Long lines, wind, and a bit of watercolor

Wednesday, Oct 2, 2019
Movie night tonight. I wake up before the sun - and by 6 decide to get cooking. Literally cooking. There will be a line soon enough.

I really appreciate that most houses have a "dirty kitchen" at the back where odors and steam can escape to the outside. Kitchens don't have fans - so front and back doors stay open and the breeze blows through. The non-smelly stuff mostly gets cooked inside, while boiling water for spaghetti (6 kg) and frying happen at the back. The dual ovens in the regular kitchen get a workout, along with the back room burners.

It's worth the effort when people start trickling in at 6. The new ones may feel shy for a few minutes but "family" welcomes them.

Our motto is "first time a guest, second time a friend, third time family." And our young family takes care of the guests and friends very well. We have about 75 people here from 18 countries tonight.

The house fills with chatter as people drape over sofas, on pillows, and anywhere else they can find a seat. Most are very respectful of the space - which helps when you have that many people over. (Even so, the Roomba will fill up 4-5 times tonight after everyone leaves.)

One concern is water. During dry season, especially at the end of it like now, water may only come from the city once a day for a few hours. Some neighborhoods have had no water for weeks. Residents borrow water from friends or have it trucked into a central place.

We have Western and traditional (squat) toilets in the back hall. W tries a new tactic for making sure the toilet is turned off after flushing. He asks the helper to listen for running water. And do you think the sign is big enough? It works well.

We lock up after the last guests leave at 11pm. By the time we turn out the lights, it's a new day.

Thursday
Neither W nor I are up for a walk. The sun comes up about 5:30 at this time of year. So we're awake early. Makes for some sleepy evenings, though.

We have to put the house back together, which takes most of the day. It's time to prune the dill shrub that has grown 6' tall. I snap off long branches and stick them in a bowl in the entry. I love green things.

Friday
I head to the office and spend the day writing. Program inserts. Enews. I edit a Foreword for one of my books and an event poster for someone. Depending on advertising skills and savvy, there may be a lot or little info on promo pages. This one is full.

People find it hard to read and follow instructions in oral (non-book) cultures like Indonesia. It takes about 20 WhatsApp messages between 3 of us to get the poster this far.

They're offering a great opportunity for budding entrepreneurs who want to make a difference in the world. Sadly, the last version arrives after the drop deadline for enews. We can promote it other ways. Please come if you're able!

Guests come in and out of the office. Three projects will have to wait for tomorrow. I blink a few times as I leave, watching someone paint the second floor eaves of a nearby building. I can no longer sit on my heels like that, never mind shuffle on a narrow ledge with a paintbrush in hand ... two stories above the pavement.

W and I meet nearby at #KalpaTree restaurant. Though I rarely have fish, tonight's fish and chips are the perfect dish. They're setting up for an evening concert, so I stuff my ears with tissue to block the booming bass as we enjoy someone else's cooking.

Saturday
W has his usual meetings around town. The driver walks the dogs, waters, and picks up a bouquet from the florist for tomorrow's Gathering. He comes back feeling sick - "drink something before you go, Pak," I request. He's dizzy, perhaps from lack of food and water.

I'm playing around. Every month, we need a simple centerpiece for the #BICBandung bulletin board. The black and white mat is paper hijacked from an IKEA picture frame. It probably won't last much longer after having the center and tape torn off it so many times. It's working so far - one more go ... I tear September off and look around for October ideas.

It's not autumn here - rainy season is on the way. How I LOVE the heat day after day. I don't miss a single red maple leaf or cold rainy day, especially with trees shedding leaves every day during the end of dry season.

This month, I'm not in the mood to design anything. I cut off the bottom half of a sketchbook cover. The pencil sketch is the perfect size and I can use the other half another time.

I haul out a few #CaranD"ache watercolor crayons and a brush, which I dip into my tea. (Too lazy to go to the kitchen one more time - have made about a dozen trips this morning already.) Now all I need is a fat blue marker for lettering. I'm not fussy about perfection, that's pretty obvious! I tape the sheet into the flimsy paper mat and am done for another month.

We stab the month's announcements into the bulletin board around this center. One of the most exciting events is an upcoming community reading - here's the schedule. Follow along if you like, and let us know if you want to read or listen along with one of our WhatsApp groups. We'll gladly add your name.

It's been hot and windy. The last few days, the cushions have blown off the seats on the porch.

Is someone in the house? I hear clattering, as though someone is walking in flip-flops on the old teak floors upstairs. Nope, but the map in the stairwell is slapping against the plaster wall. The breeze whistles through the closed windows and doors and rushes up the stairs. The 40-yr-old custom doors and windows are not sealed ... no wonder everything is dusty inside.

Read more:
*May the peoples praise you, God; may all the peoples praise you. The land yields its harvest; God, our God, blesses us. May God bless us still, so that all the ends of the earth will fear him. Psalm 67:5-7  NIV

*The God of heaven will set up a kingdom that shall never be destroyed. Daniel 2:44

*For yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen. Matthew 6:13 NKJV 

Moravian Prayer: Eternal God, you are what was, what is, and what is to come. We thank you for the new Jerusalem—not only a picture of our future with you—but also a vision of what this world may be if we are in tune with you. Amen.