Joints, Beer and Jesus...Just another 8 hour day in Torino...

What a crazy day...today I've...talked to people about Jesus as they were smoking a joint in front of the university, in the church (not smoking a joint), and over a beer in the Pub; plus I unpacked, spoke enough Italian for my brain to oooz, grocery shopped and took some photos which might be in the newspaper...what an amazing day...and none of it was planned by me. You just never know what God is going to do in a given day here in Torino!

Anyway, it's my first full day back in Torino and I thought I would give you the breakdown. It's good to note that everyday in Torino is incredibly different... and that has held true for today too. Right now we have two short term missions teams here...one is hosting Bible based English Clubs (free English classes) and the other is doing street preaching and evangelism in front of the university (something VERY strange for them).

Tuesday March 20, 2007:
8:00am - Wake up, but opt to stay in bed for a little while longer pretending to be prayin' but really more like resting in God's arms (AKA sleeping)

8:30am - Read 2nd Peter and ignore writting in my journal cause I just don't feel like it today

9:00am - Check email and email Rudy and other friends in the States to let them know I got here okay

9:05am - Check email again...and again...I don't know why I check it so much it's 3:00am in the States! (If anyone needs an online pharmacy let me know). Checking email is a lot like checkin' the fridge for more food, something compells me to do this with a rediculous hope.

10:00am - Unpack my bags and get my new room "orginized" (Translation: toss my stuff into drawers and figure out what I put where later)

12:35pm - Head down 3 flights of stairs and down the street to catch the #16 bus (which I literally risk my life running across a huge street to catch...I made it!)

1:15pm - Eat four cookies and two tangerines for breakfast and arrive at the humanities university to watch Tom Short (a street preacher from Ohio) street preach to Italians which have likely NEVER EVER seen something like this before. We met Francesco, a student, while he was watching and had great conversation about Australia and Jesus. (Officially My job was to take photos...and a journalist for a local paper asked me for copies to do an artical on this "strange" event... we invited her to church and she said she might come!)

3:45pm - Grocery Shopping!

5:30pm - Hang out with Italian student who are participating in English Clubs...there were tons of people packed into our small storefront space (named "Il Refugio")...it was very exciting to see.

7:00pm - Nap on the couch in "Il Refugio"

8:00pm - Make dinner for me and Elia a good friend who is part of the church...it was Tortelinni with Ricotta and Spinach filling plus "Arrabiata" sauce (Arrabiata literally means "Angry"...so Tortelinni with "Angry" sauce...it's spicy)

9:00pm - Participate in a discussion with Italians we are reaching out to about American Universities and questions American students often ask about God (Franceso attended and Tom Short and I had a very interesting conversation with him afterward)

11:00pm - Go have a beer in the Irish Pub directly beneath my apartment with Francesco and his friend Niccolo and continue our very intersting talk about faith in Jesus, Slavery to something (it's up to you), sin and freedom from sin. (I have a lot of
respect for how open both Francesco and Niccolo were with me and my friend Andrea from church).

2:00am - Wander up stairs and write this post!

A few minutes after 2:00am - Sleep!


Just another day at the office...

(Sorry for no photos this time)

States' Side Grocery Adventure

Groceries purchased to take overseas are a lot like a person's stomachs final request... what is purchased says a lot about what that person really values! (like Frosted Mini Wheats for me)

So... just a couple days till I am heading back to Italy... it's 3am and time for a WalMart grocery run! Before leaving Italy I had a few requests for foods not found in Italy...so here's what I got to take over the pond!

Maple Syrup / Instant Hungry Jack Pancake mix - A student in Torino said he had always wondered about it and would like to try it with...(he couldn't think of the right word)...pancakes!

Football (American) - I have never seen one in Italy (though they might be found somewhere)

Fajita Seasoning - A key ingridient for me... which is not even found in Michigan let alone Italy

Penut Butter - Another thing Italians are often curious about but is not readily found in Italy

Speed Stick, Body Wash, Tooth Paste, and 2 toothbrushes - Because I a dummy and I thought I forgot them at my friends apartment who got married... then I actually left the bag of replacements at WalMart (thanks Marcus for the gift card)... then after going back to WalMart the next day I found all of my toiletries which I had just repurchased in the trunk of the car I am driving (Thanks Kelly for the loaner car! It pays to have friends get married).

Mezmerized by the fluorescent lights and dog tired at about 5am I wrapped up my last minute States Side shopping! I am ready to fly! ...if I can get some help zipping up my suitcase!


Ben

Back in US of A (briefly)

Before I left Italy I was invited into the sculpture school for a tour with Elia a good friend & sculptor who is so encouraging in His love for Jesus. Here are a couple photos:

Anyway after waking up at 4 am walking a mile with my bags from my new apartment to the train station...riding the train to Milan...riding a shuttle to the airport...catching flight #1 to Newark...flight #2 to Houston...getting a ride home with Huan (my former roommate)...visiting NASA...and catching the Greyhound bus to Austin...I am back in the US of A!

But I am not here for long...though I did not know that until just recently; I will be departing on March 18th to head back to Torino until it is time to submit my university VISA application to the Italian Consulate in Houston (probably in late April or May).

In the mean time I running around trying to get the documents prepared...ready for another longwinded list (in one big deep breath). With my ORIGINAL High School Diploma (yeah right...I got and lost that thing 10 years ago) I have to...find it...send it to the high school so they can write a statement physically on the diploma stating it is authentic...have it witnessed by a notary...I have to then send it to the secretary of state of Michigan for the Notary's signature to be authenticated...then it comes back to me to be translated into Italian and is send to the Italian Consulate in Michigan for the translation to be certified...then it is sent to me again to be submitted with my application packet to the Italian Consulate in Houston (ok, exhale). And that is just one of the documents I have to do this with!

But I am excited because it all does seem very doable and it also looks like God is really opening up a great door for me to do ministry at Politecnico from the inside out...which I think will be better than what we could have envisioned. He's pretty crazy how things do look very bleak...but right at the end are worked out.

I am off to sleep!
Ciao!
Ben