mountainmelody

If I were home sick, lying in bed feeling miserable, would I want anyone to come visit me?

Not unless they were a doctor or nurse. (And maybe not even then.)

So why, when people are horribly sick--feeling awful and looking worse--does everyone and their mother come visit them in the hospital?

It's beyond me. If I'm ever in the hospital, you can tell Cousin Fred and Sweet Miss Margaret to just send me a card.

Traffic report: ...There are a bunch of other wrecks out there--just be careful!

My God, I pray better to you by breathing,
I pray better to you by walking than by talking.

-Thomas Merton

By 2050, Yemen will have more people than Russia.

Attention retirees, stay at home moms, students, and all others with flexible schedules:

The polls are open all day. Your vote will count just as much at 1 PM as at 7 AM. There is no need to rush to polling places first thing in the morning, when most of us are trying to get to work.

Sigh...If only the world would listen to me! ;)

This morning I was attempting to take some comp time and sleep late.

At exactly the same time my alarm normally goes off, I was jolted awake by a loud "BEEP!" Apparently my smoke alarm battery had decided that moment would be the perfect time to die.

If you're going to look in the classified ads for a new job, don't do it in the breakroom at work.

Today I was working so hard (or something) that I didn't notice when someone turned half the lights off.

Either that, or it was so dark outside that it threw me off. :P

Problem: Take a day off work to have a long weekend. Come back to 80 emails.

Solution: Take several days off work as soon as possible.

Don't leave the lid to the water meter box off when it's raining.
Especially if you're hoping to turn the water back on.

One of out every five senior citizens looks forward to a physical exam “a lot.”

Only about 20% of people who were involved in church as teenagers are involved at the same level when they're in their 20s.

Most women would now prefer electronics over diamonds, shoes, or tropical vacations.

....going to Talladega on a race weekend

Did you know that Canada is the most multicultural (diverse) country in the world?

Pop quiz: What's the capital of Canada? Last week, I was the only person in a group of four from the US to answer this question correctly.

Korean Air
Seafood for breakfast
Seaweed and rice for snack

Atlanta airport
Fried chicken
Sweet tea
Macaroni and cheese
Corn

In some ways, it's very nice to be home. :)

Today I was informed that people in India don't use hair dryers because they make your hair fall out.

So if I'm bald when I get back, you know what happened.

I'm leaving tonight. Supposedly, I'll be home some time in the next decade. See you then!

• Somehow picking up an American football game on TV, and being asked, "What's that?"
• Hearing someone from Papau New Guinea pray fervently for the North American church to regain its passion
• Hearing "Sweet Home Alabama" on the loudspeakers between sessions
• Trying to explain why most of the American civil rights struggles took place in the "Bible Belt"
• Explaining that in my culture, marriages aren't arranged by parents
• Meeting people who have started churches, written books, and founded significant ministries before they were 30
• Rice

There's much more to think through and share later.

more conference info

My roommates are from India and Germany.

friends

worship

I wish I had time to tell you about all the experiences I've had so far. Right now, I can just give you a quick recap:

I am in a small group with girls from the Solomon Islands, the UK, Pakistan, and the Netherlands.

I had lunch with the guy who wrote Perspectives.
I talked with a guy who was shot in the conflict in Liberia.
I had breakfast with Heather Mercer.

You can read more here.

I'm here, and have accomplished the first few things on my list:

• get here (this one took a while)
• take a shower
• meet some interesting people from other countries
• find the internet

French toast or rice?

Fish in wintermelon sauce, or chicken?

Some choices are easy.

(Plus, the seaweed mixed in with the chicken was...an interesting bonus.)

3.5 hours: drive from Birmingham to Atlanta
25 minutes: flight from Atlanta over Birmingham
4 hours: layover in LA
13 hours: time difference between Birmingham and Malaysia
longer than that: flight to Taipei

Car place: You need to do x, x, and x to your car, or else it will die in the middle of 280/only drive in reverse/spontaneously combust.

Me: Why can't I just take the bus?

the whistler
Mr. High Maintenance
the singer
the rich Americans
the befuddled senior tour groups
the football fans (the majority of the last plane)
the photographer (even I don't take pictures of the flight attendant serving food)

So...I'm back.

• three meals a day
• no commute
• instant friends
• sleep later

Of course, you do have to study...

...singing a song based on the Lord's Prayer--to the tune of Kumbaya

• Prague is in Bohemia (an area of the Czech Republic).
• A unique technique made famous in Prague is defenestration. (Here's the definition for those of you who aren't up on your English or Latin.)
• Prague is one of the few European cities that was not damaged much in World War II, so parts of it still have a medieval feel.
• "Good King Wenceslaus" was a real person who ruled in Prague. (Who knew?)
• Hitler planned to make Prague the capital of his empire.

Feel smarter now?

Some of these pictures aren't the greatest, but you get the idea...

You see buildings like these everywhere.

Some fancy/historic building at night.

Everyone's looking up, waiting for this special clock to strike.

Here's the clock. The "disciples" rotate through the windows when it strikes the hour. The clock dates back to medieval times, I think.

Does anyone want to write an 85,000 word paper for me, using 300 to 500 sources?

I've discovered that I really like the British system of education. We don't have tests, quizzes, or papers. Instead, we read, listen to lectures, discuss, and learn. All the learning without any of the pressure--nice!

We do have classes here on Saturdays...

• The weather has been beautiful--like a nice spring or fall day. But at one point tonight, it was cold enough to see your breath!
• We went to an American grocery store. You could buy a bag of double-stuffed Oreos--for only $11.

During World War II, the buildings that are now the school were seized by the Nazis and used as one of the offices of the SS.

Kind of weird to think about...

I have met students from

Russia
Egypt
Norway (82-year-old PhD student; "direct descendant of the Vikings")
South Africa
Jordan
Spain
Belgium
Korea
Kazakhstan
Denmark
India
all over Eastern Europe

Theological Uses of Anglo-American Postmodernism: Epistemology--Foundationalism vs. Holism

AND

Academic Regulations for Research Degree Schemes

See you later!