The following multimedia presentation is one in a series that will attempt to provide a quick snapshot into my non-working life in Guatemala; which unfortunately, is a small part of my Guatemalan life.

Handball
One Saturday, a fellow teacher approached me and asked if I would want to go see a handball game that night. Logically, I replied immediately and emphatically "Yes!!". Well, to be honest, I first asked what handball was. But, you get the point.

The sport is quite intriguing. To me, it's a combination of soccer (the strategy and flow of the game are similar), basketball (they must dribble and pass using their hands), hockey (they have penalty minutes for naughty players), and lacrosse (there is an arc in front of each goal that only the goalkeeper can cross).





Couple of things you can learn from the video clip above.
1) I was videotaping with my digital camera, not a professional Sony video camera.
2) The wind inside of the gymnasium was severe, as it consistently rocked my camera back and forth throughout the taping.
3) My favorite part, by far, of the evening were the fans and their cheering. Most of the fans were parents of the young stars, and they were hilarious. My favorite character was the guy who brought a megaphone and kept shouting things throughout the match/game/event in his shouting device. He kept saying, "Now I can sleep tonight" whenever one of his sons scored. You can hear him at the beginning of the clip.




The most comical part of the handball game is the Penalty Shot. To me, it's like a cross between a pitcher winding up on the mound in a baseball game and a petrified soccer goalie only feet away from the path of the incoming ball. But that's just me.



Closing thoughts:
1) I think the name of the sport is fascinating in its simplicity. Team Handball? Does that mean an individual handball league is out there somewhere?
2) The game I saw was a part of the professional league. I'm pretty sure I could be the next Michael Jordan in that League if I wanted too. During the game, one individual kept dominating the other team. He seemed so much bigger than everyone else. I was impressed with his athletic prowess, until I walked up beside him after the game. He may have been an inch taller. Maybe.

Until next time,

Hoss. Pepe. Josh.

PS. I have more pictures and videos to share, but it takes quite a while to load them. If anyone has any suggestions for better methods of uploading videos, I would appreciate them.

"Guatemalans don't understand why Americans think Eva Mendez is hot. Most of us look at her and think,'Wait, what is my maid doing on the cover of Cosmopolitan'?"

This section is not meant to characterize all Guatemalans as racists, because they aren't; however, the general population's racial tolerance leaves a lot to be desired. Almost all advertisements are adorned by white models in a country whose population has a strong indian majority. Ironically, my inability to get sun here (the sun never shines and it's never hot) has increased my position on the hottness totem pole. It's quite sad; anyone unwilling to admit Eva Mendez' beauty has a few screws loose in their head. Personally, I would let Eva clean my clothes any day of the week.



Seriously though, a strong animosity is evident between the upper class and the lower class. The upper class feels the lower class (who are often of indian descent) is lazy; the lower class retaliates by shooting and robbing the upper class. These are not the symptoms of a healthy relationship. Due to this cycle, let's just say the city is not the safest place in the world. Every student in my classes has a mugging story. Just this past week, my roommate saw a murdered body on the road and his girlfriend (and my friend) had to duck in her car to avoid a street gunfight. Just another day in the Guat:)



I hate that fag - Anibal Tamacas, on Carlos Pena.

Yes, I know. Nice comedic timing there Mr. Hostetler, including that insensitive term right after your speech condemning racism. I'm with AB though; I've seen Carlos Peña's face way too often. For the non-Chapines out there, Carlos Peña is the recent winner of the 2nd Latin American Idol and he happens to be a Guatemalan. This was cause for huge celebration; Carlos Peña's reality tv show triumph was marked by fireworks into the wee hours of the night courtesy of all my neighbors. Also, the city was jammed with traffic for a day as the city closed down several roads to celebrate Carlos's homecoming parade, which was quite the intelligent move by city officials considering awful traffic already clogs Guatemala City's poor transportation system.

