I Went For a Walk One Day

**edit: the link is made good for the album of photos… go check them out*

Firstly, I want to say that my heart and prayers are with the Baptist community in Perth at the moment after what has happened in Thailand. What satan has intended for evil, God will use for good. We are one body in Christ and when you hurt, I hurt.

Secondly, I went for a walk around a lake today, because I had time to, because today is our day off. Took some photos. Shall post now.

Ok, posting photos this way takes too long. You are welcome to see more here…

http://www.new.facebook.com/album.php?aid=72300&l=3ff00&id=719152526

School is good, we have finished Ephesians and are starting Luke this week and we will spend the whole week on it. I will have read the gospels once I’ve done Luke, (I’m sure I’ve done them before but this is official since we will have read every book by the end) and randomly have proverbs and psalms to read throughout the weeks. Time is still limited, but maybe next week we will move into our house in Blackfalds and save 40 minutes travelling each day as well as having to wait for everyone who is commuting. Can be nice, but I’ll miss my time here at the Pavely’s.

The temperature has dropped, with highs in the teens, although, that being said, this week looks to be a scorcher of low 20s… I can’t wait for it to get really cold and then finally I will see the lusciously surreal white snowflakes of Canadian winter. And then once I’ve seen them, maybe after the third of fourth time, I think I’d like it to go back to an Aussie summer. Mid 30s will do me nicely.

I’ll probably come home at the end of summer (late March) which I am hoping will afford me some still ridiculously hot days. I am sad to miss summer, it’s the bestest thing about Australia, equal only to the fact that most other people can’t handle it.

that’s all for now,

must go sleep, eat, shower and finish off homework.

not in that order.

kez.

BCC = intense, onto Ephesians

Ummm, how do I say this eloquently…?

I have no time.

That’ll do. This course is intense, which is not a bad thing (that’s a litote which is a figure of speech and I learnt Luke uses it alot in his gospel) and it means I don’t have much spare time to send emails, write letters, badger people on Facebook….

We are doing an inductive bible study on different books, we just finished Philemon, Kerryn likes it because it’s so short (25 verses) but today we went onto Ephesians which has 6 chapters and lots of interesting angles. Like, for example, it might not even be written by Paul!… but, pfft, you know, I can handle that.

The students in the BCC (all three of us) have the work duty of cleaning up after lunch and cleaning the church that the three school are teaching in during the mornings. Hopefully our afternoon classes have finished and we will get to do free study during that time. Or write blogs. Either.

Oh, that reminds me. For each paragraph of the book we study, we need to come up with a paragraph title to explain the paragraph and it must use exact text from the paragraph. But, myself being the incessant blogger, LOVES to make up titles that are a bit cryptic and a play on words and don’t say much about the article, but rather entice the reader in. So, doing boring ‘this is what the paragraph is about’ titles is rather tricky) and boring for me.

We are billeted at a nice older couples place, bu that is set to change now that the base has bought a house for the students. We will move in next week, and it’s a red house.

That’s all for now, must run.

love you all,

kez

P.S. Possibly the most boring Blog Title I’ve ever had.

To Sleep, To Dream.

Just a short one, since I’m very tired and looking forward to listening to my new Jon Foreman CD in bed. Had class today, learnt about the history of the bible – quite interesting. Looks like I’ll have a lot of work to do during this course but I think that’ll be okay.

Dear Peter, the bathrooms here are wonderful and my poos have been consistant and so nothing new report on them.

Oh, and I sent you a package today. But I was cheap and sent it surface mail so it’ll take two years to get to you.

The people at the YWAM base are quite fun, I am enjoying getting to know them. I have to think for a moment if I’m in a Christian house or not (since I’ve not been for the last few weeks) and so to randomly go out and say ‘Praise the Lord’ could be a bit awkward some of the time. It is nice to stay with people who understand what I’m doing (and also how heavy the course load is).

We will read through the bible at least once, and several books that we do an in-depth study on, we will read through 5 times.. but that’s okay, it’s something to do. I can’t wait.

I’m excited about possibly shaving my legs tomorrow morning since we are playing ultimate frisbee in the arvo, it’s been several weeks and a few old-growth logging protesters since the last hair removal expedition.

