Good morning. I'm sitting here with my sweatshirt on hoping it warms up soon. These days have been mostly sunny, which makes for really cold nights and mornings-- lovely for sleeping in, a bit harder for getting out of bed. The other day I was wishing for a little space heater for our bathroom... then by noon you will sweat if work very hard!

Garry has had a very profitable time in Manila so far. He spent a lot of hours at the aviation government offices and got our helicopter pilot started on the licensing process as well as helped Brian get his temporary fixed-wing license. He turned in paperwork to do some work on the hangar up north in preparation for the helicopter flying from there. And he turned in paperwork to do a test flight in the C180. Seems like I'm forgetting something, but you get the idea-- long hours with a lot of things to think about!

Today Garry is driving north with a few other guys. They got an early start then stopped at McDonald's for breakfast at the end of the freeway... sounds like a great trip, doesn't it?! The pictures formed in your mind by that statement probably don't exactly line up with reality... but this road trip is one of the nicest we've done in the Philippines.

Which brings me to McDonalds.... we like going there because it reminds us of home. However, it isn't exactly the same. Meals come with a "regular" drink, which is the size of child's drink in North America. They serve fried chicken and rice here, which is the biggest seller. When you order a sandwich it's prudent to ask for it without something so you know it's fresh. Syrup for your pancakes comes in small carry-out plastic containers, with aren't sealed. And there is always a bottle of syrup sitting on the counter. One napkin, or should I say half-napkin, comes with a meal and you have to ask for more-- there aren't extras sitting anywhere. And, being foreigners you are a pretty interesting study to most people who come in. Similar, yes. The same, no! And where that tangent came from, I'll never know, unless it's cause I haven't had any breakfast yet!

These are some piles of bamboo for building at Kaamulan-- huge amounts of the stuff has been trucked in and turned into buildings!