And while my Fiore Abracare skills are up to specs, I am unsure how well they would fare in a MMA competition where the fighting is fierce but you are not allowed to break your opponent or drop them on their heads. So I went looking for an alternative, and decided to use Crazy Monkey Defence, a school I have had my eye on for a long time and really wanted to see if they are as good as their hype.

So last night I signed up to the Crazy Monkey Defence school (CMD) online and have been sampling the boxing teaching on there. I must say that I am impressed so far. I have never been a boxer and although we experimented with some unarmed sparring in our Latvian WSD group it was just a few times other than that, I have no fighting experience from standing up using my hands. Today I met with Mackan and we had our first session. Although I have next to no experience in boxing I could, with the help of the CM1 skills stand my ground and play a good defensive game. Although my punches are ridiculously weak and slow.

I was delighted to see that CMD also had a special Brazilian Jiu jitsu section with some really good videos strengthening my ground game. It was really good to get rolling on the ground and train some BJJ again, I have really missed it (the only caveat with medieval combat training is that there is no ground wrestling. We worked on the four base positions and started on passing the guard. It was a really good workout and I look forward to spending a month coaching a fighter to competition readiness again. It has been way to long!

It is good to do some up close and personal fighting again (not that longswords can´t get up close and personal but, well, there is not much wrestling with longswords, as you do not want to cut your bits off)

Pictures from today will be available on my facebook page.

Be that as it may, here I am writing. Since wrote last I have been to Boston where we had a fabulous SSG gathering and where I graded to Scholaro Maggiore within the SSG Spada di Duo Mani. I have also been to Sweden, twice!! The first time to find an apartment and to sort out some practicalities for our coming move to Malmö. I didn’t find an apartment but did some good networking and groundwork for the move. The second trip was a delightful break for the whole family as we spent midsummer in Alingsås and the Sunday doing our home corps specialling at Hisingskåren in Gothenburg.

After this commissioning preparations began in earnest. On the fourth of July Hanna and I became “Mr Lieutenant Hanna Olterman” as it was clear to all that Hanna was the brightest shining star on the day and the day after when she gave her testimony at our farewell meeting at William Booth College. We had the house full of guests and just before the farewell, Hanna’s and my parents where awarded the Silver Star in a short outdoor ceremony that was somewhat cut short by the incoming rain.

It is surreal to suddenly be Salvation Army Officers after these two years as Cadets. Yet we are and we are “God Willing” moving into a flat in central Malmö to take on the task of planting a new kind of Salvation Army corps in the best city in the world … Watch this space ….

It is not easy to find a place to live and even harder to find day care for the children (especially when you do not know where you will live) and so we need massive prayers mobilised now!

We are supposed to take up our post in Malmö in less than two months from now and by human standards this is quite impossible but as the good book tells us, nothing is impossible with God!

We are also seeking God for vision and guidance in our upcoming endeavour in Malmö, please pray for us and if God gives you anything for us please pass it on.

For our time in Sweden and for the start of our officership we need a stable prayer and accountability network if you want to be a part of this please send me an email or leave a comment here!

Last night we had a great youth meeting in Riga 1 talking about the prophetic life, women in ministry and manure. If you can’t figure out the connection then I guess you should have been there *evilgrin*

This morning we got a letter from William Booth College asking for pictures and a small paragraph about how we feel about going to college forpublication in the salvationist. It hits me again …. weare going to college in september, we are becoming officers!!

As I was in Malmö last weekend I walked the entire city in full uniform (including the hat) and got various different reactions. The most notable reaction was from any and all people older than 60 that smiled and seemed comforted by the presence of a “young” salvationist. Once I reached “Möllan” I met a few immigrants of various nationalities that seemed to be irritaded or disturbed by the uniform (I do not know whether this was due to their muslim faith or the fact that they come from countries where war is a very real thing, and the military is cruel and ruthless, I suspect the latter). At the funeral the uniform simply fit in as formal wear and a fitting tribute to my grandmother. It also seemed that it had a comforting and reassuring effect on the rest of the family. The oddest reaction however was that of my brother. He said:

{{“WOW, what a cool hat, clearly the coolest hat I have ever seen, can I have one to?”}}

After this he wanted me to wear the uniform as we visited with his various friends who also seemed to think that the salvation army uniform was not only ok but “cool” and deserving of respect. This coming from the hipp and in crowd in Malmö, the ones that hold the V.I.P. passes to all the nightclubs and are considered the people to be with if you are anywhere between 16 and 26 years old.

Isn’t it odd that the same group of young people IN the Salvation army are the ones aeguing that the salvation army uniform is outdated and a reason for ridicule. But as you look at other similar uniformed professions they don’t look ridiculous, pilots, air stewardesses etc.

I also found myself wishing we had been in the salvation army uniform as we stopped the assault in kingston as that had been a great witness to all the people who where standing around not daring to interfere with these heinous acts of violence. Having said that, I do get Hannas point, How would I ever have been able to do anything with high heels and a skirt?

While I percieve that the uniform still is a great witnessing tool and the trademark of the Salvation Army, there is a lot to be said about its practicality. And a pair of navy BDU’s with a navy pullover and a beret would promote the military metaphor but offer the practicality needed out inb the streets actually reaching out to the the poorest of the poor. What we would loose was the image of the SA soldier that has been worked in as our trademark for so many generations.

The night started well as we crammed into the sofa in front of the schlager fest on TV. As we started nibbling our schlager chips and schlager drinks (Sprite for me, beer for the rest) it suddenly became interactive TV as the The ARK placed a video conference call to my brother to show of their glamourous looks before strutting their stuff on National TV. Are you nervous? Yes I am very nervous my brother replied as he nervously stuffed more chips into his mouth.

The Ark obviously won the contest as they where supposed to and we did our bit as loyal friends (well most of us friends and some of us brothers to friends, me, if you have to ask) we voted for The Ark and trashed everyone else.

After the crushing victory it was time to tour the town, or rather the towns clubs and pubs. starting out at Zaratustra and then ending up at KB via Inkonst I was paraded through the nightlife of what used to be my town.

It is no longer my town, I used to not be able to walk one block in Malmö without meeting friends, now I made it a whole night out and about without encountering anyone I knew (or anyone my own age, gasp!) I had fun though, I made new friends and danced like it was 2007.

It struck me how empty the whole clubbing concept is, while some people are actually enjoyng the moment most of them seem to be lost in the mists of varying degrees of drunkedness, swaying uncontrollably to thye beat of the non descript pounding techno music. The sadder group however are the once who are not even enjoying the now but chasing after some future moment that might or might not come to pass. Looking for that right girl or right guy, willing to do anything just to be near someone who will acknowledge their existance. Ande when these people are then ignored by the object of their search they plummet into an alcohol induced depression that knows no limits.

It is so sad to see how people get robbed of the joy they are looking for by the very tools they think they need to find it. I wish that we could reclaim the clubs and make them houses where Joy abounds and people truly come to relax laugh and to dance like david danced on the mountain!

Places where life is celebrated and joy will rule.