Basinger News

Obsessed with Power

2011-12-12T18:13:00.010-05:00

I have been teasing matt that he's become "obsessed with power" these past 6 months, that is, if power=electricity. :)

The good news is that Matt's hard work has paid off! All 8 SharedSolar systems are now operational and are providing dependable electricity to a couple hundred people in rural Uganda! Zeph, Emmanuel, and I decided to join Matt on Friday to take a look at each system and help with photo-documentation for Matt's official report. I won't bore you with all of the pictures of the technical details (sorry, engineers...Matt will have to fill you in on that later). But, I will share some of the fun snapshots taken along the way...

...we piled into the care for the 1.5 hour drive (which Matt has made almost every week day)

See the way those matoke bananna trees flood down the hillside?

Boys bringing home supper:

Here's Zeph exploring the system in Ruhirra

We walked through this corridor on our way to the market in Nactunda, where SharedSolar has a system set up. The brick walls were so picturesque!

Zeph's favorite activity, of course, was finding lots of other kids to play with...

...and spending as much time as he could with his best friend, Emmanuel...

It was a beautiful and exciting day marking the completion of Matt's project.

We only have two days left in Uganda and we are cherishing every moment that we have left even as we also look forward to what lies ahead.

Mr. Blue Eyes

2011-12-06T14:10:00.003-05:00

Here are some recent pics of Zeph...

...wearing only his beloved new shoes...

...playing outside...

...and brushing his teeth (his favorite part of the bedtime routine)...

What am I learning about community?

2011-11-30T17:11:00.009-05:00

I'm continuing to reflect on my experiences throughout the past 6 months in Uganda and today I am thinking about community.

My primary community here in Uganda is our house community, which includes Jessica and Diego and Maya (our house mates and their dog); Abia, Juliet and her 8 year old son-Emmanuel, (who work for us and live in our same little compound), and William; and Matt, Zeph, me. Living together has brought the biggest blessings and the most challenging struggles.

As and extrovert, I have loved having people around all the time. Although Matt is usually at work for long hours, I get to eat breakfast and lunch with Jes & Diego. I spend much of my day interacting with Juliet and Abia. As soon as Emmanuel gets home from school, he joins us and spends the afternoon playing with Zeph.

During our short time together, Juliet lost her oldest son, Abia has had a miscarriage, and Jessica lost her mother, and William's wife got pregnant with their 6th child...so we've lived very significant, life-shaping experiences together. I have seen how much comfort the "ministry of presence" can bring and how hard it is to offer that ministry.

Shortly after arriving in Uganda, I read this quote by Henri Nouen on a friend's blog: "More and more, the desire grows in me simply to walk around, greet people, enter their homes, sit on their doorsteps, play ball, throw water, and be known as someone who wants to live with them. It is a privilege to have the time to practice this simple ministry of presence. Still, it is not as simple as it seems. My own desire to be useful, to do something significant, or to be part of some impressive project is so strong that soon my time is taken up by meetings, conferences, study groups, and workshops that prevent me from walking the streets. It is difficult not to have plans, not to organize people around an urgent cause, and not to feel like you are working directly for social progress. But I wonder more and more if the first thing shouldn't be to know people by name, to eat and drink with them, to listen to their stories and tell your own, and to let them know with words, handshakes, and hugs, that you do not simply like them, but truly love them."

This is the challenge of community: knowing that I am being overheard when I am having an argument with Matt, listening to friends when I just put Zeph down for a nap and have only a few precious moments of free time, having patience to engage teaching moments with Emmanuel even when I don't feel like stepping into the "village raising a child" context.

Speaking of a "village raising a child," there are also wonderful benefits to this aspect of community. I love knowing that there are eyes on Zeph almost everywhere he goes. When Zeph wanders into the front yard, I can hear him interacting with William, who often stops to take Zeph on an exploration around the yard to see all of the interesting plants and bugs. When Zeph wanders into the living room, Emmanuel reads him stories and carries him around and makes him laugh. When Zeph wanders into the back yard, I hear Juliet encouraging him and talking with him about how he's becoming such a big boy. Abia often picks Zeph up distracts him while I cook dinner. Many hands and many eyes really do help and I must say that Uganda is a fabulous place to raise a 16 month old. :)

Another community that I am a part of is the local "mom's group"; I have felt incredibly welcomed and supported by the group of expat moms in Mbarara. They have provided me with phone numbers for all needed contacts, they have given me rides to play groups, they have invited me over for dinner, they have cared to know my story. I love the growing friendships that have blossomed out of such an international, diverse community with women from Canada, South Africa, Australia, Holland, Switzerland, and the UK. And I have been reminded that friendship is a choice; that wonderful relationships can grow with people who are very different from me. Also, I have seen (as the outsider stepping in for a few brief months and then stepping out again) how important it is to reach out to those who are new to a context. I want to show the same welcoming spirit to others that I have experienced here.

Community is hard work...and it's well worth the effort.

Thanksgiving in Uganda: Grasshoppers and Snow Ball Fights

2011-11-27T14:49:00.016-05:00

On Friday, we had the pleasure of attending a Thanksgiving celebration with 70+ friends! Jill and Joel Skinner, who live just up the street from us, have a tradition of inviting local and expat friends to join in their holiday festivities each year.

Everyone brought yummy food to share and the spread included all the tradition US dishes PLUS some local delicacies, most notably: GRASSHOPPERS! That's right. It's grasshopper season here in Mbarara. You can buy yourself a bag of freshly fried little critters just about anywhere you look. Or, you can catch your own from the swarms in your house and yard. They actually taste better than you'd think; you just have to make yourself forget that you are chewing on an insect. :)

Joel welcomed the group...

Meanwhile, Zeph led Matt on an exploration of the beautiful yard...

After the scrumptious meal, the much-anticipated games began! The Skinners' tradition of having a SNOW BALL FIGHT was a big hit. They created the "snow balls" by filling nylon stockings with flour and then piling the balls in a central location. Then, Joel invited all participants to encircle the balls and explaind, "There are no rules. Just have fun!" The balls were hoarded and thrown over and over again. We'll definitely take this tradition with us to Indonesia.

Here's Jill rallying the troups, saying, "Come on! You don't want to miss this!"

And then, delightful chaos ensued:

Here are some more faces of friends who have become dear to us in the last few months. It's going to be sad to say goodbye!

Happy Thanksgiving!

How is my understanding of God growing?

2011-11-23T17:10:00.009-05:00

" I wonder if in this world of easy come, easy go, of sliding among places and meanings without alighting on them for very long, we don’t lose internal focus…we risk being overwhelmed by what Milan Kundera calls “the unbearable lightness of being.” It is the illness that comes to unanchored people, those who travel perpetually to new moments and sensations and to whom no internal feeling is more important than another.” — Eva Hoffman, Wanderers by Choice

As we come to the end of our time in Uganda (only 3 weeks left now), I get the chance to practice some of the things that I always encourage international, short-term visitors to do in order to intentionally struggle against the un-anchored, relativistic, lost state mentioned above.

I'm going to spend the next few weeks reflecting on some questions that Tim Dearborn and Tami Anderson, two of my wonderful mentors, have challenged me (and many others) with in the past.

Starting with: How has my understanding of God grown in the last six months?

The first thing that comes to mind is how my eyes have been opened to the BIGness, intentionality, and trustworthiness of God. I have been studying the book of Revelation (with the help of Tim Keller sermons and Eugene Peterson commentaries) and I've been in awe of the triune, creator God who has pursued me from the beginning of time and who desires me to be involved in his work of redeeming this broken world. There is immeasurable hope and joy that comes with knowing that God is working against the unraveling of creation and working towards creating a new heavens and new earth where "everything sad will come untrue" (in the words of Sam in Lord of the Rings).

The story of scripture, and the culmination of that story in the book of Revelation, shows God to be perfectly loving and just and trustworthy. Even in the midst of a week where a friend has lost her mother and another friend has lost her baby...even when the man who sold me carrots this morning was desperate for just additional 25 cents to get back to his village where he could plant more vegetables to sell...even as I see our neighbor's growing up with their father far away since no work can be found nearby...even then, I know what the future (eventually) holds...and that brings great hope.

I've also loved learning about God as I watch Zephaniah grow. The other day I read Psalm 8 which says, "from the lips of children and infants, I have ordained praise." And, it's true! Zeph's giggles and squeals of delight in exploring the world are songs of praise and I get a front row seat to his concert.

And, finally, I've been really challenged to remember that God desires quality time with me. Uganda is a quality-time culture. When people are celebrating (weddings. etc.), EVERYONE is invited to come and EVERYONE stays at the party for the entire day. When people are grieving, family and friends drop what they are doing to be with the one experiencing the loss. When people are worshiping, they do it exuberantly and for hours on end! I have realized that part of the reason I feel so annoyed when my Ugandan friends ask me to come to church with them for every lunch-hour service (which is really 3 hours) and every friday-night over-night service (from 10pm to 4am) and every 3+ hour Sunday service, etc., etc...is probably partly because I am feeling guilty about the little time that I spend with the Lord.

I think I'll call it quits for now since it's 2am and Zeph will be waking up all too soon! More reflection to come later...

Deep in the Matoke Fields

2011-11-22T13:07:00.009-05:00

William bikes two hours (each way) to work as the groundskeeper out our house. He is the father of 5 with one more on the way...and he's my age! Needless to say, he's a hard worker and a busy man.

William and his wife are Islamic and they invited us to visit their home during the recent Muslim Holiday of Eid al-Adha, which commemorates Abraham's obedience to God. They live in a village surrounded by matoke fields (matoke is the staple starch in the part of the country...it's sort of like a plantain banana).

