And here they are

The whistles I ordered last week arrived today.

My bag is officially ready for the season.

Getting Out

Awhile ago I tried to designate a "Visitation Day" when I would randomly show up at parishioners' homes.  I did that for awhile, but then things got away from me and I stopped doing it. 

I've decided that I need to be better at it in 2014, and today was the first day of random visits.

I had four people on my list, met with three of them, and came away with three really good conversations, one box of frozen cookie dough and two old crucifixes.

This could be a good thing.

Happy Epiphany

What?  Your kids don't wake you up at 5:30 in the predawn morning eager to see what the Wise Men left under the Epiphany tree?

Yeah, well, neither do mine.

We held our annual 12th Night/Epiphany Party last night at the church.  It was advertised as "Potluck dinner at 5:30 followed by a gift exchange ($20 limit) for those who want to participate."

At 5:30 we had maybe eight people.

Between 5:31 and 5:42, maybe another 25+ showed up.  Everyone had a good time (the ring, dime and thimble were all found) and the gift exchange was also fun.  In years past we did the "everyone draws a number then pick a gift or steal from the person in front of you" thing.  This year Mrs. Ref suggested that we put everybody in a circle with a gift while I read the Epiphany story, and every time I paused during the reading, people would pass their gift to the left.

It was something new and it was fun.

Today was spent cleaning up the last of the decorations, storing the Christmas figures back downstairs and taking down the tree.

We are slowly returning to normal -- whatever that is.

This afternoon I spent time at the hospital visiting a parishioner who just had hip replacement surgery.  He is in fine form and hopefully not trying the patience of the nursing staff too much.  On my way out, I ran into a couple who have attended off and on.  He was getting a blood draw, so nothing serious.  But we talked for quite awhile in the hospital lobby about everything from Corvette's to becoming a member of the parish.

It's been a good day.

Happy Epiphany.  May the Spirit of God lead you down unknown roads.

New Bag

So, the new bag came today.  It looks like this (except black):
 

 It's better than the first one I ordered, but it's still not "the perfect bag."  But for about $30, it'll do.  And I'll get used to it.

My one real gripe is that I thought there was a larger pocket that ran the length of the bag just under those top two.  As it turns out, that's the opening to the main compartment.  So there really isn't a spot for my shoes.  I'll have to pick up a shoe bag now, since I've lost a spot for those.

But on the whole, it should do nicely.  All of my other gear fits nicely into the other pockets and is evenly distributed so that I'm not forced to store the "extras" with the "regulars."  It's also a little taller than my previous bag.  That lets me put more clothes in (which is nice), but also allows for stuff to slide all over the place if it's not full.  This will be more of a problem earlier in the season when I carry less clothing.

And it rolls.  So for now, I'm generally happy with it.  And in about eight months I can start using it regularly!

Football Bag Take 2

So a few weeks ago I bought a new football bag and I was all excited about it.  When I was finally allowed to open my Christmas gift to myself, I discovered that it wasn't exactly what I wanted.

And since I'm sort of particular about my equipment, I sent it back.  I will be getting a full refund, but I had to pay for shipping.  Ish.

Anyway . . . I spent all day yesterday once again shopping online for a new bag.  I was a little more careful as I looked and researched for what I wanted. 

I settled on this one:  http://www.luggagepros.com/olympia-22-8-pocket-rolling-duffel.shtml?utm_source=GoogleBase&utm_medium=feed&utm_term=Olympia&utm_campaign=PID9536&gclid=CKCRlaeA0bsCFVaVfgodL0cAsQ  (sorry about not being able to figure out how to put the picture up here).

It has eight pockets in what LOOK like they are the right sizes and in the right locations.  It's also due to arrive on Epiphany.

We'll see how wise I was in my choice of this gift.

