Update for Week (-) 21

I haven’t written an update in a while mainly because there’s not much to report. We’re 21 weeks out (from retirement) and 5 weeks out from our upcoming Alaska land and sea adventure. countdown1

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Most of our recent activity has been focused on small preparations.

We signed a contract with a general contractor to remodel our kitchen and 2 bathrooms. Work will commence in mid-September.
We purchased several items to help with Watchmaker updates, including a Nikon DSLR camera, a GoPro Hero, and a good quality tripod.
We’ve also purchased a set of books called The Mountain Directories, which will aid us in route planning. We’ll use the electronic apps and maps, but these paper maps, along with a regular road atlas, will be useful for good overview planning.
The digital scanning project continues as well. So far I’ve scanned over 4000 individual pictures, as well as over 2 dozen photo albums and about 100 travel books. More left to do! We want to keep all of these, but we don’t want to take the space and weight in our motorhome with them.
I’m in the process of preparing Watchmaker’s Pulse signature items. For example, I’ve registered the WMKRPLS license plate with the state of Colorado (for our motorhome). I’ve also redesigned a logo… and ordered business cards… distributable stickers (4 inch diameter versions of the logo) and a decal (2 foot diameter) for the back of our motorhome. This is all for the purpose of establishing (hopefully) name and brand recognition while we’re on the road.

I’m also working on a “canned” or signature Bible study I’m tentatively calling the Watchmaker’s Story which is intended to outline the whole story of scripture in a relatively short sequence (1 or 2 hour version for Bible studies in campgrounds and other venues, 20 minute version for a video, etc.) The intent is to lay out the main elements of the Bible for those who have little to no exposure to it, and to demonstrate how the gospel fits within the whole message and theme of the Bible. In other words, similar to what Jesus did on the road to Emmaus after his resurrection.

That very day two of them were going to a village named Emmaus, about seven miles from Jerusalem, and they were talking with each other about all these things that had happened. While they were talking and discussing together, Jesus himself drew near and went with them. But their eyes were kept from recognizing him. And he said to them, “What is this conversation that you are holding with each other as you walk?” And they stood still, looking sad. Then one of them, named Cleopas, answered him, “Are you the only visitor to Jerusalem who does not know the things that have happened there in these days?” And he said to them, “What things?” And they said to him, “Concerning Jesus of Nazareth, a man who was a prophet mighty in deed and word before God and all the people, and how our chief priests and rulers delivered him up to be condemned to death, and crucified him. But we had hoped that he was the one to redeem Israel. Yes, and besides all this, it is now the third day since these things happened. Moreover, some women of our company amazed us. They were at the tomb early in the morning, and when they did not find his body, they came back saying that they had even seen a vision of angels, who said that he was alive. Some of those who were with us went to the tomb and found it just as the women had said, but him they did not see.” And he said to them, “O foolish ones, and slow of heart to believe all that the prophets have spoken! Was it not necessary that the Christ should suffer these things and enter into his glory?” And beginning with Moses and all the Prophets, he interpreted to them in all the Scriptures the things concerning himself. (Luke 24:13-27)