this is the high life...

Collective Wisdom

2011-10-25T23:44:00.001-04:00

Hi all,

We are eagerly awaiting our baby to come along, and will surely have plenty to say once that happens! Until then, I'll post some links to my company blog, www.globaladjustments.com/wpblog, where I've started writing a few things about some of the cultural issues we face in our training. There's also some cool pictures of our office there right now. I'll let you know when a new post comes along too. I know it's not as exciting as a baby - but it will have to do for now!

Peace,
Neil

Here's the latest one that I wrote.

Home

2011-09-08T00:38:00.002-04:00

What a sweet and complicated word. When you're little "home" is usually whatever house you live in with your parents. As you grow, new "homes" start popping up. Life gets deeper, richer, and more complex. Sometimes, it leaves you confused. I remember the first time I referred to college as "home". It was the first time that I realized I had two homes now. Much has changed since college, including the addition of many more 'homes' for Neil and me, the most recent of which is our small flat near the beach in India.

This year our little apartment has transformed into a true home for us. A place where we eat, where we joke, where we cry, where dear friends come over to spend time together, a place where we host visitors, a place that, for the first time in our lives, we actually own everything in it! A place where when we walk through the door the feeling of arriving somewhere that we belong comes over us. Truly, we have a home here.

And yet, just like college, it is both a home AND a home-away-from-home. "Home" will always be the smell of my mom's apple/cinnamon spiced candles, my dad & brothers walking around the house shirtless, the constant chill of my room (which has NEVER gotten as warm as the rest of the house), hugs and kisses from my brothers, sitting at the counter with my dear SIL while mom mixes something tasty in her big tan bowl, hearing my dad working in the garage....HOME will always boil down to one place. I am blessed to know the true comfort and relaxation that a home can bring; it is that home that I can't wait to come into in December, breathe out a deep sigh, and drink my fill of all things loved and familiar.

Counting down!

iPhoto

2011-06-21T02:40:00.008-04:00

This is by no means an advertisement. I have had plenty of frustrating moments waiting for iPhoto to load or refusing to recognize a picture I have just uploaded. That being said, since it is our current photo organizer, I must pay it the respect it deserves for giving me a platform to occasionally reminisce. I felt like I should post a blog today, but didn't have anything particularly important or pressing to talk about (unless you consider the fact that I'm eating quite possibly the best frozen yogurt I've ever had in my life. Too bad I already have a yogurt entry).

{Enter iPhoto}

A few minutes of browsing old pictures and I find myself waxing nostalgia. Here are a few goodies...

ahh, yes. The dreaded wisdom teeth removal process. A rite of passage for all 16-23 year olds. This picture was taken in a Walgreen's parking lot while my then-fiance, Neil, went in to get glorious pain meds that ended up making me puke all night, followed by dry-sockets and final semester college exams. Joy.

The first (of many) cooking-for-Neil experiences, full of 'I want him to ask me to marry him' pressure. Canned peaches and boxed pasta hardly count as cooking, but I can say that the ribs were a great success, as has been the marriage.

My friend, Libby, and I hit a deer the day before (well, technically I hit the deer while Libby sat innocently in the passenger's seat). Neil picked us up at a local McDonald's to bring us back to school. While there I encountered the most inept McDonald's employee you could possibly imagine. He handed me this ice cream cone with an, "I'm sorry, I have no clue what I'm doing" look on his face and all I could do was laugh and say, "No problem. It might end up being the best ice cream I've ever had. Who knows." Not the best, but it was good. And it provided some much needed laughter after our 'deer meets bumper resulting in totaled car' incident.

4 of my favorite guys reff-ing one of my favorite things: powder puff football. The tall guy on the far left looks like he'd make a great husband, don't you think? I have many fond memories of hits, bruises, and potentially broken jaws.

So ends the walk down memory lane. Hoping the next post is extra inspiring to make up...

Yenna Pandradhu

2011-06-19T05:34:00.002-04:00

Translates in Tamil as “what to do?”, and is currently my greatest cultural adjustment. “What to do?” as in your computer stops working and the IT guy doesn’t know how to fix it. As in you try for 6 months to get your name added onto a bank account. As in you switch mobile networks due to bad customer service only to find out your new one doesn’t give you a signal in your house. What to do?

Here’s a recent conversation I’ve had with my new home:

India: Neil, enna achu (what happened)?

Neil: Oh nothing, I’m just stressed because of __________ (insert a too detailed explanation)

India: Oh yes, that happends. Yenna pandradhu.

Neil: What do you mean, What to do? There’s a lot I can do. I am equipped with advanced problem solving skills. I can figure this out on my own and beat this problem into submission.

India: Apdia? (Is that so?)

Neil: Yes, I am very skilled at checking off things on my to do list and vanquishing them from existence so that I can move on to other things on my list.

India: And how is that working for you?

Neil: Well, not so great right now, but I’m still fighting it.

India: Hmm, it seems to me you are just stressed and you still have your problem, right?

Neil: Well, that’s true, but at least I’m doing something, right?

India: Puriyala (I don’t understand you)

Neil: I mean it’s always better to work really hard at something even if your chances of success are miniscule. All the sports movies I ever watched taught me that.

India: Neil, how long are you planning on staying in India?

Epilogue

I went to pick up my business mail at this rent-a-office place. When I finally explained my purpose, the proprietor went to some hidden drawer and pulled out a mountain of mail and began to sort through it looking for my name. I would usually get annoyed, walk over, and sort through my own mail looking for my stuff. But this time, I just sat back, read more of the paper, and ordered some tea. I mean, honestly, what can you do?

Baby's first concert

2011-06-09T02:55:00.006-04:00

Our friends Kamal & Priya took us to Bangalore to enjoy an AR Rahman concert. In layman's terms: the guy who wrote the music for Slumdog Millionaire; they call him the "mozart of Madras". He is by far the most successful composer in India, and rightfully so.

Eat your heart out Jai Ho fans!

Networking

2011-05-27T03:40:00.001-04:00

Since around February, I've been trying to become a serious businessman with serious contacts and clients. It's been an interesting journey of self-awareness and discovery. The main thing I've been doing is lots of reading and talking with people wiser than me. I feel I have a whole new perspective on the world and what roles I can play in it. Courtney remarked that the Neil of 19 years old would probably have a hard time recognizing the Neil of 28, and it's been a good thing so far.

One of the my strategies in trying to build up business has been meeting as many people as I can, which lately has meant going to a lot of networking and association meetings. For those who know me well, it's pretty hard to imagine me as a life of the party kind of guy, and don't worry, I haven't changed that much. While way out of my element, I'm trying to learn the art of meeting a large number of people and trying to follow up with most to develop a few close relationships.

Here are a few results so far:

-I've been in the Rotary Club for almost a full year now. It's a nice place to see some familiar faces and have a reason to get out and do some good things too. Out of this group, I have made a tennis/music sharing friend, and got my first training order on my own.

-I joined the Indo-American Chamber of Commerce, which happens to hold monthly meetings at a hotel which has an amazing breakfast. At my first meeting, I realized I only had about 5 business cards and ended up avoiding talking to people. At the next one, I walked out with around 30. As I was going through them, I felt like a kid going through a new pack of baseball cards and hoping that one was Ryne Sandberg or at least Andre Dawson. Ironically, the only further contact I've had is lunch with a guy from the Russian consulate who was surprised that Americans actually liked Russians.

-I also joined the Indo-American Association, which I quickly found out was an organization that pretty much exists for it's own sake. It's a lot of older people who like to get together and occasionally plan things. I'm scared if I go too many times they will want to make me an officer of their club.

-I've been to gatherings on Marketing and Empowering Women in IT, all very fascinating.

So, as I get acclimated to the business world, I'm trying to be more social and outgoing, yet still be myself. We'll see how it all goes, but it's definitely been a fun ride so far.

Growth Chart

2011-05-20T02:44:00.001-04:00

Blog readers, sorry to tell you that you are the last to know: We're pregnant! Our progeny is due in early November and there's lots to be excited about. Our first baby, second grandchild for the Millers, first for the Wrights, and just plain awesomeness inside of Courtney (speaking from an outsider's perspective).

At the suggestion of some friends, we started a growth chart for the baby, or I guess for Courtney. It is already incredible to think of a human being formed inside her and how big of a role that person is going to play in our lives!

A quick sketch of the next year suggests a visit from Grandma and Grandpa Wright just before the due date. We'll have the baby here in India, and then return to the US for a visit around Christmas time for about a month.

For so long, it's just been Courtney and me on this amazing adventure - I think it's about time we added another travel companion. Here's to a new level of the Miller High Life!

Yogurt, the miracle substitution

2011-04-13T00:54:00.003-04:00

I remember accidentally buying plain yogurt instead of vanilla flavored when we lived in Sellersburg. I took one bite and got a feeling similar to what happens when you get Sprite from the tap only to discover someone forgot to put the syrup in it--mouthful of carbonated water. It totally turned my stomach.

Fast forward to today, where I can barely go one day without my plain yogurt! I don't know if my taste buds have changed or if it really does taste different here, but it is one of my favorite things in the entire world. Here is just a short list of the daily miracles yogurt provides me with...

1) Easier digestion. I often take a tablespoon full of yogurt after big meals and it seriously helps. 3 cheers for probiotics!

2) Sour Cream substitution. I will never eat sour cream again. We put plain yogurt on every Mexican dish I make and a spoonful in just about every soup. It is extremely versatile and has just enough creamy sharpness that you don't even realize it isn't sour cream.

3) Mayonnaise substitution. Another item that will never again grace our refrigerator. I was so sad to discover that sandwich making is not quite the art here that it is in the States--and I'm a girl who loves herself some big, beautifully loaded sandwiches with all the fixings. Now, I just make some bread, sprinkle a little Ranch seasoning into the yogurt and spread on the bread and load up with whatever I want! Or, chop up some fresh herbs (dill is the current front runner), mix with yogurt and slather. It's fab.

4) Dip. I love dips. Ranch seasoning + yogurt + whatever variety of veggies I want = great snack. or, Yogurt + cinnamon + drop of honey + vanilla (if you're feeling wild) = the bomb fruit dip.

5) Smoothies. Substitute 1/2 yogurt, 1/2 milk for the ice cream (+ some honey) and it is yummy.

6) Weight loss. Just observe the substitutions above and do the calorie math.

So, that's my love affair with yogurt. I really really hope that whenever we come back to the US I discover that the yogurt really does taste the same and it is my taste buds that have changed, because I just don't know what I'd do without it.

Books

2011-03-19T08:41:00.005-04:00

2 discoveries in the last 2 months have totally shaped my life recently. The first is Flipkart.com, which is the Indian equivalent of Amazon, just with better prices and free delivery for their books. It's pretty awesome. Courtney is used to the door bell ringing about 3 times a week with something new for me. The second was a book I picked up called The Personal MBA, which has started me on a quest to really become a businessman and given me the confidence to do so. And with it's recommended reading guide, it has also added to the many rupees that Flipkart is getting from me.

As I've been churning through more and more books, I have a new section in our library - reserved for those books which have changed my life in some way, or at least books that I want to read again. I'm not one of those people who likes to have books for the sake of having them, but when it comes to these, I don't know if I could go without them.

The Screwtape Letters & The Practice of the Presence of God - These books really started my discipleship with Jesus; I read them both in early high school. In the first, I started to really understand my own sinfulness for the first time (a journey which has lasted a while). The second challenged me that there was a God to be known outside of Sunday morning.

The Christ of the Indian Road - In preparing to come to India, this was the first time I was really able to understand how much culture we wrap around Christ when we are trying to share him with someone else. Again, this was the beginning of a journey which Living Water, Indian Bowl by Swami Dayanand Bharati continued.

Leadership and Self-Deception and The Anatomy of Peace - Gosh. These two books put a whole new meaning of self-awareness into my life. It's become a daily thought to know if I am in the box or out of it.

The Papa Prayer - This book came at a pivotal time in my life when I was really struggling knowing how I was supposed to relate with and talk with God. I didn't "fix" everything, but it was a good companion to have at the right time.

When Helping Hurts - In my constant search for my role with poverty in this world, this book has helped me think more rationally and systematically about what we can be doing that will really help. Recently, Building Social Business by Muhammad Yunus has been giving me the power to dream about ways to help in a positive way.

As far as business books go, I've been inspired by the thinking in First, Break All the Rules, and 6 Thinking Hats which have both opened up a new way to look at the people and decisions.

The more I read, the more I realize the power that a truly inspirational book has. These books have really shaped my whole life and I am different today because of them. It's nice to be able to look back and see the journey I've been on, and the markers along the way, and wonder what will be the next one. Whatever it is, I hope it will come in a nice brown box from Flipkart.

Texting Over Talking

2011-03-10T08:47:00.002-05:00

I remember being so annoyed with texting in high school and college. I swore up and down that I didn't need texting and would never get it. Why text when you can talk? And then I moved to India.

