Interests:Languages and cultures, SOCCER, guitar, classic and sci-fi/fantasy litterature, modern world history, social justice Occupation:Spanish Teacher
"God said, “Let there be lightsin the expanseof the sky to separate the day from the night, and let them be signsto indicate seasons and days and years, and let them serve as lights in the expanse of the sky to give light on the earth.” It was so. God made two great lights– the greater light to rule over the day and the lesser light to rule over the night. He made the stars also.God placed the lightsin the expanse of the sky to shine on the earth, to preside over the day and the night, and to separate the light from the darkness.God saw that it was good. There was evening, and there was morning, a fourth day."
Genesis 1:14-19 The Moon, a constant source of fascination and inspiration:
"The Moon’s desolate beauty has been a source of fascination and curiosity throughout history and has inspired a rich cultural and symbolic tradition. In past civilizations the Moon was regarded as a deity, its dominion dramatically manifested in its rhythmic control over the tides and the cycle of female fertility. Ancient lore and legend tell of the power of the Moon to instill spells with magic, to transform humans into beasts, and to send people’s behaviour swaying perilously between sanity and lunacy (from the Latin luna, “Moon”). Poets and composers were invoking the Moon’s romantic charms and its darker side, and writers of fiction were conducting their readers on speculative lunar journeys long before Apollo astronauts, in orbit above the Moon, sent back photographs of the reality that human eyes were witnessing for the first time."
"Moon (Earth's Satellite)" - Encyclopedia Britannica Online
Man began to dream:
"In spite of the opinions of certain narrow-minded people, who would shut up the human race upon this globe, as within some magic circle which it must never outstep, we shall one day travel to the moon, the planets, and the stars, with the same facility, rapidity, and certainty as we now make the voyage from Liverpool to New York."
From the Earth to the Moon - Jules Verne
"'We are flying away from the earth at a tangent, and as the moon is near her third quarter we are going somewhere towards her. I will open a blind--' Came a click, and then a window in the outer case yawned open. The sky outside was as black as the darkness within the sphere, but the shape of the open window was marked by an infinite number of stars."
The First Men In the Moon - H.G. Wells
Then others dreamed further:
"Many years ago the great British explorer George Mallory, who was to die on Mount Everest, was asked why did he want to climb it. He said, "Because it is there." Well, space is there, and we're going to climb it, and the moon and the planets are there, and new hopes for knowledge and peace are there. And, therefore, as we set sail we ask God's blessing on the most hazardous and dangerous and greatest adventure on which man has ever embarked."
Address at Rice University on the Nation's Space Effort - John F. Kennedy
And then, 40 years ago today:
"That's one small step for [a] man, one giant leap for mankind"
- Neil Armstrong
A new era:
"All I know is that it's really the end of the beginning. The Stone Age, Bronze Age, Iron Age; from now on we'll lump all those together under one big name for when we walked on Earth and heard the birds at morning and cried with envy. Maybe we'll call it the Earth Age, or maybe the Age of Gravity. Millions of years we fought gravity. [...] A billion years Gravity kept us home, mocked us with wind and clouds, cabbage months and locusts. That's what's so really big about tonight . . . it's the end of old man Gravity and the age we'll remember him by, for once and for all. I don't know where they'll divide the ages, at the Persians, who dreamt of flying carpets, or the Chineese, who all unknowing celebrated birthdays and New Years with strung ladyfingers and high skyrockets, or some minute, some incredible second in the next hour. But we're in at the end of a billion years trying, the end of something long and to us humans, anyway, honorable."
The End of the Beginning - Ray Bradbury
And yet it was still just one small step...
"This has been far more than three men on a mission to the Moon; more, still, than the efforts of a government and industry team; more, even, than the efforts of one nation. We feel that this stands as a symbol of the insatiable curiosity of all mankind to explore the unknown ... Personally, in reflecting on the events of the past several days, a verse from Psalms comes to mind. 'When I consider the heavens, the work of Thy fingers, the Moon and the stars, which Thou hast ordained; What is man that Thou art mindful of him?'"
