And oh yeah, here's a link to my friend's site, African Banter (even though they're not in Africa anymore!) I've been reading their archives, since they were blogging back when I knew them in my beloved Eland...
He's a much more thoughtful writer than I am, so I won't be offended if ya'll start reading his blog instead of mine :(
Monday, April 30, 2007
Pressure's On
Oh man, I just read my friend's blog and he linked my blog to his. Now I'm feeling an awful lot of pressure to write about something a little less mundane than, well, the fried chicken I ate for dinner.
And yet, living in this city, somehow, I feel I have to celebrate the little things in life, like a good piece of fried chicken, simply because there is really very little here to make me feel like a "normal" person. As I was driving home from meeting with someone today to talk about some literacy programs that he has going, I was looking around with my "Canadian" eyes on. I saw burned out matatus, broken down trucks, heaps of burning trash (all on the same street), and thought to myself that this really isn't normal. And yet, for me, now, it really HAS become completely normal in just a few short months. I'm a little frightened already what's going to happen to me when I actually get somewhere as developed as, say, Nairobi again!
So, well, I wish I could say there were some deep thoughts going on in this noggin... really, it's all about the chicken tonight.
Maybe I'll have to start to be slightly more thoughtful in my blogging. And yet, it's a family tradition to write about what we eat while we're away.
And yet, living in this city, somehow, I feel I have to celebrate the little things in life, like a good piece of fried chicken, simply because there is really very little here to make me feel like a "normal" person. As I was driving home from meeting with someone today to talk about some literacy programs that he has going, I was looking around with my "Canadian" eyes on. I saw burned out matatus, broken down trucks, heaps of burning trash (all on the same street), and thought to myself that this really isn't normal. And yet, for me, now, it really HAS become completely normal in just a few short months. I'm a little frightened already what's going to happen to me when I actually get somewhere as developed as, say, Nairobi again!
So, well, I wish I could say there were some deep thoughts going on in this noggin... really, it's all about the chicken tonight.
Maybe I'll have to start to be slightly more thoughtful in my blogging. And yet, it's a family tradition to write about what we eat while we're away.
Chicken
Tonight, my kitten and I feasted! My cat got spoiled last week with the WAs here who ate meat and fish quite often (at least, compared to the frequency that we normally eat meat and fish). And now he's refusing to eat his normal fare of dried fish and bread.
And I, too, have been a bit spoiled, and was really feeling the need to eat some meat tonight. So off we went to the local restaurant which is quickly becoming one of my favorite places to eat. Everytime we go there, it's a bit of negotiation as to what they actually have to eat. There are a few different kinds of meat on the menu, and there is normally some kind of combination of fish, chicken or beef, prepared in a variety of ways. Each meat dish comes with rice, bread and a few raw veggies. Tonight, we were lucky enough to have fried chicken! Wow. I even got the white meat section of the chicken! It was just like eating at KFC again. It was really good... tender, with a nice crispy batter. Wow. Truly worth the $5 that we paid for it!
Our friend who was with us had a fried fish - they give you the entire fish, head, fins and all - so I took home the head and the scraps for my little kitty. Boy, was he a happy little cat going after that head. He's even learned how to hold the head with a paw while he gnaws out the insides of the head. I guess all that lizard hunting is teaching him a few things!
Oh yeah, I DID get some more work done today! I escorted Grace out to the building site where we have some Kenyans building a fence around a plot of land that we've got. We tried to get local folks to help them out... but they just wouldn't work! There was almost a riot out there the other day because most of the work crew showed up drunk. It's not easy to find people to work here. People expect to get paid a crazy amount of money, and then they don't show up, or show up completely drunk... it makes it hard to get anything done around here. In fact, people even expect to get paid for their time when they come out to a training session or something! This country needs a lot of prayer for people's attitudes to change if they're going to make any progress around here. Richard keeps telling them all that they're robbing each other...
Anyways, gotta go post before the generator turns off... as usual.
And I, too, have been a bit spoiled, and was really feeling the need to eat some meat tonight. So off we went to the local restaurant which is quickly becoming one of my favorite places to eat. Everytime we go there, it's a bit of negotiation as to what they actually have to eat. There are a few different kinds of meat on the menu, and there is normally some kind of combination of fish, chicken or beef, prepared in a variety of ways. Each meat dish comes with rice, bread and a few raw veggies. Tonight, we were lucky enough to have fried chicken! Wow. I even got the white meat section of the chicken! It was just like eating at KFC again. It was really good... tender, with a nice crispy batter. Wow. Truly worth the $5 that we paid for it!
Our friend who was with us had a fried fish - they give you the entire fish, head, fins and all - so I took home the head and the scraps for my little kitty. Boy, was he a happy little cat going after that head. He's even learned how to hold the head with a paw while he gnaws out the insides of the head. I guess all that lizard hunting is teaching him a few things!
Oh yeah, I DID get some more work done today! I escorted Grace out to the building site where we have some Kenyans building a fence around a plot of land that we've got. We tried to get local folks to help them out... but they just wouldn't work! There was almost a riot out there the other day because most of the work crew showed up drunk. It's not easy to find people to work here. People expect to get paid a crazy amount of money, and then they don't show up, or show up completely drunk... it makes it hard to get anything done around here. In fact, people even expect to get paid for their time when they come out to a training session or something! This country needs a lot of prayer for people's attitudes to change if they're going to make any progress around here. Richard keeps telling them all that they're robbing each other...
Anyways, gotta go post before the generator turns off... as usual.
Saturday, April 28, 2007
The day in photos
I only have a few minutes, as usual, before the generator goes out.
But here's a sample of my day, thus far.
This morning was the closing ceremony for our teacher training workshop. Somehow, I got "elected" to be named the "Course Director", which meant that I had to make a speech and hand out certificates. My speech was translated into a local language by our dear friend, the one who speaks in details. So every sentence that I said in English turned into 5 or 10 in Dinka! Anyways, it was a good time. I also wowed them all in class by showing them how to make a book out of a single piece of paper... wow... Canadian magic.
Then Jackie and I shopped in the market. My purchase was a nice piece of fabric. I know, I have a fabric complusion...
Richard modelled how to wear it for me once he came home.
Needless to say, we had a good laugh.
Friday, April 27, 2007
Close Quarters
Yup, we live in close quarters around here, even when our house isn't full of Americans. Grace just went storming by my office desk on her way to the supply closet to get some soap for her shower... wearing nothing but a towel. But she's quite a small person, wearing quite a large towel, so it's ok. It's much better than my little trip outside of the shower the other day - imagine a quite large person wrapped in nothing but a rather small towel, digging through a plastic bag for a clean pair of knickers (um, that's undies for us non-brits). Not a pretty picture for poor Grace, who just happened to be in the wrong place at the wrong time!
If you read Grace's blog, you'll also read of her quick trip to the bathroom the other day. Thankfully she shoved me out of the way before actually puking on me.
Then there's our Smallville tradition. Because my computer screen is so small, we, um, well, we scootch our beds together, making one great big bed with the computer in the middle so we can both stretch out and see the screen at the same time. Don't worry, we DO move our beds back apart before we sleep, and we sleep under our own mosquito nets. But even at that, Grace is still within reach of my bed!
Even though I don't share a room with Jackie, you can tell that we live in close quarters, as well. Today, as we were chatting with Richard, we both said the exact same thing at the same time. And most of the time I say words like, "Flask" and "tomato" with a British accent now. I even go "wee" in the "loo" and act like a "winger" about it. And then, to top it all off, this morning, we both stepped out of our bedrooms at the exact same time, both clad in green sleeveless dresses. Really, it was a little scary! But I couldn't ask for a better person to clone than Jackie :)
And speaking of close quarters, there's a little girl black cat outside at the moment, and Zane (my little boy black cat) is trying to make friends with her through the screen. If she hangs around all night, this could be a very noisy evening!
My towel clad Montanan is about ready for her Smallville tonight. Thankfully, she's smelling a little nicer than she did this afternoon when she came home from the dump. Man, I have never smelled her worse than she did this afternoon... and of course, she had to stand right between me and my fan. Phewie. Funny how most of the time, our sweat doesn't smell here - normally, we can sweat and sweat and sweat the whole day long and not stink at all. But that Grace today... anyways, enough about poor Grace and her body odour :D I'm off to watch Smallville. Oh wait, Grace just asked me to help her choose which undies to wear... really, talk about close quarters... sheesh, this is really getting frightening!
If you read Grace's blog, you'll also read of her quick trip to the bathroom the other day. Thankfully she shoved me out of the way before actually puking on me.
