It's been a long time since I've done much of anything on this blog. I haven't had much time or access to a computer since we were in NY and MI.
So, how are all of you doing today? I hope really well. Anne and I are going to go see Spider Man 2 today, so that should be fun. We're also going to go on a bike ride to get ready for the Indianapolis Night Ride that we're doing this Saturday. It's a 20 or 30 mile bike ride around Indianapolis at night. Unique for sure, I've never done anything like that! :)
OK, I'm going to try to add something else....
Wednesday, July 21, 2004
Saturday, July 03, 2004
Third Culture Kids
Anne and I are at Pre Field Orientation right now in Houghton, New York. Small town with Houghton College and not much else. There are people going all over the world here to teach, be administrators, counselors, and more. We're learning a TON about different things - culture transitions into the country we're going to (20+ different countries), third culture kids, getting to know the others going to Vienna Christian School also, Christian education philosophy, etc. This stuff has been much more helpful and interested than I (Chris) expected.
Third culture kids, I learned, can be kids of missionaries, military kids, kids of diplomats, or kids of international businessmen/businesswomen. There is a ton that they go through, learn, change, etc. They're part American (or western), and part Austrian (or whatever country they live in). It makes for a very interesting and unique person with unique desires and needs and perspectives.
Anyhow, I better go now because Anne is looking at the Austrian IKEA website to dream about what we can get to furnish our apartment in Vienna. I want to look too. :)
So long....
Third culture kids, I learned, can be kids of missionaries, military kids, kids of diplomats, or kids of international businessmen/businesswomen. There is a ton that they go through, learn, change, etc. They're part American (or western), and part Austrian (or whatever country they live in). It makes for a very interesting and unique person with unique desires and needs and perspectives.
Anyhow, I better go now because Anne is looking at the Austrian IKEA website to dream about what we can get to furnish our apartment in Vienna. I want to look too. :)
So long....
Saturday, June 19, 2004
Goodbye, Old Honda
This afternoon, we're making the offical transaction of selling our Honda Civic to some friends. Such a blessing from the Lord to work this out, and at such a convenient time.
We'll miss the white paint, the nice cd player, the speediness (sortof), and the low-to-the-ground feeling while driving it. Really, I think the speediness is due mostly to the fact that the car is lower to the ground, not that is has a huge engine or anything. Imagine a Civic with a V-8 or V-12. Yikes!!!
We're really doing this moving to Austria thing! We will no longer own any cars in just a couple hours! :) Love it!
We'll miss the white paint, the nice cd player, the speediness (sortof), and the low-to-the-ground feeling while driving it. Really, I think the speediness is due mostly to the fact that the car is lower to the ground, not that is has a huge engine or anything. Imagine a Civic with a V-8 or V-12. Yikes!!!
We're really doing this moving to Austria thing! We will no longer own any cars in just a couple hours! :) Love it!
Friday, June 18, 2004
Monday, June 14, 2004
California knows how to party
What's up what's up what's up???
We're really enjoying our time here in San Celemente, especially now that I am not sick anymore - well, I'm almost all better. Yeah!
We had a really fun fiesta - got to meet some new friends of my parents, catch up with old friends, and play around with my nieces. And besides that, we've walked around town, visited some friends, etc. We saw our niece Danielle's baccalaureate, Emilee's dance recital rehearsal, played croquet with all kinds of family in the back yard, etc.
Now we're heading up to Ventura (2 hours north of here) to hang out with Garret and Sarah Hamner. Ventura Pier, here we come!
ciao for now
We're really enjoying our time here in San Celemente, especially now that I am not sick anymore - well, I'm almost all better. Yeah!
We had a really fun fiesta - got to meet some new friends of my parents, catch up with old friends, and play around with my nieces. And besides that, we've walked around town, visited some friends, etc. We saw our niece Danielle's baccalaureate, Emilee's dance recital rehearsal, played croquet with all kinds of family in the back yard, etc.
Now we're heading up to Ventura (2 hours north of here) to hang out with Garret and Sarah Hamner. Ventura Pier, here we come!
ciao for now
Monday, June 07, 2004
Almost there
Well, everything is about to start falling together. We leave tomorrow for California for 8 days, then back to Bloomington. We'll have 3 or 4 days to finish packing, and we'll leave on June 21st from our apartment for good. Driving to North Carolina, then back to Indianapolis - Anne's parents house. Then 2 days after we'll be gone for 3+ weeks of training in New York and family vacation in Michigan. Whew!
Please pray for us now - it's easy to be stressed out with all kinds of things to do. I'm feeling sick (Chris), and we don't have so much time for me to rest. Plus - we've been talking a lot about adjusting to all the changes going on and how we adjust to that. Pray for us, that we'd go to God with our struggles and anxious thoughts.
