Last Sunday (8/18) at around 8:30 am we were returning from visiting relatives in Michigan. On the Indiana Turnpike just east of Elkhart, my husband looked up the road and said, "That looks like a Connector bus." Sure enough we pulled alongside and that's what it was, red and yellow with the website for Fairfax Connector painted on the side. The destination sign on the front said Fairfax, VA.

It was empty except for the driver, obviously a new bus being delivered to the county. That got us wondering where these buses are built. Elkhart is the capital of RVs, so we thought it might have come from there. It was too far west on the turnpike to have come from Detroit or Dearborn. Does anyone know?

Do you know the google?

Ask the google, for the google knows all...


Attachments:

Attachments:

Ahhh, the Fairfax bus. Reminds me of a story about a bus in a play. Seeing the play also kicked off a bit of me wishing I was with Goose, and I tested the waters, confirming that she is, in fact, dating Benedick. I know that she's not the one for me, but sometimes things are hard to know. Later I told a friend I hadn't talked to since high school, whom I randomly chatted up on facebook, "She'd be the one that got away, if I weren't completely certain there's a girl out there whose better for me."On the 31st, I turned in my SPU application. That's right, a full day before it was due. First time in my life. That afternoon, before turning it in, I had lunch with my old Microsoft pals, one to have lunch with them, and two, to get my letters of recommendation (which were incredibly kind) signed. It was a good thing they were signed, too, because they almost rejected one on account of it not being in an envelope. Alas, I had forgotten to print out the second half of my written thing, which was a list of teaching experiences I'd had, so I emailed that to them that night. All that's left now is an interview on March 10, and then waiting one to two weeks for an application letter. I got the feeling there were 100+ applicants per year, but ALL of the interviews, which are required in person, happen on the 10th between 8 and 4pm. I'm just trying to imagine how 100 people get interviewed in 8 hours without a LOT of interviewers. Anyway, I'm not too worried. If this is what God wants, then I'll be accepted. If not, then since I think God has me where he wants me right now, he must have a plan to get me to where I need to go next. Plus, it's not like I'm not an ideal candidate for the spot anyway. The only thing I could have done better, perhaps, was to double-major in math, but I took enough math to cover all the requirements for the MTMS (masters in teaching math and science) without taking any other courses.As for girls, as there must always be a for girls, I'm a bit put off right now. A day or two ago, I was angsty and frustrated, and way too into it, applying my girl-situation to my identity, where it does not belong. So, once again, I'm at a place where if I find a girl, cool, if not, I have other things to worry about--even though I really don't, having money and no employment. Moving! Right. Good. I was worried I had nothing to worry about. Anyway, all that's really happened since Belle is a few girls I met for lunch, none of which went spectacularly. This latest one, I met in Bellingham, and I thought it went well enough to warrant a second date, but she did not. What was great about it, though, is that it got me to Bellingham where I met with Rufus and Solomon. It'd been entirely too long since I'd talked to either of them, and seeing them again was both wonderful and nurturing to my soul. Solomon is so sincere with his Christ-like love. While talking with Rufus at the VU, I saw a good six or seven other people I knew from back in the day, pastors and friends and Fir Creek counselors. I have no doubt that the reason I ran into this girl on eHarmony was to get me to Bellingham. Besides, who wants to date a girl that enjoyed The Phantom Menace and wanted to see it in 3D? *dog with shifty eyes*The meeting with Solomon spawned off an email thread, largely about girls and what to look for in girls when looking to marry. I've read it a few times now because he is incredibly insightful. If I get his permission, I'd love to post it on my blog, or maybe a link to it. If not, well, sucks to be you, I guess.I guess saying I only met a few girls for lunch isn't fair. For a little while, I was kind of seeing this girl. We met up a few times. She was the first girl I've ever really been on a date with that was (more than a year) older than me, though not much older. I'm not really sure why we dropped out of contact, but I think we both felt we should. I don't know. Looking back through nostalgia-colored lenses, I miss her a little. Or maybe (matter-of-factly) I'm just lonely.The rest of these past months is just keeping busy. I refuse to get bored while unemployed. I've volunteered at my church and also at that Kirkland high school, though they have no place for me in the classroom right now. For my church, they have me doing repetitive menial tasks, which so far I've actually enjoyed. When they set me up to do some data entry, they showed me the software suite they're using, which only lets you search for one member at a time. I noticed that it runs on an .mdb (Microsoft Access) file, and told them I could whip together a quick program that lets you see all the people who are members in a list at once, along with all the people in the list who are new. Tomorrow I'm going to work with the volunteer coordinator to put together a rough spec, since my initial one-hour version doesn't quite do everything needed.If I'm going to make that meeting, I should probably end this post now. I've been getting up, most days, at 8:30--quite a feat when I don't have anything to do during the day--and reading my Bible while sipping Frappuccino. I was never good at reading my Bible regularly, so I'm determined to make this habit stick.lol!! World Relief University Monday, September 26, 2011 Today I met wisdom incarnate. He's the former Bishop of Rwanda, having recently retired. He spoke for an hour or so at the beginning of a day dedicated to explaining the vision and execution of World Relief Rwanda. This is a man who represents and leads the entire country through the Anglican church, a man who speaks to hundreds if not thousands at a time, a man who speaks to and councils presidents and ambassadors, here to talk to the twelve of us.He didn't speak on behalf of World Relief, but he definitely agreed with their work and methodology.The Rwandan government relies heavily on the Church to care for the most vulnerable. That is Jesus' mandate for the Church, and the Church therefore, presumably, is the body most fit for the task. Is it the government's duty as well? Yes, I think it is, but in the US, the Church often