Day 99: Guilt has become me

I am overwhelmed with guilt. Not really, but it seemed like a great beginning. A friend just sent me an email and she placed the straw on the camel's back. I have been thinking about what the next blog was going to be. Unfortunately, inspiration has to strike before words come out and recently there has been none. As I said, yesterday was an inspiring one, but that time has passed so now I am working on forced inspiration. Consider this...

Breakfast this morning is a bowl of instant oatmeal. Blueberries and Cream with peanut butter. I love peanut butter. I put peanut butter in everything. If you know anything about me you know that I love peanut butter. Today's blueberries, cream, and peanut butter oatmeal is a far cry from oatmeal with peanut butter, butter, and brown sugar, but I am grateful for what I do have.

Yesterday included two marathon games of Axis & Allies. If you have never played the game, know that one game usually takes about four hours if one team is inexperienced. If both teams know what they are doing, then the games take six to eight hours. Yesterday was the later so both games combined for 12 hours of play. I lost both games, which is humbling, but I also have many excuses for my lack of victory. But back to the peanut butter.

For a marathon day of gaming, as with any intense sporting event, the competitors require large amounts of nourishment. Yesterday was no exception. Knowing yesterday was going to be a war to end all wars, I stocked up prior to my arrival. At the commissary, I bought double stuffed peanut butter Oreos, peanut butter Chips Ahoy, Peanut M&Ms, and Reeces Peanut Butter Cups. Essential for hydration was four two liters of that golden, nectar of the gods, Mountain Dew, and because carbs are essential, we ate Doritos, Fritos, Cheetos, buritos, and all the other members of the -itos food group. It worked to my advantage because one of the competitors didn't like peanuts, more for the rest of us.

Unfortunately, even fully charged with peanut butter and sugar, I still couldn't manage victory. A small bit of joy can be had because I was the Axis powers both times so world order is still intact, otherwise we would be driving German cars and playing Japanese computer games on Japanese electronics.

Here is why I lost. In the first game, the Allied powers got incredibly lucky with their technology rolls. Right out of the blocks, they rolled three straight technology gains. As the game continued so did the rolls. In the end the Allies over-powered the Axis with to much technology. If that hadn't been the case, Japan had conquered the entire Eastern hemisphere so world domination was close. In the second game, the dice were against me again and this time in the form of unheard of luck. At one point, the Allied power of Russia rolled four times better than odds, we never really recovered. I am not sure how many hours of sleep I will lose over these loses, but it has already been a couple.

Sleep lose due to the loses will probably be the least of my worries. Today is the first day of Italy Camp. At 2000, I will be arriving at the Chapel and await the arrival of the students and then the bus. The bus is scheduled to arrive and bring us to Italy at 0300 Saturday morning. Until it arrives, we will be corralling the 60 teenagers and trying to rest as much as possible.

I will tell you more about Italy as it happens and after it is over, both weeks of it. Two days ago my friend Josh Butrin, from Bamberg, Germany, called me up and asked if I could fill in as a leader for his community. Things worked out and I am able to, which means I will be spending two instead of one week in Italy. France is not going to happen, but Croatia and Greece are still on the agenda. Wait, I don't think I have told everyone my plans. Before the change, I was going to Italy for the week, coming back to Heidelberg and then leaving on the 1st of July for a short road trip to France to watch The Tour. On the 7th I was going to fly down to Croatia, then Greece, back to Germany on the 16th and back to the States on the 20th. Now, France is out, replaced by Italy the week prior. Everything else stays the same.

My time in Europe is coming to an end, just over a month to go. It will be bitter sweet when I leave because if I didn't leave then I could come back. But now, I must think about today. Much must be accomplished before this evening and so my time here has come to an end. I am going to head out and purchase some things for Italy. When I get back, hopefully the mood will strike and another blog will come of it.

Until then and tomorrow.

Jason