And it is snowing again......

Oops.... they got the weather forecast wrong again... 6 inches came today. So far we are up to the fourth snowiest December on record and we are only 2/3 through the month. Needless to say, we will be glad to have a short break from the shoveling over Christmas. Here are some pictures from our neighborhood and Boston over the past week.
Jack isn't very fond of the snow.... he just trudges around and leaves deep trails where he has drug his body through the deep snow. Most of these pictures are after the first of our three major snows... so just imagine this times 3 minus very little melting.
Rain, snow, shine, or sleet... Billy still has to watch over the parking lot each day. Snow makes him VERY hyper. And.... he has figured out that it is edible.
Those big fluffy white things aren't lifesize marshmellows.... they are cars.
This is my best Will Ferrell (Elf) impression. We got out after storm number 1 and before the Nor'easter to go to the Cheesecake Factory and see the Boston Ballet perform The Nutcracker. I got my picture with one of the mice (lifesize and in the show). It was lots of fun. Jeremy found his favorite cheesecake of all time (White Chocolate Caramel Latte) and I was sad that they were out of pumpkin cheesecake.
The big Christmas Tree in the Boston Common. We had a few minutes between dinner and the Nutcracker.
Aren't we cute?
People ice skating at the Frog Pond.

Well, last Thursday I was told to leave work early cause the snow was coming down super fast (like 2 inches per hour). So, I left at 1:30 thinking I'd be home in after the normal 45 minute, 2 different bus commute. Well, the first bus went without incident and dropped me off in Roslindale Sq. for the next. Well, an hour later, I'm still there and noticed that it was 22 degrees. I couldn't cry because my tears would freeze! So, the bus finally came, but then it took that bus more than 2 more hours to get me home. It got stuck on the way and the driver told the men to get out and help him get it unstuck. Interesting and exhausting day.

Jeremy's war story is even worse. He didn't get home until about 10:15 that night after leaving work early at 4. He was stuck on one short stretch of road by the Charles for four hours and was worried about running out of gas. The news called it the worst commute in Boston's history.

Thanks for listening to our stories.... I guess we will be those old people that talk about the "Bad commute during a snowstorm in 2007" to our kids when they complain about traffic.

Amusing Commercial

I don't know if yall are getting this outside of New England but I just had to post this commercial. It makes me want to wet my pants. Well, I guess not "want to", but as an involuntary reaction resulting from extreme humor.

Happy Six Month-a-versary to us!

Well, as of the 1st, we've reached the 6 months in Boston mark. Can you believe it? And wow, what an adventurous time it has been....

Quit a job in Waco (Chels)
Graduation from Baylor (Jeremy)
1969 miles
Moved up to a fourth floor apartment (with no elevator mind you!)
Six weeks of unemployment......twice.
Dealing with medicaid (for unemployment) and the registry of motor vehicles...my favorite activities. not.
Starting grad school... and being just a few days from being done with one quarter of it.
Surviving our first "snowy" commute....(only a couple inches earlier this week).
Working on gas-turbine engines for helicopters.
Building relationships.

I think we are just starting to feel we are settling in.... hopefully a few months of calm now. :0)

3-2-1!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Happy day after Thanksgiving!! So, with Jeremy being off from work and me avoiding my paper writing, we managed to wonder downtown for the Christmas tree lighting at Macy's. Here's the video so you can share in the experience.



Today has been one of the colder days since we've been here. It was in the 30's all day and is 26 as I'm writing this. We gave our hats, scarves, boots, socks, and gloves a good test drive today while we stood outside of Macy's for well over an hour. Interesting, because Thanksgiving here was about 60. What a change! To close, I'll post another clip taken after the tree was lit. After this, we walked down to Quincy and had some clam chowda :) and then some hot chocolate (coffee for me) to close out our night.... yay!

An interesting article.....

In today's Boston Globe and there was an interview with Boston's Cardinal Sean O'Malley about the Catholic church's stance on abortion and embryonic stem cell research. Apparently, anyone who supports a pro-abortion candidate endangers their own salvation! Wow...... A bold statement in a state that is full of Democratic Catholics. Here's the link to the article here:

http://www.boston.com/news/nation/articles/2007/11/15/omalley_draws_line_with_democrats/

How do you "rank" morality and moral issues as a Christian? I'm talking outside of things directly contrary to God's word that we just shouldn't support anyway. I'm not saying that I'm pro-abortion here, but I just cringed when I read this. Effects salvation? Really? I personally can't rank morality issues as most important and so on and so forth. What about poverty? God speaks directly on this one, and the political party that is most often against abortion often is also coupled with an often harsh stance on poverty and social welfare. I won't go any further with other issues. Just read the article and think about it. I just don't remember God "ascribing" Republican (or Democrat!) as a description of his character.

