Where've You Been?

My rather conspicuous absence from this blog can be ascribed to the terrible case of hypothermia that I have been suffering from ever since our return from Wisconsin...That's my story and I'm sticking to it!

I have been getting requests to post pictures of my office, and I don't know why, so after several days of cleaning (maybe that's why the posts on this blog have been so few and far between) here it is. Its a cozy little place, with a cozy little desk. Nearly everyone who comes in says the same thing..."YOU NEED A BIGGER DESK"...and they say it just about that loud too. My response is that if I had a bigger desk I would have a bigger mess, so the size suits me just fine. Speaking of fine, some of the finer things that you may have noticed are the two comfy looking leather chairs, with the table between. These were a gift from two very close friends, Joe and Jeri, and the color matches the matte on the beautiful piece of artwork above. Its a print of a southeastern United States farm scene, with an old John Deere tractor, complete with iron wheels, in the foreground. That beautiful piece of artwork pales in comparison to the beautiful piece that adorns the table. That is an original woodcarving entitled "In the Cross of Christ I Glory" and was lovingly done by the hands of my friend Dick Aufdemberge (pronounced just like its spelled). Dick and his lovely wife Norie were here last summer and fall with the Laborers for Christ helping to build our church, and we dropped in on them as we journeyed back from Wisconsin and Minnesota last week. A big thank you goes out to both of them for their hospitality, and to Dick for his amazing artwork. Fortunately there is a cleaning service that comes through every Friday night or the above pictures would have simply been mounds of old crumpled paper and discarded packets of Taco Bell fire sauce...empty of course.

Finally, I have been urged to give an update on my tennis escapades with my posse. I was back out on the court Monday morning, and after the long layoff had to be retaught the fundamentals of the game. I have a hard time remembering if I am supposed to hit the ball into the blue areas, inside the white lines, or to the green area outside those lines. And when the ball hits those white lines I am never sure what it means, as it seems that can be either in or out depending upon which side of the net my friend John happens to be playing on. Actually, I am getting a little concerned for his health and sanity (well...maybe not the sanity...he does allow me to play in the group...figure that one out). Anyway, since my return he has become much more of a kind and gentle soul, as opposed to his previously being "meaner than cougar *%$# and twice as nasty." I'll have to let you know how all of that turns out.