Evangelicals and the Palestinian/Israeli Conflict

I just finished reading a book about the 1967 Six Days War, which was a continuation of the Arab/Israeli conflict. Very enlightening, as I felt the book provided a balanced perspective. This is such a complicated topic that I was somewhat clueless prior to reading the book.

However, now I have a renewed interest in this issue and it seems to be good timing. Check out this video from a CNN piece. It really presents a view has not been discussed much at all but that I've felt strongly about for some time. I've learned a lot from friends--both Palestinian Christians and Messianic Jews--and I think my perspective from these experiences is similar as that being presented by the group.

Many of you reading this will be familiar with three of those interviewed (Ron Sider, Chris Seiple and Joel Hunter).

Importance of Bible Translation

I recently read some quotes from Archbishop Henry Luke Orombi of Uganda. They were published in First Things, Aug/Sept issue, in an article titled "What is Anglicanism." I thought for everyone with an interest in Bible translation, or at least why I do what I do for a living, this would be interesting:

"Traditional African Society was solely an oral culture, which limited its ability to share ideas beyond the family level. We couldn't write our language, and there was nothing to read in our language. . .Because of the Bible, our languages have been enriched and recorded. For the first time, we heard God in our own languages. To this day our people bring their Bibles to church and follow along with the readings."

"The Bible has given us a moral and spiritual basis for transforming culture."

Pretty cool, huh?

How Does GMail Go From One Place to Another?

For all of you GMail fans out there, check out the final version of this video--some of you may have seen earlier portions of it.

Photos on Flickr

For those of you who don't know (probably most of you), I started posting more of my pictures on my Flickr site. Feel free to bookmark and check it periodically, or I've also added a link to the right on this page.

Grandpa's 80th Birthday Party

Grandpa's 80th Birthday Party
Originally uploaded by Chris Winkler

We had a big shin-dig in Michigan on Saturday for my Grandpa's 80th birthday party (and my Grandma's 78th). It was the first time in nine years that all of their kids, grandkids and great-grandkids have been together in one place. Christie and I flew up for an elongated Labor Day weekend and it was well worth it. Lots of time with my parents and plenty of other relatives.

The best part was when we first arrived at their house for the party--because they had no clue we were in town! My grandpa told us to never do that again or else he might have a heart attack. My grandma thought that I was my brother at first until she did a double-take and it finally sunk in.

It certainly gave them something to talk about at the Dairy Barn, the coffee shop in town where all the locals hang out! (In all actuality, I'm sure they'll be talking about it for months to come.)

Cry, Laugh, Whatever

Christie sent me this video that her friend Tammy sent, and I had to share it. You can cry or laugh or whatever at it. Just know that it's a little disturbing if you care at all about the future of our country.

Relevant article on CSM

Many of you know that I used to work for a great ministry called the Center for Student Missions (see link at the right). There was just a really good article written in Relevant magazine about the disparity in Washington, DC, and CSM's own Mark Harmon is quoted extensively in it.

Thought it might be worth a read for you!

Vacationing Down South

Even though we live in Florida, Christie and I don't really live in "the" South. However, Georgia definitely qualifies as the South and that is where we found ourselves last week for a vacation. Some highlights:

--A visit to Christie's alma mater, LaGrange College.
--Seeing Callaway Gardens, a beautiful park at which Christie used to work. We did it by bike--which amounted to about 11 miles or so. We had a blast!
--My first visit to Turner Field in Atlanta to catch a Braves game. Besides being a great baseball game and watching Bobby Cox earn his record-setting 132nd ejection, I was able to notch up the 14th major league baseball park in which I've seen a game--I'm almost halfway to seeing all of them. (The game ended on a walk-off double by Chipper Jones...like I said, it was a great game!)
--A trip to Trader Joe's, everyone's favorite grocery store. This time, with no airline weight restrictions limiting us, we stocked up--including a cooler we snagged from Christie's parents. Nothing beats TJ's hummus, and Christie really likes some of their healthy snack food. I think this was the best part of the trip for her!
--Relaxing for the last half of the week a B&B for missionaries near Athens.
--The food was incredible, and classic for the South: Waffle House, soul food (including an all-you-can-eat buffet for only $8.50), BBQ, and sweet tea by the gallon for breakfast, lunch and dinner.

Though it was a long drive, the trip was well worth it. We hadn't seen much of each other in the previous month because of the day camp which Christie was running, so we spent a lot of quality time together. I'll try to post pictures as soon as I can.

I Can Swim!

Several of you have written to me wondering how swim lessons went. In short, the class was fun and successful. It was supposed to be a two-week class, but the the three students and our teacher got along so well--and were making such good progress--that we decided to keep going for another two weeks!

By the end, we were all much more comfortable in the water, able to tread water (still not as efficiently as I would like, but good enough for the time being), swim using several different strokes, and float three different ways. Most importantly, the three of us now have the skills necessary to save ourselves if anything unfortunate should happen in the water.

Thanks for the prayers. And if there's ever a pool around the next time we're together, ask me to show off my new skills!

SF Mayoral Election

I love San Francisco. In what other city--okay there might be one or two others in the world--would the list of candidates running for mayor look like this? Note the occupations of each:


Harold Brown, retired teacher and blogger

George Davis, nudist activist

Tony Hall, former supervisor

Lonnie Holmes, San Francisco Juvenile Probation Department manager

Harold Hoogasian, flower shop owner

Grasshopper Kaplan, taxi driver

Quintin Mecke, program director for the nonprofit Safety Network Partnership

Gavin Newsom, incumbent

Wilma Pang, music teacher

Michael Powers, owner of Power Exchange sex club

Chicken John Rinaldi, showman

Billy Bob Whitmer, educator

Josh Wolf, blogger

Swim Lessons

For the first time in something like 15 years, I'll be taking swim lessons.

There have been valiant attempts before to teach me to swim: my friend George offering me a swim lesson if I taught him tennis (high school); lessons through the county (middle school); random people offering me the miracle 15-minute lesson. Nothing stuck.

But I'm tired of being afraid to go out in water over my head, I know that learning to swim will be necessary when we move overseas, and if that wasn't enough to push me to take lessons, there was the little canoe accident out in northern California a few years ago.

Pray for me that I would be a good student and that the methods taught would stick with me. Classes are 40 minutes long and run Monday-Thursday for the next two weeks.

Buy One Get One Free to the MAX

Several months ago, when we were just married, Christie was still figuring out how to shop and cook for a guy who loved to eat...but also loved (and needed) to eat healthy. She knew that I liked Kashi cereal--one of the least-processed cereals that they sell in regular grocery stores.

So when Kashi went on sale one week at Winn-Dixie, Christie stocked up! This picture was taken to document the rationale for Winn-Dixie never again failing to put a limit on its Buy One Get One Free deals.

And yes, there really are 30 boxes of cereal there. It only took us (me) about three months to go through them...with the exception of a few boxes that people decided to ask if they could take. We must have looked like a store or food pantry or something.

Adventure on Half-Dome

Check out this blog posting by my friend Ryan. The trip he references was the one the best experiences of my life--and a highlight of all the hiking trips we took in California. Read the article he links to first, as it gives good background of the harrowing experience the hike can be.

Rental Cars and Airport Parking

On my way to work every day, depending on the route I take, I pass several car lots that offer two services: airport parking and rental cars.

Every time I pass one of these places, I have to laugh--does anyone ever get suspicious parking their car and leaving it at a place that also specializes in loaning out cars to other people?

Makes me think twice!

Midwestern Fun

Brief recap of our Michigan and Minnesota trip last month: GREAT! In typical Chris Winkler fashion, pretty much every moment of every day was full of some sort of activity--introducing Christie to various people at Hope College, meeting friends at random parks in the Twin Cities area, having dinner with some friends from Chicago (now living in Minneapolis), and several speaking engagements at four different churches.

We came away exhausted but full of new friends, renewed relationships with old friends, and a fun time all-around. And yeah, we took care of some work stuff, too: Christie attended a Children Desiring God conference and we shared about Wycliffe on multiple occasions.

This picture is from an amazing open house that my parents threw for us. The purpose was to give all of our friends and family from Michigan a chance to celebrate our wedding with us, as Florida was a bit far to come for most of them. Mom and Dad did a wonderful job with the food, decorations, invitations, etc. We also owe thanks to Doug and Katrina Jones and many others who helped my parents in tremendous ways.

Proof of the Owl

So if anyone actually doubted my owl story, here is a picture. More appealing pictures to come soon. (And those pictures are NOT of the owl, in case you were concerned.)