My New Job (Belcan)

So I had an interview with the Belcan Corporation the other day. It was amazing! I spoke with three different team leaders and the general manager over a 3 hour period. When I flopped my groups turbofan engine report from my propulsions course on their desk, I saw a twinkle in their eyes as they flipped through the pages. They were impressed with the gas turbine knowledge I had gained in my propulsions course as an undergrad. The Lord gave me the confidence Chels and I had prayed for as I spoke with them. My words came out clearly and I actually was far more articulate than ever before.

The very next day, I received a call from Belcan extending to me an offer to be a Design Engineer working with the airfoil/turbine group. It was great and I took it. Praise the Lord! He not only took care of us in our time of need, but rewarded our faithfulness with a job. Not just any job, a career that fits my passion for gas turbine engines (jet engines) right out of the gates. The job also offers me the opportunity to work closely with group members. My propulsions professor, Dr. Van Treuren, emailed me about the job and explained to me that it is very rare for an entry-level engineer to score a design position this soon. God is freaking awesome! I'm still not entirely sure exactly what I'll be doing. The company is a very entry-level friendly company so I'm not the least bit nervous of starting on Monday.

Man, the Lord has taken us on quite a ride over the past 6 months. It’s been a little scary at times but always exciting. God has completely lived up to his end of the deal, and then some, as Chels and I have trusted Him in times of need and with some big decisions we’ve faced.

In closing, I’m pretty dern excited about working with jets. “Word to the Fatha” –DC Talk

Old Blog, Never Posted (Cytonome Lay-off)

So I'm black and boggin. Wait, scratch that and reverse it. It's been a while but if I'm gonna blog about anything, this outta be it.

The events that transpired this Thursday (9-27-07) will definitely go down in my books as an experience. My boss and I and two other coworks took a stroll after lunch to check out the three gargantuan cruise ships that docked next to our building earlier that morning. Amazing feats of engineering by the way!

To set up the story, Cytonome, Inc. is a privately owned medical devices company resting on ...or shall I say clinging desperately to the shoulders of a few investors. In a company meeting we had a month ago, Lydia, our CEO, updated us on the status of the company by saying that we had a few key investors on the fence about this next period (I don't speak business very well so excuse me if my terminology is wrong) due to the shaky economy as a result of the deteriorating housing market. She was very optimistic which allowed us to leave with nothing really to worry about. Well, this Thursday, Lydia spontaneously called everyone (all 26 of us) into the conference room for another company meeting. She jumped straight to the point. The fence walking investors lost their balance and tumbled off the wrong side. (excuse the cheese) She was given a two week period to feverishly pick up some new investors but that didn't pan out. In order for Cytonome to survive, they had to make some cuts. Well, being the latest hire, I thought for sure I was a gonner...you know, being the one guy or maybe one of two to go. Nope. They cut 50% of the company. Not only did I go, but so did many others, which from my point of view, had much more at stake. Of the laid off included a few that had been around since the company started, a few Ph. Ds, and many with wives and children to support. Quite surprising to say the least.

Prior to this day, for some time mind you, I had been spiritually struggling to no avail. Despite even the tremendous blessings Chels and I have been given (my excellent job, our successful journey to Boston, our new relationships, etc.) My line of communication with God was, what seemed to me, severed, failing to encounter Him on a daily...um, make that a weekly basis. I found myself doing what I wanted to do, not thinking twice about what He or Chels wanted. To make the story short, life has been a bit dark for me lately.

Initially my heart dropped when I heard my name. "How am I gonna tell Chels?" was the question that weighed on my mind at first. As she continued to read the list, my mind was diverted from "What was I gonna do" thoughts. At that instant, I had a hard-wire connection with God and He was saying to me, "This is it, Jeremy! Here is an opportunity to represent me. This is why I brought you here.” Probably one of the most comforting and peaceful feelings I’ve ever felt in my life. It’s as if God had just raked any negative connotation from what had just occurred.

My attitude went from the verge of panicking to speaking with and consoling other coworkers who were also laid-off. I was reminded at that point that God said he would take care of us, which allowed me to maintain a positive outlook and encourage others for the next few hours I was there. I was able to reassure other “employed” coworks that Chels and I would be taken care of and proceeded to joke and make light of the situation, though not in front of other laid-off folk as it might have come across as a bit insensitive.

