Category: Costa Rica (Page 1 of 2)

Running…

04/08/2008 / Blake

I’ve never professed to be a great runner. Though I do enjoy it sometimes. But I’m not at that point in my life right now. It usually takes a few weeks of consistent running to get the endorphins rolling…. This morning they were not rolling at all. I’m still considering the Double Decker run in about two and a half weeks. We’ll see.

But to compare morning and night running is like comparing, well, night and day. A morning run is WORK. A night run is enjoyable. I never really ran much in high school. Never had a reason. While working at Camp Lake Stephens one summer I ran a little now and then to try to impress a girl. [It must have worked; she married me] The next semester at school she calls to inform me that she signed me up for the Crescent City Classic. I had no idea what that was. But turns out it is the massive 10K race in New Orleans. So I figured i should train for it.

I did. And to this day, my first ever 10K race has been my best time ever. And I guarantee that there’s no threat of breaking it anytime soon. But a night run is the best. Or a run in the rain on a summer afternoon. Sometimes it’s quite nice to go running with a friend. But other times the solitude of a solo run is needed. It’s fun to run in Costa Rica too! [Emily does it in Columbia.]

I don’t know that I’ve ever regretted a run either. But there are plenty of times I’ve thought of running, didn’t, then regretted it later. Sorta like spending time with Jesus. Sometimes I know I should. And I know how beneficial it would be. But I keep saying I’ll get to it soon.

Anywho…running. Do you do it? Do you like it? When is the best time for you to run? And what have your best runs been? Please..do tell!

Free WiFi in Oxford, Mississippi

02/12/2008 / Blake

When I getting ready to move here I wondered where the free wireless internet spots were here in town. I’m still ferreting some of them out, but I couldn’t find a list of them anywhere on the internet. So I started asking around and doing some of my own investigation. I’ll make a list of place I know there is free wifi. I’ll update it as more are discovered:

Bottletree Bakery:Â Just off The Square. (map) A really eclectic, snazzy bakery with good breakfast and lunch. It was actually featured on The Food Network and Oprah because of their pies.
San Francisco Bread Company: Jackson Avenue (map)
Pak Mail: Jackson Ave (map)
McAllisters: University Avenue (map) The restaurant that is pretty much like all the other McAllisters, yet this one was the first one.
High Point Coffee: North Lamar by The Square.
Purple Haze: North Lamar (map) Nice little shop with culture and groovy tunes.
Puddin Place Bed & Breakfast: University Avenue (map)
Kroger: University Ave (map)
Comfort Inn:Â Jackson Ave (map)
Days Inn: Jackson Ave (map)
Proud Larry’s: South Lamar (map). You may have to ask them for access, but they’re cool about it.

Now please double check me on these. Sometimes I’ve found a signal, but then turns out you have to pay to surf (like McDonalds).Â But I may have missed some or have been mistaken about a couple. If there is a correction or addition that needs to be made, leave a comment!

So…funerals are not my thing.

08/03/2007 / Blake

Well, I was on a posting hot streak for a bit…then it stopped.

Just after I posted the last time I called The Wife from just outside of the internet cafe. She said her dad left the hospital to go Hospice, but he wanted to go home for the “last days”. She felt the end was pretty soon.Â And I get a call the next morning from Mississippi saying my father in law had died in the early morning.

So I had that weight of the entire situation on me at that point. Wow…it was heavy. But I knew I needed to go home to be with my family. So after spending WAY too long in airports all day Wednesday, I finally get back to my own bed in my own house just before 1AM. It’s a long story, but I had to deal with ticketing hoops to jump through, naps in airports, immigration (which is much more thorough coming into the US than into Costa Rica), head aches, flight delays, and total plane switches.

But visitation was last night, and the funeral was today. I was able to see some old friendsÂ and spend some time in conversation and visiting with them. It was really good. And lots and lots of family too.Â It was a bitter sweet funeral. So sad to see him go so early (only 61 years old), but he’d been through a whole lot recently and it was wearing him out til his body was just spent.

I’m still in Tupelo right now. We’ll trek back to Clinton tomorrow sometime. But please keep praying for the fam. Especially my mother in law. She’s been such a trooper and saint. But I think that once the dust settles that things will start to fully sink in. She’s an amazing lady. But be in prayer for her.

And still be praying for my team down in Costa Rica. I keep looking at my watch imagining what they’re doing and where they are and everything. I’ve had people ask me if I was going to go back down there. While it would be quite nice, I just don’t see it happening. But be in prayer for them as they continue to build church buildings, build relationships, and build the Kingdom of God.

