Do You Have These Books?

Hello all.

I have yet another list of books that I would like to borrow if anyone has a copy. As with before, I will pay for shipping if you have the book.

The books are:

– A Private History of Awe by Scott Russell Sanders  (isbn- 0865477345)

– Reclaiming Your Story  by Merle Jordan  (isbn- 0664256414)

– Mudhouse Sabbath by Lauren Winner  (isbn- 1557255326)

If you have any of these books, just drop me a line.

Thinking About Michelle…..

So while watching the big speech last night, I really looked at Michelle. Not that I haven’t looked at her before. I’ve always thought that she is just strikingly beautiful. But I really did look at her last night. And it finally came to me why so many polls say that while many Americans say that they are ready for a black President, they don’t know how they feel about having a black First Lady….a black First Lady would force (in some way) people to think about the standard of beauty that is still heavily blond-haired and blue-eyed.

Even with all the comparisons to Jackie O., there’s always been an uneasiness in how to talk about Michelle’s beauty.  Does America even have the vocabulary to talk about black beauty that is not somehow contingent on the whole idea of being light-skinned as the only way to be pretty?

So I’m thinking about Michelle today. And waiting to see the analysis of her.

“I Have A Dream”

45 years after Martin Luther King Jr. spoke those words, after everything my parents (and many of yours probably) went through as children, after all the blood that was shed to recognize the humanity of so many of my ancestors…..a colored/Negro/Afro-/Black/African-American will accept the nomination of one of the major political parties in this country.

Somewhere out there, my ancestors are crying in delight. And I am too.

The Party’s Over…..

Well not really. I still have a few more hours. Classes start in the morning, so technically my summer doesn’t end until I leave the house for class in the morning.

Sorry I’ve been away from the blog for most of the month, but after intensives ended on the 15th, I headed back to Maine to spend time with Dearest M.

Anyway…since Peacebang is on hiatus from Beauty Tips For Ministers, I thought I would announce that I will be starting a blog about fashion, but not just any fashion. Yes friends, I will be doing a blog about foundation wear. That’s right…..everything bra, girdle and other shapewear related. (it’s been a very interesting summer). It will debut sometime this weekend and more is forthcoming once I have everything in order.

I hope everyone enjoys these last days of summer. If you get the chance, go away somewhere this weekend (and you can go away in your own town). I think you will have a good time if you do.

The Price of Textbooks

While at lunch today, we got to talking about the price of textbooks. Partly because one of the people at the table has written textbooks and partly because a couple of people at the table were talking about the amount they have spent on textbooks for a class this fall.

For the NT Greek class this fall, ONE of the books costs $170.    $170.

When I took Intro. to the NT in the spring, our main textbook cost $100+.

Now I know that in some fields, it is routine for the textbooks to cost a nice chunk of change. (I’m thinking of the hard sciences and those books used in professional programs like law or medicine) However I do think that, on the whole, students are being charged way too much for the books that they are being required to buy. And I know the authors of these textbooks aren’t getting the money.

So……what ways are there for students to save money (besides Amazon)? But beyond that, should we be asking students to pay as much for the books that their teachers are requiring?

What A Difference A Day Makes

oh my.

In the span of 10 minutes, everything about this intensive changed for me. Not about my class, which I think is wonderful, but how I am going to make it through the next week-and-a-half.

I got to school at 7:50, which was good because I needed a little time to print out the assignment that was due in class today. When I walked into the computer lab there was L., one of the people from my online class in the spring that I really liked. When I ask her how her class is going she tells me that she has decided to drop it and go back home. <wo-oh> Wasn’t expecting that. Then I open my email and find a note from E., whom I had been worried about since I didn’t hear from her at all yesterday and in her note she says that she is dropping her class and leaving today too. NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!

One of the things that I was really looking forward to was actually getting some catch-up time with E., as her summer has been busy and I’ve been traveling. Now that time is gone. I don’t know what I’m going to do for this week-and-a-half. It was going to be bad enough that she wasn’t going to be here when the fall semester starts, but I just knew I had these 2 weeks. All those conversations won’t happen now (at least not here).

E. was the best friend I had here in this forsaken place and I don’t know how I’m going to get through this without her.

As you can see, my day has been turned upside down. Plans made will have to be rethought. And I am sad.

Writing Memoir

Hello again. Yes Virginia, I’m back in Indiana (for two weeks).

For this intensive I am taking the first class in the writing emphasis here at ESR, Aspects of Writing As Ministry. Our big assignment is to write a memoir piece, of which we turned in our first draft yesterday.

According to the author of our book on storytelling, our personal stories fall into one of four categories (at least when we’re talking about religion): 1. a story of self-discovery…2. a story of an encounter with the mystery (i.e. through a walk in the widerness)…3. a story of direct divine encounter….and 4. a story of conversion.

If you were writing about a particular incident in your life, which category would it fall into?