TV Commercial from here

Today's a long day of cleaning the kitchen - oh, and I've got two more bedrooms to fix up because of more people added this morning. I'm taking a lunch break and this commercial came on TV. I thought it was both very European and fun, so thought I'd give you a taste for TV over here. Enjoy!

Pictures

Bedrooms and bathrooms are cleaned and ready for the group, so all that's left is cleaning the kitchen tomorrow. It hasn't had a good cleaning since we moved in, so it'll be a full job tomorrow, but no worries.

Realized I hadn't posted these pictures from my recent trip to England - the archives, Kew, and London - so here you go. :-)

From Kew & London Trip Jan 2009

One of the first things that caught my attention when I landed at Stansted was this beautiful little stand in the check-in area. Krispy Kreme has great memories for me - from a dad who would bring them home as a special treat to an aunt and uncle who would buy them for us when we were on furlough from Kenya. They weren't the same as the US, but they were sure good!

From Kew & London Trip Jan 2009

From Kew & London Trip Jan 2009

This is where I spent Tues, Wed, Thur, and Fri. all week. The largest and most efficient archive in the world - but still, after nearly 40 hours of pouring over documents, you're still glad to to leave in the evening.

From Kew & London Trip Jan 2009

This is one of the streets that I would walk back to where I was staying at in Kew. A really beautiful and cool little town/village.

From Kew & London Trip Jan 2009

This is #11 High Park Ave where I stayed. A 100 year old Edwardian house owned by a lady who has two teenage kids - really nice family and a good experience.

From Kew & London Trip Jan 2009

The Starbucks in Kew - the first morning I was in town was the day of the US election, so I popped in here for a morning cup of tea and a newspaper.

From Kew & London Trip Jan 2009

Saturday morning I went into London a few hours before I needed to catch my bus back to the airport and walked around the Regent Park are for a while. Came across this hotel, simply called 'The London'. Anything that can name itself that has gotten to be a really expensive, posh place. Looked really nice from the outside. :-P

From Kew & London Trip Jan 2009

Before heading to the airport, I walked around Regent Park. A beautiful park, built mostly in the first half of the 1800s, but finished up in the 20th century. This fountain was in the middle fo the park and caught my eye. I'm sure in Spring the park is gorgeous with flowers and trees in bloom.

Mini-ERP

(These are pictures of the five rooms that are ready for the group this weekend. We're ready to go! :-)

I spent the day today cleaning rooms and making beds. Brought back great memories of last June and ERP, JBU's Early Registration Program they host every summer. Three days of making 400 beds with a great crew of friends. Man, what a great time! ERP and the events last year were the best part of my job - although the long 15-18 hour days wore me out, I did them because I loved it and it was worth it for me. But, never could have done any of them without the team of students and staff that I had to help me. Would have loved their help today! :-)

I only had 5 rooms to clean and ten beds to make, so it was a totally manageable day. Although, I certainly would have loved to have any or all of the team around. Last year I had the opportunity to work with an incredible team of students from all over the country, with all sorts of personalities, and strengths. It was a great year and they were a great team.

Most days I realize that education is a better place for me to be financially and career wise, but most days I also struggle with the huge desire to just go into the hospitality sector for life. Run a hostel, a B&B, or a guest house - there's so much that I love about hospitality and jobs that are centered around this kind of work and service.

Most days I dream about retirement and the chance to do something like this. What an incredible opportunity it would be to raise a family in a setting like that. It's kind of exciting. :-)

A Month of Food and Friends!

	From Photos for Blog

Picture on the right is from when JBU was here in early December for their final celebration. Max, the manager at Villa Italia cooked - it was wonderful! The picture on the right is a 'breakfast for dinner' night - probably Decemberish?? - that a bunch of friends came over.


I realized a few days ago how this month has been the month of hosting friends over food like I don't think I've ever done before. It's been a lot of fun!

Jan. 4 - Back in the US, had Jonathan & Mariah Hornok, Josh & Chelsea Collum, James Barnes, and my brother over for spaghetti and games. It was such a great afternoon and an awesome way to finish off my two weeks in the states!

Jan 15 - A group of six friends over for homemade pizza (thanks Brett for the crust recipe - it was great!) and to hang out.

Jan 18 - Three friends over for hamburgers and to watch the playoffs.

