Hey everyone,
I've been home for a little over a week now so I figured it would be a good time to do the final post. Everything as far as travel went very smoothly, and I arrived back to Greensboro, NC about 10pm EST(nice to be back in 1 time-zone with everyone). Mom and Dad were there waiting for me and we headed home, getting back about midnight.
The first couple of days home were basically just catching up on rest, mail, sleep, and just getting everything in order. I got to hang out with alot of people back home which was great, and was able to just sit around with nothing to do(which by the way, gets old fast).
The first weekend back we headed to Newport News to visit Peanut, Richard, Ronda, Ray, PJ, and kids. It was great to see everyone there and I was even able to take home the victory in the classic Bowman/Toll family poker game. It's always relaxing in NN...a little slower paced than San Diego, but having the Olympics on was a nice retreat.
Since we've been back from NN, I've really been doing alot of nothing, which I feel is all I could want, with school being right around the corner. I'll be moving in on Tuesday and then classes start the following Monday. I'm really looking forward to doing the STA(Student Teaching Assistant) for the Residential Leadership Community and feel like it'll be a great way to connect with some freshmen. I'll also be leading a Bible Study through Cru, which is one of the main skills I hoped to improve on this summer, and I'd say it was successful. I got alot of practice leading studies and alot of leadership training in San Diego and now I feel much more prepared to lead the freshman study this fall. I'm a little wary about who I will co-lead with(Cru wants all freshman study leaders to co-lead), because I did not request anyone to lead with, so I guess I'll be put with a random person, but I'm sure it will end up alright in the end. I'll be living with John again, and our suitemates are all people from our hall last year, which should be alot of fun.
The thing I'm most excited for this year is just having the freshman class below us. I remember how exciting it was to get a call from an older student asking to hang out or go get lunch and it's exciting to have that power now only by being older. I'm looking forward to getting to know alot of the younger guys and hopefully draw in some more people into the Cru movement for the future years.
After having a week or so to reflect on the project, I'm still not sure what the long-lasting changes will be for me. I'm much more looking forward to being back in school to see how things go, but I am still very excited and anxious to be able to take all that I've learned in San Diego and take it to Blacksburg. I feel like I couldn't have spent my summer in a more valuable way, and am seriously considering the possibility of going back next summer for the student-staff portion of the project.
It has been alot of fun for me to do this blog, and I hope you have all enjoyed it as well. As I say many times, I'd love to hear from you all if you would like to talk more specifically about project or just stay in touch, feel free. I look forward to seeing everyone that I haven't seen and wish you all the best in the next days to come.
Thursday, August 14, 2008
Sunday, August 3, 2008
Last Day in San Diego!
I've been slacking on posts in the last week or so, but everything has been wrapping up and it's been hard to find much time. I write this from the Olive Cafe because it's the only place to sit down anywhere near our housing!
A few days ago we packed up all our clothes and got them ready as if we were leaving that night, which, with me being a very routine-oriented person, sort of stressed me out a little. I've learned this summer that I don't need much space to live comfortably, but I do need enough, otherwise I'm driven nuts. I think back to the first day of project when I stepped foot in the Santa Clara motel, having no coat hangers, no trash can, no laundry hamper, and no where to put my clothes, and on that first day I made a trip to Target - I couldn't live without some kind of organization and feeling of a schedule/routine.
Yesterday we packed up the entire project. We took down the bunks, cleaned out the refrigerators, cleaned the bathrooms, kitchens, walls, threw out all the trash, loaded a few U-hauls and took them to the self-storage units where they are kept for the rest of the year until next summer. I got the job of loading and unloading the trucks at the self-storage and packing the units, which was alot of lifting, but ended up not being too bad. We started at 7 in the morning with all the packing up and by 5 we were done. It was weird coming back to the Santa Clara with literally nothing in the rooms...we even took the tables and chairs from in front of the girls' condos which is a common hangout spot for everyone.
Last night was our project farewell banquet. We had a catered meal with pasta and salads, some worship music, a preview of the project DVD, and a special song that some guys had written for the talent show a few weeks back. I enjoyed seeing it this time since I was out of town for the show the first time around.
Today is basically a free day...everyone is packed, no more work needs to be done, so thankfully we can just relax and enjoy each other's company. I think it's a great idea to start the packing so early so we can have this free time now, although there is a down-side of sleeping on the floor for these last 2 nights. I don't think I'll be getting much sleep tonight, but my philosophy on it has been, I'm not going to look back on project and wish I had slept more, so I'm going to try to make the best of the last day here.
My flight leaves tomorrow at 11:30ish and I'll arrive to Greensboro around 10:00pm EST, so it will be a long, but hopefully relaxing day.
I'll probably do another update once I get home just with some summary and wrap-up to the blog, but this has been a great way for me to remember the events of the summer as well as keep in touch with all of you, so I hope you've all enjoyed it as much as I have.
A few days ago we packed up all our clothes and got them ready as if we were leaving that night, which, with me being a very routine-oriented person, sort of stressed me out a little. I've learned this summer that I don't need much space to live comfortably, but I do need enough, otherwise I'm driven nuts. I think back to the first day of project when I stepped foot in the Santa Clara motel, having no coat hangers, no trash can, no laundry hamper, and no where to put my clothes, and on that first day I made a trip to Target - I couldn't live without some kind of organization and feeling of a schedule/routine.
Yesterday we packed up the entire project. We took down the bunks, cleaned out the refrigerators, cleaned the bathrooms, kitchens, walls, threw out all the trash, loaded a few U-hauls and took them to the self-storage units where they are kept for the rest of the year until next summer. I got the job of loading and unloading the trucks at the self-storage and packing the units, which was alot of lifting, but ended up not being too bad. We started at 7 in the morning with all the packing up and by 5 we were done. It was weird coming back to the Santa Clara with literally nothing in the rooms...we even took the tables and chairs from in front of the girls' condos which is a common hangout spot for everyone.
Last night was our project farewell banquet. We had a catered meal with pasta and salads, some worship music, a preview of the project DVD, and a special song that some guys had written for the talent show a few weeks back. I enjoyed seeing it this time since I was out of town for the show the first time around.
Today is basically a free day...everyone is packed, no more work needs to be done, so thankfully we can just relax and enjoy each other's company. I think it's a great idea to start the packing so early so we can have this free time now, although there is a down-side of sleeping on the floor for these last 2 nights. I don't think I'll be getting much sleep tonight, but my philosophy on it has been, I'm not going to look back on project and wish I had slept more, so I'm going to try to make the best of the last day here.
My flight leaves tomorrow at 11:30ish and I'll arrive to Greensboro around 10:00pm EST, so it will be a long, but hopefully relaxing day.
