Greetings!
I can't believe April is just about gone...tomorrow is the last day of April, at least where I'm at. And 5 weeks from today, I will be on a plane headed home. 5 weeks from tomorrow I will be arriving in Atlanta! WooHoo!!!!!
I'm diligently working on crocheting bookmarks for the kids, as an end of the year gift. Thanks mom for picking out and sending the pretty yarn! I'm also collecting gifts for an end of the year game. Mrs. Buck did it with our Sunday School class at the Christmas party. I will be getting a story with the words right and left throughout the story. The kids will each get to pick a wrapped gift from the pile. Each time I say right or left they have to pass it that direction. They will wind up with a different gift at the end of the game than they started with. Then, they can swap gifts if they want to. I ordered several things from christianbook.com back in early January. It still has not arrived. So, I contacted them, and they issued a refund. I reordered and got some of the same things and some different items, this time I had to pay a little more for shipping in order to get the priority shipping. I hope to have it in about a week. We shall see. I even found a few things at the seniors yard sale this weekend. I found 2 card games...phase 10 and blink...both brand spanking new. The cards were still in the plastic. Each game was $.50. I also found a like new "Treasure Island" book (a classic)...one of the illustrated versions, for a $.25~I have about 23-24 things so far. I was thinking for the other items I would get packs of cookies or some candy. Mrs. Buck suggested some of the little cans of fruit, which will cost about the same. She said they give them out sometimes, and the kids all tell her they don't get that stuff very often. So, I will be picking up some of those as the rest of the gifts.
As the school year is winding down, time is speeding up. We have a lot of things to do between now and the end of the year. A few things just this week...Wednesday is May Day, also known as Constitution Day. We count it as a day, but we don't actually come to school. We meet in town and walk to the Capital building. Once we hear presentations or whatever, we are free to go. I plan to have some money. The Sr. are selling BBQ plates, and apparently, there are a lot of booths around. So, I want to see that. Then, Thursday, May 2 is National Day of Prayer that we will be recognizing as a school. Friday, May 3, is the 6th-12th grade Field Day. So, we have a busy week. To top it off, not only is May 4 the first Saturday of the month, in which we meet together as a church at 7:30 am for prayer time and after that work/clean day around campus and church, but this Saturday is also "MBCA loves Majuro Day". We did this a few weeks ago. We are asked as a school to help clean the island this day. So, busy week and weekend! Maybe I will get to rest Sunday. :) Then at the end of the month there will be k5 graduation and high school graduation. Next week is the Sr. trip. They are going to an island called Arno, I think. There is no electricity there, but people live there. So, all of their foods will have to be cooked before they leave. Many of the outer islands from Majuro, the capital, actually do not have electricity but are inhabited. Most people on the outer islands do not speak any English. They will be traveling by boat. One of the parents were going to let them borrow their boat...the sr. would have to pay for the gas. When they checked into it, it would cost $3,000 just for the fuel! They can rent a smaller boat for $500 dollars. Big difference~ They pay for the whole graduation and the trip. And they do tons of fund raisers to help with the costs.
After the last set of boxes I sent home, I definitely decided to use only flat rate boxes for as much as I can. From the island no parcel post is offered, so everything is expensive! Thou we use the U.S. Post Office, not all the services are offered. They do not even carry the flat rate boxes...they don't make any money off of them. However, we can order them. So, that is what I did. I ordered a set of the Large flat rates, Medium flat rates, and on the website I saw another kind of flat rate...they are called large game board flat rates. They are longer but thinner...for a game box to be shipped in. I ordered a set of those too because I have some longer things I will be sending home, but I know I will be able to fit other things in there too. So, for now, I'm waiting on the boxes to arrive before I pack anything else to ship. I am going to be setting aside all school related items to see if the Bucks want to look through it and purchase it from me instead of paying to ship it back. I'm also going to be asking about a few things from the apartment...that I've either sent or purchased here about them purchasing instead of sending back. Some of the stuff is cheaper for me to sell and rebuy when I return home than it is to ship it back!
Anyway, thanks for stopping by. A few more weeks and I will be in the same time zone of many of you!
Blessings,
Sarah
Monday, April 29, 2013
Wednesday, April 10, 2013
Greetings!
Time is quickly coming the an end here on the island. It is less than 8 weeks before I am on my way back to Georgia. That means there is less than 7 weeks left of school. Wow! Time is flying for sure!
Still working on packing and shipping things.
