this and that

coming out of a funk

2012-01-30T06:30:00.000-08:00

now that mike has updated you on how we are doing, i would like to let you know that...we are having a baby boy! we couldn't be more thrilled. after our miscarriage i couldn't help worrying everyday of the first trimester, but now i am at 21 weeks and everything seems to be going well.

the first trimester was rough. i was cranky (to put it lightly), nauseous, and exhausted every moment of everyday...not fun. can we all say, poor mike? i didn't feel like taking any pictures during this time, but mike insisted we document this stage. i can't believe i am posting these...but here goes..

this is how i ate most of my meals while i was at my parents' house - in the basement, with my ugly blue robe that mike has come to hate, behind locked doors with ear plugs in my nose. i couldn't stand the smell of anything cooking, especially korean food, which happens to be my favorite. let me tell you, eating with your nose plugged is very difficult, even if it is just white rice and water. it's very hard to breathe and chew at the same time.

I hang my head in shame. Mike insisted in taking a picture of my outfit. Yes, I know, what was I thinking. I did go out in public dressed like this, but when you are throwing up, and feeling fat, who cares what you wear out, right?

Thank God I'm past that stage. Second trimester has been much better. For those of you who are wondering how the belly bump is progressing, here you go. I only wear the blue robe when I'm getting ready for bed, and I am actually wearing clothing and not sweats with sneakers.

Sporting jcrew's heart me sweater that may just have reached its maximum stretching capacity.

question for our readers, any thoughts on a name for our little boy? so far mike has come up with casper, cox cable, pickles, skelator, mario, luigi..and his current favorite, garfield...sigh...help me please.

the craziest nine months ever... part 3

2012-01-27T06:52:00.000-08:00

craziest nine months continued...

we didn't mention this in any of our sabbatical updates because it was too early, but the truth is, just before we left vancouver for virginia, we found out that min was pregnant! talk about an unexpected surprise! though we were thrilled, this would force us to re-evaluate our sabbatical. should we stay in vancouver? what are we going to do about pre-natal appointments in the states without health insurance? if both of us don't have jobs, what are we going to do about income? YIKES!

we decided to stay the course, however. although we weren't able to do a majority of the things we wanted to because of min's morning sickness and discomfort, we were still able to have a lot of fun. again, i won't post the pictures (because min promises to do so), but let's just say there were definitely a lot of moments of levity in an otherwise pretty miserable three months of the first trimester (ie. ear plugs in the nostrils to block out smells, fashion dyslexia and a morbid fascination with a growing gut).

about three weeks into the sabbatical, we paused to make some decisions. the original plan was to stay in virginia for a month, go on a cruise with the parents, then to california for a month and then decide where we wanted to start our next chapter. the pregnancy changed all of that. we did some more marriage counseling which was actually really helpful for us. we identified the inability in our marriage to honestly say what we needed or wanted. i think both of us being first borns and accommodators, we didn't really know how to just say "help" or "i need you to ..." or "i would like...". so with the pregnancy, min was able to say, "i think i would like to be near my family for this first pregnancy and birth." - that was all it took. she was worried that we were overwhelmingly making this decision based on her needs, but i was actually pretty excited at the prospect of living and doing ministry in the east coast. and if pastoral ministry was where i was headed, min having a stable support network around her was only going to help. so that was that.

we changed our plans and decided to go on the cruise with both our parents as originally planned, then go to vancouver to pack up our stuff and tie up loose ends, then go to california solely to spend time with my folks and a few friends in LA, no scouting out ministry opportunities or schools.

the cruise, you can read about. vancouver was great. it was a blessing to be able to see many of our friends and celebrate with our communities there. one highlight was having one last breakfast with our accountability groups.

our church, living hope fellowship, prayed for us on sunday and then took us out for a big celebration at the local pizza joint. we felt loved and blessed and knew that we were not so much leaving as being sent. thanks to all our living hope friends!!

lastly, we took major steps towards selling my condo. i can't believe i first moved in there in 2005. it's been great, 405! we've been through multiple subletters, floods, being locked out at midnight, having my car towed from the front and listening to the smoke detector go off every time i cooked. good, good times. it's been a tremendous blessing and i will miss the last place i lived as a bachelor and the first place we in together as a married couple.

after leaving vancouver we headed to temecula, california. california was pretty chill. we mostly spent time with my folks and my aunt and uncle. christmas and new year's were low key affairs, but again, it's been a busy enough year.

thanks to our inter-varsity friends, awaiting us in temecula was another awesome gift certificate, this time to one of the local wineries. we had a fantastic lunch there and picked up some nice bottles of wine to bring back with us.

now we're back in virginia. the pod has been unpacked (thanks to the generosity of min's folks who allowed us to store our junk in their dining room!), green card process is underway, the job hunt is on and min has a regular ob/gyn she can go to for her prenatal appointments. we believe that by march a lot of our big question marks regarding employment and housing will be answered. we can only pray that is the case, however.

a few weeks ago min was reminded by a friend that around this time had the first pregnancy gone through we would have given birth to a new baby. that made us really, really sad. at the same time, had the first pregnancy gone through, our story would be very different at this point. better? worse? who knows. we can't decide those things. all we know is that along the way we have done the best we can to honor and love each other, allow others to speak into our lives and put the full force of our weight onto an invisible God that we believe in and trust with all that we are.

we look forward to this next stage of our journey that will hopefully involve a new baby, a new home, a new place to do ministry and a new community to journey with. we have no idea how long this next stage will last, but i know with every fibre of my being that the last nine months have been some of the most important in my life.

the craziest nine months ever... part 2

2012-01-25T07:40:00.000-08:00

craziest nine months continued...

i had to fly out in two days and i madly scrambled to get ready. ok, no problem, only my passport was about to expire.

here's a screenshot of my passport photo - i had to fill out the application, get three references, take photos, get my shots and get back to the passport office before 4 pm - all of this with no guarantee that my passport would be renewed in time for my flight to kenya. it's not obvious, but there's a subtle terror beneath those eyes.

anyways, i did manage to get it done and though it killed me to make min endure yet another absence, i was off. it took two days to get there, but i arrived with felix's best friend, mitchell and we paid our respects.

in some ways, what an amazing opportunity to visit kenya. i met some awesome people there and went to a part of the world i never thought i would have an opportunity to visit and yet all of it came at such a cost.

july 2011 - months ago we had planned a trip to both virginia to reconnect with family and friends and edmonton to attend my cousin's wedding. given all that had happened, these trips were actually really looking like a great way to get some perspective from all that was happening in vancouver. yes, it meant more travel for me, but at least it was together with min.

