An amazing afternoon/evening involving a "warm shower"!

I was sitting at the Visitor Center minding my own when the door bell tings, heralding the arrival of a visitor!  Oh joy!!!!   Someone to talk to (only happens once or twice a day).  This day, particularly lonely, with Bill over at "the compound" across the street, building bird feeders.

As I stand to greet our visitor I see a long distance cyclist (as a cyclist myself, I recognize them right away:  the helmet, fingerless gloves, funny looking shorts, fatigued look, road grime) enter, wearing the previously mentioned items, along with a semi-panicked facial expression.  This turns out to be Ashley, touring the country the last 4 months with her husband Steve.  Ashley had suffered the loss of 4 (count them FOUR) rear spokes, quite a distance back.  She is at the end of her rope, end of her budget for the month, and, though she does not yet know it, 36 miles from the nearest cycle shop.  God has led her to our door.

Keeping the entire situation to ourselves (just didn't see any need for the Rangers to know), we invited Ashley and Steve to stay overnight with us and allow Bill to drive them to Myrtle Beach  in the morning (the Rangers didn't even know he was gone, as he was back at building bird feeders in an hour and a half:-)  These young adventurers accepted our invite, set camp up in our compound, enjoyed some of Bill's cooking and grabbed a hot (though short) shower before settling in by the campfire.

After a night of (I apologize here and now for the non-stop barking dog) rest,  I slipped off to the Visitor Center and Bill delivered Ashley and Steve, along with 2 Cannondales, to the bike shop in Myrtle Beach.  The couple are due back in Pennsylvania in 2 weeks, we wish them Godspeed!

The really neat thing that we came away from the campfire time with:  https://www.warmshowers.org

In providing Ashley and Steve a place to "bunk", a warm meal and a hot shower, we were, unwittingly,  acting as informal "Warm Shower" hosts.  We are now registered, official 
"warmshower" hosts.  

As it turns out, we have unwittingly provided this service before: 

once in Colorado for a couple from San Fransisco who had flown themselves and their bikes to the East coast, and were riding them back.  

And, once in California, a young Canadian girl who had ridden from Vancouver, British Columbia to San Diego and was on her back to Los Angeles Airport to catch a plane home.  This young Canadian lived in an apartment with a small balcony, squeezed between hers and another apartment building.  From this small balcony she could see the waters of Burrard Inlet.  This young lady, a history major,  had been studying a Rand McNally and spotted Joshua Tree National Park. While the map triggered further study, this amazing park grabbed her full attention.  During her short stay with us a tremendous wind storm broke over the hills of Blackrock Campground and our young Canadian sought shelter in the ladies bathroom (concrete block), just as her tent was blowing away, sleeping on the counter.  When we found her in the morning, we advised her that that had not been necessary, and she should make her way to our site the next time.

So, without even knowing it, God was preparing us for this new assignment that will dovetail quite nicely with what He already has us doing.

Taking us back to the previous Sunday:  we had had an exhausting day Saturday (you will see what I mean) and Sunday found us needing some "nature time", so at sunrise we were off to the Visitor Center (closed on Sundays) to plant our camera stand and attempt to get pix of our Wood Duck.  After an uneventful 30 minutes we relocated from the pier to the back porch rocking chairs.  
























You have seen this view from that location before if you are on Facebook with me:  

No, we were not lucky enough to see the wood duck, but we did observe some of God's other works:

Yellow Shafted Flicker

Purple Finch (Poor quality)

Female Cardinal

Male Cardinal

Red-bellied Woodpecker

Red Bellied Woodpecker in flight

Red Bellied Woodpecker in flight

Blue Jay in flight

Blue Jay

Red Fox

Red Fox

Red Fox

Pileated Woodpecker (see story)

And speaking of God's creatures.....Bill brought Tessa over to the Visitor Center, and due to the heavy rain that began after he arrived, left her with me for a short time.  She wandered over to the terrariums and spotted the King Snake right off.  Oh, she found him fascinating, and he found Tessa fascinating....they were both quite electric during the standoff.  