Friendly Neighborhood Owl

Christie and I just got back from a 10-day trip through the Midwest. About half of our time was spent in Michigan visiting the towns where I grew up and went to college: Boyne City and Holland, respectively. The other portion of the trip was in Minneapolis, where Christie attended a Children Desiring God conference and we visited with some of my friends who live in the area.

The trip was great, but it exhausted us. We were looking forward to coming home and spending the late afternoon and evening on Monday just relaxing and getting ready for the work week. Little did we know what was waiting for us at home.

A friendly neighborhood owl had somehow found its way into our house. But finding an owl in your home is one thing--I don't think that sole issue would have been too disturbing. However, finding a dead owl being eaten by maggots, and that appeared to have enjoyed defecating on almost every surface possible in our house--now that was quite upsetting.

Upon finding the owl, Christie ran out of the house screaming. I went next door and got the nine-year old twin boys who I thought might like to help me dispose of the animal. (They did at first, until it came time to actually move it.)

Since then, we've spent our week cleaning up owl feces and washing everything in sight. (In addition to working with our landlord to close the hole which we think the bird found its way in.) Ugh.

Two-Issue Christianity

Isn't it cool when you read something that is almost exactly how you feel, but you have never been able to eloquently put it in writing? That's what I thought when I read this great article that Christie passed along. May it provoke your thinking as much as this notion has provoked mine over the past several years.

Tolerance

I've been thinking a lot about my time in San Francisco lately, for a variety of reasons. As I was listening to my favorite SF radio station this afternoon on the Internet, I heard something interesting.

There is a big evangelical teen conference going on there right now, a program of Teen Mania called BattleCry. It has received some publicity in SF. Really, anything in SF is cause for a protest. (I seriously felt like there was one every day somewhere in the City.)

But as I was listening to KFOG today, the DJ said something which really caught my attention. To paraphrase: "Remember, in thinking about tolerance, we need to be accepting of those with views other than our own. And to all of you out there at AT&T Park for Battlecry, I hope you meet many of our stellar San Franciscans." The implication here is that in the city known for its tolerance of every belief EXCEPT Christianity, maybe a few people are actually beginning to see the hypocrisy in that system.

A Great Place to be Christian

This article was in the San Francisco Chronicle this past week. It's about protests surrounding a seminar hosted by my old church (Promised Land Fellowship) and quotes the pastor as well as a friend of mine (Michael Laird).

Some of you know the hostile climate Christians face in SF, and for others, this article is just a small taste of some of the issues going on in the City. I miss it, though, and think that San Francisco is a great place to be Christian.

Why? The Christian community is so small that it is a pretty tight-knit community. Also, the City really forces you to take a stand: either you're a Christian or you're not. Bible-belt Christianity ("I'm a Christian and go to church because my parents did.") just doesn't cut it there.

Updated Website

If you get a chance, check out my new and improved Wycliffe website. I just put up a bunch of wedding photos and updated the prayer requests.

Enjoy!

Rocket in the Rear View Mirror

There's only a few places on earth where you can look in the rear view mirror and see a rocket heading out to space. Central Florida is one of those areas, and this experience happened to me on Saturday.

I was heading west on the Beachline Expressway, on my way back to Orlando after an ultimate tournament in Palm Bay, when I looked in my rear view mirror to see a thick smoke trail with a ball of flame at the end of it. Cars were pulled off on the side of the expressway to take pictures. I was clueless, thinking that there was a shuttle launch that I had not heard about.

So when I got home, I found this article about a rocket launch that took place at that time.

Last summer's shuttle launch was one of the coolest things that I've seen in my life--and that was from my front yard! It's one of the few redeeming factors that I've found about living in Central Florida.

Why only 24 hours?

I often am disappointed at the fact that there are only 24 hours in a day.

To maintain an all-around healthy life, we're supposed to: exercise, eat healthy (which means taking time to menu plan and cook meals), spend time in God's Word, journal, pray, mentor someone, be mentored, engage with a church community, keep up on the latest world news, spend time with family and friends, read books, and relax.

And we're supposed to do all that, plus go to work, with only 24 hours in a day? Yeah, right. I like to get eight hours of sleep every night in order to be at my best, but I doubt I could do all of the above even if I only got four hours.

And there's also that neglected blog...

Photos Available!

A few photos from our wedding and honeymoon are available online at my Flickr site. I'll hopefully post more as we get more back from the photographer and other friends.

Bride and Groom

Chris and Christie's Disney Wedding
Originally uploaded by Chris Winkler.

No, we didn't really have a Disney wedding...and we didn't even buy these hats. :-) We found them in the store and thought they were pretty cool, and couldn't pass up the photo op. More wedding and honeymoon photos to follow soon, hopefully.

No Longer a Secret

Many of you know that I was keeping our honeymoon destination a secret from my beautiful bride...and nearly everyone else. I thought that for those of you wondering who might be checking this blog, I'd fill you in here.

We went to a secluded cabin in northeastern Alabama (about an hour from Chatanooga, TN) for about a week. It is owned by some friends of our pastor and his wife, and they rent it out to couples in ministry needing a retreat (Christie and I certainly fit the bill!). It was absolutely perfect for us--wilderness, mountains, no people around unless we wanted to visit town, good food nearby.

A Disturbing Revelation About My Fingers

My fingers are small.

This was made painfully aware to me by a man at the jewelery counter at JC Penney today. Christie and I were looking at wedding bands for me, and most of the styles come in sizes of 10 or higher. I, as it turns out, wear a 7.5. So we went on-line, thinking that there would be a better selection there. WRONG. The lowest size was 8.5.

Do I really have such small fingers that no major jeweler or department store carries a ring within one full size of my own? The answer, sadly, is yes.

(A disclaimer: plain white gold bands are available in my size, but this is the ONLY style available. We're looking into other options...)

Black Friday

For the first time in the 26 Thanksgiving Day weekends that I've celebrated during the course of my life, I went shopping on Black Friday (the day after Thanksgiving). I absolutely needed a dark suit for some meetings in New York next week, and they were (of course) deeply discounted at JC Penney--the only store I ever shop for clothes.

I had a game plan: one store, only looking at certain items, in and out in one hour. Did I reach my goal? I got everything I needed at good prices and was walking out of the store about an hour and 10 minutes after entering. Not too shabby.

A Near (Venison) Miss

How is it that I live in rural Michigan for most of my life and the closest I ever come to hitting a deer was just a few days ago in the Wycliffe parking lot in Orlando? And not only did I nearly hit the thing with my car--I almost hit him twice.

Late Saturday night (I was working late to finish things up before a week-long trip to Dallas) I was driving through the parking lot at Wycliffe when a deer darted out in front of me. After slamming on the brakes (as much slamming as can be done at 10 mph), the deer passed and I made it out to the road and turned right. Well...the deer had turned left decided to cross the road: immediately in front of me. That thing almost got squashed twice in a span of about 15 seconds.

And oh what I wouldn't have done for a little venison stew... :-)

Still Alive and Kicking

Yes, I do still exist, and I have not neglected my blog. In fact, I think about it almost every day. Seriously. There is always interesting stuff going on that I know I should blog about, but other things pop up and I run out of time in the day. My apologies to those of who have been checking this regularly. So...a quick update on life:

I've been traveling a lot. Dallas, DC, Southern and Central California, and various places in Florida. Had a great visit with my parents, who were here for about 10 days. When they first planned the trip, it was going to be a time for them to vacation in Florida and see some of my world. Now that I'm engaged it was all that plus a wedding preparation time (they were able to see the location, meet Christie's parents, etc.). Wedding plans are rolling along, but we're looking to outsource many of the tasks to our friends. If you're interested, let me know! We already have food prep folks, decorators, and a videographer.

Oh, and did I mention that I'm thrilled to be getting married on December 16?! I'm hoping to become a little more consistent with the blog--but I've thought that before, too. :-(

Hurricane Faux Pas

I had a slightly embarrassing moment this morning at work which revealed my naïveté of life in Central Florida.

During our morning prayer time, we were talking about all the people that were traveling to Orlando for two different sets of meetings this week, and someone mentioned that a lot of the travel was dependent on Ernesto. Now, keep in mind that I'm new to the organization and don't know all of the key people yet. However, I really felt like I should know who Ernesto was, as he was obviously somebody important if his arrival in Orlando could hold up so many other colleagues.

And then after about two minutes of listening to this conversation, I blurt out, "Oh, he's a hurricane!" Needless to say, my co-workers got a good laugh out of it.

On a related note, I'm kind of excited to experience my first hurricane. It's very much a cultural thing down here--kind of like blizzards in northern Michigan. To keep tabs on Ernesto, click here.

