I'm praying that Earthlink is right....

About a month or so ago I received another phone call from AT&T offering us a great deal on DSL. We finally decided with the recent purchase of our laptop that we would make the switch from dial up. As they processed my order, I found out that we could also get wireless in our home for an additional one time cost of $30. I was so excited about the prospect of having a wireless, high speed internet connection. Our equipment arrived and we got it all hooked up and watched the DSL light flash repeatedly and then turn to a solid red. After troubleshooting the equipment as instructed, we called tech support because we concluded that we weren't picking up a DSL signal. The first person I talked to informed me that our order was pending and assumed that they hadn't provisioned our line yet. He gave me a reference number and had me call back the next business day. The next customer service representative that I talked to responded by telling me without a trace of sympathy that "we had been denied." How can you be denied something that was offered to you? It's not like I called and requested this service. They called me! They are still calling me! I think someone else in a different neighborhood of Carl Junction must have had our phone number at one point in time and that their area has DSL available. You can log onto the AT&T website to check to see if DSL is available in your area by entering your telephone number and when I enter mine, it shows that it is. When I enter our neighbor's phone number, it shows that DSL service is not available. After checking into high speed internet through our cable provider and determining that it was too expensive, my plan was to check my neighbor's number every so often until it appeared that we could try again. That is, until Wednesday when I received a mailing from Earthlink, our current dial up provider.

Earthlink was offering high speed internet service for $9 less than we are paying for dial up for six months. At the conclusion of six months, we would start paying the regular monthly rate, which is $8 more than what we are paying for dial up. Hmmmmm....that I could handle! I called the number on the ad and asked, "I assume that if we can't get DSL through AT&T, we probably cannot get it through Earthlink, correct?". She checked our number AND our address and responded that the system showed we do have DSL available. I explained to her what I've just explained to you, my readers, and she gave me a logical explanation as to why they could provide us with DSL when AT&T couldn't. While still a bit skeptical, I was assured that there would be no harm in trying. Earthlink, unlike AT&T, doesn't send any equipment out until they've provisioned the line. This, I was informed, would take 3-10 days. Once the line is provisioned, they would send out the equipment. Although I've been trying not to get my hopes up, I'm praying that Earthlink is right.

I've encountered several frustrations with my dial up connection in recent days. Have you all ever noticed how I never post any pictures on my blog? That is because I can't! Even after compressing my pictures, something goes wrong between the time I click upload and the time it tells me my pictures have been uploaded. I suspect this has to do with my internet connection.

My family has been pressuring me all week to upload the pictures I took in Arizona to Kodak Gallery. "It's so easy", they say. I would agree that the software is very user friendly, but I was stupid enough to think that I could upload all 122 pictures with the click of a button. Wrong! In about 15 minutes, I successfully updated one picture! Steve warned me about this, but I confess that I ignored him. I'm so sorry, Steve! You are so much smarter than me. I decided to quit uploading after my dad suggested I take my laptop to Hardee's or Panera Bread to use their free wireless internet connection. I also realized that I don't have to add all pictures that I want in an album at the same time. That's part of what led my to ignore Steve's warning. My albums had to be nicely organized! So, Greg, Emily, Mom, Dad, Kim, you are going to have to be patient with me. As dad used to say, "Patience is a virtue."

If my Sparkpeople friends are reading, I must take this opportunity to explain why I can't post alot from home. It takes several minutes to load our discussion thread!

Oh, how I long for high speed internet! I know it's a selfish prayer, but "Please, Jesus, give me high speed internet! I would be forever grateful and use the internet to be a witness to your awesome power over the smallest details of our lives."

My Trip to Arizona

I took a few vacation days and went to Arizona last week to visit with family and friends. Steve couldn’t come because does corporate tax work and tax returns are due on September 15. Despite the fact that Steve couldn’t join me, I had a wonderful time! Here’s my report. Greg, I'm warning you there are alot of links!