Back to packing.... :)
Please pray for us now - it's easy to be stressed out with all kinds of things to do. I'm feeling sick (Chris), and we don't have so much time for me to rest. Plus - we've been talking a lot about adjusting to all the changes going on and how we adjust to that. Pray for us, that we'd go to God with our struggles and anxious thoughts.
Back to packing.... :)
Wednesday, June 02, 2004
The Days are Just Packed
I think that's actually a title from a "Calvin and Hobbes" book, meant to be facicous.(sp?) Actually Calvin and Hobbes are much more on the lazy side of life. But our days have actually been ganz beschaeftig (very busy). So are you ready to whet your whistle on the highlights of the last few days for us???
0.5. Bubba was here for a few days.
1. I was going to go to New Joisey to visit the Griffices, but had to change my plans to stay home, support Anne, and get stuff done for Austria.
2. I packed a bunch of boxes, brought things to Goodwill, sold some things (bike, clothes, etc.), jumped through some hoops to get paperwork for our visas to live in Austria, got help working on and replacing a bad video card for our computer, etc.
3. Drove up to Indianapolis for the weekend. Watched Shrek 2. Ran in a 4 mile run. Won a gift certificate for running shoes. Went to church. Hung out with Bob, Meg, Scott, Tom, John, and Kim.
4. Saw the Indy 500 - well, some of it. It kept raining and they said a tornado was nearby, so we left early.
5. Packed more boxes, unofficially sold our Honda Civic, paid bills, etc.
6. Drove to Indianapolis, watched the Lakers WIN, and drove the Honda back to Bloomington.
7. Anne began her last week of school and Chris went to Cincinnati to visit friends and go to a concert.
I hope you didn't drown from all of the quick facts. :)
0.5. Bubba was here for a few days.
1. I was going to go to New Joisey to visit the Griffices, but had to change my plans to stay home, support Anne, and get stuff done for Austria.
2. I packed a bunch of boxes, brought things to Goodwill, sold some things (bike, clothes, etc.), jumped through some hoops to get paperwork for our visas to live in Austria, got help working on and replacing a bad video card for our computer, etc.
3. Drove up to Indianapolis for the weekend. Watched Shrek 2. Ran in a 4 mile run. Won a gift certificate for running shoes. Went to church. Hung out with Bob, Meg, Scott, Tom, John, and Kim.
4. Saw the Indy 500 - well, some of it. It kept raining and they said a tornado was nearby, so we left early.
5. Packed more boxes, unofficially sold our Honda Civic, paid bills, etc.
6. Drove to Indianapolis, watched the Lakers WIN, and drove the Honda back to Bloomington.
7. Anne began her last week of school and Chris went to Cincinnati to visit friends and go to a concert.
I hope you didn't drown from all of the quick facts. :)
Thursday, May 27, 2004
Just call me Errand Boy
Now that I'm done with my job at IU, I've been focusing on getting stuff done. Yeah - stuff: Paperwork that is required for getting a visa in Austria, packing boxes, trying to sell or get rid of the last few straggler things we aren't taking to Austria or storing, and just doing things that Anne can't do since she's at school. Her last day is a week from this Friday. It's been a good feeling, tackling so many things in a day. It makes my sense of accomplishment move up in the rankings. That's nice, but really, I need to put my sense of accomplishment in God and the fact that he is arranging all the parts to make all of this happen. He created the universe, and he sustains it - things in nature, governments, interpersonal relationships, and even directions and steps of individual lives. If wasn't for him in my life, it would be at best, pointless. My life would be just getting by, maybe feeling good about things in life, but really, just like walking on thin ice. I am not the one that holds myself up. Even my physical body is in God's hands. Amazing, how we get so caught up in the activities of life and forget how God does things. Thanks God, for loving me, choosing me, adopting me as your child, and sustaining my life. You brought me up out of the pit of being alone and in a downward spiral, out of the miry clay.
Help me not forget.
Help me not forget.
Friday, May 21, 2004
Today Today Today!!!
It's my last day of work! Goodbye Indiana University School of Continuing Studies. Hello Vienna Christian School!!! I'm gettin' excited!!!!!!!! :):)
thoughts
I had a conversation recently with a friend of mine, Robert. He likes to talk deeply about life. He had been listening to a series of tapes by a guy whose name I can't remember. Anyhow, the main point that I heard from Robert about those messages was our perspective. As believers in and followers of Jesus, our perspective can be either that of an orphan or that of a son/daughter. An orphan feels like they have to do everything to take care of themselves - safety, food, where to sleep, etc. A son trusts his dad to take care of it. An orphan doesn't trust others and is very protective. A son has learned trust by seeing the faithfulness of his father. An orphan doesn't like to allow people to go "deeper" into their life because of fear (rejection, hurt, failure, etc.).
