Well I made here to Quito.  Andrea and I are having a ball.  This place is awesome!  We are at 9000 feet elevation, and I am used to sea level, so it´s a little difficult to breathe here.  they say it will get better soon.  I hope so because we are going to a 12000 foot high mountain manaña.  Andrea is so happy here and her friends are all awesome.  We all had lunch today and laughed and got to know one another.  Sometime you will have to ask me about the spanish class I sat in on today.  Let´s just say I wished I didn´t know that much spanish at that moment.    Already the food here has been great.  Very different customs and tastes, but fun to explore.  I am sorry, but I will never get used to the rule of not flushing used toilet paper.  I guess the water pressure isn´t strong enough in the country to handle it.  OK,  don´t think I´m an American snob or anything, but I am appreciating American infrasturcture today.  

I had a huge layover at the airport and then some nincompoop in a pilot´s outfit said that they switched my flight to a gate at another end of the airport.  This was Miami airport.  the sign on the walls tell you how long it will take you to walk or in my case – run to that exit.  When I got there they told me a mistake had been made and the actual gate was right back where I started and that they plane was loaded and ready to leave the gate.  The sign on the wall then said 20 minutes walk / run.   Well, I got to the gate and they had the nerve to be angry with me for being late for my flight.  The gate attendant said¨: What,  did you stop for a beer and lose track of the time?”  I had a mixture of emotions at that moment in time.  I wanted to hit her – I wanted to cry – I wanted to find that pilot and give him a sucker punch.  But I just smiled and prayed for Jesus to help me love these people.  I got on the plane and lo & behold there was that pilot greeting people.  He saw me and ran into the cockpit.  Fearing a flight marshall might tackle me and arrest me I decided to take my seat.   Ahhhh! the joys of flying.

I read this awesome book on the plane and in the various airports :  Irresistible Revolution by Shane Claiborne.   You HAVE GOT to read this book.  His style is edgy and he pulls no punches, and you probably will look at your world differently for a while, but I found it compelling on many levels.  I don´t completely agree with him, and it almost feels like heresy to say it, but go ahead and give it a read.  Let me know what you think.   Got to run.

Tommy from Quito