Thursday, July 06, 2006
No pets allowed...
The mouse is no longer is my house. We are hoping that it was just one and not a family.
Wednesday, July 05, 2006
High and low for the day...
While we were on outreach, we would go around the group and do "highs and lows", with each person saying the best part of their day and the worst part. I figured tonight I would do that...share my high and low for the day. Here you go:
My high...some friends of mine came to visit me here in LA. Tony, Janine, and their son Josh, are out here in California for vacation so they came up to the base and got to see where I live and then we toured a little of LA...a couple of the "must do" things when you've never been here before. We had lunch at California Pizza Kitchen at the Kodak Theatre and looked at the different handprints at the Grauman Chinese Theater....took a drive through Beverly Hills...went to Santa Monica to see the street performers and walk along the pier. It was such a great afternoon and I am SO happy to have them here!
My low...once we made it back to my house, we were sitting around, having a great conversation when the situation turned a bit chaotic. Why? Because we had a four-legged, long-tailed visitor running through my living room and I was not feeling very hospitable. Tony was the more humane one in the bunch and wanted to catch and release it. That did not turn out as planned. Other than giving me a HUGE laugh as the 4 of us tried to catch a mouse, it did not bring results. That little sucker ran just past Josh and under the door and into the hallway...the way to all the rooms. I keep telling myself that it DID NOT run into my room and I blocked the space at the bottom of my door to keep him out. I am hoping with all I have in me that I am not keeping him IN my room instead.
I had a small instance with a mouse in South Africa as well. The quick version of the story -- for two nights I was kept awake because I heard something in my room. He was pushing papers around and even knocked a box of crackers off the shelf and tried to get inside. Hard to believe, but true! And in Africa, you never can be sure what it is that is terrorizing you in the night. After two different people checking my room in all the obvious places, I figured it had left. Much to my surprise when I opened up my back pack to start getting my things together to come back to the states...I didn't own anything gray and furry! My bag quickly got thrown out of the room as I yelled for one of the guys to come "dispose" of the creature. I am a self-proclaimed wuss when it comes to things like this so no comments on that! Once that was taken care of, I saw that the mouse had chewed through the different pockets inside so i no longer have different compartments...they are all connected now. And on top of that he had torn up a dollar bill and was nesting in my backpack! A bit presumptuous when he wasn't invited to set up camp in my room! And we are hoping this mouse here in LA isn't planning on a warm cozy place to live in my room either. Or my house at all, for that matter!
My high...some friends of mine came to visit me here in LA. Tony, Janine, and their son Josh, are out here in California for vacation so they came up to the base and got to see where I live and then we toured a little of LA...a couple of the "must do" things when you've never been here before. We had lunch at California Pizza Kitchen at the Kodak Theatre and looked at the different handprints at the Grauman Chinese Theater....took a drive through Beverly Hills...went to Santa Monica to see the street performers and walk along the pier. It was such a great afternoon and I am SO happy to have them here!
My low...once we made it back to my house, we were sitting around, having a great conversation when the situation turned a bit chaotic. Why? Because we had a four-legged, long-tailed visitor running through my living room and I was not feeling very hospitable. Tony was the more humane one in the bunch and wanted to catch and release it. That did not turn out as planned. Other than giving me a HUGE laugh as the 4 of us tried to catch a mouse, it did not bring results. That little sucker ran just past Josh and under the door and into the hallway...the way to all the rooms. I keep telling myself that it DID NOT run into my room and I blocked the space at the bottom of my door to keep him out. I am hoping with all I have in me that I am not keeping him IN my room instead.
I had a small instance with a mouse in South Africa as well. The quick version of the story -- for two nights I was kept awake because I heard something in my room. He was pushing papers around and even knocked a box of crackers off the shelf and tried to get inside. Hard to believe, but true! And in Africa, you never can be sure what it is that is terrorizing you in the night. After two different people checking my room in all the obvious places, I figured it had left. Much to my surprise when I opened up my back pack to start getting my things together to come back to the states...I didn't own anything gray and furry! My bag quickly got thrown out of the room as I yelled for one of the guys to come "dispose" of the creature. I am a self-proclaimed wuss when it comes to things like this so no comments on that! Once that was taken care of, I saw that the mouse had chewed through the different pockets inside so i no longer have different compartments...they are all connected now. And on top of that he had torn up a dollar bill and was nesting in my backpack! A bit presumptuous when he wasn't invited to set up camp in my room! And we are hoping this mouse here in LA isn't planning on a warm cozy place to live in my room either. Or my house at all, for that matter!
