"Is it true that cannibals don't eat clowns because they taste funny?" - George Carlin

Today I went into NYC with Jeremy, who served as my guide. In no particular order.....

I can't imagine trying to do that on my own. The purchase of train tickets and then subway passes at the kiosks requires knowledge of secrets too deep for average humans to ever figure out. I suspect there are hundreds, perhaps thousands of people who have been stuck on the system for years because they bought tickets and boarded a train without the requisite knowledge and are on a loop from which there is no escape.

People who say the twin towers memorial is a must-see are correct. The memorial itself has a solemn kind of beauty but for me the real power was thinking about what used to be there and the people who died there.
I've written and deleted several sentences that don't adequately describe my thoughts about that place. Too complex and in some ways conflicting to put into words.
I can see how that should be somewhere you spend hours at, just thinking about it.

We walked lots of streets. I *think* Jeremy knew where we were and where we were going most of the time but I was lost all of the time. I can say that pictures don't give a sense of the scale of lower Manhattan. The buildings are SO big and tall that they dwarf the humans on the sidewalks around them. Think ants swarming around picnic table. Nowhere is that more striking than the building that has replaced the twin towers. It's huge and very very tall, and striking in appearance.
As you can see it was a mix of clouds and sun today. When the sun reflects off the surfaces of that building it's blinding.
Mostly it's a HUGE building.

Here's a Catholic church that is the definition of juxtaposition. The skyscraper next to it is Right. Next. To. It. As in there is NO space between the modern monument to engineering skill and this tiny (by comparison) church. I think there's a sermon illustration in there that would probably work better if it weren't a Catholic church.


We saw lots of other interesting sites and I'll put some more pics in tomorrow night's post but I'm not a big picture taker. I'd rather experience than document, feel than photograph.


The BEST part of the day by a very wide margin was lunch. We ate at an Irish pub down some alley that Jeremy knew to find and the food was just OK. I had a sandwich that was turkey, apple slices, and brie...and over-priced. Good, but no better than what you can order at Panera.

The close to two hours of conversation we had there...priceless.
Jeremy arrived at GBC the year after my departure so I never had him as a student. But he's a colleague so we have that bond. He's also very bright, perspicacious, has a great sense of humor, and calls it like he sees it. So we spoke openly and candidly about the ministry - it's blessings, challenges, pitfalls, and rewards.

He picked me up at 7 a.m. and dropped me off here at 6 p.m. We talked some sports, some current events, and some about what we were seeing. But mostly we spent 11 hours talking shop. I've been at this long enough to know there are some guys who get it and some guys who don't (many of whom pretend they do). Jeremy is the real deal. I wish I'd had him as a student.

OK, I'm tired. The wind is starting to howl and the snow is supposed to start in another hour or two with as much as 10" before we're done 24 hours from now. I'm going to climb into bed and ignore it all. I've got food enough to see me through the rest of the week if that's what's required (it won't be) so it's all good.

One week from now I'LL BE HOME!!!