There Will Always Be A Bit Of My Heart Devoted To It…

I’m still aching from this weeks Amicus activities.  We decided to make the most of the nice weather and loaded the car up with sports equipment and headed to Leon Rec for a strenuous evening of games.  We started with a frisbee warm-up whilst being careful not to lose any fingers to the heavy frisbee – not easy with the sun setting over the trees.  We followed that up with a game of Ultimate Frisbee which was surprisingly good-natured – not like the last time which descended into man-to-man combat.  Then a couple of innings of rounders, although we played it with a cricket bat.

There’s a three minute video below which gives you a participant’s perspective of Ultimate Frisbee, and some of the rounders action and a full gallery of pictures is online – be sure to check out the following especially:

• Graham running through a worm-hole…
• …and jumping back to earth again
• Simon heading the Sun…
• …and playing on the hop
• Proof that Maddy can throw a frisbee

Great to have some of the Uni bods back and we look forward to the rest returning in the coming weeks. Congratulations to Graham who acheived a First Class Degree – he’s set the bar nice and high for those who follow him ;o)

Important Reminders

• Camp
  • the balance of Camp Money was due in last week – please pay up if you haven’t already.
• Membership Fee
  • despite having 17 Amicus members on the roll, so far I have only received 5 membership fees – please pay up if you haven’t already.
• Hoodies
  • only four people have order Amicus Hoodies – if you would like to order one please download and return the form along with your membership fee (where appropriate) and Hoodie payment.

Next Week: come along and see…

Feeding On Decaying Matter…

This week (ahem – last week) we took part in a Photo Scavenger hunt.  It turned out not to be quite what people expected (more of a treasure hunt) but was fun anyway.  We split up into three teams, each armed with a digital camera of some description and an instruction sheet which featured some common sense safety advice and a list of 20 items. Each group had to a photograph which represented each item in the list whilst paying attention to the important information tt the bottom of the sheet.  The list was:

1. Relaxing Place
2. The letter ‘Z’
3. Human Pyramid (min. Six people)
4. Yellow Car
5. “I can’t believe we all fit in here”
6. Uniform
7. Team Reflection
8. Unusual Perspective
9. Leap Frog
10. Abstract Architecture
11. Yummy
12. Bubbles
13. Second Hand
14. Gum
15. Tattoo
16. Interesting Number Plate
17. Blue Food
18. Questionable Sign
19. Scar
20. Lego
21. <your choice>

Points were awarded for satisfactory interpretations of the requirements – and teams were given the chance to explain or argue their interpretation – but bonus points were awarded for creative interpretations of the requirements.  Extra bonus points available for photo 21 (and for using the form correctly).

Unfortunately no-one has sent their photos through to me so I can’t include them here (the pics above are stolen from Alex’s photo album – if you’re on Facebook, you should be able to see it here; if you’re not on Facebook yet, why not?).

The title of the weekly updates isn’t usually explained, but is normally instantly understandable by those who attended; this week it is based loosely on the photos the teams submitted for photo 11 – “yummy”, and on the dictionary definition of Scavenger:

scav·en·ger (skăv‘ən-jər)
n.

1. One that scavenges, as a person who searches through refuse for food.
2. An animal, such as a bird or insect, that feeds on dead or decaying matter.

Congratulations: to Alex who has passed her Driving Test since we met last week!  Yay!

Next Week (ahem, this week): weather permitting (looks ok at the time of writing), we’ll be heading to the park to play frisbee (ultimate if we have enough people) and other exciting open-space games.

Guitar Heroines and Heroes…

Just a brief update this week.  We spent most of the evening playing Guitar Hero one the Wii (thanks to James) and indulged in a little bit of Wii Sports, before larking around in the garden where we learned that Yolanda is an excellent footballer, and that Alex can neither jump over nor run through fences.

Check out the full picture gallery over at Flickr and be on the lookout for:

• the many faces of Alex
• Nick B ‘adjusting’ his eye
• Simon trying to intimidate the Wii into letting him win
• Superman looking perplexed
• nostril cam

Also take a look at the following videos of Nicci and Alex battling it out to see who could win Guitar Hero and Simon and James enjoying a sedate games of tennis.

Next Week: bring a digital camera if you have one (or cameraphone), wear some sensible shoes (Flic!) and bring a waterproof jacket (live weather check, click Wednesday) as we’ll be splitting up into teams and heading out on a Photo Scavenger Hunt.  Points will be awared for photos collected, ingenuity and there will be discretionary bonus points – and a treat for the winning team.

Having A Fig-Leaf Moment

I have very little idea about how to write up this week’s Bible Study – because we went so far off-piste that we barely made it back again.  Combine this with a lack of time, and you’ll understand why this update is so short.  Below are some of the questions which were asked during the evening and, where appropriate, links to pages which may help to answer them.

Simon did an excellent job in leading us through the Bible study which was based loosely on the film Monsters, Inc. and dealt with issues of fear, deception and truth.  We started by looking at the following readings, before moving onto the less focused questions:

• 1 Samuel 3:1-21 – the call of Samuel
• Mark 10:13-16 – ‘let the children come to me’
• Genesis 3:1-7 – the deception and the fall
• Luke 8:22-25 – Jesus calms the storm
• Titus 3:1-8 – be ready for every good work
• John 3:1-21 – ‘truly, truly I say to you…’

The questions in no particular order:

• Is the devil a fallen angel, and if so, how did that happen? {shorter version}
• Where does the popular image of the devil as a horned red creature come from? {examples}
• Are there other books which didn’t “make it into” the Bible?
• How was the final composition of the Bible Decided?
• Will our earthly marriages continue in heaven?

If I’ve missed any of the questions and you’re still wanting answer, let’s keep the discussion going in the comments.

And Finally

For those who remember the Amicus fascination with LineRider, you’ll be pleased to hear that it’s finally come of age (or perhaps ’sold out’).  McDonalds have used it to create one of their adverts.

Next week: Not sure yet – sorry, but I have essays leaking out of my ears and little other capacity to think.  Perhaps this…