- Buzz Aldrin
1 O LORD, our Lord, how majestic is your name in all the earth! You have set your glory above the heavens.
2 From the lips of children and infants you have ordained praise because of your enemies, to silence the foe and the avenger.
3 When I consider your heavens, the work of your fingers, the moon and the stars, which you have set in place,
4 what is man that you are mindful of him, the son of man that you care for him?
5 You made him a little lower than the heavenly beings and crowned him with glory and honor.
6 You made him ruler over the works of your hands; you put everything under his feet:
7 all flocks and herds, and the beasts of the field,
8 the birds of the air, and the fish of the sea, all that swim the paths of the seas.
9 O LORD, our Lord, how majestic is your name in all the earth!
Since I don't seem to post anymore, here's the 25 random things list I put on facebook (for those of you that don't have an account). Enjoy!
Rules: Once you’ve been tagged, you are supposed to write a note with 25 random things, facts, habits, or goals about you. At the end, choose at least 20 people to be tagged. You have to tag the person who tagged you. If I tagged you, it’s because I want to know more about you
(To do this, go to “notes” under tabs on your profile page, paste these instructions in the body of the note, type your 25 random things, tag 25 people (in the right hand corner of the app) then click publish.)
EVERYBODY IS DOING IT! I don't know if I'll come up with 25 things, but I'll give it a shot:
1. I never really knew what I wanted to be when I grew up (and I'm still not sure I have it figured out). I liked all my high school subjects (except for health, but who does...) and none of them really stood out to me. I remember going through stages where I wanted to be a computer programmer, a missionary, an engineer, or a translator. So logically... I ended up becoming a Spanish teacher.
2. Because of #1, I didn't end up declaring a major until my junior year of college (when I turned my French minor into a French education major and dropped my missions minor, that's two minors and no major... ) and still I ended up becoming a Spanish teacher.
3. I LOATHED High School in the states. I transferred to Warsaw High School from EMMA in Argentina in the middle of my 10th grade year. At the time, classes seemed to easy and dumbed down, my classmates seemed incredibly immature, and my teachers seemed not to demand enough respect (I know now I was going through some pretty extreme culture shock at that time). And yet, after college somehow I found myself (you guessed it...) BACK in high school as a Spanish teacher! (I do love my job...most days that is...)
4. Growing up and in college I hated any type of public speaking (yet another reason why I shouldn't be in my profession). And yet I now get paid to stand up in front of teenagers to tell silly stories and make fun of myself in Spanish (and I actually enjoy it!)
5. Just in case you haven't figured it out when talking to me, I am VERY introverted; and yet I LOVE being around people. I'm not usually the one that responds quickly with funny comebacks and or jokes. I am often silent, simply because I'm thinking, not sure what to say.
6. I have many hobbies, including photography, playing guitar, reading, and even model plane building (yeah I know, everyone has their nerd side). However, any more I never seem to have time for any of them.
7. Speaking of #5, my guitar is a sweet Takamine G-series and my camera is a Canon 10d DSLR (yeah eBay!). My favorite Authors are JRR Tolkien, Ray Bradbury, CS Lewis, and Mark Twain. Oh, and I've been working off an on for the past few years on a model of a World War II P51d Mustang.
8. Traveling is another one of my hobbies (hey, when you're single and you get the summers off... why not?) I've been to 15 countries on 5 continents (my most recent trips were to China, France, and Germany). I haven't been back to Argentina since 2003 though. I really hope to get back down soon.
9. One of my favorite trips has to be the Canada Spring break trip I took with Dan and Mike Baum in 2006. While most of our friends were heading south in search of warmer climates, the three of us decided to do something different and discover our great white neighbor to the north. Even though we froze, it was a pretty amazing trip. We got to speak some French, see some awesome sites, learn about another culture, and eat salivary glands (see #12). What more could one ask for?
