February 20, 2010 County Fair In Marcovia, Choluteca

I was tired and hot from a long day of work. A few minutes earlier I had entered my car and was cooling off, air conditioning going full blast. In the oncoming lane there was a funeral procession. The police told me to pull the car over. “How odd,” I thought to myself. A police escorted funeral?



Waiting for the funeral procession, lots of people walking in the heat with their umbrellas over their heads, I realized that a Horse Parade was coming my way. At first I thought it was a funeral. In fact it was a funeral and then a parade of horse behind the pickup carrying the body of the deceased.



I didn’t take a photo of the casket and mourners, it was a funeral. But when I began to see the beautiful horses, I hopped out of the car and started taking photos. Excuse the fact that many of the riders heads are cut off, I was more interested in the horses. I only wish you could see how they danced. It was a joy to watch the horses as they pranced and danced!

February 18, 2010 Sarah Searcy Gonzalez' Birthday

This is an old photo of Sarah when she was a ball of fire! I will never forget one day I turned my back and she was on top of the refrigerator in about 30 seconds. To this day I cannot figure out how she got up there.

Now she has grown into a lovely woman. Sarah and Casey have two beautiful children. I am so blessed that God gave Mike and I such a beautiful daughter. I thank God daily for two beautiful girls. Happy Birthday Sarah! I love you!

February 17, 2010 Making An Outdoor John For The Beach

It all started when Jose "Chepe" Benavides purchased a piece of beach front property on the Gulf of Fonseca. I, of course, was invited to visit, but unlike all the "guys" I liked to have a nice place to go potty. (Why am I writing this for the whole world to read?) Below is a pile of wood which I purchased to start the project.


There was no easy way to have my wish. Honduran latrines are the PITS! People don't aim and they are just nasty! So I remembered Grandma Jewel and Grandpa Yancy Wallace's outdoor john. I grew up using it in southern Arkansas.

I got on the internet and sure 'nough there was an outdoor john design, similar to what I remembered. It took several weeks to finish working on it when I had time. It cost a hundred dollars, but then, I plan on visiting the beach a lot. And.... I made it large enough that I can change my clothes and take a shower also!


The next hurdle was that I had to make it small enough to place on the boat to get to the island which Jose bought, but large enough to be comfortable. This proved to be a challenge. I made it in 2 halves, I took the first part to the beach one week and the second half a few weeks later. It was heavy!!! It took four guys to load each half into my truck. Below is a photo of half of the john in the boat on it's way to the island. And yes mom, we made sure we were safe. Remember wood floats!


The inside of the door has a spring where it will swing shut. It is placed over a brick pit. Someone told me that lime takes away the "stink". Does anyone know if that is true?


Finally in place, the outdoor john is BEAUTIFUL and serves it's purpose. I even placed a lock on the outside of the door where passersbys won't get it all yucky.

I was distressed that half of the wood looked new and half looked old and weathered, but I guess in a few months I will never know the difference. Next week I will take some clay tiles for the roof.

If anyone wants to come and visit, there is a nice bathroom! Now where do we wash our hands?

And for those of you who doubted that I am creative... Here is proof that I am!

February 15 2010 No Water, No Shower, Abusive Male

Did you ever get to the point that you feel like you just can't take anymore? Last night late, I came home from a beautiful day at the beach... covered in sand, slightly sunburned and ready for a nice warm shower. But there was no water, so I went to the cistern and took a bucket of water upstairs and took a bucket bath instead. Standing in my shower pouring COLD water over the sunburn, I thought... of all the days for the water not to be on... why not on a day when I was not covered in sand?

Last night I didn't wash my sandy hair, because I wanted to wash my hair in warm water. This morning I woke up, climbed out of bed to wash my hair and no water again... Two days in a row with a bucket bath and you can imagine I was not in a very good mood. Not because there was no water, BUT because someone didn't do their job and therefore there was no water.

After noon came and went and still no water by 3:00 PM I was starting to smell myself.... bucket baths just don't do the job like a good shower does.

The dog needed to go outside to potty and when she went, one of the construction workers across the street whistled for the very last time! He is always molesting all the women around here and he is an incessant jerk. He is 20 years old and thinks he is God's gift to women. Well today was his day! He whistled one too many times. Understand it is not just the whistling, it is the sexual comments, the undressing the women as they walk to their car, or walk to visit the neighbor. But today was "HIS DAY".



I tore into him like a lioness with new cubs. I told him I was tired of him whistling and making sexual remarks to me and others like all of the women in the neighborhood are prostitutes or dogs. I screamed so loud that people heard me a block away. All of his work companions gathered up the street and watched as I told him just how pathetic he was. Then I took photos. He put his hands in front of the camera and screaming I said, "But you were so brave when you were whistling and making sexual remarks, why are you so shy now?"



He kept turning around and I shouted, "I am paying attention to you now, jerk! That is what you wanted isn't it?" He was embarrassed because a woman was giving him what he deserved. And in front of all his friends. Then I went to his boss and I told him... "All the women in the neighborhood are tired of this abusiveness. You will fire him or I will bring the police and have him arrested tomorrow morning."

Soon after "Mr. Whistle", "Mr. Sexual Predator" left with his tail between his legs. I posted a poster on the front of the building across from where he was working with his photos and I wrote... "This man is abusive with women." All of his co-workers stopped and looked at it when they got into their company truck to leave today after work. All of them hung their heads and didn't even look at me as they left. I'll just bet NOT ONE of them will mess with us anymore.

