Independence Day

Thank goodness we're still a country so we can have an excuse to blow things up in celebration! I headed up Bridger canyon for some holiday fun with the Tack family. They have some land across from Bridger Bowl and the view was lovely...
I found myself, on more than one occasion, gazing longingly at the snow which still covers the South Bowl and the Fingers off the Pierre's Knob chairlift. I may have even done a few turns in my imagination until the blistering summer sun jerked me back to reality.

In other festive news, I gave it the old college try at a game of horseshoes. There's something so elementally satisfying about hucking hunks of metal through the air. I did my best to exhibit champion horseshoe form as you can see here, which naturally includes the 'try-hard face'. That, or I'm hailing a cab... or giving my best neo-nazi salute... or attempting to make my head look smaller by waving about my humongous hands!




That night I watched the fireworks from the top of Peet's Hill where I had a pretty good view of not only the main show, but all backyard incendiary jubilee across the city. The picture isn't mine, but it gives a pretty good idea of what it looked like from where I was at.

Then it was on to camping beside a lake in the Tobacco Roots. The Brownings and some of their friends made up the crew, and we had a great time. Linz, Guildy, Hadley and I shared the small tent near the fire, and I was transported back to the days when Linz and I could sleep sardine-style in a 1950s hospital bed without touching. That was a feat to boggle the mind, let me tell you.

Here's where I caught Linzy with her pants down...
Guildy and I sharing a fireside chat. I'm drinking wine out of a used plastic fruit cup. Classy, I know.

It was a great time and a lovely way to spend the weekend: food, family, friends and fishing. It doesn't get much better than that!

And we're back...

I thought that since my last postings had to do with the Brownings, I might as well get back at it again with them as the stars!
Guildy's 3rd birthday was on the 13th and we had a whale of a good time. We enjoyed a delicious angel food cake with mixed berries and whipped cream.


When Guildy had finished her cake, she asked excitedly, "Do I get to open my treasures now?!?" The answer was YES! She and Adelyn had a nice time creating collaborative art with the new magnadoodle.


The big girls and the little girls (boy Anderson in utero) sat down for a little photo shoot. With that many people--several of which lack the subtle dexterity required to look at the right camera at the right time with the right facial expression--and the guys handling the viewfinder, it's amazing that we were able to get a good one.


I can't tell you what was happening at this exact moment, but I know there are enough creative readers of this blog who could suggest an appropriate caption!



One of the great things about having the Brownings back in the Big Sky state is getting to know Hadley. The last time I saw her she was an eerp-machine who like to suck on her wrist a lot. Things have changed a bit as you can tell from the many faces of Hadley:

Along the road

I got to ride into La Ceiba, the nearest city, several times. Here are a few of the sights along the way.
The Plancha is the only major river crossing without a bridge. It doesn't look like much here, but with a couple days of rain, it becomes too deep to cross.


The places where there are bridges aren't all that reassuring! This used to be a railroad bridge for trains bearing bananas from the local plantations. And I used to think the bridge going to Wolf Point was narrow!

A number of the locals have cattle, a brahma-like breed with big, floppy ears. Farmers milk them, but were unable to transport the milk on their own to anyplace where they may have been able to sell it and make a profit. That was until this milk cooperative was built. Now the farmers pool their resources and are able to, together, afford the costs of moo-ving it. Now they each have a little milk money to put away... okay, okay, I'll stop with the puns =)


Of a finer construction than most buildings in the area, this six-seater outhouse cracked me up (just one more, okay?). As you can see, there are only two doors. And I'm taking the picture from the car! The perplexing thing to me is that there isn't anything on the other side of the building. Why not just face the thinking rooms AWAY from the prying eyes of the traveling public? I'm sure there's a reason, I just have no idea what it could be!

Gettin' Around

This is the gate to the hospital. It is manned by a guard at all times and serves as a triage. If you follow the road up the hill along the left, you can see a corner of the hospital in the distance. If you take the road that branches off to the right, you will find a number of houses for the doctors, nurses, and other staff.


This is the hospital itself, with the main entrance to the daily clinic just off-screen to the right. The building is a large square with an open courtyard in the center. The steeple-like thing you can see is a small covering for a chapel area in the center.


