It's quiet up here...

Well, we've moved into our new place. I've dreamt about living in Downtown Toronto ever since I first came here to visit in Spring 2001.
We were really blessed with the place - we just wanted somewhere close to Beth's school to make it easy for her to get there, and somewhere cheap. We ended up with the most amazing apartment. Just check out the view from our balcony. I eat breakfast while looking at the city skyline every morning.

Things are taking some interesting turns at the moment. Beth is looking more and more pregnant every day. She's 24 weeks pregnant tomorrow, so we're nearly into the 3rd trimester. Not long now until I get to hold my beautiful baby son or daughter. If I put my hand on Bethany's tummy, I can now feel the baby moving around. Man, that thing can kick. It's like Bruce Lee meets Chuck Norris in there.
We launched the North York Church a couple of weeks ago. It's going so well. We had John Arnott speak on Sunday, and he talked about how he sees us being a Church that sees many people saved. That's cool, eh? You can download his message for TACF North York here.
Beth and I are speaking this week, on Hearing God's Voice.
This is seeming to be a really busy Fall, but then again, it was a busy Summer, and a busy Spring. And the Winter was rather hectic too. I'm starting to notice a pattern emerging.

Let's recap:
I moved to Canada in January, we got married in February. Came back off honeymoon, and helped to run a huge youth conference. In April, we got pregnant, and in May we started preparations for TACF North York. In June and July, we did the Leaders' School of Ministry, and shortly after that, August took us to England for my sister's wedding. Returning from there in early September, I drove to Texas for Jacob's wedding, driving back in one go, me the only driver, a week later. Then to Peterborough for Tim & Kathryn's wedding, and finally, last Friday to Laura and John's. With the launch of a church in the middle, and the preparations for a baby. And a move of apartments. Oh, man. I'm tired just writing it.

So, this is a busy time. But I notice that we're slowing down a bit too, in preparation for the baby. Tonight we walked to the Eaton Centre (yep, we're close enough to do that now...) to buy me a new Fall jacket (I left my old one in Texas). Last night we stayed in too. I don't think we have any big plans for tomorrow night either. We're busy alright, but we're just taking some time for ourselves too.
It's a little bit like our apartment here up on the 19th floor. The road and everything is busy down below - it never stops. The elevators are constantly full of people. But the walls here are concrete, and it's all rather quiet and peaceful really.

Right, I'm off to sit on the couch with my lovely wife. I might just see if that baby will give me a roundhouse kick too.

hair therapy

There is nothing like ending an insanely busy week at the salon.
Something about sitting there in the chair being waited on hand and foot while someone else drips with sweat all to make you look and feel fabulous.

And the smell of freshly groomed hair? You know that smell ladies........sigh.

So it was a long week... now back to the books for me. I've got three assignments on the go- tata!

urban bliss

Ooooooooooooh the joys of moving. We are settling into our new corner of the world at Wellesley and Sherbourne. Who knew representin' the East side could be so fun. Here are some perks of our nineteenth floor apartment:

-the view of the CN Tower and lake
-the Food Basics directly underneath the building
-the free ESL classes in the building
-the sauna and workout facilities
-the 15min walk to school and 20min walk to the Eaton Centre
-our French Canadian neighbour

The list goes on...


Come and visit, ok? We have lots of treats!

Four Weddings And...Another Wedding?

Two down and three to go! I've never had an Autumn like this before...

I don't get tired of weddings. Ever. Ok ok, this is partly because I love to dress up and dance like the rest of you party animals (I don't get out much), but the big fat MAIN reason is because nothing feels better than celebrating love. L-O-V-E.
I sit in the pew while the bride clutches her dad's arm down the loooooong aisle and re-feel all of that nervousness, excitement, and emotion of our wedding (give me a break it was only 8 months ago). It makes me want to BURST but I end up just subtly tearing up into a kleenex and leaving it in the slot for the hymn books.

On Laura and Brett's day, Mark's dad spoke about resonating with God. He pointed out that when we find ourselves celebrating love, marriage, committment, security and family... our hearts resonate with the Creator of it all. This was a timely reminder for all of us present.
No matter how near or far we felt from the Lord, we were on the same page as Him when we willfully supported and witnessed the union of two of His favorite people. Pete went on to illustrate this with a tuning fork. We all hushed to hear the note fill the stone church in Carlton.
The foundation of the church is over 1000 years old!

This past weekend on Jacob and Carolyn's day I remembered that clear note coming from the little tuning fork. I was resonating right there with God the Father as he cheered his children on.
The day went really well, and the night was exceptional...yes Mark, even though they played Hip Hop. It was a blast. The baby, who is now GROWING like CRAZY seemed to like it seeing as I didn't ralph after all that spaghetti and meat balls. But wait, he/she doesn't like Yorkshire puddings so does this mean our baby has an Italian palette? Hmmm...

Best. Video. Ever.

There's no such thing as a jaggy snake...

Biffy Clyro. If you haven't heard them, you should do. Watch them live here. Really, do it.

Oh, I Do Like To Be Beside The Seaside...

Wow. We're back in the UK. It's my sister's wedding next Saturday, so we're over here getting ready for the big day. It's been quite emotional at times; this is the first time we've seen my family since our wedding, and so it follows the first time we've seen them since we got the news that we're pregnant. There were lots of tears at the airport, and when we got back to my parents' house, there were more.
My parents and my sister had gone a bit crazy with the baby clothes shopping, and presented us with about 6 bags of clothes. Some of them hand knitted by my mum. Incredible. There were also some things from when I was a baby, saved for this sort of thing, no doubt. We're getting quite a collection for the littlest Hardy, what with the stuff that Beth's mum has already gotten us at home.

Well, it's amazing here. The weather wasn't so good at first, but it's all got rather nice the last few days. It was particularly hot the day we went to North Yorkshire's Heritage Coast; visiting Whitby, Robin Hood's Bay (where the pictures were taken) and Scarborough.
Whitby was beautiful as always, but I haven't been there in the height of summer for years, and I'd forgotten how crowded it all gets. You could barely move. We did, however, escape from the hustle and bustle by popping into Sander's Yard for delicious cakes. I also enjoyed a tasty bottle of cider. Oh, the joys of England.
We moved on to Robin Hood's Bay, an old fishing village once very popular with smugglers, now very popular with families. The beach is clean, and full of rock pools, of the sort that you can find small crabs in. There's also a good amount of slate to be found, and within this slate, fossils. We hunted for the preserved remains of ancient creatures for a little while, and came away with a few good examples of shells, and some average ammonites. I haven't been fossil hunting with my dad for a long time, and it was rather fun.

Finally, our journey took us to Scarborough, where we were surrounded by chavs, scallies, pikeys and the likes. Lovely stuff. We took Marine Drive down to the town, and marvelled at the beautiful water, looking more like the Mediteranean than the North Sea. Like I say, I haven't been in the summer for a long time. We parked under the castle at the foot of the cliffs, and wandered past the fairground towards the sea front. Oh, man. It was rough. But it's all good fun, and you have to have the dirt and grime for it to be a real English seaside town, don't you? We ate fish and chips from Winking Willy's, where they still fry everything in beef dripping (it's terribly bad for you, but it tastes so much better that way). We spent ages in an amusement arcade, putting plenty of small change into the 2p pushers in an attempt to win a fortune (it never happens). Our last port of call was to be the Harbour Bar; an ice cream parlour on the seafront, but it was closed by the time we got there, so we returned to the car, tired and happy.