Another One Bites the Dust

I think most of the regular readers of my blog are aware of this, but many have been asking for "photo confirmation." Yes, the rumors are true: Chris Winkler is engaged. As I told some friends and family in an e-mail, when I worked in San Francisco, my good friend Wynter and I had a running joke. Whenever one of us would receive an e-mail from a friend letting us know that they were engaged, we would turn to one another with the line, "Another one bites the dust." We would know exactly what that meant.

I "bit the dust" officially last week, when I proposed to my now-fiancee Christie Bradford (she said yes). And now, the long-awaited moment where people actually get to see what she looks like. :-) This picture was taken this week, outside of the house where we will live after December 16 (Christie lives there now).

My apologies for any fainting episodes and shock that this news may have given you. I have heard numerous times, "You're the last person I expected to hear this from!" In reality, I didn't expect to hear it, either, but it all came from God. I hope to post more about our story in coming weeks.

Rachel Lake

Rachel Lake from above
Originally uploaded by Chris Winkler.

So I promised a picture from my hike in Seattle, and here it is. You're looking at Rachel Lake, an alpine lake fed by snow melt, some of which you can still see. That's right...I actually hiked through snow in late July!

It was a fabulous 12 mile jaunt (eight miles to the lake/campground and then another 4 on this side trip up higher), a definite highlight of my trip last month to Seattle. Though I wasn't able to go backpacking with my friends, I was able to hike in to their campsite, spend some time with them, and then hike back out myself.

My whole Seattle trip was great, as I was able to spend a lot of time talking with God...and he talked back! Great conversation. I highly recommend engaging with him sometime. :-)

Apologies...

My apologies to those of you who have been checking my blog regularly only to find that, yet again, I have not updated it. In every way (answering e-mails, updating websites, sending newsletters, etc.), I have been a slacker with communication recently.

I hope (in theory) to get back to regular blogging soon. So...keep checking, and be on the lookout for a picture from a hiking trip in the Cascade Mountains near Seattle.

More Lizards

I'm sitting here in my dining room, looking at an indecisive gecko who is hanging out on the floor. I think I've blogged about these things before, but they are everywhere! I think the one running around right now is the one who lives in our mail slots (where we sort our mail in the living room). At the moment, he likes Nate's slot...I would, too, since he gets a lot more first-class mail than Jon or I. :-)

Orlando Observations, cont.

Here is another strange thing about Orlando that I've discovered: building materials are everywhere on the road.

Seriously, my roommate and I joke that we could build our own house with the random materials that are always lying in intersections, on shoulders or just in the middle of the road. Two-by-fours, nails, cement blocks, siding, etc. It looks like a hurricane ripped through Orlando and dumped stuff everywhere--but it's been almost a year since the last hurricane!

My theory is that it's the building boom happening here in East Orlando. Housing developments are springing up at an astonishing rate (most schools meet in portables, since they can't build schools fast enough to keep up with the pace of families buying new homes), and with that, comes more and more retail. And, in theory, this also brings a drastic increase in the amount of pieces of houses on the ground.

Pray for me as a I drive to and from work, attempting to swerve and miss this junk. (You know this must be a serious issue if I'm blogging about it...surely people don't blog about trivial, useless information.)

Only in Orlando (and maybe a few other places)

I recently had two "Only in Orlando" moments. Although I'm sure these things happen in other parts of the world, they seemed pretty special to our area.

Only in Orlando...

...could the most sophisticated machine of all time, the space shuttle, cause a major traffic jam stretching for over 50 miles. Hours before each of the scheduled shuttle launches from Cape Canaveral (normally about an hour away from Orlando), traffic on the three main east-bound roads have been packed solid, from Orlando all the way to the coast. Lots of people wind up watching the launch from their cars while stuck in traffic. If the launch today happens (scheduled to happen in about an hour), I'll watch it from the comfort of my own home...although I might go up on the roof to get a better view.

...would armadillos be the most frequently seen road kill. I don't know if it's migratory season for these things, but the in past week, I've probably seen two dozen 'dillos on the side of the road--most of them dead. The ones that are alive confirmed my suspicion as to why so many of them wind up as road kill: they're slow and not very bright.

Time is Money

I've been thinking a lot about trade-offs in life, including the old phrase, "time is money."

In Orlando, most of the expressways are toll roads. (Unfortunately, the one I use the least is the free one.) This creates a dilemma whenever I need to get to church or friends' houses on the other side of town. On one hand, I could just fork over the cash (although it doesn't feel like cash, because I pre-pay my tolls with an E-Pass) and get somewhere much more quickly and efficiently. On the other hand, I could avoid the tolls, yet use up more in gas money and spend more time getting places.

What do I usually do? I go in spurts. When I first moved here, I took the tolls everywhere, whenever possible. But then I found some "shortcuts" to various places, and started to rethink my philosophy. For about a month, I took almost only surface streets (non-expressway), with the exception of my daily commute to work (which is much more painful when using surface streets). And then the past week or so, I'm back to using the tolls.

In all actuality, I think the tolls are the way to go...and as gas prices rise, the numbers back this theory more and more. If I'm leaving my friends' house downtown, I could take the tolls and be home in 18 minutes, having set me back $1.00 plus gas. Otherwise, I'm home 10-15 minutes later, having dealt with the stress of traffic, the additional wear and tear on my vehicle from stop lights, and spent more on gas. Is it really worth it? My conclusion is no, unless I want a change of scenery.

Soccer Mania

World Cup fever has gripped my office and my house.

When I moved to Orlando, there was a group that played soccer on Mondays and Thursdays after work. We were grateful to have four-on-four, and more often than not it was closer to three-on-three or two-on-two. On a few occasions, we had to cancel or just run drills because of lack of people.

However, something happened about three weeks ago. People started coming out to play...en masse. The IT department had a very strong showing, and people from next door (Campus Crusade for Christ) started playing. Some of the temporary summer help began work and with it, soccer. The more people played, the more word spread through the building about the soccer phenomenon. People that haven't played in years, people that have never played, MKs who grew up playing ONLY soccer, the list goes on.

The associated World Cup fever could either be a cause, or an effect, of this soccer mania. My roommate Jon sent out a bracket on Thursday for people to submit their picks for the World Cup (which started yesterday morning)...less than 24 hours later, he had over 20 brackets back! I think that we're the only office in Orlando, because of the international flavor of our building, that will lose more productivity over following the World Cup than following the NCAA men's basketball tournament.

One more indicator of the mania: my roommate and I sat and watched the entire Germany-Costa Rica game last night...in Spanish! (Neither of us speaks a lick of Spanish.)

Another B2B

Chris B2B '06
Originally uploaded by Chris Winkler.

Some of you may recognize this "costume" from an entry from last year. For the second year in a row, this was my outfit for the infamous Bay to Breakers road race, which took place this past Sunday.

Once again, it was a great time, and I somehow survived (and had a very strong kick during the last half-mile) despite not training at all. Whenever I finish B2B, I think to myself, "Wow, if I just did that without training, surely I could run a marathon if only I applied myself." Someday, I think that will happen.

Or, I could continue to run the crazy-busy lifestyle I've led over the past several years and then before I realize it, I can't run anymore. I'm hoping for the former.

Priorities in SF

Did I mention that I love the food scene in San Francisco? I just got back from some early morning shopping at Trader Joe's, a store not yet found in Florida, but hopefully soon! I did almost all of my grocery shopping at TJ's when I lived here, and today I stocked up on things that I just can't find organically and/or cheaply in Orlando.

Honey, sugar, jelly, Clif Bars, cereal, nuts, dried fruit, etc. Now I just need to figure out how I'm getting it all back to Orlando!

And like I mentioned in my previous post, there's also the matter of where to eat meals when here. I think I decided to pick up a burrito at one of my favorite taquerias on the way to the baseball game. Hurray for super burritos!

Smells and Sounds

San Francisco is a special place. Every city is unique in its own way, but there really is something about SF. When I flew into Oakland last night, I could see the sun setting behind the City (SF) and this warm feeling let me know that I was back home (at least, in one of several places I call home).

Riding BART from Oakland to SF, there is a very distinctive sound that the train makes (a friend of mine absolutely can't stand the sound). For me, it conjures up good memories--mainly going to A's games. The busses also make a unique sound, particularly the electric ones. I'm staying at my old house, and there are several bus lines running down our streets (we're on a corner).

The smells--not counting pot, of course--cannot be described on a blog. You just have to be here to experience it. Maybe it's simply because I lived here for a while, but I urge you to come and check it out!

