Well, one more day! We are all fairly bursting at the seams waiting to see what's in store for us! We all love to see new places, smell and taste new foods, learn how to navigate the culture around us and hear the new sounds around us.

The kids are pretty darned excited about THIS though:

The website says they have over 30!!!! attractions from wave pools to 200 foot water slides to lazy rivers to float away your cares on. Let me tell you, ladies and gents I am ready!

How about this??

I think sitting on a beach talking about anything but work, is just the ticket!

We have a VERY busy spring and summer with new teammates joining us, projects to get started and some funded (that means lots of proposal writing), and hopefully and new quilting group getting started- of course that one depends on if my funding comes in. But, I am very eager to get it up and running and sharing time with some ladies and watching them learn a new skill.

Anyway, I have plenty to do this evening before I go to bed. But the pizza pockets are made, the cookies baked, the other food provisions packed and ready (need to provide your own food for the 24 hour train ride); just one bag left- The Water Guy's of course! What is it with people who actually wait until the last minute to pack??!! That so does NOT register with me, but hey whatever, it's not my clothes.

Well, I promise to bring back a load of photos to share with you! Will Wild Wadi live up to its esteemed reputation? Will the "golden sandy beaches" really be all that beautiful, or will we just discover that what they mean is that you have to pay in gold doubloons to sit on them??

Until next time,

Your SteppeSister

Too long, once again.... just deal with it, SteppeSister, you're only going to be able to post once a week at best! Ahhh well, good intentions.

No real news here, except The Water Guy built me a (very) small green house from some old windows. and of his own accord planted some chard and lettuce in it! Woohoo! Maybe in a few weeks we can eat green again. :)

The other news is that we are once again in packing mode for our trip to Dubai next week. It is such a chore finding all of our summer clothes out in the shed, bringing in the boxes, making sure I put them away clean (which I'm known to blow off occassionally), finding appropriate bags (which we are majorly lacking!), and coodinating matching outfits. I do my best, but meh! Of course, NariLoo has grown a bit, and now needs a little blouse as a cover for her sleeveless dresses (no sleeveless there, for sure!), but alas, I'm sure they will not have such items in the bazaar this early in the season. Shoes, let's not even go there. Shoes only last 1! season here, then they are shot. Our last year's sandals are shoddy beyond belief, so hmmm... another dilemma for Super Mom to ponder at night.

Our power continues to be a bane in my bright outlook. Off everday from 9:30 until about 6:30 each day, although we did have a break of that nonsense over the weekend. And today, it didn't go off until about 12:30, which allowed a washing of some previously mentioned clothes for packing. Oh yes, and the other BIG deal news is that the vacuum cleaner belts that I had ordered and had sent arrived!!! Yeah, baby, my rugs are clean of crumbs once again. But alas, no matter how careful we were with crumbs, the ants found their way in and now we are inundated!! No, I don't mean like we have a few ants! They are EVERYWHERE!!!!! You know that saying, "Do you have ants in your pants?" Well, yes, as a matter of fact, I do! Thank you very much!

A discourse on ants:

There are two types of offending creatures in our home. The little black ones that are hard to see, and the great big, monstrous beasts with wings. Can you guess which ones can make you scratch your hiney for a week?? Yep, you win! Those little nasty ones that when you squish them between your fingers make a wretched smell of formic acid linger for an hour. It does keep one from picking their nose for a time- one good point, I guess. Nariloo has found it great fun to collect the big ones with wings in a jar and watch them dig. She is driven to distraction, though, as they eat their own wings when they fall off, and they won't drink from the bottle cap of water she put in there for them. As I reach for my crystal ball, I see serious interrment ceremonies in her near future. I think matchboxes will work great, don't you? It is amazing how a vacuum cleaner can help control the pest population, and I am very thankful for modern inventions such as these. Next, I will work on a coffee maker that won't burn my coffee after keeping it (too) hot for an hour. Hey, wait, maybe I could just set out the burnt coffee for the ants to drown in?

Back to my bagel making bonanza,

Your SteppeSister

Well, again, I've been foiled in my attempts to post on here! The power has been out all day yesterday AND today. They do turn it on in time for eating dinner, though. Ugh! It is times like these that I get pretty darned frustrated and need to take a step back and try to find the positive things in my situation!

So, I will dig way down deep, and try to list the things that I am grateful for here on the Steppe.

1) The culture we live in is very hospitible! When invited to a home, you are treated to the very best your host has to offer; food, entertainment, conversation, the works!

