February 2010
Behind the Scenes #9February 8, 2019
It has been a long and fascinating week here, very full, culminating in today which is special for its very own reason. Got a lot of stuff I have to do today including go to town and run a kid's club up in Miravalle this afternoon which will only help to start what will probably be another long week.
Last Tuesday I got sick and tired of taking cold showers (it does get cold here in the morning and cold showers are no fun, even in Mexico) and so went to town and bought this nozzle thing to force whatever was blocking the hot water out of the tube. It worked. For one day. I had to do it again on Wednesday and then again on Friday which is when Pastor Dorr went up, cut the hot water pipe apart, attached a rubber hose and told me we'd have to haul water into the bathroom if we wanted a hot shower. So far that has been working, it's much more pleasant washing with hot water regardless of the fact that we have to use a bucket. I'm trying to work out a system with a hose and a shower head but for now this is working well. So we'll see.
Sunday we started our competition and, to be honest with you, I've done a terrible thing. I've gotten my kids addicted to Airheads, a candy that you can't buy down here in Mexico (translated, Airheads would be 'Cabezas de Aire' lol). The deal is that if you bring a visitor, you and your visitor will receive an Airhead. Bring two visitors and you still get one airhead but each of your visitors will get an airhead. It's a system that has been working extremely well-we had seven visitors yesterday-but I'm rapidly running out of airheads. I think I have about forty left. So if anyone could find it in their heart to help out these poor kids, could you please send me some Airheads? If you think you could do this and you need the address, it's on the contact page or you can drop me an e-mail and I'll send it to you. My mom also has it. Honestly, it doesn't have to be airheads, any chewy, non-melting candy will do. Airheads are just preferred.
Anyways, about the bus route, we had sixty people on the bus yesterday, putting us in a very firm first place in the competition. We have 93 points, about twelve points ahead of the second place bus. The bus was stuffed but thanks to the fact that we didn't have the Pueblo Nuevo group (a nightmare crowd if there ever was one) everyone was fairly well behaved. You know how it is, five kids act up and by the end of the route you're breaking up fights and throwing kids out windows. Kidding, kidding. But we've broken up our share of fistfights and broken a goodly amount of windows with the Pueblo Nuevo group.
Here's to you people in Maryland, snowed in, hahaha. I'm walking around without a coat, got a nice tan on Saturday actually. Yesterday Brittany, Jenny and I all went to Obregon to go shoe shopping and I got some brown and red shoes (never thought to put those colors together but they're actually really nice) that I think my mother would have never bought for me. Heh. Then I got invited to a wedding for people I have never met which is good because then I'll have a chance to wear these shoes. (They are the most unpractical bus route shoes ever, ever, ever, ever, ever.) This gives me an excuse to go buy red jewelry, something I don't have for whatever reason. So it's all working out.
In honor of this day I left my bed unmade, threw a hoodie on my couch and am wearing orange eyeshadow (in a tasteful manner). Be careful all you Maryland people!!
Take care!
Reality Check #8
February 5, 2010
It's starting to finally really hit me that this is my last little bit of time here in Mexico, for awhile at least. My dad said this would happen. We were driving to the airport the day I left and he told me that I'd start getting really sentimental. I really, really am. I've been that way all week which has made it really hard to just let things go. I'm not sure if that makes sense.
I keep looking at things and people and thinking, I need to do my best right now because this might be the last time I get to do it. But then, shouldn't I be doing my best all the time? General Robert E. Lee lived with the idea that 'if anything is worth doing, it is worth doing well'. I think that's a good thought, a good motto. Not only will we get the job done better, we'll feel better after we're done doing it.
I'm really sad today, I don't know why and I'm not just going to write a post about how sad I feel (I was going to, I really was, but I decided not to, lol!) but this is going to be short as a result.
Do your best, if not for the people around you then for yourself, or, better yet, for Christ. Always.
Take care!
Country of the Week #8 - Mongolia
February 3, 2010
Capital - Ulan Batar
Population - 2,796,800
Language - Khalkha Mongolian
Main Religion - 50% Tibetan Buddhism, 40% No religion, 6% Shamanist, Baha'i, Christian, 4% Muslim
Behind the Scenes #8
February 1, 2010
This is going to be a longish post today. I've decided to introduce you to everyone that I mention occasionally on the blog so that you'll all have a basic idea of who I'm talking about. Also, I noticed some confusion when I said someone had 'moved off the property'. In case you were unaware, the Dorrs have purchased about four acres where we have a church, an orphanage, a small school, my house and a boy's dorm where a bunch of different people live. So when someone 'moves off the property' that means to say that they've decided to live somewhere else. Since we all eat together and work together, we've become something of a large extended family so when someone leaves it's a little bit hard. Hope I've cleared that up for you! Without further ado, here are the names:
Los Americanos
The Dorrs - Pastor and Mrs. Dorr, the missionaries I am here actually working under.
