Okay, quick rundown.
Thursday I did my videotaped lesson, twice to make sure I got a good one, and went to my night class.
This past weekend we went to the Festival of Marriage. Fortunately, we had paid for the weekend way back in May, when we had extra funds. Even now we feel that investing in our marriage is very important in terms of time and money. I'm dedicating myself to preserving that philosophy over the next 20 years with the introduction of children to the mix. We hear so many people say how much will change, we won't get to do anything; they make it sound like a nightmare that you don't wake up from. Okay, so I recognize there will be changes, but come on. People wouldn't keep having them if it was that bad. We heard the same type of whining and complaining about marriage, and we find it a blessing in our lives. Yes there will be struggles, battles, sleep deprivation, and expenses, but I gladly do all of these things for UK games, why not for a child?
But I digress...
Where was I? Festival of Marriage. It was a good retreat, not great. The keynote speakers this year said the exact same things as last year in all 3 sessions. Even their "We weren't going to do this, but here it is..." spiel. Then why is it queued up on the monitor if you weren't going to do it? Anyway... the point is this time around the people seemed more phony. Now don't get me wrong, there was still some good relationship building stuff there, and we had a good time, but the presentations didn't have the same impact they did before. 2 of the 3 seminars we went to were good and gave us food for thought and promoted discussion. I'll remember this year's retreat by the amount of 'swing time' we had, talking and taking in the mountain scenery while sitting on an old wooden swing. That was nice.
Got back home Sunday and watched the epic battle between UK and Florida. So close. The cats lost 45-37. It would have been 38, but time elapsed and they didn't allow Kentucky to kick the extra point, as it wouldn't have made any difference. But fortunately, there is a five-way tie in the SEC East for 1st place. Whoever finishes 1st in the SEC East will play the SEC West winner in the SEC title game.
Monday was uneventful. Mostly rest for me. Ellice of course worked. I had a bit of a nervous breakdown over our finances, but felt better once I prayed, realizing that God has provided for us all allong. He knows we need money.
Tuesday- subbed. Was asked if I wanted to do an interview Wednesday for a teacher assistant position. Had two volleyball games. We won the first match after losing the first game (the matches are the best of three games). It was a good comeback. Then we played First Methodist, who I call a semi-pro team. They are so good, it's scary. Well, Aaron, Judith and Ellice and I upped our game tremendously. Roger played solid and Jordan fairly well. We gave them a good game, taking it to them every step of the way. I had 3 or 4 blocks as did Aaron. We were all over the place. I played as hard as I ever have. Ellice nailed all her serves and made a great number of plays. We actually had the edge at a few points along the way, but when 2 or 3 of us rotated out leaving us to rely on our less strong players on the front line, we were doomed. We have a few people that don't quite now how to hit the ball yet-it's their first year. Understandable as it is a church league, so I'm not making an issue of it. It still hurts though to play so hard and lose.
Wednesday- Taught my videotaped lesson as an encore to another 5th grade class- I was requested. Good experience and good for the ego. I ran some errands afterward, went to my interview and got the Job on the spot! I start Monday and I'm a little nervous, but not very. I'll be helping students with special needs with their Math skills. Church then class. I am so very sore from the grueling volleyball matches.
Thursday- Subbing again today. More sore than yesterday.
Not much in the way of reviews this week, as I didn't finish any books or watch any movies. Till next time.
Thursday, October 25, 2007
Friday, October 19, 2007
The Big News This Week...
Kentucky Wins! Kentucky beats #1 ranked LSU in triple overtime thriller. Ranked 7th in the BCS (which helps determine where they play in the post season) and is actually in the title hunt this year.
Oh, and there was another big newsworthy event this week...
Billy Gillispie began his tenure as Kentucky's Basketball coach with Big Blue Madness Friday night...
Okay, so my wife is giving me that look...
We (and by we I mean Ellice) are pregnant. I don't know how it happened...okay, so we were trying and I kind of have some idea. Big excitement and good things to hope for. Busy, busy week as you can imagine (hence the lateness of this post).
Tuesday-(10/9/07) Substituted, Volleyball- we lost.
