Thanksgiving was very enjoyable with its accompanying food, friendship, and fun, but I was given another reason to be especially thankful this year for all we are blessed with here in the United States.
I was shopping at K-mart the day before Thanksgiving for some ping pong table supplies for the youth at Trinity when I decided to take a detour by the boys clothing section to check out the Thanksgiving sale prices. Given my height and the typical lack of an available salesperson at K-mart, I was approached by a nice lady named Bonnie who needed help getting some boys' pajamas off of a high display rack. I got them down for her and what was expected to be a quick 5-minute "in-and-out" shopping spree transformed into a lengthy and I might add very enjoyable conversation. I thought Bonnie looked familiar, but couldn't quite place it. It turned out she was in the local Northern Watch newspaper recently having just returned from a mission to Swaziland helping with the orphans of a village there. She recently moved back to TRF after a lenghty hiatus (sound familiar?) to be nearby her only son who works for the Pennington County Sheriff's Department and her grandchildren.
It was enjoyable hearing about her history as she is a registered nurse by profession and, per her account, was one of the first infection control nurses in the United States, having been in the second infection control class of all time at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). She spent time on an indian reservation early on, which gave her experience dealing with poor to nonexistent medical environments with little to no supplies or equipment. She described having a rather small doctor there on the reservation who didn't have the physical stature to endure amputation procedures himself, so she would often have to performing the sawing of the limbs herself that were the result of diabetes and other injuries/infections. She also worked for many years as a nurse at Northwest Medical Center here in town before moving out to California.
I learned more of Bonnie's recent visit to Swaziland where she told me the story of a bag of chips. There were apparently around 80 young children gathered in the village for a special treat. A gentleman in the village had a single bag of potato chips, but it was one of those old bags they used to sell in the US vending machines before everything became "super-sized." There were nowhere near 80 chips in the bag to go around the 80 children, but it was like the fish and loaves of bread of long ago. Each child in an orderly fashion would approach the man, receive a chip or piece of a chip, say "Thank you, pastor," then quitely walk away for the next child to receive their portion. At the end of the dispensing of chips, there was not a single child who complained or asked for more (as I recalled Oliver Twist's famous statement). It was moments like that and seeing how little these children there have that motivated Bonnie to use her own savings to travel to Swaziland at the youthful age of 75 and help as best she could.
Bonnie attends the United Methodist Church here in Thief River, which supports her mission. Unfortunately there have not been many donations to help in her cause and I offered the space here on my blog site to share her story with whomever may be reading. Below I have posted Bonnie's picture as well as below that the original article from the Northern Watch newspaper. Please read through to the end where you can see how to help Bonnie in her mission. As we have allowed our turkey, dressing, and all the fixings to digest, here is a truly good example of something to be thankful for through the end of this year and in the coming year and consider perhaps sharing some of our bountiful harvest with those far less fortunate.
For a little background on Swaziland, The Kingdom of Swaziland is a small country in southern Africa (one of the smallest on the continent), situated on the eastern slope of the Drakensberg mountains, embedded between South Africa in the west and Mozambique in the east. The country is named after the Swazi, a Bantu tribe. It is a largely Christian country with a historically British influence as a British protectorate. It is not a country marked by civil unrest, unlike several other African countries engulfed in civil war in recent years. For more info, see: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Swaziland.
Thanks for reading!
Saturday, November 26, 2005
A Reason To Continue Being Thankful...
From the November 5th Edition of the Northern Watch
Spending her time with African orphans
Written by April Scheinoha
Orphans in Ngculwini, Swaziland, Africa, enjoyed playing hand-clapping games with Thief River Falls resident Bonnie Van Schaick. The games were similar to games American children play on school buses. Van Schaick went on a two-week mission trip to Swaziland in August. (Submitted photo)
Each day, Bonnie Van Schaick thinks about the orphans she met in Africa. She thinks about the girl wearing the dirty pink flannel shirt and the boy who was so happy that someday he and others would be able to eat an onion that was growing in their garden.
For about two weeks in August, the Thief River Falls resident spent time in Swaziland, a south African country slightly smaller than New Jersey. Van Schaick worked on a mission in the town of Ngculwini (pronounced GU-la-win-EE). “I always wanted to go on this type of mission,” she said.
Van Schaick, who moved back to Thief River Falls this September after a 16-year hiatus, went to Africa with a program created by Dr. Bruce Wilkinson, a Christian teacher and author. While living in California and attending services at the Crystal Cathedral, Van Schaick heard Wilkinson speak about Dream for Africa. As part of the program, volunteers help local Africans plant and care for gardens. “I’m sitting there listening, and I thought, ‘I wish I wasn’t this old. I planted my last garden 40 years ago, at least 30 years ago,’” the 75-year-old Van Schaick said.
Then Wilkinson talked to those people who were not able to help in the gardens or didn’t wish to go. He noted there were other programs through which people could help. Wilkinson told a story about a man who received eyeglasses from one of those programs. The story touched Van Schaick. “He was a pastor who never got to read the Bible,” she said.
Van Schaick knew she could help others through that program. As a nurse in the 1950s, she worked with a similar program on the Red Lake Reservation.
Within days, Van Schaick was busy preparing for the volunteer trip in which she would pay her own way. Once she arrived in Africa, she was prepared to help people see better. “I thought I was going to do eyeglasses, but again God had another plan,” Van Schaick said.
