Happy New Year

Happy New Year

We celebrated the New Year 7 hours early than most. My family had travelled out for Christmas and were here to join in. About 20 people all gathered outside the boy’s dorm for the countdown and then fireworks. 7 hours later we were tucked up in bed while everyone in England finally realised it was time to do the same, only joking. It’s at times like New Year though that the whole time difference thing seems a little odd and it reminds me that we really are on the other side of the world.

The new year has started well so far. My family left on January 8th early early in the morning and we arrived back at the dorm late at night. We’d been away to the beach for a few days which was very nice indeed. Today a new resident into the dorm arrived, not a dorm girl but a young lady, Ruth, who will be working at the school to assist the students in their studies. She is moving into our guest room and will be with us from now until the end of the school year (May).Ruth is 18 and has just graduated and is taking some time out to be in Indonesia. Her home country is America and she is friends with another family here at the school. We’re looking forward to getting to know her and I’m sure she’ll be welcomed by all the girls.

In a couple of days the dorm girls will return to the dorm and we will be back in full operation. Janice, one of the Korean girls moved out of the dorm at Christmas to live with a Korean family in the community, but a new girl, Natasha will move into the dorm in 2 days time, so the numbers stay the same, 7 girls.

I’m teaching Graphic Design from now until the end of the school year and am just finishing rewriting the curriculum. I’m really looking forward to teaching graphic design as it’s a subject I have experience in and am passionate about. If the students put in the work (I’m sure they will) then it’ll be a lot of fun for everyone.

Emily is enjoying been mum or mom as the Americans say it. There are a lot of things that happen in the background to see that the dorm runs smoothly and Emily is fantastic at getting things done. It’s been great so far deepening the relationships we have with the girls and I know Emily is keen to keep getting to know them more. Emily is also doing homeschooling with Luke and Isaac to compliment the American curriculum. She’s enjoying it and the boys reading especially is improving a lot.

Luke and Isaac are doing well at school. Luke is achieving highly for his grade level which is excellent considering that most the children in his class are a year older than he is. Isaac is loving school; he does 5 mornings a week and is really settled now.

Well that’s the quick new year update, we’ll blog again soon. Paul

I just saw a rodent

We were playing cards on Sunday night and across the other side of the room a rodent scurried next to the wall and behind the clothes storage shelving.

“I just saw a rodent” I said to Emily.

Then jumped up to see where it had run to. I looked down from on top of the shelving and saw the rodent very still on the floor next to the wall. I own a cycling proficiency certificate, first aid certificate, but haven’t yet achieved my rat catcher’s certificate so I wasn’t keen on actually catching the thing.

As I looked down an idea came to mind. I remembered hearing one of Emily’s cousins recant the story of looking after a friend’s hamster then loosing it. She found it when she closed a draw and heard a crunch. The plan was to crush the critter.

The shelving was quite heavy but with a determined push and a little adrenaline I shoved it hard against the wall. I didn’t want the rodent escaping so there was a little more pushing before Emily went to find a stick to poke it with. I poked it, it didn’t move, the deed was done. I pulled the shelving away from the wall and scooped the rodent onto some newspaper and into a bag to be carried off to its grave, the bin.

Upon examination the rodent was actually a shrew, although not that it really mattered, it was dead that was the main thing; except that now there was some blood to clear up. The crushing death blow had squashed the shrew enough to cause it to bleed form the mouth and to force its intestines out of its rear. A rub down with some bleach and a few shrieks form the girls and the job was done; just in time for devotions, very neat and tidy.

Paul

2 Snakes in 1 hour

The day starts with a flurry of excitement in the trees at the Boys Dorm. A bamboo snake (bright green with a blue tongue and poisonous bite) has been spotted in the tree and needs removing. Unfortunately I arrived a little late to see all the action form that catch, although I was there to take photos. Here Pak Budi (the gardener of our dorm) stands behind Pak Didi, (the gardener of the Boy's dorm) Pak Budi isn't quite so friendly with snakes as Pak Didi is.

About 30 minutes later though the action started over, another snake had been spotted in the same area. Pak Didi (the gardener of the boy’s dorm) must have snake sensors or eyes that can define every shade of green because I found the snake almost impossible to locate up in the tree. Finally with fingers pointing into the branches the snake kindly revealed itself and I saw it was another bamboo snake about the same size as the previous one.

Question: How exactly do you catch a snake that’s hiding in the top of a tall tree?

The first thing the Pak Didi did was ask for assistance, of which there were three other willing helpers. I was going to help but had already assigned myself to the role of photographer.
There were some tools needed for the task: a large ladder, a very long piece of bamboo, a shorter (1.5m) stick of bamboo (1 per snake catcher) and a knife.