Shopping

Generally speaking, I'm not a big fan of shopping.  Mrs. Ref learned a long time ago (when dealing with me) that there's a difference between, "I want to go look for new shoes," and, "I want to go shopping."  If you tell me you're going to look for new shoes, don't drag me to every store in the mall.  If you want to drag me to every store in the mall, tell me you want to go "shopping."

So I'm not generally a big fan of shopping.  I am even less of a fan of online shopping.  In fact, I generally despise online shopping for anything other than books.  If it's something I have to wear or use on a regular basis, I want it to fit and function correctly from the moment of purchase.  Online shopping doesn't afford me the opportunity to check out the product and I have to rely on pictures and/or customer reviews.

Remember that Christmas gift to me . . . the new football bag with wheels and 15 pockets?

Yeah . . . Not so much.  Dammit.

So now I have to contact the company today to arrange for a return and refund and renew my search for a replacement bag.

Easter Gifts

I surprised Mrs. Ref with one of these for Easter:



For those who don't know, it's a BCP/Hymnal combo.  Now that she's singing in the choir regularly, she mentioned that it would make life easier.  So I picked one up via Amazon for her.

I also picked up something for myself:




I've been looking for a decent pair of ref shoes for awhile.  I bought a new pair last year, but haven't really been happy with them.  I found these at a discount shoe store in town.  Even if they don't work well, I can be wrong for $30.  The only problem with them so far is that they have the MLB logo on the tongue; but I blacked that out.  I know today is Opening Day, but I am REALLY looking forward to the start of football season.

Good News

Came home from work and made a beeline for my bookcase where I keep things that need to go with me in the morning -- i.e. keys, collar, calendar, pen & pencil, oil stock.  The oil stock was not there.

Grumble grumble words words grumble grumble.

So I started thinking about when I had it last and remembered that it was in the pocket of the slacks I wore yesterday.  And I remembered taking a short nap on the couch before the late service.  So possibly . . . .

Yep, it was between the cushion and the arm, having fallen out yesterday.

I can rest easy.

What to do

I have heard/read various people asking, "What can we do?" in the aftermath of the shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, CT.

We feel especially helpless because, unlike a natural disaster where we can send money to E-RD or a variety of other agencies to provide shelter, clothing, food and other resources, there are no agencies that come immediately to mind after this unnatural disaster.

On the facebook page of a friend, that question was asked.  One of the responses caught my attention:  send a donation to the Rector's Discretionary Fund of the local Episcopal church.  There will be many unanticipated needs and expenses arising out of this tragedy for which the Rector can help defray -- funerals and counseling come immediately to mind.  As it turns out, there are two Episcopal churches in Newtown -- St. John's and Trinity.  A donation to either would be appreciated, I'm sure.

At this time, however, I will be strongly encouraging my parish to be making a donation to Trinity because I know that one of the victims, Benjamin Wheeler, was a parishioner there.

If you want to do likewise, you can send a donation to:

Trinity Episcopal Church
36 Main St.
Newtown, CT  06470

Memo your checks and/or enclose a note to the Rector's Discretionary Fund.

Rocks of faith

When I first moved to the little town and smaller church in SW Montana, one of my first big projects was to get them to allow me to install a labyrinth in the yard. It wasn't gorgeous, but it was functional, and it was big. I used a ton (well, maybe a quarter ton) of rocks from the local tailing piles to lay it out. I took a picture of it and it's somewhere on my blog.

It actually got a fair amount of use from both parishioners, townsfolk and passersby.

Shortly after I left, the congregation saw fit to remove that labyrinth (something about mowing the yard). It may return again someday in a better form, who knows.

In today's mail was one of those "if it fits, it ships" boxes from the USPS that weighed more than it should have. When I opened it up, there was one of the rocks from the labyrinth with the signatures of the majority of my former parishioners.

Rocks of faith, indeed.

Gifts

Emma's parents and aunt and uncle arrived for their visit on Wednesday. It was a long trip to PDX and back, but everything went well. Their English is, well, marginally better than my Mongolian, so the communication gap is rather interesting.

