MORE Mountain Adventuring
31 Jan 2012 Leave a Comment
in January 2012
It’s been an adventuresome day 
.
I woke up around 9 because of another sleepless night. Lissi informed me that we would be having devotions in our room at 11:30 and that I had the task of leading them this time.
With this in mind, I went to the bungalow and got on the computer for just a little while. And then I went back to my room to find a verse.
During this time, Daya came to ask if I’d like to go into town with them for breakfast but I had to decline since I wouldn’t have enough time to get back and help the cooks. So, Daya told me she’d bring some mesala dosa back for me .
At 10:20, I excitedly went to help the cooks just to find out that they were all finished…AGAIN. They, of course, urged me to come back tomorrow. Hopefully, we won’t have devotions at 10:30 tomorrow and the cooks won’t be finished so I can help. Maybe I will go help at 10 
.
So, I spent the next hour writing in my journal and setting up for devotions. Daya came and delivered my breakfast and stayed to chat until the dorm mothers started to show up to our room.
Devotions went fine, nothing that special really happened. I shared Hebrews 4:14-16 about how God understands our problems.
When devotions finished, Jayne stayed a bit longer to chat with Lissi while I cleaned up the dishes.
At around 12:30, I ate my very-late breakfast. I decided I may as well just make it my lunch so I skipped lunch and took a shower instead.
After my shower, I got all ready to go to the faraway mountain with the Kiwi girls. However, as soon as I stepped out of my door, Daya showed up to tell me that we were going around 3:30, when it wasn’t so hot out. I reluctantly agreed.
So, Daya came into my room and we talked for a while. Soon, Lissi, Sam and Dani joined us and we ended up sharing jokes and scary stories. It was really great 
.
Once 3:30 hit, Dani, Daya and I started on our way.
The walk to the mountain was fantastic. I’d never been to the area just outside the main town of Kollegal before. I saw many interesting things such as irrigation ditches and sacred Hindu bathing places.
After walking a little ways into the village to get biscuits and trudging through some fields, we finally made it to the base of the small mountain. The climb up was nice, but it wasn’t nearly as exciting as our climb up the mountain near the home.
Once we got to the top, we sat on rocks and enjoyed the cool breeze while we just chatted. We must’ve hung out at the top for a good hour talking about everything from wars to books to politics to the end times. It was simply amazing.
Then, at 5:30, we began the descent. Our walk back this time consisted of going through villages. WOW! It was so interesting! Some of the houses were so TINY and only had straw and clothes for roofs. Once we had gotten out of the villages, we passed by a large building with a wall surrounding it on all sides. Stuck into the top of the wall, there were hundreds of little pieces of glass. Daya explained that it was a cheaper alternative to barbed wire.
We finally got home at around 6:30. I relaxed for like ten minutes then went to help with study time. It went pretty well.
Then we had dinner. And that was my day .
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Gobi For Dinner
30 Jan 2012 Leave a Comment
in January 2012
Hm, it’s been a baffling day. I’m not sure how but I just wanted to put a unique adjective .
I woke up at 6. Well, I didn’t actually wake up then because I was already awake like an hour and a half earlier. In any case, when Lissi woke up, I ordered her back to bed then got the girls awake.
At like 6:30, I went back to sleep and woke up again around 8:30, missing breakfast. I decided to wear my new outfit today. I absolutely LOVE it! Everyone else really liked it as well. I’m now all the more excited about when my other outfits are finished.
Anyway, I then went down the bungalow very briefly then saw the girls off to school. And then I read until 10:30. We had our usual Monday morning meeting at the bungalow, so I headed back down there.
The meeting was very different in that two girls from campus crusade came and joined us. We sang a lot of songs then one of the girls shared an on-the-spot devotion from Psalms. Then, we, of course, chatted for a while.
Once the two girls had left, we discussed different things going on in the home then talked some more.
By the time the meeting ended, it was lunch.
After lunch, I spent a little bit more time on my computer then decided I’d make gobi for dinner tonight . So, I went over the Kiwi family’s house and grabbed Sam to help me shop for what I needed.
It was quite the adventure! We wandered all around town in order to find each ingredient. I also got some milk powder, sugar and tea just in case Lissi and I are hosting devotions tomorrow.
When I got back to my room, SURPRISE! It was locked and Lissi was nowhere to be found. So, what did I do? I sat in front of the door and wrote. For about 45 minutes.
Then, Divya and Rebecca told me they were ready to go into town. Divya needed to get some snacks for school tomorrow since it’s her birthday.
So, despite the fact that I was already quite tired and very grumpy about being locked out, I took the two girls into town.
As we were heading out, I ran into Lissi. I told her about her locking me out (whilst trying my best to keep calm and not blow up in her face).
Then, Rebecca, Divya and I continued on our way. Going into town with them didn’t turn out so bad actually .