The ladder was placed against the tree and Pak Didi climbed into the tree and up from the ladder to a suitably stable branch. The long bamboo pole was then passed up and Pak Didi stretched out with the pole and proceeded to knock the snake off the branch it was wrapped around.

Once the snake became aware that it was under attack it made a run for it so there were two or three thrusts with the pole then the snake fell to the ground. Once on the ground the snake made a run for it. The snake had fallen just the other side of a wire fence, quickly the snake catchers were racing round to grab hold of it, then it disappeared into some undergrowth, “it over there” I was shouting, “no the other way”.

The shorter bamboo sticks were used to trap the snake by squashing it into the ground, enabling Pak Didi to reach in and grab its head. Once the snake was firmly grasped it was time for me to take a few photos before it was taken away to be beheaded and later cooked.

All in all it was a very exciting morning. Paul.

we're back after the summer :)

It’s been a while, we’re still here doing our stuff, in fact so busy we’re only just getting round to updating this blog.

The school year started August 12th, the dorm filled up with girls a couple of days before; we have seven girls this year. Having a years experience under our belt meant that we were a lot more confident starting the year and more capable, less splashing in the deep end. It also helps relationally that there are no new girls this year; we can just pick up the relationships where we left off last year.

Ok, so that sounds like things are easier and we should be able to update this blog; well as always when you get the hang of something you start taking on more things. In June the dorm program here received ACSI accredited (Association of Christian Schools International). It’s a big deal within international schools and shows that we are performing to a high standard. We are at the base level of the ACSI standard and have improvements to make over the next three years which is one of the adding to our work load. It’s a good thing though; the improvements are for the whole dorm program, helping to make life better for the dorm girls and the dorm parents. There are practical and safety improvements as well as administrative improvements; it’s a steady process. We are also more involved with the dorm budget this year and are thinking of creative ways to cut spending, the increase in fuel prices is global and is affecting us here. At the moment I am working with the dorm dad of the boy’s dorm at the possibility of installing solar water heating for the dorms.

Enough about work though...

We had a sunny relaxing summer, the boys enjoyed not being at school and we very much enjoyed having more time with them. Luke started back at school in second grade with a new teacher and Isaac started at the Kindergarten. They both seem to have got back into school life and are more settled than this time last year. They still have their moments, but then every child does. I think the summer was a really settling time for us and a family which is an answer to prayer. Emily and I were sent some parenting DVDs’ from our friend June (thanks June) which are really great; the lessons learnt and applied from them are taking a lot of stress out of parenting, leaving it to be more fun and loving, it’s fab.

We’ve done birthdays recently (many thanks for the presents) so I’m now 29 which means Luke is 7 and Isaac is 5, Emily is still 21 of cause. It’s a little crazy that Luke and Isaac are growing up. With all the busyness and transitioning over the last two years we’ve perhaps not realised how old they’re getting.

Sorry to those of you who have been trying to skype us recently we’ve been having internet difficulties. Last weekend the wireless antenna was struck by lightning (frying some equipment) and it’s not been working well since. We have internet at the school, which is how I’m able to post this blog, but it’s not so easy to just pop over and check emails and skype when we have dorm responsibilities. Hopefully things will be back to normal soon. Until then keep emailing and skyping, it’s always good to hear from people.

Paul.

The Summer Holidays Are Here

We are in the middle of our summer holidays and enjoying it very much. It’s a time for some quality family time with Family Noble.

We’ve had some visitors already, Sarah and Matt from Manchester and as I write this Emily’s younger sister Merry is with us. We feel blessed to have them with us and to show them the life we have here, the suitcase full of English goodies is pleasurable to.

We went to the beach last week and had a lot of fun just chilling out. We travelled south to Pacitan (look it up on Google Earth) and arrived at the Sunny Bay Beach Bungalows. They looked bigger from the picture we’d seen. We were told that it was basic accommodation so we were prepared but even then it took a little getting used to. The bungalow had one room and a bathroom with cold water only, a toilet that didn’t flush and a light bulb that flickered and went out just as you started brushing your teeth. I thing we got the raw deal because Sarah and Matt’s bungalow had a working toilet and a light bulb that stayed on.

After the first night we were adjusted.

The beach was in spitting distance from our bungalow and we headed out each day to lie around reading books, build sandcastles, jump over waves, body (boogie) board and chase crabs around. It was a relaxing break for us and the boys really enjoyed the beach fun, it reminded them of being at their grandparents (who live in a seaside town).

We returned home and enjoyed our last few days with Sarah and Matt before they flew back to England. The next day Merry arrived and so our holiday continues. We haven’t any plans to go to the beach with her (been there – done that) but we are very much enjoying her company and will be sad when she leaves in a weeks’ time.

As we get nearer to August we will start preparing for the next school year but until then we’re going to make the most of the holidays.

