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Heading South to See the Fam

I'm so excited!  I finally found a really great deal the other day on airfare to Oklahoma.  I'm way overdue for going to visit my family down south -- it's been way too long since I'm seen them, and I miss them a lot.  So, I'm very excited to be going to see my family over the holidays -- what a great way to finish out the year!  It'll be great to be there for the family Christmas party and see everyone.  I'm really looking forward to it.  And it won't hurt that it'll be a good bit warmer in Oklahoma than here in Minnesota!

Español

I'm a person who tends to do my research before making a purchase, and I've done that for Spanish language learning software since coming back from Argentina.  I remain motivated to take my competency in Spanish from just un poco toward conversational fluency.  I really enjoyed using the Spanish I do know, but it was barely enough for restaurants and taxis...some of the time...and certainly lacking when the people we were trying to communicate with spoke no English at all.  I took joy, though, in what I learned and was able to use while in Argentina. It was a lot of fun, even when we had to rely on hand gestures, but I want to be much better prepared next time.  I want to become fluent!

Gadgets and Me

I'm a gadget geek.  But I'm a pretty frugal one.  Just because some cool gadget appeals to me doesn't mean I have to buy it.  I'm content just checking it out...seeing it, learning about it.  Sometimes on my way home I'll pick up a dopio espresso macchiato from Starbucks and then stop in Best Buy while I drink it...just to look around.  I suppose Oprah might call that "a little me time."  I like to see what's out and what might be on sale.  But I don't buy the latest techie gadget just to have it.  And, honestly, I'm not that obsessed about it either -- I just take note of those gadgets that interest me or that I think I might like to have...if I'd spend the money.  But I very rarely spend the money unless the particular gadget meets a need -- I'm a practical guy, and so it's gotta be a practical purchase.

But even when it's practical, I really like to know that I got a good deal on a worthy item.  And so I'm very much one to research an item I'm interested in, read reviews, check out ratings, and follow prices in stores and especially on the Internet.  Yes, I do have a membership to ConsumerReports.org and, yes, I use it, as well as lots of other sites for ratings, reviews, and pricing.  Now, I also like to get the best when possible...if it's reasonably affordable and justified by my practical side.  Of course, that all has to start with knowing what the best is, what makes it the best, what the prices are, and where the value really lies.  Sometimes the best is worth the price, but sometimes the best is just not the best value.  All of this comes into play for me in feeling good about a purchase.  I'm not an impulse buyer, and I rarely have buyer's remorse, because I do my homework.  And the great thing for me is that it's usually homework I enjoy!

My "Black Friday" Rain Check Purchase

I went to Best Buy today to pick up my one select sale item from "Black Friday".  They were out of stock when I went in after Thanksgiving, but it was an item that allowed rain checks, which was great since that's not allowed for all of the after-Thanksgiving sale items.  So I got the rain check and then went back today after getting the email that my Instant Immersion™ Spanish Deluxe v2.0 had arrived and was waiting for me.  It normally sells for $39.99 at Best Buy, and for a few bucks less via some websites.  The Best Buy after-Thanksgiving sale price: $9.99!  Not bad.

I'll post another entry about my research of language learning software for Spanish, but I thought I'd mention that I bought this version because it's the best rated economy value (especially at $9.99!), not the best rated overall.  Still, I definitely find it a worthwhile purchase, and it'll help me toward my goal of fluency in Spanish.  It's not a big flat panel TV, but it was a great "Black Friday" buy!

Thanksgiving 2007

Thanksgiving started a day early this year, which was great.  It's kind of like opening some of your Christmas presents early...except it's turkey and it's not wrapped...and it's not under a tree...and, well, in any case, Thanksgiving started early at my house this year and we had a ball!  My mother cooked the whole meal (Thanks, Mom!), and we had our neighbors and some other family friends over on Wednesday night...Thanksgiving Eve.  We had a great time and enjoyed some great food.  There were lots of delicious things on the table, from the turkey to the gravy to the sweet potatoes and cranberry sauce...but my favorite is my mom's cornbread stuffing.  There's just nothing quite like it, and I never get tired of it.  For me, even the turkey is an accessory to the cornbread stuffing, even though it and everything else is so good.  Good food, good friends, good fun, and a Thanksgiving feast a day early!  This may need to become a tradition.

On Thanksgiving Day, we joined friends at their beautiful new home along with a whole bunch of people for a big Thanksgiving celebration.  It was a great time, with more great food, and I really enjoyed spending time with friends as well as meeting new ones. We had a great afternoon, and really appreciated the invite.  Thanksgiving night was spent having fun and leftovers with friends back at my house.  All in all, what a great couple days!  I'm so glad we have a holiday set aside for giving thanks, because we need to take time to do that.  And what better way than with people we care about and who care about us.  And what a powerful thing to take time together and give thanks to God who takes great pleasure in giving His children good things.

