We finally get a daughter!

Bjorn and Jenny are engaged
Originally uploaded by Southworth Sailor.

Bjorn popped the big question yesterday to Jenny. After a romantic day at Deep Cove, he used his computer to communicate his love. For a detailed account, check out Jenny's blog.myfairlady.

a warm winter's day

winter canoeing
Originally uploaded by Southworth Sailor.

Sunny January Saturdays in the Northwest are not to be taken lightly. This morning, I quickly finished some inside painting and then absorbed some sun on the roof, while taking down all the christmas lights from the gutters and face boards. Next it was a relaxing canoe ride in the Sound. I saw a couple of bald eagles and two seals, along with scores of grebes and buffleheads. The Olympics were showing off their new blanket of snow. Boating traffic was almost non-existent, a beautiful afternoon for a canoe ride. I finished the afternoon off with a five mile run on dry roads. After all the stormy weather of the past several weeks, it was great to enjoy the Northwest outdoors.

I finally hit the slopes

an old man snowboarding
Originally uploaded by Southworth Sailor.

I'm a little ashamed to admit that despite the abundance of snow in the mountains this year, today was my first snowboarding of the season. Calvin and I went up with the church snow van. The conditions were great! I was a little worried about the crowds and ice, but neither one was a problem. Evidently, even though there hasn't been any fresh snow for a few days, the dry and cold kept the snow from forming ice. It was a spectacular clear day and it wasn't too cold. I'll take a snow day like this anytime. I feel like I've redeemed the extended break from school this weekend. I think our whole house is actually anxious for school to get back to normal tomorrow, though they are predicting snow tonight :(

Velvet Elvis

Velvet Elvis by Rob Bell
Originally uploaded by Southworth Sailor.

One of the many books I received this Christmas was the thought provoking Velvet Elvis by Rob Bell, pastor of the large emerging church, Mars Hill of Grand Rapids. (not to be confused with the Mars Hill Church in Seattle.) The author uses the term ‘velvet elvis’ as a metaphor for the outdated and irrelevant painting of the Christian faith by today’s evangelicalism. In its place, he presents a ‘fresh’ repainting of the Christian faith. While I appreciated many of his ideas, there were others that reminded me of classic neo-orthodox theology. Among the ideas that I enjoyed were his emphasis on the ‘nowness’ of eternal life and the utilization of Jewish Mishnah for an understanding of Jesus’ teachings. However, his approach to the nature of the bible and its interpretation troubled me. The historicity and factuality of the bible don’t seem to be as important as its existential impact on the individual. Two examples are a questioning the virgin birth and a spurious homily on the ‘stench’ of Lazarus’ body as representative of our sinfulness. The book is a fast read and very provocative, but must be read critically, even as Rob suggests on the back cover.

an unplanned school break

longnecker
Originally uploaded by Southworth Sailor.

Including today's school cancellation, we will have a five-day weekend. They have just decided to cancel school tomorrow as well because of the threat of icy roads. All I can see is our summer days being eaten up. There is some consolation in the beauty of the scenary, the crystal clear skies and bright sunshine. I enjoyed a cold walk on the beach this afternoon. Now, I just have to think of some worthwhile activities to fill up the long weekend.

the iPhone is here

There is much enthusiasm in the Bulthuis family today. The long anticipated iPhone was announced and demonstrated at Macworld today. Bjorn has been yearning for this thing since it was first hinted at a couple of years age. He has refrained from buying a cell phone all these years. There were some rumors of this breakthrough device being announced, but no one imagined how radical it would be. The best way to describe it is to say that it is a video iPod, a cell phone, a palm pilot and a mobile web browser, all seamlessly linked to your computer. It won't be shipped until June, but if Apple's track record has anything to say, it will soon be the envy of every tech geek. To see an excited Bjorn, check out the video on Jenny's blog at myfairlady.

Southworth gym

Southworth gym
Originally uploaded by Southworth Sailor.

When the gym is in your bedroom, it's hard to find excuses not to exercise. Esther and I gave eachother a treadmill for Christmas. She is hoping the convenience will encourage a steady use. I plan to use it in the winter months for my bi-daily run, when the weather is lousy or it's dark (which is constant, lately) I have used it several times now, and it works great. The machine is sturdy enough to take the pounding of a long run, and the incline and pace features allow me to simulate my outdoor course quite well. After some research and debate, we decided on a Smooth Fitness 5.25. It has a lifetime warranty on the frame and motor. So far, I've been impressed. Now it's hard to tell whether the upstairs room is a bedroom, a library, a den or a gym.

Dead Sea Scrolls

Dead Sea Scrolls
Originally uploaded by Southworth Sailor.

Jenny and her dad joined us for New Years Eve and Day. It was great meeting Greg and getting to know him. On N. Y. Day we all went to the exhibition of the Dead Sea Scrolls in Seattle. It was very interesting and Jenny and Bjorn were excited as two professors from TWU do much of the talking in the recorded tour that everyone listens to. I have to say that I was expecting to see a lot more manuscripts. The actual Dead Sea exhibits were limited to a dozen or so fragments. I was surprised at how flat and smooth the fragments are (almost looked like photographs) My favorite pieces were the fragment from the Psalms and the coins that we on display. If you haven't gone, you still have six days left.