Scrabble Tuesdays

I've decided to do a series of posts on the events I participate in on a regular basis. This will be in place of the journal I should have been writing over my two years on the HIM Program. Yeah, we'll see if I ever do another one after this, but I do intend to!! Sorry if you find this boring, I just need to write it somewhere and what better place than a public blog?!

I occasionally play Scrabble on a Tuesday afternoon at the Senior Citizens Center. I saw it advertized in the paper, called and asked if I could play. The lady on the phone (Lee) said I didn't sound over 55 but it would probably be okay. She was also really quizzing me about my Scrabble skills, asking if I play in tournaments and such. I don't think she believed me when I said no and that I just enjoy the game. When I showed up the first day I had no idea where to go and no one was really excited to help me since I was clearly not over 55. A couple people just told me to leave. When I finally found the right room I was warmly welcomed by the Scrabble players (though they were skeptical of my intentions and several of them thought I was there to practice my skills.) Anyway, they like to play one on one because the games go quicker and I thought I was there for just a couple hours max and I'd play two or three games. At least five games and four hours later I walked out the door with the most muddled brain I've had since finals week in college. None of the people there thought I was some sneaky expert anymore. I didn't win one game and most of the games my score was over doubled by the winner. You'd think they were playing bingo as often as people yell bingo in there. Which, in case you don't know, is what someone says when they play all 7 of their Scrabble tiles in one play.

Anyway, that was almost exactly a year ago now. I did go nearly every week last year but I've been slacking this year. One reason is because one of my first times back after my trip home there was a Canadian visiting for six weeks who had a leather pouch on his belt for his Scrabble dictionary and was a bit too serious for me. He kindly/not so kindly felt the need to point out all my "silly moves," as he called them. I'm not really that sensitive, but his attendance was a good excuse for me to take advantage of the beautiful summer weather and enjoy the beach as much as possible. Then I just got out of the habit. I'll try to go at least once more before I leave Australia, which, by the way, is in less than four weeks!! Lately the people who are at Scrabble are all people I really enjoy playing with and who are patient with me when I don't use an 's' to form two words or a blank to make a bingo. I will say I have learned a TON about Scrabble strategy. And I've just enjoyed being with different people at least once a week...or lately once every two months, haha. Here are some pictures of the fabulous people I get to play with.

Sam

Carmel and Barbara

Robyn and Lee

for the last time

So, I am officially in my second and final year of my time in Australia. Well, that is if I stick to my contract of only two years and leave next August. That is the plan right now but you never know what the Big Guy has in store.
To the point of this post that is just a tad out of the blue.
All of last year I was doing things for the first time. I went to a bunch of beaches for the first time, had Christmas in Australia for the first time, went to several camps for the first time, ate certain food for the first time, you get the picture. All of the sudden I am doing things for the last time! It is the strangest feeling! I dont really like it at all. This last weekend we went to a camp down in Victoria called Revive. When I arrived here in August last year Camp Revive was the first major event I attended. It was fantastic then and it was awesome again! And now I have just gone to Revive for the last time. This is the beginning of doing things for the last time. But more importantly it is the beginning of seeing certain people for the last time. Which I already know is going to be the hardest thing about leaving.
I'm not really as depressed or emo about this like i might sound. It's just a really strange feeling and I wanted to write it down.
I do know if I go back to the states in August it doesn't mean I will never return to Australia and experience any of the things again that I am doing now for the "last" time. Okay, enough of being a downer. Things are fabulous here and I have learned so much about myself, church work, my relationship with God and others, who God is, and on and on and on. I wouldn't trade it for anything.

Also, since I'm posting. I have passed the one year mark now, as previously stated. Some people/churches had committed to giving monetarily once each year and since then have decided they are not able. I know God is faithful and will provide. If you get the feeling He wants to work through in this way, this is how you would go about doing that.
Mail a donation to:
Memorial Road Church of Christ
Attn: HIM Program
2221 E Memorial Road
Edmond, OK 73013
(and note that it's for me)

Thanks so much to those who have given, those who continue to give monthly, those that will give again and those who are praying for me.

visitors and neighbors

Here are a few of the things we've had visiting or living near us lately.


