http://www.shepherdslove.com/blog.php en-gb copyright 2012 - Shepherd\´s Love office@shepherdslove.com office@shepherdslove.com Sun, 18 Sep 2011 16:46:01 -0500http://www.shepherdslove.com/blog.php?blogID=1169 18 September 2011 So, it’s our last night in Rome. I’m ready to be home, but not ready to GO home. I have loved it here so much! I just wish we could stay a little longer. I love the neighborhood our apartment is in. We can walk out the front door and see the coliseum down the street. Several times every day we are treated to church bells ringing. There are so many little shops within easy walking distance – fruit shops, cheese and meat shops, coffee shops. Ther...READ MORE by clicking on the title above. Fri, 16 Sep 2011 12:33:01 -0500http://www.shepherdslove.com/blog.php?blogID=1158 16 September 2011 Yesterday I was in the shower shampooing my hair and I remembered the last time I was in Italy. We had been warned about Italian worker strikes. I was with my daughter, Shana, at the time. We were sharing a hotel room with one other girl. Shana has never been a “morning person,” so I got up, took my shower, the other girl took her shower, and then Shana got up. She got in the shower, got her hair all lathered up with shampoo and – the water worker...READ MORE by clicking on the title above. Thu, 15 Sep 2011 02:11:01 -0500http://www.shepherdslove.com/blog.php?blogID=1147 15 September 2011 We have spent the last two days in Venice. Relaxing, doing not much of anything. We took the train up here and that was nice. I am starting to really like public transportation (except for the damned cell phones). You can just sit there, watching the countryside go by, or read, or sleep. Rick likes to strike up conversations with fellow travelers. I don’t. I like to think, read, sleep. I don’t like it when other people try to talk to me either. I ju...READ MORE by clicking on the title above. Thu, 08 Sep 2011 15:06:01 -0500http://www.shepherdslove.com/blog.php?blogID=1122 Last day in Uganda 04 September 2011 We told everyone last night we wanted to leave at 08:00 this morning. So, true to form, at 08:00, breakfast was served. About 09:00, we actually pulled out of the driveway, but were we really leaving? NO! We stopped at the market parking lot, Isaac was let out to catch a boda boda back home to get a file David forgot. And then, some guy named Patrick got in the car with us. We then drove to a gas station – to get gas! NO! First David...READ MORE by clicking on the title above. Sat, 03 Sep 2011 11:28:01 -0500http://www.shepherdslove.com/blog.php?blogID=1092 Today is our last day in Kabale. I'm ready to go, and I want to stay. It's so strange having two homes on opposite sides of the world. They seriously can't be much further apart. I'm glad we were here longer this time. I've learned more of the local language and that gives me more confidence in carrying out day to day activities. I've walked to town almost every day so hopefully I'm less of a novelty now. There were also a lot of white tourists this time. ...READ MORE by clicking on the title above. Thu, 01 Sep 2011 12:51:01 -0500http://www.shepherdslove.com/blog.php?blogID=1080 01 September 2011 Last night was one of those nights – 100% humidity. I picked up something off the floor and a worm of some sort crawled out. I smashed it. Then a mosquito flew in front of my face. Rick brought the mosquito zapper in but of course all the mosquitoes disappeared and he was only able to zap about 3 of them. I had been suffering from a touch of “Montezuma’s revenge” for two days. Usually, it gets better after one day, but this time, no. And, ...READ MORE by clicking on the title above. Tue, 30 Aug 2011 11:49:01 -0500http://www.shepherdslove.com/blog.php?blogID=1054 Last night was extremely frustrating! I decided to send the monthly expense money for September by Western Union because we found out the bank takes a fairly large amount when we do a wire transfer bank to bank. First of all, they charge a minimum of 50,000 UGS (about $23.00). So, if you transferred $20.00, it would cost $43.00. For amounts larger, they take .5% (half a percent) of the total. So, when we transferred $11,000.00 the beginning of August for building projects, the bank to...READ MORE by clicking on the title above. Sun, 28 Aug 2011 09:37:01 -0500http://www.shepherdslove.com/blog.php?blogID=1036 28 August 2011 This morning, as we had coffee before church, we were watching the news on CNN where they were reporting on the progress of hurricane Irene. Several things struck me. One was how much we love our country, our home. The other is how far away from home we really are. On a global perspective, we are only one time zone away from being as far as we can be before starting back towards home. During standard time, in our winter, we are 11 hours different. As I watched the ne...READ MORE by clicking on the title above. Thu, 