Friday, June 30, 2006
Pictures galore!
A group of kids in a Johannesburg township.
Serving the kids at a soup kitchen
Speedy the chameleon...he kinda became our team pet for a while
One of the main projects was to build this workshop next to the youth center in progress.
None of the students had any real experience doing a project like this, but they stepped up to the challenge brilliantly.
The guy who this was built for is named Oupa, pronounced o-pa. He is the man standing on the righthand side of this picture.
So the building was affectionately deemed the "Oupa Cabana". This is the finished product.
Here are a few of the shack houses in Leseding, the township in Vaalwater. There are an estimated 25,000 people living in the township. And as many as 8-10 could live in one of these shacks.
A couple kids praying at the soup kitchen.
This is the way they carry small children...strapped to the back with a towel or blanket. And many of the older brothers or sisters would be in charge of the smaller ones, even though they were not that old themselves.
We went on a bush walk and climbed some of the rock formations out there, just enjoying the beauty and diversity in creation.
A giraffe, close up. By going on the bush walk, we were able to get pretty close to the animals. But it also helps to have a good zoom lens.
We went to a rhino musuem and were able to feed a 1 1/2 year old female. I never knew that rhino's make noise, but they sound a bit like a whale and she would make this noise when she wanted us to feed her.
Avery's favorite movie is "Madagascar" and he absolutely loves to dance and sing to the lemur's song, "I like to move it, move it." Here he is singing along.
Wayne, one of the leaders, rode in a mountain bike challege/race while we were in South Africa. It was organized by WWS, the Waterberg Welfare Society, that we worked with for the 2 months. The proceeds all went to continuing to build the youth center for the kids.
One of the skits the students would do involved putting on clown outfits and dancing around. It was amusing to watch and the kids loved it too.
Orange bounty! We were invited to go on a tour of a citrus farm and at the end, the farmer was generous enough to give each one of us a bag of oranges for ourselves! We ate so many oranges and drank A LOT of freshly sqeezed orange juice in the last two weeks of our trip. This Florida girl was delighted!
On the left is Mary, our contact and marvelous host for the 2 months in Vaalwater, and on the right is Anja, one of the students, from Switzerland.
This is the whole team, just one day before we left South Africa.
Thursday, June 29, 2006
My middle name is Slacker!
I admit I have not been the greatest blogger in the last month....ok, the truth is I haven't blogged at all as you can see from the massive amount of time between entries. If I could come up with some elaborate excuse as to why I have been such a slacker, I would tell you. But it all boils down to the fact that I forget and then when I do think about it, I don't have time to do it. But here I am now, writing again. Please, hold your applause until the end.
Since there is so much to cover, I will give you the highlights:
May 30...After traveling for roughly 40 hours in cars, at the airport and on really long plane rides, we arrived safely in LA.
June 5...I was overjoyed at the prospect of sitting on another plane for the day (note the sarcasm), but looked forward to going home to Florida.
June 10...Imagine my enthusiasm to once again travel by plane! I flew up to Pennsylvania for my old roommate, Danielle's wedding. It is a long story, but this weekend did not turn out as I had hoped. It seemed that nothing worked out as planned and after all the work of getting to PA to see my good friend get married, I missed the actual wedding! It took me 1 1/2 hours to go 10 miles and I still had an hour and 15 mintues to drive after that. I left with plenty of time to get there in a perfect world, but alas, this is NOT a perfect world. But I did get to see Danielle for a few minutes at the reception and she was gorgeous! It was all worth it to see her in the wedding dress and see the joy in face as she stood next to her husband!
June 12...Flew back to Florida, after getting hopelessly lost in Philadelphia and having my flights delayed numerous times.