We've had around 5 slugs in our kitchen, that I've seen, in the last couple months. The last one escaped beneath the linoleum before I could chuck it outside. Between seeing that and some new soft spots we're beginning to be a bit concerned about our floor.


This guy lives in a huge web between our tree and back fence. It's hard to tell how big it is from this picture but I'll just tell ya...it's huge.


This guy thought a cozy spot between Sammie's hammock and the fence was a good place to settle in.


Thank the Lord we haven't had any of these at our house yet. This monster was at the church building last month. I have been told about these spiders called "huntsman" spiders for a while now and how they are huge but completely harmless but I honestly don't think I could handle seeing one in the place I live.

Michelle's visssit

oookay obviously this post didnt get out as soon as i intended and it turned out helping with sport got canceled because of the rain so i dont even have an excuse.
but anyway...here are some great pics from michelle's visit at the beginning of january.

we ate some kangaroo burgers at this great burger place before playing at the beach.

of course michelle had to buy a bunch of new balls and a paddleball set because we didn't have enough toys to satisfy her.

we went to the zoo and got to feed the giraffes! it was SO cool!!

we went on a swim with dolphins adventure. we got lost on the way, thought we almost missed it and then spent 45 minutes on the dock because the boat was late. but we saw tons of dolphins and had an amazing time even though it was freezing and i was terrified.



we went out to the blue mountains and on the way stopped at featherdale wildlife park! michelle looooved the feeding the kangaroos and petting the koalas.



we spent the last two days at surf camp which was just such an all around strange experience but really fun! we got spend some time on some beautiful beaches, see lots of dolphins and learn how to surf!


the whole thing was ridiculous amounts of fun! we all successfully stood up and surfed for at least 1.5 seconds. and i learned that surfing is not the sport for me :)

that's it for michelle's visit. now you know what kind of good time i can show you if you come to visit so COME VISIT! okay see you then.

catching up

is it possible to catch up on over four months of my amazing event filled life? probably not, but here are a few highlights since september:

halloween
we had a bunch of people over to celebrate this fabulous candy filled holiday that doesn't get near as much celebrating at it deserves in this country.
















softball
softball is going really well and proving to be super fun! i finally remembered how to hit fast pitches and ever since then i dont feel like such an idiot.
















erin
erin downing was here with on her pac rim study abroad program. it was SO nice to see a familiar face and get to hang out with an old friend. it was a blessed soul refreshing time.















fishing
if you know me at all you know i LOVE fishing, and especially deep sea fishing! you just never know what you will catch. i had the opportunity to do this with the pac rim group and had an amazing time! i caught 5 fish and the were all different types. and i saw a whale!
we also got to go fishing with a guy from church named Jack. we just went to the beach and we didnt catch anything but we did see a beautiful sunrise and had a good time anyway!











new home
at the beginning of november we moved into our own place! finding an apartment is ridiculous here but God blessed us with the lower half of a duplex. we have a spacious living area (compared to most of what we looked at), with 2 bedrooms and even a laundry room out back! we lived for quite a while without modern conveniences such as washer, dryer, microwave, TV, etc. but now we actually have all of those things and the best part was all of it was either a gift or found on the side of the road! God is so good, and i am so thankful He uses His people to share. i have my own room and sammie shares with chunni, one of our chinese friends.

christmas
the funny thing about christmas is that it meant summer is also here. i'm still trying to reconcile that in my mind. it isn't easy.
we were given a tree and lots of decorations, we also made and decorated cookies and hung stockings, it was nothing like being at home but it was a tolerable substitute.
we had abi, rob, ann, sherry and yuka over christmas day from korea, chile, australia, china and japan. quite a cultural variety! we ate too much delicious food, played some games and then went to the beach. it was a really good day!


