Home For Christmas

Well I made it through the semester (barely). I finished my last papers on Thursday December 14 and flew home the morning of the 15th. It has been a busy but good trip home. I've enjoyed spending time at home with my family an dout visiting with friends. This year for Christmas my fmaily did something totally new for us and we packed up and went to Victoria on Christmas morning to spend Christmas dinner with my aunt, uncle, cousins and their kids. My aunt and uncle have just moved over to Sidney to be closer to my cousin and his wife and their little girl and my other cousin came in from Australia with her two kids so we came over here to be with them for Christmas dinner. We spend the next couple of days here visiting with them and other family before heading back to the mainland.
I hope you are all having a wonderful Christmas and enjoying time with dear ones.

More Kitty Cats!

Who'd a thunk I'd become a cat person. I have definitely fallen in love with these two cats. I know I've already posted pictures but I got these today from my housemate Sarah and had to post them. In the top one you can see George has taken Billie under his wing and you can see his paw on Billie's shoulder. The second one is Sandra and I watching a movie and Billie has fallen asleep on my lap. The last one is later on in the evening and Billie has got nice and cozy and is totally out.

Things are going well here, classes are done and I'm just working on papers and have one exam tomorrow. I fly home in three days and can't wait! Tomorrow night I'm having a gingerbread house get together after my only exam. Today I have to finish a paper so I can go out to a movie tonight. Please continue to pray for the seminary community as we all head our separate ways for the holidays that we may find rest and rejuvenation and recover from a rather traumatic semester so that we can come back together again in January. 

Grief

This week has been really hard. It began on Monday when I received news that one of my friends at LTS's dad had died Sunday night. Such sadness for her and her family as they grieve his loss. Tuesday brought grief of another kind. Something happened at school on Tuesday that has caused me and many others a great deal of distress all week. Tonight I came to realise that in many ways it is a deep grief that I am feeling. I am saddened by the fact that one or more students may not return in January because of this situation. I am deeply saddened that some people's lives may never be the same. I worry about this community and I hope and pray this Christmas break will help us to find rest and rejuvenation that we so deeply need. It has been a very hard semester for most in the community, faculty and students alike. This week I also had to confront someone who I have a lot of respect and admiration for because I believed they shared information that was not appropriate with a group of people. Every day this week has brought more sorrow and I pray for an end to the struggles this community faces. Last night we had our seminary Christmas party and it was a wonderful evening a really positive time in the midst of dark times. And yet at one point in the evening I looked around and felt grief because I knew there were people missing who really should have been there. In this time of waiting, Advent, I wait and pray for reconciliation in this community.

Advent Vespers

Just wanted to share this picture of me and a couple of friends at Advent Vespers tonight at the sem. It was a lovely service. I and my friend Barbara (on my left) were acolytes, fancy title for candle lighter. Erik (man on right of picture) led the service. It was a nice way to end a chaotic and difficult week. One week from tonight I fly home!

Prayers Please

Well I've often mentioned issues in the seminary community this semester here at LTS but today it reached epic proportions and there seems to be no end in sight. Please pray for this community as we struggle with such brokenness and pain. It is affecting the entire community and some are not able to cope very well with the burden. It's a hard place to be right now, please pray for us.

Time for some Christmas spirit!

I decided that since December started on Friday (where did it come from, I thought it was still September) that it was time to get into the Christmas mood. So Friday night I called home and got my favourite Christmas baking recipes, went grocery shopping. Saturday I went Christmas shopping and then did Christmas baking and today I decorated. In my grocery shopping on Friday night I found the table cloth ($2.77 at Stupidstore!), while perusing flyers today I saw that Michael's had all their fake trees on for 40% off and so I picked up this little on there for $5 and my housemate was getting into the spirit too and she pulled out all her lights and loaned me some that she wasn't using and voila! I have some more lights to do something on my other window but I'm not sure what yet. I also bought gold and red bead garlands and put them in a glass vase on my coffee table and a mulled cider candle to make it smell Christmassy. Today I also went to a mass choir concert at a local church that the seminary choir was participating in of Advent carols. I love Christmas and especially the season of advent. I don't have an advent calendar or wreath so I may have to do something about that tomorrow, we'll see!
It has been a hard week in the world of LTS, it's the end of the semester hysteria setting in and people are getting touchy, emotional and worn out (including me). It ended with a 4 hour community meeting on Friday to discuss some of the issues that are going on in the community. I think we all need a break! 12 days until I come home, I can't wait! I'm home for 17 days fly back to Saskatoon long enough to unpack and repack so two days later I can fly off to Peru for 17 days coming home two days before classes start again, yikes! It's going to be quite the holiday season. Somewhere in there I may also move upstairs and give up my cozy suite, but that is yet to be decided and I'm not going to stress about it until it happens.
Papers are coming fast and furious. I had a productive weekend last weekend and finished 5 assignments of varying lengths. I wish I could say this weekend has been as productive schoolwise that is, I got lots of Christmas baking, shopping and decorating done but I'm not sure my profs care about that! Six assignments and one exam left before I'm done for the semester on December 14. I have finished two of them so I have a ways to go, two aren't due until next week so the other two will be getting done in the next few days! I'm off to bed but thinking I should plug in my car before I head to bed. I forgot to mention that was down to -30 this weekend, -40 with the windchill on Saturday, fortunately it went up to -13 today. Definitely plugged in my car yesterday! I'm glad to see it's raining in Vancouver much more Vancouverish than the weather they had last week, I don't want to come home to snow! Well I shall bring an end to this ramble. 

Snow & Christmas CD's

Well as I've spoken to various people in Vancouver this weekend I have heard rumour that Vancouver may be getting just a bit of snow (a foot!). Well we got a bit of snow over night but not a lot. Of course the snow that we got weeks ago is still here and will be here until March probably! It was really cold here this weekend and of course that meant the perfect weekend for Saskatoon to host the Vanier Cup at their outdoor stadium! So yesterday afternoon thousands of people including my housemates bundled up and went to watch the U of S Huskies lose to the other team (Laval I think?). It was something like -21 and -36 with the windchill, yikes!
Today thanks to reading Celia's blog I found out that Sufjan Stevens had released a Christmas CD and so I called around and found a copy downtown at HMV so now I'm all set with Christmas music! I also went to Costco and bought timers so I can plug in my car tonight, it'll be the first time I ever plug in a car!
Two more weeks of classes and sooo many papers to write so I guess I better stop procrastinating and get back to it!

Windchill & Other Stuff!

Well I'm slowly learning what "windchill" means. We had a couple of days where it was beautiful out and above 0. I even walked along the river last night for an hour and was able to take my toque off for most of the walk. Well today it changed dramatically. It was -8 when I left the house this morning and when i walked across the soccer field from the parking lot to the seminary I thought my nose was going to freeze! Later in the morning I went out to go across campus to go to STU (Saskatoon Theological Union, the three seminaries together) worship at the United church seminary I didn't wear my toque, oops! Right now it is -13 and -22 with the windchill. I've never experienced such cold winds.
We had a bit more snow last night and are supposed to get more over the next couple of days, yuck! I've been asked a few times now if I'd rather be boiling my water or dealing with this weather. I would rather boil water any day! This has definitely been an interesting part of my experience here. I'm hoping to go ice skating outside this year, I've never done it in my life. I got a pair of skates for free and so I hope to try them out sometime soon.
School is getting really busy. As I lay awake last night trying to fall asleep I realised that I had 11 papers to do in the next couple of weeks. This is probably not even all of them, yikes!
Two and a half weeks of class left and then one week of exams (only 1!) and final papers (only 1!) and then I fly home on December 15. I will be home until Jan. 1 and then I head back to Saskatoon for two days and on January 3 I head to Peru! I'm really excited about this trip. I get back on January 20 and then classes start January 22. It's going to be a busy semester.
One more thing I have to do in the next couple of weeks is get my applications for CPE programs in so I can do that next summer before heading out on internship next fall.
It's already been a busy year and it's just going to keep getting busier!