25 Aug 2011 04:33:01 -0500http://www.shepherdslove.com/blog.php?blogID=1017 Yesterday was nice. We walked over to the place where Taylor and Michelle, our Canadian neighbors, hold their ministry for the street boys. They are teaching them baking, basket making and sewing. Taylor took us up to Bubare where they are building some family homes for orphans. One of the homes will be for the street boys they are working with now. The boys are mostly in the 10-14 age group and have been living on the streets for some time. They sniff glue and smoke marijuana and beg ...READ MORE by clicking on the title above. Tue, 23 Aug 2011 03:21:01 -0500http://www.shepherdslove.com/blog.php?blogID=1004 Yesterday was so nice - it was sunny and warm. It was the first time I've felt the sun on my skin for over a week. Isaac and I walked into town. Rick was still suffering from a bad headache, we think it may be a residual of the sinus cold he had last week. We went to the book store to get some things printed off a memory stick, but their power was out because someone had knocked the power pole down with thier car in a accident the night before. After seeing the work it takes to put ...READ MORE by clicking on the title above. Mon, 22 Aug 2011 02:16:01 -0500http://www.shepherdslove.com/blog.php?blogID=984 I just noticed that the last blog I wrote for some reason posted twice in a row. Sorry! It’s been a number of days since I was able to write. The power was our almost continuously for two full days and nights. We also attended two give-aways and a wedding – all day affairs. The first one was Friday, a give-away for a young man who is the grandson of the man who led Rev. David to realize his calling as a priest. The man is dead now, but the grandson asked Rev. David to pr...READ MORE by clicking on the title above. Thu, 18 Aug 2011 03:47:01 -0500http://www.shepherdslove.com/blog.php?blogID=955 Last night the power went out at 18:00 as usual. It was so cold, Rick and I just went to our room, lit a candle, and lay under the covers reading. When we were called to dinner, we went back to the main house and had a pleasant surprise – Rev. David had put a lit charcoal pot in the living room. It was so nice and toasty, and it also gave off some light. I wasn’t worried about fumes or CO2 poisoning with the doors opening every two seconds as people went in and out bringing d...READ MORE by clicking on the title above. Tue, 16 Aug 2011 08:47:01 -0500http://www.shepherdslove.com/blog.php?blogID=938 We spoke to the bank manager today about why it's been 18 months since we applied for internet banking and still don't have the passwords. He looked in the file and explained that, since we require two signers for all transactions, we cannot have internet banking. Gee, it only took 18 months and 5 trips to the bank being told "tomorrow," to find this information out. African time. So then we asked if we could at least be able to see the statements on line. That took several minu...READ MORE by clicking on the title above. Mon, 15 Aug 2011 12:19:01 -0500http://www.shepherdslove.com/blog.php?blogID=931 This is the dry season in Kabale. We have been here about 20 days and it has poured rain for about 6 of those days. I'm beginning to wonder about this "dry" season! I'm sitting here in the dark, the only light in the room is from the computer screen. I have about maybe an hour of battery time left and don't want to use more than half of it in case the power stays off more than just the night. I have to not worry about what may be crawling around in the dark in here. I do ha...READ MORE by clicking on the title above. Sat, 13 Aug 2011 02:27:01 -0500http://www.shepherdslove.com/blog.php?blogID=916 Watching TV here is so different. The local channels are sort of like the Mexican channels 25 years ago. Sound isn't filtered at all, lots of echoing. A lot of the reporting is in the form of people just sitting there discussing things in, what is to me, long, boring detail. But to the people who live here and know what they are talking about, maybe it is interesting. Lots of pictures of people sitting at long tables moving papers around. The shows I find interesting are the ones t...READ MORE by clicking on the title above. Wed, 10 Aug 2011 14:34:01 -0500http://www.shepherdslove.com/blog.php?blogID=901 This morning I did my first VBS lesson with the kids. I was pretty nervous about it because the kids here don't react to things the same as U.S. kids and you never know how you are really being received. But they seemed to have a good time. I was using the same program we used at Bayside this summer, Pandamania. But I had to make some alterations. It's way too much trouble to set up video equipment for each morning, so we are not using the videos. I don't have all the props...READ MORE by clicking on the title above. Tue, 09 Aug 2011 12:49:01 -0500http://www.shepherdslove.com/blog.php?blogID=888 