More Useful

I have now entered the domain of blogger because I felt that it was better to be more open to the adapting world of Web 2.0. Here people can comment on my posts without having to give away their personal details to 'the man'.

This post finds me in the State of Virginia about 40 minutes drive from Washington D.C. in the home of a group of fun Christian guys that I met through a guy in California.

Herein lie the potentially life changing events of the last little while:

I survived an expensive yet totally worthwhile trip back to my homeland, NZ!!!. The wedding I went back for was magnificent. John and Libby had their ceremony at the Kings College chapel which is amazing. The bridesmaids looked gorgeous (I am biased though :P) as did the bride, the pastor shared from his heart about true Christian marriage and their vows were really special. The afternoon tea that followed was a great time of catching up with friends I hadn't seen in ages while enjoying the sweet sounds of one Graeme Rogers and his crew.

Later in the day was the wedding reception which was held at a venue called Duda's which has an epic view out over the eastern suburbs and the harbour. The food was excellent and the company was even better. The speeches were both funny and special and conveyed just how supportive both families are of John and Libby and their marriage which is really cool. I was glad that I was able to be at John and Libby's wedding to experience the beginning of something new and exciting. I was also glad I was able to spend some time with my girlfriend Penelope. Unfortunately the reception came to a close fairly quickly which was definitely reflective of how much I enjoyed myself that I got so engrossed in the situation that the time flew by.

Pen and I headed off from the reception to a local pier that looks out over Auckland City. It was raining lightly which added to the romantic feel in the air. As it so happens this pier was the location of our first kiss which I must say was the best of my life to date. We walked out onto the pier and stood and sat for awhile, enjoying each others company talking about the future, the present and the past. I saw an opportunity to ask Pen out and took it. I wanted to convey to her that she is special and that I am prepared to be committed to her through out my time away. Thankfully she said yes!

It was definitely difficult to leave New Zealand knowing that I was leaving behind a girl as great as Pen. I got to the departure lounge and sat and listened to a few tunes on my iPod to pass the time but as the time of departure got closer and closer my heart sank. Emotions started welling up about how hard it would be to be away from Pen and I even had to go to the bathroom and compose myself. I was one of the last to board and I had to fight back tears as I was taking my seat, I was already past the point of no return. Thankfully a talkative American from Oakland sat down next to me and took my mind of the situation for at least a little while. It is still difficult now but it gets a little bit easier each day. I guess the hardest thing is just wanting the other person to be there experiencing everything that you are, seeing all the amazing things hand in hand.

I survived an American Christmas! I enjoyed it immensely! I am glad that I was able to spend some final time just chilling out with my uncle and aunt and cousins before I headed out east and they headed off to Mexico. I even went cruising down a street that had been done up for Christmas, one house had over 100,000 lights on it! Definitely adhering to the ethos of more is better. I also enjoyed spending time with my families extended family, most of whom I met at Thanksgiving. It was definitely sad to leave California. I will always reflect on my time there with fond memories of time spent getting to know what it is like to live the suburban life in California. I am grateful for the people I was able to meet who opened up their lives to me and made me totally welcome during my time there. I will never forget all of you and I hope I will be able to visit again!

Indiana was enjoyable! There I said it despite the skepticism of those who read this it truly was. What made it enjoyable wasn't the multitude of sights to see and things to do (which there pretty much isn't any of either), it was the people. Sam and Jill from Keynote were really fun to hang out with and it was great to have a few familiar faces to flash a smile or a wave to when going to the main meeting of the Indianapolis Christmas Conference. The conference was epic! Think 2500ish college aged people taking over two hotels and a conference venue for 4-5 days and you have a recipe for fun and frivolity. It was also a time where we were all able to connect with God on a deeper level. Tim Muehlhoff spoke about God and what we think of him as well as what to do when we hit hard times. One of the highlights for me was hearing Thomas Abraham speak. He is the Vice President of the Asia and Pacific Region and he spoke with clarity on the four C's of our relationship with God: Conversion, Commission, Challenge and Commitment. During my time at conference I was challenged to dig deeper into God and to rely on him more in everything I do. I felt challenge to apply for a summer project with Campus Crusade in Rome and so I am in the process of doing so and I will find out if they have accepted me by about the end of February.

My time in Virginia/Washington D.C. so far has been epic. The guys who I am staying with have been so welcoming and accommodating, definitely showing the love of Christ to me. I have been in to Washington D.C. twice now and head in tomorrow for my final look at the city. The most memorable part of my sightseeing definitely has to be the various memorials especially the World War II memorial. They are breath taking. You have to see them to believe them. Another highlight is the Natural History museum where I got to see the dinosaurs in person, something every young boy dreams of! I was also lucky enough to see an exhibit of early biblical texts from 300AD to 1000AD. This exhibit was a great remind of just how amazing it is that we have the bible today in its complete form and that our belief system is a historical one not a work of fiction. The exhibits ranged from scriptures written on pieces of papyrus or wood to full on bibles with golden covers and highly detailed art work. I am definitely glad I got to see the exhibit. Last night a large group of us went out to Georgetown which was really cool. It reminds me of Parnell or Ponsonby except it is way flasher and way more expensive to eat out and shop there. I had a great time chilling out with new found friends over dinner and drinks. I even briefly met two English gents who initially mistook me for an Aussie and thought they would have to fend off talk of the ashes series but were delighted to hear that I was a kiwi and that I wasn't going to hold over them the fact that it is highly likely that our boys will win the world cup this year. Definitely a night to remember.

I head off from Virginia on the 10th for NY! I am so excited about it! I am looking forward to spending some time chilling with David in the city that never sleeps, doing and seeing the things that we have previously only ever seen in movies.