The plan changes
The machine that helps determine eyeglass prescriptions didn’t make it through customs. Van Schaick, a retired nurse, then thought she was going to work in a hospital. That was until she learned she would only be observing the work there.
Then Van Schaick found another way to help – spending time with orphans. Even though she hadn’t anticipated that mission work, Van Schaick said, “Of course, that’s where I really needed to be.”
Each day, she and two male volunteers would travel 26 miles in a van from their hotel to Ngculwini. Other volunteers who were gardening in another town would drop them off.
Van Schaick went to an abandoned building similar to a warehouse. Five days a week, orphaned children would gather there. About 85 kids ages 2 to 13 would walk on their own from their community of huts to the building each morning, Van Schaick said. Most were between the ages of 3-1/2 and 8.
Orphans are at the end of the pecking order in their town, Van Schaick said. She noted that orphans will stay at a neighbor or relative’s home after both of their parents or their only parent dies. However, they’re not welcomed there because they’re taking up space, using water and eating food.
That’s why they come to the abandoned building. They are served food donated by various organizations. The food is cooked by two women who live in Ngculwini and volunteer their time to feed the kids. During the time that Van Schaick spent there, the women cooked food donated by German Seventh-day Adventists as well as food donated by Zionists. “Each kid would stand in line, and have rice and then beans,” Van Schaick said. The women don’t eat the food because, as they told Van Schaick, it’s for the kids.
It was the kids’ only meal for 24 hours. They had no milk or juice. If they wanted water, they went to the creek. “It was just worse than any dishwater you’ve seen,” Van Schaick said about the creek.
Van Schaick especially noticed the poverty of Ngculwini when a boy picked something off of the ground, wiped it on his clothing, put it into his mouth and then sucked on the item. She wondered what he had in his mouth and asked him. It was a grain of rice.
Meeting the kids
Van Schaick and the other volunteers got a lot of attention when they arrived at the abandoned building or what Van Schaick called the orphanage. “These kids would come up and just touch you,” she said.
Like many kids in that age group, they had questions. They spoke English and asked Van Schaick about America and the things she did when she was younger. “All these questions, you have no idea where they came from,” she said.
Go-Go plays with the kids
Some of the orphans had a special name for Van Schaick. “The little ones, they called me Go-Go,” she said. Van Schaick later learned that Go-Go is a term the kids use to refer to their grandmas.
Van Schaick, who has two grandchildren, showered attention on the orphans much like any loving grandma. “The look in their eyes was just unbelievable,” she said. “They relished anything that remotely resembled love – a pat on the hand, a hug.”
The kids apparently liked spending time with their Go-Go. They crowded Van Schaick as she hugged and played with them, she said. Van Schaick would count their fingers with them and play hand-clapping games similar to those that many American kids play while riding on school buses.
Then Van Schaick noticed a 5-year-old girl sitting beside her. “She had the dirtiest pink flannel shirt on I’d ever seen in my life, but you could tell it was pink,” Van Schaick said. Van Schaick touched the girl’s shoulder. The girl jerked, and turned away from Van Schaick.
The girl sat near Van Schaick the next day, but wouldn’t look at or touch her, unlike the other kids. In the midst of playing with the kids, Van Schaick later realized the 5-year-old girl with the dirty pink flannel shirt wasn’t sitting near her. Then she felt something move across her back. She noted it felt like a caterpillar was on her back. Then someone pulled at the cross necklace around her neck. Shortly thereafter, someone began using his or her hand to comb Van Schaick’s hair. Out of the corner of her eye, Van Schaick got a glimpse of a pink shirt. Then the girl stopped combing Van Schaick’s hair. She disappeared, only to return a few minutes later and stand next to Van Schaick and place her arm on Van Schaick’s leg. Later, she sat on the ground in between Van Schaick’s legs, and, with her back to Van Schaick, placed one arm on each of Van Schaick’s legs.
Van Schaick counted the girl’s fingers and the girl knew the numbers. For the first time since Van Schaick had been there, the girl responded to the people around her. “I think about her everyday and wonder if she’s getting attention from anybody,” Van Schaick said.
As much as her heart went out to the kids and others living in the town, Van Schaick was glad she didn’t live in Ngculwini. “You always were happy to see the dust coming down the road because you know you were going home,” she said.
The hand-clapping and counting games weren’t the only games the kids played in Ngculwini, but they had to be creative when it came to playtime. “They don’t have any toys,” said Van Schaick, who noted the kids played with a ball fashioned out of a knotted plastic bag filled with leaves.
Van Schaick and the other volunteers were surprised when they saw the ball. “We just sat there with tears in our eyes that this was all that they had,” she said.
Supporting a minister and his dream
While working at the orphanage, Van Schaick also met a pastor named Walter. “I found out he never had a Bible,” she said. Van Schaick had brought a medium-sized Samsonite bag filled with paper, crayons, pencils, and three or four Bibles along to Africa. She gave one of the Bibles to Walter.
“When you think about it, we take so much for granted,” Van Schaick said.
A house is being built for Walter. Work is also beginning on a church and school. Walter intends to raise chickens at that location as well.
While hearing about Walter’s plans, Van Schaick realized Walter needed a more reliable form of electricity. She suggested placing a transformer nearby with a solar backup system. Van Schaick also noticed Walter needed a well from which to draw water for the school. That entire project is estimated to cost $20,000 to $22,000.
