Week Two: In The Land Without Hope....aka Caffiene

Hola!

Yes, I have been getting your letters.  They are fantastic and make me feel like buttered bread on a Wednesday morning.  So Cambria can mow lawns with a tractor?! That is like hearing Smokey can sing opera with John Travolta.  Amazing.  Well that's cool.  I never had a driving lawn mower.  I only had fleas.  Some kids have all the luck. 

SO! How is the first week without Channing?? Yes I have seen her around.  I even talk to her.  Everyone here gets so excited when you tell them you have a sister in the MTC.  She introduced me to her district.  My district already knows her by now too.  They point her out to me.  Oh there she is!! Happy day.  But it's pretty cool.  Kyle left for Argentina this Monday.  So had to get some pictures with him and say ADIOS! So yeah we have pictures of us 1st ward kids in front of the map.  It's pretty cool.  So I have been taking some sweet pictures here.

How was Pioneer Days? We sang a lot of songs about pioneers and happy and watched the movie Legacy.  HOORAH!! It wasn't too bad.  And to celebrate; our priesthood meeting was about Apostasy. 

Oh, good ole President.  Only he would relate going to bed on time to apostasy.  He had us underline in Preach My Gospel the part of the lesson on apostasy, what causes apostasy, which is disobedience to any gospel principle.  I wanted to point out that going to bed at 10:30 wasn't a gospel principle -- but then he said questioning a priesthood authority also led to apostasy. Then someone told him that I pointed out a scripture during personal study about “woe be unto him that says all is well in Zion.”  So he had me stand up and read it to everyone.  Then he said those words make him shake. So I chose “Come, Come Ye Saints” for closing hymn.  “ALL IS WELL! AAALLL IS WELL!!”

But that's terrible.  But seriously, some guys just look too much into the letter of the law.  Thank you President for bringing back the days of Moses! I will never take more than 2 steps past 10:15 and shall be stoned if I am late for a meeting.  Okay, I better stop.  Terrible.  Terribly stupid.

How's it going? Oh, yes I have received your great bounties of chips and queso.  Gracias.  I shall party like a Spaniard at the world cup with that stuff.  And also thanks to the Taylor family for cinnamon rolls! Which disappeared after I opened them.  Mystery.... I shall write them a letter.  Oh so Tara had an accident?? Good thing she is okay.  But please someone tell her she has a good 50 years before she needs to be driving like a hyped up, drunken, old woman with a vendetta against the world.  Be careful!

What else is there to say?? Oh! I leave August 3rd for Atlanta, then fly to Lima.  Yippee.  Too bad I don't speak Spanish and can't tell what the heck is going on.  But it'll be good.  I like adventure.  I already have carved in my wall here, GOD WILL GIVE ME JUSTICE.  Using my belt.  I gotta get outta here. 

Whew it's hot down in this laundry bucket.  Really, I gotta just get some energy out!!!

SO! I had to teach a lesson in class.  Me and my companion.  It wasn't even very long.  But one Elder fell asleep during it.  So as I was talking I picked up a pen, threw it, and hit him the face with it.  Then continued talking about our lesson.  He woke up.  But afterwards, when the class gave feedback, the district leader told me I shouldn't throw pens.  So, I apologized.  But I have my eye on that elder......

Well that is all I have for now in this endless cycle of doing stuff.  It's good! It's tedious! It's whatever! I like/get sick of it.  But it's good. I'm happy.

ALL IS WELL!!!

Week One: Hola!

HOLA!

 Well, yes I am alive and tired in the grand ole town of the MTC.  Whew. So where do I start?

The plane flights were fine.  I know how everyone says how rough those flights out of Alamosa are, but I slept straight through it.  Some lady behind me told me that was the worst flight she's been on and I said, “oh, I slept right through it, that's too bad for you.” 

Then in Denver I ate some Quiznos with some Asian people.  That was fine.  Then I slept on two middle-aged ladies on the flight to Utah.  Usually the other way around, but I wasn't complaining.  So, I got my luggage fine and met some other missionaries who were going to the MTC.  One sister missionary was going to Quito, too.  I told her, “WHAT'S UP?!” She didn't know much. Me either. 

The shuttle finally arrived, which was a van.  This old man shoved all our bags in there.  Somehow this man from China was with us in the van...he and five missionaries.  But he loved to talk so I just listened to him and told others about my idea of a moped-gang.  They weren't too bad. 

So I finally arrive! Have some missionary take my luggage away, I got my picture taken and put on a blue card, and got a packet.  I live on the top floor by the stairs in a building at the end of the MTC.  So I got to my room and noticed some things we didn't pack. ONE! Preach my gospel.  But I got a new one, so no worries. TWO! Troy's tie that he gave me to make a tradition. THREE! My yellow fever card.  The small yellow one in plastic.  I just can't get back in the country if I don't have it so, no big.  I'll become one with the alpacas, grow my beard out, and sing “Llamad a Sevir” all my long, long, long days of solitude. 

Well, anyway, I put my stuff in my room, and went and got my Spanish materials.  Then off to class I went! I was starving… (EAT BEFORE YOU GET IN THE MTC, CHANNING).  You'll get here at 12 but they'll have you doing other stuff so you'll have to wait till dinner to eat.  I was so sad.  Pero, I met my new companero. He's an excited little Utah guy.  He loves singing and he's orderly and nods his head a lot.  Wears glasses.  Look at him looking at me.  Yeeeesssss I'm watching you Elder.  Muhahahaha, I can talk about you while you smile at me.  I smile back.  You go back to reading.  I go back to typing.  In this cave of laundry and heat and wind and hangers. 

So! I met him and started my classes.  And ate.  The food is good here! There is a quantity of it so I'm happy at least.  We had interviews with the branch presidency and when I told him I'm eating more here than I was at home he jumped on me like a puma on a baby deer!!

He started asking me, are you homesick?? Do you not have food at home?? Will you get homesick?? I just told him no, I just had to make my own peanut butter and jelly so I didn't eat much!! I don't know if I'll get homesick, maybe, probably but so what? It's only the second day!! Sheesh.  Greasy men. 

But most missionaries here are from Utah.  I see Ben and Kyle every once in a while.  Not a whole lot.  They're in different districts.  I'm in district 38 B.  It's a pretty good group of elders.  I've started to get to know them and they're cool.  The other elders in my room are awesome, too.  They're funny and give good advice.  So muy bien.  The people on my floor are just crazy though.  They just scream and run around.  I was like, what the heck?! QUIET DIGNITY?!?! Eh, esta bien.

Okay! so Channing, remember they use Preach my Gospel a lot.  Um, Spanish is slooooowly coming.  I'm terrible at putting sentences together.  I can understand them and know individual words, and how to conjugate but the ability to put sentences together is terrible.  I forget all my words.  Yeesh.  So that's a bit frustrating when my district is talking Spanish.  But hey, I'll either learn now or when I'm Peru with only Spanish to survive.  But so far, yeah, the MTC has been good! You learn a lot and it feels good to be here.  But you are tired all the time.  Muy cansado.  So tell me how it's going, what's new and what's barking up your tree! Yippee.

I haven't gotten any letters from anyone else but esta bien. We knew that would happen.  But hey it's been good! It's been great! But now I must run and do spiritual cartwheels.  OH! So if you would be so kind as to send that tie and if you can find my Yellow fever card that would be much appreciated.  Por favor y gracias. 

ADIOS!! Tes amo! (or something like that… no se!)