This Week in the Toaster

It's been about 5 weeks since we've had rain, and although there have been longer stretches of dryness in history, we are SO HOT and SO DRY and SO READY FOR RAIN!!! We've been taking our baths at the river every day (a 300 meter walk), pumping well water to drink (and carrying it 100 meters to the house), and praying our brains out for a good cooling rain.

In the meantime, we're still studying, and raising our kids (trying to anyway...). Here's Q trying to climb the gate Phil built to keep him from falling out the back door.

A small series of photos to show how nicely the kitten and puppy (Mr. Grey and Zippy) get along. They gnaw on each others legs,

Claw at each other's faces, follow each other everywhere (and they both follow us everywhere - so we are officially a parade everywhere we go),

And sleep in the same box or on the same towel. :)

Nadia loves her little Zippy. And Zippy wants to do everything Nadia does. It's complicated and adorable.

Because of our recent huge holiday here in-country, our normal vegetable seller guys have not been coming around. So, we've been running low on veggies and meat. Thankfully, the jungle still has a little bit of bounty to be picked over until the next rain - or the veggie guys come back... whichever comes first. Above is pictured some rabung, or bamboo shoots. It's what's for lunch. This is what it looks like after it's been dug up out of the ground, peeled and washed.

And this is what it looks like after it's chopped, cooked and ready for our rice. Thankful for the provision of food just when we need it most!

And last but not least - the world's ugliest dog. Honestly, the people who judge that contest, didn't really dig too far - because this dumb dog is really worthy to be in the running... He's furless due to some gross dog disease, he's a thief (like every dog everywhere), and he stinks to high heaven. I asked his owner the other day what his problem was (the dog's, that is...), and she rolled her eyes and said, "He doesn't know how to die." 

:)

Ash Holes

I couldn't help myself. :)

Here's what we did yesterday.

A newly slashed, cleared and burned rice field.

The men go first and make holes in the ankle-deep ash (hence the title). And the women come behind and plant the rice seeds into the new holes.

The kids play in the ash as long as they can stand the heat. But by mid-morning, it's too hot as the sun re-bakes the ground and makes it almost intolerable.

Dirty hands, as Nadia and her buddies discover how soft, warm ashes can be delightful.

Here i am, trying to keep up. Wearing my bathing cloth on my head to help keep the sun off my head... Not looking NEARLY as cool as my friends do. :)

As the adults work in the field, the kids try to find shade in the jungle.

Tired girlies, ready for a bath at the river!

Ok, tired all of us, ready for a bath at the river - then lunch!

Tromping around in ashes all morning is dirty work. Even though it looks like it here, i'm not wearing sandals. Those are stains from the ashes.

And while we were at the rice field, Phil stayed home with the baby. Phil's been sick all week, covered with very itchy ringworm. He took it easy yesterday, trying to keep our busy baby occupied. Here's that busy boy of ours, walking around the kitchen, holding the broom up to his ear like a cell phone. :)

The Hissing

Our national independence day here is coming up this week, and in celebration the people in our area have held a soccer tourney as one way to celebrate. Yesterday our village's team played another village. We went to watch - and join the crowd of people watching.

The bigger this boy gets, the harder he gets to hold onto for lengths of time. Even though he's technically walking, he's still not stable enough to let toddle around on the uneven ground of our jungle.

While up on my shoulders, he loves to mess with my hair. 

One of our village friends happy to take a turn with Quinn while we all watch.

And this. Oh, the English usage in the middle of nowhere. :) The Hissing. 

I leave you with that.

This Week

 Well, what a week this has been. Full hours language study, crazy home life with 2 small kids, running out of water slowly - needing rain!! - On and on and on it goes. We do our best to have fun with things, and teach our kids what's most important (as well as remind ourselves as well). Here are two gems from this past week.

This photo is from this past week when i went to cut rubber with a friend (to learn the process, as well as learn all language surrounding this part of their lives here). This was taken at 5:45am. Here is my friend, crossing the river in her pajamas, loaded up with supplies for the day (machete, rubber tree cutters x2, a change of clothes, and a small bottle of water), with a smile on her face waving me on. She was saying, "Oh, come on! Let's go! We've got a lot of work to do. Roll up those pants of yours and get over here!" She's used to me stopping to take photos of things i want to learn - and she's "onto me" when i want to stop and sneak a candid photo of her (which is what i was trying to do here). 

I love this photo for a few reasons. It catches her catching me. It shows how her hand is waving so quickly that it's just a blur in the photo. And it will remind me of the long, sweaty morning i spent with her in the jungle working her rubber trees, the army ant bites i got that day, and all the hours she's willing to drag me all over the place here so that i can learn her language.

I'm so thankful for people like her, who are becoming friends.

And here we have a hilariously common occurrance. "Ok. You wait here, bud. Dad's gonna be right back. You sit here with no pants on. On my bike seat. Holding the handlebars. No...i have no idea why your mother doesn't like to let me take you out. Just quit asking all these questions and wait here."

What's really going on here: Just back from a bath at the river - or on their way to their bath at the river, Dad stops to either buy smokes or bath soap. And Jr. gets to cool his heels (or fry his bum) while waiting.

Manicure?

Recently one late-afternoon as i was visiting with some village friends, i was staring down at my hands, and it occurred to me that they - were - FILTHY. And ugly. So. Ugly. I had grime under my nails, scabs and burns and scrapes and stains. It then occurred to me that this had happened not because i've suddenly stopped washing my hands or caring about hygiene. It happened over the course of the day(s) because of how life here just takes over. There is not enough time in the day (apparently) to ever work on "Hand Care". Yeah, i trim and scrub my nails, and wash my hands over and over again. But sometimes a little more TLC is needed - and who on earth has time for such a thing?! Clearly, it's not me.

1. Machete scar from 2 months ago. Still have only a little bit of feeling in the tip of that finger. I'm just happy to still HAVE that finger...

2. Blister turning callous from hand-pumping 10 gallons of water from the well each day (then carrying it about 70 meters to the house).

3. What happens when White Girl tries working in tribal rice field. White Girls CAN slash - they just pay in blood.

4. Skin on all finger tips are losing finger prints - i think this is due to our dish soap - or maybe the soap i use to hand-wash Quinn's diapers. Either way, i'm little miss butterfingers these days.

For awhile i was a little ashamed that my hands (um...and feet) are so grody. Then i was just annoyed. Now, i think i need to just get over it. Even if i did spend the whole weekend scrubbing, soaking, exfoliating and moisturizing - it would all be for naught within a matter of hours.

And some things just can't matter so much. It seems like such a little thing to have ugly, owie hands when several of my friends and neighbors are wasting away and dying from things like TB, hepatitus, or malnutrition. So, i'll take my scars and grime - and just not look so closely at my own hands - but look up more often toward the needs of others.