2) Life is slower and simpler here on the steppe. We are not encumbered by the temptations of shop, shop, shop; eat, eat, eat, busy, busy, busy, sport this, club that. We are HOME, most of the time, and a night out to friend's house is truly a special time out.

3) We have been able to put a little (I do emphasize a little) money away for our retirement, which we probably wouldn't be able to do living in the US. There is nothing extraneous to spend our money on, so any extra gets put away.

4) Our children are having an amazing childhood learning how to adapt to other worldviews, learning a second language fluently, and how one must rely on our Father for all kinds of circumstances.

5) We have a vastly enriched view of who God is, and many portions of Scripture have come to light with a whole new twist. When Jesus tells us that He is the Good Shepherd, we KNOW what that means. We see good shepherds all the time!!

6) We have learned to be self-reliant in many circumstances; we get along as a family, relying on each other for comfort and companionship, probably more so than most families in the US. We have skills like baking bread, butchering turkeys (I'll tell THAT story sometime :) ) , plastering a wall, and digging a cistern, that most of our friends back home don't have a clue about.

Please don't think I'm bragging!! Just am REALLY in need of finding some good things about being here. I do go through these cycles of feeling good here, and feeling quite lousy.

7) We've gotten to travel to some amazing places while being here- Thailand, all over central Asia, Turkey, and soon Dubai! Ouch, that's really sneaking up on us, isn't it??!!

8) I've had time to play with some hobbies that I wouldn't have started like quilting and reading classic books, watching old movies, and finding new and creative ways to cook a tasty meal with 5 ingredients or less. Seriously, life in the States is so distracting, that it seems very few people find time to do what they might not otherwise because they are so busy!

Well, this is certainly not an exhaustive list by any means, but it gives a good idea of how many ways we, as a family, are blessed!

Next time, I want to share a photo of that applique quilt I am working on. All 4 blocks are done, and I've started appliquing the border. Doing the border like this added about a month more of work, but I really think this will end up being one of the nicest pieces I've ever done. I LOVE IT so far!!

Hope you are feeling good about where you are, and are counting all your blessings!

Your SteppeSister

The Day Providence Paid A Visit

Well, it's been a week since I've had an opportunity to be here and visit with you all. I'm not sure who that is, since there aren't any comments lately- so if you're lurking, come out of lurkdom and say hello! Really The Steppe isn't such a scary place, now, is it?? In order to post a comment you do need to register. It doesn't mean much, just that they are trying to make sure that legitimate PEOPLE are posting, not computers. So, take a few minutes and register, so you can say hi...

So, onto Life on the Steppe... It is snowing today- it wasn't a total surprise. Weather Underground has been predicting this for a few days, but it is a little surprising that it is sticking and that it has been snowing much of the day. Yes, we ARE very excited to get to Dubai in a few weeks! I must say, I won't be sorry to miss the last couple of weeks of winter! We hear it is supposed to be in the 80's while we are there.

Weather like this always takes me back to one dark and fateful night. Can I tell you about the time we almost died? About 4 years ago, we were travelling back from a city south of us, where it tends to be warmer much of the time. In fact, right now they are turning their gardens over for planing! We started our (normally 8 hour) journey at around 1:00 in the afternoon in mild October weather. Our trip was cooking along pretty nicely until about 3 hours from our destination. Then the car started to act really funny. When The Water Guy got out to check on the engine, he noticed that the temperature had falled dreadfully! Like several decades of degrees! The engine was NOT taking the fall in temps. well, and without going into the details of why, let's just say that we limped along for another hour until we reached a familiar village to stop in for repast.

By this time is was about 9:00 when we got on our way again. The car started, but barely. Again, on our way, we noticed our lights dimming, and the temperature gauge falling steadily. Ladies, you know that look when your hubby is worried. Lines that shouldn't be there suddenly appear, like those along the San Andreas that speak of danger. Eventually, around 10:00 of driving veeeeeerrrrryyyyy slowly, it died. Yes, it just died. Let me tell you a little bit about the Central Asian Steppe... It is desolate. Can you imagine desolate, really, really desolate? Think northern Nevada, or maybe central Texas, but about 1/10 of the traffic.