Wednesday- Ate at church, class, choir for Ellice, walked
Thursday-Subbed, Cici's, class, Ellice had Bible study
Friday- Found out we were pregnant, told a whole lot of people, Outback to celebrate, I went to Big Blue Madness with Sunday School fellas
Saturday-Ellice had choir, we gamed with the guys, went to wedding and skipped the reception cause they had the UK-LSU game on TV (I have to watch the whole thing and hate to ruin it by knowing the outcome ahead of time)-My wife is wonderfully supportive about this by the way. Watched the game into the wee hours of the morning
Sunday-Church, Church picnic, more announcements about expecting
Monday- I subbed for half the day, observed at Ellice's school, helped with her academic team, and Tiffany took us out to Cracker Barrel-Fried Pork Chops, mmmm. Thanks again Tiff.
Tuesday- More Observations, Volleyball- We win handily
Wednesday- More Observations, Church, Class, Ellice choir, walked
Thursday- Video taped a Social Studies lesson I had prepared at Ellice's school. The kids loved the game I made up about the Barter System. I think the lesson went well, and I should get a decent grade. Observed the rest of the day, went to class.
Friday- We're getting ready to leave for the Festival of Marriage in North Carolina. The retreat should help the two of us recover from the last two weeks. Let's hope no one tells me what happens in the UK-Florida game this Saturday-- Shhhh! I'm taping it...
This Present Darkness by Frank Peretti
Ellice recommended this read and I'm very glad she did. Loved this book. This is my first foray into the Christian Fiction genre and I have to tell you it was a good one. Angels and devils fight it out sword to flaming sword on the astral plane, while protecting and manipulating (respectively) humans in subtle ways. The plot twists in the story were unexpected. Themes of fall and redemption are of course present, and the characters are realistic. The insidious nature of demonic influence is well represented in a believable and potentially scary way.
Warning, this is not a book for the young. There are adult themes in this book, including accusations of rape, demonic possession, and violence (including a brutal beating of a woman). The dark side of the book is well represented and is a frightening contrast to the angelic Host. And this is not a story that is just about new age angels; the angels depicted are very Biblical, calling on New Testament truths and always acknowledging that they are servants of Christ.
A very enjoyable read. ***1/2
Jungle Book (DVD)
I watched this Disney movie for the first time this week. I liked it. Among the cartoon Disney movies I'd put this one close to the top (Aladdin of course being #1). Sher Kahn was a nefarious villain; I think that element is essential in a good flick. He had a lot of build up, and when he crept on screen for the first time, I thought the characterization lived up to the billing. As far as the supporting cast goes, the interplay between Bagura and Baloo was very cool. In fact, I liked all the supporting characters; very well done. The movie was pretty short though. The fact that I wanted more says how much I liked this movie. No wonder this is a classic. ***
Oh, and there was another big newsworthy event this week...
Billy Gillispie began his tenure as Kentucky's Basketball coach with Big Blue Madness Friday night...
Okay, so my wife is giving me that look...
We (and by we I mean Ellice) are pregnant. I don't know how it happened...okay, so we were trying and I kind of have some idea. Big excitement and good things to hope for. Busy, busy week as you can imagine (hence the lateness of this post).
Tuesday-(10/9/07) Substituted, Volleyball- we lost.
Wednesday- Ate at church, class, choir for Ellice, walked
Thursday-Subbed, Cici's, class, Ellice had Bible study
Friday- Found out we were pregnant, told a whole lot of people, Outback to celebrate, I went to Big Blue Madness with Sunday School fellas
Saturday-Ellice had choir, we gamed with the guys, went to wedding and skipped the reception cause they had the UK-LSU game on TV (I have to watch the whole thing and hate to ruin it by knowing the outcome ahead of time)-My wife is wonderfully supportive about this by the way. Watched the game into the wee hours of the morning
Sunday-Church, Church picnic, more announcements about expecting
Monday- I subbed for half the day, observed at Ellice's school, helped with her academic team, and Tiffany took us out to Cracker Barrel-Fried Pork Chops, mmmm. Thanks again Tiff.
Tuesday- More Observations, Volleyball- We win handily
Wednesday- More Observations, Church, Class, Ellice choir, walked
Thursday- Video taped a Social Studies lesson I had prepared at Ellice's school. The kids loved the game I made up about the Barter System. I think the lesson went well, and I should get a decent grade. Observed the rest of the day, went to class.
Friday- We're getting ready to leave for the Festival of Marriage in North Carolina. The retreat should help the two of us recover from the last two weeks. Let's hope no one tells me what happens in the UK-Florida game this Saturday-- Shhhh! I'm taping it...