Not all of God's creatures are physically beautiful, but interesting just the same.  Sitting by the campfire one sunny day, I observed this guy just chillin it.  Drying his feathers I suppose, as he stood like this for the longest time: 

Turkey Vulture

We have been fortunate, being so close to Charleston, while in South Carolina.  This has afforded me the opportunity/excuse to go into the big city every 2 weeks for training on my Apple computer.  We have thus been enjoying some of what Charleston has to offer:

The Civil War began here.

canon being painted

Charles Pinkney National Historical Site.

Ravenel Bridge one week

                                      Ravenel Bridge the next week

 

Charleston Waterfront    

                          

                       Downtown King Street-notice anything weird here?

Downtown Charleston on St. Patrick's Day ...

                                                     Some of Bill's fav's, 
some of mine.                                                                                      Can you guess,  which is who's?                                                                 

              Patriot's Point (aboard the Yorktown)   

                               

And though we have loved South Carolina, we have enjoyed making several trips to Charlotte, North Carolina to visit Lynn (Jan's cousin) and Caron (andrusstoneware.com), which is where this writing takes place while we provide a little post surgical assistance.

This is how we feel about a visit to the Andrus household:  

Tessa communicates well for us!

As quiet as our work can be, it has had it's busy moments (days),  Take, for example last Saturday.  A Boy Scout Troop was scheduled to visit and build the 25 Bluebird Houses Bill had cut and prepared for just such an event.

 While loading up the necessary tools the night before, I had a thought ....."maybe there are some girls in the Boy Scout troop?"  So, with anticipation, I packed my pink drill:-)  Not only were there girls

 

and they LOVED my drill...  

"girls can have tools too!" ...right up until the time it ran out of power :-(

the GIRLS were the biggest fans of the snakes!

 Even the kids that were reluctant, eventually succumbed to the peer pressure.  Still, I kept giving them chances to opt out.

The time to do the actual work arrived, the kids were very attentive.  

The dads didn't expect to be told "you're building a house too",  but once they got the hang of it, they were all in.

After the work, we were all ready for the pizza  and "Moon Pies" (it's a southern thing).

The entire group was pleased with what they had accomplished!

It was a day as rewarding as it was tiring!

We finished off the week by completing a couple of projects.  

    

                                    Old Butterfly Garden sign...... 

Bill restored Butterfly Garden sign.

If you remember Bill's sign project for Camp Zion last summer....

Over the years he has had several commissions for signs.  He has always enjoyed the process of sign making, and is good at it:-)Taking into consideration our current lifestyle and Bill's love of the sign making process, which go together well, he has decided to start a little "sign making business".  If you have any interest or sign needs, let him know.
I will not leave you hanging on the Pileated Woodpecker story.  I have had an insatiable desire to see a Pileated Woodpecker in the wild.  Thinking I would have to rent a boat and go over to Sandy Island, where they are known to congregate.  So you can imagine my pleasant surprise at finding one right in our backyard:-)
Well, that's what's going on in South Carolina, How are things with y'all!
We will be heading home (Northern Illinois) on May 1st and plan to be there from the 5th thru the 21st.
Vaya Con Dios!!!  Jan and Bill

 You may see a pattern developing!

So much for the bike riding!

Just about the time we settle into a routine, the weather bottoms out, and all hope of riding my bike comes to an end.  I guess I shouldn't complain about 20's and 30's at night, 40's during the day with a little rain the last few days.  In comparison to Lake Zurich, this is heaven!  I will get back to it when I can and not fuss over what I can't change.

Speaking of change, I am helpless to change most things, but fortunately for us, God can change anything!  Below is a Facebook post I put up last week

Another God intervention today: we left my BFF (Audrey-78 yoa)

6 weeks ago. Last week I finally got around to sending her a long letter with pictures. It arrived TODAY ...on the day she received some very depressing medical diagnosis. Just when she really needed to be uplifted, I was there for her ! Still, she could use prayer.....for her salvation...complete turnaround of a diagnosis that she is going to remain "profoundly deaf" permanently and (selfishly) for me as this is making it sooooo hard for me to be away from her. Thanks prayer warriors!

5 days later this response was posted by Audrey's daughter Michelle (shown here with her son Nate (also a believer)

:

Thank you for your prayers. Praise to God that the procedure they did yesterday

(initially given about a 10% chance of success in her case) has restored much of

mom's hearing. She had almost immediate improvement after the steroid injections

directly into both ears. So, while she thought she was to be permanently profoundly

deaf, that wasn't God's plan Your kind words and support are, as always, so

appreciated and here's praying that she accepts the truth that this against-the-odds 

improvement was truly a God-thing!