Jan 25 - Nine German friends (four of whom I used to live with) for spaghetti, garlic bread, salad, and homemade chocolate chip cookies. It was so much fun! They were here till after midnight and we had a great time talking and hanging out!

then coming up...

Feb. 1 - Superbowl party! I know, for those of you that know me, you're like, 'But Daniel doesn't like football.' It's true, but we have the best place for a Superbowl party and I'm excited to spend time with these friends, so I'll definitely enjoy hanging out with them. So, 20 have been invited, I'm guessing 12 or so will come. A friend's making Chili and homemade tortilla chips. Should be great!

And, an update on other things....

*Defiance - really enjoyed the movie. Helped me understand God's harsh judgment on the 'rabble' in the Old Testament better - it made a lot more sense.

*Archives - an exhausting 4 days and over 30+ hours going through over 700 files, but really good. I now need to go through the photos I took and see what angle I can take on it that's new or unique.

*PhD Process - got my Oxford app. in last week, but don't expect to hear for quite a while. Met with Dr. Branch from Warwick who studied under the guy at Oxford I'm applying to work with. Brach is a great scholar and, if Oxford doesn't work out, Warwick sounds like a great place.

*Room - I still haven't found someone to take my Queen's room yet, so if you think about, join me in praying. I really don't want to pay £72/week for a room I'm not using, if I can help it.

*Family & Friends - My sister and brother-in-law bought their tickets for March to come visit for a week. Woohoo!! Then, just heard from some other friends who will be here in August- my best friend from high school, Bethany, and her husband! Yahoo! And then, JBU's getting together their Spring Break trip to come work on the house and Danielle Vogus just emailed me this morning to say she's coming. I'm so excited!

Fox News, Spies, Conference, and Defiance

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Fox News

I came back to the house yesterday, just after 4pm, and had the chance to catch the whole Inauguration live on line with Fox News and the Situation Room. It was really good to get to watch it from an American perspective. Good panelists - dissapointingly pro-Republican (I know, no surprise since that's the way they lean, you get the same thing on CNN, but I would have hoped for a couple of pro-Democratic voices). They all showed a lot of respect for both Obama and Bush, which both impressed me and made me really happy. Rick Warren's prayer was the most evangelically Christian in recent memory. Obama speaks of God and Scripture with deep confidence (not apologetically or with doubt) and couples it solidly with a strong intellectual ability - it's really neat to see and I hope it guides him well in these next four years.

Quote I read today from Relevant and then I'll be quiet about the election:

'I think we're going to be invited into many conversations [... Obama] is a consensus-oriented type of leader. We need to be able to respond to those invitations ... Part of our role is to speak truth to power ... [and the] most effective way of doing that is not to be so narrow and combative. It's to be part of the conversation.'
-Joel Hunter, pastor

P.S. I lied. Last post-script. Having read through many of Obama's speech's last night after working at the archive, I'm not surprised that his first decision was to suspend trials at Guantonomo. He's a defense lawyer by background who has consistently been verbal about his concern that the rules of legal process aren't being followed at Guantonomo and innocent men are given no right of appeal. Okay, now I'm done... :-)

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Spies

I've basically gotten through 5 folders (of the 18) on Koinange and they're facinating reading! Everyday I get up and go to the archives is the continuing unfolding of this incredible story. It's really neat, because it's letters and communiques between different security branch offices, it's as though I'm watching the progression as they uncover new information and try to peace it all together. Yesterday, in mid-48 they were wanting to stop following him all-together, now, in early 49 they are convinced he's connected to some key shady players, and skimming ahead to 52, they call him an 'extreme nationalist'. Can't wait to figure out why! :-)

P.S. I'm going to try to find out about copyright on the pictures of the documents I've been taking. I'd like to post one or two up here for you and the transcription of the text of some of the letters, as some of them are really neat.

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Conference

Just to get in the habit of submitting papers to conferences (in the academic world, it's a lot like a job hunt - you do it a bazillion times and get used to hearing 'no' most of the time), I decided to submit a paper to the upcoming IHSA (Irish Historical Society Association) conference. Since I got good feedback on my "Postmodernism and Holocaust Denial" paper from my prof's, I submitted it. Surprisingly, even though it has nothing to do with my field and would seem like a pretty cliche topic, it was accepted. So, I've gotta get ready now to present the paper in Maynooth for the IHSA Conference the first weekend in March...now where to find funding to pay for it...

