Festival of Homiletics: Taxxis? We Don't Need No Steenkeeng Taxxis! OR Where the Hell is Scott This Time?

Let's call this the "Oops" post for my little trip to the Festival of Homiletics. (And let's pray it's the ONLY one, huh?) I was excited to consider the late afternoon that awaited Kristin and I. First, a brief sojourn in Taxxis, the restaurant at the Hilton Hotel in downtown Minneapolis, just a few blocks from Central Lutheran Church, where we would meet several friends from RevGalBlogPals for the first time. Then, in the same hotel, a reception for Luther Seminary Alumni, where we would see and catch up with old friends we haven't seen for a while.

Those of you who know downtown Minneapolis, and also those of you who know me and my penchant for not being particularly careful on most of the details in my life, know exactly where this is going. As it turns out, Taxxis is the restaurant at the Minneapolis HYATT, not the Minneapolis HILTON, so we were several blocks away from the RevGals&Pals get-together when we arrived in the Hilton parking garage promptly at 4:00, thereby making it into the building right when we were supposed to be there. Unfortunately, with a seven-months-pregnant wife, you don't just go tripping off on a five block jaunt and turn around and do it all over again 30 minutes later to make it to the Luther Seminary reception. So, due to my muddled understanding of where I was supposed to be, and the slightly enlarged and uncomfortable status of my beloved wife, we decided to forego the RGBP meetup and stay for the Luther reception. Which, I must add, WAS in the Hilton, thankfully, and had free beer to boot. And not just crappy domestics, either - some nice local microbrewery stuff. Doesn't make up for missing the chance to meet good friends, but it does numb the pain just a little bit. :-)

So, in the spirit of trying to meet the friends I was supposed to meet today, I'm going to try a little game tomorrow. If you're a RevGal blogger and you'd like to meet me IRL, as they say, look for the guy with a shaved head and red goatee wearing this shirt:


Pretty sure I'll be the only guy wearing that shirt at Central Lutheran tomorrow morning. See you there.

The day, other than the minor meal mishap, was very, very good. Dr. Thomas Long preached at morning worship and knocked a sermon out of the park - he preached about living water and trick questions, using the reading of the Samaritan woman at Jacob's well (John 4.5-15). After worship, Barbara Lundblad gave an inspiring lecture on preaching and racism (you shouldn't combine the two), then Anna Carter Florence gave an astonishingly good lecture on the preacher and preaching as testimony. She's rapidly becoming a favorite of mine - after one fabulous sermon and such a wonderful lecture I'm pretty sure I'll be buying a book or two pretty soon.

Tonight Walter Wangerin, Jr. spoke on storytelling and the place it has for children and the childlike imagination of an adult in crisis - moving stuff, especially considering he's fought cancer over the past few years and knows a thing or two about being in crisis as an adult. Very much enjoyed that as well. Basically, if I mention a name this week, you oughta just check them out.

So, in review:
1. It's horrifyingly easy to confuse "Hyatt" and "Hilton"
2. I'm wearing a clever orange t-shirt instead of a red hat, but the concept tomorrow is the same as "Where's Waldo" if you'd like to meet me in person.
3. People spoke well about preaching. Applause was given, and continuing education money was well-spent.

Thus endeth the day. Good night.

OOPS THE SECOND: I just realized that some of you RGBPs might not see this until after tomorrow's session. Thus, I'll be wearing this shirt on Thursday:
No, that's not me modeling it - just the dippy guy from the website. But I will be wearing that shirt on Thursday. Just so you know. As you were.

Sorry to the dippy guy in the shirt. But you just looked dippy. Maybe it's just me.