min's family was waiting for us in virginia and they created an amazingly relaxed atmosphere for us to just decompress and rest after a tumultuous past few months. we were even able to take a short road trip to new york city. we ate our way around the city thanks to our friend diana.

mmmm.... momofuku, artichoke pizza, shake shack, lombardi's, empenada mama, num pang, clinton street baking, cafe habana -- NOM! we tried twice, unsuccessfully to get tickets to the book of mormon, but we did get to see the lion king. we shall return, though!

with min's family, we took another road trip, this time to baltimore, md. for fans of the tv show, the wire, let me just say that the rest of baltimore is actually quite pretty and charming, especially the harbor area. i've decided not to post the picture where i'm wearing a t-shirt that is too tight for me and was taken right after we ate a crab buffet.

anyways, on to the point of this story - it was during our trip to virginia that we were able to get the space and time we needed to process all that had happened. we had both seen counselors at different times to try and work through the events of the past few months, we felt like we were in no position to jump into a bunch of major life decisions. with the counsel and wisdom of many good friends and the extended time together, it was during this trip that we first proposed the idea of taking a sabbatical together. when the idea first came up it immediately felt right. we decided to sit on it a little while though and see how we felt in a few weeks. ultimately we would decide to take the sabbatical (the best decision we ever made), but i don't know if we would have made that decision had we not taken this trip together.

well, the rest is history. you can read about our sabbatical updates in previous blog entries. i just wanted to bring everyone up to speed before writing about what's coming up next.

to be continued...

the craziest nine months ever... part 1

2012-01-23T11:34:00.000-08:00

as we end the sabbatical, i thought it'd be important to log some of the key events in these last nine months.

march 2011 - after a few months of prayer and discernment, min and i would decide to move on from inter-varsity after completing the second of two three-year commitments. my time with inter-varsity was a true blessing and much of who i am and how i think about and practice ministry is the result of that community and being a part of that mission.

we didn't know exactly what we would be going into and where we would be doing it, but we knew that we were ready to jump into that next adventure together. no matter how difficult or uncertain the path.

also in march, we would discover that min was pregnant for the first time! we were elated and though it raised all kinds of questions about where we wanted to the raise the baby and how we were going to time things, we received the news as a blessing and were thrilled to start this next stage of life as a family.

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mega-sabbatical update!

2011-12-22T15:37:00.001-08:00

wow, so much has happened in the past few weeks -- sorry we haven't been able to update as regularly.

so, previously on the adventures of min and mike, min had just returned from a girls' trip down to austin, tx...
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austin!

2011-11-20T17:31:00.001-08:00

mike and i have not been as diligent as we had originally hoped with updating our blog. sorry about that! keeping up a blog takes some major discipline.

so..what have we been up to these days?

a couple weekends ago a few of my girlfriends and i flew to austin, texas to enjoy a weekend full of estrogen and good food. with the four of us living in different states/countries, it has not been easy to get together. it was a true blessing to spend some much needed quality time with my lovely gal pals.

here we are at gourdoughs. hands down our favorite place. their donuts are to DIE for!

this is called the hangover. can you believe there is a donut under all that?

another great spot was mighty cone on s. congress street. s. congress is full of fun, eclectic shops. after a day of shopping, we of course, stuffed our faces.

fried pickles anyone?

I wish I had taken more pictures from our trip..sigh..oh wells. it was a perfect weekend with some of my best-est friends. what more could a gal ask for?

you may be wondering what did mike do while i was away? don't worry i found him a sitter named justin. he was well cared for.

more food, weddings, housework and museums

2011-11-10T07:55:00.000-08:00

weddings...

first up, our friends jen and harvey tied the knot in a beautiful ceremony at the omni hotel in washington, dc. that might be it for weddings for the next little while.

food...

our ivcf friends gifted us with a generous dc restaurant gift card and we finally got the chance to go eat at the popular oyamel Mexican tapas restaurant. it was a cool place but I think we may have ordered poorly. might have to try again in the future. the freshly made guacamole was a treat though!

we also treated ourself to custom-made burgers at the counter. applewood bacon anyone?

housework...

min's parents have a pretty big backyard surrounded by lots of huge trees. in the fall that means lots of raking. it was good to get out and help though. penny especially enjoyed romping around in the leaves.

museums...

dc never gets old for me. there is so much to see especially if you're into history or art. this time we joined some friends and checked out the national gallery of art and the national archives. the nga was cool because it houses the only da vinci painting in the western hemisphere, the ginevra de' benci.

another cool thing about this museum is the walkway connecting the western and eastern buildings. all of min's sci-fi fantasies came true walking through here.

as for the sabbatical, it's been really good. we set to get rest, reflect and discern. so far we have had ample time to do all of those things and we are grateful. the time is flying by but it doesn't feel rushed.

we are grateful for your thoughts and prayers as we continue journeying together during this sabbatical time.

jmu and the homestead

2011-10-29T07:47:00.000-07:00

hello friends!

this week mike and i had the privilege of staying at the famous homestead hotel & resort. on our way down we decided to drop by and visit my brother who is at james madison university. he took us to eat peruvian chicken at a&t and ice cream at klines. it's nice to know that even though i graduated from college 8 years ago, our favorite local eats are enjoyed by students today.

isn't this picture weird? mike and my brother, joe, look like cut outs or something.

here i am posing with the life-size statue of james madison, our 4th president. he was a very small man.

uva and polyface farm tour

2011-10-24T08:13:00.000-07:00

hey friends!

so we hit the road to hit up two eagerly anticipated destinations:

min cha's alma mater UVA (the university of virginia)

and polyface farm (joel salatin's progressive farm featured in documentaries like Food Inc and Fresh and Michael Pollan's The Omnivore's Dilemma).

more after the jump.
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dc monuments tour

2011-10-19T17:32:00.000-07:00

mike convinced me that i should update our blog..so here i go.

the weather has been absolutely beautiful here in va/dc so we decided to check out the new MLK memorial and revisit the other memorials as well. it was a beautiful fall afternoon. i love dc in the fall.

this is the entrance through the mountain of despair.

and here is the stone of hope. the quote is a line from the "i have a dream" speech, as well as the concept for the entire memorial - "out of the mountain of despair, a stone of hope."

the memorial is also surrounded by "the inscription wall" displaying famous MLK quotes. it was quite powerful walking along and reading his inspiring words.

