The Inconvenience of Living Simply

From the blog of a friend of a friend, the following nugget:

"In taking steps toward simplicity you may lose some speed and convienience, but you just might get some of your soul back."

My theme verse for the year

I've been thinking a lot about this verse lately. So I decided to try something new tonight and make a poster-thingy on my computer. So the words can continue to sink in more. Haven't worked with Illustrator before, so it's a learn-as-you-go effort. Just for fun.

Friday in Nairobi

So I spent all week in the city. Didn't get to go to a movie, get a haircut or any of the things I like to do in the city. But I got lots of work done. I sat in Nairobi Java House for four straight days and worked on photo projects. It feels good to have gotten some of the projects done! It feels so good that it really doesn't matter that I didn't see a movie. :) I got to do some things though that I like, like soak in the bath tub every evening. And visit with missionaries at Mayfield whom I've gotten to know from times when our paths cross. Like the girls who are on a TIMO team in Sudan. It's fun to visit with friends like these when I'm here. It makes me feel normal.

Insofar wor goes: The photos I keep on my external hard drive is down to 15,000 now. That's 8,000 fewer than when I began working on this project. Plus the 5,000 I deleted from my computer, and you can imagine why I've not been blogging this week. It seems like every time I picked up my computer, it was to work on the photos and related projects. Which is good.

I got to pick up my car at the end of the day today, too. The turbo's been fixed, and I have new tires. The mechanics were asking, "Where do you drive that your tires look like this??" They pointed out several deep cuts to every single tire. That's from the rocks: When the roads are really muddy, they fix our road by breaking rocks and putting them into the worst parts. Sharp rocks + heavy car + soft, muddy surroundings = deep cuts.

This year, I spent more on my car than I ever want to again! The gearbox had to be overhauled. The shocks and lots of other expensive stuff had to be replaced. Now the turbo and the tires. Let's trust it'll all last till the car retires. It's still a great car, and I wouldn't want to drive our roads with anything less!

So tomorrow, I get to drive back to Eldoret. I met a couple from Michigan this week at Mayfield who work in Sudan, but due to the new tension there, they can't go into the country. So they asked if they could ride to Eldoret with me and see what we're doing there. They'll take a matatu back on Monday or Tuesday. I'm glad I don't have to make the drive alone. It's OK, but it's just safer having other people in the car, too.

In just a week, I'll fly back to Nairobi to meet the team from Iowa! I can't wait! Just eight days, and counting... :)

All in a Day's Work

Above the hum of the city traffic, above the chatter of the birds and visitors outside my window and the buzzing of the mosquitoes in my room, I can hear the call to prayer at the nearby mosque.

I'm (still) in Nairobi. It was a good day. Got lots done. I literally sat at Java House from 9 a.m. till 5 p.m. Yes, sitting got uncomfortable after a while... But I'm making progress on purging and sorting through my collection of 23,000 photos. Once that's done, I can order photo books for work. I am determined to sort and purge every time I download photos from my camera from now on... It'd be easier that way!

I was tempted to treat myself to a movie this evening, but couldn't imagine having to sit still for another 2 hours. Not today. Maybe another evening.

I was at the mechanics early this morning. My car's turbo is indeed in desperate need of help. It may sound like a luxury, this turbo business. Fear not. It's what helps my car go uphill faster than 30km/h. Which helps, considering that I live in the hilly part of Kenya. And I need new tires. My tires have deep gouges in them from our road in Ilula. When the mud is really bad, they fill in the holes with freshly broken rocks. Considering that's what people used in the Stone Age as axes etc, broken rocks happen to be sharp enough to cut through my heavy-duty tires. The rest of the car is fine. They'll put back the wandering nuts and bolts and screws so my car doesn't fall apart on me.

There's a group here at Mayfield who's from a church in Hong Kong. I had breakfast with a bunch of them, and it was fun to speak Chinese again. It feels funny speaking Chinese in Kenya. It confuses my mind a bit. Makes me want to address the Kenyans in Mandarin, too.

Time for dinner. And then, a hot bath, one of the luxuries of being at Mayfield. I think I'm going to read tonight rather than spend another several hours on my computer. That way, I'd be ready for the next 10,000 photos tomorrow...

In One Piece

I'm in Nairobi and in one piece. So is my car. At least, for the most part. Try driving on really bad roads for four hours at high speed and you, too, would understand why mysterious nuts and bolts are found rolling around on the floor. It makes you wonder what may have fallen off/out of the engine... These are the type of roads where you regret it if you forgot to wear a sports bra. (Sorry guys if that's TMI for you. It's reality.)

The last time I drove to Nairobi (en route to Rwanda) my car's turbo gave in. Or does it give out? Not sure. But it's no longer working. Which means that when I even just drive up the 30-degree hill to the top of our training center, I have to engage low 4WD. Which I don't think is too good for the car. Well, maybe having to use low 4WD isn't too bad, but you know it can't be good for the engine when there's a constant high-pitched buzz when you're driving more than 40kmh.

