I love the TNIV. When I was back in the states for a “mandatory furlough” courtesy of the Italian government, I was able to pick up a copy. I had been thinking about getting a copy for a while. Several years ago, before they were done with the OT, my Greek class was offered a free copy of the NT to study. I can’t remember exactly why we were offered and exactly why they never came in, communiqué, it was from that point on that I have been seeking to do some serious reading in the TNIV. ...

Traveling in Italy is always an adventure, especially if you travel by train. For anyone who has enjoyed the thrill of the Italian railways knows that the Italian train system is famous for one and one thing only, it’s amazing ability to keep a consistent time schedule, they’re always late. You can even pay a little extra for the Eurostar, you’ll still be late, but at least you’ll be late with style! My wife and I have taken trains all over Italy, and it seems that each time we have some s...

Buon Natale! My wife and I have just finished our Christmas rituals. We cuddled up in front of the TV, each with a bowl of popcorn (popped on the stove might I add) to watch A Muppet's Christmas Carol. We turned out the lights, turned on the TV and enjoyed a Christmas classic by the colorful lights of our Christmas tree. It is now 11:21pm. We are both snuggled into bed and are awaiting the sugar plumbs visions.... In the words of Tiny Tim, God bless us, everyone!

Just saw this on msn.com Link This is sooo cool! I can remember when I was little, the weathermen back home would track Santa on Doppler radar, it was soo much fun to watch! It just brought the anticipation to a maximum, sitting there and watching the weathermen explain where he was and what kind of weather was there etc. Anyone else have cool newscasters or weathermen who did Santa Tracking?

This time, we are actually going to leave. Not what we want to do, but it is what we need to do. Or should I say, must do. About two months ago my wife and I went to pick up our paperwork that allows us to stay in Italy at the state police office. It was the second time for us to do our paperwork here in Italy, so it was just a renewal of a permission to stay in the country. We thought we had covered all the bases and were 100% confident to receive our renewal papers. Apparently we cou...

The other day I was looking through an add for a local supermarket (well, it is more like a European Wal-Mart) and saw an add for this: It has to be one of the coolest things I’ve seen in a long, long time. To me, however, it makes sense. The Swiss Army knives we all grew up with have taken the next logical step. They have always prided themselves in usefulness and convenience. The Swissmemory USB Victorinox provides both. Currently I have a Victorinox Signature and I absolutely l...

I just recently read an article on MSN about the various degrees that certian famous CEOs have, such as Trump, Oprah, Bush etc. It made me think, hmm, I wonder what interesting degrees lie out there on JU? SO...my question to all is: Where did you go to college, what degree did you get and what year? (Feel free to answer only that which you would like to share) I'll start: B.A. in Bible and Ministry, Oklahoma Christian University, 2004

Here are a few pics that I took in Scandicci (just outside of Florence, Italy). At one point it was much stronger in color, but by the time we found a safe place to pull over it was starting to fade. They were taken on Dec. 3. If you look closely, you can see the faint hint of a second rainbow to the right. Same rainbow, just portrait. This is my personal favorite. The rainbow was fading fast, but the close up view with the Italian style building is just amazing! Tuscany is beaut...

Zach Rubio of Kansas City was suspended (later revoked) for speaking Spanish in the hallway during a restroom break. Link There was a time when I would have felt very different about this event. I feel that I can see the situation from a different perspective now. I am living in a foreign country where English is not the primary language. I had to learn Italian to be able to do my work. I speak it everyday with friends. However, when I am at home, or walking down the street with my w...

Just a few line-item questions 1.At the top of every blog on my site it says Page Views then the following: Home, Replies, Selected, Points, Channel – Replies and Points I understand, the others? 2.I just noticed that there are points even when there are no replies, how is that? Does that count in your ranking-point total? 3.What exactly is a referral? 4.Is there an easier way to see if there are new replies on my blogs than searching the forum page or looking at the number of re...

I was wondering if there were any turtle owners out there? My wife and I have two turtles. One is back in the states with some friends, his name is Kiwi. Our other one we have here in Italy. He was given to us by one of the boys from church. He named him Franklin. Not what I would have named him, but you can’t change a name. It really destroys a turtle’s self-esteem. I got interested in turtles some time back. So far my passion has been restricted mainly to fresh-water turtles, but se...

Apparently, one of my prison friends has made bail. I am sure it was a mafia connection, they always have the money. I didn’t even get to say good-bye. I wish her well and all the good things in life. My other friend, however, is doing much worse. He is now all alone. I went to see him this morning. I could see it in his eyes, he wants it to end. He wants out. My heart just went out to him. No friends, no one to talk too, completely alone. His bail is only 700 euros. If only I had it…po...

Amanda and I got our tree today! It’s kind of short, kind of bare, but none the less it is our first Italian tree! We saw it about a week ago when we were out walking around town. We didn’t want to buy it yet because we weren’t sure if we would be able to stay in Italy due to some document issues. The issues are still not resolved, but we just can’t NOT have a tree! We don’t have any ornaments from the states here with us, so we just bought some lights and garland, it looks okay. We do...

Amanda and I have recently made some new friends. They are a cute little couple and are very sociable. The problem is that they are behind bars. This has been a bit of a strain on our relationship with them. Amanda and I try to go at least every other day to see them. We can never stay for very long, but a least we get to see them. We asked how much it would be to free them and we were told 1400 euro for one and 700 euro for the other. They are so sweet, but we just don’t have that kind o...

Being an American missionary in a European country, politics is a topic that is brought up nearly daily. It is also a topic that I tried to avoid at (nearly) all cost. I do this for several reasons. 1.Most of the political discussions revolve around the current war and the reasons behind it. I do not know the answers to those questions, all I have is speculation, which is all they have. Therefore the conversation is often more destructive than it is constructive. 2.Most of the politica...