Meet Zoi, Doberman Pincsher Female. Born June 30th in Miami, FL. Adopted August 26th; taken to the DR on Sept. 1st. See more details in other blog post.
Friday, October 24, 2008
I Did Get Around to It
I did take the time to get at least these photos posted.
Meet Zoi, Doberman Pincsher Female. Born June 30th in Miami, FL. Adopted August 26th; taken to the DR on Sept. 1st. See more details in other blog post.
Meet Zoi, Doberman Pincsher Female. Born June 30th in Miami, FL. Adopted August 26th; taken to the DR on Sept. 1st. See more details in other blog post.
If There's One Picture I Would Post
It would be of my new dog, Zoi. Zoi is a Doberman Pinscher puppy that I got when I was back in the States in August. She was born June 30th. I brought her back with me on September 1st.
She's cute and cuddly and friendly. She's has been a hit with most of the folks coming in and out of the Center. And she's been a lot of company to me.
I'm deliberating about whether or not to take her home with me for the Christmas break. I'm taking December off in Florida, and that's a long time for my folks here who I work with, to take care of her. I think she'd survive fine, but this is such a crucial bonding time in her life. And the 5 weeks I plan to spend in Florida is a long time. So, some of you may get to meet her if I bring her home. My biggest delima is the money. You know me, I'm cheap. I had to spend $250 to fly a dog home. But, we'll see. Most of you wouldn't blink at spending that money, but me....
She has been a hand full. I always forget how hard puppies are, until I get one. Well, I have one. And she's female. And she's INCREDIBLY hard to house train. Not sure what I'm doing wrong. She goes outside, does her business, and literally with 10 minutes repeats her business right in the middle of the living room floor. (or at night, go all night without any problems). Very very inconsistent. That's driving me crazy.
Otherwise, she's been a huge blessing and I look forward to having her around. I really do need to at least post a picture of my new puppy.
She's cute and cuddly and friendly. She's has been a hit with most of the folks coming in and out of the Center. And she's been a lot of company to me.
I'm deliberating about whether or not to take her home with me for the Christmas break. I'm taking December off in Florida, and that's a long time for my folks here who I work with, to take care of her. I think she'd survive fine, but this is such a crucial bonding time in her life. And the 5 weeks I plan to spend in Florida is a long time. So, some of you may get to meet her if I bring her home. My biggest delima is the money. You know me, I'm cheap. I had to spend $250 to fly a dog home. But, we'll see. Most of you wouldn't blink at spending that money, but me....
She has been a hand full. I always forget how hard puppies are, until I get one. Well, I have one. And she's female. And she's INCREDIBLY hard to house train. Not sure what I'm doing wrong. She goes outside, does her business, and literally with 10 minutes repeats her business right in the middle of the living room floor. (or at night, go all night without any problems). Very very inconsistent. That's driving me crazy.
Otherwise, she's been a huge blessing and I look forward to having her around. I really do need to at least post a picture of my new puppy.
Not What I Signed Up For
It’s the new theme that I seem to be hearing from a lot of people. Including myself.
There are some major changes that will occur over the next several months here in the DR that will impact all of us. For one, Brian Wallace, the Director of the program (Manna International) is leaving and heading back to Florida indefinitely. His wife’s (Tammie) father is doing very poorly with his health and the family needs Tammie and Brian to help care through this rough time. Brian/Tammie have been on the mission field for 30+ years, so this is going to be a hard transition in many ways to go back. But, it’s what they need to do to take care of their family. We all admire them for what they mean to us here, but also their willingness to support their family in a time of need. We support their decision, but will miss them.
They are not sure of the future. Brian hopes to continue to work in a capacity that allows him to use his talents, but not sure exactly what that all means.
In the mean time, the work here will continue. We’re in the process of reassigning and reevaluating roles and responsibilities. All I really know is that I’m not sure what I’ll be doing or for how long. I came specifically to help Brian set up an extended training program for young adults. That will not be happening here anytime soon, so I’m not sure how best to use my skills. There are plenty of “openings” but not sure what’s best.
We have new team members joining us in January. Two couple who are currently in language school (Spanish) in Guatamala. Brian and I flew to Quatamala last week to deliver the news of him leaving to them personally, so they could have time to digest, ask questions, and suggest ways they can help. Like all of us, they recognize the great hole Brian & Tammie will leave, but are still planning to come. I’ve greatful for their commitment.
