Week 80

That Was the Week That Was!

This past week was the Readers Digest Condensed version of a normal week!!! Sunday Night Elder mentioned he didn't exactly feel well and by Monday afternoon he was "nearly dead all day". On Friday he was feeling pretty good and on Friday afternoon his generosity was apparent in my crawling into bed with the plague. However, between the two of us, we "put our shoulders to the wheel" we fought to "make the pathway bright" and by the end "all is well, all is well".

Let's see.... Monday we did apartment inspections. That is always interesting... There is always something that makes me want to squirm a bit. Now, the all time best example was way back when Elder Peter Johnson from Park City, Utah was here is Solo. I give you all that information just in case any one reading this blog that knows him will tell him I am telling the world. There were 2 sets of Elders in his house, and their house was not the best. We went from one mini-possible typhoid crud to the next explaining why "clean" was soooo important. When we got to the kitchen sink, our testimony of how these Elders are protected skyrocketed out of the solar system. OH THAT SINK....... Anyway, we told them we were going to buy them a dish tub to do there dishes. We explained that they needed to be generous with the dish soap, and to also put a few drops of Clorox in the water. They needed to do the dishes after each meal, and to then use the water to wipe down the kitchen area... counters, stove, sink, etc. We went right out and bought the tub and cleaning supplies that day! Well, along about Thursday, 4 days later, I received a phone call from Elder Johnson. He wanted to know when they were suppose to change the dishwater!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! The rest of the conversation is not important other that to tell you that I will get stars in heaven for keeping my cool. (Until after we closed the call, then I let out a long sigh/scream.) NOW, back to this week,... We went to the Kepatihan Elders house and it was very clean. We checked the 'fridge, microwave (one of the worst offenders), bathrooms, etc. We had conversed about their "rat" proble(not toooooo bad), and the past "cat" problem (make sure your garbage goes out at night) (their house has an upstairs large open to the outside area that attracts cats), and were about done when I opened their stand alone cupboard. There were all sorts of open packages of noodles, spaghetti, flour, and an old bowl of used oil at the bottom. I showed Elder Hernandez, who has lived there about 4-5 months, and said this is why you have rats! I also said that all of it should be thrown out because bugs get in the flour and other foods. Then I thought why am I just telling him???? So I called the other 3 Elders over and restated my motherly advice. Elder Wagstaff, who is almost ready to go home...who just left the Mission President as an AP,... who has just been in Solo a few weeks said, "Whose is this?" AND NO ONE KNEW. (blink, blink, blink...) That means that the open food and yuk in that cupboard had been there at least 4 months. HEY, COME TO THINK OF IT ELDER PETER JOHNSON MOVED TO THAT HOUSE BEFORE HE LEFT THE AREA!!!!! That night Elder got the bubonic plague. How fitting.

We found out later Monday that Sister Manalu was being transferred the next day. There was to be a considerable amount of time between her leaving (5:30 a.m. Tuesday morning) and the new Sister Manulang's arrival (5:00 p.m. Tuesday evening). So we told Sister Hutcheson to get a Taxi and take Sister Manalu to the train station, then have the taxi bring Sister Hutcheson here to our apartment, and to call us when she was on her way. So, about 5:00 a.m Sister Hutcheson called and Elder went down to the Lobby to fetch her and pay for the taxi, and bring her to our apartment. Of course Elder did this while looking like a zombie from Night of the Living Dead (I have got to watch that if I am going to keep referring to it). So he went right back to bed, and Sister Hutcheson and I talked, and she napped while I worked on arranging music, and Banjasari's Ward roster, and then we talked, and she studied, and then we ate lunch, and visited, and then she went with me to piano lessons. Elder and Sister Knorpp took her to fetch her new companion (brand new on her mission)Sister Manulang. The names a pretty close...Sister Manalu (gone) Sister Manulang (new). Later, I went to teach English, but all but three of the students were having school-wide tests the next day (and the rest of the week) and had to leave. So I told them moolay (that is Javanese for "go home", but that is not the way you spell it. It is probably "mule", but since it is the only word I know in Javanese, I am not too sure). However, it did crack them up that I would speak Javanese to them, so I was glad I used it instead of "pulang" which is Indonesian for go home.

Wednesday was a repeat of Tuesday, and Thursday we were suppose to head to Boyalali, but Elder was just coming back from his part in his episode of Night of the Living Dead, so we canceled and stayed home, EXCEPT!!!... He had an appointment to go with the Elders to see Michael, an American fellow married to an Indonesian member of the Church, who lives in the U.S. for 6 months, and then here for 6 months. However, we don't ever remember meeting them before, so we don't think that is a hard and fast rule of their lives. Elder really wanted to go, and was glad he did. Elder James and Elder Lee went with him, they were fed Satey (barbecued meat on a stick), and had a very good lesson. He had only been home a minute when the Sisters called and Sister Hutcheson had been hit by a "motor" while trying to cross Slamet Ryadi (main road). SHE WAS FINE!!!(in case her mom is reading this, and has not heard about it), but her bike was a bit bent. So they just threw it in a Beycak and the guy pedaled it on home while the Sisters walked. Thursday night I thought my throat felt scratchy, and warned Elder about his part in being "dead meat" if I got sick.

Friday after DDM, and making sure Sister Hutcheson was really okay,(just stiff, and a bruise), I came home and crawled in bed, while Elder took the Sisters to get the bike fixed, and mail Flat Stanley back to Grandson Eli's Second Grade. Saturday was a feverish blur, except I know Elder went to participate in the Knorpp's fabulous Family History activity with Solo 2, and had a gadzillion copies of music made for the Youth/YSA Choir.

Still, what a difference a day makes. We were off to Church by 7:15 a.m. and I played for the Banjasari youth to sing "Jesus Is My Shepherd" in Sacrament meeting, and practice with their Elders Quorum scheduled to sing "Ye Elders of Israel" next week. Later today the Youth/YSA will have their first choir practice for Stake Conference that will be held April 21. So, if you don't mind.... I am going to go have a nap(Elder is already there), and work a bit on music, and we will talk to you again next week. As my dear friend Scarlett always said "Tomorrah IS anothah day"! (please read with a southern accent). Aren't we blessed to have a new day to make things better? (sighhhhhhhhh)

Elder Bubonic Plague and Sister Typhoid Mary