Sunday, January 1, 2006 Since this was Sunday morning, we all went to church. Pastor Phil spoke on 2 Timothy 4:7, and used that to help people to persevere till the end. After church, we all went home and had a grand Christmas dinner
on New Years Day. All in all, there were about 50 of us packed
in the small house, which made for a fun, yet rather loud-at-times
afternoon. We stayed up till 12:30 just chilling with the folks (not literally.) Monday, January 2, 2006 Up early (well, 6:30) and we wanted to be on the road by 7:00 to meet Joe and Verna at a diner in town. It was a rush to get everything packed and loaded, but seemed to do well. Breakfast was small - wanted to get on the road again. So, we spent some time w/ Joe and Verna, which was nice. He runs a logging company in the winter, and farms in the summer (and winter - he has cows.) Well, we hit the road and hammered down. There was a lot of fog, so we couldn't make the time we wanted, but slowing down helped make the time we did without incident. Lunch at Timmy's in Slave Lake, and home for supper. On the way, we stopped to see how John's truck is coming - and
it's coming nicely quickly. His dad is putting a new paint job
and fixing the dings / rust holes to help make the truck last a
lot more years. The drive home was neat - in and out of the low ground fog. Once home, John and I started on replacing the ball joints on the right side of my truck. I primarily did the work because John's shoulder is giving him some trouble. I think 3 hours later we had it finished and ready to roll (this side, anyway.) We watched Left Behind - the first movie tonight. Tuesday, January 3, 2006 Not sure what to do today, we headed out in my truck to see if we could get some firewood. The plan was to scout out a local farmer's fence line to see if we could get Old Blue down there. So we left, found that the trail had too much snow--Old Blue wouldn't be able to make it back up. So we cut some, and decided to move to another location as this wood was mostly green. We went to Heidi and Jerome's place. Here we cut enough to finish filling the back of my truck and headed home, though Wetaskiwin to pick up a Stihl catalogue. About 2:00, I decided to tackle the other side of the truck - replacing the ball joints. So I worked on that, John helped with the pitman arm (which needed replacing too.) All in all, we finished by 6:30 or so, with the time for supper in there too. After that was done, we drove to town (test drive) and went to Walmart to see if they had the next 2 version of the Left Behind series. They didn't, but was able to rent the last one from the local video store. And we watched that tonight. Wednesday, January 4, 2006 This morning I had to head south for a dentist appointment. After breakfast and a coffee, I quickly threw my stuff in the truck and headed south. About a mile away, I thought it would be prudent to verify that my planner in fact did make it on the truck. After looking a while, I didn't find it, I turned back and looked around the house again. After no luck there, I went ahead and headed south. To make a long story short, I forgot it up in LaCrete! It only contains my passport needed for the trip to India that I'm planning on leaving on the 19th. So the morning was a little interesting to say the least. By the time my dental appointment was finished, they had found it under the couch. That was an answer to prayer. Now to get it down here... The dentist appointment didn't go as planned either - they have a machine that can make a crown in 2 hours, which is what I was planning on using. But- it only works if the crown stays above the gum-line. This one was a little deeper, so they couldn't make it there, and have to send it out. I get to come back on the 16th and have that put in! No problem - a little inconvenient, but could be worse. I'm glad it's cheaper up here than down south, but this time won't be as much. Oh, well - I did try. Spent the rest of the afternoon in the office caching up on loose odds and ends. Thursday, January 5, 2006 The morning broke with pancakes and eggs at the Kary's. I spent the night up in the bonus room last night, and it was a good rest, though not near long enough. I met with Jim for a bit and then John to discuss photos and video that we need to gather while in India. We would like to get more than possible, so we'll do the best we can while there. To do a good job especially with video, you need a lot of planning, preparation as well as a lot of equipment. Since the airlines are only giving us 50 pounds per check in bags, it'll be interesting to see if we can