In my conversation with Audrey after the successful procedure I found her MUCH

more open to considering that this was the Lord's intervention, and she was

EXTRAORDINARILY grateful for all the prayers sent up for her.  


Follow-up to last weeks God Intervention:


Bill and I did locate Pastor Cheryl Adamson at Palmetto Missionary Baptist Church


 http://palmettomissionarybaptistchurch.com/staff/


and attended there last Sunday.  I can assure you our search for a local 

church is over!  NOW we know why God sent us.  We were so warmly 

welcomed and Pastor Adamson's preaching so meaningful!!!  And the music!  Lovely 

:-)  We felt so much at home.


We missed church two weeks ago, as we had to drive to Charlotte for me to see my 

shoulder doc. 4 hour drive, and the night before my appointment, 2 inches of snow 

fell.  In Charlotte, that means the sky is falling and their whole world shuts down. 

But, it was NOT a wasted trip as we had a wonderful evening with my cousin and 

mutual friends:

More fun could not be had when Mo is part of the mix!

We returned home and rescheduled my doc appt.  Gives us an excuse to go back 

next Sunday (AFTER church of course).

while cruising around Charleston this week I spotted the most encouraging thing:

Hold onto HOPE!

This is what I spent my time doing yesterday (interspersed between loads of laundry)!

Not the best quality, sorry.  May be my way of getting that new telephoto lens:-)

And before I forget again :-(  Two weeks ago, on Thursday, Bill and I returned from 

our 4 days off.  As usual, I immediately check on all of  our critters.  I note that I 

cannot see the Congo Eel

in the aquarium tank... This does not alarm me, as he is very good at hiding, but, 

when I still cannot see him the next day, I sought out my Ranger Sam (who had just 

returned from a few days off).

  

Sam mumbles "that's funny, I don't remember seeing him on Wednesday" 

and joins me by the tank.  Knowing (at that time) more than me about this Eel.  Sam 

looks down at the ground, pulls a display away from the wall, and exposes our 

wayfarer.  The Congo Eel is on the floor, half behind the cabinet holding the tank 5 

feet in the air.  At best he was "out" 2 days, at worst 3.  When he was returned to the 

tank (yes, still alive) he seemed stunned, and did not eat that day, but seems to be 

back to normal.  Thru this process I learned many things:

1)  Our Congo Eel is not a Siren (as we had been told)....our Congo Eel has 4 feet, 

Sirens only 2.


2)  The Refuge has not been feeding him properly.  He should not be eating Pinkies 

as his sole source of food. 


3)  Congo Eels are escape artists (probably went out looking for food).


4)  Sam was right to go get gloves with which to pick him up....their skin is quite 

toxic.


5)  Their skin is also very sensitive.  If scratched, it can easily become infected.  A 

blogger I began following as a result of this incident, suggests we take him to a vet 

for a check-up and possible infusion of antibiotics (when you know what freezes 

over):-)  I doubt the government will invest that kind of money into an Eel.




So, you have now seen the height of Waccamaw drama.  The case of the missing 

Congo Eel.


Entering a busy time with trips to Jasper, GA (near Atlanta) to visit our friend Lydia 

AND that second trip to Charlotte.  Pray it does not snow again.  Thanks!

A word with God!

Many fun and interesting experiences greet us each and every day and they all make an impact.  I will share this month's events with y'all later, but the IMPORTANT stuff first:

I must bring it to your attention when one of us (in this case me-Jan) has a DIRECT intervention from the Lord Himself.  The kind of intervention that is so CLEAR, so DIRECT, so unmistakably DIVINE that it cannot be denied or ignored.







                                                              First, some background:  as usual, when Bill and I arrive at a new location at which we will be free on Sundays, or some of our Sundays, we go looking for a temporary church home.  In the case of our time at Waccamaw, my research revealed a nearby church called, of all things, Christ Community Church.

As many of you know, this is the same name as Bill's lifelong home church in Zion, IL.  We took this as a promising sign, and began attending.