As far as the contest is concerned, it was unfortunately very similar to its American counterpart. For me, there usually is a reason why all the artists on these shows were never previously discovered. Poppy music, average vocals, and awful songwriting abilities are these singing contestants' only consistent characteristics. Thanks to Simon, Randy, and Paula, American radio has been blessed with the sounds of Clay Aiken, Ruben Studdard, Fantasia, and Taylor. The one positive feature is that the Latin American Idol contest divides the contestants by their countries. This leads to intriguing patriotic text-messaging voting contests between the contestants and their fans. Which brings me to the next topic...

Mexico is in a sandwich of hate - Anibal Tamacas

Ellos jugaron como nunca, y perdieron como siempre (They played like never before, and lost like always - Maria Fernandez, on Guatemala's soccer team abilities.

Pobrecito Mexico. As an individual who grew up working with Mexicans on his father's construction crew, I have always felt a bond for these latin immigrants. I've worked with many of those workers since I was a mere twelve years old. To them, I am like their little brother. For this reason (and many others), prejudice against Mexicans in the States disgusts me. Still, the existence of such sentiments in the US does not shock me; however, I did not expect to find such sentiments in Guatemala.

It seems that while many Mexicans are hated in the States because of their lower class status, Mexicans are hated in Guatemala for being too cocky. That's right, they're hated by Guatemalans because Mexico has a more powerful economy and often beats Guatemala in soccer. So it seems, Mexico can not catch a break. Either they are too weak or too powerful.

Ironically, Guatemala has been kicking Mexico's ass since I got here. I tend to have that sort of effect on places. For example, my last year at UF, we won 3 titles in basketball and football. This sort of feat will never ever be repeated. Ever. Since I have come to Guatemala, Carlos Pena beat out a Mexican for Latin American Idol, and Guatemala beat Mexico 3-2 in an international soccer friendly. Due to all of these significant upsets, Chapin pride is very strong right now.

Still, I feel a little bad for Mexico. This feeling of animosity is not just shared by Guatemala, but the rest of Central America as well. What are they supposed to do? To the north, the States stand leering and to the south Central America leers. Hence, the sandwhich of hate. Pobrecito Mexico.

PS I. That will be all for tonight. If this entry seems rushed and poorly written, well, that would be a correct assumption. By the way, for all of you looking for good Spanish music, my must listen to list includes Camilo, Gondwana, Mana, Juanez, Ricardo Arjona, and Belinda. Oh, and of course, Daddy Yankee.

PS II. The Guat is starting to feel more like home; the past two weeks have been great :)

Why Guatemala? These past few weeks at the Academia Europea, every fellow teacher I meet has one question, “Why Guatemala? Why, Josh why?” Of course, I always respond by asking “Well, why are you here?” Comically, every non-chapin (chapin = Guatemalan) responds, “The wife is Guatemalan. The husband is Guatemalan. The boyfriend is Guatemalan. The girlfriend is Guatemalan.” I find this very comical. Oh, there was one exception to this phenomenon, as a British teacher responded, “A series of bad decisions and bad luck brought me here unfortunately”; however, K’mal quickly kept the streak alive by adding, “But I have a Guatemalan girlfriend, that’s the only reason I’m here now.” So why would this white Mennonite boy go to an unfamiliar third world country, leaving a country behind with loved ones? To this question, and the questions of the inquiring teachers I simply respond, “Three years ago, I spent a summer in the mountains of Tegucigalpa, Honduras as an intern for a mission organization. We spent the summer building houses, distributing clothes and food, and visiting orphanages and hospitals. That was the best summer of my life, and me being here is a testament to the love I grew that summer for Central America. Also, I have always wanted to live in another country, and being a recent college graduate without many of the responsibilities or common sense evident in most adults, I figured now was as good a time as ever to start a new chapter in my life. I don’t want to wake up one day, look at my life, and wonder why I never dared beyond the beaten path. Too many people I meet say, ‘Oh, I always wanted to learn another language. I wish I would have lived in another country.’ So for now, this gringo is pursuing his dreams in Guatemala City, Guatemala.”