I'm really looking forward to this weekend. A's/Giants baseball game this afternoon, dinner with a large group of friends tonight, Bay to Breakers and church tomorrow morning, then informal visits with folks tomorrow afternoon. The one issue, though, is that it creates the dilemma of so many great places to eat (Mexican, Indian, Thai), and so little time. I'm thinking Mexican for lunch today, Indian for lunch tomorrow followed by a Thai dinner? You can see my issues with this! :-)

Prayers Answered

Isn't it amazing when prayers get answered in a way we never would have dreamed? For weeks, I had been praying about setting up a particular appointment, which was just not happening. Presumably, God's response was, "Wait." Eventually, I gave up trying to call/e-mail, and left it to God.

Then, out of the blue, I got a call yesterday that changed everything. In a flurry of phone calls over the span of about 15 minutes, I was able to nail down the appointment--aligned perfectly with another appointment in the same area.

Praise God!

What if...

Many of us in the Christian world talk about what certain people could do if only they were Christians. "Wow, he would be an excellent preacher, if only he knew Jesus." People outside of the Christian community have skills and talents which could be put to use just as well for the Kingdom as they are being used in the secular world.

I had a thought today, reversing this idea. What would I be doing today if I was not a follower of Jesus? I recently met a pastor who, after a few minutes with me, said, "You seem like a sharp guy. You could be making a lot of money somewhere else, if you weren't in the ministry."

Whether he was right or not is debatable. However, I was talking with a friend today and I wondered aloud where I would be working if I were not a Christian--and God had not called me to be a missionary. She said I'd be good at sales. I suppose I'd be interested in making a lot of money, so maybe sales would be the way to go. I very easily could have gone down the business/accounting route in college, which possibly would have landed me a good job. Travel would probably still have been a passion, so I may have used my wealth to see the world.

However, Jesus came into my life, and now I try to live how I think He would have me live. And I wouldn't trade it for anything!

Not Your Typical Luau

Christie at peace with her sacrifice
Originally uploaded by Chris Winkler.

The generational minister at our church, Christie, was thrown a surprise birthday luau on Saturday night. I was asked to be her driver and videographer for the scavenger hunt that would bring her to the party. When we arrived, we were BOTH surprised by what we found.

Two of her friends, Tim and Lee, put on the most elaborate themed party I've ever seen. Beyond the tiki torches and Hawaiian shirts, there was food, decorations and musics to go along with the theme.

But the kicker came after we ate. Christie was blindfolded and led to the "volcano" on the back porch. It was actually their in-ground pool, died entirely red. Just before Christie came out, they poured in dry ice, making the whole pool churn and bubble, and covering it with smoke (seen in the picture).

Describing the rest of the scene would not do it justice, so I won't even try. Just be sure to contact Tim and Lee if you ever need a party thrown!

The Importance of a 5K

After posting last night, I realized that I shouldn't be downplaying the accomplishment that running a 5K is. In my mind, Chris Winkler running a 5K is not too momentous. However, it is hugely important to people who do not exercise on a regular basis, who use the 5K as motivation to get in shape, who see a 5K as I might see a marathon.

To me, running this 5K was good motivation to start thinking about a marathon again. :-)

Natural Athlete?

Some friends told me tonight, "You're just a natural athlete." I laughed at them.

Here's the context. A group from work had just finished running a 5K here in Orlando. I had finished in about 25 minutes, behind two other people from Wycliffe. Not a great time, you may think, so what would prompt someone to say that?

People were shocked that I never trained. To me, a 5K is not much; I've run several of these without any training at all. (At my first, during high school, I won a gift certificate to a resaturant because I finished first in my age group--out of one.) The real kicker was the 12K (Bay to Breakers) that I've run each of the past two years...without absolutely no training.

Granted, ultimate keeps me in shape, and I consider this excellent training for any other sort of activity. But by no means am I a natural athlete!

(On a side note, I confirmed today that I should be in SF on May 20 and 21...this means a third year of Bay to Breakers, as well as another round of the A's-Giants rivalry! Steve and Amy, we should talk about tickets.)

Winter vs. Summer

A great perspective on the weather in Central Florida was given to me recently.

Someone told me that summer in Orlando is like winter in Michigan: people will complain about it, no one goes outside, and the rest of the year is nice. How true. Back home during the winter months, most folks go from heated homes to heated cars to heated workplaces, only venturing outside to participate in snowsports, or shovel the driveway. Here, people simply don't go outside during the summer, going from air conditioned homes to air conditioned cars to air conditioned workplaces.

The only problem, for me, is that I would much rather go out and play in 0 degree weather with snow, than 90 degree weather with 100 percent humidity. Everyone tells me the horror stories of summers here, and I'm not looking forward to it.

Back to Urban Ministry

I don't think God has called me to be in urban ministry full-time. Hence, the reason I am no longer working for CSM.

However, I do miss it. I miss hanging out with people without a roof over their heads at night, people with amazing stories of war and faith and drugs, people who simply want someone to talk to. I miss the chaos of a soup kitchen trying to serve dozens, or thousands, of hungry guests. I miss seeing the dedicated staff of inner-city ministries, hard at work in difficult situations.

Today, I got the chance to dabble again in ministry to people that are homeless. The Orlando Union Rescue Mission held their annual Easter banquet this afternoon. I heard about it from a friend who works in the Women and Children's Division of the mission, and since it was Good Friday, I was able to volunteer.

One of the first things I noticed was that it was one of the few times that I was able to serve without having to worry about 10-20 junior highers and making sure they were safe, had enough work to do, etc. It was nice to serve and interact, and not worry about much else. The staff was great, and I'd like to continue volunteering on a somewhat regular basis (once a month?).

Bird Dropping Area

Bird Dropping Area
Originally uploaded by Chris Winkler.

Has anyone ever heard of a "Bird Dropping Area" before? Then you haven't visited downtown Orlando recently! Check out this link for an interesting situation here in Orlando. Thanks to Natalie for sending me the link, and Sally for sending me a hard copy of the story which wound up in the Kalamazoo Gazette!

Leave those blinds closed!

A couple people have asked me about the weather down here. Let's just say that we try to keep the blinds closed during the day, and open them up at night...to keep the hot weather out and trap the "cool" weather in. Last night was a problem. I went to open up my window to cool off my room, and there was a lovely gecko between the window and the screen.

Since he might have wound up in my bed, I shut the window. :-)

Ironic Timing

I really like this church I've been attending. I hung out yesterday with people indirectly related to the church, and will spend this evening with people directly related to it. Lots of young people with similar passions, and plenty of older folks to learn from.

In church this morning, the pastor was making an illustration and asked everyone who was 25 years old to stand up. There were two of us, and he proceeded to explain that he would give each of us a $25 gift certificate to a restaurant...if we came to church next week. The point he was trying to make was not why I'm blogging this. It was the irony that today is the last day that I will be 25...I turn 26 tomorrow. He said the offer is still valid, and I think he's serious.

Mega Churches, Small Churches

One of the main reasons I prefer small churches over mega churches was made ever more clear this week.

Last Sunday, I visited (alone) a small church that is meeting in the gym of the downtown YMCA in Orlando. Immediately, the pastor came up to me and introduced himself--he could tell that I was a newcomer to the congregation and wanted to welcome me in.

Then on Wednesday, I was attending an event at work, and was sitting with the pastor of one of the largest churches in Orlando (about 10,000 people on a Sunday). The situation was reversed. People were coming up to him and introducing themselves, informing him that they were members of his church.

This is a concept that I still struggle with. I don't think either way of "doing" church is right or wrong, but one just fits me so much better than the other. In case you're wondering where I went this week, I was back at the church at the YMCA--and received an invitation to dinner at the pastor's house tonight. :-) Click here for a little background on the church.

Tackling Tough Issues

My good friend Ryan, a former roommate from San Francisco who now lives in Iowa, has always had keen insights into tough topics, especially homosexuality. His story is powerful, but his friendship is priceless. This blog posting by Ryan is controversial (as he mentions), but I wanted you to read some of his thoughts.

The thing I appreciate about Ryan is that he often relies solely on his own experience--while people can argue theories all day, you can't debate one's own story. Check out the rest of his blog for the complete story.

World Baseball Classic

Nate and Chris, WBC
Originally uploaded by Chris Winkler.

A few months ago, I blogged over my excitement of getting tickets to the World Baseball Classic. The game finally came, and it was well worth it! This picture is of my roommate Nate and myself at the game.

The thing that struck me was the national pride. We watched the Dominican Republic (DR) beat Australia 6-4, and the Domincan crowd was large and vocal. It almost felt like being at a soccer match. Large groups of Dominican supporters paraded through the crowd, chanting (in Spanish), singing, and draping themselves in the DR flag.

