It's About Time

I'm finally going home today. Mountains, old friends, family, Claire and Dave, my home church (where I dreamed last night that they told me at the last minute that I'm preaching next week), and time to devote to paper writing. Okay, the last one is a little less exciting, although I do actually like having big chunks of time to devote to writing instead of the little chunks I get at school. I have four large-ish papers to write in the next 3 weeks. I'll basically get home, sleep, eat, and start cranking them out. On the plus side, I can do most of my writing at the coffee shop near my parents house. All of you who I've been neglecting to call for the past, um, 3 months can expect phone calls too, or at least expect me to pick up when you call. And now back to packing.

That About Sums It Up

Tonight at dinner a few of us decided what would go on our class t-shirts, if we had such a thing.

PTS 2008
It Just Needs to End.

I have about 75 pages to write, 15 of them by Friday. Marcy suggests I petition to have them call it a dissertation.

My Famous Friend

Dave's Famous!

And he has a website too!

The Art of Procrastination

Due:
Tuesday - Presentation on St. Stephen of Hungary
Friday - Group presentation on our congregational study
Monday - Lit paper on Faulkner and Silko
Friday - Church History paper on the church in Hungary in 1989
and numberous other small things like a few translations, reading 4 books, a few little response papers, etc.

Done:
Swing Dance Lesson
Gingerbread Campus

Christmas Dinner/Dance (aka Seminary Prom)
Saw Enchanted
Saw The Golden Compass
Dinner out
And today a trip to the city to see the tree at Rockefeller Center, eat yummy food, shop (unsuccessfully) at H&M, and go to The Strand where I acquired 3 books on Post-Soviet era Eastern Europe.
And I won't mention how many episodes of Gilmore Girls I've watched.

Yeah, I'm ready for Christmas.

on the utility of an M.Div.

I guess there are a lot of jobs available for people with an M.Div. Cut them in half when you remove youth ministry from the picture, and then probably half that if you take out things that require you to be ordained (which I won't be for at least a few years). Also remove children's ministry, contemporary worship leader, and positions requiring experience. Factor in the statistical fact that it is more difficult for single women in their twenties to get jobs in ministry than any other demographic (I think they think there's something wrong with us, or we can't make long-term commitments or something), and the reality that I need a job that will pay enough for me to start making loan payments and most likely buy a car. That leaves me with, um . . . catering. Or maybe temp work as a receptionist.
That might be a little fatalistic, but it's also more or less true. Lucky for me, I have "administrative assistant" and "catering manager" on my resume. I'm just too damn marketable for my own good. It's a good thing I have that Biblical Languages minor, because that will really bump me up to the next salary bracket.
Unless anyone wants to support my mission work as a Spiritual Formation Coordinator at a Christian college in Lithuania (no, seriously).

Recognition

I'm torn between the desire for recognition and the desire to learn humility, and also the knowledge that in my trying not to want recognition I show false-humily and a bit of a martyr complex.
This week I've ended up being in charge of planning a lot of events of varying sizes for a student group I'm in. Some of it just went with my job description and wasn't a big deal. But the biggest event got basically dropped by the person who was supposed to be in charge of it, and I've spent the past 5 days with my life on hold trying to get everything ready for this event that takes place tomorrow night (well, tonight now since it's now Friday). And the others who dropped the event are still the people getting all the recognition for what a great thing this is and how much work they've put in and blah, blah, blah.
I really don't mind doing all this work that much. It's stuff I'm pretty good at -- the last-minute details and pulling everything together and making endless lists. But I do mind that others were supposed to be doing it, and I have yet to be asked for help or thanked for taking on this task. In fact, I've been criticized by them for the way I've chosen to do some things. So maybe it's not that I want recognition so much as I don't want others to be praised for a job they dumped on me at the last minute.
I should just be happy to help, right? It's for a good cause, and a job well done is its own reward. It doesn't matter whether others know that I made it happen in the end, and it shouldn't matter to me that others will think someone else did this great thing, but it does. So I'm fallen, and proud, and jealous, and whatever else. But I'm honest, too.
I've done everything I could to make this thing happen. And I don't want to hear it at the event when the others, who have very strong opinions about how everything should be run, criticize the set-up or the font size, or the mic placement or the fact that we have hot chocolate instead of coffee. I'm tired, I'm working catering in less than 7 hours, and I haven't read the book or write the response paper I was supposed to have done tomorrow (I mean today).
the end

how I spent my Thanksgiving break

It's Beginning to Look a Lot Like Finals

. . . and yet it's not even Thanksgiving yet.
Thanks to AAR* and SBL** annual meeting, most of my professors are gone, so I only have one class this week. Which means 5ish days of (almost) uninterrupted study time. Starting next week I have one or more big papers/projects due every week until break, and then 3 major papers to write while I'm home "relaxing." So yesterday I spent about an hour planning the about-to-ensue hibernation period. I have my books and articles stacked on my floor according to which paper they go with, a new set of highlighters and page tab thingies, a tub of hot chocolate and a pound of coffee, and I'm ready to hole up in the Oratory to write and research my little heart out. First stop: The role of the church in the 1848 revolution in Hungary, immediately followed by another paper on the church in the 1989 revolution. Send me academic vibes. And peace out yo.

*American Academy of Religion
**Society of Biblical Literature

Those Pesky Adjectives

This afternoon I went to a resume writing seminar for Seniors. This was helpful since I've rarely actually needed a resume for the jobs I've had thus far. We were instructed to make a list of 10 adjective that are authentic and descriptive and use them in our resumes and cover letters. I haven't done it yet, but it sounds like a good idea. The problem: I'm sort of adjectivally boring. I don't think I'm a boring person necessarily, but intro-verted and dependable and punctual, while excellent (or at least neutral) traits to have, don't exactly screem INTERVIEW ME! Now would be a convenient time to be out-going, energetic, innovative, creative. A little help here?

Hey there, stranger!

So apparently I can't handle 16 hours of class, 20+ hours of work, the impending doom of finals and group projects AND blogging regularly.
I've started (okay, I started 3 weeks ago) mapping out the craziness that will be finals. I don't have any exams, but I have 6 large papers and 2 group project/presentations. The good news is, I'm relatively interested in all of my topics. My two papers for Church and State in Modern Europe are on the role of the Church in the revolution of 1848 (overthrowing the Habsburgs) and 1989 (end of Soviet power). Those will be fun to research, and my Hungarian friends Emoeke and Gabor can tell me how to pronounce the names. Things will start being due in two weeks and continue until Jan 16, when I leave for Edinburgh.
I'm also gearing up to start writing my application to CEU, which I can do online, and my application to the PhD program here. The latter is really just practice, since there's noone here for me to study under. I'll learn the application process and how to handle rejection, and that's not pessimism or despair, it's just the statistical reality of applying to PhD programs.
All this means I'm a senior. Have been for a few months, but it hits me. I have to buy a preaching/graduation robe. What?! I do things like look at catalogs for cassocks and collars. Wierd.
This afternoon I'm driving about 1 hour to Red Bank, NJ to visit a church that one of my group projects is about. It should be a nice change of pace, since it sounds like a vibrant and young congregation. Pray I don't get lost in Jersey. No, seriously, pray! This state is ridiculous and I don't have a map of it.

