It's OK to be WEIRD!

Did you know?

2009-11-02T12:25:00Z

This is an updated version of a video I saw a couple of years ago. I'm astounded by the information in it.

Did you know? And what does it all mean? It means life is changing faster now than at any other point in human history. Amazing, eh?

Scenic Tour of Montana

2009-10-27T19:40:00Z

We need to pay more careful attention when driving in Montana. And Montana needs to take some lessons in highway labeling!

Yesterday, on the last leg of our trip home from our vacation, we took not 1, not 2, but 3 scenic detours in Montana, all of them due to poor road markings and bad junction labels.

My Sweetie and I are pretty good navigators, and rarely get lost. But we missed turns 3 times and it probably cost us over an hour in drive time. It was cloudy all day, so the sun was no help with our directions at all, and we were in places where we had passed through only briefly before. None of it looked particularly familiar, so we weren't sure when it was really not the right way.

The first missed exit was in Billings. We completely missed the signs for us to switch from I-90 to Hwy 87. We did get to see Cabelas in the detour, though. Too bad we didn't have time to stop. We saw Cabelas twice, in fact - once realizing that we'd missed the turn, and again after turning around to go back the other way.

The 2nd missed turn was also in Billings. Once we got off of I-90 and started north on Hwy 87, we came to a congested intersection with no clear markings. So, we went straight. About 30 minutes later, the road we were on crossed over I-94 and dwindled down into a tiny country road. Apparently we had missed the 'turn' that would have taken us directly north, and had ended up on a road parallel to I-94 going east. The fastest way to get back on track was to go back in to Billings on the interstate road (faster speed limit there), and try not to miss the turn on the 2nd try.

Sure enough, we got back off the interstate onto Hwy 87 going north, and at that very extremely congestion intersection I mentioned before, there was 1 small sign, in the median (in the middle of the road) that indicated that Hwy 87 turned left at that point instead of going straight. When we had been there before, there were 3 large semi-trucks in the left-turn lane, completely blocking any possibility of our seeing that junction sign. We got it this time, and headed due north, just like we were supposed to.

We knew that at some point we would have to make a pretty sharp left again, going west instead of north, and going through Lewiston. So, we went through a town (I can't remember the name of at this moment) and made a big left turn, following the signs leading to Lewiston. The last sign we remembered seeing said we had 'x' many miles to go to Lewiston. Then we see signs saying we're 'x' many miles from Malta. WHAT? We weren't going to Malta! Malta is more east than Lewiston. We had apparently missed another turn. I have no idea where it was... we were watching and we didnt see it! BLARGH!

Thankfully we were right near a more clearly marked junction where we could end up going straight north again. It wasn't the route we had planned to take, but it would still get us where we needed to go.

Anyway, we ended up getting home, in Alberta, around 10:30pm, about an hour and a half earlier than I had anticipated after all the detours. Our border-crossing was very smooth, and that made up some time. We also decided to just eat in the car all day, instead of stopping to sit down and eat somewhere. That helped to make up some time as well.

We love Montana as a whole - it's one of the most beautiful places I have ever visited - but their highway markings leave something to be desired. We've always wanted to take some scenic tours of the state, but not quite like this, and not when we were on a fixed time-table. We've learned that we need to be more attentive while driving in Montana, and watch closely for signs which may or may not be visible or existent!

Climate Shock

2009-10-14T19:00:00Z

We left our house on Saturday morning for a trip down south. It hadn't been above freezing for at least 3 days before we left, and we had snow on the ground. We drove through snow all the way to southern Colorado, nearly to the New Mexico border. All the way through Montana, Wyoming and Colorado it was COLD. I kept hoping that the further south we got the warmer it would get.

My hopes proved true!

Today the high temperature forecast for our home away from home here in New Mexico is 95degrees F (about 32degreesC). Talk about climate shock!

I'm not sure if we'll be more uncomfortable now, dealing with the heat, or when we get home from the heat and back to the cold. I think we'll be freezing!

For now, we're just going to try to enjoy the warm and sunshine. It's lovely - just hotter (a lot hotter) than we're used to! :)

We're enjoying the company of friends and family, and look forward to a very good friend's wedding next weekend. It's so nice to be able to share in these times, even if we experience climate shock to do it. LOL!

What kind of crazy weather is happening around you? Snow in October crazy enough for you? It definitely has been for me!

ALMOST Free Meal

2009-09-28T11:35:00Z

Last night we had a good friend stay with us. He and his family are great friends of ours from when we lived in BC. He is a student pilot, and he and a friend flew here to log some flight time. (He flew out here to see us - isn't that COOL?! Actually, we were a convenient location for them to fly to, and it was a good excuse for him to come out here!)

It was SO good to see him.

For dinner I wanted to have a nice meal, but not one that would require me to be in the kitchen all evening so I could not visit. I was hoping to put stuff in the crock pot or in the oven to roast.

So, I pulled out the pork loin that some friends had brought over last week. We had intended to cook it while they were here, and had many other things to eat so we didn't get to it. I put it in the freezer because they had brought it frozen and it wasn't completely thawed. It was too big for the crockpot, so I put it in the oven after church yesterday to cook it long and slow.

