Nate's Place

summer update: fatherhood

2009-07-26T20:37:00.008-04:00

Wow! Summer is flying by and I haven't blogged in ages. My wife started a blog for Caleb, and you can find it here. She was planning to update it once a week, but so far has only blogged the first couple. So, that has fallen by the wayside and I doubt it will be picked up anytime soon - but it does have some good info about the little munchkin.
Caleb is growing well, and staying fairly healthy (a minor encounter with a mouth fungus called thrush last week has been our only problem). I didn't know this was possible, but it feels like we are loving him more and more as he becomes someone who we can actually know as a person. As much as he is changing, it's crazy to see myself changing and growing too. I find myself learning to be less selfish, and I'm definitely more aware of what I do and say. All good things! Being a dad is great so far.
Recent developments:
- hand sucking - lots of it. He can't get enough of his own fingers (but not his thumb yet)
- smiles galore! It's pretty easy to get him to smile at this point, and we like that.
- sleeping through the night, and by through the night I mean 8-12 hours without waking us up. Yep, pretty great!
- finding ways to entertain himself - toys, t.v., dad playing guitar, the dog are all becoming fascinating things to watch.

As for the future, we had a day care trial today for 6 hrs, and we went out for a nice relaxing breakfast and an early movie. It was pretty hard, but we hear it gets easier. We are blessed to have found a great day care in the home of a wonderful Christian woman. Three of my co-workers at school highly recommend her and send their kids to her as well, which is also a bonus because we know they are great families with great kids. Steph will be working two twelve hr. shifts a week at the hospital starting this Wednesday. Technically I could watch him for the rest of the summer for 2 days a week, but I'm also trying to get our house painted before I have to start working again and it's taking forever (next post will be paint related). So I'll be taking him all by myself one day a week. Can I be trusted!? Of course :) School related stuff starts in about a month and during the school year he'll be going to day care 1 or 2 days a week depending on Steph's schedule. I'm not exactly looking forward to mixing the frantic life of a teacher with my parenting, but hey a guy should probably work I suppose. Oh yeah, and I actually like teaching too :) That's all for now.

We are parents at last!

2009-05-06T14:45:00.005-04:00

Many of you have heard we had our baby, and we are of course, very happy. As we look back on the last few days, I really don't know how we (mostly Steph) did it. Here's the short version:
Contractions started 3 am Monday, and continued all day that day. We were planning to have a home birth, and our midwife checked in on Steph several times during the day. She was dilating, but not much. In the evening, things started kicking into high gear and by 3 am she was dilated to 6 cm, and her water had broken. We were getting ready for our little guy to show up. But he didn't. 12 hours later there was absolutely no progress, and the baby was not dropping into place. We didn't know what the problem was, but the midwife helped us decide to head into the hospital to try to get contractions going with medication. Nothing else was working. We headed in at about 6:30 pm., and the medication worked to get some quality contractions going. Within a few hours she was fully dilated and the baby was in place - ready for pushing! Steph worked so hard and pushed with all she had, but the closest we got after over 3 hours of intense pushing was just barely being able to see a little of the baby's head. The little guy was stuck and Steph was all out of steam. The only option left was a C-section, though we really hadn't wanted that. Still, after it was all over at 4:45 am we were left with a beautiful baby boy, and Steph is recovering well. In the end, it doesn't matter how he got here, the point is he's here! God is so good, and we can't wait to show off our strapping young lad. I'm at the hospital right now, and can't get the pics of my camera at the moment, but those will be coming soon - I promise.

Vital stats: 8 lb 9 oz, 21 cm long. Caleb . . . Vanderzee - middle name coming soon :)

Baby, Car, JOB!

2009-04-06T00:50:00.006-04:00

As we have entered the month of April, Stephanie and I are feeling as if the baby could come any day now. The official due date is not until the 28th, but our midwife thinks we'll be on the early side of that. Stephanie is still working, although she moved to eight hour shifts this past week, instead of twelves. That is a good thing for her, and she's planning to keep going as long as she is able. I enjoy the irony of her going into labor while she's at work (although it wouldn't be ideal). Most people make the trip from home to the hospital, but because we're having a home birth, she'd be going from the hospital to our home. I can just picture her co-workers saying, "Quick let's get you down to . . . oh wait . . . home?"
Baby prep is plugging along in our home. I finished painting the "nursery", and now we just need to get some things up on the wall. We also bought a used car last Monday. We wanted to get a four door with good mileage, very reliable, and decent storage. After several weeks of research and some test driving, we settled on the Pontiac Vibe (actually identical to the Toyota Matrix). We're really happy with it (although I hate that it's red . . . again!) and we just sold the Focus yesterday. Yes, I realize these cars are nearly identical. Many friends may not even notice we got a new one. Still, it is quite a bit bigger, and I have to admit - I'm really excited to have cruise control for our frequent road trips. As I look at it next to some small SUVs, I realize the overall interior size is quite comparable, but the gas mileage is WAY better.
I hope she doesn't mind me saying, but Stephanie shed a few tears as she said goodbye to her faithful little car. It was sad. The decision to remain a one-car family was not an easy one. I always assumed that once we had kids we'd get 2 cars, but as we looked at it more closely, we realized that we will be just fine with one car. We came to the conclusion that if we have 2 cars, we will drive 2 cars, and now that we don't have 2 cars, we'll find alternatives, which is a good thing. We can bus, bike, bum (rides), and it will save us some money as well as save the world from the strain of another car driving around.