Needless to say, I left work happier than I had left any other day. It was an incredible experience and I am privileged and thankful to God that he used me in that.

World's Fastest Update

It is 31 degrees right now in Brighton. I see frost on a neighboring roof. Our bedroom heater still whistles louder than a train and maintenance told us that was "normal." Jeremy's engineering brain didn't settle for that, so he's figuring out how to work on the heater in that room.

I have a paper due tomorrow and have written one of 7-8 pages. I'm up early with Jackson (he's helping while Billy is snuggled in with Jeremy) trying to work on my paper, yet I'm blogging.

Well, Jeremy had a job interview yesterday. Went very well and he should hear within the week.

Back to work!

The mushrooms...

Well, that is just a couple of them... Cape Cod mushrooms fresh from a bucket in our neighbor's kitchen. She picked them herself from Cape Cod. Jeremy wasn't brave enough to try them when I cooked them. He said they looked like "Billy turds." I cooked them the way she said her mother did back in Russia. Evidently, they used to pick them from mountainsides. Cool. They tasted ok.... but then again, I can eat just about anything. I need to give her something back now... I gave her fresh basil and fruit from the market, she gave hand-picked mushrooms, hmmm.... any ideas?

Scattered thoughts minus the mushrooms

I'm full of disconnected thoughts this morning. I wanted to write about my mushroom eating experience, and post some pictures.... then I realized that the pictures are on the camera which is in the car which is parked about a 7 minute walk away from our apartment. It is dreary out, so I'm too lazy to get out and walk to it, even though I am greatly enjoying fall and being able to wear scarves without it being cold or frigid. Alas, the mushroom pictures and my story of cooking them "Russian style" will have to wait.

Jeremy is out and about today. A friend of his who was a resident on his hall when he was a CL (Community Leader or simply an RA) in a dorm at Baylor wanted to come up from NYC and see Boston for a day. So, he's out playing tour guide. We've done this so much already that perhaps we should start a business. We've even got a route and pattern that we've been using when doing this. Maybe this is our calling in life.... ha!

Me, I'm staying in because I didn't feel like being wet, and also need to do some homework (I haven't done any reading, studying, or writing for grad school since mid-terms ended about a week or so ago). I came out ok with grades on papers and tests.... the hardest I've ever worked for A's in my life! I am beginning to feel like I belong at grad school where I am so that is a great blessing and confirmation.

I just noticed that there is moss growing on the tree outside our balcony, and only on one side. My thought was "hmm... that must be the North side of the tree cause it gets less sunlight." Yes, random thought but true. I learned it from Jeremy's mom who learned it in girlscouts. Remember, when lost, always look for the moss to determine North. Actually, maybe I learned that on Man vs. Wild too.

In other randomness, Jeremy turned down a second interview for a job this week, bringing out mixed emotions from our family of which one side is more understanding of the reasoning in doing so than the other. Perhaps we just should not talk with them about it anymore so that we don't get the "well, a job is a job" explanation again. A job is much more than a job.... it is where God places to portray Himself. If a job were just a job, we wouldn't be up here draining a bank account of savings when we could make much more money easier at an engineering firm in Houston or Los Angeles working in oil where the market is hot.

I've been babysitting more lately, which is great. They don't know how much of a blessing they are being in Jeremy's and my life's by giving me more work when we need it. They don't know that Jeremy lost his job either. I've just kept that quiet. Also, Jeremy's truck back home looks like it may sell soon, which would help us out in this waiting period. Anyhow God continues to give provisions as they are needed.

Finally, someone asked the other day if having continued faith in God's provision for us is getting harder as days continue to pass. I said no quickly, but then made a comment that I have thought back upon. I said, "it will when after we pass the mark of time that it took Jeremy to get a job last time." It makes me sad that I said this as I guess the quick utterance of my mouth may say something about the condition of my heart. I pray that I don't have "timetable faith." But, I also see that God values me admitting my doubts honestly as I try, and try, and try to continually look to Him.

Next time, I'll post a picture and talk about the mushrooms. Just to hold you over though, I'll post a couple pictures.... one of me old school dressed up in my SING costume about ready to leave and go perform with KXA/ATO (Yay for the 80's) and the other of what happens when I get out of bed in the morning. Thought both would be good for a laugh. :0)
And in light of Halloween coming, I thought I'd post the dog's in a clown outfit previous to Halloween this year. Don't worry, no one is dressing up here this year.