Greetings in the sweet and precious name of Jesus.Oh, where to begin the latest adventure...should I begin with leaving the Joplin airport May 29th.....or going by Wal-mart just before we went to the airport to pick up an emergency bag ... or the last prayer breakfast with the guys .......
May 22-28th- Well, I spent the last week thus...Tuesday night the 22nd I finally finished Jason's new kitchen cabinets, they had been delayed getting into their house. My last cabinet making/installing job. Chris & Terasa and the kids had arrived Monday morning to help us the last week (or was that to make sure we got on the plane and gone?????). Wednesday and Thursday morning we finished packing the container as the trucking company was supposed to pick it up Thursday at 1:00pm. Chris and I loaded in between rain squalls. We put the last bit in (and I mean the last bit of the treadle sewing machine as we forced the doors closed) just as the crane and truck arrived. Initially the crane company had said they would donate their help as was Milton trucking firm who was shipping the container to California. However the last minute the crane company said they had to charge us as they were going to have to use their large crane. This was a minimum daily rate of $3,200. There wasn't a lot we could do, as there was no other way to load the container. In the end we talked them down to $2,600 as the crane was only used for an hour. However while the crane was loading the container we were trying to get the proper documentation for the trucker from Missionary Expediters in New Orleans who was coordinating the shipment. It took us numerous phone calls and faxes. The shipping company in California was demanding a sea worthy certificate on the container from a certified Marine surveyor before they would accept it for shipment. The nearest marine surveyor MIGHT have been in St Louis. We finally got a letter sent from the people I bought the "In great shipping condition" container (my estimation) from that the container was "in their estimation" sea worthy. The quandary was 1) ship to California and hope that the shipping company would see the container and accept it as sea worthy; 2) if not sea worthy then we would have to shift everything out of the container we owned to another container which they would accept to ship in. After much chin wagging the shipping company accepted the letter from the container sellers and said if there was any question with the container when it arrived in California that we would have to have it marine surveyed at our cost ($100) before they would accept it for final shipping on June 12th. Another factor in the shipping was that the schedule of the trucking company got the container to LA on the 28th, which was too early to be accepted on the ship and thus liable for daily storage of $25. WHATEVER!!!!! We finally got a delivery docket for the truck driver, via fax, which I then had to make three copies. After we took three hours out of the truck driver's life he departed. The rest of Thursday and all of Friday were spent getting everything into the garage that we were not taking to Fiji nor were the kids taking. Our garage was bursting when the sale/giveaway began Saturday morning. By Saturday night a lot was gone but there was a lot left. Monday morning I contacted a family who came and cleaned out the garage of everything which had not been sold or been hauled away. They had it cleaned by lunch, what a relief. Then we moved everything from the house which the kids had decided they could not live without. A couple of friends from church helped with the cleaning and moving and they were so appreciated. Thank you Ruth and Carydine and Nancy.
Monday night and Tuesday morning we got everything together we were taking on the "Abrahamic journey" (minus the "go forth and multiply"). I went to the men's prayer breakfast and on the way home I bought some last minute things from Wal-Mart, including an emergency suitcase. Chris and I took the last bed from the house next door to our neighbors who had recently moved in but were without a bed and mattress. Kathy and I went to the bank for last minute banking. The house was not completely clean (what an understatement) but the kids said they would finish cleaning for us, as we had to be at the Joplin airport for check-in at 11:00am. I don't know what we would have done without the kids there helping out. Well, the emergency suitcase came in handy, as one of our trunks was overweight by 8lbs. By shifting items into another bag we only had to pay $70 for an additional bag not $100 plus for the over weight. Airlines have changed their maximum weights since we traveled last. One is still allowed two bags but they cannot weight more than 50 lbs each. It used to be 66lbs per bag.
