An interesting and slightly disturbing series of text messages...

So, based off some contacts gained by handing out planners to students last week I have been spending the afternoon sending text messages to these students. A little background: Last week Sunny, Alexis and myself set up a table in the Engineering faculty. Ok, so back to today. Apparently, I was invisible that day at the table, because all of the guys thought it was a girl named "Andy" that was texting them. This happened a few times, but it was not really a surprise. I guess I should be grateful that the guys were not checking out me, but the girls (sorry ladies).

One particular series of messages bears repeating to as many people as possible, hence the blog posting. It went as follows:

Me: "My name is andy. I was at the table handing out planners in tekniski last week. Would you like to get coffee this week?"
Student: "Yes my lady... I have your number now and I call you... ok?"
Me: "I'm actually a guy. If you would like to meet this week, let me know."
Student: "I was hoping it was pretty girl (blondy)from last week :-( Can I have coffee with her?
Me: "Sorry I can't do that. She has a boyfriend. But I am fun to be around."
Student: after some confusing words "...is there any pretty and smart girl that don't have a boyfriend?"
Me: "Would you like to meet with ME this week for coffee?"

My first thoughts were that this guy must either be really desperate to try to get a girlfriend through me, or he just really likes pretty American girls. Sunny is the "blondy" girl mentioned above and after I told her this story she knew who it was. Apparently there was a guy that kept saying to her that "she [Sunny] was going to take him to coffee!!" She kept telling him "No. Andy will take you." I guess he didn't get it.

I have had some thoughts about asking one of the other ladies on my team to come to the potential metting with him. It probably isn't going to happen now that I have posted this. Any ideas?

The Mysteries of Signs - part 2

What? Škola? School? Warning? Red and Yellow? …

A school is exploding nearby? ...

Children are running out of a burning building? …

I wonder why the bomb squad or the fire department can’t find the bomb or contain the fire that they have to put up a sign to warn people of the constant danger to their schools and children. It seems like there must be a better way.

For more dramatics…

BURNING BUILDING… CHILDREN FLYING OUT… EXPLOSIONS!!!

Gentile-jitsu!!I think that John and I have come up with a novel concept... Gentile-jitsu. No, not jujitsu... gentile-jitsu. For those uninformed people, jujitsu is a martial art that involves using the strength and weight of an opponent to disable him. I have come to a conclusion that jujitsu must be for the common jew, so us gentiles must have an equivilant activity. Hence the creation of gentile-jistu.

You might be wondering why the hyphen in the name. I ask you: doesn't it look easier to pronounce "gentile-jitsu" over "gentilejitsu"? The answer is clear.

The long awaited band post!!

So, we have unintentially taken the perfect band photo as a team. Clearly we are a rock band that is probably the greatest ever. Step aside Led Zeppelin, Guns n Roses, Hanson...

I have put much time and thought into what part we each have in the band. So, the following is my assesment of the each of us (back to front, left to right):

Allison - notice the outstretched fingers and the focus; clearly she is the keyboard player.

Taylor - oh wow, angry, intense, possibly even terrifying. That is the face of anger! Imagine her screaming, singing, and spitting at the audience. No doubt at all, Taylor is the lead singer.

Sunny - the perfect stance and hand position of the bass player. Just the right look!

Alexis - a look of pure hatred. Alexis looks like she is going to punch a person in the face with that look. The only band members that do that are the rhythm guitar and backup singer.

John - a very nonchalant attitude just like Slash, Angus Young, and Pete Townsend before. So confident in his abilities to melt the faces of screaming fans with his licks and riffs. John is the shreading lead guitar player.

Andy - the stance, the hand position, the look, the... shorts. No doubt. He is the rockin drummer; breaking sticks, smashing cymbals, slamming heads.

Fillin' up in Hungary

Apparently, in Hungary no vehicle is banned from the local gas stations. I just wonder if this guy drives his excavator to work instead of a car. That would be nice!

Border adventures... well not really

Entering into Hungary

My teammate Alexis and I made a special trip to Hungary last week. As a geography wiz, I knew that we must cross over a country border in order to get to our destination. For some reason, the Hungary border seems especially dangerous and scary. A picture was needed to prove that we did cross and survived.

The above picture is of the border guard and her gun. I took this picture and immediately regretted it. I thought there was enough light thus the flash would not go off, but unfortunately it did. There was no way the border guard did not notice the bright flash of light. My next thoughts we of Hungarian prisions, torture and rabid dogs. To our good fortune, the border guard ignored my stupidity and did not punish Alexis or I. We then proceeded on our journey filled with soft couches, music and more driving.

Finally... the long awaited post is here!!

So, for all of you who have been waiting to experience this, I have pictures of my new necessity in life; my purse. First off, I want to explain what I call it. I haven't given it a name. If I was to name it, I would have to pick a macho name like Hank or Gill or... (Andy!). But what I do call it is my purse or man-bag. I have decided against man-purse, don't ask me why.
Let me explain some of the features. First of is the size and versitility of my purse. I can put a variety of objects into it including books, journals, bibles, pens, cameras, music players, glasses, legos, dried fruit, and many other things. It is large enough for three or possibly even four bookish items.
Note the skull in the fabric. I know... I can sense your jealousy.

Secondly, I feel like a freer man, because I can relieve my pants from the extra weight my keys, wallet, phone and coinage create. I can put all of these in my purse for added comfort. One other great thing involving my phone is I am notorious missing calls cause I don't hear my phone ring. To reduce, and possible alleviate, this problem I have been using the mesh pocket on the side of my purse as my phone holder. Easy access and no missed calls, can life get better? I submit not!

