Someone asked about the camping experience from my (Jan’s) perspective.  In all honestly, this was not hard at all.  We borrowed a really great tent that endured ALL of the rain beautifully (as opposed to a few other tents that leaked).  We both slept pretty well thanks to some Ambien, ear plugs, good sleeping bags and thermarests.  The roosters started crowing after 3 in the morning but I usually didn’t hear them until after 5 which is when I would wake up anyway.  We averaged 6 hours of sleep each night which wasn’t too bad.  We were not doing a lot of physical activity due to the rain so we were not necessarily physically exhausted at the end of each day.  We estimate that it rained about 70% of time.   Most of that time, we were either in the church doing CHE training or hanging out under a tree or some other place of shelter.  The temperature was pretty cool while we were there.  I usually had a few layers of clothes on when I was out and about and then at night my sleeping bag was perfect for the weather conditions.  There was no running water or electricity.  They did have a light bulb which was run off a car battery in the room we ate in but otherwise, we all wore our headlamps.  Because it was raining so much, our team didn’t have to hike down to the creek to obtain water.  One of the buildings our church constructed last year had a metal roof and a gutter to collect rain water.  So, we used the rain water and ran it through a filter.  The water tasted like pool water so many of us would add Propel or Crystal Light single shots to flavor the water.   

As you know with camping, bathing isn’t always an option.  Wet wipes were our friend!  We did have a camping shower which by the 4 ^th day I had some people help me set-up so I could take a shower.  I didn’t plan on taking a shower the whole week.  I figured I would wash my hair on day 4 and that would hold me over for the rest of the week.  So, on day 4, a few of the girls on the team asked for some warm water from the Didinga girls who did all our cooking that week (we brought in our own food and paid them to cook it by the way).  Eunice, the pastor’s wife, heard that we wanted some warm water to wash our hair.  She came over and actually had us sit in a chair and lean back and SHE washed our hair for us!  I figured I’d have Brandon or another girl on my team help pour water on my head while I tried to wash my own hair.  I couldn’t believe she took time away from whatever she was doing to wash some of our hair!  Eunice was pretty funny joking that it was her salon.  Anyway, it felt so good having clean hair that after that I knew wanted to take a shower.  I didn’t care what kind of ordeal it was to set up the camp shower.  So, I admit it, I was the first to take a shower but several others went after me.   If I go again, and I hope I do, I will definitely make a point to use that camp shower more often because it really wasn't that difficult to set-up and use.

I had clean clothes for every day with the exception of my pants.  Those muddy things got re-worn but luckily the material was such that they didn't seem too dirty.  Probably could have washed them but since it kept raining there was no way anything would ever get dry.  With the exception of my pants, I left my clothes there.  After seeing so many people and kids in dirty and torn clothes there was no question as to whether I should keep my t-shirts or leave them.  I also left a pair of crocs since so many people I saw didn’t have shoes.  Those who did have shoes wore plastic type sandals which appear to be great for the muddy conditions because they are easy to clean and are durable.  

For those of you who were not aware, Jan and I had the privilege of spending a couple of weeks in Africa earlier this month.  Our team from First Evangelical Free Church of Austin went to work with a tribe in Southern Sudan in implementing a development program called Community Health Evangelism.  In an attempt to help you visualize what the CHE ministry looks like in Southern Sudan in the village of Nagishot,  Jan and I will periodically post stories here.  Here's our first post…

First of all, we arrived on a Saturday in a single propeller plane landing on a grass landing strip.  About 30 Didinga people were there to greet us after landing.   Immediately our bags were in their hands (which we were very thankful for given the length of the hike) and we began the hour-long muddy hike to get to the church compound which would call home for the next 7 days.  Despite all of the mud along the way, we both realized that we were hiking in one of the most beautiful places we had ever seen…the Didinga Hills!  The church compound where we stayed consists of four or five mud huts, one other building constructed of mud with a metal roof, a house for a missionary couple living in the village, and of course the stinky latrine.  The church compound is fenced in with tree branches and is for the church pastor and his family and some orphans they have under their care.  We set up our tents and soon after were led on a tour of the compound by Pastor William. 