And that was that. We've been having a great time. We went out in Worksop with some old friends last night, and enjoyed the bank holiday weekend. James (my best man) is coming over today, and it's going to be great to see him. We went to Nottingham, and saw Rob Littler at a frisbee tournament, spent some time in the peak district, conquering Mam Tor, and headed to Leeds to see some old friends from my days in that wonderful city. We shopped in York, and enjoyed a cream tea at The Crossing in Worksop. The girls are off to Manchester tomorrow to do some shopping, while me and the boys enjoy a lovely game of football at Hillsborough (very stereotypical, I know).

I'm sure there'll be more to fill you in on by the end of the trip. It's fantastic being on vacation, and really exciting getting ready for Laura and Brett's wedding. No doubt Beth will be itching to fill you in on this stuff in a few days. Until next time, ta ta.

a bun in the oven

Have you heard????

In May we were suprised, pleased, amazed, and overwhelmed to find out that we're going to have a wee little baby! Yep, there is a real person inside my belly and it has a spirit, a brain, a heart beat, a nervous system, arms, wrists, legs, toes and more.

As hard as it is, we're leaving the gender a secret and finding out when we meet the little guy or gal. That should be some time around the 29th of January, 2008. I wonder who he/she will look like...

How do we feel about it? Good question. We're over the moon.
We found out first by three at home pregnancy tests, and then got the news confirmed at North York General Hospital.
While there are many decisions, changes, and plans to make, we are learning as we go. We have so many questions...as you can imagine.

I'm slowly getting over the sicky/exhaustion phase and not showing at all yet. But as time goes on it will all become more real and more close I guess. Mark is being a legend as usual, and reading constantly about what the baby is experiencing and doing. You might have had him enthusiastically educate you already.

What a busy time. We are starting the Leaders School at TACF next week, which will be oh so timely and amazing (I miss school so much I'm el desperado to take notes!). We also just recently found an excellent apartment for the fall which is within walking distance to Ryerson Uni- my new place of study and second home.
The countdown is on until we leave for Miss Laura Hardy's wedding in England this August and maybe after aaaaall that the baby will start kicking.

More updates to come...

Revelations...

As part of my internship, I went to a Prophetic Equipping School this week.

I've always been fascinated by the prophetic, and my dad is clearly a prophet, so it was incredible to have the chance to spend a couple of days dedicated to learning more about this incredible gift.

There's way too much to write here about prophecy and the prophetic, so I'll stick to a few key points that I've picked up, both this week, and in the past few years.
When we accept Christ as our saviour, and receive Him into our hearts, we become able to prophesy. The way that I understand this is that it doesn't mean that we have a particular prophetic anointing, but that if we open ourselves up to it, and God speaks to us, we have the ability to prophesy. I also believe that we can receive a prophetic anointing that marks the anointed as a Prophet, and there are several things that come with that.

God's heart is to reveal his love for his people. If you look at the Old Testament, there is a string of prophets, whose job it was to reveal God's love for the people. Sometimes this wasn't quite what they wanted to hear, because they had strayed so far from His plan for them that they needed disciplining. God never disciplines out of hate, but always out of love, so if a prophet brought a word that appeared discouraging to the Israelites, it was only so that they could be brought back into line with His perfect plan.

We have for several years now seen a revival of the post of prophet in the Church. This excites me, because I want to know God's heart for his people. Prophecy takes various forms. God's word can be revealed through pictures, visions, dreams, interpretation of dreams, the scriptures, impressions, words popping into the head, and sometimes the audible voice of God, to name but a few of the most common ones.

Why is prophecy coming to the forefront of God's people again? I don't know. All I know is that when a prophetic word is brought, it's used for the encouragement of the Church, and for the advancement of the Kingdom of God. It's for God's glory, and it's to reveal his heart for his people.

Hmmm. Some stuff to think about.

On Mrs. Twit and Beauty

An excerpt from one of Roald Dahl's delightful childlike masterpieces, The Twits.


"...Mrs.Twit wasn't born ugly. She'd had quite a nice face when she was young. The ugliness had grown upon her year by year as she got older. Why would that happen? I'll tell you why.

If a person has ugly thoughts, it begins to show on the face. And when that person has ugly thoughts every day, every week, every year, the face gets uglier and uglier until it gets so ugly you can hardly bear to look at it.

A person who has good thoughts cannot ever be ugly. You can have a wonky nose and a crooked mouth and a double chin and stick-out teeth, but if you ahve good thoughts they will shine out of your face like sunbeams and you will always look lovely."

Quebec City

The almost four hundred year old city of Quebec was BREATHTAKING to behold.
We spent quite a while exploring this roaring, wet area you see in the pictures, and the rest of the time was spent mainly in the city centre. Oh, and Montreal on the Monday.
None other than the generous Puddles themselves decided they would take us lot on a wee long weekend holiday as a wedding present...how enormous is that?!

Oh how lovely it is to be constantly overwhelmed by the kindness of Jesus through our friends...

an apple a day

Yesterday I finally enjoyed my very first candy apple (well, to memory) at the Falls, and it was delish.



An old- fashioned sweet shop window caught our eye and before you knew it, we were one step closer to getting a cavity. I'd love to have a sweet shop of my own one day.
Is it difficult to make fudge?

So it was another romantic date night mixed in with the celebration of Mark receiving an Ontario Drivers Licence. When they insisted on confiscating his English one, we shamlessly asked for a photocopy...it was COOL, ok?!

We enjoy reading our English dad's new blog, and you might too! He is full of wisdom and creativity. Plus, he IS Mark's dad so he is quite silly as you may have guessed already.

For all you Canadians, have a delightful long weekend and wear your sunscreen!

Taking it back to the Temple...

Ezra 6 v5:

"Also, the gold and silver articles of the house of God, which Nebuchadnezzar took from the temple in Jerusalem and brought it to Babylon are to be returned to their places in the temple in Jerusalem; they are to be deposited in the house of God."

So, King Cyrus of Persia wrote all this down when he came to power, and his decree was carried out by King Darius, who took over the sovereignty.

Here's a few thoughts about this.
In Revelation, Babylon is used as a metaphor for 'the abominations of the earth'; Essentially, the works of Satan. Also in Revelation, Heaven is referred to as The New Jerusalem.

So, looking at this from the point of view that we are; after Christ, in the last days, how does this sound? For Nebuchadnezzar, read 'the Devil'. For Babylon, read 'all the crap that comes with being in a fallen world'. For the temple in Jerusalem, read 'the City of our Holy God in Heaven'.
Having spent some time reading this the other day, Holy Spirit started speaking to me, and revealing the power of this statement.
All the treasures of the Temple, that is, all of the treasures of the Kingdom of God, which we have open access to since Jesus gave us the keys to the Kingdom of Heaven, which have been stolen from us by Satan, are to be, and are now being returned to their rightful place in the house of God, and we have full access to them.

How's that for a slice of fried gold?

Passover to my place...

So, last week was Passover. We decided to celebrate the festival, so we invited some good friends over, purchased the necessary ingredients, and I researched the service.
I used a number of sources to compile my Haggadah, and made sure that I had everything that I needed. I printed out enough copies for everyone, and Bethany designed the cover.

