Some Pictures: Plants, Bug, Dogs Swimming

Kayla brought these two things in this morning. The first is a flower that appears to catch bugs. They have taken another one apart and found bugs inside - sorta like a venus fly trap (I tried to save space by putting the big pictures on the detail picture):


This is a fruit of some sort - I am sure that it has a name. It's about the size of a large cucumber:


Here is a baby preying mantis (about the size of a quarter):


Here are the dogs swimming together (and trying to drown each other) in the holding pond:



(bad news...I have been struggling with my camera because I recently dropped it and it knocked off the auto-focus feature quite a bit. I have missed a couple of great shots because of it. I may have to figure out a way to get a new one here. We probably have a few years [I am being frustratingly sarcastic] before the adoption is done and I can personally buy another in the States).

Big Cricket, BCS

Big cricket shedding it's...skin? Exoskeleton?


Boring car stuff...

Had to remove the front differential on the old Toyota - it was making noise. It was a LOT of work to get it out. Look at all of the damaged teeth and completely missing teeth.

Rats

Ya never know what you'll find when you climb into ceiling crawl spaces to fix electrical things (I found two of these, but the other picture didn't turn out):

Snail/Slug Lesson Cont...

To demonstrate what a slug is, my friend, Mr. Slug Bug, came and asked for a photo. Here he is with a Bic pen to show his size.

Caption?

Can you create a good caption for this photo? I was thinking something along the lines of a family of snails traveling and this one saying every couple of millimeters "I have to go the bathroom!"


Did you know that slugs don't have shells but snails have a shell? The common garden snail is the slowest moving animal and can travel about 0.03 mph (0.05 kph). Aren't you glad you read my blog? This information will come in so useful...probably tomorrow!

Adoption, Boat, Frog

We got some interesting news about the adoption (not positive), but we are in the middle of figuring it out. I'll write when I know more.

Boats

The kids made a boat out of a small tray, DC fan and an RC car battery. It worked well and it allowed them (mostly Carter) to experiment with various setups. He had the fans setup inline at one point and that went the fastest, but Kayla wanted one too and we only had two fans.



Frog high res.

We saw this frog this morning (Mr. Kyrk pointed him out) and he was really sticky. There were a few Haitian workers that didn't really like him when I showed them.

Amazing Snail

On the way to say goodbye to one of the teachers of a class that we have going on this week, we walked by this snail (Kayla saw it first). It looked like a cartoon snail...something that a child would color in and a parent would say "Wow, interesting color combination Billy-Bob!" Our great Lord has a great imagination in his beautiful creations. I have no idea where this guy found his green house - we haven't seen any like it around here.

Hummingbird

This guy was close to us as we sat outside for a few minutes after lunch. I will change my shutter speed and try to get another picture tomorrow - he seems to come at the same time every day.

Bat-and-Mouse-Eating Centipede

Last night after playing a game upstairs, we came out and found this (Mr. Kyrk stepped next to it to show the size)...




He is BIG (about 10-12 inches long) - and supposedly the largest species in the world! I put him in the bug catcher that the kids have. After reading this, this, this, and this, I think maybe we should get rid of it.

Tremor, BCS: Canter

The good memories of a relaxing weekend are still with me. It was a very nice trip where the majority of the time was not spent thinking about mission-type work or mission related things. For Tina and me, we still contemplate NUMEROUS things that we see, hear, or think about, not just the things that go on in Haiti, but in world missions, too. Thinks like what does the Bible tell us regarding how missions should be done and in what order as well as the typical everyday things of people asking for money. Our learning curve is not so much a curve as it is a straight line up still. We continue to ask many questions of the missionaries here at the Baptist Haiti Mission and, perhaps, make some meetings much longer. We hope and pray that God's overall purpose is served by asking the questions that help to examine what is being done here at the mission as well as pray that His purpose is being served by us growing in the knowledge of the Great Commission: to go and make disciples of all nations... Matthew 28:19

Tremors

I recall a movie called Tremors that I had watched when I was younger (to waste time, no doubt) - it's a strange one and I wouldn't recommend it above doing all the other things that you may want/need to do. I saw this dead centipede yesterday and thought I would share it with you (if you saw the movie, this would be a baby). It was about 10-12 inches long and about 1 inch thick (not including the legs). It was the biggest one I have ever seen in my life - watch out!


