Today was a perfect day weather wise. We made a road trip to see the lighthouses of the Outer Banks. We started the day early at the Orange Blossom Bakery in Buxton. Mike had a recommendation to not miss the apple uglies at the bakery. Rumor had it that they run out early. So, we left at 7:20 a.m. and made the 2 hour drive…
Our Group
Here’s our group at the OBX on our deck: Keith and Al on the left, Brett and I in the center, Mike and Greg on the right.
On Vacation!
Brett and I are on vacation this week in the Outer Banks. We have a very nice home direct oceanfront in Corolla. We’re spending the week with our friends Mike and Greg and Al and Keith. The weather is supposed to be picture perfect all week, high 70s – mid 80s and sunny. Today was just a lazy day relaxing and laying around the house….
San Diego Mayor speaks from his heart
I have seen this video discussed in blogs over this past week. It is truly amazing. The mayor speaks on behalf of same sex marriage acknowledging that separate but equal is not the same as marriage. He was speaking of the unfairness of civil unions for same sex couples instead of marriage. Take a few minutes to view the video. It is obvious that it…
Weight Watchers: Week 15
Well I finally broke 250 this week! I weighed-in at 249.8 with my total loss to date at 18.4 pounds. I am pretty happy about that. I spent 4 days at a retreat with excellent food. I watched what I ate but still over indulged at times. I think the Weight Watchers Core Plan is something I can live with. The slow but gradual weight…
Leadership Retreat: Day 3
Saturday evening’s vespers was a very spiritual experience for me. As part of worship, we gathered in clusters of four and shared our stories of what keeps us going on our journey. I was joined by 3 people with amazing stories. Two were former Lutheran Church Missouri Synod members who experienced alienation in their church. One was asked to leave congregations twice when they found…
Leadership Retreat: Day 2
Who would have thought this morning that I would have ended up with my toe nails painted with fruit flavored nail polish? I guess I even wonder why there is fruit flavored nail polish. All I can say that it was part of this evening’s worship service. I also have to say that I have never had my nails painted during church. Retreats are just…
Back in Chicago again
I am attending the Lutherans Concerned Leadership Retreat at the Cabrini Retreat Center. The retreat started with dinner and socializing with friends and ended with an uplifting worship service and reception. In between, we discussed a variety of topics related to synod and churchwide assemblies. I particularly enjoyed a presentation by Troy Plummer of the UMC Reconciling Ministries program. He described an initiative the group…