June 17-18...Went to Sarasota and Lakeland to visit friends and family
June 26...Made the trek by plane back to LA.
I realize that if I had been updating this blog as I should, you would have a lot more detail on the random things that happened during my travels to the east coast, but I don't want to overwhelm you. I will be posting a few things with pictures, as well as some of my favorites from the South Africa trip.
Since there is so much to cover, I will give you the highlights:
May 30...After traveling for roughly 40 hours in cars, at the airport and on really long plane rides, we arrived safely in LA.
June 5...I was overjoyed at the prospect of sitting on another plane for the day (note the sarcasm), but looked forward to going home to Florida.
June 10...Imagine my enthusiasm to once again travel by plane! I flew up to Pennsylvania for my old roommate, Danielle's wedding. It is a long story, but this weekend did not turn out as I had hoped. It seemed that nothing worked out as planned and after all the work of getting to PA to see my good friend get married, I missed the actual wedding! It took me 1 1/2 hours to go 10 miles and I still had an hour and 15 mintues to drive after that. I left with plenty of time to get there in a perfect world, but alas, this is NOT a perfect world. But I did get to see Danielle for a few minutes at the reception and she was gorgeous! It was all worth it to see her in the wedding dress and see the joy in face as she stood next to her husband!
June 12...Flew back to Florida, after getting hopelessly lost in Philadelphia and having my flights delayed numerous times.
June 17-18...Went to Sarasota and Lakeland to visit friends and family
June 26...Made the trek by plane back to LA.
I realize that if I had been updating this blog as I should, you would have a lot more detail on the random things that happened during my travels to the east coast, but I don't want to overwhelm you. I will be posting a few things with pictures, as well as some of my favorites from the South Africa trip.
Thursday, May 25, 2006
Only one week left...and I am sure that time is going to fly by. The next week is pretty packed with school assemblies, work days and other meetings.
Yesterday we went to a rhino museum and a school. At the museum, they have a 3 1/2 year old rhino and we not only got to feed her, but we also got to go on the other side of the fence to stand next to her and pet her. Crazy to think you usually only see these animals through cages at the zoo.
At the school, the team performed their dramas and did testimonies and played with the kids. This trip is different for me since I am not a part of the dramas and things of that nature, but I am certainly learning a lot through more unique ways, for which I am extremely grateful.
Thank you for all your prayers and support!
This is a rhino. This is NOT the rhino that Heather got to pet. This rhino may have killed her if she tried.
Yesterday we went to a rhino museum and a school. At the museum, they have a 3 1/2 year old rhino and we not only got to feed her, but we also got to go on the other side of the fence to stand next to her and pet her. Crazy to think you usually only see these animals through cages at the zoo.
At the school, the team performed their dramas and did testimonies and played with the kids. This trip is different for me since I am not a part of the dramas and things of that nature, but I am certainly learning a lot through more unique ways, for which I am extremely grateful.
Thank you for all your prayers and support!
This is a rhino. This is NOT the rhino that Heather got to pet. This rhino may have killed her if she tried.
Tuesday, May 09, 2006
Seeing the Bush...(not George Bush, the AFRICAN Bush)
Giraffe...Zebra...Wildebeast...Impala...Blessbok...These are a few of the animals I got to walk next to yesterday. We went for a bush walk on a game farm and it's amazing to realize that this is not a zoo and there are no cages that stand between you and these animals. Of course you can't get too close because they have a lot of space to run away, but it's quite an experience. And on the way home, we saw a rhino in another game park, wandering around close to the outer fence. So as most people would do, we quickly stopped, turned around and drove back to get a better look at an animal that we only see in a zoo in a small caged area. It wouldn't be a proper African experience without getting to see these animals. And we have another game drive planned for next week in a park with the "Big 5," which are the 5 most dangerous animals: Elephant, Lion, Water Buffalo, Rhino and Leopard. This time we will be in a car...
Other than the animal sightings, this last weekend was full of activity. On Saturday was the inagural mountain bike challenge for this area. The Waterberg Welfar Society (who we are working with) planned a bike challenge/race in order to raise money for the youth center they are building. So as a team we went out to work the race in various capacities. There were stations set up around the course for water and directing the riders. The entire day was a success and those who organized it are already thinking about what to do (and what not to do) for next year.
