compilation

sometimes i go for stretches where i snap a few pictures randomly here and there then forget about them in the dark recesses of my memory card. then i stick it into my computer and get to relive all those random moments. so here they are...

i got a BIG bag of doritos in the mail a couple weeks ago. i can say with 100% sureness that this is my most missed american food. this whole bag was gone in like 2 days. i stink at rationing things.

i found this one ant hauling a dead beetle around outside my classroom door one day. the ants here always remind me why King Solomon wrote about them.

boy cat is so cute that i sometimes let him sleep in my $15 chair.

see all the scarves i’ve knitted but haven’t given away yet? i’m running out of friends to give them to.

gotta love it when students leave me artwork.

ok, so these next several pictures were taken a week ago while driving through muntilan, one of the refugee areas while merapi was erupting. the ash is pretty much gone, but now they’re having trouble with mudslides coming down from the mountain.

the palm trees all still look sad and broken from the weight of the ash.

the mudslide was powerful enough to knock out the back walls of most buildings, and the mud, rocks, and debris just rushed right through them and out the front. this road was just recently reopened. i’m amazed it’s still there in some places...

i saw LOTS of rocks the size of cars or bigger. they’ve been using plows to scrape off the roads, and dump trucks are hauling stuff away.

this whole area was covered in that much mud a few weeks ago. these pictures don’t even do justice.

this area was near the edge of the mudslide area. it’s looking pretty cleared. it started pouring down rain right after we passed through, and i heard the next day that another mudslide went through not long after we did.

this many more days til spring break!!!

i have been so busy and stressed lately that i haven’t even taken time to cut my nails. they are driving me crazy. i don’t think they’ve ever been this long in my life. no joke.

oh, thank goodness my toothpaste is halal... because i like to eat it?

and speaking of toothpaste, a shout out to ibu sharon who read on my blog about my toothpaste plight and brought me a WHOLE tube of crest last night!! she saves the day. memang istri yang baik.  : )

i found out recently that aswan has NEVER seen any of the indiana jones movies before. needless to say, i was mortified. so i found two of the three (i don’t really count the  new one. i think it’s obvious why) in semarang at the movie store and bought them. we watched temple of doom last night and he LOVED it. that’s good, because this could have been a deal breaker. ; )

we’ve spent about 3 weeks on visa stuff, and it’s just starting to get REALLY discouraging and stressful. we FINALLY finished the application, but now we have a whole list of other things we have to do. time is running out and it feels insurmountable. i know it’s in God’s hands, but trying to get all the required things done is just overwhelming. we would DEFINITELY appreciate prayers!

here’s 2 more pictures to leave you with. screenshots of the actual visa application we had to fill out. ironically, these were the 2 easiest pages of the whole thing!

oh, and i got 100% in my first session of TESOL. score!  : )