How you can help
Van Schaick has already used some of her savings to pay for soil samples in preparation for the well. Others who would like to contribute to the project may send their tax-deductible donations to the United Methodist Church, P.O. Box 595, Thief River Falls, MN 56701. Checks should be written to the aforementioned church. In the memo area, write “Walter Project.”
Spending her time with African orphans
Written by April Scheinoha
Orphans in Ngculwini, Swaziland, Africa, enjoyed playing hand-clapping games with Thief River Falls resident Bonnie Van Schaick. The games were similar to games American children play on school buses. Van Schaick went on a two-week mission trip to Swaziland in August. (Submitted photo)
Each day, Bonnie Van Schaick thinks about the orphans she met in Africa. She thinks about the girl wearing the dirty pink flannel shirt and the boy who was so happy that someday he and others would be able to eat an onion that was growing in their garden.
For about two weeks in August, the Thief River Falls resident spent time in Swaziland, a south African country slightly smaller than New Jersey. Van Schaick worked on a mission in the town of Ngculwini (pronounced GU-la-win-EE). “I always wanted to go on this type of mission,” she said.
Van Schaick, who moved back to Thief River Falls this September after a 16-year hiatus, went to Africa with a program created by Dr. Bruce Wilkinson, a Christian teacher and author. While living in California and attending services at the Crystal Cathedral, Van Schaick heard Wilkinson speak about Dream for Africa. As part of the program, volunteers help local Africans plant and care for gardens. “I’m sitting there listening, and I thought, ‘I wish I wasn’t this old. I planted my last garden 40 years ago, at least 30 years ago,’” the 75-year-old Van Schaick said.
Then Wilkinson talked to those people who were not able to help in the gardens or didn’t wish to go. He noted there were other programs through which people could help. Wilkinson told a story about a man who received eyeglasses from one of those programs. The story touched Van Schaick. “He was a pastor who never got to read the Bible,” she said.
Van Schaick knew she could help others through that program. As a nurse in the 1950s, she worked with a similar program on the Red Lake Reservation.
Within days, Van Schaick was busy preparing for the volunteer trip in which she would pay her own way. Once she arrived in Africa, she was prepared to help people see better. “I thought I was going to do eyeglasses, but again God had another plan,” Van Schaick said.
The plan changes
The machine that helps determine eyeglass prescriptions didn’t make it through customs. Van Schaick, a retired nurse, then thought she was going to work in a hospital. That was until she learned she would only be observing the work there.
Then Van Schaick found another way to help – spending time with orphans. Even though she hadn’t anticipated that mission work, Van Schaick said, “Of course, that’s where I really needed to be.”
Each day, she and two male volunteers would travel 26 miles in a van from their hotel to Ngculwini. Other volunteers who were gardening in another town would drop them off.
Van Schaick went to an abandoned building similar to a warehouse. Five days a week, orphaned children would gather there. About 85 kids ages 2 to 13 would walk on their own from their community of huts to the building each morning, Van Schaick said. Most were between the ages of 3-1/2 and 8.
Orphans are at the end of the pecking order in their town, Van Schaick said. She noted that orphans will stay at a neighbor or relative’s home after both of their parents or their only parent dies. However, they’re not welcomed there because they’re taking up space, using water and eating food.
That’s why they come to the abandoned building. They are served food donated by various organizations. The food is cooked by two women who live in Ngculwini and volunteer their time to feed the kids. During the time that Van Schaick spent there, the women cooked food donated by German Seventh-day Adventists as well as food donated by Zionists. “Each kid would stand in line, and have rice and then beans,” Van Schaick said. The women don’t eat the food because, as they told Van Schaick, it’s for the kids.
It was the kids’ only meal for 24 hours. They had no milk or juice. If they wanted water, they went to the creek. “It was just worse than any dishwater you’ve seen,” Van Schaick said about the creek.
Van Schaick especially noticed the poverty of Ngculwini when a boy picked something off of the ground, wiped it on his clothing, put it into his mouth and then sucked on the item. She wondered what he had in his mouth and asked him. It was a grain of rice.
Meeting the kids
Van Schaick and the other volunteers got a lot of attention when they arrived at the abandoned building or what Van Schaick called the orphanage. “These kids would come up and just touch you,” she said.
Like many kids in that age group, they had questions. They spoke English and asked Van Schaick about America and the things she did when she was younger. “All these questions, you have no idea where they came from,” she said.
Go-Go plays with the kids
Some of the orphans had a special name for Van Schaick. “The little ones, they called me Go-Go,” she said. Van Schaick later learned that Go-Go is a term the kids use to refer to their grandmas.
Van Schaick, who has two grandchildren, showered attention on the orphans much like any loving grandma. “The look in their eyes was just unbelievable,” she said. “They relished anything that remotely resembled love – a pat on the hand, a hug.”
The kids apparently liked spending time with their Go-Go. They crowded Van Schaick as she hugged and played with them, she said. Van Schaick would count their fingers with them and play hand-clapping games similar to those that many American kids play while riding on school buses.
Then Van Schaick noticed a 5-year-old girl sitting beside her. “She had the dirtiest pink flannel shirt on I’d ever seen in my life, but you could tell it was pink,” Van Schaick said. Van Schaick touched the girl’s shoulder. The girl jerked, and turned away from Van Schaick.