At this point the temperature had fallen to a bone-chilling -20C. We had coats, but that just wasn't cutting the chill as my brave and unfailing Water Guy tried to fix the problem. To no avail. We were now at the mercy of Providence. We scanned the horizon for lights that we could possibly make a trek to, but the distances can be deceiving on a cold winter's night, so we decided that rather than risk getting there and no one being home, we'd wait for a Good Samaritan instead. After a good half hour-maybe 45 minutes, a car did stop. A few passed but did not stop before that. Curiously, this car was a pilot car for a rocket (now, if you're astute, you'll figure out where we are) being transported somewhere else. The group of men, smelling distinctly of the "spirit du jour", offered to take us to the next village up the road. THANK YOU, LORD! All 7 of us piled into the very small car along with the 3 other men and made the trek, backtracking about an hour.

We only had one acquaintance in this village that we'd met once a long time ago. The Water Guy had visited the house on another occasion many months before, and silenly prayed he'd be "lead" to it again, in the dark, by memory. It was 12:00 AM now. By only a miracle, he did remember where this particular safe Haven was and after many profuse thanks and invitations to each others' homes for tea in the future, they left to meet up with the rocket.

I can only think of one region in the world where one can knock on someone's door at midnight and be ushered in as a king. We were immediately given hot tea, bread and jam, and our hostesses made a gigantic family bed of cotton-stuffed blankets and fluffy chicken feather pillows. We were warm, safe, comfortable, and alive. We look back fondly now to that time when we were reminded once again of God's complete and utter mercy on us, and reflect often on how much in life is so trivial compared to living a life of gratefulness and mercy given to others. Yes, it is risky opening your door to strangers, but God calls us out to take many risks in His Name, doesn't He?

From a snowy Steppe,

Your SteppeSister

Number please!

Another milestone in the development of people we live with!! Seriously folks this is a monumental achievement akin to the building of the great wall or landing a man on the moon!!

Do you LOVE your internet service provider? We don't! In fact, it gives us much grief, and seems that every week there is another burp in our service. It's either off, we can't log in, "unlimited" turns out to have a limit, you know that kind of shinanigans! Last week, it was the dreaded
"spit-you-over-to-the-account-management-there-must-be-something-wrong-page".

I really hate this one, because it is always in Russian or some other language that we have a very difficult time reading and understanding. So what it really translates to is-- put on your heavy clothes, clean the mud off of your boots, find your gloves that Nariloo has been playing dress up with, and haul your angry self to the phone company office. Yes, it really is that big of a hassle!

Okay, once you are there, you walk into a small room that the fire marshall would declare fit for about 30 people. My friends, this is not true! In perfect Central Asian fashion this room regularly holds 130 angry, frustrated, and completely and totally randomly placed human beings.

Let us now depart on a queuing tutorial for the less travelled. One enters an office, government building, clinic, oh just about anywhere, and scans the room. This is necessary to take a gauge of the general temperament of the crowd. One quickly says to himself, "This is going to be fun (said with deep sarcasm), and starts listing off the other things one won't get accomplished because you be here _________ (fill in the blank with approximated hours of standing- then multiply by a factor of 10). The next thing one does is ask, "Who's last??" Said party speaks up, then one must remember this face. Can I be really honest here?? After living here 8 years, I still have a hard time with this! I know, that must sound racist, bigotted, whatever P(in)C word works for you, but I don't look at the faces. I look at the clothes. Oh, oops, they are all wearing a fur hat and a black leather coat. Okay, I won't remember with that method either. So, one just tres to stand as close as possible to THAT person as long as possible to memorize their warts and bumps. Yeah, that's it. Now one must wait, and wait, and wait --okay you get the picture. Well, it's not the kind of waiting that you do at your local DMV or Social Security Office. Here older folks get preferential treatment, as well as those who scream loudest, and those who simply cut in front of everyone and go up to the window to "ask a simple question". So, the face that you memorized the warts of, may or may not be your "Forever Friend". You just have to pay attention----- in another language---- which is extremely mentally and physically exacting. I imagine it is something like running a marathon whilst playing Jeopardy.

Enough of that, onto the point of this post. We walked into our phone company office and notice a number board with red blinky lights!!! "WHAAAAAAAAT??!!, could this be??, " we ask to ourselves. Yes, yes, indeedy doo, it IS! A real number board that puts you squarely in LINE! You push a button on a contraption in the "vestibule" and then wait until they call your number. Might I even add that they are now providing couches to rest your weary flab on while you memorize your neighbors' warts. Could it be that next they will offer complimentary lattes and spiced chai?