A Very Seminary Halloween

We had a costume contest at the annual Halloween dinner. The kids were cute and normal. We had a student dressed as a monk and another as Rosemary Radford Reuther (radical feminist theologian).
The Lutherans posted the 95 Theses on the chapel.
In the 20 minutes I was awake before my 8am class I remember to put on an orange sweater.
Rachel and I gave our floor girls bags of candy.
Jen and Rachel and I had dinner at Chick-Fil-A, then Jen and I watched about 2/3 of Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets. Spooky!
I wish I could have gone Trick or Treating around here because these are totally the kinds of houses you expect whole candy bars from.

What I Learned While Writing a Paper on Plato

Which Jane Austen heroine are you? created with QuizFarm.com

You scored as Elinor Dashwood You're Elinor Dashwood, the "sense" of Sense & Sensibility! You tend to hide your emotions, but you feel deeply. You also feel obligated to carry the burden of keeping everyone in your family under control. Anne Elliot 85% Elinor Dashwood 85% Fanny Price 75% Catherine Morland 70% Marianne Dashwood 70% Elizabeth Bennet 55% Emma Woodhouse 50%

Brad Pitt and John Eldridge

On Saturday night Shelly and her roommate and I watched Legends of the Fall. Jacy had been inspired to watch after having read Wild at Heart by John Eldridge. I haven't read it, but apparently Eldridge references the movie as part of his argument about what a real man is. I don't know whether he was holding of the middle brother in the movie, Tristan, played by Brad Pitt, as an example of manhood to be aspired to or an example of masculinity run amock. I hope the latter, because if there is anything about that character that is supposed to be emulated by Christian men, then I have sorely misunderstood masculinity in a Christian re-framing. Granted, Tristan is dead sexy, but that's all the good that I can come up with about him. He cheats on his would-be fiance after leaving her to pursue a completely self-centered quest for psychological purging, goes on vengeful rampages, and is generally out of control. He is indeed Wild at Heart, and if that's what men are supposed to be then God save us all!
To make ourselves feel better, we watched Pride and Prejudice last night. Ah, Darcy, how we swoon for thee.
We also watched an episode of Beauty and the Beast, an old '80s TV show about "the adventures and romance between Vincent, a mythic, noble man-beast, and Catherine, a savvy assistant D.A. in New York." Everyone else seems to find the show incredibly sappy, and it is. But I still like it enough to own it on DVD.

Lazy Saturday Morning

This morning I woke to the sweet sound of the coffee grinder and the smell of banana pancakes after I solid 10 hours of sleep! Why, you may ask? Because I'm in Minneapolis visiting the fabulous Shelly. Last night we went to a concert at a little coffee shop for some awesome folk/country/bluegrass, and today we are eventually going to do something other than lounge around. Maybe ;) It's delightful to be in a different place for a few days, seeing a great friend, and writing papers. Okay the latter is less awesome. But I'm still glad to take a break.

Toddlers are Cute

Tonight I got to take care of Hannah for a few hours while her baby sister was being born. I asked her when she got her bike and she said out of the trash.
Last Sunday I "taught" pre-school Sunday School (in quotes because I haven't foggiest idea how to teach 3-5 year olds). McKenzie informed me that the animals go in the ark because they can't find the zoo.

An Option

I've been poking around here in figuring out what to do next, specifically the History department. What do you think?

My Precious

Now I know we Christians aren't supposed to place too much value on worldly possessions. But I love my new MacBook. It's so pretty :) And it renews my motivation to do homework.

Caffeine

That's what this little girl is made of!
Thanks to my coffee press and grinder and pounds of coffee, necessitated by the many hundreds of pages of reading that ushered in the new semester, I'm going on little more than adrenaline and the miracle legal stimulant. I'm off to work a reception for catering, then to translate some Hebrew and read some stuff. Tonight's goal is to get something approximating an appropriate amount of sleep. Odds? Slim.

I heart NY

I've said it before and I'll say it again. New York City is great. It's fast and loud and dingy in places; churches and monasteries are nestled into unexpected places where the City has grown up around them; people actually sit on park benches, reading or talking or just watching the world. In the movie Keeping the Faith Father Brian says of NYC, "people who live anywhere else must be kidding themselves." Granted, I don't live there, and I haven't honestly spent all that much time there, but I reserve the right to love it none the less. I would live there. Particularly Manhattan on the Lower East Side.
Free Train Week on NJ Transit has inspired this little burst of affection for the City. With just my student ID and a coupon I get to ride from Princeton to Penn Station, a mere 45-70 minutes depending on the train, absolutely free. On Thursday I went up for a few hours to go to The Strand (think Powell's in Portland, but a little smaller). It took over an hour to walk from Penn Station to 12th & Broadway, and it was great. The Strand embodies all things book lovers love about books. Huge stacks, rickety ladders to the top shelf, hand-written signs labeling the dozens of categories, grungers/nerds/hippies stocking the shelves. I got four novels for my lit class and a tote bag I've been eyeing for a few years. Come visit me and I'll take you there.
Pretty soon here I'm heading back up for the day with my friend Bill so we can catch up after long summers, and probably do some reading. (I already have 500 pages of Faulkner and 50 of Plato plus a bunch of other articles and stuff to get through.) I'm a happy girl with my coffee, my friend, and my City.

Senior Year . . . Again

Today has been my third Senior Year. Most of the world doesn't get even one Senior Year, and here I am wondering what to do with this, my third. I have not grown so attached to this place that I start the semester with a dull melancholy of the sort that settle upon me as Bianca and I rolled into Spokane in Fall 2004. My reaction is more like "What!?" I just had Senior Year two years ago, and now I have to do it all over again. The desperate meeting of course requirements, the savoring special everyday moments, and the ever present question of what I am going to do next year. The last is the main difference between this Senior Year and all the others. I knew I would go to college, I knew I would go to seminary, but now I'm more or less clueless. Options abound, limited mostly by my debt load, my determination to no longer live in a dorm, and the conviction that whatever I do next needs to be directly related to some aspect of the larger calling toward which I sense my life is headed. At this point all I can do is research, pray, and take the GREs.
I wish I could say I'm taking it easy this year, but alas there are requirements to fill and money to earn. I'm taking 16 credits and working 15-20 hours/week. My classes look good so far though, and if they live up to my expectations the year will be fruitful and not too overwhelming.
I'm taking:
Church and State in Modern Europe
Gospel and Culture: The African Experience
Old Testament Readings in Greek and Hebrew
Educating Congregations for Mission
Friendship, Love, and Justice
American Religion and American Literature
With the help of my new coffee press and variety of delightful coffees, I just might even stay awake for all those classes.