Update 3 Friday

My brother seems to have recovered fully and was released from hospital today. He is at home and will be returning to work soon. They found a hole in his heart but it is apparently a pretty common condition. He will be taking aspirin daily and will follow up with a specialist in a few weeks. Thanks for all of your prayers!

Update 2 Thursday night/Friday morning

There had been some hope that he would be released last night but the specialist hadn't had a chance to look at the test results from the doppler test and so he was kept overnight again. He is on the neurology ICU at VGH.

Cat Photos

Well I promised pictures so I took some this morning before I left for school. Here are the two feline residents of my Saskatoon home.

This is George - he has been called "big boned", "the largest cat I've ever seen" and just plain "awesome". He's adapting fairly well to our newest addition to the home who arrived on our doorstep exactly one week ago tonight.

In the picture below you can see George & Blue "playing". This is Blue. In this picture it becomes obvious why his name is Blue. He's a cutie but certainly moves faster than George. Fortunately he doesn't have the strong desire to go outside like George does. He's done the outside in the cold thing and knows a good thing when he sees one!

Update

I spoke to my mom a couple of hours ago and she was waiting for more test results. They found a hole in his heart that apparently 20% of the population have and can be treated with either surgery or aspirin. So far they think that aspirin will do the trick. There was still one more test to do but if it all came out ok they were going to discharge him tonight. He still has some weakness on his right side but it sounds like his speech is better. Now begins the long road of recovery.

Please Pray

I received this news from my mom a few hours ago. I have talked to her and we are still awaiting test results. My brother had been gone for tests for about 3 hours when I talked to her. Here is her email:

Thought I should let you know that Dave is in VGH undergoing tests. He is doing much better today. He had a stroke last night that affected the right side of his body, making it difficult for him to move his arm or leg, and slurring his speech. Fortunately I was home and he called me. He was transported by ambulance to VGH and they admitted him and gave him a CT scan and other tests. His major arteries were clear and there was no bleeding in the brain. They were about to administer a strong anti-clotting medication (TPA, which causes massive bleeding in about 5% of patients, but was the treatment recommendation of the neurologists involved and was approved by Dave) when most of his ability to move and speak returned. The treatment was altered to 4 aspirin and at about 3 a.m. he was admitted to the neurology ICU, which is where he is now. They are doing a Doppler to check his legs (for clots, I’m assuming) and an ECG to check the heart.

Ryan and Jessie (Dave’s girlfriend) are there now, but Dave had gone for tests when they arrived. I am at home, but plan to go in this afternoon or whenever he is back in the ward.

God was watching over us, because I was supposed to be out at a dinner meeting and had decided not to go because I had Book Fair stuff to complete and I have a bad cold so I went home. Ryan and Pam had just left before Dave came home from working at SportMart. He and I spoke downstairs for about 10-15 mins., and then he headed upstairs to get some paperwork he needed to complete. That’s when he called me. He had planned to go to Jessie’s but then she decided she would come here. He could have been home alone or driving, so it could have been much worse. Right now we re in a holding pattern until the doctors complete the battery of tests. I’ll let you know when I know more. In the meantime, prayers would be welcomed.

I will post updates as I hear more.

First Week Back Highs & Lows

Reading week seems so long ago and I was reflecting on my week last night and realised that a lot has happened this week so I thought I'd post a bit of a rundown.
Monday - can't even remember, worked in the library, wrote a paper
Tuesday
Lows - felt really lonely and isolated at school, I always struggle with Tuesdays and Thursdays because of the classes I have those days but today was a particularly rough one.
Highs - came home to find out my housemate had planned a Halloween get together and wanted me to be involved as well, yay! We had pizza, monster's blood drinks and c carved pumpkins. Went out for coffee with a sem friend and we talked about everything, it was great! Got an email from a VST friend letting me know she'll be in Moose Jaw for internship starting in January, so excited!
Wednesday
Lows - another day with a friend arriving on my doorstep in tears, talked about death and dying in pastoral care and counselling
Highs - ummmm not so many
Thursday
Lows - found out I had been left out of a social event (on purpose)
Highs - fantastic workshop on anxiety in a system/community, went out for dinner with 10 other sem students and wound up at the same restaurant as the principal of the Anglican seminary who paid for our entire meal, what a surprise!
- Came home to find out my roommate had found a kitten outside (see previous post, one cat two cat George cat blue cat)
Friday
Lows - ummmm??? immunizations - see highs, overwhelmed with the amount of work to do for next week
Highs - meeting about Peru trip to learn about what immunizations we needed, realised we leave for Peru in 2 months exactly, girls' night - Settlers of Catan wahoo!
Saturday
Lows - talked to a friend and learned that she had had a miscarriage the night before - praying for you my friend.
Highs - went to a workshop on the new hymnal, looks great! Got a paper done! The temperature outside got above 0 (0.8), it's even warmer today!
So that's my week, so full of highs and lows. I guess that's why it seems to have been such a long week!

One cat, two cat, George cat, blue cat

Last night we had a bit of a surpirse at about 11:30. My housemate had just come home and heard a cat crying outside our front door. She opened the door and there was a little kitten crying away. So we now have two cats in the house. Some of you may not know that our resident cat is George a "big boned" black with some white cat, who has lots of personality. "Blue" is our new little kitten with mostly off white fur with light and dark brown patches and one blue eye. I'll take pictures soon and post them.

Another wonderful reading week trip!

Well I just returned from yet another wonderful reading week trip. The group was a little smaller this time and the trip was a little shorter but nonetheless it was amazing again. It was so nice to be back on the coast enjoying some downtime with friends. Kat, Jason and I went up to Gibsons and stayed at a warehouse converted into a loft suite. We just chilled, did lots of reading shopping, eating and exploring. It was a so nice to spend some quality time with friends. The one downside of coming home for a week is that I end up having whirlwind visits with so many people and not often getting to spend quality time with people. This was a nice break in the chaos that has been my time at home. The weekend was so busy with seeing sooo many people it was nice to have a bit of a break and just sit and read and enjoy being together.
Tomorrow I head back for another 6 weeks in Saskatoon. It's hard to leave again but I look forward to going back to my own space (especially back to my bathroom that I don't have to share with boys!) and seeing my new friends again. The first 6 weeks flew by and I know that the semester is just going to get busier so I'm sure this will fly by as well.
My mom's car now has a nice new passenger side window, we bought Jason another birthday cake Monday night and tried the cake thing again. Today I am having lunch with my pastor and church secretary and then out with my friends Asith and Lorraine tonight before flying home tomorrow. What a week it has been. To those I saw, thanks for a wonderful visit, if I missed you we should connect when I'm home for Christmas or you're always welcome to come visit me in Saskatoon!

I'm home!

Well I made it home late Thursday and have been on the go ever since. Friday morning was breakfast with Jason, then walking in White Rock with Sarah, dinner and cards with Clara, Saturday was hair cut, Sunday School Halloween party, Shalisha's housewarming, Jason's birthday downtown and today was church, shopping, family dinner and Kat's concert!
Last night I had an unpleasant surprise. I parked underneath the Earl's restaurant on Robson and when I went down after dinner I found that someone had smashed the passenger side window and had stolen........ the birthday cake. That's all that appears to have been taken from the car. So frustrating hundreds of dollars of damage just so they could steal a $20 cake.
Tomorrow I head away over night with a couple of friends. Then I am visiting with a couple more friends on Wednesday before flying back to Saskatoon on Thursday. It's been quite the whirlwind visit. Only 6 more weeks or so until I'm home for Christmas!

Happy Thanksgiving!

Well I have had a wonderful weekend and I'm not sure where all the time went! I spent a lot of time with my housemate Sarah shopping and cooking. We had lots of fun. We made spanakapita on Saturday and then did lots of chopping and prep for our big dinner on Sunday. There were 7 of us for turkey dinner last night and we had a great meal of turkey and lots and lots of fixings. Sarah's homemade pumpkin pie was definitely a highlight of the meal. Today I slept in (finally a good night's sleep!) and worked on school work. I'm heading to another Thanksgiving dinner tonight at another student's home with about 10 other students, should be lots of fun. I hope you all had a wonderful thanksgiving!