Here are a few photos from the past couple of weeks:

singing out the year

It’s not long until the girls all leave the dorm and head back to their real parents for the summer break. Some of them are returning in August, others are moving on or away.

We went out for supper last Monday (12th) and had a good farewell feast. I got up and sang a song, which I should explain a little. If you know the band Radiohead then you will know that they wrote a song called creep. The guitar chords are really simple and as such it’s easy to make up words to fit the tune; which is what I do. These made up songs have been fondly named the rubbish lyrics songs and have been played at different times in the dorm. Well on Monday with lyrics already written (usually I just sing whatever comes into my head) I went on tour and gave an exclusive solo performance. The girls really liked it and I did too, so here’s the song; if you know the tune you could even sing it to yourself (if you’re reading this in an internet cafe then don’t start singing):

Here we are together at Biztro Restaurant
11 special daughters and 2 special sons

Let us take a moment to look back over this year
Emily and I have got a few words we’d like you to hear

Back in the beginning we were trying too hard
You couldn’t figure out these crazy English Imports

Over time you understood the way we were talking
We read about your culture, got to know you and kept praying

So we’ve been building, trying to show you in little ways
That we want to be you parents while your real ones are away

We flew off to Lombok; found you missed us being away
You couldn’t wait for us to get back, welcomed us in an amazing way

Now the year is over, almost time to say goodbye
But we don’t want to do that, we want to try...and stay in contact

Then next year we’ll be able to catch up
On where we left off, whether you’re here or not, we’ll still want to catch up

‘Cause you made us realise we’re one big family
We haven’t told you much but we really love you...and we’re going to miss you.

until next time, Paul.

Paul's visit to England

So last week (Wednesday 23rd April) I returned to England for a family wedding. I traveled alone, Emily and the boys stayed here in Indonesia, which meant they missed out on quite a lot, but it made my traveling a little simpler. It takes a long time to fly from Indonesia to England (about 15 hours flight time) and waiting around in departure lounges for several hours made me appreciate the size of our planet. It is often said that the world is becoming smaller, but until it shrinks one day in the wash it remains a jolly big lump of rock to fly around.

“Oddly familiar” I answered.

I had been met at the airport by my in laws and taken to their house to find my feet (literally, I needed to loose the flip flops and put on my snow boots ready for a week in England) and have a cup of tea. I chose coffee instead and sat in front of the open fire with the wood gently hissing and crackling.

“How does it feel to be back then” was the question. And it felt like I could have been sitting there having a cup of coffee last week, as if Indonesia didn’t exist, that I’d not just flown half way round the world; it was oddly familiar, I wasn’t sure how it should feel.

My week was busy; the wedding was on the Saturday, Thursday and Friday were spent preparing, Sunday there was a blessing then I talked at two churches, Monday shopping, Tuesday I had breakfast in York then back through Manchester to pop into the office and finally on Wednesday I went to the airport and nestled into economy class for the long trip home.

Home?

I thought a lot about home during this visit. Was I returning home when I flew to England or when I flew to Indonesia? I found as the week went on that it felt like home, but that I missed home, which mean that Indonesia is home, no wait if I felt at home in England then England would be home. The answer came to me as I was flying away from England on course for Indonesia. I now have two homes, two locations that are comfortable, familiar and where I have family.

Then the phrase ‘home is here the heart is’ popped into my head and I began to understand why I’d been an emotional wreck all week. I’d expected to miss my family and the girls, left behind in Indonesia and I also knew it would be hard to say goodbye to family and friends in England, but my emotions were a lot nearer the surface than I realized. There were several occasions when tears would come to my eyes or I’d find it hard to talk because of emotion. These times were not due to thinking about people I was missing, although there were times when that was the case, no, it was just a struggle to contain my emotions at the most unlikely times.

So now I had ‘home is where the heart is’ in my head and a lot of emotions sneaking up and shouting boo at ill timed moments, that’s when it hit me. My heart was in both places, England and Indonesia and while in the air my heart had been torn open slightly and my emotions were spilling out. It was incredibly hard saying goodbye, maybe harder than when we left England last August. I realized how much I missed the girls in the dorm and how they are my family in Indonesia, obviously Emily, Luke and Isaac are my family also, but I hadn’t realized how much I might miss the girls and how they are a part of my family. It was hard to talking with people about the two seniors who will be moving out of the dorm in four weeks time. It seems we’ve only just got to know them and we already have to let them go, it’s too soon, I want to get to know them more.

Now I’m home, in Indonesia, waving farewell to my other home, England. It’s really good to be back and the excited welcome from the girls bowled me over and being greeted and hugged by Emily, Luke and Isaac in the rain was perfect. I’ll catch up with all the jetlag another time; it’s time for me to get back to work now

Paul

Emily's Overdue Secret

Some people invest money wisely; they enquire about ISA’s, open a high interest savings account or buy stocks or shares in a company. Other people like my wife, Emily invest in libraries. Now don’t assume that because Emily loves books she kindly donates money by direct debit each month enabling the library to by lots of encyclopaedias; that would be known as a false assumption.

