Aha! You’ve seen the pattern. Who says you aren’t genius? Okay, so when I finally get around to blogging I feel the need to tell you everything I think you ought to know that I have been saving just for you. But, I don’t want to put it all in one post because that would be too long and you’d get bored. And so is born the phenomenon of two-posts-in-one-week-and-then-no-posts-in-six-months.

Yesterday, I drastically improved your life by informing you of music you ought not live without (you’re welcome); today, I intend to improve your life by telling you about a blog that will make your life scintillate (that’s right, scintillate). Again, you must not cease and desist when I tell you it is written by my brother because a little logic will tell you that if you like my blog, chances are you’ll like his; I will admit that we are quite different (he is, after all, studying some kind of science that I have no comprehension of and he likewise thinks religion is for the kookies (yes I did just make a noun out of an adjective) in the world), but we are genetically related so our natural abilities are obviously similar (obviously), which is my way of saying that he can write better than I (point in fact, he named his blog nuggets of nugacity and I had to look the second word up). Plus, he posts far more frequently than I do (that last part might have something to do with the blog being a class assignment). At any rate, it’s not all science on his blog and what science is there is  popular and fascinating – like this recent post on a fish that hops with a fin and looks drunk. Plus, he posts a lot of videos, and he keeps abreast of interesting stories so that I don’t have to. Overall, it’s a very handy (and amusing) service he provides and you would be remiss not to subscribe.

Having said all of that, I will say that it has been a hectic summer, which we are thankful to have survived in one piece and that the fall looks even more hectic and we’re a little scared. Adam started his new job as a youth pastor today and I, as has been mentioned multiple times now, start classes. Unfortunately, Adam’s new job is in Livermore, which is about 30 miles southeast of here so he has the car all day almost every day, which means that in order for me to get to class I have to walk a mile to the subway, take the subway two stops and then walk another mile to class, and then do the whole thing in reverse to get home. AND, while it is downright chilly here in the summer, it is in the 80s now so it is a little toasty for walking long distances with a bag full of books. Not that I’m complaining, I’m just saying …

So, until the next time Adam threatens to delete my blog, I wish you all the best and if you’re bored and like to read some books for me and take notes, let me know, I have a plethora …

But is it just me, or don’t you also think of California as the land of promise and sunshine? Perhaps it is just me.

Either way, I wish the golden referred to the rays of sun rather than the dry hills, but alas and alack, apparently all of our wishes don’t come true.

Just for an update, it was cloudy again this morning when I woke up, which made me sad; but, we went for a walk and as we were coming back the sun started to peek through and now, at 10 am, it is sunny – so apparently I just need to sleep in later and then all my problems will be solved.

Anyway, you can see the changes to the blog here, where my favorite books are now pictured and there are links to websites I enjoy, including a link to books I want to read but don’t own, in case you want to buy me a present for helping you procrastinate. And you can search on the sidebar now. And the archives structure has changed. And soon there will be tags and categories you can click on to link you to similar posts of interest. Good deal huh?

Okay, back to work now …

There’s still some work to be done – other pages and more content, etc. But should you have a hankering for sermons, eat your heart out. I’m preaching this Sunday and next so there’ll be two new ones up in the new few weeks.

And, there will be new posts coming soon … promise …

Welcome to my new blog. Which is also my old blog. But on a new site. With a new design. Fun huh? I’m still getting used to WordPress, so you will have to bear with me as I learn something new and get used to finding my way around here. You will probably notice that not all of the pages are up yet, but they will be soon, so check back.

And, I will have a proper post up in the next few days about all the adventures of moving and life in the garden/armpit state. Until then … Welcome!!

I’ve been blogging for over two years now and feel I am entitled to a small blog sabbatical. I know two points of order are popping into your head even now.

1. Yes, I do understand that sabbaticals normally only happen after 7 years, but I don’t care and neither should you.
2. Yes, I also realize that I haven’t been blogging much anyway so I’m simply making it official at this point.