This morning I got up feeling listless, like I wasn't sure what I am doing here. That happens a lot when we are here. I never feel like I'm doing enough, or like I know what I'm supposed to be doing. I feel constrained because I can't move around as freely as I would like. I don't want to take boda-bodas because I would feel totally uncomfortable riding "side-saddle," and since it is unacceptable for me to wear pants here, I can't ride normally. So I have to eith...READ MORE by clicking on the title above. Mon, 08 Aug 2011 08:27:01 -0500http://www.shepherdslove.com/blog.php?blogID=875 I went over to the orphanage today just with Isaac after the dental visit. First, I met an old man wearing a clerical collar. He was there waiting to talk to Rev. David. He gold me his name is Stanley, and he was the Diocesan Archdeacon for 20 years before he retired. He wanted to know all about the Anglican Church North America, and then he wanted to know what crops we grow in California. Then we had a discussion about the difference between dairy and beef cows. After I finished t...READ MORE by clicking on the title above. Mon, 08 Aug 2011 05:42:01 -0500http://www.shepherdslove.com/blog.php?blogID=874 This morning was to be Isaac's appointment to go to the "theater," be put under general anesthetic, and have his tooth extracted since he seems to either be immune to the novacain or they aren't administering it effectively. He says he had another tooth extracted there last year and it worked OK, but this time it just wouldn't work. His appointment was supposed to be last Thursday, but they called him to say the clinic was "too busy" that morning and he was rescheduled for this...READ MORE by clicking on the title above. Sun, 07 Aug 2011 11:03:01 -0500http://www.shepherdslove.com/blog.php?blogID=868 This morning we went to the English service at All Saint's in Kabale. It's the largest COU church in town and I think the only one with an English service. English is a relative word, however, as we still can't understand most of it because of the local accent. But the service (in progress as we got there at 09:30 for the 09:00 service, and they actually start on time there) was being led by a group of students who have been together for years, kind of like a youth group, and ...READ MORE by clicking on the title above. Sat, 06 Aug 2011 14:33:01 -0500http://www.shepherdslove.com/blog.php?blogID=866 I decided I better take my bath while the power is still on. I hate bathing in the dark, even with a candle. I didn't take a bath last night because there was no power and it was REALLY dark -must have been a lot of clouds or something. There is a very large icky looking spider that lives behind the bathtub where the "foot" end meets but doesn't fit snugly against the wall. Rick killed him, but he is now either resurrected or one of his friends found the web was empty and moved in...READ MORE by clicking on the title above. Fri, 05 Aug 2011 10:14:01 -0500http://www.shepherdslove.com/blog.php?blogID=860 Today is the 5 year anniversary of Rick quitting smoking. Praise the Lord. He quit on the way here our first trip because he had been told that people in the town we would be ministering in would not believe he was a Christian if they saw him smoking. I'm really really proud of him! We just came back from walking to town and back for some things we needed - shampoo, something to oil hinges with so they don't creak loudly everytime someone opens a door, which happens about once...READ MORE by clicking on the title above. Thu, 04 Aug 2011 08:46:01 -0500http://www.shepherdslove.com/blog.php?blogID=854 As I sat there I was, as usual, fascinated by the number of times in offices, clinics, banks, etc., various doors open, someone ambles slowly out, slowly walks to another office, picks up one piece of paper and ambles back to the first door. All the doors loudly creak as WD40 seems not to exist here yet. People - patients and doctors and people whose function I never figured out - were even walking in and out of the treatment room. Isaac stuck his head in to the treatment room to see if t...READ MORE by clicking on the title above. Thu, 04 Aug 2011 06:07:01 -0500http://www.shepherdslove.com/blog.php?blogID=853 Today was an interesting experience. Our Ugandan son, Isaac, has had a terrible toothache since we got here last week. He went to the dental clinic at Rugarama last Wednesday and found out he has a tooth that is so decayed it is beyond repair and has also infected the one next to it but the second one can be repaired. They sent him home with enough pain medication to last until Sunday, and an appointment to come back to the dentist today (four days after the pain medication ran out). So,...READ MORE by clicking on the title above. Thu, 04 Aug 2011 05:05:01 -0500http://www.shepherdslove.com/blog.php?blogID=852 Elizabeth with her gift