A New Kind of Christianity, by Brian McLaren

When I saw that this book had such sharp reviews from opposing sides of the opinion spectrum, it caught my attention. So, after opening up a Barnes & Noble Nook for Christmas, the first book I downloaded onto it was Brian McLaren's latest book, A New Kind of Christianity: Ten Questions that are Transforming the Faith.

To start off, I might offer a warning about this book to the theologically mild mannered out there. My own theology has certainly been a place of journeying, reconsidering, questioning, and quite frankly honest struggle. And this book ain't making that business any easier.

Mr. McLaren's basic thesis is that our society is on the verge of another shift in thought and theolgy similar to the Enlightenment or the Protestant Reformation. As post-modernity moves into full swing it is becoming more evident that older schools of thought and theology are having more trouble addressing today's questions. McLaren's prescription: not a different way of seeing our usual faith or belief system, and not an alternate approach to "doing" church or programs, but very much a radical New Kind of Christianity.

McLaren takes issue with modern Christianity's basic approach to reading and interpreting the Bible. He submits that we read scripture backwards, through the lens of Martin Luther, who reads through the lens of the Roman Catholic tradition which reads through Augustine who in turn reads through the eyes of the patristic church fathers and so on all the way back to Antiquity. Instead, McLaren offers that we should reconsider reading the Bible forward, starting from Genesis, moving on to Exodus, through Isaiah and culminating in the person of Jesus. What I mean by this is, What did Abraham believe about God? How did Moses understand the Divine? What was Isaiah prophesying about concerning God's shalom? And how did Jesus fulfill those prophesies ushering in the the Kingdom of God?

You might be thinking, "Well, my church already reads the Bible forwards." And I apologize for my poor attempt at summarizing McLaren's thesis, but, chances are, actually you don't. Rather, like me, you probably read the Bible through what McLaren calls the Greco-Roman narrative. (Sadly, there's not space or time to fully describe this narrative and it's ramifications.) This is the understanding of scripture that took a tight hold and hasn't let go when Christianity became the official religion of the Roman Empire (the same empire that executed Jesus) under Emperor Constantine. Though he didn't say it in these words, McLaren fears that when that shift took place, the essential message of the gospel changed.

The Greco-Roman narrative of Christianity is highly influenced by a Platonic (Plato) view of the world, which says that spiritual things or the unseen parts of the universe are the better, the perfect parts of existence and the material, fleshy, human worldly portions of existence are less, fallen, dirty, changing. Plato's gods existed in the spiritual, the perfect, never-changing realm and we, because things change and evolve in our world, live on the wrong side of the Platonic tracks.

What does all this mean? McLaren thinks it means that the Greco-Roman narrative of perfection, fall, and either redemption or hell forever, is a result of a theology not held by Jews at the time of Jesus. Rather, the good news that Jesus was proclaiming and fulfilling was that prophesied by Isaiah when he preached on a coming era of reconciliation, jubilee, peace, community, and all that lions laying down with lambs mess. a.k.a God's shalom.

Now, depending on your theological acuity you may or may not be hearing the gravity of what McLaren is up to in my limited and honestly poor description. To put it bluntly, McLaren is proposing an understanding of Christianity with a different gospel that most conservative and even not so conservative folks out there. And the reason for this is the influence that the Greco-Roman narrative has had on Christianity for the last 1,600 years.

Now, there's sooo much more in this book that what I've said. Again, it's a book of questions. His topics are God, Jesus, the gospel, church, sex (particularly homosexuality), the future, pluralism (what do we do with other religions) and praxis. However, each topic is approached through a non-Greco-Roman orthodox. And what he comes out with is, if nothing else, extremely thought provoking.

Some of you reading even just my simple review will have immediate strong feelings toward what McLaren is doing. I, myself, am reserving judgment as I need much time to chew on it. There's no doubt McLaren, a pastor for 20 some years, loves God and cares for the church deeply. That no doubt will make it difficult as he has already been branded a heretic by loads of conservatives and fundamentalists. But, honestly, even if you agree with those who condemn his approach, I believe it does no good to simply lambaste him judgmentally and move on. Rather, I'd invite you to perhaps read for yourself and engage what he's saying.

The questions he's asking in this book are not going away, so whatever your response to them or to McLaren, you'd be wise to grapple with them yourself.

As for the technical. McLaren is a gifted writer with a powerful vocabulary. There were times when it took all of my seminary degree just to keep up. He declares at the beginning that his comments on the ten questions of the book are responses, not answers. They will generate discussion, no doubt. I have to give the book the ever coveted Nathan's-two-thumbs-up award. Whether I'm all aboard the B. McLaren express or not, I have to give him credit. I believe he's honestly trying to work for the good, and bravely taking lots of criticism in the process.

Who Moved My Cheese, by Spencer Johnson

My dear sister gave me this book after I mentioned wanting to read it while visiting her Raleigh home two weeks ago. Who Moved My Cheese: An A-Mazing Way to Deal with Change in Your Work and in You Life is a short book with a tall order inside. I knew I wanted to read it after hearing it recommended by two people whose opinions on good books I respect.

Physician Spencer Johnson tells a little story about two mice named Sniff and Scurry and two small (mouse-size) humans named Hem and Haw. I'll paraphrase it here. Our four characters find themselves ready to take on life. So, they set out in the maze of life in search of cheese (representative, of course, of whatever it is we're after in life). After a great deal of hard work, Sniff Scurry, Hem and Haw find an abundance of Cheese at Cheese Station C. All is well.