The best was near the end of the game, when a group of about 50 Dominican fans marched on top of Nate and I...literally. I've got video to prove it.

On the flip side of that, the U.S. was knocked out of the tournament early, and most observers are saying that it was due to a lack of passion. Though the DR didn't make it to the finals, it certainly wasn't because of that!

Zoe

Zoe
Originally uploaded by Chris Winkler.

Those of you who know me, know that I don't like dogs. REALLY don't like dogs. But this has to be one of the most beautiful dogs I've ever seen in my life, and wanted to post this picture, which I thought was pretty cool. Her name is Zoe and it belongs to my friends Brian and Krisha.

This past week was one of those where I didn't blog because so much happened that I couldn't choose what to write about. How about ultimate...

As many of you know, I try and play ultimate wherever I go. If I'm in DC for a few days, I'll hook up with a game on the mall. When I lived in Vienna, I played with a team for the duration of my time there. Seattle, Houston, Brooklyn, Chicago, Cameroon...I've picked up with ultimate games everywhere I go. It's my connecting point with an area.

So of course, the first thing to do in Orlando was find ultimate. I joined a league team, and signed up for a hat tournament (so named because the players' names are thrown into a hat and selected pseudo-randomly).

Then the losing started. My league team lost our first game. My team at the tourney went 0-5 in one day. My league team proceeded to lose their next four games. Now I am officially 0-10 in ultimate in the state of Florida.

At least it keeps me humble. :-)

Bad Place for a Blood Drive

So we hosted a blood drive today at work, and we were wondering what the turnout was like. Someone made the comment that an overseas missions agency is probably one of the worst places to host a blood drive. The rules stipulate that you can't donate if you've been in a country with malaria in the last 12 months, or lived in a country with malaria in the last three years.

Considering that a large portion of our building has violated at least one of these guidelines, I doubt the turnout from within the building was very high. :-)

Snowman in Orlando!

snowman in orlando
Originally uploaded by Chris Winkler.

And you thought my first weather-related post from Orlando would be about 80 degree, sunny weather...okay so maybe my previous post included some of that, but this is quite the contrast.

A few weeks ago, there was a "cold" front that came through Central Florida, which left frost on our cars for two consecutive mornings. My roommate Nate, who is from New Hampshire, wanted to have a little fun with it. So he took all of the frost scrapings from on top of his car and made a little snowman, pictured here.

FYI, that is our house in the background (complete with palm tree).

Settling In

Two weeks after arriving in Orlando, I'm finally starting to get my feet on the ground. The first week and a half was a whirlwind, but now I've got a real bed to sleep in, a dresser to put my clothes and am starting to unpack. (Also, I'm finally able to update this blog.) I just got back from an ultimate tournament today. For those of you in the Midwest right now, this might be a little hard to believe, but it was 80 degrees today. I was sweating profusely after my warm-up lap, at 9 a.m.!

It has been interesting to make the comparisons between Orlando and my time in Chicago and San Francisco. Orlando is one of the fastest growing (if not the fastest) cities in the nation, and there is building everywhere. Some schools are housed entirely in portables, because the school system can't keep up with the kids who keep moving in to the district. I could go on and on about these differences, but I'll save some for a later date.

One of the best things about being down here so far is that I have made several friends rapidly. One young married couple has already had me over for dinner twice (followed by a game night) and the two guys I live with are great. This is quite a change, after going nearly a year in SF before making a non-CSM friend.

Here is a prayer request before I get back to unpacking. Many of my friends and colleagues from work are currently in countries (or will be soon) that are in the news because of the cartoon violence. Pray for their safety and for the Lord to somehow be glorified through it all.

On the Road Again

I hit the road again tomorrow (Monday). I'll probably have two seven hour days, followed by a 10-hour day. Your prayers, which have been much appreciated over the past several months in this time of transition, are still needed. Thank you so much. I hope to post again sometime next week, once I get settled in Orlando.

Just a reminder, updates pertaining to my ministry with Wycliffe are available at my website.

The Car

new car
Originally uploaded by Chris Winkler.

As promised, here's a picture of the car. I parallel parked with it for the first time today and did a lot of jockeying around town, and it's becoming more natural.

Tomorrow, I'll drive when my parents and I go up to Sault Ste. Marie to visit my brother, so that should be lots of good experience. Plus, they can let me know what I'm doing wrong in my handling of the manual transmission.

A Piece of Baseball History

I'm feeling really good right now. I just bought tickets to the inaugural World Baseball Classic. It just so happens that one of the first round pools will be held in Orlando, where I am moving in a week. Two tickets to watch the Domincan Republic play Australia. The DR should annihilate the Aussies, but the DR team is stacked and since it's the first time it's ever happened, it'll be watching a piece of baseball history. Plus, tickets were really cheap (comparable to outfield plaza at the Oakland Coliseum).

The only bummer is that the DR/Venezuela game was already sold out (an hour after individual tickets went on sale). But I can live with that. The DR team tentatively has Vlad Guerrero, Alfonso Soriano, Sammy Sosa, Albert Pujols, Miguel Tejada, and a ton of other stars.

Back Home

Five hundred miles and only five stalled engines later, I am back in Michigan. The manual transmission of my new car (a '98 Jetta) is significantly easier than the vehicle I learned on (an old pickup) and by the time I made it home, I was able to drive fairly smooth. Some things are still pretty rocky (e.g. starting out in first from a stop), but I LOVE the feel of it and the control I have over what the car is doing.

If I'm ever able to master it, I don't know if I'll ever go back to an automatic. (Of course, most of the rest of my life will be spent living in countries where they've never heard of automatic transmissions.) I'll put up a picture of the car soon.

Another Mall Experience

A few weeks ago, I posted about my dislike--and fear--of big suburban malls. Yesterday, I was forced to spend time in the biggest of them all: the Mall of America!

Because of my need for a cheap flight, my plane landed in Minneapolis yesterday morning at 8 a.m., Central Time. This meant that any of my friends in the area wouldn't be able to pick me up for several hours. Since it was cold outside and the mall is just a short train ride from the airport, I wound up at the Mall of America.

Thankfully, I discovered that it didn't open until 10 a.m., so I killed some time in the airport before heading over. I also had the brilliant idea of how to kill a large chunk of time, cheaply, at the mall: seeing a matinee movie. So following lunch and watching the three-hour "Munich" (an excellent film, another Spielberg classic), it was time for my friend Andrew to pick me up.

Not nearly as painful a trip as it could have been!

Side Effect of Too Many Cop Shows

Last week, a friend took me out in his truck to give me a lesson in how to drive a manual transmission. I will be flying to Minneapolis in a few weeks to pick up my new car--which is a stick--and I figured it would be good if I knew how to drive it.

But I consistently did two things wrong. Like all beginners, I often let up on the clutch too quickly. The other mistake: slamming the gear shift around. I think my friend was worried about me going from first to second followed by the gear shift being ripped out of the floor.

As I thought about this in the days that followed, I made a realization. Perhaps it happened when watching an episode of Magnum, P.I., the show I watch daily during lunch. My slamming of the gear shift came from watching all these cop shows (e.g. Magnum or Rockford). Whenever there is a chase scene, and the cars have a standard transmission, the shifter is thrown around hard to stress the urgency of the situation. As I discovered at the high school parking lot last week, actually driving a stick is NOT like that.

Now if only I can pull a U-turn like on TV...

Global Address Book

As I was looking at the messages in my e-mail inbox, I felt a part of something bigger than my own ministry. I have e-mails from friends in China, Honduras, Israel, Cambodia, and Germany right now! It is exciting to partner with and pray for these friends (and others around the world), as they are serving the Lord as missionaries or tentmakers in a foreign culture.

Pray with me that God would continue to use them in their respective areas to advance His kingdom!

Want to Take a Trip?

So I've been looking at maps recently, trying to figure out my route from Michigan to Florida (it looks like the move will happen in about a month!). I'm beginning to realize that it's a really long trip down there and it might be good to have a traveling companion. Anyone know somebody who might be interested in driving from northern Michigan to Orlando...or at least making a portion of the trip?

Scary Big City? Worse...

I'm not scared of big cities. I'm scared of big malls. At the moment, I'm sitting in Woofield Mall in suburban Chicago, the largest in the area.

My thought is that they are built to scare people. Too many stores on too many levels, with too few directional markers and maps. It's like trying to navigate the streets of an old European city (curvey, narrow and confusing) with maps only at the major intersections where cars are careening at each other at 60 mph, and everyone crowding around to figure out where they're going.

Give me downtown Chicago any day, over this madness I'm experiencing right now.