Bethany and I put together the Seder Plate, and made a rather tasty roast chicken dinner. And so it began. I love the fact that, with the exception of the language we were speaking, we did almost exactly the same thing as Jesus did when he celebrated the Passover. The same thing that he did when he ate the last supper with his disciples.

A few interesting thoughts, then, on the subject of Passover. Jesus celebrated this feast. It's not only part of the Jewish calendar, but the Bible says that we should celebrate it, and not forget the way that God rescued his people from Slavery in Egypt. In fact, that's the whole purpose of the festival. When Jesus rose from the dead, he defeated sin and death for all time. Because of what he did for us, we're now free. The whole idea of celebrating Passover as a demonstration of God's ability to set us free has a new meaning ever since Jesus died for our freedom. That's pretty cool, don't you think?
When we got to the actual meal, I took out my Bible, and read from Mark 14:

When evening came, Jesus arrived with the Twelve. While they were reclining at the table eating, he said, "I tell you the truth, one of you will betray me—one who is eating with me."

They were saddened, and one by one they said to him, "Surely not I?"

"It is one of the Twelve," he replied, "one who dips bread into the bowl with me. The Son of Man will go just as it is written about him. But woe to that man who betrays the Son of Man! It would be better for him if he had not been born."

While they were eating, Jesus took bread, gave thanks and broke it, and gave it to his disciples, saying, "Take it; this is my body."

Then he took the cup, gave thanks and offered it to them, and they all drank from it.

"This is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many," he said to them. "I tell you the truth, I will not drink again of the fruit of the vine until that day when I drink it anew in the kingdom of God."

In the Passover ceremony, a section of the unleavened bread is kept over, and not eaten. There is also a particularly important ritual, which involves pouring an extra glass of wine, 'The Cup of Elijah' and leaving it for the prophet; tradition explains that Elijah will come before the messiah, and proclaim his coming.
Funny, then, that this is how Jesus referred to John the Baptist:

This is the one about whom it is written:
" 'I will send my messenger ahead of you,
who will prepare your way before you.'
I tell you the truth: Among those born of women there has not risen anyone greater than John the Baptist; yet he who is least in the kingdom of heaven is greater than he. From the days of John the Baptist until now, the kingdom of heaven has been forcefully advancing, and forceful men lay hold of it. For all the Prophets and the Law prophesied until John. And if you are willing to accept it, he is the Elijah who was to come.

So, when the cup is left for Elijah, it is in anticipation of the coming of the messiah. When Jesus broke the bread, he took the piece that was left over, and shared that out. Then, he took 'the cup', and passed it around. Jesus makes it clear right then that He IS the Messiah, and that anyone still waiting for Elijah to come to proclaim the coming Saviour is wasting their time. Not only is Jesus showing what will happen to him, but he is demonstrating the New Covenant there and then. He takes the cup, to be saved until the Messiah comes, and shares it out. He celebrates the feast that he has been instructed by Jewish law to celebrate, and then uses some of the elements to create something new; instructing us to 'do this in remembrance' of Him. The feast that was created to remind us how the Almighty God set his people free from the slavery of the Egyptians is re-made by Jesus to remind us of how the Almighty God has set his people free from all slavery!

I thoroughly recommend celebrating the Passover next year. I learned so much about my heritage as an adopted Jew through celebrating the feast. I learned even more about the fulfillment of the law through Christ. And most of all, I discovered a greater understanding of the importance of Jesus' death and resurrection.

relax

"In nothing is the English genius for domesticity more notably declared than in the institution of afternoon tea."
- George Gissing



















The dainty tea pots you see before you are three new additions to my collection (yesterday I decided that these + my other two = the baby stages of a colletion, non?).
So these gorgeous gifts were from three separate gals all within ONE WEEK and I think they're ace. Ok, how cute is that elephant?!

Mark, the English gentleman that he is, also gave me an adorable tea book for my birthday.
It's called, 'The Art of Taking Tea' by Kim Waller.
The book has a few tips for putting a formal shine on your tea time...whatever time of day that might be. The author suggests that one should aquire:
- creamer and sugar duo
- strainer to place over the cup for the loose tea leaves or lemon seeds
- sugar tongs and lemon forks
- tea caddies
- teaspoons : preferably with your first or last name initial engraved
This book has pictures. Pretty ones. Not everything matches, either, which I like.
Waller suggests to put tea cups and saucers together by form and colour themes.
To me this means keep an eye out for cool finds in charity shops and at garage sales then mix and match, but be picky. VOILA.

Alright... time to relaaaaaaaaaax and enjoy an afternoon tea myself since class this morning was extra intense (there are only three weeks of first year uni left! ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh)
Yeah, I'll write about more interesting things soon. School has taken over slightly you see... and I have this brand new husband to hang out with 24/7 which makes this the most FUN time of my life so far :)

ps: mark says that in a fight, coffee would kick tea's butt. I say no way hosea. You?

She's My Rushmore...

Band Club wrote a song for us on the occasion of our wedding. Brilliant. It's about when I proposed to Bethany. Steve says that we have sole rights to it. And that means that I can post the lyrics here. As with most Band Club songs, there's plenty of popular culture references in the song. Try to work out what they all are. I might even post a link to the track at some point. Enjoy...



She's My Rushmore (the Ballad of Mark and Bethany)

Her name/the east
Her name/the east
Her name/the east
Her name/the east
Her name/the east
This could go on and on.

So I say 'Bethany'.
And you say 'that way'.
Oh you've got to hand it to the poor.
You've got to hand it to the poor.

Cos she's my Rushmore
She's the ligaments of bees
She's my Rushmore
And she joins me in all these
Extra-curricular activities
She's my Rushmore
And I'll get down on my knees and get my trousers wet for her.

The plane delayed
The plane delayed
The plane delayed
The plane delayed
The plane delayed
This could go on and on

So I'll take the airlines recompense
Convert it to Canadian cents
And then into a silver ring for her
Into a silver ring for her.

Cos she's my Rushmore
She's the ligaments of bees
She's my Rushmore
And she joins me in all these
Extra-curricular activities
She's my Rushmore
And i'll get down on my knees and get my trousers wet for her.

In this climate
There'll be extremes of weather
Somehow I know that
We've been through the hardest stuff together.

Oh, we must have been depraved
More miles than Charlie would have braved
And Craig
Would have been easy to stay put.

But (oh) they'll never build a bridge
Over the mid-atlantic ridge
But you know I would have
Done it all on foot.

So come on.

Married and loving it...

Jack and Jill went down the hill...

To watch the latest toboganning adventure, visit:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DhTJ4fK5UaI

Our English parents, the best man, and many other cool Britts arrived yesterday.
Some of them enjoyed a nice, wholesome Candian snowball fight this morning until Rob's groin got injured.

Lesson of the day: Men, wear jock straps when engaging in a snowball fight.

When the moon hits your eye like a big pizza pie

That's Amore...

Yesterday was the best Valentines Day ever. Period. Let me explain...
To start, a delightful couple called Ben and Kelsey, arrived on Saturday from England. Showing them bits and bobs of our multifaceted city has been lush to say the least.
*FYI: I think Mark should be on a 'This-is-why-Toronto- Rocks' commercial. He NEVER ceases to find yet another positive thing to mention about our home and native land. Tourguide extraordinaire.*
Then Rob, a groomsman and really super close buddy of ours arrived. Amazing!

