Jennifer's update

Hey everybody,

Thanks for your patience. I know there have been many of you to connect with me wondering when the next installment was coming. Here it is...and fraught with miracles and waiting...sometimes not-so-patiently.

Well, God made a way for me to stay in San Diego. I was very open to leaving, in fact my room had been packed for a month (out of a conviction that I was transitioning) and the car had been packed for days as of last Thursday. A few weeks ago, there was a woman I met through a mutual gathering place that mentioned she had a studio for rent. I asked if I could come see it. She said, "Absolutely." I loved it at first sight! The home is located in downtown San Diego...old three story Victorian with generations of history saturating the walls and furniture. Gloria, the 81 year old's name, is pure magic--a violinist, a lover of God, a vivacious and intelligent woman...who is currently kicking my butt in Scrabble. I love it. I love her. The garden on the grounds is San Fran style with potted tress and flowers everywhere. It's totally me for any of you who know how much I love old places and especially old Victorian homes and colorful gardens. I rent the studio in back of the house...and there is an old garage full of tools and old, good things in which I have my art studio.

This past Thursday, I almost didn't get the place... I was packed and ready to go. I still had not heard from the Holy Spirit about where to go or what to do, but had heard through many praying for me to "wait." I had no idea if that was a physiological waiting or a spiritual waiting. So, I prayed on Thursday morning around 3 am...and not without some serious tears... "Lord, if you want me to stay in SD, then I am asking that the studio with Gloria will be available. If you want me to leave, then please have the impossible happen and have someone within the past 48 hours rent it." Well, I called, and Gloria was beside herself. "Jennifer, I tried to call you over and over, but it was always busy. (She didn't dial my area code.) I didn't think it was possible, and I told you I'd wait for your decision until Friday, but 12 hours ago a woman came and looked at the studio and wanted it. So, I gave it to her. I'm so sorry." I told her it was ok...and trusted that I was supposed to leave. Then, at 10 pm that same night, she calls again and said, "Jennifer, you'll never believe this...but that woman called back just now and said she DIDN'T want the studio. Do you still want it?" I told her I would be there at 10 am the next morning.

The studio is the most beautiful home I've had in 3 years...in fact it is the only home I've had to myself in that amount of time. I have slept better here than I have in 3 years. Gloria prays, and I can feel that on the property. Jesus knew what I needed. She loves me, and amazingly she calls me her blessing from Jehovah... I've become her muscle, a property manager and her technical wizard (I just set up a home network for her property and tenants, got her internet, and bidding on laptops for her...she still is actively playing violin in the area...she's been self employed for 22 years.) We both are happy, creative and energetic. We have the BEST conversations. She's teaching me Spanish and Italian... She's Italian...married Spanish. Lovely teacher. Delightful person. Sometimes I think I was born in the wrong era... :)

The amazing thing in all of this is that I contacted over 30 different rental opportunities in the past two months...and NO one, NOT ONE called or emailed me back. Gloria was an open door...strangely, she has a million doors in her house... The house has three storeys and is about 5000 sq ft. She hates to have to walk everywhere to get to another room, so almost every room has 3 or 4 doors. There are even more spare doors in her garage...antique doors, shutters, saloon doors, anything you can imagine. It's crazy. She likes collecting them. Hahha! For all of you who had heard from the Holy Spirit about the coming of an open door. She is the lady of doors.

I've been self employed for the past few months. The contracts keep coming in from strange places, but I'm still looking for full time work. I will be designing a web site, writing, designing marketing collateral and managing some of Gloria's properties... We should be able to work out a barter for a while...but a stable income would be nice...so keep praying all of you, my beloved peoples...

Thanks so much for reading. I genuinely appreciate your love, your interest and care.

Come see me. There's a spare bedroom...and the beach is only a ten minute drive over the Coronado bridge...

Tons of love to all.

j