Math "alla Celeste"

I love math! :D

I had this up on my skype comment:

31 + 14 = 29

Can you figure it out? I'll give you a hint - I posted it today (the 31st of March), and it will only add up today. ;)

Please pray we find the SD card that goes to my digital camera. I lent it to someone going on a trip and it came back without it (I guess that's also one reason why I didn't use the camera when I was in the US), and they can't remember even seeing it in the slot (which is strange as I don't use it for anything else and there's no reason for it to be missing). It's not that I'm that into photography, but it would be a blessing getting it back.

I took our OCs to Kids Club today, they had ice skating provisioned (yes, I actually skated for like an hour and only fell on my well-padded arse twice - not bad, ehi?), and I even took the camera so I could be a shiner and take pics of the kids for their parents. - But alas, none were to be taken. :(

At any rate, enough moping - TX for your prayers!

Pics!

I actually brought my camera, but didn't use it. - Pitiful!!! I did manage to bum off the couple pics Dan made sure we took together (I get no credit for those), as well as one I got of Niki and I. - I missed Smichelle though, as well as the many others around. Oh well, mea culpa!

You know the funny thing of both of these pics? Both Dan and Niki have grown since I lived with them. Niki used to feel so short and small around me - now she's like an inch shorter. HA! And Dan, as I said, you've done well! ;)

There and back!

Late, I know! I was going to tell you of the adventures of flying to Tijuana and making my way to the US! So here we go!

I made it to check in with no problems, but the flight itself was very, very, very, very, very bumpy (and even that's an understatement). I don’t know if we had an overly enthusiastic pilot that wasn't aware he was flying a passenger plane, not a fighter jet, or if it was really just the turbulence (and air pockets) that were so intense, but TTL, all is well that ends well, and we made it to TJ safely.

I saw "we" as it turns out I was sitting RIGHT NEXT to two other Family members (a young couple) from the TJ Home. - It was incredible how the Lord orchestrated that! I didn't know the guy from before, and I didn't recognize the girl, though I had met her once at a party. I noticed she was PG, they looked sweet together, and when we were taking off I heard them praying. Knowing we're not the only ones that believe in prayer and not being able to hear too well (other than that it sounded like English) I didn't want to interfere as they were cute and cozy together, so I did some work, etc. and about 15 minutes before we started our decent, the girl leans over and asks me if I'm a Family member. HA! Turns out she recognized me, but wasn't 100% sure, and the guy then saw PGP start on my laptop - so that confirmed it to them. Funny! :)

The next adventure was the decent though! - I don’t think I've prayed so hard on a flight as I did this time. I've flown a lot, but this was, by far, the worst flight ever. It felt as if we were on a roller-coaster. - LITERALLY. First the pilot started his descent too fast, then turbulence hit and I think he lost control a bit. I was holding on to those arm rests so hard, my hands were sweating! We had the usual humorous ones in the front with their arms raised (as they do on roller coasters), but we also had crying and screaming kids who were freaking out with the air pressure in their ears and the craziness of the flight in general. - Again though, TTL, we landed safely!

It was a real God-send the other Family members were there though as someone from their Home came to get them so they gave me a ride to the border crossing and walked me the stretch with my bag. So sweet! - It was already dark, the Taxi would have cost 180 Pesos (for a five minute drive - crazy) so again, TTL for such a perfect set up! And I got to practice a bit of Italian as one of the guys who came was a good old friend from Italy. :)

Turns out though that the person on the other end (the US side) wasn't there. HA! My bags weren't too heavy, but as I mentioned, it was already dark, and I had no idea where I was meant to meet up with this guy. Those who had coordinated the pick-up told me that if he wasn't parked at the exit of the customs/passport check he'd be at the fast food place, or at the gas station. Well, that was all good and well until I had to walk a good 6 or 7 blocks to get to the nearest gas station, and that was after passing every possible fast food place you can imagine. (Right, so which one was that again?) I did find super friendly folks who let me use their phones, so I got in touch with the Home, and it turns out the person coming to get me got mixed up and somehow went to the wrong border crossing, so when I called they were all worried as he had supposedly been waiting for me and given up and driven back Home. HA!