So I thought this year we'd be a bit too busy to get do a proper Valentines Day. It's not a big thing, but I am used to celebrating on the fourteenth. My mom has been superb at transforming the kitchen and living room into a festive pink white and red wonderland. She would combine just enough atmosphere and chocolate to make my sister and I feel special regardless of whether we had anyone else to celebrate with that day.
This time around we in fact WEREN'T too busy to my suprise. I was spoiled rotten by Mark and later by my family. He had put together this adorable plan to pamper me, and it was overly successful.
I was treated to a refreshing/cleansing facial, an hour massage, then a manicure at a phenomenal salon. WOW! Then he scored tickets to a LEAF GAME in the evening. It went to a shoot out! Soooooooo good! I didn't think it could get any better. Then it snowed . MAJORLY. This was all on the thirteenth.
On the fourteenth I not only woke up to little pink cupcakes on a heart-shaped plate with my favorite tea (complements of Becca), but to cards and sunshine and a McDonalds breakfast as well! Imagine that after all of these wonderful presents and calories I remembered I was getting married in TWO WEEKS!
The evening consisted of toboganning, hot chocolate and heated games of boggle. See why it was the best?

Ok, I'm out of breath now. But there is more. Just have a look at this verse from 1 John:

God is love. When we take up permanent residence in a life of love, we live in God and God lives in us. This way, love has the run of the house, becomes at home and mature in us, so that we're free of worry on Judgment Day—our standing in the world is identical with Christ's. There is no room in love for fear. Well-formed love banishes fear. Since fear is crippling, a fearful life—fear of death, fear of judgment—is one not yet fully formed in love. We, though, are going to love—love and be loved. He loved us first.

How good is that?! I could fall off my chair. On a day that has unfortunately become a money-maker, and possibly heart-breaker, the most important thing to remember is that He is LOVE!
Yes, He is affectionate and sweet and romantic and generous and kind and so in love with you! Woohooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo!

Cats and Casinos...

Well, since Bethany has not yet posted, I figured I'd best have a little go. Things are pretty hectic here, to be fair. Any spare time we have is spent sorting things out for the wedding. Which is ONE MONTH TODAY. People are coming to visit in less than a week, and it's all getting very close and exciting. No wonder these posts are short, and few and far between.

Last night we went to see Casino Royale. I have come to the conclusion that Daniel Craig is the BEST BOND EVER. Very gritty. Judy Dench gets better every time. She's awesome. Bethany enjoyed the movie a lot too, and we saw it with some good friends, which always makes for a good time. We ate good food, and played Cribbage. And we skated in Nathan Phillips Square.

What was particularly enjoyable about yesterday, however, was coming back to my amazing new cat. He's awesome. You should check him out in this video here that Bethany made last week.

More posts soon, I hope. I love you all...

Amsterdam...

We went to Amsterdam for a day at the end of last year. I think Bethany's going to write about it later, but here's a short video to keep you going...

I could go to Canada...

You know, the last month or so would have been a great time to blog. Shame I didn't take advantage. It would have made quite interesting reading, if only I'd had enough time to get round to it. I had Bethany visiting me at my parents' place in Worksop for three weeks over Christmas, which was fantastic. It was one of the best Christmasses that I have ever had.
I think that the main contributor to that might have been that it was the last Christmas that I would spend with my family before I left the country to start my new life as a husband.

So, after my move back to small town life, Bethany and I headed to the airport, and boarded a plane bound for the big city. There were tears at the security check-in, as we said goodbye to my mum and dad; knowing that this was the biggest move that I would ever make. We went through, and several hours later we landed here in Toronto. At passport control I was diverted to speak to someone in immigration, and a number of questions later, I was given my voluntary work visa. I have the right to stay here for up to a year at present. Once Bethany and I get married at the end of February, we'll begin the process of applying for landed immigrancy.

So, I moved into my apartment. It's flipping huge! We still have a couple of little things to buy for it today, but it's pretty much perfect for what I need. I spent an excellent day with Jacob yesterday moving in and getting rid of some junk that was in here, and you can check out the fruits of our labours by watching this video.

Well, I'm here now. Nearly six years after I knew that I would live here, I've finally made the move. I start work on Monday, and preparations for the wedding are in the final stages; it's less than seven weeks until the big day. I'm still having a hard time realising that I'm not just visiting. Life is good...

a thousand words

I love pictures. I'm that weird person who pretends they are PROFESSIONAL and lies down on the ground to get a shot. Unfortunately, I end up taking a traumatizing photo of the view under some woman's skirt. Whoops, sorry! Nice legs, anyway!

So, I realized that I don't have nearly enough pictures of my friends. *GASP*
Yes, you. I can see you right now. That would be weird.
I will I will I will get in the habit of carrying a wee camera around with me (honey, I love the polaroid but it is too bulky!) to capture those priceless moments...like the mastercard commercials are on about. Ramlin is a pro at this.

I want to put more recent snapshots of friends up to remind me to call them, harass them, pray for them, and for those days when I NEED to remind myself how many BEAUTIFUL people are in my life supporting me...where would I be without you?!

Here are some I took in NYC. I love the one with lights because it is at Ground Zero.

I'm Sorry...

As you may be aware, I've recently celebrated my 25th birthday. Now, I know that's not that old, but I'm certainly older than I used to be. The thing that made this more obvious to me than anything, is the change in my friends' listening habits. Of those with the ability to do so, I think I now have more friends that listen to BBC Radio 4 than those that don't.
As long as I've known, my parents have listened, almost exclusively, to this station. I've been listening to it by choice for some time too. For those not familiar with it, Radio 4 is full of spoken word programming. It features everything from politics to comedy, book readings to scientific discussions and radio plays to the shipping forecast.
It is a practically inexhaustible supply of intelligent programs. And extreme silliness. In my opinion, the best show by far is one of the longest running. for 34 years now, I'm Sorry, I haven't a Clue, has been providing what the producers of the show describe as 'the antidote to panel shows'.

Unfortunately, you can't download episodes of the show at the moment, but you can listen to last week's broadcast on the Radio 4 website. If you have a spare half hour, it's well worth a listen. Click here to go to the site. The first minute or so of the broadcast is a commercial for another show, and then the fun gets started. It's very British, and your enjoyment of it will add to my feeling of maturity...

International Day Without Art

While visiting the Art Gallery for yet another assignment today, I got talking to one security officer. She said I should come back tomorrow (Dec 1st) to view Rodin's 'Adam'. It is a large, exaggerated figure of a man displayed in the centre of a room along with other pieces in the permanent collection. Stunning.
She said to take part in the National Day Without Art, it would be draped in a thick, black cloth. How dramatic. This piece is meant to be a celebration of man, and viewing it in this way would change the meaning and reaction entirely.
Next year they will choose to erase something else. Hm.

It's not a competition...

Well, actually it is. It's my birthday tomorrow, and I was told that I should make a cake to bring into the office. We had a look online at some possiblities, and found the masterpiece that you see on your screen. My friend Sharon announced that she fancied making a cake like that, so she would do it. I wasn't hearing any of it. I wanted to make that cake, and I was going to do it. So my boss, Dot, came up with a plan.
'You both want to make the cake, right?'
'Yes,' we both replied.
'Well, why don't you both make one then? You can have a competition to see which is the best. And there'll be more cake for everyone.'
'Good idea,' we said.