I’ll be honest; though this is a dream come true, these past three weeks have not been terribly easy. My previous Latin American experiences from Honduras were limited to working with poor people and giving my time to help others in order to spread the news of Christ. This time, I am partaking in a different adventure. I moved to Guatemala City on my own to teach English at the Academia Europea. No organization behind me, nobody to answer too. This different angle has its positives and negatives. What are they? Well, thanks for caring. Let's see….

Positive: I am not surrounded by a huge group of gringos whenever I go out. I feel I can truly blend into the culture. Too often on mission trips, I felt that wherever I went, everyone was thinking, “There go those gringos”. Now, I can walk into an Internet café by myself, talk the afternoon away in Spanish with the taxi cab driver, or go spend a Friday night talking to our friendly security guard.

Negative: Since the day I have gotten here, my Guatemalan friends have repeatedly told me to be careful. Don’t walk alone at night. Don’t answer the phone in the street so people won’t try and rob it from you. Don’t ride the bus. At first, I tried to brush this advice off as my time spent in Honduras often makes me a little bolder and less afraid than others. However, every individual (Guatemalan or non-Guatemalan) I’ve met has a story about themselves or one of their friends being mugged. To back these stories up, somebody broke into my friend’s car at night the first weekend I was here. They did this by smashing a hole in his window with a crowbar. Luckily, none of us left anything valuable in the car, except for poor Niki and her backpack. Apparently, Guatemala is a little more dangerous than the other countries I have went too before. I'm not paranoid, but I have turned into a sort of 007 agent as I am always scoping out the street for potential riff-raff. Plus, I usually walk with an umbrella, and after what I have seen Jackie Chan do in movies, I know this is sufficient weaponry for my protection.

Positive: I actually like my job. At first, I didn’t feel I would be a good teacher. I’m not saying that I am great, but I have not had any students complain either. I work at the Academia Europea, a language school where students come in the morning and night to work on learning one of the languages we offer (German, Italian, Portuguese, French, but English is in the highest demand). Almost all of our students are either professionals who come to school before or after work, college students who are trying to pass the TOEFL, high school students trying to do better in their English classes, or just housewives who are trying to better their lives. The ability to speak English is a must for most people who want to get a good job in Guatemala, and good jobs are difficult to find. Therefore, most of my students are at least 18, but the ages do range. I have 60 year old students, and I have 15 year old students. The nice thing is keeping order in the classroom is really not a problem since everyone that comes actually wants to learn English. And I have made some good friends with the students; I always feel they have such interesting stories. Also, the teachers at my school boast diverse backgrounds. We have teachers from Holland, Britain, Germany, Poland, Belize, El Salvador, Guatemala, Mexico, Honduras, Costa Rica, and many others. I find this very interesting. I was expecting there to be a lot of fellow Americans here; however, this is not the case. I can only think of 3 other American teachers and that is out of about a pool of 40 people. I would say that more than half of the teachers are Hispanic, the rest come from European countries. These different backgrounds have provided the opportunity for me to meet many interesting people, which is something that I love to do.

Negative: This isn’t your typical 9-5 job. I have class from 7-8:30, 9-11, 3:30-5, 5-6:30, 6:30-8. In other words, I feel I spend all day at work; moreover, I am afraid I will have to work some Saturdays. In fact, I worked from 8AM unto 5PM this Saturday. This means my only free day during the weekend is Sunday. Ugghhhh. I didn’t come here to work and make money; I could make more back home. Plus, how will I be able to truly experience the culture if I just work all day?

Positive: We (My Salvadorian friend AB and I) live in a safe neighborhood in San Christobal. It really is beautiful, and there are several friends that live down the street.

Negative: I do not have a mode of transportation; San Christobal is about a 45-minute drive from work, and the traffic sucks here. Also, our security guard Camilo blows a whistle constantly throughout the night as he patrols the streets. Supposedly, this is supposed to scare away the criminals. What stops a criminal from knocking him out, and then blowing the whistle himself to keep all us unknowing residents from panicking, I have no idea.

