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Warning: Obscure Star Trek Reference

The best blog posting I've seen in a while (from An Entirely Other Day):

Sometimes parenthood seems like an eighteen year Kobayashi Maru.


Here's the original post.

We're Going to Disneyland!

What a weekend! Call me weird, but I look forward to Diocesan Convention each year. It's a great time to see people who I may not have seen in, well, a year. It's time to come together as a diocese and celebrate all the work that we do, and, as far as I see it, a time to see how we can better do that work together.

This was my fifth convention. I started out going by myself, then Ellen came with me, then the kids started coming, too. There is a wonderful children's program each year, and they have blast! This is my first year away from Trinity Commons. It was held at Sawmill Creek Resort, mostly as a response to the people from the western end of the diocese who complain, rightly, that driving to Cleveland can be a hassle. The downside was that is was a very expensive convention. We opted not to go to the banquet (about $200 for our family of 6), or get the continental breakfast ($66), or the boxed lunch ($62). Fortunately, Ellen and I both were volunteering so we were given boxed lunches, and we brought sandwiches for the kids. And, as a "staff" person, I was given a room, where Beenie and I stayed Friday night, while Ellen and the other kids went back to her folks house (about 45 minutes away).

Complaining aside, it was still a great weekend. I had to be there on Thursday as we needed to rehearse the "show" after the a/v company got everything set up. It was fun watching them work to hang the lights and get the screens and mics set up. I used to do that in college and after, and it was like old times. Once Martha got there and we got everything squared away it was 10:00 pm.

Friday morning I needed to be there a 8:30 and we finished up our "run-through" by lunch time. Convention started at 1:00, and (at least from my perspective) everything went great!! During the course of the two day convention, only one "weirdness" happened - when a powerpoint presentation decided to advance itself at a rate of about 3 slides per second! Fortunately we were able to stop it and reset it before the speaker said "As you'll see on the slide...". Phew!

The Convention Eucharist was Saturday morning and Beenie had been asked to read the Old Testament Lesson. Since he and I were the only ones from the family there, and I had work to do to get ready for day two, he was pretty much on his own. I saw him talking to staff members, and getting his assigned seat, and hooking up with some of our friends from another parish, who agreed to keep an eye on him. However, no fear, he did an awesome job!!!

The other highlight of the weekend was the election for General Convention Deputy. The General Convention is a meeting of representatives from all the dioceses that make up the Episcopal Church. They meet once every three years. The last one was in Columbus. The next one, in 2009, is in Anaheim, California. Each diocese, in addition to its bishops, is allowed 4 clergy deputies, and 4 lay deputies. We elected ours this weekend. We had 10 lay people running for the 4 positions!

The exciting news is that I was elected to be one of those deputies!!! It took three ballots (two ballots to elect the other 3), but I'm in. I'll be serving with Sam, Sue, and Stephen. Although my name doesn't begin with S, I think it will be okay. Actually, us, combined with Alan, Brian, Gay, and Conrad (our clergy deputies) are a really good deputation. I expect to learn a lot, and to have a great time doing it!!

So, our rallying cry for the rest of the weekend has been "We're going to Anaheim!!!" While the diocese will be paying my way out there, we plan to take the kids (another awesome kids program) and stay a few extra days to do Disneyland, and other SoCal attractions. I think we will all have an amazing time! And Ellen is going to volunteer to help with the kids program, so maybe she'll have her way paid, too!

I know I've used a lot of exclamation points in this post. I am very excited, but I do recognize the responsibility that I just signed up for/had thrust upon me. I've heard that two dioceses have already submitted legislation to repeal B033, and by the time that the convention convenes, the 2008 Lambeth Meeting will have happened. It should be an interesting convention, and I am looking forward to jumping into church politics with both feet.

In other news from the weekend, Tracey was not elected Bishop of Chicago. I'm sad, for both her and the church, but as I've said before, she will be a great bishop, and she will find that perfect fit eventually.