Anyhow, it was a great topic to converse about and ponder. In what ways do I act like an orphan in my relationship with God? I think it's my default sometimes, to feel like I have to do everything and do it right in order for things to go well. I think that if I don't dot all my i's and cross all my t's and take care of every detail, everything will fall apart. WRONG. I need freedom. Lord, help me truly believe in my role as being your son, your child.
Anyhow, it was a great topic to converse about and ponder. In what ways do I act like an orphan in my relationship with God? I think it's my default sometimes, to feel like I have to do everything and do it right in order for things to go well. I think that if I don't dot all my i's and cross all my t's and take care of every detail, everything will fall apart. WRONG. I need freedom. Lord, help me truly believe in my role as being your son, your child.
A Proud Day for Uncle Crispy
Well, the news is that I'm an uncle again! I'll put a picture on here in a little bit, but here's the scoop. Baby Holritz (no name yet) was born on May 19th at 7:59pm. She was 22.5 inches long and weighed 9 pounds and 8 ounces!!! And even better, Anne and I will get to see her in less than three weeks!
Friday, May 14, 2004
A Proud Day for Papa
Wow, am I proud of my boys! I think I had about 5 heart attacks last night during that Spurs-Lakers game. It was probably one of the most amazing finishes to an NBA game. Just unbelievable - and I'm just so lucky to be a Laker fan because we just ended up on the winning side of a big battle that ended with 2 amazing shots. And I guess just about everyone else picked up on what Shaq said: "One lucky shot deserves another."
Wednesday, May 12, 2004
Monday, May 10, 2004
Too Cool
Blogger has upgraded things and given all kinds of new templates to pick from. So here we have this new one! What do you think? I like it - different and fun. I think this blog needs to change somehow. If this is going to be a way for Anne and I to communicate to all of you while we're over in Austria, we'll need to write more about stuff that's going on, things we're thinking and feeling, things God is doing, etc.
So, I just want to let you all know that if you're reading this, we would really appreciate your prayers regarding spiritual warfare. Maybe that seems strange to you, but we're convinced that the more we follow God's leading (namely to VCS) the more resistance we get. The things that we see and touch every day are only temporal and passing away (2 Cor 4). All this stuff, including our bodies are going to pass away and disappear like a vapor. But what is unseen is eternal - and that's what we want to invest in. But satan doesn't want us to and he seems to be working more than normal in our surroundings - trying to get Anne and I mad at eachother, discouraging us at work, stressing us out with packing and other things to do, etc. We dedicate ourselves to you O Lord. We place our weakness in your strength.
So, I just want to let you all know that if you're reading this, we would really appreciate your prayers regarding spiritual warfare. Maybe that seems strange to you, but we're convinced that the more we follow God's leading (namely to VCS) the more resistance we get. The things that we see and touch every day are only temporal and passing away (2 Cor 4). All this stuff, including our bodies are going to pass away and disappear like a vapor. But what is unseen is eternal - and that's what we want to invest in. But satan doesn't want us to and he seems to be working more than normal in our surroundings - trying to get Anne and I mad at eachother, discouraging us at work, stressing us out with packing and other things to do, etc. We dedicate ourselves to you O Lord. We place our weakness in your strength.
Friday, May 07, 2004
Monday, May 03, 2004
Wowzers!
We had a great weekend!!
Wowzer #1: We ate at Yat's - which is a Creole, New Orleans-style place to eat. Very inexpensive, very good, big portions, and fun + funky atmosphere. The floors were black and red checkered, there was cool jazz for music, and random lighting. Plus it was just fun to hang out with all of the Corinth Crew.
Wowzer #2: Kelsey, our friend and Corinth Crew member, whooped up on our eardrums Saturday afternoon. We went to her graduate recital for voice - and heard songs in English, German, Italian, and French. She was amazing!!
Wowzer #3: John and Kim hosted a support raising party for us on Saturday night - S-A-T-U-R-D-A-Y....NIGHT! It was a lot of fun to hang out and connect with lots of people that we knew and didn't know. And a number of people really stepped up and committed to support us in prayer and finances. (see the updates to the left)
Very cool :)
Wowzer #1: We ate at Yat's - which is a Creole, New Orleans-style place to eat. Very inexpensive, very good, big portions, and fun + funky atmosphere. The floors were black and red checkered, there was cool jazz for music, and random lighting. Plus it was just fun to hang out with all of the Corinth Crew.
Wowzer #2: Kelsey, our friend and Corinth Crew member, whooped up on our eardrums Saturday afternoon. We went to her graduate recital for voice - and heard songs in English, German, Italian, and French. She was amazing!!
Wowzer #3: John and Kim hosted a support raising party for us on Saturday night - S-A-T-U-R-D-A-Y....NIGHT! It was a lot of fun to hang out and connect with lots of people that we knew and didn't know. And a number of people really stepped up and committed to support us in prayer and finances. (see the updates to the left)
Very cool :)
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