More Rob news

Here are the highlights from the email I just got from Rob:

• There was an Apple store that he went to but the guy working there didn't even know what Norton Utilities was and, so, was unable to help him.
• The computer problem is that it starts and only runs for a short while. He says it's running for longer each time he uses it. That's just weird.
• His foot is acting up again and he had to take an Advil. He thinks it's because of the pressure of flying for so long.
• They're staying in Gaborone this weekend and will be going rural next week.
• He finally got a full night's sleep but is still (his words) "spongy".

As for me, I am going to help Amy move today, finish emails and prepare for my trip this weekend. I have to print out directions and maps as well, now that I can't access my beloved Streets & Trips. Sigh. GPS ... no good to me without my laptop. Double sigh.

On the home front

I booked a speaking thing for this weekend in Gibsonville, NC, at Peace Lutheran Church. I'll be doing the Sunday School session and setting up our display in the fellowship area.

Last night, I went to the Melting Pot (a fondue place) with a bunch of the girls for chocolate fondue. Yummm! I finished off my last novel (Three, by Ted Dekker) befrore bed. Then, it occurred to me that reading a thriller (even a Christian one) before bed on my first night alone in the apartment was not the smartest thing I had ever done. So, I whipped out the book on lingustics for Greek students that Dr. Enermalm Tsiparis had given me, read about a third of that. That successfully distracted me and I fell asleep uneventfully.

Got up this morning and helped Beth load her moving van. I will probably do more of that this afternoon. I'm going to dinner with her family (and a bunch of other folks) tonight. Hoping to keep myself socialized to distraction ... though I feel better having heard from Rob already.

I tried to book an additional event for Friday night in NC but got the "no solicitation" speech from the gatekeeper at that church so I'm going to stick with the one event that I have going on already.

Gotta email now, on this wonky keyboard. Feeling bad for Rob and his computer problems. Sigh. Needs prayer, that one.

I heard from Rob!

I just got this email from him. He has arrived safely in Botswana. He wanted me to forward this to his folks but, as they regularly read this blog and I only have their email address on the computer which is now at that shop, I thought posting it here would suffice. So, Dennis & June, here it is ... greetings from Botswana:

Hello Sni,

Just wanted to let you know I got in safely. Very long trip. Details later. Obviously, I'm not emailing you from my normal account. My computer seems to be having problems. Just my luck, eh? The one time I don't pack any repair software.

Botswana does look a lot like Southern California. yellow grasslands, shrubby trees. Will take some pictures soon. It's dark now.

Very tired, of course. But just wanted to let you know I arrived okay. Will try to send something for the blog sometime soon. Will probably have to email it to you and have you make it pretty. Burn that bridge when we come to it.

If you think about it, please forward this email to mom and dad. Don't know their email off the top of my head.

Love,
Rob

Back!

Well, sort of back, anyway. My computer's video card fried and it's attached to the motherboard so Rob and I drove it up to Waxhaw yesterday to put it in for repairs. I should be getting it back next week. It's been useless to me for a week now. I went through serious withdrawal.

Rob flew to Botswana this morning. We drove to the airport at 3:40AM. I drove back solo. Couldn't sleep well after that. I called Rob at 8AM and caught him in Washington, DC airport. We had a nice chat; much more coherent than the one we had had at 4AM, saying goodbye.

I met with a pastor this morning, at Ebenezer Lutheran church. I'm currently trying to line something up in NC for this Sunday as I want to drive up and see my sister, who will be in Elon, NC for the weekend. Afetr this, she's going to Korea for a year and I probably won't see her again before we go to Namibia for good so I wanted to be sure to see my new nephew at least once before they take off.

Trying to find a library book today that I turned in but the library staff has no record of me doing so and it isn't on the shelf. I know this to be true; I double-checked myself. I'm annoyed. I'm theorizing that when I left it on the counter to be checked in and walked away, it left the library in someone else's stack and didn't set off an alarm because, hey, it was already checked out. I'm not categorically opposed to being wrong myself but I searched our apartment and remember bringing the book back. So I remain a little bitter a having to "renew" a book I don't even have anymore to avoid late fees. Because, as they said, "either someone stole it, which doesn't happen, or ... [meaningful silence]". Argh.

I'm stopping typing now because I'm on the computer in the student union building and I have to keep correcting typos because the keyboard is so clunky.

And I quit coffee today; drinking only tea. Grumpy, me.

Happy Birthday ...

... Kate! Wish we were there ...

And, as for myself, I have nothing in particular to report. In fact, I have to say that I may not be posting anything for the next week. I have a term paper on Galatians 5:15-21 due a week from today and, despite having put in at least 25 brain-hours so far, I'm just starting to get a handle on it now. I have a final exam in Greek a week from today as well so that's going to chunk into my time somewhat. Then, I have my Pauline Studies final that Wednesday.

So, I may not have time to report anything for at least a week. But, then again, I won't have anything to report either.

Here's what might possibly turn into an excerpt from my soon to be written paper:

'In verse 18, Paul says, “If build up again the very things that I once tore down, then I demonstrate that I am a transgressor.” In an English reading, this seems to carry the implication that Paul is not building things up and therefore is not demonstrated to be a transgressor. The difficulty with this is that the use of ei with a present indicative shows that this is a real condition. Therefore, this could be read as Paul saying that he is actually building something which he once tore down. As this sentence is followed by an explanation (preceded by gar), that Paul “died to the law”, we can safely assume that it is not the law that Paul is claiming to rebuild. This is despite the fact that the law, or justification by means of it, is the only thing which Paul “tore down” (kataluw) within this letter. In fact, it is the only thing which Paul has ever claimed in his writings to tear down. Therefore, to ascertain what it was that Paul “tore down”, we need to look for other destructive activity attributed to Paul by himself in this letter.'

In a future posting, perhaps, the mystery demystifies somewhat ... I hope ...