shrugs off its responsibility, its core purpose, because we can rationalize that our government has already taken care of it.It's entirely foreign to me that government should rely on the church to do anything. It seems to me our government tries to do what would make our lives better, avoiding at all costs any relationship to the church; the church is a hinderance, not an asset. Recently I was considering whether it might not be a good idea to completely remove marriage, a religious notion, from our laws. Let the church handle religion. Hearing Bishop John's telling of how the Rwandan government and church work together, complement each other, may have turned me around on that. Of course, it's easier when 90% of the population claims to be Christian.The Bishop talked a bit about the US, where he has lived in the past, and some of the Church's failures there. One of those failures, he said, is not being able to talk about Christianity in the schools. I assume he means students not being able to, but he didn't specify. I asked him how the church could not fail in that regard and he said it needs to change its attitude; it needs to be more humble. He said the Anglican church has figured out everything, and it leaves no room for the Spirit. He then asked if he had answered my question, which I felt he had not, so I asked how that would change the government's position on religion in the schools. Essentially he said the government doesn't value the church because we no longer have anything of value to offer. "The church doesn't do magic. If you put salt in a pan and heat the pan with the food and serve it immediately, the salt won't have added any flavor." He suggested that if we humble ourselves and serve rather than rant, in a generation or two, we may see change in how people view Christianity. It's certainly food for thought.Another culture shock that I mentioned previously is Rwanda's view of Sex. "Professor" Maurice, my translator on Thursday for the pastoral retreat, talked a bit about the Mobilizing for Life program they have which teaches faithfulness and abstinence to combat AIDS. I asked a devil's advocate question, as I do so often, "When the US, historically, has taught abstinence only, it's failed miserably. It doesn't reduce the amount of sex, it reduces the amount of safe sex. (Thank you CJ Craig.) What do we expect to happen here?" In the last three or four years, the number of sexually active youth in areas where the benefits of abstinence has been taught has dropped from 33% to 12%. Maurice talked about a lot of testimonies. Pastor Phil said there are statistics to support this as well. He went on to talk about the many supporters of Rwanda, whether they be governments or organizations, that all have agendas for Rwanda and Africa. They all have their own ideals. Much of what comes in is helpful, from financial aid to education to entrepreneurial spirit. But with the good also comes the bad and the ugly, and just because the US can't keep its dick in its pants, doesn't mean the rest of the world can't. Since then (two hours ago) I've been thinking about what could cause this separation in values (and abstinence is a value in Rwanda). I know it's not belief in the Bible, as this education is still being taught to the country and roughly one in three pastors aren't even "born again." It's not ancestral roots (they're not being taught it by their parents) as polygamy is an issue here. I'm left thinking it's our media, our advertising, our obsession with sex in the first place. They have no sex appeal ads because they have no ads at all. I'm not blaming the media outright as the media wouldn't present what we don't want to see. There's a Jack Johnson song about this called "Cookie Jar".These two pointed questions earned me the prestigious Hardest Questions award during graduation from World Relief University. overheard at the end of Bishop John's talk, on the way to tea that Rwanda is, too, materialistic. Americans put their faith and trust in the objects they own. Rwandans put their hope in the objects they think would make their lives complete. I guess Americans do that as well. It's an interesting thought, to be sure.What I've learned today is that life as it's meant to be is hard. In fact, it's impossible. The amount of forgiveness, the metaphorical seventy times seven, for every possible way someone can sin against us, whether that be accidental, misunderstanding, cruelty, thievery, rape, or murder of loved ones... how can you? With the 1994 genocide raw in everyone's minds here, it makes all of this that much more real. The amount of healing through forgiveness that's happened in the last 17 years is phenomenal. Selling your stuff to support those in need? I can easily give, and in fact enjoy giving, out of my abundance, but ask me to sell my tv, or laptop, or car to help someone? Not happening. LIfe, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Happiness? God gives us life and the liberty to do with it and fail as we please in our own pursuit of happiness. Life is the one thing we, as Americans, feel we have as our own. How can we give that up completely? It's impossible. "With Christ all things are possible." It's hard to comprehend, much less believe, much less act on.On lighter topics (and it is now this entry's tomorrow, about 18 hours since starting it), we left our hotel in Musanze yesterday morning. Before leaving, we walked up to the Catholic church about five minutes away and prayed for the region. Dyanah didn't walk with us. I thought she was being lazy since she got in a car that was to pick us up at the church. It turns out she was leaving, so I missed my chance to hug her goodbye. Nothing grieves me more than missed opportunities for relationship, romantic or not. To my future girlfriends, never tease me by offering a kiss and then denying it because of something, legitimate or not, I did. It tears me apart.The ride to our new home, where the day-university class was held, was about 40 minutes long, bumpy and upward. (We're just about to leave this place, and I just carried my bags up the stairs to where the SUVs are. To give you an idea of the elevation, not only am I winded, which would be normal, but everyone else has mentioned being winded too.) We got some beautiful shots of waterfalls and people working their fields. The retreat center we went to has the most glorious view I've ever seen, tenfold and then some. It overlooks a large lake with several islands in the middle. There's no electricity to the islands, so there are no power lines crossing the water or anything else to mar the scene. Not that I've ever been a poetic writer, but I doubt anyone but a poet laureate could capture the view. Or a photo. With the world's best camera. Yeah, you really should just visit.Glory be to God, we had a bathroom door in our room

