DEFINITIONS PART 7

WATERCOLOR ARTIST
In this world there are those that naturally excel at talent. I don't feel I am one of those (I know there are those that would disagree, but this is my blogsite, so have a little patience and hear me out). I feel I am mediocre are best and have to work at being skilled in the area of art. Frankly, that's not a bad thing, for it has been said that creativity is 1% inspiration and 99% percent perspiration (or something like that). For some artists that's a bunch of baloney, it's at least 50/50. For me, there are moments of inspiration that lead me down the path of perspiration.

I can remember the first time I attempted a watercolor painting. I took some paints my brother Sam had given me, turned over a piece of matboard and attempted a watercolor painting. I was thrilled with how the watercolor spread and created this impressionistic flow. I attempted a few Canadian geese in the foreground and didn't do too bad. I was inspired to keep trying. Looking back at my first attempt makes me cringe, but it was the beginning of a wonderful journey into watercolor painting.

I have attempted other forms of art throughout my life and have enjoyed sketching, sculpture, and other forms of painting. But I would say that being a "wanna be artist" defines who I am.

DEFINITIONS PART 6

TEACHER
On Sunday mornings I gather with a group of adults (and anyone else who is willing to join us) and we study the Scriptures together. It is a privilege and honor to lead this group of people as we seek to gain understanding and find the truth of who God is and what He says. I feel the call to make the subject matter interesting and thought provoking, for I am a teacher. I love to teach. I taste joy when I teach. Of the many things that define me as a person, I would have to say that teaching rises toward the top.

DEFINITIONS PART 5

KARATE
When it became evident that basketball (NOTICE: basketball will be another "Definition") did more damage to my knees and body than good (after playing basketball I could hardly walk, my knees hurt so bad. Also, twisted ankles and dislocated fingers damped the joy of the game), I decided to stop playing the game. But my body and mind began to atrophy. I needed some form of exercise and something to keep my mind active and sharp. I knew of a Karate class where I worked (City of Bellevue) and decided to visit one of the training sessions. I was hooked. I bought a gi (the uniform of a martial arts student) and started attending training sessions 3 times a week. Karate has been a great discipline for me, helping me function physically and mentally. We spend time stretching, which helps keep me somewhat flexible, and then do some training, keeping me somewhat in shape.

Karate is great because it is a life long pursuit. You may move through the ranks from white to yellow, orange, green, purple, brown and finally to black, but you are always learning and improving your technique. To become a first level black belt simply means you have learned the basics. From that point on you are building on the basics and seeking to learn from and improve on what you have already learned. In April of 2007 I tested for and received my black belt.

It is a great privilege to train under Sensei Cathy Cline, who is the highest ranking woman in Shotokan Karate. Her teaching style is inspirational.

Trip to Bend, Oregon

On February 1 Jean and I set out for Bend, Oregon for a week long trip. This is the kind of trip where we basically unplug from life, take some books to read, some movies to watch, some projects to work on, and an expectancy to relax. All of those were accomplished. I didn't get to read through all the books I wanted, but did manage to spend some time with "The Black Box" by Michael Bene and "Can Man Live Without God" by Ravi Zacharias. I worked on my blogsite material, wrote a little for my book, and put together material for our 2008 newsletter. We went shopping and went for walks in the snow and along the river. You know you've had a great vacation when it is difficult to return home. We weren't ready to return but wanted to stay another week.

We did see some wildlife. We saw several deer and hawks and when returning from Sisters we saw a bald eagle tearing away at the flesh of a dead deer. Way cool.

Our Visit continued

Here are a few shots of our visit to California. I don't have many more because I spent a lot of my time playing video games with Ben. Ben & Skye got "Rock Band" for Christmas and that seemed to consume much of our time. See Skye's blog site at thevandykens.blogspot.com.

It was really good to see them. Ben & Skye's daughters are cute as ever (Abby's cute as a button, even though she didn't show her eyes - she just slept and ate, ate and slept). Ben's doing great with his job at Insomniac Games and Skye's doing great as a mom (and recovering well from her surgery with Abby). Heidi's doing well. I'm proud of the all.

It was difficult to go back to work after 2 1/2 weeks of vacation, but somehow I braved the cold and wet and made it to work.

Our Visit With Ben & Skye and Heidi

We headed to California to see Ben & Skye, Lizzie, Abby and Heidi. We were there for over a week. The trip down was great and it was really great to see them all. Now that I have recovered from lack of sleep, I can talk about our visit there. See next blog.