ALL PARENTS, GRANDPARENTS, TEACHERS, ANYONE AROUND STUDENTS:
Here is a new teen "challenge" going on here...which they have gotten from the internet. So, I'm sure it is going on the in the states as well. It is called the salt and ice challenge and beware. Apparently, students~usually teenagers, but could be younger if they are watching older siblings, friends, relatives do this and want to be like them~put salt on their arms...or skin to be technical...then they place an ice cube on the salt. Salt lowers the temperature of the ice, making it colder. So, doing this on the skin can result in 1st, 2nd, AND 3rd degree burns, which if not treated carefully can lead to infection...like gangrene, and can cause death. The salt and ice when placed together on your skin can lead to something like frostbite. Another consequence of the challenge will be scars where ever they have tried this. This is a very serious game...and at face value, if you aren't familiar with how salt can affect the temperature of ice, then you might not have thought how severe the consequences could be for this game. There are tell tale signs...just look at their arms, hands, etc (skin) and you will see what appears to be burn marks in the shapes of ice cubes. Share with them the possible outcomes of playing this "game". It's been said it is to show who has a higher pain tolerance, by who can hold the ice on there the longest. Please share this information with anyone that has children, grandchildren, relatives, friends, neighbors, teachers...anyone, even your enemies... that deals with children to be on the lookout for this new activity. I guess it's all over YouTube by teens that want to put these videos on there. However, they only show the milder cases, so kids don't really see the harm in it. There are cases of kids that are in ICU with 3rd degree burns, which are not shown on YouTube. Please be conscientious of this new thing going on with young people. We have been alerted of some students here at the school participating in this...2 that I know of from 6th grade alone. I had a girl faint in class this week, and from what I understand it was because of her doing this. Salt will also dry out your skin. So, maybe it caused her to become dehydrated? Any guesses on how it caused her to faint? So, I wanted to get the word out to those that may deal with kids of all ages. And to let parents know how dangerous the consequences can be for anyone participating.
Okay, now on to something else. After church last night, the pastor's son, Jonathan, was playing down by the office last night. There were 2 baby kittens that he found. He found them in a trash can. We think they were placed there for safe keeping...they obviously could not get in them themselves. So, I held one that was the calmer of the two for a bit. She was so little and cute. I kept thinking, maybe I should keep it. The other one was way to hyper...wanting to keep moving. I mean, it would definitely help with the mouse problem in the apartment. Yet, I had to think about house training it. And if I did keep it, it would be used to people. Then what would I do with it when I left. You think people are cruel to animals in the states...people here torment and hurt cats and dogs and do not even think twice about it. So, if I took care of the cat and allowed it to be used to people, I could in fact be leading it to a certain death after I leave and have to let it go. So, in the end, I think it is best for the cat for me not to take it in...though it was really cute. I was able to hear the kitten crying this morning outside of my window. But when I went down, there was only one kitten, not two. Plus, over by the office door was the back leg, yes a severed leg, of what was left of either a mom or dad cat. So, I'm guessing the parent came back to find them and was faced with danger...and possibly saved one of the babies. Marshallese people do not see cats and dogs as pets as we do. There are a good bit of stray cats and dogs. The cats usually stay away from people. People, in general, do not like cats and dogs. A lot of my students say they have cats and dogs for pets. But they are not treated the same way Americans treat pets. For the most part, people are ok with puppies/kittens. It's when they get bigger and grow up, people stop caring for them, or torment them. Well, I will just have to wait for Miss Kitty and Maxine. Oh, the Taiwanese people have actually put an ad out in the newspaper...they will pay $8 per cat...wonder what they do the ones people sell to them. And some people here raise dogs to eat. If you think about it, God did create animals for meat...and dogs are animals. Not saying I plan on doing that, but who are we to judge what kind of meat they eat?
Well, I will just leave it at that. We have Ladies' Bible Study tonight, so I guess I will start getting ready for that.
Blessings.
Sarah
Time is quickly coming the an end here on the island. It is less than 8 weeks before I am on my way back to Georgia. That means there is less than 7 weeks left of school. Wow! Time is flying for sure!
Still working on packing and shipping things.