The best time to make the trip to the city is now, since I also have a slew of year-end projects to work on for the office. Projects that would happen much faster if I can plant myself and my computer in a booth at Nairobi Java House, and work uninterruptedly.

It just also happened that Zack and Wendy, two guests to Kipkaren were going to take a matatu to Nakuru and hire a driver to take them on a game drive. "Here's a deal," I told them. "I need to go to Nairobi by car. And the road to Nairobi takes me right through Nakuru. You can catch a ride with me."

We left Kipkaren around 10 am, just as the crowds started approaching our center for Sunday morning service. It was 3:30, maybe 4, when we finally rolled into Nakuru. I've driven that route in three hours -- an hour to town, and two to Nakuru. But the shortest road is so full of potholes that it is not good for any car to drive that way. So we took the longer way, through Kerio Valley, stopping along the way only briefly to bananas fruit from Esther, and to enquire about her husband's health.

This morning, we were inside the park by 7 am. And no sooner had we started our game drive, the morning fog still hanging thick in the air, than a vehicle stopped and suggested we go the other way around the lake. "There's a leopard on the road to Lion Hills."

I swung around as fast as you can with a car like mine on a narrow road, and gunned it. She was still there when we joined the party of about 10 vehicles under the tree. There were no fewer than 100 cameras pointing at this beauty (one of the vehicles was a large overland truck with probably 40 young adults poking their heads through the roof), and somehow, we seemed to have the perfect spot for some great photos. (I didn't bring my camera cable with me, so I'll upload photos from Kipkaren. Sorry!)

It never ceases to amaze me how beautiful God's creation is! I sat on the roof of my car for the longest time, just staring at the leopard. And then, the journey continued.

We saw many more amazing sights. A baby white rhino with its mom, the little one nursing happily. Good thing baby rhinos don't have horns yet, I figured, or the mom won't be too happy about the little one poking its nose in under her belly! We saw several Rothschild giraffes. Twelve more white rhinos. A hyena. Lots and lots of cape buffaloes. An amazing number of birds of prey. Tens of thousands of flamingos, and hundreds of pelicans. And then, just as we were heading out of the park, thankful for an amazing four hours of game viewing, Wendy yelled, "Lions!" There were two beautiful lionesses just lounging around this huge dead tree stump on the side of the road! Another 100 photos later, we left the park, thoroughly aware of what an amazing God we serve.

We braved the next part of the journey, bouncing over roads that have more potholes than there are patches of black top. The stretch from Nakuru to Nairobi used to be all of a two-hour drive. Almost four hours later, I rolled into Nairobi. I had dropped Zack and Wendy along the way with a driver who's taking them elsewhere for the next few days.

Tomorrow morning, I'm dropping off my car, trusting and believing that the repairs will be minor. I don't want to have to replace the turbo! It's time, however, to replace my tires. They're all badly cut by the rocks used to fill in our mud roads.

All this to say, I am honestly grateful for life the way it is, that I do get to drive to Nairobi, albeit over bumpy roads, that I got to stop along the way and enjoy God's creation, that unlike most of the Kenyan women around me, I do have the ability to drive, even make decisions about things like tires and turbos, though I know little about it.

And I'm infinitely thankful for places like Java House, where I can go and work tomorrow on the projects on my plate while the fundi figure out how to put my car back together in one piece.

It's been 20 years

Tonight is the 20th reunion of the Class of '87 at Bellport High School. I actually graduated from high school in 1986, but as a Rotary Youth Exchange Student, I got to go to Long Island, NY for a year, and was part of the Class of '87 and of '88 (since I was there from January to December.) So I can celebrate 20-year reunions in 2006, 2007 or in 2008. Couldn't make it to any of them, though.

So, tonight, my classmates are getting together on Long Island. Would've been fun to be there, but I honestly don't know how many people I'd even still know. I was rather quiet back then (I still am, for the most part), so not a lot of people knew me. I've been back and have seen my host families. In fact, I still keep in touch with one of the three families I stayed with.

But because I have moved 19 times in the past 20 years (no kidding!), and because I was an exchange student before e-mail changed the way we communicate, I've lost contact with most of my school friends of 20 years ago. (I do still have contact with many of my classmates in South Africa, though.)

In fact, it blows my mind when I meet people who have lived in the same town all their lives. It must be nice. But I can't relate.

So, since I'm not on Long Island tonight, I'll go make some nice dinner and walk over to my neighbors' home to celebrate the fact that I'm getting older. I only have 2 weeks left of being 38. Then I'm another step closer to being 40. I don't mind getting older, though. In fact, I like it. One gains wisdom along the way. Or I'd hope one does, at least...

Snake!