It's crazy to think that we only have 3 weeks left here in South Africa. We fly back to LA on May 29th. I will be there in LA for a week and then get on another plane to Florida for 3 weeks. I am looking forward to going home but I must admit I love being here in Africa and it will be sad to leave here as well.
Just a note on the last entry...I do greatly thank my good friend Karisse for typing up the blog entry and if I did have the capability of buying her such a hefty Starbucks card and a car, I would do it in a heartbeat. I do hope though that she will settle for a DRINK at Starbucks as we catch up on the last two months :-)
Other than the animal sightings, this last weekend was full of activity. On Saturday was the inagural mountain bike challenge for this area. The Waterberg Welfar Society (who we are working with) planned a bike challenge/race in order to raise money for the youth center they are building. So as a team we went out to work the race in various capacities. There were stations set up around the course for water and directing the riders. The entire day was a success and those who organized it are already thinking about what to do (and what not to do) for next year.
It's crazy to think that we only have 3 weeks left here in South Africa. We fly back to LA on May 29th. I will be there in LA for a week and then get on another plane to Florida for 3 weeks. I am looking forward to going home but I must admit I love being here in Africa and it will be sad to leave here as well.
Just a note on the last entry...I do greatly thank my good friend Karisse for typing up the blog entry and if I did have the capability of buying her such a hefty Starbucks card and a car, I would do it in a heartbeat. I do hope though that she will settle for a DRINK at Starbucks as we catch up on the last two months :-)
Thursday, April 27, 2006
Alive and Kicking...
I am really enjoying my time here and love the bush of africa. The team has been busy every day working with the Waterberg Welfare Society on an AIDS hospice, gardening the grounds and putting in a path for the ambulance. There are tons of kids to play with here in S. Africa so they are working with them in the afternoons, playing games and hanging out. There is also a soup kitchen they volunteer with each wednesday.
The community is building a youth center where children and teens can hang out. It is a place where they can go to get off the streets and hopefully stay out of trouble. They are short on funding, though, so the team is taking part in a "mountain bike challenge" on May 6 to raise money. All in all the team is great.
I spend my days with Avery and have already read all but one of the books I brought with me on the trip! Avery and I have tons of quality time together. Despite Avery's fabulous "tarzan" impressions I do love the "grown-up" conversation I get when the team gets back each night. =)
The animals don't seem as plentiful as they were before, but i have seen ostriches running on the side of the road. That's a crazy site!
Please keep me in your prayers and be praying for the team and the ministry they are doing as well.
Mucho thanks goes out to my longtime pal Karisse who typed this blog out for me. She is wonderful and fabulous. I will be buying her a $100 starbucks card and a car when I return from outreach to show her my appreciation. (This last paragraph is strictly the interpertation of the keyboardist and does not necessarily reflect the thoughts of Heather)
The community is building a youth center where children and teens can hang out. It is a place where they can go to get off the streets and hopefully stay out of trouble. They are short on funding, though, so the team is taking part in a "mountain bike challenge" on May 6 to raise money. All in all the team is great.
I spend my days with Avery and have already read all but one of the books I brought with me on the trip! Avery and I have tons of quality time together. Despite Avery's fabulous "tarzan" impressions I do love the "grown-up" conversation I get when the team gets back each night. =)
The animals don't seem as plentiful as they were before, but i have seen ostriches running on the side of the road. That's a crazy site!
Please keep me in your prayers and be praying for the team and the ministry they are doing as well.
Mucho thanks goes out to my longtime pal Karisse who typed this blog out for me. She is wonderful and fabulous. I will be buying her a $100 starbucks card and a car when I return from outreach to show her my appreciation. (This last paragraph is strictly the interpertation of the keyboardist and does not necessarily reflect the thoughts of Heather)
Saturday, April 08, 2006
Welcome to South Africa
Somehow I quickly went from having 8 days until I left to being in South Africa for almost a week now. Crazy how fast time flies. Life was a bit hectic and only really got stressful in the last hour before I left the base because, well, quite frankly, I was still trying to pack and had to take a shower and clean my room and take care of things to be ready for me to leave, along with a whole list of other things. My friend Karisse got great joy out of watching me be a bit stressed at the last minute because she said I was just too calm to be leaving on outreach for 2 months up to that point.
