Not in Kansas Anymore

My first blog entry. I think I have been waiting for a pithy title, and since this nod to Oz has been my mantra of the day, I decided the time had come...

As I walked through the grocery store today trying to decipher calories (known here as "energy" - sounds way better than calories, right? I am eating lots of "energy" not calories!) in various foods, I had my first real, "I think she's crazy" look from a store worker. I asked the woman in the green vest where I could find half-n-half. She looked at me like I was nuts. "You know, half cream, half milk..." Then her face shifted to dismay as she gave me the, "Oh, wow, you lazy Americans can't even mix your own milk products" look. I foolishly dared to ask her if they maybe had flavored cream for coffee (I miss my vanilla coffemate!) and this time I am sure she thought I was from a distant planet. I sulked away with my straight cream in hand - we will see how that works out in my morning coffee...

Speaking of coffee, I confess I miss a good cup of joe these days. When people ask if you want a cup of coffee here, they mean instant. My new friend Cathy was literally in shock that I had never had instant coffee before. "How do you make coffee?" she asked. She didn't even know what a coffee pot was (and she's a smart girl). She has an espresso machine, but no coffee pot to speak of. If you want something that happened to come from a filter, that would be the type of thing you'd pay money for in a coffee shop. And since I don't have any decent creamer to sweeten up my instant coffee anyway, I think I may just have to switch to drinking tea (with milk and sugar, of course).

We may not be in Kansas, but life over the rainbow is still pretty good. It feels right to be here. And though there are days I'd like to kick my heels and go home, I am glad to be here. But can someone please send me some coffemate??

(And, really Starbucks, Ready Brew??)

Taken for Granted

I (Rob) spent my first days off shopping yesterday and today. Unfortunately we found out a couple of days ago that we have to buy a washer, a dryer and a fridge. We thought they were going to be provided, but....guess not. So there cuts out around $5000 from what we would have for a car.

Buying a car has been challenging. All the brands are there, but the models are different. It is hard to know what car to trust and what we really need. All cars are smaller here in general. I saw a car today. Toyota Estima. It is New Zealand's version of the Previa. It was a decent car, but may have had a gasket leak, so I think I may hold off. I may be keen on a Mazda MPV at this point. We are looking to spend 12,000 NZD or less on it.

Yesterday was shopping for curtains. Who would have thought that could be hard? We went to three stores, looked at 17 billion fabrics, ready-mades, verticals, ventians, etc. We finally picked a mix of cheapy curtains and nice ones. I also decided to get an Iphone yesterday. The bummer being, you can't get it right away. I have to wait a few more days for them to ship it to me. Stores don't keep much stock here, so we have to learn to wait a couple days to get things. I guess this is delayed gratification.

I also went looking for many of the electronics we need today. What an overwhelming experience! Not only is everything super expensive, but there are so many brands and choices that I don't know. I am realising (that's how they spell it here) how much I take for granted the familiar things. You really don't think about how much you value something until you don't have it. Here there are different cars, stores, words and ways. It will take time to bring my attention to what I have gained over what I have lost. Interesting how life happens that way.

So I bought nothing today besides a laundry basket and a proper size coffee mug (total sale? 26 bucks!), came home and had a beer. A Monteith's Radler Bier.

A nice nose, fruity light and tart finish. Here's the description:

MONTEITH'S LEMON AND LIME FLAVOURED RADLER® is a refreshing fruity lager, based on the style brewed in Bavaria in the 1920's. In search of an invigorating brew, locals developed an easy drinking lager bier with a citrus twist - flavoured with lemon and lime. Monteith's Radler® faithfully recreates the experience, brewed to full strength with distinctive hoppy notes, a hint of natural lemon juice and a zesty citrus finish.

It added insult to injury when we found out our container is now delayed! It won't arrive to port till 3 May. That will be quite a bummer. It will delay our move in a bit and ultimately the feeling of settling in.

We are staying in Baker 6, one of the camp accommodations. It is one of the nicer spots, but not super comfortable. I look forward to having the "Colo:pete" back and to sit in the corner and relax. For now, I'm going to open another Radler and relax. Overall, we have much for which we are thankful. We have shelter, food and clothing. We have each other and that's more than most. We'll try not to take that for granted. Cheers!

First Days

We have arrived in New Zealand with all our fingers, toes and children.  That is good.  The flight was smooth and our last week was precious.  We got to see many wonderful friends and family and couldn't be more thankful for everyone making the effort to come see us.  

The flight was bumpy, but we are no worse for the wear.  The kids slept most of the way and that worked out nicely.  I on the other hand, did not sleep much at all.  I just can't seem to relax when my kids are unbuckled in a vehicle of any kind.  It is especially bad when its the kind that is cruising at 30,000 feet and traveling 500 miles per hour. 

I am sure it all goes back to the flight I took to Nova Scotia.  The plane had such severe turbulence at one point the attendants began screaming (you know its bad when that happens) and the drink cart went flying uncontrollably to the back of the plane before hitting the galley wall.  I remember it so well since I was sharply surprised by the sound of screaming directly followed by the feeling of weightlessness as the plane plummeted what felt like thousands of feet.  We were in a dive for what seemed like 90 seconds.  We jerked around after that and then the rest was (relatively) smooth sailing.

Maybe it was that memory, or just the excitement of the trip...I just don't know, but I didn't relax on the 13 hour flight.  I just imagined turbulence and Dillon (next to me) floating up in the air.  I had to stay awake to catch him if it happened.

Once we arrived, it was all good.  We were greeted warmly and made our way to Waikanae.  We stayed at the Country Patch a B&B owned by some of the camp trustees.  It was wonderful to spend a few days adjusting and resting before we jumped into our new life.

We have enjoyed many things so far:  Wonderful food (fish and chips for example), driving on the left side of the road (except for the instance that I turned down the wrong side into a shopping mall lot and got a few honks), touching the beach and the pacific from another side of the world, shopping in a Pak 'n' Save and feeling totally overwhelmed, learning a very different version of English, opening a bank account and living out of suitcases for far too long now.

First impressions?  It is just outrageously beautiful here.  The weather has been superb and the hospitality top notch.  We are truly feeling "sweet as". (the Kiwi expression for good)

I started work today and we are now residing at the camp in temporary accommodations. The kids are really enjoying the camp and playing with the other kids living here.  They have definitely found some new friends and are having fun. Work was somewhat standard.  I didn't feel like I knew what I was doing since there is so much location specific detail.  However, camps seem to have a familiar feel and I think I will manage as soon as I learn this camp's systems.  

I began our first morning tea by encouraging the staff that this camp belongs to God and that we are here to discover His dream for the place.  I read a passage from Ephesians 4 and invited everyone to commit themselves to the "unity of the Spirit and the bond of peace."  As I have been praying about what God's purpose for bringing us here is, the theme of unity has continually come up.   Our hope is to build and preserve the unity here in hopes that God will bless our efforts and grow his Kingdom.

There is much work to do and we will have our share of challenges.  Already one staff member has resigned since we arrived and I would not be surprised of others follow.  It will require much trust on our part to persevere in our new assignment.

More on this later, but it seems that the old prayer I offered some 3 years ago is now answered. I asked what was next for the Namba's in ministry.  El Rancho is what's next for now.