When I got back, I was locked out of the room AGAIN. This time, I knew where Lissi was. She was in study time. So I got the key and went into my room.
I started on making the gobi but soon decided it was best to go help with study time. Sujatha, Lissi, Rachel and Jayne were all helping out so I really wasn’t needed. But, I stayed with the older girls anyways. It was quite funny actually because I got to learn “shut up” in Kannada, haha. I don’t remember what it is now though 
.
Once the dinner bell rang, I went back to work on gobi. After a lot of tears (onions are so annoying to cut up!) and A LOT of time, I finally finished.
It actually didn’t taste that great but I am learning more and more each time I make it . so, that’s like awesome!
And that was my “baffling” day
Insert Creative Title Here
29 Jan 2012 Leave a Comment
in January 2012
It’s been another eh type of day.
I woke up at 10:00 and got dressed and read and did normal stuff like that for an hour.
At 11, I went to the Kiwi family’s home church. David started us off with the topic of being the salt and light to the world then we all just talked about ways the home could reach out to the community. I think it would be so amazing to be able to do work in town!
Church lasted until lunch, as always.
After lunch, I took a shower and read for a little bit. By this time, I was just feeling SO tired and out of it. But, I headed to the Kiwi family’s house to go into town anyways.
Daya, Sam and I went into town so I could get one of my outfits from the tailor. He made the pants just how I wanted it . So, he told me to be back on the 7th for the other three outfits.
As soon as I got back, Harshita got on my case about going into town for coconuts. I was already so exhausted and SO hot so I told her to wait a half hour.
I chilled for a bit then reluctantly grabbed Harshita and headed back into town. I decided I’d try to find a coconut guy closer by but there was none so I just went back to the home again. It wasn’t a completely pointless trip though because Harshita needed to get biscuits for the some of the girls and I needed to buy snacks for questions night tonight.
When we got back, I tried my best to keep from taking a nap, but eventually had to give in because I was just feeling awful.
I slept from 5:30 until 7:30. I couldn’t believe the time when I woke up! I slept for SO long…oops. I feel kinda better though .
I skipped dinner because I wasn’t very hungry then made tea for questions night. Lissi discovered certain eating habits of mine. I kind of ate all the biscuits she bought us. She got a bit upset with me because she thought it meant we had no snacks to give the girls. But I saved my skin by holding up the snacks I had bought in town. Hehe
Everything went really well with the girls tonight. At the end, they said to us, “you don’t need to make tea for us anymore. It’s a waste of sugar. Just answering questions is enough.” We told them that it’s most certainly not a waste and that we like to do it for them but I don’t think they are convinced…
Daya invited us to go watch a movie with her and her family tonight. I want to go but I know that if I keep staying up late, I’m going to end up being tired every day and I’m never going to be able to wake up in time to help Lissi with the girls…Hmm…
Day Out to Mysore
28 Jan 2012 Leave a Comment
in January 2012
What a splendid day!
I got pretty much no sleep at all last night and when 6:00 came, I did not think I could even go to Mysore because I was so tired. But, I decided to go back to sleep until 7 and see how I was feeling then.
I was still super tired when I woke up but I headed over to the Kiwi family’s house anyway, refusing to let my sleepless night ruin my day.
Rachel, Lissi, Sam, Dani and I (Daya was suffering ANOTHER migraine so she couldn’t come with us) had a quick breakfast of corn flakes and then headed for the bus at around 8. We soon caught a bus and were on our way to Mysore. I wanted to just sleep the whole way but I just couldn’t do it. GAH!
We arrived in the city at around 10:30 and immediately set to work in finding the computer repair shop Lissi needed to find so she could get her laptop fixed.
After catching an auto and searching for a little while, we found the shop just to find out that they didn’t fix laptops. They gave us an address for another shop though .
Rather than heading straight for the new address, we decided we’d try and find the shop Rachel needed to get her cell phone fixed.
On the way, we stopped to get some poni pori. It was SO funny! The guy just kept giving us some. We kept trying to say that we didn’t want any more but he continued to insist. It took quite some time before we finally got him to stop, haha.
We finally found the shop that Rachel needed and successfully got her phone fixed. Then we set out to find the shop that Lissi needed. This time, we stopped for coffee on the way. Rachel suggested it since she said she was feeling quite tired.
Thank goodness she did! The coffee, even though coffee doesn’t usually wake me up, gave me the energy I needed to enjoy the rest of the day. YAY!
We found the shop Lissi needed and bought some movies and CDs while we waited for her. Then, it was 1:00 and we were all starving. So, we got an auto to Dominoes.
The restaurant was absolutely packed so the employees there set up a separate room for us below the main building. We had a room to ourselves . As we were eating, Dani pointed out that one of the servers was the same one that served us the last time we came. Then Sam realized something. This same server had asked her to remember his name. She then proceeded to hide under the table until he left, haha!