Then there's our Smallville tradition. Because my computer screen is so small, we, um, well, we scootch our beds together, making one great big bed with the computer in the middle so we can both stretch out and see the screen at the same time. Don't worry, we DO move our beds back apart before we sleep, and we sleep under our own mosquito nets. But even at that, Grace is still within reach of my bed!
Even though I don't share a room with Jackie, you can tell that we live in close quarters, as well. Today, as we were chatting with Richard, we both said the exact same thing at the same time. And most of the time I say words like, "Flask" and "tomato" with a British accent now. I even go "wee" in the "loo" and act like a "winger" about it. And then, to top it all off, this morning, we both stepped out of our bedrooms at the exact same time, both clad in green sleeveless dresses. Really, it was a little scary! But I couldn't ask for a better person to clone than Jackie :)
And speaking of close quarters, there's a little girl black cat outside at the moment, and Zane (my little boy black cat) is trying to make friends with her through the screen. If she hangs around all night, this could be a very noisy evening!
My towel clad Montanan is about ready for her Smallville tonight. Thankfully, she's smelling a little nicer than she did this afternoon when she came home from the dump. Man, I have never smelled her worse than she did this afternoon... and of course, she had to stand right between me and my fan. Phewie. Funny how most of the time, our sweat doesn't smell here - normally, we can sweat and sweat and sweat the whole day long and not stink at all. But that Grace today... anyways, enough about poor Grace and her body odour :D I'm off to watch Smallville. Oh wait, Grace just asked me to help her choose which undies to wear... really, talk about close quarters... sheesh, this is really getting frightening!
Thursday, April 26, 2007
Random Happenings
The requests for our language learning book continue to pour in. But I sold the first one for real to our doctor neighbors. I even have a real reciept book. I always liked filling in forms when I was a kid, and now all those lessons learned in marketing back at the school store in Grade 5 and 6 is coming in handy :)
I'm just getting ready to roll myself to my bed, after stuffing my belly with injera and shiro yet again tonight. We were celebrating the departure of our Americans, our place on the UN map, and our official registration as an NGO in this part of the country! So many things to celebrate, so little time...
This morning started off with tourist trip to a tomb of a local fallen leader. That was quite the adventure. But Richard was with us, so no one got arrested or married off to the guards. Then we went off to the airport to bring them all away. When we got home from the airport, I danced a little jig in our hallway, since there were no people to be seen. Actually, the house feels a little deserted at the moment. It sure is nice to have brand new sinks, towel racks and fresh paint! Wow. Amazing. gotta post before I lose the generator!
I'm just getting ready to roll myself to my bed, after stuffing my belly with injera and shiro yet again tonight. We were celebrating the departure of our Americans, our place on the UN map, and our official registration as an NGO in this part of the country! So many things to celebrate, so little time...
This morning started off with tourist trip to a tomb of a local fallen leader. That was quite the adventure. But Richard was with us, so no one got arrested or married off to the guards. Then we went off to the airport to bring them all away. When we got home from the airport, I danced a little jig in our hallway, since there were no people to be seen. Actually, the house feels a little deserted at the moment. It sure is nice to have brand new sinks, towel racks and fresh paint! Wow. Amazing. gotta post before I lose the generator!
Wednesday, April 25, 2007
Marketing
I also did a different sort of marketing adventure today. I posted an advert online about some books that we've published to learn the local language. Already, I've had three people email me and ask me about coming to buy them! Amazing. I guess I could get a job as a copy writer for an ad agency. Or maybe people are just really desperate for resources to learn the local language. Anyways, it's all in a days' work for a literacy/bilingual education specialist-guesthouse manager-IT support-board hauler-water filler upper-tour guide-driver-logistics manager.
An explaination
I found out today why the two gas stations down-town sell their gas for so much cheaper than the rest of the stations in town. It's because they bring the diesel and petrol straight down from the North, rather than having it come up from Uganda. For some reason, few people seem to realize that it's WAY cheaper at these two stations in town, since there are very few people every buying their fuel there. It saved us 10% ($20 USD) when we went to fill up our barrel of diesel today! So thanks, Dad, your hard work is saving me money now :)
I went off to the market today to try to get hair braids with one of the American girls here. Unfortunately, it didn't work out. But I'm sort of glad it didn't, since I don't think she quite knew what she was getting into! It's a full day's labor to get the hair braided, and the woman in the shop we were at had never done white girls' hair, so it could have been a scary affair. Anyways, we had a nice walk through the market!
There's always something new to discover in that place, and it's a lot of fun to just wander and see what you can see. I almost traded one of the American girls in marriage for a kitenga (a colorful piece of cloth), but their dad probably would have wanted a few more kitengas for one of them... I wouldn't have been able to barter hard enough :) It's kind of fun going to the market with a couple of younger girls... but then again, it's starting to make me feel sort of old, as the men are starting to ask me if they can have the others, and not ME! I was, however, wearing my baseball cap and sunglasses this afternoon in the market. Vicky burst out laughing when she saw me in the baseball cap going out the door. So I guess it's probably not the most attractive thing to wear if you want to grab the men's atteention in the market. But really, it seems to work for me.
I didn't get a chance to have a shower today, so I'm feeling rather sticky and too dirty to climb into bed. I'd better go and do something about that before the generator turns off.
I went off to the market today to try to get hair braids with one of the American girls here. Unfortunately, it didn't work out. But I'm sort of glad it didn't, since I don't think she quite knew what she was getting into! It's a full day's labor to get the hair braided, and the woman in the shop we were at had never done white girls' hair, so it could have been a scary affair. Anyways, we had a nice walk through the market!
There's always something new to discover in that place, and it's a lot of fun to just wander and see what you can see. I almost traded one of the American girls in marriage for a kitenga (a colorful piece of cloth), but their dad probably would have wanted a few more kitengas for one of them... I wouldn't have been able to barter hard enough :) It's kind of fun going to the market with a couple of younger girls... but then again, it's starting to make me feel sort of old, as the men are starting to ask me if they can have the others, and not ME! I was, however, wearing my baseball cap and sunglasses this afternoon in the market. Vicky burst out laughing when she saw me in the baseball cap going out the door. So I guess it's probably not the most attractive thing to wear if you want to grab the men's atteention in the market. But really, it seems to work for me.
I didn't get a chance to have a shower today, so I'm feeling rather sticky and too dirty to climb into bed. I'd better go and do something about that before the generator turns off.
Tuesday, April 24, 2007
A good excuse
So today as I went to meet with our Dinka team to start marking the little tests that we gave our students in the teacher training course on Saturday, I was met with an excuse of why I couldn't get any help in doing the marking. Akol told me, "My brain has been typhoidized." That's not an excuse you'd hear every day at a course back home!
I really thought that Africa was going to win today - the first thing that I had to deal with this morning was a broken down network connection box for the office. So in my little dehydrated mind, that meant a full day again of climbing up and down ladders and diagnosing the problem. But as it turned out, it was pretty simple to change, and Jackie graciously came along and helped and gave me some moral support through it all! The second thing to go kaput this morning was the satellite phone. Note to self - sat phones are not at all worth the $1000 that you need to buy one! I've made the silly thing work once. That's it.
And then the third thing to go kaput was the scanner. I spent over an hour scanning something that should have taken 10 minutes. That's just the way things go. As Jackie put it, "Juba breaks things." So far, everything except the Sat phone is back going again, so perhaps I'm winning, instead of Africa today!
One of the other highlights of the day was helping Grace haul boards again, and then being told by the girl who helps in the house that I'm lazy! Me and Grace aren't quite sure what that's all about! I have a feeling she's been seeing everyone else painting and hauling rocks and boards and digging ditches all week, and I've just been doing my computer work and going back and forth to meetings... so I'm sure she doesn't quite realize how much work I've actually been doing all week!
Oh yeah, I also learned a new word today. Winger (that's with a j sound for the g, so it's more like "winjer"), which means, "complainer". Jackie said today that she feels like a winger, so we're going to start making up some good old Winger songs together.
Now I've gotta go do a photo shoot for Grace the cook, who's here from Uganda. Those Ugandans LOVE photos, let me tell you!
I really thought that Africa was going to win today - the first thing that I had to deal with this morning was a broken down network connection box for the office. So in my little dehydrated mind, that meant a full day again of climbing up and down ladders and diagnosing the problem. But as it turned out, it was pretty simple to change, and Jackie graciously came along and helped and gave me some moral support through it all! The second thing to go kaput this morning was the satellite phone. Note to self - sat phones are not at all worth the $1000 that you need to buy one! I've made the silly thing work once. That's it.
