Bedroom Furniture, Part One

On Friday, we received two of four pieces of our bedroom set. Perhaps it is a popular set, but only two pieces that were ordered have arrived. The other two are on back-order and are supposed to be in this week. We should have them delivered by this coming Friday. I have included pictures of the bed frame and the chest of drawers. The dresser & mirror and night stand are the ones coming soon.

This coming Wednesday, we will be getting some additional furniture to round out the guest room and the multi-purpose/other room. It is our hope that by the first week in August we should have the house set up. Then, our next major project will be to get the basement put together. That will be a project that will need to wait until the fall, as a new carpet will need to be put down before we do any major work down there.

Bonus Softball

The Strikeforce United Co-Ed team was a little short on players for tonight's game, so Christa and I helped out by playing. With a team consisting of 50% new players, we managed to win 14-2. Personally, I went 3-4 with 2 RBI and 2 runs. It's always more fun when you are on the winning end of the game. Everyone was also out there to have fun, which makes it less stressful. It's now past 11 PM though...way later than our bed time. Time to get some sleep.

Parking Space

My parents came up to visit Christa and I today. They attended the 10:45 AM service at Oakfield. Afterward, we had lunch and my dad helped us fulling "connect" the house to the internet. We have wireless!

Later in the afternoon, I asked my parents if they wanted to see the church in Eden. I drove and parked in my parking spot. The sign has been officially changed (see left).

I know that as an RHD I got a reserved spot. But, as a pastor, I get a reserved spot with my name on it! :-D

The Oakfield Tornado

Today is the anniversary of the tornado that came through Oakfield, WI in 1996. It was the only F5 tornado to be in the United States that year. The tornado actually came through the street that Christa and I live on right now. It destroyed the old Methodist church (which had just completed an addition) along with the parsonage. In total, 47 homes were destroyed and many more were damaged. Luckily, there were no fatalities.

I encourage you to pray for those in the Oakfield community as there minds are probably on this anniversary. Thank you.

Softball Update

For the first time in three weeks, I was actually able to play softball. Strikeforce United put out a good effort, especially in the seventh inning, but we still lost 8-6. Our fielding was really good in this game; we just couldn't score any runs.

I went 1-3. After two pretty pathetic foul ball outs, I managed to knock a triple into center field, knocking one run in and eventually scoring on a single by the next batter. I managed to do a pretty decent job fielding, not allowing any balls hit my way to get past me.

New Sofa and Chair

I thought I would post pictures of our new new sofa and chair. They arrived today and actually match well to the coffee table and end tables that we had also picked. Stay tuned for room photos as the house gets more put together :).

ABCs of Jim

*** This will also be posted on Facebook. Some of what you see in the introduction only applies to that. Otherwise, enjoy the information! ***

You've been tagged. You are supposed to write a note with the ABC's of YOU. At the end, choose 26 people to be tagged. You have to tag me, so really you just need 25 more people. If I tagged you, it's because I want to know more about you - but not in a creepy stalker kind of way.

(To do this, go to “notes” under tabs on your profile page, paste these instructions in the body of the note, type your ABC's of Me, tag 26 people (in the right hand corner of the app) then click publish.)

A - Age: 32

B - Bed size: queen

C - Chore you hate: dusting

D - Dog's name: We do not have a dog...yet. :)

E - Essential start your day item: A run or walk in Oakfield

F - Favorite color: purple

G - Gold or Silver: silver

H - Height: 5' 9" (ish)

I - Instruments you play(ed): piano, I sing (I suppose that's not an instrument)

J- Job title: Pastor

K - Kid(s): None

L - Living arrangements: House

M - Mom's name: Marie

N - Nicknames: Droste, JD, Jimmy (from childhood...no used anymore)

O - Overnight hospital stay other than birth? Hmm...none that I can remember.

P - Pet Peeve: lateness

Q - Quote from a movie: "What we do in life echoes in eternity" - Gladiator

R - Right or left handed: Right

S - Siblings: None

T - Time you wake up: 7:00 AM (except on Saturdays)

U- Underwear: Umm...yeah.

