Out to Pasture

K-State Agronomy Farm...

....where construction barrels grow old and fade away.

Pet Peeves - Driving

During my two road trips this week, I developed a short list of rules everyone on the interstate should follow:

1. When anything is parked along side the road, especially a cop, get into the other lane.
2. Don't dally in the left lane. When the road is open, you should be in the right lane.
3. When passing, get it done. Passing should require at least a 10 MPH difference in the two vehicles. If you are not willing to be 10 MPH faster, you should not be passing.
4. When a vehicles rapidly approaches from behind, get over and allow it to pass you.
5. Always be aware. This allows a safe trip for everyone on the road.

Bad Day

Somebody had a bad day....

...I grabbed this pic last week.
I don't know anything about it besides the
fact that someone had a problem. The KSYG sang
on that hill earlier this spring. It is really, really steep.

Sometimes you just know...

So I was on a hike with the scouts this spring and saw this weed. First time ever. Sometimes you just know...

Tommie's Cell

For all of you who, like myself, did not know that Tommie lost his cell phone:

Tommie has received a new cell phone, cell phone carrier, and new number. To obtain his new number, take his old number and do the following to each number:
-4, -8, +4, -1, +5, +3, +0, -1, +7, -1

He would like to build his phone book back up. It sounds like the only way he plans to do this is by saving numbers that call him. So, ya. Give him a call.

Good-Bye Nextel

I can't say I'm sorry
I look forward to more talky
Over two lane roads and cattle trails
Even across the Kansan Flinthills

It may be cheesy but it is true.
I'll be happy to talk to you!

(same number, just give me three days to change over to Verizon :)

It has been like forever since I've posted and a lot has happened since then. In addition to changing my cell service, one of the things is meeting my third cousin, three times removed. He is pictured below with his wife. I spent a whole evening talking about family, the past, the future, good books, and current events--what a great time!

Ethiopia

The following was written several days ago but I was unable to post it. The internet connection was really poor. I never could log onto blogger and only once accessed my hotmail account. I hope to post a bit more about my trip, but considering the realities of life and responsibilities...maybe. If I post, you know that I am procrastinating on my studies:)

In the interest of keeping my blog alive, it seems best to let the world know that I have been blessed with the opportunity of attending the “International Symposium on Integrating New Technologies For Striga Control: Towards Ending the Witch-hunt.” It has been an incredible experience so far and promises so much more as we leave town and visit sorghum growing areas.

Internet is expensive for a college student at almost 12 dollars an hour. It makes it quite a habit to support. Fortunately I am not tempted because the agenda is completely packed.

It the interest of time, I am posting a portion of my e-mail that I sent home:

Dear Family,

I am please to inform you that I have arrived in one piece. The travel was mostly long and tiring. I only slept for ~ 4 hours on the trans-Atlantic portion. It was the only time it was dark. The clouds covered the ground more then half of the time. The entertainment system they currently have is really nice. It is completely independent from each other and has movies, games, music, other stuff and tracking. The tracking was the cool. It showed two maps, and two information screens. The maps would show the continent and then the country/area. The information screens showed things like ground speed, outside temp., ETA, and other stuff. It toggled between English and metric units and between a number of different languages. Cool. I watched two movies (one in Spanish—neat but without subtitles which made it hard) and read 150 pages. It is a bummer the system is not on domestic flights. The hotel is really nice. It and the Sheraton are the nicest in town….If you still have your VOI phone service, think about giving me a call…I am 8 hours ahead of EST…Kelby, you were right in that I should have brought my cell phone—oh well. I exchanged 100 dollars for 870 dirr. This internet service is 102 dirr for 60 minutes, I will have used about half of it today and will use the rest soon. Right now I am headed for lunch (1:20 PM) and then be up in my room.

Some pictures:

Nile River, Road Obstacles, Improved Sorghum Plot, Striga Flower

Autumn

I first noticed it on Sunday. As I was driving home from Wichita, I looked across the flint hills and said to myself “the trees are changing colors!” It was a sudden thought that left me speechless—which is not a big deal since I was alone. Looking back on it, the reason it hit me so hard was the memory of Indiana in the fall. The drive on Sunday was not like IN-124/US-24/IN-25 but it reminded me of B-town :)

Kansas really has quite a few trees. I have noticed more and more of them. Kansas also has some pretty shrubs that have a deep red color. As you look across the hills, the bottoms have green cedars intermingled with yellow deciduous trees. On the sides of the hills are clumps of shrubs—red and pretty. It is a good time to drive across Kansas.

I saw a drop-dead-gorgeous field of sorghum yesterday. The field was about 15 acres surrounded by trees. It was very deep red in color, about four feet in height, and ready to be harvested. It was really clean and not lodging. It served as the front porch view of our former department head (who happens to be a Purdue alumnus). It was beautiful.

Hosea 10:12

Sow to yourselves in righteousness, reap in mercy; break up your fallow ground: for it is time to seek the LORD, till he come and rain righteousness upon you.

Although I sometimes use the flip and point method, I am a huge proponent of reading the Bible in context. It is wise to read an entire book and considering the message and noting how it develops. This is one of the reasons I love Job so much.

So I was thinking about what book to start reading next when I thought of Hosea. I’m not sure how or when. But I discovered myself reading this much longer than anticipated book. I didn’t realize it has 14 chapters. I did know about the theme in the first three chapters and how it would apply to the later chapters.

Verse 12 stuck out to me as an oasis in a desert. It gives hope in a time of despair. It shows an action course for us to follow. Think about it and consider how Israel's past would be different if they had followed these verses (my commits reflect how I apply the verse in my life; it is taken a bit out of context of Hosea—but not really):

Sow to yourselves in righteousness – plant holiness in your life, reject sin…

reap in mercy – be prepared to forgive others, show kindness…

break up your fallow ground – reach out of your comfort zone, do something BOLD…

for it is time to seek the LORD – it requires action on our part, read the bible, pray

till he come and rain righteousness upon you – God will notice, His response might not be what you expect

I was truly surprised when I came across verse 12. I was absorbed in thinking about Hosea, Gomer, and Israel for ten chapters and this verse brought me back to reality. As Derek Webb so often mentions in his songs, we are apt at playing the whore. We must crucify ourselves daily for Christ so that we remain faithful to God.

Please think about Hosea 10:12 today and how it might change how you live!

Footnote: In doing research for this post, I discovered that Derek Webb is releasing “Mockingbird” as a free download. I just downloaded it! Look for my review in the coming days.