And then the third thing to go kaput was the scanner. I spent over an hour scanning something that should have taken 10 minutes. That's just the way things go. As Jackie put it, "Juba breaks things." So far, everything except the Sat phone is back going again, so perhaps I'm winning, instead of Africa today!
One of the other highlights of the day was helping Grace haul boards again, and then being told by the girl who helps in the house that I'm lazy! Me and Grace aren't quite sure what that's all about! I have a feeling she's been seeing everyone else painting and hauling rocks and boards and digging ditches all week, and I've just been doing my computer work and going back and forth to meetings... so I'm sure she doesn't quite realize how much work I've actually been doing all week!
Oh yeah, I also learned a new word today. Winger (that's with a j sound for the g, so it's more like "winjer"), which means, "complainer". Jackie said today that she feels like a winger, so we're going to start making up some good old Winger songs together.
Now I've gotta go do a photo shoot for Grace the cook, who's here from Uganda. Those Ugandans LOVE photos, let me tell you!
Monday, April 23, 2007
Another exciting day around here
Man, I'm absolutely pooped. It was hot and humid today, and there was quite a lot of excitement around here!
First, I had to move everything out of my room and into the verandah, as my room was next on the list to get painted. So I started the day with all of my worldly belongings in this country outside.
Then, one of friends was leaving today, so off we went to the airport, which just happened to be the same place that the President of Eritrea was landing at just about the same time that we were arriving to drop off our friend. That was a little bit exciting... unfortunately, I didn't get a glimpse of him, and we decided to leave before he actually made his appearance, just so we wouldn't get caught up in the crowds of security guards! Funnily enough, there weren't any members of the Eritrean community there to welcome him to our fair city. Hmmm.... There were, however, a merry band of dancers, all decked out in their feathers, skirts and bras. Yes, that's right, their bras. It was quite the sight to see the women jumping around in their underwear to welcome the President to the city!
Jackie and I did some errands on the way home, and then as we were on the main street coming back to our compound (but still on the other side of the city), the truck just stopped... and wouldn't start again! Oops. So out I jump, and started to look like I was about to start pushing. Suddenly, a bunch of men showed up from out of the tea shops etc., and helped us push off the road. As soon as we were off the road, they all suddenly disappeared! And Jackie and I were left to wonder what to do next.
I tried calling on our radio. No luck, which isn't surprising, since the base set is in a locked shipping container. I tried my cell phone. No luck, which isn't surprising, since I have yet to be successful at getting through on the network during the day! So we put up the hood and tried to pretend that we knew what were looking at, and hoping that we were looking enough like damsels in distress for someone to come along and rescue us!
As it turns out, a Kenyan fellow who's come to plant churches had been waiting for a matatu, and he decided to come and help us out instead! All it took was a little tightening of the battery connection, and we were back on the road! Phew.
And now i really have to sleep, because all of that happened before 10:30am today! I won't even get into the REST of the day...
First, I had to move everything out of my room and into the verandah, as my room was next on the list to get painted. So I started the day with all of my worldly belongings in this country outside.
Then, one of friends was leaving today, so off we went to the airport, which just happened to be the same place that the President of Eritrea was landing at just about the same time that we were arriving to drop off our friend. That was a little bit exciting... unfortunately, I didn't get a glimpse of him, and we decided to leave before he actually made his appearance, just so we wouldn't get caught up in the crowds of security guards! Funnily enough, there weren't any members of the Eritrean community there to welcome him to our fair city. Hmmm.... There were, however, a merry band of dancers, all decked out in their feathers, skirts and bras. Yes, that's right, their bras. It was quite the sight to see the women jumping around in their underwear to welcome the President to the city!
Jackie and I did some errands on the way home, and then as we were on the main street coming back to our compound (but still on the other side of the city), the truck just stopped... and wouldn't start again! Oops. So out I jump, and started to look like I was about to start pushing. Suddenly, a bunch of men showed up from out of the tea shops etc., and helped us push off the road. As soon as we were off the road, they all suddenly disappeared! And Jackie and I were left to wonder what to do next.
I tried calling on our radio. No luck, which isn't surprising, since the base set is in a locked shipping container. I tried my cell phone. No luck, which isn't surprising, since I have yet to be successful at getting through on the network during the day! So we put up the hood and tried to pretend that we knew what were looking at, and hoping that we were looking enough like damsels in distress for someone to come along and rescue us!
As it turns out, a Kenyan fellow who's come to plant churches had been waiting for a matatu, and he decided to come and help us out instead! All it took was a little tightening of the battery connection, and we were back on the road! Phew.
And now i really have to sleep, because all of that happened before 10:30am today! I won't even get into the REST of the day...
Sunday, April 22, 2007
Convicted
So I listened to some good old John Piper and I read "Blue Like Jazz" and I listened to someone speak at our Fellowship group tonight... and I got quite convicted that I've had a pretty bad attitude about our Americans this week. So tomorrow begins another day!
And I'm hoping to see the President of Eritrea at the airport tomorrow! He's coming in for meetings and one of our visitors is leaving at just about the same time... I hope to catch a glimpse of him. Speaking of which, I had a lovely visit with an Eritrean woman today! I met her in a shop last week - for some reason, she greeted me in Tigrinya in the shop, and so I went to have a visit at their hotel/restaurant this afternoon with Grace. I found out they have a cappucino machine. Wow. Next time, I'm getting a real machiato. I can hardly wait. But this woman, her English is very limited, and so is my Tigrinya and my Arabic, so we just sort of sat together and passed the time of day while she fed us injera and zigni. I was able to say the right things in relation to the food, and she seemed pleased that I could do that much. It sure was nice to sit on the banks of the Nile and eat injera!
And speaking of convictions, our merry band of Americans almost got themselves arrested today for taking photos of the bridge! Oops. I had forgotten to warn them about not taking pictures of bridges - it's just second nature to me to not take photos of bridges and military installments, that I forgot that it's a noteworthy point for visitors. Somehow, they got out of it, and made it home safe and sound. Just another adventure around here.
And I'm hoping to see the President of Eritrea at the airport tomorrow! He's coming in for meetings and one of our visitors is leaving at just about the same time... I hope to catch a glimpse of him. Speaking of which, I had a lovely visit with an Eritrean woman today! I met her in a shop last week - for some reason, she greeted me in Tigrinya in the shop, and so I went to have a visit at their hotel/restaurant this afternoon with Grace. I found out they have a cappucino machine. Wow. Next time, I'm getting a real machiato. I can hardly wait. But this woman, her English is very limited, and so is my Tigrinya and my Arabic, so we just sort of sat together and passed the time of day while she fed us injera and zigni. I was able to say the right things in relation to the food, and she seemed pleased that I could do that much. It sure was nice to sit on the banks of the Nile and eat injera!
And speaking of convictions, our merry band of Americans almost got themselves arrested today for taking photos of the bridge! Oops. I had forgotten to warn them about not taking pictures of bridges - it's just second nature to me to not take photos of bridges and military installments, that I forgot that it's a noteworthy point for visitors. Somehow, they got out of it, and made it home safe and sound. Just another adventure around here.
Still surviving!
It's Sunday morning, and I'm just doing a quick blog while Grace gets some mangos cleaned up for us. We have the generator running because there are some Kenyans here who are doing some welding on a fence that's going to go up on our new property this week... so we get some internet time this morning! As soon as Grace comes with the mangos, though, we're going to sit and listen to some John Piper. He's a much better preacher than the ones that we normally hear at the local church here! All of our Americans have gone off to the ECS church, so all of us "regulars" are sitting around having a quiet morning...
I had a nice sleep in this morning, too, since Grace and I stayed up too late watching yet another episode of Smallville. We're a tad bit obsessed, and are now on the third episode of season 2. We also keep track online of what's happening in season 6, airing these days back at home. Our internet here isn't quite fast enough to actually watch the new episodes online :( So we content ourselves by reading the online episode summaries every week. I'm still a little puzzled about what happened to Lana's baby, though...
And I digress... time for John Piper to direct my thoughts to something slightly more important and real than Smallville!
I had a nice sleep in this morning, too, since Grace and I stayed up too late watching yet another episode of Smallville. We're a tad bit obsessed, and are now on the third episode of season 2. We also keep track online of what's happening in season 6, airing these days back at home. Our internet here isn't quite fast enough to actually watch the new episodes online :( So we content ourselves by reading the online episode summaries every week. I'm still a little puzzled about what happened to Lana's baby, though...