So, it was settled. Today we arrived at work, each with a cake in hand. Lovingly baked and decorated, each with their own personal touch. We brought them into the office, and the principal of the school was called in to judge it.
There were five catagories on which it was judged: general appearance, taste, chocappealability, height, and how much they looked like the original. Sharon's effort managed 8/10 in the areas of appearance and taste (hers was, apparently, a little dry), whereas I received a very respectable 9/10 for these. I only pulled off 8/10 for height and chocappealability though, where Sharon got 9/10 (she had melted a big bar of chocolate over the top as well). There was only one catagory left, and there was no competition here...
The vote came in: Sharon's looked more like a castle than a volcano, and was only awarded 5 of the ten possible points in this area. The principal took one look at mine, and gave it the full 10! What a victory!

The event attracted a large crowd, and was enjoyed by all. The eating of the cake went down particularly well, it seems, with my boss.
The point of all of this, as well as being to remind you all to shower me with cards, gifts, drinks and cash (or at least some gestures of pleasantness) tomorrow, is to express my feelings of being in this job.
Some of you might remember how unhappy I was at the end in my last job, and how I was told that I was unable to do the job properly.
Here, I am working with people that appreciate me; that encourage my silliness. I'm working in an environment where I am valued, and I love every minute of it. If it wasn't for the fact that I'm moving to Canada in six weeks, I'd be staying at this job. It's brilliant.

It's been a while since I last blogged, and I have a number of other things to talk about, but I'll come back to those later. I think the competition is enough excitement for now. Oh, and the cakes were both delicious. I think I might go have a slice now...

winter and romance

It's getting darker earlier. Tonight it even snowed. It smells different.
Winter is my absolute most favorite season, and it is finally icing the city with its kiss. I am truly thankful to live in a country where we have such dramatic weather. Every season lends a distinct romantic flavour to my daily walk through the city. To/from the subway, to school, to the shops, and home again...or something like that.
I am so deeply in love...and a total mushball lately.
29 days to go...bear with me.

The Guillemots. Yes. I heard their cd in the summer. One of those times you sit in the driveway just to listen to it a bit more. They're sooooooo adding to the joy of the crispy gloves-and-hat early mornings. Get your hands on a copy of their album to have a listen. Fast, slow, fun and British.
Fab lyrics and lead male singer. Do dee do da...

Blue would still be Blue - Guillemots
It's not raining cats, it's not raining dogs
And pigs are not flying, or turning the cogs
The sun has no hat on, whenever it shines
And I've never seen a cat with nine lives
I'm not in a film, I'm not in a play
I saw no aliens today
I just saw you, and thought of me

And if I had you, all the stars wouldn't fall from the sky, and the moon wouldn't start to cry
There'd be no earthquakes
I'd still make mistakes
If i had you
Oh there'd still be day and night, and I'd still do wrong and right
Ooh
Blue would still be blue
But things would be easier with you

And this is no palace, the place that I live
And I am no king, but I've got things to give
And I waste so much time, thinking of time
And I should be out there, claiming what's mine
Any day I could die, just like I was born
And this bit in the middle is what I'm here for
And I just want to fill it all with joy

white and nerdy

Watch this

knives and tigers and bears, oh my!

Today was my first time ever under the knife with anaesthetic and the whole bit. It wasn't that bad...so don't ever be anxious about it. If I can do it, so can you...believe me- I avoid talking about needles, giving birth, blood, bandaids etc. at all costs. The doctors and nurses were unbelievably sweet- Mike, I'm so glad you're becoming a doctor because the humour and general talkativeneess makes a difference.
When I woke up I felt so comfortable and cozy, with no pain at all! Thank God that it's over! I did it! Yesssssssssss...

Rosa

'Sometimes there is no language, no language but a cry.
Sometimes there is no language, no language but a groan...'
Jason Upton

arrrrggggggggggggggggggggggggggghhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhrrrrrrrrrrr...
do you ever feel like this?

After spending time with an old friend today, I realized how
the poverty and sickness in this city overwhelms my heart-
until there are not even tears...
just deep, angry, determined groans.

If anyone is interested in an eye-opener, there is an organization I'm beginning to be more involved with through OCAD that do 'street walks'. Basically, safely exploring various areas of Toronto after dark. Giving students that want to make a difference a new perspective on Toronto...because as you know there is so much need RIGHT HERE!
Ahhhhhh, thank God there is hope. Oodles and oodles of hope sweet hope.


until next time, :)

Closing Doors...

I'm about to drive back up to Leeds. It's a bit of a trek, so I like to have a good reason for going up there. Today, I have a good reason. My band, The Salvator Darlings is about to release it's only album, and I realised the other day that one song is missing two words from the end of it. That means that I have to go on a 100 mile round trip, in order to sing TWO WORDS.
It's going to be worth it, though. When I return tonight, I should have in my possesion the master copy of the album, ready to send off tomorrow to the reproduction company. It's been a long time coming, but finally it's ready for release.

You might not care, but I'm excited.

needles hurt

Tomorrow, (Tuesday...wait, it's already Tuesday if you're British) Pastor Cleetus Adrian from Texas will be featured on Miami Ink getting a brand new tattoo! If you haven't heard this amazing punk preacha...well, you need to get the recordings from TACF's Freshwind Conference.
Watch channel 34 at 10pm.
I just saw the commercial for the episode...eeeeeeee!!!!!
I wonder what the design will be...what the artist will think...what the conversation will be like....

Mark, want to visit Miami for your next one? And will I EVER be able to face the pain?

carebears

hahahaha...check this out. you know i love this comic.

meow

I found a kitten. It wasn't hard. I returned to an empty house this evening, looking forward to some peace and some silence. Yes, actual silence (Mark, you are so blessed to be spending time in the country!).

Instead, I found a kitten who will remain nameless as to protect his identity.
What an adorable creature! Black, white, and fluffy. He looked quite cold, huddled against the brick of the house on our front porch. Judging by the size of our previous cats (whom my sister had found as strays), I think he is around one year old. Tiny little fellow...

I want it I want it I want it.

Normally a dog person, I think I'd do my best to save baby animals of any kind. They're just littlies... come on, you would too. That reminds me of this past summer. A baby hedgehog was found drowning in the Hardy pond. He was almost successfully nursed back to life over a couple of days, but he eventually died. Poor thing would have probably had nasty flashbacks the rest of his life at the sight of water anyway... R.I.P.

Soooo, I tried to approach as gently as possible with my one hundred thousand pound backpack on me, but at the one metre point I had crossed his boundary line and he vanished under the wooden fence. Awww, rubbish. So I left out some proper cat food and milk. I can't wait to see if he's eaten it in the morning...like Santa's cookies that you leave out Christmas eve. Except that Santa is a huge obese outright lie...thank God somebody had the guts to finally tell me last year...

Small towns and big parties...

I just got back from Retford. I was at the house of my friend James, who is a bit of a legend. We were using spray paint to turn white t-shirts into badger costumes for a party next weekend.
Now, I'm not complaining by any means, but it seems that since I've left Leeds, all I've done is go to parties. As you can see from the picture, we threw one awesome leaving party for me. Big crowd there, the band played an awesome set... A real good send off. Then last weekend we made the annual pilgrimage to Alton Towers for my best man's birthday. Next Friday, it's back to Leeds, where I will be djing at Sarah and Becky's British Wildlife party. Hence the badger costumes.