25

In honor of my first full day as a 25-year-old, here are 25 things I am glad to have accomplished during my first 25 years:
1. Learned to walk;
2. and talk;
3. and read;
4. tried nasty liquor and got over it;
5. became a beer snob;
6. learned Latin;
7. remained friends with my Latin buddies;
8. finished 6 years at D'Evelyn;
9. stopped hitting my sister;
10. learned to like rice;
11. figured out I'm allergic to bananas;
12. gave competitive sports a fair shot;
13. learned to be okay with sucking at sports;
14. read the whole Bible;
15. figured out why I'm Methodist;
16. love Jesus;
17. all those WRUMC mission trips;
18. learned to install dry wall, sub-flooring, siding, gutters, doors, tile, etc.;
19. went to Whitworth;
20. lived with awesome roomies;
21. travelled;
22. taken risks;
23. stayed in touch with college friends;
24. made good friends at Seminary;
25. drank enough coffee that I'm probably 25% caffeine.

And since there's much more to go, here's 25 for the next 25 years:
1. Graduate from Seminary;
2. live in Eastern Europe for at least 1 year, more if I like it;
3. earn a PhD;
4. finish the darn ordination process;
5. become fluent in at least 1 spoken language;
6. play with my friends' babies;
7. be a good wife if I'm married or a good single woman if I'm not;
8. write a book;
9. pay off student loans;
10. be discontented with the status quo;
11. live in intentional community;
12. live in an urban area;
13. See a Broadway show;
14. participate in international relief work of some sort;
15. visit friends as often as possible;
16. live green;
17. dress like a grown-up (sometimes);
18. hike a 14er;
19. get the hole in my ear drum fixed;
20. be faithful;
21. travel more;
22. don't get sucked into the academic vortex of prestige and name-dropping;
23. learn to cook;
24. pastor a church;
25. and whatever else God wants for me.

Thanks y'all, for making it a great 25 years!

Unleashing my Inner Extravert

It's difficult, when I really don't think I have an inner extravert. So new student move-in day is an awkward combination of excitement about meeting new people and finding out who from Whitworth shows up at Princeton, and anxiety over constantly trying to be friendly and outgoing and helpful. I'm a Deacon, which is like MCs were at Whitworth but with even less of a clear job description. So yesterday and Wednesday our job was to run up to people's cars as they arrived to move in and help them unload. It's a little crazy. I think we scared a few people, a see of people in maroon shirts hauling stuff out of cars and vans and u-hauls. It'll be good to get settled into a routine and have pictures on my walls.

Dude!

I finished reading Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows this morning (that's right, I got up early before Church to read it). I feel like I did after the series finale of Friends; like it's the end of an era. I have nothing deep to say on the topic, but I really liked the books and want to re-read them now. Sadly school is about to start so I won't have time for that.
Maybe once school is in gear I'll actually have something remotely interesting to blog again ;)

Since I've been back

• 2 Starbucks drinks
• 3 Salads
• 2 Plums
• 2 Peaches
• 3 Cans of Diet Pepsi
• 1/2 of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hollows (and don't dare spoil it)
• 3 Trips to Target, 2 of them to help out international students
• 1 Beer (Sam Adams Oktoberfest is a winner)
• 1 Day I've remembered my Malarone

It's nice to be back, mostly to be with people. The thing about Seminary is that almost everyone has had an interesting summer. Chaplaincy, camps, churches, and other things that don't start with C.

I'm staying in my friend Geila's apartment while she's home in Michigan, loving having a bathtub and a kitchen and plenty of space. But I'm also eager for friends to return from summer adventures and for the fall schedule to get going. I start work tomorrow, and it'll be nice to do something familiar at which I am competent.

I've also been sorting and labelling Ghana pics and will notify folks when they are ready on my kodak gallery. It'll be both educational and entertaining ;)

Living a Lie

In Ghana people have a name based on their day of birth. Most people can be called by either their day name or their first name interchangeably. So I am Miranda and Abla. Abla means Tuesday born. That's what I thought I remembered from my last trip. My first day here when people were asking I said my day name was Abena, which is the Twi form of Abla. Upon consulting a 1982 calendar however, it appears that I was actually born on a Thursday, which I think makes me Akosia or Akuia. I don't have the heart to tell anyone, so as far as Ghana is concerned 9/16/82 was a Tuesday.
I return this Friday! So be expecting phone calls next week, after I've slept and eaten non-fried food and read/seen Harry Potter. Priorities, people!

I Knew It!

According to my tin of instant NesCafe:
"Experts agree that 4 cups of coffee a day is moderate amount and quite safe for most people from a general health point of view."
Moreover,
"From morning onwards, a cup of coffee puts you in great shape and helps lift your mood."
[Which is to say, it suppresses your appetite and is a legal stimulant.]
See, it says so, right there on the label!

It's the Little Things . . .

Dairy
Brewed Coffee (not instant NesCafe)
Taking a walk
Food that's not prepared with palm oil
Salad
Fuji Apples
Reliable electricity
Bluegrass music
Silence
Guitar
a Hot shower
being barefoot
people not waiting on me hand and foot
jeans
running
eating only 2 meals per day
movies
Harry Potter
being called by my nicknames (other than "white" in Ewe and Twi)

I could also do without:
Adults speaking to me in Ewe or Twi or Hausa or myriad other languages and then laughing because I don't understand, but not bothering to teach or translate.
Children being ordered to bring me a chair anytime I come out side.
Starchy lumps of staple foods.
Speaking blaring at noise-distorting levels at all hours.
Being an anomaly everywhere I go except Chicken Inn, the most international restaurant in Accra.

Um, okay enough whining. I'm doing okay, and there are good things too. But I'm just past the halfway mark and I hadn't posted in a while, and a list requires less thaught than anything else I could think of. Peace out, yo.

Tid-Bits

Most of the signs here are illustrated, which is great unless what you're selling is medication for diarrhea, gonorrhea, hemoroids, hernia, and impotence. Awkward.