And I digress... time for John Piper to direct my thoughts to something slightly more important and real than Smallville!
Friday, April 20, 2007
A picture speaks a 1000 words...
And man, there could be way more than a thousand words to speak about this past week!
But I'll just post a few photos to show some of the highlights of the past few days:
I left my house full of Americans and fled to the dump with the neighbors, who bring away all of the garbage from our compound each week. I thought it was high time to get out of town. About 30 minutes' drive out of the city, there is a small dirt track off the main road (which itself is a larger dirt track!). You drive in there and drive through the smoke from the burning garbage, amidst all the plastic bottles and plastic bags. I swear, you could build an entire city out of all of the plastic bottles that are thrown away in this city!
It's a bit of a mecca for the maribu storks (a kind of vulture). The sad part is, there are several women and children who also come there to pick through the garbage and see if they can find any bits of anything good, including bits of anything edible. There are a lot of fires burning, and Grace's dream job would be to live there all day and just burn garbage!
We've also had alot of fun with some treasures that we found in the old storage building. I think we should mount these guys up on the front of the trucks and cruise around through town... Everyone needs a 25 year old creature skull hanging from the front of their pick up, don't they?
And of course, here's one of the most flattering photos of Grace that we've ever taken, so it's worth blogging:
And of course, we've been running around town, doing the usual errands. Yesterday I took a few photos out of the truck window as we drove through the market. This is the best one that I got, which is very typical of the market stalls that are springing up closer and closer to our compound all the time.
A few of the other highlights of the week include eating termites, bought from the market here, getting an anatomy lesson, which included the Rift Valley, from Richard, answering questions about air conditioning, electricity and all sorts of interesting topics from Americans, and meeting a member of the legislative assembly of this country. All in all, it's been a good week... tiring, but good. And tomorrow we get to go see our Dinka teachers again - and that I'm looking forward to.
But I'll just post a few photos to show some of the highlights of the past few days:
I left my house full of Americans and fled to the dump with the neighbors, who bring away all of the garbage from our compound each week. I thought it was high time to get out of town. About 30 minutes' drive out of the city, there is a small dirt track off the main road (which itself is a larger dirt track!). You drive in there and drive through the smoke from the burning garbage, amidst all the plastic bottles and plastic bags. I swear, you could build an entire city out of all of the plastic bottles that are thrown away in this city!
It's a bit of a mecca for the maribu storks (a kind of vulture). The sad part is, there are several women and children who also come there to pick through the garbage and see if they can find any bits of anything good, including bits of anything edible. There are a lot of fires burning, and Grace's dream job would be to live there all day and just burn garbage!
We've also had alot of fun with some treasures that we found in the old storage building. I think we should mount these guys up on the front of the trucks and cruise around through town... Everyone needs a 25 year old creature skull hanging from the front of their pick up, don't they?
And of course, here's one of the most flattering photos of Grace that we've ever taken, so it's worth blogging:
And of course, we've been running around town, doing the usual errands. Yesterday I took a few photos out of the truck window as we drove through the market. This is the best one that I got, which is very typical of the market stalls that are springing up closer and closer to our compound all the time.
A few of the other highlights of the week include eating termites, bought from the market here, getting an anatomy lesson, which included the Rift Valley, from Richard, answering questions about air conditioning, electricity and all sorts of interesting topics from Americans, and meeting a member of the legislative assembly of this country. All in all, it's been a good week... tiring, but good. And tomorrow we get to go see our Dinka teachers again - and that I'm looking forward to.
Tuesday, April 17, 2007
And don't forget...
I'm also the IT computer trouble-shooter, cake-tin hunter, cheese slicer and rice heater-upper.
There is never a dull day here. If you're bored of doing the same thing every day, this is the place to be because no two days are ever alike!
There is never a dull day here. If you're bored of doing the same thing every day, this is the place to be because no two days are ever alike!
Martha syndrome
I'm not the guesthouse manager... but...
When there are people around who need to be fed and watered and taken care of, I am simply incapable of not taking care of them. So it's now 9:24 pm, and I've been working since 7:15 pm to make sure people have been fed and watered to satisfaction, after working the whole day doing other things to make sure people have been fed and watered and have what they need. I like making sure people are happy and are taken care of, and I love being hospitable to people. But I need to make sure I don't tire myself out too much doing it!
So I DID get some "real" work done today, and yet part of the day also consisted of making a run out to the airport, picking up our maps at the UN, filling up the truck with diesel, picking up one of our old men from the cholera clinic and bringing him to his home across the river (and peeing behind a big rock on the way home!).
And then don't forget the tramping across the compound a few times to figure out what the security warning of the day was all about! Seems there are some disgruntled soldiers in the city again (don't want to get into the details of why!), but UN was advising everyone to stay in their compounds this evening. On the way to the cholera clinic, we saw some pretty exciting military action - lots of ammo getting pulled out of new boxes and stuff like that! We tried to keep it all pretty quiet so as to not worry our Americans here, but it was a little tense for a little while since no one really knew what was going on for a few hours this evening!
Then in between all of this, I'm answering strange questions about our drinking water, "Has anyone ever gotten dysentry from this water?" and trying to keep the drinking bottle water system going, since there are some folks here who are filtering their own water with their own filter, since they don't trust our filter! Oh well.. what can you do?! These folks here are really nice and well-meaning and I admire their guts for coming to a place like this, that's for sure.
When there are people around who need to be fed and watered and taken care of, I am simply incapable of not taking care of them. So it's now 9:24 pm, and I've been working since 7:15 pm to make sure people have been fed and watered to satisfaction, after working the whole day doing other things to make sure people have been fed and watered and have what they need. I like making sure people are happy and are taken care of, and I love being hospitable to people. But I need to make sure I don't tire myself out too much doing it!
So I DID get some "real" work done today, and yet part of the day also consisted of making a run out to the airport, picking up our maps at the UN, filling up the truck with diesel, picking up one of our old men from the cholera clinic and bringing him to his home across the river (and peeing behind a big rock on the way home!).
And then don't forget the tramping across the compound a few times to figure out what the security warning of the day was all about! Seems there are some disgruntled soldiers in the city again (don't want to get into the details of why!), but UN was advising everyone to stay in their compounds this evening. On the way to the cholera clinic, we saw some pretty exciting military action - lots of ammo getting pulled out of new boxes and stuff like that! We tried to keep it all pretty quiet so as to not worry our Americans here, but it was a little tense for a little while since no one really knew what was going on for a few hours this evening!
Then in between all of this, I'm answering strange questions about our drinking water, "Has anyone ever gotten dysentry from this water?" and trying to keep the drinking bottle water system going, since there are some folks here who are filtering their own water with their own filter, since they don't trust our filter! Oh well.. what can you do?! These folks here are really nice and well-meaning and I admire their guts for coming to a place like this, that's for sure.
Monday, April 16, 2007
Sunday, April 15, 2007
Canadians
I'm realizing that us Canadians are a little bit of a minority around here. Last night, I played Boggle with friends on the compound. There was Kendrah (a fellow Albertan) and I, and then a bunch of Brits. Who knew that English would be so different between us all?
And this week, we're being over run with a group of short-termers: Americans who are coming to build and do some contruction here. So our house will be jam-packed with Americans.
I have nothing against Americans, especially MY American who sleeps on my couch every night, but, even if SHE doesn't see it, Americans are just a little different than us Canadians. Regardless of their nationality, though, it will be intersting to have a house-full of short-termers!
Pray for our container that's stuck at the border. It's full of building materials and things that these Americans need to work this week. Pray for Richard as he goes and figures out how to get that container through customs. Thanks.
And this week, we're being over run with a group of short-termers: Americans who are coming to build and do some contruction here. So our house will be jam-packed with Americans.
I have nothing against Americans, especially MY American who sleeps on my couch every night, but, even if SHE doesn't see it, Americans are just a little different than us Canadians. Regardless of their nationality, though, it will be intersting to have a house-full of short-termers!
Pray for our container that's stuck at the border. It's full of building materials and things that these Americans need to work this week. Pray for Richard as he goes and figures out how to get that container through customs. Thanks.
Two things you never thought you'd hear me say...
In the past few days, a few things have slipped out of my mouth which I never in my life thought that I would say here in this town:
1. "I'm cold!" Yup, imagine, I actually mentioned once or twice yesterday that I was cold. Wow. I even had to go inside to put on some pants because I was cold in my shorts! It was rainy and SO nice. It's amazing how refreshing it is when it rains around here. And now that there's been a little rain, there are little tiny green shoots springing up all over the compound, where there was just dry dirt before. It's amazing to see how the little plants can lay dormant for so long, and then, with just a little bit of moisture... SPRING! Of course, today the sun came out, and along with the wetness in the air... man, it was HUMID and sweaty. Blech.