Negative: My girlfriend lives in Sarasota, Florida, about a 4-day ride on a Cuban raft away.

Positive: The locals hit on me. For example, last weekend at Pizza Hut, a guy walked over to our table and told me that some of his friends wanted to meet me. I am a friendly guy, so I went with him. I should have known better once he took me into the playpen area. There in the corner of the playpen, sat two girls who I guessed were younger than my sisters. I later found out I was right. The scary part is that they guessed my age; what kind of 15 year olds try and hit on a guy 8 years older than them? The answer: one with a green card.

Negative: I do not have a car and I kind of live out of the center of the city. That makes it hard to go anywhere. I don't really have a life.

Negative: I can’t watch most Gator games or any of the Office shows.

Positive: I watched The Office season premier online. Wow, that was a hilarious episode. So excited for this season. Plus, I did not have to watch the Gators lose to Auburn either. Let me just say this; since we lost to Auburn, we are not a national championship team by far. Let’s go back to my original projection for 3 losses this year.

Negative: I had a rash/wrinkled skin appear on my neck. A supervisor at work advised me that I might have contracted scabies by birds perching on my clothes when they are hung out to dry.

Positive: Dermatologist says I did not contract an STD. Instead, I must be more careful shaving and use higher quality cream. At least, that is what I thought he said in Spanish. I am just glad I don’t have scabies. It's always a good day when you find out you don't have a STD.

Negative: I miss working out in the YMCA. I can feel my muscles shrinking.

Positive: The average Guatemalan weighs about 100 pounds. I’m not too worried.

Negative: The presence of Internet in our apartment is non-existent.

Positive: I can write super long irregular blogs that no living person will read to make up for this.

Bye-bye. I must go. Everyone here at the missionary house is asleep. (There is a sweet missionary family down the street who has been a godsend. They have Internet and free calls to the United States. Also, the wife is a good cook. Score!

hasta luego, (oooh, one more Positive: I feel my Spanish is improving steadily every day)

Hoss.

Ps I. Uploading pictures is my next text. Hopefully by next week?

Ps II. Go ahead and check out this band, Gondwana. Think Reggae in Spanish. They have a very chill vibe, and I am hoping to see them in concert in Guatemala on October 31. Very Very good band.

Hello little friends,

Sorry about the delay. Hotmail hates me. Yes, I know. Nobody can hate the
hottness. I guess it's possible for a internet commmunication provider
though.

As always, skip the sections are divided by the lovely ***** so you can read
at your pleasure. This week, the hottness has divided it into The
Introduction, The Weekly 7, Cru Announcements, Subleases/Random
Announcements, and The Conclusion. Make sure you read all of the
announcements, there are a lot of them this week.

******************************************************************************
7 Observations that came to my mind while I was handcuffed and chained to
the couch as the neighbor girls watched The Bachelor.

1) Do women realize that the men qualified to be on The Bachelor don’t
actually need help finding a wife? Let’s take a look at the requirements to
be on TB: good-looking and loaded. Sounds like your average desperate 30
year old man in the singles group at church, right? This season,
'unlucky-in-love Lorenzo tries to overcome the significant obstacles that
stand between him and matrimony. What are those obstacles? Oh, he’s a loaded
Italian prince. Apparently, American women don’t like Italian men. Bigots.

2) The funniest part about these kinds of shows is when TB contestants gripe
about each other’s “evil motives”. Turns out, these pure darlings applied to
be on national television for “true love”; contrary to the floozies who just
want a quick 5 minutes of fame. As if they all weren't shallow.

3) It’s even funnier when Prince Charming himself jumps in on the ‘Bad
Motives wagon’. “I can’t trust Lisa. I’m afraid she just joined the show for
fun”. Good thinking there Einstein. I can just imagine the producer sitting
down to have a talk with Lorenzo after the show. "I’m sorry Lorenzo; Beth
Moore wasn’t available this season. Why don't you try my other show The
Third Wheel next time?

