The Weekly Wrap-Up: October 21-25, 2019

I really feared I had spoken too soon when I said I'd probably finish English B and U this week. We had a project for the VCP volumes that needed to be done quickly, so I set English aside for a bit and copy/pasted French translations into the interactive adult learning lessons. That probably won't make much sense to you, but suffice to say, it was a tedious manual process that absolutely had to be done, so we buckled down and did it. After that, though, I officially ran out of projects for my production team to do. I've assigned some housekeeping things that have fallen by the wayside for now, but until our translators and proofreaders start sending in more work, I'm at a bit of a loss. Loathe as I am to take work home with me, I'm going to have to think about this on the weekend.

Anyway, I did end up finishing B and U except for the new booklets with universal art. I'm hoping to deploy everything next week, and then we'll likely have more art sets to publish. I'm hoping to keep everything as consistent as possible, so the quicker I can get to them, the fresher everything will be in my mind.

The big thing this week is the President's Gathering in Florida. I mention it because it means many people are out of the office, so it's another quiet week. We also had prayer for it on Wednesday - it's the big push for development projects before the end of the year. Sarah and I have been jokingly volunteering to go all summer, but alas, we are not needed. At least I'm getting my sunshine in a few weeks. Sarah will have to suffer a little while longer.

I haven't kept up with the wider world, but I know there have been several to-dos of late. I may dip my toe in the water at a later date, but it hardly seems safe to do so now.

Finally, please keep praying for the retreat planning. We're getting closer to knowing what we'll be doing, but I always forget just how much goes into this. It's rather exhausting.

I think that's it. Have a pleasant weekend, everyone. 

The Weekly Wrap-Up: October 14-18, 2019

And another one gone, and another one gone, another one bites the dust!

Yes, that does in fact mean that another group of English B and U have been published. Just one more to go! It's been interesting and helpful seeing all of the booklets together again in a relatively short amount of time. I see them quite often when working on other languages, of course, but I'm usually focused on the other language rather than remembering what the English says. We have some good stuff to offer! Who knew?

It's been another one of those weird weeks with lots of random stuff going on. I was able to finish the master files of the two new booklets, so those will be published along with the rest. I did two different surveys this week for work-related things - one on the new website for OMS and one Sarah and I wrote for the upcoming retreat. Planning for that is going well, with the usual hiccups here and there. I also finalized my prayer letter, which should be rolling out to you shortly.

On Wednesday, we had prayer rally. One of our prayer times was spent praying for one personal, one ministry, and one global prayer request. I asked for prayer over the trip we're taking (so close! see below), the VCP project, and the many political upheavals taking place around the world. I don't know about you, but I'm tired of even glancing at the news these days. It's important to stay informed, but it's incredibly depressing to see all of the terrible things happening around the world.

Anyway.

Like I said, we're approaching my departure date. Can you guess from the photo how many days are left? (Also, take note of the new item on my shelf, courtesy of Pat after her trip to Africa!)

Keep warm, everyone!

The Weekly Wrap-Up: October 7-11, 2019

So, how did the International Festival go?

By all accounts, I'd say it actually went really well! We had about 700 people there, we didn't run out of food, and I think pretty much all of the attendees had fun in some way. We had bounce houses, food trucks, a photo booth, international games, a dunk tank (more on that later), and probably a bunch of other things I knew nothing about.

Many months ago, when this was being planned, I signed up to work two shifts. I signed up to help with setup from 9-11, and then I signed up to help with games from 1:30-4. The event was scheduled for 11-4. I also recruited my parents to help out in the morning because they are lovely people.

In reality, we showed up for setup at 7, which was good because there was no way to get everything ready in two hours. You try inflating four (maybe) bounce houses, put out tables, set up tents and signs and games, etc. in two hours. I bounced around for a while on various projects until my parents and I got placed in charge of the dunk tank. It arrived at 9, and if you're ever in charge of a dunk tank, two hours is not enough time to fill it using just a hose. Also, you'll be stuck with cold water. So we carted hot water from the kitchen to the tank five or six times.

And then we just kinda never left. I didn't want to leave my parents alone with the dunk tank (especially when they didn't know the people who would be in it - not me, never, no way no how). So I stayed. And then I stayed some more, because we didn't have anyone else to cover it for the afternoon shift.

I'm sure the games were nice.

Anyway, I did leave at 4, because by then, I couldn't really move anymore. I cuddled a cat and then made her sit on the floor because her eight-pound body was leaving bruises on my legs. (Probably not, but it felt like it.) So it was good. And look! I made the paper!

I could have been holding a bull all afternoon. No, thanks. Sarah did a great job.

Anyway, we theoretically had flex time we could have taken this week, but because I'm a good employee, I did not take any. Also, we have a huge project we're trying to make headway on with T&M, so it was not a good time for it.

We're getting there! 65 and 66 are just about done, and the next step is to start assembling volumes. These will have several booklets and other VCP curriculum all in one file that can be printed and bound. I think we'll end up with four volumes for each language - English, French, Swahili, Chichewa, and Amharic. But most of that is a long way down the road. For now, I need to make sure the new booklets are as good as they can get.

But I'm also still doing U and B books. One more group was published this week! I even managed to change all of the back pages and republish previous groups.

Let's see, random stuff from this week... I think our staff briefing was the briefest brief that ever briefed. We were there less than 40 minutes! It's unheard of, truly. But it was nice. And then I gave an impromptu tour to some donors because I happened to be at the front desk and Patty said, "Jessica will take you around!" So I said, "Sure."

I am great with the extemporization.

So that's my week! Oh, and as if that wasn't enough, I did actually write a prayer letter, too. So you can look for that to be mailed out next week.

Au revoir, mes amis!

The Weekly Wrap-Up: September 30 - October 4, 2019

Whew, what a week! And it's not over yet, but more on that later.

One more group of English B and U done, so we're holding steady on that. Although, we did just make a change that effects all books, so I'm thinking I'll have to republish what I've already done. Oh well. At least I haven't distributed them yet. And it's just one change to the back page, so I just delete the old one, place the new one, and Bob's your uncle! 64 times over.

But we're also working on the two new booklets, 65 and 66. One is about evangelism techniques while the other is about telling God's story. We're trying to get them done quickly so they can go in the Africa volumes (collections of booklets bound together), but we need to make sure they are consistent with the other booklets in layout and language. I'll have more to do with those next week.

We had another retirement chapel this week, this time for Joetta, a friend of mine who works in Finance. She always asks me how many steps I've done so far that day and gives encouragement. She's a very equanimous person, which I admire, and her dry humor will definitely be missed. (Yes, there was cake, no I didn't eat any.)

The biggest story this week, though, is the frenzied preparations for the International Festival we're having Saturday. This thing has been in the works for months, and I very wisely bowed out of the planning committee way back when. I knew I wouldn't have the time, and I also knew that I'd get drawn into the periphery of planning. Honestly, I haven't done much but support others who are putting this together, but I'll be at OMS bright and early to help set up and then throughout the day to help serve the (hopefully) hundreds of people who come to learn more about OMS. I do hope it goes well, but I fully anticipate being absolutely exhausted by the end of the day.

Also, I now know how to change out the flags in front of the building. And you know me - I love learning new things!

Peace, my dudes!