Thirdly and lastly, one of my desires since ariving here in Croatia is to become more like "the people", hence becomre more European. I know what you are thinking. No, I have not stopped using deodorant. I promise. But have started the process of transformation with the purchase of my purse. I know this will not be a smooth transition, but I feel that this is a good first step.

If you are wondering if I will continue the use of my purse back home after I leave Croatia. My answer is an emphatic "absolutely!!" Why not, tell me why not! I look forward to the day that I am walking around in Compton in LA with my purse draped over my shoulder and I don't feel silly or ashamed at all.

Giddy in Budapest


I was in Budapest, Hungary the last two days getting some tests done on our "car". Long story, but we got all that we needed done there and went into the city cause I haven't seen it and really wanted to. The picture above was taken in some park there. He looked fun and I really wanted to pretend he was santa. I have never sat on santa's lap - thanks mom and dad...

Notice the purse I am holding in front of me. I am not ready to reveal my purse in its full glory quite yet. Please be patient until the right time comes for all of us.

The Mysteries of Signs - part 1


Location: Novi Vinodolski, Croatia.

I understand that signs in other countries can often be misinterpreted and cause humor for the casual visitor. For even greater enjoyment, this is a two parter.

Part 1

Ok, look at the top sign. What is this trying to communicate? Watch out for out-of-control wheelchairs rolling into the water? Handicapped people jumping into the water? I really don't know. I guess it is just a mystery. Feel free to post your ideas.


Part 2

Now lets look at the bottom one a little more carefully. Below I have included a useful piece of information in the picture. Notice the sign. I concure that the "W.C" must mean "wheel chair". That part is clear. I also notice the arrow pointing upward. That is interesting! So, what this is saying is that the wheelchaired people have to go up a hill to get somewhere unspecified. Another interesting question: What is up this special hill that only wheelchairs can go?

The most important thing to note is the path I have so carefully included in the picture below. If you look to the path, you will notice a small bump made of concrete. Interesting! Upon further inspection, this is not just a bump, but actually a series of small steps all along this path.

So, lets recap... The person in the wheelchair must go up the hill over the many small steps in pea gravel, I might add, in order to get to the special place designated for them.

Weekend trip to Novi Vinodolski

My team went to a town south of Rijeka called Novi Vinodolski this weekend. We went to the house of one of the students we know here in Rijeka. It is a beautiful little town on the coast of the Adriatic. It was amazing to walk around along the sea and swim a little (my first in the Adriatic!). Here's a few pics from the trip:




Some of you might have noticed a strap over my shoulder in this picture. Yes, to answer you question, I did buy a purse. More about this later...

I used to like Dell


This is my computer to the right; a Dell. During the summer I noticed that there were some new interesting (i.e. grinding) sounds coming from my computer. Not good! I ignored it for a while until last week when my computer just stopped working. This is not a good thing since my computer is the main form of communication while being here in Croatia.

With the help of a few friends here (thanks again Dario and Zoran) I ran a diagnostics test and it was confirmed that something was up; mainly with my hard drive. One good thing was I had backed up most of what I had on my computer on an external hard drive I own. The problem I had was with the above word "most". I did not have a backup of my supporter list. Obviously, this is important for me to have since I use this to send newsletters to supporters.

With a little luck and mostly God performing a miracle, I pulled my hard drive out with Zoran and we were able to recover most of the information I wanted and all that I needed. Praise God!

Last wednesday, I contacted Dell and told them my situation. One very nice (and unfortunately clueless) employee told me after being on the phone for almost two hours that I would get my hard drive in three to five business days. Alright, good news, right? I was told by her that I would get a confirmation e-mail that I could use to track my package.

Saturday rolls around and I have not received either the package or e-mail, so I start to ponder what might be happening. I call Dell again. This time I talk to four people over a period of maybe two more hours. I was starting to get more and more frustrated because I kept getting different responses and I kept having to spell out my address to them, which is not an easy task. Finally, the fourth person I talked to informed me that the department I needed to talk to and had been calling all this time (international service) was closed for the weekend, had been all this time, and will not open until monday morning. Ahhhhhh, great news. Another two hours wasted.

Monday comes along and I call Dell in the afternoon here to talk to someone. I get a hold of a very nice man who confirms my questioning that he works for the international service center for Europe. I explain my situation and am informed that in Dell's eyes, Croatia is not in the service zone. Great, another thing I want to hear. I ask what is available to be done. After talking to three different managers, I am informed by my service guy that there is really nothing that can be done except send it to my home in Oregon and then have them send it to me via the mail. The mail options are either extremely slow or extremely expensive. Two choices that are not ideal in this situation since I need to use my computer and I am a missionary that doesn't make very much money.

We are having at least one Crusade staff come over here in about a month, so I decided to wait and have the hard drive sent to her when the visit is confirmed. She can bring it over and take my old one back and send it to Dell. So, at lease I will get my hard drive sometime before Thanksgiving. Kind of good news...

Zoran had informed me that he had an extra hard drive that I could borrow if I wanted until mine came. I took him up on that opportunity. We have gotten my computer up and running with the use of his hard drive and borrowed software. My thanks to Zoran, but I have held back thanks to Dell for their considering Croatia out of their service area. Hopefully I will not have to add anymore to this saga, since adding more will entail more trouble with Dell.

And if you are wondering, I still ask myself "why did I ignore the grinding sounds?"

A couple of the boys...

Left to right: Me, Dario, John (my roommate). We are watching a European Championship futbol match at his apartment. It was great! Man United won!


John and Zoran - we went to a festival near Rijeka called White Sunday. It was a celebration of a new wine harvest. Lots of fun hanging with the team and other friends.