Merry Christmas

~~~
Day?s Verse:
While they were there, the time came for the baby to be born, and she gave birth to her firstborn, a son. She wrapped him in cloths and placed him in a manger, because there was no room for them in the inn.

And there were shepherds living out in the fields nearby, keeping watch over their flocks at night. An angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified. But the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid. I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is Christ the Lord. This will be a sign to you: You will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger.” Continue Reading >>

We’re Famous!

~~~
Day?’s Verse:
So Joseph went up from the town of Nazareth in Judea, to Bethlehem the town of David, because he belonged to the house and line of David. He went there to register with Mary, who was pledged to be married to him and was expecting a child.
Luke 2:4-5
~~~

…We’re on the internet! This is a video of the Christmas Traditions dinner at Fellowship Church, the church Ian and I attend. Next to Ian is our friend Sharron, and her husband Dave is sitting next to me (he also does the vomiting dog imitation). It was a good time, only they had a very creepy morphing face that talked to us on the projector screen that we all agreed should not have made an appearance. Continue Reading >>

I Never Do These, But Here We Are

~~~
Day’?s Verse:
Now in those days a decree went out from Caesar Augustus, that a census be taken of all the inhabited earth. This was the first census taken while Quirinius was governor of Syria. And everyone was on his way to register for the census, each to his own city.
Luke 2:1-3
~~~

I got this from Rachel at Milkbreath and Me. I usually avoid lame memes like this, but hers got me wondering what I had written for the first sentence of the first post each month, and since I was looking them up, I figured I might as well post them. I also included a link for each post for context if you want. Continue Reading >>

Sixty Miles and Nothing to Show

~~~
Day?’s Verse:
“I am the Lord’s servant,” Mary answered. “May it be to me as you have said.” Then the angel left her.
Luke 1:38
~~~

Today Ian and I intended to go to church. Instead, we got lost.
Lost
Fifty-odd miles and an hour later, we looked at each other and decided to just go home for the day.

I then decided to go to Borders to spend a 20% off coupon on nothing in particular — only it had to be less than $9, the amount of cash my wallet contained. I then wandered that accursed store, indecisive, for an hour. I considered: The Witch’s Daily Planner for 2007 as a Christmas gift joke; one of an entire section of bad romance novels; a CD of choral music (too expensive); Marooned In Realtime (they didn’t carry it); Roxanne (also not available); The New Encyclopedia of Modern Bodybuilding; the Nutcracker on CD (avoided that because I asked for it for Christmas); and probably 1,000 other items. Continue Reading >>

925 Miles by the Odometer

~~~
Day’s Verse:
“How will this be,” Mary asked the angel, “since I am a virgin?”

The angel answered, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. So the holy one to be born will be called the Son of God. Even Elizabeth your relative is going to have a child in her old age, and she who was said to be barren is in her sixth month. For nothing is impossible with God.”
Luke 1:34-37
~~~

On Monday I passed 900 miles bicycling to and from work. Back at 600 miles, I remember thinking about reaching 1,000 miles and how many trips (1,666 trips, assuming exactly 6 miles each trip, although I ride about 7.5 or 8 in the morning and 6.5 or 7 in the evening). Now I have about 12 more rides between me and that magical 1,000. I won’t get there before Christmas, but I’ll be awfully close. I can only pray for the snow to hold off another month, or that my resolve remains strong enough to carry me through heavy snowfall. Continue Reading >>

Massachusetts-Speak

~~~
Day’s Verse:
“He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High; and the Lord God will give Him the throne of His father David; and He will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and His kingdom will have no end.”
Luke 1:32-33
~~~

Mom sent this to me the other day. It is so true. My coworker Brenda is Brender, my ex-coworker Erika was Eriker, the drawer is a drah; the list goes on. Also some things are called strange things: A drinking fountain is a bubbler, a grocery cart is a carriage. What the heck? Continue Reading >>

My Weekend

~~~
Day’s Verse:
The angel said to her, “Do not be afraid, Mary; for you have found favor with God. And behold, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you shall name Him Jesus.”
Luke 1:30-31
~~~

Man's Best FriendFriday I worked a half-day, staying at work until 11:45 (and that was working 30 minutes of overtime!) This worked out well because I had spent the last three days trapped in second gear on my bicycle, which meant I pedaled like a madwoman on downhills while muttering imprecations at the vagaries of my stubborn front dérailleur. I took my bike to Frank’s Spoke n’ Wheel, where I explained to the nice guy pictured in that my darn bike refused to shift out of 2nd gear. He hoisted it up on their nifty bike suspender, turned the pedal once, and immediately told me, “Here’s your problem: Your whole gear system is bone dry.” I kind of knew that, having listened to the creak and rattle of my chain for the last month, but he pulled out some spray-can lubricant, demonstrated how to apply it to chain, derailleur, and (interestingly) the gearshifts up on the handlebars. He recommended I buy lubricant with Teflon and apply it often; I think this cold, often wet weather tends to wash the lubrication away. And he checked my tire pressure, added some air to my front tire with a really sweet pump, and sent me on my way without charging me a penny for all the help. Continue Reading >>