Just as we were finishing our pizza, we saw a boy watching us from outside. He kept pointing to his mouth. So, we took him a piece of pizza and watched as he shyly ran off.
About five minutes later, he returned with a really cute little girl, who was now pointing to her mouth as well. Then, we held up one of our drinks in a questioning manner and their eyes just lit up as they nodded their heads vigorously. So, we took the little girl a piece of pizza as well as one of our drinks. They were very happy .
After we finished eating, we decided to buy a small pizza for poor Daya after we went shopping in the supermarket next door.
I stocked up on some stuff I want to take home with me then went with Lissi across the street to buy her contacts. I decided that I’m likely to never use contacts .
And then, we went to buy the pizza for Daya. As Lissi, Rachel and I waited for Dani and Sam to buy the pizza, we sat on the steps leading to the restaurant. An employee came over and told us we should go sit on some chairs at the top of stairs. He said to us, “Sitting here is fun for you, but it makes us look bad.” I couldn’t help but to chuckle at his honesty. In any case, he was right. Having a bunch of foreigners sitting on their steps did make the restaurant look bad .
After we’d moved to the chairs and got the pizza, we headed to the autos across the street so we could go the market.
It was SO funny! The first auto guy insisted on having us pay 80 rupees. We eventually got him to lower to 60 but we continued to ask for the price of 50. All of the auto guys soon came over to watch our bickering. We fought back and forth for a little while and even attempted to just leave at one point when another auto guy finally spoke up and said he’d take us for 50 rupees. We felt very accomplished .
In any case, we arrived to the market and immediately got bombarded by Mister Cat Guy and some other guys selling ankle chains. Rachel bought some chains and that got the sellers off our tail. Then, we ran into another guy selling ankle chains.
This time, I was interested in buying as I found a few I really liked. So, guess what I did?! I bargained all by myself! I got the guy to lower the price from 300 rupees to 150. I wish I had insisted on 100, I probably could have gotten it . Oh well… I’m proud of myself .
Then, of course, some guy offered to show us how to make incense and Rachel wanted to go. So, we went. Although the incense making was quite cool, they went on and on about the different oils again. Rachel wouldn’t let them go on for too long though. She soon told them we were in a hurry and had to go. Yay, Rachel!
We then stopped by a jewelry store. I found some earrings I really liked and as Rachel, Lissi, Dan and Sam moved on to another store, I stayed to see how I could do with bargaining.
His set price was 20 rupees a pair. I asked for 10 each pair and he said no bargaining so I said 15 rupees and he still refused, saying 40 rupees for two pair. So I told him 35 and he agreed! YAY! I gave him a 50 rupee note and was totally anticipating him only giving me 10 back, but he actually gave me 15! He then asked for my name and shook my hand. I think he was surprised that a foreigner actually bargained with him . It was seriously SUCH a confidence booster for me .
I joined the others at the other jewelry shop and considered buying some bangles. But, we were in such a hurry that I didn’t have time to really search.
So, we left the market and caught an auto to the bus stand. We found a bus within 10 minutes and boarded. The female ticket person looked at me really excitedly and waved. I knew I recognized her from somewhere but I just couldn’t remember where.
Then, as we set off from the bus stand, it hit me. This ticket person was the same one who worked on the very first bus I took to Mysore when I went with Jayne and Daya. I remember her because of how our bus had broken down and she made sure the three of us got on the bus that came to pick us up. I found it really interesting how the ticket person for my first bus ride from Kollegal to Mysore was the same for my (most likely) final trip from Mysore to Kollegal.
Anyways, we finally got home and I headed to my room and made Lissi and me some tea. I’ve no idea where the time went but soon the dinner bell was being rung.
I had dinner (no chapatti tonight though because of the re-doing of the kitchen . Which means, I probably will not get another chapatti night before I leave) and then came to my room for devotions. However, our dorm girls are all helping clean the kitchen at the moment so I’ve decided to use up the time by typing this . And that was my day in Mysore. I can’t believe how quickly it went!!
Eh and Stuff
27 Jan 2012 Leave a Comment
in January 2012
Today has been… eh.
I woke up at 6 in a pretty good mood and helped Lissi wake the girls up. Oh my goodness, they refused to get out of bed! UGH! I think it was because of yesterday being a holiday. In any case, they FINALLY got out of bed TEN minutes before morning devotions. I’ve no idea how, but they somehow got there on time.
At 6:45, I got my shoes on for the usual morning run. However, Daya didn’t answer her door so I figured she was still asleep and went back to my room. I actually wasn’t that bummed about it . Especially since I got to sleep some more. YAY!
Lissi woke me up for breakfast at 8. I was standing in line to get food when the Kiwi girls came and asked if I’d like to come to breakfast in town with them. I excitedly agreed .
