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Wilderness Week
Two weeks ago (July 15-21) I was one of four leaders on a week-long Current River canoe trip with fifteen teenagers. Here are a few pictures: ‘ A highlight was the time I spent up late talking with different guys. One night until 2am! When…
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Teen Week Counseling Update
So I don’t have time to write an update so I’m not going to. Except to say Week 1 of camp went by quickly, and is now over. And true to prediction, I am now officially sleep deprived and worn out. But, it starts all…
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Around the World in 180 Days (wrap-up post, by request)
I remember more than one night lying in bed late, in the dark, except for a dull street-lamp filtering through cracks in my venetian blinds, feeling restless. Getting up and going for long walks: padding round and round the nearby pond at my apartment with…
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I Feel Welcomed Back!
Tomorrow I get back to Wichita once again, yippee! Already I’m feeling quite welcome. Spent a week with Luke and Sarah out West, and they treated me royally – we had a great time (at least I did!) Then a short visit to Seth &…
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A Connecticut Yankee in King Aloha’s Court
From Tokyo to Honolulu was a red-eye flight. Only slept about an hour that night. The weirdest thing happened… I left Japan on Wednesday night and arrived in Hawaii on Wednesday morning! Therefore, I was able to do what few people have ever done: live…
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The Shocking Semantics of Culture Shock
So the powers that be, whoever they are, have determined Culture Shock has four stages. However, I’m not convinced Culture Shock has only four stages, just as I’m not convinced public speeches have only three parts (introduction, body, and conclusion). I’ve heard speeches before that…
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I Thought I’d Seen it All, Until I Saw Japan
First: Language… Most the signs in Japan are not in English. And their script is scary-looking. See for yourself, here is the title of this post in Japanese: 私は日本を見るまで私は、私はそれをすべて見たと思った And the people don’t speak English either, hardly a one. Even at the airport, nobody can…
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Jakarta Ho! A Somewhat Sagacious Soliloquy.
I’m currently in the capital of Indonesia. It feels oh-so Asian. And fairly Muslim too, though I don’t find the locals here as intimidating as their compatriots in the Middle East. With over 10 million citizens, Jakarta is populous. But Indonesia itself is populous: the…
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Luxury
I’m back in Sentani. Good ol’ civilization. Even if it’s third world civilization. Even if it’s “wild west” civilization. Dave, who picked us up at the airport, told about how he got stuck in the middle of a local demonstration yesterday in Sentani, including having…
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Clashing Civilizations
Often my most creative writing thoughts come at an inopportune time for recording said thoughts. One such time is just before drifting to sleep. Like now, but this time I gave in, got out of bed, and pulled out ye old laptop to jot down…
