Europe

It's 8:07 on Saturday morning and I'm sitting at home, eating a egg-mushroom-turkey-onion & feta scramble and waiting for the UPS man to bring my Eurail pass - obviously and important part of my trip. I'm waiting for my overnight Saturday delivery...one that cost me $40, but notwithstanding...I wait...and hope that it arrives before I leave for Zurich Sunday morning. I watched via the tracking log as my Pass traveled from Northbrook, IL to Chicago last night...arrived in Louisville at 12:05AM...4:48AM departure from Louisville...5:39AM arrival in Ontario (CA, that is)...7:37 arrival in Anaheim...7:38 "out for delivery". I mean, how cool are computers? Which leads me to my next point: How did I get myself into this debacle?

My perception of Switzerland in general and even more specifically Swiss trains is sort of the cutting edge of technology. Switzerland has the most highly secured banks in the world, Swiss Francs are the most difficult to counterfeit and Swiss trains, well, I've heard the stories. So why am I having train documents overnighted from Chicago? As Ronnie explained to me on the phone yesterday, "although the trains are very sophisticated, since the trains travel multiple countries, there is is currently no way to do e-tickets." I might be an idiot, but my plane travels from Orange County to Newark, NJ to Zurich (multiple countries) and I didn't seem to have a problem printing an e-ticket for that. So Thursday - I'm halfway through the pass and ticket booking process when I get to "shipping options" - no e-ticket. No way to print anything out. I read further, "all pases are paper tickets and must be mailed". Scrambling, I search through about 13 pages of the web site and finally locate the US Eurail phone number - thinking I'll be able to talk to someone who will help me book this ticket.

"Sorry, I can't confirm you on that train, Italy's computers are closed for the night." Huh? Who "closes" their computers? Again, aren't we the e-commerce age where everything just works 24-7? "Yes, Sir - the computers in Italy close for the night at 10:30" - which is 2:30 Chicago time, which is 12:30 in OC and I look at the clock - 3:21.

In the end, at 2:05 Chicago time on Friday, I finally got the ticket booked and it began on its journey - which brings me back to where I am now - 8:30AM Saturday, sitting in my living room, waiting the knock on the door.

Hopefully, this isn't indicative of the way my trip will go: or maybe hopefully it will be. The best stories are when things go wrong. We're certainly leaving opportunity for things to go wrong. Of the 14 days that we'll spend in Europe, we currently have three nights "booked" - two at a mountain hostel in Switzerland and one with Nadine's family - a friend that my parents had as a foreign exchange student for a year (I'm very curious to see where she lives in Switzerland and how Eureka must have been, well, hell compared to the glorious Swiss Alps where she grew up). I'll certainly blog about that when I get back. Lodging for the rest of the night we decided - "We'll just figure it out" (famous last words).

The "plan" for the trip is as follows: Fly into Zurch on Monday morning - catch a train (this is where the rail pass comes in) to Venice, Italy (about a 8 hour train ride through the Alps). Meet my buddies Ben & Seth in Venice (they're currently in Budapest). Stay one day in Venice and catch a ferry across the Adriatic to Pula, Croatia.

Pula has the most preserved Roman Coliseum anywhere. I'd like to see that. From there - the journey begins. We will likely rent a car to go Plitvice (pictured) - which from what I understand is a can't-miss. Croatia's most treasured National Park is an oasis of lakes and waterfalls. From there, we'll likely camp, find a house to stay in (Croatians are known for converting a portion of their homes into private rooms to rent to travelers) or sleep on the side of the road somewhere. From Plitvice, we'll likely travel to Dubrovnik (pictured)- Croatia's most beautiful and cultural city - with old stone city walls that jet out of the Adriatic. From Dubrovnik, we'll likely head north to Split to drop the car off and catch a ferry back to Italy.

We plan to spend a day in Florence before heading up to Switzerland to beat the heat. We've really left Switzerland wide open. I'm hoping to go see the Matterhorn one day. We'll spend a couple days in Interlaken and the mountain hostel (pictured) in Gimmelwald (www.gimmelwald.com). From there, we'll likely head to Lucern to visit Nadine and her family. After we leave there, we'll have 3 or 4 days until we fly home out of Frankfurt, Germany. We'll either spend more time in Switzerland, head to Austria, or head to Germany for the final couple of days.