The last thing I need to update you all on, my faithful readers, is this: I have a job for next year! God has provided, and we are so thankful. I found out about 2 weeks ago, that there are significant needs in the social studies department at my school for next year and I'll be working pretty close to full time (at least .92 FTE). I'll be teaching U.S. history, global issues, and one section of government. Ok, this post is too long, so until next time . . .

I'm still alive

2009-03-04T08:24:00.003-05:00

The idea of blogging has been really intimidating over the past few months because It usually takes a lot of time (time that I have, but just don't want to spend). So I'll keep this update very short so that I might be less inclined to be intimidated in the future.
I'm teaching, loving it, but sometimes being stressed. I'm still playing Xbox - beat Mass Effect twice, gave up on Assassin's Creed after it lost my data twice, beat Fable II, and I'm now playing the game responsible for the downfall of Western Civilization - you guessed it GTA IV. I resisted for so long, but after it got game of the year and I saw it for 17 bucks I caved, and I'm glad I did.
Stephanie is still pregnant, and it shows :) We're having a boy and want to name him Caleb. As far as middle names go, we disagree, so we'll see. If all goes according to plan he'll come screaming (or maybe not) into our lives in about 2 months. We are very excited!
Next year's job prospects are iffy for me, but God will provide. He is good.
That's all for now.

The battle for the kitchen!

2008-10-20T18:26:00.005-04:00

Here's a post I wrote a couple months back and never posted. I've seriously been neglecting the blog, in case you haven't noticed.

Shortly after we found out Stephanie was pregnant she began having cravings. She tried the vegan thing for about a week of that time, but shortly after, started eating meat and dairy once again (not all the time - but here and there). She knows she doesn't need this stuff to be healthy and grow a healthy child (we've known and heard of quite a few people who have remained vegan all through their pregnancy with great results). Still, when she feels like crap already, she really just wants to eat what she can to make her feel better, and often that's a piece of chicken or some mac' n cheese. I even tried making vegan mac 'n cheese one night, and we both thought it was really good. Still her craving was for Kraft :) and she had to have it (she waited until the next day). Basically, most of the things I cook for dinner haven't sounded very good to her, and we've been cooking separate meals most nights.
Honestly, this has been pretty hard for me to deal with. It's been a huge hassle for both of us, and I've given up questioning it, and have finally just accepted that this is the way it is. She works until 7:30 or 8 pm many nights so on those nights I try to cook dinner before she gets home.

Since I wrote this a few months ago, things have gotten a little better. We've started trying to find more common ground in our menu, and we're just getting used to getting in each other's way in the kitchen. We're bracing ourselves for how having a child will make things even more complicated. Of course, because of nursing we hopefully won't have to deal with that for another year or so.

some permanency would be nice

2008-10-16T18:25:00.005-04:00

Lately life has been very busy. It makes sense now that I think about it, because I currently have the heaviest class load of any year I've taught, and next semester will be even heavier. Did I mention we recently bought a house that needs a lot of work and we also have a child on the way for April?
I've taught more hours in the past, but never had three different classes to prepare for, one of which I have never taught in the past. I am so thankful for the job I have, really enjoy it, and know that jobs like this are hard to come by in Michigan. God has been good. Still, I find myself longing for something better. And when I say better I mean-- permanent. In my four years of teaching I've never done the same thing two years in a row, and I've never had a completely full time job (though I certainly work 60 hours per week). Having my own classroom this year has been amazing, but I hope some day soon I can take the next step to being a real teacher :) by landing a job where I can teach the same thing 2 years in a row and benefit from having some lesson plans and experience! Some day it will come, I'm sure.

Chicago Diner

2008-09-30T17:44:00.003-04:00

Stephanie and I recently went to Chicago for the wedding of our good friends Sara and Jack. Congratulations guys!! It was a great wedding for sure, but lately one of the highlights of my Chicago trips has been hitting up a little establishment called the Chicago Diner. Their motto is 'meat-free since '83', and the menu is almost entirely vegan. The great thing about this place is they have pretty traditional American -style diner food, but they've veganized it all without sacrificing any of the deliciousness. I may be vegan, but I still crave a nice meaty sandwich now and then, so this place always hits the spot. This time, I ordered the reuben with a side of mashed potatoes and gravy. Stephanie ordered the dagwood with some spicy corn chowder. Dang it was good. Oh, I almost forgot, for desert we shared a slice of chocolate "cheese" cake that was rich as can be and out of this world.
Even if you aren't vegan, I highly recommend this place if you're ever in Chicago.

Big shock - we hit traffic everywhere we went! Some day we'll wisen up and take the train.

surprise!

2008-09-28T21:00:00.000-04:00

The doctors have discovered something growing inside my wife's belly. We are quite thrilled.

vegan food reviews

2008-09-06T15:08:00.007-04:00

Between working on the house non-stop and working at school, life has been pretty busy for us the past 6 weeks. The cooking in our kitchen has really dropped off, unfortunately. There have been a few good meals here and there, but there have also been quite a few packaged meals. While I usually share good foods I've cooked on the blog, this time I thought I'd share some of the store bought vegan fare we've been munching on.

Amy's Quarter Pound Veggie Burgers- These are amazing! They are our new favorite veggie burgers. They are not so full of veggies like a garden burger, yet they are not trying too hard to meat like a Boca burger. So I suppose they are the perfect balance in my view. I highly recommend them. At over 5 bucks for a 4 pack, we try to make these a rare treat in our kitchen.

Smart Dog - veggie protein links - These are a great substitute for a hot dog, and WAY healthier. Once you dress it up with some ketchup, mustard, and relish or onions, it's very hard to tell any difference between these and a hot dog. My only complaint is that the texture gets really weird (mostly the skin) if you cook it wrong. It's been hit or miss for me.