fit everything we need for 5 weeks. For me, it's a little harder because of the computer / video camera / camera equipment that needs to go with! Anyway, I was in Olds till about 2:00 p.m. - when I was able to take off. There was a lot of little things that needed to be taken care of. The ride back to Idaho was un-eventful, and that was nice. I wasn't feeling the best, some aches and whatnot, but managed to make it just fine. this time I drove west of Calgary and through Banff, Radium and the like. The one stretch between Banff and Radium was snow-covered, and full of frost heaves. I did enjoy it, as it was snowing lightly - and I like snow. I called up and talked to Jen, and she said that my passport and things were mailed out today. So - Jim should be able to bring it down with him on the 12th when he flies down here then. Crossing the border was fine too - despite the fact that I didn't have my passport. I didn't even show the officer my photocopy, and she didn't mind. No pictures of this trip - not feeling the best, so I didn't shoot any. Friday, January 6, 2006
Barney and I went down to work on the servers, but no one was there. We came back and put together a list of all the IP addresses, paths, usernames, etc for each website that are on our current servers. I even had supper at his place, then back to the office to finish up those things I was working with. Learned that we received another award for The Stranger DVD -
this time it's the Communicator
Award. Just a quick note: the awards presented here are represented of the top 15% of ~3,000 entries (Communicator) and less than the top 10% of ~12,500 entries (Telly) of those submitted. These are gained by us submitting our video (with a submission fee, of course). The reason we try to get them is so that our productions lend more 'credibility' or 'professionalism' with the general public. It does, however, cause me to think back on the amount of work that went into putting this all together. It is all to the Glory of God. Saturday, January 7, 2006 Spend the day in the office today as well - starting to get organized for the Indian trip. Got some finances in order, and started to get the pile of things to do (that has been on my desk) moved to another location. Much of which ended up in the round bin that's under the desk. Sunday, January 8, 2006 Since I wasn't feeling better yet, I decided to stay home and go to the electric church - well, a live video feed from the church I've been attending (here). Also, I watched "The Hope", and 2 creation videos by Answers in Genesis - "The Hearing Ear and The Seeing Eye" by Dr. David Menton, as well as "Aliens, UFOs and the Bible" by Gary Bates. While "The Hope" was indeed a quality production, I would like to see actual scripture being used. My biggest critique is that there were two times that I caught them saying things like "He (Jesus) was reported to have calmed storms, and walked on the sea." Everything else they portray as fact, but this left room for doubt. That just hit me. I don't want to be too hard on this production but if you want more information, feel free to ask me about it. Monday, January 9, 2006 Barney and I went to Marc's place to start setting up our servers. It was a long day, filled with lots of discussions about this and that. One of the highlights was to download a screen capture software (Macromedia Captivate) and use that to make movies of us working on what we are doing so we don't forget it next month. But over lunch, Barney took me down to where the bald eagles usually
perch. They have been here lots - there is one spot it seems where
they like to hang out. Derek went down yesterday and got a beautiful
shot of one in a tree, and I was hoping to get at least something
that good. But - the only bird within range was a young one, and
so that's all I have to offer. Back in the office (Marc's that is) we built the DNS structure on 2 of the machines. There is a lot more work to go, but it was a good start. We were there till about 8:30 working on this and that, and talking a lot. The kind of talk where Marc is doing the speaking and we are trying to understand what's coming our way. This evening, I bought a new template for a website - hope to get some time in on that here in the next few days. Tuesday, January 10, 2006 Today was a sick day, but in the office. Since I left my planner in LaCrete (you know, the one with my passport in it?) I don't keep many notes, and since I'm writing this the next day, there's not much that can be remembered. Even though I was sick, I do remember that I ordered a new lens. It should come in on