Cold winds

It was quite brisk this morning again after another clear night. I don't think it got much above freezing today, if it ever did.

Pastor Brown and his wife arrived here this morning. I went over to see them about noon. I decided to go for a little bike ride prior to that. The roads were frosty for much of the way. The tires make interesting, crunchy sounds when going over the frost. And some of the frost sticks to the tires until they melt away once they hit drier/warmer roads.

I went out just long enough to put in about 30 minutes on the bike before arriving at the church. By then I was starting to feel a little on the frozen side in the face and thumbs. I do have a full-face balaklava, but 30-degrees isn't quite cold enough for that.

I spent about 3 hours chatting with Pastor Brown and getting mutually acquianted. He is an older person, been in the ministry for many years, retired, took up trucking, and then returned to the ministry in Wrangell.

He understands that I have my own way of approaching things, my way of seeing things, my own strengths and interests, and he will give suggestions, but let me work here in ways that suit me best.

Today, Shelley had her first piano lesson since our arrival. From what I hear, she did quite well. What perhaps didn't go quite as well was that Amy had been left in the church with me, and being her usual, boisterous, non-conforming, overly curious, and rambunctious self, she may have perturbed Eunice a bit, Pastor Brown's wife, who had a rather long night and was probably rather tired. We had originally wanted them to have dinner with us tonight, but Elise thinks Amy's actions might have turned Eunice off from the idea. And that didn't sit too well with Elise. And then when that got related to me, it irked me and now I'm trying to not let it mushroom into something that will drag me down.

It's usually a combination of small things that end up getting me down. For the past few days, since it's the start of the month, I've been staring at mortgages (for houses we don't live in) and bills (for a house we don't live in, plus bills for last month and this month prepay for some of the utilities here). And then I stare at our bank balances and trying to decide which investments to sell to generate the necessary cash, how long to postpone writing the check until funds get transferred to the right places, etc. And all this has been a rather depressing exercise. And then when I return home this afternoon and sense that Elise is also feeling a bit down, it does not help matters any. It's a bit like psychological Jenga (link to Wikipedia for those that aren't familiar with the game) where a little bit at a time is taken out, and then it really doesn't matter what the last piece is, the whole structure comes tumbling down.

Anyway, back to the cold weather. Yup, we're starting to see it. The forecast says teens and 20's tonight and that may continue for the next several nights. The skies are supposed to remain fairly clear - which is why we are getting the freezing temps. And since our apartment is right on the shore with nothing between us and the water, any north wind blows directly onto the building, chilling it considerably. We'll see how the boiler heat holds up, and if it doesn't we will need to find things to cover up the (still) bare windows on the front side.

Sunset is now just at 4:00 p.m. With the hills around the island, dusk begins about 3:15 p.m. It's an odd feeling to want supper around 4:00 or 4:30 and want to be in bed by 7:00 p.m. or so. As I write this, it is only a bit past 6:00 p.m. but it feels much, much later than that -- perhaps 8 or even 9. Elise noted that today around noon, the sun was still coming in at a very shallow angle. Noon does not mean overhead sun during the winter months in this part of the world.

I haven't yet pinpointed a good reason, but I've been waking up about 3-4 hours after I fall asleep. So I've been tossing and turning for a good part of each morning from around 1 or 2 a.m. to 3 or 4 a.m. It may be subconscious stress or anxiety, because I'm not necessarily feeling anxious every night -- just some nights -- but maybe it just comes through when I'm asleep and that wakes me up. In any case, I'm finding it very annoying.

Tomorrow, for the first time in seven Sabbaths (can you believe that?!), I won't be doing the speaking. I'll only be leading the Sabbath School class, play the piano, and a few other items during worship.

And then tomorrow evening, we will be attending a Young Life banquet. After my Wed. morning get-together with some of the pastors, I received an invitation to the banquest after Phil found a couple of spaces at his table. Young Life and WyldLife are non-denominational Christian youth groups for high-schoolers and middle-schoolers (respectively) that have a chapter here in Petersburg. Tomorrow evening is (I think) a fundraiser and an occasion to highlight what they did last year and discuss what they are doing this coming year. Shelley is old enough to take part in WyldLife this year and Young Life next year. Amy will be old enough for WyldLife next year. We think this will be a good way to show our faces to the community, to become acquainted with some of the things that are happening, connect with some of the other Christians in town, and it might be a good way for Shelley (and Amy next year) to come to know some of the other kids in town.