Emily is fantastic at returning books late, this leads to large library fines. I hoped that by moving to the other side of the world she might leave this annoying habit behind, my hope was crushed yesterday.

In the (internal) post came the notice, OVERDUE book. The school didn’t know Emily’s past before they allowed her to borrow books, if they had they would have kindly and politely sent her packing. They didn’t know better and it would seem Emily didn’t either; here she had a clean slate, a chance to break this pattern of behaviour, to learn a better way.

The school has the most dangerous policy when it comes to overdue library books; it dangerous because they don’t charge any fines to members of staff. Emily (aka the chicken) sent me to return the book. When I returned giving the news about there being no fine Emily punched the air letting out a relieved and satisfied YES!

This is the worst possible outcome for Emily (as I see it). What incentive is there for her to ever return library books on time; the library will have to raid the dorm in search of overdue books if they ever want to get them back.

If this habit is not turned around I fear that the £18 fines I’ve paid in the past in UK libraries will double or even triple when we return home. I think she may need some help in the future.

the cecak and the toaster, a true story

Just before I get started let me teach you how to pronounce the word cecak. The Indonesians use a ch sound whenever there is a c; so cecak when sounded out is like this: cheechak; now on with the story:

The toaster enjoys a peaceful life on the kitchen work top. Every now and then its insides are warmed as bread is placed into the toasters mouth and its belly button is pressed. The toasters body temperature rises and the bread is gently toasted; when the toaster is ready it spits the toast up to be taken away and adorned with butter and jam. It’s a simple life for the toaster.

The toaster wasn’t happy! Emily had noticed that for a day or so the toaster looked a little speckled, like it had contracted a skin condition. On examination she was discovered it not to be a skin infection, but an infestation of tiny red ants; they had come to consume the food in the toaster.

A friendly cecak had come along for a meal as well. He’d come to eat the crumbs of bread the toaster kindly leaves under its belly for those needing its charity; except the cecak was in the wrong place at the wrong time. Emily was the first to discover the horrific truth. The cecak had got to close to the electrical parts of the toaster and as the toaster had started to do what it does best, warmed its insides, the cecak was electrocuted and fused in place.

The cecak’s back legs were on the worktop, the rest of its body inside the toaster, the ants all over it. Emily took the toaster outside and called the bug exterminator. I (Paul, the bug man; cockroach squishing a speciality) turned up to deal with the problem. First things first the cecak can’t stay there. I find the long nose pliers and gently ease it out; I don’t want to pull too hard for fear of pulling it in half. It’s out, few. I toss it over the back fence to be eaten by the bugs outside, brush the tiny red ants off my arms and return to the toaster. I decide for the all round happiness of our family and the toaster to give the toaster a good clean. The red ants are still eating the tiny bits of skin left form the front paws of the cecak, they’ll have to move, it’s deep clean time.

Once cleaned the toaster is placed back in its familiar place atop the worktop. It looks grateful I think. It was obviously not too disturbed by the ordeal as it made good toast the following day. Emily and I have an unspoken rule now; not to talk about the cecak in the toaster while one of us is making toast. The toaster has also taken an oath of silence; we all agree it’s for the best.

Merry Christmas Everyone

'So this is Christmas and what have you done', that's how the song starts isn't it. Well this year we've been asking ourselves that very question; Christmas here is like no other before. It feels like summer time in England, there's patchy sunshine, a bit of a breeze and a good chance of rain in the late afternoon. We have the Christmas tree up, the lights and decorations but it all feels out of place. Where's the cold weather, the count down of shopping days, the endless organising of who's where for Christmas and how are we going to see everyone. There are no decorations in the streets, no Carol singers knocking on our door, no build up of excitement; it's like we're pretending Christmas is here, pretending because it doesn't feel right.

We're adapting the best we can and finding as many things as possible to get us into the Christmas spirit. We've downloaded Christmas music from i-tunes, stocked up on all the imported cheese and chocolate we can find organised a Christmas meal with some of the other staff here. When we switch the main lights off and just have the Christmas lights on, then play some Christmas songs, it actually feels like Christmas, we're getting used to pretending.

Christmas day. The boys wake just before 6am which is fine for them, I spend half an hour sleep walking before I'm ready to start the day. We all have stockings to open, unfortunately we've been shopping together and have removed the element of surprise; more Christmas pretending needed. The boys are full of Christmas enthusiasm, I think they are enjoying it for what it is instead of feeling a home sick and missing the way Christmas is traditionally.

