Well, Here we are at Camp..it has taken a Few days to get used to this whole thing. When Lydia and I got here on Friday afternoon I wasn’t really sure how I Felt about being back here. It had been two years Since we both had Started a summer here, and a whole lot has Changed since then. We got here a Few hours before “memorial day family camp”, and after taking half an hour to setup our temporary home we were getting right to work. This summer I am going to be the camp host, and Lydia is tle waterfront director. I started off learning some of my “host duties” like her to unlock lodges, clear bathrooms, etc… One of the great things this summer is that I get my own “host truck” to tool around in, its always a little frustrating to try and find rides at Camp, and it’ll be nice to have my own vehicle. After learning some of the hosting procedures, Lydia, Rob, Jessica and I Started to check-in family campers. This is where lydia & I noticed how out of our environment we were. And how much of a change camp was going to be. When we started going around to greet People it took a little bit of work to be “nice”. Maybe it was the week of Packing, maybe it was over the past two + years of “real world work”, we found that we had become a bit “jadded”…
getting “friendly”
Well, Here we are at Camp..it has taken a Few days to get used to this whole thing. When Lydia and I got here on Friday afternoon I wasn’t really sure how I Felt about being back here. It had been two years Since we both had Started a summer here, and a whole lot has Changed since then. We got here a Few hours before “memorial day family camp”, and after taking half an hour to setup our temporary home we were getting right to work. This summer I am going to be the camp host, and Lydia is tle waterfront director. I started off learning some of my “host duties” like her to unlock lodges, clear bathrooms, etc… One of the great things this summer is that I get my own “host truck” to tool around in, its always a little frustrating to try and find rides at Camp, and it’ll be nice to have my own vehicle. After learning some of the hosting procedures, Lydia, Rob, Jessica and I Started to check-in family campers. This is where lydia & I noticed how out of our environment we were. And how much of a change camp was going to be. When we started going around to greet People it took a little bit of work to be “nice”. Maybe it was the week of Packing, maybe it was over the past two + years of “real world work”, we found that we had become a bit “jadded”…
Nome Cam
Check out the Nome Cam…the link is under “Navigation” on your right. Its been crazy watching what the city will look like when we live there. I didn’t realize how light it is late in the evening….at THIS time of year. I was expecting the sun up at midnight in July…but not mid-may!
I’m sure this whole fifteen month experience will be full of more surprises, maybe even bigger than this one 
where the cool people are.
just to let ‘yall know… most of the cool stuff will be happening over in the “BLOG” section. I’m trying to make sure that it gets updates every few days, and with good juicy stuff. Its where I hope to chronicle what God is doing in our lives this summer at camp, and once we get up to Nome. Perhaps someday I’ll get rid of this main page, and just put the blog here…but until then you’ll have to keep clicking on the link up at the top, and this page will remain reserved for discussion of the website, and random pictures/thoughts/things that I think are funny (see below). Feel free to keep posting/commenting, in all areas of the site! I’d love some feedback.
Moving…part 1 of 476
It feels like it will never end. We have SO much junk, and we have little idea what we will need in Alaska, what we will need while spending the summer down at cascades…and we both hate moving. Saturday morning was just plain crazy.
1. Friday night was a large contributing factor for that. Lydia had her last event for work….until 4:30am. She was the team coordinator for Arbor Villages “Relay for life” team. It’s a 20 hour cancer walk, and Lydia was there from 6pm until 4:30am.
2. She got a few hours of sleep until our 9:00am cast party & set strike for the play we were just in.
3. At noon we went home to start packing…feverishly, for at 2:00 our friends were coming to help us pack, and it would be extremely counterproductive to have everyone watch me sort old windows CDs, deciding what I should bring with me. We needed specific things for people to do, or it would be extremely lame. Aside from one other night of packing, and a few hours of clothes sorting…or house just looked messy.
4. Friends come around 2:00 or so, and we are mad men, making trips to goodwill, the storage facility, consolidating boxes, hanging up complicated, ugly curtains…it was amazing to watch.
By 6:00, we had cleared a majority of the house, filled (most of) the storage unit, and gotten really tired. We proceeded to migrate to Lydia’s parent’s house and buy everyone pizza. Upon reflection of the whole day, and the evening in particular we realized how incredibly blessed we are with our group of friends. I was in *awe* at some of the things that were accomplished over the course of the day, and the attitude that our friends did them in. Words could not describe how grateful Lydia & I were that evening.
Its starting to get hard…
transition.
Well, we are transitioning into our 15-month long transition time. Attempting to move out of our house and pack up our belongings into three categories (camp, nome, storage), while also trying to finish out living our normal lives is a lot trickier than I would have expected. How much time do I devote to church meetings for changes that will be in effect after I leave, while Lydia is at home packing? How do I continue to stay 100% motivated at work with a week left, while completely distracted by thoughts of what we have to do to make the move as quick and smooth as possible? But, its going well…and it looks like we might be able to get out of our house this Saturday, a week earlier than expected. Here is what has been accomplished so far, a before and after picture of our den:
Before:
Also, our support is going pretty well, I need to try and get another letter out within the next few days. I had a phone conversation with kicy late last week, and we figured out that most people we appealed to are probably waiting until September approaches until they pledge support. Also, I’ve found some pretty decent insurance that will cut our expenses almost in half, so we won’t have to raise as much as we were originally expecting. Keep praying for our move, for our sanity, and for our support to keep coming in.
peace out..
-josh
a whole new world
That’s right folks, it’s a whole new ballgame. We are now a “dynamic” website! That means I don’t have to go in and edit the entire website when I want to add something! Its really cool for nerds.
Besides the layout, here is what has changed content wise:
– BLOG: I’ve got a blog (b – log?? I don’t know what it means, just that I write my “thoughts” there). I thought with the new “life transition” it would be good to start writing down some of my experiences. Lets see how often I use it, but hey…it’s a good idea.
– GALLERY: There is a new “Gallery” feature instead of the old photo album. You can post your comments, and others can read them. I’m sure its WAY more fun that just looking at pictures
- ARTICLES: Well, I hope to be writing articles on a regular basis soon as I explore the “communication” side of myself. again…we will see how long this inspiration lasts. If you have anything that you’ve written and would like to post it, let me know! I think that would be great.
– REVIEWS: I use lots of technology. I thought that northslope could be a good forum to let others know what I think about random trinkets. I would love any other reviews you might have to add, either on a one time or regular basis.
– MESSAGE BOARD: it’s a new version!! You can go ahead and keep ignoring it….just like always.
- LINKS: I actually have links now! I’ll keep adding as I find sites that you might be interested in.
- MEMBER UTILITIES: Its pretty much the *exact* same thing as it has always been.
