The Tuscaloosa District Missionaries

Mary's Baptism

January 29, 2012

Mom & Dad!!!

I’m staying in Tuscaloosa again with Elder Ingersoll!!!! I don’t know what to do haha. I’ve never been with a companion more than once and I’ve never been in an area for this long. After this transfer, half of my mission will have been in Tuscaloosa...crazy! So keep sending me mail because it will be at the same place as usual. Only one new thing happened: Elder Ingersoll and I will be the "campus" elders. So we'll do the campus missionary work and work with all the young single adults, spend a lot of time on campus and at the student's apartments and stuff. Plenty of em to talk to :) we'll figure it out, easy. We are gonna have a blast! Elder Hardy and Emmanuel will be moving into another apartment. So just Elder Ingersoll and I back home :) Gonna be good to have my own bathroom and shower again. But it will be different. But yeah, I’ll have been here for Thanksgiving, Christmas, New Year’s, my birthday and Valentine’s Day. It’s crazy! This is pretty much home for me now. And yeah, my bday is in 5 days!!!! Haha! 20 years old baby, no big deal ;) You must be feeling way old!

And yes, I sent Lauren’s package to you because I didn’t know her address. She'll get it eventually though. And don’t worry about what is in it! Be patient and just wait for her to open it. Mary's baptism was b-e-a-utiful. Taylor, a young man who is about to report to the Missionary Training Center, baptized her. We thought it would be cool for him to go on his mission already having baptized an investigator! I still haven’t baptized anyone, but I don’t care. I enjoy teaching the people and seeing them become happy and change their lives. Then Bro. Robbins confirmed her. Thought it would be better than having a missionary (who is going to leave) confirm her. So she has a lot of support from the ward and they are excited to help her continue to grow in the gospel.

I saw the pictures of Connor and Nick this morning when I got on the computer. Looks cute! Living the dream out in California, going to dances and stuff. I miss that! But it will still be there for me when I get home. That movie you saw seems happy....sike! (I know that’s not how you spell it but I like spelling it like that..ok?) And that Polynesian dance thing sounded fun too! You guys are having a blast back there at home without me, shoot! And you’re remodeling my bathroom? What are you going to do to it? That’s exciting. And yeah, Bro Mays got an iPhone and wanted to add me and Jackie on facebook. That’s cool that he did that. He's an awesome guy, and tell Jackie to go on my profile and add him too! His baby is so cute and tiny! Babies are sketchy a lil bit. And I’ve got to come back and visit the south after my mission! Gotta show you and Jackie around and let you see what its like down in the dirty dirty.

Jackie is cutting dads hair again? Man, he must like those free haircuts haha. And then Jackie is coming over to dinner...I am so hungry right now its not even funny. Tri-tip sounds perfect. I haven’t had that since leaving home. Oh my goodness that sounds so delicious.

Windy and warm back in California, huh? Sounds so good. It’s been pretty hot here but last night was pretty cold. I guess some solar flare or something got temperatures up around the world?? That’s just what I heard, I don’t know if it’s true or not. I have not gotten a letter from PJ yet! Where is it? Haha I can’t wait to hear from him. Can’t believe that PJ is already about to go to the Missionary Training Center. Crazy how everyone is going out, but I’m proud that my age group is going big and going on their missions. Gonna be cool when everyone gets home and we can chat it up. And yeah, Elder Ingersoll knows Elder Brown haha. Utah kids all know each other, its weird.

That Clippers game sounds good too. Man, its weird not even thinking about sports or movies or fun haha. I’m so busy that when someone brings up football or something I’m like, oh yeah that’s still going on. It seems like the world stops but it actually doesn’t. Just into different things nowadays. I love it. The ward is doing alright at feeding me. Bro Mays fed us this week. That’s when he took the pictures and stuff. But I’ve just been feeding myself mostly. It’s all good out here in Alabama. I’m glad I’m staying here because we have a lot of people to meet. We met some awesome people this week and I have high hopes for them. And we started teaching Keshia, Mary’s friend again. We started teaching her with Mary in the beginning, but they got into a fight. But she’s back and she came to Mary’s baptism!! She said she can’t wait until she’s baptized, so we should be having another one soon. I hope y’all have a good week and I love you! I'll send some pics of the baptism and stuff.