I'll probably do another update once I get home just with some summary and wrap-up to the blog, but this has been a great way for me to remember the events of the summer as well as keep in touch with all of you, so I hope you've all enjoyed it as much as I have.
Thursday, July 24, 2008
Less than 2 weeks!
It's crazy that I make this post with only 11 days left in this summer adventure. It doesn't seem like I've been here anything like 8 weeks...more like 2 or 3. This morning we took Matthew(a guy from St. Louis that I've gotten very close to) to the airport to leave for the summer. He knew coming in that he'd be leaving early...it's for a family vacation to Panama City Beach but it should be alot of fun. He's excited to get home, but it's also sad to leave, especially to be the first to leave. We're all starting to adopt an idea that leaving is going to bittersweet....we're all excited to get home and start back on our campuses but also it's going to be hard to leave the amazing weather, the incredible community, and Shamu, obviously.
The last week or so has been pretty unusual. Helen and Glenn made their San Diego Summer Project debut which was very eventful. We went all over the place the first day they were here, up to Mt. Soledad(a mountain that has a beautiful 360 degree view of the entire San Diego area), La Jolla and the beach that has a bunch of wild seals living on it, lunch a little French Bistro which was delicious, Torrey Pines Golf Resort(the site of the U.S. Open), dinner at a German restaurant, then over to the Sunset Cliffs, although we missed the sunset by a few minutes. The next day we went to SeaWorld and got to see all of the day shows except the Cirque de la Mer, which was alot of fun. It was a pretty hot day so I was glad I was there as a guest and not there sweating like crazy. I got alot of pictures of the fellow vendors which was really fun.
Thursday evening a group of us went to the midnight showing of the new Batman movie with I really liked alot. It was pretty long and made for a late night out, but it was completely worth it to be exhausted at work the next day.
On Friday night was Friday Night Live where I spoke on Romans 8. A couple complications came up that day including the portable sound system running out of battery and not being able to locate the charger, so we were without a system on the beach. Everything still worked out alright though and I really enjoyed having the opportunity to be able to share with the group.
I worked on Saturday, Sunday was pretty normal with church, meetings, and time to plan for the weekly Bible Study, and Monday was also fairly normal, going to campus. Sunday night we had a date auction in order to try to raise money for the support debt that still exists for project, which is much larger than in previous years. My growth group decided that it would be fun to utilize the hotel suite that Mom and Dad had been upgraded to for free, so our date consisted of making the girls group dinner at the Bahia Hotel, then going out on the boat cruise that leaves from the hotel and drives around the bay area. We came back and had some dessert and then just hung out for awhile. The date we purchased was a trip to the local lazer tag, which was an absolute blast. I hadn't been since middle school but I absolutely love it, so it was alot of fun to get back into something like that.
Tuesday the parents were back in town(they left on Friday to go north to visit Mom's cousins). We met up with the Dooley's from WRCOB in Old Town who were here visiting some relatives. We had lunch at a really good Mexican restaurant and explored some of the area of authentic Mexican shops and handmade things. That night we did the date for the girls and everything worked out really well.
Yesterday was our So Cal Fun Day, in which we have planned events and it's just a day to hang out and have a great time. We started out in Coronado where we relaxed on the beach for most of the afternoon. Next we headed to Little Italy for dinner which was incredible. After that we headed to Balboa Park for a catered dessert of different specialty cakes which were delicious as well. Overall it was a great day with lots of fun and just time to enjoy each other's company.
Tomorrow we plan to go to the San Diego Zoo, which is apparently pretty world famous, so I'm really excited about that.
Not much else coming up that I know of, but I'm sure every day will be packed from here on out. I realize this was alot longer than I originally anticipated but it had been awhile since a post. I hope everything is going great with all of you!
11 days to go!
The last week or so has been pretty unusual. Helen and Glenn made their San Diego Summer Project debut which was very eventful. We went all over the place the first day they were here, up to Mt. Soledad(a mountain that has a beautiful 360 degree view of the entire San Diego area), La Jolla and the beach that has a bunch of wild seals living on it, lunch a little French Bistro which was delicious, Torrey Pines Golf Resort(the site of the U.S. Open), dinner at a German restaurant, then over to the Sunset Cliffs, although we missed the sunset by a few minutes. The next day we went to SeaWorld and got to see all of the day shows except the Cirque de la Mer, which was alot of fun. It was a pretty hot day so I was glad I was there as a guest and not there sweating like crazy. I got alot of pictures of the fellow vendors which was really fun.
Thursday evening a group of us went to the midnight showing of the new Batman movie with I really liked alot. It was pretty long and made for a late night out, but it was completely worth it to be exhausted at work the next day.
On Friday night was Friday Night Live where I spoke on Romans 8. A couple complications came up that day including the portable sound system running out of battery and not being able to locate the charger, so we were without a system on the beach. Everything still worked out alright though and I really enjoyed having the opportunity to be able to share with the group.
I worked on Saturday, Sunday was pretty normal with church, meetings, and time to plan for the weekly Bible Study, and Monday was also fairly normal, going to campus. Sunday night we had a date auction in order to try to raise money for the support debt that still exists for project, which is much larger than in previous years. My growth group decided that it would be fun to utilize the hotel suite that Mom and Dad had been upgraded to for free, so our date consisted of making the girls group dinner at the Bahia Hotel, then going out on the boat cruise that leaves from the hotel and drives around the bay area. We came back and had some dessert and then just hung out for awhile. The date we purchased was a trip to the local lazer tag, which was an absolute blast. I hadn't been since middle school but I absolutely love it, so it was alot of fun to get back into something like that.
Tuesday the parents were back in town(they left on Friday to go north to visit Mom's cousins). We met up with the Dooley's from WRCOB in Old Town who were here visiting some relatives. We had lunch at a really good Mexican restaurant and explored some of the area of authentic Mexican shops and handmade things. That night we did the date for the girls and everything worked out really well.
Yesterday was our So Cal Fun Day, in which we have planned events and it's just a day to hang out and have a great time. We started out in Coronado where we relaxed on the beach for most of the afternoon. Next we headed to Little Italy for dinner which was incredible. After that we headed to Balboa Park for a catered dessert of different specialty cakes which were delicious as well. Overall it was a great day with lots of fun and just time to enjoy each other's company.
Tomorrow we plan to go to the San Diego Zoo, which is apparently pretty world famous, so I'm really excited about that.
Not much else coming up that I know of, but I'm sure every day will be packed from here on out. I realize this was alot longer than I originally anticipated but it had been awhile since a post. I hope everything is going great with all of you!
11 days to go!
Monday, July 14, 2008
Hanging out!