The girl sat near Van Schaick the next day, but wouldn’t look at or touch her, unlike the other kids. In the midst of playing with the kids, Van Schaick later realized the 5-year-old girl with the dirty pink flannel shirt wasn’t sitting near her. Then she felt something move across her back. She noted it felt like a caterpillar was on her back. Then someone pulled at the cross necklace around her neck. Shortly thereafter, someone began using his or her hand to comb Van Schaick’s hair. Out of the corner of her eye, Van Schaick got a glimpse of a pink shirt. Then the girl stopped combing Van Schaick’s hair. She disappeared, only to return a few minutes later and stand next to Van Schaick and place her arm on Van Schaick’s leg. Later, she sat on the ground in between Van Schaick’s legs, and, with her back to Van Schaick, placed one arm on each of Van Schaick’s legs.
Van Schaick counted the girl’s fingers and the girl knew the numbers. For the first time since Van Schaick had been there, the girl responded to the people around her. “I think about her everyday and wonder if she’s getting attention from anybody,” Van Schaick said.
As much as her heart went out to the kids and others living in the town, Van Schaick was glad she didn’t live in Ngculwini. “You always were happy to see the dust coming down the road because you know you were going home,” she said.
The hand-clapping and counting games weren’t the only games the kids played in Ngculwini, but they had to be creative when it came to playtime. “They don’t have any toys,” said Van Schaick, who noted the kids played with a ball fashioned out of a knotted plastic bag filled with leaves.
Van Schaick and the other volunteers were surprised when they saw the ball. “We just sat there with tears in our eyes that this was all that they had,” she said.
Supporting a minister and his dream
While working at the orphanage, Van Schaick also met a pastor named Walter. “I found out he never had a Bible,” she said. Van Schaick had brought a medium-sized Samsonite bag filled with paper, crayons, pencils, and three or four Bibles along to Africa. She gave one of the Bibles to Walter.
“When you think about it, we take so much for granted,” Van Schaick said.
A house is being built for Walter. Work is also beginning on a church and school. Walter intends to raise chickens at that location as well.
While hearing about Walter’s plans, Van Schaick realized Walter needed a more reliable form of electricity. She suggested placing a transformer nearby with a solar backup system. Van Schaick also noticed Walter needed a well from which to draw water for the school. That entire project is estimated to cost $20,000 to $22,000.
How you can help
Van Schaick has already used some of her savings to pay for soil samples in preparation for the well. Others who would like to contribute to the project may send their tax-deductible donations to the United Methodist Church, P.O. Box 595, Thief River Falls, MN 56701. Checks should be written to the aforementioned church. In the memo area, write “Walter Project.”
Wednesday, November 23, 2005
A Most Joyous Thanksgiving Eve
The long awaited day arrived today as we gathered at Redeemer Lutheran this evening with the congregations of Redeemer, Trinity, Zion, and believe it or not, the Mosbeck's former church, Black River Lutheran. Paster Hermodson gave the sermon and the other three pastors assisted in the service. I arrived, comforted in the knowledge I would be playing my cello with only one other cellist from the middle school group, thinking I'd at least sound that good, but shortly after arrival, Ruth Stenson, the director, advised me I would be joined by not one, but three cellists, as a high school boy and girl would be playing after all, so we have a nice strong section of four cellists anchoring the string group. We had a great turnout of choir members as well, packing the risers in front of the sanctuary and then some. One of the choir members "Tivo'd" the service at home, so I'm trying to get a copy of it for you, Mom and Dad. The nice part of having a combined service is the building was packed with people much like it was back in the day when it was hard to get an open pew. We enjoyed soup and pie before the service too.
After the service, Ruth passed around a sign-up sheet, and it would appear I will also be performing in a string ensemble for the "Santa Lucia" festival at Redeemer on December 10th, so I'll keep my skills warmed up, hopefully. Joe Drevlow's son played string bass besides his daughter Brianna on cello, so we were thinking sometime getting a quintet or something going at Trinity with all of us. Brianna is an incredible pianist, learning from Ms. Knuttila. For a sixth grader, she plays like she has a lifetime of experience under her belt.
The boys had a good time as I hired a babysitter from the high school choir named Heather. The boys and her took to each other right away and Daniel said, "She was fun!"
In other news, the boys and I went to see Harry Potter on opening night here in town and the film broke in two different sections, so at one point, it was like a Christmas light show as they hadn't turned the lights on and at least every other seat had someone with a lit cell phone. It was twinkling like a thousand points of light in there. It was a disappointing ending, but the boys enjoyed the movie overall and sat through the entire 150 minutes of it in stride.
We're still scheduled to go over to Kristi and Scott Grochow's place tomorrow for Thanksgiving dinner. I am hoping to spend a little time this holiday weekend getting the outdoor Christmas lights arranged. I got a cool extension pole for that purpose that eliminates the need to go climbing 20 feet up on ladders in the snow. I want the Clark W. Griswold "look," without the pratfall injuries if I can help it. We lost much of the snow on the roads this past week, but the temperatures are hovering back below freezing again and more snow is due to fall over the holiday, it looks like.
Happy Thanksgiving to everyone, especially you two by yourselves in Japan, Jeff & Katrina. Your music video with the Grieg music was very enjoyable!!
Love you all!
Jim, Aaron, and Danny
After the service, Ruth passed around a sign-up sheet, and it would appear I will also be performing in a string ensemble for the "Santa Lucia" festival at Redeemer on December 10th, so I'll keep my skills warmed up, hopefully. Joe Drevlow's son played string bass besides his daughter Brianna on cello, so we were thinking sometime getting a quintet or something going at Trinity with all of us. Brianna is an incredible pianist, learning from Ms. Knuttila. For a sixth grader, she plays like she has a lifetime of experience under her belt.