Love, Elder Chase

January 23, 2012

Madre and Padre!
I had a great week, don’t even worry about that! The ward fed me.....actually they didn’t haha. But I got dinner from a member of the other ward last night so no worries. Interviews with president were great, just asked how I was doing and all that good stuff. Nothing special haha. I don’t remember Aunt Doris at all. I doubt I have seen her in the last 10 years haha. Cool to hear that we are direct descendants of Abraham Clark. Maybe I can use that nowadays to get some attention haha. Maybe someone in Alabama will be obsessed with the Declaration of Independence. Who knows? Sounds like your stake conference thing was way exciting! All I have to do for church is show up, maybe give a talk, and talk to our investigators. Easy peasy lemon squeezy! I don’t have to type anything last minute or stress out. And I got described as "cool like a cucumber" this week by a young single adult dude. He's all “you don’t seem like you ever get stressed out”. But really, I have no reason to haha. I don’t know, I just thought it was random that he said that as I was knocking on a door. So I thought I would share. The mission has changed me for sure. People say I have a strength with talking to people.... I was like you got to be kidding. Back home I was in my own world. But whatevs, I have no idea why I’m saying this, so I’m just gonna stop.
That’s so cool that Eric is on a reservation! I want to chat it up on a reservation. That sounds way different from Tuscaloosa. Yeah...Lewis the wiener dog was a classy fellow and that squirrel was sketchy for sure. Tasted a lot better than it smelled and looked. Wasn’t too shabby. Send me some pics of Nick’s winter formal when you gots a chance. I love that kid. I got the Irvine Oppenlander’s Christmas card this week and I loved it. Got a good letter from Aunt Kris and Nick wrote me a letter that had me lol'ing all over the place haha. Elder Hardy thought I was crazy! But it was good to finally hear from that kid. I’m so glad I’m not forgotten! Its good to know that some people out in the world actually care about me and what I’m up too.
And I have not forgotten Lauren’s birthday … (or Connor’s :) and tell Jackie I have the recorder and I love that thing so good. I’ve recorded a bunch on it already and its embarassing haha. But it’s just good to hear her voice and Zac’s, and see that it’s possible to have some fun without me around. I thought everyone would just be sitting around depressed all day counting down the days till I come home. I guess I’m not that big of a deal...:)
But seriously, we only have like one investigator who is doing well and that is Mary. She’s getting baptized this Saturday at 10 am!!!! Happy birthday Lauren, that’s your present...but yeah, we are so pumped and the ward is too. They only had 3 baptisms all last year and we already have one the first month of this year. So we should be able to get way more than 3 haha. Its good to see how happy Mary is nowadays and see how the gospel makes all her trials and problems easier to handle. It feels good to help people out like that. That’s why I love being a missionary.
I haven’t had any near death experiences lately. Crazy storm last night with some tornados but we were good to go. Just kept getting woken up by all the lightning and rain but it was good. Everyone is safe and sound. I can’t believe that I only have another week and this transfer is over. Doesn’t feel like it’s been 5 weeks with Elder Ingersoll already. Time is going by too fast! I love it and I’m scared at the same time hah. Bitter sweet. Only 3 more transfers till I hit my year mark...crazy!!!!! Doesn’t feel like it, but its true facts. Lauren still hasn’t told me what she wants for her birthday so I’ll just get her random stuff and she'll just have to deal with it. Hope y’all have a good week and I don’t know what else to say. Oh, it was the 176th anniversary of Doctrine & Covenants section 137 this week, the revelation on salvation of the dead and the celestial kingdom! That’s cool and we had a mission-wide conference call about it. Celestial kingdom is good to go.
Haha have a great week, westerners!
Love, Elder Oppenlander

Interviews - January 18, 2012

Mail, Muffins and Juice

Elder Oppenlander

Elders Ingersoll and Oppenlander

Elder Oppenlander and President Holzapfel

Elders Ingersoll, Emmanuel, Hardy, Smitley, Stephens, and Oppenlander getting ready to begin their weekly district meeting in the Northport building on Thursday

Some Pictures

Squirrel!!! hahaha I ate his thigh!

Cutest puppy just roaming around!

Classy Wiener Dog named Lewis!! He had crazy colors and his eyeball is all dead and crooked!