Hey everyone! This last week has been pretty uneventful. I've worked quite a bit, and just done some hanging out. Last night I had the night off and got the chance to go to another Padres baseball game....it was pretty incredible...they were playing the Braves and Maddux was pitching for the Padres, so it was sweet to see that. The whole game was a the 10 year anniversary celebration of 1998 Padres team that went to the World Series, so there were fireworks afterwards that were amazing. They had them coordinated with music and everything, so it was an awesome show. Today I went to church(which I haven't talked much about before - it's called Clairement Emmanuel Baptist Church) which was pretty cool because the pastor's sermon was on Romans 8, the topic of the message that I'm going to deliver at FNL this week. I realize as I'm writing this that I haven't talked about alot of the stuff that is pretty regular.
First with the church - it's pretty casual - some people come in jeans and just normal clothes. They have an awesome praise band that plays before the service, then a time of prayer, then the sermon, and it's over. The whole thing is about an hour or so in length but it seems much quicker since everything seems to have a pretty important part in the service. The pastor is probably in his 50s and seems to be really knowledgeable about the Bible and makes all of his messages very life-applicable. One of the best parts is the Starbucks coffee and homemade treats that we get each Sunday...sometimes it's cookies, sometimes pastries, sometimes muffins - always homemade.
The next big thing is FNL - which stands for Friday Night Live. It's basically like our regular weekly meeting that we have back at Tech. There is music, prayer, sometimes a game or ice breaker, and then a message is delivered. When the staff left, they chose different people to speak at all the FNLs for the rest of the year, like Joe(the project director), and a few other guys. I was selected to speak this week and assigned to speak on Romans 8...I'm really excited about that. I've just started to plan my talk and I've got lots of ideas, so I'm pumped to see where it goes. Last week we had FNL on the beach(instead of in the rec center which is kind of out of the way) and it attracted alot of people, so it's exciting to have the opportunity to possibly minister to random people walking by. Also, one of the main goals of the FNL team(it's one of the ministry teams), is to have just as many other non-project people(co-workers, people we meet on campus, people from the beach, etc.) as we do project people by the end of the summer, and we've seen increasing numbers so far this year...it's been awesome.
Other than these big events coming up, not much else is happening...other than the debut of Helen and Glenn Bowman to San Diego Summer Project - that's right, Mom and Dad will be in San Diego visiting for a few days. It should be alot of fun...I'm excited to take them to SeaWorld and whatever else we decide to do...it should also be nice to check out some of the nicer restaurants that are a little out of my standard price range.
After church this morning we all headed over to Belmont park just down the street for the employee party in the park. Basically we all invited our co-workers and people we had met to this big cook out at the park and we had alot of games and things going on...free food...lots of stuff. It was alot of fun and some of the workers from SeaWorld showed up so hopefully that will help us build better relationships with them as the summer goes on.
Well, it's getting pretty late and I'm ready for bed so I'm going to hit the sack for tonight. Have a good one!
First with the church - it's pretty casual - some people come in jeans and just normal clothes. They have an awesome praise band that plays before the service, then a time of prayer, then the sermon, and it's over. The whole thing is about an hour or so in length but it seems much quicker since everything seems to have a pretty important part in the service. The pastor is probably in his 50s and seems to be really knowledgeable about the Bible and makes all of his messages very life-applicable. One of the best parts is the Starbucks coffee and homemade treats that we get each Sunday...sometimes it's cookies, sometimes pastries, sometimes muffins - always homemade.
The next big thing is FNL - which stands for Friday Night Live. It's basically like our regular weekly meeting that we have back at Tech. There is music, prayer, sometimes a game or ice breaker, and then a message is delivered. When the staff left, they chose different people to speak at all the FNLs for the rest of the year, like Joe(the project director), and a few other guys. I was selected to speak this week and assigned to speak on Romans 8...I'm really excited about that. I've just started to plan my talk and I've got lots of ideas, so I'm pumped to see where it goes. Last week we had FNL on the beach(instead of in the rec center which is kind of out of the way) and it attracted alot of people, so it's exciting to have the opportunity to possibly minister to random people walking by. Also, one of the main goals of the FNL team(it's one of the ministry teams), is to have just as many other non-project people(co-workers, people we meet on campus, people from the beach, etc.) as we do project people by the end of the summer, and we've seen increasing numbers so far this year...it's been awesome.
Other than these big events coming up, not much else is happening...other than the debut of Helen and Glenn Bowman to San Diego Summer Project - that's right, Mom and Dad will be in San Diego visiting for a few days. It should be alot of fun...I'm excited to take them to SeaWorld and whatever else we decide to do...it should also be nice to check out some of the nicer restaurants that are a little out of my standard price range.
After church this morning we all headed over to Belmont park just down the street for the employee party in the park. Basically we all invited our co-workers and people we had met to this big cook out at the park and we had alot of games and things going on...free food...lots of stuff. It was alot of fun and some of the workers from SeaWorld showed up so hopefully that will help us build better relationships with them as the summer goes on.
Well, it's getting pretty late and I'm ready for bed so I'm going to hit the sack for tonight. Have a good one!
Thursday, July 10, 2008
Some days off!!
Well this is a pretty casual post just about what's been going on lately. I'll going to be trying to update more often now because I find that I easily forget alot of important things that happen since so many more things happen before I have a chance to post.
Really that's it for now...figured I should update with a free day so you can get a feel for all of what project looks like. I'm trying to work on the issue with not allowing comments, but I can't make any promises.
Hope everything is fantastic!
I ended up getting off of work for today(Wednesday) so I got to hang out with the guys and have a MUCH needed day off!! First, I got up and went to breakfast with Joe(the guy from my Growth Group and the project director), Colin(another one of the project directors), and Travus(from University of Florida, leading the Movement Launching team). I've really started to grow close to these guys and it's been awesome just to extend more than Joe and Chris(the Growth Group guys). After that we decided to go surfing, which I was a little apprehensive toward, but it ended up being amazing. One of the rental shops close by gives us free rentals cause he's a cool Christian guy so we got wet suits and boards and hit the water. It didn't seen as cold as normal with the wet suit on and I actually stood up a few times! We didn't ride any of the huge waves but I was pretty happy with myself for it being my first time! After that we played some tennis(we had played last week and I hadn't been very good, but this time I felt a lot more confident in my shots and felt some of the old moves coming back). Next we made some dinner which was homemade pizza on garlic and herb crust, and angel hair pasta with ragu sauce. For the rest of the night we just hung out and played some cards and chatted. I also have tomorrow off(I know, crazy to have 2 days in a row!!), and I think we're going to go surfing again.
Really that's it for now...figured I should update with a free day so you can get a feel for all of what project looks like. I'm trying to work on the issue with not allowing comments, but I can't make any promises.
Hope everything is fantastic!
Sunday, July 6, 2008
Finally some free time!
I feel like I say this every time, but it's been a long time since the last update and I apologize.
