Dearest Rachel – The beauty of a morning flight is that, when you arrive, you still have most of the day to ‘enjoy’ the place you’ve landed in. The… dare I say ugliness?… of that same situation on the return trip means that you’re dropped right back into the responsibilities of home that you neglectedContinue reading “Less of the Same, More of the Usual”
Tag Archives: home
Meanwhile, Back Home…
Dearest Rachel – I just stuffed the bags back into the car behind my driver’s seat again this morning. Normally, I’ve got this rotation of two of the many (most of which I either disposed of or gave away) cloth grocery bags you left behind, for when I stop at Aldi – either one, asContinue reading “Meanwhile, Back Home…”
The Silent Treatment
Dearest Rachel – I have to admit, it was something I hadn’t considered about traveling to a place like Honduras, where I don’t have coverage with my phone plan (although maybe it would be wise for me to look into one of those eSIM cards for future travels here and there). For the entirety ofContinue reading “The Silent Treatment”
Returning to Collect
Dearest Rachel – I’m not sure whether I heard the car approach – I certainly didn’t recognize it, if I paid any attention to it at all – as it pulled up to your parents’ house and you got out to look through the place one more time. I watched through the immense picture windowContinue reading “Returning to Collect”
Reverse Porch Piracy
Dearest Rachel – There are neighborhoods that have problems with what I understand are referred to as ‘porch pirates,’ and while I can’t imagine that being an issue in a relatively affluent and homogeneous socioeconomic area as ours, I get the driving force behind it. Covetousness is a thing that exists (otherwise, why would thereContinue reading “Reverse Porch Piracy”
花見 – Hanami at Home
Dearest Rachel – Maybe I never noticed it because it was right there in front of us the whole time (and we had to deal with the blossoms once they fell and stuck to our respective cars, which is something of a nuisance); maybe it’s just that more obvious to me after two straight yearsContinue reading “花見 – Hanami at Home”
Why Tiny Houses?
Dearest Rachel – The other day, I was telling you about how I fell down a rabbit hole of real estate listings, particularly in a place that we’d both individually been to and wanted to return to, but never got the chance to do together (let alone take Daniel with us to show him whatContinue reading “Why Tiny Houses?”
They’ve Stopped Making It
Dearest Rachel – It’s a silly little line that hits early on in A Charlie Brown Christmas, but it occasionally resonates with me for reasons I can’t quite pin down. The gang are catching snowflakes on their tongues as they fall around them (Lucy, fussbudget that she is, insists that she never engages in suchContinue reading “They’ve Stopped Making It”
State of Normalcy
Dearest Rachel – Is it strange that it’s been half a week since getting off the ship before I start telling you anything about life back home? You’d think that there wasn’t anything to talk about here, now that I’ve returned to a state of normalcy. And let’s face it, you wouldn’t be that farContinue reading “State of Normalcy”
Frozen in Place
Dearest Rachel – It’s been a while, but it’s it’s not as if this hasn’t happened before of a winter morning. Yesterday, after texting the folks that I was on my way (and pleased with myself at getting closer to nine o’clock every day for the past week), I got in the car, turned theContinue reading “Frozen in Place”
The Sunshine’s Gone
Dearest Rachel – I don’t know how it came to be that I was waiting for you last night on what seemed to be the concourse at O’Hare airport; chalk it up, I suppose, to the usual dream logic. Most of the other aspects of our current reality seemed to apply, such as the factContinue reading “The Sunshine’s Gone”
Heating the Room
