It's been a while since I've blogged, so I thought I'd toss out some updates on what's been going on and how things are going since I last posted, in no particular order. So, let's get to it, shall we?
There is a moose sleeping in my back yard right now. Yes, I mean right now. As in, at 11:30 Alaska Time, this moose has been hanging out in the same spot for over two hours. Earlier, there was a second moose, who eventually wandered off to eat a tree or something. But this moose is still there. Karey can't get enough of the moose. I think it's pretty cool, too. Joe, the cat, is hiding under the bed. Peter's been asleep and has missed the whole deal.
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Speaking of moose, I got stuck behind one on the way home from church this morning. I came around the corner and it ran out in front of the car and just trotted down the road. As with the previous vignette, only in Alaska.
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Peter turned one year old today. Wow. He has six teeth, smiles and laughs a lot, is walking short distances (like across a doorway), and cruises like crazy. He received a ton of presents from family and friends, but loved the little black car that you pull back and watch it goooooo the most. So glad we spent all that money...
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We're up to about 15 hours of sunlight each day now. I've read that we'll have 24 hours of daylight (not sunlight, but daylight) in the height of summer. Needless to say, our primary household project revolves around blackout curtains or shades for each bedroom. Funny, venetian blinds that worked great at night in Florida just don't seem to hack it when the sun is shining on them at 10:00 PM. Go figure.
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Tom, the senior pastor at the church, has been on a semi-silent retreat at a monastery for the past two weeks. He returns on Thursday. That means, if you haven't figured it out already, that I've preached the last two Sundays in a row. I have a much greater respect for pastors that preach every single week now. I mean, don't get me wrong, I teach youth group every week, but there's just something different about planning a worship service and sermon, along with everything else. Everything seems to have gone very well, but I'm looking forward to his return this week.
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My laptop went up in smoke last Wednesday, one hour before youth group. You've got to understand, I mean literal smoke. Like the "there's something on fire" kind of smoke. Since I use it to teach every week, I wasn't really happy about the situation. After I got home, I took a look inside and it appears one of the several chips on the graphics card decided to give up the ghost. Hopefully, this will end up being a convenient opportunity to get a new laptop.
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Since I last posted, I have officially been ordained as a Minister of Word and Sacrament in the Presbyterian Church (United States of America). That happened the last weekend in February. I meant to blog about it, but I had to preach the next day and (insert laundry list of excuses here). Nothing really changed, except now I can administer the Sacraments and moderate Session - oh, and I achieved a goal I've had since I was in high school. Like I said, nothing big.
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Tom & I will both be installed on May 15. If you happen to be in the area (heh), it would be great if you could make it. The Installation is at 5 PM, at the church. I'm excited because my parents and my in-laws will be there. In addition, Peter will be baptized during worship that morning.
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Some thoughts on the nature of change (see earlier post), our desire for the illusion of stability (see earlier post re: the illusion of control), and some other general theological issues have been percolating in my head recently, but nothing is coherent enough to post about (yet). Hopefully, I'll be able to get some of those thoughts down soon.
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One of my buddies from Florida is coming up in June to lead the Men's Retreat here. I think I'm far more excited about getting to share Alaska with a dear friend than I am about the retreat. That's ok though, right?
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They're forecasting highs in the mid-60s this week. Alaska hasn't seen temperatures this warm since September or October. Quite frankly, it feels great.
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Did I mention that it snowed on Easter? Not some wimpy little flurry mind you, but like 4"? Yeah, and it snowed every day after Easter for the rest of that week. We were supposed to get 6" or so a bit over a week ago, but the front shifted north a bit, so we got a light flurry, and the Mat-Su (read: Matanuska-Susitna) Valley received 18". I always miss all the fun.
That's all I've got right now. Kind of felt like a rock skipping across water reading this, didn't you? If you only knew how it felt to live it... The past two months have been awesome, quite frankly. All of us are doing very well, with the exception of the 5,000-miles-from-our-friends-and-family issue. I'd like to say that I'll post more often in the future, but I know better than to make promises like that.
God bless you all.