Hem and Haw hand up their work shoes and build luxury homes with privacy fences next to the cheese station and get comfortable and complacent. Until, one day, there is no more cheese at Cheese Station C. That very day, Sniff and Scurry put back on their work shoes and venture out again in search of more cheese. They soon find it. What do Hem and Haw do? Well, they hem and haw for a while about being entitled and feeling victimized. Eventually, Haw musters up some motivation, dusts off his old shoes, and sets out back into the now unfamiliar maze. Hem stays behind, blathering and slowly withering.

After some time of wandering and finding small bits of cheese to last him, Haw finally, finally reaches the bountiful cheese storehouse of Cheese Station N. Sniff and Scurry are already there, and sadly Hem will never choose to leave Station C.

Johnson does a good job at making this little story delightful and obviously parallel to life's changes. The last pages of the book are a verbatim account of a helpful discussion group on the book. Various people in the group identify with the different characters' responses when the cheese is moved. It's a good little book that I'd recommend as a quick read with long-term lessons.

After finishing it, I noticed myself more motivated to adapt to the big changes in life when one day they come calling on me. Then I realized, "oh crap! I'm slap in the middle of a huge life change! I've just moved to the other side of the North American Continent to a place where my specific denomination (CBF) isn't even present, where there's no open jobs for full-time chaplains and we don't have any friends or contacts. Where did my cheese go?

So, how am I going to adapt? Well, I've got my work shoes on, and I'm heading out into the maze. I'm calling pastors and chaplains, setting up lunch meetings to talk about ministry opportunities in Anchorage. I've gotten a tour of the largest hospital in the area, and attended a meeting of volunteer chaplains for the police and firemen in the area. I've given out my resume to two HR folks so far. I'm in the maze.

And what is the outcome so far? Well, I don't know if it is a busting full cheese station or not; however, I have accepted an offer to come on as (once again) a resident chaplain at Providence Medical Center (the big hospital) for the next eight months. In that time I will complete two more units of CPE giving me a total of seven. This is in line with one of my long-term goals of becoming a CPE supervisor, and for now it is a paying job during which I will no doubt learn and blog a lot.

Who Moved My Cheese? I don't know, but I'm working on finding it.

Five Hundred

I'm reminded of that game I used to play as a kid. One person would throw a football high into the air toward a group of others trying to catch it. The thrower would yell out a number as s/he threw, and the one who caught the ball would get that many points. The first to reach 500 wins and gets to be the next ball thrower.

Today's the day folks. The day of 500. Today, Heather metaphorically caught the ball.

To become a pharmacist in North Carolina one has to jump through a great deal of hoops including but not limited to strong grades in tough undergrad courses, standardized tests strictly for the pharmacy profession, admission into a pharmacy school which leads to 4 grueling years of hard work with little recompense or satisfaction.

The fourth year of pharm-school is entirely hands on. One of the chief reasons for this is that the governing bodies require students to gain 1500 hours of supervised practice experience before they can take two more tests and be granted a license. Just to be on the safe side, the pharmacy school at UNC-CH arranges for their students to earn 1600 total practice hours before graduating so that they're well prepared to represent the pedigree on their diploma.

The state of North Carolina houses three separate pharmacy schools including UNC, the #2 ranked pharm-school in the nation, and Campbell, a school well respected throughout the Southeast.

The state of Alaska, as majestic as it may be, enacts a different set of guidelines to license it's pharmacists. All of Alaska's pharmacists are from somewhere else, because the state does not have it's own pharm-school (not surprising though, the entire population is under 700k). Alaska requires a new pharmacist to have at least 500 non-educational hours of supervised practice before it will grant a license to a recent pharm-school graduate. This law has been frustrating.

But today, folks, oh today is the day. Today Heather came home from work having completed 502 hours. Tomorrow, we leave for NC, and when she returns to work (hopefully the Board of Pharmacy has processed her paperwork by then) she will be a licensed staff pharmacist at St. Elias Specialty Hospital.

Sk'doosh!

Congrats, Heather! Now you get to be the thrower.

Moving: The Saga

Prepare yourself, this is a long entry. I recently posted on my Facebook status that I hated moving companies and if anyone is preparing to use one for a large move s/he should seek my counsel on how not to get screwed. Here's the story behind it all.

(Note: All names have been concealed to avoid slander.)

Heather's employer generously offered us a moving allowance: a dollar amount we could use to pay for anything related to moving to Alaska (moving Co., travel costs, gas, food, hotels and even first month's rent in a place to live if the money would stretch that far).

During my initial discussion with N, the chief saleslady for Moving Company, I explained our plan to drive cross-country. She said it would take approximately 25 days to ship our things. The plan: we could have our stuff picked up (10/2) a week prior to our departure date (10/10) so that we and our stuff arrive in Anchorage at about the same time. Sounds good.

Also, part of the initial discussion was how much stuff we had. She asked how many pounds of household goods we had. Now let me stop here and ask: Does anybody, I mean anybody, have any earthly idea how much your combined household goods weigh? Answer: no. However, as moving companies bill by the pound they insist on procuring a rough estimate from the shipper (me). Somehow, I'm not really sure though, we landed on about 2,000 lbs of stuff. I was given a price rate based on about 2k pounds. Each additional 100 lbs would cost "x" amount of dollars. Okay, this is how moving companies do it, fine by me. The estimated cost would be about 1/3 of our total moving allowance giving us plenty to travel on.

