I Need to Go to the Bathroom (a joint blogger edition)

31 Diet Pepsis - $12ish
24 IBC Root Beers - $8ish
2 Gallons of Lemonade - $1ish
36 Packages of Famous Amos Cookies $7ish
24 Gatorades $7ish
6 Meals at Subway $100ish
3 Afternoons at Panera $90ish
2 Trips to Buffalo Wild Wings $160ish
1 Full Jar of Home Depot Receipts $More than I can put on my hands (ish)
Jenny's New Bathroom - Priceless



It wasn't always clear to Nate that we needed a new bathroom, but I think this evidence will suffice, our former shower wall:

And notice the attractive "custom" vanity with shell shaped sink:

There wasn't always a lot of standing room between the counter and tub:

So it became time to tear the place down. We figured that re-using much of anything wouldn't have been worth it, so the room was taken down to the studs. Jenny did not stop smiling with the hammer in her hands:
We even convinced other grunt workers to show up and be our muscle:

Though demo took us longer than we would have hoped, and cut our hands more than we would have thought, we did get to start making it look like a room again (We were especially proud to get all the correct holes in the correct places on this piece with only 1 try):

And after more labor, we had the entire room covered in either backer-board or drywall:

So we put Jenny to work hanging new tile in her new shower:

But she got too bossy, so we made her cut her own pieces:
After finishing the shower, it was time to tile the floor:

Apparently, that is all it takes to make a new bathroom. Random new bathroom pictures below.

The shell wall replacement with new custom recessed inserts:

View from the doorway:
Still the doorway, but a view that shows the new cabinet system better:

The fun diamond pattern on the floor:

And, another shower wall, to compare this time:

We love the new bathroom. We are indebted to all who helped, but most to Dad Kemper who spent tireless weekends and countless evenings giving up his time and energy to come make us happy. We realized the first time we tried working without him, that we would not have created anything worth taking a picture of without his help.

We figured we would honor him the best way we new how in this post, we refrained from posting any of the embarassing pictures we had of him in the bathroom, whether bent over or hung over.

Yay for Sleep

I didn't end up having to stay up all night to finish my paper.

Unfortunately, I was in such disarray when I went to bed, that I set the time of my alarm correctly without actually setting my alarm.

Good thing my wife is attentive and woke me up this morning. She is always looking out for my good.

Time to get writing

In the next 32 hours I need to write what will amount to about 26 pages worth of papers.

One of them is my fault for overachieving and taking something that needed a minimum of 12 sections and creating mine to have 68 sections.

The other papers are a result of my normal procrastination.

After sleeping about 10 hours tonight, it will be interesting to see if I get any sleep before class on Thursday.

Time will tell....

Times Have Changed

Jenny and I went to the conservatory today as she was excited to play around with her new camera lens.

While we were there, it became very apparent to me that times had changed. The majority of people taking pictures could view them instantly. That wasn't the most unfortunate part about how times have changed, in fact, I think that part is cool.

The unfortunate part was that more people were taking pictures with their cell phones than with cameras. Can you really grab that great of a picture on a cell phone? I've never owned a phone that could take pictures, I've always just grabbed the cheapest model that fit in my pocket, and if someday, that happens to come with a camera, I'll use that camera.

I, however, will use that camera to take pictures of things that happen when I wouldn't normally be carrying a camera. But, if i'm going to go to the zoo, or a conservatory, or on vacation, or to a wedding, I hope that I bring something along that will take good pictures, not just a phone.

I Feel Fat

I do feel fat, but that is a good thing.

The championship dinner was absolutely delightful.

I even got out on the golf course today, and both dad and I were pleasantly surprised with how well we played for it having been our first time on the course for the season.

I think now, it is time for a Freezy Pop to end the night.

Phone Call of Pure Delight

Some of you may remember that I won a Swedish Meatball dinner as a prize during the NCAA March Madness competition.

I got a phone call today confirming the rest of the menu (mashed potatoes, corn, strawberry jell-o, homemade rolls, and red velvet cake) from the cook as she was in the grocery store.

It brought pure delight to my being as I began to anticipate Friday Night's Dinner.

Training Time

I had to remind myself today about the time some of the notable Bible characters spent learning before they "did ministry."

Moses on mountains, David shepherding, Jesus in the wilderness.

Some days I wonder if I should be "doing ministry" full-time instead of studying it. Then I remember the times these people had. Times of extensive training, preparing them for the crucial moments that were in their future.

Hopefully, I'll be adequately prepared.