Coming back from the beach into project with the new leadership in place wasn't as hard of a transition as I anticipated it being. All of the new staff had been selected prior to me leaving for my trip, so I was confident that they would do a great job, I just wasn't sure how the transition period would go. When I arrived back to project I quickly realized that everything was going to be just normal. The new leaders are very respected members of the project, and I think everyone still understands that they will each have to do their part, title or no title.
The last week or so has been really busy, and I've been working alot. They allowed us to work night shifts on July 3rd and July 4th since it would be so busy, but luckily I was off on the 4th. A bunch of us went to Sea World to enjoy the shows and took alot of the non-Sea World employees with us since we have our free passes now. By the end of the night, we had seen all the day shows and night shows, and gone to almost all of the encounters. It was a great way for everyone to get to see SeaWorld that doesn't work there. At night, the fireworks were amazing and they were firing off from every angle. The SeaWorld fireworks were coordinated with music, so that was pretty awesome - but it still didn't compare to the fireworks that are fired off in ole Daleville, VA.
This next week I'll be working Tuesday, Wednesday, Friday, and Saturday, so it'll be another busy one, but it's not too awful bad...it helps to make a little money. Also in this upcoming week we are doing something called "Killing the giants week" which involves conquering our fears in regards to sharing our faith and really pushing us to start spiritual conversations with co-workers and even friends back home through facebook, phone calls, or e-mails. I think it'll be a great chance to really grow in our faith and get some confidence to share once back at home at the end of the summer.
Other than that I'm just staying really busy with other things. We have the different weekly meetings and special events on weeknights that make for a long day after coming home from work. Everyone is in high spirits and I feel like unity hasn't been an issue at all. I'm really impressed at how everyone can get along without forming alot of cliques or exclusive groups. Overall, it's been a blast.
Coming back from the beach into project with the new leadership in place wasn't as hard of a transition as I anticipated it being. All of the new staff had been selected prior to me leaving for my trip, so I was confident that they would do a great job, I just wasn't sure how the transition period would go. When I arrived back to project I quickly realized that everything was going to be just normal. The new leaders are very respected members of the project, and I think everyone still understands that they will each have to do their part, title or no title.
The last week or so has been really busy, and I've been working alot. They allowed us to work night shifts on July 3rd and July 4th since it would be so busy, but luckily I was off on the 4th. A bunch of us went to Sea World to enjoy the shows and took alot of the non-Sea World employees with us since we have our free passes now. By the end of the night, we had seen all the day shows and night shows, and gone to almost all of the encounters. It was a great way for everyone to get to see SeaWorld that doesn't work there. At night, the fireworks were amazing and they were firing off from every angle. The SeaWorld fireworks were coordinated with music, so that was pretty awesome - but it still didn't compare to the fireworks that are fired off in ole Daleville, VA.
This next week I'll be working Tuesday, Wednesday, Friday, and Saturday, so it'll be another busy one, but it's not too awful bad...it helps to make a little money. Also in this upcoming week we are doing something called "Killing the giants week" which involves conquering our fears in regards to sharing our faith and really pushing us to start spiritual conversations with co-workers and even friends back home through facebook, phone calls, or e-mails. I think it'll be a great chance to really grow in our faith and get some confidence to share once back at home at the end of the summer.
Other than that I'm just staying really busy with other things. We have the different weekly meetings and special events on weeknights that make for a long day after coming home from work. Everyone is in high spirits and I feel like unity hasn't been an issue at all. I'm really impressed at how everyone can get along without forming alot of cliques or exclusive groups. Overall, it's been a blast.
Friday, June 27, 2008
From the east coast!
Sorry for the long time since the last update....I've been very busy.
I write this message from the east coast, as I'm on vacation at Myrtle Beach with the family for the week, until Sunday. The normal trip is Sunday-Sunday, but I could only come for Tuesday-Sunday, which was more than most get for vacations, so I was very pleased.
Since the last post, alot has happened. The past Thursday and Friday we had our men's retreat, which normally takes place in Mexico on the beach, but due to a last second travel advisory that the United States placed against Tijuana due to some abductions and other violence we decided it was best not to try it out - Mom was very pleased when she heard. Instead, we went to a Christian camp about 40 miles in-land from San Diego, and I got to see how nice the weather on the coast really is. Just that short of a distance inland the temperatures were close to 100, still with low humidity, but it wasn't nearly as comfortable.
At the retreat, we had some meetings, free time, a delicious BBQ with ribs and sausages, and a very important ceremony at night. At the ceremony we were to agree to 6 commitments, if we chose to, which go along with the Authentic Manhood series that has been developed for college guys. The commitments are very serious and aren't easy to uphold, but I suppose that's the reason there is a ceremony instead of just acknowledging that one will follow them. The retreat was very uplifting and gave me a great perspective on what a Godly man, as well as father, looks like. The next few days back on the beach were still man-time filled because as we got back, the girls left for their retreat.
On Sunday, the guys decided to make dinner for the girls as they returned, and we purchased long stem red roses to give to each of them just as a show of our appreciation and respect for them. It was alot of fun to see their reactions to being called up individually to receive the roses with everyone cheering them on. Sunday was also when the leadership for the project was selected. Saturday is when the staff leave, so they choose the leaders early in order to allow a transition period to occur during this week and any big issues can be addressed. One of the guys from my Growth Group, Joe, was selected as the Project Director, and he is a very qualified choice. Two other girls were put on the main leadership team as well as someone to fill the "Operations Director" position which deals with the money. A guy and girl were also selected to lead each of the ministry teams(Prayer and World Vision, Friday Night Live, Evangelism, Training, Communications, Spiritual Health, Community Life). Every single staff member leaves on Saturday, so when I get back the project will be entirely student run. The main directors come back at the end of the summer to help with packing up, but the rest of the project is basically ours.
On Monday we had the staff farewell banquet, which was held at SeaWorld. It was a great time of music, food, and an opportunity for each Growth Group to say some words about their staff leader before they left. We gave Dan, our leader, a golf driver, glove, and some tees as a thank-you for everything he had done. Monday night I said bye to all the staff people, since they'll be gone when I get back, but I'm confident I'll see many of them in the future at reunions or just sometime when we cross paths.
Tuesday morning I left very early to fly out here to Myrtle Beach. It's been a great trip so far, with Mom, Dad, Ed, Aunt A, Uncle Dewey, and Nick, Sonja and Campbell visiting. I'll leave here Sunday morning to fly back to San Diego and will be there until August 4th. The food here in Myrtle is delicious as always.
That's about it for now - I'll try to make the next post sooner rather than later!
On Monday night we had the staff farewell banquet
I write this message from the east coast, as I'm on vacation at Myrtle Beach with the family for the week, until Sunday. The normal trip is Sunday-Sunday, but I could only come for Tuesday-Sunday, which was more than most get for vacations, so I was very pleased.
