There's nothing so good for you as dirt.

Many recent reviews of 'good bacteria' containing yogurts lead me recently to the consideration of investment. On futher pondering however, I realised that my organic vegetables come delivered in a rich source of 'good (possibly/hopefully) bacteria' included in the cost. As a result I decided against both the yogurts and washing the Rocket that arrived in last weeks box. Extra humous was used in my daily sandwiches instead, to disguise the taste. Without thinking twice, the same measure was carried out the remains of the rocket this lunchtime; only to discover a mouth full of soil by halfway through my roll. So it seems that the soil tends to sink to the bottom of the bag.

Even I admit I may have gone too far this time.

A hungry Vix

Mim's exciting adventure

This will be my third time to try to write and send this email, as before my computer has either crashed or the electricity has cut out - ah well it´s all part of the Nicaraguan experience!

The most part of last week and this week has been spent travelling round to
different communities and planting Nim and Acacia trees and pitaya plants.
The people we´ve visited have been really welcoming and grateful for the
trees that it really has been a joy. One guy we met was really enthusiastic
about his farm and showed us round his land - he had mangos, lemons, pitaya,
corn and beans growing. When we asked him if he sold his produce, he said
that he didnt because he believed that the earth and all of its produce
belongs to God. He had therefore decided to share his produce by giving it
to his neighbours as a demonstartion of God´s provision. What a principle to
live by! And I´ve seen this sort of attitude in other people too, they are
content with just making enough money to feed their family. There is also a
much greater emphasis placed on relationships and therefore a much stronger
sense of community. How different to the UK where life seems to be so
focussed on making as much money as possible to make life as comfortable as
possible, often at the expense of relationships and community life.

Today we went to another farm and helped locals dig a huge fish tank. Once
the tank is completed they plan to buy 300 fish for 1 cordoba each (about
3p), keep them 3 months till they´ve grown to full size and then sell the
fish for 10 cordoba each (about 30p). Although the land here is so fertile,
harvest can be ruined by a dry season, and so people are trying to develop
new ways to produce food. A fish farm sounds like a great idea to me, and
the people here really do need something to supplement their rice and beans
diet!

Most afternoons we are going to the deaf children´s home, and take crafts
and sports equipment with us. We have a lot of fun and are really getting to
know the kids. Last week we went to one of the members of staff´s birthday
party which involved eating ice cream and dancing. We taught them the YMCA
dance which made us feel like fools, but we gave it our best shot!

There´s one boy at the deaf home, who isnt actually deaf but has cerebral
palsy and is severely handicapped, called Mario. He is 15 but is so frail
that he looks a lot younger and sadly he spends most of his time lying in
bed with the light turned off. The women who work at the home clean and feed
him but give him very little attention or affection. Over the last few days
we have been trying especially hard to show that he is an important person
and one who should be loved as much as the other children. Yesterday we took
him in his wheelchair and out into the garden where the children were
playing. He giggled a lot and loved watching the children blowing bubbles.
It was great to see him being so resposive and hopefully the children and
staff will continue to include him in thier activities. Please pray for
Mario, and that we would be able to encourage the staff to show him love and
value.

Last Friday, Hannah, Sam, Jon and I went to Managua (capital of NIcaragua)
for an all night Christian youth event. This was a memorable experience that
started with the crazy 3 hour bus ride with other youth from churches in
Condega. The event was held at a university campus and was very charismatic
with worship, prayer, drama, dance and talks. Strong black coffee kept us
going till 3am and then we all drove back to Condega. It was great to be a
part of this event and to see how God is working in so many young people´s
lives here.

The water has been off here for the last 3 days so we´re all starting to
smell. Trying to wash out of buckets as best we can but it´s not the same as
a proper shower. There´s road work being done which explains the disrupted
water supply but it also means we have no idea when its going to come back
on.

I could go on and on about all the things we´re seeing and doing, but I´ll
stop here. Nicaragua is such a beautiful country and we really are having
such an amazing experience, there is such a lot to learn from these people.

1000 miles in a week

I reckon I've travelled well over 1000miles in this past week.
Since landing in Heathrow airport just over a week ago (yes they let me through the security!)
I have been from :
Heathrow to Pembrokshire - Malawi Training weekend
Pembrokeshire to Cardiff - visiting vix and Fobbs (plus i managed to lose my wallet!)
Cardiff to Bristol - visiting Bethy (where we baked cookies)
Bristol to Frome - visiting my parents
Frome to Leicester - visiting my almost grandparents
Leicester to Ripon - visiting my brother on camp where i spent 12hrs washing up!!
Ripon to Nottingham - to visit Elisa
Nottingham to Frome - to rest and sleep and to pack for the next adventure
and tomorrow i will be going back to Heathrow again.

So tomorrow i set off for Malawi! All very exciting! Can't wait!