The honeymoon is definitely over!

I've come to that point in the semester, anyone who has been in seminary knows what I'm talking about, that point where all is no longer rosy. There is more sinner coming out in us than saint. We as a community are past the honeymoon state and our brokenness begins to emerge. This week has been tough. It began last week with some comments in a class that deeply bothered me and continued over the weekend with a friend showing up on my doorstep on Sunday evening in tears because of the action and words of others in the community. This week I had to confront someone who was gossiping about a friend in front of me. I continue to struggle in one particular class. I struggle to find my place in this community. I have had some wonderful, encouraging conversations but also some that are concerning and disturbing. I went for a walk last night after 6 hours straight of class while waiting for a friend and just walked around the seminary building and prayed. I am looking forward to a weekend of fun, fellowship and hopefully some rest. Part of the reason for my struggle is that I haven't slept well in almost two weeks. I know that I dont' handle life well when I'm tired and I definitely react more negatively to things when I haven't had sleep. And so I continue this journey trusting in God to sustain me and lead me. Trusting that God will continue to give me words to speak and the confidence to stay quiet when needed.
This will be my first thanksgiving away from home. One of my housemates and I are planning a thanksgiving dinner for Sunday night and then I'm going to a fellow student's home on Monday for another dinner.
I will be home for a visit very soon and am going away with friends while I'm home. I hope you are all doing well. Would love emails, phone calls or even comments!

Not Frozen Yet

Well I just realised that I haven't posted for a week and I haven't done a real post in two weeks. I'm settling well in to life here in Saskatoon. I love my place and get along really well with my roommates. School is a bit more of a challenge not so much academically but fitting in in the community. People don't always know how to take me because it's my first year there but I'm taking first, second and third year courses. Someone today asked if I had any experience leading worship and then they were surprised to hear that we had worship at VST. I really wonder what people are hearing about VST here at LTS. Weekly girls' nights are becoming a regular event. Last Friday we played card games until about 11. I'm still looking for a church. I went to a Saturday evening contemporary service last Saturday but it wasn't quite the right fit for me so the search continues.
I have finally found out how my courses will be transferred from VST to LTS. I also have figured out when I will be taking which courses so I am much calmer about my future and finishing my degree soon!
Classes are going well. I'm enjoying them for the most part. I'm not finding them as challenging as my VST classes but I'm learning lots still.
Weather here is still nice. The torrential rains we had a few weeks ago have passed and it's sunny most of the time. I've been biking to school more which I really like. It's fantastic to be going to a school so close I can bike.
This weekend will be the first thanksgiving I haven't been home for. We're doing a house thanksgiving dinner on Saturday and I'm going to a classmate's home on Monday evening.
I'm coming home for reading week very soon and I'm looking forward to a week at home. I will also be going away for a few days with VST friends when I'm home. It will be a nice mix.
I'm sorry this is a rambling blog. I'll try to be more focused next time (probably won't happen, but i'll try!).

Here is a close up of half of my wall of pictures that you can see in my living room. The other half is still to be done.


This is my office area with more pictures and some cards & poems up on the wall.
This is my kitchen that is open to my living room. I love how it's one big open room instead of a tiny kitchen stuck in a corner of the place like I saw in many other rental places.

Here is my bathroom.
I will post pictures of my bedroom when it's a little cleaner. I still need to buy some more hangers to hang up all the new winter coats I got last weekend. Now you can see where I'm living! I love it! It's all my own space! 

Saskatoon Home

I know some of you have been waiting for a long time for pictures of my place now that I have it all set up. So here you go!

This is my living room taken from my kitchen area. You can see my "office" area on the left. On the couch on the right you can see the quilt given to me by my home congregation. I spend much time on that couch reading cuddled under the quilt.

One week down, how many more to go???

Well, I made it through week one of many weeks. Classes are great. I'm taking Globalization & Ethics, Theology II, Biblical Theology, Pastoral Care & Counseling and the Psalter in Human Faith. Two of my classes seem to have professors who are very interested in topics other than the ones they are teaching in that particular class (i.e. they are specialists in other areas only kind of related to the particular class I am taking with them). This makes things slightly frustrating but the other classes very much make up for it. I had a great weekend with a nice balance of socializing and studying. The weather here has turned miserable. It is very much like a Vancouver winter. About 3-5 degrees and wet and rainy. I thought it was supposed to be dry out here! Apparently it will dry out this week. I bought a down vest, down jacket, wool coat and some sweaters and a scarf from a seminary friend on Saturday. They're all only a year old and so they're all in great shape. It will likely be the only time in my life when I own a $250 down vest!
I'm still loving my place. I had three friends over for dinner on Friday night and cooked maple glazed roasted chicken, corn on the cob, mashed potatoes and salad. Saturday night a group of us from the seminary went out to my housemate's soccer team's beer night. $10 got people all the beer they can drink for a two hour span. We had a great time. It was fun to see my two Saskatoon worlds come together. Last night my housemates and I had dinner together and it was good, we were all kind of tired and my housemates were recovering from the beer night so it was a pretty quiet dinner.
I will post some pictures of orientation and other stuff from the past little while. On to worship, then home to make shepherd's pie and back to school to work in the library.

I have survived!

I made it through the first week of seminary at LTS! This past week we had three days of orientation and a day and a half of retreat. I've really enjoyed getting to know people and making new friends. The retreat was by far the best part of the week. It was a retreat of the three schools that make up the Saskatoon Theological Union (St. Anrew's College, United Church School; Emannuel St. Chad's College, Anglican Church School and Lutheran Theological Seminary). We went out to St. Peter's Abbey in Muenster. It is a beautiful location just over an hour out of Saskatoon. There we spent time getting to know each other and building community. The highlight for me was the small group builds of an el-cheapo kite and of course heading outside to fly them all! Tomorrow classes begin! I am taking five classes this semester and working one evening in the seminary library.
I'm still feeling slightly overwhelmed but ready to begin the year and get classes started. It's going to be a busy year. In January the cross-cultural trip goes to Peru and I will be taking part in the trip, which means about 2 weeks in Peru in January, yay! Next year I go on internship so over the next few months I'll have meetings and applications to complete. I also have to apply for CPE which I'll be doing next summer, crazy times! It's going to be a wild ride over the next few years! I'm really excited and nervous about where it will take me!
Well I'm off to clean my house, that's a downside of living alone, it's all my mess and so all me who has to clean!

Relaxing in Saskatoon

Well I've enjoyed the last few days since everything (almost) has been unpacked and set up. Lorraine and I did a lot of relaxing, napping and just exploring. She left Saturday night and Barbara and I went for a bike ride that evening and then Sunday was just church, relaxing and dinner at Barbara's. I've found a way to make calls from my computer to anywhere in Canada or the USA for free until the end of the year! So I plan on doing that often. I need to get a microphone for my computer. I'm also really excited about biking lots. Yesterday I didn't drive my car once, which for those of you who know me is quite the feat. Tomorrow school starts in the evening with a BBQ and then 3 days of orientation and an overnight retreat at the end of the week. I'm slowly getting to know Saskatoon. One of the things I really enjoy is how close everything is. I can bike or walk everywhere. I'm slowly working out my schedule. I will be taking 5 courses and working one evening in the seminary library. Life in Saskatoon is slowly coming together.

Relaxing in Saskatoon

Well I've enjoyed the last few days since everything (almost) has been unpacked and set up. Lorraine and I did a lot of relaxing, napping and just exploring. She left Saturday night and Barbara and I went for a bike ride that evening and then Sunday was just church, relaxing and dinner at Barbara's. I've found a way to make calls from my computer to anywhere in Canada or the USA for free until the end of the year! So I plan on doing that often. I need to get a microphone for my computer. I'm also really excited about biking lots. Yesterday I didn't drive my car once, which for those of you who know me is quite the feat. Tomorrow school starts in the evening with a BBQ and then 3 days of orientation and an overnight retreat at the end of the week. I'm slowly getting to know Saskatoon. One of the things I really enjoy is how close everything is. I can bike or walk everywhere. I'm slowly working out my schedule. I will be taking 5 courses and working one evening in the seminary library. Life in Saskatoon is slowly coming together.

