Late letter from Josh 31 Dec 2009

hey family!

so we we just got back from chyulu. the internet there isnt good so i couldnt write till today. getting there and back was a joke though. its the holidays and so all of the busses were packed! we had to get some crappy half broken bus there where the shove three people on a seat that is really only big enough to shove two and only one and a half comfortably. the guy next to me was sleeping on me the whole time and the girl on my other side smelt bad, really bad. so after four hours of that i wasnt in the best mood. then we tried to come back yesterday but all of the buses were completely full, we couldnt even get another crappy one like on the way down. but we spent the whole day trying to get one. then at around six when the last buses for the day had gone through the town we went back to the chyulu elders flat and had to sleep with them another night. the good news is that one of the couple missionarys was going to mombasa today and so they were very kind and picked us up and gave us a ride. if they hadnt i am sure we would be there till next week sometime, we couldnt even book tickets till the 3 cause everything was full. but we are back now so it all worked out in the end.
Chyulu was fun. it was gorgeous down there this week. normally it is all dry and full of dirt and dust and nothing. but it has been raining like mad down there and so everything was green and blooming. i couldnt believe how many butterflies there were, they were all over the place. the bad news of the rain was that the normally dirt roads were mud roads and it really wasnt fun to ride the bikes in that. and there were parts where it would be like a two foot deep puddle for like 30 or 40 foot stretches so it was impossible not to get your feet wet. i decided that is the most uncomfortable thing in the world is to have constantly wet wet shoes and socks on. i didnt get it too bad though. the elder i went on splits with fell in one of the puddles because he hit a rock that was under the water and couldnt be seen, and that was on our way out to the area, so he was soaked all day. as uncomfortable as it was though, it was mostly just funny to laugh at each other and to see the peoples reactions, especially the ones that didnt think twice of it.
You were all concerned about my happiness after the call though. talking to you guys was awesome by the way, i wish i had more to tell you, i just really dont know what to say. My comp and i got along ok for the first transfer. but when i said he was crazy, i ment it. i am pretty sure he has a severe case of adhd and is always bouncing off the walls and is rarely serious. he cant focus on anything, including a lesson for more than 10 minutes and thats pushing it. and he is pretty stuborn, and when he wants to do something you might as well just give in because he will make you miserable until he gets to do whatever he wanted to do. so is hard to actually work with him. i am glad that he doesnt want to be super apostate, but he rarely wants to go out and work. the first transfer things worked out because we spent the first few weeks showing the other guys their area and he were busy finding a flat and organizing zone conference and going on exchanges. so we were doing enough different things that he was satisfied. but now that it is mostly just teaching and finding like normal, its hard to get him out the door, and once we are out the door it is like i am babysitting all day long. i am just getting tired of it. i need to be more loving and patient, its just hard sometimes. i think i have finally got him to see that he is less happy the days that we dont work as much so i hope that helps for these last few weeks. but if not, there are only a few more weeks till the end of the transfer, and since this is my second with him it is likely that one of us will go, and since i have been here for 6 months, its likely that i will be the one going. it would be nice to get a change of weather. since we were on the roof so that i could get reception he could hear everything that i was saying and i didnt feel it apropriate to rant about my comp when he was right there, not that it is really apropriate to do so now, but at least this way you can be informed and he doesnt get hurt feelings. and dont get me wrong either. i love the kid, i would be more than happy to serve around him, and i am even glad that i got to serve with him, but one transfer was enough.
anyways, i have to go. i will write on monday. have a great day and have fun on new years for me!!!
Love,
josh

p.s. thank you guys so much for the christmas package. my favorites were the teddy bear and the pig that poos candy and oinks jingle bells. all of the candy choices wee excellent too. i love you guys!!