Updating

My Dad: minus one toe, but doing okay.

Classes: Systematic Theology 2; German Church Struggle (8 students, 4 from Whitworth); Preaching; World Christianity Through World Literature (first assignment: Silence by Shusaku Endo); Interpretation of Job; Poetry and the Care of Souls.

Today: Staff meeting at the church; World Christianity; lunch; Job; German Church Struggle; field ed class prep; chauffer kids I babysit and their nanny who doesn't drive; read Tillich in a pleasant meadow; chauffer back to the house; help 6th grader with homework; blog; The Well (student led worship - I don't lead).

Last Friday Night: rode the train to Manhattan with 5 friends, drank coffee, ate Indian food, saw "Jesus Camp"

I recently purchased crayons and a coloring book, and used them.

I've eaten breakfast 2 days in a row.

I might have a soft addiction to the bands Newcomer's Home and Eastmountainsouth. I blame Claire and Dave.

I got a decorate-your-own-tumbler so I wouldn't make so much trash from my coffee cups. This motivates me to drink twice as much coffee.

Bill Robinson will be here in just over a week. Always a time for frivolity with my fellow Whitworth alumni/ae.

Okay, that's all until my brain is recharged and I'm having thoughts worth sharing.

Mi Padre

Keep my dad in your prayers. He's diabetic, and in the hospital with an infected toe, which they are probably going to amputate tomorrow.

Let the Games Begin

Tomorrow is the first day of classes. It's about time! This is the first time in my life school has started after my birthday (which was Saturday). It already feels like I'm in the crazy semester zone though. I've had on my best out-going face this past week, expending all of my social energy meeting new students, learning names, having meetings, and starting work at the church where I've had to do the same thing. My face actually hurt after the 9:30 service last week because I had to stand there smiling and greeting everyone. Now I love people, but sheesh! So now I know about 100 new names (I haven't counted, but that's probably close) and have a hall full of young women to get to know, and a class of 15 adults to teach and invest in. Oh yeah, and I'm mostly here to be a student. I'll fit the classes in there somewhere. Tomorrow it's Poetry and the Care of Souls and Systematic Theology.
Nothing else interesting to report. I'm enjoying all the reading for the class I'm teaching and have had a few theological insights, none of which are well enough formulated to warrant a post. But fear not, I'll give you something to chew on eventually.

Move-In Day

My junior year of college I was on leadership, and on the day that frosh moved in our whole leadership team went to the second floor window, counted down to opening with a bull-horn, then ran screaming down the stairs to greet the frosh and their parents. It was the best thing that ever happened to me (props to Dana Coleman, and all of you former Whitworth leadership for whom their phrase holds a special place in your vocabulary).
Today juniors (first years) arrive at PTS. I'm a deacon, which is a volunteer position with the purpose of building community and being a resource for juniors. I think that's what we do. I have "training" in 8 minutes. Since seminarians are older, and sometimes even more mature, than college freshman I'm thinking that screaming down the stairs will not be the order of the day. But it is still exciting to anticipate all the fresh faces and new friendships to be formed, and also to keep my eyes peeled for any Whitworthians that I didn't know were coming (it's a big feeder school, so there are bound to be a few).
Frosh were moving in at the University this weekend and it brought back warm memories of SGC training, first hall meetings, my awesome junior year leadership team, and of course my own days of excitement and trepidation as I moved to Whitworth then to Princeton. So for all of you who were there with me at any or all of those times, and especially roomoo hedgehog, this post is dedicated to you with warm fuzzies in my little heart as I prepare to haul other people's stuff up the stairs into their new rooms all afternoon, all for the sake of loving and serving them as Christ would.
And now training is in three minutes, but since our Deacon Moderators (aka archdeacons) are here in the same computer lab, I'll probably make it in time.

A Fantastic Week in Juneau

I just returned to Princeton yesterday (after 14 hours of travel) from Juneau, where I got to spend a wonderful and wet week with three of my favoritie people. I got to catch up on my hugs, mountains, hiking, ear wax candling, laughing, eating, biking, burping, marine life viewing, eagle sighting, dead fish smelling, getting rained on, and simply being with precious friends. It was great, and the perfect way to spend the week before school stuff gets going (new students arrive Wednesday, and classes start the following Wednesday).
On Sunday afternoon it was surprisingly sunny, so we went for a hike/walk.














Here's my view from right behind Anna's house.













We did ear wax candles. They melt the wax and suck it out of your ear. Gross, but cool.












I went for a hike while everyone was at work. I got lost, wandered along the road for a few miles, found a van of the tour company Dave works for (Dave wasn't in it), and was given a ride back to Anna by the driver's wife.









Claire and I went on the bicycle tour that Dave leads. So here we are extremely wet in front of a glacier (but you can't really see the glacier in the picture).










Anna and I went for a walk with her mom and friend. There is a bald eagle right behind us here.










Initial response to Jersey upon my return: it's flat and ugly, or at least Newark is. Princeton does have it's nice, although flat, spots so I should go enjoy them this afternoon.

In other news, my field ed at Princeton UMC starts tomorrow, and Meagan (you know, from Whitworth) gets here Monday.