My sleep patterns have shifted. 8pm to 4am. Cool.

I'm reading Seven Storey Mountain, the autobiography of Thomas Merton. I'm still in his adolescence, which is a little boring. But he becomes a monk eventually, so then it will get good.

I loves me some mango and fried plantain, but not together.

Why are ethnic babies just plain cuter than white ones?

I miss y'all. Reply to my email and write me :)

I'll try to put up some pictures eventually.

And Off I Go!

Tomorrow morning Claire and Dave pick me up and the journey begins.
2 days to California, 3 days in California, then 10 weeks in Ghana. I'm thinking Friday to Tuesday will be some the most disorienting and fun days of my life thus far. I'll be updating when I can, and sending update e-mails as well. So keep me in your prayers and feel free to send email and snail mail.
And I'm so excited to see many of you in the next few days!

The DaVinci Code

This past week I read the book and last night I watched the movie. Overall: unimpressed. Granted, I was reading it more to be in touch with popular religious movements than for enjoyment, but really I just didn't think it was a very well-written book. Dan Brown did manage to spin a confusing web of intrigue, blending a tiny bit of history with a whole lot of fiction, but for the most part his stuff was so far out there that I couldn't see what about it people think is fact. My biggest gripe is that he writes Church history as if it started with the Council of Nicea, which is depicted as a big political conspiracy. The church history enthusiast in me could really go off on that point, but I'll restrain myself.
As for the movie, I was even less impressed. The screenwriter turned Langdon into a skeptic and even a man of faith, which I suspect was in part to make the movie less controversial than the book. Also, part of what made the book a natural choice for conversion to film is all the grand art and architecture, but the movie was filmed in such a dark color scheme and minor plot points changed in such a way that the grandeur and beauty didn't come across at all.
So that's my rant. If you read/saw it and want to talk about it let me know (after all, I'll be seeing most of my lovely readers next week!).

In summer break news, I'm back at my parents' place for a few days after a week in the Springs with Claire and Dave. We stained a deck, did a lot of shopping (yay excuse to buy fun dresses!), watched movies and relaxed a whole lot. Tuesday we hit the road for Cali!
It's been great getting to catch up with a lot of friends here from high school, church, college, and even PTS. Now my life turns to laundry and packing. Ugh, packing.

And now it is summer break

Classes were over 3 weeks ago, it's true, but I've been working my little tail off catering. My feet might never forgive me. So it hasn't really been break time yet. One day I worked 14 hours, but that was followed by Whitworth fun time featuring Bill and Bonnie Robinson and hot wings, so it wasn't that bad.
Yesterday I flew to the great(est) state of Colorado, where I have no time commitments, and only a handful of things I really need to get done in the next two weeks. There are friends to see, thrift store skirts to buy, dvd's to watch, walks and hikes to take, and, if last night is an indicator of things to come, 1/2 of my time will be spent sleeping. I also started reading The DaVinci Code. I figure as a future 'woman of the cloth' as it were, I should probably be familiar with it.
So here's to two weeks of mountainous splendor.
If you're in the state (Denver or Colo Spgs) give me a call or something :)

The Simple Single Life

You know at the beginning of the movie The Wedding Planner, where J-Lo sets her little tv table and puts her little meal for one on it and turns on Antiques Road Show, and we are supposed to think that's cute but a little pathetic?
Well, yesterday evening I walked through the rain to Wawa to purchase easy mac, which I came back to the dorm and microwaved then added hot dog slices. I set this on my floor alongside a Diet Pepsi and a cookie and ate this lovely little dinner whilst watching Elizabethtown on my laptop.
And I did not in the least feel lonely or pathetic.

Lest you think this is a part of my life that is actually lame and pitiable, let me assure you that I did go out to dinner at Applebee's with friends this evening. But sometimes all I really want is a bowl of Kraft Mac 'n Cheese, a Diet Pepsi, and a good movie, all by myself.

48 Pages in 4 Days

I am survivor of the madness that is finals week!

There is this big room on our floor called the Oratory, which is part of the original building and is still used for dissertation defenses and department meetings. But during reading week we have a tendency to invade and make it our own, mostly because our own rooms have gotten so messy that we don't have space to spread out books in a conducive paper-writing fashion. I took up a little over half of the long table on the right, and there's Rachel in her corner on the left. As you can see, my books have spilled over onto the floor, there are several empty coffee cups and Diet Pepsi cans, and a tube of pringles. These are not exactly the healthiest days of the year. We did get fruit and candy for the girls on our floor though, so we at least had access to nutrients. So that's where I was planted for four days writing 2 big papers and 2 littlier ones.

Now that finals are over, we have become slightly wacky. Just slightly.

This is dedicated

to anyone who ever had a Mohrlang class with me, or any other class where I finished the exams first and freaked everyone out by making them think they were out of time. Today it took me 2.5 hours to take my Minor Prophets translation test, which consisted of translating about 12 verses of Hebrew with the unlimited aid of a dictionary. For the record, that's a long time. Apparently I'm not that good at Hebrew. Oh well. Also for the record, all those times I finished super fast, it didn't always mean I did well, it just meant I knew it when I didn't know an answer so I didn't bother thinking about it.
Well, one exam down; 2 papers to go. I'll be free as a bird, and officially done with my middler year, as of 5pm Monday. Until that time Habakkuk's rhetoric and the Catholic view of Scripture and Tradition are my loving companions here in my hovel of studying. And maybe a bottle of Dos Equis.

The Insanity

PJ the travel agent booked my flight to Ghana today.
I leave from San Francisco on the 17th on a red eye to JFK, where I will spend 10 hours before hopping on the direct flight to Accra.
And yes, this was the best and cheapest option.
I'll spare you the rant about the new exploits of the field ed office and the nightmare it has been to work with them, mostly because there are a lot of expletives involved.
But I have an itinerary and I have everything I need to apply for my visa except passport photos, so I guess that means I really am going to Ghana.
I worked 7 hours of catering today, so my feet are killing me and I'm about to go to Denny's or someplace to work on one of my final papers.

Oh, and I'm pretty sure I'm going to stay here and work instead of Mississippi.

Decisions, Decisions

I ask you, my loyal and trustworthy companions on this journey called summer break, what should I do the week of May 21?

Option A: Go to Mississippi to do Katrina relief
This option involved driving to Mississippi with my friend Erin, working there for a week with other Seminary folk, then driving on to New Mexico, where I would need to be picked up.

• Pros: Do good work in Mississippi; get to know people I might not have otherwise, including some of the facilities staff.
• Cons: Driving, eating, and staying in Mississippi all cost money; 5ish days of driving across the country.

