A Long Weekend!

Greetings everyone!

A post is long overdue, but I have been recovering from the last week or so!  We have been traveling,

This is what I've been driving for a month!

working, partying and many other things!  For our first month in Texas, we have been driving around in a 15 passanger van that has been teetering on the brink of death for a while now!  We are thankful that the van made it back to Wisconsin without anything breaking down!  We left the Wednesday before the Fourth of July at 4 PM and it took us 7 hours and 30 minutes to get to Wichita, KS!  It was terrible because I was, again, driving with the trailer in bumper to bumper traffic.

After four-ish hour of sleep, Shalyn and I got back on the road at 4 AM and drove all the way to Wisconsin!  It was another 9 hours from Wichita to Boscobel and I will not lie, I am dragging by the end of the journey.  Shalyn on the other hand was sleeping on an inflatable mattress that she blew up in the back of the van.  So naturally, shortly after I got into Boscobel, I slept for about 16 hours!  We had about 24 hours of rest before Shalyn and I had to go to the rehearsal for her brother, Jordan's wedding!  She was a bridesmaid and I was a co-officiant.

Saturday, we were partying at the wedding all day long.  It went smoothly and my brother-in-law is happily married to his lady of choice!  However, the wedding festivities went on until around 9:15 PM and we were getting up at 4 AM to drive back to Texas (Sunday)!  Fortunately, this trip back to Texas was a lot better.  We made it in 15 hours and 15 minutes of straight driving and Shalyn was finally able to help me out!  We had to get Shalyn back to work on Monday morning!  Luckily for me, I had Monday off so I was able to sleep lots and study more Greek.

Needless to say, it was not a particularly restful weekend, but we would not have missed the wedding for anything.  Now, Shalyn and I are working on recovering our strength before my family comes and then Shalyn's family.  No rest for these weary souls.  Shalyn is still loving her job and I am spending a lot of time studying and working.

Until next time!

Michael and Shalyn

North v. South Part 1

Greetings everyone,

This post will be a bit shorter than my typical blog, but that is due to the fact that I am writing it on a whim.  Well, to be fair, I always write on a whim and rarely have a coherent purpose to each blog post.  I thought it would be fun to start a series of blog posts over the course of my time in Texas reflecting and recording on the differences between the North and the South.  It is a pretty crazy experience to say the least!

North	South	My experience
You all	Ya’ll	Everyone says “Ya’ll” down here and I resolutely refuse to comply!
75-85 degree summer	100-115 degree summer	It doesn’t cool down except for a few hours in the early morning.
The Civil War	The War of Northern Aggression	Sadly, they are still living and fighting the Civil War down here.
Hamburger comes from cow	You can also get alligator burgers here.	No thank you!
We have a highway or two	There are about 10 highways in Dallas.	The road system is so bad here that my GPS doesn’t know where I am half the time.
McDonald’s	Whataburger	No comment.
Women wear pants	Women wear dresses	It is so hot that most women wear dresses to cope with the heat.
Easy listening music:  classic rock	Easy listening music:  Country	I hear nothing but country down here.  If I have to hear another song about a guy’s truck or dog or girlfriend leaving him, I might explode!
Mullets are thing of the past.	Not so much here.  A little too common.	Yeah...

Once Too Many

Greetings friends and family,

As you are reading this, I am currently on my way back to Wisconsin to bear witness to the wedding of Shalyn's brother.  I am driving the 15 passenger van and 16 foot trailer back north over the course of 24 hours and I will be one crabby patty by the time it is done.  Let me tell you, it was terrible to drive it once, but now I am about to do it for not only the second, but third time as well!  We will arrive in Wisconsin on Thursday and we will be driving back down to Texas on Sunday!  It is going to be a grueling experience.

Please keep us in your prayers as we drive back and forth once more!  Once we are done with this upcoming weekend, we will be forever free of that terrible drive!   1000 miles is rough.  Fortunately, on our trip back down to Texas, Shalyn will finally be able to bear some of the driving mantle.