So, it's been a pretty hectic fortnight really. I've had just enough time to settle back here, and I'm rather enjoying country life. The scenery is certainly better than Leeds. I'm enjoying a quieter week life too. My parents love to do a crossword, so that works out pretty good (although it's no match for CCC with Mr Wolfson), and there's a lot more space in the house.
One disadvantage that I'm just discovering, however, is that we only have one computer in the house. That means that we all have to share it. So when I planned to blog the other night, I came in and found that my mom was using it for work. I came in a couple of days later when I had another chance, and my sister was emailing. Sucks. So, that explains the gap in my presence here. Never mind, now that Bethany has joined the Salivation Nation blogging ranks, she's been able to keep you all entertained while I've been desperately trying to access the internet.

Good news in my house - my little sister's getting married next year. That makes the both of us. It's rather pleasing for me, because she's been with her boyfriend for five years now, and we've become rather good friends. He's a really good guy, and I'm very pleased that he's going to be my brother in law. It also gives us a very good reason to be back in the UK next summer, which will be quite enjoyable after a lengthy absence. It all works out in the end.

And so I come to my point. I was worried that when I moved here I would be bored. Back in a small town after 5 years of city life; none of my bandmates here; neighbours that I don't know, and even if I did are proabably not really my sort of people; having to keep the noise down etc. As it happens, however, it would seem that I rather enjoy the peace and quiet of life here. During the week I spend very little money, which will come as a relief and a blessing to both myself and my wonderful future wife. I have time to do things (even if I am unable to do them). And if I thought that I might be at a loose end, someone is always having a party. I can't wait to dress up as a badger with James next weekend; I can't wait to dj at the party; I really can't wait to see everyone in Leeds again. Most of all I can't wait till next Sunday, when I fly out to Canada for a week. But, when all of that is over, I'm very much looking forward to the last few months of (relatively) peaceful, relaxing time here in Worksop with my family. And if the country life starts to become tiresome, I'm fairly sure that someone will be throwing a party to keep me entertained...

North

Today a bunch of us are driving a couple hours up to Wasaga in the Puddle mobile to have a Thanksgiving BBQ at the Crithley res. Yes, the food will be scrumptious and plenty, but for me it comes in secondary to the BONFIRE. Oh how I've longed for a hot, crackling fire to roast marshmallows in and sit round. Fire is good.
I can smell it now...


Aaaaaand, Thanksgiving weekend is also when Mark and I officially got to together TWO YEARS AGO. Woweeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee!!!



Love you, Hardy....
beth

i know i know...

going from NEVER blogging to blogging twice in a day?
you just haaaaaaaave to read this verse that I've been chewing on steady:

Matthew 11:12 in the Amplified
And from the days of John the Baptist until the present time, the kingdom of heaven has endured violent assault, and violent men seize it by force [as a precious prize--a [share in the heavenly kingdom is sought with most ardent zeal and intense exertion].
It feels so good to be zealous about something...are you?

a nest for the love birds...

Yipeeeeeee! So, we scored the sweetest place to live. I'm amazed :)
It really makes the whole getting married thing a whole lot more...real.

It's a basement apartment owned by my family- hook-ups! It was a deal we couldn't refuse, and holy smokes it's BIIIIIG. The best way to describe it, is very 'open-concept'. We'll get to clean/paint do stuff November 1st (you'll see our recruitment posters soon...haha)which leaves loads of time and I am sooooooooooooo FLIPPING EXCITED. I keep daydreaming about our little nest...it helps when you're trying desperately to procrastinate from doing assignments (pretty much like I'm doing now.Shhh!).
Yeah, lately spare time is spent looking at whacky home stores and paint samples...sigh. I can't pry myself away!



Now, the only thing missing? A neighbour named Kramer. That's our DREAM. Seriously.





One day...oh,one day...

NUIT BLANCHE

www.nuitblanche.livewithculture.ca

Saturday September 30, 2006

7pm-7am

downtown Toronto transformed by artists

don't miss it!

twenty three

That's the title of a beautiful Jimmy Eat World song, and also Ramlin's new response when people ask her how old she is :)

I've finally been to New York City. Man, it was the best. Ramlin and I drove down early Friday morning and arrived in Brooklyn at Casa Newall at supper time. The drive was 8 1/2 hours which seemed a breeze after New Orleans. The Newall (is that how you spell their last name?) brothers took us out straight away to see the sights. For an extremely short trip, we managed to see and taste loads of the city. These good times include:

Ground Zero, The Statue of Liberty, Battery Park, The Empire State building, china town, Soho, New York pizza....yummmmm, Radio City, Time Square, Central Park and a buttload more ( I saved the Seinfield cafe, Poet's Alley, and New York cheesecake to see with you, Markers :) . We travelled by subway and taxi, and even successfully parellel parked our car in the middle of all the chaos of the lively city. We didn't do the galleries or shows because hopefully I'll get to go with school, and they deserve a trip all their own...at least pour moi they do!

Jeez, God is so gooooooood! We had the best weather, and when it began to spit and cloud over we prayed and spoke to the clouds and the sun came out again! Woohoo! I'm always amazed when that happens. And what a blessing to have our own personal tour guides! We've got some great pics. It's so hard not to take picures of EVERYTHING there. I'll post some soon....

I fell in love with NYC. The lights, the cameras, the action... and the many many homeless broke my heart, but when we approached the Canadian border to return home, during the golden hour of an autumn day... it was breathtaking. It's like Canada hugs me somehow once I've crossed the border... as corny as that sounds....

Ok, I have to go to my last class for the day...until next time, let's all peer pressure Mark to blog.

love yourself. you're a masterpiece.
bethany

Very moving...

It's been an interesting month, that's for sure. First things first: my good friend J came to visit Bethany and I in Toronto; the first time I'd seen him since he left England in May 2004. J rocked it out with me on the turntables at Freshwind 2004, and also formed the band The Salivators with me. The guy had keys to my house for a year, you know? We hung out and saw the sights. We went to Smokeless Joe, and to the Ontario Film Board. We took him to the Panorama lounge, and we watched movies. We drank beer and went to church. We hung out with people and ate good food. We drank cocktails and we drank coffee. We spent time catching up.

Then came the tough part. I had to say goodbye to Bethany. We'd been together for two months by this point, and I was not looking forward to going to the airport. It would be four months before we'd see each other again, when she comes over to visit at Christmas.
There was something else making my forthcoming journey home a little daunting. Over the summer, I took into account my options; my thoughts on the teaching course I started in January. I thought about the things that I would almost certainly have to go through in my final term, and I decided that it was not going to be a good thing to continue. As a result, I left my job in the school, and with it, made the decision to leave my beloved Leeds, and move back to Worksop. Leaving Canada this summer meant leaving Leeds, and finding a new job.

So, this month has been an interesting one. When I got back, I found myself a new job - I'll be working with teenagers with behavioural problems. I found a replacement for my room in Leeds. I broke the news to my band, and organised a couple of farewell gigs. I've packed things and sold things. I've given things away. I've spent time sorting things out to leave. I've visited Worksop a couple of times, and been to the unit I'll be working in. I've met my sister's tortoise. I've caught up with some friends, and had band practices. My cell group got together with my old cell group to give me a send off; which was excellent.