Boring Car Stuff... Canter

The back half of the frame of the Canter was painted by our painter - first with the deadly red-oxide paint and then with the oil-based, gloss black paint. I had to drill a couple more holes in the new support plate so I could put the gas tank back on and then I finished everything else up. I drove it under the dump bed and then Mr. Kyrk and I started putting the dump bed on. We got about half way and then I drove it under the garage area to finish up today, Lord willing. Once it's done, we'll be sending it down to get the windshield put in and then it will be all finished. I am looking forward to, hopefully, seeing it provide many more months of service (I won't say years because there isn't much that lasts for "years" on these roads). I'll get a picture of it all completely when I complete it - it shouldn't look any different than before if everything goes well.

Logs and Misc.

It's been a little while since I last posted. Mr. Kyrk and I have been working a bit on cleaning up the large logs that were left by the hurricanes. We hollowed a number of them out. We have been making various things using them including this little playground, a bench, and even some coffee table tops. It's been a lot of work. We have gotten some good wood chips out of it that makes for some great fire starter.



On Tuesday this week, I was asked to look at a centrifuge (I like the variety). It turns out that there were two of them (of three) that were broken - they didn't turn on. I looked at one of them and all that the motor needed was some brushes/carbon so I took some extras that fit closely and it worked. The other one was a bit more complicated, I took it apart and saw that there was a short against the metal case - one of the wires had broken insulation. I repaired the wire and it worked again.


Here is a picture of a very pretty caterpillar that one of the kids found:

Lumberjerks

Evidence that we do indeed have termites. This is from the top of the door of one of our cupboards above the stove (see the pile at the top of the first picture). Tina emptied the cupboard so we don't open that door any more and look what we have after a few days (the "droppings" have piled over the door and still "drop"):

Goat, Trip, Ranger - Fixed, Log-Splitter

The last trip that Pastor Rob went on about a week ago yielded a gift. That gift was a goat. Yesterday, they had one of the workers butcher the goat and Kayla and Carter wanted to watch. I wasn’t entirely sure what to expect. I think that Carter learned a little more respect for life by watching it and Kayla just confirmed the respect that she already had. It was interesting to watch how they did it and interested as well to think that this happens to many goats each and every day because they are a primary food source here in Haiti.

Pastor Rob and I took a little road trip two days ago and I got some interesting pictures. Here is one of a tree with watermelon-sized fruit hanging from it (I wouldn't have believed it if I didn't see it myself):



We have a few events coming up today and tomorrow. This evening we’ll be eating dinner as a group and then going to Pastor Rob and Patti’s place to watch the kids present a play. They practiced a little bit yesterday for it. Then, tomorrow, Christmas Day, we’ll be doing a meal together again at about 2:30. But before that, we’ll be delivering Christmas gifts to people in the hospital. We have bags of hygiene supplies for the people who are staying in the hospital. I’ll try to get pictures of this and the kids play as well.

Boring Car Stuff…

I got the Ford Ranger running yesterday. When the suspension broke, it took out the oil filter. They found a new one and filled it up with oil. Somehow in the process of driving back home, they over-filled the engine with oil. That oil was all throughout the intake, including the intercooler. I took it all out of the car and cleaned it all up with gasoline, brake cleaner, and carb cleaner. I drained the oil and replaced the oil with the correct amount. It started real hard (the battery was pretty warn down from having the hazard lights on for so long), but it started nonetheless. I took it for a little drive to “get the lead out” and it seems to be just fine. I’ll be keeping an eye out on it because there may be a small oil leak. I also put touchup paint on the spot where the cow-catcher from the Landcruiser wore a hole in the paint.

I worked on a log splitter that they have here yesterday as well. It ran enough to cut a couple logs and then it quit. We have a generator here with nearly the same engine and so Mr. Kyrk and I spent about an hour replacing various parts and we got it to work again. We took it to an area and split wood for about an hour (I like working with wood – there may be a little lumberjack inside of me). We used the four-wheeler to pull it up from a shed to the shop and to pull it around. It sure is nice to have that four-wheeler!