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Defiance

The place I'm staying Kew is really cute and I definitely appreciate it, but the room's not huge and since it's not my house, I don't feel the freedom to roam about. As well, they have two cats and a dog, which my allergies aren't crazy about (finally got some medicine tonight on the way home). So, after two long days of research and becuase of the cats, I think I'm going to head out here in like 45 minutes and go see the new Daniel Craig, WWII survivor movie "Defiance". I'll try to let you know how it is. The director also did Last Samurai, which I really enjoyed.

Well, that's it for an update. So really cool things happening and I find myself each day so thankful for this incredible life and these amazing experiences that God's allowing me to have. :-)

Innauguration Day

Tomorrow's the day. Just before noon EST, President Bush and President-elect Obama will walk together to the swearing in ceremony.

I just got into Kew tonight - really cool place with a small "village" kind of feel. I'll take pictures. But, I realized tonight that, although Kew stays open tomorrow till 7pm, watching the innauguration is an important part of being involved in US politics, so I'm ditching the archives just before 5pm and hoping to find a place that has it on.

If anyone actually reads this before tomorrow, let me encourage you to do what you can to watch it. Whether you're on lunch break, at the office, or catching the replay tomorrow evening. Watch it with a thoughtful heart full of caritas (that beautiful latin word that mixes charity and discernment/wisdom). May we each seek to be discerning as we listen and celebrate as a country. America is a powerful force in the world - living here has made me understand that so much more - and, in many ways, a powerful force for equality and the significance of each individual person.

We're called to weep with those who weep and rejoice with those who rejoice. There will be plenty of time over the next 4 years for policy discussions and rightful disagreements, but wouldn't it be great if tomorrow we learned to celebrate with each other - regardless of our views.

Now, there are things in Obama's policies, some of which might come up tomorrow, that I'm not excited about. But at the same time, there is much that I am excited about. For example, I don't foresee the Obama presidency as being one where religious freedom's are taken away. In fact, I believe it's going to be a four years where freedoms are protected and preserved - both religious and non-religious.

I hope...

There is much I hope for in these next few years, just as there was much I hoped for in these last 8. I know they won't all be fulfilled as they all weren't during Bush's presidency. Just as there has been much to rejoice about in Bush's presidency (for example, under his impetus, the US does more now for HIV/AIDS in Africa then ever before), there is much to rejoice in what President-elect Obama has meant for many in America and round the world in bringing a message and dream of hope (the impact on the minority communities in Britain alone is HUGE!), and I hope to rejoice in many things four years from now.

Tomorrow, I'd challenge you to join me in celebrating with the hope many have. For those of you that pray, join me in praying - for President Obama's safety, for wisdom and direction. That it would be a great four years for America - that's my hope and will be my prayer.

I may not have voted for him, but he's about to be my President. I'm going to support when I can, disagree with his policies when I feel I must, and respect him always for these next four years.

A Neat Day

It's been a really neat day. Listened to a sermon from Summit Church in Orlando this morning as I got ready for church. I went to Summit back in the summer of 2004 and loved it - so it was a great way to start the day.

Then off to church where I got to sick (sit actually, but Paul was sick) next to Paul Hutchinson who helps lead worship at Fisherwick and is just a solid guy. On top of that, I got to experience my first child baptist today. Still not crazy about it, but does at least give me an idea of it and a theological framework for understanding how others understand it.

After church, Derek invited me to lunch with him and the interns. I always feel a little bit like a third wheel - like I'm taking away from their time together. But, I actually really enjoyed it and Spencer mentioned being really glad I was there - making the comment that it was the first time "all six of the interns had been together in a long time" - I'm the "6th" unofficial intern. They make me feel loved which always feels good.

This afternoon I was able to rewrite my research proposal (the last piece to my PhD apps) and it turned out a lot stronger than the first version.

Around dinner time, Derek came and picked me up and I was Fisherwick's participant (led the antiphonal reading confession of sin) in the ecumenical church service as part of the Worldwide Church Unity week. It was a really good experience, in a beautiful Church of Ireland restored church. The homily was given by the new Catholic Bishop of County Down and Connor. He did an okay job - not great, but pretty good. Overall, the entire service was very Christo-centric, so i was very encouraged there. As well, in a small world way, I sat next to a couple where the wife had grown up in Kenya and her dad had been a colonial administrator during Mau Mau. What a small world!