V - Vegetable you dislike: lima beans

W - Ways you run late: I don't run late. If I do ;)...it's because I got lost driving somewhere.

X - X-rays you've had: dental and fractured wrist

Y - Yummy food you make: Parmesan cheese bowls (good with Caesar salad)

Z - Zoo favorite: the penguins

A Beautiful Saturday

It truly is a beautiful day today! Blue skies...gentle breeze...and it's 80 degrees. God must want us to get outside and enjoy the weather :).

Christa is enjoying the weather working at Settler's Mill. I imagine there will be many folks playing mini-golf today. I did manage to get a walk in this afternoon, but I have been spending a lot of time filing and unpacking. I have also been practicing tomorrow's sermon.

On a sports note: Last night's Brewers game was painful. I thought the Brewers could pull it out; it was exciting to watch. But six runs in the 10th inning is not acceptable. *sigh* Hopefully they can turn things around tonight.

The Week That Was

It's Friday evening and Christa is at work until 11:30 or so. With the Brewers going toe to toe with the Dodgers on TV, I thought I would provide a few bullet points highlighting the past week:

• As mentioned before, we got the internet and cable hooked up on Thursday. Things feel more like home.
• We got our first batch of forwarded mail from Oshkosh. Wow...you do manage to get on a lot of bulk mailing lists in a few short years.
  
• Sunday is my first worship service at Oakfield and Tabor. I like the way the bulletin turned out and I think my sermon will help the congregation get to know Christa and I a little better.
• We get the new sofa and chair on Monday. I think it will provide a little more lounge space than we have right now.
  

Running in Oakfield

Being a little more settled in, Christa and I have now gotten back into our more usual routines. I have begun running again. Without consistent internet access, it has been difficult to map out some runs, but that will hopefully be changing soon. Living in Oakfield does provide some great advantages for the runner:

1. There are no stop lights in the city at all. The nearest one is probably six miles away. Luckily, you don't need to stop too much.
2. Much of the city is surrounded by long, county roads, ideal for long runs.
3. There isn't a whole lot of traffic in the city, so you can relax as you run around the area.
4. There is a nice trail that runs through the city and goes both east and west from the city. It is often shaded which is very nice.
   

First Day in the Office

Today is my first official day of work as a pastor for the Oakfield and Tabor churches. Most of the day was spent in the office going through files and setting up the office. I am hoping that tomorrow, I can begin sermon preparation and begin putting together the bulletin.

Christa and I had a nice weekend at home with my parents. We grilled out on Saturday and met Christa's parents on Sunday for lunch. On Friday night before we went home, we got to go to a Timberrattler's game with friends from the church.

Cable and internet come Wednesday...yay!

Adjusting

Christa and I moved into our house in Oakfield on Monday evening. In three days, there have been a few things that I am already adjusting to:

1. Not having internet and cable in the house is tough! You don't realize how much to rely on it until it is no there...well, that's not entirely true. I already knew how much I rely on it. If anything, television was something I was used to having on in the background. Social networking has become such a part of my life that when you don't have constant access to it, you feel quite disconnected. I also get most of my news through the internet, so that has also been an adjustment. This will change on July 8...we are getting connected :).
   
2. For the better, Christa and I are tempted less when it comes to things that are bad for us. We don't eat out much or eat as much junk food. You can't really because there isn't a great deal of commerce in the city. It means that we really have to plan our trip as most things are 15-20 minutes away from the house.
3. It is really quiet in Oakfield. As such, I feel as though I have more time for reading and it is easier to concentrate. That also might have something to do with the lack of internet and cable ;).

That's all for now. Hopefully I can post more regularly.

Blog Updates Postponed

Hey folks!

Christa and I are unpacking in our new house in Oakfield. We will likely not have internet access in the house until July 8. As such, you probably won't see regular blog updates until then. Depending on when I can find wireless access, I may pop on from time to time :).