I want to see the world. Oh God, will You let me go?

http://www.lib.utexas.edu/maps/world_maps/world_rel_803005AI_2003.jpg

Bah-humbug and yea!

On an annoying note, what I don't understand is how a student can apply, be accepted, and have everything done for IBEX in 2 days, yet the people who were accepted 4 months ago still don't have it together. I guess it is this way in a lot of things (classes, jobs, applications, etc.), but you would think that if you really cared about going to Israel, you would be prepared.
On a happier note, my oldest brother graduated from the police academy last night and is now a full-fledged policeman! After 24 weeks of study and preparation, Ross is now a Placer County deputy sheriff! He works for the same department as my brother Scott, who has been a deputy sheriff for about a year and a half. They both looked very spiffy in their green uniforms. They also sported little black elastic bands across their stars, in honor of the policeman that died on duty on Wednesday.
On a funnier note, when Brenda and I walked into the auditorium last night, the usher handing out programs gave one to Brenda and asked her to share it with her mom.
"Mom? or sister?" he asked.
"Sister," I said.

Pickles

For some reason when my parents had Brenda 7 1/2 years ago, I started calling her "Pickle." I don't know why; she doesn't look like a pickle. Any way, the other day Brenda was commenting on the fact that Mom had written "pickles" on her shopping list.
Jennica-"We don't need pickles, we have one right here!!"
Brenda-"I'm not a pickle to eat, I'm a pickle to love!!"


Pickle has a big forehead just like the rest of her family...

Status

The sentence has been served...Off to credentialing I go...

Status

Jennica is awaiting her sentence...

Christian Worldview Reading...

The Christian faith is not true because it works. It works because it is true.

Genuine understanding generates genuine faith, and genuine faith in turn generates genuine experience. Without genuine faith, experience can easily be counterfeited by emotionalism. Without genuine understanding, what passes for faith can be a counterfeit confidence of purely human origins (such as the power of positive thinking). So understanding is integral to faith, just as faith and understanding are both integral to experience.
- Os Guinness, God in the Dark

Does your worship inform your theology or does your theology inform your worship?
-Dr. Greg Behle

Overheard...

I was walking to class yesterday when I overheard this conversation:

Tim: Where are you going?
Adam: The IBEX office. [I pretend not to hear this as Adam waves his application in the air] Are you going to Israel?
Tim: No, I don’t have time.
Adam: Ahh, you always have time for Israel!! You don’t know how long it’s going to be there!

Hehe, Shabbat Shalom!


Tank museum, Latrun, Israel

Upon a star...

I wish people would stop dropping IBEX because of financial reasons (as responsible as that may be).

I wish my IBEX e-mail would answer itself (hehe).

I wish I got to mail stuff everyday (I think it's fun).
hmmm-hh-hmmm

I wish I could throw away a lot of stuff in my office (or at least recycle it).

I wish I got paid a little more and that my job required a few more hours.

I wish I could work and talk to friends at the same time; not always easy.

I wish I knew why people weren't signing up for next semester.
I wish I could have this job beyond the spring, but I also want to graduate and move on to something even better! :)

Ben-Gurion and I are buddies...

professor, mentor, friend

So Todd is coming out to California! It is awesome how much this man has had an impact on so many students.
For one reason I think it is because ibex is so different from any other college experience. You get to live in the Middle East and you get to see the professors and their families all the time. You definitely get to know them better than you get to know most of the other California professors.
Also, since ibex brings up so many good memories, many of these memories are automatically linked to the professors.
Third, Todd genuinely cares about his students. He cares not just about their intellectual lives, but even more he cares about their spiritual lives. It is very important to him that his students stay close to God and live genuine, non-hypocritical lives before Him.
Also, Todd has a great personality. He is a funny, intelligent, sarcastic guy.
Yea for Todd! I haven't seen him in 2 years.

Well, we finally got internet at our apartment. Yea for more distractions!

How ironic...

Wouldn't you know that the day I decide to wear both my "Palestine" shirt and my "אילת" (Ayelet) necklace, I would meet a Jewish guy named David working at Panera Bread? He asked what my necklace said and I told him "Ayelet."
"What does that mean?"
"It means female deer; it's Hebrew."
"I know, I'm Jewish, too, but I don't know Hebrew."
I thought of telling him, "Oh, I'm not Jewish and I don't know Hebrew either, but really, I'm on Israel's side!" But someone was behind me in line and I figured it would be long and kind of complicated to explain it. Oh well; I guess I'll just eat my blueberry muffin...

Viola Sighting #110

Viola has been in hibernation; good thing she missed the fires. She has joined Plant Ops as part of their pest control patrol. Keep those gophers away!