Catching up

There are about 15 things I've been wanting to blog about lately.  I don't remember what most of them were.

First, let me tell you about the awesome (though budget-crunching) deal we got from the Apple Store last week.  We'd been planning to buy Elizabeth a MacBook computer for awhile, we just hadn't found the right one, or the right time.  Then we found out that if you buy a new MacBook with your student discount (which saves you $100) then you can get up to a $299 rebate for a new iPod... which happens to be exactly what an iPod Touch costs.  So we have one of those now.  Along with Elizabeth's new computer.  AND, with the purchase of a new MacBook, you can get up to a $100 rebate on a printer too.  So now we have a new computer, a new iPod Touch (which is really fun, by the way), and a new printer/scanner/copier/fax machine.  All for the price of less than a new MacBook ('cuz of the student discount).  That's $400 in total savings.  Not too shabby.

Next, let me say a few words about the new Batman movie, "The Dark Knight."  It was good.  That's all I'm gonna say, because it seems everyone and their brother (including my brother, in fact) has recently blogged about it.  Greg Boyd and Ben Witherington (two prominent Bible scholars) have both written very good posts about it.  They both tie in some awesome niftiness (it's a word) about the theology and philosophy of the movie too.  I'll just say that I agree with everyone's assessment about Heath Ledger's phenomenal performance as the world's greatest villain, the Joker.

My two-week intensive theology class ended last Friday, which is kinda nice.  It was a great class, giving me some much-anticipated knowledge about theological stuff I've always felt like I should know (like what the real differences between Calvinists and Arminians are, and what big words like supralapsarianism mean).  I still have a little after-the-fact work to do for the class, but the really tough stuff is finished.

Last week's Sports Illustrated had some awesome triva-type information about the U.S. athletes preparing to participate in the Beijing Olympics.  Last week's Time magazine had some similar entries, but they were under the heading "100 Olympians you should know about" or some other similar-sounding title.  The Time section didn't focus solely on U.S. athletes, but on many of the notables from around the world.  I'm really excited for the olympics.  They're fun.

Ok, I know there was a lot more to write, but I'm gonna end it right there because I can't remember anything else.  If and when I do, you'll hear about it.

Scribbles

The other day Elizabeth and I made a cake.  It was really good.  So good, in fact, that the two of us finished it off today.  It was something like 5 or 6 pieces of cake apiece over the last two days (we gave one piece to my manager at work... but we took care of the rest).

My family is amazing, by the way.  I'm thinking of writing a biography of my folks.  They're probably the two best parents that have ever been parents before.

Anywho...

First Anniversary!

Last weekend Elizabeth and I went away to Vail, Colorado, in celebration of our first anniversary. We had an awesome time.  Our hotel room was much more fantastic than either of us thought it would be, our hike up the mountain was littered with scenes of beauty, culminating in a super sweet water fall at the end, we took a gondola to the top of Vail Mountain to eat at a restaurant out on the deck overlooking some snow-capped mountains, and we walked around Vail Village to visit local shops and sample the tastiness at the farmer's market.  The whole time, our cell phones were off, and we were relaxed!

On the hike

The waterfall at the end.  We look a little awkward because

there was no one around to take our picture, so we had to prop

the camera up on some rocks, set the timer, take a guess as to

where we should stand, and take a few wobbly steps across

unstable stones to get into the picture before the timer went off.

On the gondola ride up the mountain for dinner.

I'm on... top of the world lookin' down on creation...

That's our 1-year anniversary cake.  It was gooooooooood.

Overdue pictures

Here are some pictures from our recent trip to Iowa to visit family.  The star of the show is our 9-month old nephew, Gabriel.

Summer

This summer has somehow become as busy as the school year for me.  I didn't know that could happen.

I also wanted to say that I miss my friends.

And if you want to read an entertaining and funny book with what's left of your summer, try The Year of Living Biblically by A.J. Jacobs.

Road work

First things first:  If I'm ever president of the United States, I will sign some kind of executive order that FORBIDS any road construction along Interstate 80 for a single summer.  One summer of my life, I want that to happen.  For one summer before I die, I want to be able to drive for more than an hour on I-80 without having to slow down or risk doubled fines for road construction.  Once.

Elizabeth and I just returned to Denver after a 5 day mini vacation.  We were able to visit with a few college friends for a couple of hours, hang out with Elizabeth's family and extended family for birthday parties, grilling, and fireworks, and spend a solid chunk of time with Joel, Pam, and Gabriel. (note: Prior to this trip I believed that Gabriel only appeared to be the happiest, cutest infant in the history of the world.  Now I believe that he truly is.  It's not a joke.)  We took in a River Bandits game, ate Tropical Sno, played a little Nintendo Wii (I was a first-timer), and generally just hung out.  The driving was monotonous, but not too terrible (as good, I suppose, as a trip through eastern Colorado and all of Nebraska can possibly be).  It was a fantastic trip for us.  Our families all went out of their way to accommodate us and spend time with us, which is very great of them.  We don't get to see any of them enough.

All in all, Elizabeth eased up a little bit on the "I'll never move back to Iowa" rhetoric, and we both plan to give the idea some serious consideration once we get closer to finishing up our studies around here.

I'll be posting some pictures and even a video (assuming I can figure it out) soon.

Hiking

My wife's pretty cool.

Elizabeth and I have been hiking every chance we get, and since we're still pretty new to the area, we tend to choose different parks or different trails almost every time.  Today we were fortunate to have selected a rather magnificent little stretch, and had a fantastic hike.  Along the way, I came to a realization that's been months in the making.  While I tend to get most excited about grand scenic views and big-picture atmosphere of nature, Elizabeth is much more likely to enjoy the little detailed bits of creation.  I like getting to the top of a hill and looking out over the mountains and valleys and rivers and lakes.  I like trying to see how deep into the woods my eyes can look.  She gets a thrill when she spots colorful wildflowers, or when even the smallest of butterflies comes to rest alongside our path.  She pauses frequently to admire the budding pinecones on the trees, or to point out the goofy looking insect that she almost stepped on.  Hiking with Elizabeth is rather refreshing.  I think we both add a little something to the other's experience, and in turn, we each get a slightly fuller picture of our omnipotent creator.

(note: the late post is the result of me not being able to sleep, and my blog winning the debate between writing and reading yesterday's TIME magazine)

Book list

I'm not that bad.

In the 103 days since I started this blog, I've written 23 posts.  That averages out to one post every 4.5 days, or about 22% of the time.

There are some books coming out soon that would be good for you to at least know about, if not read.  Next month Mark Driscoll is publishing a series of short books called "A Book You'll Actually Read."  They include On the Old Testament, On the New Testament, On Who is God?, and On Church Leadership.  Then in September Driscoll is publishing Death by Love.  These are all published by Crossway.

The ESV Study Bible, also produced by Crossway, will be available this fall as well.  There are 8 formats to choose from including hardcover, and a number of different genuine and bonded leathers of various colors.

Denver Seminary New Testament professor, Dr. William Klein, has a new book out from Navpress called Handbook for Personal Bible Study that looks really great.  

Also, if you haven't heard of Christians at the Border yet, you need to read it.  It's written by Denver Seminary's M. Daniel Carroll R. and it's published by Baker.  Dr. Carroll is Guatemalan-American, and he has a unique perspective on the immigration issue that's both timely and biblical.

Finally, I'll mention Timothy Keller's new book, The Prodigal God, published by Dutton, which will be available in Octobor (Keller's recent book, The Reason for God, was fantastic).