We both enjoyed the preaching AND the welcome was warm and inviting.  On the 2nd Sunday we visited, CCC presented a guest preacher.  We did not catch her name, but SHE WAS FABULOUS!  We didn't focus on her name because we thought we would be able to find it on CCC's webpage later.  By our 4th week of visiting CCC, it was clear that I was not being fed by the style of worship music being presented, and that was important enough for me to bring it to Bill's attention.  We came to a quick agreement that we would both like to try the church of the "guest preacher" we had heard at CCC several weeks earlier.  NOW, to find out who she is and where she preaches.  The information could not be found anywhere...not the CCC website, nor anywhere on the web.  We could not remember her name, or the name of her church and I was too embarrassed to call CCC and say "hey, we like your church, but not enough to stay, so could you give me the name of that guest speaker we had a few weeks ago?"  The week was passing, several days had gone by, with no success in our search.

Now, I am standing in the laundry room, putting a load in, moving a load over and I hear a voice, clearly say "Cheryl Adamson"!  What???  Wait???   THAT was the preachers name, and I rush to my computer to discover:

Pastor Cheryl Adamson

An answer to prayer staring me in the face!

We will be traveling this Sunday, but can't wait for the opportunity to hear her again.  She is clearly anointed.

We have now been at Waccamaw just over a month:

and are settling into a routine:

I ride when I can, while Bill and Tessa shadow me.

Bill likes to pick garbage alongside the road during the hour I am riding, but Tessa, well, she just likes the scenery.

Cleaning up alongside the messiest roads we have ever seen is not exercised solely during my ride time.  We feel so strongly about this

we go out on garbage patrol regularly.

Sometimes our training is just so miserable, but somebody has to do it:

ATV Training Day

 

Now, to find something to do that would require the use of these machines.

And, of course, we must know what we are talking about when people call or come in looking for our hiking trails.  Our best answer "Go up to Cox Ferry", there's about 4 miles of trails up there:

The Cox Ferry Trails are about 20 miles from us here at the Visitor Center, closer to the north end of the Refuge.  It is also where our friends Ken and Joanna (whom we met at The Cradle of Forestry-our 1st volunteer assignment) are posted while they are here volunteering at Waccamaw.  It was just a sheer coincidence that we both ended up here together.  The volunteer world is getting smaller all the time.

The Cypress Swamp is beautiful right now...another month and well be spraying up with Deet!  Another month???  We couldn't stand still very long right now!

My need for training on my new Apple computer affords us the opportunity to be down in Charleston a lot.  This is good on several levels, not the least of which is that it affords us a chance to see my cousin Kelly  (daughter of my cousin Lynn) over lunch on the waterway.

BUT, during lunch, Kelly and Bill, facing the water, bring to my attention an interesting old boat cruising slowly by.  I turn and note the neat old boat, as the conversation continues.  The old boat passes several more times and Kelly says "I guess they are filming something".  

As I turn and look again, wondering what is going on, FINALLY Kelly says what she has known all along (took her awhile to be sure):  "Yea, that's Darius Rucker".  "WHAT"!!!!!  And you're just telling me now????  OMG, I'm a HUGE fan!"

,And Kelly goes on to explain that Darius lives near them.  I didn't want to look like a besotted fool, but I HAD to take some pix!  Where is my real camera when I need it?  Sorry Darius, I apologize for gawking!  P.S.  I was a fan back when Darius was still"Hootie", just sayin:-)

Plans are in the works for Bill and I to get together with ALL of my cousin Lynn's family who live there in Mt. Pleasant.

That would include Kelly, hubby Charlie,

We have not yet met this young man.

 kids Ellis and Luke

AND Kelly's brother Kevin, his wife Cassie

       






                        and their kids Eva, Sade and Mya.

This is VERY exciting to us, as these people are right up there at the top of our list of FAVORITE people.  Can't wait!!!

After the exciting lunch with Kelly, we headed toward Charleston to take in a couple of the many sights to see:  Fort Moultrie

and Patriots Point.

  We will be returning to Patriot's Point, as there was so much to see there.

This drive takes us by the bridge into Charleston, which we find quite lovely!

Take a cue from our South Carolina friends Greg and Becky:

who, came to visit not long ago!  We only work on Thursday, Friday and Saturday.  So our time is quite flexible!

Sincerely, JAN