Option B: Stay here and work PDR (aka Catering)

This option involves staying here to make some much-needed money by serving catered dinners for the events happening that week.

• Pros: Money saved and earned; a little extra time to move out of my room; flying home might be cheaper than driving; Bill Robinson will be here.
• Cons: It seems a little schmucky to choose money over a mission trip; it might throw off some other people's plans.

Thoughts?

And now I can sleep

This week was busier academically than finals will be for me. I had my 15pg Field Ed appraisal, a short paper, a 25 minute presentation on the development of Sola Scriptura during the Reformation, a group presentation on Cross-Cultural Translation of parables, and my normal Hebrew assignment, all on top of working more than usual. But as of yesterday at 12:30pm the sun was shining bright, the Southern Society BBQ brought everyone out to the quad, and I am practically done until finals. This week I just have one short paper, then we have reading week, then finals, during which I only have 1 exam and 2 papers. So today I slept until 10am, and it was marvelous.
Yesterday afternoon Geila took me and Rachel to get our travel immunizations, so my arms are all pumped up with Meningitis, Polio, Tetanus, and Typhoid. Then we ran around town picking up presents and food for our lovely friend Sarah's 28th birthday party (I'm the 2nd youngest of my group of friends here), and at last eating and playing the night away.
Today I will be working catering during lunch, than catching up on Gilmore Girls, then going to hear Geila preach at her church, then going to see Hot Fuzz. Ah, the joys of Sabbath!

The Nomad Illness

I've been sick for a week now, and it's the wierdest thing. On Easter I woke up with a sore throat, but not a big deal; Monday I missed most of my classes thanks to nausea and soreness, and I drank SO MUCH vitamin C and other such healing things; Tuesday I was still icky, but not as bad; Wednesday and Thursday I was a little congested, but felt fine overall; Friday I woke up with a sore throat, a runny nose, and no voice; same thing yesterday and today. Yuck! So I'm not at church this morning because I can't talk. Instead I am watching the freak storm going on outside my window. Stupid Noreaster! It's supposed to be Spring by now.
In other nomadic news, things are falling into place for this summer. I'm going on a mission trip to Mississippi with school folks to do Katrina relief the third week in May, then driving with my friend Erin from there to Santa Fe, New Mexico, where I will either be picked up by an obliging friend or parent, or else taking a train or bus or something up to Denver/Co. Springs. Then I'll have a few weeks with family and friends in CO before wedding -> Ghana craziness ensues. The Ghana plans, by the way, are not yet all worked out in large part because the field ed office doesn't think we're capable of booking our own flights. Grrr.

Easter Weekend

Kyna was here! Yay! We walked ALL OVER Princeton, including the cemetery, the "museum," the University Art Museum (which is really quite a respectable collection, including Monet, Gaugin, Worhol, and other notables), the University, the Battle Field, and Firestone Library. It was delightful to walk with a good friend and show off the town. We also went to the Easter Vigil Service on campus and Sunday morning service at my church, but decided to forego the 5am service at the University Chapel. Two services full of Alleluiahs is sufficient, I suppose.

I celebrated Easter dinner at my Field Ed supervisor's house with her family (husband and 2 kids a few years older than me) and my friend Laura, a PhD student and former intern at the church.

After dinner I both felt the onset of a wicked cold and started writing a paper. By this morning the cold had fully set on and I had an extension on the paper. So today I've had about 3000% of my daily allowance of vitamin C, a little Sudafed, and some tea, plus a few extra hours of sleep. There's something nasty going around campus, so I really hope that's not what I've caught.

But whether I'm sick or not, Christ is Risen! He is risen indeed!

Sometimes I'm Irresponsible

Today's manifestation: going to IKEA with Geila and Rachel instead of writing the funeral sermon I have to preach in class on Monday and catching up on all the homework I didn't do during the Book Sale. But hey, we each need a new bookshelf for all the books we acquired.
Such as:
A Day in the Life of the Soviet Union (a coffee table book)
The Book of Lights by Chaim Potok
Memoirs of a Geisha
To Kill a Mockingbird
Medieval Women Writers
A History of Christian Thought by Justo Gonzalez (3 volumes)
Yugoslavia (also a coffee table book)
First-hand Reports of Rumania's Minority Policies Today
The Journal of John Wesley (highly abridged)
From Jerousalem to Irian Jaya
The Four Loves by C.S. Lewis
Pinakothek (an art book of one of my favorite museums in Munich)
Christendom by Roland Baintan
The Reformation of the Sixteenth Century by Roland Baintan (to replace mine that fell apart)
The Da Vinci Code (I really should read that)
Hungary: A Bried History
In My Father's House by Corrie ten Boom
The Kite Runner
The Book of Common Worship
and a few CDs of Czech music. Yeah, I'm random.
And I obviously need to go buy a Swedish self-assembly book shelf.

I'm alive, mostly

The last time I updated was during Reading Week I believe. That seems so long ago, those days of forced relaxation. For the past two weeks I have pretty much lived in the gym working on the Book Sale, which is a huge event that raises money for seminaries in developing countries. After using ever free minute for almost two weeks sorting books and cataloguing the rare stuff so we could get more money for it, the sale completely overtook my life since Friday.
Friday: 12pm-10pm - Haul books upstairs and start setting up.
Saturday: 10:30am-10pm(ish) - Set-up
Sunday: 11am-7pm -Set-up, 7-9 Preveiw Sale, 9-10:30 clean-up
Monday: in the gym 8am-10pm, except for coming back to campus to deposit money, and getting my stitches out in the afternoon (yay!)
Tuesday: in the gym 8am-11pm
Wednesday: in the gym 8am-2am for the last day of the sale then clean-up.

It's a good cause and I enjoy a lot of it, but I haven't gone to classes this week, my feet hurt, and I'm exhausted. I've also eaten a lot of junk because of missing meals in the cafeteria.

But we did find two books from the 1600's worth several thousand dollars, and a Journal of John Wesley from 1800s that the United Methodist archives is buying from us.

And apparently it's been beautiful outside, so I hope to see that today. I'm babysitting all afternoon, so maybe I'll take the kids to a park.

Have my cake, and eat it too.

I don't think of myself as a very demanding person (you are free to disagree . . .) but I REALLY wanted to have my way with this one.
Me: Can I come to Ghana around the 18th so I can go to a dear friend's wedding in California?
Rev. Dogbe: No problem!
YAY! It's a paraphrase, but it gets the point across.

