San Francisco

We headed into San Francisco to check out Fisherman's Wharf for the day today. SF is an amazing city. No sign of fog and fantastic weather! We even saw the "world famous Bushman" scaring people at the Wharf!

No this isn't from Alcatraz! Although not a bad idea. Actually this is taken from Battery Spencer which is an old Anti-aircraft gun installation that was set up near the Golden Gate to protect the bridge during the second world war. This is actually Trav in one of the old officers quarters. 

Here's my Dad and I at the Golden Gate in SF. 

Here's my Dad and Trav from above the Golden Gate bridge. 

This is the famous Lombard St. in San Francisco. The crookedest-short street in the world. 

Here's Alcatraz prison from Fisherman's Wharf in San Francisco. 

The sun dipping below the horizon. It's so cool to stand at ocean and consider God's creation and the possibility that He created these sunsets to dazzle mankind. 

It was such a kick watching Trav chase the waves at the beach. The waves were amazing! 

Here's Trav at the ocean at sunset. 

Here's the sunset on Father's Day 2005 from a beach near Santa Cruz. I have wanted to watch the sunset at the ocean for a long time. To have Trav there was amazing! 

TO - Tacoma - Turlock!

Vintage Faith church in Santa Cruz was awesome! Thanks to Kristin and Hannah who gave us their time at the coffee shop to tell us the story of people on an adventure themselves and encourage and affirm us on ours.

We arrived in Turlock, California (about 90 minutes east of San Fransisco) on Monday night! It was exciting to see family and friends and to find a semi-permanent home away from home for the next 2 months!

It was a little sad to see one part of our trip come to an end - the father and son adventure across the US. For as long as I live I will never forget these last two weeks. Once in a lifetime do you get the chance to have some time with your son like that. The memories are so rich and I would do it all again in a heartbeat. We learned about Trav's favourite movies, favourite actor, favourite sports team, favourite chocolate bar, favourite thing to do when there's nothing else to do, favourite place to eat (although we learned that too much of Taco Bell is not a good thing!), what he wants to be when he grows up, we found out what Dad's favourite everything and anything was (twice, in fact) we learned that Dr Pepper beats anything else hands down, and we forged a bond and a memory as we tamed the roads from Illinois to Washington. Although the roads in Santa Cruz did get the best of us near the end! We celebrated Father's Day at the best burger place on the planet (IN-N-OUT) and we watched the sun go down on a beach beside the Pacific ocean. These last two weeks have been dreams come true. Thanks to all who've shared the adventure thus far.

Now for some time to relax and begin reading (a long list of books I've wanted to get to for a time - including "The Shaping of Things to Come" and thinking about the story God is telling in our lives and where the past two weeks will lead us in the chapters ahead!

... the adventure continues ...

On Maps, Roads and Hotels...

Okay - here's the thing about maps ... apparently the big blue lines are roads that get you where you want to go fast - without much fanfare and with great efficiency. It's important to consider that the map makers used a very thick blue marker to make those lines - just like the ones your teacher used to use - to draw your attention to something important!

The small pink lines are apparently roads that get you where you want to go with a whole lot of scenery but at the same pace at which the glaciers are reseeding. The small pink line seemed so straight to me - getting us to where we wanted to go but with the benefit of a whole lot of cool scenery! Sure everyone else seemed to be on the big blue line but hey - the road less traveled right?

Well, the trip that should have taken 7 hours from Portland to Santa Cruz, California took 14 hours! Here's the thing - I've always wanted to drive the Pacific Coast Hwy along the coast and figured we could watch the ocean after spending so much time in the mountains. Well after about an hour during which we covered maybe 15 miles - I began to see the ocean as overrated. Particularly because there was a storm and we couldn't tell the difference between the sky and the water!

Along the way - we also realized that when you buy McDonald's at 10pm in a town where they rolled up the sidewalks at 8 - you really should never look inside your burger (generally a good safety tip for McD's at anytime, anyway).

And while we're on it - you know when that guy on the Motel 6 commercial tells you that at Motel 6 - "we'll leave the light on for ya..."? Yeh, well that light is actually a "bug zapper" - seriously - RAID makes better motels than these folks! And if you get a sense of "timelessness" at Motel 6 - it's because none of the rooms have clocks in them!!!

Okay - so with all that in mind what's the point? Well, the point is that on our twisting and turning mountain to ocean to mountain drive yesterday as we were wondering if the invention of sasquatch came from people lost on drives like this - I remember Mike Yaconelli's words to live by - cherishing each moment with the perspective - "What a ride".

This sabbatical journey has been an incredible ride and God has been - well, God. Inspiring and speaking every step of the way. And what wisdom did He give in the midst of the extra 7 hours? Just this - sometimes to be part of something really special - you have to take the "small pink lines" even though many others are doing quite well with the "big blue lines."

!Manana!

We finally made it! Although at this point the days' journey was just beginning! 