Hormel Veggie Chili (99% fat free) - I think these were about a dollar per can at Meijer so I got a few. I'm not a big fan of canned Chili, but these do fine for a quick meal or snack. They are just as good as any canned Chili as far as I'm concerned. Textured vegetable protein (TVP) gives them a meaty consistency. Can't say I'd recommend them to most people.

Almond Breeze Chocolate Drink - This is a pretty delicious tasting chocolate milk. I love it, and I don't really see why anyone would go back to the dairy stuff after trying this. Do yourself a favor and pick some up. Shake well!

So Delicious Frozen Desert - I've found that different flavors are either great or not so good, so I'll speak to the three flavors I've tried. Mint marble fudge gets a 'D'. Stay away from it if you know what's good for you. I'll give neopolitan a 'B+'. It was very good, but I've had better. Oddly enough my favorite flavor has been creamy vanilla. I'm giving it an 'A'. Definitely give it a shot.

And I almost forgot these -- Newman-O's -- like Oreo's except healthier (a little) and vegan.

Home Improvement project number one!

2008-08-21T01:20:00.005-04:00

We've been in our new house now for about three weeks, and we are still living out of the downstairs. Picture enough furniture and boxes for a good size house crammed into a one bedroom apartment and that pretty much sums it up. Let's just say we are going nuts and ready to get these floors done with! Here's a little photo journal of the project as we near the finish
line.
You may remember we started with carpet, ripped it up the day before move in, and found painted floors. There were 2-3 coats of paint, and some varnish to deal with so we could get down to the wood.

Steph's brother and I got a drum sander and started the job of removing the paint. Then Steph and I went crazy on it for a good 12 hour day the following week.
Between this last picture and the one that follows I couldn't find my camera, but basically I put in about 60 hours last week (and others chipped in here and there) to sand with three different types of sanders trying to get up all the gunk. After the sanding was done I flipped out for a few hours realizing there was still quite a bit of paint in hundreds of cracks and crevices. I was going to have to pick away at it with various sharp objects, and some chemical "green" stripper. I spent a couple days on that before I gave up and realized I could put up with the imperfections and messy "rustic" look.

This weekend I finally began to stain the floor. We like the dark wood look, so this was something we knew we had to do. A couple good friends recommended trying to do some touch up on paint spots after the stain was applied. They also warned me that I'd need a pre-stain wood conditioner and I'm so glad they did. Soft woods like this can turn out pretty crappy if you try to stain them w/o that. After the stain, I spent 3 or 4 hours with various wood fillers and wood pencil-crayon-thingies to touch up some of the most obvious spots, and I think it really helped.Monday night I finally started laying down polyurethane. We did an oil based stain and a water-based polyurethane, and I think it worked well. Today I buffed and finished the third coat, and now we just wait. It can take about 72 hours before the floors can handle furniture.

Overall this project has been a major headache, but I'd do it again. The wife and I are far from perfectionists, and didn't want to fork over a few thousand for a professional job. There's still quite a bit of paint in the cracks and dents, there are some parts were you can see marks from the sander, and there are little bits of grit and dust in certain parts of the finish. Still, we're pleased with the results and happy we got rid of the carpet. In a couple days here we'll really be able to move in; and it's about dang time.

A whole lot happening!

2008-07-31T13:18:00.004-04:00

The past couple weeks have been crazy (mostly the past week I suppose). A couple weeks ago I took advantage of a 50 dollar price drop and sprung for the Xbox 360 I've been drooling over for a year. I briefly considered the PS3 after the release of Metal Gear Solid 4, but in the end I think I made the best choice. Yes, I realize the picture of me with my new baby is frightening, and yes - I am topless. It was over 85 degrees and humid, gimme a break!
Unfortunately I haven't had much time to play with my new toy because last week Friday we closed on our house! We're finally all moved in and now it's a huge mess. We haven't moved anything into the upstairs yet, and won't until I (with some help from Steph and her brother) refinish the floors upstairs. We ripped up carpet and the wood up there is painted, so it might take a week or so to get all that done. I'm excited to post more about the history of the house, the neighborhood, and all of our home improvements; but for now you should check out this little blurb on our new neighborhood - Eastown!

house pictures

2008-07-22T18:10:00.008-04:00

We've got a tentative closing time of this Friday at 2 pm. We're thrilled, of course. Here are some pictures of the vacant house. The owner left us some nice surprises- A t.v. in the kitchen (which Steph hates), mounted kitchen radio w/ cd, some area rugs, porch chairs, a few tools, work bench, and a bunch of other stuff. Not bad. Here are some pictures!
For those of you reading this on Facebook, you might have to click on "view original post" above to see the pictures. That'll send you straight to the real blog.

The latest from our vegan kitchen

2008-07-17T09:21:00.004-04:00

We got the Real Food Daily cookbook a few weeks ago and now we finally own more than one vegan cookbook. Dozens of vegan meals and goodies continue to flow from the Vanderzee kitchen. The following are a few I happened to have the camera around for.

This was a delicious tempeh meat loaf (that crumbled apart completely) with mashed potatoes and the best gravy I've EVER had (golden gravy from RFD).

Potato and kale enchiladas from Veganomicon with black beans -- don't worry it's Tofutti sour cream :)

Steph made a Falafel sandwich for lunch one day and said this tzatziki sauce was to die for. I had some leftovers later and agreed.

My own creation - mix a reuben sandwich with a smart dog and you get a reuben dog. Canned sauerkraut, and fresh rye bread from the Wealthy Street Bakery. Not bad. We also made the tempeh reubens from RFD a few days later and they were amazing. They were topped off with the homemade tofu ricotta and homemade thousand island dressing. Sadly, we didn't get pictures of those.