Since the last post, alot has happened. The past Thursday and Friday we had our men's retreat, which normally takes place in Mexico on the beach, but due to a last second travel advisory that the United States placed against Tijuana due to some abductions and other violence we decided it was best not to try it out - Mom was very pleased when she heard. Instead, we went to a Christian camp about 40 miles in-land from San Diego, and I got to see how nice the weather on the coast really is. Just that short of a distance inland the temperatures were close to 100, still with low humidity, but it wasn't nearly as comfortable.
At the retreat, we had some meetings, free time, a delicious BBQ with ribs and sausages, and a very important ceremony at night. At the ceremony we were to agree to 6 commitments, if we chose to, which go along with the Authentic Manhood series that has been developed for college guys. The commitments are very serious and aren't easy to uphold, but I suppose that's the reason there is a ceremony instead of just acknowledging that one will follow them. The retreat was very uplifting and gave me a great perspective on what a Godly man, as well as father, looks like. The next few days back on the beach were still man-time filled because as we got back, the girls left for their retreat.
On Sunday, the guys decided to make dinner for the girls as they returned, and we purchased long stem red roses to give to each of them just as a show of our appreciation and respect for them. It was alot of fun to see their reactions to being called up individually to receive the roses with everyone cheering them on. Sunday was also when the leadership for the project was selected. Saturday is when the staff leave, so they choose the leaders early in order to allow a transition period to occur during this week and any big issues can be addressed. One of the guys from my Growth Group, Joe, was selected as the Project Director, and he is a very qualified choice. Two other girls were put on the main leadership team as well as someone to fill the "Operations Director" position which deals with the money. A guy and girl were also selected to lead each of the ministry teams(Prayer and World Vision, Friday Night Live, Evangelism, Training, Communications, Spiritual Health, Community Life). Every single staff member leaves on Saturday, so when I get back the project will be entirely student run. The main directors come back at the end of the summer to help with packing up, but the rest of the project is basically ours.
On Monday we had the staff farewell banquet, which was held at SeaWorld. It was a great time of music, food, and an opportunity for each Growth Group to say some words about their staff leader before they left. We gave Dan, our leader, a golf driver, glove, and some tees as a thank-you for everything he had done. Monday night I said bye to all the staff people, since they'll be gone when I get back, but I'm confident I'll see many of them in the future at reunions or just sometime when we cross paths.
Tuesday morning I left very early to fly out here to Myrtle Beach. It's been a great trip so far, with Mom, Dad, Ed, Aunt A, Uncle Dewey, and Nick, Sonja and Campbell visiting. I'll leave here Sunday morning to fly back to San Diego and will be there until August 4th. The food here in Myrtle is delicious as always.
That's about it for now - I'll try to make the next post sooner rather than later!
On Monday night we had the staff farewell banquet
Monday, June 16, 2008
Short Update
Hey everyone,
I write this message from a lounge at San Diego State University - the campus I will be doing outreach and sharing with this summer. Every Monday, a quarter of our group comes here to SDSU to share our faith with others and try to launch a movement here on campus. We lead Bible studies each week and try to get people involved. Today, I had the unbelievable opportunity of sharing my faith with a guy named Andrew who ended up making the decision to accept Jesus into his life as his Savior. It was incredible to see how he changed his attitude from apatheic and overall confused about the foundations of Christianity, to involved, asking questions, and truly desiring truth and answers. In part of our time of sharing, we ask if the person would be interested in going through a booklet which basically outlines the New Testament and gives 4 points(The 4 Spiritual Laws) that sum up the foundation of Christianity(that God loves us, that we are separated from God because of sin, that God sent Jesus to bridge the gap that sin caused, and that we must accept Jesus as our Savior in order to have eternal life and bridge that gap). Andrew was very receptive to all I had to say and appeared to understand everything. I left my contact information with him and hopefully he will follow up with questions and concerns as he begins to grow in his faith. It was truly incredible to see God work in his heart when he was sitting right in front of me and I really hope he will go somewhere with his faith.
Other than that, there isn't much to update since the last post. We are having a 24 Hour Prayer time in which people sign up and people will be praying from 6pm tonight until 6pm tomorrow that is being organized by the Prayer and World Vision team, the Ministry Team that I was placed on. Tonight we have men's time/women's time which are always very impactful.
I work tomorrow and then we leave for the men's retreat to Mexico on Thursday and Friday, then the women leave for their retreat Friday-Sunday, so alot is going on this week.
I hope you are all doing great. I'd love to hear from you, so feel free to drop me an e-mail or give me a call. I continue to ask for prayers for the jobs of people here on project - 2 people have already had to go home for various reasons, but one of which being they could not locate a job that would provide some money for them this summer. It's still a big struggle but we're all trying to stay faithful.
More to come soon -
Albo
I write this message from a lounge at San Diego State University - the campus I will be doing outreach and sharing with this summer. Every Monday, a quarter of our group comes here to SDSU to share our faith with others and try to launch a movement here on campus. We lead Bible studies each week and try to get people involved. Today, I had the unbelievable opportunity of sharing my faith with a guy named Andrew who ended up making the decision to accept Jesus into his life as his Savior. It was incredible to see how he changed his attitude from apatheic and overall confused about the foundations of Christianity, to involved, asking questions, and truly desiring truth and answers. In part of our time of sharing, we ask if the person would be interested in going through a booklet which basically outlines the New Testament and gives 4 points(The 4 Spiritual Laws) that sum up the foundation of Christianity(that God loves us, that we are separated from God because of sin, that God sent Jesus to bridge the gap that sin caused, and that we must accept Jesus as our Savior in order to have eternal life and bridge that gap). Andrew was very receptive to all I had to say and appeared to understand everything. I left my contact information with him and hopefully he will follow up with questions and concerns as he begins to grow in his faith. It was truly incredible to see God work in his heart when he was sitting right in front of me and I really hope he will go somewhere with his faith.
Other than that, there isn't much to update since the last post. We are having a 24 Hour Prayer time in which people sign up and people will be praying from 6pm tonight until 6pm tomorrow that is being organized by the Prayer and World Vision team, the Ministry Team that I was placed on. Tonight we have men's time/women's time which are always very impactful.
I work tomorrow and then we leave for the men's retreat to Mexico on Thursday and Friday, then the women leave for their retreat Friday-Sunday, so alot is going on this week.
I hope you are all doing great. I'd love to hear from you, so feel free to drop me an e-mail or give me a call. I continue to ask for prayers for the jobs of people here on project - 2 people have already had to go home for various reasons, but one of which being they could not locate a job that would provide some money for them this summer. It's still a big struggle but we're all trying to stay faithful.
