The Local Wildlife

Okay,

I feel bad for the delay since my last post. The first few days have been a bit of a whirlwind. Party because of the transition and partly because I haven't slept much. You know that

feeling? Like being in a dream state. You do what you have to but are a bit unconscious and discombobulated.

I have been at least trying to post some status reports on Facebook.

Since my last post we have set up our mobile phones. For any brave souls

that would dare call, my number is +27 (72) 3431717.

I brought a blackberry with us so I have email access (dave@pocta.com), PIN message access (my Blackberry PIN is 21D63211), or you can SMS me. Connected.

We have spent some really great time with the Aguirres and Rentons over that last few days. I love that the kids hang out, outside all day, everyday. It has been fantastic! There is a TV in the house that is hooked up to a DVD player but no cable or satellite. It is nice. We did watch 13 going on 30 on DVD last night as a family (one of the many things that happens to girl dads).

Milo is adjusting to being one of three dogs at the house.

This is Tiga. She is a seven month old puppy that most are convinced is half-wolf. She is very playful and quite a bit intimidating as she doesn't realize her own strength. Every time she sees Milo she pounces on him to play but Milo isn't quite sure how to process

it. Freaks him out.

The other dog is named Petra.

She is aging and much more mellow but also very large. When Tiga and Petra start playing and fighting, it gets quite loud. They are big dogs (or as the South Africans say, they are "proper" dogs.)

The dogs take some getting used to but they do provide great security. I would not risk coming in the gate with them!

The house that we are staying in is very nice but also feels a bit like camping. We are renting it from a family that live in the Congo. They have a house here that they only stay in about a month during the year. It is about three times larger than the house we had in Mt. Prospect and has a pool. It is also surrounded by palm trees and lots of vegetation. The roof is made of thatch. It seems very African and a lot of houses here have it. It is cheaper and rustic but also attracts various pests.

The first night we were here, Hannah came to inform me about a spider that she saw in one of the bedrooms. I went to take a look but was not expecting what I saw. I had to take a picture. Here it is.

Okay, does it look big?

It was huge!

I would estimate it to be about eight inches across. I went to ask Eunice what to do about it. Eunice lives here

and takes care of the house. She is fantastic. She told me that it was most likely a rain spider. She went to get a bag and paper towel but by the time we went back upstairs, it was gone.

We affectionately named that room "the spider room." Fortunately it was the one bedroom that we were not using. Last night the spider returned. I took a broom and tried to kill it. I hit it once, hard! Knocked a leg off and it fled. I found it hiding behind the curtains and finished it off.

Mercy. It was a beast spider.

We have found other various "friends" in the house. The first night we had a little lizard. I have seen two praying mantises. Here is one of them.

I had thought about getting a macro lens for my camera but didn't. Kind of wish I had now to take great pictures of the bugs!

The other fun wildlife experience is the mornings. About 6 AM it begins to sound like a jungle. There are various birds that sing, chirp, and howl. The craziest is a bird the locals call the "hawdy daw."

It has an absolutely horrific and repetitive call. I already have it deeply implanted in my brain. I am working on my impression of it. Today, two of them landed in the yard. I tried to take a picture with my phone.

Here is what I got.

I will have to work on getting a real picture. Milo took off chasing them. They fled to the roof. I also tried to get a picture of them there. It is a bit more of a silhouette.

These birds look very prehistoric.

The next picture is from the kitchen looking outside. All of the window frames are metal and sliding glass door is gated. Security is a big deal here for safety. There is also a gate that locks between the bedrooms and the rest of the house.

On the chance that your house is broken into, you are safe. We are actually staying in a very secure area. They neighborhood has private security and this area is considered one of the safest in all of Johannesburg. Similar to Chicago, it is just important to be smart.

So, all in all...different!

Being that we just came off the easter season, I thought I would conclude with a photo of the palm tree outside the front door of the house. Of course, that is Milo walking in front of it. It was a rare moment that Tiga and Petra were absent.

I will post some more soon about the ministry here. I thought I would restrain myself from creating massive entries covering multiple topics.

Stay tuned...