Part I – Visiting with my immediate family

I arrived in Phoenix on Wednesday at about 1:00 Phoenix time and my parents, sister and brother’s family were waiting for me at the airport in a rented Ford Expedition that seated 6 adults and 2 car seats so we could take off for Sedona and the Grand Canyon. We stopped at Montezuma Castle and Montezuma Well on the way to Sedona and my 4 year old nephew, Nathan, prided himself in becoming a Junior Park Ranger. He was so cute! He pointed to his badge in every picture we took from that point forward. We spent the night in Sedona and went to Slide Rock for a bit the next morning. Greg and the boys changed into their swimsuits and Greg got to experience Slide Rock while the rest of us watched. I wish we would’ve had more time there because it would’ve been fun for all of us to get in. Then we had lunch in Flagstaff and spent a few hours looking around Grand Canyon before we had to head back to my grandparent’s house in Phoenix.

Part II – Visiting with my extended family

Greg, Emily and the boys left early the next morning to head back to Texas (sniffle, sniffle). I spent the first night on my grandparent's couch (until I crawled in bed with my mom after my dad left at 3:30 a.m. to take Greg’s family to the airport). We went out to lunch and dinner Friday with my extended family in Phoenix. The balance of the day was spent swimming with my sister, playing Head and Foot with my grandparents and watching TV with Uncle Steve, Aunt Jean and my cousin Tammy. Kim and I roomed together that night at Uncle Steve and Aunt Jean’s house. We got up earlier than Kim would’ve liked Saturday morning and went back over to my grandparents to spend some more quality time with them. We finished up some pending games of Head and Foot and taught them to play Oh, Heck. We took some quick pictures with Grandma and Grandpa and said our goodbyes.

Part III – Visiting with my family in Christ

My parents and Kim drove to Phoenix so they were heading back to Joplin on Saturday. I had made plans for us to meet an old friend from Chile for lunch before they headed out of town. We met Ely and her husband, Ricardo at On The Border in Mesa so that we could eat the closest thing we have here to Chilean "empanadas de queso". Ely and I were really good friends when I lived in Chile, but I hadn’t seen her in over 12 years! They just moved to Arizona a few months back when Ricardo took a job as the Hispanic minister at Chandler Christian Church. We have talked on the phone and emailed each other some since April, but I was so glad to get to visit with her in person. We went back to her place after lunch and we talked nonstop from 3:00 p.m. to 2:00 a.m.! It’s amazing how some friends can just pick right back up where they left off. I am looking forward to developing a closer friendship with this awesome woman of God. We were just kids when we knew each other in Chile. Thank God we have both grown emotionally and spiritually (physically too, but I’m not thankful for that!) since we last saw each other in 1994. I have a feeling our friendship is going to become stronger than it has ever been in the coming years. We certainly laid the groundwork for that with this initial visit. Ely, si estas leyendo, estoy tan emocionada de tenerte de vuelta en mi vida. Eres una gran bendicion de Dios!

When Ely’s husband, Ricardo, came home from the Saturday night service, we talked on Skype with another Chilean friend, Ricky Olivares, who is serving along with his wife, Tracie, as a missionary in Cusco, Peru. They are in the beginning stages of their ministry in Cusco and still need to raise 40% of their budget. I just learned that they’ve started blogging so I hope you will take some time to read their blogs and consider how you can help support them, whether it be financially or with your prayers. They are being sponsored by Iberoamerican Ministries out of Washington and are doing an awesome work there from what I can tell. Stay tuned in at www.rickyandtracie.blogspot.com.

On Sunday, I attended Chandler Christian Church with Ely and Ricardo and thoroughly enjoyed the service. They had several go forward to be baptized after the service, one of them a member of the Hispanic group. While I love College Heights Christian Church in Joplin and regret having missed Jaime Jamgochian lead worship on Sunday, I feel privileged to have been able to visit an even bigger, dynamic, progressive church. I’ll steal a line from CHCC’s building campaign song—"God’s at work here!" I will be anxious to see how God will use Ricardo and Ely to reach Hispanics in the greater Phoenix area.

Our First Golden Anniversary

No, we are not celebrating our 50th wedding anniversary (yet), but we are celebrating 8 years of marriage on 8/8 this year so I'm calling it our First Golden Anniversary. Steve and I were married on 8/8/1998. I made it easy for him, didn't I? Some days it seems like we've been together forever and other days, I am surprised by things I am still learning about him. I feel so blessed to have him as a husband. Our love has grown stronger with each passing year and I can't imagine how wonderful our relationship will be when we celebrate our real Golden Anniversary! Happy First Golden Anniversary, Steve! I love you so much!