Well... It's been a few days, so here's my best memory of what's been going on.
Thursday morning we woke up what we thought was an hour late (I accidentally set the alarm for 8, not 7), and we all took really fast showers to be ready to go out with the program. But it was raining, and since kids didn't want to wait outside in the rain, the J&E was cancelled for the day. (Note - in the Bahamas, people don't really want to do anything when it rains, whether the activity is inside or not.)
So instead we had a more relaxing morning. Then, in the afternoon, we went with Mark and Maggie to drop off groceries to a family affected by the SeaHauler mail-boat crash. The man now has a spine injury that has left the left side of his body partly dead. He is in constant pain and has to use crutches to walk. He can no longer work, so he is forced to go out begging for money for food. 4 of his 8 children live with him in a house smaller than our living room, which costs him $420 a month to rent plus utilities. He was very greatful for the groceries, even though he realizes it is only a temporary help and cannot meet his permanent needs.
After that, we went with Mark to meet with parents of some of the kids who used to be a part of the ministry. It was a really good chance to see how Mark involves the parents as well when working with the kids. After that, we got Wendy's to go and ate back at our place before going to bed.
Friday, we got up to go out with the program. The rain held off long enough that we didn't have to cancell, although all the kids got dropped off in the rain. There were about 45 kids this time, which was great. We did have a bit of trouble getting hold of the bus driver, so it took a bit longer than usual to get back. We picked up a few odd items at a grocery store before getting Bamboo Shack for dinner and heading home to watch footage. We have about 20 hours of tape to wach and log what is on them, which will be difficult to get caught up on. But we have Saturday and Sunday off, so we should get some of that worked through. As long as we can watch more than we shoot on average, we'll be ok.
This is Tim, signing off for now.
Saturday, June 30, 2007
Wednesday, June 27, 2007
well, we took Stefan to the airport and saw him off. We talked with a couple of people in the mailboat accident that are disabled and in need Mark and Maggie are trying to assist. We interviewed one today and will one tomorrow probably after the program with the kids is done in the afternoon. We interviewed an inspector of police today after getting the run around from some judges just like everywhere else we get the run around (we were supposed to interview a magistrate). We ate at Wendy's...big surprise. We stopped at ZNS to try and get some news footage. enjoyed the coolness from the rain. Gonna go to sleep now. Welp...night.
-JZASON-
Note - This is Tim updating for Tuesday since Jason didn't know he was supposed to write for two days...
On Tuesday we had a nice late morning (Stefan slept till 11:30 or so) and then we went out for our meeting with Mr. Controversy at 4:00. He talked to us about some legalities and is also going to try to get us in touch with several former gang leaders from the past. He is also getting us in touch with victims from the Sea Hauler crash, which Jason wrote a bit about. Then Stefan grabbed the rest of his clothes from Mark's house and then we came back, ordered Pizza, and watched a movie.
-JZASON-
Note - This is Tim updating for Tuesday since Jason didn't know he was supposed to write for two days...
On Tuesday we had a nice late morning (Stefan slept till 11:30 or so) and then we went out for our meeting with Mr. Controversy at 4:00. He talked to us about some legalities and is also going to try to get us in touch with several former gang leaders from the past. He is also getting us in touch with victims from the Sea Hauler crash, which Jason wrote a bit about. Then Stefan grabbed the rest of his clothes from Mark's house and then we came back, ordered Pizza, and watched a movie.
Tuesday, June 26, 2007
A home-cooked meal (Thanks, Jason)
Monday was another fairly lazy day for us. This is partly due to the fact that we still don't have our car back. We just woke up late (for me, 8:45 has become late) and hung around until about 2:30 when Mark came and picked us up to go check on the car. We got there only to find out that he still hadn't had a chance to look at it yet. We're supposed to come back later this afternoon (Tuesday) to see what's up.
After that, we hit up the grocery store. We now show at a place called Solomon's, which is the closest they have to a Walmart here, but with mostly groceries. We even got a 3lb box of Honey Nut Cheerios for the hefty price of $12.99. We came back home and put our groceries away, and I was suprised at how little we brough home for the money we spent. So is life here.
After that, Manuela picked us up and took us to the Grocery store (again) where we got some food to cook a dinner at her place. Jason actually cooked the chicken and fries, put together the cesar salad kit, and made the Daquiri's (unleaded) which was wonderful. *edit* My mistake, Manuela did coock the fries and arrange the salad. */edit* Of the four of us, only Stefan actually likes eating out all the time. Jason, Jonathan, and I prefer to eat at home on plates, which is part of what made the meal so great.
Afterwards, Manuela played a few songs for us that she'll be recording in the next month or so, which was quite a treat. Hopefully we'll be able to get a copy of the CD before we head back.
We then jumped in the pool for a while. It was nice and warm, helping us cool off from the hot days we've had with heat indexes well into the 105-110 range. It was actually wierd, though, to swim without the added boyancy of salt water, but nonetheless, it was great.
We headed home and (can you tell I'm losing steam?) went to bed fairly soon after. Thankfully, the night cooled off enough to allow another good nights sleep.
