10/31/2011

You know what is weird, he doesn't even know it is Halloween since they don't celebrate it over there. Just saying.

Um.... Cool week? Inflection? No. Cool Week. Sure of it. Here we go, round the Mulberry bush once again:

Last Monday was basically the longest day of my life. I kid you not. Man, oh man. It's no wonder mom gets all worried. I feel much better this time around, though. Sometimes I just get lazy and drink the water that the nice people here offer me, you know? Bad plan. Just a bad bad plan... Either way, better today.

Um... I can't actually remember the exact order of things, so this could get a little scattered. Today. Today is easy. I'm in an internet cafe in a town called Osijek which is in Croatia. I've just been to the MUP (Croatian Policeish Station) trying to change Elder Schouten's registration. Why would we spend our pday doing such things? I'll tell you why: he's now my companion and living in SM. On our exchange which was only supposed to last a week, on Wednesday morning as we tried to a catch yet another bus going to Belgrade we received a call from President. He asked us how we were, told us that we were now companions and that was that. Apparently due to increasing legal compexities with having Elder Jacobsen in Serbia (as he never officially unregistered from Zagreb where he'd been living because his stay was apparently only meant to be a transfer at most) the opportunity was too prime to pass up and so we've been pulling the switch these last couple of days. We're Dead. Šalim se.... I hope.
So we had a sleepover in Beograd from Wednesday to Thursday (we worked a double shift Wednesday and the morning Thursday), a sleepover with the now Osijek Elders (Jacobsen and Genther) Thursday to Friday, and a sleepover in Beograd from Friday to Saturday (did the same thing in the bookfair again). Not to mention the fact that we got in last night at around 10 and spent the night here in Osijek! Maybe someday we'll all be settled again, though I doubt it. President sure keeps us on our toes! So, C. Schouten and I have SM which is terrifying because it means that I have the best working knowledge of the city and the people who live in it. (Elder Jacobsen doesn't count. Too far away.) AAAAHHH! I'm cool, man. I'm cool.

Saturday: Novi Sad Elders were late to exchanging shifts at the book fair so we missed our bus. That made us two hours late to our lesson that we had. You'd think that our lessonee would be mad, right? Eh, not really.... Our lesson went good. Except for the part where her JW brother in law started to whip out all of these WatchTower quotes and bible bashing us. Ah well, she did kind of prepare us for that. Whatever. Outside of that, I mean the baptismal date that she has is kind of cool. I'm gonna do that one more time. HER BAPTISMAL DATE IS COOL. JS. There is now officially somebody getting baptized in SM on the 19th of November. Um, what? I have NO IDEA what just happened to me. We walked out of that lesson, where she basically just told us all the logistical problems that there might be with being baptized. No doctrinal issues, you know, just whatever. She's read the BoM like 15 times AND IT SHOWS. When we told her about Mosiah 18 she was like 'uh huh. Oh, and here in Third Nephi is the prayer that you'll say when you baptize me, right?' AAAAAHHH! itskindofcoolbutwhatever,youknow? So that was kind of a cool part of my week. Elder Schouten and I butchering the Serbian language. Tell you what, there is a God and he loves me because there is no possible way for that sort of thing to occur without Him. Jel tako? Which is to say, isn't it like that?

Sunday: Gave another talk. Blessed the sacrament (much better this time as I wasn't dying of a fever of like 112 degrees... jk mom). Taught Sunday School. Saw a pig being slaughtered. Drove to Osijek. Cool Day.

Once more: someonesgettingbaptizedinSremskaMitrovicawherethathasn'thappenedforabout3orsoyears. Ahh, gets better every time. :)

The Characters
President Vučenović
Really cool guy. Played basketball in high school. Used to be the District President over Serbia. Used to live across the river in Maćvanska Mitrovica. 56 years old. Craziest accent for me to practice my understanding on. Knows like everything about the people living in our area. Really helpful.

Duška Vučenović
Used to be a head cook at a classy restoraunt before the war. It shows. She makes the best punina paprika I've ever had. For some reason always is baking things whether she is expecting somebody or not. Speaks super fast but ennunciates so it's okay. Translates for General Conference. Currently translating for the Doctrine and Covenants team (There were guys from Salt Lake here in Beograd the other day to talk about its progress. Gives me hope.)

Ada and Milica Vučenović
Best singers together that I have ever heard. 12 and 15.895 respectively. Come to English, really cool if somewhat dramatic. Ada's in love with my MTC teacher Brother Morris. It's pretty funny.

Mama.
Jovanka Osterman. Really nice lady who leases her apartment behind her house. Early fifties. Loves the missionaries and has housed very very many of us. Calls us her children and demands that we call her mama. Only uses first names. Funniest lady ever, if you can understand her. Darn serbian language....

President
International lawyer for some huge law firm. Has lived in Bosnia, Belgium, Azerbaijan, and everywhere else cool in the world as far as I'm concerned. Married to a wonderful woman who he met in High School (also in Provo). Have 5 kids ranging about 5 to 17. Best gravelly laugh in the world! Basically the next new apostle...

The Missionaries (Serbian Zone)
Elder Freeman
Zone Leader. Novi Sad. From Lehi, UT. Really good at contacting and talking with people. Served for 5 months in Rijeka, HR before being transferred to be with Elder Beaument in Beograd due to the February Fiasco. Really excited about the work, really laid back kind of guy.
Elder Defreitas
Newbie with me. Originally called to Serbia, switched to Croatia, switched to Slovenia (studied their weird frenchie language for a month in the MTC), switched back to Serbia. In Novi Sad being trained. From Virginia Beach area, Virginia. Good with the language. Likes to laugh and eat Banjalućki čevap.
Elder Hansen
District Leader. Beograd. From Provo, UT. Funny as all get out. The single best Palačinke maker in the world (has bought a professional style palačinke maker. It's great for district meetings....
Elder Armond
Came out with me. In training. Beograd. From (you guessed it) Provo, UT. The best smile the world has to offer accompanied with the best prayer-scripture-reading voice in the world. It's wonderful. Loves Beograd. Never wants to leave.
Elder Schouten
My new trainer. Sremska Mitrovica. Been out 4 months at this point. (One transfer ahead of me). From Orem, UT (we really branch out, you know?). Is probably gonna be my best friend and worst enemy in the world pretty quick here. Way cool guy but he wants me to do this whole work-out thing that we're supposed to do. What a dumb idea.... Quiet, reserved. Nervous about the language. Happy to be in Serbia.
Elder Adams.
Yours truly.
The Beaument
Returned Missionary. Our idol. Served for 22 months solid in Beograd. Had 2 in SM and about 4 days in Novi Sad before the February thing happened.... Has many, many quotes up on the walls of the Beograd apartment. Pričaj Srpski, bre!

Elder Genther
Branch President. Osijek. Funniest guy you will never meet in your life. Bottom one of 7 brothers and 8 sisters. From UT somewhere... Not sure where. Loves to eat palačinke. to je to....
Elder Jacobsen
Pops. New DL in Osijek. Almost dead. Trunked. Šalim se.
Sister Creager
Training. Osijek. Same 'age' as Genther. Blonde.
Sister Black
Trainee. Osijek. Currently en route to Slovenia for the week. Same age as me. Way cool. From Saint Louis, Missouri.

That's about all I've got for right now and stuff but whatever... Hope everything is going well for you all.
I do get Tio's snail-mail and absolutely love it! I will probably at some point reciprocate.... Time. Not enough time...

Čiao.
С. Адамз