Internet Connectedness

All day today, I've been listening to my favorite San Francisco radio station, KFOG. One of the beautiful things about the Internet is the ability to listen to stations that might be thousands of miles away. It allows me to reminisce a little (hearing about the traffic back-up on the Bay Bridge and the amount of fog covering the City) and also hear the music that was always on in our office and my car.

When baseball season begins, I'll probably renew my subscription to MLB.com Gameday Audio, which allows me to listen to any game, anywhere as long as I have an Internet connection. This means following my A's on KFRC. (I still haven't decided if I'll have to become a Devil Rays or Marlins fan when I move to Orlando. It seems unlikely, but it's sometimes nice to follow the "home" team, as well.)

It makes it difficult to imagine what people did before the Internet...how did people stay connected? Are we more connected now because of the Internet, or do people communicate less because of not using the phone? All random musings on another cold and snowy day in northern Michigan.

Fascination With Fire

Why is it that humans are so fascinated by fire? I know I'm not alone in my ability to sit and stare into a burning fire for hours. That's half of what makes sitting around the campfire what it is. (The other half is sharing with each other and being in fellowship.)

There was a major fire in our town today. I don't think anyone was killed, but a man reportedly had to jump from a second story window to the ground and was sent to the hospital. It was early this morning, but I happened to be up for a prayer meeting and I swung by the fire (we heard about it on the news) on my way.

Just like a campfire, it was captivating. Mine wasn't the only car that was just parked, staring at the flames leaping from the top and sides of the building. A large bucket truck was there, dumping tons of water from the sky, yet the fire raged. It's encouraging to know that the firefighters (from five different cities) are putting that fascination with fire, that we all have, to such constructive use: saving lives and property. It certainly is more productive than poking that stick into the campfire, moving around the logs and sending sparks flying.

A Great Place to Nap

Did you know that the library is a great place to nap? I'm sitting here in the Hope College library, site of many Winkler snooze sessions over the course of 1998-2002, reminiscing about those days. This is mainly due to the fact that I've been watching one guy sleep since I arrived, about an hour and a half ago.

No joke, I used to bring my alarm clock to the library, knowing that I would probably fall asleep. If you're wondering about the noise caused by both my snoring and the clock, I would make sure to get an individual "study" room. How silly--putting a nice, quiet room on one of the quiet floors, complete with a door. Depending on how my back was feeling, I would either curl up on the floor or just rest my head on the table.

Fleece jackets make great pillows.

A Different Thanksgiving

The past three Thanksgivings have been all been quite different from each other.

In 2003, I went down to hot and sunny Palm Springs, in southern California. It was spent with the family of a good friend from college, enjoying the hospitality of her grandma. Swimming, tennis, horseback riding, hiking, and fine dining were all on the docket for the weekend. It was something of a luxurious holiday.

Then there was last year. It started with a lovely dinner with friends from church in San Francisco. Following the turkey, there was karaoke upstairs! I made a bread pudding which would have made my mom and all previous holders of the recipe proud. The next day was my infamous Point Reyes solo backpacking trip. Well, I guess it wasn't solo if you count the coyotes and the kind folks who ran over to my campsite to help put out the picnic table fire. Long story...ask me about it sometime!

Today is another Thanksgiving, but instead of the heat of SoCal or the mild temps of SF, we are in a whiteout. Instead of the traditional Winkler-Dunn gathering of 20 people, there will be four of us (my immediate family) hunkered down in Boyne City, amidst a blizzard and prayers that a tree isn't blown over into our house. At least we can still watch the Lions lose! (Assuming the power doesn't go out, which is entirely possible.)

Porch Snow

Porch Snow
Originally uploaded by Chris Winkler.

A good indicator of how much snow has fallen is the snow level on part of our front porch, which is exposed. Here is a picture of it!

From the time that I wrote my entry Wednesday, I don't think it has stopped snowing for more than an hour. The sun was out for a brief time yesterday, but my guess is that we've gotten around nine inches. Not as much as near-by Lake Ann, which got 17" according to the national news this morning!

I don't think I've ever been so excited to see snow! Goodness knows I won't see much of it when I move to Orlando...

The First Snow!

snow on shed
Originally uploaded by Chris Winkler.

This one is for all of you out there who wish you were in snowy weather (e.g. home) while you're stuck in single-climate San Francisco.

The first snow of the year (to my knowledge) hit this afternoon. I looked out the window a few minutes ago and this is what I saw. It's not really accumulating, but with a couple more days with this cold snap, it will be.

There is a running joke in our family (although it's spreading outside the family now) that whenever a big snow hits, it's because my mom and dad are going to visit one of their boys. Maybe I'm cursed with this...I'm supposed to go to Traverse City tomorrow (hour and a half away), and the weather isn't looking good.

Sibling Look-Alike

My brother (Bradley) and I do not look alike. Or so we say. Everyone else on the planet, however, seems to think that we do. I've been to the post office here in Boyne twice in the last week. On one of my trips, a guy who actually knew both of us during our high school years (Bradley and I are over four years apart) called me "Brad."

Then this morning when I went in to the post office, the clerk says (in response to my "First class, please"), "Are you still playing?" Now, put yourselves in my shoes at this moment. When I lived in Boyne, I only played three things on a consistent basis: the saxophone, high school football and church league softball. None of them were especially notable, except for perhaps the music, but that was years ago. So in that first split-second, I had no clue what the guy was referring to.

Then it hit me. Of course, he was not thinking of my hitting skills in slow-pitch softball. He mistook me for my brother, who plays the banjo. The clerk had played in some open-mic events with Bradley, and had no doubt that I was that gifted banjo player.

I told my brother this week that this is just payback for him having to live in my shadow for so long; now it's my turn. And maybe it's finally time to admit that maybe we do look a little alike.

New Wycliffe Website

In case you're wondering why I haven't been writing anything about my new career with Wycliffe Bible Translators, it's because I've been working on a new website specifically devoted to that. There is a new permanent link at right.

So...if you want funny personal stories, this is the place for it. For updates on my ministry, including pictures and prayer requests, check out my "Wysite." I'll be updating it regularly in these next couple months, and there are also some syndicated stories which are always interesting and will change from time to time. Plus, you can even donate on-line!

Rain and Leaves Don't Mix

Backyard Leaves
Originally uploaded by Chris Winkler.

Yesterday, my parents spent the day raking leaves. I spent a few hours with them. I guess that's part of the price you pay for the beautiful colors we've had in the past month. Unfortunately, we weren't able to get everything picked up and it rained throughout the night.

Rain does two things that detract from the raking of leaves. First, it knocks them off the trees at a rapid rate. Second, it makes them wet and very difficult to pick up. This picture was taken this morning, after all the rain. I think life was a little simpler living in San Francisco, where noone had yards, much less leaves to rake!

Spider!

Spider!
Originally uploaded by Chris Winkler.

We found this spider tonight at my parents' house in Michigan. I had never seen one like it before, and couldn't find any helpful websites. Anyone recognize it? The orange thing on it was full of white pus, which turned to yellow shortly after getting squashed. :-)

The Price is Right

"The Price is Right" is just not the same without Rod Roddy, who passed away back in 2003. For the first time since his passing, I watched part of an episode today, and the flair of hearing Rod yell "Come on down!" and seeing him in his vibrantly-colored jackets was all gone. Whoever replaced him has a good voice and is professional, but I think it's one of those things that because Rod was such an icon, he can never be replaced.

Sports fans in the Bay Area recently felt a similar loss. Bill King, who at one point was the play-by-play announcer for the Oakland A's, Oakland Raiders and Golden State Warriors simultaneously, passed away a few weeks ago. Though I have only been a die-hard A's fan for a few years, I grieved his loss. As the A's announcer since 1981, he was the A's to many people. He was the main reason I purchased a package this season that allowed me to listen to any baseball game at any time, as long as I had an Internet connection--I never missed listening to Bill for lack of a radio feed. Much has been written about Bill's passing so I'll let others say it better than me, but I had to write about this great loss for the Bay Area.

Pulse Dialing

One other thing...my parents still have pulse dialing. For a majority of the general public who has no idea what pulse dialing is, it is the opposite of touch-tone. For instance, when a voice prompt says to "push zero for the operator," you can't just push the "0" key. You have to push a special button first, then the digit. Or when you dial a number with several digits, you have to wait for the "pulse" on each one; it's anything but instant.

Yes, pulse dialing does still exist.

A Whole Different World

Moving from the heart of San Francisco to rural Michigan is a shock in multiple ways. One of the biggest has been technologically.

In SF, I had wireless Internet access almost everywhere, and most certainly at home and work. Even in all of my travels last month, I could connect via Wi-Fi in Boston, Philly, NYC, DC, Orlando, Chicago, Holland, etc.