Everything went fine with check-in until I walked thru the metal detector and they finally had to do a complete pat-down because for some reason I kept setting off the buzzers, this was after removing my shoes, watch and even my belt. I thought I was going to lose my pants during the pat down! Our grandkids were watching the whole thing with glee! I finally was cleared to get dressed again and proceed to the plane. (I swore I heard someone reply to my "thanks a lot", "you can thank John"). We arrived in Kansas City on time and were surprised to be met by Pat Carpenter. She stayed with us until our next (supposed) boarding time. She and her husband Jerry have been our closest friends since Okinawa days. Denver Colorado, our next destination, was having severe storms (once in a century type) and our flight was not even allowed to leave KC. During the first delay I discovered I was carrying the spare keys for the Jeep and the truck, neither of which we have sold yet. Please pray with us that the vehicles and house will be sold soon! So I mailed the keys back to Jason. We finally were allowed to depart Kansas City 6 hours later along with several other flights, which had been delayed. When we arrived in Denver we could have caught our connection to LA but had to wait over 90 minutes for a deplaneing gate, thus missing our flight to LA. We were however re-booked on the last flight out of Denver to LA which left at 2:30am. Did you know that all the shops at the Denver airport close at 10:00pm? Neither did we, but we were able to get something to eat just before everything closed tight. Of course, we arrived in LA hours after our flight to Fiji had taken off. Our bags were waiting for us when we went to the baggage collection area. It seems that though we didn't get on connecting flights like we should have our luggage got to LA before we did. At least we knew where our luggage was!!!!!! Why, of course, the airlines were not responsible for "weather" related delays. They steered us toward the Radisson for accommodation "at our expense". The voucher said it would cost us $65 but the Hotel said $90. Guess which price we were charged? Again not much we could do about it as Air Pacific does not have personnel on the ground in LA except when they are flying which is Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday. So, after a sleep we called the Air Pacific number (answered at a call center in Arizona) thinking we would have to layover in LA until the next Air Pacific flight on Thursday night since our tickets were issued to Air Pacific. However they said they would shift our tickets to an Air New Zealand flight, which was scheduled that night, Wednesday. We chilled in the hotel until early evening since we did not have to be at the airport for check-in until 9:00pm. I would like to inject here the words, "he can do more than we ask or think". Kathy a week or so prior to our flights had said it might be good for us to have a couple of days of down time before we landed in Fiji just to chill. Now I ask, would my Heavenly Father cause such a weather stir just for us to have a chill period? It does say, "more than we can ask or think"! Wow!!!!!! Thank you Father for the chill time! Oh, we had to spend some of your money, which you provided, again thank you!!!!!!!
When we presented our tickets at the airport we were first told that
they could not change our tickets as we had restricted tickets (should have
known things don't go that smoothly). They could also not honor the payment
for the overweight charges that we had paid in Joplin. We laid our hearts
bear (and offered a prayer) and the woman went to bat for us and after 10
minutes the supervisor came out and said that they would honor our tickets
and payment for overweight but that we would have to pay an additional $150
per ticket because we were making changes. So $300 more for our "cheap"
fare but we did get on the flight that night with a hale and hearty "Thank
you Lord". The flight was very, very empty and we were able to stretch
out the whole way to Fiji for much needed rest. (I more than Kathy, as I
took the whole center row of three seats whereas she had only two seats
on the side.)
We landed in NADI, FIJI, Friday - June 1st at 5:30am. We are 17 hours ahead of Central Daylight Standard time. We cleared immigration with nar a hitch. We came thru the "Residents" line while the 100 or so tourists had to queue up in the "visitor" line, kind of felt like returning home. All our bags arrived (which was a whole lot better than the last time I came and NONE of my bags arrived with me!!!!) and we cleared quarantine and took a taxi to the Cathay Hotel in Lautoka, 35 kms away. After a brief pause we had breakfast (eggs over easy) at the Hotel and then we went to the bank to get Kathy on the savings account and open up a checking account. We went to the Post Office and were able to secure a Post office box (#4615, Lautoka, Fiji Islands). We went downtown and found a real Estate agent who said he had a fully furnished flat. We went to see it and with him saying how he was going to clean it up, ready for Monday morning, we put down a deposit and first month's rental. I bought cell phones (2@$65) for both of us (Kathy (679) 972-2747; Tobey(679) 938-2808). That was Friday in brief! We walked everywhere. Daytime temperatures in the upper 80's with humidity even higher. It has been getting down to 80 at night but the high humidity makes it feel cooler in the early morning. And this is cool season!!!!!!!!
