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We got back from the Wisconsin Dells today (I’ll post pictures in the next couple of days). We were gone for two and a half days and I’m completely wiped out. We had a great time. I love getting away with Bethany and the boys, but I definitely wouldn’t describe it as relaxing. Parker’s old enough to entertain himself, but Kent…well let’s just say he adds “spice” to the vacation experience.

I’m starting to realize something about myself. The last couple of times I’ve been away from home overnight, I’ve had an increasingly hard time getting a good night’s rest. Last night in the hotel I tossed and turned. I felt like I was up all night. I think it’s the pillows. I never thought I’d say this, but I think I might have to bring my pillows with me. Is that weird? There’s nothing special about my pillows. In fact, they’re crazy old. I’ve been using them for at least 8 years. But for whatever reason, I just can’t get comfortable with the hotel pillows.

Maybe it’s because I turned 30 this year….oh well, at least I’m back home with my pillows.

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It happens to everybody. You’re running late, and when you get to your car, you find the windows fogged up. If they were frosted, you could grab your scrapper and clean of the ice. This, however, is different. It’s some sort of strange temperature thing and to solve the problem you’re going to need to wait ten minutes for your car to warm up.

But, as I said, you’re late.

So what do you do? You go ahead and leave hoping that windows will defog before you run into your neighbors garbage can or run over that strange neighborhood cat that always seems to be lurking around.

I’ll admit, I’ve done this, but last Saturday I fell victim to this seemingly innocent, yet defiant act.

Around 7:40am I was traveling north on 80th Ave. when a guy in a red Pontiac Firebird pulled out in front of me. He pulled up to his stop sign (I had none), stopped for several seconds (as if he was waiting for me to pass) and then just pulled out in front of me. Fortunately, my lightning fast reflexes kicked into gear and I immediately laid on my horn (priority #1) and then swerved and slammed on the brakes. As I was moving to safety, I realized that I couldn’t see into Mr. Speedracer’s windows. Yep, they were all fogged up.

He forgot one of the most important rules of driving with foggy windows: Role Them Down. After all, being able to see is one of the slightly essential aspects of driving.
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I’m on vacation for the next couple of days. I’m not sure how much I’ll be able to post since wifi at the hotel only works in the lobby. I’ll post pictures when we get back.

In the meantime, here’s a few observations from our first couple of hours away:
- People in Wisconsin need to read my Traffic Tuesday posts.
- The Taco Bell at the Belvidere Oasis is quite possibly one of the nicest I’ve been too.
- Time Change, Road Trip and boys under five don’t mix.
- Wisconsin Dells is ghetto.
- It’s nice when your hotel upgrades your room.

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Tonight our youth ministry decided we’d do something for others instead of ourselves. Instead of going from house to house asking for candy and handouts, we asked for non-perishable food items for a local food pantry. And we didn’t accept any candy.

This is the second year we’ve done this. Last year, Halloween landed on a Wednesday and instead of holding youth service, we loaded our students onto our church bus and dropped groups off in four different neighborhoods around the church. It’s a perfect night for this because people are already expecting visitors to be coming to their door. Most are pleasantly surprised that a group of teenagers are thinking of others instead of themselves.

Because we didn’t have a captive audience (non-youth service night), we had about 25% of our group show up. We had a blast and collected a ton of food for people in need. I’m so proud of our students who are willing to give and live selflessly.

When we finished, we helped out at our church’s Trunk or Treat event (see picture).

To celebrate, we pelted each other with dodge balls for about an hour before going home.
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I voted early today. I’m not going to be around next Tuesday and wanted to make sure I did my part.

I didn’t realize how crazy it would be.

When I got to the township office, the lady there (turns out she’s my sister-in-law’s aunt!) told me that it would be a 2 hour wait. So I sat down with a book and waited. When all was said and done, my name was called about an hour and a half in. Not too bad.

The voting went well, but I have a question. Maybe I’m not doing due diligence before I get into the booth, but what’s with section on Judges? There were about six on the list and I’ve only heard of one of them. I’m not typically in the courtroom, so I’m pretty much clueless about what these people are like or why I should or shouldn’t check yes by their name. Every time I vote I just stare at the page trying to figure out what I should do. Is there some sort of “Voter’s Guide” for judges?

At the end I got an “I Voted” sticker. Something about that just makes me proud. Whether or not my candidate gets elected, I’m proud of the fact that I live in a country that gives me the opportunity to voice my opinion. And I guess I’m proud that I acted on that opportunity.

Don’t forget to cast your vote on Tuesday, November 4, 2008.
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