They're Stuck to My Leg

Last night's soccer game was played on a turf field.

I managed not to re-open any scabs on my knees from the previous games, but to add, two new knee skin injuries.

I also got the dreaded "strawberry" on the side of my left leg from sliding on the turf.

When I woke up this morning, my boxers were stuck to my leg as the ooze that should be scabbing was just absorbed by them. It hurts to get you boxers unstuck from that situation. The shower then, doesn't feel much better.

A Sigh of Relief

I had a teacher extend the due date on a project. It was a sigh of relief to read that e-mail. It spaces my projects out into a much more manageable timeframe.

It is amazing how an e-mail like that can change your attitude in the morning. Okay, i'll be honest, it was afternoon before I was up today, but regardless, that e-mail took considerable pressure off of what I needed to accomplish this weekend.

Bland Anticipation

I thought that the first Narnia movie was made well. It didn't blow me away though.

I haven't heard much hype for the next one. I'll see it. I'll enjoy it.

But my expectations are bland. I'm much more looking forward to Indiana Jones and Dark Knight later in the summer.

Quoting Another

Reading a book for class, he quoted another author I've been meaning to read but still haven't.

"The God of love, the love of God - the words come easy. The most difficult thing is to bear witness in some tangible way to the truth of the words. In many cases love is actually powerless. Love has in itself no immediate tangible benefits. We are therefore hard put to find where the love of God can be, hidden behind tangible realities which rather suggest that God does not exist, or that he never speaks, or that he is angry."

Shusaku Endo

Calm Before the Storm

There are many students starting to worry at Seminary. The end of school year approaches. This week is my calm before the storm as I have had only small assignments due.

Next week, I have more work ahead of me.

Ugh.

Decision Made

If I could only have one entertainment object the rest of my life it would be a deck of cards.

Don't know why I asked myself that question, but I did.

More Exciting than Last Week

Last week I had one and only one thought after the soccer game. My body hurts.

This week is a little more exciting. Last week we would have won if we had 1 more sub. This week, we had 5 fewer subs and we won.

The key to winning, the other team didn't have any subs, and played short.

We scraped by with a 3-2 win after trailing 2-1 with 15 minutes to play.

It was a lot more fun, and even though I couldn't sub out, my body isn't sore.

More Bathroom Work

Nearing the end.

Long pictorial post coming soon.

Defining My Being

Occasionally as I read different books for my classes, parts of them speak into my life more than into my brain. I love these. Though they make it harder for me to again focus on the assignment at hand, the value they bring to my soul surpasses any of that.

I was challenged today by one such quote. It is from a book by Douglas John Hall called "God and Human Suffering"

The quote stated this:

"...temptation is all about the desire of the creature to have arrived, to possess a permanent abode, to transcend the precariousness of temporality... The temptation of Adam and Eve and of Christ, the temptation of everyman and everywoman is to 'have' their being rather than having to 'receive' it, daily, like the manna of the wilderness or the 'daily bread' of Jesus' model prayer. It is the temptation to possess being rather than to trust the One who gives us our being daily."

Make me today a person who receives being from you and acknowledges your gift of it to other people. Help me to realize the same again tomorrow.

No Interpretation

I like art. I like looking at art.

What I don't like is trying to interpret the story or message behind art. If beauty is in the eye of the beholder, can't meaning be also. What if what a picture does inside me has nothing to do with the intention of the artist?

Tonight in class we were asked to discuss our interpretations of a painting that related to the church. It felt like a small group of people trying to find the answer behind a painting. Must there be an answer? Can't everyone's thoughts be true to themselves? If something was supposed to be clearly depicted, shouldn't it be clearly painted or sculpted?

I'm too logical sometimes for art that needs interpretation. That is what I have decided. Regardless, I enjoy that art, just not having to discuss it with people who "understand" art.

How Hot Can You Handle?

I don't know how hot of conditions I could handle living in, but I've discovered this.

Frogs can live comfortably in a hot tub at 103 degrees. I know this because I have had to kick him out a couple of times when I wanted to use it.

Tonight was again one of those times.

An Enduring Mind

I have found that my mind has maintained its endurance as I have continued to use it.

My body, not so much.

Soccer last night made me very sore physically.

Mentally, I was able to stay up most of the night to finish my paper, while I refused to go up and down the stairs.

Maybe at some point I'll get in shape again physically.

Feeling Guilty

I just finished off a block of cheddar cheese.

In the last three days, I ate the whole block.

I didn't buy the cheese.

I'm feeling a little guilty.

Time to go eat my guilt away.