So, things continue to change. It’s such a different world. In America I generally had a direction of where I was headed, and it seems I ended up there, for the most part. I know that may be different for others, but for me, paths were somewhat layed out and achieved. Not here. Not by a long shot.
Every path thus far has changed dramatically. I still don’t see myself in a different “job”; no desire to go back to what I had or was. Just not sure what specific role I will play; where, or when. My hope is that I’ll continue to stick with this. But it’s not what I signed up for.
There are some major changes that will occur over the next several months here in the DR that will impact all of us. For one, Brian Wallace, the Director of the program (Manna International) is leaving and heading back to Florida indefinitely. His wife’s (Tammie) father is doing very poorly with his health and the family needs Tammie and Brian to help care through this rough time. Brian/Tammie have been on the mission field for 30+ years, so this is going to be a hard transition in many ways to go back. But, it’s what they need to do to take care of their family. We all admire them for what they mean to us here, but also their willingness to support their family in a time of need. We support their decision, but will miss them.
They are not sure of the future. Brian hopes to continue to work in a capacity that allows him to use his talents, but not sure exactly what that all means.
In the mean time, the work here will continue. We’re in the process of reassigning and reevaluating roles and responsibilities. All I really know is that I’m not sure what I’ll be doing or for how long. I came specifically to help Brian set up an extended training program for young adults. That will not be happening here anytime soon, so I’m not sure how best to use my skills. There are plenty of “openings” but not sure what’s best.
We have new team members joining us in January. Two couple who are currently in language school (Spanish) in Guatamala. Brian and I flew to Quatamala last week to deliver the news of him leaving to them personally, so they could have time to digest, ask questions, and suggest ways they can help. Like all of us, they recognize the great hole Brian & Tammie will leave, but are still planning to come. I’ve greatful for their commitment.
So, things continue to change. It’s such a different world. In America I generally had a direction of where I was headed, and it seems I ended up there, for the most part. I know that may be different for others, but for me, paths were somewhat layed out and achieved. Not here. Not by a long shot.
Every path thus far has changed dramatically. I still don’t see myself in a different “job”; no desire to go back to what I had or was. Just not sure what specific role I will play; where, or when. My hope is that I’ll continue to stick with this. But it’s not what I signed up for.
Where's Norm Been
Good question.
If you’ve emailed me and I’ve not responded, you’d probably have to take a number and stand in a long line of people. I’m sorry, but it’s hard for me to getting around to emailing. After you spend your energy on putting out fires of all sorts and trying to push things forward, the other important but less urgent things get pushed aside. But, thanks for emailing. It is a great encouragement. And, to be honest, given what's ahead I'm afraid I'm going to get worse at it, not better.
Got back here in September to a half finished project (more like 80% finished) of a resource center we’ve purchased and we (me and Tim/Lisa Bynum most) immediately dug into finishing it up. It consumed far my of my time than I expected. Not quite finished yet, and it's been almost two months!
It’s going to be a nice place, very nice, has needed a lot of work. And, the work that’s needed also comes with foreign help, Dominican’s, (local electricians, tile layers, plumbers, etc.) and their skills are minimal at best. So, it’s been a huge challenge to deal with. I’m accustom to extremely skilled craftsman and technicians. That’s not here. More growing pains.
Lately, even though we now have internet 24/7 and I’ve installed a battery inverter system to use when there’s no city power, the electricity has been very bad. Not even enough electricity to charge the batteries, so for now we have very little. And thus things like internet and emails are hard to come by. It’s amazing how different life is with electricity. Everything, everything uses electricity. When you don’t have it for months on end, it gets really tiring.
So, that must mean I’m about ready to toss in the towel, or at a minimum slow things down. Well, not really. Quite the opposite, I’ve made plans to start on building a house. And we’re suppose to start next week. I must be mad. But, in the final analysis of whether to start or not, I see how employing 10-20 people to build a house sustains many families that need the work. Frankly, all things being equal, I wouldn’t start now, but I’m going to anyway. I’m sure it will be unspeakably difficult. But, I also have a peace about it. Not the house or the outcome, just that I’m starting it. We’ll see how it goes.
