Thursday, July 07, 2005

Leadership Conference

Alrighty, as I mentioned in my previous post, today is a 2 post-day. This post, however, will not deal with the news (which was dealt with before). I am planning on attending a leadership conference in Wisconson (which I have never been to before, actually) over Labor Day weekend. One thing I find interesting--it's a rather outdoorsy type of event, and I'm not that much of an outdoors person. Most people who know me (or who read what I write), realize that I am an indoors person, preferring conversation or reading or writing (all of which can be done indoors, and some of which are more difficult to do outdoors). Besides being a bit of a klutz, I am rather allergic to a lot of things (like poison ivy, mangos, certain plants my stepfather has in the yard--in particular the miniature (or dwarf) schefflera, which causes my skin to break out in hives). Nature doesn't like me, so I don't have much reason to like nature. It's beautiful and all, but at the very least it makes me sneeze. However, that notwithstanding, I think it's a good thing to go to a place I've never been, hopefully meet some people I don't know (though a few familiar faces would always be nice), in one of those atmospheres where I don't tend to go very often and hence would consider a relative weakness. I guess you could say I'm a glutton for punishment. Besides, there will be plenty of seminars as well as a service opportunity, things I am more familiar with. The pontoon ride sounds interesting, though I'm a bit worried about any other kind of boating, because I'm not really into canoeing or rafting or anything like that (don't get me started on that--suffice it to say I'm not particularly strong in the arms, I'm not very coordinated with a paddle (or anything else for that matter), and I've ended up in water a few times, which I'm not fond of). I've even had my canoeing skills made fun of by people who were freeloading off my labor before, which I always find irksome (if you don't like how I do it--do it yourself and leave me alone). However, other than boating, the other activities strike me as very nice, and the accomodations may even be pleasant, which is inversely proportional with how rustic they are. I don't know why camping is such a big deal in the church of God, but such it is, and that must be dealt with. The singalong sounds nice though--perhaps I will be able to sing "Seven Stars," my favorite Appalachian folk song.

2 comments:

Richard said...

They're called breathing masks, Nathan. You can get a box of five for five dollars at Walgreens. I know, because I did about a week ago.

"Seven Stars?" Isn't that how many people competed on that dancing show?! :-->

Nathan said...

Good idea. I should go to a Walgreens sometime. I'm not much of a big shopper. As far as "Seven Stars," go, it's a stretch to say that all of the "stars" in the "Dancing With The Stars" show were actually stars. The lyrics to the song are:

Seven stars are in the sky.
Six and six go equal.
Five's the rambeau in his boat.
Four score's an acre.
Three's a driver.
Two's the lily of the day,
Dressed in scarlet and green-o.
And the one, the one, that is alone,
It shall no longer be alone.
And the one, the one, that is alone,
It shall no longer be alone.