After stockings comes Christmas breakfast, English pancakes with lemon and sugar (yum yum). Then it's time to relax, play with new toys and watch a Christmas movie (Ratatouille). Emily and I leave the boys playing and head into the kitchen to prepare the Christmas meal; Id say lunch but we ate at 4pm so it's neither lunch now tea.

The food turned out great. We had all the trimmings we could find this side of the world. It was lacking in comparison to Nigella's Christmas, (a program we can get here on the tv) but we did what we could and really enjoyed tucking in. The best part was the sticky toffee pudding, oh yes! We were able to get all the ingredients and made a classic English pudding which the Americans loved. There was plenty left over so we've been enjoying it over the last few days.

So that was Christmas, I'd like to comment on boxing day and festivities, but trying to pretend all that is too much. We had a good Christmas, but as soon as it arrived it left again and we returned to our English summer days here in Indonesia

It is well worth saying a really big thank you to all of you who sent gifts and cards, they've meant a lot and really helped us get into the festive mood.

We're sorry we've not been able to contact all of you and send out cards etc but Christmas has been an adjustment this year and we've felt out of place. Hopefully next year we'll be more organised.

So Merry Christmas to you all and enjoy a Happy New Year.

Paul, Em and the Boys

Our DHL Parcel

It has arrived, the long awaited parcel from the UK. We're so thankful to our family and friends who organised and paid for it to come, it's absolutely fantastic. We had been tracking the parcel online waiting expectantly each day for it to be dispatched and on its way to us. The parcel came into Jakarta and from there was sent to the next sorting depot, which DHL call 'the rest of Indonesia'. In case you didn't realise that means anywhere in a space the same size as America; with all the islands Indonesia is a big place. The only hold up in the end was a charge we had to pay to receive the parcel. Apparently you don't have to pay the charge, but if you don't you can expect to be waiting for you parcel for the next 6 months; needless to say we thought the charge was worth paying.

The parcel came and Emily behaved in a most delighted way, "it's here, it's really here" she kept saying. I don't think either of us have been so excited about a parcel before.

The opening of the parcel had to wait, the children were circling like a couple of eagles and it was our job to protect the parcel till dark when the eagles would be sleeping.

Emily carefully unpacked the gifts and we separated them into piles and wrapped a few things for the boys. I had to speak firmly to Emily about keeping the Salt & Vinegar walkers crisps till x-mas, she reluctantly stepped away from green packets. We had fun looking over everything, you guys did a great job choosing gifts and packing them.

Now all that's left is to wrap the goodies and arrange them under the tree.

Thanks again, Paul, Emily, Luke & Isaac

bathroom smells

Sometimes being away from home and all things familier, something suddenly reminds me of days gone by and places I've been in the past.

Yesterday I was transported to my Grannies bathroom!

Washing my hands with Imperial leather (available here) the smell cought my nose and reminded me of when I went to stay at my Grannies house. I think when mums become grannies they start buying imperial leather; I know my mum buys it!

The soap is one of many little moments when i think of home. It's really strange being here for x-mas. I want it to be freezing cold, I want to see frost on the leafless trees, I want to breath the crisp icy air in the morning. Here life is a complete contrast. It feels like a summer day in England, hot and sunny with a shower of rain in the afternoon. The trees are all green and it's not cold, it doesn't make sense.

So there are some adjustments that need to be made, things to get used to, x-mas to do in a new way; it's fun in a bitter sweet way.

OH, i've just rememnered, there's no snow here either, what sort of place is this!

Satelite TV

Yesterday Wednesday 21st November astro arrived at the dorm (astro being Asia’s Sky TV). It’s an early Christmas present for the girls, who received the news with screams of joy. It means that we have a little more connection with England through BBC World Service and the girls have the enjoyment and education of western TV; CSI is a dorm favourite already!

The Installation Process

In the UK you contact sky who give you a day they’ll come to install your dish and receiver. They arrive in a van with the Simpsons smeared across one side and David Beckham scoring a goal on the other. They have ladders strapped to the roof, a health and safety book on the dash board that tells them they can’t climb up the tall ladders on the roof, (they’re there to look good, but have no real function) then proceed to install the dish expecting to be offered a cup of tea within the first 5 minutes of work. They only drink half the cup because they have two dozen dishes to install that day and therefore time only to do the bare essentials; leaving you to figure out what they’ve done to your TV once they’ve gone and spent 30 minutes pushing buttons to take you from one sky operator to the other on the phone.

In Indonesia things are a little different

Two men arrived to install the dish, on time as arranged at 10 o clock. They didn’t have a van with pictures either side because they didn’t have a van, they arrived on motor cycles! Yes carrying a big dish, (not the neat little black ones you find in the UK, one of the big white ones everyone had 10 years ago) the other had a rucksack full of the tools needed for the job. The Indonesians obviously understand that in the UK the sky installer doesn’t use his ladders (they’re for show on the roof remember) so they didn’t bring any with them; I guess there’s no room for roof bars on a motor cycle.