4) CRU Girls will always rally around the “classy” girl who defies society’s
decaying standards by continuing to save herself for marriage; our
aficionados seem to ignore a few minor details about their 'Mother Teresa'.
You know, like how she classily lets her “boyfriend” simultaneously date a
brothel (her new fellow contestants and friends). Or maybe how this prude is
letting her partner for life be determined by the events of a reality
television show. Does nobody catch this hypocrisy? Am I just crazy?

5) I have to admit; there are some really funny quotes in TB. “It’s not easy
getting your heart stomped on”. In other words: I joined a show with 26
other women to compete for one man; how dare he break my innocent heart. I
didn't see that coming!

6) With some plot twists, I think The Bachelor could be a good show. I’d
like to propose a new show called The Chiggens. Bachelorettes apply to be on
the show under the presumption that they will be competing for another
dashing young male; however, they are sadly mistaken. Enter Gus Chiggens, an
elderly miner in search of love. Highlights of the show would include prune
feeding time, lamp lit dinners, and Jimmy Fallon laughing. It's a whole new
show with a whole new love warfare.

7) All of the sudden, my roommate makes sense. Grey’s Anatomy really isn’t
that bad.

*****************************************************************************
CRU ANNOUNCEMENTS:

A) BARN DANCE
This is the last week to pick up your barn dance tshirt, unless you talk to
Angie Galceran or Chrissy Hannah about it.  Otherwise they will be lost to
the crusade offices...
don't forget to bring your five dollars or you won't get the shirt.

B) DINNER DATE
This Thursday after Crusade! Bring your checkbooks and be ready for
some intense bidding!

C) PARKING FOR CRU
Don't forget to park in the parking garages for the CRU meetings. The UPD
might begin to ticket all cars parked in the East Lot (the dirt area
adjacent to the HPNP). Be sure to park in the garage and give yourself
a few extra minutes to walk so that you still make it to CRU on time.

D) SNL (This Sunday 11/19 at 830PM at Creekside Church)

E) SUNDAY SOCCER is back!  We will be meeting this Sunday @ 2 o'clock at
the soccer field behind Hume.  It's gonna be a great time, so don't
miss it!  All skill levels welcome. If you have questions or concerns,
please contact Sandy Roddy at 386-795-3450 or sandyr@ufl.edu.

F) WOMEN'S BEN AND JERRY'S BENEFIT
11/30 before CRU from 7-8PM, proceeds will benefit women's ministry

G) CHRISTMAS CONFERENCE
Next registration deadline is Dec 1st. Current Cost is $210.
Scholarships are available. E-mail Amber (crewgurl@ufl.edu) or Desiree
(tigerilly45@gmail.com).

H) 24/7 STUDENT PRAYER MOVEMENT
College students are coming together to pray continuously - day and night -
for forty straight days. Dozens of campuses around the U.S. will
participate. Be a part of one of the biggest prayer movements you've ever
seen from November 14 - December 23! We (The Prayer Team) encourage you to
sign up at least 3 times (3 hours of prayer) during the forty days. When
your day arrives, please go to the web site and pray for any requests that
have been added to the site. Feel free to pray with others, prayer journal,
worship, or anything else that connects your heart with God's. Get ready to
see God do incredible things during this amazing 40 days and 40 nights!!!
- To Sign Up Go To: www.protopage.com/studentprayer
- To Add/View Prayer Requests: www.protopage.com/studentprayer2
- Join the Facebook Group: 24/7 Student Prayer Movement

I) CANNED FOOD DRIVE
The Outreach Team is putting on a canned food competition between all the
community groups. Whichever group can gather the most cans of food will earn
a prepared meal with Joelle Paine’s Bible study (if the winners are guys) or
a meal with TJ and Josh Meyer’s community group (if the winners are girls).
The deadline for groups to turn in their cans to the outreach team is Nov.
16, and the dinner will be on Dec. 2. For more information, contact Josh
Meyer at dennis21@ufl.edu

