Monday, March 7, 2022
We start each day with an early walk, at least a loop or two, usually with the dogs. Gypsy is slowing down and doesn't always want to come along. He's fine once we're underway.
Our lease contract comes through after a week in process. It's a relief to stay put for a few more years. Eki's sketch makes me happy. It reminds me of the hundreds and hundreds of people who have been here over the years. We hope for at least as many more in the coming years.
I don't care about that. The rough surface is a good experiment. The first day it's just a swish-around of blues, greens, and whites. I should have left it at that.
The second day (below), the yellows turn it muddy. I've had to add back the sparkle another day.
There are 5 meetings scheduled today. I make 2 in the morning. I completely zone out on the third as I'm working. Then I fall flat over the garbage pail in my office = literally flat on my knees and body. Ouch.
My vision blurs within a half hour and I can't type a coherent sentence. I type a short text 4X and finally send off the last one. In the morning I see how garbled it is but it is the best I could do. I have to cancel the rest of the meetings.
We pressure-washed and painted the wall a few months ago, but it's already peeling off. You could spend all your time on maintenance! (Nope, people and lots of other things need our attention more.)
- to lush in a few easy ferns...
Wednesday
I'm better by morning. The early walk with W and the dogs is fine. W feels better after a third doctor visit for a final check up of his foot. His blood markers are healthier than when he was recovering from dengue. I'm writing most of the day.
Little by little, we chop away at little tasks that make for a safe environment. It's ongoing in the tropics. PakG paves a small pad at the muddy side of the porch. We also have permission to clean up the yard next door to keep snakes and other varmints at bay. Can you spot the tiny lizard on the right?
I splash aroun a bit to brighten things up. Oh well, I'llt gesso the whole thing and start over if I don't like it in the morning.
W and I aren't really hungry at supper. But leftovers in the fridge and freezer evolve into one of my favorite Indonesian means: rendang (spicy dry beef roast), bitter papaya flowers and leaves, and ... what else, rice.
You don't need a lot of meat when the flavor is this strong; the beef is shredded onto rice. We made 4 lbs (1.5 kg) of roast last month. Since, we've had 5 meals (about 14 portions) and there's more to come with 4-5 portions in the freezer,
One more appointment online for me, before night. Meanwhile, W is up until 4:00 a.m. until his meetings wrap up.
He's part of a theology commission that writes position papers and responses to current issues. They decided not to meet in person yet - so by staying up opposite the clock (10:00 a.m. there is 10:00 p.m. here...) he saves himself 2-return trips. The first set of flights typically take 30 hours to and from the USA. The second set are 7-hr cross-country flights with a car rental to the city where the Commission meets.
I'm glad he had one night up instead. Though that is brutal, too.
Thursday
No walk in the mountains again today. Hopefully as things ease, we can trek further afield. Friends who were COVID-sick in the last weeks are recovering as the virus rolls through the neighborhoods.
The yard man is back for a second day this week after being sick a few weeks. The place is quickly overgrown in rainy season. The trees, shrubs, and weeds need a buzzcut. It's not just a matter of aesthetics - trimming keeps the beasts at bay. Even when walking in our backyard, we watch our feet and the grass carefully to make sure we don't step on snakes, poisonous caterpillars, or lizards.
Today PakA's 2 added chores are cleaning our a pile of log cuttings and bamboo scaffolding from last year. And filling in the green wall where the vines stripped off the wall in the zealous pruning of neighbors. We're all beating back the overrun. We need something less invasive on that shared wall. he goes from bare -
- to lush in a few easy ferns... W drills concrete hooks into the 11' (3.5 meter) wall to hang plants over the bare patch. I spot two huge birds nest ferns on a stump near the old shed. How about those? The fronds are at least 3' (1 meter) long.
PakA chops the bases of the ferns into pieces and mounts them to the wall. Will they die off or thrive? He says there's no need to water them since the soil and bases are wet. I would have filled the centers with water, but let's see. Locals know their gardens best. I'm still a beginner here.
Can you spot him climbing up the tall ladder behind his handful of fern?
Since W had the drill in hand, he puts up the last few shelves in the nook. They've been in my office for a long time.
In the evenings or between "real work," it's been nice to check projects off a long list. As we do Zoom meetings, I'm working on the quilt in the nook table, stitch by stitch.
On our walk, we spot a butterfly on its last flight. Even the creatures that fall to the ground are wonderfully intricate. The velvet wings beat feebly against the paving.
Kristi heads for the office to check kid supplies. I was there earlier to make sure the greens on the outdoor perch are thriving. Yup.
I'm buried in writing this week. Working ahead provides ease later but it's a big job now. Sun's out. I'm working in the shade. Never better.
Read more:
*The fear of the Lord is hatred of evil. Proverbs 8:13
For no one can lay any foundation other than the one that has been laid; that foundation is Jesus Christ. 1 Corinthians 3:11
We are what he has made us, created in Christ Jesus for good works.Ephesians 2:10
Moravian Prayers: Lord, forgive us for boasting about the terra firma of our lives that are castles made of sand. Your truth and your grace—your perfect love alone—are the true footings of our faith and without them we labor in vain.
Maker of all things great and small, we celebrate the care by which you forge our hearts and fashion in us like-mindedness. May we love as you love and be built together into a true house of prayer. Amen.
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