This Present Darkness by Frank Peretti
Ellice recommended this read and I'm very glad she did. Loved this book. This is my first foray into the Christian Fiction genre and I have to tell you it was a good one. Angels and devils fight it out sword to flaming sword on the astral plane, while protecting and manipulating (respectively) humans in subtle ways. The plot twists in the story were unexpected. Themes of fall and redemption are of course present, and the characters are realistic. The insidious nature of demonic influence is well represented in a believable and potentially scary way.
Warning, this is not a book for the young. There are adult themes in this book, including accusations of rape, demonic possession, and violence (including a brutal beating of a woman). The dark side of the book is well represented and is a frightening contrast to the angelic Host. And this is not a story that is just about new age angels; the angels depicted are very Biblical, calling on New Testament truths and always acknowledging that they are servants of Christ.
A very enjoyable read. ***1/2
Jungle Book (DVD)
I watched this Disney movie for the first time this week. I liked it. Among the cartoon Disney movies I'd put this one close to the top (Aladdin of course being #1). Sher Kahn was a nefarious villain; I think that element is essential in a good flick. He had a lot of build up, and when he crept on screen for the first time, I thought the characterization lived up to the billing. As far as the supporting cast goes, the interplay between Bagura and Baloo was very cool. In fact, I liked all the supporting characters; very well done. The movie was pretty short though. The fact that I wanted more says how much I liked this movie. No wonder this is a classic. ***
Tuesday, October 09, 2007
It had to happen...
Well, Kentucky dropped one. South Carolina took advantage of four wildcat turnovers to hand our football team its first loss of the season. (Sigh). UK now hosts #1 LSU Saturday night at 7pm. It will either be the biggest upset in UK football history, or another loss. Here's to hoping for a close game.
Brief review of the week, a full week off from work for Ellice, Second Anniversary on Monday, hosted a few friends from Sunday School to dinner on Friday, went to Ren Fest on Saturday, helped put together the Chili lunch for the college kiddies on Sunday. All in all a fairly business but productive weekend.
Didn't get much writing done this week due to a heavy run of classwork. Hopefully, I'll get to do a little more this time around.
The Seeker: The Dark is Rising
Yes it is predictable. But there's a reason for these formulaic stories--the formula works. I'm just a sucker for the manchild-learns-his-destiny-is-to-save-the-world tale. Will is the 7th son of a 7th son, and there is a great burden on his shoulders, to battle the Dark, which is in case you didn't guess, rising. In a season of dull movie choices, I recommend this one. I don't want to give much away, but if you like the genre, you'll like the flick. ***
Star Wars: Attack of the Clones (book) by R. A. Salvatore
One of my favorite fantasy authors delivers in this treatment of the film. His writing embodies the character drama that encompasses the film, and his ability to bring the action to life shines in this one. Included in the book are deleted scenes omitted from the theatrical release of the film. Salvatore's writing fits well with Star Wars novels, even if he departs at times from what is seen on screen. His deviations work, though they are glaring to a Star Wars afficionado like myself. The only real glaring problem is that the ending seemed a bit abbreviated, like he was working against a deadline, but he may have been emulating the frenetic pace of the end of the movie. We'll give my man Salvatore the benefit of the doubt here. ***
Brief review of the week, a full week off from work for Ellice, Second Anniversary on Monday, hosted a few friends from Sunday School to dinner on Friday, went to Ren Fest on Saturday, helped put together the Chili lunch for the college kiddies on Sunday. All in all a fairly business but productive weekend.
Didn't get much writing done this week due to a heavy run of classwork. Hopefully, I'll get to do a little more this time around.
The Seeker: The Dark is Rising
Yes it is predictable. But there's a reason for these formulaic stories--the formula works. I'm just a sucker for the manchild-learns-his-destiny-is-to-save-the-world tale. Will is the 7th son of a 7th son, and there is a great burden on his shoulders, to battle the Dark, which is in case you didn't guess, rising. In a season of dull movie choices, I recommend this one. I don't want to give much away, but if you like the genre, you'll like the flick. ***
Star Wars: Attack of the Clones (book) by R. A. Salvatore
One of my favorite fantasy authors delivers in this treatment of the film. His writing embodies the character drama that encompasses the film, and his ability to bring the action to life shines in this one. Included in the book are deleted scenes omitted from the theatrical release of the film. Salvatore's writing fits well with Star Wars novels, even if he departs at times from what is seen on screen. His deviations work, though they are glaring to a Star Wars afficionado like myself. The only real glaring problem is that the ending seemed a bit abbreviated, like he was working against a deadline, but he may have been emulating the frenetic pace of the end of the movie. We'll give my man Salvatore the benefit of the doubt here. ***
Monday, October 01, 2007
No. 8?!?!