One of the only vegan feasts we've cooked for Steph's parents. These seitan enchiladas, black beans, and Spanish rice all got the meat-loving in-law seal of approval.

Giant Bombcast

2008-07-09T10:00:00.004-04:00

Several months ago Jeff Gerstmann lost his job at the popular gaming website, Gamespot, under some very shady circumstances. Fortunately for gamers, he took some of his colleagues with him and started a new website and podcast that is much better, and much less in the pockets of game publishers. It's called Giant Bomb, and I've really been loving it the past few weeks. My favorite part is their podcast, called the Giant Bombcast, which is basically four or five "gaming experts" sitting around talking video games for an hour or two. It doesn't get much better than that.
In other gaming news - The Xbox 360 Pro is going down 5o dollars in price (to 299.99) very soon. See this for proof. I told Stephanie the good news, and she didn't seem quite as excited as I am. Oh well.

Happy Birthday Lola (and U.S.A.)

2008-07-04T19:06:00.003-04:00

We've had our adorable little mutt for about 9 months now and we're not sure exactly how old she is. When we first got her, they told us she was about 3 months old, which would put her birthday around early July. I decided she certainly must have been born on the 4th of July because she has such undying love for America and all that it embodies. Here's to you Lola!

Coming up for air . . . and a house!

2008-07-03T12:01:00.003-04:00

Yesterday I got home from work at 2:30 and the storm blew in about that time. After a few loud cracks of thunder I panicked and started to batten down the hatches (close the windows). While I was surfing the net, wasting time in the wonders of cyberspace, I heard a loud slamming door and the screen went blank. The power was out and I was submerged into a world of darkness. In some ways being without power can be a good thing. I was forced to light a candle, sit by the window and study Spanish (something I desperately need to do before my July 12 test). I suppose its nice to be reminded that we can survive without power, and it forces me to find other ways to waste/spend time. As for now, I'm cozied in at Kava House using he internet; feels like coming up for air.
A lot of this time has also been spent dreaming about or new house! We made an offer on one we really loved on Tuesday and later that night we heard that they had accepted our offer. Last night we had the inspection and it all went well. We should be closing sometime in the next few weeks. The place is a 100 year old 4 bedroom house in the East Town neighborhood of Grand Rapids, and we love it. It's one block from the main drag of East Town (Lake Drive) which is full of cool businesses and also major bus route. We talked to the owner for a while last night and he filled us in on some of the great neighbors and history of the house. It was really nice and we were grateful for his time and kindness. Obviously I'll be posting a lot more on this in the near future. 507 Norwood, here we come!

Ahh to be irresponsible again . . .

2008-06-13T15:46:00.004-04:00

Yesterday one of my favorite video game franchises saw it's latest release out of the starting gates. Metal Gear Solid 4 is now out for the Playstation 3, which is double bad news for me because 1- I don't have a PS3 and, 2 - I've pretty much made up my mind to go with the Xbox 36o when I do finally catch up to the next generation. I've been absorbing the reviews today (a couple perfect 10's found their way into the mix), drooling, and dreaming of what could be if only I was more financially irresponsible. I suppose I will play it some day, but it could be a couple years.

Speaking of financially responsibility, the wife and I have officially begun house hunting. We met with a mortgage lender this week and next week we'll go look at some houses with an agent.

vegan airport dining

2008-06-11T17:40:00.002-04:00

When flying back to Seattle, I was nervous about trying to eat vegan for several reasons. One of them was how I was going to manage my eating during 6-8 hours of travel. This may not seem like a big deal, but I've always been the type of person who picks up a "snack" wherever I can get it. My metabolism is still cranking away and I find that I get hungry pretty quick. Usually this has meant grabbing something from McDonald's (those McGriddles are my weakness) or some Panda Express Chinese or something. I packed enough food to hold me over, but that dang airport food is always so tempting. Fortunately this time, I was able to indulge my grumbling belly with something other than my apple, PBJ, pretzels, and fruit and nut mix. Before I left I found this blog post, and I just happened to be flying in to Minneapolis, so I was in luck. From what I hear vegans in other airports usually have a much harder time.
Here's how I fared at the French Meadow Cafe and Bakery.
1- On the way out I chowed on a bowl of black bean chili with a couple slices of bread. It was pretty good, but not spectacular.
2- On the way home I had an almost 3 hour lay over, so I splurged on a Grilled, Marinated Tempeh Reuben, and it was fabulous. It even inspired me to grab a loaf of rye bread from the bakery to try my own version in the next week.
3. And for dessert, vegan carrot cake - delicious.
I'll be trying to connect in Minneapolis whenever possible from now on :)

the almost summertime update

2008-06-03T09:11:00.007-04:00

SEATTLE This past weekend I had a great time visiting friends and family in the Seattle area. It was only a three day venture, but it was time well spent. As our friend Jeremy was getting married, much of the time was spent on wedding stuff. Derek Wright stayed with me at my parents' house and let me tag along with him and his rental car - a nice little convertible. A couple highlights were a fabulous rehearsal dinner at Salty's, a day hike on Rattlesnake Ledge with my pops, hanging out with my parents and grandma, a get-together at Dustin and Jenae's new place, and of course the wedding. Here are some pictures from the trip:

SUMMER At this point I have three finals to give and then I'm done with school completely. After Friday, I'll finish up a little bit of grading, clean up my crap, and then I'm free for the summer. For those of you who haven't heard I got a job at a different school for next year. It is a much bigger Christian school and I did my student teaching there, which means I already have a lot of good connections with some good people. It is sad to leave my current school as I like it a lot, but I'm currently only 35% FTE and am looking forward to the boost up to 81% next year. That's the main reason for the change. This summer I'll continue to work at the bakery part-time, and I'm hoping to find something else to help make money and give me less free time to spend money. Painting is one very good option. Jehova Jireh! Because of the new job, the month of August (especially the second half) will find me pretty busy to be sure - planning, decorating, organizing, etc. before the storm hits (school starts).