Texting is everywhere here! In the 6 years that I had a cell phone in the US, I probably texted 3 times total. In Chennai, I text an average of 6 times everyday. It's just not worth it to call here. Most people don't have voicemail (it costs extra to have it) and if any of you have been out and about in Chennai, you know that it isn't very practical to answer your phone every time it rings. We've had many yelling phone conversations in the back of an auto, trying to be heard over the noise.

It took me some time to adjust to messaging people, but now I really love it. It's so practical! The two most difficult adjustments have been increasing the amount of smiley faces I use :) :) :) and exclamation marks!!! But, next to learning Tamil, these are a breeze.

The Sprayer

2011-02-18T00:20:00.004-05:00

Can one integrate too much into a new culture? How far is too far? At what level do you have to draw the line?

All of these questions center around one very important part of everyday life here in India. Perhaps the most pressing decision we had to make as to how far we were going to take our leap into the Indian lifestyle came in of all places...the bathroom.

Most people are aware that Indians mostly use their hands to eat (which we've readily accepted). Curiously though, only the right hand is used. Similarly, you would never offer your left hand to someone to shake it. While nearly 10% of Americans are left-handed, I have only interacted with one person here who knows of someone who is left-handed. All of this points back to the question of what is so deterring about the left hand.

The answer lies in the washroom, the most basic of which includes a toilet (sometimes sitting, sometimes squatting), and a small cup filled with water. Once finished, one uses the left hand to scoop out some water and clean him/herself. While it might sound disturbing to the uninitiated, this simple system has been in place in this land for several centuries.

While we were aware of this "interesting" part of the Indian lifestyle, we continued to buy our toilet paper, believing that there really was a point of being "too" enculturated. Then, one evening we were babysitting our American partner's child and I needed to blow my nose. Not finding any tissue anywhere, I thought surely I would find something I could use in the bathroom. But there was none. Then I realized that they had taken the plunge and were now going paperless.

Shocked, but with renewed enthusiasm, we slowly started to wean ourselves off the paper too. Thankfully, we don't have to resort to a cup of water, but have a handy sprayer which made the transition a little more comfortable. Looking back, we're glad we made the switch. Not just for the sake of saving money, paper, or being more Indian. It's actually a lot cleaner too, provided there's some soap to wash your hands afterward. The sprayer is our preferred method and now we are dealing with the prospect of being without it when we come back to visit. I guess we'll just have to get our parents to install them. I'm sure it will provide some good resale value if any Indians are in the market.

Neil

Public Service Announcement

2011-02-14T09:21:00.004-05:00

"Wear Sunscreen."

This is what happens when you live close to the equator and forget your sunscreen at home. It's amazing how many Indians didn't realize skin could turn purple. I'm awesome.

There's always room for one more

2011-02-05T05:33:00.008-05:00

With over a billion people, India has some spatial challenges. It's hard to fit everyone in where they need to be and where they need to go. While we still on occasion like to have our "personal space", our comfort zone has drastically decreased since arriving. Here are a few of our favorite modes of transportation and some capacities that would not be conceivable in the US.

First is the share auto. If you hire a regular auto you get to sit all by yourself with plenty of leg room. However, you also end up paying a lot. A trip from our place to a nearby movie theater would cost at least 200 rupees. However, with a share auto, the driver goes on a set route and you can get in and ride for however long you want. That same trip ends up costing 30 rupees a person. But the "share" part means the driver tries to pack as many passengers as possible into the auto to maximize his profit. So, it's not uncommon to see one of these chugging along with around 15 humans crammed into something about the size of a smart car.

The family sedan. Motorcycles can be used for lots of useful ventures including hauling your entire family around. These boys have probably been riding in the same position on this bike since they were born. While comfort and safety are not really important in this option, you must respect the way they are able to still make it work without breaking the bank.

As nice as they are, share autos don't cover most of the city. Therefore, the vast majority of the population of Chennai must rely on the bus. These buses vary in shapes and sizes and colors and smell. They have deluxe A/C buses (which are pretty nice), regular deluxe buses (basically means that the doors close), standard buses (as pictured in blue), and the old-as-dirt buses (above) which are a lovely dirty green color and the metal has melted in certain places.

Since most people have to ride buses, they tend to get pretty packed. We were on a particularly crowded bus one time and I started counting (from what I could see, which means no one under 5'7" was included). I got to 115 before we got off. It's really crazy just how many people can cram on to these things, which are always overflowing with eager young boys running alongside and hanging on for dear life. The green bus pictured above gives evidence to just how many people will hang on to the side and tilt the bus till its nearly toppling over. Sometimes the buses get stuck in that position even when they're empty.

So, as our world gets more crowded and full, we can say for sure that our experiences here in India have prepared us well to realize the potential space not yet used to its full potential. So forgive us if the next time you see us we are trying to fit into the back of your minivan that already has 7 people in it - it's just who we are now.

Not Looking Both Ways When We Cross the Road

2011-01-28T23:35:00.008-05:00

I've thought a lot about having children in Chennai and what it will be like for them to hop back and forth between India and Indiana. I realized that the biggest adjustment for them will probably be crossing the street--and me hoping that they don't get hit. And no, I'm not talking about India....

Here's the deal. Jaywalking is an everyday occurrence here. Shoppers, bicyclists, dogs, cows...everybody does it. If you don't, you wouldn't ever get anywhere. Sounds scary to American ears, right? Except that drivers expect it. Along with dodging other cars, buses, lorries, and motorcycles, drivers are 100% prepared to dodge the everyday pedestrian.

When we first moved here, traffic seemed like one big ball of chaotic, unorganized petrol. We were wrong. We now see that there are rules of traffic here, they just aren't the same as the ones followed in the States. One of those rules is being prepared to happily dodge the jaywalker. So, when I cross the street, I take a quick glance to make sure I'm not stepping directly in front of oncoming traffic and if I'm not, I walk confidently into the road knowing that the traffic will simply change pattern for a moment to let me pass. It's brilliant really. It's almost like the city operates on roundabouts, except that they appear and disappear in a matter of seconds. If we had traffic lights at every intersection, no one would ever get anywhere.

And so, our kids will be jaywalkers. Don't be perplexed when we come home and step confidently into traffic. I'm sure after the first encounter with an angry driver, we'll learn our lesson. Hopefully it doesn't cost an arm and a leg.

This is obviously a VERY low traffic time on the outskirts of Chennai. Regardless, the bicyclist gives a good picture of what I'm talking about.

Cheering when Sachin scores a century

2011-01-19T08:52:00.004-05:00

We're starting a new blog series, focusing on the ways that we've grown in our "Indian-ness" now that we've been here for a year.

First, let me focus on cricket - a source of much mystery to Americans. Cricket is often likened to baseball. Which it is - except the batter gets a bat about 3 times as big and he only has to run to one base to score a run. Truly it is a game of skill, but it is heavily weighted on the side of the batter. Test matches (a form of the game that lasts 5 days) often see scores in the 500s.

Nothing is as popular in India as cricket. If there is any flat, open space to be found (streets, beaches, parking lots, fields), you will undoubtedly find a group of guys wailing away on a tennis ball.

When it comes to the best cricket player in the world, there is no debating. Sachin Tendulkar holds all the major batting records that have ever been conceived. In ability, he easily falls into the category of Michael Jordan, Tiger Woods, and Wayne Gretzky. He is small (only 5'5"), but has managed to become the most respected player in the cricket world.

So usually with all "great ones" there is that moment when you realize their personal life is not quite on par with their sporting life, most recently demonstrated by Mr. Woods. But with Sachin, he has been faithfully married to his wife for 15 years, and regularly adores her in public. He takes time off of traveling with the team so he can be home with his children. He acts well on the field and doesn't argue with the officials. He's not movie-star good looking, and doesn't seem to mind it. Basically he's the kind of guy you wish we had in the States for kids to look up to.

One more thing is that he has a fiercely loyal following. I had one trainee that found a way to include him in nearly every speaking activity she did. A century is when a batsmen scores 100 in a single game. And now, when we see him get a century (which he's done over 50 times in his career, recently got a 200 as well), we feel like getting up and cheering alongside the rest of the country.

Nightmare Before Christmas

2010-12-22T03:10:00.011-05:00

I go to a yoga class three times a week. I've gotten to know my instructor, Samu, really well. It started with staying a few minutes after class to chat, then we started sharing a few recipes with each other (she gave me potato curry, I gave her banana bread), eventually she started to even speak with me in Tamil. She asked me a few weeks ago if I could come and dress up as Santa for the kids in the preschool that she teaches at. Me, being the considerate wife that I am, knew that Neil would be off of work and might enjoy doing it. So, I volunteered him. What follows is only a portion of the terror we witnessed this morning...

Neil & Courtney, spreading Christmas joy in Chennai.

Clara turns 1

2010-12-09T01:02:00.000-05:00

We remember just one year ago...

love at first sight

bright-eyed from the start

sweet cuddler

not yet interested in Uncle Neil's antics

Can't believe she's already one! Lots of love and kisses being sent today to our #1 niece on her #1 birthday!

Dr. Dreadful--Indian style

2010-11-30T06:48:00.007-05:00

the makings of curry

I was never that into science growing up but I did always love the Dr. Dreadful Drink Lab. Anyone else with me? I never thought about it before, but maybe my interest in mixing spices and bizarre flavor combinations is somehow associated with the strange, carbonated, colorful concoctions that entertained my palate around the age of 8. Who knows. Either way, I seriously love mixing and matching flavors and finding creative substitutes for things I can't find or use here (eggs, sour cream, quick rise yeast, etc). I have also had my fair share of things blow up on me to claim an even stronger association with a science lab (tomatoes in my mixie, hot soup in my mixie, boiling chenna in my pressure cooker, the list goes on). Thankfully I've escaped with only minor burns and a lifetime's worth of lessons on "this should not be mixed with this".

My favorite thing to make is curry. The big lesson of the night the first time I made curry is that sniffing the freshly ground spices of curry is similar to inhaling flour, except there's chilly powder in curry. Explosion of the sinuses.

Still learning.... :)

Cyclone Jal--almost

2010-11-24T03:19:00.005-05:00

We were set to have a huge cyclone hit Chennai a few weeks ago; In anticipation of the cyclone's arrival, Neil and I went to the beach to watch the waves. It's hard to capture through a camera, but they were pretty impressive. The cyclone ended up being considerably smaller than expected, which we were thankful for because it felt kind of intense leading up to it! Here's some footage of our first 'almost a cyclone' experience...

Looks can be deceiving

2010-11-04T08:59:00.002-04:00

This might look like a normal hand, but it's not. It's actually a hand unintentionally marinating in chilly (yes, that's how it's spelled here) oil. I thought I would be quick and chop chillies with no protective covering. FAIL. After soaking my hands in whole milk 3 different times they still felt like they were on fire for the next 8 hours. I learned this lesson in August.

Fast forward to October. Again, I am cutting chillies. I DO protect my hands this time (an inside out grocery bag works wonders), but I fail to protect my eyes. For some unknown reason I decide I need a closer look while I'm chopping. Result: left eye on fire.

Take note: chillies are not for wimps.

Lemony Bitterness: a rant

2010-10-25T06:34:00.004-04:00

A few years ago I realized that lemon scented cleaners have wreaked havoc on my ability to enjoy anything lemon flavored. My most recent bitter moment came while enjoying a date night with my hubby at a local Thai restaurant. The waitress poured traditional Thai tea with a pungent lemon smell. One whiff of the tea filling that cute little Thai cup turned me into a 12 year old dusting my mom's piano, trying not to break all of her Precious Moments figurines. I've had similar moments over the last 5 years that increase my beef with the Pine Sol lady (you know, the one with the dreads who has been doing lemony-fresh commercials since 1992). I seriously don't get it. Why have the lemon people sacrificed the countless commercial marketing opportunities with teas, cakes, marinades, candles, etc for the floor cleaning industry. It's a waste of a perfectly good citrus, if you ask me.

So, take this as a public service announcement: Stop using lemon-scented cleaners. Seriously. If your children, in whom you want to instill a 'dignity of work' value, have any hope of enjoying lemon flavored food, you MUST stop using these vehicles of dessert destruction.

I would really like to be cured of this association. Until then, my bitterness smells like lemon-scented Pine sol.

Flattery

2010-10-03T09:04:00.004-04:00

As a part of their jobs, many of the trainees are asked to pick pseudonyms for when they are on the phone. Some Americans have a difficulty hearing and repeating Srikalaivaani, and so they are asked to start going by "Paul" or "Carrie". Thus begins the infamous dialogue:

"Hi, welcome to (huge company), my name is Cory, how may I help you?"