On Sunday we attended church in a small structure consisting of logs for benches (us Americans had a heck of a time sitting on these for extended periods of time), walls made of tree branches, and a grass roof.  The place was packed that morning and the worship was amazing!   There were probably 100 people crammed into the church building.  Brandon noticed that they consisted of mostly younger people and we learned that is due to the fact that 75% of the Didinga people are under the age of 16 and most of those have lost their parents due to war.    Despite this statistic, they have genuine community with each other and really care for and take care of one another.  For a community who is experiencing a shortage of food and have very little (sometimes no shoes and maybe one set of clothes) they displayed to us what joy in the Lord really looks like.  We saw that throughout our trip and were struck by the fact that we often do not choose joy when we have been so blessed.

Monday through Thursday we did the CHE training along with children's ministry and community lessons.  The community lessons covered the topics of clean water, sanitation, and diarrhea treatment and prevention.   Everyone on our team rotated teaching these lessons and it went very well.  Sometimes people ask what can really be done in only a week on a mission trip.  What is wonderful about the CHE program is that it is designed to equip a community with structure and education in all areas of their lives including physical, intellectual, and spiritual needs.  This training was the beginning of a development program that our church will continue investing in for the next 3-5 years by sending teams every 4-6 months to further train and support the community.  The program will be completely "owned" by the Didinga people.   One of the lessons Jan taught was about seeing the community through God's eyes.  The lesson was designed to facilitate discussion among those in the training (about 40 people who are mostly believers and even a few of the area village chiefs) to talk about what God desires for his people.  This was accomplished first by reading scripture and then discussing their needs and existing resources they see in their community.  Then they discussed what they felt were the most important needs and how they could begin to tackle them with the resources they have available.   These things ranged from needing more Biblical knowledge to needing a road with improved water crossings so they can access another village which is 4 hours away.   Brandon taught a lesson on different methods to obtain clean water to the community.  He also taught a lesson on why it is important to plan and how they can plan a successful CHE program in Nagishot. 

One of our prayer requests was that God would raise up champions, trainers and a committee for the CHE program.  We believe that the church pastor and perhaps some of the chiefs will be the champions for the program which is great since the community respects and follows their leading.   The pastor selected 3 people out of the training to become trainers.  These three people were very excited and willing to take on the responsibility of continuing to train their community in some of the very same lessons we taught which include both spiritual and physical things.   So that is an answer to prayer.  We still ask that you would pray for the community to select individuals to be on a committee.  I compare the role of a CHE committee to that of a city council who makes decisions on behalf of the community and encourages the trainers in the direction they should go with the program. 

One of our team members who designs highways for Texas did a special lesson on how they can improve their so called road and build longer lasting water crossings.  Their first response after hearing the analysis and potential solution was to ask us to come and build it for them.  This is the mentality of the people there sadly, but this is also one of the reasons we are working to help them implement a CHE program.   They have the resources to do this themselves and our prayer is that they will realize they can and will do it.   As the saying goes, "Give a man a fish; he'll eat for day.  Teach a man to fish; he'll eat for life."

Here are our pictures from Nagishot if you would like to look at them:  http://picasaweb.google.com/brandon.r.wilson/SudanMissionTrip2007

The fishing trip was a good time but we didn't catch any keepers.  I caught 11 fish over the day and a half that we got to fish.  The cool thing about that is the variety of fish I caught.  That is something you don't get necessarily fishing in fresh water.  I caught mostly trout, a couple of red fish, a flounder, some fish I couldn't identify that had spots and a lizard-like mouth, and even a blue crab!

The funny thing that happened was Friday night.  We fished until dark and started to load up the truck.  Dad had started the truck and we had both kayaks loaded up and most of our stuff put in the back.  Well, we soon realized that with the truck running and the lights on, the keys were inside the truck!  It was completely pitch black and we were nowhere near any other people or places with people.  I tried not to panic but my dad seemed to get pretty worked up.  I guess that's understandable given the situation.  We looked around hoping to see that some of the closeby fishers were still around but they had all taken off for the day.  There was one truck that pulled up within 100 yards and all we could see were its lights.  Dad decided to go and ask for help (mainly to borrow a phone) so he headed over while I stayed with the stuff.  He walked over and came upon some redneck moron taking a leak.  My dad asked if he had a phone he could borrow.  The guy said something like "No.  Who would you call if I did."  My dad said he wasn't exactly sure but probably a locksmith.  The guy paused, finished his leak and said, "well, it looks like you're on your own."  My dad simply said "thanks anway" and walked off (pissed off - pun intended.)