So I put away my plate, got ready for the day then headed down to their house. Once they were ready, we all headed into town.
Breakfast was really nice especially since Prithe the dog decided to follow us all the way there and then just chill and watch us eat at the outside restaurant. Aw Prithe! She has got to be the most amazing dog I’ve ever met!
The four of us protectively surrounded Prithe just in case we ran into any stray dogs on the walk home. Daya and I even picked up some rocks so we could use them as ammo.
Thank goodness we got back to the home without Prithe getting attacked . We had bought some potatoes while were in town and set to work on peeling and cutting them for the mashed potatoes Jodi was making for tonight’s dinner.
We finished at 10:20 and I headed down to the dorm area to help the cooks. I stopped in my room briefly and found out that we were having devotions right then. What is up with this?! Why the change in time all of the sudden? I’ve a feeling it’s going to stay this way and I won’t get a chance to help the cooks anymore .
In any case, we went to devotions in Sumitha’s dorm at like 10:27. Well, Lissi told me that it was very rude to come early in Indian culture so I told Sumitha we would wait outside until 10:30 so Lissi and I left. I don’t really think Sumitha had any idea what we were doing since she was busy making tea this whole time but I’m pretty sure if she knew what we were saying, she’d insist that we stay . Anyways, at 10:30, we re-entered her room and then sang LOTS of songs. I really liked it. During our singing time, Sujatha, Yolanda and Munjula came. Then Sumitha gave her devotion and we prayed. After talking for a little while, we all left.
I got on the internet until lunch. Rachel and I walked down to the dorm area together and arrived at like 1:10. All the girls had already finished eating and the food was put back in the kitchen. Dang! How was lunch over already?! In any case, I enjoyed lunch in the kitchen with Sujatha and Rachel .
After lunch, Rachel and I joined Lissi and Sumitha at the playground and talked for a really long time. When Lissi had to leave to wash her clothes, Rachel invited us to her room so we could set a plan for Goa. We decided on coming at 3:30.
So I slept until 4. This IST thing is really starting to grow on me…
I woke up in an absolutely terrible awful awful mood. GR! When will I learn? Taking naps are almost always BAD.
Anyways, Lissi and I went to Rachel’s room and we talked about Goa for a good two hours, completely skipping over the regular time I take a girl out to get a coconut. Oh well…I don’t think Meghana even knew that today was her day anyway…
So, by this time, I was really sad and down and feeling horrible so I just needed to back to my room, make myself some tea and just read.
Reading immediately took my mind off things. It was so great just to focus on a world that wasn’t my own .
At 7:30, I went to the Kiwi family’s house for dinner. As usual, the food was really yummy. I fell back into my bad mood again though and spent most of the time just slowly nibbling on my mashed potatoes with a completely blank expression on my face.
Things got better though when they started passing around old photo albums of the Kiwi kids when they were babies and of Jodi’s childhood. So, I got to eat yummy ice cream with a peanut butter doughnut Jayne had made while reading up on the first twenty-one years of Jodi’s life. AWW! Jodi was SUCH a cute kiddd!!!!!!
Then, we watched a comedian on Youtube. I had to leave before the video was over though because it was getting so late and MYSORE IS TOMORROW! YAAYY!! I really need a day to get my mind off things…
Sleeping In
26 Jan 2012 Leave a Comment
in January 2012
Today has been…fascinating. Yeah, that’s it…
The fascination started this morning…today was Republic Day so the girls had a function at their school at the bright and early time of 7:30. So, I figured I’d end up having to go to the function and not get to go running. However, I got such a terrible night’s sleep last night that when I woke up at 6, I was feeling pretty terrible. Lissi noticed this and insisted that I just stay and sleep some more. I told her that I’d feel bad because the girls expected me to be at the function but she continued to insist.
So I fell back asleep.
At 8:30, everyone had come back to have breakfast. I woke up just in time for breakfast. When I went outside, I found out that there was to be ANOTHER function and it would likely be many hours long. When the girls saw me, they told me I looked super tired and told me I should go back to bed. Lissi agreed. So, I had breakfast then went back to sleep.
I woke up at 10:30 and didn’t bother going to ask the cooks if they needed help. I wasn’t really feeling up to doing anything. So, I took a nice hot shower.
11:30 came and went. Again, I didn’t bother to go see if we had devotions. In any case, Lissi still hadn’t returned so it was likely cancelled due to the function. I then read until lunch.
Once I’d finished my lunch, I went to talk to Jaxon. That kid just gets more and more adorable. While we were talking, he looked over and saw Levi crying in the grass. He goes, “Levi is crying!” and races off to see what the matter was. I followed. Levi informed us that he was crying because he’d hit a green toy with a bat and it’d landed in the grass. And, since the grass is also green, he can’t find it anywhere. Poor kid .