Saturday (June 2) after a breakfast of fried eggs (literally fried like chicken) we walked to town (about 5 blocks): we went to an internet cafe where I logged on, we bought some groceries and some things (a toaster) we would need in the "furnished" flat. That afternoon we took a taxi to Josua and Ann's house to see them. When we returned to the hotel that evening for dinner we ordered pizza but received raw dough with toppings. Not too good! we re-ordered fish and chips!
Sunday morning (June 3) after a breakfast of fried eggs (like chicken again) we walked to town bought fresh bread and margarine then to the market where we caught a bus to Sabeto junction where the church meets, about 5 kms from Nadi. After services and lunch we returned to the hotel about 3:00pm. Sunday was also the morning that Kathy found that the small sweet ants had found her pills and there were about a zillion ants in her pill box. We also found out Sunday that the Real Estate agent we had dealt with Friday was not to be trusted. No IT cafe's open on Sunday so we have a communication blackout over the weekend
Monday morning (June 4) after a breakfast of poached eggs (after figuring the cook could not do over-easy eggs) we, along with Josua, visited another Real Estate agent, Mr Fazal Khan, a Muslim Indian, whom I had communicated with via email before but had been unable to locate his office on Friday. After talking with him Kathy and I decided that the first flat was not really suitable for what we needed. We looked at the flat he had talked about in his earlier email and decided that even thought the monthly rent was higher than the first flat the location and facitilies were a better value. So I had to go and try and get my money back and was able to do so by 4:00pm that afternoon. We arranged to move from the hotel to the newer flat on Tuesday morning, which we did, after a breakfast of poached eggs. The flat we have is located above the owner's house in the Tavakubu housing ward, and get this John the lesser, right on the edge of the local golf course - 25 Golf Link Crescent. The course is on the other side of a 6 foot chainlink, barb wired fence. Mr Khan said from time to time they find golf balls in the yard and have some richochet off the roof sometimes. It is a fully furnished 3bd flat + ofc with a wrap around verandah and they even loaned us a small TV, iron and bought a washing machine for our use along with all the other furniture and applicances. Since we have not sold our house in Joplin yet and are having to pay mortgage on it he lowered his monthly rent until we sell to help us out. He said he had had several people wanting to rent the flat since it became vacant last month but just had a feeling that they were not the right people. He said when he and wife met us Monday they agreed that we were the right people. HOW'S THAT FOR GOD WORKING!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Our rent right now is $650 per month.
On Monday (June 4) I visited the internet cafe and after composing an
email to Jason had the server die and was not able to send it. It was such
a master piece to! We have applied for a phone but it could be several weeks
before we get one and then we have to apply for internet service after that.
Until then we hit the IT cafes. Even though we were allocated a post office
box it can take up the two months to get an actual key, but we can get our
mail by going to the collection window (Mon-Fri only). Mail is not delivered
to houses here only PO boxes. However DHL and other freight companies do
deliver to homes.
Even though our container does not leave the USA until June 12 and is not expected to be here in Lautoka until July 17th (if everything goes smoothly) we have second thoughts on some of the stuff we put into the container and some things we did not include. Even in the few months since I was here things have changed and prices have escalated due to inflation. We wish we had sent a pallet of toilet paper and paper towels as they are extremely lame and expensive here. Cereal is ballistic and pretzels not existent (without saying my days of day-old Dolly Madison cinnamon rolls for lunch has come to an end). Other prices (converted to US dollar) are: canned fruit/ $2.50 can; potato chips/ $2.00 sm bag; Oreo cookies/20@$1.20; Kraft cheese/18 slices@$6.00; frozen peas/.5lb@$2.00; low fat UHT milk/1lt@$1.20; tomato soup/can@$1.05; Kelloggs Frosted Flakes/reg box@$10.50; baked beans/can@$2.50; Tomato sauce (ketchup)/sml bottle@$2.50; fresh bread/sml loaf@$1.20; frozen chicken/3#@$6.50; microwave popcorn/$2.00 per bag; imported lettuce/$2.25 ea; imported broccoli/$2.50 ea sml head; imported potatoes/.40 per lb; imported green peppers/ $7 ea; gasoline/just under $4.00 per gal; bandaids/200@$1.10 (almost priceless); fresh pineapples and fresh mandarin oranges/ PRICELESS!