But. Life is busy. In 38 days (after three long years) I will finally have my Masters of Divinity (yes that will make me a master of all things divine, thank you for realizing that, feel free to pay me for my mastery). Then, a short two days after that we make the move to New Jersey which will

• require packing,
• require moving everything fifteen hours to the north where it has been known to snow in April (e.g. last week),
• require unpacking and putting all away again, and
• require finding a job to support Adam while he does his unpaid, full time hospital internship.

No big deal though. I’m not stressed out about those things or the mountain of school work that must be accomplished in the next 38 days. Truly.

So. Since I’ve been blogging for over two years I am going to take a two month blogging sabbatical and promise to be back in June (which is really less than two months so do not fret). And, lest you think that nothing will be happening in the meantime, let me reassure that when I return it will be to a new site on a new domain with a new look – because I’m married to a web-designer and the upside to his being attached to the computer like a leech to blood is that I get a new site in the next two months … and now he knows.

See you in June if not before …

So I had a couple typos. Whoops.

We watched An Inconvenient Truth Saturday night when we got home and I now am of the belief that everyone should watch it. I think the work Al Gore has done and continues to do is amazing and incredibly important. (I feel like if I had lost the presidential election to Bush I might still be moping, but this man has definitely done something productive with his time) Not only is it an incredibly relevant (and urgent) topic for our day and age, but the film is really well done and very engaging. Definitely a must see. Definitely.

This is my husband. He looks easy going, but he can be very stubborn. Unfortunately, for him, not as stubborn as his very tenacious wife. Adam almost always goes to bed after I do; so, when we’re sharing a room (like on vacation) it’s Adam’s job to turn off the light before he goes to sleep. Well, one night Adam decided to go to bed when I did, so we had no one to turn off the light. The result was both of us lying in bed waiting for the other person to get up and turn off the light. We both tried to pretend we were sleeping so the other person would have to get up, but inevitably after five or six seconds we’d start giggling. Adam held out almost five minutes, but in the end he decided to take the “high road” and turn off the light. And victory is mine. Thank you.

Mrs. Kimble by Jennifer Haigh may not be great literature, but considering I read it all on the plane ride from Rochester to Seattle, I think it’s pretty good. It is an engaging story and definitely worth picking up should you want to escape your own life for a little while, or simply pass time quickly.

Case Histories by Kate Atkinson, on the other hand, might be consider great literature. Or perhaps not, but still a great book and definitely worth reading. The novel blends “case histories” or glimpses of different people’s lives into one story with a murder at the heart of it all.

Caroling. Mmm. Adam’s family is big into caroling. Every year they carol through nursing homes and hospitals and to elderly folks who don’t get out much. It combines both holiday cheer and good outreach. It also goes for four hours. Adam can tell you that I’m not much of a caroler. I once sang in choirs and did all that good stuff, but have since put it behind me. I am, perhaps, the most reluctant of carolers. But, tradition is tradition and so we caroled.

My brother’s girlfriend got Little Miss Sunshine for Christmas and let us borrow it, since neither of had seen it. Probably you’ve already watched it, but if you haven’t, you should. We both laughed, cringed, and stared in abject horror sometimes all at the same time. Good movie.

Well, there was more, but that’s enough for now. Two more days until class starts (Adam, sadly, decided not to take a class this Jan term and will have to stay home while I get up every morning for class; but, it’s okay because he’s going to do all the cooking and cleaning for us – yay!!! (if I write it on a blog that makes it true right??))

One website is all about outreach opportunities in the area. And, while you might not be able to do these specific things, they might spark some ideas about how to be involved in your own community.

The second website is all about living ecologically friendly lives (living green if you will). While there are some specifics aimed at this community, it has so many links and ideas for how to live more environmentally sound lives that no matter who you are or where you live you find something to help you make the earth last a little longer.

And, even if none of that appeals to you, you should still check it out because I made them and they’re pretty for my first websites with multiple pages.