Jon and Annie - Friends of mine who live about an hour from here, starting their own church in Los Camotes. Annie is the Dorr's daughter.
Markie and Christy - The people actually in charge of the orphanage ministry. They do not live on the property. Christy is the Dorr's daughter.
Mike and Jillian - Friends of mine who are actually out on deputation right now. They will be back sometime in May and will be living on the property.
Brittany - Very good friend of mine, lives in the orphanage on the property. In charge of the basic day to day running of the orphanage. I mention her a lot.
Los Mexicanos
Las Muchachas
Claudia - The girl who lives in the house with me, originally from Guaymas. She goes home occasionally, leaving me alone in the house (a.k.a. in peace). No, really, I love her. She's great.
Sugey - Pronounced Soo-hay, she lives in the orphanage with Brittany and is a great person. Good friend of mine, she teaches at the Miravalle kid's club for me. Comes from Baja.
Rosario E. - Also known as 'the normal Rosario', she lives down the street from the church and teaches for our Secundaria.
Rosario O. - The 'crazy Rosario' she has a bus route and lives in Pueblo Viejo.
Xochitl - (Pronounced sew-chee.) A lady who lives in Gabrielle Eva and comes to institute via bus every Monday. Great person, hard worker. I really like her.
Karen - An institute student who comes Monday through Wednesday. She's nice, very friendly.
Jennifer - Relocated from Hermosillo, works in a school here in Navojoa, plays guitar like a genius and probably one of the most talented people in the church. She teaches the Prepa.
Fernanda - Wife of Bernardino, comes from Guaymas, same church as Alan and Claudia. Great cook.
Laura - Lives in the orphanage, sister to Mario.
Los Muchachos
Misael - Hails from Baja and goes to the same church as Sugey which works out because they can travel home together. He's on of my best bus workers and lives on the property.
Israel - Really friendly guy, lives on the property. He goes home to Navojoa every once in awhile, mostly to get his mom to wash his clothes.
Abraham - Former bus worker of mine, comes from Hermosillo, the capital of Sonora, about four hours away. Lives on the property.
Alan - Absolutely the tallest individual I've ever met (he's over 6'5") and comes from the same church as Claudia. Very friendly, kinda touchy feely, newest guy on the property.
Mario - Lives with the guys because he's too old to be in the orphanage. Laura's brother.
Chuy - Comes from a few miles outside Navojoa, greatest guy in the boy's dorm, in my opinion. Hard worker, very friendly, very careful, trustworthy..the list goes on and on.
Uriel - Xochitl's nephew, came to us first because he was being travieso and no one could work with him. He's made an almost complete turnaround since he came to live with us.
Gerardo - Pronounced 'Herr-arr-do', probably the most nondescript individual on the property. He's just...Gerardo.
Bernardino - Married to Fernanda and is kinda an assistant pastor of sorts. Directs choir and leads music on Sundays. They live on the property.
Jorge - Another one of my bus workers, Jorge is technically engaged to Erika, Pastor Zamarron's daughter. He's a great guy, works as a mechanic.
Moises - The first bus worker I was ever in charge of. Very short, very funny. Young.
Ramon - Israel's brother who moved off the property after throwing a fit about rules. We saw it coming though, he is very independent. He still comes to church and works on the bus routes.
I didn't go into who Pastor Zamarron was because I never, ever talk about him. He's a pastor on the other side of town. Funny guy. Other people I didn't mention are the Scotts, missionaries who live close to my bus route and the Helferiches, a family currently working with the Scotts. I hope this list helps and if you're confused about something or want to know more about a specific person, let me know. We all have different backgrounds and the stories are really interesting. Misael, for instance, ran with this really crazy gang called 'the 3 Carloses' before he got saved. Bernardino has worked at pretty much everything under the sun. Claudia's brothers are small-time criminals who go in and out of jail all the time from what I understand.
My ankle is doing much better, my mom said everyone kept asking her and she was a bit upset that I hadn't told her what was going on. lol
Thanks everyone for reading this blog! I really appreciate the comments and the input!!
Take care! Happy February!
