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Jay to the niner, over and out
November 04, 2005
October 23, 2005
Royalty
I am a beloved daughter of God! How dare the scum of the under-Earth to even talk to a princess, let alone try to mislead her! Oh, the audacity! The palace guard would never even allow him in through the castle gates, let alone into her chambers! My King has a Prince Charming ready for me, and when the time is right – when He deems that it is so – my valiant knight shall come and sweep me off my feet! And the entire kingdom shall rejoice!
But in the meantime, my King is preparing me for Himself. He is teaching me how to behave like royalty; for I used to be a servant. No, I was even lower than that. My ancestors willingly sold our family into slavery to an evil master. But my King, oh, my merciful, loving, generous King – He wanted me for Himself – He wanted me to be part of His kingdom. So He went to my slave master, and enquired as to what the cost would be to free me from my enslavement (although He already knew the cost), for He was saddened by the fact that my ancestors had knowingly and willingly made me a slave, and wanted to free me. My master, cruel and evil though he was, was also one of the King’s subjects, and – especially when face-to-face with his ruler – had to follow the law of the land. The King’s own law – which He must also follow, for He is just, and if He did not obey His own law, He would not be just – said that the only way for a slave to be freed was by death. That was the only way a contract could be fulfilled. Now, my old slave master had many slaves. In fact, the entire kingdom was under his hand, except for the King and His Son, the Prince. All people – who were once free men – became slaves. This happened at some point early in the history of the kingdom. I’m not sure when, exactly. Legend has it that there was once, long, long ago, a man and his wife who were free. But my master, who has never died, somehow convinced them that being slaves would make them more like the King, and would somehow make them happier. This story is quite strange to me, because this couple was living in the King’s palace, and the King had appointed them to high positions of authority in the kingdom. But they chose instead to be slaves. As a result, all of their children, and their children’s children have all been born into slavery. And as the King’s law states, children of slaves, born into the slave master’s house, remain slaves until death. So that is what my master told the King; the only way I could be made free was by death. My King wanted me for Himself – alive. So He asked my master (knowing in advance what his answer would be) if any death would suffice. And my master, the greedy, conniving, evil being that he is, saw an opportunity (or so he mistakenly thought) to take advantage of the King. He told the King that if the Prince – the King’s only royal Son – would be willing to be executed by him, my master, he would release all of his slaves. My master did not think the King would accept such an offer. For who would give the life of royalty for that of slaves, worth less than the dirt they slept on? But the King had foreseen that this was the offer the slave master would make, and He had, in fact, been preparing His Son since before His birth to give His life willingly to free us slaves. So the King accepted the slave master’s offer, and they arranged a time for the execution and exchange of life to be made.
At the appointed time, the Prince came out of the castle. We could see that He had been preparing Himself for this moment. The slave master was giddy with delight at his apparent impending victory. For the slave master envied the King and His kingdom greatly. He thought that if the Prince died by his hand, there would be no heir to the King’s throne, and that somehow, he would be able to take control of the kingdom. The Prince had asked His Father several times if there were any other way for us to be freed other than by His death, and for Him to choose that alternative. But each time, the King told Him there was no alternative. And the Prince, for He loved, honored, and respected His Father, and lived in accordance with His Father’s wishes, willingly walked out to the place of His execution. We were amazed, for we knew that at any moment, the Prince, by His authority as His Father’s Son, could call out His army to annihilate the slave master. I watched the scene with tears streaming down my face – for the King was letting His beloved Son be killed for our freedom!
The Prince allowed the slave master to bind His hands, knock Him to His knees, and beat Him! Oh, the audacity! He beat the royal Prince, in the presence of the King! But the King knew that it had to happen for us to be set free. The slave master beat the Prince – then he placed on His shoulders His cross – for that was the undignified, merciless way the slave master had chosen to kill the King’s Son. All men who died on a cross were considered cursed; there is no way to be killed that is less honorable. The Prince had to carry this massive structure of wood – all the while stumbling and bleeding – to the top of the hill overlooking the kingdom. And that is where he nailed Him down and hung Him up to die. After He had hung for what seemed like an eternity – for crucifixion is not only excruciatingly painful, but excruciatingly slow as well – with His last breath (and I do not even know where He found the energy to speak) He cried out, with a heart-breaking sound, “Father, why have you forsaken me?” And upon speaking those words, He died. You could feel – not just see, but feel, the life go out from Him. At that moment, our master gleefully began to laugh, and he seemed to swell with pride. But over his cackling, at the very same moment that the Prince’s bruised, bloody head fell limply to His regal chest, we could hear a heart-rending sound from the castle. It sounded like something great breaking. Others claimed it was the castle gate, and in fact the gate was cracked, but I believe the sound we heard was that of the King’s heart actually rending in two. For although He willingly offered up His Son as our substitute, and His Son dutifully obeyed His Father’s wish, He could not have paid a higher price for our freedom, though He owned all the land, and everything above the land, and everything below the land.
After the Prince died, we slaves found ourselves in an unusual position. There are a few days of which my memory is quite foggy. I do know that the cage in which we were enclosed was suddenly removed, but other than that, it was as if my memory has been blacked out. I do remember coming to and viewing an unbelievable sight. If the King Himself had not assured me that it was real, I might still not believe that what I saw existed. Some of the other slaves (they are still slaves now, in fact) said that I was foolish to believe such a sight. For what I saw was the Prince! He was alive! I always knew that the King was powerful, but I never could have imagined that He could return the dead to life! Yet this is what my eyes beheld! The dead Prince brought back to His glorious life! All of us slaves were standing together in a group, for although the cage had vanished, we had not moved from the spot where we had stood to witness the execution of the Prince. The Prince, now very much alive, approached us, and spoke to us. He told us that the King had purchased our freedom. All that we had to do was take the Prince’s hand, and walk with Him up to the castle, and the King would adopt us as His own children, on equal standing with the Prince, for when He was brought back to life, He was also restored to His rightful place at the King’s right hand. This was too good to believe for some of my fellow slaves. They did not believe their eyes or their ears. They were so accustomed to their lives as slaves, and so instead of taking the Prince’s hand and walking with Him to the castle, they walked back to the slave master, and asked to be slaves again! I could not fathom it! The slave master all to readily welcomed them back, and reclaimed his slaves. It was rather odd, however, to see how much he seemed to have shrunk, and to hear how much quieter he was now that the Prince had returned to His Kingdom. For I was beginning to see things as they really were.
After the Prince appeared to us, I know that I felt an undeniable pull in my heart. I do not know how long I stood there after I found out that my freedom had been purchased. It was all so very hard to believe! And the Prince, whom I had seen killed – executed – before my very eyes stood before me once again, declaring freedom. To someone who has been a slave her whole life, the gift of freedom, especially at such a cost, is next to impossible to believe. And yet I did. I stepped forward, and took the Prince’s hand. His grip was strong, yet gentle. He smiled at me, and we stood there for just a moment. It was so strange: there were many slaves who returned to captivity, but there were also many who stepped forward with me. Although there is only one Prince, it was as though He took each of us by the hand individually.
As we began our walk to the castle, the Prince began to tell me what it meant to be free; for a slave cannot know what a life of freedom entails. As He spoke, I began to understand that choosing freedom from slavery meant choosing to be part of the kingdom. In fact, the King had adopted me! I was to be part of the royal family! This meant also, though, that as His daughter, I was expected to obey Him. The King didn’t remember – and this is still a mystery to me – that I was ever a slave. He would treat me as His own flesh and blood. As such, He loved me, for no other reason than that I was His daughter. In fact, the Prince told me, they had both always loved me, and that was why the King had asked the Prince to die to set me free. Because of His great love for me, the King had many gifts for me. I could hardly believe this! The King, the ruler of the whole kingdom, with all of its wealth at His command, wanted to give to me! The Prince explained to me that although the King would not remember that I had been a slave, He would train me and teach me to be a proper princess. For many of the things I had learned as a slave, things I thought were part of me, I would have to give up. But the trade of my old life for this new one as a princess seemed more than generous! The Prince said it would not be easy, but that the King had a special Teacher that He had sent, just for me, who was part of the royal family, too, who would tutor me in the ways of royal living.
And so, for the past several years, I have lived in a castle. The King is now my Father. My Teacher is with me all the time. I think, sometimes, that I know better than my Teacher how I should be taught, for one of the not-so-royal things I learned as a slave was pride. As a result, sometimes I ignore my teacher. For it is hard work to get rid of all my memories of slavery. I was so accustomed to being dirty and cold that sometimes I think that is how I would rather be. So I start walking away from the castle, and smearing mud all over my beautiful, pristine ball gown. But my Teacher, He is right there with me, telling me to stop and turn back. If I am feeling really obstinate, I will put some mud in my ears, and His voice begins to fade away. If I decide to listen to Him, I remember how great the King is, how much He loves me, and how wonderful life in the castle is; and I walk back with my eyes on the ground and a heavy heart in my chest. For if I lift my eyes, I am reminded of that other time I stood outside the castle, in a cage, and saw my Prince executed, so that I could be adopted. Somehow, no matter how far I have strayed from the castle, my Teacher always manages to get my attention. Sometimes it takes pain to wake me from my stupor. When I turn around, and arrive at the castle gates, I must admit my mistake. Oh, the pain that causes me, for I know that each time I decide to go outside of the King’s house, I break His heart. Yet every time I return, He welcomes me back with a royal hug and kiss, and gently lifts my chin with His hand, cleans me off, warms me up, and dresses me in an even more beautiful gown than before. And it always seems as though if I bring up one of the times I left, He has no recollection of it; I am the only one who remembers.
This is my new life. The King has adopted me. I am His princess. The longer I spend in the castle, the less I remember my old way of life. The King does not seem to even remember that I was a slave. My Teacher is always with me. He is my constant companion, and my best friend! He guides me through life in the castle. He keeps me focused on the gift that enables me to be here, living as royalty. Royal life has its responsibilities. Whenever the King asks something of me, I must obey. Often, I do not understand His requests; but He is the King, wise beyond my feeble understanding. I know that He always has my best interests at heart. Sometimes, my old slave nature rears its ugly head, and I disobediently decide to go wandering. But those times are growing fewer and farther in between. Each day, I wake up, and listen to my Teacher’s instructions. It is not always easy to be a princess, but I would not exchange my new life for anything!
But in the meantime, my King is preparing me for Himself. He is teaching me how to behave like royalty; for I used to be a servant. No, I was even lower than that. My ancestors willingly sold our family into slavery to an evil master. But my King, oh, my merciful, loving, generous King – He wanted me for Himself – He wanted me to be part of His kingdom. So He went to my slave master, and enquired as to what the cost would be to free me from my enslavement (although He already knew the cost), for He was saddened by the fact that my ancestors had knowingly and willingly made me a slave, and wanted to free me. My master, cruel and evil though he was, was also one of the King’s subjects, and – especially when face-to-face with his ruler – had to follow the law of the land. The King’s own law – which He must also follow, for He is just, and if He did not obey His own law, He would not be just – said that the only way for a slave to be freed was by death. That was the only way a contract could be fulfilled. Now, my old slave master had many slaves. In fact, the entire kingdom was under his hand, except for the King and His Son, the Prince. All people – who were once free men – became slaves. This happened at some point early in the history of the kingdom. I’m not sure when, exactly. Legend has it that there was once, long, long ago, a man and his wife who were free. But my master, who has never died, somehow convinced them that being slaves would make them more like the King, and would somehow make them happier. This story is quite strange to me, because this couple was living in the King’s palace, and the King had appointed them to high positions of authority in the kingdom. But they chose instead to be slaves. As a result, all of their children, and their children’s children have all been born into slavery. And as the King’s law states, children of slaves, born into the slave master’s house, remain slaves until death. So that is what my master told the King; the only way I could be made free was by death. My King wanted me for Himself – alive. So He asked my master (knowing in advance what his answer would be) if any death would suffice. And my master, the greedy, conniving, evil being that he is, saw an opportunity (or so he mistakenly thought) to take advantage of the King. He told the King that if the Prince – the King’s only royal Son – would be willing to be executed by him, my master, he would release all of his slaves. My master did not think the King would accept such an offer. For who would give the life of royalty for that of slaves, worth less than the dirt they slept on? But the King had foreseen that this was the offer the slave master would make, and He had, in fact, been preparing His Son since before His birth to give His life willingly to free us slaves. So the King accepted the slave master’s offer, and they arranged a time for the execution and exchange of life to be made.
At the appointed time, the Prince came out of the castle. We could see that He had been preparing Himself for this moment. The slave master was giddy with delight at his apparent impending victory. For the slave master envied the King and His kingdom greatly. He thought that if the Prince died by his hand, there would be no heir to the King’s throne, and that somehow, he would be able to take control of the kingdom. The Prince had asked His Father several times if there were any other way for us to be freed other than by His death, and for Him to choose that alternative. But each time, the King told Him there was no alternative. And the Prince, for He loved, honored, and respected His Father, and lived in accordance with His Father’s wishes, willingly walked out to the place of His execution. We were amazed, for we knew that at any moment, the Prince, by His authority as His Father’s Son, could call out His army to annihilate the slave master. I watched the scene with tears streaming down my face – for the King was letting His beloved Son be killed for our freedom!