Dearest Rachel – I mentioned the other day the difficulties I’d been having with the wall-mounted space heater, and that I had acquired a small, portable model for where I sit and watch television (and do some computer work – the watching distracts me, though, as I’m sure you could relate, so not much actuallyContinue reading “Heating the Room”
Working From Home
Dearest Rachel – Were I still gainfully employed, and deriving my living from so being, this would be a debilitating quirk of mine, this insistence that I be at home when Kris comes over to clean the house. It’s not out of any desire to supervise her or her work; even if she didn’t alreadyContinue reading “Working From Home”
Deadlines and Promises
Dearest Rachel – I’m sure I’ve mentioned it over the past couple of years worth of letters, but you’ll remember either way how it was a running joke within our little family that the three of us always got the same amount of cold when it swept through the house; we just got it overContinue reading “Deadlines and Promises”
It Could Happen in Any Neighborhood, Now
Dearest Rachel – I’ve been meaning to write out the usual stipend to Twofeathers ever since the holiday weekend marked the turn from one month to the next. I admit that I’m nowhere near as faithful – or should I say punctual – as I was when it came to paying the mortgage to yourContinue reading “It Could Happen in Any Neighborhood, Now”
Broken Bed
Dearest Rachel – Another day, another task I’m not looking forward to having to deal with. This time, it’s a case of having to either buy an extra mattress, or find a handyman to see if the old Jenny Lind bed can be repaired or not. If I remember you and your mom correctly, thatContinue reading “Broken Bed”
It Takes More Than Just Sweat
Dearest Rachel – It’s been a very hot weekend, honey. Not just outside – which has indeed been hot, getting well up into the 90s – but inside as well. On Friday, Logan pointed out that the pipes for the air conditioner had frost all over them, and when I called the HVAC people toContinue reading “It Takes More Than Just Sweat”
A Quiet, Empty House
Dearest Rachel – I really didn’t need to hurry home as fast as I did, but at the same time, I just didn’t see much point in staying at camp yesterday morning. The counselor training was about to wrap up for the week, so there wouldn’t be as much going on for me to beContinue reading “A Quiet, Empty House”
A Not-So-Tiny Home
Dearest Rachel – I don’t know if I can blame the Sims for this, but the program does make building and furnishing a home ridiculously easy. You’d think I’d know better, after having been through the remodel of the kitchen and laundry room, but I guess I can’t help but imagine what a house likeContinue reading “A Not-So-Tiny Home”
from Rachel: Our Own House, Our Own City
What were Paul’s feelings towards the believers in Philippi (Philippians 1:3-8)? “He thanked God for them.“He longed for them with all the affection of Christ Jesus.” Accepting that no fellowship of believers is perfect, what are a few things you really love about yours? “I love the wealth of generational diversity. The Kindred Spirits especially,Continue reading “from Rachel: Our Own House, Our Own City”
I’m So Looking Forward To…
Dearest Rachel – Despite all the things that I’ve been able to enjoy here on the ship for the last three months, there is a lot that I’m looking forward to getting back to. And since my time here is coming to a close, I thought that, rather than bemoaning that fact, I ought toContinue reading “I’m So Looking Forward To…”
When Does It Become “Home”?
Dearest Rachel – I suppose I really need to do breakfast more often in the dining room. If nothing else, it helps me with portion control; eating upstairs in the Windjammer, with its buffet style layout, offers the temptation of going up for multiple helpings – and when combined with the urge to ‘get myContinue reading “When Does It Become “Home”?”