Standard procedure for a move such as this is for the company to send someone out a week or so before the move to inventory our items and get a better idea of furniture, number of boxes and a more accurate estimate of the weight. However, this company had no one to send so they went with their second option, an over the phone inventory. Fine. I talked with L, chief N's assistant. L asked about all of our furniture, calculating cubic feet and weight. I walked through the house telling her about any items that wouldn't fit in a box. She then inquired as to how many boxes we'd be shipping. Again, having not yet packed, who the *#&% knows!?

I guessed, "Maybe around 45 or 5o boxes."

"Hmmm," she said, "probably not that many just for a 2-bedroom apartment. Usually it's more like 20-25."

Okay, she was the expert, so I deferred to her good judgment. We estimated about 25 boxes. Again, she confirmed that it sounded like it would be 2k pounds or just over. "Good, everything is still looking good," I thought to myself.

Moving Day: The truck driver calls that morning for directions. Upon arriving at our apartment he judges that he can't fit an 18-wheeler into our complex. He informs me he'll have to run and get a smaller truck to transfer our goods from our house out to his big-rig across the street in the grocery store parking lot. Not a problem, they must do this all the time. After all, I don't know many places like this you can actually fit a transfer truck. I'm informed that once our stuff is properly stowed he will hit up a weigh station and find out our exact weight.

The movers begin carrying boxes and wrapping up furniture. They finish up and our stuff begins it's journey to Alaska: the last frontier. For the next week, Heather and I sleep on the floor and say goodbye to our Asheville peeps. Oct. 10th we set out on the road. Day three of our journey, while standing underneath Mount Rushmore, I get a call from R, my contact who monitors our stuff while in transit. He informs me that our stuff has reached High Falls, Montana, where it will be transferred to another truck.

"Great," I replied, "hey, what was the official weight of our shipment?"

He pauses, and spits out, "Right at 5,000 pounds."

Holding back the freak out, I inquire, "So, how much does that change our projected invoice for this shipment?"

Doing some quick math he tells me the new price, which will be just over 9/10 of our entire moving allowance! Queue the freak out.

After a few days of freaking and wonderful traveling I drafted and sent an email to chief N requesting that our rate be adjusted to a rate more suitable for a 5k lb shipment. It seems the gods smiled on my email that day (or at least N did), and I was contacted by N who said she could reduce our invoice to about 7/10 our moving allotment. This was acceptable, but it drastically changed some of our financial plans. It would seem that we would be footing a significant portion of the moving costs.

After arriving in Anchorage I contacted R (transit monitor) letting him know we're here and asking how soon our things will arrive. He doesn't know, but reminds me that it typically takes 4-5 weeks for this kind of move. Funny, how I was initially told 25 days (3.5 weeks) and now suddenly the norm is 4-5 weeks. Grrr. Okay, no matter, because we didn't yet have apartment for our stuff to go into.

In the mean time, Moving Company had sent the primary invoice to me and to the hospital who was paying for the move. However, days later, I received a call from the hospital to inform me that they had received a second bill from Moving Co. for an additional $1200. This was news to me, because it was made clear that everything regarding billing would be sent to me and the hospital. This second invoice was itemized as follows:

1) Small truck for small apartment street: $700.00

2) Packing of 15 boxes $500.00

There are so many problems with this, I don't even know where to start. But here goes. First, we agreed that we would do all the packing, which we did. The movers didn't have to pack a single box of stuff. What they did pack were things like mattresses, box springs, large mirrors and a painting. However, packing of those such items is already included in our primary fee to Moving Co. Second, even if they did pack 15 of our boxes of stuff, where do you get off charging 500 friggin' dollars to pack 15 boxes!?! Next: yes they had to acquire a smaller truck for our apt., but I can go down the road to U-Haul and rent a truck for the day for only $50 bucks. Where do you get $700?

I told the hospital not to pay anything till this was resolved. I called Moving and couldn't get a hold of N. Left a message. No returned phone call. I called the next day. I sent an email: nothing. I called the next day and got R who sometimes helps with matters of billing when N is busy. Now, Moving Company subcontracted our move out to Second Moving Company. They are the actual company that picked up our stuff, because Moving Co. didn't have people in our area. Whatever. R informed me that they had received a second invoice from 2nd Moving Co. for the small truck and that they have to pass this bill along to us. That's where the second bill came from.

In this conversation I also mentioned that the $500 packing fee was bogus, that we'd already paid for that service. R's response was, "well we've got the movers saying they packed some boxes and you saying they didn't. It's your word against theirs. How do we know who to believe?" This infuriated me. However, after that conversation, a 3rd adjusted invoice was mysteriously sent. It was only for the $700 small truck fee. The $500 packing fee had magically disappeared, and no one on their side said a peep about it again.

I wanted to know how this $700 for a small truck was itemized, broken down. Richard didn't know. So, I called 2nd Moving Co. and started inquiring. The first lady was pleasant but couldn't answer, so she suggested I talk to their manager, D. (Note: Now I am talking with the subcontractor company, doing leg work that should be done by Moving Co.) When I spoke with D, I asked why it costs $700 for a small truck. His polite response, I kid you not was, "I don't know anything about $700 dollars, we invoiced Moving Co. for $552.20, that's all."

It is now clear to me that Moving Co. was trying to screw us royally. They somehow added a $150 markup to this already outrageous bill?! Nathan mad. Heather was literally ready to violently destroy somebody.