Transportation: Pretty good and affordable bus and taxi system here if you don't mind waiting. It costs about $1.00 for both of us to go to town by bus, about $2.00 by taxi. It costs $3.50 for both of us to get to Sunday services out at Sabeto junction. When the people are walking or waiting around they are pretty laid back however when they get behind the wheel of a vehicle they go 200 miles per hour. Wow! We are looking to buy a very small like (Nissan March) car for economy and not have to transport everybody and their groceries around town. However I need to sell my truck in the USA to finance a car here!
Environment: Pretty heavy most times with diesel fumes coming from the buses and vans. It is dry season in Lautoka and thus dusty as well. A walk in town will give one an instant tan. People here are the royalty of littering. They just don't care and the whole place is littered in cans, plastic, jars and paper. The local council does have pick up crews but they cannot keep up. Rubbish (trash) is picked up twice a week in the residential areas with people putting their trash out in Wal-mart size bags where local dogs (every house seems to have at least 2-3 wandering loose) get into it before the rubbish truck gets there. There are always piles of yard trimmings, branches and leaves along the roadways awaiting council pick-up. Just another convenient place to throw one's rubbish. The streets are in fair to poor condition and one has to watch where they step on the uneven surfaces. Kathy has already fallen while walking in town stepping off a curb.
Water to our sub division goes off every night by 8:00pm and SOMETIMES comes back by 9:00am. We are fortunate that we have a water tank with a pump which we can use when the local water supply is not functioning, MOST are not as fortunate!
We have had a few cockroaches appear at night and the ants are very active in and around the house, so the landlord had the house sprayed and Kathy is currently sweeping up the death toll. As for the roaches, there are some small ones and some larger ones (2-3"). We also have frogs which come onto the verandah at night eating the bugs which congregate under the lights. We don't mind them except what they leave, which has to be swept off every morning. We also have a multitude of geckos which eat the light-attracted insects. However they are also affected by the spraying and will have less to eat for a while.
Sometime next week we are going to sit down with the brethren here and see what the next steps are for our work and the Bible School. We have feelers out trying to locate some land which we can get for the School but the Land department (since the coup) has put a hold on leasing new lands right now. There might be some freehold land available though. Even if we find the land we are going to be hard pressed to come up with the $15-20,000 we would need immediately to secure the land. To date we have no funds earmarked for the School from contributors there in the USA. What we will probably do is try and rent a meeting room here in Lautoka where we can start some night or weekend classes for those who want further Bible Studies. That would give us an idea of the interest here. Everyone we have talked with has shown an interest and that is why we are here. Many in the government, even our landlord, have this misconception we are here supported by a large education organization who are paying for our housing and should provide a vehicle. After explaining WE ARE THE CHRISTIAN INSTITUTE OF BIBLICAL STUDIES and we have to build it from the ground up with funds we have not secured yet from the USA and that we are paying our own housing and vehicle from donated funds from you brethren they seem to have a new respect for us and less of an anticipation of US dollars falling out of our pockets. Even though we do in fact have a higher income level than many of the local people it is still less than what we anticipate we will need to get this project off the ground.
There are a couple of ways of getting into mission work. #1) Go where there are other workers and you have their help in getting settled into a work. You have the benefit of their accumulated experience thus a boost in getting into a routine. You also usually have facilities which are shareable until one gets their ducks all in a row. or #2) go where you are the only overseas worker and use the accumulated experience you have to get into a routine. We have experienced both ways over the years and are now, like our last work in Vanuatu, going the #2 route. Because we have local brethren on the ground here they are a help but limited in that many of the hook-ups we need are areas which they are not experienced in. Our housing is more up-graded because we feel that our requirements need it. We are not at the highest level because we don't see that as an expedient use of the Lord's funds but we do feel that up-graded gives us more time to attend to the areas we are better qualified in rather that just existing and trying to keep a house functional. Indoor plumbing has its benefits! We are trying to get internet connection which most don't have but many do. It seems that everyone and their dog have cell phones, which we have also, and it is a pay up front system. Because we are coming into the Fiji work the #2 way it will take us longer to get set-up and get into a routine which will help us accomplish what we are here to do, provide Bible Based education for the expansion and building up of the Body of Christ. It doesn't matter how much experience one has in mission work or how they enter into a work, #1 or #2, culture stress is an ever present sensation. However with #1 there is help is getting through the new stress and recognition of the stress barriers as they come along because the more experienced workers have been thru it. With #2, stress can be a real downer but we feel that with our past experience we can recognize the stress, laugh at it and move on, which we are ever doing. Either way stress can come in the ever presence of ants, the fact that one's water supply is not reliable, sweat running down your back just sitting there, temperature not getting below 80f at night (in the cool season), the local paper is not delivered but has to be picked up from vendors on the street, mail has to be checked/picked up at the central post office in town - if and when it ever comes, 2 months to get a key for your post office box, weeks to get telephone connection for internet, clouds of diesel fumes from the road full of buses, swirling dust, dirt and flies, local meat (????) which takes a while to chew, lack of personal space on the buses and walking downtown, for some unknown reason the hot and cold taps in the bathroom sinks are reversed (only on the bathroom sinks), the myriad of different new smells (body odor, curry, open sewers), language- even though English is the official language it is spoken differently, higher prices for items you know are cheaper at Wal-mart, lack of familiar items (cinnamon rolls, pretzels, soft fluffy toilet paper, good kitchen cabinets, fresh brewed coffee, dry clothes). We are not in Kansas anymore, Toto! (Nor Missouri!)
