The Weekly Wrap-Up: March 27-31, 2017

So. Crazy week.

I did warn you.

For some time now, I have wanted to take T&M training. We do it twice a year in Greenwood, and usually I'm behind the scenes. I should already know how to use it, right? Technically, yes. But I wanted to actually sit in the sessions and hear what we're telling people so that I can be clear on what I tell people when they send email inquiries. This week, I finally got the chance.

Let me tell you, I got a ton of information this week. It was really inspiring to meet people from so many countries and backgrounds who are passionate about church multiplication and wanting to see how Train & Multiply can help them.

Here, Paul is demonstrating the backbone of Train & Multiply - the Generational Cycle. This repeatable process takes people step by step through the phases of planting multiplying churches, beginning with prayer and circling around to enrolling new workers. It's such a simple concept, and it really can be used in any context.

I drew this to illustrate what it takes to have a healthy church. Truly, my artistic talent is being wasted here. 

I don't have a photo of my part in this particular roleplay, but essentially, there were two evangelists who were trying to ignore the distractions in order to find the Person of Peace (yours truly). I was so distracted by the distractors that I nearly forgot to welcome the evangelists into my home. Quite funny. 

In the midst of all of this, I was dog-sitting for a friend. This is Kira. She tolerated my presence, but spent most of our time together pining for her owner. 

Immediately after ending my dog-sitting stint, I started cat-sitting. This is Lily. I've taken care of her before, so we're great friends. She's not normally so stand-offish. 

And now, a blast from the past!

Anybody know who that is?

Next week, we hopefully finish Portuguese so I can move on to Tagalog!

Finding Dory Live Blog

No, I haven't seen it yet.

Yes, I know it's been out a while.

No, I don't have an excuse.

Joining me today is Kira, a husky mix with half-adorable/half-creepy heterochromia. Who better to guest commentate on an animal film than an animal, right?

Let's begin.

Does anyone else expect the little lamp to go flying when it squashes down the 'I' in Pixar? Just me?

How exactly is she supposed to remember to tell children she has short-term memory loss?

And what responsible parent plays hide-and-seek with their memory-challenged child?

Is her father actually Marlin? Because he worries like Marlin.

How does she remember her name?

How did the VW Beetle end up at the bottom of the ocean?

Do we know how long Finding Nemo lasted?

This is one of those things Marlin's going to hold over his child forever, isn't it?

(Kira, do you like the song?) (...) (Right, then.)

The manta song rocks.

Seriously, where is this reef? They went across an ocean to Australia. California is another ocean away. I'm confused.

Sooooomewheeere, oouuuttt there!

Turtles. Sweeeeet, dude.

Is this a shipping container shipping ship? Yes, it is. And it's inhabited by the Giant Squid.

And children, this is why you cut up your plastic rings before you throw them away.

No child is going to go into ocean conservation if they think they're separating families.

I totally fell for this octopus thing. He's hilarious.

No one wants to go to Cleveland.

(How about you, Kira? Cleveland?) (::snore::)

Coffee cannot be good for squid.

Idris Elba as a sea lion. Yes, please.

Something tells me we don't want to know who Destiny is.

Yup. That's a problem. Get this fish some sonar.

Of course she learned whale from a whale shark.

How many things rhyme with open ocean? I get the feeling we'll find out soon.

These ducks look evil. Becky is hilarious.

Wow. This kid has some sass.

Gerald looks like a deformed ferret.

(Kira looked up when I started laughing.)

Really? She can fit into a sippy cup?

Remember when I was concerned about the lamp? Yeah, that was why.

Why is Sigourney Weaver the voice of the Marine Institute?

Wow, Hank. Harsh.

Horror movie of the year. Starring children.

Instinct. The answer is instinct.

That is a very dangerous course of action. Also, do they know what a tide pool does?

Awww. Octopus blush. Septapus, sorry.

I'm pretty sure all of these fish have very precise pH requirements for their water. And she's been in how many different water sources now?

Don't tell me. They put her parents back in the ocean.

Who puts a giant suction pipe in an exhibit?

Ah, The Cleveland.

Yay, she found them again! (Marlin and Nemo, Kira. Not her parents yet.)

If the flag goes down, does that mean that Sigourney Weaver is no longer in residence?

Disney. Come on. The dead parent trope needs to stop.

Ooh. Right back to the beginning. With smaller eyes.

(Kira's heartbroken. Truly.)

WWMD? (What would Marlin do?)

Her parents are awesome. Shell runways FTW!

Pretty sure the Marine Life Institute shouldn't have walls they can jump over.

Bridge.

Yes! Cute otters are cute.

That's right, Dory. Tell off the weird septapus.

Yeah, try explaining that the septapus drove your truck away.

Do a kamikaze dive off the bridge.

Called it!

Oh, look at all these non-native species going into their non-native environment.  I'm sure this will end well.

I would have been disappointed with any other song.

(What did you think, Kira?) (...) (I don't think she cares about fish.)

That was cute. Nothing complicated. And only one still-dead parent this time! Good job, guys.

Do they hunt down escaped marine life? What would PETA do? Probably kill them.