There are times in ones life when everything aligns to the point that you finally do what you should have done a long time ago. Today was one of those days. My fuse was short (no shower 2 days in a row) and he was abusive again. Several women dropped by to congratulate me. Just another day in the life of a missionary in Honduras. Christians need to stand up for themselves.

February 14 2010 Pacific Beach Here I Come!

My friend Bob Harrison says that we must all "take time to renew and rejuvenate". This weekend I expected to do just that. I relaxed with friends on the beach, rode in the "launchas", ate fresh shrimp the size of your hand, drank club soda and relaxed. I took photos of the fishermen, birds, the water, the beach and people in general. It was a wonderful trip.



My girlfriend Mercedes met me today at the beach and brought along her two children. We all played and had a great time. This particular beach has a really special place in my heart. I remember good times I had there with my family when my girls were much younger.







What a beautiful way to spend Valentines Day seeing and feeling all that the Lord has made for us to enjoy!

February 13 2010 Turkey At A Friend's Farm

Turkeys and ducks!









I am learning to capture birds and animals on film. It is a lot of fun and requires a lot of patience. These are photos I took at a friend's farm.

February 12 2010 Wheelchair Giveaway

I have been tired lately from all the craziness of the last few months of day after day of hard work. I decided this week to take things a little easier, but I am still giving away a few wheelchairs a week. Today was one of those days.

February 11 2010 Valentines Day Is Around The Corner

Today Edwin came over and we made Besitos. These are marshmallows covered with white chocolate and then dipped in sprinkles. We made 100 and I didn't eat not one. Did I mention I don't like marshmallows? Then we made 48 Brownies. I will not even tell you how many I ate!

February 10 2010 Another Only In Honduras Day

Just another day at work four stories up in the air. No safety rope, what you see hanging is the torch hose.

Now lets take a look at the crane holding up the steel beam... Could it be touching the electrical wires?

Look a little closer...

and a little closer... Can you beleive that this man is up there and the crane could fall over any minute since it is sitting on pieces of wood?

February 9 2010 Mil Ojas... 1000 Sheet Pastry

I hope I spelled it correctly. In English it is translated 1000 sheets. It is a flaky pastry and it is a pain in the posterior annex to make. But this morning, I cheated, I bought the dough already made and I made Turkey Ham and Cheese Pastries. They are sooooooooooo good. I don't know when I will ever really go on a diet! I love to make bread.

It was another one of those days when I stayed home and studied, caught up on laundry and baked.... How relaxing!

February 8 2010 Homemade Lavash Crackers

Today I spent most of the morning at home baking Lavash Crackers. It was one of those days when I just wanted to relax in my PJs and do something I enjoy. So I did. I received my "The Bread Baker's Apprentice" recipe book from a friend who came to Honduras and brought it with her.



First I pulled out White Sesame Seeds, Black Sesame Seeds, Poppy Seeds, Paprika and Cumin… These were the toppings I decided I wanted for my crackers.



I made the dough, let it rise slowly, rolled it out thin, but not too thin.



I cut it with the pizza cutter, added the seeds and spices...



probably should have done that before cutting, but live and learn….



Baked them in the oven… Made homemade Hummus and dipped and ate….

Yum!

February 7 2010 Cleaning The Beach With The Boy Scouts

I am a firm believer in the Bible and the Bible says in Psalm 24:1 The earth is the LORD's, and the fulness thereof; the world, and they that dwell therein.

If the Lord’s throne is magnificent and we know that it is… then we know that the Lord like cleanliness… knowing this, shouldn’t we keep the earth as clean as possible? Since the earth is the Lord’s and it is on loan to us, shouldn’t we take care of it?

The ride out to the beach... Julio the scoutmaster on the left.

There is nothing that peeves me more than to be driving down the street and see people throwing stuff out of bus windows and car windows. If it is a banana peel or an apple core, it is one thing, but plastic bottles, plastic bags, glass bottles, aluminum cans… old tires on the side of the road… it goes on and on in Honduras. The roads are full of clutter and people’s yards are full of trash. UGH!!!

The ride back in with a tired bunch of kids...

Jose recently purchased a piece of property on the beach. It has a beautiful view, but he has a bunch of pigs for neighbors. So I called the Scout Troop #14 Kenya group from Choluteca and enlisted their help. These are the same scouts who have helped SMART Medical Teams with their medical brigades for years and years. These are also the same kids which have put together hundreds of wheelchairs to give to the needy.


As always they were more than happy to help with the beach clean-up project and especially if it meant that they could swim after the job was done. So we all met at 7 AM on Sunday morning and off we went to the beach.


Trash was burned and plastic bottles were bagged to be recycled. We had a great time and I believe God smiled down on us.

February 5 2010 Prespire Choluteca Honduras

The other day I was driving down the road with a friend and all the sudden I threw on my brakes and came to a screeching halt. I threw the car into reverse. My friend sat looking at me like I was crazy and then she saw what I saw.... It was a little old man with two long sticks, one in each hand, crouched over with a humped back, ever so slowly shuffling up a hill which would make me pant.


I jumped out of the car and started asking questions to a man at the bottom of the hill and found out the old, crooked man's name. Little did his friend know that I would soon return.


This week, I returned and with a wheelchair from Free Wheelchair Mission. He is very happy. He says, "At my age, I am too old to be looking for a girlfriend, but if I was young, I would ask you out." He made my day! Then he began to tell me about his two friends which really need wheelchairs. I guess I will return to Prespire soon! Two more old folks need wheelchairs.

I love doing what I do, but it would not be possible without the help of my friends which donate money to pay for gas, hotels and food when I do these road trips. Thanks to all of them!