1. On Wednesday, I took my Jeep to Graham Automotive, who always seem to be reliable guys when it comes to mechanics, and again they have left me befuddled. Most mechanics look for opportunities to fix something on a car, to make sure they get their money out of the customer; these guys look for reasons not to do work. My engine light was on when I brought it to them, I needed an oil change, it has been 40,000 miles since I last had my transmission serviced, and I am about to embark on an ambitious adventure during which I will drive 6,000 miles over the course of a little more than a month. I told the guy at the front that I wanted it checked head to toe because I didn’t want anything going wrong on the road. I returned 4 hours later and all they had done was change the oil. They checked the transmission and said it was good. The belts are in good condition as well. The engine light is on because of a previously diagnosed misfire code, which seems to be essentially irreparable. They did remind me that my air conditioning was not working, but I knew that already, and did not plan on fixing it. (Yes, that’s right – 4 years and counting without air conditioning. It can be done. I approach it as a luxury rather than a right, and it puts things in perspective.) Thank you Graham Automotive, for your impeccable honesty, but why?
2. Mostly, the way I’ve been “training” for the hikes is by walking on the treadmill – 3 mph at a 10.0 or 12.0 incline. I usually just walk for an hour or so, which leaves me tons of time to think. And that has led me to the conclusion that I am so blessed. I’m pretty sure I’m probably going to run out of money some time in California on this trip, but I’m intent on enjoying myself, and I’m not going to worry about it, because I know that even if I don’t have money, God will still be with me, and I will still be immensely blessed. I’m healthy, regardless of the broken wrist thing, I have some great friends that I’m finally getting to visit, and my family is really cool too. Thank you God! There’s nothing greater in my mind, there’s nothing that makes me truly satisfied deep down inside, more than knowing that heaven exists and sometime relatively soon I will begin eternity with God there. Last summer I got to go to New York for the first time, and it was a life changing experience. Over Spring Break I was able to go to the Grand Canyon-an amazing sight, and hike to the top of a huge sand dune in the Mojave Desert-a spiritual event. This summer I will get to reconnect with old friends, see some very cool places, and celebrate life along the way. But really, none of it compares to knowing Christ. Philippians 3 is probably my favorite chapter in the whole Bible, and every time I reflect on my short life, I think, there’s nothing more than I want people to say about me other than I lived that chapter.
3. Through a pretty sizeable grant, Pleasant View will be building and maintaining a greenhouse. It’s tied closely to the elementary Science curriculum, but somehow there were some middle school teachers involved in the process too. Yesterday we began building the greenhouse – by “we” I mean PV employees, parents and students. It had been a while since I’d done any yard work, and the weather was great, so it turned out to be a fun time. Below are some pictures. As progress continues I’m sure I’ll be taking more pictures, but I imagine they will be posted to the PV website.
Building the raised beds.
The cinder block crew.
Close to finished. Hauling soil like the good old times in NOLA.
4. I’ll probably be updating my adventure on my phone quite a bit, using my Twitter account, so if you want to follow me on that to see what happen, as it happens, please feel free.
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