Here you see Diego and William in front of William's House...

Amongst the matoke fields...

This is William's family...

Jessica, Diego, and Matt enjoy the afternoon conversation...

Everyone was very welcoming of Zephaniah...

Zeph kept the kids busy as he explored the house...

Shanea, William's oldest daughter, took Zeph under her wing. She showed Zeph their goats and Zeph quickly became very attached to her.

William is making mud bricks to build a chicken coup so that he and his family have another source of income. Making bricks by hand is tedius, back-breaking work. He showed us how it is done...

William, Hennifa, and their family were wonderful hosts and we thoroughly enjoyed our time with them. Me and Jess took a quick snap with Hennifa before heading home...

Tea Time

2011-11-09T16:39:00.006-05:00

Last week was "Mission Week" at our church and Pastor Enoch encouraged us to invite our neighbors over to share God's love with our community. We love our neighbors, so we were excited to have them all over for tea last Tuesday evening.

We chatted, played games, and ate snacks together...

Zeph loved all of the attention AND the popcorn.

Angelina is the mother of the neighbor household with 5 children of her own plus at least 5 other nieces & nephews under her roof. She's a busy woman! Santos is her adorable 5-month-old son.

Zeph wanted to give Santos a kiss...

We ended our time together with songs:

"Who's the King of the Jungle?"...

"Only A Boy Named David"...

as you can see, all of the giants came a tumbling down.

And, last but not least, "Father Abraham"...

Soroti Friends

2011-10-31T04:42:00.007-05:00

During our brief time in Soroti a couple weekends ago, we packed in lots of visits with good friends.

This is Agolu family with their new baby boy!

Zeph loved playing with the Agolu girls, Patience and Blessing:

I treasured re-connecting with my good friend, Susan, who taught me so much about counseling in Uganda. She a blessing to me and it felt so natural to be with her again.

Here's Susan's beautiful family:

The men: Patrick, Osborn, Julius, Paul, Paul's son, Matt, and Zeph...

Another snapshot with Julius and Francis:

The Ladies...

And, finally, a snapshot of Zeph playing with Grace, who manages the Golden Ark Guest House, where we stay when we are in town.

Our hearts were FULL after such a fun-filled day of catching up with friends.

Soroti!

2011-10-25T07:56:00.005-05:00

Being back in the town of Soroti left us feeling quite nostalgic! We have great memories from these dusty streets...back when Matt was working in an engine lab to provide back-up electricity for Pilgrim's secondary school and when I was working with Pilgrim's counselors to meet the needs of traumatized kids (as a result of the war). We enjoyed introducing Zeph to the sights and sounds (mostly bicycles, birds, and goats) of Soroti. In the picture below he is facinated by a near-by goat and is trying to say "maaaaaa maaaaa."

One afternoon we walked over to the school to reconnect with people there. Here's Matt in front of the engine lab:

I was so blessed to find that Gabriel, one of the students that I worked with in 2007 was now the "Head Boy." He recognized me right away and gave me an update on how many of our mutual friends were doing. Here you can see me and Gabriel and our friends back in the day. :)

Kampala Friends

2011-10-18T16:48:00.004-05:00

Catching up with dear friends in Kampala filled our hearts with joy...

Rita and I enjoyed spending the afternoon together and talking about our kids! She is due any day now and I am so happy for her. We worked together in the summer of 2007 and every time I am with her, she makes me laugh and encourages me to think about the things that matter most in life (see Rita and me climbing a mango tree together in 2007 by clicking here).

And, one evening, we had dinner with a whole crew of our friends from Pilgrim. Here you see Anthony, Betty, and three of their four kids along with Edward, Doreen, and their family. Our evening was full of interesting conversation and deep re-connection. Zeph was celebrated by all and we soaked up every second that we had together.

We praise the Lord for the people he has brought into our lives! We are truly blessed.

Road Trip!

2011-10-14T03:42:00.004-05:00

Last week, our family embarked on a week-long road trip from our home in Mbarara to the capitol city of Kampala (where Matt had a conference), to Jinja (where the source of the Nile River is located), and then on to Soroti (where we worked during the summers of 2007 and 2008). This map will give you a glimpse of the lay of the land:

Zeph (and Matt, who sat in the back and entertained him) did exceptionally well with our 20+ hours of road travel.

Our time was full of re-connecting with dear, dear friends. We treasured every moment and will be posting lots more pictures and stories very soon.

Hangin'

2011-10-01T09:27:00.010-05:00

Back-yard fun with Emmanuel and Ryan...

Moods

2011-09-20T03:22:00.005-05:00

Zeph has been working hard on pushing through his EIGHTH tooth. This means lots of things for us, including some entertaining mood swings. Check out the range of feelings he expresses in the course of an afternoon of playing outside:

Electricity via SMS

2011-09-17T09:47:00.003-05:00

This week I (Matt) had the opportunity to train some teachers at a school we installed a solar PV system at. Here's a little video. For more information check out the SharedSolar website.

Village Visit (part 2)

2011-09-13T07:50:00.009-05:00

As the post below explains, last week Jacinda & Zeph joined me on a day & night in the field. I (Matt) really enjoyed showing them the in's and out's of SharedSolar...and now, because of Jacinda's pictures, I get to share the details with you!

Our first stop of the day was Ruhiira where I needed to check in on a SharedSolar installation. This is our first site and has been operational for a few months. The picture below shows the "shed" where the power system's electronics are kept (in the background, behind the little girl and her sibling).

The MVP (Millennium Villages Project) has also started to install an extensive piped water system in the area (I'm not involved in this project, but it sure is interesting). Here's a photo of the water tower in Ruhiira (see the metal tank behind the "Ruhiira Project Field Office."

Our next stop was Nyaktunda. This is a market center about 30 minutes away where we are in the process of installing 5 SharedSolar systems. Here is our "shed" near the market. We stopped by so I could meet with our field tech (Innocent is his name) to train a local shop keeper as a "vendor" to sell electricity to households who are attached to the system.

Here you see Innocent with the "vendor" training him on how to use the software on the tablet we've developed for selling electricity.

The team in New York designed a wonderful piece of software; you can see it here on the tablet.

Next we walked down to the other end of Nyaktunda and visited a school that is connected to a new SharedSolar installation. We were commissioning the system and it was the first day back at school for the kids after a break, so everyone was excited.

You can see the PV modules (solar panels) on the roof of the school in the background.
The school is "mixed parents" which you may think means they are especially supportive of inter-racial marriages, but it actually means that the school is for both boys and girls (mixed) and private (parents pay).

Here's a photo of the "control room" (same as the "shed" above, but in this case the electronics are housed in a room in the school). You can see Innocent, the batteries in the back, the inverter/charge-controller on the floor, some circuit breakers on the wall in the back, and on the wall near by are the power meters that we developed at Columbia.

As it grew dark we all got more an more excited to "turn on the lights." Here are some more pictures of the kids with panels in the back.

The sun went down an the lights came on! This is one of my favorite pictures of the blue sky at dusk with the school building and lights starting to peak through the windows.

The kids enjoyed their "night preps" (evening classes / home work sessions) with electric lighting provided by SharedSolar!

A shop keeper at the market installation also enjoyed light and longer business hours.

Village Visit

2011-09-06T08:39:00.012-05:00

Matt spends most of his work day at the villages of Ruhiira, Nyarushanje, Nyaktunda, about an hour drive from our house. Yesterday Zeph and I decided to go along with Matt to check out his work and photograph the commissioning of two SharedSolar sites (more about that in the next blog posting).

The staple food in this area of Uganda is matoke, a kind of banana, and it is PLENTIFUL in the villages that we visited. The matoke trees flow down the sides of the rolling hills and pool into the valleys, as if someone poured them down the mountains.

When we arrived at the first village, we were greeted by this pile of matoke, a perfect backdrop for a family portrait, don't you think?

Matt took us on a tour of one of the villages...

It was really beautiful to see the brick buildings and red dirt contrasted against the vast sky.

We stopped to watch the local entertainment, of course! Outdoor games of pool...

...and creative kids making up games with discarded tires...

We stopped by the gas station:

And, we saw herds of cattle, which are also signature inhabitants of the area:

The best part, was, of course, meeting the people!

Everyone loved Zephaniah!

He made lots of friends and soaked up all the attention.

Eventually, we made it to the school where Matt has been working to install one of the SharedSolar sites. It was very exciting to be present on the very first day that the school had electricity! We spent a few hours with the school kids as we waited for it to get dark.

What beautiful faces!

We found ourselves passing the time in a picturesque dirt-floor classroom, which Zephaniah thought was fantastic! I quickly gave up any hope of keeping him clean and laughed as he entertained me and everyone else as we watched him sit, dig, "swim," scoot, crawl, and roll in the dirt.
Truth be told, it was difficult of any of us to keep clean. My beautiful pedicure (which cost $4, by the way, Ladies), was taking on a whole new look.

I hadn't exactly anticipated Zeph getting so messy, but I did bring his PJ's along. So, at dusk, we bathed him with 1/2 of our liter-sized water bottle and managed to rub off most of the dirt.

We contined to wait with the eager children as the sun went down.

And, soon, we saw the glow of the solar powered lights! I felt so proud of the SharedSolar team and the life-transforming work that they are doing; more info about this coming with the next post!

Guitar Lessons

2011-08-30T15:28:00.005-05:00

Zephaniah LOVES music...and especially music played by his daddy. When Matt gets home from work, he usually pulls out his guitar and serenades Zeph and I while I cook dinner and Zeph plays. Eventually, Zeph usually crawls up on Matt's lap and "helps" to play and sing along.