Things are so much better than our first days in Papua New Guinea in 1975 when it took mail 2-3 weeks to get there by airmail and there was no such thing as email. Telephone calls were $25 per minute. At least here we can get email (and spam) at a local cafe until we get our own connection. Getting funds is a lot easier and quicker as well. Then in 1975 when we wrote a check we had to wait for it to clear before we could access the funds, up to three weeks. Now we can swipe the ATM card. I guess it is all a matter of perspective.
We were talking the other day with some of the brethren and commented that we first came thru Fiji and visited Lautoka in Feb 1975 on our way to Papua New Guinea. That was before many of the people we know here were even born. We landed in Nadi, spent 8 hours, had a taxi drive us to shop and bought a stereo system and a small cassette tape player, flew on to the New Hebredies (now Vanuatu) and into Port Moresby, PNG where we spent the first night in country with the Gary Hyer family before flying to Lae and then on to Goroka in the highlands. 32 year ago!!!!!!!
June 8 - We have been here one week now. It seems we still have to bus to town everyday for something we need. Usually we have to go to numerous shops to find what we are looking for, other times it is futile to look because we know they don't have such-and-such here. I went down to buy a screw which I needed because the bed frame we have is very loose. I have now found that one cannot go to the local hardware store for just a screw. If I wanted 50 brass screws 3 inches long I could have bought them for $15.00, but I only wanted 1 screw. The bed will stay loose until our container gets here where I have zillions of screws. That will teach them!!!!!!
Because electricity is very expensive here most of the homes have fluorescent lighting and the lowest watt bulbs they can buy for lighting. I have been changing out some of the 15w bulbs with 100w ones. I was finding it very hard brushing my teeth and taking a shower in dimmest. Most rooms only have a single plug in for electrical items so I have been attaching multi-plugs and extension cords all around.
We have lime, lemon and orange trees in our yard which are bearing fresh fruit right now. The sugar cane crushing began this week with the four mills crushing the sugarcane as it is being cut and delivered to the mills. They say they expect the largest mill located here in Lautoka to crush over 30,000 tones per week.
No decent can openers here so Kathy has been using the P38 opener I got with c-rations in Vietnam. (Remember those Steve Cole???? and the yummy pound cake??????)
Sunday (June 10): We waited for the bus to the market to catch a bus out of town only to find out that the town buses do not run a regular route on Sunday. (Last week we were at the hotel in town and walked down to the market.) So we took a taxi and then caught the bus out to services at Sabeto Junction (80c each). Two young girls were baptized as a result of previous teaching by Josua after service in a nearby local river.
Monday (June 11): We took a day trip to Nadi to buy some things we cannot
buy in Lautoka. It cost us about $5.00 round trip on a bus. It is about
20 miles and takes up to an hour one way depending on how many stops they
have to make on the way to drop off people and pick up people. Oh, the open
road, the open windows, the burning brush, the dust the ...... We were able
to get a Cannon printer and some paperback books. In the roundabout by the
airport a fully loaded sugar cane truck had not stopped in time behind a
small car and traffic was backed up while the police cleaned up the pieces.