"Wait, your name isn't really Cory, is it? I know your name isn't Cory. What's your real name"

"Hari Kumar Balasubramanian"

"Umm, ok, let's stick with Cory."

From time to time I hear back from the trainees who are getting ready to start answering phones. A few days ago one sent me an email stating that he had been asked to choose a pseudonym and was proud to tell me that he had chosen Neil Miller as his fake name. I was at once amazed and in disbelief. Flattered, yet slightly unsettled. So, just in case you run into him on the phone, I wanted to let everyone know that I have neither switched jobs nor started a cult.

Tree House

2010-09-10T14:01:00.000-04:00

We recently visited some friends in Bangalore, which is a large city about an overnight train ride away from Chennai, most well known for being the headquarters of Microsoft in India. We went because our friends there are practicing the kind of devotion to Christ that we are interested in learning about here in India. I came into the weekend thinking that I would walk away with some great spiritual encounter and a lot of informed theology. I thought I would leave with a deeper sense of our purpose here and an action plan of how to move forward.

Instead, I helped build a tree house.

There are 4 kids in this family and the two youngest are boys aged 12 and 8. They had already kind of started the tree house, but soon decided to start over. So, most of the day on Saturday we moved limbs around and tried to tie things together to make it more stable. As always, you have to add on some cool amenities like a climbing rope to the top, and a swing made out of small limbs (which I very proudly designed and built), and mats made of weaved palm leaves. All the while, the father of this family was helping the kids along and getting them whatever supplies they needed. He had no other agenda that weekend, just there to be with his family.

It really got me thinking about God. I've been trying to learn more to see him as my Papa and the one who has no other agenda than to hang out with me and all his other kids. In this dad, I saw a good glimpse of our Papa. It made me think that when the world gets redeemed and Christ comes back, we may be looking for all of our theological questions to be answered and to come to a greater understanding of the world and how things work. It's easy to think that we will sit around all day and be taught by God about all these deep philosophical questions.

I hope some of that happens, but I think we might end up spending a decent amount of our time building tree houses with really cool rope swings.

Time to brag

2010-09-06T14:58:00.002-04:00

Last week, Neil told me that there was a function going on at Cognizant (the company where he does accent modification/customer service/corporate etiquette trainings) and that I was invited to come. I wasn't sure why I was invited since I don't do regular trainings, but I figured it was just a matter of providing as many people as possible to represent our company. This morning, we arrive at the function and I slowly start piecing together that this is not what I expected it to be. My suspicions are confirmed when they begin giving out awards. Lo and behold, about 15 minutes in they call Neil's name and he is awarded the "Top Trainer" award in his division. Later, I discovered that this was especially awesome because they determined the winners by going through trainee evaluations and the results they see coming from the trainings. I was (am) so proud! Neil has taken his role as a trainer very seriously. He has a lot of natural gifts in the area, but he has also been faithful to develop what God has already given him. He spends days off working through curriculum, seeks to know each trainee individually, loves getting to spend time with trainees outside of the classroom, frequently shares lunch with them to learn more about their culture and who they are as individuals and most of all he is faithful to pray for each group that comes through. He really cares for each person who comes into his classroom. I'm sure it's obvious by now, but this is one proud wife!

I'm thankful that we serve a God who wants us to draw satisfaction from our work. I'm also thankful that we serve a God who loves us and blesses us with great husbands!

Rotary Club & Starstruck

2010-09-02T05:20:00.003-04:00

I (Neil) joined the Rotary Club of Thiruvanmiyur last week. Rotary is actually very international with clubs in over 200 countries. A 'Rotarian' friend from New Albany suggested I look into it. For those unfamiliar, Rotary is a service organization for business men and women, which encourages them to be active in their communities.

I found the club closest to me and go on Tuesday nights when I get back from work. I've found it to be a great place to meet other businessmen and also be aware of what is going on in the community. I had my induction ceremony last week were I got my "Rotary Pin" along with some other goodies. Already, we've been able to connect with some of these guys who definitely have service at their heart and are eager to invite me in.

Here in Chennai, the Rotary Club is very active and always has some sort of event or project going on. Recently, they organized a 6km run for cancer research, and Courtney and I went to it. We got there a bit late (which was actually on time), but found a large gathering going on at the starting gate. There were a bunch of people frantically gathering around someone and cheering loudly. Then, we found out that Vikram was there.

Movie stars are big in the States, but they are crazy huge here. Vikram is a "hero" (leading man) in Tamil and Hindi films, and is also the star of a movie we saw twice called Ravanan. He's pretty much the only celebrity we have any connection to. While I thought it was cool, Courtney thought it was amazing that the one movie star we know was right in front of us and she kept trying to get us closer and closer to him.

I finally asked her, "What are you going to say if we get up to the front?". She said, "I'll say, 'I loved you in Ravanan!', and then leave." It's good to know that India is getting deeper into us and touching that inner 13 year old in us all.

Being Veg

2010-08-25T05:19:00.002-04:00

We arrived in Chennai on January 1st of this year and since that time, we have been what is called "veg" here. Being a vegetarian is so common that a restaurant is either Veg or Non-veg, and it's about a 50/50 split on the number of restaurants.

For us, being Veg means no red meat, no chicken, no fish. The most strict vegetarians here will not eat eggs, garlic, and onions as well, but we still indulge ourselves on those items.

Being veg has a lot of advantages for us:

-Cheaper meals (at least 20 rupees cheaper at a restaurant)

-Not worrying about if meat is going to spoil in the fridge, or if it gets left out on the counter, or if bits of bacteria are hiding in a cutting board

-Being able to freely invite others to eat our food. Many who are vegetarian here will always question what something is made of. Also, they will not want to eat off dishes that have had meat on them before, even if they are washed.

-Being Veg is seen as a practice of those who are more spiritual or religious

-After seeing where some of the meat is sold, it becomes much less appetizing

-It's usually a shock for someone to learn this about us, which always invites interesting conversation

Part of the training that we do is getting the trainees more familiar with American culture, and they are always interested in our "food habits". Here are some snippets of conversations:

"So are the Veg restaurants in the US very good?"

"Uhhh...." (I could not for the life of me think of any chain of restaurant that had only vegetarian food - help me out if you know of any!)

"The Midwest has a lot of farmland."

"What kinds of things do they grow?"

"Mainly corn and soybeans. But we don't eat those."

[confused looks] "What do you do with them?"

"Well, we feed them to our animals and then eat those."

[gasps of horror!]

"I want to know some of the famous American Vegetarian dishes."

"Umm, potato salad?"

"But there aren't any main dishes that are vegetarian?"

"Not any really common ones."

"Well what about pot roast - I've heard of that one."

"Umm, it's not exactly vegetarian..."

Always barter

2010-08-12T23:07:00.004-04:00

When we first moved here, I loved the thrill of bartering with auto-rickshaw drivers. It was fun to get our feet wet and try to learn how to do it. Quickly, though, the novelty of it wore off and I found myself dreading the bartering process and hoping that the driver would just agree with our first price and we could move on. However, after some careful reflection, I have come to a new appreciation of the back-and-forth that must happen between a passenger and a driver. In fact, it is critical to ensuring a quality, safe and fair auto experience. You see, if you tell a driver where you want to go and he immediately agrees on the price without arguing with you:

1) He didn't understand you and therefore you will get lost

2) He doesn't actually know the location you are talking about and therefore you will get lost

3) You offered to pay way too much and therefore you will be overspending

4) He's had 'one too many' and therefore you might die

All of these possibilities don't bode well for the passenger. Once I realized that lack of bartering was simply a short-term gain with some serious long-term set-backs--I now deeply appreciate a driver who wants to dicker with me. It means the opposite of the above four, which is exactly what I want in a driver.

Bring on the bartering!

Indian Carry-Out

2010-08-07T01:20:00.005-04:00

We've got a little eatery about a block away from us that we go to whenever we need a quick bite. Or, in the case of these photos, when I've made an Indian gravy that needs to be sopped up with some delicious, homemade bread. Packaging is a little different than the States :)

Paratha bread wrapped up in banana leaves & twine.

Sambar, a vegetable stew, and raita, a yogurt & onion based condiment, in the plastic & twine.

In other news, has anyone else noticed how frequently I post about food?

Language Learning

2010-07-12T09:43:00.002-04:00

I (Neil) have spent the last few weeks in an intensive month-long Tamil program. It's been pretty good and has given me a good foundation for more learning in the future, but being conversational is still a ways away. One problem is just finding people to practice with as most people only want to speak English with us. Here's a conversation I had on the bus today:

"So where are you from?" asks a 20 year old guy
"America lirundhu [from America]."
"What?"
"U.S. lirundhu"
"Oh, US. Are you working here?"
"Naan velai seirein [I am working]"
"What? You speak English, right?"
"[sheepishly] Yeah, I'm working here."
"How do you like Tamil Nadu (the state)?"
"It's really nice, I'm trying to learn the language, but it's very hard since I don't get to practice it much."
"Yeah, the only way to learn it is to practice talking with people. You have to practice a lot. So, where are you staying?"
"Thiruvanmiyur tengi irukein"
"What?"
"Nevermind..."

It's not delivery! It's homemade Indian food..

2010-06-27T06:07:00.004-04:00

We were enjoying a lazy Sunday afternoon when a knock came to our door; it was our new neighbor holding 2 containers full of some delicious smelling food. She was cooking lunch and thought we would enjoy some.

How awesome is that?

the remnants of yummy-ness.

Be jealous.

Handy Man

2010-06-21T01:20:00.001-04:00

I've always aspired to being a handyman around the house. It is such a great feeling to be able to see something that needs fixed and totally fix it with your own hands.

Here in India, there is not a lot of room for the do-it-yourself personality. No Home Depot, no Lowe's, and a lot of funny looks if you walk into a small hardware store.

So, when a few problems arose in our flat, I was anxious to see how well I

could fix them using only the tools I brought over (1 screwdriver, 1 pair of pliers).

Problem #1: The drain where the water from our washing machine empties is too high. The hose usually comes out and then floods the bathroom with dirty water. After many attempts to correct this one, I finally realized I needed to stabilize the hose somehow to stay up.

Solution: I used a lot of string from some bags we had to make one long rope which I tied to the washing machine and then to the hose. I'm pretty proud of that one as it has worked and stayed in place.

Problem #2: The doorstop on the bathroom door will not stay up and so it is always dragging and prevents you from ever actually closing the door.

Solution: I wanted to lodge something in the hinge to keep the doorstep from falling down. Without many other options I chose to chew two pieces of Juicy Fruit (to match the paint) and set them around the doorstop, hoping it would dry and hold it up. That idea failed miserably. The doorstop is still annoying and now it has gum all over it.

With the odds stacked against me, I think 1 out of 2 is pretty good.

Heaven Song

2010-06-17T07:58:00.002-04:00

Some people have the gift of marrying words with rhythm; the gift of song. I do not. It is the one gift I wish I had. I feel music inside of me all of the time, especially in moments of especial intimacy with Christ, but I've never been able to get that music out. I have always struggled with writing poetry, singing harmony, remembering lyrics--but I love them all deeply. I have always had to rely on others to pen the words in my heart. Only in the last few years have I become especially aware of this..."block". I wasn't sure what I was supposed to do with this self-realization--did it mean I had a sin that I just wasn't letting go of? Is there a part of me that first needs to be stripped away, to free me to sing the way my heart feels? The question of whether I was supposed to have this gift never occurred to me, because I am; I feel it. So why is it not coming?

Thinking about my beautiful friend, Kylee, and her death 2 months ago, has made me restless for Jesus to come back. I feel more aware than ever that Neil and I are not supposed to be "together forever", that I don't want to live to be 900 years old, and that this world is not at all the way that it is supposed to be. My heart belongs somewhere else--somewhere beyond the love found in friends, family, marriage, and country. My heart belongs with Him; that is the only place it will find rest.

I am realizing that no words I speak and no tune that I sing will ever fully reflect the affection my Brother, Friend, Lover and King has for me. Maybe God has put this longing for song throughout my body, knowing that it will not be quenched in this life. Maybe it was meant to be my pointer to the hope of heaven; my reminder that I have so much more of Christ to experience.

Someday I will sing with total abandon the heart song inside of me.
Maybe it's just a matter of waiting for Heaven.

Come quickly, Lord. I'm ready to sing.

Kylee, I'm a little jealous.

Hot or not?

2010-06-10T04:58:00.003-04:00

Does anyone else remember that website? People would post their pictures to be rated as "hot" or "not". I remember finding out in college that a friend of mine had posted his picture on it--oh the jokes that came from that discovery :)

But now, I am sucking up my pride and posting my own picture. I took it after walking back from the grocery store (in 100+ degree heat). Notice the drop of sweat from my chin.

I vote "hot".

Mirror

2010-06-02T09:06:00.003-04:00

I've realized lately that I am a much better person on the days when I don't look into the mirror. I'm much less plagued by vain curiosities and have a greater tendency to just be me.