Positioning the dish

Satellite dishes have to point towards their relevant satellite in space, back in my home town all the dishes pointed southward up into the sky. All you need to get this right is a compass; they didn’t have a compass so a lot of guess work got under way. They used our short ladder to climb onto the roof bare foot to start with, but the roof tiles were rather hot in the tropical sun so the sandals were thrown up from above. They connected the dish to the TV and pointed the dish around till the signal was found, it took a while. Once found they spent a good hour drilling three holes and fix the dish to the house

Finally we had Astro TV
Once the man from Astro cleaned his sim card a couple of times he was able to contact the Astro centre and the receiver picked up all the channels. He then proceeded to give me instructions on using the receiver in Indonesian, (my Indonesian is not that good yet) thankfully my language teacher came over to help for that part.
So all installed and demonstrated (it took 4 hours) I paid the money, thanked them and watched them ride away on their motor cycles, still pondering on how they managed to ride with a satellite dish between their legs.
So until next time; stay tuned for the next episode of The Nobles in Indonesia, coming up after these commercials.

Paul.

Culture Shock

The Culture is always here, the shock comes and goes, without warning and without remorse. Usually it's related to missing friends and family or just the cold autumn weather in England.

Yesterday was different, I had a black cloud day.

One of those days when things aren't really right. it's not that anything has gone wrong or something terrible has happened things just aren't right. The day started as everyday does, in bed, feeling tired (Presently Em and I achieve 6.5 hours of sleep each night so every morning there is a struggle to rise from the comfort of the bed). Yesterday I got up and my knee hurt / ached, don't understand why, it's not even the one I injured a couple of years ago; so I started out feeling a bit glum.

It was dorm sorting day (we're trying to make more of a home / family atmosphere) so things were being moved around and new things being purchased down town to create the desired changing rooms look. The problem was that my black cloud didn't like the way everything was being changed and everyone else was busy changing things and I felt like a spare part; like the camera man on changing rooms who wants to shout out "no not there, put it over here" but can't because it's not his place to say. I should add here that apart from the boys I was the only Male involved in the changes (I say involved I actually mean present) so I was out numbered and my black cloud left me huddled in the corner trying to protect my masculine side from being consumed by female creativity. (If you check my Birkman Persnoality Profile it states that I don't cope well / reject changes that are made without my input. I now understand what that means).

The knee situation got worse in the afternoon as well. I was out on my bike with the boys messing about and my foot slipped off the peddle, sending my knee (the other one, not the one that was aching in the morning) crashing into the handle bars. Being a tough boy I managed not to cry but I now had two knees that hurt.

So I had a black cloud to start with and the days events had not blown it away. The black cloud was finally consumed as a side dish to supper at 6pm, it's amazing how beneficial food can be sometimes. For Em and the Boys it was the healthiest meal I'd eaten all day as it transformed the way that I interacted with them and meant that I was actually quite nice (sorry for being horrible).

Today is a better day I hope i don't have the same problem next month; Em's been teasing me about PMT!

Paul.

away on break

Well wow it's been a while. I could try and make lots of excuses, but it would take too long, so I'll simply say sorry and get on and tell you where we're up to.

In October we had a week long break and took the opportunity to visit some friends from the UK and America who are living and working in a big town about 150 miles east as the crow flies. The journey on long Indonesian roads and through Indonesian traffic took an impressive 9 hours (in a car, 9 people, it was a squeeze, we travelled with a family from school). We finally arrived and were really glad to be able to meet our friends and make new ones, it was refreshing to hear Alan's northern accent (he's form Preston).

We enjoyed a week of shopping for clothes that fit us. In our town there aren't many western size shops, everything is made for Indonesians so often, depressingly, the XL sizes don't fit.

We had hoped to go swimming while there, there is a great swimming park, but Luke injured his shin (deep cut, needed super gluing / stitching maybe, but swelled up to fast to do anything with it) so we'll have to wait till next time to enjoy the big slides and rubber rings.

We did manage to go ten pin bowling, a first for the boys. It's amazing I think all bowling places look the same, it felt a bit like home, except at home you can ask for the 'bumpers' down the side of the lane so no matter how useless or young you are you hit some pins. They didn't have said bumpers, but that didn't put us off. The boys had a lot of help from Paul and hit a few pins; the scores were Luke 26 and Isaac 21. They really enjoyed themselves, we all did.

The highlight of our week was a trip to Tamen Safari where we got to see a lot of animals from around the world, we even got up close with a few. Emily and the boys had a reef of flowers placed over their heads by an elephant who marched forward with flowers in trunk. We all had a stroke and photo taken with a baby tiger (about the size of a dog, except with sharp teeth and claws) it was fun and scary at the same time. Paul tried purring at the tiger, the tiger growled back, oops.