one of the visitors to the memorial did a very good MLK impersonation by reciting the "i have a dream" speech by memory. it was quite entertaining.

next stop: the korean war memorial

sabbatical day 6

2011-10-16T09:45:00.000-07:00

it's been a few days since our last update, but min's been busy being a part of her friend michele's wedding. yesterday we celebrated with them at the wonderful W hotel in downtown washington, dc.

here's a quick pic from the rooftop. you can't see it here, but we had a great view of the washington monument, the white house and a panoramic view of dc and the surrounding area. breathtaking!

the wedding itself was beautiful and elegant. the reception, also beautiful, had a string of humorous/strange moments including:

- a line of folks seemingly slow-dancing to "america the beautiful"
- overly sexy dancing by older folks
- random hotel guests taking off with the centrepieces
- an overly long tango request number that the live band had no idea how to play along with
- the hotel employee taking me on a behind-the-scenes tour of the W

there were other fun moments, but my memory fails me. congratulations michele and brian!

a day or two more of rest and relaxation then our first road trip: southern virginia!

sabbatical day 2

2011-10-12T12:38:00.000-07:00

during our flight on alaska airlines, i was immediately reminded that we were going to be in america for the next three months. with our meal came this little card:

though its actions and believes don't exactly line up with gospel-teaching, there's no doubt that america definitely has a "christian culture". it's bizarre seeing blatant expressions of christianity in small cards like these, hearing worship music pumped through the speakers in fast food chains and the evocation of God's name in all spheres of public life. it's going to take some time getting used to.

in my morning devotion this morning in common prayer, i came across this small little line "commemorating" columbus day: "In 1492, the indigenous peoples of the Americas discovered Christopher Columbus." a sobering reminder that nothing we enjoy comes without a price.

though a small mixup led to a pretty long wait at the airport, we eventually got home and enjoyed a great home-cooked meal at min's parents' house in fairfax, virginia.

one of the things we saw waiting for us was our new sony nex-5 camera. it's a micro 4/3 camera that we bought to replace our old nikon d40. though we loved the nikon, we just had to accept that we were less likely to lug the dslr around. the sony is smaller and will accompany us on all our adventures. we look forward to posting pics from the new little guy!

sabbatical day 1

2011-10-11T08:11:00.001-07:00

.... and we're off! after a frantic day of cleaning and packing on monday and an early start today our sabbatical has officially begun!

first stop: fairfax, virginia!

sabbatical

2011-10-08T14:39:00.000-07:00

sabbatical (from Latin sabbaticus, from Greek sabbatikos, from Arabic Sobat, from Hebrew shabbat i.e., Sabbath, literally a "ceasing") is a rest from work, or a hiatus, often lasting from two months to a year. The concept of sabbatical has a source in shmita, described several places in the Bible (Leviticus 25, for example, where there is a commandment to desist from working the fields in the seventh year)

on october 11th, min and i embark on our three month sabbatical. we are deliberately entering into this time with the intention of creating space for rest, reflection and discernment.

rest - it is customary for people in the fields of education and christian ministry to take a sabbatical every seven years. ours is slightly different in that though it has been seven years for me on staff with inter-varsity, i will not be returning but moving on to a new ministry context. it is also different in that we are primarily going on sabbatical for rest rather than further education or training. both of us have gone pretty hard with work, ministry and education and we feel like taking a short break while we transition is a good thing to do.

reflection - we have also gone through a lot, particularly in the past five months. we are looking forward to the space and time we will have to reflect on the big questions of family, ministry, work and calling.

discernment - lastly, we need to make some important decisions about what we will be doing and where we will be doing it after the sabbatical. rather than just taking whatever opportunity arises or whatever makes the most sense, we want to approach this decision with an particular ear to where we hear God's invitation and calling.

we hope to include you, our friends and supporters in our sabbatical journey. without being overly exhaustive, we will post our adventures from time to time, both the ordinary and extraordinary. we look forward to spending lots of time with friends and family, visiting cool places, reading great books, eating lots of good food, exercising and praying.

we look forward to sharing the journey with you.

gratitude and limbo...

2011-09-13T09:56:00.000-07:00

it was exactly ten years ago when i first came to vancouver to study at regent college. i came to attend my first official day of school when i was met at the door with the chaos surrounding the news of the attacks on the world trade center in new york. as i had just made new friends who were from the east coast, i immediately felt a connection to all that was happening and the surreal quickly became real as my friends could not reach their families back home and we had no idea if other cities were being targeted.

we did the only thing we could do. we gathered in the chapel and sat. we prayed, we shared, we sang, but mostly it was silent. i learned a powerful lesson that day about the power of "sitting". there are often times when there is nothing you can do but sit.

there's a great line in the movie "lars and the real girl" where a bunch of the neighborhood ladies come over to comfort the main character after he suffers a tragic loss. they bring over casseroles and their knitting paraphernalia and take a seat in his living room.

Sally:We brought casseroles.
Lars:Thank you.
Lars:[Lars looks around the sewing circle. The three ladies are knitting and doing needlepoint] Um, is there something I should be doing right now?
Mrs. Gruner:No, dear. You eat.
Sally:We came over to sit.
Hazel:That's what people do when tragedy strikes.
Sally:They come over, and sit.

Lars and the Real Girl (2007)

flash forward exactly ten years. we are just one month away from going on a three month sabbatical that may translate into a permanent move from vancouver. my emotions and thoughts are conflicted as we are both excited for new opportunities but grieved at all we may be leaving behind.

i've been living in a place of gratitude and limbo for the past few weeks. gratitude because i am actively in the process of thanking the many people who have invested in me, supported me and encouraged me during my seven years on staff and indeed for the entire time i've been in vancouver. limbo because we are neither here nor there. as a border-line "driven" person, without tasks and activity, i struggle with issues of purpose and identity. without a clear sense of where we are going, i struggle with security and the wisdom of our decisions.

so i am once again learning the value of "sitting". yes, there will be a time for action and busyness and we'll probably look back on this season of "sitting" with longing. but for now, i think there is something good about receiving this gift of inactivity for what it is.

"be still and know that i am God" writes the psalmist in psalm 46:10.

"don't just do something, sit there" -- a sign that used to hang in the prayer room of an intern house i lived in a few years ago.

do you listen to podcasts?

2011-08-26T19:53:00.000-07:00

All of this media recap madness has me in the mood for just one more round of sharing media I love to consume. This time: podcasts!