After lunch, I continued working on pictures. And still got nowhere by the time my laptop battery died. Then, Rachel threw a dance party for the girls in the bungalow. I got to teach them how to dance to “Cotton Eyed Joe”. I think they enjoyed it very much.
Then I began to feel terrible again and headed back to my room. On my way, I saw Divya sitting alone so I invited her to come and play a game on my laptop with me. I got to my dorm and started up a bowling game. Soon, three more girls joined. Then, Ramya wanted to play as well so I gave her my spot and just watched them.
Once the game ended, I went into my room and did my nails .
At 5, Latha told me she was ready to go get a coconut with me. As I was leaving, Jaya told me something but I wasn’t sure what she was saying. You see, Jaya was supposed to come with me today but she refused the offer. The other girls say it’s because she doesn’t like being stared at (which of course, happens because I’m white and all the Indians are interested in me).
Anyways, Latha and I headed out. When I got a coconut, Latha made the comment that all the coconut guys looked really tired. This gave me an idea! I told Latha that we should buy them each a tea! So we went across the street and got seven cups of tea. The first coconut guy I gave it to was quite young (which is really weird because all the coconut guys are usually old). He said that he didn’t like tea. I was flabbergasted and didn’t know what to do. Latha then insisted and practically shoved the tea in his face, haha. He finally accepted it. The other coconut guys took the tea and happily thanked me. It made me feel SO good. It was great.
When I paid for the tea and got 5 rupees change, a beggar man was right there, waiting for me. So, I gave him the 5 rupees.
Then we headed home. While we were walking, Latha informed me that the young guy was just being really shy and it probably had something to do with the fact that a young, white girl was giving him, a young Indian dude, some tea. This makes sense, I think…
When we were quite close to the home, we saw Munjula walking back from a church service and joined her. Oh Munjula! She held on to either Latha’s arm or my hand the whole walk home with her usual big grin plastered all over her face. She is such an amazing, uplifting person . She told Latha about a man who had given his testimony during church then Latha told it to me (Munjula’s English isn’t too great).
Once we made it home, Jaya got on my case because she said that she wanted me to get her a snack. She had found out that every girl I take to get coconuts gets a snack. I told her that she’d have to come in order to get one and she sulked. JAYA! UGH!
Anyways, I read some more. Actually, I spent more time trying to kill mosquitos than reading. After a while, I felt like I was committing genocide because I had the remains of about five mosquitoes stuck to my wall, haha. I think I’m getting better at this mosquito-killing thing .
At about 7:10, Lissi came into the kitchen and started peeling potatoes. She told me that she was going to make some chips. So, I joined her.
Then she informed me of a very important plan. She said that since the potatoes weren’t going to be enough for a decent supper, we should have supper with the girls then fry up the potatoes afterward and eat them. She told me that we should eat as much supper as possible. I found this incredulous, of course, and told her that that would mean we wouldn’t have enough room in our stomachs for the potatoes. But then she went on to explain that if our stomachs were full, we would eat the chips very slowly and get to savor them. However, if we were still really hungry, we’d just scoff them all down and they wouldn’t last as long. I find all this perfectly logical .
So, we went to line up for dinner at 7:30. While I was in line, Jaya came and gave me a hard time about the snack thing again. She said that tomorrow I should get her some. So, I asked her if that meant she’d come with me tomorrow and she said no and that I should bring her a snack anyway. I told her I wouldn’t so she said that she still didn’t want to go and then told me that she didn’t want a snack anymore. Haha!
After supper, Lissi and I fried up the potatoes. Wait…let me rephrase: I fried up the potatoes. Lissi decided to ditch me within the first two minutes. But that’s okay because she does that all the time .
Once I was done making them, Lissi came and insisted that she clean up. I asked if she was going to do it right then and she said that she’d do it later. ARGH! I informed her that it would annoy me greatly to eat chips while knowing that the kitchen was a mess. But she insisted that she would do it after we ate. We finished eating about a half hour ago. The kitchen is still a mess. And Lissi is nowhere to be seen. UGH!
Anyways, once I’d separated our chips into two dishes, Lissi offered to give me juice from the Indian juice powder she got. So she made me some. It was warm. I kind of wanted to spit it out and dump the rest down the sink. When I told Lissi of this warm juice, she goes, “Oops, I didn’t wait for the filtered water to become cold.” Then she gave a nervous laugh that was so hilarious that having warm juice was worth it .
So, we munched on our chips and I washed my plate. And the kitchen is still messy. And Lissi is still gone. But I think I’m going to be able to just deal with the fact that the kitchen is a mess. Deep breaths. In and out. That’s right. Good job, Marlia .
Gobi Day
25 Jan 2012 1 Comment
in January 2012
So, last night, Lissi suggested that we eat German chocolate pudding and watch a movie on my laptop. We had a really good time and the pudding was delicious. I think that we have made watching a movie and eating snacks a tradition whenever one of us feels terrible.
