merry Christmas everyone! i just returned to my flat after spending the day (about 13 hours) at the thompson's house, the family i am closest to in zambia. we started the day by reading the story of Jesus' birth from Luke, then opened presents. afterwards we watched 'jingle all the way' while preparing for lunch. two other families came over for the big Christmas meal, we had ham, turkey, etc., it was great. and we had pumpkin pie, my favorite desert of all time.
after lunch we played some games and watched 'the shawshank redemption' and 'pirates of the carribean.'
tomorrow morning, about seven hours from now, i am leaving to go to johannesburg, south africa for the first time. i will be gone for about two weeks, mostly to be a counselor at an MK (missionary kid) camp. tomorrow night i will be spending in botswana, a country i have never been to before.
(listening to: sleeping at last- 'ghosts')
20031225
20031224
just got back from bowling again, this time rolled a 164 and 126. it is extremely fun, but that is the last time i go for awhile because it is so expensive! most things in zambia are cheap, but not bowling. it costs 20,000 kwacha a game, the equivalent of $4. in january they are starting leagues and yearly memberships, that is what i am waiting for.
last day of swim practice was today, most everyone is traveling the week after Christmas.
i am spending tonight, Christmas Eve, at the Strange family's house, and then tomorrow, Christmas Day, with the Thompsons. i am excited.
(listening to- over the rhine- 'ohio')
20031223
the redskins lost again, what a year. they can play anybody close, but win, no. the patriots have won 11 games in a row and have the best record in the NFL. last team to beat them? the redskins.
i cannot believe tomorrow is Christmas eve. Christmas season isn't the same when it is 90 degrees outside.
(listening to: starflyer 59- 'i am the portuguese blues')
20031220
i have become aware that this page does not look like it is supposed to. i am working on the problem, but it is due to my lack of html knowlegde. i am learning.
today i spent 7 hours at a swim meet. mainly to coach the AIS team, but i also swam in it. while it had been over a year since i had bowled last, it has been almost 10 years since i have swam competitively. amazingly, the times i swam are comparable, while slower, to what i did in my prime. maybe now i'll start training hard and see what i am capable of. these times are for meters, so i need to convert them to see how close they are to my yards personal bests:
50m fly: 30.37
50m breast: 37.06
50m free: 28.15
100m fly: 1:08.57
100m free: 1:01.07
100m I.M.: 1:10.25
(listening to: pedro the lion- 'it's hard to find a friend')
20031218
i just bowled for the first time since i arrived in zambia. i bowled 101, 141 and 129. not bad, but not good either. however, 14 months is a long time to go without bowling, so rust is to be expected.
(listening to: appleseed cast- 'low level owl' volume 1)
20031217
i have seen 'return of the king' and loved it. and, as you can tell, i just discovered spider-man 2 comes out in july.
(listening to: celldweller- 'celldweller')
20031216
two weeks ago the company who hosted www.turnofftheradio.com decided to delete it without informing me beforehand. ironically i used to work for this company. all of the work i put into it is gone.
i am starting over here. there is no content yet, so go to the link to the right to see my pictures.
the biggest news in zambia today is that i just bought tickets for 'return of the king.' i will be seeing it at 1 p.m. on december 17. that is 6 a.m. EST in the states. so yes, after a year of seeing movies at least two months late, if ever, i will be seeing this movie before almost everyone in the states!
(listening to: coldplay- 'a rush of blood to the head')