And there's more

Right after writing that post I received an email notifying me that I have been placed at Bishop Speaks AME Zion Church. I need confirm with them soon so we can get paperwork started, but I'm not yet 100% sure I want to go. I'm rereading my journals from when I was in Ghana before, as well as meeting with the girl who was at that placement two years ago. I also just sent an email to the pastor suggesting the wedding-altered schedule, and I'm not sure which I'll choose if they can't work around the wedding. So keep me in prayer for where my butt and I will spend the summer.

Tail Tale

I saw the surgeon this afternoon and he said everything looks good so far. I get stitches out in 12 days. In the mean time, I have to continue staying off my rear until at least Monday, and then I still can't be sitting too extensively.
I have a nice little set-up here in my room, although my hips and shoulders are sore from being laid on far more than usual. I've been eating standing up in the cafeteria and otherwise mostly laying in bed watching movies or doing internet things or chatting with people. So far I've watched both the A&E and the newest versions of Pride and Prejudice, and all 4.5 hours of the extended version of Return of the King.
In other news, I had my second international field ed interview today with the other Ghana site. I hope to know soon which wants me, and convince them to let me push my start date back a few weeks so I can go to this summer's big event, the much-anticipated Bianca/Andrew nuptuals.

Rump Update

Surgery went well and I've been in bed since then. I have my computer set up so I can reach it while laying here. I'm only in a little pain, and am only going to take painkillers if it gets really bad. So far I've watched 3 Gilmore Girls episodes, 5 Friends episodes and half of That Thing You Do. Friends are taking care of me - bringing food, visiting, etc. So far so good.

BS Day!

No, not the card came, nor the expletive. Butt Surgery! Tomorrow morning at 7:30am. So by the time you West Coast folk are getting I'll probably be back in my dorm room doped up on codine. So keep me in your prayers, mostly for a speedy and infection-free recovery. This next would be a great week for those of you who I haven't talked to in a while to give me a call, since I certainly won't be busy ;)

Whining (like Jeni, only not pregnant, and therefore with less of an excuse)

Surgery
My surgery for my butt cyst will be this Friday at 7:30am. It will be under local anesthesia and will only take about an hour. Then I'll spend about 10 days staying off my butt (aka laying on my stomache and standing). The logistics of this is a little mind-boggling, but that next week is reading week, so I'll just be doing my reading in bed.
Field Ed
Have I whined enough about the field ed office yet? No, because I haven't told the promised 'why they're having me interview with Ghana' story.
The short version is, and this is as direct of a quote as I can remember from Chester, my field ed "advisor": 'it's like we have a barrel of students (i.e. 14 students), and we pull them out and try to place them in the best site for each of them. Then you were left for Ghana.' Yes, he actually told me that.
And it gets worse.
Yesterday I had a phone interview scheduled for 8am my time with Bishop Speaks AME Zion church in Accra. I arrived a little early at the field ed office to find it locked and nobody there. At 8:18, Harry, the other field ed "advisor" arrives for work and I tell him that I was supposed to be on the phone with Ghana at 8. So he goes into the office, hunts down the phone number, and calls the church. Then he says to the pastor (again, almost direct quote): "Rev. Dogbe, I have a student here who wants to talk to you about summer field ed. Here she is." And hands me the phone! No introduction, no explanation for calling almost 1/2 hour late, no apology. So I got a 25 minute interview (they're expected to be about 1 hour), then when I came out of the office in which I was interviewing the office assistant (who I usually consider the only semi-reliable person in that ridiculous office) said 'sorry I was running a little late' then proceeded to explain that she hasn't been able to get in touch with the other church I am supposed to interview with. I'm considering writing a formal letter of complaint to the Dean of Student Life about how this office is screwing me over. Unfortunately, I can't remember the appropriate non-colloguial term for 'screw me over.' I'm not sure I want to travel to Africa under the auspices of an office that can't even remember to show up when they've scheduled an international interview. At least I know how to get myself around in and out of Ghana when they fly me to the wrong airport then forget that I exist and think that I dropped out of school and therefore cancel my loans and I don't graduate. That's a little melodramatic, but with all the s#%@ that office has already put me through while I'm only living 200ft away, I can't imagine what it'll be like when I am out of the country.
Seriously folks, it should not be too much to ask to have an ounce of tact and reliability.

Oh, now that's just gross!

Remember that time freshman year when I fell on my tail bone and thought I broke it and it's been hurting sporadically ever since? Five years after the fact I go to the doctor and learn the really disgusting truth:
I have a pilonidal cyst. I won't go into details, but prepare to be grossed out if you choose to research it for yourself. It's not dangerous, but I will be having it surgically removed either next month or after I get back from Africa, depending on the surgeon's recommendation.
If you've heard Dave's stories of cyst nastiness from college, this is the same thing he had.
Ew. That's about all I have to say about that.

Lent-tastic

I celebrated Shrove Tuesday (aka Mardi Gras) in style by gorging myself on half-priced appetizers at Applebees with some friends last night. Ah, the feast before the fast.
So overall I'm pretty bad at the whole giving something up for Lent thing. I was much better at it as a kid when 'because you're supposed to' was a good enough reason for me to give up cookies or salad dressing or whatever. But once I actually understand the purpose of giving something up (ie. cultivating a longing for Christ and identifying with his suffering), I had a really hard time thinking of things that would have that impact on my life, rather than just self-denying for its own sake.
But this year I'm back on it. The plan is to eat bland food, because life without Jesus would be bland. This being the first day of Lent, I'm not exactly sure yet what that will look like, but I figure there'll be a lot of rice, bread, hummus, and meat without sauce involved. I think I should still be able to eat pretty healthfully on this plan, and by the time Easter comes around I will definitely be longing for something with flavor.
There is much discussion on campus about the imposition of ashes. Are they self-righteous, it is meaningful, is it a good witness, etc. Thoughts?

The Late, Great Bruce Metzger

New Testament Scholar and Bible Translator Bruce Metzger Dies
Princeton, NJ, February 15, 2007–Dr. Bruce Manning Metzger, New Testament professor emeritus at Princeton Theological Seminary and one of the preeminent American New Testament critics and biblical translators of the twentieth century, died February 13, 2007, at the University Medical Center at Princeton, at the age of 93.

