Interests, Etc.

He should...

• Love China. (Bonus points if he’s been there, but he should at least have the desire to visit/live/work there at some point in the future.)
• Like and want kids, and be willing to consider adoption, especially internationally.
• Be passionate about music, especially for worshiping. He should probably play at least one instrument, but at the very least must be able to carry a tune. (Bonus points if he can harmonize…)
• Prefer activity to inactivity. E.g. He would rather hike, or bike, or climb, or run, or… than watch T.V. or go out to eat.
• Enjoy being out in nature.
• Like to play like a kid (e.g. jumping in leaves, playing in the snow, climbing trees).
• Like to travel and enjoy photography, or at least be patient with me when I want to stop and take a lot of pictures.
• Like and fit in with my family, and I with his.
• Not be allergic to and at least tolerant of cats.
• Be willing to watch and maybe even enjoy chick flicks and musicals, from time to time.
• Not be obsessed with watching sports on T.V., playing video games, surfing online, etc.
• Enjoy board/card games.
• Be able or interested in learning how to dance (ballroom-type stuff).
• Like massages, both giving and receiving.

Personality Stuff

He should...

• Value communication and recognize its importance in sustaining any type of relationship. He should be willing to discuss even negative emotions/situations, however uncomfortable that may be.
• Be honest, open, and not deceptive.
• Come from a similar background/upbringing as me (e.g. family values, hometown characteristics, etc.).
• Be very intelligent, as well as educated.
• Be patient with me in my weaknesses and willing to help me become more Christ-like.
• Be encouraging. He should be excited to help me achieve goals that I have set for myself. He should be quick to praise me when I do well and be constructive and gentle with his criticism.
• Be funny/silly. He should be able to make me laugh and willing to laugh at himself.
• Be adventurous.
• Appreciate my quirkiness.
• Not be prone to skepticism/suspicion.
• Be wise with money, but not to an extreme (i.e. frugal, not cheap).
• Not be extremely introverted or extroverted, but rather somewhere in the middle.
• Be optimistic. He should assume the best about people rather than the worst.
• Be organized and enjoy planning.
• Also be spontaneous at times.
• Treasure traditions.
• Value eating healthy and exercising.
• Want to live... in a small city, somewhere with four seasons, where it snows and doesn’t get too hot, not too far from or too close to family, within driving distance to some mountains.

Spiritual Stuff

He should...

• Be passionate about God, actively pursuing that relationship above all else.
• Be passionate about missions, whether doing or supporting or educating...
• Desire/plan to be involved in some sort of ministry throughout his life.
• Have the desire and ability to be the spiritual leader in our relationship/family. Being in relationship with him should spur on my spiritual growth rather than distract me from God.
• Hold similar convictions as me about non-essential spiritual matters.
• Have career ambitions, but should value God and family more.

A Teammate

So where were we? Oh, yes...

The other day, I was having dinner with a dear friend. She told me about a conversation she had many years ago with a group of single girls: each of them chose a word that described the kind of partner they would want. One said "a clown," another wanted more of "a coworker," and my friend was hoping for "a constant companion." I thought about it for just a moment and knew what I would ask for: "a teammate." I am crazy active and I love to play, plus my love language is primarily quality time, so I want someone I can do lots of cool stuff with. Basically, I want a best friend. Of course, most importantly I want our relationship to glorify God, but I think that will happen when we are who God made us to be, individually and as a couple. So I expect that we'll have many things in common, from our backgrounds, to our personalities, to the activities we enjoy, to our passions, to our hopes and dreams for the future...

Details will follow.

Um, well... Yeah. I'm Home!

So, bad news. They got the part Sunday morning and put it in, but apparently that part didn't work either. SO... We had to cancel the trip. The Super 8 shuttle bus took us in three loads back to our first bus to collect the rest of our things, then to the Greyhound station in Gary, IN. Then THAT bus was late 'cause a driver didn't show up, so we just got back to the 'Nati at about 1:30 am. But despite the fact that we never even made it to our first stop, Chicago, we still made some new friends and had a lot of fun! I'll post pictures soon...

This Just In...

So let's take a brief detour as I fill you in on what is turning out to be more of an adventure than we bargained for...