Settling In

Well I'm slowly getting to know Saskatoon. Today we went to a great little coffee shop in a neighbourhood near mine. Then tonight we went to a very mediocre Greek restaurant downtown. I'll definitely go back to the coffee shop but will take a pass on the Greek restaurant. Lorraine leaves tomorrow afternoon and then reality of being here alone will really hit. I have been spending some time with Barbara who is a first year student who just moved here from Smithers. We tried to organize a BC students dinner for Sunday night but so far have only had 2 no's, only one more person to hear from. I think I have almost worked out what classes I will be in. It has been two years of trying to figure it all out with the school here and we're almost there. I dropped off the last 4 course outlines that need to be transferred today and have four out of five courses registered for this semester. I just need to hear from a professor on one course and if I can get credit for that one I can take a different one. I will be working in the library on Tuesday evenings and have a class on Wednesday evenings. I miss everyone in Vancouver dearly and tomorrow I'll buy a microphone for my computer to use Skype to call people. Apparently you can call out on Skype to Canada & the US for free until the end of the year so I can use that to talk to people back home, yay! I would love to hear from you all, send me an email or something!
School starts on Tuesday evening with a BBQ and I'm hoping I'll meet lots of great people then and begin life here in Saskatoon. I've enjoyed my week off but am ready for some more structure in my life. Too many changes!

I made it!

I made it to Saskatoon late Sunday night. We left Richmond just after 7AM on Saturday morning and made our way to Calgary. "We" being myself, my friend Lorraine and my dad. Lorraine and I travelled in my honda civic (it made it!) and my dad drove his mini van with all my stuff. In Calgary we stayed with my friend who is attending VST Betty & her husband Alan. Then Sunday morning we went to church with Betty & Alan to their church where another friend of mine from VST is priest. Afterwards we all went out for lunch before we hit the road to go to Ikea and then on to Saskatoon. Yesterday was spent putting together lots of Ikea furniture, shopping for a bed and a bunch of other stuff and unpacking boxes. My dad left early this morning to begin the drive back. Lorraine is here until Saturday. School begins with a BBQ on Tuesday evening and a couple of days of orientation beginning on Wednesday. I still don't know what classes I am taking and am hoping to find that out soon.
I love my place. The girls that live upstairs are great and my space is bright and beautiful. I have put up pictures and put candles out everywhere today to make it more my own.
I will be keeping my same email address so please email me lots! If you want my home # or address please feel free to send me an email. I'll also be updating this lots (I hope) so keep on checking back!

Thank you!

A huge thank you to all of you who were able to make it last night. It was a very special evening. I'm sorry I didn't get a chance to have good visits with all of you but it was good to catch up even briefly. It was a wonderfully overwhelming evening, you are all very special people in my life.
Today I'm packing like crazy and having a family dinner tonight before I head off bright and early tomorrow morning. It hasn't really hit me yet that I'm really leaving, it probably won't until my dad leaves on Tuesday morning.
Thank you for the CD's and other gifts and especially for the notes and cards. I will treasure those forever.
I carry each one of you with my as I continue my journey! Don't forget I have a great futon and you are all welcome to come visit (but maybe not all at once)!
Love to you all!

Time is Ticking Away

Well, in two days I get in my car and head for the hills, literally. I have been home since Monday and have been madly packing, running errands and getting ready for the big move. It hits me in waves that very soon I will be living on my own and in a completely different city. In Winnipeg I saw some friends who also will be starting at teh seminary in the fall and we have made plans to get together next week when I'm moved in. I also have another friend from Smithers who I have been emailing back and forth with and she is already in Saskatoon and so we will get together next week as well to explore the city.
My dad, Lorraine & I head out bright and early Saturday morning and drive to Calgary. Sunday morning we're going to the church where my friend Christine (VST) is the curate and another VST friend, Betty attends. Then it's on to Ikea and back on the highway for the last bit of our trip to Saskatoon. My dad will stay on Monday and help put stuff togehter, buy a bed and do a big shop to get all the supplies I need and then he'll head out on Tuesday to drive back home. Lorraine will stay a few days and then fly home. I'm really glad that both of them are coming to help me get settled in my new place.
Tonight I'm having about 30 people over for a BBQ (come on sunshine!) to say good-bye. I'm looking forward to seeing everyone but saying good-bye is going to be really hard. I just keep reminding myself that I will be back often over the next year. And if anyone wants to come visit, I have a great futon you're welcome to crash on!

In Winnipeg

Well, someone mentioned to me today that people have been checking my blog and waiting for an update. I have been run off my feet since I left last Sunday. We met Sunday night and spent the next few days frantically preparing for 1200 youth to arrive on Thursday morning.
Thursday morning 1200 youth arrived to register and participate in welcome activities in various rooms. The afternoon began with a "Large Group Gathering" which is a combination of keynote speaker, worship led by our very own gathering band, presentations by the drama team and video presentations put together by the volunteer production team. The theme was introduced briefly and information about the national youth project that has been promoted over the past 2 years, the Habitat for Humanity House was presented. Youth then were sent out in batches of 200 to do a "Faith Walk" where they walked through the city of Winnipeg carrying banners and chanting chants about affordable housing. They stopped at stations along the way where each of the 7 bishops (1 National, 5 Synodical and 1 Anglican) present spoke to the groups about various poverty and housing issues. All 1200 of us gathered in front of the Manitoba Legislature to hear read aloud a proclamation urging Stephen Harper to keep his promise to provide funding for affordable housing. Along the way youth also filled out postcards to send the Mr. Harper to share their feelings. We were all dismayed to hear that coincidentally that evening Stephen Harper cut his affordable housing project and all the funding that had gone with it.
Friday was a day of fun in the sun. Youth attended another Large Group gathering in the morning and then head out to various workshops and forums. Topics covered included internet luring, a panel by the bishops, African drumming and many more. In the afternoon everyone headed down to the Forks and enjoyed an afternoon of activities, a live concert and a BBQ dinner. One of the activities at the Forks was a dunk tank where youth were invited to make a donation to throw balls at pastors, leaders and youth. Over $500 dollars was raised for the Habitat for Humanity project.
Today (Saturday) was a serving day. We met in a large group gathering this morning where youth washed each other's feet. This afternoon everyone was sent out to various parts of the city to serve the community in different ways. The two largest events were car washes, one at the Winnipeg Blue Bombers' stadium where over $1300 was raised in just over 2 hours which will be split between the United Way and the Blue Bombers' charitable foundation. The other large car wash was at the Goldeyes' stadium where just over $800 was raised to also be split between the United Way and the Goldeyes' charitable foundation. Youth also collected garbage, cleaned churches, painted and sorted items at CLWR and the Habitat Restore.
It's hard to believe that it's almost over. After two years of serving on the National Planning Committee I have become friends with the people I serve with and we have all worked very hard to make this event happen. Tomorrow we will have our closing worship and bid good-bye to the youth and their leaders and then celebrate our successful event. Monday we pack up and say good-bye to each other.
This weekend has again reaffirmed to me the incredible gift the church has in our youth. They are passionate, enthusiastic and faithful men and women.
I am completely exhausted and often have to deal with a variety of frustrations, issues and problems which cause me to sometimes wonder why we do all of this but all I have to do is talk to some youth and it quickly becomes clear.
For more news and some pictures of the event please go to http://youth.elcic.ca/FSLive/index.html .
I fly home Monday and then have a few days at home before I begin my next adventure moving to Saskatoon to finish seminary. Life is definitely an adventure right now!

Off to Winnipeg

Yes I know Winnipeg is not on the way to Saskatoon but before I can move to Saskatoon and begin seminary I am attending the National Youth Gathering "Full Serve". I have been privileged to be the BC Synod rep on the national planning committee for this event which has meant many trips to Winnipeg at all different times of the year (even February, yuck!). I'm really excited about this event. It is the culmination of hundreds of hours of planning and working and the people working on it are pretty amazing. You can see what's happening by going to the Full Serve Live Website. I come back on August 21 and head off to Saskatoon on August 26.