Then I got to Boyne.

Thankfully, my parents have DSL. But wireless is not available, meaning that right now I am using a cable pulled out of the back of their desktop PC and plugged into my laptop. Not the most convenient, but it'll work for now. (All the while San Francisco is providing Wi-Fi for the entire city.)

Another issue is the age of the computers I'm having to work with. The computer sitting next to me is about the size of a small refrigerator and is louder than a car from the '80s with a bad muffler. When trying to e-mail a file from that computer to the one my mom uses at work, I had to install a driver for my flash drive (it uses Windows 98SE). Then I had to download the file at mom's work, which uses a dial-up connection (I didn't realize those were still around). After waiting 20 minutes for a two-page PDF file to download, the version of Acrobat Reader decided it didn't like the file...and there was no way I was going to try and download an update! (In case you're wondering why I didn't just use my flash drive to transport the file, you should know that the computer was using Windows 98, which doesn't accept flash drives.) That made for a rough evening.

What will probably happen is that as soon as I adjust to living in this low-technology world, I'll move back to a big city. Isn't that the way it happens?

Classic Northern Michigan

I've been in northern Michigan for a total of five nights, and have already fallen into a bunch of stereotypes. No, I haven't been deer hunting...although close. Last night, we went to Boyne City's football game. During the fall, everything not called football shuts down (except for hunting of course) in Boyne, and the town goes nuts.

When I played (yes, my scrawny little body survived three grueling seasons), any player was able to walk into any restaurant in town and either: a.) receive preferential treatment; b.) get a discount on food; or c.) get free food. Not a bad deal, especially for someone like me who didn't play very often, if at all.

While at the game, we went to visit with a friend from church who is in charge of shooting off a real-life cannon whenever Boyne scores. Within minutes of arriving in the cannon area, the Ramblers were getting ready to score again (we were up 34-0 at halftime) and someone had asked me to pull the cord to fire the cannon. I hesitatingly agreed, and proceeded to set off one of the loudest explosions I've ever heard in my life--and that was with headphones on.

Today, I drove with my parents up to Sault Ste. Marie--on the Canadian border--to visit my brother Bradley at school. The highlight will be tonight, when we get to attend a Lake Superior State University hockey game. It doesn't get much more "Michigan" than hockey, and the game will cap a week of reaquainting myself with this beautiful state.

The Game is Almost Done

For those of you who have been waiting on the edge of your seat for a State Game update, here you go. Since the last update, I have seen North Dakota, New Hampshire and Hawaii. Oddly enough, I saw Hawaii in Boston about five minutes after telling my friend who had picked me up from the bus station that I only needed Hawaii and Alaska.

That means Alaska is the lone remaining holdout for me to "win" the game. Chances are that I'll need to do it in the next few hours before leaving Chicago, as rural Michigan tends not to have a lot of out-of-state plates.

On the Way Home

It's tough to eat healthy when traveling. Today for lunch, I downed some orange sherbet and two pieces of pizza...the fifth time I've had pizza in the last week. But I've finally begun the last leg of my month and a half of travels. I'm in Chicago right now, and from here, it's a train to Holland (Michigan) tomorrow and a bus to my parents' house on Monday. All I want right now is to be in one place for a while (and eat healthy again)...and that will happen to a degree when I get to Boyne.

The past two weeks in Orlando have been a strain on me in every aspect, but it was a great time of growth and learning about my future career. (E-mail me for specific details; I can't put them on this blog.) Exciting things are in store for the coming months and years...

Orlando, FL

For the first time in the last month, I was able take all of the clothes out of my backpack and put them into a dresser. I also unpacked my toiletries to put in a cabinet in the bathroom, set up a mini-office in my room, and have a refrigerator to call my own. I will be stationary for two whole weeks! That seems like forever after spending no more than four nights in one state since I left SF on August 30.

Orlando is home to the Wycliffe USA headquarters, and where they host Training Camp for new members such as myself. Lots of intensive classes, and getting to know others who will also be serving with Wycliffe in the near future. No funny stories yet, but I'll be sure to pass them along as they occur. When you get 40 people wacky enough to live the rest of their lives in developing countries, crazy things are bound to happen!!

New Friends at Yankee Stadium

New Friends at Yankee Stadium
Originally uploaded by Chris Winkler.

Here's a story that I absolutely had to post...I only wish I had been able to do it sooner. This is one of the craziest "small world" stories of my life, and if you know me, you know there's been many!

I went to Yankee Stadium only to see the stadium. I can't stand the Yankees, and was not really a Baltimore fan (although I was on Monday!). After being thoroughly unimpressed with the park itself, and settling in to watch two teams that I didn't care about, by myself, I was thinking it was going to be a very long game.

Then, a couple sitting behind me had to move down to my row, after they realized they were in the wrong seats. Amazingly enough, they were Baltimore fans--now I had someone to root with! I began talking with them, and the topic turned to our jobs. When I told the husband about CSM and what they did, he said, "Oh, a friend of mine is trying to start that here in New York."

He didn't have to say anymore. I knew that his friend was Cindy, whom I worked for in Chicago and has been in NY for a year attempting to start our site there. They knew all about CSM, and the wife had even had breakfast with Cindy that morning. (And I was having breakfast with her the following morning!)

10 million people or whatever live in NYC, I know two (a friend from college also lives there), and I wind up sitting next to a close friend of a co-worker! What are the chances? The three of us had a great time cheering on Baltimore together for the rest of the game, although were disappointed when the Yanks won on a walk-off homer...which landed only three seats away from us.

New York, New York

Wow...I've been in many of the world's major cities, including a few in the past couple days, but there's just something about New York. I've been here for all of one hour, and I'm in awe. Not really anything I can describe, but maybe it's just the knowledge that I'm in one of the most "important" places on earth. More to come...

Richmond, Virginia

What a nice treat I got tonight. I’m in Richmond, VA, for the wedding of a CSM staffer (and good friend) from DC, and I was supposed to stay at the house of the boyfriend of a bridesmaid (or some other random connection like that). But when I got here, the VP of staff for CSM, Greg, offered me a space on the couch in his hotel room. So...after a couple weeks of travelling, I’m spending my first of all those nights in a hotel. There's just something about a hotel that's different than friends' houses and CSM housing sites. The icing on the cake is that I’m able to watch the A’s game, something I’ve only done a few times this season. Thanks to GP the VP for the offer!

The Look that Says, "Ask Me!"

I must have a look about me that says, "I'm not a tourist, ask me for directions." Perhaps it comes from years of working in the inner-city, where I know that the best way to not get mugged or anything else is to make it look like you know where you're going (walk with a purpose, go into a store if you need to look at a map, etc.). Like I mentioned two nights ago, it happens a lot in Chicago, and I'm able to help people. In DC, a guy asked me on Tuesday for directions, and amazingly I was able to give them to him. (It helped that the street he couldn't find also happened to be the one we were standing on.)

But in Philadelphia? Here I was yesterday, dragging three bags through downtown, looking just about as touristy as one can get...and I still get asked for directions. Finally, I had to turn down someone's request, based primarily on the fact was that I had been in Philly for all of two minutes. Maybe today I'll strap on a fanny pack and wear an "I Love Philly" t-shirt and see if people still think I'm a local.

A Brief Lapse in My Sense of Direction

I like to think that my sense of direction is above average. Three or four times when I was in Chicago, people asked for directions and I was able to help them. It helps that Chicago is an easy city to figure out, and I'm there so much that it's like taking refresher courses every year. On the other hand, DC got the better of me tonight.

The streets here are funny. There are east-west letter streets (e.g. K Street, where all the lawyers are), the diagonal state avenues (e.g. Colorado Avenue, where I'm staying now), the north-south numbered streets (e.g. 16th Street, which runs into the White House), and all sorts of other random things, like another set of alphabetical order and such. But those don't always stay true, and I got turned around big time on a little stroll through the neighborhood I took tonight. It was several blocks too late when I realized that the house numbers were going up instead of down.

But in any case, I found a thrift store to replenish my reading material and saw some of DC that I wouldn't have seen otherwise. Helpful, since I'll be living here next year.

From Chicago to Charleston to Washington

My time in Chicago was just as I wanted it to be: relaxing and full of memories. Three days of wandering around the city, primarily visiting my old stomping grounds. I stayed at CSM, where I worked during the summer of 2002, on the campus of North Park University. Uptown Baptist Church, a favorite place of mine during my seven months living in Chicago, was just as diverse and lively as I remember it. Oak Street Beach, Canterbury Court Apartments, ultimate at Montrose and Western, Chicago Semester, the museum campus, and Lou Malnati's pizza also all found my favor once again.