Anyways, today was pretty decent.
I woke up at 9:30-ish after refusing to get out of bed for breakfast . But it’s all good because I have an amazing roommate who made me a breakfast of oatmeal and tea. YAY Lissi .
After my breakfast, I read. Then, at 10:30, I went to help the cooks. As it has been this ENTIRE week, the cooks were finished before I came. GR! So, I went to the bungalow instead. I only spent a few minutes on the computer when I got invited to sit at the bungalow table and just chat with everyone there.
It was so great getting to listen to everyone. I say listen because I don’t talk much in those kinds of situations . Once we’d all said goodbye to Lilo, who promptly left via auto, Rachel and I headed to the dorm area for devotions. We went on quite a mission to figure out what dorm it was going to be in. We finally had to ask Jayne, who directed us to Munjula’s dorm.
But, SURPRISE! They were just finishing devotions when we walked in. What happened to the good ol’ devotions starting at 11:30 thing? Oh well…
We chatted for quite some, during which time Rachel asked for Sujatha’s permission for her, Lissi (who we’ve decided to invite . She REALLY needs a break.) and mine week holiday to Goa. Sujatha said yes .
After devotions, I spent like a half hour changing my nose ring just cause I was experimenting with different earrings and backs and stuff. Everything worked out okay because my piercing isn’t sore at all, YAY!
Then I had lunch and went to the bungalow to work on pictures. Yeah, they’re still not organized. GAH!
At 3, I headed back to my room because Sujatha said that she would come teach me how to make gobi then. I knew she wasn’t actually going to come at 3, but that’s okay because I got to read some more .
At like 4:15, she still hadn’t arrived. Caleb did though! And when he found out I was waiting for Sujatha, he ran off to go get her. GRRR!!! He came back telling me that she was busy but he had convinced her to come. I felt SO terrible. I didn’t want to have her stress out because she was teaching me. I told her she didn’t have to help me right then, but she insisted.
Cooking was a lot of fun but I could tell that Sujatha was in a bit of a hurry, which made me feel even worse. In any case, we finished cooking and Sujatha left. I tried my homemade gobi and it was actually pretty good .
At 5:10, Divya made sure to remind me of getting a coconut, so we headed out. It was nice. Not really anything exciting happened.
I got back a bit late for study time but that’s okay because I couldn’t be bothered to go anyway. I wasn’t feeling too great. But then Daya, Sam and Dani came to my room and we had a bit of a party. It was SO hilarious! We made the last of the gobi and fell into fits of uncontrollable coughing. That’s what gobi does. It makes you cough. But, this time, we just couldn’t stop coughing! Oh gosh, it was the funniest thing. Especially when Daya started crying from cutting up the onions . I’m glad it was her and not me because when I cut up the onions with Sujatha, the tears were falling so much I couldn’t see what I was doing anymore, haha.
Anyways, after Daya shooed Pippy off my bed and tried (unsuccessfully) to wipe the dog’s drool off my wall, we sat down to munch on some gobi. We started by using toothpicks but got annoyed with it after a while and just used our hands. Cause that’s what we do .
Then Daya screamed and said that everything was okay because she thought it was a rat but it was actually a piece of fluff. That began another fit of laughter from the four of us.
Then the dinner bell rang. EGG DAY!!! Egg day, egg day, egg dayyy!!! I had eggs .
And, of course, Daya, Dani, Sam and I went to get popcorn for kettle corn. Cause, yet again, that’s just what we do . So, we got the popcorn, made the kettle corn and ate it and homemade slushies while watching “Arrested Development”. The Rachel joined us and got addicted to kettle corn saying that she’s never tasted anything like it before and that it was awesome. So, I’ve decided that I’m gonna have to get her the recipe .
So, I am actually sitting in the Kiwi family’s (you’re welcome, Zoe!) house, watching this here TV show. I win .
…
24 Jan 2012 Leave a Comment
in January 2012
Today has been…it’s been a day. How’s that for descriptive?
Anyways, I woke up, went running. DIDN’T trip. Took a shower. Went to breakfast.
Daya came to my room for a bit. So we talked. Then I shooed her away so she could go do schoolwork. Then I read till 10:30 and planned on going to help the cooks but then Lissi told me we had devotions right then because Lilo was coming so we had devotions. It was nice. Then I left and found myself incredibly tired so I slept. Because sleeping is generally a good cure for tiredness.
I woke up, feeling completely re-energized then went to lunch. Then went back to my room and finally finished the book I was reading. Then Daya came to tell me that we could go get the tailor-made outfits I’ve been wanting and that Rachel was coming too. Then we talked some more. Then we went to the bungalow and talked to Lilo for a little while. Then Rachel, Daya and I went into town.