Do you listen to podcasts? When they first came out I thought they were just a passing fad, but in the past few years, I have come to almost exclusively listen to podcasts. Yes, I will occasionally listen to an audiobook, lecture series or sermon, and of course I listen to a lot of music, but when it comes to "talk radio", podcast is my preferred medium.

I can listen to them whenever I want, they update automatically through iTunes and they are great for the commute. The only downside is that Min and I have nothing to talk about at the end of the day because we've already listened to the same stories.

Me: "Did you hear about..."
Min: "Yes, I listened to the podcast"
Me: <silently eating my dinner>

Here are a few podcasts I enjoy:

Born a little before my time but still well-versed in the pop-culture and sports that were an important part of my childhood, Bill Simmons covers it all in this consistently entertaining podcast. Possessing a savant-like knowledge of sports and communicating in fluent pop-culture-nese, I am rarely disappointed after a session of the B.S. Report.

Growing up in Canada I was more accustomed to CBC Radio than NPR, but once I discovered these NPR podcasts, I quickly made them a part of my regular talk-radio diet. NPR Shuffle is a good place to start for a random sampling of news items and stories, Wait, Wait Don't Tell Me is a fun "game show" based on current news items and often involving celebrity guests, and the Pop Culture Podcast is just what its name suggests. Left leaning and well-produced, I have really come to appreciate the content that comes out of National Public Radio.

Mike's Mega Media Recap - Pt 2 (TV SHOWS, BOOKS and MUSIC!)

2011-08-24T08:23:00.000-07:00

Okay, continuing yesterday's post, a recap of some of the TV shows we enjoyed watching in the past few months. We watch a few shows "live" but we prefer getting the whole season and watching a few at a time.

TV Shows:

Soooo good! At first we were just kinda watching it in the background, but slowly the characters and storylines started to grip us. Yes, some of the plots and character arcs mysteriously disappear from time to time, but as we all know, the heart of this show is Coach and Mrs. Taylor. I kind of refuse to acknowledge their daughter Julie's existence. Her storyline was one of the more aggravating ones. Like The Wire, season four of this series is television drama at its absolute best.

I feel obligated to end this with the tag line, but I won't... so... clear eyes... full hearts...

We just started watching this series on the many, many recommendations from friends and reviews. It's definitely intriguing and the acting is phenomenal, but we just haven't given it enough time yet. I'm sure it will eventually grip us in time, but it seems like a pretty bleak way to spend an hour. Plus I keep waiting for Malcolm to show up as a strung out meth-head.

Drop what you're doing and go watch this show. It totally flew <ahem> "under the wire" but it absolutely deserves a viewing. Every seasons takes about 5 episodes to get going and half the time you don't even know what people are saying because of the urban slang and gang lingo, but trust me, this is one of the best written and performed TV shows ever. Did you know two of the main actors have harsh British accents in real life? When you see them in interviews, you feel like they're pretending to be British. Uncanny! And like I hinted before, season four of this show is just hands down the best ever seen on TV.

We're toying with the idea of starting Game of Thrones, but that one's going to be a tougher sell for the wife and we're still basking in the good memories from Friday Night Lights.... CAN'T LOSE!!!

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Mike's Mega Media Recap - Pt. 1 (MOVIES!)

2011-08-23T14:08:00.000-07:00

So, even though it's been one of the most eventful and trying summers of my life, we've still managed to take in a lot of media. Whether movies, tv shows, books or music, we've done our fair share of media consumption. It might be escapism but I also think I've been drawn to stories as we try to make sense of the many changes happening in our life. Oh, also, a lot of the movies are the result of logging thousands of miles in the air. I literally exhausted the entire Air Canada movie inventory.

So, without further ado here's the list:

Movies:

I watched this with no trace of irony. I was genuinely pumped to watch this and was not disappointed. Fast cars, straight-faced delivery of absurd lines and The Rock. 'Nuff said.

I went into this with pretty low expectations, especially since X3 was such a disappointment, but I was pretty entertained. They got good actors and were successful in rebooting the series. But c'mon, how does one replace Kelsey Grammer as The Beast? (okay, I forgot he was even in X3 before I went and looked it up)

...and we're back!

2011-08-11T21:47:00.000-07:00

after going back and forth about maintaining a blog, mike and i decided to commit to blogging. in light of the upcoming sabbatical, we thought this would be a great way to keep in touch with those we love in vancouver, as well as family and friends scattered around the world. we hope you will continue to follow us as we begin a new chapter in our lives.

as excited as we are to see what the future holds, we are feeling a bit blue thinking about being apart from our vancouver friends....

our new end table

2010-10-06T17:22:00.000-07:00

a few weeks ago i spotted this beauty at a local thrift store.

here is it is after a few coats of paint. isn't is lovely? it's perfect for our guestroom.

how to do it:

1) clean the table, remove the hardware and sand down some of the rough sections.

2) prime the table using Kilz brand spray paint primer. supposedly it is the best for this type of thing.

3) paint the table using whatever color you like. i used martha stewart semi-gloss paint from home depot in 'popcorn' and applied two coats.

4) spray paint the hardware. i spent a lot of time at home depot and anthropologie trying to find the perfect handle but at the end of the day i decided to stick with the original. i used rustoleum spray paint and painted it black.

5) attach the hardware and enjoy!

for more ideas and tips check out one of my favorite blogs: www.inthefunlane.com

i'm debating on whether to distress the piece or not, any thoughts?

our hipster day out

2010-09-13T15:50:00.000-07:00

mike and i are definitely not cool enough to be hipsters, but every now and then we like to pretend. this weekend we put on our chucks and ventured to main street.

we stopped by the farmers market at trout lake.

it was a beautiful day and the market was packed.

don't you love pictures of food?

afterwards we took penny to the dog park right outside of the market area. penny is so awkward.

we then grabbed some coffee and hit up some consignment stores and the salvation army. i bought a cute side table for our guest room that i am planning on painting this week. pictures to come.

yeah to relaxing weekends! what did you do this weekend?

the story of teddy and penny

2010-09-12T14:11:00.000-07:00

justin took these series of pictures of teddy and penny. they are SO cute. i couldn't resist posting them.

this is the story of teddy and his new friend penny.

penny loves making new friends so she thought she would say hello.

*kiss kiss

SMACK! no love for poor penny...

penny is sad and feeling rejected.

teddy being the good baby he is, decided to say sorry to penny.

penny accepts teddy's apology with a kiss.

good job, teddy! you are a good boy.

the end.

the kims in town!