More to come soon -
Albo
Friday, June 13, 2008
Busy busy busy
Well, I just got home from my 3rd day of work, and it's definitely been a unique experience. After Day 1, I basically anticipated the next 2 months of work being absolutely miserable. My neck was strained and I had bruises on my stomach from the 50 pound tray being leveraged on to my stomach for a few hours. I went to bed sore and wasn't sure I would even be able to do vending for the whole summer. Basically it was a - sit around from a few minutes doing nothing, then prepare the drinks, popcorn, ice cream, churros, water bottles, and cotton candy. Then you find out what you will be vending. The guys normally get the heavy things, including the task I was assigned the entire day called "Tray 20". Tray 20 is not any normal tray. On the FIRST tray(on the bottom) you have 20 bottles of 24 oz. Aquafina water. On TOP of the first tray, you have another tray with 20 bags of popcorn. On your arms, you have 3 souvenir popcorn buckets, and on top of the 20 bags, you have 6 large bags of cinnamon kettle corn. This entire set-up is quite a scene and you get alot of funny looks and even some sympathy stares. Now, it sounds like all I'm doing is complaining, but it gets better.
After Day 3 of working, I feel much more optimistic about vending. I'm still sore, and I'm still bruised, but it's not nearly as bad, and I think I will definitely get completely used to it. Today I was perfect on my change and had the correct amount of money at the end of the day, which I was very pleased with. I did 3 shows back to back and although I was pretty mad at the time, I think it's preparing me for the worst, to make everything better.
I'm meeting alot of people at work and I think once I can get out of the new-worker-not-knowing-anything I'll be able to focus more on the ministry aspect of the job and start some great relationships and hopefully spiritual conversations.
Other than work, the project is still going great. Unfortunately, theft has become an issue, with yesterday my room being broken in to while we were at a meeting...we left the window open. One guy's laptop was stolen, another's ipod, and another's wallet. Thankfully nothing of mine was sitting out in the area that these things were on the counter and I lost nothing. Later that night, a bike was cut from a fence and stolen...so we're going to be much more careful now. Last year, over 40 bikes were stolen, so I guess it takes something like this to make us be more aware of what's going on. We have talked to the police and they'll be patrolling our area more and honestly I still feel completely safe and secure. I think we will be fine...just have to be smart about what we do.
Not much else to report at the moment...like I said, everything is going great. Still getting to know people on a deeper level and growing in many ways. If you have any more specific questions feel free to e-mail me...I'd love to hear from everyone.
Have a great day,
Albo
After Day 3 of working, I feel much more optimistic about vending. I'm still sore, and I'm still bruised, but it's not nearly as bad, and I think I will definitely get completely used to it. Today I was perfect on my change and had the correct amount of money at the end of the day, which I was very pleased with. I did 3 shows back to back and although I was pretty mad at the time, I think it's preparing me for the worst, to make everything better.
I'm meeting alot of people at work and I think once I can get out of the new-worker-not-knowing-anything I'll be able to focus more on the ministry aspect of the job and start some great relationships and hopefully spiritual conversations.
Other than work, the project is still going great. Unfortunately, theft has become an issue, with yesterday my room being broken in to while we were at a meeting...we left the window open. One guy's laptop was stolen, another's ipod, and another's wallet. Thankfully nothing of mine was sitting out in the area that these things were on the counter and I lost nothing. Later that night, a bike was cut from a fence and stolen...so we're going to be much more careful now. Last year, over 40 bikes were stolen, so I guess it takes something like this to make us be more aware of what's going on. We have talked to the police and they'll be patrolling our area more and honestly I still feel completely safe and secure. I think we will be fine...just have to be smart about what we do.
Not much else to report at the moment...like I said, everything is going great. Still getting to know people on a deeper level and growing in many ways. If you have any more specific questions feel free to e-mail me...I'd love to hear from everyone.
Have a great day,
Albo
Saturday, June 7, 2008
Sea World Time!
Hey everyone!
The main focus of this post is going to be Sea World, because it's taken up most of my time the last couple of days. We started our orientation yesterday at 8 in the morning (Sea World is about a 25 minute bike ride from our motel, so I got up about 6:30) and they basically went over the overview of the company and the park. It was all very general stuff that didn't relate to our job at all, and honestly we could have easily done without, but I was happy to be there and get started. The best part was getting our uniform at the end of the day, which includes black shoes, blue shorts/long pants, a white Sea World polo shirt, a red apron-type thing, a red Sea World hat, a name-tag, and I was lucky enough to get a very nice Sea World vest which I plan on keeping at the end of the summer.
Today, we had our second orientation(this one STARTING at 7...so it was a very early morning). This was a much more hands-on orientation, starting with a tour and an overview of our job. I will be doing vending for the shows like the Shamu show, the Dolphin show, the Sea Lion and Otter show, etc. Basically I'll be carrying trays of popcorn, drinks, hotdogs, ice cream, etc. up the steps of the stadiums and selling. I'll also be preparing the drinks and making popcorn and the other snacks before shows to get ready. After lunch, we got to practice on a show with both the preparation and selling. I filled up lemonade cups($9.75 for about a 35 oz. cup...wow) and got to sell popcorn at the show. It was a rush to have people screaming at you for popcorn and I sold almost all I had before we had to leave.
I will begin working officially on Wednesday with my regular shifts, and I'm looking forward to meeting some co-workers, making some money, and really just having a good time. I've never been to Sea World before, and it seems like a great place to visit and work. The leads, supervisors, and basically everyone we've encountered so far is very pleasant and just enjoys working there. I think it's going to be a very rewarding summer job.
Not much else to report. A major concern that has continued to exist is the job search for many of the project people that couldn't get Sea World jobs. Alot of people are still struggling to land jobs and some are talking of having to go home if they can't get a job for the summer. I'd ask for your prayers that everything would work out and they could stay....it's going to be a life-changing summer for alot of people out here.
Well, time to head out...we're having a reflection, prayer, sharing, and worship time down at a local park and my ministry team is helping to lead it, so I have to go get ready for that.
More to come soon.
albo
The main focus of this post is going to be Sea World, because it's taken up most of my time the last couple of days. We started our orientation yesterday at 8 in the morning (Sea World is about a 25 minute bike ride from our motel, so I got up about 6:30) and they basically went over the overview of the company and the park. It was all very general stuff that didn't relate to our job at all, and honestly we could have easily done without, but I was happy to be there and get started. The best part was getting our uniform at the end of the day, which includes black shoes, blue shorts/long pants, a white Sea World polo shirt, a red apron-type thing, a red Sea World hat, a name-tag, and I was lucky enough to get a very nice Sea World vest which I plan on keeping at the end of the summer.