I've been learning a lot lately--about myself and about Christ. The vulnerability of being in an environment that I'm completely unaccustomed to and realizing afresh that we marry those who are opposite of us have revealed with painful accuracy my faults. My sins, I should say. Faults make it sound like I stumble into them, when in fact they are often calculated moves, if I'm being honest. To quote a friend, my brain is "3/4 a wild zoo of bad, mad, sad animals" (ref. James 3:11-16. And every person you've ever met). I suppose, in this light, a figurative mirror would plague me as much as my actual one. A pimple or wide nose is no match for hate-filled tendencies. Again, I would much rather not look into a mirror.

And yet, that is what I have been doing a lot of this past month. My husband, a wise counselor, and Romans 2-3 have been my mirror. Through these the Law has crushed me (I will never be able to uphold it); and through the crushing of the Law, the grace of Christ has become more evident than ever. Earlier this month, my wise counselor actually shared with me the good news that I am loved by Christ. Sure I've heard it before, but it felt new. It was beautiful and it made me cry. For days, in fact.

With this new perspective, being baptized when I wash my face each morning and looking at myself in the mirror presents a paradox. I am a slave to my flesh and yet am filled with His Spirit. My flesh will haunt me until the day it is restored. I will continue to do the things that I hate and refuse to do the things that I love. His mercies really are new every morning.

Seeing the grace of Christ in light of my fleshly state is overwhelming, heartbreaking and full of hope. I won't avoid looking in the mirror so much; the first few moments of nasty realizations are worth it.

In fact, I'm beginning to find what I see pretty breathtaking.

Tata

2010-05-11T10:07:00.004-04:00

Everyday on the way to work, I pass this massive structure which looks like a pirate ship collided with a professional football stadium. It is gargantuan and extremely impressive. It is being built by Tata Consultancy Services. It's about their 20th building in Chennai, and Chennai is a small part of their operations. Maybe you haven't heard of Tata - maybe you will some day when they own the other 5/6th of the world. Seriously, they are bigger than Walmart - yes, bigger than Walmart.

Here is what "the Tata Group" specializes in:
-Wireless Mobile Services
-Mobile Broadband
-IT consulting (largest in India)
-Business Process Outsourcing (largest in India)
-Product Design
-Cars (largest manufacturer in India, they made the Ambassador, which was pretty much the only car in India for a few decades, owns Jaguar and Land Rover, makes a car that costs only $2,200)
-Energy production (largest in India)
-Steel (largest in India)
-Tea (largest in India, 2nd largest in the world)
-Chemicals
-Satellite TV

In virtually any profitable industry, Tata is there building huge buildings and loving it. Good luck keeping up with that pace, Walmart.

Bobble Heads

2010-05-01T06:32:00.004-04:00

One thing India is famous for is the ever ambiguous head bobble. It is not the lateral "no" or the verticle "yes", but a third dimension of head movements. It can mean, "Ok", "No problem", "Yes", "I don't know", "Maybe", "Of course", and a host of other phrases. So, often when we get that response, it is necessary to clarify the exact meaning of what they said, which usually results in another head bobble.

For example:
"Ok, so 50 rupees, right?" Head bobble
"50 rupees?" Head bobble.
"Ok, so it's 50 rupees then?" Very confident head bobble.

I thought this might be just a cross-cultural problem, but then I got this email from a trainee in my last batch. His manager was 2 hours late to a meeting and apologized when he finally arrived. The trainee wasn't sure how to respond. In his own words, "I had no clue what to do. I nodded my head in every possible direction."

He asked me if he did the right thing. I bobbled my head.

Things Nutella is not good on...

2010-04-19T12:16:00.003-04:00

So, how are you?

2010-04-13T03:06:00.005-04:00

A question I am frequently asked and have the hardest time answering! The answer is generally found somewhere between "great" and "I don't know exactly". So, here's how I would love to answer this question next time it is asked of me:

-The Genius option on iTunes has saved me from many a bad mood.

-Peas are my new favorite veggie.

-Skype makes my life exponentially better than it would have been without it.

-The seeds in the middle of Jackfruit freak me out a little (I think they look like unborn babies. See, disturbing.).

-I now put chilli powder (yes, 2 l's) in everything--including chocolate desserts and vegetable soup.

-Grief, quite frankly, sucks. And then it meets Jesus. And then you are better than you were before.

-After being exposed to a portion of the 1 billion Indians in this country, my husband is still my favorite person in the world.

-I've had a sudden realization that once you get pregnant, you can't go back (no, we are not pregnant. Just an epiphany I've recently had.).

-I WILL learn Tamil.

-I'm more anxious for Heaven than ever.

-I've cooked some pretty stellar meals lately.

-I love and hate my 2 mile walk to get groceries.

-My Christmas 'pudge' is officially gone. One of the many gifts India has given me.

-I really like my family a lot.

-Best friends having babies might be one of the greatest things in the world.

-I can take "long walks on the beach" whenever I want to.

-India is a home for us now.

-Christ is often found in the strangest of places...

So, that's how I am. All of those things wrapped up into one is me, today.

so, how are you??

-c

American Culture Quiz

2010-04-05T11:38:00.002-04:00

Part of the trainings I've been doing include getting the trainees familiar with American culture. As a way to decide who will get to go first on an activity, I said the first side to name 5 Major League Baseball teams gets to go first.

Silence.

Ok, 3 teams.

Silence.

"Umm, the New York Yankees...the Chicago Bulls....the Los Angeles Lakers."

I guess the good news is that we still have 2 weeks of training left.

Neil

too proud not to share...

2010-03-26T06:29:00.004-04:00

I just made egg-less brownies...with Chili powder.
and I like them.

bam.

Courtney: 1
Cultural Shock: 0

Maximum Size

2010-03-22T04:10:00.001-04:00

I've learned to do my absolute best to shop BY MYSELF in India. I don't mean no friends coming along, I mean dodging the 15 "very helpful" employees at every store you walk into. Sometimes the rush to help you is actually helpful. Sometimes, it's not. For instance, walking into a clothing store I can nearly guarantee you that the following conversation will occur:

helpful employee: "What size, ma'am?"

me: "Medium"

helpful employee: "okay, Large."

me: "No, Medium"

helpful employee: "okay, okay, Large"

me: "Medium. I wear a MEDIUM."

helpful employee: "sure, sure. Here is a Large."

The other day I was looking for shoes in a large department store here. They were all sized by European measurements, so I wasn't sure what number fit my American foot. I found a pair I liked and went to the shoe guy on duty. I explained my dilemna to said shoe guy, he took one look at my feet, turned over his shoulder and yelled to the other shoe guy across the room, "Maximum Size!"

awesome.

Neil & I got a good laugh out of that one :)

the life of tea

2010-03-18T03:15:00.006-04:00

For Kylee, who knew how to drink from a cup of bitterness while drinking deeply of Christ. I love you, friend.

Tea is a staple in India (and many parts of the world). It serves as an excuse to call people into your home. It is a sweet (and sometimes bitter) way of sharing. An excuse to make a conversation go on longer.

I've never been much of a tea drinker. I've always secretly wanted to be one of those people who can put a very emo/organic/hippie facebook status report about the most recent exotic tea they just drank over a book or song that made them cry. But, it's just not me.

A few days ago a neighbor knocked on our door and said that she and her husband would like to come by this weekend. I ecstatically agreed and knew what I needed to do. I went out that day and purchased my first tea set. A reminder of the promise I heard God give me a few months ago, "You have friendships waiting for you in India." That tea set looked so beautiful to me that day.

______

Something else I want is to be good at mourning. It may sound crazy, but in the last year I have been so humbled to see the way God draws near during times of pain and sadness. This world is not in it's ideal state, and that should be sad to us. Knowing Christ is not a reason to "be strong and quit crying"; knowing Christ is the reason why we can drink deeply of sadness and loss without fear of being overtaken by them. Those of us who know Christ should be the best mourners; not the ones who avoid it.

Mourning is a staple in most of the world. Some cultures are just plain good at it. Jews sit for days at a time, tear clothes, spread ash on their heads. In Chennai, a group of men carry the body through the streets, making sure to block traffic and force regular life to stop if even for just one second. God praises women who are good at mourning.

This morning, I lost a dear friend. A friend who was one of those women God praises for their skillfull mourning. Is it cliche to say that she was young, beautiful, and left us too soon? Either way, it's true. I felt so sad. I still feel sad. I will feel sad for a long time. I didn't know what to do; I needed some kind of an expression for my aching heart. I made a batch of tea, leaving out the sugar. I sat at my kitchen table, sipping the bitter tea until it was gone. It hurt. A lot. It also felt good.

I'm not sure the purpose of this post. Maybe being so far away from all of the other mourners, I needed to have a forum to share my hurting heart.

Thankfully, I have my husband, my tears, and a cup of tea.

and Jesus.

#1 Beach View

2010-03-14T08:41:00.000-04:00

When we first walked into the guest house we rented for 2 months, this was the sight we saw. A picture of the beach that covered the entire wall of the flat. Though it might seem slightly tacky to put an entire mural of a tropical paradise on a wall, we must admit that it was extremely well done and realistic. It made for some nice background in talking with family over Skype.

Having a place of our own to live for a few months was a real blessing and we really grew to love living in the area. We got to know the markets, the nearby restaurants, the call of the guy who collected the waste paper.... It was really a nice time and there were times we were sad that we had to move again.

But, now that we've made it into our long-term apartment, we are thankful. Not only is it wonderful and homey and relaxing, we also do not have a set date that we have to move out. Since we've been married, there has always been an ending date associated with every place we've lived. A reminder that there was little permanence to our lives and a discouragement from really engaging in where we were.

But here in Chennai, on the other side of the world from where we first started our journey, we've found a place we can truly start to call home. It took a while to find the best place, but we were so excited once we decided on it. We hope to live here for a long time and really create a place where our family can grow and we can become a part of the neighborhood. So, without any further delay, here is our new place. We traded in one beach view for a much better one.

#2 Having a "shoe guy"

2010-03-10T10:05:00.000-05:00

One of my (Neil) favorite days so far was just a typical day of running errands. I have these sandals that I really like, but the velcro on them was positioned in a way that they would not tighten firmly enough for me. In the States, I just dealt with it. But, a few days before, Courtney's shoe had broken and she took it to a “shoe guy”, which means that there is a guy who sits by the side of the road and has a booth where he repairs shoes all day. He did a pretty good job with her shoe, so I decided to chance it and have him reposition the velcro. Speaking very little English, he totally understood what I wanted and within 10 minutes had fixed the one thing I hated about these great shoes.

It's not just shoes either. There are all sorts of jobs of convenience here in India. Courtney and I have both taken in clothes to get tailored. Having clothes that fit just ok was another thing that we just dealt with in the States. But here, it's so easy to take in an article of clothing and for a reasonable price have it tailored.

With a billion people to find jobs for, there are many professions that exist here. Shoe guys, ironers, elevator men, ladies tailors, gents tailors, waste paper collector, house help, watchman, etc. There seems to be a common understanding here that people need jobs. So having a shoe guy is not only a really convenience for us, it also makes sure there is one more job out there for someone to fulfill.

#3 Not Talking about the Weather

2010-03-07T20:43:00.000-05:00

You all know the scene. You walk into work, see the receptionist who gives you a friendly smile, which necessitates a verbal response, so you say "man, it's cold" with a smile. OR you're small talking with strangers at a party, conversation starts to get a little dry so someone says, "can you believe how much it's rained lately?" OR you're standing on the train and start to feel chatty, so the easiest way to strike up a conversation with the guy next to you is, "can you believe how hot it is today?". Welcome to the Midwest.

Having both grown up in the Midwest, Neil and I know that we can always rely on the faithful "how's the weather?" conversation filler. What's great, is that it's not just mindless "filler", because it really is a legitimately interesting topic, because the weather is so rarely the same two days in a row. Monday could bring 50 degrees, partly cloudy. Tuesday is 20 degrees, sunny. Wednesday is 31/32 degrees and freezing rain. But, not in Chennai.

I realized before me moved here that we would have to re-learn how to "small talk", but I wasn't totally sure what was and was not going to work. After a couple of friendly "it's hot" comments, I quickly realized that talking about the weather was one area of small talk that didn't survive the plane ride. Imagine if all of your conversation fillers suddenly come back void and you realize that you have NO CLUE how to start, end or fill friendly conversation. That's what happened to me. It was a little unnerving at first, until I realized that the reason weather isn't a great topic to talk about in Chennai is because IT NEVER CHANGES! There are definitely differences in the seasons, but day to day you can absolutely count on the weather being between 30-34 degrees celsius and sunny. Go ahead, google it.

So, now I'm happy that I've lost a conversation filler because I've gained consistency in an area of my life that was NEVER consistent before: the weather. Plus, I've figured out the perfect conversation filler to go in it's place: my language faux-paus.