The Prince allowed the slave master to bind His hands, knock Him to His knees, and beat Him! Oh, the audacity! He beat the royal Prince, in the presence of the King! But the King knew that it had to happen for us to be set free. The slave master beat the Prince – then he placed on His shoulders His cross – for that was the undignified, merciless way the slave master had chosen to kill the King’s Son. All men who died on a cross were considered cursed; there is no way to be killed that is less honorable. The Prince had to carry this massive structure of wood – all the while stumbling and bleeding – to the top of the hill overlooking the kingdom. And that is where he nailed Him down and hung Him up to die. After He had hung for what seemed like an eternity – for crucifixion is not only excruciatingly painful, but excruciatingly slow as well – with His last breath (and I do not even know where He found the energy to speak) He cried out, with a heart-breaking sound, “Father, why have you forsaken me?” And upon speaking those words, He died. You could feel – not just see, but feel, the life go out from Him. At that moment, our master gleefully began to laugh, and he seemed to swell with pride. But over his cackling, at the very same moment that the Prince’s bruised, bloody head fell limply to His regal chest, we could hear a heart-rending sound from the castle. It sounded like something great breaking. Others claimed it was the castle gate, and in fact the gate was cracked, but I believe the sound we heard was that of the King’s heart actually rending in two. For although He willingly offered up His Son as our substitute, and His Son dutifully obeyed His Father’s wish, He could not have paid a higher price for our freedom, though He owned all the land, and everything above the land, and everything below the land.
After the Prince died, we slaves found ourselves in an unusual position. There are a few days of which my memory is quite foggy. I do know that the cage in which we were enclosed was suddenly removed, but other than that, it was as if my memory has been blacked out. I do remember coming to and viewing an unbelievable sight. If the King Himself had not assured me that it was real, I might still not believe that what I saw existed. Some of the other slaves (they are still slaves now, in fact) said that I was foolish to believe such a sight. For what I saw was the Prince! He was alive! I always knew that the King was powerful, but I never could have imagined that He could return the dead to life! Yet this is what my eyes beheld! The dead Prince brought back to His glorious life! All of us slaves were standing together in a group, for although the cage had vanished, we had not moved from the spot where we had stood to witness the execution of the Prince. The Prince, now very much alive, approached us, and spoke to us. He told us that the King had purchased our freedom. All that we had to do was take the Prince’s hand, and walk with Him up to the castle, and the King would adopt us as His own children, on equal standing with the Prince, for when He was brought back to life, He was also restored to His rightful place at the King’s right hand. This was too good to believe for some of my fellow slaves. They did not believe their eyes or their ears. They were so accustomed to their lives as slaves, and so instead of taking the Prince’s hand and walking with Him to the castle, they walked back to the slave master, and asked to be slaves again! I could not fathom it! The slave master all to readily welcomed them back, and reclaimed his slaves. It was rather odd, however, to see how much he seemed to have shrunk, and to hear how much quieter he was now that the Prince had returned to His Kingdom. For I was beginning to see things as they really were.
After the Prince appeared to us, I know that I felt an undeniable pull in my heart. I do not know how long I stood there after I found out that my freedom had been purchased. It was all so very hard to believe! And the Prince, whom I had seen killed – executed – before my very eyes stood before me once again, declaring freedom. To someone who has been a slave her whole life, the gift of freedom, especially at such a cost, is next to impossible to believe. And yet I did. I stepped forward, and took the Prince’s hand. His grip was strong, yet gentle. He smiled at me, and we stood there for just a moment. It was so strange: there were many slaves who returned to captivity, but there were also many who stepped forward with me. Although there is only one Prince, it was as though He took each of us by the hand individually.
As we began our walk to the castle, the Prince began to tell me what it meant to be free; for a slave cannot know what a life of freedom entails. As He spoke, I began to understand that choosing freedom from slavery meant choosing to be part of the kingdom. In fact, the King had adopted me! I was to be part of the royal family! This meant also, though, that as His daughter, I was expected to obey Him. The King didn’t remember – and this is still a mystery to me – that I was ever a slave. He would treat me as His own flesh and blood. As such, He loved me, for no other reason than that I was His daughter. In fact, the Prince told me, they had both always loved me, and that was why the King had asked the Prince to die to set me free. Because of His great love for me, the King had many gifts for me. I could hardly believe this! The King, the ruler of the whole kingdom, with all of its wealth at His command, wanted to give to me! The Prince explained to me that although the King would not remember that I had been a slave, He would train me and teach me to be a proper princess. For many of the things I had learned as a slave, things I thought were part of me, I would have to give up. But the trade of my old life for this new one as a princess seemed more than generous! The Prince said it would not be easy, but that the King had a special Teacher that He had sent, just for me, who was part of the royal family, too, who would tutor me in the ways of royal living.
And so, for the past several years, I have lived in a castle. The King is now my Father. My Teacher is with me all the time. I think, sometimes, that I know better than my Teacher how I should be taught, for one of the not-so-royal things I learned as a slave was pride. As a result, sometimes I ignore my teacher. For it is hard work to get rid of all my memories of slavery. I was so accustomed to being dirty and cold that sometimes I think that is how I would rather be. So I start walking away from the castle, and smearing mud all over my beautiful, pristine ball gown. But my Teacher, He is right there with me, telling me to stop and turn back. If I am feeling really obstinate, I will put some mud in my ears, and His voice begins to fade away. If I decide to listen to Him, I remember how great the King is, how much He loves me, and how wonderful life in the castle is; and I walk back with my eyes on the ground and a heavy heart in my chest. For if I lift my eyes, I am reminded of that other time I stood outside the castle, in a cage, and saw my Prince executed, so that I could be adopted. Somehow, no matter how far I have strayed from the castle, my Teacher always manages to get my attention. Sometimes it takes pain to wake me from my stupor. When I turn around, and arrive at the castle gates, I must admit my mistake. Oh, the pain that causes me, for I know that each time I decide to go outside of the King’s house, I break His heart. Yet every time I return, He welcomes me back with a royal hug and kiss, and gently lifts my chin with His hand, cleans me off, warms me up, and dresses me in an even more beautiful gown than before. And it always seems as though if I bring up one of the times I left, He has no recollection of it; I am the only one who remembers.
This is my new life. The King has adopted me. I am His princess. The longer I spend in the castle, the less I remember my old way of life. The King does not seem to even remember that I was a slave. My Teacher is always with me. He is my constant companion, and my best friend! He guides me through life in the castle. He keeps me focused on the gift that enables me to be here, living as royalty. Royal life has its responsibilities. Whenever the King asks something of me, I must obey. Often, I do not understand His requests; but He is the King, wise beyond my feeble understanding. I know that He always has my best interests at heart. Sometimes, my old slave nature rears its ugly head, and I disobediently decide to go wandering. But those times are growing fewer and farther in between. Each day, I wake up, and listen to my Teacher’s instructions. It is not always easy to be a princess, but I would not exchange my new life for anything!
October 08, 2005
Ephesians 1
I was chosen by God to be one of His children before the foundation of the world. Since God is omnipresent and omniscient, He has known, for all time, the sins that I have committed and will commit. I do not surprise Him. So I think that there is something wrong with the idea of trying to maintain my status as His child. For if He already knew of the worst sin I will ever commit, and yet adopted me, even wants to bless me, then there is no act that I can commit that will result in the loss off my status as a child of God. I was adopted because of the good pleasure of His will. It pleases Him to call me, “daughter.” His grace – an undeserved gift – He has freely given to me through the death of His Beloved – Jesus. He sacrificed His perfect, holy, blameless child so that I could be His daughter. He has lavished His gift upon us. How can I but respond in love? He loves me – not despite my sin, for Jesus has redeemed me, no, I think He loves me because I am His beloved Janine, His darling daughter. He glories in my creation! My Father in heaven thinks me wonderful! He loves me!
He was wise and insightful when He showed me that His will was for me to be in right relationship with Him – and it pleases Him.
Since I am God’s daughter, the child of the master of the universe, I have been given a heavenly heritage. Whatever unpleasant family history and inheritance I thought was mine – is no longer. Instead, my family is God’s, and my siblings are His children – Christ is my Brother. And it does not matter where I fall in the family line, because my Daddy has more than enough to go around!
I became His daughter, and will always be His daughter, because when I heard the Truth of the Good News, I believed in my heart that God raised Jesus from the dead, so I was sealed in Jesus with the Holy Spirit. God pours out His love into my heart by the Holy Spirit. He is patient, kind, not jealous, not bragging or arrogant, does not act unbecomingly, does not seek His own, is not provoked, does not take into account a wrong suffered, does not rejoice in unrighteousness, but rejoices in the truth, covers all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things, never fails.
I pray, along with Paul, that my Father would give me a spirit of wisdom and of revelation of the true knowledge of Him. I want to, and ask to, have the eyes of my heart opened, for I know that I do not fully see the hope that He has called me to as His daughter, the riches of the glory of what He has in store for me as His adopted child, and the power that is so surpassingly great, that He uses for me, His beloved daughter. His might, which He used when He raised Jesus from the dead and placed Him in His proper seat in the kingdom, that same might He will use for me, who He picked out before the creation of the world. I ask that the Holy Spirit will open the eyes of my heart, so that I will fully understand the extent of God’s love for me, and the extent to which He has gone and will go in demonstration of His love – for I am His daughter! He loves me! I am part of the body of Jesus – I make up part of the fullness of my Jesus, who fills in all.
He was wise and insightful when He showed me that His will was for me to be in right relationship with Him – and it pleases Him.
Since I am God’s daughter, the child of the master of the universe, I have been given a heavenly heritage. Whatever unpleasant family history and inheritance I thought was mine – is no longer. Instead, my family is God’s, and my siblings are His children – Christ is my Brother. And it does not matter where I fall in the family line, because my Daddy has more than enough to go around!
I became His daughter, and will always be His daughter, because when I heard the Truth of the Good News, I believed in my heart that God raised Jesus from the dead, so I was sealed in Jesus with the Holy Spirit. God pours out His love into my heart by the Holy Spirit. He is patient, kind, not jealous, not bragging or arrogant, does not act unbecomingly, does not seek His own, is not provoked, does not take into account a wrong suffered, does not rejoice in unrighteousness, but rejoices in the truth, covers all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things, never fails.
I pray, along with Paul, that my Father would give me a spirit of wisdom and of revelation of the true knowledge of Him. I want to, and ask to, have the eyes of my heart opened, for I know that I do not fully see the hope that He has called me to as His daughter, the riches of the glory of what He has in store for me as His adopted child, and the power that is so surpassingly great, that He uses for me, His beloved daughter. His might, which He used when He raised Jesus from the dead and placed Him in His proper seat in the kingdom, that same might He will use for me, who He picked out before the creation of the world. I ask that the Holy Spirit will open the eyes of my heart, so that I will fully understand the extent of God’s love for me, and the extent to which He has gone and will go in demonstration of His love – for I am His daughter! He loves me! I am part of the body of Jesus – I make up part of the fullness of my Jesus, who fills in all.
October 07, 2005
Fall leaves
I wrote this in a journal at about noon today. Thought you might enjoy it! You can see more of the pictures I took today on my photos page.
Can I take back what I said about Germans being unfriendly? I have been overwhelmed by how friendly the people I've run into lately have been. Maybe it's just been the run of beautiful weather we've been having this week - sunny, clear, crisp, beautiful fall days - what October should be like. It's been in the mid- to upper-sixties the last few days. This is why fall is my favorite season. The temperature is cooler and more comfortable (I love to wear jeans and a long-sleeved T-shirt) and most of the flowers are still in bloom, with the brilliant addition of the changing leaves. You can sit outside in the sun and drink a cup of hot tea or a glass of sweet tea.
I think that I just experienced my favorite moment since arriving in Germany (and maybe since longer). I am sitting on a bench on the backside of the castle, in the shade. The Schloss is on a hill, so I can see the rooftops of the city
in front of me, and mountains beyond that. I think this is the first time I've noticed the mountains nearby. There is a section of wide-open blue sky in front of and above me, with just a few white clouds low in the sky. The sun is to my right and although it's noon, the sun is only about 50 degrees above the horizon. When it peeks out from behind the white cloud, it shines right through the maple tree, illuminating its pale green, golden yellow, and barely orange leaves that cascade down around me when the wind begins to blow. When the hour reached exactly 12:00, the bells of all the churches began to compete for my attention, proclaiming the time of day out to all people in the city.
Have you ever really watched leaves fall? If given the chance to fall from a tree without a gust of wind driving them downward, they don't merely 'fall.' Fall is perhaps an adequate verb to describe the descent of chestnuts or acorns from their lofty perches. 
They plummet down, compelled to fall down to the Earth, their smooth, rounded casings providing no or minimal resistance against their downward trajectory, and little variation from one to the next. But a leaf; when the breeze dies down, it detaches itself from its branch, and does not fall, but rather drifts, glides, spins, twirls, flutters, turns, and settles its way earthward, its stem leading the way. They grip onto their branches for dear life, shaking their heads, "no," when they feel the wind urging them to let go. The ones that are forced to release by a sudden gust of wind are driven downward, compelled by this external force against their large surface area. Ah, but for the ones that decide to detach of their own accord, that same surface area provides them wings with which to fly. Their destination is the same, but their journey is so much more beautiful.