Now I'm back home with Jude, Megan, Melissa, and John and we're watching the NFC playoff game between Eagles and Cardinals. Megan's broadcasting it from her Slingbox back in Arizona - I'm really impressed with it. Anyways, it's a lot of fun to be sitting around with a bunch of Americans, eating hamburgers, and watching football. :-)

Well, it's been a great day! Tomorrow I leave for London and it'll be a crazy week experiencing working in an archive three straight days all day. Woohoo!

Interrogation Room, A First

[Picture of the National Archives at Kew.]

Well, I get to add another item to a non-existent list of things I've done for the first time. Today, I sat in an interrogation room at a Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI) station. Thankfully, I was in there by choice - not forced against my will. Just before leaving for the states, I witnessed a car accident where one taxi flew into a main thoroughfare and nailed a taxi full of baristers and solicitors (i.e. lawyers). It's was after midnight and I needed to get some friends back to Lakeside, so I left my info with the taxi drivers. Today was the follow-up from the police officer who reported to the scene after I left.

A little bit of an intimidating experience - even though I was there to help out. Really small, padded room. Two chairs and a table bolted to the floor that was in the back of the station through a really confusing series of doors, all behind a really high, cement wall with a cage over it that connected it to the building. A legacy of the troubles - yikes!

Other than that, I turned in the final two papers for this semester today. Woohoo - one semester down & 1/3rd of the year done. It has flown by!

I head out on Monday to Kew, just on the outside of London, for five days - one day of travel and four of research. I'm excited - although a little overwhelmed - a ton of material that I need to try to get a good feel for in a really short amount of time. Plus, it's going to be a really expensive week (£36 plain trip, £13 for bus, £15 for underground, £125 for housing plus food) - the hope is, if I get enough good information this time, I can apply for funding for the 2-3 other trips I'll probably need to do between now and September.

As for PhD programs, my application to Oxford's nearly done - just my research proposal and 2nd writing sample need to be finished up. My Warwick application's nearly done, as well. I'm setup to meet with Dr. Daniel Branch from Warwick next week on Friday for lunch at the National Archives. Dr. David Anderson, from Oxford, is in Addis Ababa this week and only has two days back next week before heading to Geneva, so hopefully he and I will connect later in the Spring on another trip.

The Much Belated Update

(Top: from a trip downtown a couple of nights ago. The Belfast ferris wheel on the left and the City Hall on the right. Bottom: I took over the upstairs office in need of a place to work and keep my school work and details for coordinating Lakeside events organized - so this is the view. It's gorgeous and I feel so incredibly blessed!)

So here's the promised post about what's been going on with life and what's coming up in the near future.

The Semester's End

Well, it's not really. Weirdly enough over here, classes end just before Christmas, but then the entire month of January comprises students exams and final papers. Several students here I've talked to know about the way we do it in the states and really wish they were done with it all before Christmas break. Another oddity of the system over here is that each of the papers I turn in gets checked by two professors - one at Queen's and one 'external' examiner from another university. I just got back my first grade, from the Queen's professor, on my first real paper and it was really encouraging. Granted, a 75 in the US is nothing to get excited about, but here 70's typically seen as the top grades, so I was really encouraged - those multiple 3am nights back in December paid off I guess. :-)

As I'm sure you know by now, I got to go back to the US for Christmas which was an incredible and wonderful, unexpected surprise. Had a great time seeing friends and family! The weekend before I left, two JBU students and one of their friends - Jordan, Katherine, and Nathan - were here. Had a great time with them. We rented a car and hit up Giant's Causeway, Dundrum, Castlewellan Maze - and watched Friends every night over dinner.

Here Comes the Storm

Not really, but it is busy. The other really encouraging news in December was that I found two professors interested in my PhD topic: David Anderson, who heads up the African Studies Centre at Oxford, and Daniel Branch at the University of Warwick. On top of that, I got a great email from John Lonsdale, probably the preeminent scholar (although retired from Cambridge) on Kenya and East Africa, that also was very encouraging, seeing the need for the research and giving me some direction for what might be the best way to approach it.