Bus story Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Ahhh, the Fairfax bus. Reminds me of a story
> about a bus in a play. Seeing the play also kicked
> off a bit of me wishing I was with Goose, and I
> tested the waters, confirming that she is, in
> fact, dating Benedick. I know that she's not the
> one for me, but sometimes things are hard to know.
> Later I told a friend I hadn't talked to since
> high school, whom I randomly chatted up on
> facebook, "She'd be the one that got away, if I
> weren't completely certain there's a girl out
> there whose better for me."On the 31st, I turned
> in my SPU application. That's right, a full day
> before it was due. First time in my life. That
> afternoon, before turning it in, I had lunch with
> my old Microsoft pals, one to have lunch with
> them, and two, to get my letters of recommendation
> (which were incredibly kind) signed. It was a good
> thing they were signed, too, because they almost
> rejected one on account of it not being in an
> envelope. Alas, I had forgotten to print out the
> second half of my written thing, which was a list
> of teaching experiences I'd had, so I emailed that
> to them that night. All that's left now is an
> interview on March 10, and then waiting one to two
> weeks for an application letter. I got the feeling
> there were 100+ applicants per year, but ALL of
> the interviews, which are required in person,
> happen on the 10th between 8 and 4pm. I'm just
> trying to imagine how 100 people get interviewed
> in 8 hours without a LOT of interviewers. Anyway,
> I'm not too worried. If this is what God wants,
> then I'll be accepted. If not, then since I think
> God has me where he wants me right now, he must
> have a plan to get me to where I need to go next.
> Plus, it's not like I'm not an ideal candidate for
> the spot anyway. The only thing I could have done
> better, perhaps, was to double-major in math, but
> I took enough math to cover all the requirements
> for the MTMS (masters in teaching math and
> science) without taking any other courses.As for
> girls, as there must always be a for girls, I'm a
> bit put off right now. A day or two ago, I was
> angsty and frustrated, and way too into it,
> applying my girl-situation to my identity, where
> it does not belong. So, once again, I'm at a place
> where if I find a girl, cool, if not, I have other
> things to worry about--even though I really don't,
> having money and no employment. Moving! Right.
> Good. I was worried I had nothing to worry about.
> Anyway, all that's really happened since Belle is
> a few girls I met for lunch, none of which went
> spectacularly. This latest one, I met in
> Bellingham, and I thought it went well enough to
> warrant a second date, but she did not. What was
> great about it, though, is that it got me to
> Bellingham where I met with Rufus and Solomon.
> It'd been entirely too long since I'd talked to
> either of them, and seeing them again was both
> wonderful and nurturing to my soul. Solomon is so
> sincere with his Christ-like love. While talking
> with Rufus at the VU, I saw a good six or seven
> other people I knew from back in the day, pastors
> and friends and Fir Creek counselors. I have no
> doubt that the reason I ran into this girl on
> eHarmony was to get me to Bellingham. Besides, who
> wants to date a girl that enjoyed The Phantom
> Menace and wanted to see it in 3D? *dog with
> shifty eyes*The meeting with Solomon spawned off
> an email thread, largely about girls and what to
> look for in girls when looking to marry. I've read
> it a few times now because he is incredibly
> insightful. If I get his permission, I'd love to
> post it on my blog, or maybe a link to it. If not,
> well, sucks to be you, I guess.I guess saying I
> only met a few girls for lunch isn't fair. For a
> little while, I was kind of seeing this girl. We
> met up a few times. She was the first girl I've
> ever really been on a date with that was (more
> than a year) older than me, though not much older.
> I'm not really sure why we dropped out of contact,
> but I think we both felt we should. I don't know.
> Looking back through nostalgia-colored lenses, I
> miss her a little. Or maybe (matter-of-factly) I'm
> just lonely.The rest of these past months is just
> keeping busy. I refuse to get bored while
> unemployed. I've volunteered at my church and also
> at that Kirkland high school, though they have no
> place for me in the classroom right now. For my
> church, they have me doing repetitive menial