I'm looking forward to the adventure, the food, the beverages, the people, the experiences, the pictures...I could go on and on. Hopefully, I'll return. And hopefully, I'll return with some great pictures and some great stories...and hopefully, this rail pass will show up.

Irrational Exuberance, The Subprime Mess and Luke 12; "I Will Build Bigger Barns"

I recently read a few articles about the perils facing Bear Stearns Cos. regarding some highly leveraged bets they made on the subprime mortgage industry. Bear Stearns is in hot water as subprime defaults have skyrocketed, causing huge losses in Bear Stearn's hedge funds. The market was down sharply late last week as investors worried that the subprime mess in the housing market is worse than previously thought.

I'm by no means an expert in anything housing, but as a conservative, logical, and in most cases a "value" investor, I've been voicing the pending housing doom since 2003. The data show that 2 years of housing boom continued, peaking in 2005. The last few years, however, have been a sobering reminder of what happens when investors get caught up in greed and, as Alan Greenspan so famously said "Irrational Exuberance". Greenspan, in 1996 gave the speech concerning the technology-driven stock market boom of the late 90's. The same holds true for the housing market of the 2000's.

Personally, I'm quite interested in the state of the housing market as a 2003 grad, I was a few years too late to capitalize on the price appreciation of the last few years, which has left me to continually monitor housing, looking for a time to buy. Recently I came across some data that made me believe the worst of it is not quite over:
From 1985 to 1990, California housing increased by about 75%. In the early 90's, there was a correction - followed by 8 years of depreciation/stagnation. In other words, housing was valued the same in 1998 as it was in 1990. From 1998 to Q1 2006, the California index almost tripled! Which has been followed by a fairly flat 2006. With the Fed concerned about inflation and interest rates rising, one can only guess what will happen next.

The point of this post is not to discuss what I think will happen next (there are a billion housing indexes and articles out there - help yourself). The above discussion is what ultimately reminded me what the Bible says about all of this...

Last Sunday at Mark Dever's church (Capitol Hill Baptist in Washington, DC), Mark touched on Luke 12:13-21 which is a parable about a man who had a few years of plenty and said to himself "I will tear down my barns and build larger one, and there I will store all my grain and my goods. And I will say to my soul, 'Soul, you have many goods laid up for many years to come; take your ease, eat, drink and me merry.'" But God said to him, "You fool! This very night your soul is required of you; and now who will own what you have prepared?" Now after listening to this, I was immediately confused. Doesn't God require us to be good stewards of what he's given us? Is this not exactly what Joseph did in Egypt when he build large grain storage for the 7 years of famine? Why not "build bigger barns" and open up the bubbly?!

This lead my back to to Matthew 25:14-30 where Jesus tells the parable of the 3 slaves whom were entrusted their master's possessions. The slaves who made returns on their master's money were rewarded, and the slave who "hid the money in the ground" and returned it to his master upon return was chastised - which provides proof that we are supposed to make returns and be profitable with what we've been given.

But then James throws a curve ball at us in James 4:13 "Come now, you who say, 'Today or tomorrow we will go to such and such a city, and spend a year there and engage in business and make a profit.' Yet you do not know what your life will be like tomorrow. You are just a vapor that appears for a little while and then vanishes away. Instead, you ought to say, 'If the Lord wills, we will live and also do this or that.'"

So what gives? Should we try to "make a profit"? Should we engage in business? I think the answer lies in the intent.

Matthew 6:19-21 says "where your treasure is, there your heart will be also" and further I Timothy 6:10 says "For the love of money is the root of all sorts of evil..."

I think the Lord is telling us through his Book that we are required to be good stewards of what He's given us. I think we are required to be savvy "Be shrewd as serpents and innocent as doves". But I think, more importantly, we must understand that all things are God's and the moment we think that we have done anything on our own, we will be humbled. We are stewards, not owners. "If the Lord wills", we will do this and that.

What does all of this have to do with subprime mortgages, Alan Greenspan, and the California housing market? We as Christians need to be very careful not to get caught up in greed or, as the world refers to it "Irrational Exuberance", but rather we should be smart, savvy, and God-honoring with our finances. "If the Lord wills", we will be profitable with what he's given us and we will then be required to use it for His glory.