***********************************************************************
SUBLEASES/OTHER ANNOUNCEMENTS
1) UCF Crusade Semi-Formal Dance Nov. 17th 7-11PM
Come for A Night in Time at the Orlando Science Center with UCF Crusade in
Orlando, FL. The cost is only $15 per person or $12 per UF Student. Purchase
tickets at door-only-must have student ID)
DOORS CLOSE AT 7:45PM. Directions:
http://www.osc.org/guest_services/location.htm

2) I am looking for someone to sublease with me and live in Russell's house
for the spring.  Please do it. Its a great place to live: with a pool, a
huge yard, 3 Huge TV's, a TIVO Master named Allen Williams who will catch
all your shows for you, 3 dogs and 3 Crusade Staff people (Coincidence?, I
think not!).  Anyways, rent is 275 plus utilities, and I am willing to work
with you on that.  Contact me at 904-891-8555, or JPBowers@ufl.edu.  And
don't worry, Russell will probably not physically abuse you.....okay maybe
he will.

3) FEMALE ROOMMATE WANTED!!! 2br/1bath
Hey guys! I got an internship that starts this spring so I’m trying to
sublease my apartment. My roommate is AMAZING and I’m looking for an amazing
girl for her to room with. The apartment has walk in closets, backlit
alcoves, laundry facilities on the floor below ours, decal parking and is a
block from campus! Come check it out! The apartment is University Heights
and is right behind Norman Garage. Rent is $325 plus 1/2 the utilities. This
price is negotiable. It will be available starting December 16th to August!
If you just want to be here spring that's fine too! Give me a call at
321-278-6222 if interested, or e-mail me at luemccoy@ufl.edu. God Bless!

4) Nick Stamas, my beloved roommate, is traveling to Italy for the spring
semester and we are looking for a special CRU guy to fill his place in our
apartment.  Sublease prices are flexible and whoever lives with Jordan and I
will have the joy of not only our company but HD TV as well.  Call Nick at
727-686-7551 or email at nstamas@ufl.edu.


Want to put an announcement here? Send your announcement to
dearthehottness@hotmail.com by Tuesday night, and please either
a) Write the announcement as you would like it to appear in the email (and
please use the art of summarization)
b) Or please give me all the information necessary
(Who/What/When/Where/Contact Info), and I will try to make an amazing
summary for you.

******************************************************************************

Wow. The Announcements Section is out of control. And yes enemies, next
week's weekly seven willl be "7 signs the hottness is single and in need of a new
girlfriend/hobby". Come on, I only watched TB once.

In your service
The hottness

As always, flattery, comments, and announcements are accepted at
dearthehottness@hotmail.com

So yes, I haven't updated in a while. Ok, it's been a year. Lo siento, no es mi culpa.

Anyways, I'm currently writing the weekly emails for Campus Crusade and I felt it would be a good idea for me to publish them here for safekeeping. So enjoy:)

Dear minions,

I’m bringing sexy back. Yes, the hottness is resurrected.

As always, the email is divided by **** into four separate sections:
introduction, crusade announcements, and a heartfelt goodbye.

*******************************************************************

This week, I would like to introduce a new hottness email feature called the
weekly 7. Why seven? Everyone knows God’s favorite number is seven, and
well, I’m God’s chosen electronic communications ambassador. Perfect, huh? I
thought so too.

Seven signs your roommate is whipped and in need of intervention.

1) Arriving home after midnight, you discover your roommate watching The
Notebook. Alone. Granted, he is single at the time and therefore is not
pathetically attached to someone at the hip, but still. It’s a sad thing.

2) The following conversation takes place:
Me: “Ahmm, why is Grey’s Anatomy being recorded on our TV?
Roommate: “I'm TiVoing it for the girlfriend. It’s really not that bad.”