> tasks, which so far I've actually enjoyed. When
> they set me up to do some data entry, they showed
> me the software suite they're using, which only
> lets you search for one member at a time. I
> noticed that it runs on an .mdb (Microsoft Access)
> file, and told them I could whip together a quick
> program that lets you see all the people who are
> members in a list at once, along with all the
> people in the list who are new. Tomorrow I'm going
> to work with the volunteer coordinator to put
> together a rough spec, since my initial one-hour
> version doesn't quite do everything needed.If I'm
> going to make that meeting, I should probably end
> this post now. I've been getting up, most days, at
> 8:30--quite a feat when I don't have anything to
> do during the day--and reading my Bible while
> sipping Frappuccino. I was never good at reading
> my Bible regularly, so I'm determined to make this
> habit stick.lol!! World Relief University Monday,
> September 26, 2011 Today I met wisdom incarnate.
> He's the former Bishop of Rwanda, having recently
> retired. He spoke for an hour or so at the
> beginning of a day dedicated to explaining the
> vision and execution of World Relief Rwanda. This
> is a man who represents and leads the entire
> country through the Anglican church, a man who
> speaks to hundreds if not thousands at a time, a
> man who speaks to and councils presidents and
> ambassadors, here to talk to the twelve of us.He
> didn't speak on behalf of World Relief, but he
> definitely agreed with their work and
> methodology.The Rwandan government relies heavily
> on the Church to care for the most vulnerable.
> That is Jesus' mandate for the Church, and the
> Church therefore, presumably, is the body most fit
> for the task. Is it the government's duty as well?
> Yes, I think it is, but in the US, the Church
> often shrugs off its responsibility, its core
> purpose, because we can rationalize that our
> government has already taken care of it.It's
> entirely foreign to me that government should rely
> on the church to do anything. It seems to me our
> government tries to do what would make our lives
> better, avoiding at all costs any relationship to
> the church; the church is a hinderance, not an
> asset. Recently I was considering whether it might
> not be a good idea to completely remove marriage,
> a religious notion, from our laws. Let the church
> handle religion. Hearing Bishop John's telling of
> how the Rwandan government and church work
> together, complement each other, may have turned
> me around on that. Of course, it's easier when 90%
> of the population claims to be Christian.The
> Bishop talked a bit about the US, where he has
> lived in the past, and some of the Church's
> failures there. One of those failures, he said, is
> not being able to talk about Christianity in the
> schools. I assume he means students not being able
> to, but he didn't specify. I asked him how the
> church could not fail in that regard and he said
> it needs to change its attitude; it needs to be
> more humble. He said the Anglican church has
> figured out everything, and it leaves no room for
> the Spirit. He then asked if he had answered my
> question, which I felt he had not, so I asked how
> that would change the government's position on
> religion in the schools. Essentially he said the
> government doesn't value the church because we no
> longer have anything of value to offer. "The
> church doesn't do magic. If you put salt in a pan
> and heat the pan with the food and serve it
> immediately, the salt won't have added any
> flavor." He suggested that if we humble ourselves
> and serve rather than rant, in a generation or
> two, we may see change in how people view
> Christianity. It's certainly food for
> thought.Another culture shock that I mentioned
> previously is Rwanda's view of Sex. "Professor"
> Maurice, my translator on Thursday for the
> pastoral retreat, talked a bit about the
> Mobilizing for Life program they have which
> teaches faithfulness and abstinence to combat
> AIDS. I asked a devil's advocate question, as I do
> so often, "When the US, historically, has taught
> abstinence only, it's failed miserably. It doesn't
> reduce the amount of sex, it reduces the amount of
> safe sex. (Thank you CJ Craig.) What do we expect
> to happen here?" In the last three or four years,
> the number of sexually active youth in areas where
> the benefits of abstinence has been taught has