Thursday, but don't hold your breath. Wednesday, January 11, 2006 Helped Russ get things moved over to his new computer -- Outlook transferred over and running as if it never was moved, and a host of other programs and files. Barney helped a bit too. After that, I finished editing a new version of The Lamb AudioBook - this one will be available for those doing DVBS and that sort of thing this summer. I need to have that finished before leaving for India next week. After supper I worked a some on our Archive Folder - a Case Logic case filling up with DVD's with projects past. Thursday, January 12, 2006 We started out at our ISP, where Barney and I rack-mounted some equipment. It was more of getting things setup to start working - cleaning out our area a bit, and putting in the UPS's. Since they are all batteries, we put them on the bottom! Went back to the office for lunch, and I stayed there the rest of the afternoon, continuing to tie up loose ends before the trip. The new lens did come in today as scheduled, and was thankful for that. I only took some inside shots, nothing worthy of publication. But no worries - you'll see some I'm sure in the near future. Submitted The Lamb for illustration/graphic design with The Communicator Awards today. Friday, January 13, 2006 Jim made it in last night, and left a present for me on my desk today - my planner that I left in Northern Alberta. So thankful to have that back - not to mention the Passport that it housed. Obviously, this close to leaving, if I didn't have that I would be working in the office while the rest of the group went to India! So it was an answer to prayer to get that back. I got most of what I wanted to get done today done. And while I'm thinking of it, I feel more like I do now than I did on Sunday. But was able to submit The Stranger DVD for the Crown award - presented by the ICVM - the International Christian Visual Media association. Also, was able to finalize the VBS version of The Lamb audio CD. Plus a lot of little things as well. You might have noticed I have a lot of those going - the little loose things. Saturday, January 14, 2006 Morning. I didn't feel well at all today. I wanted to get to the office and finish up some things so I could leave bright and early on Sunday (paperwork, pack the truck, etc.) But I couldn't get to the office. So I stayed home all day and slept, watched movies and ate. Felt kinda worthless, but that's what I did. Sunday, January 15, 2006 I was up at 6:30 - looked out the window and it was snowing right heavily. The rule at the Leger's house is to shovel the driveway before driving on it (as it would pack the snow and turn to ice. Remember it's a steep driveway.) So I thought I would eat breakfast and go shovel then leave. But Tom woke up and started, so I went out. I didn't get too far before realizing I didn't really have the strength to do what I originally felt like. So he and Titus kindly shoveled while I ate breakfast! Drove to the office, and worked on the paperwork for the border
crossing into Canada. Trying to get things figured out last minute
is always a hassle, but finally got thing squared away, on paper
and in the truck. Got on the road by 9:00 am. The snow stopped about 7:30, so the trip was just wet, slushy roads for about an hour, then it cleared up a bit. The rest of the trip was pretty fine, except north of Radium. The border crossing was neat. I declared the things I was bringing in, and as the officer was processing the paperwork, he said, "I just bought this book for my mother." I said that was cool, and mentioned that we had it on DVD - that I'd been working on it for the past 7 years or so. His eyes lit up and asked if I had one with me. "No - but I'm probably coming back down tomorrow and I could bring one." He was willing to buy one - and so I would like to get there before 8:00 pm before he gets off his shift. Arrived at the Laws' place at around 7:00 pm MST. Ate supper, looked at the 125 photos I took on the way up, and prepared them for YOU! Monday, January 16, 2006 Had breakfast with Roger and Renee, which was nice. Out to the office by 8:40 (10 min late) and we recorded a quick video for FBC Olds (First Baptist Church of Olds) which was done right before leaving for the dentist. (The filming was done, but not the editing.) The trip to the dentist was painless - just put in a new crown on a tooth that had a root-canal 1.5 years ago. I was supposed to have this done one year earlier, but that is another story. Back at the office, I finished putting the video together, tied
up some loose ends, and headed out by 3:00 MT. My goal was to be