3) It’s an emotional experience every time your roommate answers a phone call
from the girlfriend. Immediately his voice converts back into prepubescent
stage, as if he has just received a kick in the groin (which you doubt
exists). Though Mr. Michael Jackson imitator’s voice is dangerously high, he
is still barely audible owing to the fact he is whispering, which is
possibly due to a slight awareness of his embarrassing metamorphous from a
college male into my teenage sister.

4) When addressing the master of his domain, He hails Her in their cutely
chosen pet names “babe, honey, etc.” The mention of any other title is
considered pure treason, and thusly avoided for fear of fatal consequences.

5) He starts to call you Lindsey and often gazes at you longingly. By the
way, that really freaks me out Dunlap.

6) You can always tell when she is out of town. A puppy dog face overcomes
your roommate for days as he snacks on chocolate in his room, and counts
down the days until her return on his Precious Moments calendar.

7) Suddenly, your roommate’s wardrobe has undergone a magical transformation.
Cute collared button-down shirts with animal logos have become the norm; the
tattered jeans and stained T-shirts and their sophomoric sayings are gone.
The hottness would make fun of such people, but I do wear pink shirts. It
brings out my eyes.

********************************************************************
Announcements:
A) Barn dance is coming! Buy your tickets this week for $3 at Crusade this
week, or for $4 at barn dance. Ladies and Gentlemen (we are culturally
advanced here), bring your baked goods for our favorite emcees to test!
T-shirts will be handed out at CRU on the 9th, so remember to bring your $5.
For more info, contact Angie Galceran at ang886@ufl.edu

B) The Outreach Team is putting on a canned food competition between all the
community groups. Whichever group can gather the most cans of food will earn
a prepared meal with Joelle Paine’s Bible study (if the winners are guys) or
a meal with TJ and Josh Meyer’s community group (if the winners are girls).
The deadline for groups to turn in their cans to the outreach team is Nov.
16, and the dinner will be on Dec. 2. For more information, contact Josh
Meyer at dennis21@ufl.edu

C) Does anyone need a female roommate or a sub leaser for the spring? Stacy
Weaver, a new Cru staff member, is looking for a place of residency. Contact
her at stacey.weaver@uscm.org

D) Nick Stamas, my beloved roommate, is traveling to Italy for the spring
semester and we are looking for a special CRU guy to fill his place in our
apartment.  Sublease prices are flexible and whoever lives with Jordan and I
will have the joy of not only our company but HD TV as well.  Call Nick at
727-686-7551 or email at nstamas@ufl.edu.

E) Two friends of the hottness are looking for an apartment or a house of
females that need two roommates for the spring semester. If interested,
please contact Chalee at chanae321@yahoo.com

F) Want to put an announcement here? Send your announcement to
dearthehottness@hotmail.com by Tuesday night, and please either
 a) Write the announcement as you would like it to appear in the email
 b) Or please give me all the information necessary (Who/What/When/Where/Contact Info), and I will try to make an amazing
summary for you.

******************************************************************

It’s been too long.

Glad to be back,
The hottness

PS. Comments, compliments, and flattery are accepted at
dearthehottness@hotmail.com

There's a rumor floating around back home that

a) I have a girlfriend
b) She's pregnant


I'd like to confirm these rumors. My baby's momma goes by the name of Pamela Lee and we are both excited about the approaching arrival of my little princess Bianca.

One of my dear friends on this trip, Nayane, has been wearing a feminist shirt that bothers me. It prominently displays the statement that follows,

A wise man once said
"I don't know
ask a girl"

Now, I'm all for girl power (you know, as long as it doesn't leave the kitchen). This shirt, however, bothers me a lot. I actually even find it very funny. What young Susan B. Anthony didn't realize that she has no concept of English when she created the shirt? Any English book will tell you to put commas before quotation marks. Any English teacher will tell you to put a semi-colon between two independent thoughts, and where is the punctuation to end the sentence? This is how the shirt should look according to grammer.