> dropped from 33% to 12%. Maurice talked about a
> lot of testimonies. Pastor Phil said there are
> statistics to support this as well. He went on to
> talk about the many supporters of Rwanda, whether
> they be governments or organizations, that all
> have agendas for Rwanda and Africa. They all have
> their own ideals. Much of what comes in is
> helpful, from financial aid to education to
> entrepreneurial spirit. But with the good also
> comes the bad and the ugly, and just because the
> US can't keep its dick in its pants, doesn't mean
> the rest of the world can't. Since then (two hours
> ago) I've been thinking about what could cause
> this separation in values (and abstinence is a
> value in Rwanda). I know it's not belief in the
> Bible, as this education is still being taught to
> the country and roughly one in three pastors
> aren't even "born again." It's not ancestral roots
> (they're not being taught it by their parents) as
> polygamy is an issue here. I'm left thinking it's
> our media, our advertising, our obsession with sex
> in the first place. They have no sex appeal ads
> because they have no ads at all. I'm not blaming
> the media outright as the media wouldn't present
> what we don't want to see. There's a Jack Johnson
> song about this called "Cookie Jar".These two
> pointed questions earned me the prestigious
> Hardest Questions award during graduation from
> World Relief University. overheard at the end of
> Bishop John's talk, on the way to tea that Rwanda
> is, too, materialistic. Americans put their faith
> and trust in the objects they own. Rwandans put
> their hope in the objects they think would make
> their lives complete. I guess Americans do that as
> well. It's an interesting thought, to be sure.What
> I've learned today is that life as it's meant to
> be is hard. In fact, it's impossible. The amount
> of forgiveness, the metaphorical seventy times
> seven, for every possible way someone can sin
> against us, whether that be accidental,
> misunderstanding, cruelty, thievery, rape, or
> murder of loved ones... how can you? With the 1994
> genocide raw in everyone's minds here, it makes
> all of this that much more real. The amount of
> healing through forgiveness that's happened in the
> last 17 years is phenomenal. Selling your stuff to
> support those in need? I can easily give, and in
> fact enjoy giving, out of my abundance, but ask me
> to sell my tv, or laptop, or car to help someone?
> Not happening. LIfe, Liberty, and the Pursuit of
> Happiness? God gives us life and the liberty to do
> with it and fail as we please in our own pursuit
> of happiness. Life is the one thing we, as
> Americans, feel we have as our own. How can we
> give that up completely? It's impossible. "With
> Christ all things are possible." It's hard to
> comprehend, much less believe, much less act on.On
> lighter topics (and it is now this entry's
> tomorrow, about 18 hours since starting it), we
> left our hotel in Musanze yesterday morning.
> Before leaving, we walked up to the Catholic
> church about five minutes away and prayed for the
> region. Dyanah didn't walk with us. I thought she
> was being lazy since she got in a car that was to
> pick us up at the church. It turns out she was
> leaving, so I missed my chance to hug her goodbye.
> Nothing grieves me more than missed opportunities
> for relationship, romantic or not. To my future
> girlfriends, never tease me by offering a kiss and
> then denying it because of something, legitimate
> or not, I did. It tears me apart.The ride to our
> new home, where the day-university class was held,
> was about 40 minutes long, bumpy and upward.
> (We're just about to leave this place, and I just
> carried my bags up the stairs to where the SUVs
> are. To give you an idea of the elevation, not
> only am I winded, which would be normal, but
> everyone else has mentioned being winded too.) We
> got some beautiful shots of waterfalls and people
> working their fields. The retreat center we went
> to has the most glorious view I've ever seen,
> tenfold and then some. It overlooks a large lake
> with several islands in the middle. There's no
> electricity to the islands, so there are no power
> lines crossing the water or anything else to mar
> the scene. Not that I've ever been a poetic
> writer, but I doubt anyone but a poet laureate
> could capture the view. Or a photo. With the
> world's best camera. Yeah, you really should just
> visit.Glory be to God, we had a bathroom door in
> our room