Argentina Conference Recap

My whole experience in Argentina was tremendous.  The International Transformation Network 2007 Global Summit was excellent and impactful to my life.  What an experience!  God has grown my vision for my life and ministry, spawned much bigger dreams in me than I'd conceived of before, and done some beautiful things in my heart to help me grow in Him and toward what He has for me.  I made a ton of new friends from all over the world.  I had a blast.  I got to impact others and be impacted by others.  I got to speak to hundreds of people from all over the world.  I got to hear from a variety of people from all over the world who God is using to do amazing things that are impacting churches, businesses, schools, governments, cities, and nations all over the world.

I was blown away by all that I was exposed to as well as by what God was doing in my own life.  I feel very priviledged to have had this opportunity, to have shared in what God did at the conference, to have heard from such amazing people from all over the world, and to have some really cool new friends...yes, from all over the world.

I'll be posting a photo album of pictures from the conference and as well as pictures from my vacation days in Argentina.

High School Alumni Reunion Weekend Pictures

I've uploaded a few pictures taken over the course of my high school alumni reunion last weekend in Springfield, IL. I was mostly occupied with seeing everyone, visiting, and catching up, and so, unfortunately, I didn't really get very many pictures. I was glad to get these, though. These pics are of alumni my age, older, and younger, and other friends.  Click HERE to check 'em out.

High School Alumni Reunion Weekend

I'm so glad I made the trip for my high school alumni reunion!!  Even though I had to pass through Iowa...twice...it was absolutely worth it.  Planning for the fact that there would be no Starbucks along my path through Iowa, I drove through Starbucks on my way out of Springfield, IL, and got two Espresso Macchiato Doppios to help me on my journey home.

It was really a lot of fun to see friends that I hadn't seen in years!  Some of them looked almost the same, and some, well...  We're all a few years older!  And no one could bluff on their age with this crew.  While there were several people that didn't make it that I would have loved to see, there were many old friends there that it was so awesome to get to see.  I wouldn't have wanted to miss it!

It's amazing the power of shared experiences.  When you have enough common ground, even if it left off years ago, it's like you still have a door into each other's lives...to pick up where you left off, catch up on what has happened in your lives, and go from there.  What a cool and wonderful thing to have friends like that.  I reconnected with a number of friends like that, and I look forward to keeping in touch.  (Do you guys hear that??  Let's keep in touch!)

Outside of the reunion events and church services, I was able to spend most of my free time with friends and their families, with Mark Johnson, and seeing others I knew from school and from my church there.  It was a blast!  What a great weekend.

Iowa in Passing

I left yesterday and drove south into Iowa and to my friend's house in Mason City.  It was great to see him and meet his wife and three kids.  We had dinner, a great visit, talked about all kinds of stuff, and stayed up too late...all the stuff of a good visit.  And my friend just happens to be a really good cook -- the home cooked dinner was great!  We grabbed some breakfast this morning and then I hit the road to head on to Springfield, IL, for my high school alumni reunion.

Now I like to make fun of Iowa from time to time, but, honestly, the jokes really aren't that funny.  It's mostly just fun to give my friends from Iowa a hard time.  Plus, Iowa does raise a lot of cows, corn, and soybeans, so ya gotta give 'em that.  Here's what I found really concerned me, though... I drove a whole lot of miles through Iowa and I never saw a Starbucks...not one.  I wanted one...I needed one...I hoped for one...but ultimately I had to get my caffeine another way.  I managed, but it was rough.

I kept my doors locked and windows rolled up until I finally made it through Iowa.  It was still a ways through Illinois until I reached Springfield, but I'm here, getting settled, and really looking forward to the festivities that start tonight.

Going to My High School Alumni Reunion

So I'm going to my high school alumni reunion this weekend...  It's in Springfield, IL, and I'll be heading out this afternoon.  I'll be going through Iowa and staying the night with a friend of mine that I recently reconnected with on Facebook -- it'll be cool to see him again, catch up, and get to know his family.  Then on to Springfield, IL, the "Land of Lincoln"...Abraham Lincoln...the 16th President of the United States...the guy on the penny for all you Miss Teen USA contestants.  (Did you see that video?  A friend showed it to me, and it's painfully funny.  Poor girl...and kind of a tough question.)  Anyway, I'm really looking forward to seeing lots of old friends from high school and people from the church I attended there, including Mark Johnson, who's a good friend, mentor, and pastor there.  This will be the first alumni reunion I've ever gone to, and I'm really looking forward to it.