Love
Hx

ever the comforter

Victoria seems to have taken a few lessons from Job's comforters. Having been informed Fobb's neck is tinged yellow she sent two messages:
"R u sure the ga hasn't screwed over ur liver!" 18 Aug 2006 15:34
"Reckons ur heads gona fall off!xx" 18 Aug 2006 15:37

Fobb's operation

Just to let all her fans know that Fobb's operation went smoothly. She spent a comfortable night in hospital before being dispatched. Currently her jaws are elasticated together which is making speaking rather difficult but she has permission to remove them for eatage purposes which is a huge relief for some people (including Dr Oliver) who fear she may otherwise disappear... Special thanks to all those who have prayed, phoned, texted, visited, sent cards, flowers and juice... all token of God's love.

Fobbit/chip-munk

It is a pity I alone currently get to appreciate the beauty that is the fob/chip-munk like creature dwelling in our home. I shall attempt to obtain photo's later, the maxillofacial surgens have created a work of art!

Vx

Expansion of job description

I'm no longer solely responsible for supervising biscuits, but my post has expanded to include the interviewing of potential window cleaners. After selecting four suitible applicants, I invited them all in for a look...and chose the cutest.

All in good days work!

Vix

Some people call me the space cowgirl!

I'm currently sitting in front of the slowest computor in the world, the ones in Romania were about 10x faster, listening to the music station my sister has left on (Ocean fm) the space cowboy was on just now hence the title of this blog.

I arrived home on Sat night after 17hrs travelling, I did stop for a cup of tea in the international hostel and the A3 was closed at Woking so I saw a great deal more of the home counties then I possibly wanted. My sister's floor is very comfortable, Baptiste has mine. For those interested (Beth) Baptiste now eats peas and a few other vegetables, fruit is still inedible in the world of Baptiste.

My mother has volunteered me as the firstaider at DABS- children's club in my village- about 300 kids, mwahahahahaha , I've refused to do Thurs or Fri as have things to do in Cardiff but tomorrow and Wed I'm going to be chief plaster bearer.

Everyone is back from shopping now so I'll have to go help put stuff away,

La revedere

Fran
xx

irresistable beauty

Recognising the irresistable beauty that is locked up within the walls of the Heathfield House we are being harressed, one by one, by photo shoot companies to take up their 'free' prizes. Today I only managed to deter them by insisting I am having facial reconstruction within the next few weeks.

Lx

making money- ways and means

The ways and means of making money are fascinating to consider. Within the house we seem to have various approaches: salaried work for those who enjoy house pottering; temping work (call phone centres/ reception duties/ biscuit monitor/ skiving early), auxillary nursing, a parent's angel (thats me by the way- Mum is working hard to appreciate the Peacock Blue I've painted the front door!!). And some haven't quite got round to making any...

Lx

short men

Urchin and Play Boy (aka students living in 'The International Hostel for the Priveleged') are wonderful examples of short men: the way in which both asert their masculinity by making the walls of my room shake as they climb the stairs is incredible. I especially appreciate this as my early wake up call each day.

Lx

These days of enlightenment

So as my third week of working here in the law firm closes to an end, a new discovery is made. It turns out I'm actually suposed to work 1-6:30, not 1-6.

Oh well, what can you do?!!

Vix
xx

Drawing to a close...

Just realised that, what with the sudden influx of exciting post from the other heathfield girls, i haven't actually posted anything on here for nearly 2weeks!! Craziness! (though i have appreciated having a whole post dedicated to me vix!)

So Brasov time is coming to an end...its been a good two weeks - the summer school with the young people has been great fun! Think we just about managed to get across the point of the Joesph story to them!

We had a very exhausting adventure to Sinaia (correction from frannie's spelling) today, early start, hot day, not enough water! But the castle/palace was much more impressive than i remember it to be - though the last time i was there, 3yrs ago, it was covered in snow and about -20degrees!

I'm going to have fun loading frannie up with my stuff to take back to cardiff tonight! Can't quite believe I've only got one week left here - time has gone fast, yet slow at the same time.

Zoezoe and I are doing our last bit of adventuring tomorrow when we set off again to arad to work with street kids till thurs, then i fly back a week today!

Miss you too vix!
And miss everyone else too!
the hannah lady
xxxxxxx

My last day in Romania (and Hannah's last in Brasov)

Hello everybody, Daf, I would love to come and work in A&E for you but I think the GMC might have a different opinion.

This is our last day in Brasov and so we went on an adventure to Sinea, unsure on spelling, to visit the summer castle of the first Romanian king-Carol 1, previously a German prince. His grandson the ex king Micha is still alive at 84 apparantly. The guide was very proud of the castle and showed us all the modern bits, lifts, central heating and a central vaccuum cleaner, all in place since the turn of the last centuary.

Romania is a funny place, it was once very advanced, as can be seen from the castle, but has suffered a bit of a setback and is only just getting back on it's feet. The buildings are either really old or very new, just like the cars. People either have a rusty old Dacia or a brand shiny new western European car. (There are some brand new Dacias but they make my eyes hurt because they are squashed into a slightly shorter, taller shape than all the others.)