Wisdom

I can't believe it's been over a week since I last posted. It has been a week of preparing. Preparing for Winnipeg and the youth gathering there and most importantly preparing to say good bye and move to Saskatoon. I have just over two weeks left until I go and I'm getting very excited. Within those two weeks I am in Winnipeg for 8 days and so I have a lot to do in a very short time. While I'm rushing around getting ready to go I've also been spending time with friends and had many good visits with many friends.
I really believe that God puts people in our lives for specific reasons. And through out much of my life I have been blessed to have friends who have spoken wisdom to me on a regular basis. These people have been different people at different points in my life but I always seem to find that there is one specific person who speaks wisdom to me on a regular basis. Last night I went for dinner and a walk and coffee with one of those people. What a gift she has been to me over the past two years. I am grateful for all of my friends but was really struck last night how grateful I am for the friends in my life who have spoken wisdom to me over the past years. We spent 4 hours together last night talking about everything and anything. She left me with a lot to think about and with a clearer outlook on some of the aspects of my life and I am grateful for that.

The most beautiful gift I have ever received

This is the quilt that my congregation presented to me as part of my good-bye present today at worship. It is the most beautiful gift I have ever received. On the other side everyone in the congregation has signed it and written a message for me. The children created quilt squares that are also incorporated on the other side that have either their handprint or a picture they drew. Four women in the congregation made this quilt and a similar one for Vida the other seminary student who is also going away. I am so blown away by this incredible gift. The thought, time and energy that went into this amazes me. These four women were at the church so much over the past few months. I knew they were up to something but I had no idea it was something this incredible. It was very hard to say good-bye to my home church today. I have been there for almost 27 years. They have been an incredible family to me and I will miss them a great deal. This is just the beginning of many difficult good-byes. I'm excited about Saskatoon but the reality of saying good-bye is starting to sink in.  

Now comes the chaos!

Well I have had lots of fun enjoying summer in Vancouver getting ready for events that are upcoming and now the events have arrived. On Monday Vacation Bible School starts and the week after that I have to go to confirmation camp for two days then I have a week of packing and stuff before I leave for Winnipeg on the 13th, coming home on the 21st to pack up vehicle(s?) and head to Saskatoon a few days later. I have had so much fun these last few weeks spending lots of time with friends and doing fun Vancouver stuff. I hope to fit a little more in but I know the next few weeks are going to fly by! I'm getting really excited about Saskatoon. I'm trying to figure out what house stuff I have to buy and tomorrow I get boxes from my friend and can start packing. I've been having lots of fun emailing back and forth with a friend from Smithers who will also be starting in Saskatoon in the fall. We've been sharing moving tips and ideas for where to live. She goes soon to find a place. I'm glad she'll be there when I get there and we can figure out this living in Saskatoon thing together!
This week I spent lots of time at VST. It has been nice to feel comfortable at the school again after a few times of going in to the school and having a really negative reaction to being in the space (reasons why aren't public yet but will be made public in the fall, nothing happened to me but just other crappy stuff happening at the school). I saw lots of friends who were taking classes and spent lots of time with Kat.
I'm trying to be more intentional of getting together with friends before I leave because I know the next month will just fly by and then I will be in Saskatoon. So if you want to hang out send me an email or give me a call. I may have a big BBQ at some point just so I can say goodbye to more people. The goodbyes are slowly starting to happen, I had my last spiritual direction session on Tuesday and said goodbye to Jamie there. Next Sunday (July 30) is my big goodbye party at the church which will be very hard. And the goodbyes will be coming all the time after that.
Well I should go to work and keep working on getting ready for VBS. I have to go to a congregation member's home to look at his train memorabilia that he will lend us for decorating for the "Gospel Express" which is the theme of this year's VBS. I'm really hoping the heat will die down for Monday otherwise it will be a very long week!

What to write, what to write

I always get frustrated when I go to read people's blogs and they haven't updated them. I have many friends who don't update for weeks (and even months) at a time(you know who you are!). So I have vowed to keep my blog updated on a regular basis. Unfortunately this week I don't have much to write. It has been a pretty "normal" week. I guess I'm getting more comfortable with the living in limbo aspect of my life. I'm really excited about moving but right now it seems sooo far off and I have so much to do before that.
I'm really struggling with general grumpiness this week. I have had three different friends treat me poorly all in different ways and it frustrates me to no end. I'm hoping the weekend will pull me out of the funk I seem to be in. I'm also wondering if the weather has been affecting me more than I realised (cool and wet).
I'm heading down to the folk fest at some point this weekend to chill and listen to some music (outside the gates, ticket prices are too rich for me!). Next week is my last quiet week until things get really busy and stay busy until I move. I need some motivation to get stuff done next week otherwise the rest of the summer will be chaos! I think next week is a good week to start packing stuff. I can pile boxes in my sister's room. I also still need to get my car fixed, book flights to Winnipeg (for me) and to Saskatoon (for my mom) and figure out what I still need to send to the LTS registrar to transfer my remaining courses from VST. So I have lots to do, just not the motivation to do it!

Roadtrip!

Jessica and I went up to Barkerville this past weekend to visit our friends Andrew & David (all VST people for those of you who were wondering). We had a great time. We left on Thursday right after Jessica got out of class and made it to Williams Lake where her sister lived. We crashed there for the night and I got to meet her sister and three nieces in the morning. We then headed the rest of the way up to Barkerville and had a great day and a half visiting with Andrew & David before we began the drive home on Sunday.
It has been so nice to spend time with VST people this summer outside of the craziness of the school year. I was really glad to get to see Andrew & David again before I moved. I didn't think that was going to be able to happen.
One thing that really shocked me on the trip was the impact that the pine beetle has been having on forests in BC. I know it's been on the news for the last few years but until you see the hillsides covered in brown and red trees for yourself you don't actually realise the full impact of this pest.
Today I went to VST and was overwhelmed by people and so Clara and I took off and had lunch off campus. Tonight was apartment church and now I'm about to hit the sack, I'm zonked.
Tomorrow I am seeing Sarah who just got back from a semester in Ghana, I can't wait to see her. I also have to wash the van we took to Barkerville and unpack the last little bit of stuff. Oh and I guess I should go to work for a bit.
I will post pictures from the Barkerville trip when I find my card reader for my digital camera.

Saskatoon pad take 2!

4 more pictures. First one is my bathroom (in case you couldn't tell). The second is my living room. The only thing left in it now is the futon that is on the right hand side of the picture. You can see one of the full sized windows on the left hand side. That is the back wall of the house. The third picture is my kitchen. There will be more cupboards added before I move in and the small fridge and the cat (thank goodness) are no longer there. Fourth picture is rest of the kitchen and the other full sized window. The kitchen is open plan and so is open to the living room. I'm so excited about this place! It's beautiful and bright.





 

Well, for those of you who were waiting (Kortney ;) ). Here are some pictures of my new place in Saskatoon. For some reason blogger will only upload 4 of the 8 so I will have to upload the rest in my next post. The first picture is the front of the house. It is a duplex so I am in the basement of the right hand unit (from about the motorcycle over to the right. My entrance is around the right hand side of the house. The cement pad that the motorcycle is on is my parking space (complete with plug in! Ahhh, I have to plug in my car, yikes!). The second picture is just my entrance to the house. You can see my bedroom window along the bottom of the house past the door. The third is a picture of the upstairs (not my place) that I can use if I want. The fourth picture is a picture of my bedroom. The bed that is in it in the picture is a queen sized bed, just to give you an idea of size.


 

I found a place in Saskatoon!

