Mapas del Google: ‘Jesucristo es El Señor’ en Tijuana

I was browsing Google Maps using Satellite view today. I ended up on a big hill in Tijuana that I thought looked like a volcano and discovered this. It says “Jesucristo es El Senor” which Sudi tells me means “Jesus is The Lord”. Cool huh? I submitted it to the Google Sightseeing site for their consideration.

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A Crisp Fall Day

This is the first and only blog post I can categorize as “Home” and “Places” at the same time. On clear days I like to peek outside our bedroom window to see if I can see Mt. Helix. Today is especially clear… and with pretty trees. This is the same shot at different zoom levels.

No Zoom (Bedroom Window)

12X Zoom (Optical)

48X Zoom (Digital)

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Puerto Vallarta- Our Trip To Paradise

Our trip to Puerto Vallarta was unforgetable. We ate the most delicious food, enjoyed beautiful sunsets, had a great time with Lucy and friends and rested. We also celebrated our third wedding anniversary on September 8th. It was truly wonderful. We created 6 galleries, click on the pictures below, they will take you to all the pictures on that category. Enjoy!

Anniversary	Family	Food
Places	Portraits	Sunsets

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Stats

If you are wondering why I haven’t blogged since last Sunday, I’ll give you one word: “Stats”. The toughest course I’ve ever taken. Long story short I was in tears Tuesday and ready to quit. My friends Sarah and Tracey felt the same way so we sat down, talked it over, prayed and vowed to stick it out and stick together!

I’m telling you the amount of information this course attempts to cram in 5 days is absolutely delusional. Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday and Friday Sarah, Tracey and I made a herculian effort to accomplish the impossible, which was to turn in 5 projects out of the total 6 projects required for the course. In plain English 6 weeks worth of work accomplished in 5 days. Most students take most of the work home but we were so overwhelemed and confused that we decided that in order to survive we needed to tackle all of them together. We spent from 8-5pm in class, took an hour break and worked in the lab from 6-10pm every night. They ended up being very, very long days. Last night after we were done, we were insanely tired and giddy! It was very funny.

When it’s all said and done and I look back on this class, I will remember how much I learned about perseverence, determination, courage and the power of encouragement all of which I learned from Sarah and Tracey. I could not have done it without them.

Sarah and Trace, you’re amazing!

Tuesday night in the lab	If “p” is less than “alpha”…	Heaven Help Me!!!!
Project Two	Chi Tea	We did it- All done!

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Una Famiglia

Friday night my co-hort, Steven (our honorary member) and I went out on a- night-on-the-town. We suggested Buca Di Beppo a family style Italian restaurant. Apparently it was a great choice, we loved it. They serve exquisite food and have great service. Plus we had the funnest time. The motto for the restaurant is “Una Famiglia” which means “One Family” in italian. We adopted it as our team name.

Jules, Omari, Gary, Sarah, Sudi, Tracey	Una Famiglia	My baby love
Having fun	Julie is very happy	The menu

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Dave’s House

Today we had class at Dave’s house in San Dimas. Lovely home and a great time. Betsy, Dave’s wife made us chilli which of-course I did not eat, but everyone else loved it! We had a special guest speaker, the Dean of Students at APU, Terry F.

Our pm diversity class was back on campus, I took some pictures of us and Carol, our prof.

Dave’s House	Tracey, Sarah, Gary, Omari, Julie	Fun Bunch
CD Cover	Cute Pony huh? (It’s a camel)	Sarah, Julie and Moose
Gary and Omare	Us and Carol	Diversity Class

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Field Trip

We had a long day today, just got back. We had our morning class which was excellent. We had Mexican food for lunch and then we headed to LA. We toured the “Museum of Tolerance.” http://www.museumoftolerance.com. A stunning presentation about prejudice. Child Slavery issues, The Civil Rights Movement and the Holocoust were the ones that impressed me the most. It was informative, painful, agonizing. I was glad when it was over. We met a Holocoust survivor, Eva B. She told us to tell others about her so I will. She survived a horrific time in the history of man kind and had the courage to forgive. A truly beautiful Jewish woman! Born in Hungary, now a very proud American. She vividly remembers when the American soldiers liberated them and gave them water and Hershey bars. One of the soldiers told her “Baby, you’re going to be alright, you are free now.”
“Forgiveness is a gift, you give yourself. Forgiveness is freedom.” Eva B.

Art at Duke	Steven and Jesus	Mirror, mirror!
My classroom	Steven and I at Duke Hall	The gang
Mug Shot	Silly Willy	Class Starts

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First Day Of Class

It was a dream come true! Being in the classroom makes my heart beat faster. I love it.

