i’m at a starbucks in yucaipa, cali, just down the hill from forest home, a massive christian camp in socal (there’s no wifi, or even cell signal, at the camp). i’m speaking to 600 middle school kids this weekend and next. having a great time with them. i’m doing a series on moses that me and the other two speakers (other weekends), april diaz and andy jack, put together. it was a fun process to e-chat with friends about what we wanted to talk about at this camp, knowing that we would never be at the camp at the same time. it’s the long weekend here, due to the holiday on monday. and i’m here all by myself, freezing my butt off due to the uncommonly cold weather in southern cal. there’s lots of snow and ice and single-digit temperatures at the camp. shoot, i feel like i’m back in the midwest — except, it was WAY warmer in detroit over christmas than it is here now! i even have to wear these little strap-on gripper things on my shoes to keep from falling on my butt.

i’m trying to write. kurt and i have two more books due march 1, and i just started writing last week. i’m getting a good amount done, but i’m also feeling massively distracted (for no apparent reason): hence the drive down the hill to starbucks.

tomorrow i head home, will watch tonite’s episode of 24 with my wife on the DVR (did you follow the math on that?), then drive out to crystal pier for our ys exec team retreat. we’ll be there for the week, and i won’t have wifi. so i don’t know what my blogging will be like. our retreat wraps up friday, just before lunch, and i’ll run home and repack, then pick the kids up from school and bring ‘em back up here to the camp (it will be fun to have them with me next weekend, and they’re each bringing a friend). jeannie gets a weekend at home along, which she is big-time looking forward to.