at the border by 8:00 PT, but I found out later that the Canadian
side is still MT, where the US side is PT. So I did arrive at 8:00pm,
but not MT. So I left a DVD there for the officer I talked to yesterday. On the US side, I imported my truck, so now I can register it here in Idaho. The drive down was safe, but hazardous. I mean that it was snowing for about half of the trip (4 hours) - to the point where if you used your low-beams, the snow would cover the highs, so you couldn't use them. Anyway, by God's grace I made it home safely - at about 10:30. Tuesday, January 17, 2006 Just two days to go before leaving for India. Lots of last minute things to take care of before heading out. Spend the day in the office mostly, but did get out to go shopping (clothes for the trip.) One of my favorite things (yeah, right) that's why I waited till the last minute to do it. But as far as I know, I did manage to get everything I needed. The rest of the day was stuck in the office packin' and stackin'. Mailed a prayer email out - sorry to those who got it twice - I sent it to the wrong list first, and then the right one. So - if you got two, then you are on both! Wednesday, January 18, 2006 Today was spend packing, and getting last minute things done (like a master burn of The Lamb audio for VBS.) But also, we learned early this morning that it looks as though we would be teaching 2 seminars at the same time. This is a problem for a couple reasons - one is that we weren't planning on this, another is that we only had one set of visual aids, the third is that John would have to teach one by himself (the one to be translated), another is that Derek and I aren't really ready to chair a seminar by ourselves, and John's health isn't as strong as it used to be - which would be hard for him to get through all this. But we are looking to the Lord for wisdom and direction, heading out knowing that this is in His care. I am happy to say, that everything worked just fine - one bag weighed in at 50 pounds, the other at 40. The smaller was a neat deal - where I was looking for help in how to pack things, and came up with the idea of putting a 'box' made out of sign board and put that inside a small duffel bag. They way, it gives the contents added protection. I first started with cardboard as an idea, but this sign board (corrugated plastic) was much sturdier. Tom worked on getting a set of scales cut out of the same board and the hardware that was needed with that. He did a good job, and thankful for his help. Thursday, January 19, 2006 The big move day. We had to leave at around 10:30am to get to
the airport on time. This made for a sorta-nice morning, as things
(for me) was packed. I was able to clean up a bit the office a
bit, and get some last-minute things done (like call Visa and my
phone company, etc.) Tom took us to the airport, and we arrived in good time. Derek, Chantal and I had a bite to eat, then headed through security and to the gate. Our flight was 30 min. late, and we only had an hour lay-over in Seattle. My biggest concern was our bags - if they made it ok or not. We did catch our Seattle - San Francisco flight no problem. Then the first wait. 6 hours in the airport, 3 before John, Janice and Corrie came. DC, CC and I went ahead and ate, and caught up with JC, JC and CB - got them checked in at Singapore Airlines. The flight left at 12:05 am (midnight) and was on time as best as I remember. They now offer wireless internet in-flight, but I just found out that it's only for first / business class. This leg was only about 14 hours to Hong Kong. Saturday, January 21, 2006 Yes, we missed Friday somewhere. I think it was just west of Alaska where we lost it. But it is Chantal's birthday. We'll try to do something for her at Singapore, where we have a 9 hour lay-over. Here in Hong Kong, we had a 1 hour layover. I stayed in the plane with the rest of the group got off. So, I wrote up the last couple days here. We made it to Singapore Derek bought Chantal a cake (well, a piece of one) and we had a quick, quiet celebration. The trip to Bangladore went well - it was about 3.5 hours long.
I slept more than I wanted to, because we would be arriving at
around 10:30pm, I wanted to be able to sleep tonight (which wasn't
a problem!) But we stayed up till about 1:00 or later, discussing
plans and getting our strategy down for the next week anyway. I
don't have the specifics, but Chantal kept notes. Sunday, January 22, 2006 Today we went to bed at about 1:00 am, and got up by 7:15am. Breakfast
was onion omelets, toast, cold cereal, hot milk tea and the trimmings.