If there's one thing I'll miss about Leeds more than anything, it's the level of silliness that ensues when my friends and I come up with an idea. Last night, we opened an art gallery in our BASEMENT. No, really. We had flyers for it and everything. We displayed work by Bethany and myself, my roommate Butch, and his girlfriend Katherine. We had free wine, and people came to look around. Some pieces have been sold, and we expect more to go during the week. It's the sort of thing that can only happen in a big city. I'm going to miss that in Worksop.

Having said that, there's some benefits to living back with my parents, and I'm not talking about low-cost rent (although that is a major bonus). They pretty much live out in the country, and some clean air won't do me any harm. There's not that much to do at night, so I might find some more time to exercise. My dad likes to build fires in the garden. I like to build fires in the garden. We can build fires in the garden. And it's not too far from Leeds, so I can pop back for a visit.

Oh, there was one other great thing that happened to me this month. My wonderful friends Ben and Kelsey decided that they wanted to bless me. Having told me how much they remembered hating being apart before they got married, they checked some dates out with me, and bought me a ticket to Canada for October. So, my three months in Worksop is nicely divided with an excursion to see my wonderful girl. That's what I'm talking about.

It's good to be back. Love.

sometimes it sucks

to have to socialise without your best bud and other half.

entre nous

Friday:Someone hacked into my gmail account. Poo. Other than that today was lovely. The delicous pears on the tree in our backyard are ripe. When they start to fall off the tree, I know it's going to get cold very soon. Today they started falling, so I bought my first sweater for the chilly autumn winds that will suddenly be upon us. The sweater (or 'jumper' as Mark would say) I've been eyeing in Lululemon of course. I don't know why I like that store so much. Technically, if I had an identifiable style it wouldn't be that (too expensive!!!), but the cardigans are so thick and juicy. Like, I won't even let you try this on because you'll keep it. I could live in it. Maybe I will....as some preformance art statement (see Thursday's blog below).
Tonight I went to youth, and Ben Kennedy was preaching. He said something that gripped me. It went like this, "The world is constantly telling you you don't have enough time for God by distracting you with anything/everything. That's a lie, because Jesus had the exact same time as you had while he was on earth. He was confronted with distraction. He was confined to 24hours, and He still knew His Father and gave him his time." Time is your most precious thing to give away...who or what are you giving it to?

Thursday:
We've been researching and discussing preformance art in one of my classes for the last two weeks. I feel like I've seen EVERYTHING. From plastic surgery experiments to stomping around a stuido for one hour, to painting with people's faces and/or cow blood to getting someone to SHOOT you in the arm. Yes, this is all preformance art, most in video format, and it has deep meaning to the artist. Hmmmm.

Amidst all of these 'unique' approaches to getting one's point across, I've found some that I quite like. For example: Good ol' Yoko Ono. I've always liked her. She had everyone in her audience come up one by one and cut off a piece of the garment she was wearing. At the end, she told them to send that material to someone and tell them they loved them. Later, she explained that by letting complete strangers approach her and get close to her with scissors, she was sending the message that it's alright to trust one another.

Another man, gosh I can't remember his name, spent a year outside without ever going indoors in New York City. Apparently, a lot of it had to do with the fact that he was an illegal immigrant, and therefore felt isolated. I'm not sure how he went to the bathroom.
He also punched a clock at every hour once for a year (a different one). That was to express how our society relates to time...but to invest in something that most people won't appreciate or see for a year? Wow.

The artist I researched was named Billy Talen. He's known as Reverend Billy, and he has a church of Stop Shopping. They travel around and have 'revival-style meetings in shopping centres (uninvited), in Times Square, in universities...it's quite the ordeal. I liked the clips I saw for the most part. I agree with some of his views on big coorporations/ advertising/ sweatshops/ the environment, and some others I don't agree with at all. Anyway, he and his chior are talented, and certainly know how to draw a crowd...or get arrested. He gets a lot of publicity in the States. Check him out- www.revbilly.com

Love on your enemies,
Bethany.

OCAD

Day 1: I'm writing from my new school's library. Shhh! It's so quiet. My first official day here at OCAD has been superb. I've been handed lots of free stuff, including rootbeer flavoured cotton candy (aren't you jealous Mark? muhahahah), and I've met many friendly students. Score. I can't believe I'll be here the next four years of my life...or more. The view from the massive checkered building on stilts called, The Sharp Cenre For Design, is gorgeous...you should come see it. There are a zillion cool shows and exhibitions popping up round the city soon, too. I'm seeing the Warhol one tomorrow. You've probably heard of 'Nuit Blanche' starting from 7pm till morning on Sept.30. There's also a gallery called Xspace in Kensington Market that displays our work. I'll post as many shows as I can on here when I get other dates confirmed so that those of you in Toronto can come out and support the arts.

Mark is back in Leeds...again. It was incredibly hard to say bye to eachother after 72 days straight of epic summer fun. I think 'Transatlanticism' by DeathCab for Cutie sums up my feelings on the matter. I love that song. Anyway, we thought it would be December until we saw eachother next, but someone had other plans. THANK GOD. A good friend of ours who isn't coming for the wedding, but instead a week before the wedding has given us an early gift...he's sending Mark over in October! Wooohoo! That's right...during Mark's half-term week he'll be here (22nd-28th). We were speechless. How do you even say thank you for a gift like that?


Day 2: More classes. More chaos. I went to look at all the hi-tech cameras and video-cameras that we can rent for assignments and exploring in general. They're so beefy. My first film assigment is a 3 minute one called, "How I See It". It's due in two weeks. We're supposed to interpret that sentence on our own and express it through a film.
Any ideas?

Lots of love to everyone...especially all you UKers. I'll see you in December. Until then, send me chocolate and emails. Please?

Wonderland and World Wonders...

It's been a fun week. Bethany and I have been making the most of the time that she has off work by spending every waking hour doing something of interest. Last week, we headed to Wonderland, where we had a great day out. We were supposed to go with Becca, but it was her friend's birthday, so we went on our own. I love rollercoasters, it's no secret. I particularly enjoyed the minebuster, where we both nearly died from being shaken to death. It's pretty good fun. I also risked losing our camera by snapping us on the Vortex. Well, snapping me with a bit of Bethany's face. It's hard to take a self portrait on a rollercoaster...

My parents arrived on Saturday, having waited in line for two and a half hours just to go through security at Heathrow airport in London. That must have been pretty intense. On Sunday they attended church with me. It's quite a strange experience having my parents visit my church, particularly in another country, where it's not even really my church yet. It was a good time though, and Randy Clarke spoke a great word. I met Jacob's girl too.
We headed up to Jo and Russ' place for a sweet bbq lunch, followed by a dip in the pool. And when I say dip, I mean dip. I was in for about 5 minutes before we had to leave to go back to T.O to pick Bethany up from work.
From there we went to Central, where the worship was great and the word was superb. Alyn Jones started with some prophecies, one of which was for mum and dad. That was good. Then he spoke on humility, and did it with such a relaxed attitude that it blew me away. There was no religiosity there at all, and it was superb. We went to Panorama after that, getting a fine view of the city and hanging out with good people.

Yesterday, Bethany had the day off again, so we took my parents to the church downtown that we're getting married at. The minister wasn't around, but we got the chance to look inside, and they love it almost as much as we do... We showed them Bethany's school too, before getting back on the subway, and picking up the car to drive to Niagara.