The boys had a good time as I hired a babysitter from the high school choir named Heather. The boys and her took to each other right away and Daniel said, "She was fun!"
In other news, the boys and I went to see Harry Potter on opening night here in town and the film broke in two different sections, so at one point, it was like a Christmas light show as they hadn't turned the lights on and at least every other seat had someone with a lit cell phone. It was twinkling like a thousand points of light in there. It was a disappointing ending, but the boys enjoyed the movie overall and sat through the entire 150 minutes of it in stride.
We're still scheduled to go over to Kristi and Scott Grochow's place tomorrow for Thanksgiving dinner. I am hoping to spend a little time this holiday weekend getting the outdoor Christmas lights arranged. I got a cool extension pole for that purpose that eliminates the need to go climbing 20 feet up on ladders in the snow. I want the Clark W. Griswold "look," without the pratfall injuries if I can help it. We lost much of the snow on the roads this past week, but the temperatures are hovering back below freezing again and more snow is due to fall over the holiday, it looks like.
Happy Thanksgiving to everyone, especially you two by yourselves in Japan, Jeff & Katrina. Your music video with the Grieg music was very enjoyable!!
Love you all!
Jim, Aaron, and Danny
Wednesday, November 16, 2005
A String Serenade
I guess I'm just not satisfied with settling for only singing. We had our practice tonight with combined choirs at Redeemer Lutheran (Zion, Trinity, and Redeemer). We will be singing at next Wednesday's "pre-Thanksgiving" service (two songs). Redeemer also invited us to dinner beforehand at 5:30, so we'll be having "soup and pie." Ruth Stenson, the choir director at Redeemer, said she has only baked one pie in her entire life, but signed herself up to make two pies for next week. In the spirit of not really knowing what you're doing before volunteering for something, I noticed there was a group of kids with string instruments about to practice under Ruth's direction for the prelude and offertory music at next week's service. I asked Ruth out of curiosity if she knew of a community string group around here and she said there really weren't any in town, but did invite me to play my cello with the kids. Apparently Brianna Drevlow, Joe's daughter, is the only cello at this point. Pretty much all the kids are middle school age from Franklin and there's about 5 or 6 pieces they'll be performing, so I figured, "What the heck?" I'll have to practice a little bit over the coming week, but I shouldn't have a problem with the level of music I'll be reading, knock on wood. Brianna was rather pleased to see she won't be all by herself next week in the cello section.
I'm sure I've told most of you out there it's freezing over here this week. It's currently 6 degrees outside with a feels like of minus 5 degrees. Andrew ran to the convenience store this morning just three blocks away and when he got back, the lenses of his glasses had completely frosted over, so he couldn't see. When we climbed in the weasel (our car) to head to church tonight, the INSIDE of the windows were frozen. Here I was scraping the outside and there wasn't a single speck of ice on the outside. Andrew's valve stems on his Honda were completely frozen, so he couldn't check the air pressure tonight. I think he'll be bringing the hair drier out there tomorrow to thaw them out.
I think the guy across the street was more intelligent than I thought, putting his Christmas lights up outside the day after Halloween before the winter storm moved in with all the snow. Now it'll be a bit more tricky on my side getting it done as I doubt the snow will be leaving until Spring now with these temperatures. I also have to work on rigging a better harness this year for Duchess to pull the boys down the alley/sidewalk in their sled.
I have to wish you a Happy Birthday one more time, Jennifer. Hopefully you had a great day of celebration with your family over there. It seems like just yesterday you and I were making that sign for Mom's 37th... Here's to many more years! :o)
I'm sure I've told most of you out there it's freezing over here this week. It's currently 6 degrees outside with a feels like of minus 5 degrees. Andrew ran to the convenience store this morning just three blocks away and when he got back, the lenses of his glasses had completely frosted over, so he couldn't see. When we climbed in the weasel (our car) to head to church tonight, the INSIDE of the windows were frozen. Here I was scraping the outside and there wasn't a single speck of ice on the outside. Andrew's valve stems on his Honda were completely frozen, so he couldn't check the air pressure tonight. I think he'll be bringing the hair drier out there tomorrow to thaw them out.
I think the guy across the street was more intelligent than I thought, putting his Christmas lights up outside the day after Halloween before the winter storm moved in with all the snow. Now it'll be a bit more tricky on my side getting it done as I doubt the snow will be leaving until Spring now with these temperatures. I also have to work on rigging a better harness this year for Duchess to pull the boys down the alley/sidewalk in their sled.
I have to wish you a Happy Birthday one more time, Jennifer. Hopefully you had a great day of celebration with your family over there. It seems like just yesterday you and I were making that sign for Mom's 37th... Here's to many more years! :o)
Sunday, November 13, 2005
Singing, Singing, and More Singing...
This has been a busy week for the choir at Trinity. We had practice Wednesday night, sang at both services, and this afternoon, we were invited to sing on TV at the telethon at Lincoln High School for the fundraising effort of the Lincoln High Choir so they can go on tour of the Smithsonian and New York. We followed Dad's old group, the Sunrise Singers from Franklin Middle School. Andrew joined the performance too and seemed to enjoy a few minutes of local fame. Mariel Anderson, my realtor, was one of the two MC's of the event and Joe Kezar did the soundboard. It was neat seeing the new setup of the music department at Lincoln since I left in 1981. They have great soundproof practice rooms like I remember from Washington State University and a large band room. Come this Wednesday, the choir will be practicing at Redeemer Lutheran in preparation for the upcoming combined choir performance for Thanksgiving.