#4 Juice "The Way God Meant it to Be"

2010-03-03T10:05:00.002-05:00

There are few things in life that give me (Neil) more pure joy than juice. I love fruit in general, and there is something so wonderful about squeezing out its essence. When we lived in the State, I was always on the lookout for some wonderful new juice mixture (white cranberries AND peaches AND strawberries? Banana AND mango? I must try it...) .

Upon a few days after arriving in India, we went to a grocery store and there was this big banner advertizement which was for a brand of juice called “Saint”, and the ad reads “Juice the Way God Meant it”. Immediately I knew I was among people who spoke my heart language. We got the Mixed Fruit Juice and I feel okay saying that it was heavenly.

While I am dropping brand names, I must add my new favorite drink, Nimbooz, by 7UP. It's similar to a lemonade, but better in ways I can't quite describe. I have often said that if I had an endless amount of money, my one luxury would be wearing a new pair of socks everyday. However, since I don't wear socks in India, I think I will change it to having a Nimbooz everyday.

Not only are there a plethora of delicious juices at the grocery store, there is also a juice shop on nearly every block. While living in our guest house, we found one shop that made delicious juice for a cheap price. These places will make nearly any fruit into a juice and the fruit is just sitting there in the store. On my birthday, we went with Karyn and Ben to the king of juice shops called the Fruit Shop on Greams Road. They had a menu with at least 40 options of juice choices. Unbelievable.

If you are still reading by this point, you must be a juice lover as I am. So, if you want to make a pilgrimage to the center of great juices, look no further than Chennai.

#5 All Food is Finger Food

2010-02-25T10:01:00.004-05:00

Welcome to the first in a five part series entitled, “5 Things We Really Like About India”!

For those who know me (Courtney) well, you don’t need much explanation of the above title to understand how happy it makes me to say it. I have always loved playing with my food. In high school I would sit at Steak ‘n Shake, bumming food off my friends usually, and at the end of the meal would create some disgusting concoction that would make my friends “ooo” and “aahh” (not totally true. Reality was more like, “gross, Courtney”). I have since graduated from salt, ketchup and hot pepper mixtures to gravitating toward taco bars. Any hands-on eating experience warms my heart. That being said, I think I was specially made for this part of Indian life. Every meal is eaten with your hands (actually, ‘hand’, maybe I’ll explain that one later…). The traditional way to eat is to combine rice and some “gravy” into a mushy ball, pick it up with your right hand and roll it into your mouth. Only the truly gifted can do this without tipping their head back to catch the food; we are nearly there. I absolutely love it.

Neil has always told me that I’ll never be able to tell our kids to stop playing with their food. If they grow up here, I won’t have to. :)

Train Ride

2010-02-25T02:21:00.004-05:00

We went to Goa for a conference and were challenged to try taking the train instead of flying. Goa is on the other side of the country from Chennai and is known as a tropical getaway. We decided to go for it, but waited to buy train tickets until about 2 weeks before, which we found out was way too late. One travel agent even refused to work with us! In the end, we had to resort to flying to Goa (2.5 hours in a plane) and taking the train back (about 24 hours).

Here is a video of us getting ready to board our first train and some shots of what it was like.

All in all, we had a good experience with it. 24 hours on a train is much more comfortable than 24 hours on a plane. We did a lot of reading, walking around, Sudoku, journaling, listening to podcasts - anything that would take up a nice block of time. Food was pretty easy to get as there would be someone walking through about every 5 minutes saying "Chai, Chai", or whatever else they had to sell. People on a train are very friendly too. there was a lot of laughing going on around us and I even saw a group of people playing some form of charades.

There were a lot of good memories, and we might try it again sometime, but after a full day of traveling, we were both ready to crash at home.

Movies

2010-02-24T05:40:00.002-05:00

Even before we got to India we kept hearing “you have to go to the movie theatre”. I couldn’t quite figure out what was so great about going to the movies here, until I got to experience it for myself!

Neil and I went to see Avatar with Jason & Karyn at a movie theatre called ‘Sathyam’. This is well known to be the nicest movie theatre in Chennai—it’s the nicest one I’ve ever been in! Here are the highlights:

-AIR CONDITIONING.

-Big, comfy seats all with their own armrest. Seriously the most comfortable I’ve ever been at the movies.

-Intermission for a potty break (or to get more food)

-getting to eat 2 veg puffs, 1 brownie, 1 coffee, 1 veg sandwich, bottled water & a container of caramel corn for around $6US (I can’t remember the exact amount, but this is conservative. It very well might have been less.) We barely get a coke for that in the States!

-this is by far my favorite…the whistling, yelling, and clapping. The theatre was so much noisier than we would ever go for in the States, but we loved it! There were a couple of times when a scary, slimy monster would be sneaking up on the hero and someone in the crowd would whistle, seemingly to get the hero’s attention. Or, when a really good part would happen, they would clap. If something scary or exciting happened, some would yell. It was awesome!

If you ever find yourself roaming around Chennai, looking for something to do, go to the movies. (actually, if you ever find yourself roaming around Chennai, looking for something to do, CALL US, then we’ll go to the movies.)

Subway Delivers!

2010-02-15T21:20:00.000-05:00

So another great thing about India is that nearly everyone delivers...including Subway. I'm not sure why this hasn't caught on in the States, but here, you can go online and choose your own sandwich, toppings, sauce, bread, and then they'll bring it right to your door for no extra charge. Pretty wonderful...

-Neil

num num nummy...

2010-02-10T02:14:00.006-05:00

I had another cooking adventure--my first true (North) Indian meal! While this one did involve a pressure cooker, thankfully nothing tragic happened :)

I make a "bath" for every market purchase before we eat it. Some clean water + a little vinegar = my interpretation of "clean". I love my grinder and the little spice bowls they frequently use here. It was my first time grinding my own spices and what made it even better was that it was my favorite spice: cumin! I absolutely love the stuff. They have really good snack selections here and I'm always on the lookout for anything 'jeera' (cumin) flavored. I managed to spill tomato juice all over my cookbook, but no harm done; I just figure it has more personality now.

So, we had our first homemade Indian dish and it was great! I feel so much more at home now. :)

A few of you have requested recipes. I've included the recipe for the meal in the pictures below...

Curried Vegetables

2T cooking oil 2 med. tomatoes, seeded & chopped

1 t. cumin seeds, crushed 2 med. potatoes, peeled & diced

1 clove garlic, minced 1/2 c. chopped carrot

1 t. salt 1/2 c. green beans (can be frozen)

1 t. garam masala 1/2 c. peas (can be frozen)

1 t. grated fresh ginger 2 c. water

1/2 t. ground turmeric 1/4 c. raisins (golden are best)

1/4-1/2 t. cayenne or chilli pepper 1/2 c. whipping cream (opt., I used plain yogurt)

(depending on how hot you want it) 2 c. hot cooked basmati rice

Fresh cilantro for garnish

In a large skillet heat oil over med. heat. Add cumin seeds. Cook & stir for 10 seconds. Add garlic, salt, garam masala, ginger, turmeric & cayenne at the same time. Cook & stir for 15 seconds (watch closely to avoid burning!). Add tomatoes, potatoes, carrot, green beans, peas, water, and raisins. Bring to boil; reduce heat. Simmer, covered, for 15-20 minutes, or until veggies are tender (mine took more like 40 min.). If desired, stir in cream or plain yogurt. Serve with rice. Garnish with cilantro.

It's pretty spicy, so I recommend serving with a fruit, like pear or pomegranate.

-c

Less than $1

2010-02-07T02:05:00.003-05:00

Let me be specific. All of this...

for 63 US cents. I love veggie shopping here!

The Knights

2010-02-04T09:13:00.005-05:00

When we first arrived in Chennai, our teammate Jason looked at me (Neil) and asked if I wanted to coach a youth basketball team. My Indiana blood screamed "YES", and it came out of my mouth quickly, but then I thought, "Basketball in India?". Does anybody really even play here? Is this too much westernization? Am I being type-casted?

I was also a little nervous because I've never actually coached before, but Jason assured the guy who ran the league that I had played basketball all the way through college. Which is true, I did play some pick-up games while at Lincoln; but I think the connotation might have led to a different interpretation. This was confirmed when the league director saw that I had worn some IU stuff (wristband, shorts) and asked me if I played at IU.

As it turns out, coaching basketball has become one of my favorite things here in Chennai. It is sponsored by the church we've been going to as an outreach event. Only about 10% or less of the kids are from the church. Most come from middle or upper class families, and quite a lot of them are Hindu. These parents want their kids to have a really quality, international education and exposure. Many of these kids might end up studying abroad. So, learning basketball can be a helpful way for the kids to feel comfortable and fit in if they end up in another country some day.

My team is called the Knights. They are amazing. All the kids have really good attitudes and are really excited about playing together. They do a great job of listening to me too and at trying to do the things we are teaching them. We have won our first three games and clinched the division already.

It makes me so happy to be around these kids and have fun with them. I introduce a "word of the day" before the game. The first word was "remember", stressing that they needed to remember all the good things we taught them at the camp. I used the story of Moses and the Israelites to show how important it was to remember the good things of the past and not forget when things got tough. Last week, we talked about "teamwork" and how only having one person not do their job can lead to the whole team losing, using the story of Achan keeping back the treasures of Jericho for himself.

Basketball is one of my favorite things in life, and I thought it would have to be in the shadows here in India. But, it has been such a great tool to get to know these kids and have a chance to impact their lives.

Time to tell on myself...

2010-01-26T07:15:00.002-05:00

I might have had a few faux-pas during the last 3 1/2 weeks (scratch that, A LOT) so in my effort to battle pride, I will share a few...

1) While riding in an auto-rickshaw (which they just call "auto") I wanted to try out some of my new Tamil skills. The driver asked if he was supposed to turn right, to which I replied, "Yes" in Tamil ("Amma"). He looked in his rearview mirror at me like, "What is wrong with you, lady?". I immediately realized what I had done. I had put the stress on the wrong part of the word. I had called him "mom".

2) (this one is both of us) We have been frequenting lots of shops in the area trying to get a feel of what is available in Chennai. There is one little treasure of a store that we found called Conne Xions (we weren't totally sure how to pronounce it, so we just called it "Connie Zions"). We kept giving auto drivers the name of the store, but they were always really confused. A few days later, Neil was cleaning up in the kitchen and started to throw away a "Connie Zions" bag. He looked at the website address and noticed that it said 'Connexions' all in a row. The store is called "Connections".

3) (I think this one takes the cake) I had been told that auto drivers strike fairly often in the city & that you have to watch out to make sure you aren't trying to travel very much on the days that they strike. We had just passed a group of auto's parked in front of a sign that said, "Stand for Auto-rickshaws". Me, trying to be really observant & savvy, leaned over to Neil while we were riding in the bus and said, "I think the auto drivers are getting ready to strike". I pointed the sign out to Neil and instead of the "What's wrong with you, lady?" look I got the, "oh my goodness, I can't believe you just said that," look. He responded to me by saying, "It's a place where the auto's park".

-c

Recommendation

2010-01-24T23:32:00.002-05:00

Our friend, Marianne, wrote a beautiful post on her blog entitled "Why I Love Orphans". I highly recommend reading it... http://thegrossfam.blogspot.com/.

Our Father is good.

-c

View from our laundry

2010-01-22T23:46:00.009-05:00

I was hanging clothes out to dry today and felt inspired. Here's the view from our laundry...

"Shout, and sing for joy, O inhabitant of Zion, for great in your midst is the Holy One of Israel." (Isaiah 12:6)

Be blessed in the mundane today. He is near.

-c

The Night Life

2010-01-22T00:30:00.000-05:00

Of the many things that we are adjusting to in India, one is the time that things happen. For example, our favorite restaurant doesn't even open for lunch until 12:30. When we go out for dinner and arrive at a place around 7, we are generally sitting in an empty restaurant. Most people do not eat until at least 8 or later.

This is a video of one of the more organized street crossings we've been to in a part of town called Saidapet ("side-a-pet"). Usually you just cross when there's a small break in the traffic, but here there were lights and everything. This was around 7:30, when things were just starting to pick up.

Perpetual Saturdays

2010-01-18T21:00:00.000-05:00

While we were back in the States, Courtney said that she felt our lives felt like they were perpetual Saturdays. Not in the sense that we get to watch cartoons every morning and go outside and play. But in the sense that Saturday is the day that you usually get all those little tasks done that have been waiting on you all week or all month. Every day it seems we get to make a list of all those little things that we haven't got to yet...balancing the checkbook, running to the store to get some household things, catching up on email, fixing things around the house.

While this might sound appealing to some, after a year of it, we are both ready to have a reason to look forward to Saturday. It will be so nice to get into a routine and a schedule where we are able to see a lot of the same people, build great relationships, feel comfortable with our lives, know what to expect.

