Hello again! I’ve traveled clear across the state of Florida, and am currently writing this update from New Port Richey –a town a little outside of Tampa proper that braces the Gulf of Mexico. It’s my second time in this little city in as many years, and I’m pretty happy to be back.
We arrived in the parking lot at Our Lady Queen of Peace church yesterday just as the bells in the steeple started chiming out the 7 o’clock hour. What was supposed to be a four and a half hour trip turned into a six hour trip with two near death experiences, and we consequently ran about an hour late getting to the church. Once we did, though, it was all hands on deck (and by all hands, I mean four hands, as it was only Dria and I, as usual), moving equipment, unloading things, stage plotting, disentangling cables, and all that fun stuff that comes with doing a semi-local gig.
I’m actually not complaining, if you can believe that. I like the work and the brain energy it takes to accomplish the organized chaos of setup. I can’t take the credit totally, though. I wouldn’t know a thing about it if it weren’t for watching and listening to Mein Bruder over the years. My observations of him have proven valuable this trip especially, as I have to play amateur sound engineer on top of everything else, since they didn’t actually hire a sound crew for this particular retreat. I’m getting by. My only issue is being one person. If only I had a clone.
Today was pretty smooth sailing. I have none of the minor, petty complaints I’ve had from the other retreats. We have a good group this weekend. They each seem very open to what God will do for them  –which, honestly, is half the battle on retreats. It’s so difficult to convince people to let their guard down enough to allow something good to happen in their lives. Everyone’s a skeptic these days.
Anyways. That’s neither here nor there. As far as updates go, I realize this isn’t much of one. Hopefully I have time to flesh out some more thoughts tomorrow and get into the meat of this weekend instead of just the superficial stuff everyone expects but nobody really wants. For now, though, I need some sleep. From the west coast of the Sunshine State (or in this case, the Punshine State), I bid you goodnight.
Carry On,
Martina