ISU | Wayfarer

I know that I’m not going to generate much sympathy, but Wendy and I really struggled this week to get back on schedule after our time on Kauai. Like most people, our autumn schedule is packed full and jet lag did not help us manage the stress well this week.

We are deep into rehearsals for Union Street Players production of The Christmas Post. Wendy is directing the show. I’m both producing and performing. It’s a heart-warming Christmas musical based on two Norman Rockwell paintings. Wendy’s directed the show twice before. The last time was 10 years ago. So, our free time has been sucked up by 4 rehearsals a week and production responsibilities on top of that. Performances are Dec 2-4 and 8-10.

Work has also picked up for us of late. We’re grateful for a couple of new clients and new projects! Of course, that means some increased business travel for me. Off to Texas this week. Trips to California and northwest Iowa are on the horizon in coming weeks, and there’s potential for even more. That, of course, conflicts with rehearsal schedules for the show. You get it. It’s busy.

I did get to enjoy attending parents’ weekend at Iowa State University’s Sigma Kappa sorority with Megan this past Saturday. Megan played my daughter in USP’s production of K.O.L.D. Radio back in 2010. I’ve been blessed to get to continue playing an honorary “dad” role for Megan after her father, Mike, passed away during production of the show. So, I drove up to Ames for a late breakfast at the sorority house and hung out with Megan and her mom, Cyndi. We all walked to the ISU vs. Baylor football game. It’s always a joy to be with Megan.

Wendy and I had a date night on Saturday evening and attended Theatre Central’s production of Boeing, Boeing. One of the actresses is a USP Alum and it was fun to see her in the show. The cast and crew did a fabulous job. Wendy and I laughed a lot.

I’m continuing to preach on a regular basis in the auditorium services at Third Church. I was wrapping up one series on Sunday and will kick-off the next series next Sunday. That’s been a lot of fun for me, and I’ve really enjoyed the opportunity.

Taylor is back from Scotland. She continues to live and serve at the Des Moines Catholic Worker. We had a chance to spend an hour or two with her earlier this week and hear about her adventures working the Edinburgh Fringe Festival. It was a great experience for her. She’s continuing to pursue jobs in the art world and has had a few interviews.

Madison is continuing to grow life, community, and career in South Carolina. She works in sales and training for a cosmetics company. She’s on the road regularly across South Carolina and is enjoying her work, even as she learns the ups and downs of it.

I’ve had several friends ask about Wendy’s sister, Suzanna, who lived with us over the past few years. Suzanna is living with her folks in Ankeny and working as Assistant Manager of the Family Bookstore there. We’re looking forward to seeing her this coming weekend!

Summer has turned to autumn. The mornings are crisp and cool. The late summer sun is strong, but tempered with the cool fall breeze. The trees are changing color and looking increasingly bare. Here in the Iowa heartland the combines are out and the landscape changes daily as fields full of tall corn are laid bare with the harvest.

A few weeks ago we returned from our fall weekend at the lake with Kevin and Becky. While we were in Missouri there had been a big rain back here at home. And, I had been watering our fledgling lawn religiously. Early that week I was sitting in Vander Well Pub with Taylor talking about her day when I looked into the basement family room and noticed that a big pillow sitting on the floor was discolored. It was then that I discovered our sump pump had not been working and our storage room and family room were flooded. When our contractor came over to inspect the issue, he found that at some point the sump pump plug was not flush in the outlet. All he did was push it in and the sump started to work. It was not a good evening.

We had a lot of damaged photos, artwork and other belongings that were still boxed in the storage room from the move. Fortunately, our friend Brad responded to my text and brought over huge fans and a special machine for sucking up water out of the carpet/pad. I was up until the wee hours trying to dry things out. Ugh.

Wendy has been planning a new tat for a long time now, and had vowed to put it off until after the summer (You’re supposed to keep new tattoos out of the sunlight). She finally pulled the trigger and had a gorgeous phoenix inked onto her upper left arm. It’s a gorgeous tat. The phoenix, a symbol of rebirth and glory from ashes, has long held special significance for Wendy. I’m happy that she finally got it done.

Last weekend was Pella’s Marching Band Festival. Des Moines Christian was marching, so Jody and my folks drove down for it. Wendy and I met them at the field to watch the band, then came back to the house for a quick bite. It was great to have them here and to see both Emma and Harry Roose marching.

This past week Taylor received word that her Master’s dissertation had been accepted by Queen Margaret University in Edinburgh. We uncorked a nice bottle of wine, made a special dinner of grilled salmon, and toasted her acheivement!

Yesterday we were in Ames. My dear friend, Megan, asked me to be honorary dad at ISU Dad’s Weekend. Her mom picked Wendy and me up early in the morning and we drove up to the campus. Megan has pledged to a sorority, so after picking her up at her dorm we went to the house for tailgating and games. We then walked to Jack Trice stadium and sat in the student section to watch the Cyclones beat Kansas. It was a cloudless day and one half of my face got nicely burned! It was great to see Megan and, as always, it was a privilege to be honorary dad.

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Wendy and I have spent the past couple of weeks finalizing our transition out of leadership with Union Street Players. There have been files to transfer, final reports to prepare, meetings with the new Board. Last night was the 2015 USP Award’s Night which was essentially our final major responsibility. Wendy planned the event and made several cheesecakes. I put together the year-in-review video and emcee’d the event. Suzanna came back from school to attend. Our friend Heather MacClennan came down from Des Moines with her trio to provide entertainment. Good time had by all (despite some maddening technical difficulties that just about fubar’d the entire evening for me).