I was able to wait for the team coming to get me in a closed McDonald's though (they were closing as soon as I got there, but said I could stay in there with them as they were still cleaning the place, and realized I probably wouldn't be safe otherwise - whew). So yes, they came about an hour later, and TTL, I got to my destination a lot later, but with a fun adventure to tell. - And with something to tease a certain someone about. :D

So that's the adventure of my trip to TJ and then on to FCF. - The folks there are always so hospitable and friendly, and really make you feel at home. Thanks guys, if you see this, for putting me up and for putting up with me. They not only worked it out to pick me up and drop me off, but they also had it coordinated to where I was able to be driven to my DMV appointment, and they even allowed Smichelle's and Niki to come spend Saturday night on such short notice. - It was so nice! (Tales @ that to be shared at a later date...)

Oh, and I got to see Dan and his lovely wife, Gin! - And their adorable kids!! So nice, after 6 years!

I'll have some pics soon, I hope! And perhaps even find a chance to post about the fun time with the girls mentioned above. - Until then, ciao, and have a great week!

I have some adventurous tales to blog about from my trip yesterday to the US but I got this pic of Priscila and her adorable kids and just had to post it. Pris, you have BEAUTIFUL children!

ILY and am praying for you! XXX

Grasping this is my challenge!

I re-read these quotes on my brother's quote page:

I can take my telescope and look millions of miles into space; but I can lay my telescope aside, go into my room and shut the door, and while in earnest prayer I see more of Heaven and get closer to God than I can when assisted by all the telescopes and material agencies on earth.

--Isaac Newton

The moment you wake up each morning, all your wishes and hopes for the day rush at you like wild animals. And the first job each morning consists in shoving it all back; in listening to that other voice, taking that other point of view, letting that other, larger, stronger, quieter life come flowing in.

--C.S. Lewis

We all know that prayer is not the least you can do but the most! Why, of why, does it seem so hard to just do that and not try to work at things to fix them? I always have to fight vehemently to take that time in the Word, in prayer, in intercession for others. Its not that I don't want to, nor do I not realize how important it is to my spiritual life and the general running of life. But the thoughts, the "to-dos", all that runs through my head, they're impossible to put to words, but let's just say they're a million and one, and they're always about all the work that is pending. I'll often go to bed at night thinking of such and such a situation, or remember how so and so is still waiting on us, so on and so forth. - Really, the list is endless.

I know it’s not me, I know I'm human (yes, believe it or not I have to remind myself of that - pitiful as it sounds - otherwise I actually feel guilty), and I know there's only so much I can do. I'm not lazy, I'm not a slacker, and if anything it’s because I'm trying to do the job right, in a personable manner, which means it might take a little longer.

Prayer! - I do a lot of that, I really do, but it’s just so hard to trust that it’s enough. Faith, and I guess prayer, without works is dead too, so there is a balance, but I think at this point the "work" part isn't lacking in my life, it’s the trust and faith part. LHM! I should know better! – I do! I’ve had those great days where, yes, I work hard, I get into a project, and at the end of the day I feel as if I accomplished something. – And if I look back I can see that there was that key factor that sparked all those things going well, or the contentment in my heart and the peace that I did what I could. – It was starting the day off right and, as C.S. Lewis says “listening to that other voice, taking that other point of view, and letting that other, larger, stronger, quieter life come flowing in”.

Oh well, I won’t let it discourage me – I will keep trying - let’s just hope I get the point! Have a great day! :)

Happy Birthday, Miggy!

I figured, seeing as so many B-days are coming (and have been happening) that I'd try to post wishes and the likes (at least photos) of folks. - I don't know how faithful I will be, but I'll try!

And what better day to start than today! It's Joaquin Miguel's (a.k.a. Miggy, Mig, Miggie, Miggi, Quin-ky, etc.) 26th birthday. - I wanted to post a pic of me with him, but try as I could, I could only find this picture from 2005. (I think it's 'cause I'm so much taller and pics of us standing together don't really turn out. HA!)

I know, I know, its a pitiful excuse for a pic! Well, Mig doesn't look too bad, but man, I look like I'm washed out. (Come to think of it, I probably was - it was during some meetings and I tend to run myself ragged at those. - Foolish me!) Not to mention that we were hungry, and the waitress was, oh, so very spacey and Mig and I were going to split a nice Asada, which did not come until way later, I got a head-ache from waiting for the food, and...yeah, a story all in itself. PTL!