camp challenge
this is a pathetic picture to represent camp challenge but it will have to do. camp challenge is the big summer bible camp here. lots of people came and we had a great time! i taught a class of 3-8 year olds for two hours every day which was exhausting but really fun. i was also a counselor for the teen girls but i never really figured out what that meant or what my duties were haha, i just slept in the same room as them and told them to be quiet every once in a while. this camp is a little different than my camp at home. there were lots of different activities in the afternoons such as horse back riding, swimming, water sliding, archery, flying fox (zip line) and more! the evenings were lots of fun and included a trivia night, an auction, a talent night and a dress up (costumes, not fancy) night. the last evening was new years eve and we had a huge spoons tournament. you probably dont even have to ask who won but i'll tell you anyway. it was me :)

youth day
three weeks after camp the warringah church puts on something called warringah youth day, this is in place of the youth night we put on once a month. this gives everyone a chance to get together soon after camp before school starts again. we had a big barbecue, i cooked a freakish amount a fried onions (and haven't been able to enjoy them properly since), after that we went to the beach and played sand volleyball. we ended the evening with great singing and a talk by adam frank who spoke on the importance of church family and being a part of the body and how important chocolate is.









this is just a snippet of things i've been doing the last four months. i couldn't even begin to tell you all of it. hopefully i will post more frequently from now on to avoid posts like these. and right after i get back from helping with sports at curl curl primary school in the rain i will post pictures from michelle lair's visit which needs a post all its own. but right now i have to go prepare to get wet!

gettin outta herrr.

Tomorrow we are heading down to...Healesville? I can't remember the name of the town, somewhere near Melbourne is all I know. There is a church retreat called Revive this weekend. I am really excited! It is like a 10 hour car ride which will be great! I hope to be fed some spiritual food and come away with a renewed heart and maybe a couple new friends, if I'm lucky.
I bought a new sleeping bag yesterday which was quite an experience. I am a horrible shopper and can never make up my mind. Especially about something like a sleeping bag, I mean, I have to sleep in the thing, it is a serious decision! I don't even know how long I spent standing there reading the descriptions, pulling them out, holding them up and seriously contemplating snuggling in them on the floor of Big W. Twice I walked half way to the check out with one only to turn back and get a different one. I am feeling really good about my choice. I think it will be very nice.
Also yesterday we got bank accounts set up and money deposited. I am very thankful to now have access to my funds! I was down to only change so it is good to have some bills again.
This week has been really good!
Saturday was my first softball game. I didn't play very well but I got to meet my team and I have full confidence that I will improve. After every game they have what is called Kangaroo Court. We sit in a circle and people propose fines for other people to raise money for the end of the season party. I was fined $1.50! It is 50 cents a fine and I got two for striking out and one for not proposing any fines for anyone else. You'd think they'd let it slide my first game. Nope. The team seems really friendly and great, God is good to me.
Sunday we got out internet up and running on our own laptops. I am writing this on good old lappy! It is a great feeling. And it's nice because I can sit in bed and do it, that's my favorite part. Sunday night was Youth and Young at Heart. I really enjoyed getting to know the other Christian's in this area. Afterward a few of us went to Mackers (McDonalds) for ice cream. It was so great to be out with people around my age just hanging out. Plus I love ice cream so all in all it was a real good night. Monday Bob and Lynne took us out to eat and I had what was probably the most delicious chicken I have ever tasted. It was SO good!! Then we had ice cream again. I had a scoop of macadamia and a scoop of midnight cookie, both divine. Tuesday was a long day of babysitting in the morning, which I thoroughly enjoy, and banking and shopping in the afternoon. Then we had mid-week services that evening which I enjoy more and more each week. We average about 8 people on Tuesday nights and I really like the small group setting.
This morning was playgroup and the weather was gorgeous! We won't have playgroup for two weeks because it is school holidays but after that Sammie and I are running the show. We could use your prayers for sure. Tonight the Chinese girls came over again for dinner and Bible Study. They are so fun and ask such deep questions. It is really interesting studying with them and I learn something every time. They are now on school holiday and next week they are taking us to China town so show us around and tell us where the hot spots are. I am SO excited. But I will be making it very clear I do not want any seafood!
I hope you all survive without me for a few days! I'm sure you'll be okay.

prayers:
Visas (good things are happening)
safe trip to Revive
good experience for all at the retreat
as always, FUNDRAISING

Thanks for all your love and support!