So, I'm in the midst of applying to Oxford and Warwick and we'll see where God leads. I can honestly say that I'm excited about all of my possibilities for next year: (1) staying here in Belfast, (2) heading back to Arkansas, or (3) going to Oxford (which would be a dream come true!) or Warwick and starting my PhD - yikes! Next week I head to London for a few days to look at some MI5 at the National Archives in Kew and hope to meet with both Dr. Branch and Professor Anderson, if they're available.

Other than that, I'm working on papers - I've got two due this week - and getting ready for a busy Spring of groups using Lakeside. We've got two church groups coming in the next month and two college groups from the US scheduled for March - plus more in the works. Should be fun!

Friends & Family Headed to Belfast

One of the really cool developments is the number of people that I may get to see over here in Belfast in the next year. My sister and brother-in-law are looking into visiting in March - if they're able to make it work financially (hopefully!). It'd be great to see them, show them around, and I really think they'd have a blast with the adventure! On top of that, a couple that are like my second parents are looking at coming over in April/May and a married couple that might come over in the late summer. If that wasn't exciting enough - two married couples that are friends of mine, the Hammonds and the Beckmans, are both looking into the possibility of comign to Belfast & Queen's for master's level work next year. How cool would that be!!

So we'll see. I don't know if it will work out for anyone to make it over this year, but I can't wait to share Belfast with them if they do!

A Wonderful Two Weeks!

What an incredible two weeks this has been! Four months ago I had resigned myself to being gone for a year and that I'd see family and friends next summer. This trip home has been amazing. Each day I woke up thinking I'd awaken from a dream and be back in Belfast, but here I am, sitting in the airport getting ready to head back (via Columbia, S.C. and back to Belfast on Wed/Thur). [Long story short, a friend found out I wasn't coming home for the holidays and blew me away when he called and said "I'm buying you a ticket, when do you want to leave?" I can't ever thank him enough.]

It's hard to describe how wonderful these last two weeks have been and the opportunities that the Lord has made available. The first week in South Carolina with my sisters, their husbands, and family's was so sweet. Although my nephews totally wore me out - I have a whole new level of respect for my sister - it was so good to be with them. On top of that, nearly two weeks with my parents has been such a blessing. The older I get and the more people I meet, the more thankful I am for my parents and the fact that they always welcome us home and love spending time with us as their kids. They are incredible in their servants hearts and I'm amazed at their deep thoughtfulness. From dad changing my oil for me to mom picking up some clothes for me that I'd run out of time to get - they're both busy and have plenty to do and yet they chose to do things for me that they knew I hadn't found time to do yet. Incredible!

This holiday I've just been overwhelmed with the realization of the wonderful people God's put in my life and I'm so fortunate to call friends. I think of the friends I've made in Belfast and the huge blessing they are. Then my family and how amazing it is to have a family that loves to spend time with each other. Saturday I took a crazy day-trip to Siloam and spent time with the Beckmans, Janzens, Snyders, Stevensons, Houghs, and Barnes and I was overwhelmed by the amazing people there that I am able to call friends. Then in Little Rock, my time with Josh, Justin, the Hammonds, the Collums, Hornoks, James Barnes, my brother, my grandma, and my aunt was great.

I was sharing with a friend yesterday that I'm so excited to be at a place in life where no matter where the Lord leads for next year, I'm excited about it. Whether it's staying in Belfast, moving to Little Rock, or heading back to Siloam the opportunities and possibilities that lay ahead of me are wonderful and exciting and full of hope! Whether I'm in a PhD program, running a guest house, working at my church, or working a custodial job next year - they are all possibilities I can get excited about. And really, that excitement revolves around these incredible people that I get to know and spend time with. No matter where I might go, there are wonderful people who I love spending time with and respect - it's what makes the future so exciting!

This is an amazing life I've been given, one for which I've found myself, more and more, incredibly grateful for. I don't know if God's favor (in the sense of opportunities and relationships) will rest on me in such a way my entire life - but during this season, I am so thankful for the rich opportunities and friendships He's given me.

[P.S. Sorry, I was kind of in a reflective mood this morning, rather than an update mood. I'm hoping to send out an update the middle of January with how things have been, what this next semester looks like, life in Belfast, and the PhD possibilities that are opening up. So, that should be up in a couple of weeks. ]