A wise man once said,
"I don't know;
ask a girl."

What bothers me the most about this inflammatory shirt is that this sex is supposed to be quite skilled in their use of language. You always hear these females jabbering about something. How can they not realize their shirt about girl power does not convey girl power; rather, it conveys girl incompetence? Oh well.

I'm sure I will get a letter from N.O.W. for this,
Hoss

Since the day we went to sunday school, many of us have been trying to outpreform each other. In our first class, the teacher hung up an attendance sheet. If we were good little boys or girls, our names would be accompanied by nice pretty stars under the dates. We tried to come to sunday school as much as we could, so we could be good little children. This unfortunate pattern continued as we got older. As we aged, our struggles became more difficult, and we tried to hide them more. This destructive pattern must reach a point where we realize that this fallacy just is not possible. We can not convince others or ourselves that we are good enough for His love.

Because we aren't. We will never be good enough for this great love/grace God has given us.

This is something that we must come to terms with. Each day that I am living here in Honduras, I am forced to realize my inadaquacies.

I can not stop hunger; let alone hammer nails instead of my thumb.

I can not stop people from living without homes; let alone use a tape measure sometimes (I have screwed up so much the past week for some reason).

I am not able to walk a blameless walk; neither walk down a mountain and not fall on my face.

If I can’t even control my own life, how can I affect the lives of others.?I am literaly useless. Every time I try to accomplish things by my self, I am forced to realize that I am unable to do anything. I guess that’s the beauty of this whole grace thing. Through Christ, some loser like me can do many things that kings can’t dream of.

There are days when I feel that if all I can be is a jar of clay, than that’s what I want to be. Maybe the breaking of me (as a jar of clay) will bring Gideon and the Israelites his victory. Maybe my openness (as a jar of clay) will enable Jesus to turn water into wine. My flexibility (as a jar of clay) creates the possibility for the potter to design his master piece. And if I am nothing but an ugly jar, then I pray God will help humble me to accept the breaking of myself for his glory.

Because a broken jar can be beautiful. Beautiful through God. And I’m fine with bumbling through life if God is with me.


II Corinthians 4:7 "But we have this treasure in jars of clay to show that this all-surpassing power is from God and not from us."

Whoever thought that a kid telling you,

eres un hombre de su palabra (you are a man of your word)

would mean the world to you. I told a village kid that I would return (just wasn't sure when) and he was excited that I really did come back the next day.

Whoever thought that a kid telling you,

me recuerdas (do you remember me),

could make a frustrating day brighten up? Some kid from a city I did vacation bible school last year, ran up to me in the street. He remembered me from a year ago!

I believe I understand why Jesus saw the kingdom of God in the children. Jesus thanked God they could comprehend things wise adults never could about his Father's kingdom (Mathew 11:25). He also said, "Let the little children come to me.... for the Kingdom of God belongs to these (Mark 11:14).

The poor children of Honduras, who have little to no hope of ever living beyond dirt floors and empty stomachs, are blessed more richly then I will ever be. I see in them a faith, a hope, a love that saints lack. They truly are independent, free from a materialist world whose dark foundation is based on an insatiable greed and jealousy. I pray God will bless me with the faith of babes. Because its these kids whose faith helps me make it through on those days.


those days when I see kids scavenging for food in dumpsters.....
those days when I see the son of my friend looking out from his shack.....
those days when I see kids looking for toys in dumpsters....
those days when I see mothers looking for wood for their houses in the rotten trash heap behind the saw mill...
those days when I see a girl with 6 toes on one foot, 7 toes on the other.....
those days when Satan reminds me of how inadaquate I am....
those days when hope seems foolish...
I am reminded, that living without hope, is, well hopeless. So let us all depend on the hope that brings us together.... the hope, no, the faith, in our salvation through Christ. Let's live out this hope, by bringing it to others. Because the Honduras children sure are. Let's follow their example.....

Hoss