10. My favorite English-speaking bands are Jimmy Eat World and Copeland. Believe it or not, I couldn't stand them when I heard them for the first time. Music tends to grow on me.
11. I love music, but anymore I rarely know the words to the songs I enjoy (I tend to unconsciously tune out the vocals and treat them just like any other instrument). Sometimes, after listening to a particular song for months, I'm surprised (and sometimes horrified) at what the lyrics actually are saying. This doesn't happen with Spanish music though. Maybe it's because Spanish songs are so fun to sing...
12. I love to eat. My philosophy is to try everything, and then if I don't like it I just don't have to eat it again. Some of the more unusual things I've had during my travels are gozo, termites (CAR), snails, raw oysters, blood sausage, moldy cheese (France), squid, eel (China), cow intestines, more blood sausage (Argentina), cow salivary gland (Quebec), and haggis (USA). There isn't a lot I've tried that I haven't liked (the Argentine blood sausage, the haggis, and the gozo were interesting...).
13. One of my most embarrassing moments (that I can remember, I tend to try to forget these things...) happened this past summer when I was translating in Germany for the Grace Brethren Charis meetings. I got my languages mixed up in the middle of a session and instead of saying the Spanish for "capable leaders" into the microphone, I said the equivalent of "leaders that can be castrated." The worst part was that the Spanish speakers in the room let on only after the session was over (after I'd made the same mistake multiple times).
14. I can enjoy watching most sports, but nothing gets me as excited as when the Argentine national soccer seleccion plays in an international tournament. One of my life dreams is to see them in a world cup match, (it’s very unlikely, although I’d be happy if I could just get the games here in the states without paying for them...)
15. Those of you that know me well know that even though I love sports, I suck at all of them (it’s embarrassing telling people you can’t play soccer after living Argentina for 12 years). In school in Argentina, I played team handball and volleyball (the two sports I suck the least at). Even though I suck, I still enjoy playing (especially volleyball).
16. I don’t own an Ipod and I probably never will (although I must confess the WI-FI on the Ipod touch is pretty sweet). I just don’t think I would use it enough to justify the expense. There’s just something about blaring music through actual speakers, and my car has a CD player (I know some of you are thinking, “CD’s, they make good frisbees”). My family and friends say it’s because I’m too cheap. They’re probably right, but I’d rather save the 200 or so bucks and travel to Argentina or buy camera equipment.
17. This one is related to #16. Another reason I’m convinced I don’t need an Ipod is because I absolutely love to listen to NPR (another part of my nerdiness). Seriously, where else can you find out about the shenanigans of the current congress, the wildfire in Australia, and hear a review on the new Che Guevara movie all in the same half hour? (That and Wait, Wait, Don’t Tell Me has to be the funniest game show out there.) If you’re not happy with the commercialism of TV news and you don’t have time to read the newspaper (I know I definitely don’t) you should definitely check it out.
18. Although my favorite movies include The Motorcycle Diaries, Master and Commander, Batman Begins, and Hero, I’m convinced that some of the best movies are those made by Pixar. Just to give you an idea, when finding Nemo came out a few years ago, I went to see it not once, but 3 times in the theater. I haven’t seen Ratatouille or Wall-e yet, but I’ve heard they're pretty good.
19. I’m horrible at keeping up with people. If you’re reading this and I haven’t talked to you in a few months (or maybe years), please know that it’s not that I don’t care. I just suck at keeping in touch (thank God for Facebook and Xanga, although I hardly ever post). One of my new year’s resolutions was to call friends on a more regular basis.
20. I’m convinced that George Foreman is a genius (without him, I might actually have had to learn how to cook).
21. My first car was a 5-speed Volkswagen Jetta GT. My current car is a 5-speed Mitsubishi Eclipse (I try to forget the Chrysler New Yorker I owned between those two vehicles). I’m convinced that Manual transmission is the only real way to drive a car.