I love Niagara. I can't really tell you specifically what it is that I love about it so much, but it just leaves me speechless. It's such a demonstration of God's power in nature. I could stand there and look at the falls forever. But there was no chance of that; Mum and Dad took us on the Maid of the Mist, so we got an incredible view of them, whilst being drenched in the spray that comes from this wonder of the natural world.
It's an incredible way to experience the falls, and a romantic one too (even with the ridiculous blue ponchos that they hand out to keep you dry). The view is spectacular. If you ever get the chance to go to Niagara in the summer, take a trip on the Maid of the Mist - it will blow you away.

So, on to today. It's Dad's birthday, and Bethany's bridal shower. I know it's a little early for the shower, considering the wedding isn't until February, but my mum's in town, so Bethany's mom and grandma wanted to put one on for her. We're taking my dad to a restaurant first, then showing up at the shower for the end. I have no idea what to expect, as this is not an English tradition. I guess I'll just have to wait and see what happens when I get there. A report will follow...

Barrytown...

When Bethany and I travelled to Canada last week, we flew from Glasgow airport. That's quite a trek from Leeds, so we figured into our journey a few days in Scotland. This all worked out well, because we'd intended to visit Bethany's Aunt Mary in Camberslang (a district of Glasgow) before we left. We figured we could plan it all into one visit.
Unfortunately, Aunt Mary passed away a short time before Bethany came to England, so we were left with tickets to fly from Glasgow, and no real reason to go there. We do like Scotland though, so it wasn't too much of a hardship to head up there. The plan started to come together again when our good friends Simon and Esther suggested that they come up with us too. We'd take their car, go camping, and they'd drop us at the airport. An absolutely cracking scheme.
Simon said that he could get a tent big enough to house all four of us (see picture above), so we didn't need to bring two small ones (a decision that almost led to the downfall of our trip on the second night), so we packed up the car, I jumped into the driver's seat, and we set off for the highlands.

It was our intention to travel all the way up to Glen Coe on our first night, spend a couple of days there, and then head back to Glasgow, where we'd camp on the last night before going to the airport on Sunday morning. By the time that we approached the largest city in Scotland, however, it was getting on a bit, and we didn't fancy the two hour drive north to the highlands. We pulled off the motorway, and onto the absolutely brilliant camp site at Strathclyde Country Park. This site is great. Nice and clean with good facilities. Close to the city - you can easily get a train from one of 3 nearby stations to Glasgow Central station, with a rather nice park and lake on site. It's right next to the motorway, before you hit the city, so you can avoid the busy roads. What's more, it's cheap too. For the four of us, it was £8.45 a night. That's about the cheapest you'll find...

After a good night spent there, we packed down the enormous tent, and drove up north. The journey up to Glen Coe is absolutely beautiful; the road follows the bonnie, bonnie banks of the song-worthy Loch Lomond for a good deal of the way, with plenty of spots to stop and admire the views of the Loch itself, and the increasingly large mountains that give the highlands its name.
Mid-afternoon we rocked up at a little spot that Bethany and I found last year in a place called Bridge of Orchy. It's one of the few places left that they allow you to camp for free, and it's beautiful. Right by the river in a valley just off the main road through the Glen, it's picturesque and pretty much unspoilt. You just pitch your tent and stay there. There's a nice pub, too. My only recommendation is that you get yourself a lot of insect repellent, and some of those mosquito nets for your face. We tried to sit out that evening, and beat a hasty retreat to the tent when we started to be eaten alive. The next morning I counted 25 bites on the back of my right hand alone.

Before all that, though, we took a little walk on the hillsides, admiring the view. And what a view. The train line cuts a course just above the base of the valley, and the mountain tops on both sides were shrouded in mist. In the height of summer, the sides of the mountains are covered equally with a verdant grass and curtains of deep green fir trees. The Heather tints areas with a rich purple. Crystal clear streams run down the mountains and under the path every few metres. And it's so quiet!
The path that we walked on is part of the West Highland Way, a 95 mile (152 kilometre) path that runs from Milngavie, just outside Glasgow, to Fort William at the foot of Ben Nevis.

It was on this path that we met Barry. Barry, who you can see pictured here with Bethany, is a dj from Glasgow, specialising in cheesy tunes of the highest calibre. I've never met a man before who would claim that his favourite song ever (and he wasn't even joking) is Everything I Do, I Do it For You by Bryan Adams. This guy was something special. He spoke to us for a while on the mountain about doing the West Highland Way, and then said that he was off to the pub in Bridge of Orchy, and that he might see us later.
Sure enough, when we came back down a while later, he was stood outside the pub. It turned out that the guest house he was staying in was 3 miles down the road, and off the trail. A taxi was going to cost him £25 in these parts, so we offered him a ride, and in return, he offered us a drink.
Despite the fact that Barry had a particularly special taste in music, and claimed to be the kind of dj that I despise the most, he was one of the most fantastic people I have ever met. He was funny, friendly, liked a drink; he was kind and fun to be around. He didn't hit on Esther or Bethany, nor did he hit on me and Simon... He bought us drinks, and tried to buy us more. He played terrible music at weddings and parties, and took pride in his work. He didn't do much walking, but fancied spending a week of his summer hiking for nearly 100 miles on his own. He was crazy. In short, he was Scottish.

Despite the fact that I'm told most Scottish people hate the English, I experienced nothing but the opposite of this. Everyone we met along the way was just the same as this - helpful, kind and fun. I love Scotland, and I especially love the Scottish. In fact, I think that when I move here, I might even miss Scotland more than I miss England...

Differences...

I'm back in Canada. It's always felt like home here, but every time I come over, I notice more differences. It's not just the use of different words for things, strange spellings and a different way of life.

Earlier on today, I noticed that Thomas the Tank Engine was about to come on the TV. I was rather looking forward to hearing Ringo Starr's voice narrating it. But it was new. And narrated by an American. I'm sure that even new episodes in England don't have an American narrator. Wierd. And what about Rupert the Bear? American voices on that too. How very odd. I've noticed a lot over here that there's a certain urgency to become more European - a lot of English shops are opening over here, and everyone's rushing to them trying to catch up with European fashions and so on. But nobody seems quite comfortable being entirely British; they want a comforting American edge to it.
Here's an example of what I mean. I'm sat watching the Antiques Roadshow right now; but not as I know it. It's an American version.

I know that the main attraction of this program is the discovery of the value of the items that people bring in, but in the UK this is all wrapped up in the discussion of the interesting features and history of each piece. For 23 years, The Antiques Roadshow has run on the BBC, giving viewers a chance to laugh at hopeful people being told that the masterpeice they paid a fortune for is a reproduction worth next to nothing, or to smile with delight when a little old lady finds that the teapot she's been using to keep coins in is worth a little over £100,000.
The BBC knows that what people want is to find out how much each item is worth. But, because they're British, they make sure that most of the show is based around the history of the pieces. The experts tell the owners of the antiques how much they should insure them for, and the owners brush over the value, as though it's far more important to them to know a little more about it than to find out how much money they can put in the bank after flogging it. All very British indeed.

The American version, whilst covering the history of the antiques to some extent, doesn't beat about the bush when it comes to the value of the pieces. The experts (who are all from famous auction houses) quickly run over a bit of information about the antique they are looking at, and then say something about how much they think it will sell for. The owner of the peice will then get excited about taking it to auction.

I don't think that Americans are more greedy than the British, I just think that the British do a better job of disguising their greed. Right now, the jury's out on whether or not that's a good thing.