Day 63 (10/27 - Tues)

Behold the bedroom after the metamorphosis.



Nathan-world has moved in. It brings bright lights with it, too, apparently. And bumper stickers. And Jars of Clay paraphernalia.

Day 62 (10/26 - Mon)

Holy heap o' happy harmonies! What happened? I got a roommate! Meet Nathan.



As you can see, we'll get along just fine.

Day 61 (10/25 - Sun)

Tomorrow I get a new roommate! My living solo is over!

But that means I have to clear out the bedroom that he will soon be occupying. Thus far, it has been the "throw stuff on the floor" room, but soon it will experience its metamorphosis...



This is what it looked like *early* this morning as I frantically tried to organize everything and lug it (still organized) to the basement. What will it look like come tomorrow? Stay tuned...

Day 60 (10/24 - Sat)

OW! What happened?!?!



Ladies and gentlemen of the blogosphere, this is what happens when cute woodland creatures discover the tastiness of Iowa. Well, of Iowa pumpkins at any rate. The "WA" is still fine, but the "IO" has been expunged from this world by what are certainly a horde of Mutant Ninja Nazi Squirrels from Beneath the College Campus. (there is only one person who reads this who will get that reference)

I think what I love the most are the pumpkin shavings that lie still on the ground as mute evidence of their butchery adjacent to the now-removed votive candle shell. Seriously!? They removed the metal shell but left the candle inside? These are professionals!

Day 59 (10/23 - Fri)

Mr. Leaf! What do I see?
A slightly-reddish tinge on thee?



Looks like a certain person named "my mom" wins the contest (for guessing 10/21)!
What is very interesting to me is that only about 20% of the leaves have begun to change on this tree at all. You can see many leaves in the background that are still completely green. I suspect one more week and that will change...

Day 58 (10/22 - Thurs)

Fall is here. It greets me on my front walk when I step outside in the morning.



Fall is rather polite that way.

Day 57 (10/21 - Wed)

Mr. Pumpkin in all his glory!



I brought him home from Iowa, to proclaim the wonders of that verdant land. Yes, clearly that is the outline of the state of Iowa, surrounded by the letters I O [shape] W A. No, really, that's the state outline. No, it's not a tipsy bison. No, it's not a pumpkin rhombus. No, it's not a...

Day 56 (10/20 - Tues)

On this, my last day of my thus-far glorious Fall Break, I took up an invitation of a co-worker here to attend a special lecture tonight by Walter Hooper, the man responsible for managing the literary estate of C.S. Lewis and for publishing (and keeping in print) Lewis's work after his death. The talk recounted the history of his work as an advocate for Lewis' work in general, but focused specifically also on his editing of Lewis's personal letters for publication. Here he talks with a gaggle of interested undergraduates.



Perhaps most interesting were his many anecdotes about knowing both Lewis brothers (only one electric space heater per room!) and Tolkien ("I'm the master of this clock and I'll tell you when you can leave!"). A great talk -- time well invested.

It's interesting (and sobering) to consider that at this point in time we are privileged to be only one generation removed from these literary legends: "I know someone who knew that person." But the day will come when it will be two generations, then one day three. What will be remembered then? What will be lost? (thankfully, we have archivists who are on the job as you are reading this...)

Day 55 (10/19 - Mon)

On my way back to Illinois, before I left Iowa I swung by a lovely little place called Anderwood. My friend Anna lives there. I envy her her sunsets.



But she shared this one with me.

Day 54 (10/18 - Sun)

Party at Melissa's after church.
The chili was tasty!
The company was great.
There were pumpkins.
We went after their guts.



We won.
(the baked pumpkin seeds were also tasty)

Mr. Iowa Pumpkin will soon be on my porch, proclaiming Iowa cheer to one and all.

Day 53 (10/17- Sat)

Today is the first day of Wheaton's Fall Break! I'm thus heading to Iowa City to catch up with many of my old friends and colleagues -- and even do some research in the U of Iowa library. But on my way out of town I got to say a lovely Fall Hello to the trees around Lake Marmo at the Morton Arboretum!



Thanks to Megan, the esteemed photographer freedom-pose specialist, for this shot.

Glorious 4-day weekend, here I come!

Day 52 (10/16 - Fri)

My family name is Thorne. It's not a super common name, a fact I rather like, but as a surname it's not unheard of. It so happens that we know who our first immigrant ancestor is: a certain William Thorne, who walked off a boat in a port in the new, budding colony of Massachussetts sometime around 1630. I like to envision him with a straw hat and a grin on his face, imagining all that he could make of himself and his future family here in this wild, open land. He probably looked nothing like I envision, but he was real. I found him tonight in the Wheaton College Library in a book entitled something like Dictionary of Early American Genaeology.



That's a long time ago -- my ancestor settled in Long Island when it wasn't even New York yet, but still New Amsterdam! That's pretty cool.