The Sign of Jonah
·Evil and sinful people [L An evil/wicked and adulterous generation] ·ask for [seek; demand] a miracle as a sign, but they will not be given any sign, except the sign of Jonah [see 12:40; Jon. 1:17].” Then Jesus left them and went away. Matthew 16:4, Expanded Bible Dearest Rachel – To be sure, when Jesus invoked the name of Jonah, as aContinue reading “The Sign of Jonah”
The Course of a Thousand Days
Dearest Rachel – It’s not as obvious as looking on the calendar and seeing a “23” on it, as happens every month. It probably would have even passed my notice if it weren’t for the fact that I’ve been sending “a line a day when you’re far away,” and the site keeps tabs of howContinue reading “The Course of a Thousand Days”
What it Means to be Home
Dearest Rachel – I’ve told you before about how I’ve been trying to expand the assortment of music I’m exposed to, if for no other reason than that to dilute the frequency I have to deal with songs that we would have considered ‘ours,’ whether or not they were part of our mix tape collectionContinue reading “What it Means to be Home”
Rent and Responsibility
Dearest Rachel – I have to say that, when the folks dropped us off after driving us home from the airport, it was really nice to have Logan there waiting for us, with lights on and everything. The fact that he’d also prepared dinner (southern-style baked macaroni and cheese) was an added plus. Yes, heContinue reading “Rent and Responsibility”
All or Nothing at All
Dearest Rachel – For all that it’s been an edifying trip (even with the distraction of me trying to write everything down as I’m walking through every single site), it’s really good to get back home, and pile myself into my own bed. Daniel agrees, despite the fact that his bed is essentially the familyContinue reading “All or Nothing at All”
An Ungodly Hour in God’s City
Dearest Rachel – There are many cities around the world that seem to pride themselves on being ‘the city that never sleeps.’ New York and San Francisco come to mind in particular, being celebrated in song to that effect. Jerusalem is not one of those places. On the contrary, part of its pride lies inContinue reading “An Ungodly Hour in God’s City”
Our Dinner With Omer
Dearest Rachel – Omer’s home overlooks the cliffs of Gadara (the site, as I always say, of the original deviled ham), and the city of Susita, on the northern half of the Sea of Galilee. Basically, to hear Omer tell it, he can see where half the events of the New Testament took place fromContinue reading “Our Dinner With Omer”
To What Use…
Follow me, and I’ll show you to what good use… these wares can be put. Spirit of Christmas Present (Edward Woodward), to Scrooge (George C. Scott) in the market, from the telecast of A Christmas Carol (1984) Dearest Rachel – You’ll probably remember that, when we were looking to move out of the condominium andContinue reading “To What Use…”
Your Big Brother is Dying
Dearest Rachel – There were a lot of factors I could point to that conspired to present last night’s dream. There’s been all the work that’s been done her at our house, and the issues involved with navigating around everything while it’s been worked on. Hand in glove with that is the current issue withContinue reading “Your Big Brother is Dying”
At Home For Once
Dearest Rachel – I realize the place has changed dramatically since your departure; you would hardly recognize the kitchen, and its new layout. Even I forget where some things are stored nowadays (in fact, I still couldn’t find enough trivets to go around last night, even though I know there’s more than the one IContinue reading “At Home For Once”
If You Can’t Take the Heat…
Dearest Rachel – Of course, the standard follow-up to that proposition is that you need to ‘get out of the kitchen.’ That, along with the expression about the buck stopping with him were among the most quotable lines from President Harry Truman (partly because much of what he said had to be sanitized for publicContinue reading “If You Can’t Take the Heat…”
Family Room No More
Dearest Rachel – As much as I like the setup I have in the yellow room upstairs, and I’m glad for an alternate bedroom to use while the construction begins in the laundry room next week, I’m a little bit concerned about getting too comfortable up there. I fell asleep in the recliner pretty quicklyContinue reading “Family Room No More”
I Suppose I Could Call it Home
Dearest Rachel – I really need to be getting some more sleep, if I can. But what I just saw needs to be related before I fall back asleep and forget it. It was an apartment that I was preparing for us – the three of us – to live in. The main vestibule ofContinue reading “I Suppose I Could Call it Home”
A Kiss Atop the Lid
Dearest Rachel – I don’t know if you remember that scene in Tim Burton’s Batman Returns where Serena Kyle enters her apartment with that stock line, “Hi honey, I’m home!” followed by a quick beat, whereupon she adds, “Oh, yeah. That’s right; I live alone.” That’s what it’s like to come home these days. ItContinue reading “A Kiss Atop the Lid”
So Many Spinning Plates
Dearest Rachel – Home used to be a haven for me. I could come home after a hard day, even after spending a hour or two (or three) in a conference room being told by my boss that I was a worthless piece of, well, you know; that I was a huge disappointment to him,Continue reading “So Many Spinning Plates”
Letters to Rachel 