Last lesson and supper of August

Friday morning was mostly at home. When I took the trash out, our neighbor across the hall was going down on the elevator at the same time. We chatted about how hot it was, and she said they were really suffering, particularly in the morning when the sun beats on their main outside wall (our apartment is on the other side and gets more afternoon sun). I asked if they had AC, and she said no. She then asked if we had it, and I said "yes, in two rooms, which is where we live now most of the time". She chuckled and said that they, as Italians (and especially her husband), don't think it is good for your health, especially your sinuses, throat, and neck. I said, "we Americans may die first, but we will die happy", which really made her laugh. Then she kinda whispered to me that "my daughter and I will ultimately win my husband over to air conditioning."

In the morning I finished my lesson prep on Luke 24, which was good because Claudio and I had planned for him to come to the Institute in the afternoon and assemble his new high-end desktop. I helped him with the parts selection, which was fun. Anyway, I assumed I would have little time for my lesson during the afternoon. Turns out that the final piece wasn't delivered on time by Amazon, so we had to postpone. 

Dee had a dentist appointment at 12:30, and we left early so that I could drop her off. She could have taken the bus, but with this heat and many buses without AC, I wasn't going to let that happen. It turns out that, after sitting in the dentist office waiting room for 30 minutes, the dental assistant came out to say that since it was their last day before the August holiday,they would like me to reschedule. Then she looked at my teeth and said, "oh, you take good care of them, we can definitely wait until September." The dentist was there when I arrived, but left without even talking to me.

Meanwhile, I drove on my own to the Ganziani apartment, which is near the Institute. Google Maps took me on a strange route from the dentist that had me crossing two bridges across the Tiber, over and back. I went there to drop off two of our wooden chairs, which we rarely use, because they only have two kitchen chairs for the four of them. We will probably buy replacement ones for us at some point, because they are useful sometimes. While there, I did our first apartment inspection. It is a nice place, new to the missionaries, so it was in great shape.  I then drove to the Institute, arriving right at about at our normal opening time,1pm. 

Josh and Ivan, two of my Seminary students, dropped by to cool off for a while, and we had a nice visit. The Ganziani also came by with an investigator, Jude, for a missionary lesson. Our location is so wonderful, with WiFi, AC, and food sealing the deal. On the way back from the dentist (on the bus and Metro), Dee ran into Signora Chirra, the owner of the big apartment one floor down from us that we had hoped to rent. She told Dee that the other offer she has on the table was kinda on hold until September, because Italy is on vacation for August. She made the same offer to Dee, so we immediately talked to Ugo. He was in Paris all week for a meeting with other Institute folks, including the heads from the US. Ugo called them and seemed to finally get the ball rolling there. They are now asking for dimensions to make an estimate of the build-out and maintenance costs, so that they can make an offer. This might work! We would appreciate your prayers. The new facility would be so great for the young people.

In the afternoon, I spent some time on the phone with Vodafone, cancelling some new feature they had enabled on my phone which costs money and drove my balance negative. No matter how many times we tell them not to do that, a few weeks later it happens again. Dee spent all afternoon cutting up chicken and preparing for the curry chicken over coconut rice dinner.  You can see the twenty boxes of coconut milk on the counter.

 

My lesson, on Luke 24, went really well. I particularly love the story of the two disciples on the road to Emmaus, and how they figured out that they should have recognized Christ by the spirit they felt, not by his face or voice or mannerisms. It is a good illustration that spiritual things can be more real and more convincing than physical things. I also emphasized how everyone tried to ignore the women's testimony, because of the culture, but that Christ repeatedly dealt with women in an ennobling way. There was a lot of participation, with good comments and laughter. The classroom was so full they had to put up some extra chairs! At the end of the lesson, I had Anziano Papritz bear a brief testimony. He will almost certainly be transferred next week (the Ganziani almost always have only two transfers at the Institute), and he has been wonderful.

Dee's dinner was really popular. It got completely finished in short  order, partly because there were so many kids, but also because they liked it so much. Anziano Papritz couldn't stop smiling. It was his mom's recipe and his favorite. A few people took pictures of the written recipe, too. I am totally going to make Papritz chicken with coconut rice again! Dario cooked the last batch, because he wanted to learn how. He is very good in the kitchen. He and Grace got engaged last month and hope to be one of the first couples to be married in the new Rome Temple in March. The place was full, with about 24 kids signed in, of whom at least 7 were nonmembers. Several were kids we had not seen before or for a while. We left late after my marvelous Dee did all the cleanup (I was tired after not much sleep the night before), and the party was still going on. Ivan especially said he would miss us, and Franz asked if he could give me a hug because he liked the dinner so much!

 

 

 

 

 

 

I'm trying to get some nicer-looking shoes that I can put my new orthotics in. There's a comfort shoe store near our house and I thought I might try to zip over there before we go to Naples tomorrow. So, I phoned them to verify their hours. They assured me they would be CLOSED on Saturday and that on Tuesday they'll decide whether they're going to be closed all of August. So, I found a pair on Amazon that I hope will work.

I usually take a tram and then the Metro from the dentist. But someone told me that the tram is broken for several weeks. I'm sure glad he stopped to tell me. They have instead added a bus with the same number as the tram. The bus ends near the Piazza del Popolo, which I just love, so I took a few minutes to stand there and enjoy its beauty. I think this monument says something like "happy is he who enters here".

Margie is about to write her Master's thesis. I asked her if I could help type or something, and she lit up. I'm so happy I asked! I think she wants editing, because she is not a native English speaker.