I tried to get a hold of N, because she seems to be the only one that can make things happen, but with no avail. Once again I spoke with R. I asked him how $552 turns into $700. He said, "Well, we've got to make some money somehow."

I responded politely. But what I was thinking was, "You're already making your profit in the large amount from the first invoice. This second markup is just ridiculous." It now felt like they were trying to scam us.

Not to mention, by this point it had been 5 weeks and we still had no word on our stuff getting delivered, and R had no idea where it was.

After several more days and attempts to talk with N, I drafted another lengthy email requesting that Moving Co. pay all or the majority of this $552.20 invoice. I was polite, firm and persuasive. Too long to post here, I simply spelled out how we had been misled, ignored and how the bills were bogus, over priced and much of it should be covered in our initial payment to Premier. The story concludes several days later when N, finally like a ray of warm sunshine, contacts me. She said nothing in direct response to my email; however, she said they could reduce this second invoice down to $176 dollars. By this point I was ready for it to be over. I can handle $176 for an extra truck rental and a bit more labor on their part. Whatever. We agreed and the final invoice was sent for the last time.

Somehow, through persistence and downright nagging, I managed to turn a bill for $1,200 into $176. Magic! This makes me wonder how many people just go ahead and pay whatever invoices get sent to them by this company. I imagine they get away with these rip off scams all the time. I'm just glad we were careful and smart enough to know what we were paying for.

As for our stuff, it was picked up on Oct. 2nd and delivered 6.5 weeks later on Nov. 16th. A far cry from their first estimate of 25 days.

Life in Alaska

My apologies for the prolonged blog hiatus. It seems there is an endless amount of busy-work to take care of when you move 5,000 miles away (changing address, banks, car ins, utilities, etc.). Most days while Heather's plugging away at her new job, I'm just as busy trying to get us set up in the great Northwest.

Anyway, here's a quick update on life in Alaska.

After our road trip of all road trips across two countries in two weeks, we arrived in Anchorage eagerly seeking a new place to reside. We found The Highlands, a "luxury" apartment complex surprisingly very similar to the non-luxury complex we lived in in Asheville. Our second level unit is nice: around 1100 square feet, we have two bedrooms, a big open area for the kitchen, dining and living rooms, a den/nook area, fireplace, two full baths, and our own private staircase inside the door. The ceilings are 9 feet high and the wall corners are rounded to give it that "luxury" feeling. But honestly, I wouldn't call this luxury living. Rent is astronomical (as we expected), but it is almost made up for by our balcony view.

The first pic (see above) was taken from our balcony in the early evening. Mountains, moon and blue sky are a wonderful thing to see from the couch.

Heather's job is going great, and she enjoys the people she's working with. In mid-Dec. she will finish her intern hours and be a fully licensed pharmacist in AK (making her licensed in 2 states!).

The puptons love laying down in front of the fireplace whenever it's on. When they curl up together, cuteness abounds. It's like they create a black hole of cuteness that we get sucked into. Add Heather to the mix and it's an explosion of adorableness!

They also enjoy sporting their cold weather gear when we go on walks.

About a week ago I stepped outside our front door with Dakota for a bathroom break, lifted my head and saw Bullwinkle across the street only a rock's throw away. He was feasting on the tree next to him and just moseying about our complex. It was totally cool! This makes our second moose sighting after seeing them outside Heather's hospital one day after work. Moose are great. They're not afraid of anything because they're as big or bigger than most cars.

We had a great Thanksgiving meal with a huge ham (I cooked it!), but we missed lots of folks from Asheville. That's what we've been up to for the last several weeks. Check back, and I'll try to post more regularly.

Adios!

1984, by George Orwell

My friend loaned me this book about a year ago. Finally, I have finished it.

George Orwell, writing in the 40s, shares his feelings about the social climate of his time with this striking futuristic satire. A political commentary, and a dark one at that, 1984 is about one man's experience of life living under governance of The Party ruled by Big Brother in Oceania, one of only three super-countries left in the world.

In this world, Oceania is constantly and forever at war with the other two super-countries: Eastasia and Eurasia. There are three classes of people in Oceania. Inner Party Members, the ruling class, run the party, enjoy more of life's comforts than most, and make up a tiny percentage of the population. Outer Party Members, to which Winston Smith, the protagonist, belongs, are lower level grunt workers who serve the Party but live on limited rationed food and daily goods. The Proles make up the poor masses. They are outside the party and seen as a nuisance which must be controlled while simultaneously ignored.

Somewhere between socialism and communism, life under the party is bleak. Thought Police monitor party members 24-hours a day. Arrests are made for impure and disloyal thoughts before any action is ever carried out. Privacy is non-existant (except among the Proles), and families are so disjointed that children who turn in their parents for thought-crime are rewarded and admonished.

The world that Orwell creates is terrifying indeed, and his run in with interrogation techniques is disheartening, intriguing and down right depressing. Not knowing enough about my mid-20th century British politics, I must confess I'm not quite clear on the greater point the author was trying to make to his original audience, but at the same time I am in awe of this social commentary and can appreciate that it packed a punch 50 years ago and still does today.