I also cut up some potatoes and carrots that some of our friends had given us from their garden to roast. I added onions that we bought a couple weeks ago and some celery as well. Another friend gave us some beets, so I roasted them,too. She also brought a lovely loaf of whole grain bread, so we sliced that up and set it out with dinner. While I was at church working on my conference stuff this week, someone brought in a bag FULL of cucumbers, and everyone i the office took some home, me included. So I also sliced up a big (BIG) cucumber to have with dinner.

As I was putting it all on the table I realized that it was almost a completely FREE meal. Except for the onions and celery, and the butter we used on the bread, everything else had been given to us. And it was a lovely meal. The guys enjoyed it a bunch, and we still have leftovers for at least another meal. YUM!

I felt so blessed, and so thankful for God's provision through the people around us. I know that at harvest time now that many back-yard gardeners find themselves over run with cucumbers, zucchini, tomatoes, potatoes, etc... and are happy to share just so that the vegetables don't go bad. (Kind of like we've been doing with our apples!) What a blessing for us, as a family on a budget and getting ready to make a big trip for a friend's wedding - EVERY little bit helps, eh?

A wonderful, almostly completely FREE, meal! So Cool!

It's Official - We're CANADIAN!!!

2009-09-20T19:58:00Z

Last Thursday my Sweetie and I took our Canadian Citizenship exams and both passed! So, on Friday, in the presence of some good friends (new and old) and about 400 other people, we were properly 'ceremonied', taking the oath of Canadian Citizenship (in both official languages, English AND French), receiving our Canadian Citizenship Certificates and Cards, and singing "O Canada" for the first time as Canadian Citizens. I did shed a few tears as it was a very solemn and joyous occasion.

It's OFFICIAL!!!! We're now Canadians!!!

We will maintain dual citizenship, being both American and now Canadian. I've been saying, "We're STILL 100% American, and NOW 100% Canadian, too!"

This is the culmination of a long process, and it feels so good to have it DONE! In actuality, the only things we can do now that we couldn't do before are carrying a Canadian Passport and voting in the elections here (oh, and I guess we could run for office as well... not likely, but now possible).

One friend said about our new status, "You already are Canadian, now it's just official!"

And I guess, after living in Canada for over 11 years now, being here most of our adult lives, and raising our family here, that statement is very true about us.

I don't necessarily feel any more Canadian now that I've taken the oath of citizenship, but somehow I do feel more connected. It will be much more difficult for anyone to consider us as outsiders, if they ever wanted to do that. We truly have embraced the culture and lifestyle here, and now there's nothing different about us than probably 1/3 of the population of our city, who are immigrants or 1st generation Canadians.

We love America and we love Canada - and we're so glad we get to maintain BOTH citizenships.

The other big thing is that we KNOW the Lord has called us here, and He continued to keep us here even at our most recent crossroads. He continues to provide for us here, and He is using us to minister to this lovely community, and this beautiful country of Canada. He chose Canada for us as much as we did, and it feels like we've honored His choice in a very definite way in becoming citizens of Canada.

The truth of the matter is that we are either citizens of 3 realms, or of only one - the 3 realms being the United States, Canada, and the Kingdom of God; the one being ONLY the Kingdom of God. We are truly strangers in a strange land - and even though we have ties to these two earthly 'kingdoms', this isn't our home. We're only passing through!

But, for our time here on Earth, this is definitely where He has sent us/brought us, and it feels right and proper to become full citizens of Canada, with all the rights and responsibilities that go along with that.

I'm a TRUE Canuck now - it's official! And I LOVE IT!!!!!!!

Oath of Canadian Citizenship

I swear (or affirm) that I will be faithful
and bear true allegiance to Her Majesty
Queen Elizabeth the Second, Queen of Canada,
Her Heirs and Successors, and that I will faithfully
observe the laws of Canada
and fulfill my duties as a Canadian citizen.

Serment de Citoyenneté en français:

J'affirme solennellement
que je serai fidèle et porterai sincère allégeance
à Sa Majesté la Reine Elizabeth Deux,
Reine du Canada, à ses héritiers et successeurs,
que j’observerai fidèlement les lois du Canada
et que je remplirai loyalement mes obligations de citoyen canadien.

O Canada - the Canadian National Anthem

O Canada! Our home and native land!
True patriot love in all thy sons command.
With glowing hearts we see thee rise,
The True North strong and free!
From far and wide,
O Canada, we stand on guard for thee.
God keep our land glorious and free!
O Canada, we stand on guard for thee.
O Canada, we stand on guard for thee.

Ô Canada! en français

« O Canada! Terre de nos aïeux,
Ton front est ceint de fleurons glorieux!
Car ton bras sait porter l'épée,
Il sait porter la croix!
Ton histoire est une épopée
Des plus brillants exploits.
Et ta valeur, de foi trempée,
Protégera nos foyers et nos droits.
Protégera nos foyers et nos droits. »

English Translation of the French Version of the National Anthem

O Canada! Land of our forefathers
Thy brow is wreathed with a glorious garland of flowers.
As in thy arm ready to wield the sword,
So also is it ready to carry the cross.
Thy history is an epic of the most brilliant exploits.
Thy valour steeped in faith
Will protect our homes and our rights
Will protect our homes and our rights.

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