I love the mornings when I can sleep in to at least 7:30 am. Nothing scheduled until 1:00 pm today. We spent a leisurely morning around the apartment, so I thought I would show what the apartment looks like.
The main room we seem to gather to (at least three times a day) is the kitchen (15' x 10). Appliances (gas stove and refrigerator) are very small compared to what we have at home. We go shopping frequently because there is so little room to store things in the refrigerator. There is only one small rack in the oven, so when we cook big meals, we have to do it in stages. There is no hot water plumbing, so we heat water on the stove to do dishes. We can easily sit eight people at the table, but frequently have to round up the chair cushions that Merl steals to sit on.
The front room is nice sized with minimal furniture (10' x 15'). The big bookcase holds all of our extra stuff. Lots of drawers and cupboards. The sofa is big enough for someone to take a nap on - which happens frequently. There are no screens on any of the windows, but the breeze and sun are usually welcome; the mosquitoes are not. The tile and hardwood floors throughout are easy to clean.
Our bedroom window faces the main road, so we get a lot of traffic noise. Since we just got a fan, it helps drown out the noise so we can sleep. We have a small desk, a full-size bed, and a nice closet/wardrobe with shelves and drawers. We really don't need anything more (10' x 12'). It make me think about all the "stuff" we have at home that really isn't necessary. I didn't take a picture of David and Ann's bedroom (12 x 15). The only difference is that they have two desk areas. David takes care of the internet modem and networked printer for all of us. Internet seems a bit temperamental or weak because we lose reception if the doors are closed or someone blocks the signal with their body. Also, rainy weather knocks us off (and it rains a lot).
Then there is the bathroom (4' x 8'). We share one bathroom, but it hasn't been much of a problem - we have night owls and early birds, and our schedules seem to work out. Again, no hot water plumbed to the sink or shower. There is a "point-of-use" water heater attached to the shower head. If the water gets too hot, you turn on the faucet more to bring more cool water in from the storage tank on the roof. In the winter, the water comes in cold; in the summer (which we are in now), the water comes in luke-warm. The water temperature reflects the weather.
If there was anything that I did not look forward to here - it is the little black garbage can next to the toilet. All bathroom tissue is deposited in the can - the septic systems here will not handle paper. When we were sitting in the Natal Luz show with all the technological advances synchronized together, Merl said, "You would think that with all the technical expertise they have here, someone would be able to figure out how to flush toilet paper." Apparently, the old plumbing pipes are just not big enough to handle it. So, with that, you have seen our apartment.
A couple of young ladies (Jehovah Witnesses) stopped by for a revisit with David and Ann - very attractive and personable. In reality, the two religions have a lot in common; the difference seems to be in the belief of prophets and revelation after Christ. They had a pleasant visit with plans to talk again at another time.
At 1:00 pm, Ann and I met Janice at the bus stop up by the church to go to San Lucas to find primary children that live there. We wanted to invite them to church and take pictures for the Primary bulletin board.I am always intrigued by the colorful houses and decided that they paint them bright colors to camouflage the weathered construction. What a difference a coat of paint makes! Inside, many of them are very clean and nice - with flat screen TVs and modern furnishings. Several of the houses had small swimming pools of all varieties.
We had addresses (sort of) where the recently baptized children lived. We went to several homes, found a few people at home, and took pictures. We only got run off by one grandmother after taking a picture of her granddaughter (with permission from the mom). It was a long, hot afternoon walking the dirt roads. Two of the boys we were looking for were skateboarding; all of the boys wanted their picture taken and expressed interest in coming to church. Cute kids! By U.S. standards, they seem to have so little, yet they are happy and friendly. I have been surprised to see so many youth with smart-phones - and everyone here wears headphones attached to some type of electronic gadget.
After a couple of hours, we decided it was time to head home. I seemed to always be walking behind Ann and Janice - taking pictures of whatever caught my attention.
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| Flowers/horses on our way |
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| New construction |
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| Heading home |
Later that evening, both Ann and I started new piano students: Branch President Marcos and his wife Sianara, and his counselor Rodrigo Macedo and his wife Danubia. This will be the start of getting music in SFDP. The youth will eventually grow up and leave for school/missions/etc. The adults can teach their own children and others. I have been asked to get a group of youth to start lessons with the help of the Branch Presidency.
The end to another long day after trying to find something to eat for dinner.
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