2010-09-12T13:27:00.000-07:00

our good friends anna, justin and baby teddy flew to vancouver for abe and soo's wedding. mike and i had a BLAST hosting them at our house during their time in vancouver.

we went to the richmond night market. yup that's mike holding teddy and me stuffing my face. mike with baby = shocking, me stuffing my face = normal.

cool night shot by justin.

we also took a trip to whistler together. we were worried that the weather would spoil our plans but it turned out to be a beautiful day.

beautiful british columbia.

and of course the boys did a lot of this.

bye kim family. we miss you guys!

the va + vancouver connection

2010-09-12T12:53:00.000-07:00

a few weeks ago we had the privilege of celebrating the abe and soo's wedding. it was a beautiful ceremony at first baptist. here is a picture of the lovely couple and the many nova friends that flew in for the occasion.

my date for the night: iron man.

congrats abe and soo!

urban partnership 2010

2010-09-08T12:51:00.000-07:00

Squeaky floors, contaminated tap water, a constant stream of noise from the windows we couldn't close because of the heat and an pervasive sense that we were inhabiting a very different setting than we were used to. One block to the west was the ever expanding affluence of downtown Vancouver. One block to the east was the famous "Downtown Eastside" (DTES), one of the poorest postal codes in Canada and our home for the two weeks of Vancouver Urban Partnership. My major project for this summer, I helped 13 staff and students do a full on immersion into this neighborhood and into God's heart for peace and justice.

Our days began with breakfast, morning prayers and Bible study. We spent a lot of time poring over Scripture and discovering that concern for the poor and seeking justice are not isolated or minor themes but rather essential aspects of God's character and His Kingdom.

After lunch (usually at the Carnegie Center where you can get a great meal for under $2), we heard from many of the voices of people living, working and serving in the Downtown Eastside. Pictured above is a DTES resident giving us a very in-depth and helpful tour and history of the neighborhood.

After very full days, we would spend the evenings either joining a local community for dinner and conversation or creating space for our team to unpack the day.

There is so much to say about the trip but I can say with confidence that every participant was significantly challenged and inspired through the experience of living and learning in the Downtown Eastside, myself included. The looming task before us, however, is learning how to integrate what we've experienced and learned into our local context at home, namely the university campuses we work and serve at. As one our participants, the IV USA Director of Urban Projects challenged us, what would it look like for us to "seek the shalom of the city or campus we are curently in?"

Here is what one student wrote upon her arrival back at home: "Re-entering my community/lifestyle has been a pretty big challenge for me. Definitely felt some intense culture shock and jet lag the first few days back (i.e. walking around slightly dazed, forgetting to shower, leaving the house looking disheveled or "like a crazy person", according to my mom). It's not as bad anymore... but still trying to cope with the contrast between living in community in the DTES and being back at home, where the elderly retire and families with young children abound. I feel rather torn. It's as if I'd left a piece of my heart back in the DTES and long to be back..."

This statement captures the tension we were hoping all our participants would experience. A disorienting experience that forces us to re-evaluate our familiar surroundings and ask that dangerous question, "Jesus, how are you loving this place and how can I participate with you?" The two-week pilot project is over but the task of thinking of how a longer and more extensive program that continues to challenge and deepen our campus ministry can happen next summer begins. Thank you for your prayers and support!

what's next:

* New School Year - I am excited to begin this new school year with three new staff: Justin Yuen and Barron Crawford will be the new staff team at SFU and Leslie Lai will be joining Jacqueline Brower at UBC. Please pray for these new staff as they work to be fully funded and ready to go on September 1st!

* Sept 28-30 - Western Ministry Director Meetings - One of my joys is meeting with the other Ministry Directors in Western Canada -- through scripture, prayer, planning and lots of good conversation, much of the ministry in our field is shaped and influenced by the relationship we enjoy on this team.

* Oct 1-3 - Metro Vancouver Fall Retreat

* Oct 20-31 - Trip to Turkey and Greece - Min Cha and I are thrilled to be taking our vacation this fall in the Eastern Mediterranean. For 12 days we will be immersing ourselves in a part of the world that interests us very much. We're looking forward to good food, lots of nerdy historical sites to check out and good quality time together. Can you believe we're already on our 3rd year of marriage together!?

current fundraising situation:
The good news -- I got a raise! Well, technically I'm closer to what someone in my position is supposed to be paid -- but of course the reality is that I need to raise more support as a result.

Here's a breakdown: Previous Goal: $52,656 (annual) / $4,388 (monthly) Total Donations 2009-10: $47,062 (annual) / $3,921 (monthly) New Goal: $59,308 (annual) / $4,942 (monthly)

How my fundraising works:
Of the total $4,942 I have to raise each month, my actual take home salary is $2400. The other $2542 goes toward taxes, benefits, ministry expenses and overhead (20%).

inter-varsity's core purpose and values:
Being shaped by God’s word and led by the Holy Spirit, the purpose of Inter-Varsity Christian Fellowship of Canada is the transformation of youth, students and graduates in all their ethnic diversity into fully committed followers of Jesus Christ.

how to get involved:
* your prayers: I do not take this lightly – the only reason I feel like I can go forth with this work is because I know I am covered in prayer
* financial support: this kind of support allows me to have the freedom to spend time on campus with students – you can make monthly donations or a one-time donation – big or small, it all counts -- to donate online, click here.

phnom penh restaurant

2010-08-30T16:24:00.000-07:00

a couple weeks ago we had the privilege of going out to dinner with two of our favorite people, brian and shannon. mike and i have been wanting to try the food at phnom penh for awhile so we thought this would be a great opportunity.

the restaurant is in chinatown surrounded by small markets and chinese stores. it doesn't look like much from the outside but there is often a wait during peak lunch and dinner hours.

we ordered the fried chicken wings and the butter beef which are the most popular items on the menu. we also ordered a few other items but they were not as memorable.

the fried chicken wings were amazing. i could eat them all day. they are topped with garlic and onions, and comes with a black pepper lime sauce. oh so yummy and definitely worth the trip.

the butter beef. i know i know it doesn't look very appetizing, but it is very good. butter beef is a plate of thinly sliced rib eye covered in a soy vinaigrette, with cilantro, garlic and other spices. it is barely cooked. i was a bit taken back when the waitress brought it to the table but i'm glad i gave it try. definitely will try it again.

mike and min give phnom penh 4 stars out of 5. check it out and try the chicken wings and the butter beef, you definitely won't regret it.