22. Speaking of #21, Dan and I learned to drive stick when we went to pick up the Jetta from a friend in Pennsylvania. After practicing for about 15 minutes with my dad (we had never really driven a stick before), we proceeded to make the 8 hour trip back to Warsaw, IN. After stalling the car many times (many of which were caused by forgetting to disengage the parking break) we finally made it home with a pretty good idea what to do (and what not to do) when driving a manual.
23. Speaking of #22, when I drive other people’s cars I tend to forget I’m in an automatic. I usually am reminded when I go for the clutch with my left foot and end up hitting the brake pedal (you can probably picture the end result).
24. My best friend has to be my brother Dan, although this hasn’t always been the case. We’ve been through a lot of the same things and we have a lot of the same interests too (although it’s funny to think of how different our chosen career paths are).
25. Wow, I can’t believe I actually came up with 25 (I’ll admit those last few were kinda stretching it a little). I hope you enjoy it, you might not get much from me for another 6 months or so (see #19).
To be released October 14th! Anyone else up for seeing them live in Chicago on October 30th? This song is probably my current Copeland favorite. What do you think?
Well I guess it's time to finally get around to updating this thing. I apologize once again for the lack of information (although I haven't heard from some of you in ages either). So much has happened these past four months since I last wrote on this thing. So to not make this post way too long and boring, I'll try to write several shorter posts these next few days.
After school let out in June, I finally (and some say foolishly) left the home of my youth and moved out into the world. Mike Baum and I the current proud renters of a two bedroom duplex on William Drive in good old Winona Lake (just off of Packerton Rd). If any of you are going to be in the area and happen to need a place to stay, don't even think of not giving one of us a call (we've got a futon, a couple of couches, and PLENTY of floorspace). The moving in part of the whole ordeal wasn't too bad, although we found out pretty quickly that the previous tenant had some VERY irregular cleaning habits:
:
Just to give you an idea of how incredibly nasty the kitchen was, this is what the pan looked like AFTER soaking it for an hour and a half in the sink (needless to say, we just went ahead and bought new ones). I won't go into any details about what the bathroom or the kitchen floor looked like. I'll just say that it took us half the morning and most of the afternoon to finally get the place cleaned up. Lis and Dan helped out more that a little on the whole ordeal. You guys deserve a medal or something.
Here's Dan putting the finishing touches on what was probably the grossest job of the day. The inside of the stove was so caked with grease that we literally had to take an ice scraper to it (I shudder at the thought of the previous tenant actually cooking on that thing...) The place looks a HECK of a lot better now than it did. You guys should seriously come see it.
After only spending three nights in the new place, Dan and I took advantage of the newly found freedoms of summer to take what had become our annual trip down to Buckeye Town. It was fun filled few days of hanging out and reconnecting with a lot of you guys. We played a lot of (probably too much) Guitar Hero with Aaron, Caleb, Bob, and Nancy (I seem to remember getting a cramp in my wrist). We did breakfast with my old youth pastor Kevn and even had an Argentine asado and free Dunkin' Donuts with Mike and Emily.
Here's Dan getting a little help with that dang fifth button (I swear if you master the "expert" level in this game you have waaay too much free time on your hands).
Here's Mike showing off his skills. He did some research on the Argentine chorizo and discovered that one of its main ingredients was none other than: nutmeg (who would of thought?). The brats we had were probably the closest thing to chorizos this side of the equator, although they still didn't taste exactly right (maybe it was the not so surprising lack of random chunks of fat? just a thought...). All in all it was a really fun few days in good old Columbus. It was exciting to see old friends and find out where God is leading them at this point in their lives. Hopefully we'll be able to do it again soon, especially before Mike and Emily leave for Mexico City (although that might be an excuse for a bunch of us to head south of the Rio Grande... Anybody up for a road trip?).
You can only type ONE Word! Not as easy as you might think. Now copy into your xanga, change the answers to suit you and post it . It's really hard to only use one word answers.
1. Where is your cell phone?....... pocket
2. Where is your significant other?....... somewhere...