A parade of vegan food (photos)

2008-05-21T12:56:00.008-04:00

Well, here they are, as promised. 2 days ago I just re-discovered the close-up setting on Steph's camera, so most of these photo's pretty much suck because they were taken before that :) Oh well, the meals were delicious. Many of them are already repeat visitors at our table, and all of them will be in the future.

Spaghetti and bean balls

Chili Cornbread Crusted Tofu "Po Boy"

Frying up some seitan for one of our favorites . . .

. . . the BBQ seitan and coleslaw sammich (these bbq strips cook well on the grill too)

Snobby Joe (sloppy joe style lentils - very good)

All the above dishes are from the Veganomicon. As you can see we haven't ventured very far from the "sammiches" section as of late, probably because I can get free (and great quality) bread from the bakery where I work part time.

Veganism part 3

2008-05-19T10:22:00.007-04:00

Well, I'm still going strong on the whole vegan thing. I've certainly taken it farther than I ever thought I would, but there is rarely a week where I don't slip in a little animal product somewhere (chicken tamales in Chicago, a sip of cheesy broccoli soup at the bakery, a cinnamon roll, etc.) It's not real hard when I'm at home, but the ways of the world outside my walls can make it a challenge. I can say I am officially sick of the vegan hummus sandwich, and the weekly vegan cookies on our bakery's menu. So lately I'm starting to explore off the menu options - a vegan pizza was last week's experiment, and it was quite good.

When I say I've taken this thing farther than I thought I would, I mean that the following quote from my first blog post on this topic no longer applies -

"I don't want to become an inconvenience to others, especially when I am a guest and am served food."

While I'm still uncomfortable refusing food that is served to me, it doesn't mean I haven't done it, and won't do it again. Two weeks ago I took my first stand as a vegan. My aunt and uncle will often have a bunch of us Vanderzee cousins over for pizza on Sunday afternoons after church. The last time I was invited I decided I wasn't going to eat any pizza, so I packed myself a chili corn bread crusted tofu sandwich (deelish). I was nervous about explaing this to people, but realized that if I didn't want to use animal products I needed to start telling others that, and then explaining why. My excuses like - "Well, they already ordered the pizza so I might as well. . ." or "They made this food just for me" were no longer holding up. If I start saying no thanks to food, others will start to think about their own consumption and in the end less animal products will be consumed (even if it is just me). Also, it got some good discussion started with one of my cousins who is thinking about becoming a vegetarian. If I reluctantly chose to just eat the dang pizza, I would have missed out on some good discussion and more people would continue on their way with possible negative misconceptions about those crazy vegans. Now it's just, "that crazy cousin" ;)
Last thing - I started this whole experiment because I was struck hard by the realities of factory farming in meat, eggs, and dairy. In the light of my views on Christian stewardship I was greatly saddened by the environmental toll as well as the things animals suffer all so we can have some food we don't even need. I was under the impression that it was healthy to eat animal products, but I could get what I needed okay from a vegan diet as well. As I continue to do research, however, I'm starting to find that much to my surprise a plant-based diet is actually much healthier, and animal protein has even been linked to the high heart disease and cancer rates in the U.S. Yikes! This book, the China Study, lays it all out there scientifically and it's pretty incredible. I was very skeptical at first, but I'm coming around. Anyway, just thought I'd mention that as another step on this journey, and more to come on that when I finish the book.
Also, I'm excited to post some pictures of the vegan wonders that have graced our kitchen. I'll do that this week.

We're not in Seattle anymore

2008-05-04T07:49:00.003-04:00

For the most part Grand Rapids is pretty familiar to me, and even though I grew up in a markedly different place, I'm not often struck by the glaring differences of this world called West Michigan. There have been a few moments, though. I'll share some.
- A Columbian friend asked me why there are so many churches in the U.S. I had to explain to him that this is the Mecca of all things "reformed", and there's a very healthy portion of other church denominations too. It's not a U.S. thing - it's a Grand Rapids thing.
- My bakery/coffee shop is closed on Sundays - would a place like this survive in Seattle? There are a whole lot of things that are closed on Sundays, and everything closes earlier around here.

Today's little venture, however, definitely takes the cake. I was up early buying some groceries so I could make some Baja Tempeh Tacos for our potluck tonight. I had a bunch of stuff, including a 12 pack of Labatt Blue (the tempeh marinade calls for a pilsner beer). As I put my beer on the conveyor, the words of the clerk magically transported me back to Colonial New England. "You can't buy beer on Sundays before noon."
I was flabbergasted, "really?!"
"Really. Michigan state law."
Many of you may think I'm being overly dramatic here - after all, Pennsylvania won't let you buy any alcohol anytime on Sundays, and in Michigan you can at least buy beer and liquor in a regular grocery store as opposed to state run liquor stores. Still, I couldn't help but feel oppressed. I hung my head in despair and left the store. In my mind my Sunday morning drunken binge was turning into a Sunday afternoon drunken binge. All of a sudden I had several hours to kill with nothing to do but . . .
go to church!! Wow, I guess these laws really work!

Does your pastor love America as much as you?