I am used to having internet at my disposal anytime I want, for however long I need it but here you have to use internet cafes, which I am grateful for, but can't say I am a fan of. I am not sure if I will be able to post any pictures while I am here, but if not, I will do a series of them when I get back.
We have been in Johannesburg for the last week. Yesterday, we went to an AIDS home/orphanage. They house adults and children, but we were working with the kids. They say that 85% of the kids in there have AIDS themselves. Some come with their mothers or fathers and then when their parents die, they just live in the home as well. We did dramas and Bible stories and just sat with the kids. I am not in any of the skits so I get the pleasure of sitting with the kids and being able to enjoy the program with them. The second we walked in the gate, a little boy walked up to me and put his arms up for me to hold him....and that is what I did the entire time we were there. We then went over to another area for smaller kids, and again, as soon as I walked in, a little baby boy crawled up to me and held his hand up. I will never complain to hold a baby. Unfortunately, we can't stay forever so when I put him down, he stared weeping...like the "gasping-for-breath" crying. It's so heartbreaking to be in that position because I want to hold him and love him as much as possible and that is what he wants and needs. But there just aren't enough people working in these places to give them the attention and love that they need.
Please be praying for our team as we head north in the country to a small town called Vaalwater on Tuesday. We will be staying in the same place for the rest of the outreach (until the end of May).
I am used to having internet at my disposal anytime I want, for however long I need it but here you have to use internet cafes, which I am grateful for, but can't say I am a fan of. I am not sure if I will be able to post any pictures while I am here, but if not, I will do a series of them when I get back.
We have been in Johannesburg for the last week. Yesterday, we went to an AIDS home/orphanage. They house adults and children, but we were working with the kids. They say that 85% of the kids in there have AIDS themselves. Some come with their mothers or fathers and then when their parents die, they just live in the home as well. We did dramas and Bible stories and just sat with the kids. I am not in any of the skits so I get the pleasure of sitting with the kids and being able to enjoy the program with them. The second we walked in the gate, a little boy walked up to me and put his arms up for me to hold him....and that is what I did the entire time we were there. We then went over to another area for smaller kids, and again, as soon as I walked in, a little baby boy crawled up to me and held his hand up. I will never complain to hold a baby. Unfortunately, we can't stay forever so when I put him down, he stared weeping...like the "gasping-for-breath" crying. It's so heartbreaking to be in that position because I want to hold him and love him as much as possible and that is what he wants and needs. But there just aren't enough people working in these places to give them the attention and love that they need.
Please be praying for our team as we head north in the country to a small town called Vaalwater on Tuesday. We will be staying in the same place for the rest of the outreach (until the end of May).
Sunday, March 26, 2006
8 days and counting...
It has recently come to attention that I leave for South Africa in 8 days. Please understand, the date has always been the same, but I have been so busy that I failed to grasp the small amount of days until I leave. And then on top of that, I got sick. So I haven't really had time to think about it. But now that I have thought about it, I am trying not to get overwhelmed with the details. Not the details of the actual trip and the time there, but the details that I have to take care of before I leave. I am working on making a list, which is quite long and involved. Anyone who knows me knows my love for making lists and crossing each thing off as I accomplish it, so there is a part of me that is looking foward to getting it all done. Plus, when it is finished, it means that I am getting on the plane for South Africa! I have to think of it as a great reward for a long, busy week. Bring it on!
Thursday, March 23, 2006
Long live VIND!
To the fellow members of the VIND club...
We will not know the fate of our dear friends until April 19! What happened to the promises of coming back in March? For this and other offenses, I say we find J.J...I have a few questions for him.
We will not know the fate of our dear friends until April 19! What happened to the promises of coming back in March? For this and other offenses, I say we find J.J...I have a few questions for him.
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