Te Tia Mwamwananga

Malawi or Bust

Lindsey and I had talked about changing the format of this blog; so that it no longer represents a sole traveler.  But as you can see, we haven't gotten around to that.  Nor have we gotten around to updating it either.  Some exciting times are coming up for us though, and I wanted to make everyone aware of it.  We will be heading to Malawi, Africa for the month of July for Linds' works at Urban Promise.  We will be visiting the ministries that are there.  Its going to be a great time.  One of my jobs is to update our travels on Urban Promise International's blog.  All of UPI's website is new too, so check that out.  So follow along with pictures and updates as we embark on our first trip to Malawi!

In other exciting news, I'm officially on Summer Break!  Oh, it feels so good.  Next year I will be relocating to a different school.  I will be at Harrisson Elementary which is a K-8 school in Central/Northern Philly.  It is a small school and I will be teaching Special Ed, grades K-3.  I spoke with my future co-worker and she has some really encouraging things to say about the school and work envorionment, so I'm hopeful about next year.  But that's a whole Summer break away, so to the back of my mind it goes! 

Spring time

Alright, it has been forever since we last posted.  Not that we haven't been busy, its just that the day in day out stuff doesn't seem blog worthy.  When you go from blogging about spear fishing for dinner, getting mobbed by old topless Kiribati women at a botaki, navigating Japan in a week, trying to teach 900 Korean students English, to getting engaged, married, then a new house; my 3 hour lecture course on special education inclusion practices at Grad school doesn't seem that exciting.  But that's just the way it goes right now.  Linds and I are both comfortable in our jobs.  My school is still chaotic and the ebodiment of a failing Philadelphia school.  I am on spring break right now though, so life is good.  We have our tickets bought to be in Malawi from the end of June until the 1st of August.  We are both really excited about that trip.  Spring is in the air around here, so we went to lowe's and home depot and got some gardening supplies and started our seeds.  We also got a grill which I am personally super stoked about.  We're having friends over tomorrow to BBQ.  Since it is Holy Week, our church has had a gathering at someone's house every night this week.  It has been fun getting together every night.  We have a nice community forming around us.  My birthday weekend we are planning to bust out the tent and go camping.  It sounds like we have abunch of people on board for that, which will consist of good times. 

So, that's the latest.  Check out the photos and see Linds' new haircut.  She reached her fundraising goal of $500 so she got blond and red highlights as well.  For those of you who voted, the winning haircut was "F". 

Christmas is coming

Kim and Kasi over for cookie baking
Originally uploaded by amarkelz

Its been nice around the house. We're slowly getting things set up and cozy feeling. It has also been nice having weekends and nights free to meet up with friends.

The day Lindsey and I went out to get our first Christmas tree we realized that we have different decorating traditions. So, we decided to split the tree down the middle and have a competition. Everyone who comes over is voting on which side they like better. Whoever wins will have the tree decorating power . . . forever! So this is a pretty high stakes deal. Its funny . . . the tree actually looks nice half and half. Other suggestions have been to combine our styles, switch years, or get a rotating tree stand.

Lindsey's job is going well. I'm definitely feeling the first semester burnout. I think I hit the wall last week and now just waiting for the break. For Christmas we'll be heading to Linds' parents for the 24th-26th. Other than that, it will be a low key holiday season.

Our Wedding

Our Wedding
Originally uploaded by amarkelz

Here they are! Photos from our wedding. These are just a sample of the ones we're making into an album. Both receptions are done and wedding planning is officially over. The ceremony and receptions were definitely awesome, but it feels good to relax. On Sunday Linds and I watched a movie and napped. Its been a long time since we've had two extra hours on the weekend to watch a movie!

We just had our washer and dryer delivered, so settling into our house is going well. Its starting to feel like a normal life. I guess its time for a little bit of normal.

Our new Home!

Our new Home!
Originally uploaded by amarkelz

Its final! We closed on the house! Here's a few pictures of it in all its glory. There's still a lot of work to be done, with set-up and all, but we had a mad painting and moving party last weekend and got a lot done. A huge thanks to all of those who helped. There's not too many pictures of the house yet because its still really messy, and we couldn't post pictures of a messy house. Mom wouldn't approve :) I'm thinking that after the wedding things will slow down and I'll be able to actually write a bit and post pictures more frequently . . . we'll see.

Our House

Our House
Originally uploaded by amarkelz

Here's some photos of the house that Linds and I are about to buy. We're 99% done with the process. Just have to sign the contract, wait for the mortgage to go through, then I'm movin' in. Lindsey will follow shortly after . . . October 26th to be precise :) Besides the bathroom photo, the upstairs shots didn't turn out well. But there are two bedrooms upstairs also. All in all its a sweet deal in a nice little community. RPM is who we're going through to get the house and they are a redevelopment program that pretty much guts these historic houses to the brick and puts in all new wiring, pluming, heating, a/c, appliances, ect. And the mortgage is at a very attractive balance. So, this is our soon to be house . . . can't wait!

In other news, wedding stuff is going good . . . stressful at times, but good. We were up in the Poconos again this weekend and found a super sweet spot to have the ceremony and reception. Just have to hammer out the details now. Invitations are in the works and other little things are getting worked out. And I'm officially in charge of the catering . . . mmm. . . foooood . . .

On the employment front: I finished my teacher training. Sweet! I'm going to be temping again for UPenn here in August to pay da bills. Hopefully I'll find out which school I'll be teaching at soon. It would be good to know where I'll be working at, right?

Lots going on . . . major life defining moments . . . good stuff.

We're Engaged!!!