So, keep hanging in there. I will eventually blog, if not email.
That's where I've been.
If you’ve emailed me and I’ve not responded, you’d probably have to take a number and stand in a long line of people. I’m sorry, but it’s hard for me to getting around to emailing. After you spend your energy on putting out fires of all sorts and trying to push things forward, the other important but less urgent things get pushed aside. But, thanks for emailing. It is a great encouragement. And, to be honest, given what's ahead I'm afraid I'm going to get worse at it, not better.
Got back here in September to a half finished project (more like 80% finished) of a resource center we’ve purchased and we (me and Tim/Lisa Bynum most) immediately dug into finishing it up. It consumed far my of my time than I expected. Not quite finished yet, and it's been almost two months!
It’s going to be a nice place, very nice, has needed a lot of work. And, the work that’s needed also comes with foreign help, Dominican’s, (local electricians, tile layers, plumbers, etc.) and their skills are minimal at best. So, it’s been a huge challenge to deal with. I’m accustom to extremely skilled craftsman and technicians. That’s not here. More growing pains.
Lately, even though we now have internet 24/7 and I’ve installed a battery inverter system to use when there’s no city power, the electricity has been very bad. Not even enough electricity to charge the batteries, so for now we have very little. And thus things like internet and emails are hard to come by. It’s amazing how different life is with electricity. Everything, everything uses electricity. When you don’t have it for months on end, it gets really tiring.
So, that must mean I’m about ready to toss in the towel, or at a minimum slow things down. Well, not really. Quite the opposite, I’ve made plans to start on building a house. And we’re suppose to start next week. I must be mad. But, in the final analysis of whether to start or not, I see how employing 10-20 people to build a house sustains many families that need the work. Frankly, all things being equal, I wouldn’t start now, but I’m going to anyway. I’m sure it will be unspeakably difficult. But, I also have a peace about it. Not the house or the outcome, just that I’m starting it. We’ll see how it goes.
So, keep hanging in there. I will eventually blog, if not email.
That's where I've been.
Things You Wish You’d Never Seen
I’m sure I’ve drank some nasty water in the past, but at least I didn’t know it was so nasty.
The new Center has a cistern, which is kinda a large concrete tank to store water. The water comes from the city, is pumped into the tank a couple of times a week, and from there, I then pump water to another tank on the roof top, thus having a gravity feed water system.
Well, the problem came when I decided to shine a flashlight into the cistern. This after using the water to cook with, brush my teeth, bath, wash dishes, etc. Everything really but drink straight. The flashlight revealed fish, no big deal. But what where the fish eating?? Dead cockroaches floating in the tank. And more light revealed all kinds of trash, wood, metal, and a ton of algae growing in the cistern. No wonder the fish are doing so well, and the cochroaches.
I’ve now changed my water usage habits. I still use it to shower; it’s either that, or no shower, and use it to wash clothes and dishes (what else can I do?). Not sure how clean the dishes are getting or if the water is doing more harm than good on them, but for the first time I can remember, I use bottled water to brush my teeth and purpose not to drink the water or cook with it.
The plans are to drain the cistern and scrub it down. Not exactly sure how. Perhaps hire a kid that’s small enough to fit inside the 12x12 inch opening. But, hopefully it will happen soon. I generally don’t get grossed out with stuff, but this is SO nasty.
If I had just never looked inside I would have been fine. Things you wish you’d never seen.
The new Center has a cistern, which is kinda a large concrete tank to store water. The water comes from the city, is pumped into the tank a couple of times a week, and from there, I then pump water to another tank on the roof top, thus having a gravity feed water system.
Well, the problem came when I decided to shine a flashlight into the cistern. This after using the water to cook with, brush my teeth, bath, wash dishes, etc. Everything really but drink straight. The flashlight revealed fish, no big deal. But what where the fish eating?? Dead cockroaches floating in the tank. And more light revealed all kinds of trash, wood, metal, and a ton of algae growing in the cistern. No wonder the fish are doing so well, and the cochroaches.
I’ve now changed my water usage habits. I still use it to shower; it’s either that, or no shower, and use it to wash clothes and dishes (what else can I do?). Not sure how clean the dishes are getting or if the water is doing more harm than good on them, but for the first time I can remember, I use bottled water to brush my teeth and purpose not to drink the water or cook with it.