Time to fly, if I could do one thing while I sleep, it would be study (that was a question in a game we played, and everyone knew it was from a BCC student).

love you all\kez

Stage 2 of 3. Blackfalds YWAM.

Hey my friends!

Here I am, writing from Blackfalds, Alberta, a small town of 5000 and a small YWAM base of about 14 (with about 10 students). I arrived here yesterday arvo (or, ‘afternoon’ for all those who aren’t Australian and shorten everything) and am slowly recovering from the sleep deprivation that comes from a Winnipeg to Calgary greyhound trip. I had wanted to include bus photos with this blog, but alas, I had no idea when I would get on a computer and *hands open* no cable cord.

At the moment, we are being billeted because the accommodation hasn’t been set in concrete yet (figuratively) and should be at our constant place of residence in two weeks. Never mind about that, the older couple we are staying with are LOVELY with a nice house and I get my own room with double bed and an out-of-nest mother to dote on me. I don’t mind letting her, mums like doing that kind of thing right?

There are 3 students in my Biblical Core Course, a three-fold increase on the number of students compared to my last YWAM course. One is Trisha, from the summer camp I was at, and she and I are both staying at the same billet.

There are two other schools running at this time, a DTS and a eQuip which is about leadership. There are about 3 students in each school so we are a small base. Not that I’ve ever lived at a large one…

This afternoon, we did a scavenger hunt all around town to learn where everything is. Most things are quite close, although for bigger items (like the snow pants I will have to get somehow), we will need to go into Red Deer, the next largest town about 10 minutes away. Yes, I know, it’s weird having towns so close to each other. I try to explain that Australian towns are 3 hours away.

I have enjoyed unpacking my bag (what a delight to hang clothes up!!!!!!!!!!!!!) even though I know in two weeks I will have to move again. Small joys but I will take them.

Ummm, what else? The bus ride was long and was with the french guy as well since he was going to Calgary. Or, ‘Hal-garee’ as he kinda pronounces it. Very funny. I didn’t sleep much and I didn’t drink much either because I’d rather die of thirst than die of holding my bladder for 15 hours. Well, there was a toilet on the bus, but they really are no fun. Nor are public toilets, of which I have had my fair share in the last few weeks. Still, the beautiful bathroom at my billet is letting me drink lots of water now!

The YWAM base isn’t really a ‘base’. At the moment it is a series of houses and a coffee shop and a church building during the week. It works. It’s very community based which I like. Yesterday I had a giant iced coffee from the coffee shop, it was very nice, but the caffeine dind’t even touch me. I was that tired.

If you are the praying type, pray that I work hard during this course (they tell me it’ll be nuts with the amount of reading and work we have to do) and that I am diligent and learn lots that is practical.

having fun, peace out brothers.

kez

Manitoba, It’s All Over.

Last day in Winnipeg, although it almost wasn’t even going to be a day because I was going to leave at 10am. Now I’m leaving at 7pm. Love the discovery pass.

Last night the cat and I slept together for awhile, she even came over without me calling and we had a snuggle which was nice. After awhile though, she upped and left, I don’t think I make a great cat rug when I roll over lots of times (hopefully I don’t think I rolled onto her this time).

I’ve always thought in mathematical terms, so my current situation looks, mathematically, something like this:

Amount of stuff > amount of room in backpack.

It eats the big one, remember?

I bought a warm jacket yesterday, ended up getting 75% off which made it cheaper than my room for a night at the hostel in New York, but still, I’m left with this dilemma about how to get all this stuff to Alberta. Greyhounds is recanting and only letting one piece of luggage aboard, but maybe I just wear all my clothes at once… it would be warmer…

The jacket I bought, by the way, was black because I have discovered I have zero ability to keep things clean and nice. Honestly. Living with these cats has left cat hair and fluff all over everything so I look like I’ve not washed my clothes in weeks. I smell okay, so maybe people can overlook that. I’m keeping my jacket away in it’s bag, hoping against hope that somehow it will manage to avoid the asteroid field of cat hair that is this room.