So we walked down the highway.  Luckily I had a flashlight to waive so cars could see us and not hit us.  We did not want to waive any cars down however.  We're smarter than that and not that desparate at this point.  Well, to make this story a little shorter we walked a half mile up the road and by the grace of God, there was one lady still at the bait store that was already closed.  She was super nice and let us use her phone to call the locksmith.  The locksmith came and picked us up 30 minutes later and got the truck unlocked in seconds.  I've got to get one of those things I thought to myself watching him break in.  That only cost $40 suprisingly. 

Well, the whole ordeal was worth it because Dad took me to the best Tex-Mex place I think I've ever been to.  Los Camales had the best verde chicken enchiladas with avocado on top as well as the best cheese enchiladas I have ever had.  Period.  Ole.  Bueno.  Gracias.  Adios.

I'm writing this morning from a neat little coffee shop in downtown Colorado Springs called Pike's Perk.  Since I've had like 3 coffees so far today, I'm nursing some freshly squeezed orange juice just killing time.  I flew into Denver this morning at 6:30 (ouch!) as a couple of co-workers and I are on our way eventually to Steamboat Springs for our annual company retreat.  Along the way (or out of the way) we have to make stops here in C.Springs and then up to Boulder before we head out.  Then, after a lot of driving in a PT Cruiser (Chance - insert comment about this please) we will be headed to Steamboat.  I'm excited to take in the landscape and the cooler crisper weather for sure.  I'm also looking forward to meeting some of my co-workers who I've not met before.  We are staying at a cool place called the Royal Flush House.  The best feature of the house is that it has cable TV for the big UT v. Ohio State game Saturday night.  I'll try to take a couple of pictures to post here later for those interested in the view.

Currently listening to:

my fingers typing

Currently reading:

The Bourne Identity (my first fiction book endeavor since sometime around high school.)

I'm excited about my upcoming weekend plans.  I'm going to Port Aransas to go deep sea fishing with some dudes for a bachelor party weekend.  My friend Matt is getting married later this month and he invited me and about 4 others to go.  I haven't been deep sea fishing (or any other kind of fishing unless you count bamboo sticks and corn at the kid's camp I worked at a few summers) in over 15 years so there's much I do not know.  One thing I do know though is that I'm about to head over to HEB to get some motion sickness patches!  I'm not going to spend my 5 hours on the boat puking!  I'll leave stories like that for Pete to live out!

Hope I catch some big'uns so I can have me a big ol' fish fry (or grill.)

Jan and I had a great time last weekend in Greensboro, NC visiting Kevin and Summer.  We were able to see a couple of ACC tournament games, including UNC vs. UVA and Boston College vs. Maryland.  Thanks to Kevin for tracking down tickets for us.  I do have to point out though that we were a little misled.  Kevin said that he got us tickets that were on the upper section, row AAA.  He thought that this might mean we were on the first row of the second deck.  He was partially right.  We were in reality on the first row...in front of the LAST row!  I really can't complain though, because it was still a great view of the game and we were pretty close to midcourt.  The second game, we actually went down and sat in Summer's brother's seats on the 4th row.  That was the closest I've ever sat at a college game.  It is such a different perspective and makes you realize just how huge those guys are. 

The rest of the time we were there, we basically got caught up on The Office, season 2.  I was skeptical of the show at first but after watching a few episodes and getting used to the characters we are really enjoying it.  "You heart NY don't you?"  We also went to a cool park and ran some pretty rugged trails.  I wasn't able to run much because my knee starting acting up.  That's becoming a more frequent event unfortunately as I approach my 30's. 

We also got to hang out with Jan's lifelong friend Sophia who is getting a PhD at Duke.  She's pretty cool as long as we're not talking Duke/UNC. 

Overall, we had a great visit with family that was needed and experienced some of the beautiful scenery in North Carolina.  We should do this more often!

Jan and I went to Vegas a couple of weeks ago and I'm just now blogging about it.  Deal with it ("D.W.I" as Chance would say.)  Anywho, we had a great time.  Jan was there for a whole week. She went for work because they sent her to the infamous trade show known as the "World of Concrete."  No, it's not an amusement park or a museum as you might think by the name.  Instead, it is the biggest trade show in the country and maybe the world, depending on who you ask. 