These pictures were taken the day after we arrived in Uganda (after being away from Matt for 3.5 weeks). As you can see, Zeph is facinated by the guitar and LOVES his daddy...

Zeph Roars

2011-08-24T05:04:00.001-05:00

Jacinda decorated our room with fun animal pictures (A-B-C's of Animals) - and Zephaniah is learning which animals are which, and what sounds they make.

Here's a video of Zephaniah's ferocious lion roar!

The Kids Next Door

2011-08-23T17:02:00.003-05:00

It's typical for extended families to live together in Uganda...and that's the way it is in our neighbors' home. There are several family units and lots of kids (at least 8) who live next door and they LOVE Zephaniah.

First thing after breakfast each morning, Zeph likes to grab a hold of my fingers and lead me outside of the house, around the back, to the bushes bordering our neighbors' property. He stands there and shouts until the neighbor kids hear him and come running over to say hello.

Many times we find ourselves playing our our driveway in the afternoon when the kids get home from school, so they peek through our gate and ask to stop in to play. Sometimes they play with Zeph's toys, sometimes they draw with sidewalk chalk, sometimes they push Zeph around in a stroller, sometimes they teach us Ugandan games. Whatever the activity of the day, Zeph is thoroughly entertained when they are around.

One afternoon a bunch of the crew came over to hang out and listen to Matt play the guitar. You can also see our housemate, Jessica, pictured on the right:

Zeph showing off his strong standing legs:

John and Zeph checking each other out:
Maria holds Zeph while Daniel, Daniel, John, and Cristine smile for the camera:

Disclaimer: Young children in Uganda often spend the majority of their day without clothes. Zeph has quickly embraced this cultural norm...and thus you see him "being free," as we say in Uganda.

John and Zeph play with the football:

Zeph, John, and Ryan investigate the sidewalk chalk:

We're very blessed to have such special kids living next door!

Eighth Anniversary Excursion

2011-08-21T15:30:00.006-05:00

August 10 marked our eighth wedding anniversary and we decided to take a trip to the scenic Lake Bunyonyi, which is about a three hour drive from the town where we live.

We stayed at a hotel called Acadia on the top of a mountain overlooking the vast lake and beautiful islands. It rained most of the day on Saturday, so we enjoyed bundling up and playing indoors. In the afternoon, the sun came out and we hung out on the patio of the lodge. Matt played guitar and I chased Zeph around.

Although Zeph didn't sleep very well in his new environment, we enjoyed the beauty of the weekend, ate some very yummy food, and had a great time reflecting on 8 wonderful years together!

Here's a panaramic view from the lodge patio:

Our cabin:

Zephaniah exploring his surroundings:

Hanging out on the lodge patio:

Zephaniah Walks

2011-08-15T15:29:00.005-05:00

Zeph has taken a step or two at various times during the last month, but he hasn't been willing to really try ... until tonight. He's still not off and running... yet (thankfully), but as you can see from this video, he will be soon!

What's Cooking?

2011-08-08T14:35:00.003-05:00

I've been digging in to my old recipes from Indonesia to inspire our meals and snacks here in Uganda. Cooking in developing countries is really quite similar no matter where you are. I even see many of the same brands that I used in South East Asia!

Here are some staple ingredients:

Uganda Star instant coffee for delicious coffee milkshakes.
Milo (a chocolate & malt poweder) used as substitute for baking cocoa (since that is unavailable here). Milo is also yummy on peanutbutter toast. :)
Blue Band is margarine and is a developing country staple used in all kinds of baking. You don't want to spread it on your toast, but it's fine if it's cooked!
Milk powder is a must for making yummy milk shakes and yogurt. Fresh whole milk is available here, but it's a little risky to drink because it's often mixed with dirty water...which is what, we think, has caused Matt's and my last 24 hours of discomfort. :)

Life is not what it should be.

2011-08-04T08:00:00.000-05:00

Imagine living through the terror of Idi Amin. Imagine being shot multiple times. Imagine having five sons and loosing four of them...one at four months, one at a year and a half, one at twelve years, and one at twenty. Imagine loosing a child just a few days ago.

You've met Juliet, who lives with and works for us. And, you've met Emmanuel, her 8 year old son. But, there's more to her story and her family.

Juliet's oldest son was John. He developed severe cerebral palsy at age four which left him a quadripeligic, unable to feed, dress, clothe himself--trapped in his frail, twisted body ever since. Uganda has very few resources for people who are disabled, so families of disabled children are left with a lot of hardship and very little support.

I met John just three weeks ago and my heart was immediately burdened for him. His beautiful almond shaped, deep brown eyes sparkled even in the midst of his terrible pain, but every day his condition worsened. He had developed terrible bed sources which ate through his muscles and down to his bones in several places on his tiny body. He became increasingly weak and unable to swallow as the days went by.

Each day, Zeph visited him in the backyard where he laid outside of his two-room house. Each day I felt so helpless and overwhelmed. What could be done for him? How could we support Juliet, his devoted mother?

On Friday, when Zeph and I visited John, Juliet said that he wasn't able to eat. I could see that he was struggling to breathe. At a loss for words, I started singing softly, "I lift my eyes up, up to the mountains. Where does my help come from? My help comes from you, Maker of Heaven, Creator of the Earth. Oh how we need you, Lord. You are our only hope. You are our only prayer. So we will wait for you to come and rescue us to come and give us life...to come and give John life."

That afternoon Juliet told us that John, at twenty-something, had breathed his last breath. Emmanuel watched Zeph while I helped Juliet bind up his wounds one last time as we prepared him for burrial. He was finally at peace, no longer trapped in his broken body.

Please pray for Juliet, that she would have strength and peace even as she grieves the loss of another child. And pray for Emmanuel, too, who has lost another brother.

As I touched John's lifeless frame on Friday evening, I couldn't help but think of Christ our savior who died to save us from the brokenness of this world.

God, this life is not what it should be. Use us, in whatever small way you will, to bring hope and redemption and healing. We look forward to the day when you will put everything right again. Come quickly, Lord Jesus.

Party Time!

2011-08-02T01:54:00.011-05:00

On Sunday we celebrated Zeph's first birthday.

We had a cookout in our font yard! Guests included a group of interns from Harvaard who are working with Jessica for the summer, and our new friends Linda, Mathijs, Emma & Niko, as well as everyone who lives in our little compound (Jessica, Diego, Juliet, Abia, Emmanuel).

Our wonderful housemates, Diego and Jessica:

On the menu: home-made chips, mango salsa and guacomole, fish tacos with fresh talapia from Lake Victora, and jungle animal cup cakes!

We played pin-the-tail-on-the-monkey and Emmanuel won!

We determined that each animal symbolizes a particular character trait: Monkeys=sillyness/sense of humor, tigers=intelligence, lions=courage, zebras=uniqueness.

We gave Zeph a chance to select his preferred jungle animal...

and he chose...

...a lion! He's our little courageous one.

We spent the afternoon and evening watching Zeph open presents and enjoying yummy food together.

How blessed we feel to be the parents of one-year-old Zephaniah!

Jeff Sachs visits SharedSolar Installations

2011-07-30T17:30:00.009-05:00

My (Matt's) work in Uganda is for the Millennium Villages Project (MVP). Specifically I'm managing the implementation of SharedSolar. (SharedSolar is a metering technology I managed the development of from New York as a post-doc at Columbia University the previous 12 months before coming to Uganda. Now I'm with AE full time, working as a consultant to the MVP.)

Jeff Sachs, director of the Earth Institute, Special Advisor to the United Nations Secretary General and author of many books including The End of Poverty, visited the Uganda SharedSolar installation Saturday July 16th. Below is a picture of Jeff as well as the CEO of JM Eagle (who donated a few hundred kilometers of pipe to the MVP for a water project), and Vijay Modi (my boss at Columbia the past 6 years - SharedSolar is his idea). Pius and Innocent (the Ugandans that I work most closely with at MVP) are showing them the new “Vendor App” on the SharedSolar tablets.

Below is a picture of me and Jeff as I describes how the SharedSolar system works in Ruhiira.

Happy Birthday, Zeph!

2011-07-27T02:40:00.002-05:00

Today, July 27, Zeph turned one year old. What a delight he is to us; we praise the Lord for blessing us with such a wonderful boy!

Our official birthday party is on Sunday and we'll post pictures of the festivities soon after. I wish you all could be here to celebrate with us.

Rub-a-dub-dub

2011-07-25T02:33:00.000-05:00

Zeph spends a considerable part of every afternoon playing in a tub in the front yard. He LOVES water!

Safari!

2011-07-22T08:44:00.009-05:00

Last weekend, Matt organized a short Safari trip for us to enjoy when Jill Watz, a visitor of Matt's Shared-Solar project...and now our friend!, was visiting from the US. We went to Queen Elizabeth Park, just a two-hour drive from Mbarara.

Herbert was our driver and we went in his open-roof van!

We enjoyed seeing the gorgeous country side of the "Pearl of Africa" and the many fruits of the land. Check out this bicycle load of "matoke" bananas...a staple food in Uganda:

We went on two "game drives" and one boat trip and saw so many incredible animals...

Lions!...

Elephants...

Buffalo and birds...

Baboons...

Crocs...

Hippos...

Warthogs....

Antelope-like-creatures (I can't remember exactly what this was)...

All the vegetarians hang out together at the bank of the river. Check out that hippo-bottom!!! He can eat 88 lbs of vegetation each day.