At the second service today, Aaron was presented with his "Third Grade Bible." He had made this nice cloth holder/cover for it with handles to carry it around. He brought it with him to Lincoln this afternoon, he was so proud of it. I'll post a pic or two of it this week.
The Trinity youth continue working on fundraising for their big trip to San Antonio next summer for the youth convention. I found out today each family has to pony up $600 out of their own pocket and another $1,200 per child has to be raised through fundraising. We are presently working on reinvigorating the youth program there, hopefully getting some kind of a youth room together downstairs with ping pong, perhaps the shuffleboard they used to have, and appropriate furniture so they have an area to call their own. I suggested a program like we had at Gloria Dei in Mountlake Terrace, i.e. Pioneer Clubs for K-6 so the boys are kept busy on Wednesday nights and don't have to turn to another church for that activity. Some ideas for the youth were a fundraising pancake breakfast and getting the older kids involved in the idea process so it's a little more collaborative. We don't have too many people on the council so far, Mary Forney, two other couples, and myself. Hopefully we can get Kristi Grochow on board too as she has good motivational skills.
As for school these days, Aaron brought home a note this Friday indicating instead of the third grade students exchanging Christmas gifts this year, they will be going to the water park at Seven Clans. Should be a great activity in the middle of winter to get into the nice warm indoor park. Daniel has invited me to his lunch this coming week as he caught wind I had visited Aaron a couple of times for his.
We had a nice little snow storm last night, but other than cold temperatures, nothing is left of the snow to make it look like winter around here. We are expecting a couple more days of snow showers this week, though. Deer hunting season started last weekend and it's in full swing as you can tell by all the fluorescent orange hunting gear whenever you go shopping at the supermarket or around town. I was thinking of popping up to the old 80 acres to see if they're honoring the signs Mom & Dad posted this summer. Scott Grochow has already been out several days with Casey and I think he's already gotten two deer. I'm just trying to avoid getting any with my car. I found out Minnesota was something like 6th on the top 10 states to have deer-vehicle collisions. Hopefully Harry Potter will be showing in town here so I don't have to brave the roads at night coming back from Grand Forks.
At the second service today, Aaron was presented with his "Third Grade Bible." He had made this nice cloth holder/cover for it with handles to carry it around. He brought it with him to Lincoln this afternoon, he was so proud of it. I'll post a pic or two of it this week.
The Trinity youth continue working on fundraising for their big trip to San Antonio next summer for the youth convention. I found out today each family has to pony up $600 out of their own pocket and another $1,200 per child has to be raised through fundraising. We are presently working on reinvigorating the youth program there, hopefully getting some kind of a youth room together downstairs with ping pong, perhaps the shuffleboard they used to have, and appropriate furniture so they have an area to call their own. I suggested a program like we had at Gloria Dei in Mountlake Terrace, i.e. Pioneer Clubs for K-6 so the boys are kept busy on Wednesday nights and don't have to turn to another church for that activity. Some ideas for the youth were a fundraising pancake breakfast and getting the older kids involved in the idea process so it's a little more collaborative. We don't have too many people on the council so far, Mary Forney, two other couples, and myself. Hopefully we can get Kristi Grochow on board too as she has good motivational skills.
As for school these days, Aaron brought home a note this Friday indicating instead of the third grade students exchanging Christmas gifts this year, they will be going to the water park at Seven Clans. Should be a great activity in the middle of winter to get into the nice warm indoor park. Daniel has invited me to his lunch this coming week as he caught wind I had visited Aaron a couple of times for his.
We had a nice little snow storm last night, but other than cold temperatures, nothing is left of the snow to make it look like winter around here. We are expecting a couple more days of snow showers this week, though. Deer hunting season started last weekend and it's in full swing as you can tell by all the fluorescent orange hunting gear whenever you go shopping at the supermarket or around town. I was thinking of popping up to the old 80 acres to see if they're honoring the signs Mom & Dad posted this summer. Scott Grochow has already been out several days with Casey and I think he's already gotten two deer. I'm just trying to avoid getting any with my car. I found out Minnesota was something like 6th on the top 10 states to have deer-vehicle collisions. Hopefully Harry Potter will be showing in town here so I don't have to brave the roads at night coming back from Grand Forks.
Wednesday, November 09, 2005
You Know You're in Scandinavian Country When...
The nearest Sam's Club carries entire pallets full of Lefse in their food department... :o)
Saturday, November 05, 2005
Uff Da About Sums It Up!
Well, dinner at Trinity Thursday night was quite an event. The church was filled to the brim downstairs in the fellowship hall with people overflowing in the sanctuary. When we got there, there were cars around the block and about 80 percent of the parking lot of Johnson Funeral Service was packed to boot (no funeral going on either). We bought our tickets from Fern and proceeded to the sanctuary to await our turn as they were calling numbers, 20 at a time. We were treated to of all things a nice little trio of guys playing a string bass, banjo, and Jay Forney on Guitar, singing songs that sounded as if they were taken straight out of the movie, A Mighty Wind. It was hard not to smile watching and listening to them play if you've ever seen that movie. They just didn't have the funny hairstyles is all.