Then Emily the bravest person that day plucked up the courage to get up close and personal with a 1 year old lion. Now this lion was more the size of a Great Dane dog, except it had more body / muscle. She stroked it a bit, was feeling ok then it growled, teeth showing, jarring it's head. The handler said it was ok, but Emily had already proved herself and made a steady but swift exit from the lion.

The week was refreshing and when we got back to the dorm we had that settled feeling, the one when you say 'it's nice to be home' because it is home; we're settling in and feeling like we are doing more that keeping our heads above water. Emily is gettng busier as her role increases - she is running a series of classes on bullying for the elementary and high school and rewriting the school's policy. She's also helping out with planning classroom management for students with SEN. It's an interesting mix - please pray for her to have wisdom as we work to serve the kids and families better.

Here's some photos of the Safari, enjoy. Love Paul & Emily

bird flu

I wonder if the BBC know about the most recent outbreak of bird flu... There have been 3 confirmed cases in the neighbourhood next to our school (very close!). Once again, I am reminded who we are dependant on here - for everything, but especially I'm thinking about our health at this time. Please pray for the people in the kampung (neighbourhood) : Indonesians, our students, staff and us too - all of us who are a little too close for comfort to this particular outbreak.

one month in

Firstly, in the last blog i told you about a member of school staff who was very sick - one week ago Mbak Ester died. It has been a tough couple of weeks for her family and those who worked closely with her. Paul took some of our girls to the funeral which was traditional Indonesian and very different to the UK.
Sumatra (to the west) was hit by a quake a couple of days ago. Although it was felt by some on Java, we did not feel it here. We do have some families on Sumatra, so please pray for them. In these things, no news is usually good news.
The girls have been away on retreat and are due back today - we have had a couple of family days which have been wonderful (although the house feels empty!). I think we are all recharged and ready for action when they get back at lunch time.
Please pray for ...
Mbak Ester's family and friends
Wisdom in managing the dorm and decision making
Paul in his teaching role
Luke and Isaac in their culture shock
Us in our culture shock
Our relationships with the girls as we all get used to each other
Planning the dorm retreat in October
Guidance in preschool planning (i am thinking of offering a morning a week to 3s and 4s, but need to really plan, and not bite off more than i can chew!)
well, that's all for now, Love emily

body scrub, mosquitos and cotton candy

SO this week has been full of interesting experiences. On Saturday, I (Emily) went to Solo, a big city, to do a spot of birthday shopping for the boys. The road there is pretty goods and there are petrol stations along the way. We needed to stop for gas so we pulled into the station behind a people carrier. Fortunately we were about a car's length behind the vehicle because it's back wheel fell off (yes, the whole wheel) and went bouncing down the road. The driver and passengers got out and were like "oh...it's the wheel...where did it go...these things happen". Of course, us newcomers were quielty freaking out that not only did the wheel come off and nearly cause an accident, but that the attitude was "oh, drat"...interesting cultural experience. So we go to the loo (Squatty potty...use your imagination...) and were on our way. We got the the mall and the parking attendant said we were only allowed to park for half an hour and seemed to speak in a mixture of Indonesian and Javanese, so that we were not all that sure why...now, being white and paranoid, we thought he was trying to make more money by making us move on so we ignored his instruction to be back in 30 mins. When we had done our shopping we tried to return to the car and found the whole street FULL of parade...horses, musicians, floats, people, motorbikes etc etc. We could see the top of the car through the crowd and hoped that it was not being ransacked or 'decorated'. We had no hope of getting to the car and we were informed in no uncertain terms that the stupid expats would have to wait to move the vehicle. Well, it could have been worse, and as it happened, we were stranded in the mall so we drank coffee and waited. After an hour and a half or so, we were able to return to the car and get on our way. It took ages and ages to get home, but we did get home at about 7pm. Paul had been stranded at the dorm all day, so another member of staff had come over to help. I, in my guilt for being out for so long, offered to make him an iced coffee with crushed ice using the blender I had bought in the city. I was really pleased with my new purchase. I had dithered for ages over which to get because I wanted an ice crusher. The man in the store assured me that it would be good for ice and eventually I bought it. So, i'm in the kitchen making iced coffee, all proud of my skill, and i put the ice and ingredients in the blender, and for a moment, I can taste frapacinno, and then...I realise that the motor is on, but the blades are not turning. In fact the whole mechanism has completely shattered. So, Paul had icy coffee with ice instead. The peverse thing is that I open a cupboard the next morning, which i was sure was empty, and I find a spanking new ice crushing blender. It works a dream. I am the frappacino queen.
So, I'm realising that i have made no reference to the title - in the midst of my culture shock at the end of last week, I recieve a gift...a pot of delicious body scrub from the mum of one of my girls. It is lovely and does the trick on all that dust on my feet from flip flops and bare feet. Thank you Tena!! And the mosquitos think i am delicious and don't care for anybody else. I am getting bitten in the night through my PJ's and my sheet! Nasty beasts. I had 4 new bites this morning and 5 yesterday. Malaria is not a problem here, but dengue fever (breakbone fever) is. Well, deet at night i guess...
And the candy floss...luke and isaac were kindly bought some candy floss the other day from a street vendor at the fair. One (floss, not street vendor!) was rather blue and turned Isaac's mouth, tongue etc electric blue for quite a while. One of the girls told me this morning to avoid cotton candy because it usually contains fabric dye instead of food dye. NICE. All great cultural lessons!...
BIG NEWS...Luke, my little baby, decided that he wants to folow Jesus and we talked about what that means and he decided that he believed it. Luke became a christian on Sunday. How exciting is that. Please pray for him.
Also, on a serious note, please also pray for our elementary secretary, Esther, who is extremely ill with aplastik anaemia. She is very very sick and is being kept alive with transfusions. Please pray for her, her family and for the medical personal who have very tough decisions ahead.
Also, dorm life ir going well, please pray for all our girls, for our relationships with them and for their families who are working all over the Islands.
...for now, Emily for the family

