Contagious

Don't worry, I'm not talking about my physical health. That seems to be intact. I am, however, starting to think that computer geekiness is contagious. Really. Before I came to Seabury, I liked my computer because it was pretty and I could burn CDs. That was about it. Then I took up chatting online. Then I started a blog. And now, I'm playing with new software. Bookster is helping me catalog my books for GOEs. Plus, its just nice to have a catalog of my books- it even has a "lent to..." feature, so I can remember where my books are when they aren't safe at home. Thanks to Mark for the heads up on that piece of shareware. Then, last night, Si and I travelled down to Indiana to surprise Jane for her birthday. That was a great trip- learning, surprising, eating, laughing. While we were waiting for the birthday girl to wake up from her nap, Bruce showed us the pretty-ness of iCal, and the cool online sharing you can do. Did I mention its pretty, with lots of colors? I guess I have strayed too far from my roots. Too bad frequent posting doesn't seem as contagious as general geekiness. Small steps, friends, small steps!

Home Sweet Home

Luke and I traveled back to Michigan this past weekend. Again. I'm starting to get confused about where I live. Anyway, it was actually a joyful trip, where we attended the wedding of a friend of mine from high school. The wedding was fun, it was good to catch up with a couple old friends, and the dancing was a blast. My friend is such a trooper- she has had a saga of painful incidents involving a broken foot and nerve damage. After another scan right before the wedding, they decided to put on another cast, but also decided to wait until after the wedding when she is back in Delaware. The last three months have been so difficult with her injury that the couple started laughing during the "in sickness and in health" part of the vows!There was no way a broken foot was going to stop her though- she walked down the aisle, said her vows, and danced with her new husband, her dad, family and friends, all with a broken foot. That kind of dedication bodes well for a marriage, I'm pretty sure. Many blessings and happy years, Chris & Emily!

While we were home, Luke and I passed a house for sale, right near my church back home. Its pale green stucco, with dark green trim. It has hardwood floors, a big backyard, and a nice little porch. Basically, we love it. Unfortunately, we don't live in Michigan, and even though we're moving back next year, we have no idea where. Still, it was great fun to plan how to decorate, how we would expand the kitchen, what to plant in the garden, and what kind of parties we could have. And- perhaps more importantly- it was great to know that our ideas of a perfect little house are very similar. House fantasies continue anon.

Back in Chicago, it turns out that the internet is pretty much down at my house for now, and I'm not sure how long the outage will last. Luckily, I have all these other summer projects that are taking up the time I'm not spending online chatting and reading blogs. My office is filled with piles of books, as I've decided to rearrange all of my seminary books. Until now, I've mostly shelved them by term, that is, when I buy my books each term, I just put all of them on the shelf together. I'm thinking that in the middle of General Ordination Exams though, I'm not going to want to spend time saying "Gee... which term was New Testament II with that little book on Paul?" So, I am attempting to organize generally by topic, aiming towards canonical categories for the GOEs. Of course, my office is also known as our spare bedroom, and there are people planning on sleeping on the futon in a week or so. They'd probably appreciate it if I finished my little project soon. Of course, I'd appreciate having a bit more space. What was I saying about house-dreaming?

Tomorrow-ish

So, when I said I'd post the sermon tomorrow, that was an approximation of time. I'm a big fan of the "better late than never" school! So, the Clare sermon is posted here. To celebrate Clare's actual feast day, Stephanie and I travelled north to the Wisconsin State Fair. There was dancing corn, a Pom-pom competition, maple cotton candy, adorable bouncing baby sheep (seriously- they look like they're on a trampoline!), bunnies and chickens and cows- oh my! It was a fabulous day. Even though it culminated in scary noises from the car, and Luke and Wes coming to our rescue, it was still a fabulous day.

Does anyone know the musical that has the State Fair song in it? Someone was asking...

Its That Time Again

Tonight is the NFL Hall of Fame game, and the first night of Monday Night Football! I am so excited! I didn't even know it was starting already. I can't believe we're this far into the summer. But oh boy do I love football. Broncos and Redskins... it should be a good game.

Oh yeah, and I preached this weekend. It went really well, and I got some of those wonderful comments- the kind where people tell you about the important thing they heard, and it isn't even something you said. The best compliment though? One of the girls who used to be in my youth group was acolyting at 8:00 church. She told her mom that she actually listened to the whole sermon- and then she wanted to stay and listen to me talk in Adult Ed! I miss those kids from our youth group. Anyway, the sermon needs a bit of fixing up, and I'll post it tomorrow.

Cruisin'

I'm very sure that its not possible to be in two places at one time. I'm also pretty sure that its not possible to be driving at two speeds. So, when Luke and I were driving home from the Prince concert on Tuesday night, and the spedometer said we were going 0 miles per hour when we were clearly moving, and when Stephanie & I were stopped at a red light and the spedometer said I was going 110 miles per hour, it became clear that something was very wrong with our car. Luckily, Wes owns the exact same car and we got a mechanic referral from him. Now we just need to hope that they can fix my poor car in time for me to drive home and preach!

Friday am Addendum: The car is all better now. Turns out there was a short in a wire, probably from driving through a huge puddle on the way home on Tuesday. And, I would recommend this mechanic anytime- they were friendly and speedy.

Embroiderers, Good Weather and Television

... to name just a few of the patronages of Saint Clare. Saint Clare is also the patron of my home church, back in Ann Arbor, where I will be preaching this coming Sunday. We will be celebrating the Feast of St. Clare, transferred from August 11. Coincidentally, the Gospel reading for St. Clare is also the lectionary reading for this Sunday: Luke 12:32-37: "Do not be afraid, little flock, for it is your Father’s good pleasure to give you the kingdom..."

I don't have my sermon nailed down yet, but I am convinced that this reading relates to the blessing from Enriching Our Worship attributed to St. Clare - "Live without fear: your Creator has made you holy, has always protected you, and loves yo as a mother, Go in peace to follow the good road and may God's blessing be with you always."

I think its also related to this comment from The West Wing. The staff are talking about repealing the estate tax, and how it would only affect 4500 families. President Bartlett comments, "It doesn't matter that it only affects 4500 families. Thats the problem with the American Dream. Its makes everyone concerned for the day they're going to be rich."

This is my favorite part of writing sermons, playing connect the dots with bits and pieces of inspiration. Now I just pray that it moves along more quickly!

In A Jam

I have spent time the last two afternoons with a whole new activity- jam-making! Stephanie and I have been crushing blueberries, hulling currants, chopping cherries and slicing peaches, and now we have three batches of jam to show for it! Its such a satisfying process, especially since we finished our session by coming back over to my house and eating croissants with sour cherry-peach jam. I learned two things in the process. First, jam is absolutely not diabetic-friendly- I had no idea how much sugar went into the stuff! Secondly, sitting around preparing fruit, drinking a beer and chit-chatting with a friend is an absolutely fabulous way to spend a summer afternoon. It felt old-fashioned and relaxing in that "I"m being productive but I don't care how long it takes" kind of way. Just the right combination of lazy, social and sugar.