INTERNET CHALLANGED ONCE MORE

This will be a post without pictures for now.  We moved out of the hotel where we have been staying since we arrived in New Caledonia.  The hotel with the incredible view.  We moved into our apartment last Saturday.  I don't believe I have ever set up an apartment from ground zero.  When we signed the lease the apartment had a stove, an oven, construction dust, and grout film on all the tile.  There weren't even any light bulbs. We don't have internet at our apartment and it is a complicated process to get it so in the meantime I have some time at the office when my work is done and Elder Glade's isn't, but I don't have access to our pictures.

The first night after the water had been turned on and we went to clean our apartment was a comedy of errors. We finally left the office about 4. Went home and grabbed a quick snack before going to the apartment.  We had borrowed a broom, bucket, fan etc. from the office and thought we were well prepared.

When we got to the apartment we realized there were no light bulbs and it was getting dark. We couldn't remember where we put a couple that we had bought to try. (We didn't  want blue light.) Elder Glade decided to go back to the hotel and look for them. He left and I was going to start cleaning the grout film off the tile floors.  That was when I realized that the water I turned on when we first got there was all that we were going to get. I called to say that there was no water after all. Elder Glade realized I had the key to the hotel.  He called me to say he would turn around and go to the office for light bulbs. We realized we needed something to stand on to reach the ceiling.  He said he'd get the ladder at the office, too.  I could see a tap outside so I went to see if I could get water there. The handle had been removed.  I called Elder Glade to ask him to bring some water.  He told me to look for a valve outside and make sure it was on.  I checked on the terrace and couldn't see anything. I called Elder Glade to find out exactly where.  He told me to go to a closet in the hallway. My key unlocked it and I was able to turn the water on.  Called  to tell him we did have water. Missionaries were around the office for an activité sportive at the chapel and wanted to talk to Elder Glade. He kept telling them that he had to go--he had left me in a dark apartment. Our apartment is at the beginning of an indoor hall which is very dark so there is a light switch at the beginning of the hall.  When it is turned on it will stay on for a few minutes and then turn off again.  I kept turning it on and leaving the door open so I could see until Elder Glade got back with the light bulbs.  

We stayed for a while and went over the floors a few times where we had light. It was pretty hot with just a fan. Before we left we plugged in the water heater and it overloaded the circuit. After that we had no electricity.  After running around and so many phone calls I'm glad we finally got something done.  

So far we have spent long hours at the office trying to get things running smoothly here.  We are caught between two systems--New Zealand and Tahiti (French).  Still not sure how it will all turn out.  We wanted to get my signature on a local bank account that Elder Glade had opened and we had to make an appointment and return a week later.  Things are done differently here and in a very complicated fashion to our way of thinking.

In the evenings we have tried to get what we needed for the apartment.  Most stores close by 5:30.  Even grocery stores close by 7:30 or 8.  It's probably good because we are exhausted by then.

We have also kept busy by attending baptisms when we can, a dinner with a sister becoming active again, and dinner with another sister in the ward.  We have accompanied missionaries to doctor and dentist appointments; picked up medicine at the pharmacy; gone grocery shopping a few times with two sets of elders trying to teach them to budget so they don't run out of money half-way through the month; worked through problems with packages shipped from home; corresponded with worried mothers; dealt with visa issues and driving school (a requirement for expats of more than a year); helped with missionary car inspections; and have had a set of sisters and one of elders who have had car accidents--fortunately not serious.

Hopefully internet next week and a blog post with pictures.