DuaneFriesen.com

We have had a lot of snow in the last week and a half. This is the first time I have seen so much snow at one time. Here are some of my pictures.

Our lane was drifted closed. If we would not have brought out the tractor we may still be stuck in the house.

Here is the walk to our front door, taken in the middle of the blizzard. The path we shoveled is basically drifted closed.

Graveyard on the farm.

This picture was taken at 12AM (midnight) without any flash. I was amazed at how bright the snow makes things.

The cabin on our farm.

Recently a friend of mine showed me this rap from New Holland. I found it amusing that someone would create a rap on the town I currently live in (or right beside). They were very creative.

A month ago Lucy and I with some close friends went to Sugarcreek, Ohio to hear Ray Vander Laan (www.FollowTheRabbi.com). I mentioned this in a previous post but didn’t post any pictures. Sugarcreek is know as “Little Switzerland”. You can see this in the building designs, to music you hear, to the food you eat. It was really intriguing.

Posing by a Swiss pub we saw on the street.

The Budget is a popular newspaper for the older Mennonites. The younger generation now uses Facebook. We drove right past the headquarters of The Budget and thought we had to take picture.

The Budget

I was happy that some of my family came from Texas to attend the Ray Vander Lann event. We were able to spend part of the time with them.

Lucy and I are now homeowners. We had settlement for a house in Philadelphia yesterday morning. We are excited, but we know it will take a lot of work before we can move it. Will be posting pictures later.

You know you had a busy week when…
…your wife tries to unlock the house door with her car remote unlock.
…you stand by a bathroom sink at an Olive Garden’s rubbing your hands under the faucet and no water is coming. You are ready to try the next automatic faucet when you see that this faucet has knobs (it isn’t automatic).

This last week Lucy and I were in Las Vegas for a business show. We really enjoyed the landscape and temperature of Las Vegas. As I type in my cold Pennsylvania house (the furnace is getting fixed tomorrow) I am wishing for some of the mild temperatures we had last week.

One thing we noticed after coming back to PA is our lack of lights. Everything is Las Vegas has lights!

I got a view of the Grand Canyon from the airplane.

The mountains and sunrise in Las Vegas are great. This was taken through a glass window so some of the quality has been lost.

Here is the booth we had at the show.

Lucy and I. I love her and was so happy she was able to come to Vegas with me.

This picture of the Strip was taken from the airport. The Strip is very stimulating at night with all its lights.

I was amazed at the expensive architecture on the Strip.

We walked through Bellagio to get to the free water and light show. Very luxurious!

Water and light show.

Replica of Paris.

Luxor from the airport.

Inside Luxor. We tried to go up an elevator to overlook the city but security didn’t allow us to.

Inside Luxor.

It is sad the addiction people have to slots. Even airport terminals have to have slots to accommodate passengers as they are waiting for their airplanes.

We had a great weekend (a week ago) sitting under the teaching of Ray Vander Laan as he spoke about the Exodus of the Hebrews. It was inspiring and convicting. I left with a deeper passion for God and his Word.

Please ready Lucy’s post about this trip:
http://lucyfriesen.com/blog/?p=119

Orion and recently went to see the Comcast Center in Center City, Philadelphia. I had never been inside it before, though I had heard about the wall which was a TV screen. Pictures below.

We took the subway to Center City, passing City Hall.

This looking up in the Comcast Center. See the people walking on the beams.

I came here to see this wall. At first glance it might look like a regular wall, but if wait a minute the wall is transformed into a giant screen playing video clips and animations.

It is always great to stop by Love Park with its refreshing fountain.

Lucy and I were at Penn Treaty Park by the Delaware River some time ago.

Lucy and I wearing the 2009 6th Street Church t-shirts.

Ben Franklin Bridge

Old PECO Electric Plant

Flag Pole by the river

We had a great week at Camp Andrews. It was intense and stretching but we could feel the power of the Spirit in us. We were definitely upheld by prayers.
Here are some pictures from the week (click on the picture to enlarge):

Playing in the ga-ga court. Ga-ga is a form of dodge ball. (Wikipedia)

Giant swing

The person who is on the swing is pulled up by his cabin. (See them pulling in the lower left hand of the picture)

We swam everyday. This day we got to do it at night.

We try to get the campers to learn something useful. Here a group of them are learning how to crochet. Some of them enjoyed this so much that they were doing it while they were walking to their different activities.

Jethro is leading the singing in the boys chapel. Lucy and I did two of the chapels.

These assistants did a great job in creating laughter when they came out with their clown suits.