Tuesday night, I threw myself a party at Leona's, my favorite Chicago restaurant. People from many different parts of my life converged, all of whom it was great to see again and who all had some sort of connection with one another, as well. It was cool to see the networking and reuniting take place! Thanks to all who came and made it a special night.

Wednesday morning, I was back on a plane (I'm flying as little as possible on this trip) to Charleston, South Carolina to meet up with other CSM staff from around North America for staff retreat. This was a major blessing, as normally I wouldn't have been allowed to go (considering that I no longer work for CSM!), but they invited me to join them for half the week and it was great. Four days in a beach house on the Atlantic Ocean...not too shabby! (See my previous posting for a picture and more comments.)

I've been in Washington, DC, for the last couple days, hanging out with my friend Justin (who works for CSM here). Another great church service that spoke right to me at a time I needed to hear it, and another baseball game (Justin, also a big baseball fan, lives literally two blocks from the stadium). This morning, I met up with the Wycliffe people here in DC--this was important, because I'll start out my time with Wycliffe here next year, possibly for up to a year and so it was a time of meeting with my future co-workers and learning much more about what I'll be doing.

Next stop will be Philadelphia, on Wednesday.

State Game Update (Total--45 states, 2 provinces, and DC):

Kansas
Massachusetts
Michigan
Rhode Island
New York
Ohio
Indiana
Quebec
Florida
Louisiana
Connecticut
South Dakota
Tennessee
North Carolina
New Jersey
Oregon
Kentucky
Maryland
New Mexico
South Carolina
Virginia
District of Columbia
Arkansas
Alabama
Maine
Vermont
West Virginia
Deleware
Oklahoma
Mississippi
Montana

Charleston, South Carolina

Charleston Sunrise
Originally uploaded by Chris Winkler.

For the last few days, I've been able to hang out with all of the full-time nationwide staff of CSM in Charleston, South Carolina. On Wednesday morning, I flew from Chicago (more on that later) to Charleston. It was a time of closure with many of my best friends from the past several years, with quality time spent in two ocean-front beach houses, great food and of course, the games which I always look forward to at staff gatherings.

Right now, I am staying with a friend in Washington, DC, and am safely away from Hurricane Ophelia, which is now threatening the very city we slept in last night. It's late and I'm tired, but will try to update more later this weekend.

"KatrinaGate"

Here's an interesting column from the BBC about the media's attack on the federal government's response, or lack thereof, to the hurricane. I very much appreciate the fact that people are speaking out, especially as it was New Orleans' most vulnerable citizens who were herded into the Superdome--with full knowledge that it could turn real ugly, real fast.

The reports coming out of the Gulf Coast have urged me to do something. This is a time in my life--these next few months--where I don't have a job, and it dawned on me that I am in a perfect position to volunteer down there for a few weeks. After making some phone calls to both the Salvation Army and Red Cross, I'll probably go with the Army after I get back from my travels in the middle of October. I was ready to drop everything and leave today, but I need to go through a brief training and have to go down with a scheduled group...which wouldn't be for another six days or so. This makes October the best option. If any of you friends of mine are interested in going with me, or knows anyone, please let me know! It'd be great to go with a friend or two.

Getting Close

Chicago is so close now, I can almost smell it. We’re still in farm country, but are on track to be at Union Station by 8 p.m....one hour from now. The first ring of suburbs isn’t too far off and it’s familiar ground from then on. The sun, about to set, is gleaming off the corn stalks right now, and it’s a cool view--about as interesting as miles of corn fields can be. Though I’m not on a tight schedule (others around are being rerouted onto different trains or having to get put up in a hotel for the night), I’m still anxious to get to a bed and settle in for more than a night or two. Plus, the fresh air will be welcomed. One good thing about arriving in Chicago in the evening instead of the afternoon is that it won’t be nearly as hot! I got off for a minute at a stop in Iowa, and it was so blazing hot that I had to get back on right away. Welcome back to summer in the Midwest, eh?

State Game Update (17 total):
Washington
Wisconsin
Iowa
Nebraska

Baseball, Sunset and the Mountains

Baseball, Sunset and the Mountains
Originally uploaded by Chris Winkler.

We’re just leaving Omaha now, something like four or five hours behind schedule. The cool thing is that I don’t really care. No one is waiting for me in Chicago, and I’ve got plenty of things to do, not the least of which is watch the scenery go by...even if it is the flat land of Iowa.

Last night in Denver, I had a slight schedule change for the better! I knew there would be about an hour and a half layover in Denver, so I asked the station attendant in Grand Junction if she knew if the train station in Denver was near anything worth seeing, or at least a cafe to check e-mail, upload blog postings, etc. Her first reply was that Coors Field, where the baseball Rockies play, was only two blocks from the station; I didn’t hear another word she said. I had heard good things about Coors and with all of the other stadiums I was visiting on this trip, a quick peek at the outside of the field would fit right in.

When we were pulling into Denver, I could see flocks of people walking with baseball mitts and decked out in Rockies gear, a sure sign that there was a game that night. Even better--I’d be around the stadium in a real baseball atmosphere. The climax was when I went up to the station attendant in Denver and he answered my three questions: when would my train be departing (about two and a half hours late), what time did the Rockies game start (7 p.m., which also happened to be the current time), and could I still get cheap tickets (they had an abundance of $4 tickets released just before game time). Perfect. Now I just needed to figure out what to do with my bags. Thankfully, I had already befriended a mother-daughter pair that were traveling to Iowa and they had brought up the idea of one of us staying with all of our stuff while the other two went out to find dinner. I asked if they would be willing to stay with my stuff (at least one of them couldn’t go anywhere anyway) while I went to the game. They agreed, and I was off to Coors.

I got there just in time to see the sun set over the Rockies--from inside the stadium! It’s a beautiful park, with views of the mountains and downtown. After walking around for a half-hour taking pictures and getting dinner, I finally made it to my seat to watch the game. Four home runs, just in my five innings there--typical at Coors Field, where the outgoing winds and high elevation (my seats were almost exactly one mile above sea level) make it the most hitter-friendly park in the majors.

After the fifth inning, I ran back to the train station, only to find out that our train was delayed for another hour. But, the Iowa couple and I continued to chat and then wound up on the train next to each other. That’s one of the great things about train travel--meeting new people and carrying on conversations, something that just doesn’t happen on planes.

The State Game

Some people asked before I left if I had plenty of reading material. The truth is that I only brought an atlas and the latest issue of Reader’s Digest. I’m fascinated by the scenery in this beautiful country of ours, and wasn’t really planning on doing a whole lot of reading. Since leaving Grand Junction (on a bus, since they were working on the train tracks between there and Denver), I’ve marveled at the Colorado River, the canyons that it has formed, and the mighty Rockies off in the distance.
The bulk of the Rockies is yet to come, and we have significant elevation to gain. The bummer right now is that the bus driver is a fan of country music, and has had it playing for a while. Thank goodness for my laptop and headphones, which have rescued me from those wretched songs.

One note: After fond memories of playing the license plate game as a kid on road trips, I’ve decided to do the same for this trip. So...I’ll keep you posted on all the different states’ and provinces’ license plates that I pass. Here’s the list (13) thus far:

California
Idaho
Colorado
Utah
Georgia
Wyoming
Nevada
Illinois
Minnesota
Texas
Ontario
Missouri
Pennsylvania

Grand Junction, Colorado

Chris and Carol at Liberty Cap
Originally uploaded by Chris Winkler.

For the past two days, I've been enjoying western Colorado with my friends Carol and Katie Miller in Grand Junction. Carol is a good friend from Hope and Katie is her mom, whom I got to know well in Michigan, as well as Thanksgivings in California.

After arriving around 1:30 p.m. on Wednesday afternoon, we dropped my stuff at their house (complete with a golf course as a backyard) and set out on a hike to Liberty Cap in the Colorado National Monument. Gorgeous. I loved how different it was from the landscape in both the Sierra and Utah. Loose sandstone, unique in color, with horizontal layers showing the eras of the past. And of course, a fabulous view from the top!

Thursday brought a longer and even more spectacular hike (Liberty Cap was only about five miles). Crag Crest Trail on the Grand Mesa was a 10-mile stunner, with steep dropoffs on both sides of the trail, 360-degree views and a variety in the scenery. (More photos are available at my Flickr site.)

For dinner, we hit the farmer's market in downtown Grand Junction, followed by tennis and a long session of throwing the disc (AKA frisbee). A tiring day, but worth every moment. Now it's off to the train station, where I'll take a bus to Denver and get back on the train for Chicago. Another entry should follow once I make it through the Rockies.