Seven Months

Mom & Dad!

This week has been so slow its not even funny. I have no idea why but it felt like forever. Jackie got to go to Fortune Cookie with you guys... I miss that restaurant so much. I’ve only had one member meal this whole week and that was with the Robbins. She made chicken and rice. But Asian style and it was so good. I had 2 phat servings and I had been fasting that day so it was well received into my stomach. You went to the Mormon Battalion visitor’s center?? I was just looking at that on mormon.org or something this last week and thought it looked exactly like a Disneyland show haha. It looks cool and I want to check it out when I get home. And I think it would be so weird to go on your mission and do a church historical site... It would just be different I don’t even know. But I can’t believe that girl missionary didn’t recognize me from the MTC!! I can’t believe she went in the same day I did. Come on, who wouldn’t recognize this face? :) And you had Mexican food in old town San Diego......come on! I’m going to get so fat when I’m home! All I’m going to do is eat food. I bet Eric and Forrest are not enjoying the weather at all where they are in Wisconsin and Maryland. It’s been so cold/amazing this week. One day it will be 75 and sunny and the next it will be in the 20s. Its crazy!

Some guy at work is getting you a labrador puppy! Get that thing! You’re welcome for that haha. Oh shoot! I have a picture of a classy Weiner dog I ran into this week at this crazy guys house! I'll send it:) and get a dog!!! Haha that story about Jackie and the hat made me smile big time! Jackie can’t handle Lauren’s aggressiveness! She is passive for sure but that’s good! If she was like Lauren, there would be fights all over the place haha. I’m glad y’all are getting along! And Lauren better not punch her! That’s jacked up. .....Mom....the pit bull didn’t even break Elder Ingersoll’s skin so chill out haha. It was just a near death experience. He’s perfectly fine and just had a little bruise. Samson, the pit bull dog, would have killed him though if he got a hold of him. That sucker is buff and mean. But no he doesn’t need a shot or a kiss ;) He’s perfectly happy!

He’s a little sore today though. We had a crazy game of basketball yesterday. 8 missionaries: Elders Emmanuel, Hardy, Smitley, Stephens, Burdette, York, Ingersoll, and me. It was so fun haha. We played for a good 2 hours and I started doing pretty well. I am no bueno at basketball but I did well yesterday. Got all sweaty and it was a good workout. And I wore my "I <3 my girlfriend" shirt to that too haha. Elder Burdette was telling me I need to start wearing that every time I play now so I’ll do better haha. But that’s funny that Jackie and Nicole wore theirs to the dance, showing some love to Chris and me. :) And yes send me my knife and I need stamps too. Running low!

My interview with President Holzapfel is tomorrow at noon so I’m looking forward to that! I can’t believe this is already my 3rd one! Shoot! I’ve been out for 7 months already and it doesn’t feel like it at all. Feels like 7 weeks sometimes and other times it feels like 7 years! The Carey's are related to Pres and Sister Holzapfel????? Haha - you remember Zach Carey? He was my age and we used to hang all the time when he went to church. Man that’s crazy!! I'll have to let him know when I see him tomorrow!

But yeah this week was great! Did I tell you about that pizza place yet? It’s called pizza palace buffet and for 6$ you get all you can eat pizza, good pizza! Like baked potato and sour cream, bacon, bbq chicken, pepperoni, spicy chicken, just a bunch of good pizza and a drink for 6 dollazzzz.. It’s soo good! Had that yesterday after our basketball game and it was so good. After that, we went to Family Home Evening with Mary, our investigator with a baptismal date, and she’s doing great. Just pray for her that she can stop smoking by her baptism and everything will be amazing! We need to find some new people to teach and I think we're going to focus more on the young single adults this week. They all have friends who could learn about the church. Thanks for all the support Momma and Poppa! I hope your week was good and I hope you keep Jackie safe from Lauren!! Scary!! Hahah

I love you! Have an amazing week!

Elder Oppenlander

January 9, 2012

Hey now!