Walking
Today I ended up walking to the Brubakers' for English class. It was such a beautiful fall day! I love the colors of the trees, the rays from the sun low in the sky, and the smell of the fallen leaves. Here are some pics I took. Click on a photo or go to my Yahoo! photos to see some more. Enjoy!
October 06, 2005
Siedler von Catan
The Brubakers are back (thank you Lord!). They returned on Tuesday, and yesterday we did our weekly prayer walking through Alt Chemnitz. We will start going through Lutherviertel, the section of the city where I live, next week.
After prayer walking, they invited me over for dinner, which I naturally accepted. After dinner, Celeste and Zach were doing dishes, Sarah was reading, and Steve was up on the computer, so I just assumed (especially since it was a school night - the kids have to leave for school at about 6:30) that the evening was over, so I put my shoes on, and (sadly) got ready to go catch the bus back to my apartment. Then I noticed that Zach was looking at me sort of strangely, so I asked what was up. He said he was hoping to play a game of Siedler von Catan (see above - pictured is one of the expansion sets for the game, not a book; click on the link to find out more). Oh Happy Day! Siedler is AWESOME!!! I immediately took my shoes back off, and went to go set up the game.
To give you a little bit of info about the game - it's like Risk, only funner! (jk - more fun) I don't even know how to explain it. It took us two hours to play a game last night. It takes a lot of strategery and is very complex. The board is set up differently every time (the pieces of land or water are movable), so each game is a new challenge. It's just good, clean fun! Check out Wikopedia's sites about Settlers from Catan, and the expansion set of Cities and Knights, which we play with, for more information. The second weekend I was in Chemnitz, the city set the world record for the biggest Siedler game.
Last night was fun - and it's SO good to have the Brubakers back in town!
Cheerio!
After prayer walking, they invited me over for dinner, which I naturally accepted. After dinner, Celeste and Zach were doing dishes, Sarah was reading, and Steve was up on the computer, so I just assumed (especially since it was a school night - the kids have to leave for school at about 6:30) that the evening was over, so I put my shoes on, and (sadly) got ready to go catch the bus back to my apartment. Then I noticed that Zach was looking at me sort of strangely, so I asked what was up. He said he was hoping to play a game of Siedler von Catan (see above - pictured is one of the expansion sets for the game, not a book; click on the link to find out more). Oh Happy Day! Siedler is AWESOME!!! I immediately took my shoes back off, and went to go set up the game.
To give you a little bit of info about the game - it's like Risk, only funner! (jk - more fun) I don't even know how to explain it. It took us two hours to play a game last night. It takes a lot of strategery and is very complex. The board is set up differently every time (the pieces of land or water are movable), so each game is a new challenge. It's just good, clean fun! Check out Wikopedia's sites about Settlers from Catan, and the expansion set of Cities and Knights, which we play with, for more information. The second weekend I was in Chemnitz, the city set the world record for the biggest Siedler game.
Last night was fun - and it's SO good to have the Brubakers back in town!
Cheerio!
October 05, 2005
Reading...
Sorina asked me what else is going on with me besides idiosyncrasies, so I promised her another post tonight. Well, there isn’t anything too exciting going on today. I read a bunch today, prepared for and taught English class, and will probably read some more before going to bed. I’m currently working on Mere Christianity by C.S. Lewis, Waking the Dead by John Eldredge, Conformed to His Image/The Servant As His Lord by Oswald Chambers, On the Threshold of Hope by Diane Mandt Langberg [note: I'm reading this at the request of a dear loved one, to help understand her struggles], Let Me Be A Woman and Through Gates of Splendor by Elisabeth Elliot, The Pilgrim’s Progress by John Bunyan, and Ephesians by Paul, and I just finished Quest for Love by Elisabeth Elliot. That I love to read is an understatement. I used to read on the bus to school, and sometimes would finish a book a day as a kid.
I guess I’ll write about something from Waking the Dead. In the second chapter, Eldridge writes about how we need to open up the eyes of our heart to the spiritual war that is going on all around us. He uses Daniel 10 as an example. Go and read your Bible to get up to speed, but what happened was that Daniel was troubled, so he fasted and prayed for three weeks without seeing a result. Eldridge proposes that if most of us were in that situation, we’d come to one of two conclusions – that either “I’m blowing it, or God is holding out on me” (31).
Daniel, if he’s like most of us, “might try confessing every sin and petty offense in hopes of opening up the lines of communication with God. Or he might withdraw into a sort of disappointed resignation, drop the fast, and turn on the television. In an effort to hang on to his faith, he might embrace the difficulty as part of ‘God’s will for his life.’ He might read a book on ‘the silence of God.’ That’s the way the people I know handle this sort of thing.
“He would be dead wrong.” p. 31
After the three weeks of fasting and praying, an angel shows up. God sent him out on the first day Daniel started praying, but he was delayed because of having to fight a fallen angel. Eldredge makes his point that we are in a world at war. There is more going on than meets the eye.
I don’t feel like I’m really communicating this well, but regardless, God spoke to me through this section. I had a mini ‘ker-plunk’ moment.
Random link of the day - my brother and his trebuchet
Idiosyncrasies
What - me?! Idiosyncrasies?! Surely you jest!
After thinking long and hard (two minutes), I managed to scrape together a few. Thanks for tagging me, Sally!
1. When I eat ice cream out of a bowl, I add milk, and mix it together to form a sort of thick milkshake-type substance. And the bigger the ice crystals, the better.
2. I add peanut butter to my hot chocolate.
3. I don't untie my shoelaces unless absolutely necessary.
4. I have a favorite number. It is 24. My birthday is on the 24th, but beyond that, 24 has an uncommonly high number of divisors for so small a number - 1, 2, 3, 4, 6, 8, 12, and 24. Math Geek in the Hizzouse!!! Whaaaat!!! I could rock some arrow roads back in the day...and don't get me started on number circles, Eli and his magic peanuts, and number boards!
5. Oh, I almost forgot - I put lemons in my Dr. Pepper. Drives waitresses crazy! ("Could I please have a plate of lemon wedges to go with my Dr. Pepper?")
6. Just kidding on there being more than five...what, you don't believe me? Ok, I'll just say that I found a few others...
Tag: Amy, Amy, Maryah, Peter, Nathan, Sorina
After thinking long and hard (two minutes), I managed to scrape together a few. Thanks for tagging me, Sally!
1. When I eat ice cream out of a bowl, I add milk, and mix it together to form a sort of thick milkshake-type substance. And the bigger the ice crystals, the better.
2. I add peanut butter to my hot chocolate.
3. I don't untie my shoelaces unless absolutely necessary.
4. I have a favorite number. It is 24. My birthday is on the 24th, but beyond that, 24 has an uncommonly high number of divisors for so small a number - 1, 2, 3, 4, 6, 8, 12, and 24. Math Geek in the Hizzouse!!! Whaaaat!!! I could rock some arrow roads back in the day...and don't get me started on number circles, Eli and his magic peanuts, and number boards!
5. Oh, I almost forgot - I put lemons in my Dr. Pepper. Drives waitresses crazy! ("Could I please have a plate of lemon wedges to go with my Dr. Pepper?")
6. Just kidding on there being more than five...what, you don't believe me? Ok, I'll just say that I found a few others...
Tag: Amy, Amy, Maryah, Peter, Nathan, Sorina
October 02, 2005
Landesjugendtag
Yesterday was great. I took some photos. You can see them and more on my Yahoo! photos page. (I tried posting them here - but you can probably see that it didn't work. Imagine the photo to go with each comment - and just go to my Yahoo! photos page to see them. They're all there.)
The band. The guitar player was only 14, and played like Carlos Santana. The drummer's name was Karsten - same as my brother's.
They were great. They played lots of songs I knew, some in English, and some translated into German - Mein Erlöser lebt! (My Redeemer lives!)
The youth. The room was packed with kids and youth leaders. Great day!
The Holy Flames, doing a dance (yes, in a church) to "Irene" by Toby Mac. It felt like Love89 was in the hizzouse. Fo sho.
Where we ate. That says it all.
Another shot of where we ate, behind the church.
Wir haben gegrillt! We grilled out, and here's proof that I was there!
My favorite photo. WURST!!!
The band. The guitar player was only 14, and played like Carlos Santana. The drummer's name was Karsten - same as my brother's.
They were great. They played lots of songs I knew, some in English, and some translated into German - Mein Erlöser lebt! (My Redeemer lives!)
The youth. The room was packed with kids and youth leaders. Great day!
The Holy Flames, doing a dance (yes, in a church) to "Irene" by Toby Mac. It felt like Love89 was in the hizzouse. Fo sho.
Where we ate. That says it all.
Another shot of where we ate, behind the church.
Wir haben gegrillt! We grilled out, and here's proof that I was there!
My favorite photo. WURST!!!
October 01, 2005
Sunrise, sunset
A beautiful day has dawned in Chemnitz. I know, because I was up to see it. (Please, hold your applause.)
Check out the view from my apartment:
These photos brought to you by Edeka - and the wonderfully nice people who work there who let me buy batteries even though they weren''t open for another hour and a half.
Check out the view from my apartment:
These photos brought to you by Edeka - and the wonderfully nice people who work there who let me buy batteries even though they weren''t open for another hour and a half.
September 30, 2005
English class - Idioms and paralanguage
I'm not sure I've quite figured out how to do this whole two blog thing. I guess I'll just start posting things on both sites...so from now on, just check your favorite format...and LEAVE A COMMENT, for crying out loud...I KNOW you're out there...lurking in the shadows of the world wide web...leaving behind your cybertrail...okay, I hope that by now you're laughing, and that you know that I'm kidding! I love you all, even if it remains so quiet that you could hear a pin drop...oh, I found another one! [Read on to see what I'm talking about.]
Kyle's post on qualifiers brought to mind my intermediate English class from Tuesday. We talked about idioms and paralanguage. Do you have any to add to the lists?
Idioms
Eat like a horse
Sweat like a pig
Fighting like/Raining cats and dogs
Pulling out my hair
Driving me batty/up the wall
Going out of my mind
It's like pulling teeth
Sleeping like a log
Quiet as a mouse
Paralanguage
mm
hm
um
ah
ah hah
uh oh
uh uh
huh(?)
tsk tsk
Kyle's post on qualifiers brought to mind my intermediate English class from Tuesday. We talked about idioms and paralanguage. Do you have any to add to the lists?
Idioms
Eat like a horse
Sweat like a pig
Fighting like/Raining cats and dogs
Pulling out my hair
Driving me batty/up the wall
Going out of my mind
It's like pulling teeth
Sleeping like a log
Quiet as a mouse
Paralanguage
mm
hm
um
ah
ah hah
uh oh
uh uh
huh(?)
tsk tsk
September 28, 2005
Luggage - do not over pack!
So it occurred to me today that although I have let everyone know about the ‘adventure’ of getting my apartment together, I haven’t really said anything about my actual journey over to Germany. So today you get a two-fer.
I left Knoxville (a little behind schedule – I mean, hello, this is ME we’re talking about!) for the Atlanta airport at about 12:30/45 I think, for my flight at 6:15. Three hours to drive there, and still two and a half hours before my flight. Plenty of time.
The drive was great, even though I was exhausted. I didn’t so much sleep the night before, what with getting ready to leave the country for a year. We talked about Jesus on the drive, and it He’s a good thing to get your mind set on.
We got to the airport well before 4pm. I got into line at the British Airways counter. It was a short line, with only, maybe, 8 groups/people between me and the counter. I waited. And waited. And waited. I get to the counter by about 4:30 (I’m guessing). And I find out that BOTH of my bags are overweight. Oh, yes, and they don’t just let you pay for your overweight bags – you have to REPACK them to somehow make them less than the weight limit. [I must not that I should have weighed my bags before I left, and that I should have known better. It was my own fault that I got into this mess.]
I freak. Just on the inside. I do the math in my head, and no matter how I slice it, you can’t take two overweight bags, and make two underweight bags without taking something out of both of them. Straightforward, right? Except that I don’t live in Atlanta, and my ride is LONG gone. So I explain my situation to the nice British man behind the counter, and he tells me I have to go find this store where they sell boxes, and take stuff out of my bags so that they’ll make weight. Ok, I can handle that.
Except that the Atlanta airport is HUGE!!!!! I mean, seriously. I’d never flown out of Atlanta before, just had layovers there. I should have known better. I took my luggage and trekked five miles to the nearest box store, and bought myself a box. It was pretty inexpensive, and I figure that lots of people have been through this before, and so it’s no big deal.
I claim a little spot on the floor, and display all of my things for the passers by to see. I repack my suitcases, and the nice man at the box store tapes up my box for me. I walk the five miles back to the airline counter, and get ushered to the front of the line. At this point, I’m really pushing it to make my flight. I pay for my extra piece of luggage, check my bags, and pray that the rest of the trip is not quite so eventful.
