I am due to fly back home to Detroit and the lovely Miss Kami tomorrow morning, arriving in the afternoon. They flew me down here on a B777 which is as wide as the old 747′s but with a nicer cabin. I had a window seat on the way down but even though I booked my flight a long time ago, I could only get a middle of the row seat for the flight back. Good thing it is only two hours. I hate the middle seat but it is better than walking home from here.

The Campus Church has been a hoot. We have had close to a full house each night. They aren’t quite used to laughing as much as they have and I think their ministers don’t say some of the things I say, but they have been gracious and there haven’t been any stoning parties launched my direction. The staff of the congregation and their elders couldn’t be nicer. If you want to know how to greet visitors and make people feel welcome regardless of race, dress, or background go to Campus Church on a Sunday and watch how they do it. I will take some ideas and challenges back to Rochester Church with me.

Today is in the low 90s with a high humidity added in so I only walked a couple miles this morning before retreating indoors. Since I can’t work in the hotel (noisy and sporadic visits from maids who clean the rooms in shifts makes that difficult) I hied myself off to a local Borders and availed myself of free WiFi to get a TON of work done before noon — including checking in for my flight. I know some people long for the good old days but I don’t — not for a second. My Droid phone, my MacBook (I still have two windows machines at home but I travel with the much lighter and faster Mac now), my Kindle, my Garmin GPS, and the wide availability of free internet has made my life SO much easier. It means I pack a few more things but I save that and more by not packing six or ten books, a pile of maps, etc.

Some things I haven’t adopted, though. I still don’t Twitter though I have been often called a Twit. I tend to use my Facebook page like many people use Twitter anyway. I don’t have an iPod because I don’t really have a use for it. My Droid will show videos if I want it to (which I don’t) and it will store and play music too (no thanks). I don’t have an iPhone because I love, love, love my Verizon service and I refuse to go to AT&T especially since they have so many connection issues and limited 3G service in most places. I’d love to get an iPhone one day but I’m very happy with what I have.

It is neat to have time saving devices that actually… uh… save time! I have more time to read now and more time to play the guitar because I can do my work so much faster than before. Want a verse? There are tons of online Bibles and free programs to make the verses appear in any text or presentation you have going. If Campbell, Calvin, Luther, or Augustine had these tools, what would they have done with them?

I’ll head back outside in a bit to find a mall to walk in. If I don’t, my back gets stiff and it doesn’t need any help doing that. Yesterday, I was convinced someone had broken into my hotel room and beaten me with an Old Man Stick all night long. I had to start the day with ibuprofen and dial it up from there just to manage. Today is much, much better. Still, I miss that other bit of technology — one of my favorites — that I can’t take with me: my Sleep Number Bed.

That’s waiting on me at home tomorrow. And I promise I’ll get right back on the Hidden History stuff. Let me know when you get tired of it. I wouldn’t want to bore readers who would rather know my political thoughts, what I had for lunch, or what meds I’m on…