2. "Mmmmm... I can't wait to eat that fish!". Richard brought home two fishes from some fishermen on the Nile today after church. He chopped them and cleaned them, stuffed them with onions, green peppers, tomatoes and a ton of garlic (all chopped up by yours truly...). It all, looked, well, actually really good. We wrapped them up in garlic and put them in the oven. Here's a picture of the little guys before they were all gutted:
And here's Richard stuffing them all up... Grace, the cook from Uganda, is watching so she can make it for us sometime this week. (We have a team of Americans coming in to help us with construction this week, so a cook came up from Uganda to cook for them).
And really, I found myself saying, mmmm... that looks like a good fish, while sitting there looking at the whole thing - fish eyeballs, fins and all. I tell you, I've come a long way!
1. "I'm cold!" Yup, imagine, I actually mentioned once or twice yesterday that I was cold. Wow. I even had to go inside to put on some pants because I was cold in my shorts! It was rainy and SO nice. It's amazing how refreshing it is when it rains around here. And now that there's been a little rain, there are little tiny green shoots springing up all over the compound, where there was just dry dirt before. It's amazing to see how the little plants can lay dormant for so long, and then, with just a little bit of moisture... SPRING! Of course, today the sun came out, and along with the wetness in the air... man, it was HUMID and sweaty. Blech.
2. "Mmmmm... I can't wait to eat that fish!". Richard brought home two fishes from some fishermen on the Nile today after church. He chopped them and cleaned them, stuffed them with onions, green peppers, tomatoes and a ton of garlic (all chopped up by yours truly...). It all, looked, well, actually really good. We wrapped them up in garlic and put them in the oven. Here's a picture of the little guys before they were all gutted:
And here's Richard stuffing them all up... Grace, the cook from Uganda, is watching so she can make it for us sometime this week. (We have a team of Americans coming in to help us with construction this week, so a cook came up from Uganda to cook for them).
And really, I found myself saying, mmmm... that looks like a good fish, while sitting there looking at the whole thing - fish eyeballs, fins and all. I tell you, I've come a long way!
Thursday, April 12, 2007
Not too much to say...
Grace is mourning the releasing of two of her little hedgepigs tonight. But she's still got Pokey and Spike to keep her company, so she'll be ok. We just came back from a nice Ethiopian meal. Man, I can't get enough of that stuff! It's a fun place to go, too, since we see friends every time we go there, too. Richard had fun today showing off his hedgepig tricks to Sunday and Vicky (the girls who help in our house).
And today I had fun getting a SIM card for my phone! I have finally joined the land of the living again... except that the network's been down for a few days now. There are basically three networks in use here. We've been waiting for months to get SIM cards for the network that will be the most useful for us... but they are all sold out and haven't brought in any more in months. The other network is different technology and you need to buy the whole phone to get a line with them. So that leaves the network which has been down for a few days. So in all practicality, it probably won't be all that useful. But it's certainly not expensive, and there is hope (just like there's hope that the town power will come back one day!) that it will get better. So while Richard is here to help me out, I went and bought the SIM card today. So I am now the proud owner of a phone number in this country! Wow. Very exciting. I feel like I at least have the possibility to communicate with people now.
On other phone notes, I actually got to answer the "office phone" here a few times in the past few days. I know that sounds funny, but few people are ever able to make this phone work, either. So it never rings. In the past 6 weeks, I have now talked on the phone a grand total of 4 times. Amazing how quickly you get out of the habit of talking on the phone and how exciting it is to talk on the phone once the opportunity presents itself again!
Because I haven't posted any photos for a really long time, here are a few to keep you going...
These are our American girls who keep exclaiming about how old me, Jackie and Richard are. They are just very strange girls. But quite a lot of fun, anyways. And they're so willing to help out and do whatever they can to help us, so that's quite nice. I'll have to warn Richard where all his nails got put away today, though... The other two girls are Vicky and Sunday, who are a hoot and a half in their own right. I'll leave it up to you to guess which two are the Americans.
And this is the sax section in the police band that was playing last weekend at the UNICEF celebration that we went to. My high school band teacher would be appalled at their posture. It's always quite odd to me to see these African bands playing European marches and all that. These guys march up and down the road once in a while, too, whenever dignitaries come to visit. I heard them just yesterday, as the South African President was visiting our distinguished city.
Oh, and on a sadder note, I ripped one of my favorite skirts to shreds yesterday on a nail that was sticking out of the chair! I'm so sad. My skirts are rapidly being destroyed here - one of them has a zipper that refuses to work, and now this one is all ripped. And of course, it's not a nice rip along the seam that's easy to fix. Nope, I did a really good job on it and completely shredded it. Now at least I fit in with the neighborhood kids.
And today I had fun getting a SIM card for my phone! I have finally joined the land of the living again... except that the network's been down for a few days now. There are basically three networks in use here. We've been waiting for months to get SIM cards for the network that will be the most useful for us... but they are all sold out and haven't brought in any more in months. The other network is different technology and you need to buy the whole phone to get a line with them. So that leaves the network which has been down for a few days. So in all practicality, it probably won't be all that useful. But it's certainly not expensive, and there is hope (just like there's hope that the town power will come back one day!) that it will get better. So while Richard is here to help me out, I went and bought the SIM card today. So I am now the proud owner of a phone number in this country! Wow. Very exciting. I feel like I at least have the possibility to communicate with people now.
On other phone notes, I actually got to answer the "office phone" here a few times in the past few days. I know that sounds funny, but few people are ever able to make this phone work, either. So it never rings. In the past 6 weeks, I have now talked on the phone a grand total of 4 times. Amazing how quickly you get out of the habit of talking on the phone and how exciting it is to talk on the phone once the opportunity presents itself again!
Because I haven't posted any photos for a really long time, here are a few to keep you going...
These are our American girls who keep exclaiming about how old me, Jackie and Richard are. They are just very strange girls. But quite a lot of fun, anyways. And they're so willing to help out and do whatever they can to help us, so that's quite nice. I'll have to warn Richard where all his nails got put away today, though... The other two girls are Vicky and Sunday, who are a hoot and a half in their own right. I'll leave it up to you to guess which two are the Americans.
And this is the sax section in the police band that was playing last weekend at the UNICEF celebration that we went to. My high school band teacher would be appalled at their posture. It's always quite odd to me to see these African bands playing European marches and all that. These guys march up and down the road once in a while, too, whenever dignitaries come to visit. I heard them just yesterday, as the South African President was visiting our distinguished city.Oh, and on a sadder note, I ripped one of my favorite skirts to shreds yesterday on a nail that was sticking out of the chair! I'm so sad. My skirts are rapidly being destroyed here - one of them has a zipper that refuses to work, and now this one is all ripped. And of course, it's not a nice rip along the seam that's easy to fix. Nope, I did a really good job on it and completely shredded it. Now at least I fit in with the neighborhood kids.
Wednesday, April 11, 2007
A slight disappointment
Sometimes people disappoint me. That's all I have to say about that.
But don't worry, it's no one in my immediate living situation, and it's no one that would be reading this blog :) I love all of you, and I couldn't ask for a better group of people to be living with here on this compound!
Please pray, though, that a situation that needs to get dealt with will be dealt with in a way that honors and glorifies God, and carries on the work of the Kingdom in this country. We're dealing with it via email communication, and that's always a bit tricky, and you really have to choose words well in order to say what needs to be said in a way that people will hear it. So please pray for wisdom, for reconciliation, and for Godly attitudes all around.
Thanks, I appreciate it.
But don't worry, it's no one in my immediate living situation, and it's no one that would be reading this blog :) I love all of you, and I couldn't ask for a better group of people to be living with here on this compound!
Please pray, though, that a situation that needs to get dealt with will be dealt with in a way that honors and glorifies God, and carries on the work of the Kingdom in this country. We're dealing with it via email communication, and that's always a bit tricky, and you really have to choose words well in order to say what needs to be said in a way that people will hear it. So please pray for wisdom, for reconciliation, and for Godly attitudes all around.
Thanks, I appreciate it.
Tuesday, April 10, 2007
The debate of the night
Is Richard learning how to speak Hedgehog? Or is Richard teaching the hedgehog tricks.