(photos courtesy of urbanspoon. we were too hungry to pause for pictures)

2nd wedding anniversary

2010-08-30T15:14:00.000-07:00

apologies to our two blog followers for not updating. :)

this summer has been very busy but first thing's first - mike and i celebrated our 2nd anniversary in august. the second year was full of ups and downs but, i couldn't be happier married to my hubs.

we celebrated this year by going to cirque du soleil's kooza show.unfortunately i got my hair cut a few hours before the event. the cut was great but my stylist thought i would look cute if i curled my hair. you be the judge.

the show was amazing. i'm not a big fan of circuses but kooza was fantastic!

after the show we went to spice islands for indonesian food. we started with the roti, and then shared the rendang curry, bami goreng, and the sambai long beans. sorry there are no pictures, all the pictures we took of the food turned out blurry. the food was excellent but we naively thought we could handle indonesian spicy...well as you can see we obviously couldn't.

the food was great and the service was excellent. mike and min give it a 3.5 out of 5.

Spice Islands
3592 West 41st Avenue
Vancouver, BC

hiking to garibaldi lake

2010-07-28T11:46:00.000-07:00

this past weekend we joined a few friends and went hiking in squamish at garibaldi provincial park. can i just say i'm horribly out of shape. the website said the hike was moderate, um, no. i struggled up the mountain and was on the verge of falling apart on the way down. luckily i was among great company.

here is a picture of the lake taken by our friend bill. beautiful no? it was absolutely breathtaking.

here is a picture of the happy group.

for locals, the hike is definitely worth it. we went through taylor meadows on the way up and bypassed it on the way down. the wild flowers were not in full bloom when we went but come august i'm sure the meadows will be a great place to be. on the way down make sure you hit the barrier view point. it is amazing as you can see below.

prk day week 1

2010-07-22T10:09:00.000-07:00

it has been a week since i got my eyes fried at the coal harbour eye centre. overall it waa a good experience however i felt that they rushed me through the pre-surgery procedure. they ushered into one room and then another without any explanation and handed me a bag full of eyes drops with a 2 second instruction of how to medicate my eyes. being SUPER nervous as it was, all the hustle and bustle made me even more apprehensive. the procedure went well, but did you know that your eyes smell like fried squid when they are getting zapped? interesting..

my vision is still blurry and putting drops into my eyes has become a second job. i didn't have any pain during the first week and was able to go back to work after 4 days of rest. today i got the contacts which serve as bandages removed and i feel great (even though my vision is a bit blurrier). overall i am happy that i braved the surgery and am looking forward to life without glasses or contacts.

here i am sporting my lady gaga glasses coal harbour gave me. awesome huh? don't covet them too much because they already have a new owner, miss michi who will be sporting them at the lady gaga concert with her hello kitty dress.

the day after surgery mike took me to a yummy taco place downtown called la taqueria (www.lataqueria.ca). i couldn't really see the food but it sure was tasty.

the most important meal of the day

2010-05-24T02:32:00.000-07:00

mike and i rarely have a chance to sit and have breakfast together. one or both of us are usually in a rush out the door. we either grab a granola bar or stand at the kitchen counter scarfing down our cereal before running out the door. not good, right?! i know...

today for the first time in a very long time we had an opportunity to cook breakfast together and sit and chat...chat about what? lost of course. heehee...

we decided to make some biscuits for breakfast.

ingredients (makes about 6 biscuits):

- 2 cups all-purpose flour

- 1 teaspoon sugar

- 1 tablespoon baking powder

- 1 teaspoon salt

- 8 tablespoon butter, cubed

- 1 cup whipping cream

preheat the oven to 375.

since we don't have a kitchen aid mixer with a paddle attachment, i put all the dry ingredients into my bread maker until it looks like corn meal.

after the dry ingredients are mixed together slowly pour in the cream until it is combined with the dry ingredients.

after the dough is ready, roll it out on a floured surface and cut out circles (i used a mug). i like to cut out two thin circles and stack them so that the biscuits come apart in the middle after they are cooked.

put the biscuits on a buttered baking sheet and bake for about 20 minutes until they are golden brown.

breakfast is served!

the end of lost

2010-05-24T01:40:00.000-07:00

i'm totally going to out myself as a big nerd but oh well..

as many of you know i am a HUGE lost fan.nerd.geek. i started watching it 6 years ago with my little lights staff in dc. it was a way for us to unwind and relax after a long day with our crazy LL kids. after 6 years of lots of questions and mind boggling twists in the story, lost finally wrapped up this weekend. i know there are many mixed reviews on the finale but in my opinion i thought the writers did an excellent job and ended the show with what ultimately mattered most to the fans - the characters, not the questions.

in order to celebrate the end of lost, mike and i hosted a little party for a few of our friends. it was really tough trying to round up lost fans in vancouver. there isn't much of a following here. anyhoo, enjoy some of the pictures of our festivities.

good bye lost, i will miss you.

mr cluck's chicken.

the swan station sign for our door.

the names of our guest on the "cave wall"

daniel faraday and crazy claire

richard & the number 15 bunny

the beverages

thanks to the brauns, the shim clan, and namster for celebrating with us!

vancouver sun run

2010-05-09T22:28:00.000-07:00

on sunday minna, jen and i ran the vancouver sun run. we couldn't have asked for a more beautiful day.

the vancouver sun run is the largest community race in north america. this year there were over 50,000 participants. insane right?

the three of us have been running almost every weekend together. it's been a lot of fun exploring different parts of the lower mainland. we are proud to say that we finished at our personal best of 1 hours and 4 minutes. go team!

(miss piglet aren't you proud that i remembered to bend my arm for the photo :))

baby hair clips holder

2010-05-09T08:17:00.000-07:00

i had a baby shower to go to this weekend and i thought i would open up my craft box and try to make something for the mommy to be. my best bud mrs. chou suggested i make a baby hair clip holder. being a mother of a baby girl, she said it would be a cute and practical gift so i thought i would give it a shot.

first i spray painted this base. i was hoping to find the wooden base in white but had no luck. i spray painted it on a windy day and it ended up looking a bit bumpy and uneven. oh well...

next after the paint dried, i cut this circle out of some pretty pink paper and decoupaged it to the base.

while the glue dried i painted the letter k i bought. the baby's name is kayla. i think that is such a beautiful name.

after everything dried i glued the pieces together with wood glue.

tada! i got a bit lazy taking the step by step photos. after i glued the base and the letter "k" together i glued some brown and pink ribbon to the base for the hair clips to hang from. i then tied a bow on the top and sewed a buttom in the middle. the mom-to-be told me the nursery colors are brown and pink so i tried to keep with the theme.

here is a close up.