We took off from Cincinnati Friday night at maybe 10:00 pm, more than an hour late. We stopped about midnight to get ready for bed in Walmart's restrooms, while the drivers converted the bus seats into beds. (Which was pretty cool, by the way, as the bus was transformed into what looked an awful lot a hard sleeper train in China.) We stopped at about 4:30 am a little outside Chicago to fuel up, but continued sleeping there till about 6:30. It was then that we discovered a river of coolant (if that's what that bright green fluid is) flowing slowly away from the bus. After a few calls and a visit from a mechanic, we learned that the broken part could not be repaired and a new one could not be found in all of Chicago. So we spent the whole day stranded at the rest stop, feeling a lot like Tom Hanks in The Terminal. After a whole lot of waiting, and complaining, and debating, everyone finally agreed on a new plan: one of the drivers would fly to Boston to pick up the new part, fly back, and fix the bus in the morning. We would stay at a hotel. We would continue on the trip as planned, just one day late. We would skip the day in Las Vegas and swing by the north rim instead of the south rim of the Grand Canyon to make up for the lost time.

So there ya go. If you don't hear from me again about this, our adventure has continued! But hopefully it's the type of adventure we signed up for rather this other sort. Still, I'm having fun, getting to know a lot of cool new friends, and learning a lot about being flexible. It's interesting: when you have no plans or expectations, it's a lot easier to not get disappointed or frustrated about setbacks like this!

The List

So, while I'm on my Out West trip, I won't be posting much. But I don't want to leave you all with nothing to read, so... Look for my List, in installments, over the next week. You know, the List. Of qualities I'd ideally like to find in a future mate. C'mon, you know you have/had one too... I actually had a list many years ago, in college, but didn't have much need for it there for awhile. More recently, however, I've created a new list, which, incidentally, I believe is much more complete this time around. That is largely due to the fact that my past experience has shed a lot of light on the things that are important to me. At any rate, it should be an interesting read and may give you some insight into what makes me tick as well. But also, if you happen to know of anyone who seems to fit the bill, please let me know!

Wild, Wild West

This evening I'll be leaving for a ten-day trip out west with about 30 international students and scholars from UC and OSU. It'll be a tiring whirlwind of a tour, but I'm so excited because I've never been to any of the places we'll be visiting: Chicago, Mt. Rushmore, Yellowstone, Grand Tetons, Jackson Hole, Las Vegas, Grand Canyon, Great Sand Dunes, and St. Louis. Even if we don't have a lot of time in any one place, I'll at least get some amazing photos and a feel for where I'd like to spend more time in the future. Plus, it'll be a great chance to get to know some new friends!

It's All In the Name

I found this little news story interesting, so perhaps you will as well...

Chinese babies named 'Olympic Games'
(June 11, 2008, BBC News)
More than 4,000 children in China have been given the name Aoyun, meaning Olympic Games, in the past 15 years. The rise in popularity of the name is seen as a sign of support for the Games being staged in August in Beijing. Officials in charge of identity cards say that more than 92% of the 4,104 registered Aoyuns are boys. It is not uncommon for Chinese children to be given names of common events and popular slogans - such as Defend China, Build the Nation and Space Travel. There are 290,798 registered Civilisations. The first surge in Aoyuns came in 1992, when China applied to host to the 2000 Games. About 680 Aoyuns were registered at the time. In 2002 another 553 Aoyuns were named, after China was chosen to host the 2008 Games. The BBC's Chinese service says that in recent weeks babies have also been given names such as Hope for Sichuan, to show solidarity with earthquake victims.

Designed For What?

One of my teammates the first summer I went to China asked us a simple question that has stuck with me ever since: Have you ever felt like you were doing exactly what God designed you to do? At the time, I answered, "Yes, right now," and that's why I went back. There were some challenges and struggles living in China, to be sure, yet if circumstances had been different, I'd probably still be there. In fact, I pretty much think about it daily. So why don't I go? Well, mostly it's a financial thing. Not so much about support-raising, but about the sad state of my IRA. There are other fears that deter me, too: traveling alone, never meeting anyone I might want to date/marry, gaining weight again... Still, I can't shake this feeling that I'm supposed to be there. Is that a God thing, a "calling" perhaps? I wish I knew...