How did this happen?

How did this happen? playing in my kitchen, chopping vegetables, seasoning steak, drinking wine and listening to Nora Jones. Next thing I know, I'm taking a picture of my dinner. Now, lest you find this to be the most pathetic post of all time and forever place my blog in blog purgatory, please - I promise, this won't happen again. But while I'm here...let's finish.

On the Menu (and quite easy, I might add):
- Australian Free Range Ribeye seasoned with seasoning salt and a tremendous amount of pepper - medium rare.
- Vegetables: Mushrooms, Asparagus, Sweet Potatoes (cut into wedges) and Red Onions - all basted with olive oil and (again) a tremendous amount of pepper and grilled for 15 minutes in foil. On the side is a strawberry-walnut salad. All pared with a 2005 Rhone de Robles red wine from Paso Robles, CA. Yes, I cooked only for myself, unfortunately. Yes, I'm writing about food at 9:45 on a Friday night. Oh well, sometimes, after a long week, being alone with Nora, some rare beef and a fine wine can be just perfect. And tonight is one of those nights.

406 miles, a Tight Hammy, and Snakes; A Pink Fanny Pack Waddles By

This is round two of my lunchtime turkey sandwich, blueberries and cottage cheese blogging. I was think about running - how bizarre it really is...how to some, the idea of running generates flashbacks of high school PE, waddling around a track in short shorts in complete agony, trying not to pass out or get passed by the fat kid. To others (like myself) running is bliss. If you fall into the category of the former, you might want to stop reading our of sheer boredom or haunting memories...but if you fall into the latter, read on because I'm going to post my top 10 runs of all time and I'd love to get some feedback of other's favorite runs.

I've tried to understand what it is about running that is so addictive...and I'm not sure that I've nailed it down yet - but I think it in large part can be summed up in 1) Endorphins, 2) Exertion, and 3) Exploration. The endorphin high that is generated by running hard is quite addicting. Maybe it's just me, but I need to exert myself pretty much every day to keep my mind clear - that's another thing: I do the clearest thinking on my long runs. And 3) - running is a fantastic way to explore the beach, mountains or cities.

With that said, here are my top 10 runs of all time...if you're ever in any of these areas - check out these runs.

1) Madonna Hill - San Louis Obispo, CA
I found this trail by just running out of my hotel and wandering until I found a park, then a trail - I followed the trail across a barren meadow until the trail meandered to the right and climbed Madonna Hill. I ran the ridge line of Madonna Hill for about a mile until the trail descended back down the other side. The rolling rocky terrain and cool ocean breezes made me think this is what Ireland would be like. It was about a 6 mile loop.

2) LaJolla Canyon - Malibu, CA
This is an absolutely fantastic trail. I did this one in the XTerra Scramble Race - 18K. 2-3 miles were on a ridge with sweeping views of the Pacific Ocean. 2-3 miles were in a gorgeous high meadow on the back side of the mountain. Really fantastic.

3) San Francisco, CA
One morning in San Francisco, I waddled out of my hotel near fisherman's wharf before dawn and began running toward the Golden Gate Bridge. As I waddled toward the bridge in the early morning darkness, a full moon appeared to be perched atop one of the columns of the Golden Gate Bridge. To this day, I wish I had a picture of that scene. The out and back was about 7 miles. It was a truly memorable run.

4) Somewhere Near Wooburn, MA
After my first day of work at a property outside of Boston, I threw on my Asics and headed out, not having any idea where I was going. It was a crisp fall day in the 50 degree range. I ran on a small trail around gorgeous brick houses, a medical facility and a school. It was old-school east coast at it's best.

5) Napa Valley Marathon - Napa, CA
This might be a posting of it's own at some point but to summarize: High point - first 17 miles, galloping down a winding road through gorgeous vineyards in Napa. Low point - Being passed by a guy wearing a pink fanny pack at mile 22 as I truly found out what it means to "bonk". Needless to say - this one was 26.2 miles.

6) An unnamed trail near Highlands Ranch, CO
This is a crisp (40s) early morning run in Colorado in early October. I followed a trail not far from my hotel as it wandered through trees and an open field.