2008-04-18T09:44:00.004-04:00

First off, credit for this title goes to some random blog I ran across here. Last week Wednesday (April 16) I watched parts of the debate between Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton and I was pretty disgusted by the moderators' questions. At least half an hour was dedicated to tabloid garbage like verbal gaffs and sketchy associations that we've already seen pulled through the mud for the last several weeks. This could be because America loves this stuff and wants to see these candidates asked the "hard questions" (stupid questions if you ask me). Another theory, which seems just as likely, is that with so many debates between these two we've kind of run out of things to talk about. Several months ago these candidates as well as the American people were having trouble telling much of a difference between the two democratic senators. Now we've had several debates that attempt to draw lines of distinction between the two, with some success, but mostly a whole lot of irrelevant nonsense.
The most ridiculous question I heard asked was one asked to Senator Obama - "Do you think Rev. Jeremiah Wright loves America as much as you do?" First off, who knows and who can judge? Second, who cares?! Ahh, politics. Gotta love it.

Veganism part 2

2008-04-13T21:14:00.005-04:00

As I continue to consume food I find myself struggling to define my diet to onlookers. My parents were in town last week and we went out for dinner at a newer local restaurant called the Green Well (a great place if you're in G.R.). I tried hard to find something on the menu that was vegan, or could be made that way, and it actually worked out quite well. I got a veggie burrito without the sour cream and it was spectacular- one of the best burritos I've ever had. I'm sure my family noticed my attempt to stay away from the animal products, and I probably was more careful because I know they were watching.

The next day my sister and I were having breakfast. My mom had ordered an egg soufflé from my bakery the day before and she had left in the fridge after they went back to Seattle. I stuck it in the microwave and then took a couple bites, then handed some to my sister. She commented on the fact that there were pieces of bacon in it, obviously wondering where my vegan conviction had run off to. I said something to the effect of, "and eggs too . . . so what?" I explained my conviction using the following comparison. As a way of being a good steward of resources I try to minimize the amount of driving I do. In the same way, I've been trying to minimize the amount of animal products I consume in order to be a more faithful "caretaker" of this world. Just as I'm not going to completely give up driving, I also won't completely stop eating dairy, meat, etc. In retrospect, however, I'm growing increasingly uncomfortable with this comparison.

I guess the point of all this is - I find myself wanting to let others know that there's something different about my diet but have trouble doing that when I'm only selectively eating vegan. Part of my reason for wanting this recognition is purely selfish: I want to be different, unique, and yes I can be honest- fashionable. Let's not forget that eating vegan is definitely fashionable, cool, edgy, "alternative", and all that stuff. There are some pure motives here to, however. I want to eat more sustainably, live out my values a little better, and it is important for me that others see that this is possible and compelling. I suppose being under the microscope of my immediate family this past week as increased my desire to define myself as vegan, not just someone who tries to eat vegan sometimes. We'll see where that takes me.

the plan(s)

2008-03-26T10:42:00.005-04:00

horrible- Stop playing video games and get a life! Not likely . . . or desireable.

bad - Spend my tax refund that we should be saving for a down payment on a house on an Xbox 360 (and risk my marriage in the process).

okay - Wait a couple years and focus on getting more cheap Ps2 games (there are lots of good ones left to try). Or I could buy a gamecube for 30-40 bucks to tide me over for a while. The problem is that while there are some great games, they aren't nearly as cheap as ps2 games.

good - Start a jar and put all my bakery tips in it until I have 450 dollars to spend on the console and an awesome game. This would take about a year.

better - Work out some agreement with the wife, whereby I allow her one thing in exchange for said purchase. (I.E. When she gets pregnant, or when we buy a house, or if she gets a big fancy fish tank- I can get my 360).

best - Risk sounding like a nerdy, tacky, and selfish ass, and ask my parents and in-laws to buy me gift cards to Best Buy or another electronics store for my birthday (September) and for Christmas instead of other lavish gifts. Voila! The prize will be mine in less than a year.

That's the break down at this time. Perhaps a better plan will hatch soon.

rest deprived

2008-03-26T10:26:00.004-04:00

Lately I've been feeling exhausted. I've always been someone who likes to get a good solid 8 hours of sleep every night, and getting 6 to 7 hours instead may have something to do with that. I often get home from the bakery at 10:30 pm and get right back up at 5:30 am to get myself on the bus to school. Still, a lack of sleep is not the problem. I think what I'm really dealing with is a lack of rest. We all need rest, and by that I mean we all need to take time to do those things which rejuvenate us. That's my real problem. I've lamented my lack of progress on my latest video game projects since I started the second job. But lately, even sitting down to kill bad guys hasn't filled the tank like I thought it would. What I think I need is more time to be still, more time to pray and listen, more time to read my Bible and other good books, observe sabbath, and more quality time with my wife.

flirting with veganism

2008-03-13T13:31:00.005-04:00

Yes it's true, I've been considering going vegan for a several weeks now. My small group at church has been going through a book called Living the Good Life on God's Good Earth. It's mostly about how to integrate our faith in areas of life like homes, neighborhoods, clothing, energy, work, etc. When we got to the chapter entitled The Food We Eat several weeks ago, we spent a good three or four weeks going through all sorts of food related issues. After doing a bit of my own research and reading about the problems with all sorts of animal products, I'm feeling more and more like this is something I should do. And yet, I can't seem to comprehend going all the way with this. I've been trying to eat less meat for a number of years now, and I'm currently pretty okay without it, but subtracting eggs and dairy especially would be difficult. I can easily see myself going vegan for a couple weeks at a time, but to never have a nice cheesy omelet again, or a greasy piece of cheese pizza is unimaginable.