At any rate, the intentions of this post is to wish Miggy a great 26th year. - I'm sure the Lord has TONS of cool stuff in store for you, Mig, and I pray that you have His joy in all you do. Will be praying for you!

And in other news, we have warm water again!!! Yes, TYJ!!!!! I (we) have been taking FREEZING cold showers since Saturday - its not funny! Our gas ran out, so with it went the hot water heater, and we couldn't get any gas till Monday. (Special, I know.) Then we couldn't get the water heater lit! Heh...oh well! There are so many things to thank the Lord for though, like the fact that we didn't waste water with long showers (quite the opposite actually), also, though I can't find the exact quote about this, they say that if you jump into freezing cold water you lose a few grams of fat, so I'm thinking that perhaps the cold showers made us all lose some fat (though come to think of it I'm not actually trying to lose fat, hmm...well, any others can TTL for this). I think the best part though was to hear Ez singing/squealing out his promise to never forget to order gas on time as he showered in the freezing cold water. :D

So yes, today was a good day!

Niel!

My big (and only) brother has a web page he's setting up. - Fun! There isn't much to it yet, but its there. ;)

P.S. Don't we look alike? :D

So cool!

I am NOT a bookworm in the least. - I think the most novels I read in my life I can count them on the fingers of my two hands, but I find this so incredibly neat and haven't been able to stop till finished. - You've gotta read it. "An Uncommon Life" - True-life accounts by Bethany Kelly.

Guess what I did?

I reset up the routers in our Home to be part of one network rather than…ummm…6, I think? Oh yes, I feel rather happy with myself. – So cool I learnt that. (And TX Andrew Vee for taking the time to explain it to my curly brains.) I don’t know about you but it feels good when I learn something new. – Cool! Now I just feel a bit closer to following through on the prospect of learning programming (don’t laugh – I’ve always wanted to learn that). – Some day, some day…

Oh, and we started watching this soap opera to learn Spanish as a Home. It’s rather entertaining actually to watch our Home members get into it. – It’s a bit slow, and the plot isn’t really there yet, plus I think our Spanish is a lot more advanced than the initial episodes, but so far it seems it’s a new idea and motivational, so we’re going to see how far it goes.

And yes, I almost forgot to mention something super exciting. - This friend of mine is going to come to Mexico for a couple weeks of vacation, and I get to see her. YAY!!!!

So fun! Hopefully I'll be able to get a better pic while she's here...isn't she pretty? I'm so looking forward to seeing you Jenny! :)

And that's that for now as far as updates and the likes. - I'm tired. Ciao!

No regrets...

You can tell I haven’t been living in Italy for a long time. HA! I just got a hold of this song from a friend of mine who, like me, hadn’t heard it till recently. (Yes, she also hasn’t been living in Italy for a while.) It came out in 2000, so as I said, this is old hat, but I still think it’s beautiful!! I’ve listened to it a couple times just for the lyrics (though the melody is sweet too) and thought to share it with you.

I’ll link you to a clip of the guy who actually sings it, though it’s a very short clip and the song is a lot longer. (Warning: Strange man in blue – sorry about that!) Then this version is of a cute guy named Jimmy who I think sings it nicely too, (besides, I think he’s cute, did I say that already? :P) - Anyways, just so you get an idea of the melody.
As to why I like it, I think we’ve all looked back at lost loves or affairs and wondered whether, if either of us had done something different, things would have been better, or different, or if it would have lasted. – In the end it doesn’t matter whose fault it is really, we just have to move on and try to become the better for it. – And I love how this song puts it. I’m going to try to translate the lines, but in a more literal way. (Please fellow Italians, don’t ruin it by trying to point out my errors, I’m just doing the basics here. ;))