Day 51 (10/15 - Thur)

Thursday night is when my Men's Bible Study meets. We meet in a home (belonging to the nice man in the comfy chair on the right) and talk about God, life, loving our neighbors, seeing others and ourselves as God truly sees us, the nature of sacrifice, why the Cardinals stunk so bad in the playoffs (maybe only I talked about that), and our new book we're starting on servant leadership.



We also shoot the breeze and talk about music and movies and good restaurants and family stories, et cetera. It's a slice of honest male community, and that, my friends, is priceless.

Day 50 (10/14 - Wed)

Day 50! How did I celebrate today? By staying crazy late in the office, but all for a good cause. In our next Thucydides class (advanced Greek), we are celebrating the last day of A-quad by taking a quick break and reading something, well, a little more modern.



That's right! The first book of Harry Potter translated into genuine article Ancient Greek! ΑΡΕΙΟΣ ΠΟΤΗΡ is sure to make a splash in our Friday class! "But wait," you ask, "what on earth possessed somebody to translate such a book into an ancient (read dead) language? Read here if you'd like to know -- the intrepid author is happy to tell you. You can even here him in an NPR interview reading from the Quidditch game chapter. It's legit, let me tell you.

I asked the students what they wanted to read and they chose the "Mirror of Erised" chapter. Mmmmm....good. Any suggestions out there on what the mirror would be called in ancient Greek?

Day 49 (10/13 - Tues)

Today I had a little adventure. Last week I came across a list online of some upcoming talks relating to the classical world at the University of Chicago, and a certain talk on "Reconstructing the Mechanics of Roman Augury" struck me as particularly interesting. That talk was today, so I drove on over.

If you have never been to the University of Chicago, I highly recommend it. Aside from being a very fine institution of higher learning, the vast majority of campus just oozes that old-school, ivy-on-limestone, Cambride-esque yet distinctly 19th century American college feel. Here, for example, is the main dining hall in the student commons.



I like Wheaton's dining facilities very much, and we most likely have better food, but there's a certain thrill to eating in a room that reminds most people of something out of Hogwarts.

And yes, the talk was very nice and informative, as were the refreshments and delightful conversation I had afterwards with some of the Classics folk there. A good day.

Day 48 (10/12 - Mon)

One great thing about going to conferences is that you just never know what you're going to find. I always love a good discovery -- and I sure made one at this weekend's Illinois Classics Conference! They had a book exchange room, where people could bring whatever old books they wanted and then other people can buy them for whatever they think they're worth, with all money given in this fashion going towards a scholarship fund or something good like that. Well, among the teeming miscellany piled upon the table were four little books -- magazine-lets, really -- published in the late 80's for kids, with comic-book style stories, bits on then-current pop culture (e.g. a story on the Jackson Five, one on deep-sea diving, a write-up on Robin Williams' acting career), and little games like crosswords and such. And it's ALL IN LATIN. No lie. Don't believe me? Check this Western comic strip out:



Just about the greatest thing EVER.

I'm definitely going to try to add the phrase "Fregisti scopletum meum!" into my daily speech.
Totally awesome. (et utile?)

Day 47 (10/11 - Sun)

Today's picture is also one I did not take.



What is it, you ask? Well, the person who took this picture definitely wanted to ask the same question. What resulted is definitely one of the funniest customer complaint letters I have ever read!

Read it here.

Day 46 (10/10 - Sat)

8:17 am - wake up at Paul's apartment in Lincoln Park
9:21 am - arrive at Northwestern University, fight off tailgaters for parking spot on campus
9:32 am - find Kresge Hall where the 2009 annual meeting of the Illinois Classical Conference is being held, attend opening session
12:03 pm - head over to the student union to eat a very nice lunch and hear stimulating talk on "Creusa, Dido, and pietas in Vergil's Aeneid"
1:41 pm - walk around the very lovely tree-filled and lakefront-view-filled campus for a while
2:25 pm - intend to attend afternoon session, instead get sidetracked by the book exchange room, where I discover (I could not make this up) a version of RLS's classic Treasure Island translated competely into Latin, promptly snatch it up
3:39 pm - intend to attend afternoon session, instead get sidetracked by the book room on the 2nd floor, end up getting examination copies of Cambridge Latin Course
4:43 pm - attend scant remainder of afternoon session
5:07 pm - say goodbyes, head for home
5:31 pm - take this picture

5:42 pm - make detour to Paul's place to hand over some umbrellas left in my car the night before
<*time blackout*> - listen on the radio as Dodgers go up 4-0 on the Cardinals, buzzing in ears, decide to listen to things that won't depress me
7:16 pm - arrive home in Wheaton, watch Cardinals lose AND then watch the Iowa Hawkeyes WIN a close Homecoming game over Michigan, happiness returns accompanied by lightness of spirit
11:38 pm - make this blog happen

Day 45 (10/9 - Fri)

Right after classes were over this afternoon I packed an overnight bag and hopped in the car to head downtown. This weekend is the august (not the month, the attributive adjective with stress accent on the ultima) Chicago Marathon! And my great friend and old roommate Paul (center) is running it this year, so I wanted to catch up with him and cheer him on a bit. He's running as part of a charity, Team World Vision, that runs to raise money for installing fresh water wells in African villages. Pretty cool, right? Team World Vision hosted a big "carbo load" dinner tonight for runners and their various friends / family / cheering sections, where tonight's picture was taken.