Bruce Metzger was born in Middletown, Pennsylvania on February 9, 1914. After gaining a B.A. from Lebanon Valley College in 1935, he entered Princeton Theological Seminary, graduating with a Th.B. in 1938. So began a life-long association with Princeton Theological Seminary during which Bruce Metzger became not only a legend himself but also one of the school's greatest intellectual ornaments. He was ordained in the United Presbyterian Church (now the PCUSA) in 1939. In 1944 he married Isobel Elizabeth, the elder daughter of John Alexander Mackay, the great third president of the Seminary, who rebuilt and revitalized the school after the divisions of the 1920s. Bruce Metzger's sheer brilliance, clarity, and Christian devotion set a standard all of his own. He taught while he continued to study (Princeton University, M.A. [1940], Ph.D. [1942], Classics), serving as teaching fellow in New Testament Greek 1938–40 and as instructor in New Testament 1940–44. He was appointed assistant professor 1944–48; associate professor 1948–54 and professor 1954–84. He was named the George L. Collord Professor of New Testament Language and Literature in 1964. He retired in 1984 and was named professor emeritus.

An absolutely preeminent New Testament scholar, Metzger was known internationally for his work in biblical translation and the history of the Bible’s versions and canonization. He was one of the world leaders in textual study of the New Testament, the Apocrypha and the Pseudepigrapha. He served as Chair of the Committee on Translation of the American Bible Society 1964–70, and as Chair of the Committee of Translators for the New Revised Standard Version of the Bible 1977–90. The impact of this work is incalculable and Bruce Metzger saw it through the press almost single-handedly. The NRSV, published in 1990, made changes to the RSV in paragraph structure and construction, eliminated archaisms while retaining the Tyndale-King James tradition, polished renderings in the interest of accuracy, clarity, and felicity of English expression, and eliminated masculine language referring to people, insofar as this did not distort historical accuracy. In 1993 Bruce Metzger presented a copy of the NRSV, Catholic Edition, to Pope John Paul II at the Vatican. Bruce Metzger understood and was passionate about the significance of biblical translation for ecumenical dialogue. In 1957 he served on the committee that translated the Apocrypha (the committee included the original RSV Committee plus Metzger, Floyd Filson, Robert Pfeiffer, and Allen Wikgren). In 1972 he chaired the sub-committee that translated 3 and 4 Maccabees and Psalm 151 for an expanded version of the Apocrypha. He personally presented this expanded version to His All Holiness Demetrios I in 1976. It was important to him that Roman Catholic, Greek Orthodox, and Protestant Christians be able to have recourse to a common biblical text as an instrument of unity.

Bruce Metzger cared about and provided for his students. Generations have been grateful for his Lists of Words Occurring Frequently in the Coptic New Testament, and his Lexical Aids for Students of New Testament Greek (first published in 1946) became a standard study tool. He edited The Oxford Annotated Bible in 1962, and in 1966, along with Kurt Aland, Matthew Black, and Allen Wikgren, edited the United Bible Societies' edition of the Greek New Testament. This text, especially adapted to meet the needs of Bible translators, with its beautiful original font and indication of the relative degree of certainty for each variant adopted in the text, proved to be an enduring landmark. The editors were later joined by Carlo Martini (the Cardinal Archbishop of Milan from 1980 to 2002). A warm friendship grew between Metzger and Matthew Black, the doyen of Scottish text-critical scholars. The honorary degree of Doctor of Divinity from St Andrews University was bestowed on Bruce Metzger in 1964, and all Scots are moved by seeing that he is wearing his St Andrews tie in his portrait in Princeton Seminary’s Speer Library.

There were other honors. In 1994, Bruce Metzger was awarded the Burkitt Medal for Biblical Studies by The British Academy in London (of which he had been a Corresponding Fellow since 1978). This is only awarded in recognition of a lifetime of distinguished biblical study. Bruce Metzger was elected president of Studiorum Novi Testamenti Societas (1971), the International Society of Biblical Literature (1971), and was the first president of the North American Patristic Society (1972). He was a member of the Institute for Advanced Study in Princeton (1969 and 1974) and visiting fellow at Clare Hall, Cambridge (1974) and Wolfson College, Oxford (1979).
There were many other books, among which the classic studies The Text of the New Testament, Its Transmission, Corruption, and Restoration (1964, and translated into German, Japanese, Korean, Chinese, Italian and Russian) and The Early Versions of the New Testament, Their Origin, Transmission, and Limitations (1977) have been particularly influential. Bruce Metzger's last publication before his death was Apostolic Letters of Faith, Hope, and Love: Galatians, 1 Peter, and I John (2006).

Bruce Metzger cared passionately about the Bible, and in 1982 became the general editor of the Reader's Digest Condensed Bible. He lectured throughout the nation and the world, in North and South America, Europe, Australia, New Zealand, Korea, Japan, and South Africa, often at churches and universities where his former students ministered and taught. He was awarded honorary doctorates by Lebanon Valley College, Findlay College, St. Andrews University, the University of Münster, and Potchefstroom University in South Africa.
A Bible autographed by Bruce Metzger is sealed in the time capsule embedded in the corner of Princeton Seminary’s Scheide Hall.

Princeton Seminary President Iain R. Torrance said that, “despite all his distinctions, Bruce Metzger never lost his modesty, or his courteous welcome, genuine interest in and encouragement for much younger scholars. He was a warm and supportive colleague within the Seminary and beloved by many scholars and lay people in Princeton and throughout the world.”
Bruce Metzger is survived by his wife, Isobel, and his sons John Mackay Metzger and James Bruce Metzger. There will be a memorial service to give thanks for Bruce Metzger's lifeon Tuesday, 20th February at 2.00 p.m. in Nassau Presbyterian Church in Princeton.



[above: PTS students with Dr. Metzger after a seminar he led at Princeton UMC in Oct. 2005.]

Snow Day!

That's right, classes are cancelled due to crazy bad ice and snow. Wahoo!

In honor of the frigid weather, I'm posting this photo of me in Ghana, which serves both as a reminder that the sun is not all it's cracked up to be and as a precursor for a forthcoming post on the Field Ed office's explanation for why they are having me interview with Ghana sites for international field ed this summer.

Still here

I'd like to be able to say my fortnight's foray into the world of oblivion was filled with fascinating things to keep me busy and away from blogging. The reality is that I've been working a whole lot and going to classes.
I have to plan the spring retreat for my field ed church. This is not an especially daunting task, except that the theme is something along the lines of a spiritual spa. Now those who know me know my propensity toward ascetisicm (if not in reality than at least ideally), so my inclination was to do something on spiritual disciplines, kind of a weekend as a monk/nun thing. It probably comes as less of a surprise to you than it did to me that being a Religious for a weekend is not that appealing to the common church-goer. Hence, the theme of spiritual spa. I figured I could spin that so it sounds like a rejuvenating self-care weekend, then come out of left field with the idea that there's no place for self-indulgence in the Christian life (self-care is necessary and good in as much as it prepares us to live lives worthy of our calling in the world) and it's really all about God and not about us at all. It doesn't sound like that's the direction the Adult Education chair would have it go. We haven't done much in the way of planning, so I still have time to work with my supervisor and get the direction headed where I think it's more appropriate to go (i.e. toward God, not toward ourselves). I said something at our last meeting about having a flow of the weekend that goes from interiority, to focus on God, to being sent out into the world, and latter two seem to be very clearly lower on the hierarchy of importance. Thoughts on how to extricate the self-indulgent form of self-care from the spiritual spa weekend?

p.s. This is petty, I know, but the confusion of e.g. and i.e. is a pet peeve of mine. So for the greater good of all, here's the deal. E.g. stands for exempli gratia, which means 'for the sake of example': (She likes fruit, e.g. strawberries). I.e. stands for id est, which means 'that is': ((I can read Greek, i.e. Koine Greek).