Freedom is a huge theme in the book; however, one of the most interesting concepts Orwell introduced was called Doublethink. Here's an excerpt which provides a description of doublethink:

To know and not know, to be conscious of complete truthfulness while telling carefully constructed lies, to hold simultaneously two opinions which cancelled out, knowing them to be contradictory and believing in both of them, to use logic against logic, to repudiate morality while laying claim to it, to believe that democracy was impossible and that the Party was the guardian of democracy, to forget whatever it was necessary to forget, then to draw it back into memory again at the moment when it was needed, and then promptly to forget it again, and above all, to apply the same process to the process itself--that was the ultimate subtlety: consciously to induce unconsciousness, and then, once again, to become unconscious of the act of hypnosis you had just performed. Even to understand the word "doublethink" involved the use of doublethink. (p. 35)

The writing is very good. Orwell can be a bit longwinded and over-descriptive at times. But, the absurdity of his somehow-believable fictitious future keeps you coming back to it. I would recommend this book to anyone (if, like me, you didn't read it in high school though it was assigned) wanting to be a well-rounded reader. It is a classic that people will most likely come up in book talks for many generations.

Why would someone with four cars walk to work?

Meet my buddy, Robert (on the right). He is a computer programmer for the distinguished Wake Forest University and lives in Winston-Salem, NC. I have known him for about 4 years now, and in that time he has owned a total of six cars (not at the same time). Robert introduced me to Dave Ramsey, a money guru who gives sound practical advice on managing personal finance. Together, Robert and I often talk about wise and not so wise money decisions when it comes to cars, apartments, jobs and paying off our wives' school debt.

You can view Robert's well-written blog here.

Now, the question that titles this blog is an intriguing one for sure. Why would someone with four cars walk to work? The answer to this question is in a sequence of events that coincidentally lined up as if nature was working against him that kept Robert from driving any of his cars to work. Robert, I won't divulge too much of your personal info on this one, but you have tarried too long in posting this funny story on your own blog.

Robert and his wife each have a car they use daily. However, Robert had recently purchased my car (car #3) with plans of selling his and making a few extra dollars; however, this car was still in Asheville for time being. At the same time, his wife had found what she's wanted for a long time, an old 1965 Chevy truck, and bought it cheap (#4).

One happy morning, these two wonderful people awoke and prepared each to go to work. Robert's wife, left first. But outside, she found that her car's lock was busted and wouldn't unlock. She couldn't get in. No matter, she borrowed Robert's regular car and headed off to the world of pharmacy for the day. Robert could drive the classic truck. But outside on a chilly morning, the truck wouldn't start. His last option, the car he'd bought from me, was some 130 miles away. So, he's standing outside next to a car that won't start, a car that won't open up with keys in his hand for a car that runs fine but is across the state.

When I heard about this, I sympathized, but I can't help but find this funny. And that's why someone with four cars would walk to work.

Surprise

As part of our adjustment to Alaska geography, we have been informed of our need for dog booties. Dakota and Lola are no strangers to the snow; however, for 5-6 months out of the year there is snow on the ground in Anchorage. And, if we're to take them on any long walks their paws will easily get cold, get ice in them and cause their entire bodies to lose warmth. Doggy booties are in order.

So, the search began. After having no luck in a number of Super Pets, Pet Co, Cabellas and REI stores we finally got a tip to try a local pet store in Anchorage called Alaska Mill and Feed Pet Supply (or something like that; it had a long name). A fellow dog owner gave us the tip to buy only fleece booties, because dogs that have never worn other kinds (there's lots of kinds for serious hiking and rugged type stuff) wouldn't like them.

So on Heather's first day of work I went on a mission to find dog shoes. I finally found the store (it's hard to get to), found the fleece booties and bought 8 of them. There was just enough time to put them on and pick Heather up from work. The plan: For her daughters to greet their mommy in the car wearing their fancy new shoes. (Heather loves surprises like that!)

I had it all planned out. The dogs were in the car wearing the boots, and I went in the hospital lobby to wait on Heather. When she was done, we walked out together toward the car. Now, when we leave her in the car, Dakota always climbs into the front seat and greets us when we open the doors. This will only add to the surprise. When we reached the car, like the gentleman that I am, I opened the door for Heather and: Surprise! Dakota had vomited all over Heather's seat and floor board! She was missing a cutie bootie and Lola was missing two. Happy first day of work, my sweet.

Not exactly the surprise I had in mind. But aren't they just adorable in those things?! They hate wearing them, but are slowly (SLOWLY) getting used to them. Right now, when I put them on, the dogs usually just stand in one place on three legs waiting for the bad dream to end (take these things off my paws!).

I'm sure they'll adjust in time.

Voyage of the Dawn Treader: by C. S. Lewis

In preparation for the third installment of the latest series of Chronicles of Narnia movies, Heather and I did what we've done before the previous two movies and read the book aloud with each other.

Edmond and Lucy Pevensie, along with their obnoxious cousin Eustace, are magically pulled into a picture on the wall and find themselves quickly aboard the Dawn Treader, a Narnian ship carrying King Caspian and a full crew, set out to find seven explorers sent east by Caspian's late father, Narnia's previous king. Their journey takes them beyond any cartographer's knowledge to the end of the world toward Aslan's home country.

Thus far, I have been generally pleased with the latest renditions of the classic children's books by Clive Staples Lewis, professor of medieval literature, philosopher, author and theologian. The Lion The Witch and The Wardrobe movie was fantastic. Following the book almost to the letter, the only liberties the film makers took were to add a bit of flare and excitement to the popular novella's suspense and battle scenes. Movie two: Prince Caspian was good, yet Hollywood for some reason unnecessarily veered farther from the book's storyline. Adding a completely random (not in the book at all) castle besieging scene and changing the timeline, the movie was clearly from the book, but just not the same. In my opinion, the movie would have been just as great had it followed the book as closely as the first.