The contrasts between different places in the country are amazing. To get home in a bit we'll catch an electric tram to the edge of the city. At the terminus the likelihood is we'll get into the back of any car which is going to the village (the norm is to stop and offer) and pay the driver (always a him) 1 lei (20p.) It is at this point that the journey becomes most exciting. To avoid the potholes everyone drives in the middle of the road, zooming past the horsedrawn carts and swerving at the last minute to avoid the oncoming traffic. The road markings stop at the edge of the city so from then on it's everybody for themselves.

This evening we are going out for a meal and packing, I think my luggage is going to be a lot heavier coming back as my bag is going to be full of books and things belonging to Hannah and Zoe.

Love

Fran

xx

A strange thing about biscuits

So I think I've finally caught on to the fact that I'm the biscuit supervisor at work. I believe I'm supposed to stop greedy employees eating them all, since they are actually for clients. However, I've spent the last three weeks handing them out willy-nilly, whilst munching away at them happily myself, and keeping the fridge stocked.

It's only moments ago, when my boss came and asked my nicely if she could have a biscuit, that I realised that maby they're not for free access.

I guess that's why the key to the cupboard they're locked in sit's in my desk draw.

Interesting.

Vix

to be imp-ed or not to be imp-ed?

The impish activities of Fobbs' computer have finally been sorted. Praise the Lord! Our kind friend Dave visited this morning and showed me that if I actually log on to McAfee rather than skip the password bit I can access the internet! How clever is that?! So it seems that my computer hasn't been imp-ed. This may be the beginning of epic bloggage on my part...

Fobbs xx

The Hannah Lady

Due firstly to the lack of anything to actually do at work, and secondly sleep deprivation leaving me unequiped to revise, I have been scrolling through past blogs. Seeing you in those stunning pj's, with beautiful face slapped around a big fat chocolate cake, reminds me how much I miss you Hannah Lady! Not long now though!

Not that I don't miss the rest of you, it's just that Hannah's been gone for longer.

xx

Inset bites

First off, I should clarify a few things from previous posts/comments.
Vix, you are a FATTY, in fact I think that you are queen of the fatties.
My Romanian is amazingly bad, in fact it is non-existant except that I know that a pig is una porc and a cow is una vache and a stamp is una timbra and a ticket is something like una biletta, I don't know how to spell them though. I know please and thankyou as well but there's no way I'm even going to attempt the spelling.

I have only been bitten once by a Romanian insect so far and I aim not to have anymore. The bite is located on my left lateral calf and is 2cm in diameter ( the raised bit anyway) the edges are well demarcated and the lump is firm, tender, itchy and fixed in the skin. There is a central red punctum surrounded by paler lump. Around the edge extending a further cm from the lump is an area of redness. It is lovely.

I hope everyone is having fun, it rained here briefly today, coming as quite a shock. The air smelt lovely afterwards.

Fran
xx

One of those nights

Those of you who've had the beautiful experience of living with me, will perhaps know how great my sleeping (in)ability is.

This combined with my tremendous capacity for food resulted in my having my last meal at mid-night last night, my first breakfast @ 4 o'clock this morning, my second @ 6:30 and my 3rd @10:30. I'm currently enjoying a slab of banana cake for lunch (1:51).

Does the word 'fatty' spring to mind?

Vix

In Romania

As I type this in the internet cafe in Brasov (it has a cedilla style thing under the s so you say it brashov) Hannah is next to me typing an epistle to everyone she has ever met and Zoezoe is opposite me behind the computor. We went to a church this morning where they provided headphones for an english translation- very handy as my romanian is not all that good.

Today's lesson:
I am-sunt
You are- esti
He/she is- este
We are- suntem
You (pl) are- sunteti
They are- sunt

Hannah and Zoe are both very brown and possibly very tired as they have been doing lots of exciting things and claim to have been nearly mauled to death by dogs yesterday, the phrase 'mad dogs and english (ladies) go out in the midday sun' has just popped into my head. (claim! It's actually true - it was very close - I had to do a lot of reasoning in Romanian with the owner of the SIX BEASTS to avoid being mincemeat!) the number of dogs involved in this story increases with every retelling.

We caught a crazy minibus from the village into town this morning, my favorite part of it was the HUGE smash in the front windscreen with cracks covering half of the window. I think I'd prefer to travel in the back of the horsedrawn carts only the potholes and drivng skills shown by the car drivers puts me off somewhat. Everybody is very friendly and patient with me and my general stupidity.(frannie's not done anything too stupid yet - though i'll keep you posted! She is wearing a very cool skirt though that i am trying not to covet!!Hannah) 'tis my one from the fair trade shop in Cardiff, I will lend it to Hannah so she can wear it as well.

I passed the year, as did both Hannah and Zoezoe so we are now grown up nearly 4th years, watch out if you need to visit a welsh hospital as a patient anytime soon.

Stand-by for further updates as the week progresses and we have more inspiration.

Fran (and Hannah a bit)

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx