This and That for January 2015

Fixing the wires up the street.

The close up of the workers.

Bugs Bunny College is probably a pre-school.

We got onto the bus and ahead of us was this picture of Christ with the inscription
"into thy hands I commend my spirit" and wondered if that was
supposed to help us feel safe.

Interesting architecture

Gotta love the colors down here!

A large variety of pears.

The land by our short cut trail has been cleared
 and now we aren't limited to a small path.

Amazing Edible Flowers

In the temple today, Hna. Rodriguez who comes regularly on Saturdays as a patron and twin to Hna. Margarita Rodriguez who serves in the temple on Saturday told me she had left some "gelatina" for me in the fridge.  I went to see what she meant. Berenice was there and Margarita and they both told me about the gelatin that was there and brought it out for me.  I was totally amazed by what I saw.  There was a clear small bowl that fit in the cup of my hand with a beautiful flower that looked like it was suspended in clear plastic.  I was totally surprised to learn that it was all made of edible gelatin.

I asked Margarita how it was made and she said her sister makes unflavored gelatin and poured it into the container and when it is set, she uses syringes to insert dye into the gelatin and makes the designs.  The flowers look real.  It takes a whole lot of artistic creativity to come up with these beautiful creations.  They seemed too beautiful to eat and she said a lot of people take photos of them before eating them.  I went to the locker for the camera and did just that.  I sliced through the gelatin with a little plastic knife and was curious to see the inside.  It was flavored with coconut and tasted good.

Paul was there and we shared one and decided to keep the other.  Margarita said her sister gives classes for 250 pesos each in her home to show how she makes these.  She said the sister’s daughter had gone on a mission and had watched someone make these gelatin designs and paid attention.  The daughter returned home and showed her mother how to do them.  Apparently there are places where they can buy these little cups with lids for not too much here.

Margarita Rodriguez

Berenice Vergara

Time to Clean the Water Tanks Again

This is Paul  trying to clean the 600 liter water tank on the roof. 

Then he had a better idea and climbed inside.

He used a brush to get all the algae off the sides of the tank.

We sucked the remaining water out of the tank with this vacuum.

Both tanks are clean and ready to fill with water again.

The Local Accountant

Sherryl's thoughts:

I have been reading Matthew in the New Testament and he is a tax collector.  I assume he is interested in numbers.  Paul is interested in numbers. Paul always knows what time it is but he also knows when we begin a task and when we end it and how long it took.  He knows that the temperature is now and what the low and highs will be for the day and how that compares to the temperatures the kids are facing in Texas and Utah.  He keeps track of all of the money we are earning and spending on our mission.  He knows how much change to expect and if they gave him the right amount.  He is bothered by clocks being not exact—like the temple clock, for example.  He explained things to Pres. Briones and had him move the temple clock back or ahead (I don’t remember which) by 4 minutes.  He is always aware of the temperature in the temple.  He knows that house numbers on one side of the street all end in an even number and those on the other side of the street are uneven.  When we have a car, he watches the mileage markers on the trips that we take and calculates what percentage of the trip we have taken and what percentage we have left to go.  He keeps a spreadsheet on how many ordinances we perform each day and keeps track if they are endowment or initiatory.  He also notes how many sessions have been cancelled and how many people were on the sessions where he officiates or I am a follower and the number of hours I spend helping with the laundry at the temple.  He checks our electricity meter as we enter the house and has a program on the computer to calculate and estimate the price we will be charged at the stated rates on our bill. He has noticed that they keep changing the rate structure. In the grocery store, they don't have the handy stickers that show the price per ounce in Mexico so Paul will figure out the prices per ounce or gram in his head.  He is aware that not all items in larger packages cost less per ounce.

I can see that person who is truly interested in numbers sees the world a lot differently than those without this gift.

Growing More Avocado Trees from a Seed

Sherryl had such good success with her first attempt
to grow an avocado tree from a seed that she decided to do it again.

This avocado tree is doing very well. 

Now she will plant three more avocado seeds with 4 inch roots
and is hoping for the best.

New Years Day - 2015

We decided to go exploring along Agua Dulce which is a road where we haven't walked before and we took photos of whatever caught our interest.  Our goal was to check out a golf course.

A mini mall with many English words.
We especially like "SafariFun--The Funniest Restaurant & Playground" caption.

We found a lovely park with kids' toys, a tennis court and shady benches.

The monument in the corner of the park honored two military men. 

We found the golf course but our path was barred by a fence and it was time to turn around.

 

Saw this sign and thought of Niki.

We saw a building through a fence and Sherryl said "it is either a school or a nursing home"  We found the front entrance and learned that it is indeed a nursing home. 

.

pretty yellow bird 

We were walking through a very nice and clean side street.

We thought this was a church and it probably is but as we walked further along the sidewalk
we discovered that is also a school.

New Years Day we went to the local theater to see the third film of "The Hobbit" series.
We went to the 3 p.m. show and were 2 of about 10 people in the theater.  When the show finished, the foyer and parking lot were packed.

The New Year has begun!