The African sunrises and sunsets were stunning. We treasured every minute that we had enjoying the incredible beauty of creation.

New Friends

2011-07-20T15:34:00.004-05:00

Zeph and I spend a lot of the day with our new friends: Abia, Juliet, Emanuel, Maya and William.

Here's Zeph with Abia, who lives on the same property as us and helps us with cooking:

Juliet and her son Emmanuel also live on the same property as us and Juliet helps with laundry and cleaning:

Zeph loves water and spends a lot of time playing around this spigot in the back yard, where the laundry is also done:

Emmanuel is a very good friend to Zephaniah:

Maya is the family dog and is one of Zeph's favorite parts of living here. Zeph wants to find her to play with her first thing every morning.

I'll post a picture of William soon. He helps with the gardening, which, as you can see above, is a wonderful blessing to us! Jessica and Diego (with William's help) have planted lots of yummy fruits and vegetables.

Bathtub in the Kitchen

2011-07-19T16:17:00.003-05:00

I've decided that if I were to design a house, I would put a bathtub in the kitchen.

Zephaniah has been enjoying playing in a bucket in the kitchen, which gives me time to cook. It's fantastic while it lasts. :)

Home Sweet Home

2011-07-19T07:50:00.003-05:00

Before arriving in Uganda, I spent a lot of time wondering where we would live...and I am really excited to say that the Lord has provided an amazing opportunity for us.

Matt met a couple (Jessica and Diego) who are doing research here through Harvard University shortly after he arrived in the town of Mbarara and they were interested in renting us their upstairs rooms. It has turned out to be a perfect situation. We have two rooms and a bathroom and we share their kitchen, dining room, living room, and yard. This means that we haven't had to purchase any furniture or housewares...and it means that many of the details of living overseas have already been arranged...such as someone to help with laundry (which is done by hand) and someone to help with cleaning/cooking (as is the custom in the developing world since housework takes up so much more time). Plus, we really enjoy Jessica and Diego and their dog Maya!

Here's a picture of our home:

Zeph loves to greet Matt with a big hug when Matt gets back from work:

We're still getting settled inside, but as soon as we are organized I'll take inside pics. :)

Globe Trotting

2011-07-12T09:09:00.007-05:00

On July 7, Zeph and I embarked upon our 20-hour trip from the US to our home for the next six months: Uganda, East Africa! Thanks to all of your prayers, the trip went quite smoothly. And I have some pictures to document our adventures...

A very kind gentleman moved so that we could have an extra seat from Newark to Amsterdam, and because it was night time for us, Zeph slept most of the way:

We had an uneventful 3-hour layover in Amsterdam which we spent in a little section of the airport where Zeph befriended as many people as possible and used up lots of energy crawling around (inspite of the fact that it was 2am for our body clocks):

From Amsterdam, we flew to Kigali, Rwanda. This was the toughest part of the trip because we only had my single seat and because Zeph was done sleeping for the night. He did take a few naps, though. And we spent the rest of the time with him playing at my feet, trying to eat (or throw) the airplane food, and walking around the plane to use up some energy. By the time we got to Kigali, Zeph was really wound up. Here's a pic and video of him in his sleep-deprived, jet-lagged, hyper state:

Finally, we flew from Rwanda to Uganda. We welcomed a 10-month old Rwandan friend and his mommy who sat next to us on the quick flight. Zeph finally crashed from his hyper state, so we slept for this entire 45 minute flight (including the take-off and landing).

Matt was there to welcome us to Uganda and when Zeph saw his daddy (after being away for 3 weeks), he threw out his arms and grabbed on to Matt. He hasn't wanted to be seperated from Matt since then!

We are now settling in to our home in Mbarara, Uganda and I will send you an update on that soon! We are doing well, although Zeph has his days and nights switched up...so you can pray that we adjust to the correct time zone soon! :)

On the Move

2011-07-01T13:47:00.010-05:00

Today marks one month since we've left New York. Time is flying by and we have enjoyed seeing many family and friends across the country in the past four weeks...

The Ashers in Manteeno, IL:

College Roommates in Portland, OR:

My Brother and Sister-in-Law (Jared and Teresa) in Vacouver, WA:

The Basinger Family in Kuna, ID (check us out on our hay ride!):

College Friends in Meridian, ID:

The Daniels in Meridian, ID:

The Jacksons and Blums in Seattle, WA ... and many other friends when I was camera-less including Stephanie, Mandy, the Keatleys, Tammy & Shannon, Courtney, Jen, Karin, friends at First Free Methodist Church, the Challys...

Wiley Family in Vancouver, WA:

Reunion with Indonesia friends at Becca & Spencer's wedding in SanDiego, CA

(photo credit-Katie Weber):

And now my Grandparents, John and Kay Van Houten.

Zeph and I leave in one week to meet up with Matt, who is already in Uganda. We can't wait to see him and settle in to our new home in Africa! Please pray that we will have an uneventful trip :) I'm a little nervous about traveling overseas with just the two of us.

Be Still My Soul

2011-05-22T19:12:00.005-05:00

We have 9 days left in New York City and I am just starting to feel the weight of this transition.

The excerpt of a hymn that we sang in church this morning was a perfect reminder that we are not being tossed about aimlessly, left alone in the pain of saying goodbye and starting another chapter of our lives...

1 Be still, my soul: the Lord is on thy side;

Bear patiently the cross of grief or pain;

Leave to your God to order and provide

In ev'ry change he faithful will remain.

Be still, my soul: your best, your heav'nly Friend

Through thorny ways leads to a joyful end.

2 Be still, my soul: your God will undertake
To guide the future as he has the past.
Your hope, your confidence let nothing shake;
All now mysterious shall be bright at last.
Be still, my soul: the waves and winds still know
His voice who ruled them while he dwelt below.

3 Be still, my soul: when dearest friends depart,
And all is darkened in the vale of tears,
Then shall you better know his love, his heart,
Who comes to soothe your sorrow and your fears.
Be still, my soul: your Jesus can repay
From his own fullness all he takes away.

4 Be still, my soul: the hour is hast'ning on
When we shall be for ever with the Lord,
When disappointment, grief, and fear are gone,
Sorrow forgot, love's purest joys restored.
Be still, my soul: when change and tears are past,
All safe and blessed we shall meet at last.

Indonesia, here we come!

2011-03-02T22:07:00.005-05:00

After two years of being absent from the blog scene, we're back! ... and we're headed to Indonesia. The details of our timeline are still being worked out, but we do know this: We officially joined Mission Aviation Fellowship and will be working with Papua Harapan (Hope) School where I (Jacinda) will be a Counselor and Coordinator for Intercultural Affairs and Matt will use his engineering skills to serve local communities and government initiatives.

Wondering how you could partner with us? Here are some ways to get started:

Pray for Papua, Indonesia and MAF's ministry around the world. Set aside a little time during the week to google news articles about Papua and to pray for the prayer requests in our newsletter. You can also sign up to receive regular prayer updates from MAF worldwide here: http://www.maf.org/prayer.
Help us expand our ministry partnership network. If you are a part of a Bible study or small group where people might be interested in learning more about what God is doing in Indonesia, we'd love to come share. The average MAF missionary has several hundred prayer and financial ministry partners. so we'd love to share with whomever is interested to hear!
Partner with us financially here: http://www.maf.org/basinger (click the "donate" button on the far right). We won't be able to begin our work with MAF until we are completely supported, so, the sooner people can join our partnership team, the better. Any funds donated between now and when we leave will go toward our outgoing/language school expenses.
Share your thoughts, questions, and ideas! In my role at Sekolah Papua Harapan, I'll be constantly thinking about how to care for kids and keep families connected even when they are living far apart, and I'd love to be challenged and encouraged by your feedback. It would be a wonderful gift if you took a couple of minutes to express your questions or impressions after reading through our newsletter. Or, if a fabulous idea strikes you in the middle of the night, please let me know!
Equip Sekolah Papua Harapan with educational supplies. Let me know if you are interested (jacinda.basinger@gmail.com) and I can send you a wish list! It's important to note that some supplies could be purchased in country, so it may be best to donate funds for a particular project/need instead of sending a care package. On the other hand, some supplies need to be purchased in the US and then sent to Indonesia. Int these cases, note that it costs about $200 per 70lb bag to get supplies to Indonesia, so it would be necessary to raise funds for transportation.
Stay connected. Join our mailing list (send contact info to jacinda.basinger@gmail.com), become friends with "Sekolah Papua Harapan" on facebook, follow our blog (www.mattandjacinda.blogspot.com) which we are just now resurrecting after two years, check out the Advancing Engineering website--the company that Matt eventually hopes to open a branch of in Papua (http://aeconsults.com/).
Plan to visit! If you are up for an exciting adventure, begin planning a family trip to the other side of the world! We'd love to have you stay with us and meet the kids at Papua Harapan. I can guarantee that there will be lots of hiking and swimming and exploring and hearts-growing-for-what-God-is doing-in-Indonesia.
Grow Sekolah Papua Harapan's library... by selecting your favorite children's book and writing a little note inside saying why you like it and who it is from (e.g. I liked this book because it shows lots of pictures of the city where I live - Zeph Basinger, New York, NY). This idea sort of goes with #6, but could be a fun and personal way to connect with kids at Papua Harapan. If you want to do this, I can tell you the address (in Washington State) where you can send the books and someone can hand-carry them to Indonesia.

New York City

2009-01-09T13:01:00.000-05:00

Back in New York we had a day and a half with Luke before he headed home to Idaho. After not having any American Fast Food for nearly three weeks, Luke was craving a hamburger - here he enjoys a chocolate shake and fries (the hamburger disappeared instantly).

Later in the afternoon I took Luke on the Staten Island Ferry to see the Statue of Liberty.

On the way back we had a great view of the City and in the distance you can just make out the Brooklyn Bridge.

Later in the evening we walked back up to Time Square and visited the giant Toys 'R' Us store. On the top level is a huge T-Rex that moves.

Then Jacinda took Luke to the top of the Empire State Building.

The next day after sleeping in, Luke and I explored the city. We started off with a few hot dogs in front of the Empire State Building.

Then we spent a couple hours at the Metropolitan Museum of Art's Egyptian exhibits.

Next we walked through part of Central Park and then had some pizza for a snack.

And we walked to the Museum of Modern Art (MOMA).

At the MOMA we saw works from several famous painters - Picasso, Van Gogh, and Warhol, to name a few.

Outside Beach

2009-01-06T19:35:00.000-05:00

For our final hurrah we made a two night three day beach trip to the outside beach. Here's a shot from the road driving up that shows the large bay. Just around the furthest point is the Outside Beach.

Its always more fun when Jared is around!

Andrew knows how to have a good time too.

Once we all arrived at the beach we started stringing ropes to hang tarps to make up our camp.

Luke climbed a tree to help move the tarps into position.

One of Jacinda's favorite activities is lighting the lanterns - she makes it look easy, but its a pretty complex art.

With the lanterns lit we could all gather to hang out into the evening. The Wiselys joined us, they brought smores which made the campfire experience complete.

After smores Wally, Jared, and Luke did some night snorkeling and got some lobster!

Here Luke holds up a two foot shark that Jared caught.

The next morning the waves were pretty big! It looked like at times they were 6 to 10 feet high, crashing on the reef a few dozen yards off the beach.

Dan Wisely played with his son Ransom on his surfboard.

Jacinda and I took a nap in the hammock...unfortunately we were rudely awakened when a rogue wave crashed on top of us, drenching us while we were deep in slumber!!

About 20 yards back from the beach a fresh water stream has been rigged up with some bamboo "pipes" to route freshwater to a nice accessible point for showering and cleaning off after fun in the surf.

The second night we I joined the team for night snorkeling. Wally & Luke partnered up and Jared and I stuck together.

Jared and I got a few lobster and I speared my first fish(es)!

Good thing we put up the tarps because it RAINED hard during the night. Here we all scramble to re-adjust the tarps to make sure everything is covered well.

Since the waves were so big (it was "wavy season" after all) for our last afternoon we packed up and headed into the Inside Beach for snorkeling.

Rob practices his Ninja moves in his dive skin / ninja suit.

Since Jacinda, Andrew, Luke and I would be leaving the next morning, on our way home from the beach we stopped by the Papua Harapan kids dorm to play with them a few minutes and say goodbye.

As we arrived back home on top of the HIS hill the sun was setting and we enjoyed some tasty street food we'd picked up.

Kali Biru

2009-01-03T19:06:00.001-05:00

We spent the afternoon at Kali Biru (river blue) enjoying both floating down the slow flowing river, as well as jumping off ledges into the river. As we floated we remarked how much it felt like we were on the jungle boat ride at Disney Land...only better!

Half way down the float, we found a vine hanging above the water. It was hanging just high enough above the middle of the river that it posed a VERY FUN challenge to figure out how to grab it. It was too far from the bank to jump for from land, and a person by them self couldn't shoot out of the water high enough to grab it. Instead, team work was required. We found two methods that worked - climbing onto someone's shoulders near the bank and having them stand up suddenly catapulting you into the vine, or two people could start upstream, one person walked on the river floor with a mask on and another person balanced on their shoulders, then when they got to the vine the person on top just had to stand up and grab the vine.

You can only imagine how much fun we had figuring all this out. Eventually, just about everyone was able to grab onto the vine. When Luke did it, he would "run" on top of the water, splashing and making everyone laugh.

Here Jared perches on Rob's shoulders (below the water) and reaches for the vine.

After our jungle book float, we climbed out over some logs above the water and took turns jumping in. Here Luke and I prepare for a jump.

Luke and I mid air.

Luke made friends with a Papuan boy near his age, they had a lot of fun jumping into together.

Jared and Luke also had fun jumping in from the high bank together.

Jared dives in, with perfect form he almost floats far above the water in mid air.

Luke and Jared diving from the high point on the opposite bank.

Rob adds a quarter twist to his dive for good measure.

Rob gracefully dives in.

I jump feet first and Andrew does a flip (though it looks like he tripped in this picture, he's actually just mid flip).

Front flips became too easy for Andrew so he had to try a back flip (which he landed perfectly).

Andrew dives head first.

Jacinda and I hold hands as we jump in.

Luke jumps feet first while his new friend does a flip.

Since it was Saturday, there were a lot of people at the water hole. Luke was pretty popular, and after he dried off and started to climb into the car to leave, about a dozen junior high and high school age girls swarmed him asking to have their picture taken with him!

Black Sands

2009-01-02T18:53:00.001-05:00

Black Sands is a beach near Jayapura with good boogie boarding waves. We took the Papua Harapan kids and enjoyed an afternoon in the surf.

Here look climbs out of the water with his dive skin (aka ninja suit) to help protect from a sun burn. The kids play in the background.

Maria enjoyed the water.

The kids had a blast boogie boarding in the shallower waves.

Anika helps some of the kids brave the waves.

The kids climb into the hammock for a picture with Andrew.

Andrew caught a lot of great waves on the boogie board.

Wally takes a break from helping the kids in the surf to enjoy some Nasi Bunkus for lunch.

Jacinda and I take a picture of ourselves.

Jared & Rob.

God's Awesome Falls

2009-01-01T18:33:00.000-05:00

Throughout Jacinda's childhood Sunday afternoons meant exploring, adventure, and fun outings with her brother Jared and her dad. When Jared and Jacinda were little kids on one particular Sunday they "discovered" a water fall. Jacinda "named" the water fall God's Awesome Falls. For years throughout junior high and high school it was a favorite hike for her and friends.

We had a chance to hike up to God's Awesome Falls and enjoy the water fall, swimming in the pool below.

Here we are on the hike to the waterfall.

After about a 60 minute hike we caught our first glimpse of the falls.

Following Jared's example, Luke and I swim across the pools and climb up on the rocks to dive into the pool.

Rob climbs up the slick rocks, Luke floats in the pool, and I get ready to jump.

Rob climbs still higher under the falls.

Andrew with Rob in the background.

Jared dives in head first cannon ball.

Jared and I do a tandem jump.

Jacinda sores into the water.

Andrew plummets into the refreshing pool.

A graceful dive from Rob.

With arms wide open Rob prepares to embrace the cool water.

As we got ready to leave the pool to hike back Jared caught some tadpoles to...eat??!!

I guess its a kind of "see" food...?

Luke and Andrew joined in swallowing living tad poles. Andrew's was so big it was almost a frog - it had legs!! When asked how it tasted he said, "kind of like bubble tea!"

Ibele

2008-12-30T20:17:00.003-05:00

From Wamena we took small MAF planes to a village called Ibele. We stayed with the Adams, a missionary family that lives and works in Ibele. It was such a delight to not only stay with Todd and his family, but his parents were visiting as well. Todd's parents had been missionaries for nearly 20 years in Ibele a generation ago in the 70's. It was inspiring to sit around their dinner table and listen to recent stories and 30 year old stories from the same community from the two generations of Adams.

We were shown around the area - here Andrew climbs over a pig fence.

It had just rained but we (Virgil Adams, Rob, Luke, and I) participated in a game of (mud) volleyball. It was a hoot - or I should say the awkward white people (us) were a hoot playing with the much more athletic Donnies.

A group of the kids also performed a traditional dance for us.

I was really excited to learn all about Todd's hydro system (utilizing an ST-3 generator head, very similar to what I have some experience with on my lister engines).

Luke and I slept in one of the Men's Honais. Here's a picture of the inside (bottom level) of one of the Honais. And below that Luke poses in the upstairs where we slept.

The photographer is often missing from pictures - here's a shot of Jacinda previewing a picture she must have just taken.

Digital camera's are so much fun - you can share the results instantly with new friends.

Jacinda organized a game of Duck-Duck-Goose with the Adams kids and some kids from the community.

Then some of the men showed us the traditional way to start a fire with nothing but wood, rope/twine, and some kindling.

After seeing how it was done Luke gave it a try, but it is harder then it looks.

I was able to get it started when I tried (took me a couple attempts) - here's a picture of my feet holding the stick like the Donnie men showed us.

Once the firer started I got a little more help in fanning it into a large flame.

In the spirit of starting fires, Luke then showed off some of his bottle rockets he had brought from the coast.

But alas, our time in Ibele was short (1 and a half days). It was close enough to Wamena to hike back out, so we loaded up our back packs and hiked back to Wamena...but as we passed the runway, Andrew couldn't help himself and decided to pretend to fly down the strip.

Here we are hiking out.

On our hike we encountered many several people in more traditional dress. This is a man wearing a gourd (and nothing much else).

Our trek near complete we pose for a shot overlooking the valley.

Spelunking

2008-12-29T20:53:00.003-05:00

In Wamena we hiked to a cave at White Sands. Here's Luke standing on the hill just outside the entrance to the cave.

We decend into the bowels of the cavern.

Stalactites and stalagmites decorate our path.

Luke, me, and Andrew during our subterranean voyage.

We found what looked to be a throne - Wally poses for a picture...all hale King Wally.

Flying with MAF

2008-12-28T20:38:00.000-05:00

We had a chance to spend a few days interior. We flew from Sentani to Wamena. Wamena is the largest city in the world that is only accessible via plane. Wally has worked for MAF in Papua for the last 32 years. Here's some shots of a Caravan plane we rode in.

This is the 206 plane (tiny 5 seater plane) we flew into the tiny landing strip in Ibele.

Luke in front of the MAF plane.

Inside the Caravan.

A good friend of Jared's from Seattle, Rob Willet joined us. Rob is on vacation from teaching in China. Rob is a LOT of fun, here he is looking very pilot-like.

Andrew had a chance to co-pilot the flight back from Wamena to Sentani. With his hands on the controls the flight was so smooth I slept most of the 45 minute flight.

From the air we were able to see huge "sink hole" that Jacinda and Jared have explored on many occassion.

Some more shots from the MAF airplanes.

The landing strip in Ibele.

Inside Beach

2008-12-27T20:17:00.000-05:00

We were planning to spend two days at the beach but were rained out our first day. We did get a spectacular day on the second however. To get to the beach Wally drove our troup an hour around mount Cyclops. Then we commissioned a boat to take us and our gear out to the Inside Beach (as it is too wavey to land at the Outside Beach this time of year). Here we are on the boat ride out.

On the boat ride Luke and Andrew had a chance to trole for fish, unfortunately we didn't catch anything this time - but we know you're out there fish, and we're coming for you!

Here's a shot of the Inside Beach.

And here we've just landed, about to make camp.

We asked Andrew to pose for a mock-senior-photo - lookin' good.

Jacinda's toes as she enjoys the sun.

We spent most of the time snorkeling. I spotted a cuttle fish, and Wally was able to spear it. They are slimy guys. He gave it to some local villagers when returned. Here is Luke holding it. Check out those tentacles!

Wally is quite the underwater expert - a little later in the day he and Luke were snorkeling and he caught a puffer fish with his hands. Here is Luke holding it.

Just before we left to head home for the night we went night snorkeling. Wally was partnered with Luke and speared a fish and some lobster. Here's Luke holding them.

And since we were all in our nice dive suits (spandex) looking like ninjas, we thought it would be good to pose for a ninja shot.

Christmas eve and Christmas

2008-12-25T22:01:00.004-05:00

For Christmas eve dinner we had BBQ lobster and fish - it was so good!!! Here's some pictures of us around the table, the lobster, and Luke enjoying the feast!

On Christmas morning we opened our stockings together and Jacinda and Joan had given Andrew, Luke and I some really fun and funny Indonesian snacks and trinkets. Here's an energy drink, and us posing - we pretty much look just like the guys on the box.

For Christmas dinner we had the Papua Harapan kids & teachers over for a spagetti feed and to celebrate the dorm mother's birthday. The kids had fun with spagetti - which can be a pretty entertaining finger food!

After dinner the kids performed the Christmas production they had put on for members of the community last week.

Then after dessert Luke and Wally entertained us all with fireworks. This time the kids got into the act as well - here they are enjoying the pull-type of firecracker.

All the Planes in the World

2008-12-24T07:24:00.000-05:00

Wednesday our planned day at the beach was foiled by rain, so we took the chance to play a few board games during the morning. Then later in the afternoon Wally, Luke, Andrew and I took the Papuan Harapan kids to the airport to see the MAF hanger and commercial planes. Imagine – 3 months ago these kids had never seen or ridden in a car! As we sat looking at two commercial planes taxi and fuel, and a half dozen small missionary planes, one of the kids told Wally – “all of the planes in the world must be here!”

Enjoying the rambutans (a kind of fruit) we picked up on the way, Andrew used the husk to make a funny nose, which the kids LOVED and quickly imitated.

We were able to stay long enough to watch one of the planes take off. The kids were in awe.

Then it was back home for Christmas eve dinner.

Soto Ayam

2008-12-23T07:14:00.001-05:00

Tuesday we relaxed for most of the day, catching up on some email and playing some networked computer games with some of the high schoolers at the computer lab. Then Wally brought the Papua Harapan kids over for the afternoon to play at the school. Here they are enjoying a snack.

Jacinda, Joan, and Annika made a delicious dinner, Soto Ayam (literally “soup chicken”).

The kids enjoyed the food and fun, even playing with the Christmas decorations (see Tinus entertaining baby Jesus below...not that we believe that Jesus had blond haired and blue eyes, please know!... A more culturally appropriate baby Jesus appeared on the scene a little later).

Then over dessert we headed out onto the front lawn where Luke and Wally dazzled the kids with some fireworks.

Base G

2008-12-22T07:04:00.000-05:00

On Monday Joan and Wally had some business to take care off in the nearby city of Jayapura. We joined them, shopping for funny T-shirts and snacks while they ran their errands. Then we spent the afternoon at the Base G beach, playing in the surf and relaxing in the sand.

Luke had fun chasing and digging up crabs, and with Wally’s help was able to catch some.

Andrew, Luke and I decided to be silly for the camera.

But Jacinda got the best of us, asking us to stand right in front of where the waves were crashing in some nearby rocks. While she “experimented with her camera settings” we talked, not paying attention to the wave that was about to drench us! Here’s a before and after picture of the wave that surprised us.

The waves weren’t going to get the best of us. Here we are floating on the crest of large waves as they broke right onto the beach. We decided to act like whales and breach the water together.

After our afternoon at the beach we headed back into Jayapura to Ikan Bakar (literally “fish bake”) for dinner.

In Papua

2008-12-21T06:49:00.002-05:00

Later Friday night (around 3am) we flew from Bali to Papua. Here is Luke meeting Sterling and Megan, Jacinda’s parent’s dogs.

Thoroughly burned from our day in Bali, Jacinda applied aloe to Luke’s face.

Later Saturday night Jacinda’s parents, Joan and Wally, joined by Annika, drove up to the military base, Ifar, to take in the sunset and the beautiful view of Sentani.

Sunday afternoon we took the Papua Harapan kids (the school Wally has started for Papuan children) to a nearby creek to cool off from the hot afternoon sun.

Then it was back home for a delicious street food dinner. Here vendors fry our meal.

Have a Holly-Bali-Christmas

2008-12-19T21:48:00.000-05:00

We arrived in Bali late Thursday night. After collecting our bags Jacinda used her Indonesian skills to negotiate a price for a Taxi ride to our hotel. After dropping off our bags, even though it was past midnight we decided to explore a little. We were all hungry so we grabbed some Nasi Bunkus (literally “rice package”).

Back at the hotel Luke found a frog outside our door and was quick enough to grab it.

After a good night sleep we enjoyed the wonderful complimentary breakfast.

We then spent the morning walking around, exploring the shops, and playing in the waves. Once we were good and hungry we found a restaurant for lunch. Here Luke enjoys his whole grilled fish.

Rejuvenated by our tasty meal Andrew, Luke and I were ready to try our hand at surfing. Again Jacinda negotiated a good price for us for two hours of surfing with two instructors. Here we are with our boards.

We had a blast! Here’s Andrew riding the waves.

And here I am, with such a long beginner’s board I was able to stand up on most tries.

And here the big kahuna (or is that big Kuna) himself, Luke.

Following our surfing we grabbed some drinks and enjoyed the sunset on the beach.

Japan Air

2008-12-18T21:42:00.000-05:00

For Christmas this year Jacinda and I get to travel to Indonesia to visit her parents! We are joined by my nephew Luke and my friend Andrew. We began our journey together in New York City, taking a direct flight to Japan. Pictured below is Luke enjoying one of the several meals on the 14 hour flight to Japan.

We had about an hour layover in the Tokyo airport, just enough time to pick up some snack food:

From Tokyo we traveled to Bali and day two of our adventure.

Surveying

2008-06-12T21:42:00.002-05:00

One of Matt's main goals during the trip was to work wtih Pilgrim's field staff to survey farming communities in order to determine where two more engines will be installed in the near future. Pilgrim facilitates 40 farming cooperatives in the districts around Soroti and Pilgrim hopes to provide Multi=Function Platforms (ie. engines that run on straight vegetable oil to provide power for agricultural processing equipment, electricity, waterpumping, etc.) for each cooperative.

Here I am working with Moses, a Pilgrim volunteer, to survey a household in a rural village.

The mother of the household (sitting to my left in this picture) was 26 years old and had five children!!! What a contrast to me: a 28 year old with no children...but not to worry...I temporarily adopted these beautiful kids while we did the survey (which took 1.5-2 hours for each houshold). This picture was taken shortly after the baby (now in her mother's arms) peed all over me...which was no surprise to anyone. When you hold a baby in rural Africa, you've got to expect to be peed upon....it's just life.

The grandmother of this household was so stunning! Isn't she beautiful?One of the highlights of every day in the field was picking and eating MANGOs...as many as I could carry! We stopped to pick mangos any time we were hungry. Below you can see the succulant little fruits hanging in the trees behind my head. I am smiling with a silly grin because I have mango fibers stuck in my teeth. :)
Note: If you are planning a trip to Uganda, you should definately go in May or June in order to take full advantage of mango season!

Back to the Engine Lab!

2008-06-12T21:18:00.002-05:00

Matt and Joey, a mechanical engineer who joined us from Manhattan College, could not wait to get their hands greasy in the engine room!

You can cee that Matt is thrilled to be back "home":

Here you see Joey and Pilgrim staff member, Edward, examining a small batch of bio-fuel that Edward made. By the way, we love Edward and have deemed him "Uganda's Jack Bower" because he has a creative solution for ANY situation .
Julius (in the background of this picture) was just hired by Pilgrim to keepthe engine running smoothly year-round. Jen (in the forground) is holding jatropha seeds (which are pressed to produce vegetable oil to fuel the engine). Jen is testing out the press......and everyone is VERY excited to see oil begin to drip into a bucket!
Within a few days, the boys had the engine running on vegetable oil...just in time to produce back-up power for Pilgrim's school, which is part of the purpose of the engine (since electrical power is so unpredictable in rural Uganda).

Mobile Clinic

2008-06-10T22:24:00.006-05:00

On our first day in Soroti, I joined Pilgrim's medical team on their trip to Kapalebyong--an Internally Displaced People's camp about 2 hours northwest of town. Below you see me with Sylvia (a medical assistant) and Suzan (a counselor and dear friend from last year).

As we set up the mobile clinic, I was struck by the beauty of the land: the contrast of the red dirt and blue sky and massive trees. I could see the mountains of Moroto in the distance; it was Karamojong territory (the land of the "cattle raiding tribe" notorious for stealing and killing at a whim). Because of the constant feelings of instability and vulnerability and because of the recent drought in the area, the people of Kapalebyong suffered many medical problems.

I spent the day observing and helping when I could (cutting gauze for dressing wounds and counting out malaria tablets, etc.)

Sylvia handed out vitamin tablets to all the kids:
Suzan provided counseling:
Emma (short for Emmanuel) dressed wounds. This was a very brave boy; he barely winced as his badly infected leg was being cleaned.
Dennis and Julia met with people and determined diagnosis...
Suzan recorded the medication needs:

And, Mary and a few other voluteers helped to dispense the meds:
There was one very sick little boy, in particular, who captured my heart. I was deeply moved by the love that overflowed from the boy's concerned father as he watched his son being examined. You can see the way the father is tenderly touching his precious son in the picture below:
The little boy was so cooperative...here he was saying "ahhhh" so that his throat could be checked. Even now my eyes well up with tears as I look into his beautiful, trusting face.

Dennis' gentle hand rested on the boy's head as he offered him a lollipop as a reward for his bravery. The boy had never seen candy like this before and didn't quite know what to think of it.
I feel really greatful for the difference that Pilgrim is making in the lives of people who need physical, emotional, and spiritual healing. I pray that this precious little boy is doing better now...and my heart is burdened as I think of so many other little boys like him who continue to suffer with oiut access to proper medical care.

We-gone to U-ganda

2008-05-24T10:56:00.000-05:00

We spent our first few days in Kampala attending meetings with various engineering organizations doing a little shopping before heading to Soroti (the rural headquarters out of which most of Pilgrim's work is launched).

After a day of meetings, Matt worked diligently to write up notes while we enjoyed coffee and checking email at our guest house. Then, Edward and Anthony took us out for a very special dinner…

...and the dinner was quite an adventure—Joey’s first time eating Indian food…and in Uganda, of all places. Jen braved crocodile tikka which she says, “tastes like chicken.” Yum. We enjoyed great conversation about everything from the varying tastes of coca-cola in different countries to impressions of Kampala vs. New York City.
And, just before leaving, the waitress gave Jen and I a beautiful red rose!

Layover in London

2008-05-24T10:32:00.000-05:00

We departed from JFK airport on Saturday night and arrived in at Heathrow airport in London on Sunday morning...just in time to spend a wonderful day exploring the city and meeting up with old friends!

We took The Tube from the airport to Picadilly Circus, in the middle of London. There we bought bus-tour tickets (we were shameless tourists).

Later, around lunch time, we hopped off the bus to meet up with Rachel and Claire, two friends that I know from growing up in Indonesia. Rachel is British and lives in London and Claire was visiting from Australia...so we met up with them at Hyde Park by Speaker's Corner (where anyone can stand on a raised platform to speak about anything he/she chooses to eager crowds). Here's a pic of Rachel, me, and Claire in the park...
We gathered with Rachel's friends for a picnic in the park! It was brilliant, as our English friends would say. :)
Here are the four of us...Joey, Jen, me, and Matt...by the gate to Hyde Park.
After meeting up with Rachel and Claire, we continued our bus tour of the city and enjoyed learning about the history of London and seeing famous sites...like Big Ben (see Jen below)!

Happy New Year!

2008-01-01T14:35:00.000-05:00

Last night, we had a very special New Year's Eve celebration with my MAF extended family. Mission Aviation Fellowship is the organization that my parents have worked with in Indonesia for 30 years and, a couple of years ago, MAF moved their US headquarters to Nampa Idaho, just 1/2 an hour from Matt's parents house. This is very exciting for me because it means that I get to visit immediate family and MAF family every time we visit Idaho!

To make things even more special, the Dukes (my best friend's, Ailie's, family) hosted the party at their new home (they recently moved from Indo back to the US).

Ailie and Luke were visiting from LA and they brought their video game Wii, so Matt had the chance to practice his golf swing...
Below is a collage showing the beautiful faces of many wonderful people, who I love! We had a great time eating, talking, laughing, and playing together.

And, here's the official group picture...(back row, left to right) Ralph and Valerie Dawson; Paul, Barb, and Anthony Dukes; Jo and Max Meyers; Keith and Beth Parker; Nancy and Rick Daniels;

(middle row, left to right) Ian Rask, Jacinda (Wiley) and Matt Basinger; Jonathan Dukes; Luke and Ailie (Dukes) Daniels; Dave and Crissy Rask,

(front row, left ot right) Evan Rask; Beth, Emily, and Elliot Dawson; Allie Hilbrand

Christmas in Idaho

2007-12-27T23:56:00.000-05:00

A few hours after Matt passed his doctoral qualifying exam on
December 21st (hooray for Matt!!!), we flew to Idaho to spend the Christmas with family. It has been a huge blessing to rest and relax together!
On Christmas Eve, everyone gathered for a scrumptious ham dinner (w/home made mac and cheese for Matt). Here you see baby Timothy, Terry, Matt, Matt, Luke, Jim, Peggy, Nanny, Jason, Teryl, A. Carol, U. Bob, Stacy, Troy, and little Grace.

Matt and I enjoyed our yummy coffee on Christmas morning before opening presents:
Eli ate his breakfast cereal with his favorite santa hat. Luke wasn't quite sure that he was ready to be awake. :)
Abi excitedly played with Rowder as she waited to open gifts:
Teryl cracked up at Jason's silly face-making (he was copying baby Timothy).
After a laid-back morning at home, we had Christmas lunch at Uncle Bob and Aunt Carol's house. Here you see Peggy and Nanny relaxing after dinner...
And, Abi entertained Jim for most of the afternoon...

It was a wonderful Christmas day!

Hooray for Becky!

2007-12-27T01:23:00.000-05:00

In December, another beloved friend, Becky, visited from Seattle to see us and to meet up with her friend from Norway (Helge) who was performing some Jazz concerts in the city. While she was here, we had a mini reunion with SPU college friends Emily Cochran Bech (and her family) and Nick Glancy (and his fiance' Joyce). Emily is studying at Columbia with Matt and Nick and Joyce were visiting from Boston. It was great to catch up with everyone.

Becky and me riding the Subway:

Becky, Joyce, Nick, Matt and Helge at the top of the ESB.

...and me, too. :)

Andrew Visits!

2007-12-26T23:58:00.000-05:00

One of Matt's best friends, Andrew, took a break from grad school at Stanford and flew in to spend Thanksgiving week with us in New York. We really miss Andrew, so we loved every minute that he was with us--he and Matt bring out the best in each other. Andrew wanted to explore New York City neighborhoods, so we observed lots of interesting people and places! Here are some highlights...

The view from the top of the Empire State Bldg was breathtaking! It was COLD...as you can see from the boys' faces.

On Saturday afternoon, we enjoyed Dim Sum in China town and then stopped at this little shop to get a coconut bun and some bubble tea for dessert. YUM!

Later, we stopped by South Street Seaport to go to the Bodies Exhibit and to enjoy the view (note the Brooklyn Bridge in the background). Matt and Andrew had walked accross the bridge on a previous morning while I was in class, so they got to enjoy it from all angles!

Switchfoot!

2007-12-26T20:10:00.000-05:00

During Andrew's visit, we had the chance to hear the bands Ruth, Reliant K, and Switchfoot in concert and it was AMAZING!!! Dustin Ruth (the lead singer of Ruth) is dating a friend of mine named Amy Hannan, so Amy flew out to NY for the concert. The show was held at the Hammerstein Ballroom, a venue just two blocks away from our apartment. We joined 4000 others on Friday, November 17th to enjoy some fantastic music. Dustin hooked us up with great seats, Amy took us on a back-stage tour, we hung out with the Ruth band members, AND Dustin took us to talk with Switchfoot after the show!!!

Here you see Andrew, me, and Matt in line-- people wrapped almost all the way around a city block:

Here you see Andrew, Matt, Amy, Dustin, Cheryl (Dustin's mom), and me:

Matt is chatting wtih Switchfoot's Tim Foreman and Drew Shirley and with Dustin Ruth:

We grabbed a quick pic with Jon Foreman and Dustin before saying our goodbyes:

What a fantastic night!

Thanksgiving

2007-12-26T01:02:00.000-05:00

Matt and I took the train to my Uncle's house for Thanksgiving to spend a couple of days with family. We ate lots of yummy food and enjoyed relaxing together!

Below you see cousin Becka, cousin Katherine, Gramps, Grandma, Aunt Dawn, Uncle Jim, church friends, and Matt sitting around the Thanksgiving table.

Game Night!

2007-12-26T00:32:00.000-05:00

Well, it's been TOO long since we've posted an update! Now that we have time to breathe after a busy fall semester at school and work, I'll try to catch you up on the past couple of months!