Today, we had our second orientation(this one STARTING at 7...so it was a very early morning). This was a much more hands-on orientation, starting with a tour and an overview of our job. I will be doing vending for the shows like the Shamu show, the Dolphin show, the Sea Lion and Otter show, etc. Basically I'll be carrying trays of popcorn, drinks, hotdogs, ice cream, etc. up the steps of the stadiums and selling. I'll also be preparing the drinks and making popcorn and the other snacks before shows to get ready. After lunch, we got to practice on a show with both the preparation and selling. I filled up lemonade cups($9.75 for about a 35 oz. cup...wow) and got to sell popcorn at the show. It was a rush to have people screaming at you for popcorn and I sold almost all I had before we had to leave.
I will begin working officially on Wednesday with my regular shifts, and I'm looking forward to meeting some co-workers, making some money, and really just having a good time. I've never been to Sea World before, and it seems like a great place to visit and work. The leads, supervisors, and basically everyone we've encountered so far is very pleasant and just enjoys working there. I think it's going to be a very rewarding summer job.
Not much else to report. A major concern that has continued to exist is the job search for many of the project people that couldn't get Sea World jobs. Alot of people are still struggling to land jobs and some are talking of having to go home if they can't get a job for the summer. I'd ask for your prayers that everything would work out and they could stay....it's going to be a life-changing summer for alot of people out here.
Well, time to head out...we're having a reflection, prayer, sharing, and worship time down at a local park and my ministry team is helping to lead it, so I have to go get ready for that.
More to come soon.
albo
Wednesday, June 4, 2008
Alot to update!!
Hey everyone!
A couple observations that I've noticed less than a week into this trip :
-I won't be getting much sleep
-I won't have much time to update the blog
-I won't be bored....ever.
Fortunately, I'm satisfied with all of those and am ready to be a little sleep deprived if it means hanging out a little later or getting to do some late-night activity.
Since my last post, alot has happened. We all went to purchase our bikes down the boardwalk area, which was a pretty awesome deal because the owner is willing to sell us the bike for $125 new now, and then buy it back at $60 when we leave at the beginning of August. The bikes are very nice and there are tons of bike lanes, boardwalks, and trails to head around on...I'll also use it to get to work.
I talked earlier about my job at Sea World...I will be starting orientation for the job on Friday, but unfortunately Sea World only took half of the project for jobs, leaving many people still on the search. It's been a big prayer concern so far that these people find jobs in the area, and if you would like to add it to your list it would be greatly appreciated. It's hard, as I'm sure you would imagine, going to an employer and saying you need a job that can't work nights, needs alot of weekend time off, and you're leaving July 31. Hopefully something will come out of this soon.
In the past couple days we have done alot of training, building relationships, sharing our faith on the beaches, and just preparing ourselves for the summer. The days have been long, but solid relationships are definitely developing and a comfort of settling into a routine is finally starting to come about. This being said, it will probably all change again once we start work, but we'll deal with that when it comes.
Yesterday was probably our longest day so far here. We traveled by bus and train to Tijuana, Mexico to an orphanage that the project is associated with. There, we played with the children, led a short Vacation Bible School, and did some maintenance and cleaning around the place. It was an awesome opportunity to connect with the kids, and really share our faith with people of different cultures and languages. After leaving the orphanage, we got to go into the market areas where bartering is the system, and people basically drag you into their stores....not somewhere I would recommend going at night, but everyone was safe during the day.
After that, a few of us decided to go to the San Diego Padres game, so we got off the bus in downtown San Diego and headed over to the park. The ticket salesman recommended a place called "Tin Fish" right next to the park so I got some good ole Fish and Chips before the game that was delicious. The Padres were playing the Cubs, and although I'm not a huge baseball fan, it was still alot of fun. The Cubs won, which made 2 of the people in our group happy, as they were big Cubs fans, and luckily no one with us was a big Padres fan.
Overall the trip is still going great. Today we're heading to one of the local college campuses to try to start up some Bible studies and just bring the offering of Christianity that many out here have apparently no knowledge of.
Hopefully it won't be too long before another update, but I can't promise anything. Hope everyone is doing great!!
-Albo
A couple observations that I've noticed less than a week into this trip :
-I won't be getting much sleep
-I won't have much time to update the blog
-I won't be bored....ever.
Fortunately, I'm satisfied with all of those and am ready to be a little sleep deprived if it means hanging out a little later or getting to do some late-night activity.
Since my last post, alot has happened. We all went to purchase our bikes down the boardwalk area, which was a pretty awesome deal because the owner is willing to sell us the bike for $125 new now, and then buy it back at $60 when we leave at the beginning of August. The bikes are very nice and there are tons of bike lanes, boardwalks, and trails to head around on...I'll also use it to get to work.
I talked earlier about my job at Sea World...I will be starting orientation for the job on Friday, but unfortunately Sea World only took half of the project for jobs, leaving many people still on the search. It's been a big prayer concern so far that these people find jobs in the area, and if you would like to add it to your list it would be greatly appreciated. It's hard, as I'm sure you would imagine, going to an employer and saying you need a job that can't work nights, needs alot of weekend time off, and you're leaving July 31. Hopefully something will come out of this soon.
In the past couple days we have done alot of training, building relationships, sharing our faith on the beaches, and just preparing ourselves for the summer. The days have been long, but solid relationships are definitely developing and a comfort of settling into a routine is finally starting to come about. This being said, it will probably all change again once we start work, but we'll deal with that when it comes.
Yesterday was probably our longest day so far here. We traveled by bus and train to Tijuana, Mexico to an orphanage that the project is associated with. There, we played with the children, led a short Vacation Bible School, and did some maintenance and cleaning around the place. It was an awesome opportunity to connect with the kids, and really share our faith with people of different cultures and languages. After leaving the orphanage, we got to go into the market areas where bartering is the system, and people basically drag you into their stores....not somewhere I would recommend going at night, but everyone was safe during the day.
After that, a few of us decided to go to the San Diego Padres game, so we got off the bus in downtown San Diego and headed over to the park. The ticket salesman recommended a place called "Tin Fish" right next to the park so I got some good ole Fish and Chips before the game that was delicious. The Padres were playing the Cubs, and although I'm not a huge baseball fan, it was still alot of fun. The Cubs won, which made 2 of the people in our group happy, as they were big Cubs fans, and luckily no one with us was a big Padres fan.
Overall the trip is still going great. Today we're heading to one of the local college campuses to try to start up some Bible studies and just bring the offering of Christianity that many out here have apparently no knowledge of.
Hopefully it won't be too long before another update, but I can't promise anything. Hope everyone is doing great!!
-Albo
Friday, May 30, 2008
First post from San Diego!
