Hawkeye-Gopher game from the concourse

Saturday I had the opportunity to work security at the Iowa-Minnesota game.  What Iowa fan wouldn't want to get paid to see them play especially when Minnesota is doing the paying?  I went through a few hours of training a few weeks ago but didn't really know what to expect.  I reported at 11am for the 2:30 kickoff.  It took a few minutes to get my uniform, a bright yellow jacket to go over "however many layers you need to stay warm."  (I had 5.)  Then I found a chair until it was time to head up to the student section where we got our assignments.  When one of the supervisors added me to his group he told me it would be one of the warmer jobs.  As we walked around the concourse to our location the constantly running water fountains were my first clue that there wasn't anywhere on the concourse that would qualify as warm.  It was 21 degrees on the field and it was several degrees cooler when surrounded by concrete.

My assignment was shared with two other people.  One of us stood next to the entrance to Goldy's (the U of Minn clothing store which did a great deal of business - though it could have just been a great place to go to warm up).  Another checked tickets at the door leading to the premium seating elevators.  The third stood in by the elevators.  That's where the warmth was.  We rotated every 15 minutes so after a half hour of cold we took a turn getting warm.  None of the jobs were difficult and gave me ample opportunity to people-watch.  However I didn't have a view of the field.  Fortunately there was a TV monitor in both locations so I could follow what was happening.  It wouldn't have helped to follow the roar of the crowd since both the Minnesota and Iowa fans put out about the same volume.

During the training we had been told that the student section yells, "We hate Iowa" even when they aren't playing Iowa.  I'm not sure that is true (though I was far from the student section) and from my vantage point it was a good-natured rivalry among the fans.  In fact there were several couples or groups made up of both Minnesota and Iowa fans.  Everyone was cold (except those who were dressed for snowmobiling or hunting) and both sides had things to cheer about until the last Minnesota drive which won the game for them.   The goal posts came down and a group of fans thoroughly enjoyed leaving the stadium cheering, "Who beat Iowa?  We beat Iowa!" After waiting for the stadium to clear and checking a few sections for lost-&-found items, I was glad for a brisk walk and an all out sprint for the last block to catch a nice warm bus home.  I was also glad to have some left-over soup to warm up for supper.

Giving Thanks

It's the time of year when we remember all the things we have to be thankful for.  While there are always reasons to give thanks, it is good to have a day set aside to thank God for a bountiful harvest and getting us through another year.  This might be more obvious to those of us with some connection to agriculture.  Most of the time a good farmer will make a better living than a poor one.  But one storm can wipe out a year's income no matter how good of a farmer one is.  Maybe it's that realization that their livelihood is dependent on the weather that makes it easier for farmers to be thankful and enjoy a day of feasting to celebrate another year's harvest in the bins.

During this transition I've been purposefully reminding myself of the many reasons I have to be thankful.  It helps me put things into perspective when I'm missing friends and a sense of belonging.  So here's a partial list of what I'm thankful for right here, today.

• A great living situation: 12 minutes from school by bike with a roommate who understands cross-cultural transitions
• Numerous opportunities to speak French
• Twin Cities Church: a family of families where I am starting to have a sense of belonging.
• I'm only 3 1/2 hours away from my family
• Extended family in the area that include me in gatherings
• Classes that I am enjoying
• How nice people are when I ask for help or information.  "Minnesota nice" is a cultural thing that still takes me by surprise.  I guess I was used to getting a sense that my request is a bother even when responding to that request is that person's job.
• I'm not having to spend as much time studying as I did at the beginning of the semester.
• People around the globe that care about me and keep in touch

What's one thing on your list this year?

Odds and Ends

I was laying in bed last night and remembered I hadn't written anything here this weekend.  I was too snug under my blankets and quilt to want to get out of bed and I didn't really have any good ideas of what to write about so I stayed put.  I had talked to Mom on Sat evening and she did most of the talking.  In any case, here's some odds and ends just so I don't break my streak (even though I am a day late.)

Last week, despite the 60 degree temps, we got ready for winter by getting the upstairs windows covered with plastic.  (That "we" doesn't include me as I had no part in the actual work.)  I am living in a house that is over 100 years old and the window's aren't very tight so this will be a big help as temperatures fall.  Saturday I woke up to snow and it kept snowing until mid-afternoon.  It felt very much like a snow-day to me and I was wishing I had some hot chocolate in the house.  I did do the shoveling and walked to the library through.  It wasn't that much snow but it was heavy!

I've been more serious about the part-time job-hunt over the past week.  Part of my daily routine is checking the part-time job section on Craig's list and responding to anything that someone might think I was actually qualified for by looking at my resume.  So far, I haven't had any calls.  The disadvantage is that the vast majority don't have any company name so I can't actually follow up on them.  I'll keep trying.

Now it's time to study for my psychology test tomorrow on personality and motivation.  It's not too difficult but I do need to get the right dead men (and one woman) connected with the right concepts.

Cider and s'mores

About a month ago I decided which church to become a part of.  There are numerous good churches in the Twin Cities and several are within walking distance of where I live.  In the end I settled on Twin Cities Church which has a service in West St Paul in the morning and another in Uptown in the afternoon which isn't far from where I live.  TCC is a church plant so it is quite a bit smaller than most churches.  People will definitely notice if I'm not there.  What drew me was the friendliness of the people as well as the emphasis on what they call "house church" during the week.  I joined a group that meets on Wednesday evening at someone's home.  We eat together, have communion, study the Bible and pray.  I have appreciated the discussions and how the group doesn't move on until everyone has completed their homework.  And it's not enough to just get through the material; it needs to be internalized.

Yesterday afternoon my house church got together with a house church from St Paul on a small horse farm east of St. Paul.  The weather couldn't have been more perfect.  The horses and ponies got a good workout giving everyone rides.  We made apple cider which I had never done before.  It's a pretty easy process as long as you have some ready muscles in the group.  Throw some clean apples into the contraption and have someone turn the crank to grind them up.  When the bucket underneath is full a top is screwed down forcing the juice out where it drains into a pitcher.  That's about it.  The big question of the day was, "What's the difference between apple cider and apple juice?"  As the sun went down the HOT unpasturized and unstrained apple cider was a big hit.  Supper was bratwursts, sauerkraut, baked beans and numerous other side dishes.  Two of the people there spoke French so we had our own conversation going on for awhile.  We ended the evening sitting around the fire eating s'mores.  I enjoyed being out in the country where it was quiet and I could see the stars.