Mis Amigas

Meet Chelsea, Angela, Katie, Laura, and Sara. We spend far more hours together than we do apart. On this occasion, we made mini pita pizzas, watched Madagascar, and played Apples to Apples. :)

John and Doug [Ang's husband] really loved it.

Just a Wednesday

Had a lovely morning today. Didn't start class until 9am, so I had the luxury of taking the "late" train at 7:48. I got up early with John, as he had to get to work for the morning shift. I can rarely manage to make this happen, but I LOVE being able to relax for a bit in the morning before the day's events begin to unfold. And so I did. I watched the news, disturbed after the first 4 stories concerned murders. I enjoyed my cereal and grapefruit as Channel 5 shared more light-hearted news: the Dalai Lama learning to fist pound and a baby dancing to Beyonce's music video. Enlightening? Maybe not, but better than murder. I left the house early enough to grab a cider at the Bucks and delve into the RedEye crossword for a bit before catching the train.

Toby is coming to visit today! We're excited to have had so many visitors. Should be a fun weekend!

Well, lunch break is over! Off to class...

Bennisons Bakery is the Bomb

This morning, after sleeping in for what felt like the first time in years, we decided to ride our bikes over to Bennisons Bakery for some breakfast. It is a local bakery here in Evanston and it is amazing. Leah had a carrot cake muffin and sugar donut and I had a ham & cheese croissant and custard-filled donut. Yum. So good. Now we are in the library and Leah is studying and I am putting off writing a paper!

U2

This past Saturday we were at the U2 360 Tour!!! Incredible! It is hard to describe a U2 concert if you have never been. There was so much energy in Soldier Field. David Bowie's "Space Oddity" started blaring through the sound system and that got everyone pumped up for the entrance. They came out to a thunderous ovation. Pretty cool to hear. To my surprise the opened with "Breathe" off of their latest album but it was perfect. The rest of the set list was spot on with the exception of only a partial play of "40." This was definitely made up though with the addition of "The Unforgettable Fire" and "Ultraviolet." I was not expecting either of those songs. So sweet. Also on the list was a beautiful version of "MLK."

Adding to the experience was the AMAZING stage they had set up. As you can see by the picture it looks like a space ship landed in the middle of the stage. Complete with rotating drum kits and walk ways, a retractable beehive LCD screen, and spotlights shooting into the sky. The tower in the middle of the stage also had the worlds biggest disco ball that exploded during "With or Without You." Such a great experience. After the last encore they finished off with "Moment of Surrender." I was a little surprised by this selection as well but it ended up being perfect!

So that was the concert. Sorry I geeked out and told you about every song they played but it was such a great night. Overall not as intimate as the Vertigo tour but ten times more powerful.

Long Absence

Ah, the blog. It gets tucked so deeply in my brain behind the facts about Diabetes, epidural hematomas, and contact dermatitis. Sorry for the long absence.

The days are long, but the weeks are moving quicker than I can keep up. John has started graduate school at Trinity International University in Deerfield, IL. He is taking classes for the "Communications and Culture" program, which I think suits him very well. He's so intuitive...much more abstract than I could ever claim to be. His schedule still allows him to work quite a bit, which is nice.

My days go kind of like this:
5:45 -- Wake Up
6:43 -- Hop on my bike to the train station
6:56 -- Train arrives
8-4 or 5pm -- CLASS
5:30 or 6:30 -- Arrive Home
6:00-7:00 -- Dinner/Decompress
7:00-9:30 -- Study
9:30ish -- Head to bed

Last weekend I studied for 26 hrs between Friday and Sunday. I usually have one or two exams every Monday or Tuesday. So, it's a bit busy. BUT, when I stop and think about what I am doing and why I am subjecting myself to this crazy life, it all makes sense. After a long road of wondering what to do with my life, applying to schools and waiting a year to find out where I'd be going, it feels really good to be IN THE MIDST of it all. And I am so eager to know enough so that I can make a positive impact in someone's life by helping them heal. Medicine is [or should be] of holistic benefit to the patient...it's not just about curing, but HEALING.

Well, nothing else too new here...we miss our family in PA and really, really hope to get out there soon. It's been far too long. Congratulations to Crunch and Gina on their new son, Owen, who was born quite premature and has not been able to leave the hospital yet. We are praying for his health, that he might be home soon. Dad B. still has daily struggles with swelling and neuropathy. We are thankful, though, that he is still CANCER FREE!!

Dad H. is training for his 50-miler on October 11th. In celebration of God's goodness in his 50 years of life, he has decided to run 23.8 miles to the start of the Chicago Marathon, and then run the marathon, totaling 50 miles. He is raising $50,000 for Africa and to start a running/walking/mentoring program in the city of Chicago called "Sole to Soul." I would love it if you'd check out his website and consider giving financially to this endeavor. It will be life-changing, for sure, but he certainly can't do it alone.
http://www.firstgiving.com/timhoekstra50miler
http://timhoekstranumbtoe50miler.blogspot.com/ (His blog)

Thanks for reading...if anyone is reading....

Leah Joy