Chatter Boxes

1. There is treatment for logophobia.
2. Butterflies eat through their feet.
3. Pink freezer pops are better than green ones.
4. "Cheese and bread" – is an expression of surprise in Virgin Island Creole.
5. There once was a man named Burt, who went really fast and got hurt.

There is a blog I read almost everyday. I don't know the author...not at all. I discovered it by way of another blog by another person I don't know. That probably makes me a little weird but no more so then the fact that certain words make me nauseous.

I just think she's funny and creative and a great writer. I appreciate her talent and insight. She set out today to learn five new things. Nothing profound...just something she didn't know before. I thought it was an interesting exercise and wanted to give it a try.

My first new thing...The fear of words is called logophobia.

I'll let you know how I do.

The only time I journal regularly is when I travel. I want to document where I've been and capture the feeling I had at that moment. I wrote every day of our African adventure and have grabbed a line or two from each day to share here.

So sit back, relax, and please keep all hands and arms inside the ride...until the ride has come to a complete stop.

July 2nd, somewhere over the Atlantic Ocean - It's our first leg of a 19 hour flight. People are in good spirits and still getting along. Kelly and I are sharing our two-seat row. It's so much better to cuddle with someone familiar.

July 3rd, somewhere over Africa - I haven't slept and I feel it. We've decided to spend the night in Johannesburg since we're two hours delayed. We would rather be late then drive at night to Swaziland.


July 4th, Manzini, Swaziland - We've finally arrived, safe and sound. Dinner was Chinese food with the District Superintendent and his wife who sat next to me. She thinks I'm funny and wants me to marry her son. She jokingly offered 2 cows and 3 goats as the "bride price". Her husband paid 7 cows for her. Why am I only worth 2 and are goats really that valuable?

July 5th, Manzini, Swaziland - It is our first day of work. It feels good to get started but I think we have more hands than work to do. Heather and I went to the grocery store. They drive on the left side of the road and the rule applies to grocery store aisles as well.

July 6th, Manzini, Swaziland - I felt much more productive on the work site today. Heather and I worked together laying bricks. I split bricks and got two thumbs up from "the foreman". I'm sunburned and sore but that means we got stuff done.


July 7th, Manzini, Swaziland - There is a status women have in the country. The medical team met a woman with TB, the final stages of AIDS who was hemmoraging after losing her unborn baby after a 7 month pregnancy. She was alone and in complete despair. I am proud of those who sat beside her. Despair is a difficult thing to share.

July 8th, Manzini, Swaziland - We visited Raleigh Fitkin Memorial Hospital today. Hospital politics are everywhere. I ache for those I saw and for many more I didn't see.


July 9th, Manzini, Swaziland - We worshiped with the Luve church this morning...the same congregation we are building with. It doesn't matter where in the world I go, visiting a church always feels like visiting distant relatives. The food is different, people do things differently than you do, but it feels like you belong together.

July 10th, Manzini, Swaziland - We took a detour to the candle factory on our way home from the work site. The best part was the tea shop across the street. Cappuccinos in foreign countries make me very happy.


July 11th, Manzini, Swaziland - It was our last day at the building site. Heather and I teamed up again and laid block. We also finished up our grocery shopping this afternoon. We are a novelty at the local market. They know us as the group that buys all the water and 24 packs of Coke, Coke Light, Appletiser, and Grapetiser.

July 12th, Manzini, Swaziland - We had a dedication service this morning with Pastor Lucky and his wife. The best part of the day was watching the Swazi workers eating freezer pops that we passed out after a half day of work.

July 13th, Kruger National Park, South Africa - We've left Swaziland and have arrived at Kruger. Our drive to camp was 52 kilometers and we checked quite a few animals off our list, including a herd of elephant.


July 14th, Kruger National Park, South Africa - We added several animals to the list today. Heather and I got separated from the group for our night safari. Somehow we joined the geriatric club from Loud Mouth, Texas. Not exactly what we expected but it makes a good story.


July 15th, Johannesburg, South Africa - We've arrived safely back in Joburg. We ate dinner at La Boma tonight. It's a "game" restaurant where we could eat some of the animals we saw over the last few days. I tried everything but the seafood.

July 16th, Somewhere over Africa - Headed home at last. I'm anxious to get home to John and hair products. We are so thankful for safety in all the situations we found ourselves in. I'm thankful for the experience of meeting another part of our family and now thankful for the life I have to go home to.

I just wanted to let you know that we are home safe and sound from our African adventure. Stay tuned for further details (with pictures). Right now I'm having a hard time keeping my eyelids open. When we arrived in Kansas City this morning I set a goal to stay awake until 9:00pm...and now my new goal is to only nap once before 9:00pm. I'm a model of self-discpline.

Here are a few pictures to tide you over...

I will be leaving for Africa on Sunday morning so I'll be away from blogging until I return. But never fear...there will be lots to write about when I get back in two weeks.

I'm looking forward to it for a few reasons...the work we're doing, the chance to visit a new place, and I won't have to hear this song in every store, on every tv show, and on the radio every time I turn it on.

I'm not looking forward to wearing the same clothes for two weeks, showering with cold water, getting the inevitable "traveler's sickness" (yes, I'm speaking in code), and being away from John (I don't care if it's sappy...roll your eyes all you want...I won't apologize!).

So farewell faithful blog readers until next time...

I love going to the dentist. I had my six month cleaning yesterday afternoon. I've been looking forward to it for weeks. I love that clean slippery feeling after they scrape and polish my teeth.

I particularly like my dentist. He's the only one I remember going to. His office was in our neighborhood...we could walk if we wanted to. My elementary school is right across the railroad tracks.

We've long since moved but I have been loyal to my dentist. He remembers who I am, where I work, where I went to college. He scolds me repeatedly for brushing my teeth too much. We've negotiated and I'm allowed to brush three times a day but only if I use the proper "frequent brushing technique".

I see the same dental hygienist every time and I thought yesterday, she has the perfect job! Not because she gets to clean mouths all day (yuck!) but because she likes to talk. A lot! What better job for someone who likes to talk a lot than a job where you can stifle the other person's response?

Here's a brief rundown of topics during my 30 minute appointment.

* Her parent's divorced two weeks after their 25th wedding anniversary.
* They each have new boy/girlfriends one of whom smokes a pipe (I don't remember which one).
* She likes her father's girlfriend better than her mother's boyfriend. But she invited all four of them for Christmas last year and they came because "they're all adults afterall."
* They're going to St. Louis for the 4th of July because they've never seen the arch.
* She is more afraid of traveling in a car over a bridge than she is flying in an airplane over the ocean.
* Her husband had temporary paralysis after getting a typhoid shot in his arm.
* Her sister doesn't like being on birth control.
* She grinds her teeth at night too.
* Her favorite color is blue.
* The four year old patient she had earlier in the day would do much better if his mother didn't try to "calm him down".

It was also perfect for me because she didn't expect a response...in fact, she'd rather not have one. So she got to talk for 30 minutes straight. And I got to prop my feet up, watch HGTV where a couple tore down and rebuilt their fireplace, and walk out with sparkling white teeth.

Everybody wins!