Hello Again

Well, it certainly has been a long time since I have posted. My grandmother has been hounding me about it, and I have promised a resumption several times, so here I am.

So much has happened since last time, I am sure I will leave several things out, but I will try to recap the past couple of months or so.

Thanksgiving weekend was great. We went to Tullahoma to spend the holiday with Michelle's parents and grandparents (who were in from New York). Everyone had a great time. Michelle and I had just bought a 2000 Dodge Intrepid a few weeks earlier, so her dad and I spent some time in the garage, changing the transmission fluid and some other stuff. All was well. On the Sunday, we left early so that we could worship at Mt. Denson, in Springfield. We spent the morning telling everyone how great everything was going, and sharing excitement about the baby.

After worship, we left for home, with a plan to stop at the Bellevue exit on west Nashville to have lunch. Just before we got there, the car suddenly lost all power from the engine, so I yanked it over to the shoulder. I just knew that doom was imminent. Anyway, we called a tow truck and had it dragged to a nearby shop. We spent the next couple of hours watching the Titans getting their tails handed to them, until finally the shop said the problem was beyond their capabilities. So, we called my aunt and uncle who lived nearby to see if we could crash there. By that time, the Titans had made a miraculous comeback, and when my uncle got there to pick us up, they were only down a few points, and were driving with time running out. Needless to say, my uncle would much rather have been watching the game then picking us up, so things were a little tense in the car. We had the game on the radio, and we got to the house at the 2 minute warning. The Titans ended up winning the game, so all was good...LOL. Anyway, we enjoyed a great dinner and went to bed, trying not to worry about the car.

The next morning, we had the car towed to a nearby dealership, and rented a car to tool around in. We decided to head to Clarksville, and visited with my grandmother, then went to my parents' house. My dad was working that day, so we went by there, and ended up in Patty Averitt's office talking to her for about an hour. By the time we got upstairs to my dad's office, he was gone...LOL. So, we just head home to Memphis, awaiting word on the car. I think it was either Wednesday or Thursday before we got a final verdict, which was that the engine needed complete replacement. Jeez, that sucked. So, we spent the next day or two trying to figure out what we wanted to do. We eventually decided to sell the car to salvage, live with one car for a while, and then buy something else in the middle of January, before school started again.

So, we spent December trying to finish our last projects and papers, and trying to get me graduated. The end of the semester was just crazy. But, eventually, we both got all our work done, and I graduated. I cannot remember which tournament it was, but I remember after Tiger Woods had won one of his majors, he spoke about how the entire week he only focused on each upcoming shot, never thinking about a past or future shot. Then, after he putted out on the last hole, he had a really strange feeling because he suddenly realized he had no more shots to play. This is exactly the same feeling I had after I took my last final exam. It was my astronomy exam, at 8:00 AM. I got done in about an hour and a half, so as I walked out of the building, it suddenly occured to me that I had nothing more to do. For the past several years, I had been so focused on papers, projects, and exams, and now I had nothing more to do. It was such a strange feeling. My legs were literally shaking.

It was wonderful that most of my family, and Michelle's parents, were able to come down and celebrate with us. At dinner the night before, I quoted the French philosopher Gabriel Marcel by saying that only a fool would claim to be self-made, and thanked everyone for their support throughout the years. I would like to reiterate those sentiments.

The ceremony itself was great; I saw several friends from classes, and we all shared good laughs. Afterward, everyone in the group went back to our apartment and celebrated. We all had a good time (except for when Steve broke my wireless router...LOL), especially when the cake was revealed. My mom had given Michelle a picture of me when I graduated kindergarten, way back in the day. Michelle had gotten the picture put on a cake, and it was hilarious. They made me eat my face, which was kind of weird...LOL.



We went to Clarksville to celebrate Christmas, and had a good time. We went down to McGregor park to see the Christmas lights, which is where we got engaged. That was cool. A couple of days later, we went to Tullahoma to see Michelle's family. It was good to see them again. It is usually quiet around their house, so I was able to get a lot of reading done. That was nice.

New Year's eve was uneventful, as we stayed home. Michelle went to bed early, and I stayed up reading. I looked up at the clock to see that it was 12:30 AM, so it felt a little strange to have "missed" the new year's arrival. So, I just went to bed a while after that.

A few days later, I got word from my best friend Michael Clark that his dad was in his final days of battling the cancer that had ravaged his body for the past couple of years. I wished I could have done more for Mike, but I just called occasionally to offer my support. Michelle and I went to Clarksville for the funeral service, and although it's always good to be in town, I wished I could have been there under better circumstances. The night before the funeral, we went over to my parents' house, and my dad and I had a good time playing guitar. I brought my new guitar that I had just bought, and was glad that my dad liked it. One neat thing is that while we were playing, Michelle thought she felt the baby move. That was really neat.

After the service, we went over to Mathews Nissan to see Jessie Johnson, and look at cars. We quickly discovered that Jessie and his business partner now work at James Corlew Chevrolet, so we went over there. Jessie was off that day, so we talked with his partner Kurt. We did not really plan on buying a car that day, so were just gonna look. However, We became smitten with a 2002 Chevrolet Blazer, and ended up buying it. So, we spent an extra night in Clarksville, then came back to Memphis the next day. We have enjoyed the Blazer, and we are enjoying the fact that we bought a 2 year warranty with it :) So, if it conks out, we should be OK.

During the winter break, it was nice to read some things that were of my own choosing, instead of being dictated by a syllabus. I revisited John Stuart Mill's "On Liberty", and I read the Iraq Study Group Report". I also read the Gospel of Judas, which is a new book that paints a revolutionary new picture of Judas Iscariot. I also read a couple of chapters of "The Guns of August", which is the preeminent account of the events that led up to the first month of World War I. And, I read a really funny book, "The Mr. and Mrs. Happy Handbook" by Steve Doocy.

Last Friday, I had orientation and registration at seminary. It was a really long day, but well worth it. My first class is today at 5:30. It is a strange feeling to call myself "college graduate" and "graduate student". I am sure that reality will set in tonight when I get my first syllabus...LOL.

My course schedule is as follows:

CH 05045 Issues in Church Relations Worldwide (Mondays at 5:30)
TH 01111 Reading, Writing, Research Thursdays (Tuesdays at 12:30
CG 00108 Covenant Group (Tuesdays at 4:30)
NT 10000 Intro to New Testament (Tuesdays at 5:30)
CH 10000 Intro to Church History (Wednesdays at 1:30)
TH 10000 Christan Beliefs (Thursdays at 5:30)

Covenant Group is a no-credit class that meets for 1 hour per week. It is a support-group type thing where a student who has been around for a couple of years stimulates discussion about our feelings and concerns.

TH 0111 is a one-credit hour class that I hope will help me with my research and paper-writing skills. One of the texts is a book called "How to Read a Book". I have been joking about the fact that I had to go to grad school to learn that...LOL.

The rest of my classes are all 3-credit hour classes. So, I have a total of 13 hours, which should be manageable.

Today is the 23rd anniversary of the introduction of the Macintosh computer, which was done via a Super Bowl commercial that, while it aired only once, is still considered one of the best commercials ever made. It was named "Commercial of the Decade" by at least one prominent trade publication.



I remember the computer lab at my high school having about 30 Apple IIe units, and about 8 Macs. In order to use the Macs, one had to be in the good graces of the teacher, Mr. Stinnett. Fortunately, I was one of the few that were elevated to that level. I went away from Macs for quite a while, but always knowing that I would go back. Now, I would never trade my iBook for anything, except a new Powerbook...LOL.

I hope everyone is doing well. Peace...