Many people have asked me over the years: "Mark, would you ever run a marathon?"

Ahem, NO. You can tell me all you want about runner's high and the community of runners and the free swag at the expo and the funky swishy shorts, but it still sounds about as much to me as coating my head in rubber cement and then setting it on fire.

That and my knee would explode after two miles, so I really don't see the point.

Day 44 (10/8 - Thur)

View across the way from my building to the campus library.



This is a common sight every day as I leave the building. Or as I enter the library. Which I might be doing in the near future...

Day 43 (10/7 - Wed)

I regret the fact that I promised an update on Mr. Leaf a few days ago, built up expectations, and then left you all hanging like chads on a Florida ballot. Thus, without further ado, here is Mr. Leaf, as of 7:49 am CDT this morning.



No brown! I guessed it would start turning on 10/4, and I was clearly wrong. It looks like this tree will take its merry time to don its autumnal hue. But stay tuned...

Day 42 (10/6 - Tues)

Field trip!

Today my good friend Anna came in to town. Why? She was on a mission to see the Chicago Art Institute downtown and its Cy Twombly exhibit before it left town. And I got to join her in the art-appreciating fun. Cy Twombly is, as I put it, "all wombly with colors." Some I liked, some not so much, c'est la vie. But other holdings of this justifiaby famous museum always command my attention. Such as the famous Suerat.



Did you know it took Georges Seurat around two years to paint this masterpiece? It's worth reading about. As for me, I'm especially fond of the perspective of the above picture. The camera (and thus you and me) looking at Anna looking at the picnicers looking at other people looking out to the water and on to Paris and on to...

Day 41 (10/5 - Mon)

Ladies and gentlemen, I bring you --

The School of Danger.
(Παίδευσις τῶν Κινδύνων)



This is my advanced Classical Greek class in Thucydides, and we are having a blast pretty much every day. Well, except when there was that one test. And that quiz. And that completely insane multi-participle clause that all modified a string of subjects which all governed verbs that kicked off indirect discourse whose infinitives also kicked off indirect discourse... (thank you, Pericles)

Except for all that, this class is pretty much the best ever. (e.g. note the brownies in the middle of the table, hooray for birthdays!) Who knew you could have this much fun in a general assignment classroom in the Chemistry Building? I had to splice two photos to get everyone in together, hence the strange perspective lines in the middle, but I had to get everyone in on my one-picture / day rule.

Oh, the name? I encouraged them to meet up as a group when working through the translation and reading assignments, and inspired by a choice quote in Thucydides' text (end of first p-graph), some of them started calling themselves the School of Danger.

Epic. May its legend never die. (but grow as a monument in the hearts of ... etc etc)

Day 40 (10/4 - Sun)

Okay, I lied. I'm not showing you Mr. Leaf. The sun actually came out this afternoon after being way too shy these past few days, so I had to carpe that diem (or is it solem) and head out to the magnificent Morton Arboretum! Expect to see photos from this arboreal wonderland now and then throughout the year. Here is what I enjoyed today.



Mmmm. 'Nuff said.

Day 39 (10/3 - Sat)

I have been on the lookout recently for the trees to start changing color, and have seen very few starting down that path. Most on campus are still fully green. But then I found this leaf the other day lying in the middle of the green grass in the heart of campus.



There were no other similar leaves around it. Where did it come from? Is it a sign of things to come? I wonder how my neighborhood Mr. Leaf is doing, which I predicted would be starting to change color on October 4th? Check back tomorrow to find out...

Day 38 (10/2 - Fri)

Tonight, to cap off a full week of good but exhausting work, I hosted my Passage freshman group (from Honey Rock) at my place for a party-homemade dinner of rotisserie chickens (the store-bought part) and stuffing and corn and ciabatta bread and some other good fixin's. My recently acquired Honey Rock messenger bag hung off of a living room chair to set the atmosphere.



We had a great time of discussion and fellowship and reconnecting and ultimately being honest with each other. One thing that garnered a lot of discussion was the concept of "Sabbath" and I concluded by challenging them to really take the idea seriously, namely the idea of choosing to set aside time as set-apart for the purpose of spiritual and physical/emotional re-creation. Then we closed with a time of prayer for each other, which was very encouraging, and just plain cool for me to listen to and know that I'm a part of a group of people like this.

Wheaton College (and Honey Rock) does some pretty darn cool things.

Day 37 (10/1 - Thurs)

Holy October, Batman! Where did September go? Fall weather is certainly here...it rained most of the afternoon. But that didn't dampen the fun visit I had today with my bestest friend Josh and his new protoge, Robert.



(it's best if you pronounce the name as a French word, much more satisfying somehow)