I managed to ask them if they were hungry. They were. I tried to figure out what they might want to eat. The only word they knew for sure was, "Steak." :)

So we found a restaurant and everybody had a good meal.

Then on Thursday we gathered at our house for dinner. Had a good meal of our favorite chicken dish and salad. After a quick dinner, I had to scoot off to a meeting at church, but was home at a reasonable hour. When I got back, everyone was playing on the Wii. Mrs. Ref said, "Do you have any idea how hard it is to explain the concept of a hula hoop to someone who doesn't speak English??"

After a few Wii games, they presented us with gifts from Mongolia. The Kid received chopsticks, a fan, a t-shirt and small decorative dolls in traditional garb. Mrs. Ref received a nice purse and maybe something else I can't remember. I received a wallet with Chinggis Khan on it, a t-shirt, and this (scroll down to the very bottom). I asked if I needed to share a drink with the men, but was told no.

So I'm thinking that it will go sit on the shelf in my office. Unless any of you out there are vodka drinkers, then I'll share some with you.

Surprises

Today was full of them.

Dealt with a less-than smooth liturgy in which it wasn't one really big thing, just a lot of little things that went wrong -- a lay reader who lost his place, ushers who just stood at the back of the church waiting for Jesus himself to appear I guess before coming forward with the offering, and several other things that just were not normal.

A vestry meeting full of hard discussions and hurt feelings that was done with as much calm and respect as could be expected.

A good youth group session in which we dissected the Lord's Prayer and how it applied to life in high school.

And a brand new 35" Vizio flat screen tv dropped anonymously in our living room while we were off at church.

It was a good, long day.

A long, strange day

Well, not all that strange . . . but there were strange goings on around the vicarage.

Sunday I had the two services as is normal; and then after that, we had a local choir performing at the church. Stayed for that and got home just before 4:00.

At 5:00 I went over and started prepping for our TEC200 class. We are going through Sex, Shame, Sacrifice and Smiting: Is the Bible Always Right? It's interesting and has provoked some good discussion; although it's causing some consternation amongst the more conservative members of the group. We finished up about 7:00, and I walked in the front door just before 7:30.

That was the long portion of the day.

The "strange" portion of the day came when we pulled up to the house after the concert, because there, on the front step, was a very large garbage bag full of . . . something we couldn't quite identify.

When we got to the door, we discovered that the bag was full of stuffed animals and hobby horses that look like they're big enough for a 3-year old.

Without a note.

Why someone would give this to us, I have no idea. Here's a hint: if you want to leave me an anonymous gift on my front step, leave a Costco gift card.

The Bishop is coming, the Bishop is coming

Next Sunday, 1 Advent, is our annual bishop's visitation.

As it turns out, some stars and planets must be aligned because on November 29, 1896, 1 Advent, Bishop Brewer came to our town and consecrated Christ Church. Now, 113 years later, it's again 1 Advent on November 29 and the bishop will be here. Not Bishop Brewer, of course, I think he retired some years ago; but our current bishop who is probably in much better physical condition at the moment.

Anyway, because of this rare confluence of secular calendar, church calendar and bishop's calendar, we are doing one service that day. People from VC are coming down for the event and we've invited a whole herd of people. We have a couple of confirmations that day, and it will all be followed up with a brunch.

It should be a fun time. And the best thing about this? I don't have to write a sermon over the shortened holiday week.

:-D Happy priesty boy

Award

The VCPA is a local group dedicated to the preservation of our local "Wild West" buildings and heritage. They are behind the historical reenactments during the summer weekends (come see the hanging of George Ives, fun for the whole family), the two Grand Victorian Balls (after the first of which St. Paul's does a Holy Eucharist from the 1789 BCP) and various other events.

They also keep a close eye out for people who work to preserve our buildings and history and, once a year, hold an awards ceremony for those people deserving of such.

