Corn Dogs, steak, cushioned couches, the English language.
It's been good to be in the good old U.S.A. for a little bit, including a Memorial Day cookout and hike in the woods yesterday. I've been able to eat some good food and see some good friends over the last couple weeks.
One of the other changes over the past weeks is that I've gotten back to using deodorant on a somewhat regular basis. I still haven't finished the same stick of Degree that I brought with me to Sudan back in February 2007. Not sure how much longer it'll last at this point, but I guess I've saved a couple of bucks over the year plus to help out with buying gas for my really good trip I took out to Indiana and Ohio just after returning.
Of course, in the process of being back in the U.S., I've also watched far too much television considering I don't miss it when in Sudan, nor in the time I've lived in the States without one. Between NHL and NBA playoffs, and regular season baseball, though, I've definitely enjoyed getting to watch some TV. I've even gotten to practice a few of my sports skills and had it pointed out to me that I've lost quite a bit of speed during my time overseas. Looks like I've got to get back to doing some exercise to try to get back in shape. Or I can just keep eating a lot more steak, potatoes, breads, and desserts in order to see how much more out of shape I can get.
28 May, 2008
30 April, 2008
Some Zakayo Pics
We're teaching him how to drive... and he's making progress
Apparently he doesn't like the look of himself in the mirror
Apparently he doesn't like the look of himself in the mirror
Mzee
I now look like a young man of 28.
That’s what our head cook told me in his broken English (which is a lot better now than it was when I first came to Sudan in February of 2007) when I first donned the clean-shaven look. Apparently, with the beard and moustache, Levy thought I appeared to be 42 years old. Glad to know that I now only look 28. Wow. 42!
I hope that I haven’t aged that much in the last year. I used to always be told that I look younger than my actual age, but suddenly it’s a couple years older. I guess I’ve just gotten a lot of life experience in the last couple of years and am maturing. If I start acting 42 years old, someone please hit me really, really hard and tell me to stop it.
That’s what our head cook told me in his broken English (which is a lot better now than it was when I first came to Sudan in February of 2007) when I first donned the clean-shaven look. Apparently, with the beard and moustache, Levy thought I appeared to be 42 years old. Glad to know that I now only look 28. Wow. 42!
I hope that I haven’t aged that much in the last year. I used to always be told that I look younger than my actual age, but suddenly it’s a couple years older. I guess I’ve just gotten a lot of life experience in the last couple of years and am maturing. If I start acting 42 years old, someone please hit me really, really hard and tell me to stop it.
A Good Day
Monday was a really good day. It was just one of those days when things seemed to go really well, and it felt nice.
We were planning to send 300 bags of cement to a site first thing in the morning, and that usually doesn’t go all that smooth. But Monday morning was different. Right after devotions, I let everyone know we were going to be sending out the cement, and that everyone would get to help (“get to” is a bit of a misnomer). So, we took tea and then at 8:30 we started loading the trailers. One got loaded and off and then another. We had a bit of a break after the second load, and then got to the third one of 100 bags. It was incredible as we finished by 10am. I wouldn’t have been surprised had it taken until lunch (1pm). So, I ran to town and picked up a crate of Coke and Fanta and we had another bit of a break to share in some drinks.
I spent the rest of the morning getting some paperwork taken care of and email sent, and the rest of the staff got to their business also. We ended up getting having some productive meetings with leaders of a few different communities we’re working with, got transportation for resources at another site, and began transporting at a church site that is quite far away and we’ve had difficulty coordinating with up until now.
We needed some water on the compound around the end of the day as we’re making cement block here right now, and since our driver is at a training right now I took the LandCruiser to the dam to fill up a couple tanks of water. After loading, a couple of the guys wanted to bathe since the area doubles as a nice, big bath tub. So, while they were bathing, I decided to go for a swim in the big reservoir that results from the dam. It was just a nice end to a nice, productive day.
There wasn’t anything big, but a combination of a lot of productive things, a nice Coke, and a dip in the lake made Monday a really good day.
Hope you each have a good day however that might look where you are.
We were planning to send 300 bags of cement to a site first thing in the morning, and that usually doesn’t go all that smooth. But Monday morning was different. Right after devotions, I let everyone know we were going to be sending out the cement, and that everyone would get to help (“get to” is a bit of a misnomer). So, we took tea and then at 8:30 we started loading the trailers. One got loaded and off and then another. We had a bit of a break after the second load, and then got to the third one of 100 bags. It was incredible as we finished by 10am. I wouldn’t have been surprised had it taken until lunch (1pm). So, I ran to town and picked up a crate of Coke and Fanta and we had another bit of a break to share in some drinks.
I spent the rest of the morning getting some paperwork taken care of and email sent, and the rest of the staff got to their business also. We ended up getting having some productive meetings with leaders of a few different communities we’re working with, got transportation for resources at another site, and began transporting at a church site that is quite far away and we’ve had difficulty coordinating with up until now.
We needed some water on the compound around the end of the day as we’re making cement block here right now, and since our driver is at a training right now I took the LandCruiser to the dam to fill up a couple tanks of water. After loading, a couple of the guys wanted to bathe since the area doubles as a nice, big bath tub. So, while they were bathing, I decided to go for a swim in the big reservoir that results from the dam. It was just a nice end to a nice, productive day.
There wasn’t anything big, but a combination of a lot of productive things, a nice Coke, and a dip in the lake made Monday a really good day.
Hope you each have a good day however that might look where you are.
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