Having just finished Voyage of the Dawn Treader, I have some particular expectations for the movie. The book, to me, is the weakest of the first three, yet it still follows the same majestic and mysterious nature of Lewis' writing. The storyline follows the format of most adventure/quest novels. Readers are exposed to sight after sight of new and unpredictable obstacles and experiences through which the characters must stuggle.

The story starts a little slower than it's predecessors, but by the middle it kept Heather and I on edge daily waiting to read the next chapter before going to bed (our customary reading time). The writing is, expectedly, for kids and a little dated (as it was written some 5 decades ago), but one can't help being enchanted by the world Lewis has created with which most of us have grown up.

One of the greatest challenges the movie will have to overcome is only including two of the four original Pevensie children as High King Peter and Queen Susan have grown too old to return to Narnia. However, after a short bit of remorse over this fact in the first few chapters, I was distracted to their absence and caught up in the engaging adventure.

I believe the movie will be exciting, and I'm curious to see how the many fantastical and grandiose scenes are rendered on screen. I do hope the film makers stick close to the original story, but in the end, it will be difficult to produce a poor movie from such a wild and fun story. This book, in my book, (or should I say blog) is a recommended quick read for anyone.

Welcome to Alaska

Tell tail signs that we're not in Kansas anymore Frodo.

You know how some rules are made because it's just good sense and certain rules are made because someone once did something stupid? Well, during our drive south from Tok, to Anchorage, AK we saw an inconspicuous road sign that simply read, "No shooting from road." I wonder why this rule was made. Welcome to Alaska.

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It's common knowledge that alcoholism is like an epidemic in Alaska, especially during the winter season. Heather recently learned that to treat alcoholic patients suffering detox, it's not unusual for hospitals to use whiskey (as opposed to other more conventional medications) to ease the process. When Heather asked about it, turning her head and raising an eyebrow, another pharmacist looked back and simply said, "Welcome to Alaska."

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A number of years ago, an Anchorage news paper article covered a story of a man walking his dog in one of the city's many trailed parks. He happened across a moose, a dead moose, which had just been killed by a grizzly bear. The bear, worried the man was threatening his dinner, then attacked the man. Though he was only out for a stroll with his pup, he proceeded to pull out a large caliber gun and shoot the bear dead. WELCOME TO ALASKA.

Day 15: The Last Leg

From: Tok, AK

To: Anchorage, AK

Well we did it! We arrived in Anchorage, AK 15 days after setting out from Asheville, NC. Total millage was about 5680 and we have seen more than we could have ever imagined!

We got up this morning in Tok, AK and ate at the Grumpy Grizz, one of two eateries in “town.” We’d have to say though, it wasn’t far off from the Country Kitchen in West Asheville and was quite fantastic.

On the road we went, bellies full and happy. The drive south toward Anchorage was to re-use an over-used word, BEAUTIFUL. It lasted about 6 hours; but in that time we saw another mountain range, at least two glaciers and the sun move mostly sideways through the sky. The sun in the “high-noon” position doesn't happen after the summer here.

For most of the drive we could look, literally, in any direction and see huge mountains. Snow covered most of them, and on some mountains they were snowy on the shaded side and green on the sunny side. This was a cool effect. The highest peak around was completely white, more so than any other. Between two mountain ridges we noticed what looked like a motionless river flowing, but not moving, through them. It was a glacier. We stopped to take some pictures and take in the wonder of it all.

We also learned about a new kind of glacier: a rock glacier. One information sign pointed us toward the side of a mountain that appeared to have suffered a landslide. In actuality, underneath the over grown moss and dirt was a hidden glacier. Ice mixed with rock and soil was slowly moving down the mountainside seemingly underground. It was some fanciness!

From here, Heather took over the helm, driving the second leg of today’s journey into our destination city. We entered Anchorage around 5pm local time and began the daily hotel hunt. With a little advice from Kenny (Momma T's cousin who lives in Anchorage) we headed toward the airport and found prices to be much better than in Canada. Microtel was our choice, which turned out to be a good one, because they have a laundry facility in house (something we’ve been needing).

We tried to find a pharmacy for Heather, but that became frustrating on a Sunday so we moved on. McDonald’s served us our three course meal for dinner and Walmart provided us cash out of our own account with which to exchange for laundry quarters. While out, we drove by one house for rent to get a look-see. On our way back we stopped in for a quick gas station style laser wash and got Jayne a much needed bath. He was so dirty that when Heather walked out of one hotel into the parking lot she couldn't tell Jayne was the truck right in front of her.

It already looks like we are getting a grasp of how the city is set up. Navigation should be no problem in the days ahead. Next task: find a place to live.

For two weeks and a day we’ve been driving, sight seeing and having our hair blown back by all kinds of God’s creation, wildlife and general awesome-ness (for which there is no charge). From our home state, North Carolina, Alaska is like a different world. It was a trip of a life-time and will be unforgettable. We left North Carolina, homeless, with our destination in sight, declaring, “Alaska, here we come.” It’s hard to believe the trip is over and that we’ve made. But, believe it or not, we’re finally able to say to our new home state, “Alaska, here we are!” 