But this is also an insular area and people tend to be wary of outsiders and what they might do to that history . . . like, refurbishing an old house to make it "modern and up to date." People here don't like modern and up to date. I hadn't been here six months when I heard that I had won an award for my work at St. Paul's in VC (if you remember, the church that needed new carpet). In actuality, it was an award for doing nothing to the building.

While I was appropriately gracious, it felt a little like, "Welcome to the neighborhood; don't mess with our stuff."

But things have changed in the last five years.

Last night I accepted an award from the VCPA given to Christ Church. First, CC is not in VC, so it would appear that the VCPA is beginning to expand their vision. Second, I have apparently been here long enough, and done enough good things, that people are no longer scared that the outsider will run roughshod over local history.

Over the past three years, CC has re-roofed the building, installed a new bell tower, and completed a paint job (go here and scroll down to see what's been done). For all of these efforts, the members of the VCPA decided that we were deserving of an award recognizing our commitment to preserving the local history.

We still have things to do (a major stained glass window preservation project needs to be undertaken and, good lord, we need to get rid of our 1974 brown & gold indoor-outdoor all-purpose carpet); but it's nice to be recognized for work we have done, and nice to know that people finally realize that I didn't come here to eliminate their history but to add to it.

Bar Night

Thursday's bar night went something like this:

Three bars
Three games of pool
Three really good conversations
Two people who expressed an interest in attending church
One couple offering $600 seed money for a holiday dinner for those who can't
One offer to donate a truck to the church

It was a good night.

Happy Birthday to Me

I did some online birthday shopping for myself last week and some items arrived today.

Looky at what I got:



Yep, I'm a happy Rev Ref.

That went well

Tonight we had our going away party for The Kid. Not everybody on the list showed up, but that worked out just perfect since it turns out we had set up the exact number of tables and chairs needed.

I'm not sure how it happened, but all of the teens ended up at one table (as expected), but then all the women were at another table and that left the four men sitting with the four or five kids 11 and under.

45 and still sitting at the kids table . . .

Anyway, it was a good night and a good way to send her off to Germany.

Tomorrow we head out to send her away for a year.

Angels in our midst

I picked up the mail today and received a letter from a person whom I have never met but has made an offering to the parish in the past. Thinking that this was going to be along the same lines, I was pleased to see the envelope and wondered what he had to say this time.

I was quite surprised, however, when the envelope contained not a donation to the church but a donation to The Kid's upcoming trip to Germany; along with his advice to "not tell her mother everything when she calls home" (which made me laugh).

Thank you for that.

Angels in our midst, indeed.

Sweet Sixteen

Yesterday was the feast day of the Nativity of St. John the Baptist.

It was also The Kid's 16th birthday.

We always did big parties for her before we went off to seminary, and even managed to do one for her while there. Mrs. Ref was always the creative force behind those. This year was no different; she wanted to do something special because, "You only turn 16 once."

I didn't point out to her that you also only turn 4 once, 11 once, 23 once . . .

Tuesday after work, I drove to Bozeman and picked up a couple of cakes from Costco. Mrs. Ref had contacted the Upward Bound leadership and told them the plans. Very few people knew about it. Yesterday we drove up to Butte, dropped the cakes off at Point A, picked up The Kid and two of her friends at Point B and took them out to see "UP" (a very good movie, btw) and out for a birthday dinner. Then we dropped them back at campus for their evening classes.

We killed some time picking up a few other necessary items for the house and then returned to campus at 8. All of the other kids trickled into the dining hall and were filled in about the party then. Turns out that The Kid shares a birthday with another kid in the program, and there was a third who was given a belated birthday wish. The three had been kept after class under false pretenses, and then came wandering into a dining hall full of people and cake and ice cream.

She was duly surprised. We all had plenty of cake and ice cream. And a good time was had by all. And we didn't leave Butte until almost 9:30 -- which made for a late night getting home.

Yep, my little girl is 16 now. Like I tell people: It's not that she's 16 that gets me, but I wonder when I became old enough to have a daughter who's 16.

Wow.