Two straight lines are great!

While it's still early for graduate admissions departments to make decisions on their incoming students, three of my five possibilities have contacted me. The universities haven't neccessarily made decisions, but my application has peaked their interests. I don't want to say too much more at this point, except that my first paid, departmental visit comes at the end of this week. My research has sparked some interest, too, and I've been asked to give a presentation over my MS thesis work when I visit school-number-one this week.

The presentation deadline could not have come at a better time. I'm just now organizing and analyzing my data in order to start writing my thesis. Having spent numerous extra hours mining my dataset, a few *amazing* correlations have become apparant within the urban streams I study. One sloping, straight line is a very good thing. Two sloping, straight lines is a great thing! Furthermore, the statistics are reasonable and interpretable! Please pray for me I as I become more familiar with the chemistry theory behind the results I see in my data. Please pray for me as I give a practice presentation on Tuesday and the real thing on Friday.

The week ended in the home of a math professor, where Kindel and I babysat his three children. Being my first babysitting experience, it started a little akward for me. After dinner, though, we all seemed much more comfortable around each other - comfortable enough for the kids to tie us (mainly Kindel) up countless times and to countless household objects. Our last event with kids was a rousing game of Battleship. The oldest son, at 5 years old, and I used an iron-tuff defense to confuse the enemy (Kindel and the two other children), leading to their defeat! Their parents arrived home at the end of our game, refreshed from what may have been the "best meal they have had in Champaign-Urbana, and maybe the best meal they have ever had." Praise God!

Kindel starts student teaching at Urbana High School this week. She has four classes, I think, two sophomore and two senior. Please pray for her (and I) as she begins teaching.

Blessings...

Wedding?

Kindel took me as her date to a wedding in Bloomington this weekend. Here's a pic prior to the service. I'll put more in my PhotoBucket later.

Though I must say, I could not have been more blessed to have that woman next to me. She's absolutely wonderful!

Sugar Pine Point State Park. Lake Tahoe. CA.

Breaking into the New Year

On December 14th I traveled across Illinois and Missouri to my home in Kansas City. I left during the middle of finals week to catch a flight from Kansas City to Sacramento, California, where I would visit Kindel and her family. With all of the anxiety and excitement, I managed to get a good hour of sleep before leaving Kansas City Friday morning.

I had been discussing research opportunities with a professor from Stanford before the semester ended. Wanting to support my PhD search, Kindel made it a priority to find time during our first day in CA to visit Stanford's campus and meet with my faculty contact. To psych me up for the rest of the trip, Kindel scheduled lunch with her family shortly after I arrived. Our short, yet fun lunch set the stage for the rest of the trip - it would be busy, genuine, and rewarding.

Stanford rocked! In summary, there is a very high probability that I'll be accepted and be returning for the official visit in early February. There is an equally high probability that upon being accepted, I'll complete my PhD education at Stanford. The research centers on Arsenic environmental chemistry. Arsenic contamination in ground water drinking wells of South East Asia represents the the most expansive case of poisoning in the world. My field research would be conducted in Cambodia. Even more exciting is the leading by the Spirit that Kindel and I have received, encouraging us to move to the same geographic region together. California would be a good place for both us.

Family...

If you didn't know, Kindel's parents serve at a the Rift Valley Academy in Kenya, Africa. They were back visiting for the month of December. They're not sure the next time they will be visiting the States. Because of this, it was really important for me to spend quite a bit of time with them. Steve and Lori are extraordinary people - full of the Spirit, very funny, genuinely caring, and intelligent. While much of our time was planned - family visits and events - the extra time during my three-day visit extension was probably the most memorable. The Denver airport closing kept me in CA for a little while longer. With the extended family expecting me to be have left, Kindel and I were able to relax outside of some type of schedule. I was warmly welcomed into Kindel's family during the entire trip, but this was especially acute during the the last three days. It was an exceptionally fun and rewarding visit. I really look forward to spending more time with them.

During our time in CA we spent a few days at Lake Tahoe, which included sledding, hiking, and hot-tubing. Kindel and I also spent quite a bit of time in her home town and the surrounding communities. Biggs, where K grew up, isn't too big. Settled in orchard and rice country, it is kind of charming, though.

Accident...

My last full day in CA, Kindel and I headed out to visit Yosemite National Park. It was a beautiful Saturday and the drive couldn't have been easier in her uncle's Dodge Ram 2500 (yes, it had a Hemi). Just North of the park, though, Kindel and got in an accident while driving down a grade toward a bridge. The accident could have been quite bad, but God had other plans. The concrete guard rails kept the truck from falling into the 80 foot ravine and we didn't hit any other vehicles because of minimal traffic. Kindel and I walked away from the accident with insignificant injuries. AAA and excellent insurance made it so that neither of us had to pay anything. Both of us are thankful for God guiding our vehicle through the accident that Saturday morning.

Pictures are available. See my PhotoBucket link at the right.

Blessings,

Paul