I was planning on only getting two outfits. But I got four because I couldn’t choose. But that’s okay because all four full outfits cost about as much as a pair of jeans back home. So I told myself that to make me feel better about spending money. Then I went to the tailor, got measured and chose designs.
Then we got back to KGH and I Skyped with Brandon then went into town for coconuts with Ramya. It was fun. She was being very talkative and asking questions. Which was really great. I think that me telling them my testimony has made them open up to me more. At least I hope so.
Then I got back and went to my room. Then I sulked.
Then I forced myself to study time and helped Meghana read. It was funny because she kept adding her owns words when she didn’t know one.
Then I went to dinner. Now I’m typing this. The end.
PS. I’ve decided that Lissi is a ninja because I can’t seem to EVER find her.
The end.
Cooking With Sujatha
23 Jan 2012 2 Comments
in January 2012
It has been a day of learning! Yeah, I know…learning isn’t an adjective but don’t you just love how I used it descriptively-ish .
I woke up at 6 but knew immediately that if I actually got up, I would never last the day, seeing as I went to bed at 12:30 last night. So I went back to sleep until 6:45, when I woke up and forced myself out of bed for running.
I was in my second lap when I tripped…again. I was awarded with ANOTHER skinned knee and a skinned hand. I have officially decided that India has made me extremely accident prone. In case anyone is counting, that is the THIRD time I’ve gotten hurt while going running. Dang rocks…
I had to stop running and go back to the Czepanski’s house to have Doctor Daya fix me up and put Band-Aids on my hand (which is hurting right now because of typing, GAH!)
Anyways, I finished off the rest of my run then took a shower and went to breakfast. At breakfast, Sujatha noticed my hand and I told her what happened, ending my story with some laughing at my clumsiness. She told me that I was SO strong because I was laughing even though I’d hurt myself, haha. Oh Sujatha… In any case, Sujatha told me that she would teach me how to cook Indian food after devotions today so I got super excited for that. She suggested that I boil potatoes before she gets there.
I went back to my room and peeled potatoes then threw them in a pot of water so I could boil them later. Then I read.
At 10:30, I was just about leave to help the cooks when Lissi came to remind me that we had a meeting in the bungalow right then. DUH! It’s Monday! We have meetings on Mondays, not devotions! Which meant that I didn’t get a chance to boil the potatoes .
Anyways, when we stepped outside our dorm, there were some guys working on the eating area. Loose tiles were everywhere and the workers were taking a sledgehammer to a fire pit. So, apparently, we are finally starting the work on the eating area! In two months’ time, there will be a much larger kitchen and a newly-tiled eating area. How exciting!
We stopped at the Singapore kitchen to talk to the cooks for a bit. They were working on cutting vegetables in the large room. As we continued to the bungalow, I asked Lissi if they liked changing to the Singapore kitchen for the time being and Lissi told me that they actually didn’t like it because they enjoyed having the little kitchen.
At the meeting, we talked A LOT and sang A LOT. Then we prayed. It ended at 12 and Sujatha was still in the bungalow when everyone left so I figured that we wouldn’t have time to cook before lunch. Rachel had mentioned during the meeting how Lilo planned on having Rachel and I go on holidays so I decided to go with her to her computer and look up some guest houses in Goa.
I found some pretty cheap ones but then lunchtime came and we decided we’d look more later. I. Am. So. Excited!
At lunch, we had to sit outside the eating area, around the playground and Dorm 1. It was such a different, more spread out atmosphere! It’s gonna take some getting used to! I will probably never get a chance to eat in the eating area again since they will probably finish after I leave .
After lunch, Sujatha informed me that she’d come teach me to cook at 3. So, I got on the internet for a while, went back to my room.
Lissi had gotten another package from her family and showed me her favorite thing that she got from them. She handed me a CD case. When I opened it, there was no CD or anything. We all cracked up laughing. Lissi’s family is so funny! She also got some chocolate and shared some with me. Yay, German chocolate!
Also during this time, I went into the kitchen spotted Ron the lizard scurry under our shelf. I told Lissi and she gave me the best news EVER. She told me I was allowed to catch Ron and keep him and his non-sticky little feet as a pet! YAY! Then I asked what lizards ate and Lissi told me insects so she went in search of dead spiders. Now, I just need to catch the little guy…
2:40 soon hit so I decided to start boiling the potatoes.
They were done at 3 but Sujatha still wasn’t there. So I read. And waited. And read. And waited. Gosh darn it! I know how IST works and all but I just kinda figured that Sujatha wouldn’t use it on me since I’m a foreigner. I’m never making that mistake again . It’s all good though. It’s just culture .
