My Brother the Blogger

So, my brother is blogging now. He has been at it for about three months now, and his posts are a delightful blend of updates on his personal life and deeper ponderings, all well-written with a dash of sarcastic humor thrown in every so often. I have wanted to be a writer since I was a little girl, but after reading some of Matt's writings, I am having a feeling that he may beat me to it! His latest post very nearly brought tears to my eyes and is a wonderful tribute to my parent's marriage, which has stood the test of time for 37 years now.

If you have a few minutes, head on over to "(to be announced)" and check it out.

Waiting

So much of our life right now seems to be about waiting. Waiting for Baby Dois to make his appearance... waiting for spring to come and the weather to warm up... waiting on God to provide a sponsoring church and the funds we need to go to Angola. This last is probably the hardest right now. I mean, I know I'm eventually going to have this baby. He'll come when he is ready, and I won't be pregnant forever. (Right?) And I know spring is just around the corner. I guess that's the hard part about waiting for all the pieces to come together for Angola -- we don't know how much longer we will have to wait.

We continue to pray, prepare, present to churches, network with an ever-growing list of contacts, and pray some more. Most churches we send our materials to say they just can't commit to taking on a new missionary right now, often because their funds are already committed to other missionaries or ministries, or because of budget cutbacks, a building project, or the "current economic situation." Others agree to take up a one-time contribution for us, which is certainly appreciated and helpful, especially right now with all of our preparation expenses, but won't sustain us long-term on the field. And then, there are those few churches who are actually in a position to be either a sponsoring congregation or to give monthly towards our salary or work-fund for the next few years. So we make our pitch to the missions committee... and then we wait.

Waiting is... agonizing, discouraging, demoralizing, frustrating. It is also faith-building. Throughout this whole process, I am trying to remember that. I know there have been other missionaries who have looked for support a lot longer than we have been looking, and they eventually found what they needed and went. I know that when God calls, he also enables. I know that God's timing is perfect and that I don't always see the big picture or understand why things happen (or don't happen) the way I think they should. I hope that in years to come, I can look back on this time in my life and see it as a time when my faith in God's providence and in his timing was really strengthened.

A few weeks ago, I saw the movie "Fireproof," a wonderful movie on the importance of commitment in marriage, even (or especially) when times are tough. There was a song in the movie called "While I'm Waiting," that really touched my heart and encouraged my soul during my own season of waiting. I'm posting links to the music video on Youtube and to the lyrics below. If you haven't yet seen the movie, then I highly recommend that you go rent it and watch it with your spouse (if you have one) tonight!

"While I'm Waiting" music video
"While I'm Waiting" lyrics

The Suspense is Killing Me!

Okay, so I just watched last night's episode of "LOST" on the ABC website. Awesome, awesome episode, by the way. (And if you don't watch "LOST," you will have no idea what I'm talking about, so you can skip to the next paragraph.) Loved seeing the reunion of the Oceanic Six with their families, especially Sayid and Nadia. Loved how Sun told off her father. Loved that Jack finally found out that Claire is his half-sister and Aaron is his nephew. And Hurley's mom got the best line of the night: "Jesus Christ is NOT a weapon." Loved it!

So, after I watched it, I found out that the next episode is the 2-hour season finale. But it's not going to air for another two weeks. In two weeks, I will be out of the country. This means I will have to wait until July to watch the season finale, to find out exactly how the Oceanic Six make it off the island, what happens to everyone else, whether or not Jin, Desmond, and Michael get blown to smithereens, and who is in that dang coffin!!!

I just don't think I can stand it.

Worth Reading

Thank you for all the comments (10) on my last post. Ten comments is a record for us (never mind the fact that I made 3 of them)! We don't have a very wide "readership" here in this little corner of cyberspace. Actually, I have a sneaking suspicion that we have quite a few readers, just not a lot of people who leave comments. We call that "lurking" here in Blog-Land. So, if you've been lurking around our site, leave a comment sometime and make yourself known. And you don't have to have a Blooger/Google account in order to do so. Just click on comments, and in the little window that pops up, type your message. Then, you have to complete a word-verification (this is to prevent "comment spam" from those morons who have nothing better to do than leave their political rantings or sales pitches in the form of comments on random blogsites). If you do not have a Blogger/Google account, make sure to click "Anonymous" or "Other" (and if you click "Anonymous," please type your name in the text of your comment so we know who you are). Then, click "Publish," and you're done!