Much of my time these days is spent hanging out with the Resident Assistants at The King's College where I work as the Assistant to the Director of Residence Life. The "RA's" are called "Chamberlains" at Kings...and there are nine of them...all wonderful, gifted student leaders who love to have fun. These are some pics of a recent game night at our apartment. BTW, we all have "aviator" call signs for fun so, from r to l around the circle you see Heidi (Tango), Allison (Lima), Allie (Delta), Stephanie (Sierra), Shawn (my boss) (Papa), Chris (Quebec), Jon (Foxtrot), and Andrew (Romeo). Two Chamberlains aren't pictured (Jon-Yankee and Lorraine-Zulu). And, you should probably know that I am India and Matt is Echo. :)

I passed!

2007-12-21T12:12:00.001-05:00

I am now a "qualified" Eng.Sc.D. student...and the real work can begin.

-matt

September

2007-10-03T23:47:00.000-05:00

September brought classes for both Jacinda and I and a crazy schedule. But we've managed to have a few good weekends...

For Jacinda's birthday we took a boat trip around Manhattan (a 3 hour cruise, a 3 hour cruise). It was fun to see our city from picturesque view points. And it was sunny and warm, gotta soak that in while it lasts. Here's some pictures:

We also attended Jacinda's co-worker's wedding (Betsy). Here's a pic:

Last weekend we went to the annual medieval festival and took the Ricci kids. We've been meeting at the Ricci's apartment for fellowship group for church the last two years and they are a wonderful family. Sunday is truly my favorite day of the week! We had a blast seeing the costumes and pickles through their eyes:

I guess 18th century pirates are now considered medieval...?

3,411 miles

2007-10-03T23:11:00.000-05:00

At the end of August I drove accross the U.S. I wanted to move our car from NY where it was collecting dust to my parents house in Idaho so that it could get some use. I also wanted to visit a couple friends along the way. Here's a map of the trip:

My dad came out to help me make the trek, as Jacinda just got her new job at Kings and had to work (the above picture is of us on top of the Empire State Building the night before we started the drive). The first night we made it to Lexington, KY where I got to catch up with Kevin Davis. Kevin is a great friend from Seattle. We played together in the Dandelion Method, and I sure miss him and miss making music with him. He's on a label now and releasing a CD soon - Glowworm. Its going to be amazing. Speaking of amazing, he just got a dog which he's already taught some cool tricks.

Next we made it Jackson Mississippi to visit with Johnny and Emily. It was so wonderful to catch up with Johnny a bit. I've been following his blog for the last two years and dreamed of seeing Jackson. It was way to short, but so fun to see his new apartment and drive around Jackson visiting the Perkins Center (below) and other land marks.

From there we made it into Texas, the New Mexico, then Utah, and finally Idaho. I got to spend almost a week in Idaho and it was so nice to get to visit family. Here's a video of us celebrating Eli's (my nephew) birthday:

Goodbyes

2007-08-06T04:27:00.000-05:00

Sigh. Goodbyes are always hard. Matt and I leave in just 1.5 more days and we are feeling quite sad about it.

On Saturday evening, Suzan and I had a great time hanging out with students as we celebrated the time that we've had together. We ate "tires" (doughnuts) and candy and coke-a-colas. This was a BIG DEAL since the students' diet normally consists of beans and posho, a type of corn bread paste. It was SO great to see the grins on the student's faces as they enjoyed their special treats. Here's a group shot taken after the party:

And, last night, on Sunday evening, Suzan, Barbara, Timothy and I hiked up a rocky hill to enjoy the view of town and to spend some quality time together. I'm going to miss these beautiful friends!

A Tour of Town

2007-08-06T04:01:00.000-05:00

I'd like to take you on a quick tour around Soroti town so that you can see where we spend our days. Jump on a "boda-boda" and follow me. :)

We'll start out from the "Golden Arc", the guest house where we have been staying. We feel very spoiled to be in such a comfortable place with electricity (most of the time) and running water. It's a refuge and a blessing!Next, we'll ride into town where there are two main roads: Main Street and Market Street. This is Main Street:

Now it's time to head to Pilgrim's Soroti Municipal School, where Matt and I spend most of our days. This is a picture of the "assembly hall" where all of the student gatherings happen. You must know that all important meetings in Africa happen under big shade trees. :) This shot was taken at church yesterday morning. Matt works on the school campus at the "engine lab." As you can see, the structure is still in progress, but great things are happening inside!
And, our last stop will be Pilgrim's Beacon Medical Centre, which happens to be right next to the Engine Lab! I work in the counseling office here, just around the corner, toward the back of the building. Thanks for joining me for this spin around town!

Shopping!

2007-08-06T03:44:00.000-05:00

On Saturday, I had the opportunity to check out the shopping scene here in Soroti. Note the "one stop shopping" sign at this store below. It was amazing--full of all kinds of treasures from clothes to shoes to lotions to cooking pots. :) Then, we went to the local market. I was so impressed! Here you can see Soroti Rock in the background...so picturesque. And, all of the fruit and veggie stands were very clean and organized.
Aren't the colors stunning? I was excited to buy some tea to bring back to NYC with us so that we can enjoy "African Tea", i.e. tea brewed in milk with yummy spices like ginger and cinnamon. You're invited to come to our apartment for spot of tea anytime!

I love the fresh chapati's which are sold on the street corners and in the market places. This man has a great little business going!

Engine video link

2007-07-28T08:25:00.000-05:00

Some people have asked for more technical explanations on the project I'm working on here. I'll post all the details later, but until then click HERE for a video showing me explain my research and lab setup at Columbia. The engine that we're installing here in Uganda is the same engine and the setup is similar (different preheater setup, etc. then shown in the video - I've streamlined it a bit to make it more appropriate for the field, but the concepts are all the same).

This should satisfy the techno-minded out there until I have time to post all the details of this particular installation.

Counseling Update

2007-07-25T11:10:00.000-05:00

This week Suzan and I met with the group of formerly abducted students to conduct an “Impact of Events” scale which helps to reveal which of these students are still struggling with Posttraumatic Stress (PTSD) symptoms. It’s incredible to see how much healing has taken place as students have met with Suzan regularly to talk about their experiences. Still, this scale showed that some students are still suffering painful symptoms from the horrific acts that they were forced to commit.

In the next two weeks, I’ll meet with the students are most severely plagued with PTSD symptoms. I have already met with several students a couple of times and I am astounded to see the way the Lord is powerfully working to heal their mind, body, and spirits. It's truely amazing to see these young adults process and let go of rapes, murders, and other unimaginal atrocities that they have experienced or perpatrated. Incredible freedom comes as they come to understand that they are truely forgiven and their experiences were not their fault.

I wish I could share more personal details, but to protect the students, I need to be vague.

Please continue praying for me and Suzan and the kids here. The weight of evil has felt very heavy in the last couple of days, and yet God has been sustaining and encouraging me. I can feel the power of your prayers and I know that you are with me on this journey of healing.

Praise God who is "close to the broken-hearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit." (from Psalms somewhere :)

Engine Move

2007-07-25T10:44:00.000-05:00

After taking yesterday off work to rest from my malaria symptoms today Edward and I were back to work placing the engine. (Edward also has malaria.) Edward is Pilgrim’s Science Researcher and he has been such a wonderful person to work with. I was very excited today to finally place the engine on the frame. I have been waiting for this milestone for weeks and was very happy to reach it. We still have a lot of work before we’ll be running the engine, but now that its out of the crate and on its frame, we can start cleaning it and preparing it to run!

The engine weighs over 800 lbs! We tried to rent a forklift from Seimco (the only place in town with a fork lift), but due to their amazingly poor management we couldn’t. We stopped by and called multiple times a day, every day for the last week, and today we finally found out if we could rent their fork lift – sure we could, if we fixed it first! Seimco’s shop is full of several dozen beautiful pieces of machining equipment, but they are gathering dust, unused, under-utilized – such a waste! This includes their fork lift. We spent an hour trying to replace the battery but it was clear there was more wrong with it. So we decided that the manual lift would be the way to go.

John (one of Pilgrim’s staff) quickly drafted a dozen nearby idle boda-boda drivers (bike taxi) to come and help. Click HERE to watch a short video of the lifting process.

The team lifted the more then 800 lb engine more then 40 yards across the campus of the school, then up into the container, and again up onto the frame where we would mount it. I saw them start, turned around, then when I turned around again they had already moved it. They amazed me with their strength and speed!

As they moved the engine Edward and I triple checked the bolt spacing on the frame. One of the bolts had been bent about an 8th of an inch, so we gave it some taps to move it back into position before setting the engine on it, as shown in the below picture:
Getting the engine to slide down on the bolts evenly was an ordeal. Here I try and direct the team as they lower the engine onto the frame:
John was the master mind behind quickly organizing the boda-boda group once the forklift fell through. Here is a picture of him tightening the nuts & bolts on the frame holding the engine down:
Here I make the last couple turns on the nuts & bolts:
This is a picture of the entire team of drafted boda-boda drivers who helped us move the engine:
Edward and me in front of the freshly mounted engine:
In addition to the engine the lab will include a Biodiesel reactor and wash tank. Using B100 Supply’s popular Appleseed design kit we’ll use 100 liter water heater as our reactor tank. Here’s a picture of me next to some of the tanks we’re preparing:
To prepare the tank you have to remove the sacrificial anode from the heating element flange, so that it doesn’t react with the chemicals during the transesterification process when making the biodiesel. Here Edward holds the heating element flange: