June 17, 1997 - Tuesday

Well today I woke up like 10 or something.  It was great.  The weather was almost cold and I could sleep really good.  Last night we had a lot of fun at семеный вечер [Family Home Evening].  Today we had our собрание округа [District Meeting] and I did get some mail.  I told Ст. Schwartz that I was going to scream if I didn't get anything but I did, so I didn't get to scream.  Still nothing from my mom, but oh well.  I got two packages also.  From Tammy Krajnik.  Cool huh?  They are cookies.  Pretty good ones in fact.  Well on came in a "Pringles" can and the cookies are so thrashed that I can't eat them.  So I am going to use them for cereal in the morning.  I got a letter from Nick also.  And one from Grandma and Kathy Bishop and Sister (I forgot her name, but she's psycho anyways) D... 

Nick's letter is pretty hard to read but I assume mine was like that also.  We made chili again but it doesn't taste right and it's so freaking hot (spicy).  I still hate mail days.  They freaking suck so bad.  I hate it when I get hardly any mail.  Actually I could get a whole lot of mail and still be upset.  I just want to be home, because Russian f'ing sucks dude.  (?!# Bleep Bleep 

[mid-journal chat - Alright - for some reason I was pretty upset here.  It's a good thing that a journal is a private place - haha - where I can vent my feelings so that I don't vent during my missionary work.  I look back at my mission and I see times when sometimes for no reasons at all I get depressed, or even if I think there is a reason - looking back it seems like my feelings are all out of proportion to what they should be.]

Well we are done with our D with Евгений [Evgeny or Eugene in English] and some dude followed us from the metro.  We got in the elevator with this old dude and his dog and then this other guy got in with us.  We got out on the 6th [floor] and the guy also got out.  It was really weird he didn't get in the elevator again.  And then he asked "which one of you is going to help me, I'm from Afghanistan."  It was freaking strange.  Anyways we just told him that we can't help that way and he eventually left.  Man it's wigging me out.  Well I gotta write some letters, so bye for now.

June 11, 1997 - Wednesday

Actually it's 40 min. after midnight on the 10th, well 11th.  Today showed me just not to worry about things.  We went to district meeting and I didn't get any mail.  It's the first week I've never gotten mail.  I was pretty pissed and I had a really bad mood.  Which was really bad because we had a D with Лариса [Larissa].  So I was sitting on the metro and fuming when after praying for God to "take these bad feelings from my heart."  After I prayed I was sitting a couple of seats to my left.  This old couple were sitting across from me and they smiled at the baby.  Well seeing this weathered old Russian man's face brighten up really touched me and I couldn't be mad or depressed anymore.  It's weird how the Lord answers prayers. 

Then while at the D with Лариса, which went really well, I really felt the Spirit and she did too.  It was cool.  She committed again to pray for answers about Joseph Smith and the Book of Mormon.  I explain[ed] why it was important for her to know.  Then she'd know for sure about what we're talking is true.  I think I got her to see a little about how it would help her.



Sister Vera Yagadkina, Nadia Yagadkina, Sveta Borisova & Sasha -
evidently the two girls not too happy with me taking a picture.



Then we came home and sweated in the apartment while eating dinner.  Man it is so humid lately.  So hot.  Getting to the point of where I started about things always working out.  Last night we got told that there would be this New Era thing.  A reporter was coming - we were supposed to set up a FHE.  Well Elder Reagan said to meet the reporters or Ст. Gammon & them in the metro at a little before 7.  The Family Home Evening was to be at 7 over at Ягодкина's [Yagadkina's] house.  Well I worry a lot about it - we were suppose to plan a game and Саша [Sasha] planned a spiritual thought.  So we worried and waited in the metro until about 7:10 and then just decided to go to the place.  So the whole ride to the Ягодкина's I was fuming - dang Gammon etc. because I was afraid the night would flop.  Well we got there at 7:30 - a half an hour late - expecting to have to tell them that the reported hadn't showed.  We even had a game planned and we brought drinks.  So we showed up and 'lo and behold' the reporter and Сты. Gammon & Ludwig are already there with the reporter. 

It turned out all cool and the kids  - Саша [Sasha], Света [Sveta], & Надя [Nadia - hahaha kids - Sveta might have been 16, but Nadia was 19, and Sasha was 18 or 19 as well.  A note about Sveta's name - Svet is light, and if I translated it into English I would call her Lucy???  Lucent - glowing with light, Lucid - shining or glowing, Lucifer (not the best example) - son of the morning etc.  So...the the kids] gave some really good answers to his questions.  It was really cool.  Then after the reporter and the future A.P.s [Assistants to the Presidents - future because we had learned that the mission was going to split on July 1st, and Сты. Gammon & Ludwig were going to be the new president's assistants when he got here.] left we drank the pop and ate this cake Сестра Ягодкина [Sister Yagadkina] made for us.  It was pretty good.  Then we went to the Red Square and hung out with [Ст.] Woolverton and ate at McDonald's and came home late.