from her sponsors. Wed, 03 Aug 2011 10:32:01 -0500http://www.shepherdslove.com/blog.php?blogID=849 Today we went to the English service at All Saints at 09:00. We actually got there at 09:15 which is pretty good for here. Rev. David took us right to the front as usual. I don't try to argue about that anymore. The Archbishop was there, and the service was led by a couple of students from Bishop Barnum University. They did a great job! When the children came up for a blessing, the Archbishop asked Rick to pray for the children. We also got to talk to the Archbishop for awhile aft...READ MORE by clicking on the title above. Sat, 30 Jul 2011 13:41:01 -0500http://www.shepherdslove.com/blog.php?blogID=828 We just returned from the wedding of Bishop William and Reverend Winnie. It was a beautiful wedding at the cathedral with the Bishop of Kigezi presiding and Archbishop Luke Orombi preaching. The wedding began at 11:00 and we got home about 20:00. The reception was at the best place in town, the White Horse Inn. The food and entertainment was good and the newly married couple seemed to be very happy. Tomorrow we are going to two churches, one in town and one up in the mountains near Lake...READ MORE by clicking on the title above. Fri, 29 Jul 2011 03:05:01 -0500http://www.shepherdslove.com/blog.php?blogID=818 Yesterday we boarded a bus for the trip to the Give-Away of Winnie to Bishop William. The event was held in Ibanda which turned out to be a three hour trip from Kabale. It was about 45 minutes past Mbarara, back in the cattle and coffee country of Ankole. The event was very nice and Bishop William and Winnie both seemed very happy. It was the usual - we were to be ready to board the bus down at the church at 08:00 - we finally did board the bus about 08:45 and left atout 09:15. We arriv...READ MORE by clicking on the title above. Wed, 27 Jul 2011 12:10:01 -0500http://www.shepherdslove.com/blog.php?blogID=801 Rick and I have finally arrived safely in Kabale this afternoon. We left Sacramento 08:30 Sunday morning (24 July) and just arrived here 14:00 Wednesday (27th). Tomorrow, we retrace our steps and drive 1/3 back to Kampala to the city of Mbarara for a Give-Away. More about that later. Flights were uneventful until we went to leave Rome on Turkish Airlines. It seems we didn't know how to read their regulations and they allow quite a bit less weight per suitcase than the major airlines. So,...READ MORE by clicking on the title above. Sat, 23 Jul 2011 18:27:01 -0500http://www.shepherdslove.com/blog.php?blogID=769 Our plane leaves tomorrow morning at 08:30. So, whatever is in the suitcases is what's going, whatever we have planned for is what's happening. I'm finally starting to look forward to the trip. It will be good to see our family and friends in Uganda, especially the "new" baby, Purity, who was born in February to Emily and her husband, Isaac. I hope to do a Vacation Bible School with the kids with some materials I got from church. Hopefully, there will be a guitar still there...READ MORE by clicking on the title above. Wed, 20 Jul 2011 12:38:01 -0500http://www.shepherdslove.com/blog.php?blogID=765 Four more days. Massage this afternoon . Then to the bank to make some deposits, and to get our our travel money. All the bills have to be minted year 2000 or more recent or they will not convert the money in Uganda. I feel like I should wear a cape and mask and hand the teller a note, "give me this amount of money all in year 2000 or newer." All the "stuff" is on the bed in the spare room waiting to see which we can fit in the suitcases and which is most important to take this tim...READ MORE by clicking on the title above. Mon, 18 Jul 2011 16:38:01 -0500http://www.shepherdslove.com/blog.php?blogID=751 We are leaving in six days. We've got someone (a Grandson) to house/Moses/lawn/mail sit, someone to take care of the Shepherd's Love books (a board member) and a few back-ups just in case. Permission to take Moses to the vet if necessary is taken care of. Anti-malarials are in the house and we start those on Saturday. Lists are made, ride to the airport is arranged for (not sure of who will pick us up in Entebbe yet so that may be an adventure - we get there at 01:10.) Hopefully...READ MORE by clicking on the title above. Wed, 13 Jul 2011 01:52:01 -0500http://www.shepherdslove.com/blog.php?blogID=732 I'm new at this Blog thing so have no idea what everyone will see. We leave in 12 days and will spend the longest time in Uganda yet. First time we went we spent 4 weeks but it was the first time (and we thought only time :0) Trying to get ready, planning for Moses to be cared for, house to be cared for, bookkeeping to be done, all the stuff needs to keep going even when we are not here. Today I worked on the video of us doing "normal" things. I thought the kids in the orphanage mig...READ MORE by clicking on the title above.