Having said all that -- onto the real purpose of this post, which is to share a couple of links to things I have read recently and thoroughly enjoyed! Yes, I know, you are all eager for updates on our life, and I promise I am working on several posts to that end (or at least, I have them in my head). So, for now, this will have to suffice.

This first link is one of those laugh-out-loud-til-your-sides-hurt-and-the-tears-roll-down-your-cheeks kind of reads. At least it was for me. Who would have thought that an auction listing on Ebay could make me laugh so uproariously?

The second link is more thought-provoking, even bordering on academic. In the midst of all the hoopla surrounding the release of the 7th and final installment in the Harry Potter series, this Christian author and professor of English gives a thoughtful and well-organized defense of the merits and religious implications of "The Youngest Brother's Tale." Definitely worth a read, especially if you are a fan of the books. Thanks to my dad for sending me this link.

I Finished!

I finally finished "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows," and let me just say, IT ROCKED!!! It exceeded all my expectations for the conclusion to a fantastic series. I can't wait to see the movie because it's going to be awesome (of course not as awesome as the book, but awesome, nonetheless)! I'm looking forward to unpacking the rest of the series because I plan to read it over again from start to finish now.

I don't want to say anymore because I don't want to spoil anything for those that haven't read the book yet, but I'm dying to know what other people thought of it! Leave a comment and share your thoughts... favorite part... the thing that surprised you most... whatever. And if you haven't read the book yet, be warned -- the comments may contain spoilers, so read them at your own risk.

Trouble Getting Up In the Morning?

Okay, normally, this blog is simply a place for us to keep friends and family updated on the goings-on of our daily lives. If you visit our blog on a regular basis, then you know that, for the most part, you are spared political rantings, preaching, or unsolicited endorsements for the latest cool technological gimmick. In fact, being the doting parents we are, we mostly post pictures of our adorable son. Truth be told, this is probably more "Alex's blog" than "Rusty and Laura's blog." But, I digress...

I was skimming through a catalogue that came in the mail the other day when I saw this ad. Rusty can testify that I have not laughed so hard at something in a really long time. And after I picked myself up off the floor, I thought, I must blog about this! Like Dave Barry, I must preface this by saying I swear I am not making this up! In fact, you can click here to see for yourself.

So this is the ad I saw:

Flying Alarm Clock Makes You Get Out of Bed on Time!

Trouble getting up in the mornings? When the alarm sounds, "time flies" when it launches its propeller that emits a nagging siren noise that will for sure annoy you right out of bed! To turn the alarm off, you have to get up, find the propeller, and return it to its base!

You have got to be kidding me! Would anyone really buy this?! If you are the kind of person who would actually consider owning this alarm clock, (for $24.98, batteries not included) please post a comment because seriously, the only thing I think it might be good for is an episode of Seinfeld (if they were still making them, that is).

A Word From Rusty

jeepstroller
Originally uploaded by rustyandlaura.

I don't know what Laura meant when she wrote, "Rusty likes the Jeep" (previous post). I only had Alex's best interests in mind when I suggested we get the Jeep Liberty Limited Urban Terrain stroller. How else is he going to be able to keep up with me out on the disc golf course? He'll grow to appreciate the cup holders and sound system as he learns how necessary they are on those long road trips through the mall with mommy. Besides, the chicks dig it. None of these silly little pastel-colored umbrella strollers with plastic wheels the size of bottle caps for my boy. We're talking 3WD, 13" rims, convertible rag top, saddle bags, forest green with gold pinstrips, plug in surround sound, latte holder, and the ultimate one-handed fold. Now that's a MAN'S stroller. Gidder done! YEAH! That's my boy! (Lucky for me, they also sell them in pink if the next one's a girl.)

Indulging Our Obsession

battlestar1
Originally uploaded by rustyandlaura.