I got to the gate with just enough time to call my family one last time before leaving the country, and then board the plane. Now, I’m excited about the flight, because I’d found out that in the plane I was to be flying on, they had the screen in the backs of the seat in front of you – so you had your own personal screen, and a selection of things to watch and listen to. As much international flying as I’ve done in my life, I’ve never been on a plane like that. It was great, good food (I LOVE airplane food…something about the individual sections, and the personal packets of butter…I know, I’m weird), and good company. I was so exhausted, though, that I passed out before the end of The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Universe was even over. I woke up as we were landing in London.
I don’t have much to tell about London. I changed, freshened up, and read for about eight hours in the chorale where all the passengers wait for their gate number to be announced. The flight to Hanover was fine. I slept again.
My flight got in on time, and I proceeded through passport control without any problems, and went to the baggage carousel. My suitcases made it through fine. But the box. Oh, the box. A more accurate description than ‘box’ would be the 'pieces of cardboard loosely held together by tape.' It was absolutely demolished! I’m really very surprised that my things were actually still inside it. My bottle of shampoo (we later determined that’s what it was) had popped open and gotten on some things, so it smelled nice, but I was worried my books were going to be damaged. [They ended up being fine.] I probably shouldn’t have packed the two together, but I when I was repacking, I was (in my panic) just trying to get the heaviest things out of my bags and into the box. I figured that liquid and books were probably the heaviest, so I put them in the box. Whatever, you try to pack everything you’ll need for one year, and then come talk to me!
I’ll try to wrap this story up. The Brubakers picked me up at the airport. The traffic wasn’t too bad back to Chemnitz (while the Autobahn is famous for it’s lack of a speed limit in sections, it is also notorious for traffic jams). We stopped at Burger King for dinner (yup, my first meal in Germany – a Whopper Value Meal – but with an Apfelschorle!), and made it to Chemnitz within five hours. All that to say that it was a long trip and quite eventful!
September 27, 2005
Englisch Klasse
English classes in Germany are going great! I realize that I say that every time I talk about them...I'm not sure what it would take for a 'bad' English class. God works through all things, no?
Yesterday, there were five students for the beginner class. Two from last week didn't come (don't know why) and there was one new girl. One of my neighbors asked if it would be ok to bring another girl next week (yes, yes, yes! Bring ‘em all!). So I guess that's a good sign - that they want to bring more people. The boy, Christian (!), is 13, almost 14, and in Chemistry, so I might have something to offer there. And I got a chance to share a little more about myself and what I'm doing here in Chemnitz.
We (me and I think also the Brubakers) see the English classes as an opportunity to offer a service to the community, and to get to know people. However, we are not advertising them as having anything to do with church. We are honest, and explain at the beginning why we're here, and who we're 'employed' by, but it would almost be like tricking them if we used the classes as a way to lure them in, and then bop them on the head with Jesus. If we get together outside of class (like me and Ute), or if they ask more questions about why we're doing what we're doing - which they do; they don't understand why anyone would offer anything for free without a catch - THEN all bets are off.
So, the intermediate class is good, too. There were only three there today (Ute couldn't come, she had a guest, but we're going to get together on Friday), and they were all guys...could have been a little awkward, but it was fine. We got into some good discussions about emotions and friends - the German concept of friend is different than in America. A German does not take friendship lightly, so it was pretty thought-provoking for me to ask them what qualities a good friend would have. One of my students, is giving a speech in English in Slovenia on the October 10th on his job as a social worker. I'm going to help him go over his speech, and I'm glad that we're going to get to talk about things outside of class...but I'm still not so sure how I feel about the whole male/female interaction thing...especially since Germans and Americans have very different social norms (not that I'm afraid he'll try anything, but I feel more comfortable meeting with a woman).
So there you go. That's how the classes are going. On a different topic, I'm going to speak at the Landesjugendtag on Saturday. The Landesjugendtag is a state-youth-day (Christian thing). The theme of the day (sounds like it's a sort of youth conference - except they're probably going to be 17-19/20 years old) is "Who(ever) believes, stand up - being light and salt in our community." I'll be speaking about what I'm doing here for the year, why I'm doing it, etc. I will be speaking during the workshop times, and the theme of the workshops is "where and how can I stand up during my volunteer year for Jesus" (as I understand it, they have a year after graduation, or before their last year of high school, during which they volunteer their time, or do some sort of service project, or something (I'm not really sure I understand it!). SOOO...I'll be getting an opportunity to meet some of the youth in Chemnitz, a full day of German (woo hoo!), and a chance to share about what I'm doing! I'm excited and nervous. My German has been getting better - I think that the rust is finally coming off - but there's a difference between casually speaking, and speaking in front of a crowd. We'll see. I've been praying about it - would you, too? Thanks!
Well, I'll let you go. Tschussi!
Janine
September 22, 2005
(Not so) culture shocked
So, you want to know what’s going on in Chemnitz? Well, I'm glad you asked…
I don’t think I mentioned it in my post last week, but the weather definitely took a turn for the wurst, I mean worst last week. (Not really – I just wanted an excuse to use that CORNY joke! It’s the simple things, really…) It really just got cooler (and a little wetter) last week. The temperatures had been in the 80’s since I got to Chemnitz, with just one rainy day till last Monday (9/12). Then the temperatures plummeted to the 50’s, with rain for three days or so last week. Things have cleared up (get it, cleared up?!), and it’s warmed up to the mid-60’s this week, with the forecast looking good for the weekend – a high of 21 degrees is predicted for the next three days, so it’ll be a nice weekend. Oh, you don’t know Celsius yet? You crazy Americans! That’s 70 degrees for those of you who can’t (or, more likely, choose not to) multiply by 9/5 and add 32. [21 degrees C actually converts to 69.8 degrees F for those of you, ahem, mechanical engineers out there who like their decimals.]
What else (besides the weather) is different about Chemnitz? Now that you mention it…
Well, for one thing, I’m a little thrown off when I see kids – yes, I said kids – of about 15 drinking Bier out on the street in broad daylight. I mean, they can’t even drive yet (you have to be 18 to drive) which is good, I suppose. Sometimes I want to walk up to them and ask them, “Do your parents know what you’re doing?!” but then their parents were probably drinking (legally) at that age, too, so I’m not sure it would make any difference.
On a lighter note, I’ve been enjoying the bakeries A LOT! The pastries, cakes – yum! And you can buy a fresh roll for a quarter! Where can you buy anything for a quarter anymore? I’ll tell you where - at your neighbor hood bakery…or the one two doors down…or the one around the corner…or down the street…you get the point. I’m exaggerating (slightly), but there is one spot downtown where you can stand inside one bakery, and see two others in the same square. And a Subway right down the street. I’ve been able to resist so far, but if I ever get really homesick, I may splurge.
Now, you may wonder how I’m going to maintain my girlish figure with this high carb diet. Well, I think that elevators have been outlawed here. Not really, but I do get lots of exercise from walking around all the time. And up and down the two flights of stairs to my apartment. Luckily, there is a grocery store just a block away, so I don’t have to walk too far to get there.
The grocery store is a whole adventure in itself. If you want to use a shopping cart (that means buggy to you Tennesseans) you have to make sure you have a one Euro coin. They have a little slot in the handle that you have to push the coin into, to unlatch its chain from the row of carts. You get your Euro back when you return your cart. It sure keeps the parking lots clear! Things are pretty normal inside the grocery store – German food is pretty normal – except for a few things. You have to pay a 25-cent deposit on almost any bottled drink. Soda, or mineral water (Germans love their Mineralwasser – club soda with some minerals added, basically) usually comes in 1.5 liter bottles. That’s the largest you’ll see. (A bottle of store brand Mineralwasser costs less than the deposit. And you can choose from no bubbles on up to very bubbly.) Juice is mostly found in 1 L boxes. That’s right. Boxes. So’s the milk, for that matter. You can buy your boxed milk from the non-refrigerated section. They super-pasteurize it, or something, so that it has a long shelf life. I have some milk in my cabinet that is good until New Year’s Eve. Now about the boxes, the Germans are just good about keeping things condensed, because they don’t have much refrigerator space. They are so energy conscious, and utilities costs so much, that they tend to have mini-fridges, so they have to watch how they use their space.
Once you have your boxed juice, milk, and some sort of pork products – they have much more pork here than beef – you head to the check out. Now, let me prepare you – get your bags ready, and brace yourself. The customer service mentality is very different here. People who serve you – at the grocery store, post office, bank, restaurant, anywhere – are for the most part not concerned if you had a pleasant shopping (or banking or dining or whatever) experience. Service with a smile can be hard to find. Now, back to your grocery shopping experience. Do you have your bag ready? Cause you’re going to be bagging your own groceries. Oh, you forgot your bag? Well, that’ll be an extra 20 cents for a bag. And for goodness sakes, don’t hold up the line!
Restaurants aren’t too bad, to tell the truth. The waiters take your order, bring you your food, and then leave you alone until you ask for the check. You could take all day if you wanted. Waitresses don’t hover to refill your glass, because ‘free refills’ is a foreign concept here. If you want another drink, you can pay two Euros for another ice-free glass of cool cola. Sometimes Germans won’t even order a drink with their meal.
Since we’re talking about food again, let me tell you why I love Germany. Chocolate. It is the best. I don’t care what you think you know about Swiss or Belgian or whatever chocolate – German chocolate takes the cake (get it? German chocolate cake!). Seriously. It is the best. Another great thing about Germany is the Döner. It’s not a native German food, but it’s all over here. The Döner is a fresh pita shell filled with shaved meat (lamb, I think), sauce, shredded red and white cabbage, cucumber, tomato, goat cheese, and onion. Tasty! I think that it is Turkish. There is a restaurant a block and a half away from my apartment that sells them for two Euros, and they are big enough to eat for lunch and dinner. Ah, a Döner for dinner…yum.
I could go on, but I’ve already taken up too much of your time. If you want to read some more about those Germans and their wacky ways (jk), check out Deanna’s posts, Living Less, and The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly, and Martha’s Culture Shock (part 3).
Thank you for reading this far! Kudos to you for you endurance! It must be because you love me! Or something like that :)
See ya on the flip side!
Janine
I don’t think I mentioned it in my post last week, but the weather definitely took a turn for the wurst, I mean worst last week. (Not really – I just wanted an excuse to use that CORNY joke! It’s the simple things, really…) It really just got cooler (and a little wetter) last week. The temperatures had been in the 80’s since I got to Chemnitz, with just one rainy day till last Monday (9/12). Then the temperatures plummeted to the 50’s, with rain for three days or so last week. Things have cleared up (get it, cleared up?!), and it’s warmed up to the mid-60’s this week, with the forecast looking good for the weekend – a high of 21 degrees is predicted for the next three days, so it’ll be a nice weekend. Oh, you don’t know Celsius yet? You crazy Americans! That’s 70 degrees for those of you who can’t (or, more likely, choose not to) multiply by 9/5 and add 32. [21 degrees C actually converts to 69.8 degrees F for those of you, ahem, mechanical engineers out there who like their decimals.]
What else (besides the weather) is different about Chemnitz? Now that you mention it…
Well, for one thing, I’m a little thrown off when I see kids – yes, I said kids – of about 15 drinking Bier out on the street in broad daylight. I mean, they can’t even drive yet (you have to be 18 to drive) which is good, I suppose. Sometimes I want to walk up to them and ask them, “Do your parents know what you’re doing?!” but then their parents were probably drinking (legally) at that age, too, so I’m not sure it would make any difference.
On a lighter note, I’ve been enjoying the bakeries A LOT! The pastries, cakes – yum! And you can buy a fresh roll for a quarter! Where can you buy anything for a quarter anymore? I’ll tell you where - at your neighbor hood bakery…or the one two doors down…or the one around the corner…or down the street…you get the point. I’m exaggerating (slightly), but there is one spot downtown where you can stand inside one bakery, and see two others in the same square. And a Subway right down the street. I’ve been able to resist so far, but if I ever get really homesick, I may splurge.
Now, you may wonder how I’m going to maintain my girlish figure with this high carb diet. Well, I think that elevators have been outlawed here. Not really, but I do get lots of exercise from walking around all the time. And up and down the two flights of stairs to my apartment. Luckily, there is a grocery store just a block away, so I don’t have to walk too far to get there.
The grocery store is a whole adventure in itself. If you want to use a shopping cart (that means buggy to you Tennesseans) you have to make sure you have a one Euro coin. They have a little slot in the handle that you have to push the coin into, to unlatch its chain from the row of carts. You get your Euro back when you return your cart. It sure keeps the parking lots clear! Things are pretty normal inside the grocery store – German food is pretty normal – except for a few things. You have to pay a 25-cent deposit on almost any bottled drink. Soda, or mineral water (Germans love their Mineralwasser – club soda with some minerals added, basically) usually comes in 1.5 liter bottles. That’s the largest you’ll see. (A bottle of store brand Mineralwasser costs less than the deposit. And you can choose from no bubbles on up to very bubbly.) Juice is mostly found in 1 L boxes. That’s right. Boxes. So’s the milk, for that matter. You can buy your boxed milk from the non-refrigerated section. They super-pasteurize it, or something, so that it has a long shelf life. I have some milk in my cabinet that is good until New Year’s Eve. Now about the boxes, the Germans are just good about keeping things condensed, because they don’t have much refrigerator space. They are so energy conscious, and utilities costs so much, that they tend to have mini-fridges, so they have to watch how they use their space.
