A Birthday, Visitors, A Comprehensive Exam

A Busy Weekend

A couple of weeks ago, my wife and I agreed to host a family visiting our congregation last weekend.  After having said we’d do it, I thought, “Ah, isn’t that the weekend I’ve got my comp?” as well as, “that’s Mom’s birthday, too.”  Because I’m naturally too absent-minded to focus on rearranging things that can’t really be rearranged, anyway, I carried on with the plan, which was really no plan beyond not fighting with happenstance.

Comprehensive Examination

My graduate studies program requires that the candidate for a master’s level degree pass the National Board for Certified Counselors comprehensive certification examination.  A few months ago, I ordered the prep book from the organization after having taken a sample exam online.  The online test questions were really easy.  When the book arrived, I glanced at it.  Over the past month or two, the names Vygotsky and Kohlberg came to mind again and again.  Last Friday night, which was the night before the test, I reviewed some material about both Vygotsky and Kohlberg, took the practice examination (which was included in the study guide I’d purchased) and scored the instrument.  My score was not stellar.  I was weak on the theories of both Super and Roe, so I looked them up and reviewed them.  Around 2:00 am, I went to bed.

Saturday morning, I awoke between five and six, breakfasted, showered, dressed and drove over to my friend Theodore’s house, arriving there around eight.  Theodore’s got a Ph.D., has taught numerous university courses online, holds a couple of positions with a local school board, and had agreed to proctor the online examination for me.  I greeted him and his family, we drank coffee, ate cinnamon rolls, and talked for a bit before I took the test.  Anyway, I correctly answered a sufficient number of the 160 test items (among the 160, questions on the theories of Vygotsky, Kohlberg, Super and Roe) to warrant a passing grade.  My relief was immense.

The Gibello Family

The Gibello family arrived at our house during the early afternoon, last Saturday; they arrived with a mini-van and a small travel trailer.  We didn’t know what to expect, and neither did they.  Years ago, as part of another congregation, we had a good experience hosting a missionary couple who were (and did) travel to Australia to help found a Reformed theological seminary there.  We hoped this experience would be similarly good.

Turns out we had a great time.  The children played together pretty well (although our son, a couple of years older than their son, was way too bossy at times), we enjoyed cutting up with the Gibellos, who are normal people with intact senses of humor and good insight.  Whenever I encounter anyone, what I hope for is to find someone who is:  1) Oriented to reality; 2) Competent or working to develop competence; and 3) A person of general good will.  Usually, if the people I meet hit two out of three, that’s pretty good.  The Gibellos hit the mark three out of three times.  That’s better than good.

Caleb and I didn’t get to take a bike ride Saturday, but he’ll be taking the Razesa when they come back through Tennessee in May.  My friend, Eric Thompson, bought the bike at Ciclos Madrid in about 1985 when he was serving as a missionary in Spain, so it seems fitting that Caleb Gibello should get the bike as he’s preparing to travel to Papua New Guinea to serve as an itinerant missionary to people in remote villages there.  I doubt he’ll be able to take the bike to PNP, but he’ll have something economical to monkey around with on home visits.

My wife and I have decided to help support our new friends with a little money each month.

Mom’s Birthday

Mom said she was feeling pretty bad Saturday when we invited her over to the house for supper with the Gibellos and to celebrate her birthday.  We finally did get to see her on St. Patrick’s Day – she invited us over to her house to share the traditional corned-beef and cabbage meal she makes annually.  We had a good visit and gave her a present; took some leftovers home, too.  I ate the last of them Thursday night.

Miscellany

I have not been accomplishing as much this week as last. I made a list yesterday and got most of the stuff done. Made a list today and got some of it done. Had Whitecar yesterday, but today am without wheels. I haven’t walked much since Saturday. Short walk yesterday and a longish visit with some of my neighbors. Physical therapy yesterday and will again this afternoon. Wasted less time today, but have accomplished less.

This morning my mom and a cousin came by the house. My cousin is elderly, but was coming to town to do some shopping, and wanted to see our house. Then we all went over to the sitter’s house to see Seventy-Six. My cousin hasn’t seen him since his birthday, and the little guy’s hair really started to curl in earnest since then. I’m not sure my son remembered her, but he warmed up to her pretty easily. He blew her kisses when I carried him back inside the house.

Shoulder’s hurting less today than it did this past weekend. My second post-operative checkup is Thursday morning, and I will find out then when I will be allowed to drive a standard transmission automobile and return to work. My time off would have been far more enjoyable with two good arms. We’d have fewer boxes that need unpacked, a tidier garage. The cars would’ve both been washed. I could have resumed strength training.

Later

Later on, I found myself wondering whether my parents loved me as much as I love my son. As a parent I am finding that much of my own infant amnesia reversed as I interact with my little boy. As I see him experience and explore life’s events and his environment, I am able to recall my own similar experiences.

After physical therapy, I drove out to the strip mall to see the Stepford storefront our congregation is renting. Pretty cheap, at $550.00/month. It’s next door to an out of business pet-store that I always reckoned was a front for a drug-dealer’s business. On the other side is my favorite scratch-and-dent discount grocery store. Looks like a little further down, a tattoo parlor has opened. We will certainly be ministering at ground-level, an excellent opportunity for our congregation to speak real Gospel into real-life (as opposed to country-clubland) Stepford.

Adrian, Bill-Jack, and Josh were preparing the facility.  I regretted I couldn’t help out because of my shoulder.

Shoulder, Boat Bag, & Some Photos

I’d planned to paddle yesterday, but was again awakened from sleep by my sore left shoulder.  I chose instead to remain home and disassemble my Pouch E-68, and put it away for awhile.  I don’t think I’ll have another chance to paddle until New Year’s Day, and reckon it’s best to store it out of the weather until then.  I’ve kept the boat assembled in the yard on sawhorses this past season, so there’s little likelihood the skin will shrink while in storage.  The boat’s frame is badly in need of stripping and revarnishing, and I need to find someplace to do the work.

Frame needs some maintenance work

Back during the summer, a gentleman from Louisiana met me at Chattanooga and gave me two Folbot lateen sailing rigs including an old vinyl Folbot hull bag with some Big Glider or Super seats and one rib.  If I had the power to create a skin on frame vessel from one rib, I’d probably make Folbot Super out of that rib and name it Eve.  Providentially, according to my theology, I lack that ability.  On the other hand, it is not good, in my time and space bound opinion, for a man to be without a boat.

That Folbot bag, covered with I-don’t-know-what grease, spider’s nests, dirt, saw-dust, once cleaned up and zipper rehabbed with a lot of parafin, makes a great hull and rib bag for the E-68.  The green canvas GDR duffel-sack I’d been using was always an annoyingly tight fit.  The Pouch hullskin fits easily into the Folbot bag.

Pouch E68 hullskin & ribs fit with plenty of room to spare

Finally, I drove out to Morris Ferry Landing with my camera to see what it looked like with all the holiday homes and campsites razed.  I took some photos – you can see all of them at my FLICKR account photostream at left.  I posted a couple below –