If you've ever had to pound in a mile of fence posts, you know how great it would be if the fence just sprang up out of the ground by itself. Well, in Honduras, it practically does. When a branch from this tree is cut off and stuck in the ground, it immediately starts growing. It sprouts branches and sends down roots with amazing rapidity. Here you can see how the "fence post" has grown around the barbed wire! The branches can also be cut, dried, and used for firewood. Talk about a renewable resource...

Eating Out - Honduras Style

We made grand plans one night to treat ourselves to dining out at one of the local restaurants. While we may be accustomed to strolling into an eatery, casually perusing page after page of menu items, and then ordering not just our hearts' desire, but all the particulars that go with it - no onions, if you put mushrooms on it I'll die a horrible and unnatural death, etc - this is not how it works in Balfate, Honduras. The "ordering" happened several hours in advance so the cook has time to buy the food, if necessary. It is at this time that you must designate your choice du nuit: chicken or fish. (Saying it in French makes it sound better, doesn't it?)

We met up with Mike & Peggy Yost and had a grand time with fried chicken, beans, rice, and tortillas. Mike works with Josh doing maintenance work while Peggy works at the hospital. The two empty plates were set out for Samuel & Kristel, but they found food somewhere else that night. They missed out!

On the way, we stopped to pick up a car seat for Hadley. While Josh & Linz & Hadley went inside and visited (it was only supposed to take a minute - we all know how that goes!). Guildy and I finally resorted to playing with the only thing available in the dark cab of the Keychain Car: my camera. This is only one of many, but the only one appropriate for a public forum. You know how crazy toddlers can be...

Video

Okay, through a complicated process which involved two countries, three states, two power outages, my less-than-watertight memory, and one fantastic cousin, we've got a short video up on YouTube for your viewing pleasure.

http://www.youtube.com/sistroll

"Hadley's First Week" should be the video already loaded on the page, but if not, you'll see it below.

Enjoy!!

New Year's Eve

For New Year's, we slipped next-door to Iain and Liz's house for a Scottish-American-Honduran celebration. We had Banana pop, potato salad, fried plantains, and haggis. Now, I had heard of this thing called 'haggis' but had never tried it, not even when I was in Scotland. For those of you who may not be familiar with this national dish from the land o'the Scots, here is the official description from the dictionary:

Scottish dish consisting of a sheep's or calf's offal mixed with suet, oatmeal, and seasoning and boiled in a bag, traditionally one made from the animal's stomach.

Mmmmm! Finger-lickin' good! It's really not as bad as it sounds - I found it surprisingly delicious. I may even have to track some down here and enjoy it on a more regular basis. Here is our jolly host, Iain, in his red "HOT STUFF" chef's hat. The brown stuff on the plate is the haggis.


We ate and enjoyed each other's company while listening to traditional bagpipe music as well as the more contemporary sounds of The Peatbog Faeries. Samuel is Iain and Liz's biological son (center). Jayson and Ana also live with them.


A lovely time was had by all, as we rang in the New Year (at about 9pm Honduras time)!

Marguerite Church

This morning we joined Norma at the church she has been working at in a nearby town. Language barriers are the darndest things, but a smile and a hug for a child can go a long ways. Samuel and Kristel finally made it here. . . without their luggage, of course. Kristel and I helped with the small children's Sunday school class. It was snotty noses and a lot of crayons for me. Without any language resources to draw on, I resorted to just saying "bueno" over and over again. This picture is of Samuel and I with the pastor's children between us.



Jayson is the boy behind Samuel. He was taken from a sexually abusive situation and lives with Iain and Liz, the next-door neighbors that are hosting me. He's only 8 and has been through difficult things, but is a happy and healthy little boy. Iain and Liz are the Developmental Directors here of a children's home that is currently under construction.



The main building will be for individual children, though not structured as an orphanage. Their vision is to operate it more along the lines of foster care, with the rehabilitation of families as their main focus. The smaller houses surrounding it will operate as a type of Ronald McDonald houses, where families can stay while they or their children are receiving long-term care at the hospital.
Iain and Liz will be welcoming a 1-year old into their home within the next couple of days. Her mother is severally mentally handicapped - she has the mental capacity of a 4-year old. Someone, however, has fathered this child and she is expecting to deliver another within the next few weeks. Unable to care for her first child, Iain and Liz have been given the next few months to care for the child. Since I'm sort of living with them at the moment, my nanny duties are about to grow!