3/13 Tuesday: Shichigahama

Today was a work day here at the Guest House.  It's kind of like changing the oil in your car - not a whole lot of excitement and zip, but vital to keep the engine running well and the car on the road.  

See any mold?  No!  We zapped it with Kabi Kii-lah!

Gilberts had some projects that have been needing attention for a while, but their constantly active schedule meant they just couldn't get to them.  I happily volunteered for the routine stuff - cleaning out the bunk bed room, handy-man work on the deck, etc. -  freeing them up focus on more significant projects - visiting with the pastor of a large church in Sendai, and taking care of their Japan income taxes.  

Ann Lynne, the intern who is living and working here with the Gilberts for 6 months, worked with me on the bunk bed room.  We hauled all the blankets and mattresses outside for fresh air (thankful for a sunny day!), washed the mattress covers and curtains (the sheets and pillow cases are washed after every visitor leaves), then attacked some nasty black mold that had been creeping into the corners and up on the ceiling.  We used "Kabi Kii-lah"  (Mold Killer) and it worked like magic!  The mold is gone!  We put everything back in place and now the room is fresh and clean again, ready for another round of guests and teams to come work with the Gilberts.

Love driving this little K-car.  Wish I had one at home.

Mid-afternoon, I hopped into the fun little "K-car" (actually "Kei-kaa" in Japanese, and a very successful concept here) went into town for some lumber to replace some rotting 2 x 6 flooring on the outside deck.  Curious that it's considered 2 x 6 (and even pronounced "tsu byi seeks" instead of "ni kai roku" or something).  It's bit tricky getting 6' long boards into a tiny car but I reconfigured the seats and it worked fine. 

Supper tonight was spaghetti - yummy!  Ann made it, and Gilberts and I join her and Jonathan and Kathleen Long for supper.  The Longs are veteran EFree missionaries who have come back to Japan to work with Gilberts here, and are living in the first floor of the Guest House.  We had a great time sharing stories and laughing together.

These ruined fields were finally cleaned last month

BTW, on the way home this afternoon I drove through some destroyed neighborhoods and just had to stop for photos.  I find myself not noticing it all anymore, so it was good to stop and think about the families who used to live here, the drivers of the destroyed cars, and the kids who used to walk to school on these roads.  It still makes me sad.

What do you do with these stacks of destroyed vehicles?