Once we got downstairs there were few empty seats to be had. Mike, Carol & Roger, Terry/Rita, Kristi Grochow, Shirley, Idella, and numerous others were there as were quite a few people from the community at large. We went through the serving line and I figured I'd try "just a sliver" of lutefisk so I could say I didn't wimp out, but before I could object, the server had plopped two heaping spoons of the steaming quivering creation of jellied fish onto my Dixie plate with just a little room on the other half for Swedish meatballs. Howard Thorson was at the end of the line serving corn and when he asked if I wanted some, I advised I didn't have any room left, so just "put it anywhere," reminding him it was like the old days in the school cafeteria to which he had a big laugh.
For those of you curious people, Aaron had been talking up having fish the entire day and when we got there, he still hadn't gotten the hint of what he was about to experience. He went ahead of me in line and accepted a healthy serving of the lutefisk with the meatballs. As I'm sitting there not looking directly at him, I could spy him taking a bite of the fish (if you could still call it that). I managed to force down four complete bites of it (so Dad couldn't say I quit without giving it a fair shake). Aaron started shoveling it in, not really getting the full "flavor" as it were yet. I motioned to Andrew to take a look and before long, there was an older couple in their 70s or so the next table over looking with delight at Aaron as he chowed down on the Norwegian delight before him. Shortly thereafter, though, the taste caught up with him and he announced if he ate another bite, he would lose his lunch, so to speak. I think the "P" word came into play. He went back to his meatballs and lefse thereafter.
We had our first good snow late that night, with the snow remaining on the cars and backyard through Friday. It's all gone now, though the temperature continues to dip into the low 30's with high 20's when factoring in the windchill. I came home this evening around 9:00 to find my next door neighbor directly across the street putting up his icicle lights for Christmas already. I had to go over and ask if he was working on his "Clark W. Griswold" light presentation this year. My house should be fairly easy should the spirit move me enough to do something in that regard. I believe I can just crawl out the second story bedroom windows onto the roof of the porch and string them up from there without having to mess with a ladder, though thanks to Dad and Fern, I have one if necessary.
We have been invited out to the Grochows for both Thanksgiving and Christmas this year. Kristi doesn't have family to celebrate locally with here, so it's basically "the more the merrier."
We went to see Chicken Little at the Galaxy Twin last night. It was pretty funny, a gag a minute. We met Dusty with Kristi and his sister Kaylynn at the theater. There's quite a few laughs for adults too. We now have Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire to look forward to in two weeks. I heard it's 150 minutes long, so should be a nice test of the boys' attention span. It promises to be as good as its predecessors, though, and the boys have greatly enjoyed the first three.
Once we got downstairs there were few empty seats to be had. Mike, Carol & Roger, Terry/Rita, Kristi Grochow, Shirley, Idella, and numerous others were there as were quite a few people from the community at large. We went through the serving line and I figured I'd try "just a sliver" of lutefisk so I could say I didn't wimp out, but before I could object, the server had plopped two heaping spoons of the steaming quivering creation of jellied fish onto my Dixie plate with just a little room on the other half for Swedish meatballs. Howard Thorson was at the end of the line serving corn and when he asked if I wanted some, I advised I didn't have any room left, so just "put it anywhere," reminding him it was like the old days in the school cafeteria to which he had a big laugh.
For those of you curious people, Aaron had been talking up having fish the entire day and when we got there, he still hadn't gotten the hint of what he was about to experience. He went ahead of me in line and accepted a healthy serving of the lutefisk with the meatballs. As I'm sitting there not looking directly at him, I could spy him taking a bite of the fish (if you could still call it that). I managed to force down four complete bites of it (so Dad couldn't say I quit without giving it a fair shake). Aaron started shoveling it in, not really getting the full "flavor" as it were yet. I motioned to Andrew to take a look and before long, there was an older couple in their 70s or so the next table over looking with delight at Aaron as he chowed down on the Norwegian delight before him. Shortly thereafter, though, the taste caught up with him and he announced if he ate another bite, he would lose his lunch, so to speak. I think the "P" word came into play. He went back to his meatballs and lefse thereafter.
We had our first good snow late that night, with the snow remaining on the cars and backyard through Friday. It's all gone now, though the temperature continues to dip into the low 30's with high 20's when factoring in the windchill. I came home this evening around 9:00 to find my next door neighbor directly across the street putting up his icicle lights for Christmas already. I had to go over and ask if he was working on his "Clark W. Griswold" light presentation this year. My house should be fairly easy should the spirit move me enough to do something in that regard. I believe I can just crawl out the second story bedroom windows onto the roof of the porch and string them up from there without having to mess with a ladder, though thanks to Dad and Fern, I have one if necessary.
We have been invited out to the Grochows for both Thanksgiving and Christmas this year. Kristi doesn't have family to celebrate locally with here, so it's basically "the more the merrier."
We went to see Chicken Little at the Galaxy Twin last night. It was pretty funny, a gag a minute. We met Dusty with Kristi and his sister Kaylynn at the theater. There's quite a few laughs for adults too. We now have Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire to look forward to in two weeks. I heard it's 150 minutes long, so should be a nice test of the boys' attention span. It promises to be as good as its predecessors, though, and the boys have greatly enjoyed the first three.
Wednesday, November 02, 2005
A Brief Addendum...