So far here are my objections to becoming a strict vegan:

1- I don't have a problem with eating meat, eggs, or cheese as long as I know the animals were treated humanely (though that hardly ever happens).

2- I don't want to become an inconvenience to others, especially when I am a guest and am served food.

3- It's dang hard! There would be many situations in which I'm sure I'd just go hungry because there wouldn't be any vegan options. (I'm now working at a bakery that has delicious pizza's, pastries, etc. and that makes it even harder).

On the other hand, here are some striking facts that influenced me in the first place:

1- A vegan who drives a Hummer leaves a smaller carbon footprint than a meat eating bicycle rider. (some debate this point, but even if it's not quite true I'm sure its close).

2- Dairy cows are artificially inseminated, milked round the clock, and nearly all male offspring end up in veal crates. This is true even of organic dairy, and smaller scale dairy farms.

3- Industry standard in the meat and egg industry is appalling. I'd never want to go anywhere near one of these places, so how can I in good conscience eat these products? For that matter, if I couldn't kill a chicken myself, should I eat one?

More to come on this mess that is my life and conscience.

new job

2008-03-08T08:35:00.003-05:00

Yesterday I started a new job. Don't worry I haven't quit my teaching job; and don't get your hopes up; I haven't got a full time teaching job. The past couple months I've been scrounging around for work in a mile radius of our home at local Coffee Shops and Cafe's. Finally last week we went to a local bakery down the street from us. I'd never really been there before, but it seemed like a pretty cool environment and I asked if they had any openings. About a week later I had the job. This place is kind of a coffee shop/bakery/pizzeria/deli/everything! It's pretty cool, but of course pays minimum wage. I'll mostly be running the register, making hot and cold caffeinated drinks, making sandwiches or the occasional pizza, and generally keeping things tidy. I'll probably be working two or three shifts a week, which will be great, and won't conflict with my school schedule at all. I don't know what it is about minimum wage jobs at really cool places, but I've already been told by three people (including my wife), "that's awesome! I'm so jealous". I guess all professional types harbor a secret desire to work in a cooler place than they currently work, and get paid way less. Makes sense to me. So yeah, be jealous!

nerdy timeline, part 2

2008-02-20T16:53:00.007-05:00

When last we left our hero, he was in college and getting closer to true adulthood. On the verge of leaving behind video games forever and resigning himself to casual gaming at friend's houses and dorm rooms we find Nate alone on the third floor of a residence hall at Calvin College . . .
College- During college I was always busy, and fairly involved. I didn't have much time for video games. My junior year a guy on my floor let me borrow his Sega Dreamcast that he never played and that started a love hate addiction with Tony Hawk 2. Also, during interim (January) of this year, an Xbox with Halo made it's way to our floor for a couple weeks, and life pretty much stopped for some of us. My experiences during this year showed me that video games were probably not good for me. I continued in this misconception for several years, into marriage, and was only diverted by a few fun PC games along the way.
Spring '07 - During Spring break I flew with my wife from Seattle to Grand Rapids to visit friends and family. We stayed with Stephanie's brother Jonathan for a couple days and his roommate had a Playstation 2 with a bunch of games, including one that caught my eye - Street Fighter 2: Anniversary Collection. I used to love Street Fighter 2 back in the day, and this version was great. I decided I had to have it. Upon returning to Seattle I began to look into getting a used PS2. Sure Xbox 360, PS3, and Wii were all the rage, but I really just wanted this one game (yeah right).
PS2 - A 20 minute drive and 80 bucks snagged me an almost new slim PS2 from someone on Craigslist and thus video games and I were reunited. I'm not a complete video game nut, but because I had a few free weeks during the summer, and have only been employed part time in Grand Rapids, I've had a lot of face time with my games.
There, now we've got the background covered, we'll be all set for future rants and reviews dealing with one of my favorite topics.

yes, I am a nerd!

2008-02-20T12:07:00.006-05:00

Those who know me best know that the past year has seen my return to the realm of video games. I took a hiatus, knowing full well that I can go overboard at times, but last spring decided I would deprive myself no longer. At first I was going to write a post about the Nintendo Wii (my brother in law just got one and I've probably played it more than he has), but decided that a little background for ya'll (I know you don't care) and a little reflection for me might be helpful. So, here's a little video game timeline for my life:
early elementary school- My parents never bought us any video games or consoles and we didn't have a computer. My contact with video games was limited to 7-11's or Chuck-E-Cheese's arcade games, and the NES that various friends owned (most notably Dustin's family). Mario games, Excitebike, and Megaman were just a few favorites. I was one of the little kids who moved the controller up every time Mario jumped.
late elementary- My cousin got a Sega Genesis and I entered the realm of Sonic the Hedgehog, Mortal Combat, and others. In 6th or 7th grade I saved up enough paper route money to delve in myself and bought a Super Nintendo packaged with Super Mario World and Mario Paint at our local Costco. . .
middle school- I met my friend Will in 6th grade and his dad was a computer maniac. He built computers, and although they didn't have car or health insurance, they did have three powerhouse computers and all the gadgets to go along with them. My parents finally realized the benifits of having a pc and Will's dad put one together for our family. Enter - Doom, Wolfenstein 3d, Syndicate Plus, Warcraft, and lots of little shareware games on floppy. This era also saw some addittions to the SNES library; most notably Mario Kart and Donkey Kong Country, two incredible games.
high school - In high school I started wanting to be cool, which really limited my computer game playing, but let's be honest. I still played a lot. The biggest standouts were Warcraft II, Quake, Ultima Online, Diablo, and Duke Nukem 3d. There were dozens of others. Overall I didn't play the SNES much in high school and as Playstation and others were becoming popular I lagged behind the times. I got pretty busy with basketball, youth group, and social stuff. I played a little here or there at friends house's and even rented a PS1 a couple times from the video store, but overall I took a huge hiatus from the realm of video games which lasted through college and into adult life.
adulthood - . . . ?????
What will happen next? Will Nathan make his way back to the fantasy world of slaying demons and dragons, blowing things up, and racing down boardwalks at breakneck speeds? Or will the real world pressures of adult life claim him forever? Stay tuned to the next post to find out!

divine intervention?