Ihad almost the same experience on a CUE Bus years ago.

I saw what looked like a brand new Connector bus parking in the Comfort Inn Parking lot at Main Street (Fairfax Blvd) and Jermantown Road Saturday. The destination sign said Fairfax, VA

Holy SHIT how long does it take to type a giant wall of text?

Bus story Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Ahhh, the Fairfax bus. Reminds me of a story
> about a bus in a play. Seeing the play also kicked
> off a bit of me wishing I was with Goose, and I
> tested the waters, confirming that she is, in
> fact, dating Benedick. I know that she's not the
> one for me, but sometimes things are hard to know.
> Later I told a friend I hadn't talked to since
> high school, whom I randomly chatted up on
> facebook, "She'd be the one that got away, if I
> weren't completely certain there's a girl out
> there whose better for me."On the 31st, I turned
> in my SPU application. That's right, a full day
> before it was due. First time in my life. That
> afternoon, before turning it in, I had lunch with
> my old Microsoft pals, one to have lunch with
> them, and two, to get my letters of recommendation
> (which were incredibly kind) signed. It was a good
> thing they were signed, too, because they almost
> rejected one on account of it not being in an
> envelope. Alas, I had forgotten to print out the
> second half of my written thing, which was a list
> of teaching experiences I'd had, so I emailed that
> to them that night. All that's left now is an
> interview on March 10, and then waiting one to two
> weeks for an application letter. I got the feeling
> there were 100+ applicants per year, but ALL of
> the interviews, which are required in person,
> happen on the 10th between 8 and 4pm. I'm just
> trying to imagine how 100 people get interviewed
> in 8 hours without a LOT of interviewers. Anyway,
> I'm not too worried. If this is what God wants,
> then I'll be accepted. If not, then since I think
> God has me where he wants me right now, he must
> have a plan to get me to where I need to go next.
> Plus, it's not like I'm not an ideal candidate for
> the spot anyway. The only thing I could have done
> better, perhaps, was to double-major in math, but
> I took enough math to cover all the requirements
> for the MTMS (masters in teaching math and
> science) without taking any other courses.As for
> girls, as there must always be a for girls, I'm a
> bit put off right now. A day or two ago, I was
> angsty and frustrated, and way too into it,
> applying my girl-situation to my identity, where
> it does not belong. So, once again, I'm at a place
> where if I find a girl, cool, if not, I have other
> things to worry about--even though I really don't,
> having money and no employment. Moving! Right.
> Good. I was worried I had nothing to worry about.
> Anyway, all that's really happened since Belle is
> a few girls I met for lunch, none of which went
> spectacularly. This latest one, I met in
> Bellingham, and I thought it went well enough to
> warrant a second date, but she did not. What was
> great about it, though, is that it got me to
> Bellingham where I met with Rufus and Solomon.
> It'd been entirely too long since I'd talked to
> either of them, and seeing them again was both
> wonderful and nurturing to my soul. Solomon is so
> sincere with his Christ-like love. While talking
> with Rufus at the VU, I saw a good six or seven
> other people I knew from back in the day, pastors
> and friends and Fir Creek counselors. I have no
> doubt that the reason I ran into this girl on
> eHarmony was to get me to Bellingham. Besides, who
> wants to date a girl that enjoyed The Phantom
> Menace and wanted to see it in 3D? *dog with
> shifty eyes*The meeting with Solomon spawned off
> an email thread, largely about girls and what to
> look for in girls when looking to marry. I've read
> it a few times now because he is incredibly
> insightful. If I get his permission, I'd love to
> post it on my blog, or maybe a link to it. If not,
> well, sucks to be you, I guess.I guess saying I
> only met a few girls for lunch isn't fair. For a
> little while, I was kind of seeing this girl. We
> met up a few times. She was the first girl I've
> ever really been on a date with that was (more
> than a year) older than me, though not much older.
> I'm not really sure why we dropped out of contact,
> but I think we both felt we should. I don't know.
> Looking back through nostalgia-colored lenses, I
> miss her a little. Or maybe (matter-of-factly) I'm
> just lonely.The rest of these past months is just
> keeping busy. I refuse to get bored while
> unemployed. I've volunteered at my church and also
> at that Kirkland high school, though they have no
> place for me in the classroom right now. For my
> church, they have me doing repetitive menial
> tasks, which so far I've actually enjoyed. When
> they set me up to do some data entry, they showed
> me the software suite they're using, which only