Since there's really not that much else to do in the evenings around here, Grace and I went on a hedgehog safari. Since we only saw one, and weren't able to catch him, we came inside to while away the evening online. Now that Richard's home, though, Grace has her pet hedgehogs out. Richard is now making kissy noises at Spike, the boy hedgehog, which makes the hog spaz out a bit. So I think they're telling secrets to each other. But Grace thinks Richard's teaching Spike a few tricks.
Next thing you know, we'll have a circus. Zane Khawaija will show off his new found trick of being a lap cat, and Spike just flick around his spikes! So if anyone wants to come out here, we'll entertain you!
Since there's really not that much else to do in the evenings around here, Grace and I went on a hedgehog safari. Since we only saw one, and weren't able to catch him, we came inside to while away the evening online. Now that Richard's home, though, Grace has her pet hedgehogs out. Richard is now making kissy noises at Spike, the boy hedgehog, which makes the hog spaz out a bit. So I think they're telling secrets to each other. But Grace thinks Richard's teaching Spike a few tricks.
Next thing you know, we'll have a circus. Zane Khawaija will show off his new found trick of being a lap cat, and Spike just flick around his spikes! So if anyone wants to come out here, we'll entertain you!
Monday, April 9, 2007
The never ending holiday
Once again, today was a holiday :) The government officially announced it a day or two ago that today would also be a holiday for Easter. So Sunday (the girl who helps us in our house) came by this morning, but we had to send her away since it's a holiday. It's actually been kind of nice to just be able to putter around without Vicky and Sunday around for the past few days. I even did my own laundry today! Somehow, it feels good to wash my own clothes once in a while. Of course, as soon as I got them up on the line, it started to rain. So... they're hanging there getting a second rinse at the moment.
There's not too much to report today. I spent part of the day organizing our kitchen. You know how there are certain things that just sit around for a long time, and somehow you don't even notice them anymore, until one day... well, today was that day in our kitchen. For some reason, we've had these enormous pots, which never get used, sitting on the counter, taking up a lot of space. We've even had rats hiding behind them and scurrying around them. But for some strange reason, it never occured to me to move the pots somewhere else. But today, I went a little nuts in the kitchen - moved all the extra junk off the counters, consolidated all the bits of rice and lentils and beans into matching milk tins and lined them up on the shelf. Ooohhh, since I haven't put any pictures up lately, I'll post a photo of the newly cleaned up kitchen.
Whilst cleaning the kitchen, I noticed some goats munching on the grass underneath our drain spout (that's right, water from our kitchen sinks just flows out onto the ground underneath the kitchen window and it's the only place on the whole compound that green grass grows). So I went out to wrangle the goats out of the compound. Phew, that made me work up a bit of a sweat :)
We also watched Richard knock out a piece of the wall in the store. The young men that he had wanted to help do it never ended up showing up, so he decided to take matters into his own hands and get it done. I think he's just tired of being stuck here with all of us women, so he's desparate to get all his jobs done - with or without the help of any strong young men! Actually, Richard's pretty young and quite strong himself, so he made pretty short work of that wall... I think Grace has a photo of that, too, so maybe I'll post that one, too.
But I'd better post this now without the photos since generator is about to turn off...
There's not too much to report today. I spent part of the day organizing our kitchen. You know how there are certain things that just sit around for a long time, and somehow you don't even notice them anymore, until one day... well, today was that day in our kitchen. For some reason, we've had these enormous pots, which never get used, sitting on the counter, taking up a lot of space. We've even had rats hiding behind them and scurrying around them. But for some strange reason, it never occured to me to move the pots somewhere else. But today, I went a little nuts in the kitchen - moved all the extra junk off the counters, consolidated all the bits of rice and lentils and beans into matching milk tins and lined them up on the shelf. Ooohhh, since I haven't put any pictures up lately, I'll post a photo of the newly cleaned up kitchen.
Whilst cleaning the kitchen, I noticed some goats munching on the grass underneath our drain spout (that's right, water from our kitchen sinks just flows out onto the ground underneath the kitchen window and it's the only place on the whole compound that green grass grows). So I went out to wrangle the goats out of the compound. Phew, that made me work up a bit of a sweat :)
We also watched Richard knock out a piece of the wall in the store. The young men that he had wanted to help do it never ended up showing up, so he decided to take matters into his own hands and get it done. I think he's just tired of being stuck here with all of us women, so he's desparate to get all his jobs done - with or without the help of any strong young men! Actually, Richard's pretty young and quite strong himself, so he made pretty short work of that wall... I think Grace has a photo of that, too, so maybe I'll post that one, too.
But I'd better post this now without the photos since generator is about to turn off...
Sunday, April 8, 2007
Easter Greetings
Today for Easter Sunday, we toddled off to the Anglican Church in town. Everyone else in the city (and from our compound!) toddled there, as well, so it was pretty crowded! And since it was Easter and a communion service, it was pretty long, and therefor pretty hot! It was also quite difficult to understand the sermon, since I didn't quite understand the accented English that the Bishop was using, and the acoustics are never very good in that building. But oh well, it was nice to go through the liturgy, say the prayers and share in the communion. This Easter, the idea of "a new creation - the old has gone, the new has come" is really hitting me.
The whole idea of being a new creation in Christ... I have died with Christ, the old has gone and I'm a new creation. Wow. Amazing. That Christ would make me clean, wipe the slate and make me new. That's pretty big, when you really start to think about it. And that's really what Easter is all about - rising to new life, and the whole idea of chickens being hatched from the eggs to new life, the spring flowers emerging to new life... not that we've had any of that here!
The Easter Hedgehog DID bring Grace an Easter basket full of different colours of nail polish so she can mark all the hedgehogs that she catches and know which ones she has already released back into the wild. The night guard is even getting in on the whole hedgehog hunting business. Each night he collects a few and saves them in a box for her! He's the resident expert on the 'hogs, since he spends every night just wandering around the compound with nothing else to do. I think Grace should figure out how to find some funding for the hedgehog catch and release program. James, the guard, could be the beneficiary of that funding, or at least it will buy him a few cups of tea to keep him awake during the long nights here.
Anyways, after church, we went to the pizza place for our Easter lunch, and also to celebrate Janna's birthday. As usual, the pizza was amazing! We followed the pizza with some haircuts out on the patio/septic tank. And by then, it was time for fellowship! I do like that fellowship that we have, though more and more, it seems like it's people who live on our compound who are coming out for it! But that's ok, it's good to get to know our neighbors. They're really great people, and I really want to get to know them well while they're living on this compound, so that we can continue our relationship whenever they leave this compound... which I pray won't be soon... but that's a story for another day!
Tonight, I just want to continue to think about and ponder the new creation that I am in Christ. And if I'm truly living as a new creation, how do I need to behave?! Food for thought... and right now, my tummy is full of French toast (we found real LOAF bread in the market!!!) and chocolate cake, made with cocoa that someone left here a month or two ago :) I guess living in a guesthouse with constantly rotating guests DOES have some advantages...
Happy Easter. May you be blessed as you celebrate the wonders of the risen Saviour.
The whole idea of being a new creation in Christ... I have died with Christ, the old has gone and I'm a new creation. Wow. Amazing. That Christ would make me clean, wipe the slate and make me new. That's pretty big, when you really start to think about it. And that's really what Easter is all about - rising to new life, and the whole idea of chickens being hatched from the eggs to new life, the spring flowers emerging to new life... not that we've had any of that here!
The Easter Hedgehog DID bring Grace an Easter basket full of different colours of nail polish so she can mark all the hedgehogs that she catches and know which ones she has already released back into the wild. The night guard is even getting in on the whole hedgehog hunting business. Each night he collects a few and saves them in a box for her! He's the resident expert on the 'hogs, since he spends every night just wandering around the compound with nothing else to do. I think Grace should figure out how to find some funding for the hedgehog catch and release program. James, the guard, could be the beneficiary of that funding, or at least it will buy him a few cups of tea to keep him awake during the long nights here.
Anyways, after church, we went to the pizza place for our Easter lunch, and also to celebrate Janna's birthday. As usual, the pizza was amazing! We followed the pizza with some haircuts out on the patio/septic tank. And by then, it was time for fellowship! I do like that fellowship that we have, though more and more, it seems like it's people who live on our compound who are coming out for it! But that's ok, it's good to get to know our neighbors. They're really great people, and I really want to get to know them well while they're living on this compound, so that we can continue our relationship whenever they leave this compound... which I pray won't be soon... but that's a story for another day!