Dave my first prof is very engaging. We had great discussions and a very neat group project that taught us a lot about listening to each other and sharing information. Information is power. My second class about Diversity brought on an amazing conversation about race and social justice. Carol is co-teaching with Pam who is African American which adds an extra edge to the class. All my profs have doctorates and all insist on being called by their first name. Carol is very warm and friendly. They are all very smart, very knowledgable.

I loved that Dave said at the begining of class, “I will with your permission, actually I wont ask for permission, begin each class with a devotional and a prayer.” I love it, because the profs are very intentional about integrating their faith with their knowledge and expertise.

Steven and I spent some time with a few second and third year students. I am so glad he is here with me, sharing this amazing experience. I think he is having a great time (he looooooooves the APU veggie burgers :)) and that makes me happy.
Great day!

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We’re Here

We made it! What a fun day. We arrived at APU at about 2:45pm. We got settled in our room, we love it here, it feels like home. Everyone was very helpful, a couple of guys from ITS came over to get Steven hooked up to the internet. Everything was organized and expeditious.

At 5:30pm we walked to the Turner Center for dinner and an orientation session. Steven was able to stay so we enjoyed some Mexican food and great fellowship. We sat with third year students, they were very warm and friendly.

There are only 7 people in my cohort which will give us a chance to get to each other very well. So far I have met Gary, Omare, Julie and Sara who got stung by a bee and had to put her foot in a bucket full of ice. Everyone is very nice. All the third and second year students gave us great tips. It was super helpful.

We found a Stater Bro. a block away where we got 72 water bottles and toothpaste. Before we left home we stopped at Henry’s and stocked up on granola bars, soups and fruit so we’re set.

My schedule is 8-12 am-class and 1-5 pm-class. My first two classes are Introduction to College Student Affairs and The Role of Diversity in CSA.

We are very tired so we’re going to catch some zzzzzzzzzzzz. I gotta hit the books and hubbie’s gotta bring home the bacon, I mean the facon!

Everything but the kitchen sink	Bon Voyage	APU West Campus
Home Sweet Home	Computer and Treats	“Always” is settled and happy.
My desk, I love it!	Los Libros	The journey begins

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Azusa Pacific University

In two weeks we will be driving to Azusa Pacific University, east of L.A. We will be there June 12-23 to start my Masters Degree in Higher Education. The format is fabulous. Two weeks of intensive courses, three consecutive summers. I will be taking 4 courses each summer. Two on the first week and two on the second week. I will complete the course work for each class in 8 weeks periods during the Fall and Spring. I have been wanting to get my Masters since I gradauted in ‘94. I CAN HARDLY WAIT. I’m thrilled!

The last 4 years have been very excruciating for me in terms of my career. After my job at the church I sensed that the Lord was calling me to something different. That was hard for me to accept since I had assumed that I would do church ministry for the rest of my life. It was also hard because I felt like I hadn’t tried hard enough or been good enough. I started my search from scratch. I considered many paths and not just once but several times. I looked at different schools and programs all over the country.

While still at the church I stumbled upon this program at APU. It sounded great but a bit foreign since I had never worked in a University. After one year of unemployment, in 2004 I decided to take the plunge and started looking for jobs in a Christian university. I wanted to try it first and see if it was a good match. Six universities and eight rejection letters later I landed my first job at Point Loma Nazarene University as an Admissions Assistant.

That job taught me many things, first that I am a people person and that just because I am not working at a church that doesn’t mean that what I do can’t have an eternal impact. A meaningful job to me will always involve daily interaction with people and it will be a ministry, a calling and a mission. I also learned that when you make a career switch you have to start from the bottom and work your way up.

Nine months later I was offered the position I’m now in at Ryan Library as a supervisor. This is by far the best job I’ve ever had. I really enjoy it. I work with great faculty and staff. I interact with students all day long, every day and I love it. This job confirmed my desire to work with university students. I have always been the kind of person that discovers things I like by doing them. It’s hard for me to love something in “theory.” Now that “university students” have names and beautiful faces, now I know that this is exactly where I want to be. I finally found my niche! Whew!

Steven and I will be driving up on Sunday June 11th. They are having a dinner and an orientation session for all the students that night. Monday I start bright and early. Classes go from 8-12pm and from 1-5pm. We will be staying in the dorm. Steven is bringing his computer along and will set up shop in our room. It’ll be great to study all day and then come home to hubby. Steven has been amazing and so encouraging. He tells me nice things whenever I doubt myself. He has been unbelievably patient and sweet! I am so blessed to have him.

Here are the courses I will be taking. It is a very broad degree that will open doors for me to work in different areas of Higher Education such as Academic Advising, Residential Life, Spiritual Development and Career Counseling among others. I am excited and a bit scared. The next three years of my life will be busy with tons of reading, research and papers. I love school. I love books. I love learning. It’ll be a fun ride!

“For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the LORD, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future”. Jeremiah 29:11

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