ALL PARENTS, GRANDPARENTS, TEACHERS, ANYONE AROUND STUDENTS:
Here is a new teen "challenge" going on here...which they have gotten from the internet. So, I'm sure it is going on the in the states as well. It is called the salt and ice challenge and beware. Apparently, students~usually teenagers, but could be younger if they are watching older siblings, friends, relatives do this and want to be like them~put salt on their arms...or skin to be technical...then they place an ice cube on the salt. Salt lowers the temperature of the ice, making it colder. So, doing this on the skin can result in 1st, 2nd, AND 3rd degree burns, which if not treated carefully can lead to infection...like gangrene, and can cause death. The salt and ice when placed together on your skin can lead to something like frostbite. Another consequence of the challenge will be scars where ever they have tried this. This is a very serious game...and at face value, if you aren't familiar with how salt can affect the temperature of ice, then you might not have thought how severe the consequences could be for this game. There are tell tale signs...just look at their arms, hands, etc (skin) and you will see what appears to be burn marks in the shapes of ice cubes. Share with them the possible outcomes of playing this "game". It's been said it is to show who has a higher pain tolerance, by who can hold the ice on there the longest. Please share this information with anyone that has children, grandchildren, relatives, friends, neighbors, teachers...anyone, even your enemies... that deals with children to be on the lookout for this new activity. I guess it's all over YouTube by teens that want to put these videos on there. However, they only show the milder cases, so kids don't really see the harm in it. There are cases of kids that are in ICU with 3rd degree burns, which are not shown on YouTube. Please be conscientious of this new thing going on with young people. We have been alerted of some students here at the school participating in this...2 that I know of from 6th grade alone. I had a girl faint in class this week, and from what I understand it was because of her doing this. Salt will also dry out your skin. So, maybe it caused her to become dehydrated? Any guesses on how it caused her to faint? So, I wanted to get the word out to those that may deal with kids of all ages. And to let parents know how dangerous the consequences can be for anyone participating.
Okay, now on to something else. After church last night, the pastor's son, Jonathan, was playing down by the office last night. There were 2 baby kittens that he found. He found them in a trash can. We think they were placed there for safe keeping...they obviously could not get in them themselves. So, I held one that was the calmer of the two for a bit. She was so little and cute. I kept thinking, maybe I should keep it. The other one was way to hyper...wanting to keep moving. I mean, it would definitely help with the mouse problem in the apartment. Yet, I had to think about house training it. And if I did keep it, it would be used to people. Then what would I do with it when I left. You think people are cruel to animals in the states...people here torment and hurt cats and dogs and do not even think twice about it. So, if I took care of the cat and allowed it to be used to people, I could in fact be leading it to a certain death after I leave and have to let it go. So, in the end, I think it is best for the cat for me not to take it in...though it was really cute. I was able to hear the kitten crying this morning outside of my window. But when I went down, there was only one kitten, not two. Plus, over by the office door was the back leg, yes a severed leg, of what was left of either a mom or dad cat. So, I'm guessing the parent came back to find them and was faced with danger...and possibly saved one of the babies. Marshallese people do not see cats and dogs as pets as we do. There are a good bit of stray cats and dogs. The cats usually stay away from people. People, in general, do not like cats and dogs. A lot of my students say they have cats and dogs for pets. But they are not treated the same way Americans treat pets. For the most part, people are ok with puppies/kittens. It's when they get bigger and grow up, people stop caring for them, or torment them. Well, I will just have to wait for Miss Kitty and Maxine. Oh, the Taiwanese people have actually put an ad out in the newspaper...they will pay $8 per cat...wonder what they do the ones people sell to them. And some people here raise dogs to eat. If you think about it, God did create animals for meat...and dogs are animals. Not saying I plan on doing that, but who are we to judge what kind of meat they eat?
Well, I will just leave it at that. We have Ladies' Bible Study tonight, so I guess I will start getting ready for that.
Blessings.
Sarah
Monday, April 1, 2013
Greetings!
I can't believe in 9 short weeks from this day and hour, I will be on a plane heading towards Hawaii, which I will have a layover, then I basically change planes in Houston, Texas which will take me on to Atlanta. Wow! It seems like a long time, but I know it will fly by! Tomorrow evening I will be handing out report cards...third time of that. Then, the next time I will do that is the day that I leave. I will hand out final report cards Monday, June 3, 9-4 then head to the airport for an 8 pm flight! This will be different for me. I've never flown at night, and both flights will be at night. From Majuro, I will get into Hawaii around 2ish in the morning. Then I fly out of Hawaii at 7pm, just to arrive in Houston in the morning. Then, the flight into Atlanta will be during the day.
I can't believe Easter has come and gone already. Yes, here it is the evening of April first. We had today off from school. I already had my report cards finished, so I just had a lazy day. I like those kinds of days. :) I did some reading. I will have to get it out of my system, as in a few weeks I will get my course sheets for Pensacola Christian College, summer classes. I will then start reading things for summer.Now, it just feels like it is crunch time. I need to make sure I get everything that I want from the island, so I can be sending it back...but also make sure I have money when I return. I will have to get my car insurance up and running, get a new cell phone. I've been looking at StraightTalk. I know one friend, Kelley, has it. I wanted to see if anyone else has it too...just to get feedback on the service and reception that you all get. I think that is the best for the money...if it has good reception area like it looks like it does. Just any help would be very beneficial. I do think I need a cell phone to travel all the way to Pensacola by myself, so before I go, I want to find a good one that doesn't cost me an arm and a leg. Those are just a few things I am going to be getting again when I return. I do need to get my hair cut too! But the lady I've been using moved to Hartwell. I am not sure what I am going to do for that, but I'm sure I will find someone I like when I get back.