I arrived on Thursday to relieve her dad who had been there since Sunday.  We stayed in the Luxor hotel, and they had nice rooms.  The resort/casino was nothing fancy though, especially when you put it up against some of the others.  Have you SEEN the Belaggio or better yet, the Wynn resort?  Good grief!!  I was impressed by a lot of the structural sites and these two were by far my favorite.  Why not?  They only cost 2.5 - 3 billion to build!

We got to celebrate my birthday while we were out there.  Jan took me to see Blue Man Group as my gift and it did not dissapoint at all!  It was an amazing show, filled with awesome music supplied by their heavy percussive rock band, and filled with really cool multimedia visualities, all coupled with good humor by the group themselves.  They had a lot of crowd participation stuff too which made for a very unique experience.  (Thanks Jan for my awesome birthday gift!!)

We didn't blow too much coin on the slots, so we were able to chock (sp?) that up to entertainment.  Next time, I want to get to the point where I can just walk up to a blackjack table and go to town (with a limit of course.) 

The most random thing on the whole trip had to have been when we were on the airport parking shuttle and met last year's Miss California who had just come back from the Miss America pageant (she was a spectator this year) in Vegas. 

Enjoy our blue pics.

It's not just a new cheesy Fox drama coming this fall...it's also the real deal for me as I attended my 10 year high school reunion this past weekend in Tyler!  Robert E. Lee Class of 1995 baby.  It was a blast getting to see everyone that was there.  It really was like stepping back in time as there were so many people that just seemed the same to me, only they either had less hair, more gray hair (myself included in that category), kids (some of them 3 and 4!!), or all of the above.  It was amazing to me how many people lived in Tyler and several that were in Austin. 

There were a handful of people that I missed seeing there - Cory Turner, Ryan Goff, Sarah Garza (Hunsley), and Eric Smith.  I've lost touch with the first three, so if anyone knows how I can get touch with them and you are reading this then shoot me an email (don't post here.)

The biggest suprise of the night came when this guy came up to me and I immediately knew who he was even though he never went to my high school.  It was actually someone I went to Baylor with and had not seen since he left sometime in '98 I think.  Who was it?   None other than Brandon Welch!!!  Whoah!  What a random meeting seeing him at my high school reunion.  It was great seeing him and getting to talk quite a bit with he and his wife Holly Brady who I went to school with.  All of you Segues who don't believe me, I'll post a picture here shortly to prove that it was indeed Brandon.

UPDATE

Here's B-Dub and Tiny Brandon...

Last weekend, Jan and I celebrated our 2nd anniversary by staying at the bed and breakfast that we stayed at on our wedding night.  We had been talking about going back ever since we went the first time, mainly because we were only there for a brief time (we got there at 5:00 PM and left the next morning to catch our flight at 7:00 AM.)  So, I surprised her by booking a night and we had a great time.  I highly recommend the Inn Above Onion Creek in Kyle, which is just south of Austin.  It is a beautiful place and the food is excellent. 

Two highlights were the bluebonnets and the feather bed that we did belly flops onto before we checked out.  Check out the air I got below...

Jan and I got back from our Colorado get-away on Monday.  We had a great time spending a few days with Jan's brother and sis-in-law, Kevin and Summer.  We flew into Denver last Wednesday night and got up at 7AM the next morning to roll onto the slopes at Copper Mountain.  Jan and I went by ourselves and got our ski on for the one day.  It was fun for us since it had been several years since either of us had skied. 

That night, we ate at an awesome place called Zengos and had some "quality, not quantity food."  My very favorite was the mustard chipotle glazed beef short rib.  It was the most tender piece of fabulous meat I have ever eaten, so much that I wish I were eating it right now instead of typing this mouth-watering blog entry.

Then, we spent a few days in a beautiful cabin in Buena Vista.  There, we spent our time snow-shoeing, sledding, relaxing, eating great food, watching the UNC/Duke game, and even working on our application for the Amazing Race (more on that at a later time.)  It was awesome to just get away from everything and enjoy God's gorgeous creation.  I'll try to post a pic or two here later.

(I will have to post a separate entry and tell you about a couple of weird/funny things that happened while we were there.)

UPDATE:

As promised a couple of pictures...

(Us in Buena Vista)

(Us with Denver in the background)