Saturday, January 9, 2010

Saturday - Day 6

Well, we'd been pleased and amazed at how mild (relatively) the temperatures had been, and how much the cloud cover helped.  Then Mr Murphy found us today... :)

 Now, this was in the sun... we think it was really more like 41 or so in the shade ... like that makes a lot of difference though.. :)  The breeze coming in through the window mid-afternoon literally felt like the blast of dry heat you get when you open the door of a hot oven...  It has cooled down a bit now, but as you can tell from our Chia Pet Convention photo, even at 9:00 pm it's still warm:



Despite the heat, it was back to work day.  We started the day off with a dawn walk along the canal.  There is a lot that happens around here at that time of day.  Men line up on the bridge near the compound before light with their tool(s) to wait and hope to be picked up for a day's work in the fields or brush as laborers.  Some get picked up for the day, others don't.  They all go back and do the same thing the next day.  We also got to walk along the canal and see farmers at work in the fields, people making their way to or from work, or walking horses or donkeys laden with produce.  We ran into three boys (maybe in their teens) carrying their hoes to work today... what was really odd was that one of them was listening to an MP3 music player as they walked...




A lot of the work focused on trying to finish the walls for the apartment and get the remaining posts poured.  We ran short on cement blocks (we've already used 2000 or so) and didn't quite finish off the walls, and there are a couple of large posts remaining, but we're getting close.  A lot of the prep work for the headers that support the roof was accomplished as well.  Jim and Peter spent the morning digging (chipping may be a better description - the ground here is super hard!) for new footings and eventually a floor where the stairs were added.  This will also support one of the main new posts that we need to finish preparing on Monday.





We also received a large truckload of building materials at the end of the day - 500 more blocks, and a large collections of 4x4 supports and steel jack posts we'll be using when we get ready to pour the roof.  As Bob noted, we are lucky to be getting a steady flow of material - especially here in Haiti.

There are a lot of smaller projects all happening in parallel too.  Often there isn't room or need for the entire team to work on the apartment, but there are always multiple other projects going on.  The other day Bob, Jim, and Brian Bowers took apart and cleaned all the connections and terminals for the array of car batteries that the house runs on when the generator and local power aren't running/available:

(Jim's starting to wonder how we always manage to get his best side in these shots... better ones below...)
There have been many repairs going on (showers, cabinets, etc.) and new projects like rerouting the exhaust for the diesel generator, removal of the old generator to allow us to block the generator room in and further reduce the noise, working on school benches, and assembling wheelbarrows.  Here are a few shots of Brian Roberts, Leonard, and Peter on some of these projects - what's really nice is that some of the older boys (Vladimy - 14, and JJ - 8) were able to lend a hand with some of the projects too:


Vladimy spent some time with Jim and his camera a bit today and loved it.  Here's a shot Jim took of Vladimy, and one Vladimy took of Jim with Dieunel:




Most of the kids are happy to have their photo taken, but they love to see the results:


Alex (or Ti Luck) is thriving on all the playing and attention he's been able to enjoy lately.  He's really taken to Deux (as in Brian 2 - Brian Bowers):



Today we also finished organizing a lot of the donations and distributed them to the kids here at the orphanage.  Kate helped to lead a lot of this, measuring the kids' feet (by tracing them on paper) and gathering potential fits, along with Heidi.



12 comments:

  1. The Chia Pet Convention cracks me up. Keep up the good work, especially in that heat. Take care and thanks for the great updates. Dickie

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  2. We look forward to these blogs every day! Thanks! The Rowe Gang

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  3. Love your write ups and photos. Your sense of humor is great! I have never attended a Chia Pet Convention...have I missed a lot!
    I admire Kate and Heidi doing all that work...it was my job last year...and although very rewarding is demanding. They will make many many many trips up and down those stairs trying to fit everyone....especially when the kids come from school! Does school start next week? Glad to see cousin Jim...was beginning to think you had dropped him somewhere along the way!
    Love to you all
    Sandra

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  4. Hi everyone, Good to see all the pictures and read all the progress your doing. Our temperature is not as hot as yours, about -10, but no more snow. My prayers are with you all. Keep safe and healthy. Love to Brian # 2. PS I think he is Brian # 1 .... Love Patricia

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  5. Hi Opps I guess I made a mistake Brian R. is #un after all. Hope you have a great day. Love Patricia

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  6. Hi Gramp,it's Hannah, we just got back from Sunday School and before that I was at a sleepover. Daddy is fishing again today, we are playing Wii again. Miss you LOTS and can't wait til you come home. Say hi to "Wilma" (Gerry)for me. xoxoxo
    Love and prayers,
    Hannah
    and the Roberts Crew

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  7. I'm so glad to see things are going well. Seeing the pictures make me want to be there with you...all except for the gorilla domino game!! It is hard to see all the work being done and not be a part of it. Praying for you all and watching intently!
    Ed Rose

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  8. Patricia, Tracey, Weldon, Baby Dolls and Boys
    Thanks for the comments everyone. Patricia, Brian #2 is disappointed that you realized your mistake. He was looking forward to your next comments. Yesterday and today(Sunday) were incredibly hot (41 in the shade). But nights are more comfortable--Satin sheets would be nice if I could have them.
    The kids were so beautiful at church this morning. there will be some pictures on the blog tonight, I'm sure. Love you lots
    Brian, Dad, Gramp.

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  9. Enjoyed the pictures today. The best yet. Loved the Chia Pet convention!!!!!!!!! I'll take my Nova Scotia temperatures thanks, I've worked in +40 and didn't appreciate it. If no one has believe me it is not comfortable. Know that you are all in our prayers each day for safety while you are there and safe travel home and for doing God's work. For as much as you are doing for one of those who have nothing you are doing for Him. Please hug all the children and let them know they are loved.
    Shirley and Larry

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  10. Sorry forgot to tell you that someone forgot to sprinkle the chia seeds on some of the chia pets heads.

    Larry and Shirley

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  11. Hi, Janice and Heather was just here for scallops.MMMMMMMMMgOOD God Bless You All.Love Margaret/Hayward

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  12. hi gang glad your all cool there like us haha say hi to leonard for ushe lives next door to us here. hi brian and gerry may god keep you all safe see you soon. god bless ...leonard @ frances

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