How Cold Is It?

It’s been so cold here that the Christmas cactus on my front verandah bloomed last week. Nothing like Christmas in July – south of the equator.
We actually saw a little sunshine yesterday and today.

It Must Be Strange Animal Week

If I lived in the Middle East, North Africa or even a high tourist area in Kenya - like at the coast, I might expect to see a these unusual animals. But the past couple of days our weather here had been just like winter in Seattle. (But without central heating.) This highland area is never desert-like so I would never expect to see a desert beast here.

But there I am this morning rolling long the country road amidst the tea and coffee farms through the fog and rain and I come around the bend to see a camel packed down with saddle bags and blankets and two or three guys walking along with it - one with a Masai blanket over his head. I blink and ask myself, "What was that?" Then I round the next curve and see another on the other side of the road with a couple more guys. I giggle to myself, "Only in Kenya, expect the unexpected."

What's the plural of Mongoose?

This weekend I saw two of these little critters right out the back door on the patio.

I sure hope mongooses are not the Kenyan equivalent of squirrels. :]

Here it is -

I feel like I have a whole new lease on life. I will be at church this Sunday!

Come on in...

I finally have a few photos of my house. I updated the photo blog which you can get to here or by clicking on it in the side menu. My house isn't quite finished in terms of decorating, but it's definitely to the point of having visitors! Karibu.

Also find photos of the Rasmusons visit.

Let me know about your photo sites. It's hard to receive photos by email since I don't have a super fast connection, but it's easy to view other sites.

It doesn't look like a car...

This is a Log Book. I think we would call it a Title. It represents the Rav 4 I found on Saturday. It's paid for and I will pick it up on Friday!

I couldn't be more pleased to finally have wheels

It's old but it's been really well taken care of. The Norwegian Embassy woman selling it seemed to really enjoy it, but she's heading home.

When I get the car I hope to post a photo so you can see what my new blue baby looks like.

Thanks for praying me through the search. If you are still inclined to pray, safety needed all the time here (even while I wait to pick up my vehicle).

Ramping up on work

I think this week I passed the critical mass point at work. Sure, I have had some work and a list of things to keep me somewhat busy, but suddenly I now have deadlines! Things need to get done. Some of them will require ‘research’ so I can adequately do the end task.

“Jan, we need to market the tree nursery so we can create enough income to continue to pay the staff for the remainder of the year. Here are a few companies we have thought of that might be interested…”

Whoa, I think about that for a minute. I’m given a small list. Now I start clicking through what it would take for me to be able to ‘sell’ our ministry:

Learn the trees available
When are they planted?
How many can we have available for planting seasons?
What schools are waiting for a planting to be funded?
Can we find donors and recipients for water harvesting projects?
Create tangible pieces with this information to leave with the prospects
What catches the eye of such companies – in this culture?
On and on.

Then I am presented with another task and asked how soon can this be done? I start to wonder which is a higher priority. This one will take a little research too. I really am busy. How do I find time to find a car and finish getting my house functional? In time it will all get done.

Francis said to me again today with a slight sarcasm in his voice, “Welcome to Kenya, Jan.”