At 3:40, Sujatha finally came. Cooking with her was SO MUCH FUN. Like, seriously, it was a blast. We first made a potato-type dish (the name is too hard to pronounce so I’ve decided to just call it “Indian Mashed Potatoes” ). Then, Sujatha taught me how to make pori, which is like mini, deep-fried chapatti. While I was rolling out the dough (which was supposed to be circle-shaped), Sujatha told me that it looked like America. I told her that I thought it looked like India but she insisted that it was America-looking. When I began to roll out the next pori, she told me that it was starting to look like Australia. I found this all very entertaining .
We finally finished and I had the mashed potatoes with pori and it was DELICIOUS! I was SO proud of myself . I cleaned up the kitchen with Reetha’s help then went to share my food with the bungalow inhabitants.
I found Rachel, Daya, Dani and Sam in Rachel’s room and gave them some. They all really liked it. Then I gave some to Yolanda and she told me it was honestly terrific and that she wasn’t just saying that. YAY! It made me so happy .
I finished off the mashed potatoes then went back to my room to read until dinner.
At dinner, Rachel, Lissi and I were waiting in line when I saw Momo run past. I exclaimed to Lissi, “I never get to hang out with Momo anymore!” to which Lissi replied in the most hilarious way EVER, “That’s because he is a cat”. I laughed until my stomach hurt .
And that’s pretty much what happened today .
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- Re-constructing the eating area
Juice and Questions
22 Jan 2012 Leave a Comment
in January 2012
It has been a relatively laidback kind of day. Laidback. Hm. How have I not used that adjective before? It’s such a nice adjective…
Anyways, I woke up at 9:30 because I have dubbed Sunday as my sleep-in day . I made the last of my pumpkin spice pancakes and even got to share some with Lissi. We spread all sorts of different toppings on them such as Nutella, peanut butter, jelly and honey. I didn’t put all of them on at once though. How uncharacteristic of me…
After my yummy breakfast, we went to church with the Czepanski’s. It was particularly fantastic this morning. We started off by talking since the power was out. I don’t really remember what we talked about. I just remember it being very intriguing . Once the power finally came back on, we watched a sermon on David’ computer. It was SO great! And SO funny! It was about being honest and vulnerable and how it is completely counter-culture. The preacher told a story of how he worked at two companies that told him to lie to the clients but when he joined a new company that was based on honesty, it was not only incredibly freeing but it also flourished.
The preacher also explained some reasons why people don’t want to be vulnerable, such as the fear of failure, the fear of being embarrassed, and the fear of being viewed as inferior. I just loved how simple and practical the preacher presented everything.
After the half-hour sermon, we discussed the idea of being honest and vulnerable. Our conversation soon veered to churches and how we all put on a mask when we go to church and try to make everyone think we have everything together.
Lunchtime soon came and we had to leave the Czepanski’s to go to the eating area.
After lunch, I sat and talked with Rachel for a while about the girls and how they have such a shallow understanding of what it means to be a Christian. It was really great.
I then got my laptop and worked on saving pictures onto my computer. By the time 4:00 rolled around, I still hadn’t finished but my battery died and I had to go into town for coconuts.
I went to Rebecca today. She was particularly talkative. I asked her what she thought of devotions yesterday and she said that she really liked it and wanted to do it like that every week. I think I will . We talked a bit about seasons as well. Apparently, at least this is what I gathered from what Rebbecca told me, in India, they have summer starting in February, then spring for May. But it’s still summer in May. So it’s summer and spring at the same time. Anyway, then it’s the monsoon season until like October/November-ish then its winter. Fascinating….
When I got back, I worked even more on pictures. By dinnertime, I STILL hadn’t completely finished. UGH!
When I got back to my room to get my plate, I found a little lizard stuck in our sink. I named him Ron and left him there because he was really cute and I wanted Lissi to see him. I was also considering not telling Lissi about the lizard and seeing if she screamed when she saw him in the sink. But, I thought better of it and told her .
At dinner, I got my chopsticks and seaweed again. Quite a few of the girls ventured to try some. Then, they asked for more and more. I was really surprised that they actually liked it! One of the girls kept giving me rice just so she could see me eat it with seaweed. Crazy girls.
I went to clean my plate in my sink and noticed that Ron had somehow gotten out of the sink. However, I think his stickiness went away because when I forced him onto the wall, he immediately fell to the floor. Poor Ron. Lissi and I both mourned the loss of his stickiness and considered buying some stickers for him. Lissi said that it’s good he’s stuck in our room though because then he will eat all of our spiders . Only the spiders on the floor of course.
Then, we had questions night with the girls. I made them juice instead of tea this time and they were all quite happy about that. One of the girls had written out like twenty really good questions for us to answer. Some of them were even questions about the Bible, which is so fantastic!
Lissi and I only answered five of them and saved the rest for next week. One of the questions was “how do you know God loves you?” which was kinda cool since it means that she was curious about what I talked about last night.
So, yeah, questions night went very smoothly . Another day has ended. 6 weeks left in India…