Well, I did it, I found a great place to live in Saskatoon. I looked at three places today. Two basement apartments that would do in a pinch but not ideal and then the third was amazing! It is a basement suite in half a duplex. The house is only 4 years old and it has big windows and it's really nice and bright. There are two grad students (female) who live upstairs and the one I met was really friendly. We share all utilities including phone line if I want and cable and internet, wahoo! It's so nice. It's a one bedroom and it has a large living space with a kitchen at one end that has a brand new fridge and stove. They are going to let me use their futon (nice, solid wood) and their microwave (also nice!) because they have two and only need one upstairs. I'm feeling so much better about this whole move thing now that I have a place to live and such a nice one with really great people living above me. It's close to the grocery stores and restaurants (on 8th St.) and close to theatres and cultural stuff (on Broadway) and fairly close to the school but in a quiet neighbourhood. I have a parking spot on the driveway. I can' t believe I found it on my first day out looking. Now I have to figure out what to do all day tomorrow. My friend Barb is coming up from Moose Jaw tomorrow night and so I have the whole day to enjoy Saskatoon. I'll post pictures of my place once I get home because I forgot my card reader for the memory card at home. Don't worry I'll take lots of pictures.

I'm in Saskatoon

Well, I made it to Saskatoon, after standing in long line ups at the Vancouver airport and a 2 hour layover in Edmonton I have made it to Saskatoon. For those who aren't up on what's happening in my life I am transferring to the seminary here from VST to finish my Masters of Divinity degree because that is what the Lutheran church requires. I have come to Saskatoon for a couple of days to see the seminary and find a place to live.
I have a rental car while i'm here which I got using my dad's airmiles (yay for dad's points!) and when I got to the desk they had to upgrade me so I am driving around Saskatoon in a ...
a Dodge Magnum. A gangsta vehicle. It's quite fun. It's a very strange car to drive because I'm in a car but I'm really high up.
I really want to find a nice place and the vacancy rates in Saskatoon are at an all time high so it really shouldn't be a problem (she says, crossing fingers, toes, eyes etc). I saw one place today that will do but wasn't ideal in any way shape or form. It was a one bedroom basement suite that was fully furnished (very old furniture) but you had to share a bathroom with the person in the other suite and the only parking was street parking and it was all wood paneling so quite dark, so tomorrow the search continues. I'm hoping wood paneling isn't the "in thing" in Saskatoon, the only other place I've seen inside pictures of also had wood paneling, yuck!
Anyways, tomorrow I go to the seminary, meet with the registrar and then continue house hunting. Think I may stop by a few churches where I know the pastors and see if they have any leads I could follow. I will post more each day because I need contact with the outside world!

Living in the la vida limbo

I feel like I'm living in an in between time. When I preached on ascension I talked about this and compared it to how the disciples must have been feeling after Jesus left them and they were waiting for the Spirit that had been promised to come down. I am done at VST and almost done at both of my jobs. At both jobs I sit on the search committee for replacements for me, weird! I continue to attend synod and church meetings knowing that most of what they're talking about will take place when I'm already in Saskatoon. So in a couple of months I move to a place I've never been, living in a place I haven't found yet, going to a school I have yet to see. Feeling kind of strange.
I told my spiritual director that in some ways I wish I was already there and he was worried I was saying I wanted to run away from the chaos at VST but I explained I didn't want to run away from it but that I knew I wouldn't be there in the fall when things get really crazy and so it's hard to be around but not really. I feel like it would be better to just be gone.
Though I am really enjoying my summer on the coast. I love Vancouver in the summer. I went to the dragon boat festival last weekend, which was great until the rain came tumbling down! This weekend the jazz fest starts and the World Urban Forum and the Peace Forum is this week so much to do in Vancouver in the summer!
And it's my birthday this week too. Thursday I am not going into work (yay!). I am going to lunch with a friend and then to a spa for pedicures with another friend and finally to a BBQ with a whole bunch of friends. I think it will be a lovely day! I also have to renew my driver's license this year, crappy $75 I don't have!
Next week I head to Saskatoon for a few days to meet with the registrar at my new school and check out some accomodation options. I feel all grown up as I'm renting a car for the first time in my life (oh except for when I had my rental after my accident but that was an ICBC thing and not a vacation rental!). I'm going all alone and looking forward to the adventure. I checked with the place I'm staying and they have wireless so I'll be sure to post from there too!

Hope you're all having a great week!

Good movies & Bad movies

I saw a couple of movies over the past couple of weeks. Last night I was wonderfully entertained by A Prairie Home Companion. It was based on the radio show of the same name by Garrison Keillor. Such a good movie! It was a lovely evening out. The movie had an amazing cast and was such a delight to watch. I loved every minute of it. I think my friends and I were the loudest laughers in the theatre, I strongly recommend this film to everyone.
Then a couple of weeks ago I saw Davinci code, what a waste of $! It was 2 and a half hours of torture. My friend and I talked all the way through it (quietly of course) because that was the only way to stay awake! My favourite part of the movie was this really serious part in the story and Tom Hanks made a really strange face and the entire movie burst out laughing. Oops! Such a bad movie.
Anyways, I'm working lots but also enjoying the summer lots too. I head to Saskatoon for a couple of days at the end of June to look for places and meet with the registar. Going to be a busy summer!

Just a battery, off to the beach!

Well life has definitely been more fun in the last 24 hours than it was all of last week. Last night I went to a friend's place and we played games until late. It was so nice. We played Settlers of Catan (now I now what everyone is talking about, great game!) and then Phase 10 (lots of fun too!). I decided that I wasn't going to go into the church today as I was there all last week some days up to 12 hours. So I slept in and then went to school to go for lunch with a couple of friends. When I got back a few other friends were hanging around the coffee shop and so I joined them. A little while later who should walk in but my crazy thesis writing friend Kat! We had a lovely impromptu coffee date and then I decided I had procrastinated enough it was time to come home and face the music with my car situation.
My car hasn't started since Friday morning and I went through all the stages of panic as the dollar signs were popping into my head. After consulting some friends I came to the conclusion it might be my battery which wouldn't be so bad in the scheme of things. So I called BCAA and 20 minutes later the BCAA guy showed up and is right now putting in a new battery. This means that I don't have to have it towed nor do I need to put hundreds of dollars into my car, yay!
Later this evening I'm heading down to the beach with another VST friend who I ran into today at school (yeah, we're all sick, don't even have classes and we still hang around the school!). It's sooo beautiful tonight. Have to get out and enjoy the sunshine before it disappears again.
I'm thinking that I really need to go and get my summer clothes out of storage. I am wearing jeans today and it's just too warm!
Anyways, car is done and ready to go, have to go call my friend and arrange plans for the evening!

More Doves

This is the mobile in its proper place. Looks pretty nice! 

Doves, Doves, Doves

This is the dove mobile I've been working on all week at work. 268 doves, 300 yards of fishing line, 1 hula hoop and way too many hours of work! This is when it's lowered to the ground.  

What's with the doves?

Well I just realised I haven't posted for a while and so I thought I'd post something about what I've been working on since I posted last. A few months ago a woman in my congregation approached me with an idea for an art installation for Pentecost. It required 400 folded paper doves, a hula hoop and some fishing line. No problem, I thought! We started folding doves and as of Monday afternoon we ended up with 268 doves (that would be after I folded 70 on Monday afternoon) so we used what we had and I spent most of this week stringing up doves. By Friday afternoon all 268 were strung and I got to hoist it up into the air!
And that would be the excitement in my life! Wahoo! Starting to think I need to work harder to find some things to do with my summer to bring a little more excitement. Otherwise work will consume me. The structure of my group of friends has changed around me and some of my summer plans have been changed as a result, soooo I'll have to be creative and come up with a new summer plan or maybe just wing it (ahhhh, I'm such a planner, I hate winging things). Who knows what's in store!
I went to the Camp Luther walk/bike/canoeathon yesterday. It was stepping into the past for me as I haven't been out there for a year and a half. It looks great, they're really working hard to make it nicer. It is definitely time for me to move on from that place though. I love it and always will. I believe that it does important ministry. It was nice to see old friends but I am definitely in a much different space now. Had a good talk with a wise friend about camp and about the church. I value those wise friends so much!
Anyways, I really need to clean my room! So I better work on that for an hour or so before I head out for a games night with friends.