Once you have your boxed juice, milk, and some sort of pork products – they have much more pork here than beef – you head to the check out. Now, let me prepare you – get your bags ready, and brace yourself. The customer service mentality is very different here. People who serve you – at the grocery store, post office, bank, restaurant, anywhere – are for the most part not concerned if you had a pleasant shopping (or banking or dining or whatever) experience. Service with a smile can be hard to find. Now, back to your grocery shopping experience. Do you have your bag ready? Cause you’re going to be bagging your own groceries. Oh, you forgot your bag? Well, that’ll be an extra 20 cents for a bag. And for goodness sakes, don’t hold up the line!
Restaurants aren’t too bad, to tell the truth. The waiters take your order, bring you your food, and then leave you alone until you ask for the check. You could take all day if you wanted. Waitresses don’t hover to refill your glass, because ‘free refills’ is a foreign concept here. If you want another drink, you can pay two Euros for another ice-free glass of cool cola. Sometimes Germans won’t even order a drink with their meal.
Since we’re talking about food again, let me tell you why I love Germany. Chocolate. It is the best. I don’t care what you think you know about Swiss or Belgian or whatever chocolate – German chocolate takes the cake (get it? German chocolate cake!). Seriously. It is the best. Another great thing about Germany is the Döner. It’s not a native German food, but it’s all over here. The Döner is a fresh pita shell filled with shaved meat (lamb, I think), sauce, shredded red and white cabbage, cucumber, tomato, goat cheese, and onion. Tasty! I think that it is Turkish. There is a restaurant a block and a half away from my apartment that sells them for two Euros, and they are big enough to eat for lunch and dinner. Ah, a Döner for dinner…yum.
I could go on, but I’ve already taken up too much of your time. If you want to read some more about those Germans and their wacky ways (jk), check out Deanna’s posts, Living Less, and The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly, and Martha’s Culture Shock (part 3).
Thank you for reading this far! Kudos to you for you endurance! It must be because you love me! Or something like that :)
See ya on the flip side!
Janine
September 21, 2005
Update Email
Hello all!
Today was a beautiful day in Chemnitz, clear skies and about 19 degrees (66 for you Fahrenheit folks out there). I walked downtown (about 15/20 min) and caught the bus there to the Brubakers apartment. They are actually in the States through the end of next week, speaking at churches (Steven), at a prayer advocates meeting (Celeste), and visiting their two oldest kids. So that means - you guessed it - I am teaching their English class, too!
English classes continue to go well, and I am over the first week-jitters. I had five new people at my English class on Monday, and one new person on Tuesday. I continue to be encouraged by the classes, and I am praying that by the end of the classes (in eight weeks) God will give the students a desire to find out more about Jesus, and to join a Bible study or discipleship group. I have had a few chances to get together with Ute, one of my students, already.
The "Kaffee und Kuchen" went well on Saturday. Several of my neighbors came, and one couple even brought their twin baby boys. I was being called Tante (Aunt) before the afternoon was through, and they are trying to convince me to stay for five years, not just one! I was so happy that some people came, as the Brubakers offered a similar sort of invitation to their neighbors before, and only one person came, out of pity!
I had a visit on Tuesday from Martha Moore and Deanna (pronounced Dee-na) Davis, two missionaries in Jena, a nearby city. They work with a (college) student ministry there and in neighboring Weimar. We only had about an hour to talk before my class started that evening, but I am looking forward to picking their brains for ideas for college outreach.
As I mentioned earlier, the Brubakers are out of town this week. The reality of being away from Knoxville hit me last Friday, and I had a minor meltdown. I really did not think that it would be so hard to be away from family, friends, and church (oh, how I love you!!). God, in His perfect plan - I praise Him for it - has brought me to a place where I HAVE to rely on Him. I have had to go through a (albeit short) valley, but I believe that He has brought me through it to a deeper, and more intimate relationship with Him. I have claimed Philippeans 4:6-7 for myself, and He has given me His peace. I have never lived by myself before, but I am learning what a blessing it is to be able to walk around all the time, reciting verses, and praying out loud. (If the walls in my living room could talk they'd tell you that the crazy lady is talking to the arm chair like there's really someone there!) The Holy Spirit has been revealing Himself to me so much this week! I am learning so much about what it means to submit myself to His authority, in all things, great and small.
Please pray for the English classes, that more people would come to them, and that they would desire to know more about Jesus, and ultimately be saved. Please pray for God to give me the opportunity, courage, and the right words to share the truth with my students, especially Ute. Please pray for God to continue to open doors with my neighbors, and for good relationships with them.
For the college outreach, please pray that God will give me the discernment and wisdom to know what His will is, and guidance as to what form the ministry will take. Classes start in the middle of October.
Thank you for your prayers - you are all such a blessing to me!
Love in Christ,
Janine Tessarzik
Clausstr. 110
09126 Chemnitz
Germany
http://photos.yahoo.com/jtessarzik
If this is the first email you have received from me, and you would like a copy of my first update, just reply and let me know!
September 16, 2005
Chemnitz, Schmemnitz
Things in Chemnitz are going well! English classes have begun, and the Lord is already opening doors! If you want to be added to my prayer email list, just comment on this post, and I’ll be able to add you. For the sake of those of you who are already on the list, and have already read my recent email update, I’ll write about some new things.
I found something interesting last week (or earlier) when I opened up my map of Chemnitz. It turns out that there is a region of the city called Siegmar – which just happens to be my dad’s name! Weird, huh?! I’m going to go to the library and see if there’s any information on how long it’s been called Siegmar, because as the story goes, my uncle (who was seven at the time) made up my dad’s name (in the German tradition of combining words). They were in East Prussia (now Poland) at that time, so my Onkel Jürgen had probably never heard of that part of the city of Chemnitz, and probably thought he did make it up. My dad was absolutely surprised when I told him about the coincidence! He just couldn’t believe that there was a place named after him! (jk – but he was surprised)
My apartment is now finally complete! I have a functioning washer and dryer, microwave, freezer, desk, dining room/kitchen table, and enough chairs for all of my English students! It all came together with much time, effort (and a bit of money, unfortunately). The microwave and freezer were easy enough (especially since I didn’t have to carry them up the flights of stairs to my apartment!). The desk, table, and four chairs came from Ikea – my first time going there! I was so excited! Now, they were pretty inexpensive, and Ikea’s furnishings usually are, but then you get the experience of putting them together. Not a difficult task, as I had a Phillip’s head screwdriver (one of the few useful things ‘furnished’ with the apartment) and the bag of ‘nuts and bolts’ included with each piece had all the rest! It all went together easily enough, but I’m still recovering from the blister I got from screwing the pieces together.
Now the washer and dryer, well, they are almost worth a post in themselves! Keep in mind that the hook-ups for both machines are in the bathroom. They were delivered (on time!) at about 9:30 in the morning on Tuesday. The deliverymen carried them up the flights of stairs and into my kitchen. Into the kitchen, because the door to my bathroom (for no visible reason!) is uncommonly small. They tried to get the washer into the bathroom when they first brought it up, but it was too big by several centimeters. So they asked me what I wanted them to do with it. When I finally figured out that that was what they were asking me (I have discovered that the good citizens of Chemnitz speak Sechsisch – a regional dialect that could be it’s own language!!) and saw that the washer wouldn’t fit in the door, I had a little bit of a personal freak out. Just a little bit. I called up the Brubakers, who had over some German pastors for an American breakfast, to ask what I should do (do we return them, put them in the kitchen, what???), and Steve said to just have them put them in the kitchen for the time being. I guess it was a good thing that I hadn’t yet put together the kitchen table, so there was plenty of room.
Well, later that day, Steve came over with his toolbox, and, after taking off all the hoses from the back of the washer, the washer door, the top of the washer, the door to the bathroom, and the knob from the front of the washer, we were barely able to angle it in. But only just. I had to push in the buttons on the front of the machine one by one as we slid it through the door. Talk about a tight squeeze! Steve managed to get all the parts back together (without having anything left over!) and I washed and dried my first load of laundry that night (before and after English class).
The weekend was a lot more relaxing for me than Tuesday, to say the least! There are always soccer games being played on the field across the street from my apartment, and on Saturday, as I was cleaning, I heard the usual noise from games being held. Then it got quiet for a little while, so I peeked out my window. By the row of parked cars next to the field, I saw the next team to play unloading its gear. And I realized that the reason why it had gotten so much quieter was that the players were not speaking or yelling to each other, but signing! I was intrigued, so after the game had started I went over and watched for a while. It turned out that both teams had both hearing and deaf players, and it was the neatest thing to see how the players and coaches all managed to communicate with each other.
Later that day, I went downtown, and window shopped at the mall, got my first treat of ice cream (really it’s gelato), and saw Charlie und die Schokoladenfabrik. I liked the movie, and it was good for me to hear it in German.
If you want to see the pictures I’ve taken up to now (before and after shots of my apartment, the colorful campus of the Technische Universität, the GIANT HEAD!) go check out my Yahoo! photos page (http://photos.yahoo.com/jtessarzik).
That’s enough to bore you with for now. I’ll probably update again next weekend. I’ve got to get to bed now!
That’s a J-9, over and out
I found something interesting last week (or earlier) when I opened up my map of Chemnitz. It turns out that there is a region of the city called Siegmar – which just happens to be my dad’s name! Weird, huh?! I’m going to go to the library and see if there’s any information on how long it’s been called Siegmar, because as the story goes, my uncle (who was seven at the time) made up my dad’s name (in the German tradition of combining words). They were in East Prussia (now Poland) at that time, so my Onkel Jürgen had probably never heard of that part of the city of Chemnitz, and probably thought he did make it up. My dad was absolutely surprised when I told him about the coincidence! He just couldn’t believe that there was a place named after him! (jk – but he was surprised)
My apartment is now finally complete! I have a functioning washer and dryer, microwave, freezer, desk, dining room/kitchen table, and enough chairs for all of my English students! It all came together with much time, effort (and a bit of money, unfortunately). The microwave and freezer were easy enough (especially since I didn’t have to carry them up the flights of stairs to my apartment!). The desk, table, and four chairs came from Ikea – my first time going there! I was so excited! Now, they were pretty inexpensive, and Ikea’s furnishings usually are, but then you get the experience of putting them together. Not a difficult task, as I had a Phillip’s head screwdriver (one of the few useful things ‘furnished’ with the apartment) and the bag of ‘nuts and bolts’ included with each piece had all the rest! It all went together easily enough, but I’m still recovering from the blister I got from screwing the pieces together.
Now the washer and dryer, well, they are almost worth a post in themselves! Keep in mind that the hook-ups for both machines are in the bathroom. They were delivered (on time!) at about 9:30 in the morning on Tuesday. The deliverymen carried them up the flights of stairs and into my kitchen. Into the kitchen, because the door to my bathroom (for no visible reason!) is uncommonly small. They tried to get the washer into the bathroom when they first brought it up, but it was too big by several centimeters. So they asked me what I wanted them to do with it. When I finally figured out that that was what they were asking me (I have discovered that the good citizens of Chemnitz speak Sechsisch – a regional dialect that could be it’s own language!!) and saw that the washer wouldn’t fit in the door, I had a little bit of a personal freak out. Just a little bit. I called up the Brubakers, who had over some German pastors for an American breakfast, to ask what I should do (do we return them, put them in the kitchen, what???), and Steve said to just have them put them in the kitchen for the time being. I guess it was a good thing that I hadn’t yet put together the kitchen table, so there was plenty of room.
Well, later that day, Steve came over with his toolbox, and, after taking off all the hoses from the back of the washer, the washer door, the top of the washer, the door to the bathroom, and the knob from the front of the washer, we were barely able to angle it in. But only just. I had to push in the buttons on the front of the machine one by one as we slid it through the door. Talk about a tight squeeze! Steve managed to get all the parts back together (without having anything left over!) and I washed and dried my first load of laundry that night (before and after English class).
The weekend was a lot more relaxing for me than Tuesday, to say the least! There are always soccer games being played on the field across the street from my apartment, and on Saturday, as I was cleaning, I heard the usual noise from games being held. Then it got quiet for a little while, so I peeked out my window. By the row of parked cars next to the field, I saw the next team to play unloading its gear. And I realized that the reason why it had gotten so much quieter was that the players were not speaking or yelling to each other, but signing! I was intrigued, so after the game had started I went over and watched for a while. It turned out that both teams had both hearing and deaf players, and it was the neatest thing to see how the players and coaches all managed to communicate with each other.
Later that day, I went downtown, and window shopped at the mall, got my first treat of ice cream (really it’s gelato), and saw Charlie und die Schokoladenfabrik. I liked the movie, and it was good for me to hear it in German.
If you want to see the pictures I’ve taken up to now (before and after shots of my apartment, the colorful campus of the Technische Universität, the GIANT HEAD!) go check out my Yahoo! photos page (http://photos.yahoo.com/jtessarzik).
That’s enough to bore you with for now. I’ll probably update again next weekend. I’ve got to get to bed now!
That’s a J-9, over and out
September 12, 2005
Books
Howdy, folks!