Saturdays are great, but I'm a guy who is actually looking forward to Monday.

Pressure cookers are not for soup

2010-01-13T10:33:00.002-05:00

Despite lacking many useful items, I braved my way into the kitchen to cook my first dish: Eastern European Lentil Soup (I know, I know, not an Indian dish, but the only dish I had all of the ingredients for). One of the 'useful items' I don't have is a stockpot, which comes in handy for soup. The kitchen did come stocked with a pressure cooker; the only item large enough to hold the amount of soup I was cooking. It was all pretty uneventful until the last 10 minutes of simmering. I checked the pot, stirred it, and decided it needed an additional 5 minutes. I put the lid back on (*ahem, the pressure cooker lid) and unknowingly latched the lid. For those who have used a pressure cooker, you know that latching the lid is what guarantees the "pressure" part...

I'm sitting in the living room, checking email, when I hear a hissing sound. I stop, concerned it is the soup, but then resume my emailing when I decide it isn't. I keep hearing it. I stop again, this time deciding to glance into the kitchen. The closer I got to the soup, the louder the hissing got...I realized it was the soup. I quickly unlatched the lid and a subsequent "BANG!" was heard. My soup had been effectively pressurized.

This all came after Neil and I spent some time on our rooftop enjoying the stars and thinking thoughts that only come when one is under the stars. The kind of thoughts you don't have time to think about during the rest of the busy day. Ironically, one of those thoughts for me tonight was, "What happens if I burn the house down while cooking? We have no insurance here....hmm, I hope that doesn't happen."

Thankfully, I was spared tonight.

-c

What is it?

2010-01-13T05:36:00.002-05:00

We will give a year's subscription to our blog + a postcard to the person who can first correctly guess what this useful item is.

Is that motor oil?

2010-01-08T20:58:00.005-05:00

So much of our transition to India has gone extremely well. Our flights were good, we got all of our luggage, we had great friends who showed us around town, we found a place to live very quickly... it couldn't have been better.

So I guess it was only fair that we had something go wrong - terribly, stickily wrong.

On Neil's birthday in the afternoon, we were getting ready to lay down for a nap when Courtney noticed a strange dark liquid by the side of one of our suitcases. In our brilliant packing, we had one suitcase that we had packed with stuff that we wouldn't need until we moved into our permanent place. Decorations, books, pictures, etc. So, once we saw it come off the baggage claim, we didn't even bother to look in it.

Then, Courtney said, "What is that?" We were both perplexed at first and then the horrible truth started to come into focus. One of the items we packed away was a jar of molasses which is unavailable in India, but useful for all sorts of things. It was the one thing too that we did not put into a plastic bag, thinking it would be safe. It was not. There was molasses everywhere and on everything in the suitcase. All of the few items we had decided to take with us to remind us of home had this dark sugary syrup all over them. Sad and gross.

Gratefully, we were able to wash off most of the items in the bathroom as the molasses comes off pretty easily. But there were some casualties including some decorative pictures, Courtney's business class notebook, and some books that will probably always have that nasty brown look to them. We tried to save the suitcase itself, but it too was beyond saving, and will enter the world of the Indian recycling program known as "throwing it away".

So, a sad story, but we've come through it. And after many showers, we can laugh about it, at least a little bit.

Guest House

2010-01-08T20:06:00.005-05:00

We moved into our new guest house yesterday. It is amazing to be again on our own after more than a month of living with other people. While it is not our permanent housing here in Chennai, it will provide a great place for us to call home for now. There are a lot of good places within walking distance and the area is really nice. Here is a tour of our new place.

-N

Happy Birthday to Me

2010-01-07T23:57:00.004-05:00

My birthday has usually been the mark of a significant change in our lives. In 2007, we moved into our very first apartment in Lincoln. In 2008, we moved into a new place and began our lives in Sellersburg, IN. In 2009, we kicked off a support-raising tour after deciding to move to India. Now, in 2010, we are just barely a week into our new lives here in Chennai.

One of the best parts about having a birthday on the other side of the world is that it lasts so long. I got birthday wishes from the time I got up on the 7th until around noon on the 8th. Here in Chennai, we celebrated with Karyn and Ben by going to the Fruit Shop on Greams Road. This was an excellent decision, as I usually can't get enough fruit. They had about 40 different kinds of fruit juices and smoothies and fruit salads. It was incredibly delicious. Afterwards we went to a store that carries a lot of import items from the States, where we were able to find the one item that airport security would not let us take to India on our carryon...cherry pie filling.

We had an amazing lunch at our new favorite vegetarian cafe and then came back to the Fry's flat. In a later post, we'll share what we did in the afternoon...it is a story that deserves it's own space.

Karyn made some fajitas for dinner (Mexican food is very rare around here) and then we had a chocolate cherry cake made by my lovely wife who brought over most of the ingredients as a surprise.

It was a great birthday! Thanks to Courtney, the Frys, and to all of you who sent your greetings to me. Here are some pictures.

Birthday Boy

2010-01-07T03:44:00.002-05:00

Today, one of the biggest blessings in my life turns 25.

Happy Birthday, love.

I like him so much. :)

First Days...

2010-01-04T10:44:00.011-05:00

Well, we've been in India for 3 days now. It's still so hard to believe! We're staying with Jason & Karyn while we wait to move into our temporary apartment (which we found today! Pictures to come when we move in on Friday). Jason & Karyn have been incredible tour guides and gracious hosts. We have crammed a TON into our first days, so I'll just give a snapshot below..

We've eaten a lot of wonderful food. Our first meal enjoyed at the only logical choice: an Indian restaurant! Our sampling is found below. We've also enjoyed homemade Minestrone compliments of Karyn, yummy pasta @ an Italian restaurant in town, & lots more Indian food. oh, and Neil & I ate our first veggieburger today.....and it was good! We couldn't believe it either. Plus, it only cost $3 for our whole meal. Even better. :)

We also enjoyed a beautiful dance performance at a local theatre. We moved to Chennai at the start of "Music Season" in the city, which hopefully means a lot more free concerts like the one below...

as you can see, the costumes were absolutely stunning.

We couldn't publish this post without a nod to our entertainment when we aren't out on the town: Ben. Jason & Karyn's little boy is a pretty funny kid and as you can see, seriously cute.

We've also ridden our fair share of auto rickshaws. Which, by the way, might be my favorite part of the city so far. The driving is absolutely crazy. And by crazy, I mean awesome. The video below doesn't do it justice, but it will suffice for now.

that's all for tonight. There's lots more, but my body is tired and needs to be put to bed.

-C

Travel

2010-01-02T20:29:00.006-05:00

We're up earlier than anticipated this morning. A Hindu temple about 200 yards from where we are staying likes to play Tamil pop music from 5:30-7 to entertain the slum dwellers living nearby. We're not in Kansas anymore!

Our travel to & first day in Chennai were awesome. All of our flights were on time, the plane food was surprisingly good and we even got upgraded so Neil got to enjoy some serious leg room on our flight from Frankfurt (I could almost stretch my legs totally out!). AND, there was no line in customs! We just walked right through and had no trouble at all. I'll tell you, it was the strangest feeling in the world to be hovering over the city prior to landing, seeing all of the city lights and realizing that this foreign world was now my home. Amazing..Overwhelming..so many things.

We'll post soon with pictures of our first day!

love you all & thanks for the prayers.

-C

The End of the Chapter

2009-12-30T14:13:00.006-05:00

Hey all. Thanks for all of your love and prayers. We are leaving tomorrow morning and are excited to share this new adventure with you all. We look forward to letting you know some of our first impressions of India! Time to fly...

as promised...

2009-12-11T12:05:00.010-05:00

Our prayer for you, Clara...

is that you would know His love for you.

Love Him back, sweet girl.

love,

your uncle Neil & aunt Courtney

Clara Lynn...

2009-12-10T10:20:00.001-05:00

Clara Lynn Hall was welcomed into the world yesterday at 5:30 pm weighing 5 lbs. 11 oz and 19 in. long. Pictures from the proud aunt & uncle coming soon!!

Taking a cue from the holiday week...

2009-11-25T09:51:00.003-05:00

I'm thankful that I have a nose to be stuffy.

I'm thankful that I have limbs to be achey.

I'm thankful that I have a throat to be scratchy.

I'm thankful that I have a husband to share my germs with.

I'm thankful....

I'm out. I got nothing else. I thought this cold was going away, but it reared it's ugly head last night as I stayed up half the night coughing & feeling miserable. I would really appreciate any prayers/home remedies, as I feel I have exhausted my resources. We have a new niece coming soon--if God honors our prayers, as soon as 3 weeks--so I can't have any traces of cold. Plus, we are seeing so many people for the last time and the last thing I want to be doing during our goodbyes is wishing I was in bed.

Honest thanksgiving... We're hanging out at Neil's home in Newburgh, IN for the holiday week. In the next hour we are heading off to our next round of vaccinations and then to a CHINESE BUFFET with Neil's grandparents. "Buffet" gets me excited paired with just about any word, but it's doubly good next to "Chinese" and "Neil's grandparents". It's going to be a beautiful day of full belly, sleepy eyes. Can't wait :)

yay Chinese food.

boo colds.

An Ode to the blue flour canister

2009-11-18T17:12:00.004-05:00

Oh blue flour canister

how I love thee

for my happiness when I walk into the kitchen,

you have been a key

I love that with a tint of blue

I can see how much flour you hold

I remember the day I got you

during a shower just after I got my wisdom teeth pulled

it stunk to empty your contents

and pack you away

I'll miss you while I'm in India

maybe I'll use you again someday.

Promise me you'll stay in style

so that upon my return

I can take you out of that blasted box

and together we can satisfy a cookie yearn.

love, me

A Great Picture

2009-10-26T19:58:00.005-04:00

Sometimes you have to go back in order to go forward.

I love these people and I love this picture!

ATTENTION SWINE FLU:

2009-10-23T10:08:00.004-04:00

The Miller's are closed for business.

So we went to get round 1 of our vaccines yesterday (this may be misleading, because calling it 'round 1' would give you the impression that it was our first visit to the 'vaccine doctor'. No. In fact, it was our third. We assume God was using these failed attempts & run-ins with bureaucracy to better prepare us for India. half full, right?). We got some depressing news while we were there (apparently vaccines cost a lot of money, particularly the one for Japanese Encephalitis). BUT, drum roll please...

we got our swine flu vaccine. for free. without standing in a line. I know, I know, my mother in law has already informed us that people have been standing in line only to find out that their office of choice has run out of the precious nectar. Neil and I didn't even plan on getting it yesterday. In the midst of our doctor going through all of the necessary vaccines for India, he said, "Oh and we have the H1N1 vaccine if you want it. It's free."

It was a much appreciated surprise in the midst of some frustrating experiences.

oh, and Neil got a sucker, too.

God always seems to offer light right when we need it.

India...

2009-10-16T09:34:00.003-04:00

Today's a day I can feel you waiting for us. Calling us to get 'home' soon.

We're coming...

Rain Rain

2009-10-15T11:30:00.003-04:00

Stay for another day!

I am seriously loving these chilly, rainy days recently. I know all of the farmer's at the cusp of harvest would kill me for saying it, but it's true. This is the only time of year when I miss running. There's something about starting out so cold & tight and ending soaking wet & burning hot that makes you feel so alive.

I know. I'm crazy.

Plus, this weather practically begs for leggings & baked goods. I have been relenting to the pressure & am often seen sporting my cotton leggings while hovering over my KitchenAid. My most recent challenge was an oatmeal cookie recipe that was supposed to yield 40 but ended up producing a batch of over 65 cookies! I was thankful for the miscalculation because I was able to play with the ingredients----chocolate in some, honey in others, a few had cranberries & walnuts, others had raisins, and I reserved a small amount for good 'ol plain oatmeal. The problem is that I can never decide which one I want most and end up grabbing one of each. It's not good for the waist, but it's sure good for the heart. Yum.

I'm going to go eat one (*cough* five) now.

I love fall.

More India please!

2009-10-07T22:45:00.020-04:00

Hey everybody!

We've been hearing your crys for "more India, please!"; here are some descriptors and links for

some of the things that began our introduction to our new home:

The Christ of the Indian Road: Here's a link to the book site on Amazon. This was one of the first books that we read about India. It blew our minds as we began to realize that the only thing we had to offer India was Christ. He alone would have to be sufficient to spread the gospel (novel idea, huh?). We were totally challenged by this book, not just for our lives in India, but for our lives whever we go.

Aradhna: http://www.aradhnamusic.com/ This is a musical group that plays a fusion of traditional Indian & western music for Christ. They are phenomenal and we are amazed at both their talent and ministry. We like to listen to their CD to relax and unwind, or to have some worship playing that soothes and stimulates the soul (I know that's a lofty statement, but it's really true!).