For those of you who have been wondering why we haven't been blogging very much lately, I have two words for you: Battlestar Galactica. This scifi drama, a "reimagining" of the original series produced in the 70's, is arguably the best show on television these days (sorry, LOST fans), and certainly the best, most creative, most thought-provoking science fiction show I have ever watched. Even if you aren't a fan of science fiction, you should certainly give this show a try as it is primarily a human drama, with the setting being outer space. And don't worry, there aren't any green one-eyed aliens running around the set.

Anyway, Rusty and I got hooked (shamelessly addicted, actually) on this show last year when the first season was airing on the SciFi Channel. For my birthday this year, I asked for Seasons 1 and 2.0 on DVD, and my parents brought them over when they came to visit in March. They also brought a few of the most recent episodes on VHS, which they taped for me before their trip. So, for the last week and a half, we have engaged in a "Battlestar Galactica" marathon. Now that we are finished, I promise to get back to blogging. I have Easter pics of Alex to post, and more.

By your command.

My Worst Best Friends

These strange-looking contraptions are what we heat our house with in the winter. There is no central heating or air conditioning in Japanese homes. Nor is there insulation. So, not only is it cold outside, but inside as well. As a result, the Japanese have many options to heat their homes in the winter months. A general rule of thumb is that the more convienent and healthier heating methods are the most expensive and the nastiest most inconvenient ways are the cheapest. Let me introduce you to our heaters, my worst best friends.

The three heaters on the right are electric, but each generates heat differently. The itty-bitty one is a ceramic heater and it does a wonderful job of heating up the space about the size of a shoe box. (Of course that depends on if the shoe box was for a pair of Laura's dainty size 7's or for a pair of my size 13 bunian barges.) We use it in the toilet room. Yes, the toilet has its own little room which about the size of a coat closet. We rarely ever use this heater, however, because the toilet seat actually has a heater built into it. This is a very common feature amongst toilets of the Mongaloid descent.

The middle-sized heater has three older heat lamps and the use of one, two, or three lamps will determine how much heat it puts out. However, the knob that adjusts the heat and turns it on and off is missing. Probably, this is why it was given to us for free. So, I have to locate a pair of pliers to adjust the heat but I do have it plugged into a seperate cord that has its own on and off switch. We use this heater in the laundry/bathroom, but since we can't adjust the heat, it's set on the highest setting. This means that nearly every other day, we flip the breaker in the bathroom because it sucks up the wattage. In order to keep warm when you are drying yourself off after you get out of the shower, then, you have two options: 1) do the "IT"S FREEZING IN HERE" two-step or 2) dry off in the dark.

The third electric heater is called a "Heater Fan" because it's shaped like and rotates like a fan but is actually a heater. (This is the one that keeps my posterior warm in the butt-cold hours of the night -- no bun, I mean pun, intended.) It uses a new type of heating lamp that is shaped like a cow's face. The only constructive criticism that I would offer to the very pleasant people in the constructive criticism department at the maker's home office (which is not at all located or connected to the head office, nor the warehouse that packages the product, nor the plant where the parts are assembled) IS THAT the timer is only 3 hours long and I don't have to go to the bathroom that many times in the night, so it doesn't always keep my Campbell (actually, Starnes)-sized bottom warm in the butt-cold hours of the night. (WOW!!! There's alot of wind in that sentence.) This is the only heater that we purchased ourselves and that we can actually say that we own. We are very proud fans of this heater, which I have to turn back on everytime I go to the bathroom in the middle of the night. Of course, the chivalrous man would allow his pregnant wife to use it on her side of the bed. This would make good sense, since she has to get up every 5 minutes to go potty because her bladder can't hold much more than a thimble, and she could maintain that the Heater Fan was always on. That of course would defeat its purpose of keeping my Campbell (actually, Starnes)-sized body pillows warm. Of course, I have no idea what running this heater all night is going to do for our electric bill. We do have another electric heater, which is also an air conditioner, but running this heater all night will assuredly double our electric bill.