(Kira woke up for the post-credit scene. Now we need a movie with these guys. Kira agrees.)

The Weekly Wrap-Up: March 20-24, 2017

"I got chiiilllllllsss, they're multiplyin'!"

Subject: Air Conditioning
Message: Is On

This was the content of an email in my inbox this week, guys. Despite the still-varying temperatures of March, we're now committed to the cold. I, fortunately, still have my heater, but this is one time when having a large office is a detriment - it's gotta work doubly hard.

So Japanese is done! Yay! It's nice to have that project in the can. They've been waiting a while for it, and I like being able to deliver.

We're back to Portuguese, group 4 this time. It's actually good to keep working in the same language for a while because you get used to looking for things specific to that language. Still, I'd like to be done with it soon.

I forgot to link the radio ad we did last week. I did a bit of co-writing, cast the voices, and played a small part myself.

Slight health update - I had a couple of doctor's appointments, and I'm having some tests run. Hopefully, we figure this out soon so I can stop taking so many painkillers.

Next week will be a bit different, so stay tuned. Exiting stuff, Maynard!

The Weekly Wrap-Up: March 13-17, 2017

Okay. Now that that's out of the way...

I think I've been a bit distracted lately. Or in a bit of a fog. Can't really say I'm done with that. But I'll try to be a little more informative about things on here. I need a little help, though. What do you want to know about my life? What kinds of things are you interested in hearing? More photos? More random thoughts from the dark recesses of my overactive brain? Do you like my live blogs of animated movies? What about music? It's been a while since I've done music. Do you have questions I can answer? Do tell.

In the meantime, I'm deeply entrenched in Japanese. We were in the middle of translating what used to be level 1 (1-34) for them when we started revising everything, so we are finishing that as they upgrade to version 4. I'm trying to get these 34 booklets published this week. And next, probably. I'm moving fast but also trying not to miss things. It's getting more uncomfortable to sit for long periods of time, so I'm trying to intersperse breaks at opportune times. 

I sang in chapel again on Tuesday. I'm still of two minds about it, but I'll keep doing it until I resolve something. It's not that I don't like to sing. I do. I like it a lot. A little too much, sometimes. I'm decent. Could be better with training. It's something I once thought about pursuing professionally. But I have a very healthy ego. And an unhealthy self-esteem, if those things can exist at the same time. I want to do this for the right reasons. 

Are you guys observing Lent this year? Insofar as it relates to giving something up, I am not. I didn't really feel convicted about anything, and being in this fog didn't help. I couldn't really focus long enough to pinpoint one thing. But I think I am going to try to have longer personal Bible study and prayer times. We have had a gal from the South Korea office with us since January. She's quite lovely, and she spoke yesterday about her own times of prayer and study. She reads the Bible through three times a year. She's in prayer at least three hours a day. It's partly a cultural difference, true, and partly personality, but I admire her devotion and her spirit. It's something I'd like people to say about me - "She was always in tune with the Spirit of God." That would be a ringing endorsement indeed. 

So that's a new goal. It's weird. I was talking to a coworker about this, and we noted that we're fortunate to work for a Christian organization. At the same time, however, we're very much regimented in our work. We have deadlines and schedules and set times for prayer just as we set times for meetings. 

I think I've established by now that prayer is a different experience for me than it is for many other people. 

(Incidentally, in searching for the posts to link to in the above sentence, I realized just how hidebound I've become lately. Like, I wasn't exactly a social butterfly before, but I did actually do stuff outside of work and my apartment. I went places. I think I need a vacation. Like, out of this state. I'll put it on my credit card if I have to.)

Anyway, I think this is something I should work on. It's just going to be hard to convince myself that it's worth taking time from work to do. 

Umm... Sorry. Got an email, which turned into a trip upstairs, and by the time I came back down, I'd forgotten where I parked my train of thought. 

Seriously, though, feedback would be nice. 

See you next week.

The Weekly Wrap-Up: March 6-10, 2017

First, a flashback:



Ah, good times.

I finished Portuguese this week! It's about time, I know. But it was three whole groups. So I'm fine with my timeline.

I don't have a lot of other work stuff to talk about. But I do want to mention a particular need for prayer. I've been feeling some pain and discomfort for a couple of weeks now. I did finally go to the doctor, but I'm not thrilled with the result. (Mainly because they don't really know what's wrong.) So please just pray that we figure out what is going on and that I don't go crazy before then.

My parents are in Israel for the next two weeks. Not sure who I'll talk to until they get back. I have no life. Maybe I should make some friends.

meh.

And now for something completely different...


Bikes for Church Workers from One Mission Society on Vimeo.

The Weekly Wrap-Up: February 27 - March 3, 2017

All I do is Port-Port-Portuguese no matter what!

Yep. A few meetings sprinkled here and there to make life interesting, but mostly just Portuguese. I finished group 1, though, so progress!

And I helped Carolyn do the timeline for orientees, again. That's always fun.

One of these days, I should really learn how to draw.

Not sure what else to tell you.

Uh...

It's March!

Oh, I also did my performance appraisal for last year. I'm performing at above average standards.

So that's cool.