Vegetable Korma: Yummy! We remember how lost we were the first time we ate at an Indian restaurant--we needed a map. Let us be your 'menu map'! We have lots of favorites, but this one is a very popular dish in South India (where Chennai is), plus it is vegetarian (many Indians are vegetarian and we will also be while we live there!). For all you daring cooks out there, here's a recipe that you can try at home. Happy eating!

Mango Lassi: double yum. Seriously, this is so good and so easy to make! Here's the recipe. It's basically a mango shake but substitute yogurt for ice cream. You can spice it up with some fresh mint, cinnamon, or cardamom. If you are feeling really adventurous (and really Indian), you can put chiles in it. Make sure you go for a Mango Lassi or Mango Shake next time you're out to eat!

Nose Ring: Accessorize! Courtney's dream of getting a nose ring came true early this summer. For video of the piercing, click here....yeah, right. I don't think so. A more practical Indian accessory is the toe ring, or if you happen to be around a festival or Indian community--a henna tattoo! (Courtney's tattoo below)

Making Room

2009-09-04T10:34:00.003-04:00

This is a communion meditation that I shared at Mark and Sarah's 20th anniversary at Hazel Dell.

"My favorite image to think about when it comes to communion time is the table. It's as though every time we gather, the Lord has made this great meal for his family to enjoy around his table. He invites us to sit down and remember what Christ has done for us.

Now the mark of any good family is it's ability to make room for one more around the dinner table. Whether that one more is your son's friend from Jr. High who hangs around for a couple of meals in a row and then decides he never wants to leave. Or whether that one more is the boy that your only daughter keeps bringing around year after year. Or whether that one more is your son's high school sweetheart who has become more of a daughter than a daughter-in-law. A good family will always find room for one more.

In Mark 2, Jesus says that no one puts new wine into old wineskins. If he does, the skins will burst and the wine and the skins will be destroyed. Jesus knew that new wine meant new wineskins. A new era meant a new covenant. And a new family meant a new table, with plenty of chairs. In Romans, we learn that the Lord wanted to extend his family tree by grafting on branches, making the way for you and me to know be apart of his family. Or, to put it another way, he was looking for a way to add more chairs around the table.

This morning, there is a meal before us, prepared by the Lord, to be served around his table for his family. And, like any good family, there's always room for one more. So pull up a chair, and let's enjoy this time together."

Peace,

Neil

Colorado

2009-07-30T15:05:00.010-04:00

We arrived in Palmer Lake, CO (just north of Colorado Springs) two weeks ago to begin our last formal training time before we leave in December. The first two weeks of the program are focused on language learning. American English uses 44 of the 1,000s of sounds that our mouths are capable of making. Along with giving us some great material and guidelines for language learning, this program is also designed to loosen your tongue to be able to make some of the 966+ sounds we don't use in English in order to give you a more pleasing accent in the language you are going to learn to speak. The training has been so beneficial and we have the added bonus of spending our days with some amazing people in a beautiful state! Here's a snapshot...

Last Sunday we drove up Pike's Peak with our friends Jonathan and Lauren who are headed to Sudan this fall. To say they're the 'outdoorsy' type would be an understatement. Thanks to the Vissani's for sharing this friendship with us!

An evening hike to the reservoir armed with canned soup and corn on the cob. As you can see, it rained. But it was one of those nights that you will always remember.

The wildflowers in CO are gorgeous; when you go hiking you run into sprawling fields of them that make me smile every time. Our friends decided that we needed a picture in the middle of them. They were right.

An impromptu s'mores night with some of our fellow trainees. For those who know Courtney, this might end up being the highlight of our time here.

Here are some videos for you to enjoy. Just imagine a room full of 45 people doing this in unison all day long. The drills can be tiring, but it's amazing how much of an improvement we can see in just two weeks! Enjoy :)

Remember

2009-07-14T21:32:00.005-04:00

"I don't know what happened. We did everything you're supposed to do. We taught them right from wrong, we got them involved in church, we prayed over every meal, we stayed married, we were affectionate, we always told them we loved them..... and yet they deny God."

This has been a hidden fear for me ever since the day it hit me that Neil and I were going to raise kids someday. You hear it from so many parents; whose to say that the same 'take your breath away' heart-breaking rebellion of a child wouldn't leave me perplexed and questioning God one day. What is the secret to success as a parent? Is there such a guarantee? The last two weeks have brought me comfort and peace in my pre-mature fear...

The Israelites were constantly in rebellion. God would do something great, they would praise him, then they would forget, rebel, cry out to God, and he would save them again. Then He would tell them to remember what He had done and to tell their children so that the cycle of suffering and rebellion could finally be ended. But they didn't. They taught their children the importance of the temple and they probably ate meals together, but they didn't tell their children of the great things God had done for them. They forgot how He had crushed their oppressors; their children didn't know to fear God. They forgot that He had allowed them back even though they had abandoned Him; their children didn't know He was Grace (maybe this is why they didn't recognize Christ?). They forgot how He was vexed over them; their children didn't know His punishment was Love. "Remember" is the central theme of Psalm 78 and I would argue God's point most of the time He addresses Israel as a nation.

"This do in remembrance of me." He was gracious enough to attach an action to the remembering.

I won't be a perfect parent. I will make sure that I tell my children not only of the great stories of what God has done in Scripture, but also the great stories of what He has done in my life and for the generations that came before me. That's all I can ask of myself as a parent. To remember. To remind.

And to learn to say "I'm sorry" a lot.

*and while I'm talking about parenting, thanks for 'reminding' me so much, mom and dad.

Let the little children come to me...

2009-06-28T16:32:00.008-04:00

This morning I had the most beautiful interaction with a little boy that I had taught during the previous week at VBS. It was such a pleasure to teach these kids about God’s story inside of them, about India and about the special places and people that God has prepared for them to tell that story to. It was also really fun. I’m sure many of you remember from VBS days, but kids really latch onto their teachers during that week.

This morning, a little boy of about 4 saw me from across the room and came over to give me a hug. I thought the interaction would end there. Instead, he proceeded to hold my hand. Then he touched the fabric on my dress and told me it was beautiful. While he talked to me and told me about how his mother was getting coffee, he reached up to touch my face while I talked back to him. It was one of the most tender and innocent moments I have ever experienced. He had seen me from a distance all week and was finally able to interact with me face to face.

It makes me ache for Christ; to hug him, to hold his hand, to touch his garment and to hold his face while he talks sweetly to me.

Let us all, like little children, come...

Some highlights...

2009-06-25T16:10:00.005-04:00

1. We walked into our temporary apartment on the Wheaton campus 2 weeks ago. It was late on Sunday night and we were anxious to unpack. We enter to find an apartment with a nice size living room, kitchen, 2 bedrooms--we were pleasantly surprised. That is, until we realized that bunk-beds was the only sleeping option.

2. We are going to an Indian church on Sunday nights while we are in Wheaton. Last Sunday, we were told to come hungry because they were having a potluck. We were so excited that we were going to have a smorgasbord of authentic, homemade Indian food. When we got there, we found out they had catered in Italian. Welcome to America!

3. I'm taught at VBS this week and on Monday I asked a group of second graders if they knew any Indians (since we are moving there). One little boy shouted, "I have family in Cleveland!"

-c

Saturday in the park

2009-06-21T22:11:00.028-04:00

Saturday, Neil and I took the day to "do Chicago". We knew that if we waited too long, our schedule would get full and we'd end up never doing it. For those that don't know: we are living on Wheaton's campus for 3 weeks while Neil takes a course in phonology to aid in our accent-reduction work in India. Here are some of the highlights..

We started the day in Millennium park, with 2 hours to have 'retreat time' off by ourselves, just us and God (and the million other people, mainly Puerto Rican's and Cubs fans, who we shared Chicago with that day).

It ended up being 'Puerto Rico Day', complete with a parade going down Lakeshore Dr. I loved it. I learned there are many creative ways to wear the Puerto Rican flag.

I also learned that gospel tracks can make their way into just about any event around the world; including Puerto Rico day in Chicago.

At the end of my retreat time, I walked through the gardens in M. Park. I believe with all of my heart that Heaven will be a city with the aroma of a field of wildflowers (not smog). I love the two pictures below, because they fill me with hope. The scent was so beautiful and I half thought that the pictures might capture the smell. You'll just have to trust me; it smelled like Heaven.

After our retreats, we made our way north to Portillo's. If you've never been, all I can say is "GO". I had the Italian beef, Neil had the jumbo hotdog and we finished off the meal the only logical way to finish off a meal at Portillo's, with a Chocolate Cake Shake. Although, Neil and I have renamed it the 'Better than 'Better than sex cake' Shake'. Not a commentary on our marriage, simply how good this shake really is. mmm...

After dinner, we headed to Sports Authority and got some new workout clothes (70% off, baby!). When we left, we had 20 minutes before our train left and a generous 35-40 minute walk ahead of us. So, we ran. We started out speed walking, but ended up realizing that if we had any hope of making the train, we were going to have to get our Kenyan on. So, we ran; just like all the cool tourists. We stepped onto the train and no less than 30 seconds later, the bell went off and the doors closed. The perfect ending to a day in Chicago.

Our sweaty-selves on the Metra after our impromptu workout.

-c

Safari Steve

2009-06-19T09:28:00.003-04:00

This morning I was looking through recent pictures we've downloaded and ran across some from when Neil's parents came to visit us a few weekends ago in Sellersburg. We took a day trip to the Louisville zoo (yes, people can visit the zoo without little kids and still be cool. I think..). Anyway, it was a lot of fun and my favorite picture is of a man I like to call 'Safari Steve'. At one point, when we were standing in the bird area, a little girl looked up at him and asked him a question about one of the birds. I was trying to convince him to start a dialogue and see who gathered around to listen.

Maybe we should be going to Kenya...

Yoga

2009-06-18T00:27:00.002-04:00

Tonight I had a dream come true: I got to participate in an actual yoga class! I bought a 'how to' guide for practicing yoga about 5 months ago and got a mat for Christmas. I had this strong urge to learn yoga and feel comfortable with it before we got to India. I'm a 'flavor of the month' type person when it comes to exercise. Jan-Feb: running, Feb-Apr: yoga, May: biking...I like to switch it up, it keeps things interesting and my muscles always waiting in anticipation of what's around the corner. But there is something different about yoga, something lasting. I'm not sure if it's the slow, steady movements that force me to realize that I am a captive to my body, or the controlled breathing that reminds me that each breath is a gift from the Breath-giver, or maybe it's just the fact that you can soak in some amazing music and let yourself retreat for an hour while you burn a few cals... Either way, I've been able to enjoy many benefits of practicing yoga on my own, but tonight I was blessed to share it with a group of 25 that covered a wide range of abilities. I absolutely loved the entire experience and the dream was reinforced that someday I might lead others in yoga.

Tonight, our leader said something profound in her prayer to end the session, she said, "God, in yoga we learn that we cannot force ourselves into a pose, we must release our urge to force and just allow our muscles to stop where they stop and grow from there. Help us to practice this submission in our daily lives." Amen, sister.

yo quiero Taquito

2009-05-30T18:58:00.003-04:00

I remember going to my friend Meghan's house when I was in junior high. We used to call her house "frozen food heaven" because her mom had a huge freezer in the garage that they kept full of all sorts of goodies that I try to make a habit of staying away from now (in order to keep my girlish figure). My favorite item was the Taquitos. Ever had them? It's like the Mexican version of pulled pork wrapped up in a mini tortilla and fried. yumm.

Anyway, my mother-in-law pulled them out tonight for us to snack on before dinner. I felt like I was 12 again. I was torn between putting them in the microwave, which would deliver the fried goodness to me in less than 5 minutes, and putting them in the oven, which I would have to wait longer for, but they would be perfectly crisp when they got out. I voted against instant gratification and popped them in the oven.

True to form, I could wait 15 minutes to cook them, but I couldn't wait the 5 minutes required to cool them. I burnt my tongue. But every 270 calorie bite was worth it.

Live la vida loca; eat a taquito tonight.

-c

Lasik

2009-05-23T08:51:00.007-04:00

I had Lasik done 3 weeks ago and the highlight for me was not seeing 20/15, it was the goggles I had to wear when I slept.

Bringin' sexy back.

-c

this will not inspire you

2009-05-23T08:40:00.003-04:00

So, I've been feeling pressure to write something thoughtful/deep/inspiring whenever I post a blog. Hence, not many blog posts. I think I'm going to switch my approach and just type like I'd talk. Not try and organize it so much. Not do the whole "okay, it's prayer circle time and I need to be thinking about what I want to pray about so I'll rehearse now and then just say the prayer again when it's my turn". Anyone else do that? I hope so, or I've just outed myself. Well, I quit doing that years ago in my praying, but for some reason the temptation still lingers in my blogging.