The hospitality of the folks here is top-notch. They sure are a
blessing to us. Derek and I stayed back to read "By This Name" while the rest went to church. John spoke there this morning. Tamil is the language here, which what they the want to translate BTN into. There are over 1200 languages here in India. For lunch they gave us Indian food, which was very good. I couldn't tell you what it was, save the rice and fried noodles. There were several people here that were at church - 3 Auzzies working on a water project, and a family from Germany? as well as some other national friends. Took a sleep till about 4:30. I didn't want to get up, but that's life. After we sort of got up, John, Derek and I started going through the book, figuring out what different parts we were going to cover, as well as how to cover some of the newer visual aides. We worked on this for a couple hours, and had to break because there was people here to meet with us - 3 people of which I knew! Peter and Gretchen Wagner, and Michael, all 3 working with NTM here in India. Peter and his wife attended a TERM seminar in Olds where I helped (I didn't teach, but drove folks to / from the airport, as well as to / from the church / hotel.) Michael was a student back in '95 at INTERFACE. So it was cool being able to catch up with them for a few hours. We had a similar supper at around 8:00pm and visited till 10:30. I had to help pull the plug, though, so we didn't carry on late into the night. Monday, January 23, 2006 I got up early to add some things in here, worked on it for about an hour. Breakfast at 8:00, and we had a time in the Word and prayer before discussing some more strategy. It is still my hope / prayer that we only have one seminar this week, and not be broken into two. Chuck came in before 11:00, and we met a little concerning what
to expect this week. After that, he took Derek and I to go pay
for our tickets, as well as get some money exchanged. Came home, had some lunch and took a nap. Tuesday, January 24, 2006 We were packed and in the van by 7:00 am. Took the 5 mile drive
to the airport, and made it through security and all no problems.
It was a concern of mine because we were a little overweight. It
wasn't huge, but airlines can (and often do) charge excessive amounts
for overweight. I think the fact that we had 9 people flying, they
were a little more gracious than could be. Uncle talked to them
as well--not sure what he said, but it worked. We arrived in Channei by 11:30 I think it was. The flight was only about 40 min, but the did give us a 'refreshment' - couple bread items and tea. Note on the tea here - and coffee for that matter. They don't use water, but rather milk. I like it - some sugar and very good. We got picked up at the airport because of arrangements from Uncle. (Uncle is a term that can be used with people that are 'older' - a little show of respect.) We were taken to the hotel and got situated, before heading downstairs for lunch. We did get a rest in, then headed to the venue - a Catholic conference center, on the outskirts of town. To get there, we drove through areas that were hit by the tsunami. If you didn't know there was a tsunami, you probably wouldn't have noticed anything different because it's been built back since then. Much of the cement buildings were still there, and there were lots of huts built. There are pieces of catamarans that were destroyed lining the road, on top of the rock wall that has been built (parts were there before.) The water went inland about 700 meters here in this area - still quite a bit. The center wasn't as much as I expected, but let's just say it didn't surprise me. I think it'll work ok. Still, we aren't sure if we are doing 1 or 2 seminars. We toured around a little, and ended with a last minute meeting, and closed in prayer. A mass prayer - which I don't remember doing before (where everyone prays out loud at the same time.) The trip home took over an hour, due to truck traffic on these narrow, crowded roads. We left later than what we would normally, and hope this won't be the norm. Back home we pretty much crashed. I am sharing a room with Derek. So we ordered another set of sheets / blanket so we didn't have to share that at least. About an hour later they showed up. The room service rang the bell then walked right in. I wasn't impressed, and needless to say he didn't get a tip. Slept fine for the most part. All in all it was a very long day. Wednesday, January 25, 2006 Room service breakfast at 6:45 - toast and eggs and toast butter and jelly for me. Derek had something else I can't remember, and if I did I couldn't spell it anyway. We left the hotel at around 7:15am, and got to the center in about 45 min, which was decent time for a 12 mile drive. We got there, and started setting things up. Apparently they either hired someone to run the sound (that's what I gathered.) The speakers looked like it