First photo as newly engaged
Originally uploaded by amarkelz

This may not come as TOO much of a surprise but its official, Lindsey and I are engaged! We were up in the Poconos with her family at her grandparents' house on the lake when the deal went down. Actually we were in the middle of the lake on a boat when I asked. I had been trying the day before to get out in the boat alone with her, but the fishing was just too good, the boat was in high demand, and I just couldn't get us out there alone! But the timing worked out wonderfully the next day and in the late afternoon I slyly asked Linds if she wanted to go fishing. She actually was taken by surprised (a personal victory) when we got out there and I popped the question. Of course everyone was super happy when we got back and shared the news. A couple people rushed out to get cake and champagne to celebrate and then we sat around the fire, shooting off fireworks and making s'mores. It was a wonderful day and its exciting to be taking this to the next step.

Exciting Times

Cute car . . . cute driver!
Originally uploaded by amarkelz

Okay . . . life update . . .
Got a new car (check out the pics). Ooooh, it feels good to have wheels again. This little thing appears to be in great shape and will get awesome gas mileage. It has 124,000 miles on it, which is a little high, but I've heard nothing but great reviews about the Protege. And Linds had a '92 Protege and it made it to 217,000. I hope this one lasts as long too.

I finally got my Praxis scores back and . . . I passed! Not that I was too worried, but you never know, and there was a lot riding on these scores. So, I'm officially a teaching fellow. Well, not officially yet, haven't been to processing day, but that's just around the corner. Then I'll get to find out which school I'll be teaching at here in the city. So until the training starts in July, I'll be temping still at UPenn. Another change was that Eastern University didn't offer the graduate program that I needed to teach so I'll be attending href=www.arcadia.edu>Arcadia University instead. They have a great special education program so I'm satisfied with that. A little financial aid wouldn't hurt though . . . oh well. . .

Some other really great news is that Lindsey got a job at Urban Promise !!! This whole deal has been in the mix for a while now, but its great to finally hear the OK. Its crazy that she actually wrote up the proposal and basically created the position on her own. Right now her position consists of two jobs: 1. Executive assistant to the President, and 2. Director of the International Program. The executive assistant position was an existing position and this is where most of her salary and benefits are coming from. The International Program is new and experimental. But it is both Lindsey's and the president's hope that the International Program director position goes full-time. To sum it up, Urban Promise is a Christian Non-Profit Organization centered around youth development for the city of Camden in New Jersey (Just over the bridge). They run schools and various youth programs. In regards to Non-Profits, it has been really successful and has gotten a lot of attention. As an experiment, interns from Malawi have been invited to work and gain experience at Urban Promise with the intention of carrying that back to Malawi to implement there. The difficulties that these interns have run in to once back in Malawi is that they lack the administrative training to run a Non-Profit or Non-Government Organization. In comes Lindsey and all her skills. So as I understand it, she'll be in charge of properly training new interns in NGO management, while maintaining a connection with returned interns providing assistance and accountability. The goal is for this International program to expand in Malawi and reach out to other countries as well.

The problem though, is that this program is experimental and Urban Promise does not have sufficient funds for Lindsey's salary. This is why she is wearing two hats. The burden, therefore, falls on her shoulders to raise the money through donations. A significant amount of $12,000 will need to be raised within the first month if the International Program is to stay alive. If you want to find out more about contributing to this program you can contact Linds directly at lindsey.lee.lewis@gmail.com

So that's all the exciting news for now. More will definitely be coming soon . . .

Katie's Graduation

And . . . done!
Originally uploaded by amarkelz

Had a wonderful weekend over in Pittsburgh. Or if you're cool and in the know, "The Burgh". It was great hanging out with the lil' sis, and mom too. Congrats again Kate!

I haven't written an update in a while . . . oh boy, where to start. I'm living in Philadelphia now. Moved into a house with some other people that I didn't know, but were friends of a friend. That has been working out great. I got a temp job at the University of Pennsylvania. Its actually a sweet gig; good pay, potentially more interesting than answering phones, and it'll last until I start training for the fellows program, so, steady income. The location is nice too. I can walk to work everyday, which is great, unless its like today . . . nasty.

As I mentioned, training for the fellow's program begins July 1st. Still waiting to hear back about my praxis scores though. After the one month training, I'll have August off in preparation for teaching in the fall, and grad classes. I applied to Eastern University. Speaking of, I haven't heard anything back . . . I'm assuming I've been accepted. I think I'm a shoe-in since I'm in the fellows program. I won't find out where in the city I'm teaching until June 23rd. That's when site selection day is. I'm not too picky; one high needs school is as good as the next to me, however, Lindsey and I are trying to coordinate our jobs and living arrangements. We'll see how that all works out later. As for now, I'm comfortable . . . although, I could really use some wheels! Basing everything Linds and I do around the infrequent train schedule is getting annoying. I've almost always owned a car . . . and now I know why! So, I've been car shopping . . . which is fun, although slightly nerve-racking when buying used; especially in my price range because this is where the miles start getting up there . . . and nobody wants to by a lemon! But, I'm sure pictures will go up when that purchase has been made.

That's all for now.

Coming to an end

Just a couple days left until my final departure from Korea.  Another chapter coming to an end.  Apart from saying goodbye to some really great people and my wonderful church, ICC, I'm not too sad to say goodbye to Korea.  Its fascinating how of all the places I've traveled to, Korea can continually and unquestionably rub me the wrong way.  And as any eaves dropping will tell you, this is a more common sentiment among 'westerners' than not.  The "Hermit Kingdom's" cultural, social, professional, and ethical underpinnings remain strong, and to me, quite unattractive. 

But, this year has served its purpose.  I learned a whole heck of a lot about myself, being saved and finding my footing in Jesus.  Lindsey and I are continually learning and growing together.  I have great direction occupationally that I'm excited about.  I stayed afloat financially.  And I got to learn and see a little bit more about the world.  Not too bad . . .