Sounds like California is beautiful as always! This week has been super warm out here in Alabama as well! Like 60's and 70's all week! You don’t even know how jealous I am every time I hear you eat meat off that smoker....I want to try some of it, shoot haha. But that’s awesome that dad is now high priest group leader! We just got a whole new bishopric and auxiliary leaders in the Tuscaloosa ward yesterday. Bishop Wyatt is out after 6 years and Bishop Thompson is in. He's a pretty cool guy and he'll do great as bishop. Bro. Mays is no longer ward mission leader either :( but we'll still see him a ton and the new one is a cool guy too. So I’m excited for all the changes.

Mark and LuAnn came down to go to Disneyland?? That’s so classy! I miss d-land big time. Won’t be at the happiest place on earth for more than two years...man. What a shame. I got a letter from JT and Zac this week, too. It’s awesome. That’s crazy that JT won’t be out of the Missionary Training Center until the end of February, though. Zac will be out way before that. And yeah, Elder Ingersoll wishes he was me :) always trying to tell me how unclassy I am but he knows how it really is haha. We have a great time and I’m enjoying training him. Even though sometimes I feel like I don’t know what in the world I’m supposed to do. But its going well and I’ll just have to keep trusting the Lord to lead me and help me know what I need to do.

You got your hair blow dried by Jackie? Haha is that all she had to do or what? I don’t know if its a girl thing or what, but I feel like to just get your hair dried is kinda weird. But that’s good that you went and she was able to get credits for it. Sounds like she’s doing great!! :) And tell her I got the package and I love it!! I love the tie and the calendar and the letter. It was a good'n and made me smile. Sounds like you had a good time out there in Mission Viejo too! That’s good that you can still hang out with Cathy every once in a while and have a good time. How are the Reynolds doing?? I’m going to for sure write them today and thank them for everything and tell them how I’m doing. I have like 9 people I have to write today, and hopefully I can finish all of those letters haha. But I’ll sure be trying as hard as I can.

Derry didn’t know i was on a mission?? Haha I thought i told his mom like 3 times I was getting ready to go. But that’s good that he knows now haha. For us over here in bama, this week was pretty slow. No dinners....Elder Ingersoll has been slacking lately haha. And it was just a hard one. My bike tire and inner tube need to be replaced. I feel like I own a trashy car that I have to buy a part for every week. No joke, that thing is sucking money out of me lately. So I’ll have to buy another tire today. So yesterday and the day before we were walking everywhere. And it was so tiring especially since yesterday we were fasting haha. Its all good though, I love it :)

Elder Ingersoll got bit by a fat pit bull!! Haha it was awesome! We were walking up to this investigator’s house at night and all of a sudden I see this huge pit bull peek around the corner and start running for me. I book it out of there so fast its ridiculous!! The dog is about to eat Elder Ingersoll when its leash snaps it back! Near death experience number 1. Then we teach the guy and as we walk out the guy says, “I’ll walk you out so the dog doesn’t break the chain and get you like he broke the chain yesterday”. So he starts petting the dog and Elder Ingersoll goes over to pet it too. I’m like 50 feet back because I’ve learned my lesson with pit bulls haha. And the dog is acting all sketchy and Elder Ingersoll doesn’t see it. And so he goes in to pet it and the dog bites his arm hahaha. It was just a lil bite but it still hurt, I’m sure. So that was exciting for sure. :) That’s about it out here. I don’t know anything else that happened. There was a Church Education System fireside last night. It was pretty good. And today I’m going to an Indian food buffet. I’m so scared! Gonna give me diarrhea, or however you spell it, so good! But I’ll take a hit for the team. Bro. Mays wants to take us out. Then Elder Ingersoll and I are going to the thrift store to buy some wardrobe for our fashion shoot next Monday haha. The Mulders are going to take pictures of us and then we are going to Wal-Mart to print them out and frame them all classy-like. Gotta make some memories of this companionship. So look forward to seeing those. :)

Love you!

Elder Oppenlander

Happy New Year!

Hey!

Happy 2012!! Doesn’t even feel like it though because all I did New Years Eve was sleep all night haha. Its super weird being a missionary and not doing the normal teenager thing. But its alright, I would rather sleep than stay up anyways. I’m so tired all the time. And especially this week...goodness gracious it’s been hot, then freezing and then I biked the most I think I ever have. So my body has been taking a fat hit this week. Elder Emmanuel and I went on exchanges and we biked 8 miles out to some less-active person’s house, then biked 15 miles south to visit a member and plan on how she wants us to teach her boyfriend. That 15 miler took an hour and 40 minutes of strait biking. It was crazy! Biked on highways and up huge hills. I was so tired it wasn’t even funny. Luckily, we got a ride back home after that haha.

