Lord willing, next week:
-I'll take some final exams
-I'll be half finished with my five semesters at UF
-I'll witness the Jadyanne wedding
-The best ten day stretch of my summer will begin

Passage that's been helping me recently (more or less unrelated to above list): I Peter 4:7-11

That's all.

MB

So... under my last post (which I recently deleted), a bunch of people were claiming I should post again. Here's the thing: I'd much rather read about other people than write about myself (emphasis on write), thus the usual 6-8 month gap between my posts. Besides, most of the people who usually prod me to compose something new (e.g. my mom) already know all the news I'm going to share. That means when I do write something new I feel as though I have to write it in a clever or interesting way, so that the people who pretend to be ignorant of what's happening to me won't be bored to tears as they read what they already knew. Unfortunately, I used up what little writing skill I had as an undergraduate, so accomplishing that is tricky. I'm doing graduate work in science for a reason.

Now that you understand my reticence and realize that this post will not be worth reading, I'll proceed.

I'm now working my way through semester #2 of graduate school. Semester #1 went smoothly--with God's help I managed to get straight A's without Starbucks firing me or my girlfriend dumping me--and the new year is off to a good start as well. I have three classes and one lab (musculoskeletal anatomy with lab, pathophysiology, and kinesiology), all of which meet between Tuesday and Thursday, so I have the weekends free for work and/or quick trips to Tampa. It's the best school schedule I've ever had, and I love the things I'm learning.

I've had an apartment to myself since I moved to Gainesville in August, and I love it. This coming July I plan to move in with two great guys from church who have a house on the other side of town, and while I will miss having my own place, the new arrangement will have plenty of perks and will help those guys out, so I'm looking forward to it.

I'm slowly getting closer to and getting more involved with my new family at Glen Springs COC, and there have been lots of blessings associated with that. I've also made some friends through work and school who make both of those environments more pleasant, and a couple of those friends are showing interest in the gospel, which is very encouraging.

I have several other exciting things to look forward to in the next six months or so and they are, in order:
- Sister-in-law (and therefore nephew/niece) visiting from Chicago
- Spring break trip to Denver and Gettysburg, PA
- Playing in a YMCA basketball league with some guys from church
- Seeing my girlfriend graduate
- Masters program really starting
- Becoming an uncle

God is good.

Micah

tomorrow morning at 7 am (in other words, 8 am) i'll drive to my new apartment in gainesville and settle down in a city away from my family for the first time. i'm very excited, but there are also bits of me that insist on being sad or nervous. despite constantly grousing about the weather, snowbirds, and football's year round domination of the sports page and talk radio, i have to admit that 8 years in tampa have seemed very short and provided me with some of the best memories of my childhood. i'll leave behind some great family and friends. i also feel as though it's finally time for me to graduate from childhood. sure, i worked, went to college, got a couple degrees, and (i think) found my first gray hair (thanks dad). but through all of that i still lived down the street from my parents, let my mom feed me and do my laundry, and remained almost constantly surrounded by christians--at home, at work (fc not starbucks), at church, and at school. now i feel as though life is going to step it up a notch. i'll be taking graduate level classes, really living on my own, and managing with less money than ever before. then somehow i hope to preserve enough time to get to know a new church family, maintain a long distance relationship, entertain guests at my apartment, make a dent in the list of books i need to read, and work enough hours at starbucks to survive.

but really. i'm excited. i'm also grateful that god promises to take care of his own and to give them heaven, where debts, stress, car repairs and gator fans are non-existent.

if you're driving up or down i-75 and have a few minutes or a few hours or a night, stop by and visit.

peace, tampa.

micah

leg one: family reunion/visiting papaw

--overnight at harbers
--3 days/nights at grandparents
--billions of family members
--billions of pictures
--billions of good food (wrap your mind around that one)
--watched much ado about nothing and liked it (proud?)
--few hours in southern illinois with papaw james

leg two: chicago

--first visit to joe and lauren's apt
--first visit to wrigley field (braves/cubs)
--millenium park, magnificent mile, joe's work, etc
--midway airport

leg three: pa

--kathryn
--denver
--gettysburg: dinner with miozzas at bishops, lots of wonderful people at church, overnight at bishops, breakfast with bieseckers at bishops, lunch and afternoon with hardmans, connor's all-star game and dinner with romanics
--les mis
--kathryn
--middle creek hike
--tennis
--church in marietta
--afternoon at luke and shannon douthitt's
--airports/planes from 5 am-6:30 pm (air tran is lame)
--kathryn

this might have been the best trip i've ever taken.

i love love love the luthers. lousy luck could never change that.

i learned a new word while reading notes from underground, by dostoevsky. the word is "tormenticules." little torments, no doubt.

i just learned i have a job waiting for me when i move to gainesville.

i don't deserve anything, but i have everything (except any desire to see harry potter tonight or any other night).

i should be studying for a final exam.

micah b