I've been doing work in and around my house this morning and decided to plant some new seeds in my garden. This required me to get my watering can, which just happened to be the perfect spot for some evil-looking snake to be taking a nap. It's not too big, so I didn't get a huge fright. But I wanted to get a picture of it, so I put the watering can down again (though not on top of the snake where it was) and went to fetch my camera. When I got back, the snake was gone. I saw it slithering in under my drain cover, though. So now I'm waiting for Davis, my herpetologist neighbor, to get home so he can identify it and see if we should kill it. (We don't kill non-venomous snakes since they eat rodents.)

When he lifts the cover, I'll take a decent picture of it and post it here!

Umm. Not possible. It disappeared. According to Davis' snake book, it could be a viper of sorts. But it also could be a baby python. Davis believes a python is more likely to have gone into a wet drain than a viper. Which makes me feel OK. I'm not afraid of a baby python. A viper, on the other hand...

Here's all I could see of it before its final disappearance.

Styx

My first Friday night in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, my new friends Danette and Nan invited me out. We went to Applebee's, had Thai chicken salad, laughed our heads off at silly conversations to the point that our neighbors truly said, "We want what they're having!"

Then we went to Java Creek for coffee and live jazz (which, sadly, was terrible), and when they found out I had no clue who Styx was, we went to Danette's car and listened to Lady at top volume. It was so much fun!

I'm sitting her doing me-stuff on my computer and have Styx going. Just for fun.

It brought back good memories of great friends. Friends who are both coming to Kenya in 16 days!

Can you tell I'm excited?

Some days . . .

. . . more than other days, I really miss being in a place where I'm closer to friends and family.

Some days, like today, I want to be able to call up a good friend and go and see a movie, grab dinner, talk about nothing at all. And about life's big issues.

Some days, I crave routine, and traditions. Some days I fight it like it's the pest and lavish in the fact that my days are unpredictable.

Some days, I want a roommate that can talk back, that's willing to argue the tough stuff with me without either of us having our toes stepped on.

Some days, I enjoy the conversations with visitors and neighbors. But when visitors keep coming and going and we revert to small talk, I sometimes wish I didn't have to engage at all.

Most days, I miss the anonymity of life outside a village. Some days, I appreciate the fact that my lack of anonymity gives me a platform for dialog, something that most women around me simply don't have.

Some days, I wonder about the big picture. Most days, I simply enjoy the fact that I will only see the big picture in bits and pieces, in retrospect.

Square Eyes

Since last night, I've been working on a project: sorting through my digital photos. I had maxed out my external hard drive (120GB) and have been saving photos on my computer's HD, but I don't want to max that out since it would make the computer unstable. And so I'm doing what I should be doing every time I download photos: deleting pictures. By the thousands, literally. I like purging. But after having worked on this for almost the entire day today and much of last night, I'm tired. So are my eyes!

I did take a break tonight and had dinner guests over, a couple who are here for a few days. I made Yaya Mary's tomato basil cream soup with fresh basil from my garden. And grilled chicken with pasta and a cheese sauce. Yummy. It turned out great, with all the right things to make a dinner more than just eating together. My neighbors left and I've been working on the photo project for another hour or so, but I think this is it for today...

In other developments - actually, it seems like there really aren't other developments per se. I'm just chipping away at projects. Year-end updates. Photo projects. I may have to go to Nairobi next week to be able to access high-speed Internet for work projects like ordering posters and photo books. Will see if I can get away since we'll have a team and two interns on the ground at the time.

Hannah's doing OK. In fact, she's doing better than a week ago.

The Sifuna kids registered for school this week. Now we need to go and purchase uniforms.

Tomorrow I'm going to town to pick up a friend of an acquaintance, someone who's interested in medical missions. She'll only be here for a day. I may have to take her back to town on Friday.

On Saturday, we have an AIDS campaign. And the next Saturday, we're starting a new outreach in our community by doing church on a nearby rock in an area that has a lot of alcoholics.

Never a dull moment, I tell you.

But right now, there doesn't seem to be anything interesting enough to share. Unless you want to hear about the Kenyan colleague who crashed the bones in his hand today when a trailer fell on it. Ouch!

I should go to sleep. Or sort through another 100 photos... And kill a mosquito or five before I crawl in under my net!

Oh, here's one photo you might enjoy. I was spending time journaling at my colleague Juli's house before dinner the other night. She doesn't have electricity on her side of our property yet, so there it's still life by lantern. She might actually have power within the month.

On that note, lala salama.

P.S. It's more than an hour later, and I just finished the first part of the photo project. Now I just need to purge the photos on my external drive... Except, there are about 22,807 photos more in that collection, about 14,000 more than there were on my computer... But it's got to be done so I can finish photo projects faster! Glad ONE part's done, though. I must've easily deleted 4,000 photos that weren't worth keeping! I know, I know. I'll make a habit of organizing photos as I download them. I should know better!