[Post-Journal Chat - OK folks do you like how use the brackets[ ] right after the Russian word and give what it sounds like or translates to and sometiems it goes a little long, or would you rather that I did a footnote kind of thing?  or monkeys?]

May 20, 1997 - Tuesday

Today was interesting.  We had district meeting which was a lot of bashing against Pres. Jarvis and his new rule about not going above the ring line at all, even on P-Days.  It'll be hard to live that rule.  Then we came home and ate peanut butter sandwiches.  Well we went and picked up some milk and peanut butter at Stockman's [which incidentally right on the ring line]. 

Then I slept for an hour and we went to a беседа [discussion] with Евгенния [Yevgenniya].  We got a Russian lesson and then we went over D&C 89 before leaving at 9:00[pm].  It was a great responsibility to teach and testify and make - mistakes.  At one point I went off on some thing and I stopped at the end of a sentence and asked Ст. Schwartz "where was I going with that."  Then I just testified to her about something.  Well it's time to get a snack and hit the sack.  bye.

[Post-journal chat - Peanut butter is pretty expensive compared to in America - that's why we had to go to Stockman's to buy it.  Stockman's is a pretty big grocery store.  Well when I say pretty big, I mean big for Russia.  Most of their stores are Circle K size places.  Stockman's was two or three Circle Ks put together.  It stocked several American, or European items that you can't get anywhere else.  They have milk from Finland & it comes in 3.5%, 1.5% & .5% in stead of 2%, 1% & Fat Free like here in the US.  The 3.5% makes corn chowder sooooooo goooood.  Very creamy.]

March 6, 1997 - Thursday

Today I got up at 7:20am and jogged in place for 16 minutes.  It helped.  Got me warmed up so I wasn't cold and expended some energy.  Pres. was right.  I even put my hands above my head like he said:  the international sign for victory.

We are having lunch with our собран[ие] округа [District Meeting - sobraniye okrooga] today.  An AP will be here today also.  I wonder which one.  Yesterday night we went over to Larsen & Larson's and had some cookies.  I played Ст. Larsen in chess twice and lost twice.  I am pissed at him.  Not really because I lost.  Well...not ALL because I lost, but because he is such a poor sport when he wins.  He's just a dick.  He thinks he is God's greatest gift to the earth and it gets boring.  He is really generous though.  He gave us some root beers etc. from Mick's and he is always nice.  It just last night it built to a head.  oh well.

February 18, 1997 - Tuesday

Well today I got up at 6:30am by golly.  It wasn't that hard actually.  But if I don't get my companion to get up with me it's harder than heck.  We studied in the missionary guide.  It was kind of weird but pretty OK.  Now we got to shave, shower & stuff some food down us before we slide off to the office. 

Okay its after D[istrict] meeting.  It was pretty cool.  Ст. Woolverton had some good ideas on what we should work on.  The pouch didn't come in but I got some e-mail from home.  My parents just got an e-mail address.  Cool huh?

My friend Allen Balzen is getting married on May 24th, '97.  About 16 days after my birthday.  I want to be home - but I'm not.  Oh well.  I hope that I get some letters from friends and stuff.  I want to hear from Allen & Doug mostly.  And of course Melissa & Michelle.  But they don't seem too much like the constant writing type.

January 29, 1997 - Wednesday

We had a really good D on Tuesday with Alicia & Jarom.  We went and read from the Book of Mormon.  We read 3 Nephi 11.  I'm sure they read it before, but it was good to read it over with them.  They asked questions and we discussed a lot.  Ст. Woolverton said they might be getting a little bored so we wanted to get them excited about the Book of Mormon.  I read pretty good and I got to explain things and asked one question - I think?  That is something that I need to work on.  I need to ask questions more. 

Jarom shows the exact same characteristics that Grandma Johnson showed.  It's hard for him to read, slightly slurred speech, loss of motion skills on one half of his body.  I imagine it's pretty hard for him.  I don't think he works.  That would be pretty scary.  Later I was talking with Ст. Johnson & Ст. Woolverton about the mission splitting and then Ст. Burghardt told us at District Meeting that it is official. 

I need to crack down and study.  I could get a greenie soon and I want to be in charge of myself.  I've been doing good with my problem, none since Sunday.  It's been cool.  Well night.

I think it was what Elder Johnson told me.  It kind of scared and excited me.  I need to be the best I can be.  A darn hard working missionary.