I’m getting settled into the apartment. (If you want to read more about that, check out my Xanga site.) I’ve had a lot of time to read lately, and I’ve finished off a book or two. I’ve read Safely Home, by Randy Alcorn, and Blue Like Jazz, by Donald Miller.
Safely Home reminded me of just how easy we have it in America (and even here in Germany) as Christians. It made me wonder if a little persecution (not that I’m asking for it!) wouldn’t make us a little more passionate about our faith. We have copies (I’ve got a couple with me here) of the Word, and we treat it like just another book on the shelf. We don’t cherish it like the treasure that it truly is.
Now, I’ve edited the rest of this post. One of my dear friends took the time to write me an email about what she read in this post, and I’ve just replaced my post with her email, as it includes the rest of my post. (I’ve put her comments in bold.) I did not want to leave my post up in its condition. I really dislike the idea of perpetuating something that is false! Please read and think about what she has written.
Hi Janine,
Thanks for writing back! I've read some from your sites, so I know more about your world. Whatever did we do before the I-net?
I'm going to copy in part of your blog, so's to comment on your thoughts.
YOU: Reading Blue Like Jazz felt like I was reading the journal of someone of (almost) my own age who has grown up in the same time as me, and who is a Christian, and has come to some of the same conclusions as me, or has searched out the answers to some of the questions I have been asking. (please forgive that run-on sentence) He has had some of the same struggles I have had. I can relate to his writing. He is real.
One of the recurring themes is caring more about yourself than other people. Is this what the post-modern culture has done to us? Even though some of my actions may give the impression that I care about others, I continually catch myself caring more about myself. My prayers can be so selfish. “You ask and do not receive because you ask with wrong motives, so that you may spend it on your pleasures.” Jas 4:3 I want my motives to be right.
As a side note from this literary excursion, I found myself in the first few days after I arrived here feeling sort of listless, and wondering what even to pray about. I think that in all the busy-ness of getting ready to leave, I lost sight of the fact that I’m here to do God’s will, to reach the lost. And I suppose this is not so much of a side note, because one of my favorite quotes from the book about one of Miller’s friends is, “He didn’t really see evangelism, or whatever you want to call it, as a target on a wall in which the goal is to get people to agree with us about the meaning of life. He saw evangelism as reaching a felt need.” (p. 114 emp. mine)
ME: Well, dearest, it seems to me you're stepping onto the slippery footing Mr. Miller offers. You see, the problem with BLJ is that it pulls so strongly away from the foundation of Christianity, which is the revealed nature and plan of God in Scripture. That's what "meaning of life" means.
"Reaching a felt need" starts with the questioner, not the answerer, and moves the responsibility for (and the substance of) the exchange to the wrong person. Evangelism is not "reaching the lost." It's preaching the gospel. It has to be. The lost then get to respond or not. Of course, part of our preaching is the demonstration of God's compassionate nature. But compassion without a true and healing answer is meaningless.
It's much like tossing a rope to a drowning person. You can't make them grab on. Your responsibility is to toss the rope (go where they are and share what you know to be true), and then to make very sure your own footing is solid enough that the rope will be of use in their rescue. You mention a concern with selfishness. Many of our needs are real and must be met before we can offer something to others. The problem with self-seeking isn't that it exists, it's that we seek what we need from something or someone other than God.
YOU: I think that what so many (lost) people need is not another religious person telling them that they are going to hell, and they need to repent, but they need love. “I loved the fact that it wasn’t my responsibility to change somebody, that it was God’s, that my part was just to communicate love and approval.” (p. 221) I (regretfully) found myself identifying with Miller’s sentiment about using love like a commodity – like withholding it will get someone to change. When Jesus talks about being the vine, and us as His followers being the branches, He says (in John 15:10) “’If you keep My commandments, you will abide in My love; just as I have kept My Fathers commandments, and abide in His love.’” And just two verses later (v. 12) He says, “’This is My commandment, that you love one another, just as I have loved you.’” And as Miller quotes one of his friends, “’…to be in a relationship with God is to be loved purely and furiously.’” (p 146) It is my prayer that I would be able to communicate that kind of love to the people around me. I know that I have failed so many times in this mission, but praise God for His grace and mercy, He still lets me try, again and again.
ME: It's interesting that Jesus had no problem telling people they were going to hell unless they repented. He also spent zero time telling folks He approved of them. For example, we are told that Jesus loved the rich young ruler (Matt. 19:21). However, He didn't accept him without the condition that this young man give up everything he owned. When the ruler was unwilling to meet that condition, Jesus sadly but deliberately let him go on his way (Luke 18:24).
It's true that we aren't responsible to change anyone. But that's a LOT different than communicating to them they don't need to be changed. God's love never leaves us as we are, and we shouldn't extend any other kind of love to others, especially in His name.
YOU: On a slightly different note, one of my favorite lines from the book is about (I believe) Joshua Harris. I found it so funny because it seemed like when I Kissed Dating Goodbye came out, so many of the guys in the college group (specifically the He-Man Woman Haters Club!) absolutely loved the book, and as a result ended up not dating/courting or anything! Anyway, I’m going to include the whole paragraph in which the line is found, italicizing my favorite line.
“When I first moved to Oregon I was befriended by this vibrant kid who read a lot of the Bible. Josh was good-looking and obsessed with dating, philosophies of dating, social rituals, and that sort of thing. He was home schooled and raised to believe traditional dating was a bad idea. I traveled with him around the country and introduced him at seminars he would conduct on the pitfalls of dating. He wrote a book about it, and it hit the bestseller list. No kidding. A couple years later he moved to Baltimore and got married. I called him after the wedding and asked him how he got to know his wife without dating. He said they courted, which I understood to mean he had become Amish. But he explained courting is a lot like dating without the head games. He and his wife are also very happy.” (pp 139-140)
ME: You're right, it was Josh Harris he was talking about. His comments here are one of the reasons I believe Don Miller has had no real contact with God. To travel at length with Josh and still not see (and desire) the source of his "vibrancy" and happiness spoke to me of Don's spiritual deadness.
I'm not trying to be hard on you, Janine, or even on DM, but these are exactly the kinds of confusions that has made the modern church so impotent. The lost world so desperately needs the full-strength combination of TRUTH and LOVE. Have you ever mixed epoxy glue? It takes equal portions of both to have any effect. Most hellfire preachers lack love, most "felt-need reachers" lack truth. Somehow, my dear, you've got to find and cling to both...and, of course, they're both very available through the scripture and God's Spirit.
Love and prayers,
Diane
September 05, 2005
In the apartment!
As my post title indicates, I've moved into the apartment. On Friday, we got the keys, and although the apartment was not as newly furnished as the rental agent had indicated it would be, it is now home. We spent all day Saturday fixing it up (putting in light fixture, shower curtain, minor things like that!), and I spent Saturday night there. (I'll upload some pictures later.)
On Sunday, I got to go to a Baptist church in Chemnitz. Much different from Calvary. I understood some of what the preacher said, but he spoke with a pretty strong accent. Sunday, we passed out flyers for the English class the Brubakers will be teaching. Here, unless there is a sticker on the mailbox saying "no advertisements" you can put in any kind of flyers. Then, that evening, we had an English evening at the Brubaker's apartment. There were five Germans who came. Our topic of discussion was food. It was a good time, but turns out that one of the women's husband is a preacher, one of the men is good friends with him, and another woman goes to an international church. Not that there's anything wrong with that, but the ESL classes are to be an avenue to reach unsaved people. Ah, well, maybe there'll be a different response to the classes we're offering out of my apartment. The classes that I'm leading will be Mondays and Tuesdays, September 12/13 - November 21/22 (ten weeks). Please pray that there will be response to the flyers, and that I'll be able to develop relationships with many of my neighbors.
Today, I walked to the university, which is about a 15 minute walk from my apartment. I saw a couple of student apartment buildings, but not to many students. Hopefully I'll get to know many of them when classes start up again in October.
I guess that's all for now.
Janine
On Sunday, I got to go to a Baptist church in Chemnitz. Much different from Calvary. I understood some of what the preacher said, but he spoke with a pretty strong accent. Sunday, we passed out flyers for the English class the Brubakers will be teaching. Here, unless there is a sticker on the mailbox saying "no advertisements" you can put in any kind of flyers. Then, that evening, we had an English evening at the Brubaker's apartment. There were five Germans who came. Our topic of discussion was food. It was a good time, but turns out that one of the women's husband is a preacher, one of the men is good friends with him, and another woman goes to an international church. Not that there's anything wrong with that, but the ESL classes are to be an avenue to reach unsaved people. Ah, well, maybe there'll be a different response to the classes we're offering out of my apartment. The classes that I'm leading will be Mondays and Tuesdays, September 12/13 - November 21/22 (ten weeks). Please pray that there will be response to the flyers, and that I'll be able to develop relationships with many of my neighbors.
Today, I walked to the university, which is about a 15 minute walk from my apartment. I saw a couple of student apartment buildings, but not to many students. Hopefully I'll get to know many of them when classes start up again in October.
I guess that's all for now.
Janine
September 02, 2005
Steve and Celeste
These are the missionaries I'm working with in Chemnitz. Click on the photo to link to Flickr to check out some of the other photos I took!
September 01, 2005
Well, I'm here!
So, folks, I've finally arrived in beautiful Germany! It is beautiful today. It's pretty hot out (especially for Germany at this time of year - keep in mind that air conditioning is not a common thing around here!) and sunny.
I'll give you all a run down of how my last few days have gone.
I rode to Atlanta with Tim Kolody who was kind enough to give up his day to drive me down there. He was a great conversationalist, which was great, but I was still pretty tired from getting about four hours of sleep each of the previous four nights from final preparations, so I'm not sure I was able to keep up with him.
In Atlanta, things started to get a little interesting. I was over the weight limit with both of my checked bags, so despite my efforts to keep costs down by shipping stuff on Monday (sorry Em) I ended up still needing to pay to send over an extra box. So for those of you who are at my level of ability of reading between the lines, this meant that I had to hoof it to find a box shop, and in the middle of ATL, repack my bags/box, then hoof it back to the British Airways counter to finish checking in, just at the one hour mark. I sure am glad that we left early enough to have a cushion of time.
So, needless to say, I made it to the gate just before they started boarding the flight. I ended up sitting in the middle row of several rows of this English high school/university age pops orchestra (complete with instruments and matching shirts). That was pretty neat. They really like the US, and one of the guys I talked to wants to move there.
On the plane to London, I stayed awake for dinner, and most of The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Universe. Then I pretty much slept until we landed in London. Then, a short seven hours later, I flew to Hanover, where Steve and Celeste Brubaker met me. You may be wondering if all my luggage made it in one piece. Well, it all made it. But the box looked like it had been beaten up and torn apart (that may just be part of the new safety procedures, I don't know) but the only thing holding it together was the tape that had been wrapped around it. I'm pretty sure all the books that were in it are still there, but I haven't had a good chance to go through it yet.
We left the airport, and drove on the Autobahn for about four hours to Chemnitz, and on the way, stopped for my first German meal - Burger King. I spent last night (tonight, probably, too) at the Brubaker's, since we still don't have a key to my apartment. (The agent was in a car accident, and they haven't been able to get a hold of her yet.) I actually kind of like it. It's nice to be with people when you're in a new country/city.
Today the Brubakers took me through the city of Chemnitz, and I took some pictures. It is a very quintessentially East German City. I'll post some pictures in a bit. Till then, Tschuss!
I'll give you all a run down of how my last few days have gone.
I rode to Atlanta with Tim Kolody who was kind enough to give up his day to drive me down there. He was a great conversationalist, which was great, but I was still pretty tired from getting about four hours of sleep each of the previous four nights from final preparations, so I'm not sure I was able to keep up with him.
In Atlanta, things started to get a little interesting. I was over the weight limit with both of my checked bags, so despite my efforts to keep costs down by shipping stuff on Monday (sorry Em) I ended up still needing to pay to send over an extra box. So for those of you who are at my level of ability of reading between the lines, this meant that I had to hoof it to find a box shop, and in the middle of ATL, repack my bags/box, then hoof it back to the British Airways counter to finish checking in, just at the one hour mark. I sure am glad that we left early enough to have a cushion of time.
So, needless to say, I made it to the gate just before they started boarding the flight. I ended up sitting in the middle row of several rows of this English high school/university age pops orchestra (complete with instruments and matching shirts). That was pretty neat. They really like the US, and one of the guys I talked to wants to move there.
On the plane to London, I stayed awake for dinner, and most of The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Universe. Then I pretty much slept until we landed in London. Then, a short seven hours later, I flew to Hanover, where Steve and Celeste Brubaker met me. You may be wondering if all my luggage made it in one piece. Well, it all made it. But the box looked like it had been beaten up and torn apart (that may just be part of the new safety procedures, I don't know) but the only thing holding it together was the tape that had been wrapped around it. I'm pretty sure all the books that were in it are still there, but I haven't had a good chance to go through it yet.
We left the airport, and drove on the Autobahn for about four hours to Chemnitz, and on the way, stopped for my first German meal - Burger King. I spent last night (tonight, probably, too) at the Brubaker's, since we still don't have a key to my apartment. (The agent was in a car accident, and they haven't been able to get a hold of her yet.) I actually kind of like it. It's nice to be with people when you're in a new country/city.