Ice Cream Shoppe

07/31/2007 / Blake

Before coming to the intenet cafe tonight, we stopped by the ice cream shop. I was being goofy w/ taking pictures. And there was this couple that were pretty well dressed but looked to be locals. I told Whitten, “Go stand by those people, IÂ´ll take your picture.” He did, but it looked too awkward, so I didnÂ´t take it. T

Then Utah said, “That guy is looking at you, Whitten.” Sure enough, he was. He kept looking at Whitten like he was a dummy. We were laughing. But then the guy says in perfect English, “WeÂ´re from California. We understand everything you are saying…”

Suffice to say we felt a little stupid. But we make up for it by talking to them for a while. They are just here on vacation. Been here for a month and a half already. Leaving Thursday. That sounds pretty awesome.

But now IÂ´m kicking myself for us not actually getting a picture taken with them…

Costa Rica :: Day Three

07/31/2007 / Blake

I donÂ´t really have any ground breaking revelations to share. But I am sitting in an internet cafe that is full. Some people had to wait to get a seat. I donÂ´t know if most people in CR donÂ´t have computers or what. But there are SIX internet cafes that I know of. And IÂ´d bet that there are at least double that amount. All of those are w/in walking distance. I donÂ´t think such a place would get good business in Clinton. And IÂ´m not sure how they stay afloat here. An hour online is probably around $1 US money.

Today I did a lot of paiting…again. Yesterday was w/ a roller. I can handle that okay. But today was the tedious stuff. But I found a cd that was a Spanish version of the United We Stand cd by Hillsong United. Good stuff. Then we listened to DC*B and RelientK some. It did make the day go a little faster.

It rained a lot of the afternoon, but I was painting under a porch, so that wasnÂ´t a good excuse to quit painting. In the church, there is a lot of progress being made I think. But there is LOTS more to be done with it as well. It is quite amazing what all has been done on it since we were here last year. And also what weÂ´ve been able to do the last 2 days.

When the first trip from our Clinton church happened about 9 years ago, I think our mission team outnumbered the people at the church service. And last Sunday night there was around 200 there. So things have grown a lot. But a lot of those people were outside. With this new place, there will be room for a whole heck of a lot of people. ItÂ´s exciting.

Costa Rica Church

07/30/2007 / Blake

This is part of a church service from Sunday Night.

Costa Rica : Day Two

07/30/2007 / Blake

I just posted Day One, but here I go with Day Two. I wrote most of that last night, but itÂ´s evening now when IÂ´m posting it. So I figured IÂ´d go with some details about Day Two.

I slept well, but never as long as IÂ´d like. Such is life. But the day started with us waiting on some supplies to work in the new church. OR…we could start painting the pastorÂ´s house. I usually donÂ´t like paiting, but IÂ´m okay with a roller. So a few of us went to paint. We painted the whole house with two coats of paint. And tomorrow weÂ´ll start on the trim.

ThatÂ´s basically the day in a nut shell. But itÂ´s so very good to be able to talk with and connect to both old and new friends here. I was talking with Utah tonight about could he ever see himself living here. We both agreed that on one hand, yes because we think we could fit in fine with the culture. But not so sure on the other hand because… Continue reading

Costa Rica : Day One

07/30/2007 / Blake

So, I intended to get to sleep and grab a few hours of rest before having to get up to meet people at the church. But after a slow, yet methodical packing process and tying up some loose ends before leaving, it was nearly 1a.m. before actually laying down. My alarm was set for 3:15. So at 2a.m. I was still awake. So I decided to go ahead and get up. A small group of students were meeting at IHOP for breakfast. So I decided to go ahead and meet up. So hereâ€™s the rest of my schedule. Continue reading

Costa Rica: We got here

07/29/2007 / Blake

After a night of no sleep, IHOP, playing a few video games at Wal-Mart and then loading a plane, we made it. The stop in Atlanta was uneventful, and then a plane ride that I actually got a little sleep on and weÂ´re here. ThereÂ´s no way weÂ´re anywhere near being through with building the church. WeÂ´ll have plenty of work to get done.

But IÂ´ll be able to do some good updating since I brought the computer. Plenty of pictures aready. IÂ´ll get them all organized tonight and ready for an entry tomorrow. So please be praying for us.

Why does Costa Rica Need Missionaries?

07/28/2007 / Blake

Someone asked me this earlier. And to be honest, it’s a good question. I don’t necessarily think that any place doesn’t need missionaries. Some places have higher ratios, of course. But I came across this video this morning. Thought I’d share it.