Well. It has happened. I am a Mac user. I am about 24 hours into it and enjoying it. When I got up to the Apple Store in Lenox and got the Macbook Pro, it also came with the Nano (I was expecting this) AND a printer/scanner/copier (I was not expecting this!). While both of those beauties are mail in rebate deals at the end of a couple of months, I am going to have $300 back, a Macbook Pro (which I had a $200 student discount), a Nano, and a printer! Fun. Spending $2504.79 should always be this easy.
Um, besides that...I had a phone interview with a church around ATL today to be a part-time youth minister. I think it when ok. They will let me know by the end of the weekend if I am going to be coming up for a personal interview. I hope that at least that works out because they seem to be a very cool place to connect.
What else. Only 2 weeks left before my time at Trinity is over. It is beginning to sink in that I can start to pack up my books and clean out the filling cabinet. Weird but good. I am looking forward to the change.
kirkout

Laptop Peer Pressure

Well, today was going to be the day. I was going to get a Macbook Pro. Unfortuntately after talking with the good folks at the Apple Store and discovering that they were unable to switch/adjust the original set up, I decided to re-group and am planning on going tomorrow (Wed). Why a Pro you ask? Great question. I have been waffling recently about which to get, the Macbook or the MB Pro. While I actually like the look of the Macbook and the $300-500 price difference, I am leaning to the Pro. I can't get pass the larger screen (I wear glasses for a reason), the back lit keyboard, the newest intel chips which run cooler and with less battery drain. The plan is to head up to the Apple Store in Lenox (ATL, holla) tomorrow evening and talk with the Apple Genius (read: sales people) and see what they think "my needs require." If they can convince me to go with the Macbook, that will be fine too. So that is exciting. OS X here I come.
It is weird the amount of resistance I am getting about switching from a Windows PC to the Mac's. My family is weirdly against the move. I had another (number 4 or so) conversation with my dad about why I think Mac's are the best fit for me today. I don't know, I think a lot of it is just fear. I hate to sound analytical about it, but we are all just so afraid of the unknown that we will do almost anything to keep comfortable.
Well, I got a call from a church in Logansville today about a potential youth job. It is at best it is unlikely that things will work out. They are looking for immediate help and we are still living here in WR and so that is a big hurdle, but we are going to talk and see what comes of it. IF we could be a good fit for each other, I would like to pursue the position. I will be talking with the lady in charge of interviews later this week.
Well, I am off to rest. One more day of VBS and then a relaxing weekend. I will let you know about the Mac situation.
kirkout

So...about those letters you keep sending me

I want to give everyone a heads up. Those letters and e-mails the people at seminaries (namely Candler) ARE important and should be read. I have this neat little (read: moronic) habit of getting a letter, opening it, and setting it down on the coffee/foot rest table. Well, apparently a crap load of deadlines were this week and I am cramming to get in on the last minute. I know, this type of behavior from me is unheard of.
This past weekend as I was talking with my brother I remembered (actually it is more like discovered) that part of my seminary experience is a "class" called Contextual Education. It is a process that only a handful of seminaries do in which all students are required to get some hands on time in ministry and not just learn a bunch of theory and theology. This sounds great to me. A school teaching us to actually be the love of God AND understand the love of God. Students are placed in a organization (i.e. recovery center, assisted living home, etc) and spend 5 hours a week serving in various capacities. Unfortunately this is a major blow to Robin and my plans to live here in Warner Robins for at least the first semester and possibly the first year. I had been banking on, for the last few weeks, that I would only go to class on Tues and Thurs and get a part time job here in WR. Depending on my placement in the Context Ed program, this could be annihilated. I am in communication with the folks that arrange the Context Ed jobs and am hoping to fall on the mercy of the court. If you happen to know anyone in that Department or someone "wink wink" else who has significant influence over space, time, and the like I would love a good word put in for me! We are committed staying either way, but it might become a major pain if I am driving to ATL more than three times a week.
I got my hands on a Macbook Pro, a slightly older model, and was...arrr...not impressed! Yes, I said it. Mac's are weird. You can't click a button to maximize things and you have to re-learn all of your subconcious movements that work on a Windows PC. I am not saying I am out on Mac's, I am saying that it is weird and icky.
Robin is halfway through summer and is still very hopeful about being able to work full-time in the Fall with the YMCA. There will hopefully be word about the availability of the position within the month. I am now actively pursuing job opportunties. It is unnerving to realize that on August 6th I don't have anything to do beside go into debt. So I am looking around middle Ga for jobs. I have decided that if a good opprotunity at a church is available, I will consider it, Youth or other. While I had been feeling burned out over the past few months on youth ministry, I am beginning to see that it might be partly due to my current situation here. So, I am looking around.
Ok, enough from me for now. I will hopefully find out soon about the Context stuff which will help me figure out a little bit about where and how much of a part time job I can get.
kirk out

(took this photo at a church in North Carolina. "Visitors Welcome EXCEPT during Church Functions" Now that is what I call Evangelism!)