was big enough for a football stadium, and for a room that will fit about 110 people, I think that'll do. There was announcements, some songs and whatnot, so we probably started teaching at around 10:00. JRC did the intro with Powerpoint, and Derek and I started to help at around 11:00 or so. It was after morning tea anyway. The schedule looks like this: we would teach a section, then it would be 'summarized' into another language, which at times was longer than what we just did. It does help those that have a limited English vocabulary, but it does slow us down a bit. We spent a lot of time trying to figure if we had enough time to finish the seminar, which is needed before things to make sense. Lunch - rice, chicken in a hot sauce, green beans and a banana. Very good, so it was. The afternoon went well, just slower than we wanted. We'll have to figure something out later, but for now we'll finish the day and just see how things line up. But one encouraging thing was that people were saying today in effect, "Why hasn't anyone taught this stuff before?" This was in reference to YHWH and how that's important throughout scripture. The ride home was un-eventful, and I continue to be amazed that we didn't hit anyone on the way home. The driving here compared to that of Egypt, though I think Egypt is worse. If you ever come here, this is some thoughts for the trip: 1. "He who has the least to loose has the right of way" 2. "There is strength in numbers" and 3. "Driving is like a perpetual game of chicken." You honk so people don't pull in front of you, and if you honk longer, that means it's more important. Dogs, cows, pedestrians (men, women, and children), bicycles, tricycles (pedal powered), Autoricksha's, mo-ped, motorcycles, cars, trucks, and semis all sharing the same 'common ground.' We had supper in the hotel restaurant again, and it was still good! This evening I stood on the curb for 5 min just recording the traffic noise. Try to get a sample for you to listen to. Thursday, January 26, 2006 Not feeling well today. Will have to try and elaborate later. Again, it was a long day - starting by leaving at 7:00, and back by 7:30 or so. Then have supper and that's about all a body can do in a day. Friday, January 27, 2006 Not feeling well today. This morning I rode with the taxi to the center, which was an experience in itself. Today I would have rather rode with the normal driver, as it's quieter because he has AC and keeps the windows up! Saturday, January 28, 2006 The last day of the seminar here in Chinnai. It is going well, and depending on the translation, we'll do well to get things finished and wrapped up in good time. As the day progressed, we were doing well with the time. So over lunch, JRC decided to see if we could get some testimonies from some of the people, to help express to the folks back home what this meant to them. One fellow said in summary: "I learned more here in 4 days that I learned in 4 years of seminary." Sunday, January
29, 2006 Another l-o-n-g day. Started by sleeping in to 6:30, shower, breakfast and down in the lobby by 7:30. Jay, JRC, JC, John Paul and I went to a United Methodist church, about 1 km away. John was to deliver the message this morning (and he did) but was only given about 35 - 40 minutes to do so. The service lasted about an hour and a half - not really sure, but I did record it. At 10:00 I think it was, we all broke for tea / coffee where the congregation milled around outside for a while. Today was a special emphasis on missions, and John was to lead a 'seminar' on that which started around 10:30 or 11:00. Sorry, I wasn't keeping notes on the times. He spoke about the Person and Work of Christ, using his skipper experience as an illustration to start it off, which I thought was really good. Glad I recorded this one too, though as of yet I've not listened to it. By 12:30 we were back at the hotel, and went for lunch. Chicken basket for me, just cause I knew what it was (and no one else who had been ordering before was here.) Chuck, Connie and Corrie weren't back yet (or so we thought) so we went ahead and ate. Chantal wasn't feeling well, and Derek joined us, bringing food back to Chantal. After filling up, we headed back to the rooms to pack for our afternoon flight. It was non-stop packing till 2:30, which was nice, because we were to be in the lobby by 2:45 - good, a nice 10 min break in the hectic day! After piling up 2 taxis, we headed for the airport. We, in the lead taxi with our normal driver, had to drive much slower to give the other guy a chance to keep up. Finally we got there, through security and to our gate with no problem. Except that our flight was delayed about 30 min. Saying good bye to Chuck and Connie, we waited our turn. They were heading back to Bangalore, and we Calcatta The flight was good, a good shot of turbulence, but wasn't long. 2 hours later we were down on the ground