Here's a view of the Pacific while we drove along and along and along HWY 1! 

Here's what happens when you arrive at your hotel at 1am and find out about your hotel after you've slept a night! This is the technical way of saying "we allow smoking in designated rooms!" 

On The Road Again...

Well we're packing up from Portland. It was an interesting stay and I hada chance to think thru a few things so far which I'll get to blogging on soon. We're heading into California and a drive along the Pacific Coast Highway into Santa Cruz. There we're hooking up with Vintage Faith church. You can check out their web site by clicking below:

Vintage Faith church

Since I've been checking out what it means to be the body of Christ - I think it's pretty cool the series they are in right now at Vintage Faith! Looking forward to it!

I got a feeling back a few months ago that my plans may not come out exactly as I figured they would but so far I can see that God has opened some doors and experiences - that I wouldn't have thought of or dreamed of! So we'll look forward to VF! It's been an amazing journey so far! What a ride!

If you've read "Blue Like Jazz" you'll remember this place fondly! 

I looked for a confession booth but alas Renn Fayre is in May! 

On the way out to Mt Hood we stopped by this place for something to do but ... couldn't find anything, really. Very slow ... not much to do there, not very exciting at all ... go figure. 

Trav and I took a run out to see Mt Hood today! It's pretty awesome! Kinda weird to see snow. Nice, knowing that I won't have to see it at home for a few more months! 

Here's another picture of Mt Hood 

Here's Trav at the Old Laurelcrest Church. This is the "building" where the Imago Dei community meets on Sundays. 

Here's another picture of the building. It has a lot of character and really nice grounds. 

Portland and Imago Dei

We're in Portland for the next couple of days with another part of the body here called Imago Dei. The book "Jesus in the Margins" was written by Rick McKinley - the pastor here and if you've read "Blue Like Jazz" or "Searching for God Knows What" by Don Miller - you have heard of Imago Dei. You can check out their web site by clicking below

Imago Dei

Stay tuned for some more updates, questions and stuff ...

On the way to Portland, we stopped by Mount St Helens. It was incredible to see the before and after pictures from the devastation in 1980. If you don't remember when Mount St Helens erupted - then man, am I old! 

The river has shrunk because of all the ash and debris. The small peak at the top is actually one side of the former rim that was blown out when it erupted 

What Does Soma Look Like?

I have spent 5 days as part of the community here checking out Soma. There is so much to say and I don't have the space to fit it all in. Many amazing things to try and digest and I don't have the words yet. So I will as best I can answer the question - What does Soma church in Tacoma, Washington look like? Here goes:

Soma looks like Ray & Diane and Josh, Whitney & Elijah welcoming 2 strangers into their homes and making them feel as though they have lived here their whole lives; it's Stephan getting up at 3am to serve incarnationally at Starbucks; it's Caesar and breakfast at Shakabra graciously eating undercooked oatmeal and loving on those same 2 strangers; it's a fashion show for Loyalty on Broadway on a Sunday afternoon; it's blessing a man outside the Salvation Army; it's Hans tending his garden and inviting everyone and anyone to come and see the gospel in flowers; it's Josh & Ryan trying to help people own their own homes; it's one of Caesar's daughters going over with a friend to care for a woman and her baby while her husband is in Iraq; it's eating at the Hob Nob with Josh, Whitney & Elijah; it's a conversation around the table at Ryan and his wife's home on a Sunday night; it's Rachel and her coffee shop; it's blessing someone in someway; it's interacting around Hebrews 11 and about trusting God for the unseen - together; it's being welcomed to share communion with brother's and sisters; it's about not wanting to leave; it's about "come back anytime"; it's rhythm and release; it's taking responsibility for young men and women; it's Nathan and his wife who are moving to Portland; it's worship and about wanting to walk it and walk in it; it's newlyweds welcomed home; it's Jeff and dialogue; it's Caesar and story; it's W3; it's prayer with Stephan in the kitchen; it's neighbours welcomed to the party; it's grace when you're late because you can't figure out the friggin Tacoma roads; it's messy and beautiful; it's Ray at the Rescue Mission and Diane with Step by Step; it's an adventure; it's home; it's living generously; it's not a style but a lifestyle; it's missional outposts; it's playing pool and incarnating Jesus; and it's not anything any "building" could possibly contain ...

This is Soma. It's Josh, Whitney and 4 month old Elijah who welcomed us into their home for the weekend! They rock! 

This is Soma. It's Ray & Diane who welcomed us into their home on Thursday night. Awesome people  

The Hob Nob cafe. Great food and conversation. Where Trav and I ate with Josh, Whitney and Elijah and learned the eccentric "history" of Tacoma. Massive cups of coffee, the likes of which textbooks will be written about and school children will study! 

Shakabrah coffee house. A very groovy place to eat. Trav and I had an awesome breakfast with Caesar here. The "Chrissy" was amazing but the oatmeal - really lacking in the wow factor there.