Hey everyone,
Sorry for the delayed first update - we don't have any internet access where we are staying, so I write this from a little restaurant up the street called "Olives"...you have to buy something to use their connection, but I doubt that will be much of an issue.
So far the trip has been fairly hectic and overwhelming, but it's finally starting to settle down. The plane rides were peaceful without any babies screaming and loud snorers, and luckily I only had about a 15 minute layover in Memphis before flying the rest of the way to San Diego. When I arrived in San Diego I discovered that only one of my bags had come with me, and when I went to the desk to find out what was going on, they told me the other bag was left in Memphis, and for me to leave a number for them to call when it arrived. That made for a stressful beginning of the trip, because that bag had my toiletries and some other things that would be necessary very soon after arriving. The bag ended up coming that night, and the airport delivered it to the place we are staying, so that turned out to be less of an issue than it could have been.
The actual planned events of the project started with registration upon arriving to the motel, and checking into the rooms we would be staying. The accommodation is a fairly small hotel room with two sets of bunk beds, a small kitchen, and a bathroom, with very limited space for storage. That was also a little stressful to take in all at the beginning, but after settling in, I think space won't be as much of an issue as I originally thought. That night, we all had a dinner together as a project and just had more of a basic orientation. Considering I had woken up at 2:30am eastern time, I was ready for bed about 9:00 pacific(there's a 3 hour time difference between San Diego and Roanoke), but I had to stay up to wait for my bag to be delivered.
Yesterday was another busy day, with another small orientation in the morning and the first real meeting for all of us to hear about our schedule and receive our notebooks with vital information. After that, we broke up into our growth groups(a group of 3 students on project, and 1 leader/staff member). The afternoon was spent sharing our faith stories and basically any of our significant life experiences that had shaped us into what we are today. It was an awesome opportunity to really get to know some people on a personal level early in the project and I feel like it will develop trust that can lead to friendships much faster. That took most of the rest of the day and we were all pretty much exhausted afterwards.
Some other random details so far that I have left out....
After orientation the first day we were assigned our job locations, and I was assigned Sea World, rode a shuttle over to the H.R. department and applied for and received the job. I will be doing vending services at the park for different shows, carrying cases of drinks and snacks up and down steps trying to sell. My other option was to work in the back of a kitchen, and being a people-oriented person, I felt like this was a better fit for me, not to mention I think it will really get me into shape carrying around a 40 pound case. We don't start working until next Friday just because of the different trainings and other opportunities that are planned by the project. I'm excited to work, but I know these other things will be awesome as well.
Today we have a "Man's time" on the calendar, followed by some of the local pastors from churches we will be attending are coming to talk to us about their congregations and different things around San Diego, so that should be interesting. After that, we're going out on a time of sharing around the local area where we're staying and can hopefully spark some great conversations.
I think that's about it for now. I'm going to try to update every couple days, and most of the posts probably won't be this long. Feel free to ask any questions you have either through e-mail or whatever you would like...my e-mail is albo24@vt.edu.
Have a great day!
Sorry for the delayed first update - we don't have any internet access where we are staying, so I write this from a little restaurant up the street called "Olives"...you have to buy something to use their connection, but I doubt that will be much of an issue.
So far the trip has been fairly hectic and overwhelming, but it's finally starting to settle down. The plane rides were peaceful without any babies screaming and loud snorers, and luckily I only had about a 15 minute layover in Memphis before flying the rest of the way to San Diego. When I arrived in San Diego I discovered that only one of my bags had come with me, and when I went to the desk to find out what was going on, they told me the other bag was left in Memphis, and for me to leave a number for them to call when it arrived. That made for a stressful beginning of the trip, because that bag had my toiletries and some other things that would be necessary very soon after arriving. The bag ended up coming that night, and the airport delivered it to the place we are staying, so that turned out to be less of an issue than it could have been.
The actual planned events of the project started with registration upon arriving to the motel, and checking into the rooms we would be staying. The accommodation is a fairly small hotel room with two sets of bunk beds, a small kitchen, and a bathroom, with very limited space for storage. That was also a little stressful to take in all at the beginning, but after settling in, I think space won't be as much of an issue as I originally thought. That night, we all had a dinner together as a project and just had more of a basic orientation. Considering I had woken up at 2:30am eastern time, I was ready for bed about 9:00 pacific(there's a 3 hour time difference between San Diego and Roanoke), but I had to stay up to wait for my bag to be delivered.
Yesterday was another busy day, with another small orientation in the morning and the first real meeting for all of us to hear about our schedule and receive our notebooks with vital information. After that, we broke up into our growth groups(a group of 3 students on project, and 1 leader/staff member). The afternoon was spent sharing our faith stories and basically any of our significant life experiences that had shaped us into what we are today. It was an awesome opportunity to really get to know some people on a personal level early in the project and I feel like it will develop trust that can lead to friendships much faster. That took most of the rest of the day and we were all pretty much exhausted afterwards.
Some other random details so far that I have left out....
After orientation the first day we were assigned our job locations, and I was assigned Sea World, rode a shuttle over to the H.R. department and applied for and received the job. I will be doing vending services at the park for different shows, carrying cases of drinks and snacks up and down steps trying to sell. My other option was to work in the back of a kitchen, and being a people-oriented person, I felt like this was a better fit for me, not to mention I think it will really get me into shape carrying around a 40 pound case. We don't start working until next Friday just because of the different trainings and other opportunities that are planned by the project. I'm excited to work, but I know these other things will be awesome as well.
Today we have a "Man's time" on the calendar, followed by some of the local pastors from churches we will be attending are coming to talk to us about their congregations and different things around San Diego, so that should be interesting. After that, we're going out on a time of sharing around the local area where we're staying and can hopefully spark some great conversations.
I think that's about it for now. I'm going to try to update every couple days, and most of the posts probably won't be this long. Feel free to ask any questions you have either through e-mail or whatever you would like...my e-mail is albo24@vt.edu.
Have a great day!
Wednesday, May 14, 2008
First Post!
Hey there everyone,
I just set up the blog in preparation for my Summer Project in San Diego with Campus Crusade for Christ. I will be adding to this blog occasionally during my trip to keep friends, family, and anyone else interested updated on the goings-on of my trip and how I am doing.
For those of you who have supported my trip, thank you again very much for helping me to get to San Diego for what hopes to be a life-changing summer. I hope that some of what I experience can be relayed to you through this blog.
More updates to come soon!
I just set up the blog in preparation for my Summer Project in San Diego with Campus Crusade for Christ. I will be adding to this blog occasionally during my trip to keep friends, family, and anyone else interested updated on the goings-on of my trip and how I am doing.
For those of you who have supported my trip, thank you again very much for helping me to get to San Diego for what hopes to be a life-changing summer. I hope that some of what I experience can be relayed to you through this blog.
More updates to come soon!
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