The flight Garry was preparing for last week when I wrote is happening as I sit here listening to the crackle of the radio and catching up with you! He actually left early this morning and got to his destination only to find that it was covered in clouds and they couldn't land. Half an hour later he and his passengers were back here at our home base and the passengers drove back to town.

Throughout the morning I was watching the weather satellite updates (Garry doesn't have internet at the hangar) and Lance was trying to contact one of the indigenous people to get a weather report. Lance was finally able to get in touch with someone around 1 pm and the weather satellite was also looking much better, so they decided to try again. This time they made it!

Garry will be on the ground there for a while because there has been a problem with the missionary's electrical system. They aren't sure what was wrong or if it will be easy to fix. But without electricity (theirs is actually a solar system, I believe) they have no form of communication so can't stay "home" very long.

Badminton update...

Many of you have mentioned how often we talk about badminton. It is rather interesting, not primarily for the game, but because of the opportunity it allows us to get to know people and get involved in their lives.

Over the Christmas holidays the boys joined two tournaments. Both were put on by our "Badders Club" and we enjoyed the time we spent with these new friends. The second evening ended on a fun note with a big dinner... roasted pig, chicken, noodles, spring rolls, and a few other traditional dishes. My friends wondered why I hadn't taken some of the crispy pork skin since it is their favorite part of the "lechon". I smiled and evaded the question.

On Friday evening we were invited to another party-- this time a birthday party for the mayor, I believe. They have a house outside of town complete with its own tennis court and badminton court. We were invited through a friend (a normal thing here!) and met the host only when we arrived. His birthday party was a 2-day affair complete with meals, a tennis tournament, badminton play, and I'm not sure what all else. Besides lechon (roasted pig), chicken, sandwiches, and vegetables they also served quail, which is a new meat to me.