I was invited to Easter dinner with the Bucks. The other girls were invited but weren't able to make it. Pastor Lang, Belinda, and their son Jonathan came too. We enjoyed ham, pork...from a freshly killed pig, mashed potatoes, gravy, rice, deviled eggs, and corn. Banana pudding was the dessert. It was a nice time of fellowship. The church gave out sandwiches, hard-boiled eggs, and a drink to those in attendance. Someone also brought coconuts. Many people here poke a hole in the coconut to drink the milk out of it. Then you can scrape out the insides and let them dry for the coconut flesh. The coconut milk is okay. I like coconut, but not fresh coconut, as it is still wet from the liquid being inside. Once it dries, I like it. Even though the church voted on it, it is an expensive thing to offer the community...sandwiches/eggs/drinks. Each person would get one of each. One large loaf of bread costs 2.99, which I found out is more than minimum wage here...$2.25 an hour. Wow! That is a sacrifice for some families...families were asked to bring 3 loaves of sandwiches, and 3 dozen eggs. Eggs are about $2.50 a dozen! Singles were to bring 2 of each. They later decided we girls in the apartment could bring one of each...which would be total of 3 of each from one household. So, I was good with that. I had already purchased 2 dozen eggs, so I gave them to Mrs. Buck for the deviled eggs.
I guess that is all for now. I hope all had a blessed Easter, and remember that He is alive. He is not in the grave anymore! He is risen indeed!
Blessings!
Sarah
I can't believe in 9 short weeks from this day and hour, I will be on a plane heading towards Hawaii, which I will have a layover, then I basically change planes in Houston, Texas which will take me on to Atlanta. Wow! It seems like a long time, but I know it will fly by! Tomorrow evening I will be handing out report cards...third time of that. Then, the next time I will do that is the day that I leave. I will hand out final report cards Monday, June 3, 9-4 then head to the airport for an 8 pm flight! This will be different for me. I've never flown at night, and both flights will be at night. From Majuro, I will get into Hawaii around 2ish in the morning. Then I fly out of Hawaii at 7pm, just to arrive in Houston in the morning. Then, the flight into Atlanta will be during the day.
I can't believe Easter has come and gone already. Yes, here it is the evening of April first. We had today off from school. I already had my report cards finished, so I just had a lazy day. I like those kinds of days. :) I did some reading. I will have to get it out of my system, as in a few weeks I will get my course sheets for Pensacola Christian College, summer classes. I will then start reading things for summer.Now, it just feels like it is crunch time. I need to make sure I get everything that I want from the island, so I can be sending it back...but also make sure I have money when I return. I will have to get my car insurance up and running, get a new cell phone. I've been looking at StraightTalk. I know one friend, Kelley, has it. I wanted to see if anyone else has it too...just to get feedback on the service and reception that you all get. I think that is the best for the money...if it has good reception area like it looks like it does. Just any help would be very beneficial. I do think I need a cell phone to travel all the way to Pensacola by myself, so before I go, I want to find a good one that doesn't cost me an arm and a leg. Those are just a few things I am going to be getting again when I return. I do need to get my hair cut too! But the lady I've been using moved to Hartwell. I am not sure what I am going to do for that, but I'm sure I will find someone I like when I get back.
I was invited to Easter dinner with the Bucks. The other girls were invited but weren't able to make it. Pastor Lang, Belinda, and their son Jonathan came too. We enjoyed ham, pork...from a freshly killed pig, mashed potatoes, gravy, rice, deviled eggs, and corn. Banana pudding was the dessert. It was a nice time of fellowship. The church gave out sandwiches, hard-boiled eggs, and a drink to those in attendance. Someone also brought coconuts. Many people here poke a hole in the coconut to drink the milk out of it. Then you can scrape out the insides and let them dry for the coconut flesh. The coconut milk is okay. I like coconut, but not fresh coconut, as it is still wet from the liquid being inside. Once it dries, I like it. Even though the church voted on it, it is an expensive thing to offer the community...sandwiches/eggs/drinks. Each person would get one of each. One large loaf of bread costs 2.99, which I found out is more than minimum wage here...$2.25 an hour. Wow! That is a sacrifice for some families...families were asked to bring 3 loaves of sandwiches, and 3 dozen eggs. Eggs are about $2.50 a dozen! Singles were to bring 2 of each. They later decided we girls in the apartment could bring one of each...which would be total of 3 of each from one household. So, I was good with that. I had already purchased 2 dozen eggs, so I gave them to Mrs. Buck for the deviled eggs.
I guess that is all for now. I hope all had a blessed Easter, and remember that He is alive. He is not in the grave anymore! He is risen indeed!
Blessings!
Sarah
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