Orange soda dissolves corrosion on alternator connections.

Anatevka continues to live up to her name with further travails. Tonight the tow truck driver proved once again the value of AAA by discovering in ten minutes the problem that the mechanic could not uncover after three chances at diagnosis. Should be a quick fix. Praise Jesus for always getting me off or keeping me off the freeway when my cars die (sometimes as my cars are dying). There have been two other reoccurring trials of late--lots of character building.

This weekend I enjoyed visiting Richie, Katie, Dani, and Tim in Valencia for a rousing two rounds of Imagine If prefaced by tacos. That was followed by a visit to Camarillo for Joey's birthday (always a treat to see the Parishes), two church services on Sunday, and the delight of Kate descending with two kittens.

Sunday morning I spoke on prayer, revolving around Luke 18:1 -- "Then He spoke a parable to them, that men always ought to pray and not lose heart." This verse is followed by the parable of the persistent widow and the corrupt judge, who even though he did not fear God nor regard man, gave into the widow's cries for justice because of her squeaky wheel act. Jesus goes on to say how much more our loving heavenly Father will answer our prayers. The second main thrust of the teaching is that the humility is the heart of prayer; when our will is submitted to God's, He gives us the desires of our hearts because they are His desires. Even though He knows what we need before we need it, God has created prayer as an integral part of our humble trust relationship with Him. Specifically, He has told us to pray for leaders, our enemies, healing, laborers for the Harvest, and things about which we are anxious. These are some highlighted prayer topics; we are to constantly be in communication with the Lord. I used to view this as a weight, but I am coming to understand that when I die to myself more, it will be an incredible freedom. For instance, this evening as the power in my car was quickly fading, I could feel the stress level rise at an interminable red light, the last barrier between me and the relative safety of a parking lot. As I sat there tensely, I realized I didn't have to be mentally stressed or physically pained. God is taking care of me. If I make it to the parking lot, I make it to the parking lot. If not, I'll be okay. I can't imagine how, but I will.

Well, I have sidetracked somewhat from my points on prayer; the teaching was more coherent. Do not grow weary in well doing. Be willing to pray large and long-reaching prayers. If you are a believer, Jesus prayed for you! Go read John 17. It will blow your mind.

Currently, I am seated indian-style against the back wall of the library immediately adjacent to the park. A hundred people are beginning to disperse from their soccer game a few yards down, and this spider seems curiously attracted to the light. Free internet is a wondrous benefit of libraries, though I have received a few weird looks (and am currently being interrupted by a man querying whether I can still access the wi-fi with the Spanish accent on the fi). Time to toddle home and pack for my inservice training in Los Angeles. We're semi-stranded at the Westin near LAX until Thursday afternoon. I say "semi" because of traffic and Anatevka's dubious capabilities. Richie reminds me of how ecstatic I will be when I have a car that is not nearing the end of its days. Perhaps journeys will be devoid of suspense. Adieu.

This weekend

"Twelve Angry Jurors" at Vanguard theater with Donovan
Health fair for work in the chilly elementary school halls
Katie time reading card game rules and munching little smokies in crescent rolls in my still, clean (and still clean) apartment
Beach bonfire
John creaming us at Oh Heck (Oh Hell, Up and Down the River, There and Back Again, Screw Your Neighbor, One to Seven, Pick Your Poison) because he plays penuckle (??)
Reminder of the Holy Spirit's active role in our lives--guiding us to "all truth" (John 16)
OCMA free day
Nap?

It's a winding road...

For LOTR and Star Wars nerds. Enjoy.

Response to "What is Fair Trade?"

Yes, one of the values of fair trade is that products that are traded are made by free people. Essentially, Fair Trade is a social justice movement that seeks to ensure that laborers and people associated in the chain of production are treated equitably. Three of the primary standards are good working conditions with fair wages, no slaves, and no child labor. There is more here:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fair_trade. Many fair trade advocates are also involved in anti-trafficking efforts and in environmentally sustainable (green) products.

For the past couple of weeks I have been more focused on doing rather than being. I have realized that I have more control issues than I thought which is tied into my perfectionist tendencies. As my lovely friend Jennifer once said, "I only stress about things that I can control; obviously, I have control issues." Tied into this is realizing how much I need to turn over to the Lord. Though I have trusted Him, there are still so many layers. I do not think that He would want me to deprecate our relationship but rather give glory to all the things He has accomplished when I relinquish my desires. Still, again, I have so much further to go.

Though I am at a good place in life, I do find myself missing other chapters--London, Cal Poly. The presence of new friends does not mean you forget the old ones or wish they were with you. Place is such an interesting concept to me. People can gather, but you can only be in one place at a time. Today I went to this year's warehouse for Operation Christmas Child. They rented a much larger facility for a cheaper price. It was a completely new environment yet stirringly familiar.

If you want to buy some African bead necklaces, I have a new batch I'm selling for a different organization. Christmas approaches! We are having a fair trade gift fair (initiated by yours truly) for our November AmeriCorps meeting, and I plan to send out an email about fair trade gifts around that time.