Today the Brubakers took me through the city of Chemnitz, and I took some pictures. It is a very quintessentially East German City. I'll post some pictures in a bit. Till then, Tschuss!
August 09, 2005
It's the final countdown
Three weeks.
One week till NY. Pray for me - safe travel, and safe visit. I'll be at home (in the guest room on the pull-out sofa) with my mom, dad, and my brother. Bless his heart, I called home last night, and he answered the phone (which caught me off-guard - almost didn't recognize his voice - since he's not been home much this summer) and proceeded to 'reassure' me that he would not be home too much during the week I'll be home, but that we would see each other on the weekend.
I am starting to really feel the pressure of the final few days. I can't believe how quickly the time has flown by! Someone asked me the other day what I've been doing this summer, and I blanked. I said something like, "Well, I've been busy, but I just remember doing what right now." I had to look back at my day planner to see what I've actually been doing.
Praise, praise, praise!
God has resolved some things for me financially today. It was a great relief to hear the news.
Good eats - last night after our not-so-single class/ministry/group prayer meeting, some of us went out to Wok HAY! for dinner. I really liked my lo mein (Em didn't like her pad tai, though, so buyer beware). Sorina and her Romanian palate didn't have much of a taste for her mango salsa, but she managed to stomach the ahi tuna. And I suppose those last comments make it sound like the food wasn't too good, but I really liked it - probably because I got the best (unique) fortune - 'You will be fortunate in everything you put your hands on.' Hopefully that bodes well for the coming year!
Tschus -
J-9-er
One week till NY. Pray for me - safe travel, and safe visit. I'll be at home (in the guest room on the pull-out sofa) with my mom, dad, and my brother. Bless his heart, I called home last night, and he answered the phone (which caught me off-guard - almost didn't recognize his voice - since he's not been home much this summer) and proceeded to 'reassure' me that he would not be home too much during the week I'll be home, but that we would see each other on the weekend.
I am starting to really feel the pressure of the final few days. I can't believe how quickly the time has flown by! Someone asked me the other day what I've been doing this summer, and I blanked. I said something like, "Well, I've been busy, but I just remember doing what right now." I had to look back at my day planner to see what I've actually been doing.
Praise, praise, praise!
God has resolved some things for me financially today. It was a great relief to hear the news.
Good eats - last night after our not-so-single class/ministry/group prayer meeting, some of us went out to Wok HAY! for dinner. I really liked my lo mein (Em didn't like her pad tai, though, so buyer beware). Sorina and her Romanian palate didn't have much of a taste for her mango salsa, but she managed to stomach the ahi tuna. And I suppose those last comments make it sound like the food wasn't too good, but I really liked it - probably because I got the best (unique) fortune - 'You will be fortunate in everything you put your hands on.' Hopefully that bodes well for the coming year!
Tschus -
J-9-er
August 03, 2005
Deutschland
Well, folks (if there's anyone out there who still reads this thing!), things have changed around again since my last posting. The executive board of Project Purpose 2005 decided that there would be no PP'05, so this summer has been much different than I expected. I have still done some temping, helped out with a church thing, done some volunteering at Montgomery Village, moved (thanks Tommy and Kristy), and done some babysitting. A pretty mixed bag of things, but it's kept me busy.
As I write this blog, I am in Nashville, at a home that has become somewhat of a rest/rejuvenate place for me. Several weeks ago, God convicted me of a need to make a decision to be obedient to His will in an area of my life, and it is as if since making that decision, a weight has been lifted from my shoulders, a veil has been lifted from in front of my eyes, and like everything has gone from black and white to color. Praise God! He is so faithful, and knows exactly what we need and in what timing. He has brought me so much closer to Himself over the past few weeks, but I could feel myself starting to let things get in the way, so I knew I just needed a small break to get away, focus, and come back refreshed from some reading, praying, and stimulating spiritual conversation. It is like when I finally hear truth about something, I can finally exhale, and God has been revealing some big truths to me lately.
I am in the final count down, friends. It is less than four weeks until I depart for Germany. I will be there for a year (!), teaching English, and doing other various things. I am so excited (ask anyone who has any contact with me...oh, what, you probably are someone who has contact with me!) about this trip, and how God has perfectly orchestrated it. It has been amazing to look back and see how God has had His hand on my life, guiding me to this point, without my realizing that this was where He was guiding me.
Thank you for your prayers as I have been raising support for the mission trip to Chemnitz. Please pray that the Lord's will would be done. That's the main thing.
Love to all!
Janine
PS - check out this article for a little bit of insight into the current state of Christianity in Europe.
As I write this blog, I am in Nashville, at a home that has become somewhat of a rest/rejuvenate place for me. Several weeks ago, God convicted me of a need to make a decision to be obedient to His will in an area of my life, and it is as if since making that decision, a weight has been lifted from my shoulders, a veil has been lifted from in front of my eyes, and like everything has gone from black and white to color. Praise God! He is so faithful, and knows exactly what we need and in what timing. He has brought me so much closer to Himself over the past few weeks, but I could feel myself starting to let things get in the way, so I knew I just needed a small break to get away, focus, and come back refreshed from some reading, praying, and stimulating spiritual conversation. It is like when I finally hear truth about something, I can finally exhale, and God has been revealing some big truths to me lately.
I am in the final count down, friends. It is less than four weeks until I depart for Germany. I will be there for a year (!), teaching English, and doing other various things. I am so excited (ask anyone who has any contact with me...oh, what, you probably are someone who has contact with me!) about this trip, and how God has perfectly orchestrated it. It has been amazing to look back and see how God has had His hand on my life, guiding me to this point, without my realizing that this was where He was guiding me.
Thank you for your prayers as I have been raising support for the mission trip to Chemnitz. Please pray that the Lord's will would be done. That's the main thing.
Love to all!
Janine
PS - check out this article for a little bit of insight into the current state of Christianity in Europe.
June 08, 2005
Updates
So, to be true to the title of this blog, I will fill you in on what I've been up to over the past few weeks.
I've stopped temping now, because I am getting ready for Project Purpose '05 to gear up. PP'05 is a Christian summer camp for teenagers at Montgomery Village, the housing projects in south Knoxville. I'm one of the leaders, and we are getting ready to start in less than two weeks. We are finalizing daily schedules, and basically getting everything organized so that we can effectively minister to the kids.
Camp goes through August 5, and then it's but a few short weeks before I leave the States for Germany. I'm going to be in Chemnitz for one year on a mission trip. Please pray for me as I raise support and am traveling.
That's the nitty gritty of it all. I'm so excited about this summer and the coming year! I'll be posting some more info over the coming weeks. Let me know any questions you might have (I know I've been pretty brief, but it's after 2 in the AM).
J to the 9, signing out
I've stopped temping now, because I am getting ready for Project Purpose '05 to gear up. PP'05 is a Christian summer camp for teenagers at Montgomery Village, the housing projects in south Knoxville. I'm one of the leaders, and we are getting ready to start in less than two weeks. We are finalizing daily schedules, and basically getting everything organized so that we can effectively minister to the kids.
Camp goes through August 5, and then it's but a few short weeks before I leave the States for Germany. I'm going to be in Chemnitz for one year on a mission trip. Please pray for me as I raise support and am traveling.
That's the nitty gritty of it all. I'm so excited about this summer and the coming year! I'll be posting some more info over the coming weeks. Let me know any questions you might have (I know I've been pretty brief, but it's after 2 in the AM).
J to the 9, signing out
May 18, 2005
Ch- Ch- Ch- Changes
Well, things are changing. Call me fickle, but I guess that's just part of my perogative, being a woman and all. I'm no longer really pursuing the whole forensics thing (although it still seems incredibly interesting to me, and I will probably always enjoy reading about/watching programs about forensic investigations). I had applied with the TBI early in April...six weeks later, I found out just how unlikely their hiring of me would be.
If you're wondering what I am planning on doing, well, I am looking into something. If you really care, you can ask me. I feel kind of funny about posting it on the internet, like it would jinx it or something (not that I actually believe in that). I feel like I have a tendency to jump to the next project/job/whatever, but I'm praying that in this process that I'll be going through over the next few months will provide me with some input from other people as to whether my idea is crazy or not. That's not to say that I'm easily swayed by what other people say, but I look for confirmation (or not) for something that I'm thinking in the comments they make.
On a different topic, I had a blast playing softball last night with the Calvary women's team. We may not have scored many runs, but we had fun out there. I was so excited that I actually got on base both times I got up to bat. I wish I was more familiar with playing softball, but I guess it'll be a learning experience for me to play a sport I'm new to. It's fun playing a team sport, too! Sure, there's a track team, but you don't have to work together like a softball team. Come check out our games next Tuesday at 7:20 and 8:25 and watch us represent for the CBC!
If you're wondering what I am planning on doing, well, I am looking into something. If you really care, you can ask me. I feel kind of funny about posting it on the internet, like it would jinx it or something (not that I actually believe in that). I feel like I have a tendency to jump to the next project/job/whatever, but I'm praying that in this process that I'll be going through over the next few months will provide me with some input from other people as to whether my idea is crazy or not. That's not to say that I'm easily swayed by what other people say, but I look for confirmation (or not) for something that I'm thinking in the comments they make.
On a different topic, I had a blast playing softball last night with the Calvary women's team. We may not have scored many runs, but we had fun out there. I was so excited that I actually got on base both times I got up to bat. I wish I was more familiar with playing softball, but I guess it'll be a learning experience for me to play a sport I'm new to. It's fun playing a team sport, too! Sure, there's a track team, but you don't have to work together like a softball team. Come check out our games next Tuesday at 7:20 and 8:25 and watch us represent for the CBC!
May 05, 2005
Back, and better than ever!
Well, I've awoken from my slumber (and graded papers for the last time in the foreseeable future). I received an incredibly sweet email from one of my students from this semester. It is so rewarding to know that someone is really appreciative. I guess it sort of gave me a feeling that I made a difference, even if it was small.
May 04, 2005
Running on fumes
Yes, I certainly am.
I went to the Women's Adventure Social last night at the Climbing Center off of Sutherland Ave. It was my first time rock climbing (wall climbing) and I loved it! I actually got to the top of the wall several times (yeah, it was the easy wall, but for someone with a fear of unprotected heights - and you can't get much less protected than that - it was definately an accomplishment). I made the most of our three hours there, and I am feeling the pain today. With every letter I type, I can feel it in my forearms/fingers, bi's and tri's, shoulders, and back. I think my foot is even a little sore from pushing off of the holds so much.
I think maybe I'm sore today (not only because I haven't worked out in a while...a very long while, but) because I haven't been to bed yet. I just completed my final final (not a typo) on chemical applications of group theory. Yes, it is just as much fun as it sounds. And I had sort of neglected to go to class for the last month of the semester, so I had to learn all that material in about 12 hours. You may call it cramming, but I believe I'll retain it. I shall find out tomorrow how successful I was.
I'm now going home to crash. If you miss me at church tonight, it's because I'm in the bed, and will be till morning comes. Then it's back to campus by 10 am to grade some other poor fool's final. Ah, the joys of teaching!
I went to the Women's Adventure Social last night at the Climbing Center off of Sutherland Ave. It was my first time rock climbing (wall climbing) and I loved it! I actually got to the top of the wall several times (yeah, it was the easy wall, but for someone with a fear of unprotected heights - and you can't get much less protected than that - it was definately an accomplishment). I made the most of our three hours there, and I am feeling the pain today. With every letter I type, I can feel it in my forearms/fingers, bi's and tri's, shoulders, and back. I think my foot is even a little sore from pushing off of the holds so much.
I think maybe I'm sore today (not only because I haven't worked out in a while...a very long while, but) because I haven't been to bed yet. I just completed my final final (not a typo) on chemical applications of group theory. Yes, it is just as much fun as it sounds. And I had sort of neglected to go to class for the last month of the semester, so I had to learn all that material in about 12 hours. You may call it cramming, but I believe I'll retain it. I shall find out tomorrow how successful I was.
I'm now going home to crash. If you miss me at church tonight, it's because I'm in the bed, and will be till morning comes. Then it's back to campus by 10 am to grade some other poor fool's final. Ah, the joys of teaching!
April 27, 2005
April 19, 2005
CSI, Baby
So, I've decided to forego the next four years of graduate school, and I am now job hunting. I am looking to begin a career in criminalistics. I am excited! I finally (two years after graduating from college!) know what I want to do! I am so fired up about this. I am looking for jobs in Knoxville, but unless the TBI decides to respond to my application, I'll probably end up moving elsewhere. This is a definate downer. But who knows, maybe by the time I find a job, it'll be time to move on to a new town/city/ville.
I suppose my period of transition (from grad student to job hunter) has resulted in my periods of silence on the web. Well now my few readers have a glimpse into why. I didn't really want to advertise my plans, mostly because I wasn't entirely sure what my plans would be. But now that I've committed, everyone can know.
By the way, if anyone out there is hiring, I can send you a hard copy of my resume.