The plans are to drain the cistern and scrub it down. Not exactly sure how. Perhaps hire a kid that’s small enough to fit inside the 12x12 inch opening. But, hopefully it will happen soon. I generally don’t get grossed out with stuff, but this is SO nasty.
If I had just never looked inside I would have been fine. Things you wish you’d never seen.
Monday, October 13, 2008
So Much, So Fast
Things are changing here so quickly, I can't keep up. And the things that changed yesterday are over shadowed by the things that happened today. And, I'm guessing tomorrow with be the same.
I went to a hearing today, for a child (14 years old) that has been taken from his mother because she'd tried to kill him a couple of times. His name is Kevin. If you've seen prior pictures, you've seen him in them. He's been active in this ministry long before I got here.
At this hearing for Kevin, (with Osvaldo) I was there just to advocate that the proper steps were to be taken to make sure he's placed with the right person (family, whatever). And, like a scene out of a movie, where you blink and something else happens, they are awarding me temporary custody of him! What just happened??!! Well, truth is, as a single man it's not appropriate for him to be here with me, so we're placing him (hopefully) temporarily with the children's home folks in Bobita. But, they don't know that as of yet. I hope the team in Bobita meant it when they said if we had an emergency we could place someone there temporarily. Well, I think this falls in that category.
Other significant events are also taking place, but there's a time and place for everything. And, we've got to get things in order. But, it has a major impact on my future plans. I could really use some counsel from some of you right now! Just keep us all in your prayers. It's changing fast around here.
I do plan to get to the other reader's digest topics, but so much so fast.
I went to a hearing today, for a child (14 years old) that has been taken from his mother because she'd tried to kill him a couple of times. His name is Kevin. If you've seen prior pictures, you've seen him in them. He's been active in this ministry long before I got here.
At this hearing for Kevin, (with Osvaldo) I was there just to advocate that the proper steps were to be taken to make sure he's placed with the right person (family, whatever). And, like a scene out of a movie, where you blink and something else happens, they are awarding me temporary custody of him! What just happened??!! Well, truth is, as a single man it's not appropriate for him to be here with me, so we're placing him (hopefully) temporarily with the children's home folks in Bobita. But, they don't know that as of yet. I hope the team in Bobita meant it when they said if we had an emergency we could place someone there temporarily. Well, I think this falls in that category.
Other significant events are also taking place, but there's a time and place for everything. And, we've got to get things in order. But, it has a major impact on my future plans. I could really use some counsel from some of you right now! Just keep us all in your prayers. It's changing fast around here.
I do plan to get to the other reader's digest topics, but so much so fast.
Tuesday, October 7, 2008
Blog Topics
Here's life as a Reader's Digest Story Content Page:
What 3 Weeks of Rest in the USA Meant to Me
I’ve Moved; Our New Place is Almost Shiny and Almost New
My New Trailer; No Need for a Truck
I finally have semi-reliable electricity
I finally have high speed internet at my house; first time in my life
I Have a New Companion – Doberman Puppy Named Zoi
I’m Mugged
I Drink Swamp Water Daily with Fish, Cochroaches, and all the trimmings
My Old Housekeeper is New Again
If You Come to My Home in the DR, You might think you’re in America
I’m One Step from Starting a New House Project
I have a New Employee, William; Osvaldo has one foot out the door
My Almost New, Very Expensive, Motorcycle Develops a Damaged Piston Rod
If you Want to hear more, just let me know. How's that for brevity??
Where Has Norm Been???
What 3 Weeks of Rest in the USA Meant to Me
I’ve Moved; Our New Place is Almost Shiny and Almost New
My New Trailer; No Need for a Truck
I finally have semi-reliable electricity
I finally have high speed internet at my house; first time in my life
I Have a New Companion – Doberman Puppy Named Zoi
I’m Mugged
I Drink Swamp Water Daily with Fish, Cochroaches, and all the trimmings
My Old Housekeeper is New Again
If You Come to My Home in the DR, You might think you’re in America
I’m One Step from Starting a New House Project
I have a New Employee, William; Osvaldo has one foot out the door
My Almost New, Very Expensive, Motorcycle Develops a Damaged Piston Rod
If you Want to hear more, just let me know. How's that for brevity??
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)