The two heaters in the middle belong to the landlord, which he, in all of his responsible (there's a story there) generosity is so generously allowing us to use. They both use natural gas, but unfortunately, there are only three natural gas outlets throughout the entire house. These are great little heaters that really crank out the heat and we are very thankful for them. We use the small one in the bedroom (on my pregnant wife's side of the bed) while we are changing clothes or either preparing for joyful slumber or despondent awakening. We don't run it all night because while it is fairly safe, it still distributes some wonderful fumes into the room. So, every time we turn it on or off we have to open a window to allow all the cold air to eagerly rush back into the room while aromatic fumes linger for much longer than five minutes and my pregnant wife returns to a cold bedroom after her 1st trip to the heated toilet seat of Mongaloid descent.

The big heater is what we use in the LDK (living, dining, kitchen room). It totally cranks out the best heat of all our heaters, but for some reason it makes the LDK always smell like maple syrup, which is what Grade Double 13A Amber Super Sweet Sap Maple Syrup actually is, natural gas. Of course, everyone who's ever heated their home with Maple Syrup natural blue- flamed gas would know that natural gas, which is also what we cook with, is not as expensive as electricy when it comes to heating your 6-S-LDK home. Knowing this, you can imagine the tremendous relief we felt when last month's gas bill arrived the other day and it was only about $200.

And finally, the two heaters on the left are the cheapest to opperate. They burn the one thing that I absolutetly hate in Japan, kerosene. What can be said about kerosene, other than its fumes kill brain cells, which in turn makes you forget about so many things that I can't remember them all. It is the worst-smelling fuel in the world, except for perhaps the kind of natural gas which is a common feature of those of us that are of Starnes descent, that my wife doesn't appreciate whether she's pregnant or not. The blue heater is the only one of the two that I like because it's broken and doesn't work at all. It is currently serving a useful purpose as a decoration in the closet. The white one works great except for all the lights that don't stop blinking on the front of it, warning you of many dangers. This would be quite useful, if I could read the various and sundry Chinese characters on the front that say various and sundry things such as: Warning - Losing Brain Cells; In case of earthquake or Campbell-sized bunyan barges doing the Macarana, will shut off; Timed for pregnant women that fall asleep on the heated toilet seat in the shoe-boxed sized toilet closet; Time to immerse your hands in kerosone (which doesn't smell anything like maple syrup) as you once again fill up the kerosene canister which is the size of a pregnant woman's bladder; Warning - Evacuate the room, fill canister, or shut off - either way you're going to lose brain cells moron. AAHH!!! KEROSENE!!! We use this heater in the parts of the house we rarely use, such as the office, library, or the mother-in-law wing. When you heat with kerosene you have to leave a window open, which seems to be an oxymoron kind of thing to do. You can either do the IT'S FREEZING dance to stay warm, kill millions of brain cells (I can't remember how many I'm supposed to have but I know that I'd like to keep the ones I still have for as long as I can, I think), or leave a window cracked and heat the Northeasterly as it traverses to other regions of the Land of the Rising Freezing Cold Weather.

But of all the heaters in the house, my favorite one is this one. She doesn't cost much, except a few kisses and some flowers now and then. She doesn't kill brain cells, unless there are unproven side effects of drinking too much chai and eating too many brownies. Since she usually goes to bed before me she keeps the bed warm. She's easier to understand than the Japanese writing system. While she's not always easy to turn on, she definitely cranks out the heat. But the greatest thing about this heater is that she doesn't belong to anybody but me. I am her biggest fan and am so very proud that she is my BEST best friend.

Star Wars Junkie

I confess. I am a "Star Wars" junkie. Episode 3 "Revenge of the Sith" has been in theaters not even a week, and already I have seen it no less than four times (my junkie husband has seen it five). We were at the theater opening night for the 12:01 showing, and it was an awesome experience! I never go to movies on opening night because I hate standing in line and the mad rush for all the best seats. But, I figured if ever there was a time to make an exception to this rule, it was for the final installment of the "Star Wars" saga. It is the end of an era for me. Episode 4 came out in 1977, the year I was born. My parents went to see it, and they liked it so well that they went back the next night and saw it again! What can I say? I was raised by a junkie. At least I come by it honestly.