Tree, Creatures, Transmission - COMPLETE!

We went for a walk on Sunday and the kids climbed this tree. Here is a picture of two of our great children:


I have a few stored up pictures of some neat creatures. Check out the streak behind the snail with no house.




Boring car stuff...

I am VERY tired and sore! I got the transmission done yesterday after working on it all day. I took it for a spin and it works great - shifts like butter. Thanks to Anes who used to do a lot of the car work, we both wrestled the very heavy transmission into place. I was never as dirty as I was yesterday after putting the transmission in. The dirt on my back made it through my shirt and got my back all dirty. It took a lot of scrubbing to get all the dirt off, especially my arms. That is a job that I am happy to have finished! It's great to know that this one job saved the mission well over a $1,000 US dollars. That's what God called me to do here, He gave me the ability, and that's why I am here. A great big "Thank You" to all who have donated to help us be here!

Dogs, Peas, Fuzzy, Transmission

While everyone is away upstairs (including Neal for the weekend), we are baby-sitting the dog and we invited her over to play. They had a great play date in our house this evening.


A worker came to our house today to sell us some broccoli and peas. Tina and Lou were getting the peas out of the pods, I was weeding an area in front of the house, and Kayla and Carter were playing with the other kids. Just in case...Tina does not have two black eyes, that is a shadow across her face.


While cleaning out the weeds, I found a large fuzzy caterpillar.



Boring car stuff...

Here is a shot of the transmission and transfer case. I degreased it and will degrease it one more time before putting it in next week.

Transmission

The home for the transmission extra piece has been found!! God is good!! That part that I didn't get lined up caused me to find the missing location for the extra part. It is circled below in orange. If I didn't put that part in wrong and have to take it apart, I wouldn't have found where it went.



Here is a big grasshopper that was next to our screen door this morning:

Temp, Trip, Bugs, BCS

Our new low temperature was recorded a few nights ago: 58.4. I know to family back home that sounds warm considering the sub-20 degree temps that you had this morning, but you guys have carpet, windows that close, and warm clothes. Our indoor temperature seems locked 67 degrees. I find myself taking my time checking out the generator (it's much warmer in that room).

On Sunday I went with Cullie (the former mechanic of the Mission who is still a mechanic and lives about 1 mile up the road) to check out a house that he was working on. After we checked it out, we went for a tour. He was on his Honda 200R and I was on the Kodiak 400 four-wheeler. It was a blast and we saw some great views. I got to see more of our neighboring areas. Cullie and I are going to try to get out and do that again (my family and I don't get out much - it would be nice to bring Tina some time, too). I am starting to want a four-wheeler of my own to get out and about (Mr. Storm - any recommendations?). The Kodiak that I use has some ownership issues and related questions surrounding it. It needs a lot of work (one thing is the frame which had broke and been welded back together crooked), but we don't want to put much work into it if it isn't ours and the work will not be reimbursed.

It is really nice to get out and see how some other Haitians live. There is a different feeling when being outside of the Mission grounds here. We are somewhat isolated from the normal daily life of the Haitians just outside of our walls/gates which can be a good thing and a bad thing. I really enjoy getting out.

Here are a couple new bugs in high resolution. Check out the feet on that cricket - his body was about 4 inches long. The centipede was about 5-6 inches long.



Boring car stuff...

I got all the parts that I needed to put the transmission back together in the Landcruiser. I got both gear stacks assembled and then started working on the shift forks. There was a spring loaded ball bearing in one of the forks and it got stuck in the shift rail. There was no way to get it out without breaking something, so I had to cut the shift fork apart to get it out. Now I have to wait until the parts come in. I am so glad that I took pictures with my camera of the disassembly. It has helped greatly and I don't know that I would have put it back right without the pictures.

I am almost done with the cage for the new Landcruiser. I built the doors (that was NOT easy to get it all lined up) and now have to find a way to secure them with a locking mechanism. Then we'll be painting it and putting it on. It'll be nice to have that project done (and the transmission).