Day 14: Welcome Home: Alaska Hwy part 3; Yukon part 2

From: Whitehorse, Yukon

To: Tok, AK

We left Whitehorse around 10:30am this morning. Nathan drove the first leg. We filled up with gas on the outside of town and hit the road. The road traveled almost directly west until we crossed into the Yukon where the road changes from route 97 to route 1. Further west we ran into the edge of Kluane National Park. Never heard of it? Neither had we. But this was possibly the coolest place we passed by in over five thousand miles.

Kluane Lake is huge and, snowcapped mountains in every direction surround it. The road took us between the foot of mountains and the edge of the lakeside. Breathtaking views caught our eyes every which-a-way we looked. Hannah-banana recently asked us what our favorite part of the trip has been. Kluane National Park may be our answer.

Further down the road we stopped for gas in a little town thingy called Destruction Bay. Strange name. Come to find out it is so named because the high winds actually destroyed the first colony that came to live there. Destruction Bay sat up against Kluane Lake and was a beautiful spit on the map of nowhere.

At the lake, the road turns definitively northwest. There were no towns for quite some time. However, the scenery this day was the mostest bestest of any single day. We took more pictures today than any other of the gorgeous mountain views and lookouts. The snow peppered the trees and capped the mountains making the scenery more majestic and enchanting. Heather is now ready for Christmas.

Just before the USA border there are a few stops, gas stations and houses that are called Beaver Creek, Yukon. Our original plan was to make it to Beaver Creek and stay a night. We’re glad we didn’t. We stopped to use the bathroom (in Canadian it’s called a washroom) and continued the final leg toward the boarder. From here the road quality declined considerably. I suppose this is because the only thing it goes to is the USA, and they don’t deem it worthy to keep up this road. There was also quite a bit of snow covering the road, but thinly enough so that we could proceed at about 50mph (in Canadian its 80 kph). There were ruts, huge bumps, dips and divots. It was basically one notch above 4-wheel off-roading.

Finally, we made it to US Customs and crossed into our homeland (the mother-country). The customs agent made us feel good by simply saying, “Welcome home.” The roads after that, though still snowy were infinitely in better condition. (Silly Canadians and their bad roads.) It did feel like home being back in the states.

When we crossed the border into Canada, it was a whole rigamorow. We had to dig out the gun case from the back, fill out forms, get a gun license, pay a fee, and even temporarily quarantine the dogs. We’d also always heard that the hard part is getting back into the US. But, not so. Today, the agent simply asked us a few questions and sent us on our merry way. He inquired about firearms, and we said, yes, we had some. But he had no interest in seeing them. We mentioned the dogs and that we had the paperwork to show him. “Nah, you’re good,” he basically replied. When we said we were from Asheville, NC, another agent came to the window and was like, “Hey, I’ve got a son in Asheville. Billy Joe Jenkins, do you know him?” Really? How are we supposed to know one guy in all of Asheville? Anyway, all this is to say that crossing the border back into the US was easy as pie. (Mmmm.....I could go for some pie right about now...)

Ninety miles later we entered Tok, AK (pronounced ‘toke’) and found a cheap little hotel for the night. We ate at one of the two restaurants in town for dinner. For breakfast, we’ll probably eat at the other. Good night.

Day 13: Alaska Highway part 2; Yukon part 1

From: Muncho Lake Provincial Park, BC

To: Whitehorse, Yukon

We got up bright and early to the sun rising over our beautiful mountains. We had breakfast in the lodge restaurant with huge windows overlooking the compound, lake and mountains. Come to find out, this place is quite a resort. You can charter flight-seeing tours, fishing trips, and combinations that last all day or just a portion. There’s tent campsites, RV spots and glaciers nearby.

Before leaving we strolled the grounds and waterfront once more to take in the views and smell. The pups wore their vests outside for the first time, and they needed them as Jayne informed us that it was 17 degrees outside (we haven't found puppy boots yet).

Not ten minutes on the road we spotted up ahead something Nathan has been itching to see this entire trip: a bear. It was a medium sized black bear running across the road. Too far away to get a good picture, Heather didn’t want to get any closer thinking that this was a cub and momma wouldn’t be far away. Nonetheless, it was a fun sighting, and watching it run was exciting. (Heather thought it was fluffy and cute as it hopped across our path.)

The Alaska Highway’s beauty continued to unfold beyond our windshield (which was cracked a little today by a rock thrown from an 18-wheeler) throughout the day. We happened upon a few more buffalo today. Some congregating in bunches alongside the road, and a few lying alone on a random scrap of nowhere beside the road. Lola wants her a buffalo to play with.

It was another absolutely beautiful day. The temperature got above freezing only for a little bit. Mostly, it was cold, the road was dry, but the snow on the side of the road wasn’t melting anytime soon.

We drove through a random river of fog between some mountains. It hovered slightly above the trees creating a cool canopy effect. Other than that, the sky was clear and we could see for miles.

The driving continued with occasional stops for gas or to snap a quick picture. We also had to make a quick stop so that Heather could pull off the road and finish laughing at Nathan before she drove off the side of the mountain. See what had happened was…Nathan was trying to read The "Voyage of the Dawn Treader” out loud during the drive. He had been having a little trouble getting tongue tied and in an announcing tone he started reading the third chapter which begins “Land in sight…”. Well, instead of reading what was on the page Nathan (in a very enthusiastic voice) read “Land and shite…”. There was a second of silence followed by hysterical laughing. Heather was laughing so hard she was crying and Nathan laughed even more as she made it known that she was laughing so hard her “cheeks were making her eyes close!” This is indeed why she felt it necessary to pull over. It seemed that driving the Alaska Highway with ones eyes closed was not the best idea. After this moment of hysteria we regained composure and continued on. Ahh, good times.