Last night I went to a couch surfers Pot Luck Dinner and met some local Winnipegians who host. I also met some other people who just came for the food, but they were fun too. Alot of them were upset that marijuana was about to be put under mandatory sentencing, to which I said nothing. Laws are changed by politicians, not by sitting around a dinner table talking – not that I’m a politician or that I said anything. I’m not gifted with a passion for politics.

This is the last stop before I get to YWAM Blackfalds and it may take me a bit to figure out how to spend all my time on their computers. If I have anytime at all. All up, from Toronto to Blackfalds, I think the distance is 3600+ kms. 2 days and 8 hours of travel if I went straight there. I’ve managed to spread it over a week (although I’ve got my biggest leg coming up, at 22 hours to Blackfalds from Winnipeg) and enjoy some of the wonderful Canadian wilderness along the way. From the comfort of the bus of course, I’m not going all Into The Wild on you all. Besides, I don’t like berries.

- kezza

I’m Sleeping With A Cat

So, I was hesistant to write another blog while still in Winnipeg, but the funniest thing just happened and is still happening now. One of the crazy cats I mentioned, the one who took to sleeping in my bed last night, has come up to me, curled around a bit, sat right next the the laptop and fallen asleep. Still slightly over some keys.

Quite cute. And quite warm. And I’m back to practicing typing with one hand because my other is stuck under the warm cat.

Here’s the news, as best I can with one hand. My good friend Leith is engaged! Thats exciting. Now I always feel just a little bit sad when my guy friends get engaged, because it does mean things will change. But you know what I’ve figured out about life? Things always change. Life is ever-changing. Births, deaths, weddings, travelling… there is alot of peace that comes from living in the moment and not in the past. Heck, even I’ve changed as a person after going to Africa and even now to Canada. So, while I’ll miss the good times, I remember them fondly and embrace this new beginning.

In other news, I went to a house concert last night for a couple of local artists (my hosts here are into music in a big way) and it was pretty neat. Only about 20 people there, live acoustic singer/song-writers, both with their own stories to tell. After that, we went to a pub where a band was playing that they liked (forget what they are called). It was made up of older guys, which I like the most. When you have a 60 year old playing the drums, you know he’s not about the money or the chicks or the fame, he just loves his music. And after playing for so long, he is GOOD. The youngest member was about 35, so I appreciated that these guys did it because they loved it.

Well, 11am, a fairly good time to get up, eat some breakfast and have a shower. I do love not working. I don’t imagine my routine at YWAM will be anything like now, they seem to have a strict full routine for a place run in the Spirit… oh well. I just think God has given me the spiritual gift of sleep.

til next time my friends and fellow readers…

kez

Oh You Crazy Cats!

Hey y’all!

If I was once in the Soo, then I am now in the Peg. Winnipeg, that is. With two nutty cats and a french guy named Sebastian. Oh, and my hosts, who are in fact, normal. I have skipped Thunder Bay for the time being (lets be real, I’m not going back, I’ve skipped it FOREVER) and caught the bus to Winnipeg – thus the freedom of a discovery pass, you just hop and off as you please. That being said, the towns are like, 4 hours apart so you do kinda need to know what you are doing. I’ll spend a few nights here and then head on over to my final destination, Red Deer, Alberta. That’s another 22 hours on a greyhound but me and greyhounds, we are tight. I’ve worked out good positions to sleep in, how long I can go holding a pee and what not to eat before I ride. Greasy, anything greasy is not good. On the other hand, to avoid eating things that will make me not well on the bus, I generally don’t eat much of anything at all when I travel so when I got in last night and went to a family dinner, I was quite happy to eat a WHOLE LOT of home cooked non-greasy meals.

So, right now, one of those nutty cats is trying to get comfy in a mess of sleeping bags (and doing it quite successfully). They would run in and out of the room in the night, like ninjas, but way louder. They would come and explore my glass of water, as if they themselves might like to take a sip and be on their way. Then one became completely obsessed with the plastic bag that holds my 4 books (see earlier post).

“Iwe, iwe” I would tell them, because I’m still in Zambia no matter how much I think I should get out of it. They didn’t understand, but I think if I ever have kids then I’ll try to make them understand. I say it often enough.

My backpack is at 98% capacity (at extended capacity – that is, when the seams are stretching). There really is no more room left. I have to get to YWAM to give some clothes away and get some warm clothes. One lady on the bus was telling me how great the south of Alberta is because of the Shanook, which is a warm wind that blows all the coldness away.