Crazy Days

Well, it has become one of those months when just when I think things are going well something bad happens. Most of this week has been wonderful. Crazy busy (what else is new) but wonderful and then yesterday two of my close friends email me (separately) to tell me that they don't want to spend time with me anymore, lovely. Now things haven't been exactly peachy with either of them over the last little while (obviously) but I thought we could work things out, I'm still hopeful we can, only time will tell. I'm so grateful I have so many other wonderful friends. I'm really determined not to let this mess up my last summer of fun and freedom in Vancouver. I'm looking forward to a summer of fun and sun. I also have to start figuring out where I'm going to live in Saskatoon in the fall (anyone know anyone in Saskatoon with a place to rent, let me know!).
Today is my parents' 35th wedding anniversary. My siblings and I hosted a BBQ for them on Saturday afternoon and my aunt, uncle and cousin and his family came over and we had a lovely time. My sister is in town so we did some family shots with the whole family together (it happens so rarely). It went really well but was a lot of work so yesterday I just vegged at the house I was housesitting and didn't do much at all.
Tomorrow I'm doing dim sum with my sister before she flies off to Montreal on Wednesday for a conference and then getting stuff organized at the school I no longer attend for the student body I'm no longer a part of. Oh the fun! I have to help plan the set up of the new study carrel room in our new building. The one nice thing about doing this now as I'm about to leave is I won't be around to hear all the complaining (because no matter how we set it up someone will complain) in the fall.
This week I also have to prepare a sermon as I'm preaching at Our Saviour (my home church, ahhh!) on Sunday. So it's going to be a crazy busy week. I think I'm going to spend some time at the library tomorrow since I'm on campus anyways. I'll have to venture into the unknown territory of the Regent library because the VST library is closed until next week while they move into the new building.
Off to lunch with a friend and then maybe some time organizing my room, what a disaster!

Sudoku, Soduko, Suduko, Whatever I'm hooked!

I have been avoiding this new fad for a while now and then went to school on Monday and my friend Clara was doing them and she convinced me to try one and now I'm hooked! I've been doing them online but I think I might have to go pick up a book tomorrow.

I had apartment church yesterday after a really good spiritual direction session and lunch with a friend, what a lovely day! It was a perfect way to spend a summer day. It was so refreshing and life-giving. I'm going to miss all of those aspects of my life. I know I rave about spiritual direction all the time but it has been a hugely important part of my life this year.

Had church council tonight and the idea of buying more property came up again. I'm kind of glad to be leaving and not have to get involved in that discussion again. I sent my application to Lutheran Theological Seminary in Sasktoon on Friday and so that's one more thing off my list of to do's. Did my taxes today, feeling productive. Nice to not have to worry about school stuff and focus on the rest of life.

My sister comes home tonight, her flight should arriving any minute now. I'll see her tomorrow as I'm housesitting this week. We're working hard on planning my parents' anniversary event on Saturday. They're celebrating 35 years of marriage on Monday. I can't believe that they've been married that long. Pretty amazing! But means lots of work for my sister and I between now and Saturday. I'm glad she's going to be home to do this with me.

Anyways, should head to bed soon, I always seem to write these late at night. Tomorrow I have to go to New West to the synod office to wrap up convention stuff and look at youth gathering plans and meet with Tim from Camp Luther to talk about my experience as a DOC leader. Then it's Alias tomorrow night, yay, I can't wait, I'm totally addicted to TV on DVD.

Convocation

I graduated today, yay! But not forever. I have now been awarded my Diploma in Christian Studies from Vancouver School of Theology. Another piece of paper to add to my collection. I wasn't planning originally to actually cross the stage for this piece of paper but I wanted to graduate from VST and since I can't get my MDiv from there I had to settle for my Diploma. It was a lot of fun. The service was at the Anglican Cathedral downtown which is a beautiful space and one I've been to frequently over the past two years. It was a lot of fun to be surrounded by friends and my parents came as well. I really wanted them to get a taste of the community I've been a part of over the past two years. I was the last person to get my diploma and the only one who is not continuing in a degree at VST. Apparently (I didn't hear it) there was a sigh of disappointment when it was announced that I was going to Saskatoon in the fall. I'm really going to miss my community at VST but I am excited about living on my own and in a new place. Summer has really begun now. I have started to come up with some summer goals. I want to go to the beach at least once a week (went on Sunday!) and I want to clear all the crap out of my life (car, room, etc.).

Alternative Worship Space

This was the worship set up that Jason and I set up for our workshop at synod convention last weekend. 

This is the view from our newly renovated "castle" at VST. It's one of the best views in Vancouver, and it's where I went to school, so amazing! 

Friday Night at Home

Just spent a lovely evening at home. Got home from the VST's second dedication of the renovated castle (of four) where I played tour guide for some lovely people and found out I had the house to myself (which never happens!) and so I got my leftover pasta from the other night warmed it up and chilled in front of the TV until my mom came home and took over the remote at which point I moved upstairs and watched Fever Pitch. It was a lovely end to a crazy week.
This weekend I'm spending time with friends and relaxing. At some point I have to tackle my bedroom so that may happen too. Tomorrow I'm going to have lunch and wander the Drive with a couple of friends from school.
I had spiritual direction today and it was the best and the hardest session I've had so far. So much to think about, lots of discernment to do. Anyways, it was hard, left me with a lot to think about but really helped me put everything in perspective. I have such an amazing spiritual director. I will miss him a ton once I'm in Saskatoon.
I'm going to post some of my favourite pictures from the past year soon. There are so many to choose from but I'll try to keep it down to a few.

I made it to May!

Well, I just woke up after sleeping for almost 11 hours. Guess I was more tired than I realised. It also must mean my body is finally relaxing after the chaos of this past school year. I can't believe that it's over. I was at apartment church last night and gave a friend a ride home and she commented that I seem ready to leave VST and head to Saskatoon. I really am I think, mentally that is in reality I have a ton of stuff to do before I'm physically ready to move but I'm beginning that shift in thinking. Synod convention was this weekend and I spent a lot of it talking to people about going to Saskatoon. The bishop mentioned it a couple of times in passing to the convention so many people wanted to talk to me about it. The more I talk about it the more real it seems. I have convocation at VST on Monday night and that will be my last official VST student thing I do. I'm getting my Diploma in Christian Studies, wahoo. The only reason I'm actually crossing the stage is because I wanted to graduate at VST so this gives me a chance to.
I am so excited about summer. I love summer in Vancouver, going to the beach (went twice last week already!), hanging out with friends, camping etc etc etc. Next summer I'm hoping to do CPE (Clinical Pastoral Education=intense!) and so I have to enjoy my last summer of freedom. I am also hoping to reconnect with friends who have been neglected because of the craziness of this year. I'll also probably be blogging lots!

I survived April!

Well, April has been a crazy month, and it's the end, yay! April included finishing up at VST (saying goodbyes, papers, exams, integrating oral, year end party), Easter, and this weekend Synod Convention and a wedding. Synod convention meant I had a ton of work to be done before this weekend came and after papers were done (last Friday). So this past week was busy with going to the office and working from home and school. I had to make sure the youth assembly that was coming knew when and where to come and what to bring. I had to put together a display table about youth ministry in the synod. I also had t-shirts to sell and a workshop to prepare and lead (with Jason thank goodness!). Somewhere in there I had to get a wedding present and attend a wedding in the middle of convention, yikes! I made it through. Convention was great, our current bishop was re-elected quickly, which is wonderful. I heard the president of the seminary speak and he was fantastic, makes me excited to go to LTS. I also got to reconnect with lots of friends and colleagues. The youth did a fantastic job (highlight of the convention as usual said many delegates!). I came home exhausted and just had a two hour nap and am going to veg in front of the TV tonight ignoring my car full of stuff that needs to be unloaded and put away.