Not meaning to completely ruin the luxury of basking in this revelry of civilized behavior, I wryly turned to The Water Guy and asked him if it would totally negate the whole interlude if I just hocked a loogy right there on the floor? They love to do that here, you know. It's like the biggest blob throwers win some sort of prize or something. Maybe today I could win us some truly unlimited internet access with no hassles included?

2 Ply Toilet Paper and Questionable Cohabitation

Ever tried 1 ply, and really liked it? I mean really, doesn't it just take twice as much to do the job?? For 8 years now we've had to succomb our most delicate little tooshies to paper that is really meant for other tasks, such as draining your freshly cooked chimichangas, or for blotting ink from your recent calligraphy practice. No, it has even sometimes been WORSE! There have been known be shortages of even one-ply in our city, reducing us to the likes of The Terminator. It has once been aptly dubbed "John Wayne Paper", and proudly rests on its laurels as the "paper" which could only be produced by a society that also proudly puts its old volumes of Lenin to the same use. (This is no lie, we had some ourselves!) The Terminator takes much abuse before it's even taken into action with vigorous rubbing and working- like a loving mother handling her latest batch of bread dough. After being seen fit for consumer consumption, the user then must decide, "Is this really worth it?" Other choice thoughts enter ones mind at times like this too, such as, "Do they sell those fancy French thingys here (bidets) too, I wonder?"

Ladies and gentlemen, I am here to tell you today, that we now have 2 ply paper for our hygienic enjoyment! No lie- 2 ply and quilted with pretty little flowers! I know my tooshie (okay, you caught me, it's not so little) probably can't enjoy the color or design the manufacturers would like to hope, but this regular consumer certainly enjoys the downright cottony billowyness of quilted 2 ply. However, I certainly doubt I will find much when I visit the village- for the dainty, peach-colored, 2 ply, quilted, fluff of Heaven would most certainly look dreadfully out of place in a 3X3 plywood shack with a 2 foot hole beneath it, now wouldn't it?

Now, onto more appropriate subjects- that of questionable cohabitation. I have a new roommate. He is rather short, and well, although I don't think he is too old for me, he is very much gray. I don't know if I'd describe him as handsome per se. He eats an enormous amount of food for his size, and we've been known to dine together regularly now. My husband is not jealous, he says it's about time something like this happened. In fact, we've been expecting it for years. He is rather a quiet sort of fellow, but at night he likes to let everyone know that he's in charge now! I'm sure you also know some folks that have a voice that just seems to big for their body. Now, if you thought that my living with someone else was just too much, wait til I tell you that I think he might be a SHE! Why just last night she? told me her name was "Liz", and that's short for Lizard! My new roommate can be very elusive sometimes, but next time she almost gets stepped on I'll try to snap her picture to introduce you to her.

So, what do you think of these?? The first one, I started months ago, in hopes it'd be hanging by Christmas! HA! What a joke that was. It is actually only one of 4 panels- each one telling a part of the Christmas story. 3 are long and narrow like this, and the 4th runs lenthwise across the top of the other 3. The top one is an angel carrying a banner that says, "Unto us a child is born". All in this stained glass style. LOVE IT! This one is a wall haning I made to match, okay coordinate, with the bedspread quilt I made. Actually, the top is done, but since I don't really like the quilting phase of quilting, it has stalled out. Maybe someday, when I'm really rich, I'll buy a long arm machine to make that part easier. My only option right now is using my little home machine, and that is a pain. Well,I guess I could handquilt, which is what I'll do with the wall hanging, but to handquilt a queen sized quilt- NO WAY! I'm too impatient- I just want it on the bed!

A friend of mine living in the big city got me hooked on hand applique. Really hooked! It turns out soooo much nicer than the fusible webbing method. So here is my first attempt at it. One goal of mine to make a wall hanging for each month of the year. I have Jan, March, May, Sept. Oct, Nov., and Dec. done, so I needed something springy to keep my busy. Does this look like it fits with Feburary?? I'm not a big fan of hearts, so I stuck with flowers. Maybe I'll put some hearts on the swags in the border?? Not sure yet, it's a work in progress...

So, Maroo, you know this already, but I started an exercise program of sorts. I hate it!!! No, you don't understand.. I really HATE exercising! But the flab has won out, and my back is deteriorating (literally!) so something had to be done! 'Member, Mar, I told you I was going to jumprope?? I did 2 days ago. Okay, I can NOT MOVE today! I jumped for 12 minutes, and I cannot move. I walked today for about 10 minutes, and it will be several days that I will be able to jump again. 40 sucks!

Love and peace to you all,

Your SteppeSister