This Week's Adventures

by Jimmy

Lot's going on this week as we/I am totally blown away that within a few weeks we will have a BABY! Absolutely crazy to think about.

Becky has been nesting a bit, and by nesting meaning she has tons of energy, easily outpacing me, in working to get our new apartment ready. We have finished painting, and now are working on scraping the old paint (not all from us) off the floor. Tonight we were able to start installing some of the hardware we bought at Ecko Depot. (And Ecko Depot is NOT at all just like HOME Depot. Having the same selection, and exactly the same shade of orange. Even the same sign layout might confuse some. This Ecko Depot, posts NO prices, so you can enjoy your shopping until you get to the checkout line.)

Our shopping list consisted of several different projects to complete and Ecko Depot is my favorite store, though I did not want to drive back and forth there twice today, but that is what we did. Our supposed to be 3 hour trip to the store 3 miles away ended up being 5 and 12 miles. We are very grateful however that we can actually go to one store and find the majority of what we need.

On the way there, we were not surprised at the new signs posted on the airport walls. There is always advertising, and graffiti on them. But this new one caught our attention. This No Trespassing notice, posted every 50 feet down the wall, kept us laughing the whole way to the store and back. And then we got to pass it again.

I think something got lost in translation.

Something will always delay or surprise you in anything attempted in Haiti. Today it was our debit card. We checked out at the store, handed over the card, and it was declined. "Securite. Call your bank." Obviously I forgot our phone at the house, and could not. We asked that they keep our stuff together while we went home and would come back. (Miracle number one: They understood, and all our stuff was waiting when we got back.) (Miracle number two: We made it back just before 1:00 in the afternoon, when they close.) I always find it interesting how a home improvement store closes at 1:00 on a Saturday afternoon. Such is Haiti.

So we made it back just in time. Oh, and almost forgot - on the way there the first time, we got a free concert as we were driving down the road. A rap singer in a Jamaican hat and dreds down to his knees was sitting backwards on a motorcycle making a music video. They passed us first, then stayed in front for a good bit, so... check your local Haiti MTV station and you might just see our cameo. I was a little surprised at this unusual sight, but pleasantly amused as it took some of the boredom out of heavy traffic, but was more surprised that his dreds did not get caught up in the back wheel of the moto. Unfortunately we did not have our camera this time, and traffic was moving, slow, but fast enough to not allow us to get out and ask for autographs.

Life is ever changing in Haiti, and we are slowly learning not to be surprised by the surprising. It keeps life from being boring that is for sure. And when things go well, or even if they go half as planned, it is a time to celebrate. Like a trip to HomEcko Depot, or a guy in dreds, or signs that make you laugh, or like being able to go a farm in the mountains 3 months after you first tried to make it happen. But I will have to get into that later, as I am tired from a good half day of Port-Au-Prince traffic and another half day of work on our apartment. (and chicken coop.)

Check this out

Channel 9 News visited Haiti and this week broadcasted a special program on Heartline and it's work here. Visit the link below to watch 5 different videos of their reports on Haiti and Heartline.

http://www.9news.com/rss/story.aspx?storyid=249726

Dear Baby

Dear Baby,

Are you ready to be born yet?

Because I am ready for you to come.

I am ready to meet you.

I am ready to see your precious face and know what you look like - how you look like me and your daddy and are totally unique too.

I am ready to hold you close and sing to you and kiss you.

I am ready to give you a name and call you something other than "baby".

I am ready to learn what you like and don't like and all the ways God made you unique.

I am ready to introduce you to all of our family and friends who already love you.

I am ready to look at you and talk to you and tell you all about life... the sky and the trees and baby chickens and God and ask you questions you won't be able to answer yet.

I am ready to see you smile and hear you laugh and learn your cries.

I am ready to learn a whole lot about love and how to be a mommy.

You have done a great job growing healthy and strong inside of me.

I know already that you are going to be so sweet.

Just wanted you to know, whenever you are ready to come out and be born, we are ready too.

UPDATE: At the request of several people, here are 2 "baby bump" pictures

Adventures of an Urban Third World TeacherFarmer

by Jimmy

The sun set at 6:00 this evening. So nice that the days are getting longer. I stood at the edge of my "field," my grass field in front of the school. The field is also known as the dirt field to my wife, but I disagree. There is grass there, it is just very small, and needs water I keep saying. Alas, I gave in to the fact that the dirt is as hard as concrete so I must now hoe it up and plant grass seed.

I had almost finished my first plot as it got dark, and debated whether or not to make sure the goats had water for the night. Finally deciding to the affirmative, I took a bucket of water back to where the goats were. Sure enough there are two of the goats, the male and Snickers, both rather ornery. The male stood on a ledge by the wall, and I walked past him to give some water to Snickers, wondering where our hopefully pregnant and much nicer CeCe was. The male, Milky Way, suddenly bounded past, revealing that he had managed to break his rope. Great. CeCe had been moved by one of the workers, probably 50 feet from Snickers. I knew Milky Way would stay close to the girls, so I walked back to the apartment to get a rope and my headlamp.

On the way back, I debated whether or not to just leave him loose. Surely it would be easier to catch him in the morning. But the sunrises at 6:00 AM, and though I am up at that time to receive the night guard's weapon, I am not usually "farming" before 8:00. Knowing just how quickly a goat would love to sample the newly sprouted produce in the newly planted garden beds, I reluctantly realized I would have to catch him this evening.

I got my rope, tied a simple lasso, and attempted to corral this least favorite goat. (He whines so pitifully, quite annoying.) Failure number one. Goats are fast. I am not. I used to be, but have since slowed down since High School.

Luckily boys like girls, and Milky Way stayed running back and forth between Snickers and CeCe. I had a new irrigation ditch dug, and it dumped water right in between Snickers and CeCe as well, so as I was trying to pivot as he ran past, of course I slipped and landed in the mud. All in day's work.

I realized I would have to enlist the help of the girls and get them together. Untying them and leading them to the one fertile spot on the property where they could eat, I came closer to lassoing Milky Way, but he was not as interested in eating as the girls were. One of the boys that help clean the school on Wednesday nights came out and tried to help, but that failed as well. Milky Way outran both of us once again. I tied the girls up to a tree, and now Duna's mom, who is the head school cleaner, came out and we surrounded the three goats. Two tied, one loose. I am not sure if Milky Way was tired or just distracted, but he just stood there as I crept closer and slowly slipped the noose over his head. Quite an anti-climactic ending to the chase. (I was really hoping I would toss out that lasso in a perfect cowboy loop, as he galloped by, and reel him in, having caught him by the horns.) I am not too particular however. I will take what I can.

In other farming news: First crop is in...

or should I say first produce is in. 32 beans does not fill the pallet quite yet, but it is a start. I was so excited about those first beans. My self given reward for that first taste of success is that I bought myself a Haitian fruit tree book in Kreyol that I could not justify spending $25 US for. Now I can.

I also have corn that is just about ready, though it is not American sweet corn, so it will probably end up goat or chicken feed, cucumbers, and squash. My tomatoes are not looking good, though the new seeds I was able to bring back from the states at Christmas are taking off, and we will get some good lettuce, peppers, cilantro, onions, and basil.

Now that my farming adventure is over for the day, I have a couple of hours before bed, so I should probably be preparing and reading for my next adventure, the baby. It still feels so surreal. I see my pregnant wife every day, but somehow it still does not register. I started the birthing book, and it is fascinating and pretty weird too. A little nervous, but my wife and my God are incredible. I am blessed. Soon I will be an Urban Third World TeacherFarmerDad.