The too-busy-to-blog ABCs

There's an expectation here at Life at Luther for each of us four bloggers to generate at least one entry per week. It's been well more than a week since my last entry. You see, with so much other stuff on my plate right now, I haven't had time to even consider what I might blog about if I had the time to blog. So, rather than waiting another week-plus to finally write something coherent, I figured I should instead quickly string together some random stuff. And just to make sure it's not completely random, I'll write it up ...

• Alphabetically. I like the Alphabet. It really beats the Dewey Decimal System. In fact, even the classification system that they use at Luther Seminary's library beats the Dewey Decimal System.
• Bed sounds really good right now. Lately, I'm daily facing that classic battle of "bed or coursework?" When it gets as late as it is right now (1 a.m.), bed usually wins. Tonight, blog wins. Blog starts with a B, too.
• Clinical Pastoral Education (CPE) is a thing that Master of Divinity students have to do at some point, typically before internship. Each student serves at a hospital or other care facility as training for pastoral care. I have spent much of the last week applying and interviewing for CPE sites in the Twin Cities. I couldn't get a CPE site last summer, which was a bummer. Hey, that rhymed.
• Dumb idea. This was a dumb idea. Now I have to come up with another 22 of these!
  
• Endorsement interviews are coming up in less than two weeks. This is when members of my synod's Candidacy Committee come up to the seminary and, along with my faculty adviser, interview me to see if I'm cut out for internship next year. I already have my shirt and tie picked out.
  
• Football suddenly got less fun since the Packers lost to the Bears on Sunday night. Sad.
  
• Gnosticism. A great heresy of the early Christian church. Dr. Paulson told us in class today (well, now it's yesterday) that people who like "Lost" or "Survivor" are Gnostics inside because both TV shows involve the pursuit of an escape from the current, problematic existence, much as Gnostics have looked to Jesus merely as a way to escape from their earthly existence into their glorious destiny. I guess I'm a big-time Gnostic because I like both of those shows. At least Dr. Paulson didn't say anything about ...
  
• "Heroes." The other show I watch. Sadly, it hasn't been all that good this season.
  
• Internship application. That took up a lot of my time last week. So many applications.
  
• Jesus. My favorite third of the Holy Trinity.
  
• Kevin Federline. Not my favorite third of the Holy Trinity.
  
• Library of Congress Classification. Turns out that's the system that the seminary's library uses. How about that? Still better than Dewey.
  
• Minnesota went smoke-free statewide recently. That, my friends, is awesome.
  
• Neil Diamond. Dude really knew how to crank out a song.
  
• Oil change. I had to get one on Tuesday. That ate up some more of my time.
• Payaso. One of the few Spanish words I know. It means clown. I told Tracy a couple weeks ago that it would be fun to open a Mexican restaurant called Payaso Zapato. That would mean "clown shoe." The restaurant probably wouldn't last long once word got out that I used the two Spanish words I know in the wrong order.
  
• Quotidian. Means "daily." That's actually English. A guest lecturer used the word repeatedly on Wednesday. Dr. Padgett told me what it meant afterward, at the free community lunch.
  
• Rice. That's pretty much all I ate at the free community lunch. That and some bread.
  
• Sharkleberry Fin. The most obscure Kool-Aid flavor ever. I completely forgot about it until several months ago when I went Googling for Purplesaurus Rex. Now there's a flavor I'll never forget. Would have gone well with the rice and bread.
  
• Tom is the name of a good buddy from my days at the Green Bay Press-Gazette. He e-mailed me yesterday to tell me he was just catching up on my blog. He complimented me on the one about the Arcade Fire concert. I told him that sadly, I didn't write that one. Tom did mention that he liked another entry (one that I did write), which he lauded for its "classic Behrendt randomness." Tom should really like this one.
  
• Utinni. That's not Spanish or English. That's the word that the little Jawas shout in the "Star Wars" movies.
• Vanna White is now in her 25th year of turning the letters on "Wheel of Fortune." Tracy and I like watching the show while we eat dinner (... and, you know, let me think ... yep, it's Gnostic.) Anyway, um, It's not really necessary for her to be on the show these days since she doesn't actually turn the letters anymore. She just kind of touches them, and I'm pretty sure the new technology doesn't really require that. But I suppose if she weren't there to hold things together, Pat Sajak would lose all restraint from covertly mocking the contestants. (Great example from a recent show: An especially exuberant contestant tells Pat, "And I have a wonderful husband ... ." And Pat says, "Yeah, he'd pretty much have to be.")
  
• Why am I up so late? Well, I got the privilege of proofreading Luther Seminary's annual report as part of my job with the seminary's Communication Office. It's quite a document. And let me tell you: You're going to hate yourself if you don't pick up a copy of this thing. The articles were good, but I especially like the colorful pie charts.
  
• Xylophone. I used to play it, among other percussion instruments, in high school. I haven't done much with musical instruments since then. Although, last week, I made a somewhat foolish proposal to Dr. Skinner to write and record five songs about apostolic miracles in lieu of a final paper for my Acts class. Anybody got a cell number for Neil Diamond?
  
• Yawn. It's really late. I'm getting tired. I hope someone appreciated ... that I went out of my way to ... squeeze out a blog entry at this ... late hour of ...
  
• ZZzzzzzzzzzzzz