Temporary

Since I've been in New Zealand, I've started to notice that in my life there is a constant reminder of Temporary. First off, I'm here temporarily. I have only one year to enjoy this foreign country. One year to enjoy the fellowship of New Zealanders and then I must part ways. As Cara and I search for a church family, I've felt blessed to meet so many brothers and sisters in Christ all the way across the world. The pastor this Sunday brought up a good point that throughout history the Church (body of believers) has always been present; even in dark times. When Jesus spoke to Peter about building His Church He said, "The gates of Hell shall not prevail." Here in New Zealand I can see more clearly that the Lord IS working - everywhere! Being a Christian is something way Bigger than going to church and participating in religious programs. We are part of a powerful family whom God is molding and shaping to prevail against the 'gates of Hell.' All over the world. But even my time to be used by and glorify the Lord on Earth is temporary.

Next, the only type of work I can do here is temporary. When I chose to do a working holiday I knew the work permit was unique. I just didn't realize how unique. My permit says I can't work permanent jobs. In my mind that meant no full-time jobs only part-time. Apparently I was wrong. I recently applied for a part-time job at a local grocery store, was interviewed, and was offered the job. Unfortunately, upon a closer inspection of my work permit they learned that they could not give me the job since it was a permanent part-time job (whatever that means). So now I am interviewing with Temp Agency's so I can find 'temporary' jobs. What's interesting is that my permit allows me to work casual, seasonal, and temporary jobs, so I could work a full-time job, just for a few months and then switch to a new job, etc. So my work experience this year will all be a series of temporaries. On the plus side, that leaves more time to do fun things like Holidaying.

Finally, I'm temporarily out of theater. Ahh! That's the hardest part. Acting is what I love to do. Sure I could do community theater here, but then I wouldn't be able to travel and Holiday as much as I'd like to. I'd be tied down to a fairly long commitment. Don't get me wrong, I haven't totally ruled out doing theater. I 'm just facing the realities of the situation at this moment in time. The cool thing is, once I get back to the States I'm going to pursue theater full-time. More and more I'm realizing that it's the only profession I'm truly satisfied doing. But for now, I am temporarily out of that world.

Why?

I'm enjoying life in New Zealand but it's left me with a lot of questions.

Why am I here? What is the Lord's purpose in bringing me across the world to this country?

Why do I have to once again do office work with a temp agency? I have no passion for it.

Why do the temp people think I actually want a career doing office work? Don't they know we Working Holidayers are only doing it so we can make money to pay bills while we do fun stuff?

Why were Fritos chips located in the 'South African Foods' section of the supermarket? Fritos is an American brand...right?

Why is it difficult to find a church with a Young Adults ministry (or small group) in Hamilton? How can I meet other Christians who are my age to connect with if there's no place where they tend to congregate together?

Why do my neighbors constantly have loud late night conversations outside on their porch?

Why is EVERYTHING so much more expensive in New Zealand than in the U.S.?

Why is text messaging so big in this country? Even the banks allow you to text message them.

why, Why, WHY???

O.K. I'm done.

For now.

My Life in Pictures

Hey everyone, I've gotten a lot of complaints (mostly from my Mom) about being in New Zealand for three weeks and not showing any pictures so..... here is my life in pictures:

The Cleveland Airport, our last day in America. Yes, we're each wearing two coats in 60 degree weather. They wouldn't fit in our suitcases.

Our first week in New Zealand we stayed in the country near Cambridge. Beautiful!! Imagine waking up to this everyday.

Before we could move into our flat we had to do some serious cleaning. Believe me, that smile was only for the picture. Note to anyone moving out of their apartment: before leaving make sure you clean the fridge...oven...shower...etc.

War of the Worlds...um...the Rugby Stadium.

The great Waikato River. It runs right through the center of the city.

Look in the distance. The city is surrounded by mountains!

The fountain that gave Hamilton the description "Fountain City." The funny thing is I was told that this is one of only a few fountains in the city. I'm on a search to find all the rest.

Well, that's it for now. I hope you've enjoyed the pictures. More to come in the future.

Burritos Anyone?

About two months ago I can distinctly remember walking through Giant Eagle grocery store frantically searching for Ortega Burrito mix. Why was I doing this? Because the thought had come into my head about how much I loved making Ortega burritos as a kid. The seasoning had a different taste that was, well, yummy! Thus began my quest to find Ortega burrito mix in every grocery store I hit, large or small. My search produced zero results. There were gordita, fajita, hard taco, soft taco, and taco casserole mixes but no burrito. It's like Ortega burrito mix had disappeared off the face of the earth!

Apparently I was wrong. It just moved to New Zealand.

During Cara and my first trip to the local grocery store (Pak 'n Save) we stumbled across a shelf of Ortega taco mixes. Yes! Mexican can still be had in NZ! Even better, we saw boxes of Ortega Burrito mix. Yayy! We quickly grabbed a box eagerly looking forward to tasting the yummy burrito flavor we remembered from childhood. Let me tell you, it was everything we hoped it would be (even with the different taste of the New Zealand ground/minced beef). I was thoroughly satisfied with the meal.

I wish those of you back in America could try Ortega burritos. They're great! Perhaps there's still some being sold in the US. If you live in the Cleveland area don't hold your breath. Anyway, if you chance to see some in the grocery store grab it quickly, because it may disappear from the shelves before you know it.

Two Weeks in Middle Earth

I'm here!!

I made it!!

And I finally have internet...

Wow these past two weeks have been crazy.

God has continued to display His presence. We missed two flights due to weather delays (Chicago to LA and LA to New Zealand). And still managed to be re-booked and arrive an hour after our original flight. This was actually a good thing since our ride from the airport arrived late for the first flight but on time for our rescheduled flight. Sam and Jeremy were the two Kiwi's who volunteered to be our chauffeurs from Auckland to Hamilton. They're cool guys. They brought us to the home (farm) of Luke and Kristin, who housed us for about a week while we got our flat together. They live in a gorgeous area. It looks like Hobbiton in Lord of the Rings. Kristin's family owns a Kiwi farm. She gave us a tour of the packing plant and we got to have some free exotic yellow kiwi fruit (another name for expensive in America but bountiful in NZ).

Luke, Sam, and Jeremy are all part of a band called the Holy Rollers (ha ha). We saw them perform on Friday at a Battle of the Bands in Hamilton. They were really good. Plus they won. They are are all Christians and Cara and I were able to attend their church in Cambridge the first weekend we were here. It was a great church. Unfortunately Hamilton is 30 minutes away from Cambridge and without a car we can't really attend that church.

There have been so many funny...interesting...unexpected things that have happened since I've been here. I've formulated so many blogs in my head. Hmm, what to share. I'll share about my first day experience at the home of Luke and Kristin. They live on a farm out in the country. There house is attached to a Kiwi packaging warehouse. As such it's kind of unusual. Unusual being that there is a part of the house with a nonexistent ceiling. Instead the roof is the roof of the warehouse. So when the warehouse doors are open (which is always) all kinds of bugs and birds can get into the house. My first day I was sitting in the living room when suddenly I heard a high pitched squawk and a bird zoomed past my head. The poor thing was frightened and kept flying back and forth frantically. I opened the door to the porch to try to get the bird to fly out but it took a good ten minutes before the creature found its way to freedom. I told Kristin about my experience later that night and she just laughed and said that tends to happen sometimes. New Zealand farm life!! Another bird visited the kitchen on my last morning at their house. Let's just say I'm glad to be to at my Flat in the city.

Well, that's it for now. Miss you guys on the other side of the planet.