Mid-Summer Update

Hi friends,

It's been a few weeks since I posted last. How have you all been?

On my end I've had two visitors come and go. I enjoyed the time with them and look forward to their visits again next summer.  But for now I need to catch up on rest and house work.

My recent guest left on Friday. While she was here we had a lot of time for visiting and watching television as well as some walks and movies at the theatre and in house. I wanted to take her to a play under the stars in Stanley Park but she preferred to stay at home and watch movies. That worked for me too.  On Friday I escorted her home and at the same time had a long overdue visit with my mom.

While my guest was here I also had a surprise phone call and visit from my former Sunday School teacher and her grown children.  They have been coming the last few summers so the mother can visit her childhood friend who lives in Vancouver.  Though their trip was very quick we were able to squeeze in a visit before they departed. They kindly stopped along the way to visit my mom. I delayed my trip by one day to give them a chance to visit in private with mom.

When I visit mom I usually take time to clean and organize her closet, dresser drawers and snack food basket.  This time it was obvious that someone had spent time to organize her closet and they did a very nice job of it. It was a pleasant surprise and gave me more time to spend with mom and also attend to her medical care needs. It turns out she is fighting an infection and antibiotics and I wasn't aware of  that.  It probably explains why she has been sounding so tired this past week. She was on her 2nd day of a 7 day course if antibiotics when I visited.

I'm home again and catching up on my own sleep and errands.

I was able to pick up my glasses and order some contact lens.  I developed an eye infection and have had to spend a few days wearing eye glasses.  I'm not used to wearing glasses and my eyes have been sore from the strain. I'll likely be back to wearing contact lenses before I get used to the glasses. I've also had some major dental work done which I've been putting off all year due to illness or busyness.  I'm glad that the dental work is finally getting done and I'll be finished with it all next week.

The weather here has been unsettled for weeks. It means every day we get heavy cloud cover, sunshine and also heavy rain. I don't mind it but my garden hasn't done that well due to the inconsistency and too much water at times. I have enjoyed the blossoms that did come out though something ate all of the kale leaves and the cherry tomatoes just as they were ready to ripen. The snap peas did quite all right. The hot peppers didn't grow. It was probably too wet for them.

I put away the chair cushions due to rain. the pavers need a good cleaning but rain will dirty them again.

In the next few weeks I've got a lot to do. I have household projects to do besides cleaning. I've had these on the back burner because I haven't had time or motivation to get them done but I'm hoping to do them soon. I only have a few weeks before I have another visitor so we will see how far I get.  I also want to catch up on reading since I've gotten far behind. I'm still reading The Valley of Amazement by Amy Tan. I am now 60% finished. I'm also reading Babbie Mason's Daughter of the Most High and Brian Hardin's Reframe.

I've also taken out several books from the library including:

 

  I've long been interested in raw eating so I've borrowed several books on the subject. 

I doubt that I will be a convert to raw food but it will be good to know more about it. 

Carol Alt, former supermodel looks the picture of health and has written extensively about raw food so I've taken out several of her books. 

I was intrigued by her saying she also eats meat.

 I always thought those who eat raw only eat vegetables and fruits. I clearly have a lot to learn.

~~~

Update from Kenya

My primary focus has been on helping the young girl who ran away from an arranged marriage. She has been in hospital since I posted last time. She has gone through ups and downs and as of yesterday was transferred to a different hospital for more advanced treatment. Please continue to keep her in your thoughts and prayers.

Both of the university students I've been helping have done well in their classes receiving high marks except that each of them had one course where they only achieved a low average grade.

One of them participated in his graduation on Friday. 

The other one will graduate sometime in 2017. 

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Thanks for visiting. 

This and That

It's that time of the week again! It is raining cats and dogs here at the moment. Tonight on the evening weather report I learned that is has been anywhere from 4-11 degrees cooler at this time than last year around the same period. I could tell just because by this point last year we were in advanced stages of water restrictions.

Though water restrictions also started early this year they did not escalate. My garden isn't doing terribly well with the inconsistent temperatures and inconsistent watering. I've neglected to water on days when I thought it was going to pour and didn't. Then I've watered only to have it pour rain the next morning. I'm grateful for a good soak of the earth though. It  usually seems to perk things up a bit in the garden.

Though we've been having rain I managed to get a few sky shots on a dry evening (click photos to enlarge).

On the day I snapped these photos I was strolling along the street and stopping at various furniture stores. I'm keeping my eyes open for a set of chairs, new or lightly used.  I snapped a few photos of this and that. I saw a lot of vintage furniture (not antique but several decades old).  There used to be many antique stores in my neighbourhood but most have fallen by the wayside or moved to other neighbourhoods.

I rather  like this teak dresser but don't need one.

A few vintage chairs but not what I'm looking for. 

The chairs below are made of wood salvaged from an oxen cart.
I love them but am not sure these are the ones for me.
They are probably a bit too rustic for my indoor needs and other decor
but they are nice and very comfortable.

I stopped at many more places.
I have my eye on chairs made from salvaged wood. The chairs are in shaker style and have a nice
smooth finish.
I haven't made up my mind so the search will continue.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

News from Kenya

 I've been involved in assisting a young teenage Samburu girl who is 13 or 14 years of age.
Her parents arranged a marriage for her for 30 cattle and 6 camels.
She ran away to a rescue center to escape the marriage so she is now all alone in the world and dependent on well wishers.
The missionary at the rescue centre asked my friends to take her and put her in school where she can be in hiding and get an education.
That was working out until she got a bad case of pneumonia.
During treatment and evaluation, a heart problem was discovered.
The school didn't take any action to help her so my friend did and she is now in a hospital several hours away that specializes in diseases of the heart.

She was very weak upon arrival but I am cautiously optimistic.  She seems to be improving though I have no idea yet about her prognosis.

I can only imagine what a scary proposition to be all alone in the world like she is.
The school has been good to give her an educational placement but they have not responded to any of her medical needs.
 I've been trying to help her through my friends there.
My friends are in a difficult and awkward position too. Should the girl not survive, her family will need to be notified..
If you are a prayer warrior please say some prayers for her.
I won't share her photo here because of her situation.

Ernest who was in hospital recently for infection complications cancer surgery is now home and recovering. He seems to be doing much better now. I am hoping they have managed to eradicate the cancer but it will take time to know for sure.

Joining in with Skywatch Friday
and
Friday Foto Friends  today.
Thank you for stopping by.