7) River Trail - Portland, OR
Runs always seem more serene in the early morning. This one followed the river trail through the early morning fog down the river and across an old black draw bridge that was very eerie to run across.

8) The Puget Sound - Seattle , WA
Not far to the south of pier 67, a dirt trail begins and follows The Sound for, well, I don't know because I never got to the end - but I think it was go on for quite a while.

9) Crystal Cove State Park - Newport Coast, CA (Pictured above)
This is one of my favorite runs of all time. a 10 mile loop that covers beaches, canyons, and ridgelines.

10) Torrey Pines Reserve - La Jolla, CA
The Torrey Pines bluffs provide sweeping views of the Pacific Ocean. Dirt trails provide a soft surface and bomber hills provide all you can handle.

Ok, so I'm guessing no one is reading anymore - but if you are, post a comment and tell me you favorite runs - or just tell me I'm an idiot. Either way.

Waddle on, friend.

A Breath of Humid Air

"Buzz"
"Hello?"
"Mark, it's Ken Barbic."
"Yeah, come on up."
"Click"
We opened the door and headed up the stairway and back in time into the world of Mark Dever.

I have to admit I thought it a little odd that we were going to visit the pastor of a church at 11:53 on a Saturday night...even more, we were going to visit the pastor of a church at 11:53 on a Saturday night unannounced. I didn't really know anything about Mark Dever but I was excited to meet him as several people had told me how lucky I was to be able to visit his church.

As we walked up the back stairway I didn't know that Mark had received his Doctorate of Philosophy from Cambridge University. I didn't know that I was marching up the stairs that John Piper had recently trodden up to sit and debate theology with Mark. I didn't know that Mark was the founder of ministry called 9Marks Ministries and the author of several books.

We reached the top of the stairs and entered Mark's study...A 15 by 30 crow's nest with computers, couches, and four walls lined with books (which I came to find out was only 1/3 of his library). Mark, with a weekend beard and messed up hair sat pecking away at his computer. In the study were 4 other guys, probably between the ages of 25-30. Paul, a recent graduate of Duke, sat on the couch with long southern-boy hair and a Brooks Brothers striped tie half loosed (it was 11:53 on a Saturday night, after all) reading John Owen. Justin, a paralegal for the General Counsel greeted us kindly and began firing all kinds of questions about our jobs, our home church, and what we were doing in the area. Two other fellas sat on the couch reading other theology books they had pulled off the shelves.

Ken, our tour guide as it were was used to this. He himself had spent countless hours in this study reading, talking, and even had the good fortune to be in the study with his jaw on the floor as Mark and John Piper stormed into the study to discuss and debate a recent book. Jeff and myself felt as though we had gone back in time. It was as if we were at some elite Ivy League fraternity. In a sense, we were. But in lieu of girls and alcohol, this fraternity had Owen and Jonathan Edwards.

"Alright" Mark stood up and piped. "It's 12:15 and I have to say goodnight, unless you want to stay and critique tomorrow's sermon." Justin and Paul volunteered to stay and listen to Mark as he preached through the next morning's sermon. We said our goodbyes and filed down the stairs, feeling that we had just experienced something surreal.

The next morning was much the same. A very formal church service filled with ancient hymns, dark suits, and a fella in the choir who (I kid you not) looked exactly like Ferris Bueller. As the old pews creaked, Mark stoically preached for over an hour in the ancient and beautiful old church building, just blocks from the White House. After the service, the congregation of 500 mingled in the sanctuary for 45 minutes - and showed no signs of leaving as we fled to stuff our faces with giant burritos from Chipotle. It was certainly a memorable experience and I would recommend anyone who is in the DC area to visit Capitol Hill Baptist Church.

That was a piece of my recent trip to DC. We also played golf at Augustine Golf Club (pictured above), ate a ridiculous amount of beef at a Brazilian BBQ in the District, drank a fine Pinot Noir from a Santa Barbara winery called Steele (I would highly recommend this Pinot) and smoked tobacco products until 2AM while debating girls, golf, and things pertaining to life and godliness.

I found the people in Northern Virginia to be very kind, outgoing, and somewhat Southern. Although a bit humid, compared to the suffocating materialism of the OC, it was certainly a breath of fresh air.