all the hair clips are from SweetBittyBows: http://www.etsy.com/shop/SweetBittyBows. denise the seller was such a doll and agreed to ship all the clips to canada for me. all you moms of lil girls check out her shop. she has THE cutest clips.

happy mothers day

2010-05-09T02:02:00.000-07:00

on days like this i am sad to be far from home. happy mothers day to my momma.

toms shoes or how i became a hipster

2010-04-29T11:26:00.000-07:00

so i've wanted a pair of these shoes ever since I first heard about them three years ago. unfortunately they were only available in the states until now.

if you haven't heard, for every pair of toms shoes you buy the company will donate a pair to kids in argentina. sweet, huh? you can read the whole story at their website: toms.com. Don't go to toms.ca because as min cha unfortunately discovered it is a porn site.

composting

2010-04-27T10:35:00.000-07:00

following right on the heels of min cha's gardening post is my update on how composting in an urban context is going!

after researching both worms and EM (effective microorganisms), i decided to go with the EM. our local gardenworks store carried this starter kit (which wasn't cheap) that allowed us to make our first foray into the world of urban composting.

so, with the kit ready to go, we decided to start our compost with some fruit that had unfortunately gone bad in our fridge. after chopping them up into smaller pieces, they went into the composter with some a light dusting of the EM.

after covering our eco-waste with a paper plate, we popped on the lid and are now patiently awaiting the rich compost to use on our herb garden and on the common greenery surrounding our condo. another reason we wanted this unit was because it had a spigot with which to collect the "compost tea" that is generated in the process. apparently this run off is also good for plants. win-win!

now, although we didn't go with their methods, i found the "cityfarmer" website a great resource for all things composting and urban gardening. http://www.cityfarmer.info/

anyways, it's going to be a few weeks until we actually start seeing the compost, so we'll update you with the good (or tragic) news then!

urban gardening 101

2010-04-13T10:59:00.000-07:00

mike has been wanting to start a garden for awhile so last weekend we decided to give it a try.

neither of us have gardened before so we headed over to a nearby home depot and talked to a very friendly and helpful sales associate named tony.

he advised us to start with a terra cotta pot.

we then selected some soil.

we then selected a few herbs to plant. we chose basil, cilantro, sage, thyme, chives and strawberries (yes i know strawberries are not herbs).

tony told us to cover the hole on the bottom of the pot with a cheese cloth to prevent soil from draining out.

after filling the pot with soil, mike placed all our new plants into their new homes.

ta da! our new "garden".

notes from tony: strawberries should be planted on the edge and chives in the center. can't remember why, but something about the way they grow.

here is my husband with his new project.

i know many of you were concerned about penny and her hair. we are happy to report that her hair is growing out and she is looking much more like herself. :)

poor penny...

2010-04-07T10:55:00.000-07:00

mike & i saw clippers on sale at walmart for $30. since penny's haircuts normally cost $40, we thought, what a steal! to make a long story short...this is what penny usually looks like:

this is what she looks like now:

mike thinks if we let her out in public the spca will take her away.

running barefoot

2010-03-03T05:21:00.000-08:00

okay, i'm the first one to admit that i'm more into the "gear" of any given hobby than the actual hobby itself, but this latest foray into running shoes has really captured my imagination.

first of all, check out this time magazine article on running barefoot.

second, check out the new nike free 5.0s.

(sweet, huh?)

so, our feet aren't designed to run heel first, which is what our modern running shoes force us to do. apparently the herky jerky motion causes unnatural strain and grinding on our knees. yeah, maybe it's all a gimmick to get us to buy new junk, but any excuse to get me out of my chair, no? in fact, at the nike store, the salesman recommended that i get two pairs of shoes, the new nike frees and another pair of trainers to offset the fatigue that my feet will experience while getting used to the new system. isn't capitalism wonderful?

meat free mondays

2010-03-01T11:22:00.000-08:00

look at me go! two blog updates in a week.

i am a follower of gwenth paltrow's blog: goop. someone told me about it once and i found that it usually has some great recipes and travel tips for a whole list of cities she has been to. in one of her posts, she blogged about "meat free mondays". if you want to read the whole blog you can go here: http://goop.com/newsletter/68/en/

in summary here is what it says:

in 2006, the united nations issued a report which stated that the livestock industry as a whole was responsible for more greenhouse gas emissions than the whole of the transport sector put together.

in reponse to this fact, paul mcCartney (yes, the beatle) launched meat free mondays in the UK, and many other countries are following suit. meat free mondays are to encourage people to take a small, but practical step in reducing the negative effects the livestock industry has on the environment.

mike and i decided to keep mondays meat free. mike is from alberta, the land of alberta beef, and i'm american, fast food burgers and mcdonalds chicken nuggets are staples in my diet, but we want to be more conscious of not only what we put in our bodies, but how the food we eat effects the world we live in. anyone else like to join us?

here is a vegetarian receipe mike and i really like that i thought i would share. it is from allrecipes.com with a few revisions.

eggplant parm

the ingredients:
1 eggplant, peeled and thinly sliced
1 egg, beaten
2-3 cups Italian seasoned bread crumbs
3 cups spaghetti sauce
1 (16 ounce) package mozzarella cheese, shredded and divided
1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese, divided
fresh basil (for me, the more the better!)

1. Preheat oven to 450 degrees F.

2. Slice the eggplant into slices. Sweat the eggplant slices by sprinking salt on them and letting them sit for 20 minutes or so. Rinse and dry.

3. Dip eggplant slices in egg, then in bread crumbs. Place in a single layer on a baking sheet coated with olive oil. Bake in preheated oven for 5 minutes on each side.

4. Reduce the oven heat to 350 degrees F.

5. In a baking dish spread spaghetti sauce to cover the bottom. Place a layer of eggplant slices in the sauce. Sprinkle with mozzarella and Parmesan cheeses. Repeat with remaining ingredients, ending with the cheeses.

6. Bake in preheated oven until golden brown.

We usually boil up some spaghetti to go with it. Enjoy!

vancouver olympics project, feb 14-20

2010-02-28T19:56:00.000-08:00

Vancouver Olympics Project, Feb 14-20

ng that the Vancouver Olympic Games produced so many different opinions and emotions, rather than push one particular viewpoint, we wanted to help our students become better interpreters of what was happening around them.

For five days we looked at the following themes:

Celebrating Culture / Celebrating Hospitality / Celebrating Repentance / Celebrating Creation Care / Celebrating Greatness

I was particularly pleased with some of the ‘extra-curricular’ activities students and staff chose to participate in that were surprisingly powerful experiences. It was evidence that we weren’t just running a program but creating a context for students to actively engage in and make their own. In addition to all this, I felt that my staff did an excellent job planning and running this extremely involved project.