I forgot to mention something cute in my last post about Aaron. At church last Sunday, it was confirmation Sunday, so I had to sing at both services. Unbeknownst to me, the youth being confirmed had two front pews on the left reserved for their seating arrangements. Well, Aaron processed up the aisle with me and just before the altar, I realized I had to "do something with him quick," as the choir was proceeding all the way up to in front of the altar to sing right after the morning announcements (I had thought the choir would sit in the front as usual on the right before singing. The closest alternative was the empty pew in front on the left side... Aaron sat right in the middle of the long pew beaming up at me in front while seconds later, I stood surprised as I saw the procession of youth to be confirmed coming down the aisle in their white gowns enveloping Aaron on either side of the pew. He kind of looked like pudding in a cloud in the sea of white around him. Aaron was looking around, apparently realizing he didn't belong there, quietly arose, walked to the left and sat down in the pews that face to the center from the old chapel, never missing a beat. It can be a little disconcerting when you're "stuck" up front like that and not able to direct activities going on in front of you, but thankfully Aaron did a great job problem-solving it all by himself.
I also forgot to mention tomorrow night is the annual "Lutefisk Supper" at Trinity. I might be able to talk Andrew into going for the lefse if nothing else. I have to give the boys their first taste of a Norwegian staple too. As for other events at Trinity, the "Old-Fashioned Bazaar" last Saturday brought in over $5,000 in the 5 hours it was run!
I also forgot to mention tomorrow night is the annual "Lutefisk Supper" at Trinity. I might be able to talk Andrew into going for the lefse if nothing else. I have to give the boys their first taste of a Norwegian staple too. As for other events at Trinity, the "Old-Fashioned Bazaar" last Saturday brought in over $5,000 in the 5 hours it was run!
Tuesday, November 01, 2005
Trick or Trout!!!
It's colder than a witch's elbow over here... :o( We had our trick-or-treat session last night, our first in TRF. The boys grouped up with the pastor's kids from the corner and Pastor Dave and I went out together with them to keep an eye on things. Before they got started, it had gone entirely dark outside except for the porch lights and the TRF Police Department stopped by and gave all the kids those glow in the dark rings you put around your neck for better visibility when crossing the street. Aaron went as Harry Potter again this year, sans glasses. Daniel went as a Star Wars Clone as indicated in the pictures above. They had plastic pumpkins like last year, but unlike last year in Mountlake terrace where they got a few handfuls of candy, they ended up both overflowing their buckets with candy. I think we probably stopped at a good 40 or 50 houses all told.
We have been blessed with a break from early snow here. The last of the leaves fell from the Dutch elm out front and we have yet to have the leaves we raked up taken away. The truck keeps missing them unfortunately because someone ends up parking in front of the curb blocking the truck. Oh well... Dale Folger said he was going to call public works pretty soon to light a fire under them. We had some light rain today, but other than that, it's just been brisk outside. The house is maintaining the heat rather well, though, as it's been consistently around 37 degrees outside, yet without any heat on during the daytime, the thermostat stays at 60 or just above. Hopefully it holds for the winter with the rising cost of heating oil/natural gas. At least gas prices for cars are falling. We paid about $2.38 a gallon on Sunday in Grand Forks, which reminds me, we took a trip to Sam's Club (finally) over there in North Dakota and got stocked up on a few things. We took the old cutacross this time past the old family farm on what used to be County Road 3. The fields have all been turned for the winter and except for the occasional group of cattle, there wasn't much to see on the way over. We did get lost in Grand Forks, but unlike typical men, we stopped both times and got directions before spending a half hour driving in circles.
Last week, Aaron decided to follow his little brother's example and attend Awana with him, a youth group at the Baptist Church that sits just kitty corner to Trinity and next to the Heritage Center in town. They had a great time while I was at choir practice and it kept them out of trouble. For those interested in what Awana is, check it out ==> http://www.awana.org
I can't believe it's November already. Before long we'll be celebrating our first Thanksgiving here followed by Christmas and snow (hopefully in that order?). Well, time to get busy with the boys. Take care everyone.... :o)
We have been blessed with a break from early snow here. The last of the leaves fell from the Dutch elm out front and we have yet to have the leaves we raked up taken away. The truck keeps missing them unfortunately because someone ends up parking in front of the curb blocking the truck. Oh well... Dale Folger said he was going to call public works pretty soon to light a fire under them. We had some light rain today, but other than that, it's just been brisk outside. The house is maintaining the heat rather well, though, as it's been consistently around 37 degrees outside, yet without any heat on during the daytime, the thermostat stays at 60 or just above. Hopefully it holds for the winter with the rising cost of heating oil/natural gas. At least gas prices for cars are falling. We paid about $2.38 a gallon on Sunday in Grand Forks, which reminds me, we took a trip to Sam's Club (finally) over there in North Dakota and got stocked up on a few things. We took the old cutacross this time past the old family farm on what used to be County Road 3. The fields have all been turned for the winter and except for the occasional group of cattle, there wasn't much to see on the way over. We did get lost in Grand Forks, but unlike typical men, we stopped both times and got directions before spending a half hour driving in circles.
Last week, Aaron decided to follow his little brother's example and attend Awana with him, a youth group at the Baptist Church that sits just kitty corner to Trinity and next to the Heritage Center in town. They had a great time while I was at choir practice and it kept them out of trouble. For those interested in what Awana is, check it out ==> http://www.awana.org
I can't believe it's November already. Before long we'll be celebrating our first Thanksgiving here followed by Christmas and snow (hopefully in that order?). Well, time to get busy with the boys. Take care everyone.... :o)
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