again picking up our bags. We piled our bags and myself into one taxi, then most of the others into another. They took is to a hotel, which I had second thoughts before even getting out of the car. But - give it a try and see how it goes. The taxi drivers wanted to unload everything, and well, that's what we did. One left to pick up Jay, Derek and Corrie. After inspecting the rooks for some sort of cleanliness, it was decided to get another hotel... remember, ALL our luggage is in the lobby of this hotel. So Jay went out looking for another place, and we stayed and waited. He did come back with another recommendation within walking distance, to which he took JRC, JC, CB and CC, while DC and I stayed with the 'stuff'. We hired a porter to bring our bags to the other hotel, which took only 2 trips for him. All I can say, is that I'm so thankful to have Jay here—I would have had a hard(er) time with all this if he wasn't here! Once settled, I snapped a photo of our new, clean room (to which Jay and I would be staying.) Well, it's now almost 10:30 pm, so I think that's enough work for one day. Naw- I still need to work some photos over. But instead I went to sleep. Monday, January 30, 2006 Where was I this morning? Oh, yeah, in Calcutta. We loaded the taxis at 7:30 and headed to the airport for our 9:55 flight. Security went fine for the check in luggage, and that's when the problems started. First of all, we found out that we were flying on a 'little' plane, and couldn't take all our luggage. We started repacking and conslodating things, so we could leave some baggage behind. And that's what we did. We left 5 bags in the 'Left Luggage' depot to be picked up on the way back through. But once all that was behind us, things went well. We were able to get our bags checked in and bording passes in hand. Then we broke for breakfast, or was that broke for fast. I had eggs and toast, everyone else had Indian food, which I can't pronounce neither spell, or even remember. We did get through security (for hand luggage) no problem this time. I usually have to have my bags searched with the batteries, cameras, laptop and stuff. But the flight was delayed due to 'inclement weather.' Unbeknownst at the time, it was only delayed for about 10 min. 130 min flight to Shillar, then another 50 min to Dimapur. The airport was rather empty, which was a nice change from the past several we've been to. The pastor that was to pick us up was a little late because his wife isn't doing well. We came to the hotel and got setup. It is a nice place, for sure. Then we took a trip down to the converence room, which is about 1/4 mile down the street. Sure is nice to be closer to the conference room. It's a dark wood panneled room, dimly lit, wit a huge oval table in the middle. I think it'll work, but we'll have to figure some things out tomorrow. Once back, Derek and I headed to the internet place, and I downloaded my 385 messages (oh, about 30 were real) as well as upload my pictures to the website. Well, the first weeks worth anway. Tuesday, January 31, 2006 Breakfast at 6:30 - I just had an omelet and toast (and tea.) We left the hotel by 7:30. It is so nice that the meeting place is only about a half mile away. We got things setup - computer, projector, screen, audio, etc. We opened all the windows, and that helped out some. The carpet is rather dusty, and that's hard on JRC. But through the day, he did ok, with some minor allergy problems. Total, there were about 85 people attending, which packed out this room nicely. Many more and we would have problems. I think there are 2 Bible Schools represented here with their principals, there are pastors, youth leaders and about 35 students. There are about 8 gals that like to sing - might look into recording them here sometime. Lunch was served for us right in the same building, but the students walked next door to another restaurant. It's hard for them, only 30 min to leave, stand in line, eat, and get back, but they did well. The pastor who is coordinating this seminar - his mother just died today. They have to drive the body over 280 km today to take care of it. After class, we went to The Internet Zone to see if we could get on for a little. They usually closed at 6:00 pm, and it was 10 till 6:00. They were nice enough for us to get on for about an hour - which when supper was - 7:00. Supper was good again. The food here has been great. They have a 'dining room' on the second floor, and we were the only ones in there. After supper we split up and relaxed for the evening. Here, the power goes out on a regular basis. Apparently, they obtain power from different sources for different times of the day. So, when it switches between the sources - it may take 15 min or so. Our hotel has a diesel generator that usually starts within a minute, and takes over till the power comes back. |
Back in the office again - with a lot of catch up to do.