No more.

Just thought you might want to know I might be blogging more now. And they may be less interesting. :)

-c

The Moral of the Story...

2009-05-12T19:20:00.004-04:00

I just got off the phone with a friend who went through some amazing, life-changing spiritual experience with God, and yet was afraid to share too much about it because it was so fresh. He was scared that he would jump to the lesson too fast.

I have been reading 1 and 2 Samuel, and it has totally captivated me. I get so wrapped up in the story lines and how David and Saul and Jonathan and all the other characters interact. Yet when my wife asked me to explain what it was that was pulling me in so much, I found it hard to put into words. And when I did, it sounded nothing like what was going on in my heart.

A few months ago I went to see The Dark Knight with some friends, and one of them, as soon as we walked out of the theater, was asking us about the themes of the movie and what it said about God and how we should respond to it. I appreciated his thoughts, but all of a sudden, the power of the movie was boxed up and packaged and no longer relevant.

There's one lecture from college about physics of all things that comes back in my mind fairly regularly. It was about Heisenberg's Uncertainty Principle, which is loosely related to the "observer effect", which states that just by observing something, you change it.

These stories and several like them have been weaving through my mind recently. I'd hate to ruin it by trying to pull out an application. All I'll say is that I think there is something to just being a part of the story.

Justice

2009-04-27T14:21:00.005-04:00

Much to update everyone on from our extensive travels, but first we'll share a story from last weekend. We were visiting our dear friends, Shawn and Angela and their great kids, Emma and Noah. While we were out to dinner, I (Neil) developed the most annoying case of the hiccups I've ever heard. The kind where I'll be talking normally about something halfway serious and then it's like this little 6 year old girl possesses my body and lets out a squeak. It's kind of hard to take yourself seriously in a case like that.

Anyway, this went on for a few hours despite all the usual remedies (even a friendly version of waterboarding). Five hours later, I was still hiccuping after lots of great conversation and a great prayer time along with my 6 year old alter-ego. Then, my good friend Shawn decides to tell one of those stories that everyone thinks about when someone else has the hiccups. You know, the one where the guy is like 25 and gets the hiccups and has them for the next 50 years despite surgeries and the finest medical care. (I'm convinced that we are getting all these stories from the 5th grade boys who spend all of their "library time" reading the Guinness Book of World Records and trying to make them sound even more bizarre.) Shawn relays his version of the story, starts laughing hysterically, and then, naturally, begins to hiccup for the rest of the evening. I'm usually not really a vindictive person, but it was pretty sweet to hear Shawn giggle and hiccup like a little girl all night after that.

Defragmenting

2009-04-02T18:10:00.004-04:00

I have to be honest, I still have no idea how to defragment my computer. As a matter of fact, I don't know how to do anything on a computer that isn't required in my every day life. In college I would have to call on my friend Libby whenever my computer needed an overhaul.

Today, my brain needs defragmenting. You know how they say you only use about 3% of your brain? (or is it 30%? either way..) I've been trying to stretch the other 97% this week and I'm tired. I've been busy solving the problems of the universe (if you want to know how we can achieve world peace, I'm your girl). This whole week seemed to be exceptionally full of thinking, philosophizing, theologizing (it's a word now), and lots of other things that I'm pretty much on the 'less than qualified' side of.

If you know how to defragment a brain, call me.

Warning: this post will make you hungry

2009-03-24T18:34:00.012-04:00

I love eggs. Like, truly. Fried eggs, scrambled eggs, boiled eggs, frittatas, quiche... I love how they are the quickest, cheapest and potentially the most creative meal option available. Tonight, for instance, Neil and I realized we had nothing to eat. That is, until we discovered we had 5 eggs, some garlic, left over mushrooms, Italian seasoning, the slightest bit of mozzarella and lunch meat ham. Gourmet Italian eggs, coming right up! They were delicious.

We have had some incredible meals these last 2 months. This last week was no exception. Dessert & breakfast at aunt Toni's farm-fresh kitchen, pisghetti by Christie, skillet cookie a la Knights, a pizza recipe worth $900 by the lovely Marianne Gross....I could go on and on...

This last week we spent time in both Catlin, IL and Lincoln/Bloomington/Springfield visiting with so many people that we love. We were ecstatic to find that God had been priming their hearts to love India the way that He has been priming ours. I wish we would have taken even more pictures, but here is a snapshot of our last 1 1/2 weeks and some of the food we ate:

Visiting the Knights in Bloomington...

3 night sleepover with Caleb & Christie!

They made us a delicious 'send off' breakfast. And guess what incredible, edible item was in it?

the egg :)

I Drive a Dodge Status!

2009-02-27T12:43:00.005-05:00

So, I felt the urge to sing an ode to the vehicle which has taken us to many heights: the Dodge Stratus. We just crossed over 100,000 miles on the last trip to Chicago and it got me thinking about all the great times we've had.

It was given to me in August 2004 by my parents after I returned from a summer trip to Bulgaria with 13,000 miles. It replaced the "still-barely-running" Ford Taurus Speed Wagon which I inherited from my Grandpa after he died.

Here is a brief and assuredly incomplete list of trips it has been on:

-Many trips from Newburgh to Carmel to see Courtney

-Fall Break to Tennessee in 2004!

-Up to Chicago to see Melissa and Andrew get engaged

-To Kansas with John for Justin and Jenny McKnight's wedding

-Down the country roads every week to Eminence Christian Church in college

-To New Orleans after the hurricane to help with some clean-up

-To Newburgh in 05 for our first trip to Wadsworth Lake

-Back home again in 05 after the tornado took away my parent's house

-Numerous dates and often the only place to be alone with Courtney

-Up to Chicago with Tim in 06 to watch the Cubs get pummeled by the Brewers

-To Johnson City, TN in 06 to visit Courtney's grandparents and watch the fireworks

-3 straight Christmas Eve travels either to Carmel or Newburgh

-To Bardstown, KY to jump out of a plane with my best friends before we got married

-Multiple trips to Rush-Copley Hospital in Naperville, IL to be there for Emma Harris' birth

-To Galena, IL for a 25th anniversary celebration with the Wrights

For the last 8 months of a beautiful relationships we have trips scheduled to Virginia Beach, Cleveland, St. Louis, Wheaton, IL, and one last long trip out to Colorado Springs. 100,000 leaves you pretty attached to a car and it will be sad to finally say goodbye in October. So, here's to you, Stratus, from all those who have safely ridden in your care. Keep on keeping on.

Love...it's what you crave®

2009-02-16T20:39:00.006-05:00

Is there anything more romantic than sitting down with your sweetheart to a gorgeous Crave Case full of Slyders eaten by candlelight? I submit that there is not.

Neourtney

2009-01-15T15:38:00.009-05:00

I've heard it said that after enough years of marriage, couples start to act alike and even look like each other.

The other day Neil and I were relaxing on my parents couch in the middle of a tiring day, anxious to take a break. I picked up a book of Sudoku puzzles I got for Christmas and Neil turned on the television to watch another episode of The Cosby Show. All of a sudden it dawned on me, I'm doing math for fun and Neil is filling his brain with mindless entertainment to relax. It's starting to happen.

I'm going to start looking in the mirror a little more closely....

Road Warriors

2009-01-06T19:08:00.008-05:00

So, we've been here and there for quite some time now. We spent Christmas going to Carmel, Newburgh, Sellersburg, Johnson City, TN, Indianapolis (Courtney then to Danville, IL), and then back home here in Sellersburg. It feels good to be back in our "old place". Although we will be in and out of here, it's always going to be nice to come back to this house. Living with Courtney is amazing and exponentially so when we get to wake up together and spend all day in our own place.

Some other highlights of being back home:
-Seeing our small group and helping the Clarks move into their new house-My Christmas present from Courtney - 3 seasons of The Cosby Show

So, I had some other things to say, but I think I'll just rant on the Cosby Show for a bit. It is seriously the greatest TV sitcom ever. I can (and intend to) watch it everyday. There is something so great about watching this family that loves each other deeply get caught up in the funniest moments. The best part is the way they all laugh at everyday quirks that really are hilarious. I can't say any more, but it always makes me laugh.

Here's a great picture from Christmas.

so full

2008-11-10T19:51:00.004-05:00

Have you ever felt so full that the only way to let it all out is to cry?

I have. In fact, I just happen to be blogging right in the middle of it. (that's misleading, I am in fact blogging because of that) Regardless, I feel full. Here's what I feasted on tonight:

scriptures on God's presence & fear
laughter shared over a common meal with new friends (lasagna, yum)
"Behold the Lamb of God" by Andrew Peterson
and finally, having a forum (*ahem, neilandcourtney.blogspot.com) to share my 'fullness'

Maybe you've been feeling full lately. Or, maybe you've been feeling empty? I had been running on fumes recently, which is probably why I feel so full now. Pardon me if this grosses you out, but if I ever get stuck in the middle of the desert with little to no food or water, you better believe that I'm gonna gourge myself the next time I pass by a Ponderosa. Thankfully, my Ponderosa came tonight. And it was completely unexpected.

Go Cubs!

2008-09-21T10:05:00.000-04:00

Yapta

2008-09-14T12:03:00.003-04:00

I must admit that I have a terrible weakness to really cool websites and games. Some places I have wasted precious hours of my life in the past are homestarrunner, Atomic Badger Racing, The Black Knight, LaunchCast, that game where you are Yeti and you hit a penguin like a baseball, Engrish.com, and looking up obscure baseball stats with Tim on mlb.com. My latest vice is Yapta.com. This site starts off like a regular airplane flight search, giving you the prices of major carriers for a certain date. However, it gets really cool when you can actually track a flight over time and have Yapta email you when the price goes down over time. This method really only works when you know you are travelling about 4 months beforehand (as the price is usually lowest somewhere around 2 months before). I found myself constantly checking the price to the point of annoyance for my wife whom I asked probably about a half dozen times "Do you think we should by them yet?". Her response was always "Yes", to which I would say, "Ok, let's wait and see if the price goes down more!" She's a saint, but I saved us about $70!

What's your website vice of choice these days?

Ordination Weekend

2008-09-05T17:25:00.008-04:00

Last weekend was probably the best weekend I've ever spent with my family since I left for college back in 2003. Not because other trips have been bad; this one was just that good.

We got in on Friday night and were able to have a quality time just chatting with my parents. Then Saturday was the big ordination day. To be quite honest, when I was originally planning this thing, I was shooting for something very small and absolutely no fuss at all. In my head, I was thinking that this was not going to be that big of a deal, just something I needed to do formally or legally to ever serve as a minister in an American church some day. However, it really turned out to be a special thing.

Most of my family in the area got to come as well as those closest to my family at church. It was about the perfect size for what was taking place. There were the typical parts of the service, but probably the two coolest parts were my father-in-law, Mark, giving the charge and my dad speaking. Mark's words were great and encouraged me to not loose focus, but to always remember the who, what, when, where, why, and how of the gospel. It was really encouraging both to me and to others. Hearing my dad speak was something pretty amazing though. I was pleasantly surprised when he said he wanted to say something during the service. He got up and talked about how proud he was of me and also my sister and then asked me to continue to remember his parents (both deceased) and how proud they are of me now too. He also asked for many prayers that Courtney and I would continue to be led by the Holy Spirit as we go. It was an event I'll remember for a long time.

Two other events of the weekend made it stand out as incredible. The first was hanging out with my sister and her husband on Sunday night. They moved into a new apartment recently which is really cool and in a nice part of town. It was great to get to spend some quality time with them and just sit down and talk about real events in our lives. My brother-in-law, Daniel is good about bringing up quality discussions, and it was great to see the wisdom that my sister had in the areas we talked about.

The final event was a 4 hour, 40 mile bike ride with my dad. It was really the first time I had ridden more than 1 mile on a bike since I was about 13. I really did enjoy it and had a great time out on the small roads of southwest Indiana. My dad had an even better time though showing my where his grandparents were buried and where his dad grew up. The ride wasn't too tough until we were at about the halfway point and I realized it wasn't going to get any easier. It was a struggle to keep going, but it was worth it to get to spend that time with my dad. Filling up afterwards with my grandmother's cooking also helped take the sting out of my legs. Great times...

important additions:

2008-08-27T11:12:00.003-04:00

I made Shopska salad today as a tribute to Northside's overgrown food pantry garden and to Bulgaria. Eating it makes me happy and anxious; I can't believe God is allowing us to join NMSI and be a part of His work around the world. We are so incapable and under qualified on our own; He is so good to be our portion and sufficiency in all that we lack.

And, my husband is amazing. I'm sure other good wives of good husbands would contest my next statement, but this is my blog so I can say whatever I want: He's the best man I've ever met.

Thank you Lord for a good work to be done and for a good husband to do it with.

That's all. Going back to my yummy salad. It's hard to eat while typing....