Monday, May 25, 2015

Weather reports in this place

OK, I know, I know.  Forecasting the weather becomes more difficult with every hour in advance that we try to do so.  There are literally millions of variables, and so much randomness that even supercomputers cannot allow us to make accurate predictions very far out (see "Butterfly Effect").
But come on, people, how about giving even a semi-accurate representation of what is happening right now?!
Here is such a recent report on a certain day in Hauancayo, where we live:
That sounds nice, doesn't it?  However, in the recorded meteorological history of this, the Mantaro River Valley, it has never happened!  The actual weather at that moment was pouring rain, about 50 degrees F, with strong winds, and hail punching holes in Paula's beloved plants.
Another example:
OK, listen; Cerro de Pasco is a bleak mining town at 14,400 feet, and again, if it ever reached 73 degrees, people would want to live there!
All right, so what do I suggest?
The following method of reporting the weather is far more accurate than the transmitted information in this part of South America.  It is known and loved by all Boy Scouts the world over, and an example can be found in any site worthy of calling itself a Boy Scout Camp.  It is called "The Weather Rock," and this is an example:
The following conditions can be informed by the Weather Rock:
If the rock is white, it is snowing.
If the rock is wet, it is raining.
If the rock is warm, it is sunny.
If the rock is swinging violently, there is strong wind.
If the rock is slippery, there is ice.
If the rock is bouncing, an earthquake is happening.
If the rock is underwater, be careful, as a flood has occurred.
I maintain that this igneous device is far more accurate than what we get from the weather reports here.
May your local information be more accurate.  Or get a rock.
Dave & Paula

Sunday, May 17, 2015

Sorry about the gap in entries!

I could make all sorts of excuses, but the real one is that we have been kind of busy, like the Pope is kind of Catholic.  And it slipped my mind.  But really, the last three weeks have been particularly crazy.
Every six weeks, "cambios" (that's Spanish for changes) occur, in which missionaries finishing their time here go home.  This involves final interviews, dinner at the mission home, getting them on buses for their flights from Lima, blah, blah, blah.
The next day, the new ones arrive, needing interviewed, oriented and assigned.
During cambios, about half the missionaries have a change of companions or the areas in which they work.  The planning and decisions for all this start weeks beforehand, and continue until the day the new ones arrive.  Emergency changes then happen unpredictably until the next cambio.  This rearranging happened right after a seminar held in Lima for the 32 mission presidents in the five countries of our area.
Every three months, we have a series of "zone conferences," in which we meet with all the missionaries in three separate groups, with instruction and occasionally some fun.
These take place here in Huancayo, in La Merced in the jungle, and in Huánuco at the other end of the Mission.  The conferences also take some preparation, and a whole lot of driving around. This is the car after arriving home late last night from Huánuco, a seven-hour+ drive, a fair amount of which takes place on unpaved roads, with rain this time.  The only good thing is that no one can read the license plate.
Anyway, the craziness took a bit of an upturn.  We apologize for not communicating more frequently, and vow to do better...maybe.
Dave & Paula