Tonight, I just want to continue to think about and ponder the new creation that I am in Christ. And if I'm truly living as a new creation, how do I need to behave?! Food for thought... and right now, my tummy is full of French toast (we found real LOAF bread in the market!!!) and chocolate cake, made with cocoa that someone left here a month or two ago :) I guess living in a guesthouse with constantly rotating guests DOES have some advantages...
Happy Easter. May you be blessed as you celebrate the wonders of the risen Saviour.
Saturday, April 7, 2007
How blessed am I?
I have only a few minutes before we lose the generator (as usual!) to blog about how blessed I really am.
Today, I'm feeling so thankful for a lot of things, even as I'm sitting here sweating and smelling some, um, rather unpleasant smells! But I'm thankful that:
Today, I'm feeling so thankful for a lot of things, even as I'm sitting here sweating and smelling some, um, rather unpleasant smells! But I'm thankful that:
- I get to live in this place and be a part of something new that's happening here
- I can sit by the Nile and drink a cold coke with ice
- We have one of three doctors in the whole city living in our compound
- I'm healthy and don't have malaria (got quite a nice lesson about malaria from the aformentioned doctor this morning)
- I have wonderful friends and people to live with who seem to rather like me for just being me
- I have a nice fan to keep me cool-ish (at least when the generator is on!)
- I have a kitty who is learning to sit still on my lap
- We have a chocolate birthday cake in the oven which I'll get to eat tomorrow
- I have a computer that works
- I can use the internet to keep in touch with the rest of the world (at least when the generator is on!)
- I serve a risen Saviour who loves me and who is alive and active in me and in this world.
Friday, April 6, 2007
It's been a few days...
It's been a few days since I've blogged, which gives a bit of an indication of what these past few days have been like!
There have been a few things going on around here, not the least of which has been losing 4 of our neighbors to Nairobi! Two couples have left us, and I'm sorry to see them go, as they've all been very good neighbors. One young couple went off to give birth in Nairobi, but they'll be back with the little one in a few months. The other couple, an older couple, have switched positions in their organization and have relocated. They also left in more of a rush than they otherwise would have because of the wife's health. So we're praying that they'll figure out what's causing all of her problems. It's always sad to see people go from around here, but I guess that's just part of life - especially in this type of life, people are constantly coming and going. You learn to appreciate people for the time that they're with you, and be open to making friends with the next people who come along to take their place!
But there have been some fun activities - Boggle with my fellow Canadian on the compound. You'd think that being a literacy specialist, I'd be better at Boggle than I am. I actually really stink at it! Maybe there's an online version that I can practice with... :)
We've also welcomed two Americans into our little "family" for a few weeks. They had quite an adventure getting here, which I don't want to get into the details of. But pray that we can all help them work through some of the difficult things that they experienced on their journey here.
We had a little fun with Zane the other day, too, since our neighbors brought me some vaccinations for the little guy! He didn't seem to mind the shot, since Grace did it all without much ado. She did, however, make much ado about posing with the syringe, giving me and Richard shots! Silly girl. It amazes me the things we find for entertainment around here.
I HAVE done some work this week, too, though! I went to an NGO forum meeting the other morning. Once a month, reps from each NGO here gets together to try to coordinate our efforts and discuss issues that pertain to the whole NGO "community". Seems like most people hate the meeting, but, well, quite honestly, I quite enjoyed it! It's just nice to get out to meet some different people and hear about what's going on the in NGO world, since we're quite set apart from a lot of the things that most other NGOs are involved in here. We don't have people in "the field" and move medical supplies around and all that sort of thing. It feels a little like we're very much on the fringe of the NGO world, but I DO think it's good PR for us to be at those kinds of meetings. Most NGOs don't think too much about the language issues... and they'll do health training, or teacher training or whatever, in English or Arabic, and don't quite realize that their work might be that much more effective if they use a language that the people in the communities actually understand! So at the risk of sounding like a broken record, I'm trying to advocate for the use of local languages wherever possible :)
I also have heard a rumor that one of my friends from where I used to live has been released from where he was. It may be that he has been released for a two week "holiday" for Easter, and then he'll have to go back again. But pray with me that it will be a real release and that he'll be free to go on with the rest of his life after a year and a half in captivity! I'm hoping to learn a bit more when my friend in Egypt calls them tomorrow and then he'll email me with the news, since I don't have any way to call them myself... Keep praying for Teddy, for those of you who know his situation.
Um, ok, there's plenty more I can say, and I realize this post is a rather boring one! I think I'm still dehydrated from my sleeping last night! I tried sleeping with a little frozen bottle last night, since my neighbor said it worked wonders for her the night before... but, well, yeah, it was too hot for even the neighbors deep freeze to freeze my water bottle yesterday! So much for that idea. Richard dragged his mattress out to sleep under the trees last night, and he said that he got so cool that he even had to use his sheet in the morning. So that might be an idea, but I'm not sure if I would sleep any better in the middle of our parking lot, knowing that the guards and the neighbors would all be watching! The search for a nice cool sleep continues.
Since it's Good Friday today, we're just sitting around and resting. It's nice to have an excuse to really just sit around and languish for a day! But I do hope to make some space to celebrate a true Easter this weekend, as well. The resurrection is just too important to not spend some time pondering...
There have been a few things going on around here, not the least of which has been losing 4 of our neighbors to Nairobi! Two couples have left us, and I'm sorry to see them go, as they've all been very good neighbors. One young couple went off to give birth in Nairobi, but they'll be back with the little one in a few months. The other couple, an older couple, have switched positions in their organization and have relocated. They also left in more of a rush than they otherwise would have because of the wife's health. So we're praying that they'll figure out what's causing all of her problems. It's always sad to see people go from around here, but I guess that's just part of life - especially in this type of life, people are constantly coming and going. You learn to appreciate people for the time that they're with you, and be open to making friends with the next people who come along to take their place!
But there have been some fun activities - Boggle with my fellow Canadian on the compound. You'd think that being a literacy specialist, I'd be better at Boggle than I am. I actually really stink at it! Maybe there's an online version that I can practice with... :)
We've also welcomed two Americans into our little "family" for a few weeks. They had quite an adventure getting here, which I don't want to get into the details of. But pray that we can all help them work through some of the difficult things that they experienced on their journey here.
We had a little fun with Zane the other day, too, since our neighbors brought me some vaccinations for the little guy! He didn't seem to mind the shot, since Grace did it all without much ado. She did, however, make much ado about posing with the syringe, giving me and Richard shots! Silly girl. It amazes me the things we find for entertainment around here.
I HAVE done some work this week, too, though! I went to an NGO forum meeting the other morning. Once a month, reps from each NGO here gets together to try to coordinate our efforts and discuss issues that pertain to the whole NGO "community". Seems like most people hate the meeting, but, well, quite honestly, I quite enjoyed it! It's just nice to get out to meet some different people and hear about what's going on the in NGO world, since we're quite set apart from a lot of the things that most other NGOs are involved in here. We don't have people in "the field" and move medical supplies around and all that sort of thing. It feels a little like we're very much on the fringe of the NGO world, but I DO think it's good PR for us to be at those kinds of meetings. Most NGOs don't think too much about the language issues... and they'll do health training, or teacher training or whatever, in English or Arabic, and don't quite realize that their work might be that much more effective if they use a language that the people in the communities actually understand! So at the risk of sounding like a broken record, I'm trying to advocate for the use of local languages wherever possible :)
I also have heard a rumor that one of my friends from where I used to live has been released from where he was. It may be that he has been released for a two week "holiday" for Easter, and then he'll have to go back again. But pray with me that it will be a real release and that he'll be free to go on with the rest of his life after a year and a half in captivity! I'm hoping to learn a bit more when my friend in Egypt calls them tomorrow and then he'll email me with the news, since I don't have any way to call them myself... Keep praying for Teddy, for those of you who know his situation.
Um, ok, there's plenty more I can say, and I realize this post is a rather boring one! I think I'm still dehydrated from my sleeping last night! I tried sleeping with a little frozen bottle last night, since my neighbor said it worked wonders for her the night before... but, well, yeah, it was too hot for even the neighbors deep freeze to freeze my water bottle yesterday! So much for that idea. Richard dragged his mattress out to sleep under the trees last night, and he said that he got so cool that he even had to use his sheet in the morning. So that might be an idea, but I'm not sure if I would sleep any better in the middle of our parking lot, knowing that the guards and the neighbors would all be watching! The search for a nice cool sleep continues.
Since it's Good Friday today, we're just sitting around and resting. It's nice to have an excuse to really just sit around and languish for a day! But I do hope to make some space to celebrate a true Easter this weekend, as well. The resurrection is just too important to not spend some time pondering...