10 days in...

Indonesia has been our home for about 10 days and we are just starting to get the hang of dorm life. Luke started his new school last Tuesday and is really enjoying it. There are 6 boys and 1 girl in his class (1stgrade) and his teacher is called Miss Ashley. She is new here too and is really lovely. There is a parent and teacher meeting tonight so I am looking forward to finding out more about Luke's day. After his first day, Luke said "I like this school, it's a playing school"! I'm not totally sure what that means (except they have a fantastic playground for recess) but at least he is enjoying it. Luke said in the bath last night that he couldn't wait to go back to school - I think he finds the predictable schedule and routine comforting in the midst of otherwise chaos. The boys are really enjoying the big girls, who are very patient with them and will play lego and take them to play soccer. I think the boys are not quite sure what the girls role is, so there have been some choice performances from both Luke and Isaac as they figure out what will happen and who will sort it out! They are both coping well with all the changes, given that they are in transition. Luke has hit this is all horrible stage saying he is bored of the country and especially of rice! Having said that, he chose rice for breakfast this morning when he could have chosen toast or cereal, so I think rice is just something he can project is confused feelings on to ( I hate it and I love it at the same time). Anyway, we have started to make the apartment feel a bit like home by putting up pictures of all you lot. If any of you have good pics of what's going on there, we would LOVE to have them - it'll help us feel connected. Luke and Isaac have pictures in a long line all around their room and they spend quite a bit of time just looking at them and thinking about what those people are doing.
Paul is getting into the swing of teaching. He has 3 students in his bible class and he is teaching about the prophets at the moment. Unfortunately he teaches firt period every day except Friday which is 7:40 am! We are all feeling the early mornings, but at least it is light and warm when we have to get up!
Well, that's all for now, please continue to pray for all our transitions and for our language learning. Also, for wisdom in being dorm parents and parents of the boys - there are some big cultural differences in parenting that we need to negotiate.
In Him, Emily, for the family

indonesian blog

ok, so we've just got hooked up to the internet and I sign on to blog and my computer knows before I do where I am and loads blogger in Indonesian. It took a bit of figuring out - posting baru = new posting. If this makes in online, consider it my first test passed! (i need to keep my goals attainable for now!)
We arrived yesterday and did a little exploring arond the campus. It was fun to catch up with people we met in February and move in to our house. With only 4 suitcases, it didn'ttake long to unpack and the apartment looks rather bare, but, we'll go shopping soon and get rugs and picture frames and make it a bit more ours.
Luke and Isaac are doing really well... although Luke did say "I'm bored of this country now" before having a great time looking at the papaya tree in the garden and watching chichas (like geckos) running around. I think Luke is looking forward to starting school on Tuesday.
I was looking at all the prayer requests we put out last time -well done you faithful lot, every one was answered. despite being well overweight, we weren't charged a penny. The boys travelled well and we had no visa problems or anything else. We were even away from Jakarta a few hours before an earthquake. PHEW.
We have the girls arriving on Saturday for their orientation weekend. We have loads of help with that which is a great thing (I have to get used to accepting and asking for help!).
Well, that's all for know. we'll update often now we have the internet up. I can recieve and send text messages on my regular mobile (i think it's about 25p for an international text but do check first!) and don't ring the mobile, because it will swallow our support account in one big gulp!
Love to all, EMily for the family xxxx