Se io, fossi stato un po' meno distante
If I, were to have been a little less distant
un po' meno orgoglioso, un po' meno che
A little less proud, a little less “what”
se lei fosse stata un po' meno gelosa
If she, were to have been less jealous
un po' meno nervosa, un po' meno eh
a little less nervous, a little less “eh”
ma se io, se lei se io, se lei
but if I, if she, if I, if she
ma se noi avessimo dato all'amore,
but if we, were to have given love
la giusta importanza, l'impegno e il valore
the right importance (priority), time and value
se noi,
if we,
amare vuol dire anche a volte annullarsi per dare qualcosa in più,
loving at times also means canceling yourselves to give something more,
ma se io ,se lei se io, se lei
but if I, if she, if I, if she
Se io, se lei adesso dove sei
If I, if she, now where are you
sotto quale cielo pensi al tuo domani
under what sky do you think of your tomorrow
Ma sotto quale caldo lenzuolo stai facendo bene l'amore
And under what warm sheet are you making love well
sono contento ama....ama e non fermarti
I’m happy love…love and don’t stop
e non avere nessuna paura
and don’t have any fear
e non cercarmi dentro a nessuno
and don’t look for me inside anyone
se io, se lei
if I, if she
Se io
If I,
quando tutto finisce c'è sempre chi chiude la porta, chi invece sta male,
when everything finishes there’s always those who close the door, those instead who remain hurt,
se lei,
if she,
chi ha sbagliato alla fine non conta,
who made the mistakes in the end doesn’t matter
conta solo che adesso io non so più chi sei
what only matters is that now I don’t know who you are anymore
Se io, se lei adesso dove sei
If I, if she, now where are you
sotto quale cielo pensi al tuo domani
under what sky do you think of your tomorrow
Ma sotto quale caldo lenzuolo stai facendo bene l'amore
And under what warm sheet are you making love well
sono contento ama....ama e non fermarti
I’m happy love…love and don’t stop
e non avere nessuna paura
and don’t have any fear
e non cercarmi dentro a nessuno
and don’t look for me inside anyone
se io, se lei
if I, if she
Se io
If I
sono contento ama, ama e non fermarti
I’m happy love…love and don’t stop
e non cercarmi dentro a nessuno
and don’t look for me inside anyone
e non aver nessuna paura
and don’t have any fear
se io se lei
If I. if she
adesso con chi sei
now who are you with

Answer, updates, so on and so forth

You never appreciate health as much as when you've been sick. - I know I know that, but man do I remember it well when I am. Heh! Come to think of it, I'd probably be a lousy PG mom, having to go through morning sickness (or evening sickness, or even all day sickness as many friends I know have) for sometimes 3, 4, 5 or even all 9 months. Whoa! Ok, enough worrying about that, its not an issue, and that's not what I was going to blog about. I was, however going to blog about the fact that I'm feeling better. Yay! I'm not sure if this thing I got is what a lot of people have been getting, but if it involves a major migraine headache along with a fever, intense cough, as well as collapsing (heh, shameful, I know, but it happened - so much for superwoman me), and it dragging on for 4 days (which found me fainting again) then yup, that's it. ;)

Today is the first day of somewhat normal brain-power, though its not really there. - As much as I'd like to tell myself it is. I need to eat myself some good red meat or steak, it always does the trick with restoring some of those red blood cells that seem to get sucked out of me when I'm sick.

Alright, now that I've explained why the silence, that should also explain why I didn't post the official answers to the guessing game. Here goes:


Picture #1 w/ David and I: I'm looking through his wallet for the condom that all single men are meant to carry in their wallet. (Right? Right?) Plus I have this thing for digging into people's wallets - mainly guys', I don't know what it is, it just fascinates me to search a wallet. :D So I searched David's, and could not find his condom. He's amused that I'm looking for something I can't find, so I ask him where is the condom - he says "I don't have one in my wallet" - and I'm like "you're kidding me - a stud-muffing like you doesn't follow the "rule book"? - Ai-ai-ai, what a bottle breaker. (Note/disclaimer for David: I'm sure he carries/has his condoms close by when he needs them. Just not in his wallet. LOL!)
See? I knew Julia and I could still be friends.


Picture #2 w/ Mike and I: I have NO official word on what Mike is thinking (though I think its safe to say that his expression gives that away), but the face I'm making is aimed at Philly who is taking the pic. He was basically sneaking around with a "I'm taking snap shot pics" air about him so I was looking at him with the "I know you're taking that picture" look. - Heh... :D

So there you have it - I did enjoy the imagination though.