Kentucky Football is ranked 8th this week after a topsy-turvy weekend that saw five of the top 10 teams in the country (including Florida) lose. Not 8th in the SEC; 8th in the country! Mind boggling.
Something big happens today--its like one of those yearly things. Something of significance. An anniversary of some type. Something important. I just can't remember. I'll just ask my wife; I'm sure she'll let me know what it is.
The week in review--ate out too much, subbed, class, midterm, papers, walked, volleyball practice. Had Andi (Ellice's mentee) and her new boyfriend over for tacos. Went to Movie Tavern with David and Brittany to see the new Disney movie. Mom took us to Cracker Barrel for our Anniversary (Evan too).
Prayer concerns-- David and Brittany, Erin, James, Brian and Amey
Praise-Ellice's job
The Game Plan
Dwayne 'The Rock' Johnson's new movie is a family friendly cute Disney flick. He's an aging pro quarterback on top of the world who is just starting to realize that his all-consuming passion for the pro sports lifestyle is missing something. And then fate delivers a turn when an 8-year-old surprise shows up on his doorstep. While featuring your typically campy Disney kid humor, this surprisingly funny film is worth the watch. The Rock has a good screen presence and doesn't seem to take himself overly serious. He sings a little in this one too. **1/2
Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King (book) by J. R. R. Tolkien
This is the third and final installment in the Lord of the Rings trilogy.
I must admit, I had never read these books until now. I am a big fantasy fan, but I tried to read Tolkien back in middle school and failed. He's just overly wordy and a little boring for my taste. But now that I'm a little older and have a greater command of vocabulary (not to mention more patience), I thought I would tackle the prequel (the Hobbit) and the trilogy. This installment is probably on par with the Fellowship of the Ring. I liked it but as all of Tolkien it really drags. The style harkens to classic works of the 19th century, featuring verbose, bulky writing with way too much attention to detail. There is poetry to the language which is enjoyable-but only in small doses. What lacks is flow. But when you overcome that, the story is really good. The epic tale probably peaked with the Hobbit, which I liked more than the trilogy. I'm giving this one an extra half star as Tolkien's popularity inspired generations of fantasy authors (and an awesome film trilogy). ***
Something big happens today--its like one of those yearly things. Something of significance. An anniversary of some type. Something important. I just can't remember. I'll just ask my wife; I'm sure she'll let me know what it is.
The week in review--ate out too much, subbed, class, midterm, papers, walked, volleyball practice. Had Andi (Ellice's mentee) and her new boyfriend over for tacos. Went to Movie Tavern with David and Brittany to see the new Disney movie. Mom took us to Cracker Barrel for our Anniversary (Evan too).
Prayer concerns-- David and Brittany, Erin, James, Brian and Amey
Praise-Ellice's job
The Game Plan
Dwayne 'The Rock' Johnson's new movie is a family friendly cute Disney flick. He's an aging pro quarterback on top of the world who is just starting to realize that his all-consuming passion for the pro sports lifestyle is missing something. And then fate delivers a turn when an 8-year-old surprise shows up on his doorstep. While featuring your typically campy Disney kid humor, this surprisingly funny film is worth the watch. The Rock has a good screen presence and doesn't seem to take himself overly serious. He sings a little in this one too. **1/2
Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King (book) by J. R. R. Tolkien
This is the third and final installment in the Lord of the Rings trilogy.
I must admit, I had never read these books until now. I am a big fantasy fan, but I tried to read Tolkien back in middle school and failed. He's just overly wordy and a little boring for my taste. But now that I'm a little older and have a greater command of vocabulary (not to mention more patience), I thought I would tackle the prequel (the Hobbit) and the trilogy. This installment is probably on par with the Fellowship of the Ring. I liked it but as all of Tolkien it really drags. The style harkens to classic works of the 19th century, featuring verbose, bulky writing with way too much attention to detail. There is poetry to the language which is enjoyable-but only in small doses. What lacks is flow. But when you overcome that, the story is really good. The epic tale probably peaked with the Hobbit, which I liked more than the trilogy. I'm giving this one an extra half star as Tolkien's popularity inspired generations of fantasy authors (and an awesome film trilogy). ***
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