Thursday, the teacher invited the entire class to dinner at an Indian place. He cancelled the following day's quiz -- we had quizzes every morning since Tuesday -- but the final exam was still pending for those taking the class for credit. About twenty of the 90 students came out for dinner.

During break time, I had completed the translation assignment, John 4:7-14, due Friday morning. I arranged a ride to the restaurant with a classmate who, along with his wife, was also staying at the hotel on campus. At the agreed to time, she entered the lobby and we talked, as her husband brought the car around. She said,

"My husband's car has been having a problem that the mechanics can't figure out. So, in the week leading up to this trip, I asked the Lord for clarity concerned which car to take. And last week, his car took a turn for the worse and here we are in my car, a perfectly good car."

Is "seeking clarity from the Lord" synonomous with asking for a sign?

Between the two of them, they had three GPS screens going, homing in on "Shalimar Indian Restaurant." I don't know the laws regarding handheld devices in Louisville¹, but I generally assume it's illegal everywhere. Not wanting to be a backseat driver, I kept Waze off and trusted them. There was a wrong turn into a deadend, a driveway for a dumpster, for which the wife, as the designated navigator, took all the blame. I said something like, "All alleys in New Jersey are connected, no deadends" and the husband said Texas is the same.

As we joined a table, the ongoing conversation paused momentarily and then resumed. The man to my left, whom I later learned was a retired trial lawyer of fifty years, was telling about the reaction of French Catholic tourists visiting a Harlem church. His buddy to his left, a retired rocket scientist, said that maybe some life could be breathed into the Catholic liturgy if more Catholics visited spirit-filled churches. Later during the meal, the same lawyer told a story about a Manhattan hotel -- except he said "a New York City hotel" -- that charged only $30 a night "if you are a Catholic." So, his wife, who played organ for a Catholic church, was told she could stay at that hotel, even though she isn't Catholic². It was difficult from his tone to judge whether he said these things approvingly.

The teacher was pushing the Chicken Tikka Masala as a crowd pleaser. Most everyone listened to him and ordered that. He recommended zero spice. I ordered Shrimp Jalpharezi which was fine, only occasionally spicy. The portion was small so I was hungry later but I'd taken home some naan bread and ate that before going to bed.

The idea was to treat the seminary students from the class who had joined us at the restaurant. Three times, the teacher went from table to table in our party, asking students for their dinner check. He came back empty-handed each time. I was willing to pick up someone's bill, as was everyone else at my table, but we did not get that chance.

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¹ A law to that effect passed last summer.
² I suppose he means this place, The Leo House, charging $190/night these days to guests of all faiths.