> lets you search for one member at a time. I
> noticed that it runs on an .mdb (Microsoft Access)
> file, and told them I could whip together a quick
> program that lets you see all the people who are
> members in a list at once, along with all the
> people in the list who are new. Tomorrow I'm going
> to work with the volunteer coordinator to put
> together a rough spec, since my initial one-hour
> version doesn't quite do everything needed.If I'm
> going to make that meeting, I should probably end
> this post now. I've been getting up, most days, at
> 8:30--quite a feat when I don't have anything to
> do during the day--and reading my Bible while
> sipping Frappuccino. I was never good at reading
> my Bible regularly, so I'm determined to make this
> habit stick.lol!! World Relief University Monday,
> September 26, 2011 Today I met wisdom incarnate.
> He's the former Bishop of Rwanda, having recently
> retired. He spoke for an hour or so at the
> beginning of a day dedicated to explaining the
> vision and execution of World Relief Rwanda. This
> is a man who represents and leads the entire
> country through the Anglican church, a man who
> speaks to hundreds if not thousands at a time, a
> man who speaks to and councils presidents and
> ambassadors, here to talk to the twelve of us.He
> didn't speak on behalf of World Relief, but he
> definitely agreed with their work and
> methodology.The Rwandan government relies heavily
> on the Church to care for the most vulnerable.
> That is Jesus' mandate for the Church, and the
> Church therefore, presumably, is the body most fit
> for the task. Is it the government's duty as well?
> Yes, I think it is, but in the US, the Church
> often shrugs off its responsibility, its core
> purpose, because we can rationalize that our
> government has already taken care of it.It's
> entirely foreign to me that government should rely
> on the church to do anything. It seems to me our
> government tries to do what would make our lives
> better, avoiding at all costs any relationship to
> the church; the church is a hinderance, not an
> asset. Recently I was considering whether it might
> not be a good idea to completely remove marriage,
> a religious notion, from our laws. Let the church
> handle religion. Hearing Bishop John's telling of
> how the Rwandan government and church work
> together, complement each other, may have turned
> me around on that. Of course, it's easier when 90%
> of the population claims to be Christian.The
> Bishop talked a bit about the US, where he has
> lived in the past, and some of the Church's
> failures there. One of those failures, he said, is
> not being able to talk about Christianity in the
> schools. I assume he means students not being able
> to, but he didn't specify. I asked him how the
> church could not fail in that regard and he said
> it needs to change its attitude; it needs to be
> more humble. He said the Anglican church has
> figured out everything, and it leaves no room for
> the Spirit. He then asked if he had answered my
> question, which I felt he had not, so I asked how
> that would change the government's position on
> religion in the schools. Essentially he said the
> government doesn't value the church because we no
> longer have anything of value to offer. "The
> church doesn't do magic. If you put salt in a pan
> and heat the pan with the food and serve it
> immediately, the salt won't have added any
> flavor." He suggested that if we humble ourselves
> and serve rather than rant, in a generation or
> two, we may see change in how people view
> Christianity. It's certainly food for
> thought.Another culture shock that I mentioned
> previously is Rwanda's view of Sex. "Professor"
> Maurice, my translator on Thursday for the
> pastoral retreat, talked a bit about the
> Mobilizing for Life program they have which
> teaches faithfulness and abstinence to combat
> AIDS. I asked a devil's advocate question, as I do
> so often, "When the US, historically, has taught
> abstinence only, it's failed miserably. It doesn't
> reduce the amount of sex, it reduces the amount of
> safe sex. (Thank you CJ Craig.) What do we expect
> to happen here?" In the last three or four years,
> the number of sexually active youth in areas where
> the benefits of abstinence has been taught has
> dropped from 33% to 12%. Maurice talked about a
> lot of testimonies. Pastor Phil said there are
> statistics to support this as well. He went on to
> talk about the many supporters of Rwanda, whether
> they be governments or organizations, that all
> have agendas for Rwanda and Africa. They all have
> their own ideals. Much of what comes in is
> helpful, from financial aid to education to
> entrepreneurial spirit. But with the good also
> comes the bad and the ugly, and just because the
> US can't keep its dick in its pants, doesn't mean
> the rest of the world can't. Since then (two hours
> ago) I've been thinking about what could cause