I was looking at my stat counter earlier and noticed that people have been visiting lots but no one's leaving comments. If you're a reader and you haven't left a comment leave a comment to let me know who's reading! I'm going to try to post some pictures for the next post. Can't wait to start summer tomorrow. The Cache Creek trip is still in the works and I have to book my flight to Saskatoon in the next day or two but tomorrow is a much needed day off, yahoo!

All done...maybe

Well I'm as done as I can be. I have handed in all my papers and completed my oral exam this morning. So it's just a matter of seeing if I have any rewrites. It's so nice to be done but now I have a ton of work to do for both jobs because I've been focusing so much on school work. I had a meeting tonight and came out with a bunch of catchup stuff to do. This weekend is synod convention and I have a lot of work to do for that. I'll have a display table, a banner for delegates to sign, t-shirts to sell, a workshop to lead and oh yeah a group of youth observing the event. So busy. I'm really looking forward to having a slower pace in May. A couple of my friends and I are talking about going to Cache Creek to look at some land my friend wants to buy and so that'll be a nice getaway. I also have to go to Saskatoon in May or June, probably June so I can see Carmen. So much to do, so little time.

On a completely different note I've been feeling very third wheel for the last few days. Anybody have any tips on how to avoid this feeling when hanging out with a couple? Besides just not hanging out with them though it may come to that if something doesn't change.

I'm really looking forward to starting over in Saskatoon. I'm sooo excited about living on my own and starting my life over with new friends, new church, new life!

Any tips on the third wheel thing would be much appreciated. Have a great week!

I'm Scooter!

Ok, I promise not to do too many of these but I couldn't resist this one. I love the muppets!

You Are Scooter

Brainy and knowledgable, you are the perfect sidekick. You're always willing to lend a helping hand. In any big event or party, you're the one who keeps things going. "15 seconds to showtime!"

The Muppet Personality Test

Almost done at VST!

Well I have one more class tomorrow and then I'm finished the lecture part of my classes at VST. I still have to write two papers, do a final exam and do an integrating oral but after tomorrow my classes are done! It has been a crazy week. Last Thursday my friend Clara had her wisdom teeth taken out and so I have been helping her out since then. Jason has been walking her dog and I've been bringing her stuff and keeping her company. She turned 25 yesterday and we celebrated with a bit of cheesecake (soft food!) and then she went back to bed (poor girl!). Then on Friday we had our VSTSA (Vancouver School of Theology Student Association) year end party. I was in charge so I did lots of running around on Friday buying food and setting up. People had a good time and it was nice to get together and party in the midst of the stress!
Oh I almost forgot the ongoing saga of a car trying to die! Last Tuesday as I was driving to school my check engine light went on and so I tried the turn off the car and then turn it back on and that didn't work. So I called my mechanic and made an appointment for the next day. After running the scan and everything they said that it was the crank shaft censor and that on Honda's that was part of the distributor so they had to replace the whole distributor. They managed to find a used one for $250 (what a deal! note the sarcasm) so Thursday went like this: drive to mechanic to drop off car, bus to school for community worship, bus back to mechanic and wait for car, drive to Kitsilano to pick up Clara, get Clara's prescriptions and take her home, go to school for weekly BBQ then back to Clara's to check on her, then to airport to pick up Kari-Ann, then at about 1AM home! What a day. Once the craziness of school is over I have to start car shopping, yuck!
Well I should head to bed so I'm awake for my last class tomorrow! Then I'm going to work hard and try and get my history paper done before the craziness of holy week services descends on Thursday!
I hope you are all doing well and finding time in the chaos of life to celebrate holy week.

It's been a week since I put up my last two posts (two posts in one day, what a day it was!). This week I haven't posted because the stuff that has been on my mind is other people's "stuff" that I can't share with the world. Anyways, school is very quickly coming to an end. I can't believe I've been at VST for two years. It's a great school but this year has been one of the hardest it has ever had so it's been interesting being here this year. We (students, faculty) are all at the most stressful time of the semester and if you add to that the stress that this year has brought on top of the typical end of semester stress it's a little bit nuts here. If you are a praying type please keep this community in your prayers, things are not going to get easier any time soon unfortunately.
I have just finished a major chunk of my Hebrew Bible exegesis paper, probably the most challenging of the papers I have to do this semester so I am feeling good about that. I still have a few more journals to write for that class on my interpretive principles and an exam to study for for that class. I also have to write a paper for my liturgical studies course but I haven't got the first one back yet so I want to see how I did and what is said on that one before I start the next. I also have a couple of reflection papers to do for my History course on the history of the church in Canada. Those shouldn't be too bad.
My focus has definitely been shifting from life here in Vancouver and at VST to what my life will hold in Saskatoon. I have started to look at rental listings to get an idea of what's out there and am considering heading out there to see the city in May to get an idea of what it looks like and where I might want to look for places later in the summer. So much to do!
Anyways, I should get back to my paper just wanted to let you know that I'm still alive. Please feel free to leave lots of comments!

Oh what a morning!

Well I made it. I preached this morning at LUMS and I think it went well but it was definitely an adventure getting there. I picked up a mom and two of my youth at their home at 8:20 and we headed downtown. Just as we were getting over the Cambie St. bridge my car was making this horrible noise and I wasn't sure what was going on. There was smoke coming out of the back of my car and so we pulled over and I had a flat tire. So we pulled over and changed the tire (thanks Denyse!), it was also low on air so we knew we had to get to a gas station and fill it up. We got back in the car and the car wouldn't start. The battery was dead. I have left my lights on soooo many times that my car has no battery life left so my battery goes dead in no time flat. So we finally managed convince someone to do U-turn and face on coming traffic to jump my car. On to the gas station we went and filled up the flat and got to LUMS at 9:30. At 10 the service started, I did my assisting minister thing then preached and all was well. So now I have to borrow more money from my mom and get a new tire. It's so lovely when these things happen when the bank account is at 0! Anyways, I got lots of positive feedback from the people in the pews on my sermon. I'm off to get ready for the birthday party tonight. Got to bake cakes, buy food and maybe some decorations, see how far the visa reaches! It's beautiful here today, hot and sunny, drove home with the windows down. I love the west coast!

Preaching!!!

Well I'm off to preach this morning. Yes I know it's Saturday. I'm preaching at LUMS . I did a field placement there for a couple of courses all of last year and now I just pop in when I'm able. Brian asked me a while back if I wanted to preach again and I said sure. He gave me a date and the lectionary readings and away I went. Then about a month ago I realised that it was my home congregation that was hosting the meal. So today is my first time preaching to them and my pastor will be there as well, scary! I've preached three times before but not to congregations I knew very well. This time the sermon prep was different because I knew the context these people were coming from and I felt I knew them (26 years!) long enough I could challenge them a little bit. So here goes. Had a dream last night that I forgot my alb, the people I was supposed to pick up and my sermon so it can't get much worse than that! Have a great Saturday, the sun is shining here in Vancouver and it promises to be a beautiful day!

I'm a Dr. Pepper

Ok so I'm a total copycat, saw this on someone else's blog and had to see what I was. I think it's pretty true! What do you think?

You Are Dr. Pepper

You're very unique and funky, yet you still have a bit of traditionalism to you. People who like you think they have great taste... and they usually do. Your best soda match: Root Beer Stay away from: 7 Up

What Kind of Soda Are You?

My first blog

Well I finally did it. I finally set up my own blog. Everyone else is doing it so I decided to try it. Really this blog is a good way to procrastinate doing all the real work I need to do. I've never been good at journaling so don't get your hopes up that this will be updated regularly but I do promise to try! I was thinking this would be a good way to keep people updated on what's happening in my life especially when I make the big move this summer and end up two provinces away from most of my friends. I've been reading the blogs of many of my friends and really enjoy being able to keep up on their lives by reading them. I'm 4 weeks away from being done at VST and I must say I have mixed feelings. Being in any community is challenging and takes work, it's exhausting and yet rewarding at the same time. I love the people I go to school with and yet sometimes they drive me nuts and I'm sure I drive them nuts! I know that I will miss these people desperately after this semester is over. They have changed my life. My time at VST has been incredible and life-altering. I will never forget it.