We arrived just before dark in Whitehorse, found another Best Western (the Gold Rush Inn) and made camp for the night (even got a Milepost discount). When we say, “made camp,” we actually mean it. We ate hot dogs and beans from our camping supply (room had a microwave) followed by a cup of hot chocolate, Mmmm.

Day 12: Alaska Highway part 1

From: Dawson Creek, BC

To: Muncho Lake Provincial Park, BC

The first sight we saw was in downtown Dawson Creek. It was the mile marker post for “Mile 0” of the Alaska Highway. This highway begins in Dawson Creek and runs NW all the way to Fairbanks, AK. It was built in 1942 taking just 8 months to complete through a combined effort of US military workers and Canada providing supplies.

Heather, once again, took the first leg of the drive. The weather began foggy and overcast, but quickly cleared up becoming one of the prettiest days we’ve had.

Today was the first day we saw snow up close. We’d seen it on mountaintops previous days, but it was now situated sporadically on the side of the road. Later on, we began driving over shady portions of road which were covered with compacted snow and some ice.

We drove over a mountain pass during which the temperature dropped several degrees quickly. We passed through Summit Lake, where a lake is sitting at the top of several mountains. There was snow everywhere, and everything was white and beautiful. Back down from the pass the temperature went back up to upper 30s.

As dusk approached, elk started appearing all over the road. We stopped 5 or 6 times to view or to let them pass. Elk are far smarter than dear. The difference in brains is similar to the brain difference between our dogs. Elk see a car coming and run away. Dear just run: at the car, away from the car, who knows. Dakota sees food and goes for it with tenacity. Lola sees food, whips her head around, knocks it on a table, and the table says, “ouch.”

The mountain views are so different when they’re covered in snow. Definition between peaks becomes clearer, but the sky can sometimes smear into the mountaintops blurring the lines. When snow is on the mountains the sky seems bluer and crisper. We’d better get used to snow; we’re going to see lots of it in the next years of our lives. So far, we love it. One of the coolest parts of the day was driving along a lake surrounded by mountains shooting straight up. 

Our original destination for the day was Watson Lake, Yukon. However, near dusk we passed Muncho Lake and a little log cabin hotel called the Northern Rockies Lodge. It overlooked the lake and the wonderful mountains beyond. Heather’s heart was captured. We drove past but she kept talking about it and quickly turned around. She wanted the check their rates and pet policy to investigate the possibility of changing our plans for the evening. Nathan had no objections.

We calculated that stopping short wouldn’t really affect the trip as a whole, and Heather was excited about staying in a remote, romantic place on a whim. A few moments later we were checked into our room for the night at the lodge and excited about seeing the crystal clear lake provide foreground to some of Canada’s most awesome Rockies. Turns out, this lodge is probably one of the most desirable vacations spots. Hopefully, we will return.

Before bed, we took a short midnight stroll down to the water. The moon lit up just enough to see the white snowy ridges of the nearby mountains. Across the water, the sky was so clear we could see the outline of the entire range behind the cabins. It was lovely.

Day 11: British Columbia part 2

From: Prince George, BC

To: Dawson Creek, BC

Knowing that our drive time would be less today, we set out to find in Prince George doggy jackets and tire chains. We found a pet store called Pet Land that, much like a Super Pets or Pet Smart, had what we needed. We found some stylish winter vests for the bubbies that accentuate their individual brown coloring. (Of course, our dogs wouldn’t be caught barking in something that wasn’t stylish.)

Next objective: tire chains. It wasn’t until after driving all over Prince George due to more bad Canadian directions (Cynthia please explain this phenomenon) that we found one of the coolest stores we’ve ever been in: Canadian Tire. Imagine the best parts of an Advanced Auto Parts (with a garage), a Home Depot and a Walmart all combined in one building. That’s Canadian Tire. Here we bought tire chains, bungee chords, a sponge thing, and some winter rated windshield washer fluid. We noticed lots of people buying the anti-freeze washer fluid stuff so we knew we were doing right. After that we filled the gas tank, got some lunch and ice cream at Dairy Queen (our first stop for ice cream the whole trip…not bad for us) and got on the road. Dawson Creek was about 5 hours away.

The light rain from the night before continued throughout the entire day. Overcast and hazy, the drive included fog and limited visibility especially of the mountains. However, it didn’t take away too much from the sight seeing. Because, the fog wrapped the mountains ranges like a scarf and added a beautiful effect we would’ve never imagined. Once again, the mountains and clouds seemed to join together seamlessly.

There were also several small waterfalls and one considerable waterfall along the way. If it wasn't raining we didn't think we would have been able to see as many so well.

About and hour still outside of Dawson Creek, we drove

through Chetwynd, home of the Annual Chainsaw Carving Championship (random, we know). Throughout town we saw dozens of large intricate woodcarvings and snapped a few photos. Mostly, we were just taken aback by the detail with which these carvings were crafted.

When we finally entered town we must have stopped at 8 or 10 hotels inquiring about dog fees and nightly rates. We decided on the Comfort Inn for the night. Who'd of thought this middle of nowhere place would be so busy?

The days seem to be getting just a little bit shorter (getting dark around 6pm), and the snow is quickly inching down the mountains. We expect to see some very soon.