2008-01-26T13:34:00.000-05:00

A few days ago my wife slept in. Nothing unusual there. At about 9:30 the dog went outside our bedroom door while I was on the computer and started whining, waking Stephanie up earlier than she would have got up without the canine nudge. "That's not like Lola", I thought at the time. In the next twenty minutes as my wife made her way downstairs, she looked at the calendar and noticed, "oops, I'm supposed to be at work!" *Commence crazy stressful half hour of my life!* On the way to work Stephanie and I both commented on how nice it was for the dog to wake her up that morning. We mused about whether or not it could have been God getting her out of bed and eventually to work. To be honest, at the time I was bothered by my naiveté in believing that this could have been "a God thing". Later that day I was bothered by the fact that I had been bothered. I began thinking- of course it could have been God, in fact six years ago I probably would have insisted it was God.
Lately I've found myself wondering a lot about these things. About what in my life to thank God for, and what in my life to dismiss as coincidence. I do believe strongly that nothing happens that is outside God's control, but an example that often disturbs me is the example of wealth. I, being a middle class American, am extremely wealthy compared to most of the world. When I pray I often thank God that I have enough of everything, and I often even thank him that I have enough money to enjoy things like video games, ice cream, or nice-looking and comfortable furniture - things that I am far from truly needing. While I believe in a God that wants us to find enjoyment and pleasure in our lives, and I don't feel guilty about these pleasures, I am very wary of saying that God has blessed me with these things -- prosperity gospel yadayadayada. . . Is it God or is it coincidence? Is it God, or is it the wealth that my society has built on the backs of others? Right about now, I can see this is taking me on a never ending path of wondering so I'll try to bring it to a hasty close.
Answer - I'll keep thanking God for every good thing I receive; for every convenient coincidence and every small pleasure I enjoy that doesn't take me from Him. But I'll probably also keep asking "was that you Lord?" whether it matters or not.

Back home and thankful

2008-01-20T09:49:00.000-05:00

Stephanie and I had a good week in Seattle, hanging out with family and friends, but it is great to be home. I'm glad Stephanie got home first, to turn the heat on. It is currently 7 degrees outside, and last night was probably colder. We kept the heat at 45 while we were gone and I'm sure our furnace had to work pretty hard just to keep it there. I heard it'll be about -10 degrees in Green Bay today for the Packers Giants game. I don't know how these psychopaths can sit in an outdoor stadium like that, but I guess some things are worth freezing your balls off. No thanks!

So, here's a good story. I'll try not to make it too graphic. The following are the contents of my stomach yesterday.

a small bowl of multi grain Cheerios

three or four pretzel bites, mmm.

and for desert . . . a few bites of fruit & nut delight

The crazy thing was I wasn't even hungry. More importantly, I wasn't confident I could hold down anything more. 8 hours in airports and airplanes has never felt so miserable. It's days like yesterday that make me so thankful that I am generally healthy, and that not every day is like that.

the first update

2008-01-09T09:31:00.000-05:00

Stephanie and I have now been in Grand Rapids for about five months and I have to say we're enjoying life here. We live in the East Hills neighborhood and have just about everything we need within walking distance, which is a dream come true. Stephanie is enjoying her job as a nurse at Spectrum's Meijer Heart Center, and I'm enjoying sitting around a lot and playing video games and reading (and subbing a couple days a week). This will all come to an abrupt end for me as I start my new job teaching Spanish at a small Christian High School on January 28. It's only part time so I'm praying about other options to fill in the cracks. It would be nice to find some work painting, but I'm really looking for opportunities in the non-profit realm, or maybe I'll finally try my hand as a barista. We hope to buy a house this summer, although my semi-employment hasn't helped that cause much. We also got a puppy in September, and that has been a lot of fun, as well as a lot of work. Her name is Lola. That's it for now. More news, preachy rants, and curiosities to come!

Dear Internet, I'm back!

2008-01-08T11:51:00.000-05:00

It's been years since I last blogged (except for teaching related stuff), and maybe it'll be another year after this post. I am, however, going to give it another shot. I deleted my last blog because I was sick of knowing that anyone (my students for example) could read what I was thinking about, and even non-personal stuff seemed like something I'd rather have just my friends read. A little break from the teaching world may have something to do with my return to this blog, but I'll resume teaching again in just a couple weeks and I hope it won't scare me away from blogging again. I think I've overcome my fears. Another reason I'm back is that I checked my bloglines page yesterday for the first time in months and realized what a wonderful world I've been missing out on: Updates from friends, musings from pastors, alternative news, etc. My blog will most likely fall into the update category. In fact, I have a lovely update planned for . . . tomorrow!
Still, some things will be different this time around:
-I'm committed to making a better blog, with more doodads and knickknacks. We'll see if I can learn how.
-I'll probably be a little less personal than I was before, knowing that past and present students are always lurking around the corner in this series of tubes known as "the internet". This will be hard for me, as my friends probably know. I'm a very open person and tend to unload when given the chance. Maybe I'll hire a censor, or more likely I'll just use my wife.

But anyway, I'm back.