Thank you for all your prayers and support during the lead up to this event!

Knowing that the Vancouver Olympic Games produced so many different opinions and emotions, rather than push one particular viewpoint, we wanted to help our students become better interpreters of what was happening around them.

For five days we looked at the following themes:

Celebrating Culture / Celebrating Hospitality / Celebrating Repentance / Celebrating Creation Care / Celebrating Greatness

Every morning we wrestled with what Jesus, Culture and the Olympics said about each of those themes and took the afternoon to engage in an activity that helped us go deeper. Through varied experiences like doing a scavenger hunt in the midst of Olympic craziness downtown, participating in a peaceful demonstration at UBC, doing actual creation care at a local park and volunteering at a local mission, our students had a rich and varied experience.

I was particularly pleased with some of the ‘extra-curricular’ activities students and staff chose to participate in that were surprisingly powerful experiences. It was evidence that we weren’t just running a program but creating a context for students to actively engage in and make their own. In addition to all this, I felt that my staff did an excellent job planning and running this extremely involved project.

Thank you for all your prayers and support during the lead up to this event!

vancouver 2010

2010-02-26T06:32:00.000-08:00

after many weeks of traveling, mike and i have finally settled back into our normal rhythms, and have been able to join in the olympic festivities.

i have to admit, i was not looking forward to the olympics, but now that the games have arrived it is hard not to be caught up in buzz and excitement surrounding the city. mike and i even had a chance to see some sporting events and explore our transformed downtown.

though we have enjoyed the games, we are torn in thinking about how the olympics has affected those on the margins. groups like streams of justice have set up a tent village on hastings protesting the lack of low-income housing in our city. while the city has invested millions into hosting the olympics, the promises to provide affordable housing for the poor have been forgotten.

i find the older i get the less i want to wrestle with the difficult questions. the lure to live a comfortable and secure life grows with each white hair on my head (mike can attest there are lots). when i used to live in the inner city of washington, dc a part of me looked down on the suburban christians living in nice homes isolated from poverty, homelessness and injustice..now i find that i am one of those people. this christian journey sure is a complex one.

you got to love the evil versions of the olympic mascots.

for more information on streams of justice and the olympic tent village go here: http://www.streamsofjustice.org/

merry christmas!

2009-12-11T11:44:00.000-08:00

from the han family.

new addition

2009-08-19T10:28:00.000-07:00

we would like to introduce the newest addition to the han clan.

her name is penny. for those of you who don't know, we are huge LOST fans. penny is the name of our favorite character, desmond's wife. yes, we are geeks. she is a older puppy (about 5 months). we got her in the clearance bin at urban puppy. heehee.. she is sweet but having a hard time learning to not pee on the carpet...ugh. she is definitely testing both of our patience. what have we gotten ourselves into?!

happy anniversary

2009-08-18T04:07:00.000-07:00

mike and i celebrated our first anniversary in hawaii. i can't believe a year has gone by already. year one has been amazing....i am so blessed to be married so such a wonderful man.

i'll also include a shout out to my dear friends annie and linn who just got married on our anniversary (well a day off). i am so happy for them.

(mike took this candid during their ceremony. they had the most amazing wedding on oahu.)

aloha!

2009-08-18T03:45:00.000-07:00

we are back from beautiful hawaii. mike and i had such a great time celebrating with annie and linn on their wedding day and exploring the many beautiful spots of oahu and maui.

if you are traveling to hawaii we highly recommend this book. i believe the author has the one for every island. we tried a lot of the things he recommended and had a blast.

ok now back to reality...sigh.

min's summer reads

2009-07-27T14:10:00.000-07:00

since graduating from regent I have had much more time to read for leisure. i must say...it's been fantastic. here are a few that i would recommend:

the mysterious benedict society by trenton lee stewart. this series is a bit harry-potter-isque, in the sense that it follows a group of friends on adventures to save the world. it is well written and a lot of fun to read.

the mysterious benedict society and the perilous journey by trenton lee stewart. if you enjoyed the first book, the second one is equally fun. at times i would startle mike by laughing outloud :).

the guernsey literary and potato peel society by mary ann shaffer and annie barrows. the story is told through a collection of letters. the book is set in post World War II on one of the channel islands, Guernsey. it's based on true events of the German occupation of this island. the first few pages are a bit difficult to follow but if you stick with it, i guarantee you will like it.

unaccustomed earth by jhumpa lahiri.
i enjoyed reading both the the interpreter of maladies and the namesake, so i thought i would pick up her latest book, which like the interpreter of maladies is a collection of short stories. i have to admit i enjoyed interpreter of maladies better, but this one is definitely worth reading. note: if you like happy endings, and everything to tie neatly together in the end (like i do) this might not be for you.

the bluest eye by toni morrison.
toni morrison is one of my all time favorite authors. she has a way with words that blows my mind. i have read most of her books, including her latest, a mercy (which isn't her best), but never read this one (her first). in true morrison style, she weaves various narratives to explore a life of a young black girl living in a world that idealizes white beauty. it's incredibly written, but definitely not a light read.

picnik

2009-07-26T05:20:00.000-07:00

my friend just introduced me to picnik.com. it is an online free photo editting program. it's easy to use and has a lot of fun features. here is my latest creation.

before:

after: airbrushed mike with mascara, blush and lipstick. pretty huh?

enjoy!

slowly falling in love with food...

2009-07-24T06:43:00.000-07:00

so, people who know me know that i, for the most part, eat to live. food is sustenance and eating is more about survival than it is about pleasure or community or any of the other things people enjoy food for.

in the last few years, i have been slowly wooed into the realm of flavors and cravings. it doesn't hurt that my bride of nearly one year now is a self-professing "foodie". well, in the midst of learning how to cook and appreciate food and going to great restaurants, i have taken the greatest leap of all: we canceled our sports package on cable and now watch the food network together! for people who already watch, big deal - but honestly, i can watch any program on this show!

what was that donald miller said about jazz music?

"I never liked jazz music because jazz music doesn't resolve. But I was outside Bagdad Theatre in Portland one night when I saw a man playing the saxophone. I stood there for 15 minutes, and he never opened his eyes. After that I liked jazz music. Sometimes you have to watch somebody love something before you can love it yourself. It is as if they are showing you the way. I used to not like God because God didn't resolve. But that was before any of this happened."