Tuesday, September 29, 2009

Worst Ever Brand Name

I just saw a commercial on television that outraged me. They've recently begun marketing emergency contraceptive pills here, and unlike I've seen in the States, apparently they're allowed to market them on TV. Want to know the brand name for the new "morning after" pill? Unwanted. What! Well, they certainly are saying it loud and clear, aren't they?

Monday, September 28, 2009

A Shrew!

Some insight from our friend Paul and a little research reveal that the "not mouse not rat," noisy rodent is a shrew! Now I know why cats never actually get down to truly catching them--they are fierce fighters.

Really? That's my evening?

So tonight, the night after my bday celebrating, I was looking forward to an evening of eating, relaxing, and having no paper to write. Just as I was finishing Nay's bath, I heard this crazy screeching, not something I was unfamiliar with but certainly louder than usual. I walked with naked baby to the kitchen to follow the sound, and found the cat, Sahara, crouched in front of the washing machine. Seconds later, a squeaking rodent (not a mouse or rat) ran down the hallway with the cats in tow. I screamed and frantically ran behind trying to close all the important doors so it wouldn't go inside. I locked the cats into a room with it and promised to join them later.

After putting Nay to sleep, I grabbed my broom and headed for the destruction room where I hoped to find an already dead rodent. Instead, I found two cats looking extremely puzzled amidst a huge mess of things on the floor. So, locking myself into the battle zone, I proceeded to move everything so they could access the little fellow. It was actually really hilarious to watch him be chased around and around the same box for about 5 minutes, squeaking all the way! I was really amazed that he could get his body flattened enough to fit under a heavy cardboard box. So, what ultimately happened to this little fellow the cats did not seem to want to kill?

Now you know I've lived in South Asia too long: I brought an empty cornflakes box from the kitchen, ripped off the tab of a cardboard box, laid it on the floor, caught him, and did what? Threw him back outside ALIVE! Boy have I grown over the years.

Monday, September 7, 2009

Efficient Transportation

I don't know if you could say that this nation has gone "green." The pollution levels here seem to suggest differently, but one of the main things that environmentalists stress is the need for people to use public transport or carpooling. You may be feeling that you are doing your part by sharing a ride to work with three other colleagues in your spacious 4 four-door sedan, but trust me, according to South Asians, you are wasting space and gasoline.

Every day I take what is called a "tempo" to my language class. A tempo is a battery powered tin can about the length of a sub-compact car that carries, legally, 13 people. That may sound insane, but actually I prefer taking those because they are more "spacious" than my return trip transportation. On the way back I take what is called a "micro-bus." A micro-bus is a 15 passenger van that drives a set route just like a regular bus. Unfortunately, the micro-bus operators didn't get the memo from the manufacturer that these vans were meant to hold only 15 people. They usually contain many more than that. The other day I was returning from class when I was unusually cramped so I started counting people. I was sharing the 15 passenger van with 37 other people. For some reason, I couldn't find my seatbelt. Why did God make me 6'3"?

Difficult Days

Our intentions with this blog are pretty simple. We try to give you an insight into what our lives are like here. We try to make you laugh with the things that make us laugh here on the other side of the world, although I think we may only have a 50% success rate. We rarely bring up deep topics, or even inform you of our needs. We save all that stuff for our email updates which you can subscribe to by sending an email to us.

With that all said we do have difficult days here. Many days we have what we now call "minor" annoyances such as having no water or no electricity. Or days when it seems that no one understands a word you say. Sometimes difficult days come because this world is full of fallen humans who do you harm when they cheat you, steal from you, lie to you, or in general put their needs over the thousands of others' needs all around them. God has blessed us though. He has prepared us and strengthened us up so that we allow these things to roll off like water off a duck's back.

There are some things though, that God doesn't and shouldn't callous us against, especially the suffering of humans. Last week I was on my way to school when I saw a mother with her child on the street begging. Beggars are nothing new to us, we are quite used to them. I don't believe Jesus would feel moved with compassion for the beggars who claim to need money for food but have thought it wise to spend their money on a pack of Marlboros so they can smoke while they beg and listen to their iPod like many we encountered on the exit ramps in Chicago. This was a different situation. I don't know what this woman did or didn't do that put her in this situation, but I know for sure that the little girl, about Naomi's age, laying on the cardboard did nothing to deserve this. Her little face was covered in sores, her clothes were filthy, and her lungs were being filled with toxic fumes all day every day. My heart broke.

We are here to see lives changed. Really difficult days are those when you are confronted with the truth that not every life here is going to change. Difficult days are when you realize you can't save everyone. As you read this, your heart may be feeling heavy, but just imagine how much this breaks the heart of this little girl's Creator and Father.