We Do NYC Right

Once each semester NJ transit is free for students, which means an el cheapo day in the great Manhattan for those willing to brave the cold. It's amazing how much you can pack into one day in the city.
1. The Cloisters: Obviously I had to go to the Cloisters. Marcy and Rachel and I rode the train in to the City, then took the subway way way uptown to this great museum. The building itself is parts of cloisters brought over from Europe, and it is full of great religious art, mostly medieval. If you've seen Keeping the Faith, this is where the filmed the scene where Anna and the Rabbi and his mom are walking around in a garden.
2. The NYC Public Library: Another obvious stop for me. I hadn't made it there yet in all my trips to the City, so after Rachel left us for her field ed church Marcy and I took a tour of the library. I didn't realize that it's actually an amazing research library with some really significant holdings, such as the first Gutenberg Bible to cross the Atlantic.
3. TV Show tapings: Tickets to tv show filmings are free, so we got on the stand by list at Letterman then ran down to The Colbert Report and waited there to get on stand by until an intern from The Daily Show with John Stewart came over and said they had extra tickets, so we went there. If you happened to watch on Wednesday night I was in the audience.
4. Cheap Diner Dinner: We managed to find cheap and tasty burgers on Broadway :)
5. Train home: If ever we are travelling together and I want to drink 3 cups of coffee minutes before an hour long train ride, just say no. I won't elaborate on the consequences.

Other than the day of galavanting, I've been spending this break working at Bonner and earning my keep. Meanwhile, Dave is at the Sundance Film Festival chillaxing with the likes of Samuel L. Jackson, Justin Timberlake, and Christina Ricci. At least that's who he was in the same room as yesterday. But I did see Cornel West on the street the other day (he's a very famous philosopher), so it's almost the same really.

See this!

Last night I went to see Blood Diamond. I can't adequately explain in a post how convicting and disturbing and important this movie is. You should all see it (except Bianca). It is very violent and hard to watch, but it is so well done.

Done!

I am officially half way through my seminary career. As of yesterday my finals were over. I make no claims or promises about how they went, but I'm done and that's enough for me. Spring classes start Jan. 29th, so I have a few days and next work to put in hours at work, vegetate, catch up with people, and frolic in NYC. Huzzah!

Sometimes PTS really burns my buttons!

Exhibit A: The Library
As of Friday at 9am it is officially finals week. We have papers and exams staggered throughout the week except for on Sunday and Monday (MLK Day), although I do actually have something due at 5 on Monday. Does the Library extend its hours during this stressful and work-heavy time? NO! They close at 5pm (really they start kicking people out at 4:45) on Friday and Saturday, don't open until 3pm on Sunday (come on, even the Pentecostals are out of church way before then), and are CLOSED on Monday for MLK Day. The best theological library in the Western world (literally!) and we can't access it during the most academically rigorous week of the term.

Exhibit B: Computer Services
Our network was down for scheduled maintenance for 5 hours today. Now granted it's Sunday, so 9-12 seems like a safe bet to shut down the Seminary network. But it is still finals week, and I was one of many who opted out of attending church this morning. To top it off, it is now 3:20 and the network just came back up, but I still can't access the PTS website, including the Library catalog, which I need now that the library is open. Come on people, we have inter-semester break in a week and noone will have any homework at all. You couldn't schedule your maintenance one week later?

Exhibit C: Dining Services
As of Friday after lunch the dining hall is closed until the first day of classes, January 29th. For this week we have to get our own food, which wouldn't be a huge deal except that eating out is really pricey in P-town, and the two little kitchens available for student use are hardly equipped for preparing a decent meal. Not to mention, the meal plan is a ridiculus rip-off anyway.

Exhibit D: The Systematic Theology Final
Suffice it to say that noone has any clue what is expected of us, and the stupid terms that we have to define and turn in can't be completed without referring to books from other classes because what the professors lectured on was not systematic theology. I've used my college textbook and notes for most of my preparation thus far. I've spent a lot of time whining with my classmates about this one, so I'll leave it at that.

Exhibit E: The Registrar's Final Paper system
We have been told to turn in final papers to the registrar's office at certain times. For some people this time is during another exam. For most people, we don't trust the registrar to get our papers to the professor, and the professors don't trust them either, so we are mostly circumventing that system and turning things in via e-mail or campus mail or sliding papers under doors to avoid the disaster that we all fear could come of the registrar being responsible for anything involving our academic success.

But they're Princeton and they've been here for 200 years and they pay for us to go here, so they can do whatever they want (insert sarcasm here).

Where has the time gone?

It's mostly gone into spending time in the Springs with Claire and Dave :) I love those crazy kids. We didn't do anything extraordinary, just lived like normal as a little family of three for the week, drinking tea and watching movies and running errands. We searched for dancing shoes for Dave, did six large loads of laundry, cooked a lot, took advantage of Dave being at work to eat foods he can't have, and had an altogether pleasant time together. One thing will never be the same though . . .

that's right, I got a tattoo! It's the Hebrew root pronounced arash and it means "betroth." It's the word used in Hosea 2:19 ("I will betroth you to me forever, says the Lord.") I chose it because it represents God's covenant with me in Christ, and it's on my ring finger because whether I marry or not Christ is my first love and my primary commitment, and is more committed to me than a husband can be. (Don't worry, I didn't do this on a whim. I've wanted a tattoo for about 5 years and this particular design for quite a while. The tattoist, Doc, is a pretty rad guy, and it was much less painful than I thought it would be.)

I got back to P-town yesterday afternoon, quickly read and planned for the class I teach at church, taught the class, then worked into the week hour of the morning on my Job paper that was due this morning at 10am. That paper is out of the way now and it is officially finals week. That hasn't really hit me yet. I'm sure I have a ton to do, but for now I need to clean my wretched mess of a room.

And not that he ever reads this, what with the lack to internet at home and all, but HAPPY BIRTHDAY DAVE!