Tuesday, April 3, 2007
Water bottles part 2
So today, as I was puttering around the kitchen with Richard, we found Vicky filling up our drinking water bottles with water straight from the bore hole. So really, I guess the whole reason why I haven't gotten too sick yet is because our good God is watching over me :) Good thing I'm a pretty easy going kind of girl...
The highlight, so far, of this very warm afternoon (it's currently 39C in my room/office), occured when I was filling the water filter with fresh water. I was happily splashing the water around when I heard a billy goat bleating. Now, a goat bleating is not an usual sound for this place, but hearing a very loud billy goat bleating just outside the window is. I looked up just long enough to see Matthew, the guy who works on the compound, running at full speed by the window... chasing after the billy goat! Seems there's a hole in the back of the fence, and the goat saw some nice greener grass on this side of the fence... after racing around the compound a few times, the goat got herded back out the hole from which he came. And Matthew, for all his chasing after the goat, hardly broke a sweat, while I was sweating just watching him run!
The highlight, so far, of this very warm afternoon (it's currently 39C in my room/office), occured when I was filling the water filter with fresh water. I was happily splashing the water around when I heard a billy goat bleating. Now, a goat bleating is not an usual sound for this place, but hearing a very loud billy goat bleating just outside the window is. I looked up just long enough to see Matthew, the guy who works on the compound, running at full speed by the window... chasing after the billy goat! Seems there's a hole in the back of the fence, and the goat saw some nice greener grass on this side of the fence... after racing around the compound a few times, the goat got herded back out the hole from which he came. And Matthew, for all his chasing after the goat, hardly broke a sweat, while I was sweating just watching him run!
The dangers of sleeping
One of our neighbors came by this morning to say farewell... they're leaving to go back to Nairobi to have a baby. She always made me hot just looking at her - I can't imagine being 7 months pregnant and living in this place!
Anyways, she made a very astute observation in a passing comment. She said something to the effect that it will be nice back in Nairobi where she won't get dehydrated while sleeping. And a little lightbulb went off in my little head... yes, dehydrated while sleeping! No wonder I wake up feeling so rough around around the edges - I spent 8 hours laying in my bed and sweating, and not replenishing all that lost moisture! So, I've turned over a new leaf, and now, the first thing I'm going to do in the morning is have a big glass of water. Maybe that will help me get going a bit faster in the morning.
Last night was one of the worse nights yet - not a whisper or air moving, and though it wasn't as hot as it's been in the past, it was a lot more humid. So we really woke up in puddles. Yech. But man, it sure does make that morning shower feel good!
Anyways, she made a very astute observation in a passing comment. She said something to the effect that it will be nice back in Nairobi where she won't get dehydrated while sleeping. And a little lightbulb went off in my little head... yes, dehydrated while sleeping! No wonder I wake up feeling so rough around around the edges - I spent 8 hours laying in my bed and sweating, and not replenishing all that lost moisture! So, I've turned over a new leaf, and now, the first thing I'm going to do in the morning is have a big glass of water. Maybe that will help me get going a bit faster in the morning.
Last night was one of the worse nights yet - not a whisper or air moving, and though it wasn't as hot as it's been in the past, it was a lot more humid. So we really woke up in puddles. Yech. But man, it sure does make that morning shower feel good!
Monday, April 2, 2007
And while I'm at it...
I may as well mention a break-through with Zane. This afternoon, he actually sat on my lap and let me pet him for almost a half hour! Wow. That's about as long as the cat has sat still with a human person ever!
Of course, he completely ruined his record for good behavior this evening by escaping out the door and cavorting with the neighborhood cats for a few hours. Grace finally caught him after a little stand-off between the neighbor's boy cat Scamper and Scampers little girl friend...
And I think that's all the blogging I'll do for the evening :)
Of course, he completely ruined his record for good behavior this evening by escaping out the door and cavorting with the neighborhood cats for a few hours. Grace finally caught him after a little stand-off between the neighbor's boy cat Scamper and Scampers little girl friend...
And I think that's all the blogging I'll do for the evening :)
I don't see a difference. Do you see a difference?
I don't think my attempt at farming has been successful.
Maybe I can convince Richard to help me get some more fertile soil from the banks of the Nile. 'Cause the soil from our compound obviously isn't going to grow anything!
Maybe I can convince Richard to help me get some more fertile soil from the banks of the Nile. 'Cause the soil from our compound obviously isn't going to grow anything!
The Saloon and Water Bottles
Every day there are new little "shops" sprouting up all over the place. The market is starting to spill over onto "our" side of the main shop, and we have a shorter and shorter distance to get to the market! Already, we have a few vendors using our fence to hang up their wares. One of the newer tin shacks that's gone up nearby is a new "Saloon". Any guesses on what a Sudanese Saloon is for?! For hair dressing, of course!
A few weeks ago, when our esteemed branch director was here, though, we set up our very own saloon in front of the guesthouse. It felt quite nice to get a bit of a trim. Grace (our Ugandan cook for the week) and Vicky (a local girl who helps us in the house) were recruited to help hold bits of my hair. Of course, not really having had much exposure to "white" girls' hair, they were both quite fascinated by the texture of it. Vicky was horrified that I would actually cut my hair, as she's convinced that white girls should have long hair!
All in all, I've been very happy with my short hair here. Mom and Dad, you can pass that message on to Judy for me :) I've even given Grace a bit of a hair trim, using the techniques that my hairdressing friend at home taught be before I came. Everyone agreed that I had done quite a nice job.
Akol, one of our Dinka collegues here told me the other day as I was fixing the Internet in the office for them, told me that I'm becoming a "jack of all trades, and master of none". But today he offered to give me a certificate for being funny. He said that when an hour goes by and they don't hear an eruption of laughter from the guesthouse, I must be out somewhere! So apparenlty, I have become a master of making people laugh! Those Dinka, they're quite a hoot.
Speaking of Akol, as we were chit chatting with him about the teacher training the other day, he was wandering over to our refridgerator to get some cool water out of it. As we were all sitting around, he cracked open the bottle, wrapped his lips right around the neck of the bottle, and took a big swig. He continued to swig straight out of the bottle until we were done our little meeting. There was still some water left in the bottom of the bottle, but he then proceeded straight to the water filter and filled up that same bottle. He then stuck it right back in the refrigerator where we keep several other bottles of water that we all pour our drinking water out of.
Of course, the bottles are pretty indestiguishable from one another - they're all just old mineral water bottles that we fill up with filtered water... so... hmmm... I'm not quite sure who else has been drinking straight out of the water bottles! And I wonder why I've got a cold...
Just another one of the delights of communal living!
A few weeks ago, when our esteemed branch director was here, though, we set up our very own saloon in front of the guesthouse. It felt quite nice to get a bit of a trim. Grace (our Ugandan cook for the week) and Vicky (a local girl who helps us in the house) were recruited to help hold bits of my hair. Of course, not really having had much exposure to "white" girls' hair, they were both quite fascinated by the texture of it. Vicky was horrified that I would actually cut my hair, as she's convinced that white girls should have long hair!
All in all, I've been very happy with my short hair here. Mom and Dad, you can pass that message on to Judy for me :) I've even given Grace a bit of a hair trim, using the techniques that my hairdressing friend at home taught be before I came. Everyone agreed that I had done quite a nice job.Akol, one of our Dinka collegues here told me the other day as I was fixing the Internet in the office for them, told me that I'm becoming a "jack of all trades, and master of none". But today he offered to give me a certificate for being funny. He said that when an hour goes by and they don't hear an eruption of laughter from the guesthouse, I must be out somewhere! So apparenlty, I have become a master of making people laugh! Those Dinka, they're quite a hoot.
Speaking of Akol, as we were chit chatting with him about the teacher training the other day, he was wandering over to our refridgerator to get some cool water out of it. As we were all sitting around, he cracked open the bottle, wrapped his lips right around the neck of the bottle, and took a big swig. He continued to swig straight out of the bottle until we were done our little meeting. There was still some water left in the bottom of the bottle, but he then proceeded straight to the water filter and filled up that same bottle. He then stuck it right back in the refrigerator where we keep several other bottles of water that we all pour our drinking water out of.
Of course, the bottles are pretty indestiguishable from one another - they're all just old mineral water bottles that we fill up with filtered water... so... hmmm... I'm not quite sure who else has been drinking straight out of the water bottles! And I wonder why I've got a cold...
Just another one of the delights of communal living!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)