Back from England. And it was quality except for the weather. They should do something about that really. But you can't have everything.

The conference was very good. Some very brilliant people spoke. One about Jesus, another about mission, and another about the importance of community. But the thing was, was that they all loved Jesus, that was very clear. They didn 't just talk about him, they knew him. I think most of the people there knew and loved Jesus. And that was really cool. I was challenged by their commitment to knowing God and seeking his presence daily.

It was like God reiterated to me just how desperate he is to reveal himself to people. And if God is desperate to reveal himself, the only thing that will stop him is us, ourselves. By not being willing to let him reveal himself through us. A God desperate is something to ponder. In me it builds faith. Even when it seems like God is absent, if we keep seeking him, he will not be long in showing himself. Because it's in his character to want to be known. And so when we as people desire to know him and have him reveal who he is, then we can be sure that he will.

Just what that looks like though is the part that may suprise you and me.

sin luna 

la luna 

The Card

Check it out. I am legal. Well I suppose I was legal before, but now I am even more legal. Almost legalísimo. The Spanish tack on ísimo when they want to say that something is really really whatever it is. So I have my residency card. Yay.

As you can see, I whited out some crucial bits of information so I wouldn't suffer from identity theft. If you are an expert at these things please let me know if there is something else I should do to prevent someone using myself. I prefer not to be used. The foto was taken last spring, so that's a bit out of date. I suppose my signature is up for grabs now, here on the internet.

I am off to England in two days. Will then be there for five days. Should be good fun. And I am glad to have this here card so they will let me back into Spain. I prefer not to be held in customs for a week while they sort things out. I would say the Spanish are generally good at letting people through their borders without hastle and questions, but I am scared of what might happen if I do that.

Okay, well I will be back here post England then... Adios.

I am official. 

What's in your head..?

Some random bits of information that sometimes runs through my head that if you aren't interested in please skip to the next blog...

I realized that I like to be organized and like to organize. The other day I moved my room around (and cleaned it) and I really like the new setup. The bed is not in the middle, its on the side now, and I have loads of room in the middle now. There now you know. Then yesterday I reorganized the office beside my room. I found a genius place for the two bookshelves and it really opened up the room. I must confess that I got a small buzz off that whole ordeal.

Now for slightly less sad thoughts.

I have a new profile. I figured since I change, then my profile should change with me. So I deleted some stuff and rewrote a bit and added one book to my list of favs. I downsized a bit. Simplifying is something I am liking more and more. I try and not accumulate stuff now. There are really only a few things I accumulate without ever really trying to downsize occasionally. They would be music, books and vocabulary. Even something like money, I hope that if I had an excess I would decide to share some. Heck maybe even share some even if I didn't have an excess. After a while I sort my clothes and get rid of a bunch. With pens I do the same. Even pictures are sorted and downsized at times. But the day I have an excess of music and books I'll just open a library. And one can never have too much vocabulary.

Some would argue that those weren't any less sad thoughts...

If I could choose my ideal mix of writers that I would like to imitate it would be, first and foremost CS Lewis for his amazing way of seeing and then explaining things. Then Dostoyevski for his way of portraying his characters and well and truly human. I would like to have Tolkien's imagination and granduer. Then Buechner for his love of the truth. A combo of David James Duncan and Donald Miller for their sense of humo(u)r. John Irving for his devastating storytelling. And kudos to Phillip Yancey for how he writes about any subject, whether on or off limits.

In case you missed it, please see the connection between my title and the Cranberry's song Zombie... And I know its poor when you have to point out things like that...

Clean air.

No cups of Spanish coffee have been given out, and I have resigned myself to the loss of my recent smoking thoughts... I'll deal, and while I am dealing, England will be as well. Today on the news I saw something about smoking being banned from pubs. It's spreading...

And again. 

And again... 

I feel all should be able to enjoy my "nephew" and "niece"... 

Another Monday but...

Today was the best Monday I have had in a while. I don't think I felt the normal blueness once. I will now try to rationally disect this phenomenon.

1. It was foggy this morning. I like foggy mornings almost as much as sunny ones.
2. It was not a cold fog. A warm fog is better than a cold fog.
3. It got sunny by lunchtime.
4. That led to 65 degrees, easy.
5. 65 degrees in February is worth is weight in gold.
6. Can you weigh degrees?
7. I accomplished things. I learned that el arrecife means coral reef and encuadronar or encuadronear or something similar means to make something into a booklet.
8. I thought about making a booklet on coral reef but instead settled for writing a blog.
9. Don't ask me that tomorrow though.
10. I had some really niced baked pasta for lunch only slightly preceded by a wicked chocolate donut.
11. I am still on a bit of a high from finishing this incredible book over the weekend.
12. My voice is still completely shot from nothing in particular. People look at me funny when I talk, but I am thinking of staying like this.
13. In case you have forgot, I am listing why today was not a blue Monday.
14. Baseball season starts in the forseeable future.
15. My english lessons went well.
16. The White Sox are reigning World Champions!
17. I finished a run of four consecutive bad hair days and managed something halfway presentable today.

There are more reasons but I fear I am boring you.

Reasons why it maybe should have been a blue Monday.

1. I have a small cluster of three zits just a bit south and to the right of my mouth. That is if you are me. If you aren't it appears as if they are a bit south and to the left.
2. They have now been there for a couple of days and don't seem to be in a hurry to leave.
3. Barcalona (my Spanish footie team) has lost three straight.
4. Real Madrid fans think this is funny and like to point it out.
5. I had several thoughts about my blog dying because of me not writing enough.
6. The blame rested solely on me and that was heavy.

So I decided to grab the bull by the horns and fix the last couple. So here I am writing.

I can't think of a way to end this other than to say that people need to read CS Lewis and Frederick Buechner, and I am just grateful that it was good Monday.

Missing...

I wrote something about a week ago about smoking in Spain and now it's gone and I don't know where it went. If you stole it, please return it. If you know where it is, please let me know. If you have a copy of it, would you send it to me?

Why someone would have a copy of it, I don't know. Why someone would steal it, I don't know. Why someone would know where it went, I don't know. And why it would disappear in the first place, I don't know.

It's disturbing. I could try to rewrite it, but I don't know if I could feel good about that. Trying to recreate something that was spontanious is never an easy task to undertake. So for now, I will just let everyone know that it is missing...