January 19.
Praise the Lord, there wasn’t as much rain last night. And praise the Lord for a good night’s sleep. We were up a little before six to finish packing and be ready whenever the plane would come. Nuanda called for people to go fill in some big ruts on the airstrip. People came early and carried all our cargo up to the airstrip.
Today was youth bung day, too, and Nuanda was in charge of that today. Christy (Nuanda's daughter) came and got the notebook for team 3; also the team numbers to put on the wall.
Since the computers, our translation pages to check, and my crocheting were all gone to the airstrip already, I had to find something to do to pass the morning. Read Bible and played keyboard. Did some sewing repairs that had been waiting for a long time to be done. Still have more to do. Since Nuanda was at youth group, Daddy went to the radio around 9:00 to get an update. There had been a change in schedule, so it would be early afternoon before the plane would come. They didn’t give an ETA.
Around 11:00, we decided we should have some kind of lunch. Wondered what we would have since everything was packed and gone to the airstrip. Daddy suggested opening a can of tuna and eating it. I said I could make some biscuits to go with it. Then he suggested fish patties. That sounded like a good idea to me. So I made up a small batch, enough for two fish patties each. That was our lunch.
A little before noon, we lay down for a short nap. After nap, I finished taking the waist band off a skirt I was fixing, took the zipper out, stitched up the seam where the zipper was, and pinned the top down for a casing. Then we decided that if we played a game of Boggle, the plane would come. So we started a game of Boggle. Sure enough, after two rounds, we heard the plane go over to Marawaka. So we put the Boggle away, closed up the house, and headed for the airstrip. The plane didn’t stay long at Marawaka. We heard him coming back to Owena as we were on our way up the hill. He had already landed before we got there.
We were thankful for a drier night and morning, and that some of the trail had dried up. I found it hard going up today since we haven’t been able to get much exercise with all the rain, and also because of this cold in my chest, making it harder to breathe. The wind today was not good for my ears and chest either.
We arrived safely in Goroka around 2:40. Praise the Lord! There were four parcels from Christy and Connie waiting for us at the hangar. Had to wait a while to get our bill paid at the hangar, but everyone was too busy so they said to come back tomorrow. Then the clutch wouldn’t work on the Holland’s truck. It was out of clutch fluid. So Daddy went across the street to the petrol station to get some. There were plenty of men around to help put it in and offer their advice. One man seemed to know fairly well what he was doing. Finally got the fluid going through so the clutch would work, but it is apparently leaking out so will have to keep an eye on it. It was about 4:00 before we got over to CRMF.
There was another parcel waiting for us here in the flat. We are thankful for all Christy and Connie’s hard work in packing and sending the boxes. We were thankful to get the computer battery. Daddy got that put into the Acer. We were thankful for all the vitamins too. One box was inspected at Boroko post office, and released.
After we got the truck unloaded, Daddy went off to the ATM machine to try to get some money. However, ANZ bank is closed until further notice because of system failures. Then he went to Papindo, but their ATM machines weren’t working. Picked up some bread and milk and cookies.
While he was gone, I did some unpacking and opened all the packages. That was fun. Read some of the mail too. Then read the rest while we were eating supper. (Had opened one box and read some mail in the truck, while I was waiting for the men to work on the clutch problem.)
When Daddy got back, I sent him out again — to Papindo West for some eggs for our supper sandwiches. After supper, I reorganized and repacked the stuff that had come from our daughters. Then we looked at Connie’s October photos. Now it is 9:00 p.m.+, and about time for a shower and bed. But will write a little e-mail to C&C first.
January 20.
Thankful for a pretty good night’s rest last night. Went out around 8:00 this morning and shopped at New Century. Their prices are good, and we can get a large percentage of what we need there. The workers are so friendly, and they even box and tape up our purchases so we can take them right to the hangar. That is a blessing.
After that we took stuff to the hangar, and paid our flight bill from yesterday while we were there. Back to the house a few minutes before heading uptown. Went to Papindo first and got a few things. A couple young boys were following us around, but the security guard saw them, and was following them around. After a while they were gone so we were glad for that. Papindo had lamb mince this time so we got some of that. There hadn’t been any in town for a while.
Next we went to Bintangor. Got some fresh veggies and other things. They had lamb mince too, but it was higher priced than Papindo.
After that, we went to Best Buy and got a few things. Then Daddy picked up a case of tuna at Istana. Then to SVS for lunch and a few other items. Parked the truck across the street in front of Chemica, as there was no space in front of SVS. Went into Chemica first to check on some things. Daddy went out ahead of me, and then a man pushed his way in front of me. The security guard tried to stop him by grabbing hold of his back pack, but the guy pulled himself away and kept going. The security guards told us that that man was a pick pocket and for Daddy to watch his wallet. Thankfully Daddy does not keep his wallet in his back pocket. A lady who came out of the store behind us also told us to be careful because that man is a pickpocket. We are thankful for the Lord’s protection.
After SVS, we went back to the house. I put away the fridge items, and packed up most of the other stuff in the box we had gotten at Papindo, while Daddy went back to the bank. But he still wasn’t able to get any money today. The systems are down in all the banks, and all the banks and ATM machines are closed for business. So guess we won’t be doing any more than the necessary buying this time. We are thankful to have had some money left from last trip out.
When Daddy got back from the bank, we had a nap. Then Daddy went uptown again, and I worked on letters, getting supper, and washing dishes. Most of the dishes have to be washed before use, as the cockroaches have been leaving droppings everywhere. We enjoyed fresh broccoli and carrots for supper, as well as spaghetti with lamb mince tomato sauce.
Dad and Mom