A Weekend of Firsts

This past weekend Mandy and her boyfriend Ty came to visit! Of course we did the obvious things here at the shore that I plan to do with probably everyone who comes to visit: went to the beach, visited the lighthouse (and climbed the 217 stairs to the top), and ate really good fresh-caught seafood. But it was far from a typical weekend, as we also enjoyed a few new things. The first was tasting the homebrewed beer (summer ale) the three of us started earlier in the summer. It was light and refreshing with a slight taste of hops and citrus. First beer I ever helped to brew. The next was a visit to the fishing docks over on the bay, where the mayor of the town showed us around the offices and inner workings of the fishing docks, and then showed us on and around one of his commercial fishing boats. First time on a commerical fishing boat. And the final "first" was parasailing! I've been watching from the beach as people were parasailing over the water and, even though I do have a normal amount of fear regarding heights, I decided I wanted to try it. Mandy agreed to try it with me, and Ty rode along on the boat and watched as we soared to heights of over 300 feet (higher than the lighthouse)! It was scary, but awesome. Unfortunately, it wasn't too cheap, so it's not something I'll be able to do all the time, but it was worth it, and I would definitely do it again. First time parasailing. But hopefully not the last. :)

Celebrating my day of birth

So I had a birthday about a week and a half ago. In the midst of my new "job" it kind of came and went pretty quickly. I usually like to make a big deal out of my birthday, but I guess I shouldn't expect much when I now live away from most of my family and friends. The friends that I do have here helped make it nice for me though, so it's not like it was bad or anything. The day started off like any other Sunday now with leading worship and then some time in the early afternoon to relax. Then I headed off the island to meet up with my friend Mindy, who had arranged for me to take a ride in her brother's (2007) red Mustang Shelby GT 500. If you don't know Mustangs, that doesn't mean anything to you, but trust me, it's a sweet car. It's basically the top of the line when it comes to Mustangs. And since the Mustang is my dream car, this was pretty exciting for me. After that, I headed up to my friends' Annemarie and Tim's house to have dinner and then relax outside and make S'mores over the fire. It was a pretty good 29th birthday. I think I see more 29th birthdays in my future. ;)

Rethinking...

the title of my last post. What does "settling in" really mean, anyway? Everyone has been asking me about it lately, from members of the congregation, to my friends, and family... "are you settling in?" I know they mean well, and I really do appreciate their concern, and I respond positively. But. I've been thinking. What does that even mean? I've made about as much progress on my house as I'm going to make for now. Boxes are unpacked, pictures are hung on the walls, blinds and some curtains hung on the windows. All that's really left to do is make a few more curtains (I bought ones for the bedrooms, but I'm going to make valences for the kitchen, and a big panel for the sliding glass doors in my living room), and eventually finish decorating my office (with Steelers paraphenalia). And I'm not really concerned with getting either of those done very soon. So, does the fact that my house is as set up as its going to be for now mean that I am "settled"? Does the fact that my dog seems to have adjusted well and she and I have basically established a routine for taking her outside mean that I am settled? Does the fact that I have been here for a month already, and have changed my driver's license over to NJ mean that I am settled? I don't know. I don't think so. I don't think I will be "settled" until I feel like this is home. And honestly, I don't really feel like this is home yet. I guess it will just take time.