The Canter was brought elsewhere to have the tranmission and transfer case dropped. It showed that the fingers on the clutch pressure plate were VERY worn to the point that they were pushed backwards almost 180 degrees (four of the fingers were broken off) and the throw-out bearing was trashed. The gears in the transfer case were also toast. 3 of the four gears had significant damage. We'll be taking it somewhere to either replace the whole thing or just the transfer case side of it. I don't know where they take things to get them repaired, but as the Mission's mechanic I sometimes feel like I should be the one doing the work. We don't have the proper tools to handle a transmission as large as the Canter's and, with just me in the shop, it's hard (if not impossible) to do some things by myself - like this. I am still getting used to the way things are done around here.

BHM: Ken's Field Journal, Millipede

Word got out here at the mission that I was keeping a blog and that sparked conversations. I offered to keep one for the BHM website and it is now a done deal. I have yet to write my first one (within a week, Lord willing), but the BHM website is all set up for it. It will focus on the things that are going on at the Mission at the very least and may have things from my perspective (as the newbie) as well. I'll put an update on this blog when I have made my first post to the BHM site.

Carter found a millipede today. Look at all the legs on this thing - it seems to have a pretty hard shell on it too. (How do you like this bug, Sharon?)




Boring car stuff...

I have been doing various things lately like working on a motorcycle, a generator, a and a generator powered welder. I fixed (after MUCH troubleshooting) someone's Hyundai Tuscon - it had a fuel issue that turned out to be a busted hose INSIDE the fuel tank, inside the fuel pump assembly - a really odd thing in a really odd spot. The dealer tried to sell them an EGR (Exhaust Gas Recirculator) valve (it's a turbo) and a new fuel pump to the tune of over $1000 US dollars and we ended up fixing it for free with what we had (just some spare hose sitting around). I am also continuing to work on the cage for the new pickup - I hope it is done soon because I feel like it's hanging over my head. I should have parts tomorrow to start putting the transmission back in the old Landcruiser.

Fruit, Moth, Frog

Some cool looking fruit. I have tried the three smaller ones and they are very good. The one that looks like a blowfish, I have not yet tried.


Just a couple fairly recent shots of a moth and a frog:

Praise: My Mom's OK, Amazing Blessing, Frog

I talked to my dad last night and my mom is doing good - thank you for your prayers. Now the recovery...

Amazing Blessing

The World Servant people from the Netherlands took off this morning at 6AM. There is one lady who has been sick for a little while was occasionally passing out and the home base in the Netherlands told her not to travel so she will be staying at the mission with her husband until they can resolve the issue. It seems a little ironic that she would be told to stay because most people leave Haiti when they get sick, not stay.

The "Amazing Blessing" came in last night when Gerbin, the leader of the World Servant group that just left, walked into the house and gave me two great pair of pants (which I really need) and his boots (which I really, REALLY need). Gerbin is about 6-8 inches taller than me but his boots fit perfectly - I have been wearing them all morning. I had been wondering what I was going to do for boots because mine are wearing faster than I expected. I have holes in them and was anticipating what I would have to do - wait until we visited the US again or try to find a pair here. When Kris came early this week, I was tempted to ask her to get boots, but they would have to fit very good for them to be any benefit. God certainly looked out for me in this need and the pants.

Last night we also had a get together for their final evening with us. They gave us a small bag of goodies (a couple shirts, paper, markers, and a bunch of other nice stuff). I will miss them all, especially Gerbin. He was a great member of the BHM team while he was here for two months. I hope he comes back long term!

Frog

We had a frog on our porch last night (high resolution):


Boring Car Stuff...

We took the cage off the caged Landcruiser yesterday - that thing must have weighed close to a half-ton which is not good for the truck, transmission, or engine. The transmission keeps popping out of 1st gear so I will be taking a look at that and possibly rebuilding the transmission soon. Yesterday, and continuing today, I have been building the cage on the new Landcrusier. I should be done, Lord willing, in a few days. This takes priority over fixing the other one since we will not be putting that cage back on any time soon. The new cage should be, at most, half of the weight of the other one.