July 27

Today was… difficult. I woke up at 6:00 and made sure everything was in ship shape around the house, got packed and then loaded the car up. I went to Cattleman’s for breakfast one last time and said goodbye to Bert and Kate. Then I went to the church and gave blood at the blood drive. Once that was done it was time to go, and Doug, Charlene, Mary Lee and I left Riggins! We dropped Mary Lee off in a small town on the way to Boise so she could see her sister, then we went to Ontario Oregon so Charlene could drop something off at her dentist. After that we headed to Boise (not before plugging in the hotel on the gps… Doug and Charlene are sweet…) We got to the hotel and I said goodbye to Doug and Charlene, and that was that. My time in Riggins is done, and now I’m headed for a three day stay in Colorado for LFL. I’ll have a few more posts later so keep your ears perked.

July 26

Today was my last full day in Riggins. I woke up at about 9:00 and cleaned house a bit then got showered and went to the senior’s lunch. I got to see some of my favorite people one last time there, then I went golfing with Doug and Anita. I played my worst game of golf ever (which is saying something if you’ve seen me play golf) but birdied the last hole, so it was all worth it. After we got back from golfing I went to the church and picked up the computer. I had dinner at Bev and Ernie Knight’s house and then taught them the Opensong Program. That went well. I then went home and am going to bed. Good night!

July 25

Welllll let’s see. We’re getting close to the end here. Pastor Jim and Judy left today at about 10:30 and when that happened I went to the church and completed the great lyric migration. Yes. Completed! There were about 150 songs total, so that was an accomplishment. After that I did a little bit of busy-work around the church before heading home. I called Doug and Anita to see if they wanted to go golfing one last time, then tidied up the house before heading to bed. It was sad to see the Thibodeaux’s leave… :-(

July 24

Today was very cool, but sad at the same time. I lead worship at the church this morning, which went surprisingly well, and then there was a going away potluck for Patrick, Jessie and I. The food was amazing and I ate way too much, but it was sad knowing that I won’t see these people for a long time, if ever again. A pleasant surprise was Caleb and Stephen Hackler showing up for the potluck, since I had invited them on Friday, but not gotten a real feedback. Afterward we hung out in the basement of the church playing Wii and whatnot with Megan and Maddi. At about 4:00 I gave Stephen and Caleb a ride home and I hung out with the whole Hackler clan the rest of the night. It was really fun, talking, watching a movie, eating hot dogs, playing music, and just having fun. I’m really gonna miss Caleb and Jordan and I hope to see them again when we hopefully come up here to go skiing. Tomorrow is my last day to see the Thibodeauxs before they leave for their vacation, and that’s going to be rough… Soon I’ll be reflecting on my time here… which will yield very very long blog posts… so… yeah…

July 23

Today I started the day by fixing a flat tire on my Toyota. The valve stem was busted and Pastor Jim and I took it to the chevron station to get fixed. Then we went to the Hot Summer Nights car show. There were some pretty great cars. In particular, a 60’s Pontiac firebird. One of my favorites. As well as a 34 chevy pick up truck. After browsing the cars a bit we went to the church and I gave him a recap lesson on the computer and using his new phone. That went well. Then it was half waiting around, half practicing until the worship got to the church to practice for the service tomorrow. Practice was good, but we’re doing a bunch of songs that were very new to the team… so we’ll see how well it sticks tomorrow.

July 22

Today I started at the church winding up the great lyric migration. I’ve only got about 15 more songs to move over. Around lunch time I came home and gave Mrs. Judy a recap computer lesson. I then went back to the church and practiced my routine for Hot Summer Nights. The talent show went well, the hacklers got two first places and a third between them. I was very happy for them. There were also some really good singers. It’s crazy how so many people who can sing so well can come from such a small town. My performance went well too… at least, everyone seemed to enjoy it. Well that’s all for now. ttyt.

July 21

Well My parents left today. We started by going to Cattleman’s for breakfast, so that my parents could experience the great food and the fun service. They left at 11:00, then Pastor Jim, Doug, Anita and I went to Grangeville and played golf. It was my best round ever. I shot a flat 100. Not a good score for some, but great for me. I only had one hole that I had to take maximum strokes and I got Par twice! Afterward we came home and I was hoping to hang out with Caleb Hackler… but he didn’t call, so I guess he was busy. Hot Summer Nights talent show is tomorrow. I’m doing Bill in Lemon in Guitar. I turn a borrowed signed 20 dollar bill, turn it into a one. Take out my guitar, pull a lemon out of the hole under the springs, cut open the lemon and the signed 20 is inside. Wish me good nerves.