I ate seafood! (and didn't die)

So most of you probably know (since mainly the family reads this) that I hate seafood. The only exception is tuna and that is only on a sandwich loaded with mayonnaise and pickles. Well anyway, we had our Bible study with the Japanese students last night and they cooked for us! It was a very kind gesture but I'll admit I was dreading it all day long. With good reason too because I knew they were going to cook things I didn't like. I'm not a picky eater, really I'm not, but I just can't handle anything that used to live in water (or mushrooms and tomatoes but that's really it). So they got here and were SO excited about what they were making. It is called okonomiyaki and chirashisushi. The thought of both of them kind of made me want to die. Okonomiyaki is kind of like a pancake. Which I thought sounded fine but what they do is put a ton of cabbage, shrimp and calamari in the batter. Which I thought didn't sound fine at all. Then I saw some bacon and got really excited because I love bacon but it went directly on the thick mushy seafood filled pancakes and got contaminated. I did have one tiny piece that still tasted like bacon. Thank goodness they put this sauce on it that tastes very similar to barbecue sauce. I doused mine in it. At first I was just trying to swallow it down quickly but then I realized I was finishing way faster than everyone else and I needed to slow down so I cut it into tiny pieces and waited a few minutes between bites. They also put mayonnaise on it, which really surprised me and I just had a little bit of that with it. Going into the meal I figured I'd be fine because I knew we'd have rice. However, to be fancy, they cooked it ahead of time and made chirashisushi which is baked salmon and thinly sliced cucumber mixed in with the rice. Usually made for special occasions. I honestly appreciate the effort and it was so kind of them to do that but my stomach hated me the whole night. To top it off we watched a movie in Japanese. It was a film on Jesus' life so I was able to follow along but mainly I thought about what was sitting in my stomach and felt more and more ill as the night went on. Two hours of thinking about seafood. I will say by the end of the night I had lost any desire to ever visit an Asian nation. After the movie we ate green tea ice cream which was pretty good but I still had to eat a piece of toast after they all left, not because of hunger but because my body needed something familiar. It made me thankful I am here in Australia where those meals will be few and far between instead of teaching English in Japan where those meals might be hard to avoid. Being with the Japanese people is a lot of fun and I really enjoy studying with them. I will probably be teaching the Japanese class on Sunday's when Bob and Lynne go to the states in October. I am nervous but thankful I have a couple weeks to observe before I teach. Prayers would be appreciated.
In other news...there is a softball team that wants me! Yay! It is a B-grade team, which makes me a little nervous because I was wanting to just play C but I really think it will be great. Pam, the lady at church who did the dirty work for me, says not to worry because it is just a "social team." Haha, I can't wait to find out what that means! They play tomorrow afternoon and I have been instructed to come ready to play but I might not be able to register same day so it might be a week or two before I actually get to play. I will at least get to meet the team and watch them play.
Tomorrow morning we have a bike ride organized by Bruce, Pam's husband. He is in a mountain biking club and has arranged for the church to do what is considered an introductory ride for beginners. We will be following a fire trail in Kuringai National Park and have a devo up there and a snack. I am really looking forward to getting out in the bush (or at least out of the city for the morning). It is great learning new areas around here!
We are about to head to church for my first experience with Funky Friday. It is kind of like a mini VBS the church does once a month for elementary aged kids in the community. That's what I hear anyway, as I said, this is my first time. All I know for sure is that we are having a sausage sizzle and I do like the sausage here.
Thanks for all your love and support! I love you all just for caring enough to read this.

Prayer requests:
Visas (we're moving forward but not there yet)
good first meeting with the softball team (the Gators!)
good preperation to teach the Japanese students on Sunday mornings starting in October
a safe bike ride Saturday morning
MONEY for me and especially for Sammie at this point. We believe God is faithful and will deliver but it is YOU He will be using to keep us here! Please help Sammie if you can, I want us both to be here the full two years.

THANKS!