Clockwise from Top Left:
A grown man dressed as a baby, running a marathon.
A tree, being chased by an orangutan with an ax, running a marathon.
A man running a marathon in his silk boxers.
A 60 something gentleman, on a motorcycle that is airbrushed with a castle in the clouds, wearing leather pants and a helmet with a woman airbrushed on it, blaring George Michael from his stereo, leading the marathon.
More pics here: Vienna Marathon
This past Sunday the city shut down for the Vienna City Marathon. Over 30,000 people flooded the streets of Vienna, .
A student and I decided to train for the half-marathon this year, and despite a rushed training schedule, were able to finish the race without too much trouble. I achieved my goal of under 2 hours, just barely, coming in at 1:56:22. Good enough to beat the Kenyans leading the marathon pack. Of course they only needed 12 extra minutes to run twice as far as me, but that’s another story.
After a 2 year hiatus from any run longer 5K, it was a lot of fun to train and run this race, and I’m hoping it’ll be a springboard to other runs in my ongoing struggle to maintain motivation.
It was also neat to see a student of mine, who only started running two years ago, get really excited about training and running this race. He’s come a long way in such a short amount of time.
Facebook is a funny thing. It’s been such a blessing to me since being overseas because it’s a great way to keep up with the people I love. It’s one way that I can still feel connected while being so far away. It has also allowed me to let friends and family in on our lives over here. However, there are a few downsides to being connected. Lately, I’ve been saddened almost every time I log in. The main reason for this sadness is that I see my Christian friends joining groups, making statements, or supporting causes that are hate driven. This is not what Christ calls us to. Opinions are good. Thinking is good. Approaching your faith from the heart and the mind is good. Being politically active is good. Expressing opinions about others with undertones of hate or disdain is not good. Today I logged on to find that several people had joined the group:
DEAR LORD, THIS YEAR YOU TOOK MY FAVORITE ACTOR, PATRICK SWAYZIE. YOU TOOK MY FAVORITE ACTRESS, FARAH FAWCETT. YOU TOOK MY FAVORITE SINGER, MICHAEL JACKSON. I JUST WANTED TO LET YOU KNOW, MY FAVORITE PRESIDENT IS BARACK OBAMA. AMEN.
First off, Patrick Swayze and Farah Fawcett? Really? But that is not what grieves me. What grieves me is how ugly this statement is. It grieves me even more to note that with one exception every friend who joined this group is a Christian. Somehow we’ve come to a point where we believe that if we taint something with humor, it’s OK to be ugly. I think God has a different view.
Psalm 19:14 ~ “May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be pleasing in your sight, O LORD, my Rock and my Redeemer.”
Psalm 141:3-4 ~ “Set a guard over my mouth, O LORD; keep watch over the door of my lips. Let not my heart be drawn to what is evil, to take part in wicked deeds with men who are evildoers; let me not eat of their delicacies.”
Proverbs 4:23-25 ~ “Above all else, guard your heart, for it is the wellspring of life. Put away perversity from your mouth; keep corrupt talk far from your lips. Let your eyes look straight ahead, fix your gaze directly before you.”
Proverbs 10:10-12 ~ “He who winks maliciously causes grief, and a chattering fool comes to ruin. The mouth of the righteous is a fountain of life, but violence overwhelms the mouth of the wicked. Hatred stirs up dissension, but love covers over all wrongs.”
Ephesians 4:29-32 ~ “Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen. And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, with whom you were sealed for the day of redemption. Get rid of all bitterness, rage and anger, brawling and slander, along with every form of malice. Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you.”
The words we type are still our words. They are generally longer lasting than the words we speak. If we want to proclaim Christ, we need to guard our tongues – and our keyboards. Maybe tomorrow I’ll log in and see that people have joined a group called “I Pray for the President.” Wouldn’t that be refreshing?
So, I’ve had my new teeth for a couple of weeks now. They are getting to the point where hot and cold drinks/food aren’t painful, so I’m super excited about that. They are also kind of pretty. I mean, as much as teeth can be pretty. They look like the real deal, which is great. In the end the dentist did not feel sorry for me, at least not enough to lower my bill. The final tab was €1,900 ($2,526). Ouch! This is a good advertisement for dental insurance. While I’m excited about my new teeth, I’m a little disappointed that with a price tag like that, I don’t look like this:
Today was my second visit to the dentist. He removed the bad fillings then took impressions and ordered my new inlays. As usual, I took more novocaine than should be necessary. He said it was enough to numb a crocodile. 🙂 Also, as usual, about halfway through it started to wear off. He said he was amazed at my bodies ability to “eat drugs.” The same thing happened when I had surgery. The doctors had to give me crazy doses of morphine, and they were amazed it didn’t work. I’d like to believe this is some kind of superpower, but I don’t really see how it’s useful for anything. On the plus side, the dentist felt really sorry for me and kept stroking my head and saying, “Oh, you poor thing.” Maybe he’ll feel sorry enough to lower the cost of my bill. Hmmm…