February 17th

It was a muggy night, probably the muggiest of all so far. Didn't sleep as good but still slept some. Most of the nights have been pretty cool but not last night. Have been getting bites on my feet at night from some kind of bug, not sure what. I was told that it wasn't a bite but some kind of small bug that burrows into your skin and then leaves finds a new place and burrows again. Not sure why they burrow in and out but not sure I really want to know. I put the Blood Stone on one of the bites to see what it would do, it stayed on for about an hour and I accidentally knocked it off. The bite quit itching and the bump went away. The rest of the bites still have bumps and still itch. If only I had about 20 Blood Stones, then I could put them on all the bites.

Today was set aside as a day to go to Accra and get our barrels. It is a day long process as we will spend much of the day traveling. We had planned since Friday to pick up the barrels on Wednesday (today). We decided to call yesterday afternoon to make sure the barrels were ready, when we called we were told that they are not ready. They said that the container has not gone through customs yet and should be ready tomorrow. Point being we couldn't go and get them as planned. So today I am a teacher not an electrician or construction worker. I have been helping Kelly with the girls schooling. I helped Lyndsey with her Math, Spelling and a bit of Health. I have learned that there is no need to be in a hurry here as it will only prove to frustrate you. Nothing seems to be on any kind of schedule here, so you learn to be patient. It is hard to come from a routine based lifestyle to the Ghanaian lifestyle.

I think I am going to have to start driving or sitting behind Chad in the backseat as he drives, my right arm is really tanned and my left is not as dark. I think I need a little balance in my life, lol!

O.K. enough talk, lets see some pictures, I know that is what you are thinking. Before I show you pictures I need to apologize for my grammar and spelling errors. I am terrible at grammar so please forgive me if I do not write well, I will try to do better in the future.

I think I already mentioned that we went to see the Kente Cloth Weavers. It was quite interesting to see them work. While we were there one of the weavers let Taylor have a go at weaving the cloth. So here she is doing her best. After she tried of course the rest of the kids wanted to try. The man was more than happy to let them each have a go at it. The people here are truly very friendly and happy to meet you. Everywhere we go we are welcomed by all who see us. You can tell from their voice that they are being genuine.

On the way back from Petue Village (pronounced petway where they make the Kente Cloth) I spotted this guy on the side of the road. It is quite unusual looking, I think it is some kind of Turkey but I am not sure. If anyone has a better idea than I do please let me know!

There is always something cool happening here, I was just about to send this blog to the web when Lyndsey came running in the house telling me that I needed to come outside as something really cool was happening. She said it looked like a volcano was erupting. I grabbed my shoes and my camera and ran outside. Ho Mountain the mountain that I was just on the other day is burning. Someone has set the side of the mountain on fire and from this distance it looks like a volcano is erupting. It really is quite cool to see in person, the photos do not do it justice but I will try and post them tomorrow anyway.

I also just found out that we cannot get our barrels and are put on a waiting time. I guess there is some papers that they need from a bank in Ohio for some part of the shipment. They will not unload the container until all the papers are in order. The problem is that the bank in Ohio is closed due to the snow. It is ironic that we are here in the 100+ degree weather and the snow in Ohio is causing us problems.

Pray that the bank will be open tomorrow and that they will be able to get the papers that they need. I am a teacher again tomorrow.

If it does not rain here before Saturday we are going to climb Mt. Adaklu, we are bringing a video camera and will make some videos for you to see. Hopefully we will be able to upload them.

Kelly just reminded me that we are about to run out of water, the city water is off for some reason and has been for over 24 hours now. We have a tank that will hold us for a couple of days but if we don't get the water soon we will be out of water. Pray that it comes on soon.

Gary Phillips and family.