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And there you have it…

Well, the car’s not yet fixed. Pulling a transmission off is a lot of work, and they don’t design these things to be serviced. We’re (very) slowly making progress, partly because it’s difficult to do, and partly because we rarely have time to work on it. I’m sure we’ll get it done at some point…

It’s not all bad, though… It’s surprising how much money you save when you aren’t buying gas and paying for car insurance every month…

And there you have it.

Last week we drove down to the vets’ for two reasons. Brody had a few shots and stuff to get to keep him healthy and stuff, and we needed to drop off Troi’s body for cremation. We’ve been wanting to do that for a while, and seeing as it’s cold here in Minnesota during January, preserving her body wasn’t too hard. But we needed to take care of it. We gave her to the vets’, and on Monday we picked up the ashes.

Although is was hard to do, it was good to get some closure on that. Once summer comes around, we’ll bury her ashes. But now, it feels good to have her taken care of. Now I’m ready to get another cat (or two, even). I’m looking forward to having cats running around again. I don’t dislike Brody… But he’s definitely not a cat.

So, to those who say I’ve been converted… *eyes the Ryan’s* …I shall simply find a new feline mastermind to take over the world!

And there you have it.

Time certainly flies when you’re not paying attention…

More of the usual stuff… Work, splitting wood, shoveling snow, waking in the middle of the night as Brody whines, playing music Sunday mornings at church and Tuesday nights at Junction 122, hanging out with friends and family, and all that good stuff.

Latest news is that I’m now working for Dan. I haven’t quite figured out what it is I’m supposed to be doing, but my official title is “Project Manager.” If everything works out well, and if God is willing, this opportunity should bring me into financial independance. We’ll see what He has in mind.

And there you have it.

Ok, everyone. You should brace yourself for this one, maybe sit down, something like that… I have some news which may shock a number of you. I knew it was coming, but I probably failed to mention it to any of you.

In any case, it has now happened.

We have a dog.

Brody is a two month-old Boxer puppy. We got him Tuesday afternoon of this week. He doesn’t seem to have figured his legs out yet, and we’re working on training him… But so far, so good.

And, for those who may be wondering about what happened here… The deal was if we get a dog, I get a cat.

Pictures coming soon…

Also, we finally got my car back up here on Friday. It’s in the garage now… So all we need to do is fix it. …Which could take some time…

And there you have it.

Since I’m tired and would like to relax, I’ll keep this post brief.

I spent the weekend doing some work for Dan, and mostly stayed inside due to a multi-day stretch of snow and wind. We did venture out for church Sunday morning, which is always a good time. Monday morning, despite the continuing snow and wind, my dad and I drove down to the Twin Cities again to do some more investigation on my car. It was cold, and took a while (mostly because we kept having to go inside to warm up!), but it turns out our intel gathered from a few people up here in Pine River was sound. My car is repairable, and so we came back up with a plan to tow it up here (into our garage, which offers protection from the elements much better than my friend’s driveway ). It won’t be easy to fix, but it’s a lot easier than a broken crankshaft or buying a new car.

Oh, and did I mention that I didn’t get a whole lot of sleep, and as a result am tired?

…zzZZZzzzz….

And there you have it.

This past Monday, my dad and I drove down to the Twin Cities to try and determine what was wrong with my car. We left fairly early, and once we arrived, set to work.

We pulled off my starter, and my dad set it on fire testing it (don’t worry, it’s not as bad as I make it sound!). We determined that wasn’t the problem, and moved to the next component. I took a look at the flywheel, and it looked alright to me. However, when my dad crawled below, I heard from underneath the car, “Uh oh… I’m not supposed to be able to spin this by hand.” The final word is yet to be determined, but our first thought was, broken crankshaft. If that’s what it is, I think I’ll just end up donating the vehicle and getting another one. If it’s not, we’ll see how much work/time will need to be put into it. I might have lucked out. Thankfully, this means the transmission and starter are just fine. I’ll let you guys know what we find out later.

And there you have it.

“The mind of man plans his way, but the Lord directs his steps” – Proverbs 16:9

‘nough said.

…

…Oh, ok, I’ll explain.

This is the lesson God has been teaching me for the past few weeks (not to make it seem like He’s done or that I’m finished learning ). Through various circumstances, I’m finding a number of my plans frustrated. I’m not unhappy, anxious, or distraught over any of this, but it’s been happening. With all the crazy stuff going on in the world, we can have a tendency to try and plan all our steps. I do this all the time. That’s not to say that it’s a bad thing, because I think we should have some kind of idea where we’re going. However, when God decides He wants us to go in a different direction, that’s where we can run into some trouble. Keeping in mind this verse helps a lot.

Our plans for Wandering to play at a retreat last weekend fell through, because they ended up canceling the retreat (not enough attendees). My car broke down. We had to drive through the snow, instead of just ahead of it, on our way to Virginia. All problems according to my plans. But, God knows what He’s doing. He caused my car to give me warning signs, which led to us driving a different car to Virginia. I was able to do some other things and get some much needed rest last weekend. I can’t say I can think of a reason for us to drive through the snow on our way to Virginia… but I’m sure there is one.

So, all this to say, God knows what He’s doing, and He’s in control. Trust Him.

And there you have it.

Well, Lucas and I made it back safely to Minnesota. Unfortunately, I have yet to make it back home, due to my car breaking down shortly after leaving Lucas’ home. I’m not really sure what to do about this, so any prayers you guys could send on my behalf are appreciated. Thankfully, I should still be able to go through with my plans for this week (Wandering is playing at a retreat!), but I’ll still need to figure out what to do about my car afterwards.

Anyways, that’s where I stand right now. I’ll keep you guys informed, and, at some point, I should have some music from the Christmas concert.

And there you have it.

Just a quick post to let you all know that I (somehow) managed to survive driving from Minnesota to Virginia overnight, followed by pulling an all night LAN party. It was pretty crazy… But, hey! It’s only once a year.

The trip from Minnesota went well, but our plan to outrun the snowstorm failed, and resulted in us driving with the snow the entire way. Going through the mountains in Pennsylvania was interesting, to say the least.

We arrived Thursday morning, got a bit of sleep, and then started the gaming around 6. It was a lot of fun, even though I was in a fairly zombie-like state the entire time.

Unfortunately, Ryan had to head out early due to some scheduling conflicts. We dropped him off at the airport on Friday, and he flew home. We miss you!

It’s been a crazy few days, and I have to head out soon… but let me tell you, sleeping in a real bed with a nice pillow last night was amazing.

And there you have it.

I have no idea how to start this post.

It’s with a very heavy heart that I tell you all that Troi, our cat of 17 years and faithful friend, passed away on December 24th, 2009 around 5pm. She began acting strange last weekend, and from Sunday until her passing, she slowly grew weaker and weaker. She goes to her brother, Riker, who preceded her in July, 2006. She will be sorely missed.

We will miss her soft pur, her quiet, but insistant squeak (she rarely meowed normally, which we will also miss), and her silky fur. We’ll miss the way she would sit at our side and insist we hold her, and, failing that, find her way onto our laps regardless. We’ll miss seeing her curled up on the couch, our beds, or under the Christmas tree. We’ll miss the reminders of her presence, such as her food and water bowl (and her insistance that it be filled!), the towels on the couches and beds (to guard against cat hair), feeling the bed shake as she jumps up and shifts around in the mornings, cat hair on clothing, curtains, and in food, and, yes, we (or should I say I?) will even miss the litter box. We’ve cried a lot, and certainly aren’t done, but we know that Troi is no longer weak, in pain, or tired. I don’t know if pets go to heaven or not, but if they do, she is running with Riker in the arms of Yeshua.

We miss you, Troi. Thanks for all the years and memories.