> this separation in values (and abstinence is a
> value in Rwanda). I know it's not belief in the
> Bible, as this education is still being taught to
> the country and roughly one in three pastors
> aren't even "born again." It's not ancestral roots
> (they're not being taught it by their parents) as
> polygamy is an issue here. I'm left thinking it's
> our media, our advertising, our obsession with sex
> in the first place. They have no sex appeal ads
> because they have no ads at all. I'm not blaming
> the media outright as the media wouldn't present
> what we don't want to see. There's a Jack Johnson
> song about this called "Cookie Jar".These two
> pointed questions earned me the prestigious
> Hardest Questions award during graduation from
> World Relief University. overheard at the end of
> Bishop John's talk, on the way to tea that Rwanda
> is, too, materialistic. Americans put their faith
> and trust in the objects they own. Rwandans put
> their hope in the objects they think would make
> their lives complete. I guess Americans do that as
> well. It's an interesting thought, to be sure.What
> I've learned today is that life as it's meant to
> be is hard. In fact, it's impossible. The amount
> of forgiveness, the metaphorical seventy times
> seven, for every possible way someone can sin
> against us, whether that be accidental,
> misunderstanding, cruelty, thievery, rape, or
> murder of loved ones... how can you? With the 1994
> genocide raw in everyone's minds here, it makes
> all of this that much more real. The amount of
> healing through forgiveness that's happened in the
> last 17 years is phenomenal. Selling your stuff to
> support those in need? I can easily give, and in
> fact enjoy giving, out of my abundance, but ask me
> to sell my tv, or laptop, or car to help someone?
> Not happening. LIfe, Liberty, and the Pursuit of
> Happiness? God gives us life and the liberty to do
> with it and fail as we please in our own pursuit
> of happiness. Life is the one thing we, as
> Americans, feel we have as our own. How can we
> give that up completely? It's impossible. "With
> Christ all things are possible." It's hard to
> comprehend, much less believe, much less act on.On
> lighter topics (and it is now this entry's
> tomorrow, about 18 hours since starting it), we
> left our hotel in Musanze yesterday morning.
> Before leaving, we walked up to the Catholic
> church about five minutes away and prayed for the
> region. Dyanah didn't walk with us. I thought she
> was being lazy since she got in a car that was to
> pick us up at the church. It turns out she was
> leaving, so I missed my chance to hug her goodbye.
> Nothing grieves me more than missed opportunities
> for relationship, romantic or not. To my future
> girlfriends, never tease me by offering a kiss and
> then denying it because of something, legitimate
> or not, I did. It tears me apart.The ride to our
> new home, where the day-university class was held,
> was about 40 minutes long, bumpy and upward.
> (We're just about to leave this place, and I just
> carried my bags up the stairs to where the SUVs
> are. To give you an idea of the elevation, not
> only am I winded, which would be normal, but
> everyone else has mentioned being winded too.) We
> got some beautiful shots of waterfalls and people
> working their fields. The retreat center we went
> to has the most glorious view I've ever seen,
> tenfold and then some. It overlooks a large lake
> with several islands in the middle. There's no
> electricity to the islands, so there are no power
> lines crossing the water or anything else to mar
> the scene. Not that I've ever been a poetic
> writer, but I doubt anyone but a poet laureate
> could capture the view. Or a photo. With the
> world's best camera. Yeah, you really should just
> visit.Glory be to God, we had a bathroom door in
> our room

CARRIAGE RETURNS, MOTHERFUCKER!

They where new buses coming to fairfax.


anet Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Last Sunday (8/18) at around 8:30 am we were
> returning from visiting relatives in Michigan. On
> the Indiana Turnpike just east of Elkhart, my
> husband looked up the road and said, "That looks
> like a Connector bus." Sure enough we pulled
> alongside and that's what it was, red and yellow
> with the website for Fairfax Connector painted on
> the side. The destination sign on the front said
> Fairfax, VA.
>
> It was empty except for the driver, obviously a
> new bus being delivered to the county. That got
> us wondering where these buses are built. Elkhart
> is the capital of RVs, so we thought it might have
> come from there. It was too far west on the
> turnpike to have come from Detroit or Dearborn.
> Does anyone know?

That's a long drive, unfortunately by the time it gets here it'll be broken down.

they pay me 20.00 an hour to drive them from VA and back. that's where we make them at.

I thought maybe the county was importing some more welfare chiselers aka democrats.