Excitedly, she went on to say, ‘It would even get up to 13, 14 degrees sometimes’. Ummm, yeah, ok, that makes me feel MUCH better. 13 degrees is like a cold night’s minimum. My sleeping bag, however, is the one piece of warmity that I own. I can go anywhere, in any temperature with any windows open and be warm and snuggly in that thing. Maybe at YWAM I’ll just take to walking around in it 24/7. I could, because the feet bit zips out…

I think I did the same thing in Zambia. When it got a little cold in the mornings. ALTHOUGH, possibly there will be more than one student in this school. And maybe there’ll be a good-looking god-fearing single male there too…

Hmmm you know, searching myself, I’m pretty sure that wouldn’t stop me from walking around in my sleeping bag. 

Some things are just more important than boys.

Like warmth.

 

Time to go hang out and be sociable. Can’t wait till I get to YWAM where I can snub people … hahaha… or not. That wasn’t even funny. Oh, but it was in my head. That’s my current level of sanity.

On par with the cats.

kez.

In The Soo.

It’s funny, you know. My life, it continues to surprise me.

Here I am in The Soo, or Sault Ste. Marie as all the non-cool people call it (won’t make that mistake again) and am currently homeless. Not the first time. Is what happens when you have a morning check-out and a midnight bus. So I wander the streets like a vagrant. And who knows, the people who see me probably think I am – it’s a small town and I’ve been on the streets all day.

The other night at the bus station, while waiting until 1am to catch a bus here to The Soo, I called Leith. At one point he asked me if I had any travelling books, you know, books to read while you travel. I hadn’t and it hadn’t really occured to me to buy books especially for the occasional. But it put the thought in my mind and so when I stumbled upon a little christian bookshop in this here fine town, I thought, ‘why not’. And so today I went a little mad and bought 3 more. Now I have 4 books, and I never really had any room for more stuff anyhow. Oh well.

That’s all for now. Greetings from The Soo. Weird town, this one.

kezza.

Where’d she go?

Hi guys,

just a quick one. I’m in Toronto but I’m about to LEAVE and start my journey west. Next stop, to Sault Ste. Marie overnight for a night. If you are a prayer, I’d love your prayers as I embark on this crazy adventure.

Until next time,

Kezza

The Long Awaited Sigh

Greetings all. It seems a bit dull to write about anything after the excitement and sheer insanity that was the last week doing Niagara Falls and New York, but, since I have a few dead days here in Toronto (because exploring this city is definately not as thrilling as NY) and an almost non-stop access to this computer, it seems only right that I post something.

I have spent ah, well, lets see, this is my third day inside being a recluse, but it’s hardly a recluse because when I arrived here, there were 14 people sleeping in this rather small apartment. Some have left but at the moment we are 7. They come and go, some working, some being like me and reclusing and watching movies. It’s a sweet life. I have to convince myself now to go and get a discovery pass from Greyhounds sometime between now and wednesday night. And see the CN Tower. At some point. Maybe tomorrow.

One of the guys here, Rami is being taught by yours truly how to do a rubiks cube. Since he’s one of the lazy few who hang out at the house, he’s been practicing alot and is almost able to do it with no help! He has a job that starts tomorrow though so I suppose he’s got to master it tonight.

I should get out of the house a bit to get some sunshine and fresh air and EXERCISE… I was getting incredibly fit walking around New York 5000 miles a day with a super heavy backpack. Plus, drinking Tim Hortons every day might start to pay it’s toll… but I just can’t say no to it’s yummy goodness. Someone start a Tim Horton’s chain in Perth please!!

I’ve really become an independent traveller these days, catching subways to subways to busses to ferries to trains just to get where I need to go, following maps and working out fares. My greatest success was getting in at the Toronto Coach Terminal and catching two subways and one bus to this place, where I’d never been before. And uh, it was raining. Yeah. That makes it harder.

That’s all for now. I think we are all going to Kareoke tonight with one of the girls’ bosses (?) and I’ll let everyone know when I finally get my ticket. It’s exciting news (for me)… of course, not as exciting as New York.

Kezza