I suppose my period of transition (from grad student to job hunter) has resulted in my periods of silence on the web. Well now my few readers have a glimpse into why. I didn't really want to advertise my plans, mostly because I wasn't entirely sure what my plans would be. But now that I've committed, everyone can know.
By the way, if anyone out there is hiring, I can send you a hard copy of my resume.
March 28, 2005
Yes, I am still alive
Check out some of the photos I took a week ago in Richmond, VA. The flowers were beautiful! I definately want to revisit the Lewis Ginter Botanical Garden in May or June when the outdoor flowers are in full bloom.
February 16, 2005
Do the results flex!
So, I purified my product!
It came to me in a dream...almost. The other day, in those hazy hours just before becoming completely conscious, I had an idea for how to get the diphenylamine out of my product - a fly-over bridge, heating it under vacuum! I was able to sublime the amine away, and clean it out of my product.
I ran NMR this afternoon, and my product in about 85% pure! Much better than the mostly unpure product I had before.
Cheers!
It came to me in a dream...almost. The other day, in those hazy hours just before becoming completely conscious, I had an idea for how to get the diphenylamine out of my product - a fly-over bridge, heating it under vacuum! I was able to sublime the amine away, and clean it out of my product.
I ran NMR this afternoon, and my product in about 85% pure! Much better than the mostly unpure product I had before.
Cheers!
February 15, 2005
Another day, another dollar
Thank you to all those parents who hire poor college students to babysit their kids.
That was how I spent Valentine's Day. Babysitting (and making a decent chunk of change). It made my singleness a little bit easier to bear. [Boy, don't I sound like a martyr. Please read that last sentence as toungue-in-cheek.]
Let me just say that this Valentine's Day was probably the most uneventful I've ever experienced. No calls, no cards, no flowers, no chocolate. And I didn't mind at all. I almost didn't even notice (except for the kids' cards, all the tv shows, and fellow bloggers posts). It really didn't phaze me. I confess, I felt a little pang of jealousy when my roommate opened up her Valentine's package from her folks, but not because it was for Valentine's Day, but because I haven't gotten a care package, or any kind of package, from my parents in what feels like a long time. One of the main ways I receive love, I've learned (see the five love languages) is gifts. Now don't interpret that to mean that my heart can be won with money. On the contrary, it's really the 'thought that counts.' A card with a heartfelt message written in it with a (corny) CD that my someone special mixed just for me can mean more than any diamond necklace.
Anyway, off that tangent and on to the next. Yesterday and today have been kind of wierd days [deleted rest of paragraph]
In the lab, today was a good day! I was able to blow an NMR tube, test it with the tesla coil, clean it, and dry it without breaking it. Now I just need to transfer in my sample and the solvent, seal it, and all will be fine and dandy!
Signing off,
J to the 9
That was how I spent Valentine's Day. Babysitting (and making a decent chunk of change). It made my singleness a little bit easier to bear. [Boy, don't I sound like a martyr. Please read that last sentence as toungue-in-cheek.]
Let me just say that this Valentine's Day was probably the most uneventful I've ever experienced. No calls, no cards, no flowers, no chocolate. And I didn't mind at all. I almost didn't even notice (except for the kids' cards, all the tv shows, and fellow bloggers posts). It really didn't phaze me. I confess, I felt a little pang of jealousy when my roommate opened up her Valentine's package from her folks, but not because it was for Valentine's Day, but because I haven't gotten a care package, or any kind of package, from my parents in what feels like a long time. One of the main ways I receive love, I've learned (see the five love languages) is gifts. Now don't interpret that to mean that my heart can be won with money. On the contrary, it's really the 'thought that counts.' A card with a heartfelt message written in it with a (corny) CD that my someone special mixed just for me can mean more than any diamond necklace.
Anyway, off that tangent and on to the next. Yesterday and today have been kind of wierd days [deleted rest of paragraph]
In the lab, today was a good day! I was able to blow an NMR tube, test it with the tesla coil, clean it, and dry it without breaking it. Now I just need to transfer in my sample and the solvent, seal it, and all will be fine and dandy!
Signing off,
J to the 9
February 10, 2005
February 03, 2005
Garden State
"You know that point in your life when you realize the house you grew up is isn't really your home anymore. All of a sudden, even though you have someplace where you put your [stuff] that idea of home is gone...You'll see one day when you move out. Just sorta happens one day, and it's gone. You feel like you can never get it back. It's like you feel homesick for a place that doesn't even exist. Maybe it's like this rite of passage, you know? You won't ever have that feeling again until you create a new idea of home for yourself. You know, for - - For your kids. For the family you start. It's like a cycle or something, I don't know. But I miss the idea of it, you know? Maybe that's what family really is. A group of people that miss the same imaginary place."
--Andrew Largeman to Sam
--Andrew Largeman to Sam
January 31, 2005
Note to a research advisor...
John,
I am really struggling with crystallizing my product (so I don't have NMR on it yet). I think I understand the concept, but I am having difficulty putting it into practice. I'll talk to Andy about it today. I came in yesterday, and earlier this morning, and I am just not having any success. I'm not sure if I'm just using the wrong solvents, or what.
Also, in anticipation of maybe being able to run an NMR, I attempted to blow an NMR tube (onto the vacuum attachment - whatever it's called) and it was also a miserable failure...let's just say that I suppose I took your advice to heart about making mistakes...now I just need help with the fixing. I had a few moments this weekend where I could sense that my head was 'starting to go down,' or however you put it so well. Then I thought back to what you said last week, and I kept on trying. I'm feeling a little discouraged/frustrated, because I feel like I should have a better idea of what I'm doing, yet I keep on coming up against stumbling blocks. I mean, this is the first time I've come in on a Saturday and a Sunday...and EARLY on a Monday (for me, that is HUGE), and I almost felt like crying due to the lack of visible progress (and because I feel like I should be doing better than I am).
I am trying to believe what you told me last week about how you know that I am capable of the PhD, and that I just need to believe it. I'm going to keep on trying to keep my head up!
I'll talk to you soon,
Janine
I am really struggling with crystallizing my product (so I don't have NMR on it yet). I think I understand the concept, but I am having difficulty putting it into practice. I'll talk to Andy about it today. I came in yesterday, and earlier this morning, and I am just not having any success. I'm not sure if I'm just using the wrong solvents, or what.
Also, in anticipation of maybe being able to run an NMR, I attempted to blow an NMR tube (onto the vacuum attachment - whatever it's called) and it was also a miserable failure...let's just say that I suppose I took your advice to heart about making mistakes...now I just need help with the fixing. I had a few moments this weekend where I could sense that my head was 'starting to go down,' or however you put it so well. Then I thought back to what you said last week, and I kept on trying. I'm feeling a little discouraged/frustrated, because I feel like I should have a better idea of what I'm doing, yet I keep on coming up against stumbling blocks. I mean, this is the first time I've come in on a Saturday and a Sunday...and EARLY on a Monday (for me, that is HUGE), and I almost felt like crying due to the lack of visible progress (and because I feel like I should be doing better than I am).
I am trying to believe what you told me last week about how you know that I am capable of the PhD, and that I just need to believe it. I'm going to keep on trying to keep my head up!
I'll talk to you soon,
Janine
January 11, 2005
So it begins...
Today we (by we I mean the Chem department) had a meeting for all Gen Chem TAs. And so it begins. A brand new year. I am looking forward to my classes. One is full at 24, and the other has half as many students. I did get the Big Orange Screw, with a 3:35-6:35 lab on Fridays. Won't that be swell. I think that this is the first time I've gotten the Screw, though, which is pretty good for five years. I'm only taking one class this semester, and most of my days don't start too early, which is good for me. I do want to make more of an effort to be punctual, and more of an early riser this semester, but that's off to a dismal start. We'll see what the new year brings.
This weekend was fun. I am so glad to be back in Knoxville with friends and Calvary. I feel so at home here, and I love the weather! (I don't care how unwintery it feels. I'll take 70s in January any day!) I had an absolute blast on Friday, going over to Rachel and Emily's house, and then going dancing with Sonya and Lori. I love to dance! I've been doing it since I was, what, 4? Good times. (Even then, I was taller than all the other girls. Not that I've been feeling self-conscious lately about being tall, despite wearing great heels...I need to keep in mind that Uma Thurman is 6', and Nicole Kidman is 5'11" - and they look fabulous.)
On a side note, I have been mulling over all the eating out I did last year, and the effect that it (and my sweet tooth) have had on my health and my wallet. I'm thinking of cutting back...but I love getting to see and talk with BASIC on Sundays. Maybe we'll find another way to get together without going out to eat. We'll have to see.
Well, that's all the randomness for now.
Ciao,
J9
This weekend was fun. I am so glad to be back in Knoxville with friends and Calvary. I feel so at home here, and I love the weather! (I don't care how unwintery it feels. I'll take 70s in January any day!) I had an absolute blast on Friday, going over to Rachel and Emily's house, and then going dancing with Sonya and Lori. I love to dance! I've been doing it since I was, what, 4? Good times. (Even then, I was taller than all the other girls. Not that I've been feeling self-conscious lately about being tall, despite wearing great heels...I need to keep in mind that Uma Thurman is 6', and Nicole Kidman is 5'11" - and they look fabulous.)
On a side note, I have been mulling over all the eating out I did last year, and the effect that it (and my sweet tooth) have had on my health and my wallet. I'm thinking of cutting back...but I love getting to see and talk with BASIC on Sundays. Maybe we'll find another way to get together without going out to eat. We'll have to see.
Well, that's all the randomness for now.
Ciao,
J9
January 07, 2005
Back in Knoxvegas!!
Ahhhh, home sweet Knoxville. I am SO glad to be back. Let's just say that there was some craziness at home. [deleted] Other unfortunate things when I was home - my uncle, Jim, suffered from a burst appendix, emergency appendectomy, hemodialysis, and a collapsed lung. We were called at about 2 am on Thursday morning by someone at the hospital, saying that they didn't think that he would make it, but (by the grace of God) he is now stabilized, and his lung is inflating again.
In terms of other good news from home, I was overjoyed to hear that my cousin has recovered from Hodgkin's Lymphoma! Praise be to God! She doesn't even have to go through all of the chemo treatments she thought she would have to have, and she will begin radiation therapy next month (I think) to kick the cancer's butt, once and for all! Thanks so much to all of my friends who have been praying for her so faithfully since I mentioned it as a prayer request last fall. I saw her when I was home, and she still has her hair, and she was in great spirits. What a testament to the power of prayer. Thank you, thank you, thank you!
In other news, if anyone is planning on actually seeing the ball drop live, just to let you know, you have to get to Times Square by about 5 pm, because that's when they lock down the streets. If you get there at, say, I don't know, 11 pm, you won't be able to even get within two blocks - unless you meet up with two sisters who are in the military and can talk their way into anything. Then the NYPD might let you through...but let's just say that I was able to hear everyone cheer when 2005 rolled around. Along with all the other people who didn't make it on TV. I got some great pics of NYC (to come later).
To recap about Germany, too, the nativity went wonderfully. I had a quiet first Christmas day with my 96-year old Oma. On the second Christmas day, I had Kaffee (coffee - for those of you who are too tired to figure that out) with some friends of the family. That included five Torte. Just to clarify what that means, Kuchen translates to cakes. Torte means cakes, too, but better cake. Delicious! There is nothing quite like German chocolate, pastries, cookies, cakes...basically anything sweet. Out of this world good.
Well, the long drive down here is starting to hit me, so I'm going to sign off.
Enjoy the weekend!
J9
P.S. For anyone who is interested, I think I just might have an assortment of those aforementioned German sweets that I need to have taken off my hands!
In terms of other good news from home, I was overjoyed to hear that my cousin has recovered from Hodgkin's Lymphoma! Praise be to God! She doesn't even have to go through all of the chemo treatments she thought she would have to have, and she will begin radiation therapy next month (I think) to kick the cancer's butt, once and for all! Thanks so much to all of my friends who have been praying for her so faithfully since I mentioned it as a prayer request last fall. I saw her when I was home, and she still has her hair, and she was in great spirits. What a testament to the power of prayer. Thank you, thank you, thank you!
In other news, if anyone is planning on actually seeing the ball drop live, just to let you know, you have to get to Times Square by about 5 pm, because that's when they lock down the streets. If you get there at, say, I don't know, 11 pm, you won't be able to even get within two blocks - unless you meet up with two sisters who are in the military and can talk their way into anything. Then the NYPD might let you through...but let's just say that I was able to hear everyone cheer when 2005 rolled around. Along with all the other people who didn't make it on TV. I got some great pics of NYC (to come later).
To recap about Germany, too, the nativity went wonderfully. I had a quiet first Christmas day with my 96-year old Oma. On the second Christmas day, I had Kaffee (coffee - for those of you who are too tired to figure that out) with some friends of the family. That included five Torte. Just to clarify what that means, Kuchen translates to cakes. Torte means cakes, too, but better cake. Delicious! There is nothing quite like German chocolate, pastries, cookies, cakes...basically anything sweet. Out of this world good.
Well, the long drive down here is starting to hit me, so I'm going to sign off.
Enjoy the weekend!
J9
P.S. For anyone who is interested, I think I just might have an assortment of those aforementioned German sweets that I need to have taken off my hands!
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