That’s crazy that I’ve been out more than 200 days! Doesn’t feel a day over 190! And I’m glad you enjoyed the pictures, those peppers killed me and they earned some respect from me. Lil red ones are stronger than they look. What kind of dogs does Paige have? 2 bulldogs or what? And you’re telling me you can’t even get one? Lame. Yeah, I got letters from JT and Zac this week and it sounds like they’re both doing well. JT is saying "mate" and stuff and he sounds goober'y haha. But the mission changes people so I’ll just accept his use of words. And Zac finally goes in to the Missionary Training Center tomorrow!! About time! I’m pumped for him. Its gonna be great! He just has to remember to make it fun and it will be fun. And obviously Auburn beat Virginia ;) haha even though Auburn isn’t in our mission boundaries. I'll still rep it.

Dad got his hurr (southern for hair) cut? That’s awesome! Sounds like Jackie is getting better and better. Its crazy to think that she is about to be on her own, cutting hair and stuff. Big girl, shoot! I feel way behind everyone else in the world but its all good. We semi retired the marshmallow guns too. Those things get marshmallows all over the place and I’m tired of cleaning the house every 5 minutes haha. So I don’t even use mine anymore. I might bust it out sometime this week though and make Eder Ingersoll clean it up haha. No, I wouldn’t do that...maybe. And I have not brought Bro. Mulder the pictures yet. I haven’t been over to his house this week. One day I will! And I got 4 pairs of pants. So now I have 5 that fit and 2 that flood. I’m just curious to see how they will hold up in the summer. And no, you didn't tell me that all these people were dying!! Haha man gmas family is reaching that age I guess haha. Gma isn’t allowed to die while I’m gone, so I’m not worried about her. She still has 30 years plus to roll around and walk Abby. :)

Should be fun to go to lunch with Cathy today! I hope you have a good time and drive safe! You gave our old couch away! Man, I have a lot of memories on that bugger. Sad to see her go. Rachel is home until April?????? That’s like 4 months haha? That would be horrible to have to wait that long to go back to school. Shoot. get ‘er done! And I'll deff write Gma O and B and write Sister Reynolds. Tell them sorry for not writing them this last week but I’ve been way busy and our preparation day is an hour shorter because the library isn’t open for emails. That’s why I’m doing it now. Sorry!!!

But yeah, Elder Ingersoll and I are having a great time and teaching some awesome people! I wrote his parents yesterday to kind of let them know who their son is with and tell him how cute and awesome he is. And Elder Ingersoll wrote you too, so look for that. He’s a funny kid ... most of the time. We had an awesome training this week in Birmingham and I think I got a new favorite bible scripture: 1st Corinthians 15:9-10. Its way classy, look it up and tell me what you think :) Paul is the man. It relates to how I feel as a missionary and inspires me to work "more abundantly" aka, harder every day! I’m gonna try to do that every day so I can be the best missionary I can be for the people out here in Alabama. I love it and them. Its way fun haha.

Oh, pretty funny story! When I was on exchanges with Elder Emmanuel we went to see an investigator named Robert. He wasn’t home but his wife was home with 2 of her friends. Her friends were kind of drunk and just being dumb. Telling us how dumb we are and stuff, and telling how their church is right. We were just like ok....? Haha and we didn’t argue or anything, just saw what we could do to help Robert’s wife out and then we left. And yesterday Elder Ingersoll and I went over to Robert’s and he said "I need to apologize for my ignorant neighbors" and we were all oh no its fine don’t worry about it. But then he said "no, it was very rude of her to harrass my missionary friends in my house, when I found out I went down there and let her see the hood of me" haha he was just telling us how he backed us up and it felt good to know that we’ve helped him out and he respects us and what we're doing. It’s always cool to me that you make friends by just being yourself and caring about them. Now I got me a friend who will yell at bashers for me :) haha it was a good day! That’s about all the excitement I had for this week. If I think of anything else I’ll email you in like 5 minutes. I still have 20 minutes so respond quick if you can!!

Love you tons!

Elder Oppenlander