After that, we hit up the grocery store. We now show at a place called Solomon's, which is the closest they have to a Walmart here, but with mostly groceries. We even got a 3lb box of Honey Nut Cheerios for the hefty price of $12.99. We came back home and put our groceries away, and I was suprised at how little we brough home for the money we spent. So is life here.
After that, Manuela picked us up and took us to the Grocery store (again) where we got some food to cook a dinner at her place. Jason actually cooked the chicken and fries, put together the cesar salad kit, and made the Daquiri's (unleaded) which was wonderful. *edit* My mistake, Manuela did coock the fries and arrange the salad. */edit* Of the four of us, only Stefan actually likes eating out all the time. Jason, Jonathan, and I prefer to eat at home on plates, which is part of what made the meal so great.
Afterwards, Manuela played a few songs for us that she'll be recording in the next month or so, which was quite a treat. Hopefully we'll be able to get a copy of the CD before we head back.
We then jumped in the pool for a while. It was nice and warm, helping us cool off from the hot days we've had with heat indexes well into the 105-110 range. It was actually wierd, though, to swim without the added boyancy of salt water, but nonetheless, it was great.
We headed home and (can you tell I'm losing steam?) went to bed fairly soon after. Thankfully, the night cooled off enough to allow another good nights sleep.
Sunday, June 24, 2007
Lazy Sunday
Today we went to New Providence Community Church (NPCC), which was where the program was run yesterday. The service was very nice and we enjoyed it. I thought it was interesting that at one point, all nine people on the stage were wearing jeans. It's very relaxed and comfortable, but the atmosphere was great.
Afterwards, Manuela, who is an intern working at the church, took us home since we didn't have a vehicle while the Kia is in the shop. We decided to go out for lunch at Johnny Canoe, which was kinda like an island version of Applebees. It was great. We got conch fritters, which were like hush puppies with conch inside. Stefan still wouldn't try them since he doesn't eat seafood. It was great to relax and enjoy lunch with someone else our age. Not that we don't like each other or get along, but sometimes it's nice to change things up.
In the afternoon we just kind of did nothing, enjoyed some time off. Then we went to "The Tracks", which is an old airstrip that they ride up and down on motorcycles and cars, doing wheelies and burnouts. This is the place where lots of people go to hang out on Sunday evenings. Manuela went with us too, since although she's lived here for four years (before going to college in Canada), she had never been.
We came back and cleaned up a bit, eat PB&J sandwiches, and are currently watching "The Last Castle" with Robert Redford. I suspect that we'll go to bed shortly after it ends.
Tonigh is our second consecutive night without our beloved mosquito coils. We realized last night too late to go buy some, and since today was Sunday, nothing is open. This means that we'll probably be covered in bites tomorrow, but getting more of them is one of our top priorities.
Until next time,
Tim
Afterwards, Manuela, who is an intern working at the church, took us home since we didn't have a vehicle while the Kia is in the shop. We decided to go out for lunch at Johnny Canoe, which was kinda like an island version of Applebees. It was great. We got conch fritters, which were like hush puppies with conch inside. Stefan still wouldn't try them since he doesn't eat seafood. It was great to relax and enjoy lunch with someone else our age. Not that we don't like each other or get along, but sometimes it's nice to change things up.
In the afternoon we just kind of did nothing, enjoyed some time off. Then we went to "The Tracks", which is an old airstrip that they ride up and down on motorcycles and cars, doing wheelies and burnouts. This is the place where lots of people go to hang out on Sunday evenings. Manuela went with us too, since although she's lived here for four years (before going to college in Canada), she had never been.
We came back and cleaned up a bit, eat PB&J sandwiches, and are currently watching "The Last Castle" with Robert Redford. I suspect that we'll go to bed shortly after it ends.
Tonigh is our second consecutive night without our beloved mosquito coils. We realized last night too late to go buy some, and since today was Sunday, nothing is open. This means that we'll probably be covered in bites tomorrow, but getting more of them is one of our top priorities.
Until next time,
Tim
Friday, June 22, 2007
Just Catching Up
Hey All,
It has been a while... Well we are all in Nassau again. Yesterday marked the first official day of Mark's basketball camp. Kind of crazy that we have been here about a month and we are just now shooting what we think will be the heart of the documentary. Regardless we consider ourselves to be in pretty good shape as far as having what we need.
In the last two weeks we have not been arrested or had much trouble with the car. Probably because we were on another island called Eleuthra. We did however have many exciting adventures. On our first trip to the outer islands we sailed and stopped at an island inhabited almost exclusively by sea Gulls and Iguanas... Which was incredible!
It has been a while... Well we are all in Nassau again. Yesterday marked the first official day of Mark's basketball camp. Kind of crazy that we have been here about a month and we are just now shooting what we think will be the heart of the documentary. Regardless we consider ourselves to be in pretty good shape as far as having what we need.
In the last two weeks we have not been arrested or had much trouble with the car. Probably because we were on another island called Eleuthra. We did however have many exciting adventures. On our first trip to the outer islands we sailed and stopped at an island inhabited almost exclusively by sea Gulls and Iguanas... Which was incredible!
We then pressed on to Eleuthra where Mark worked to revive old connections and prepare the way for a group coming from Tennessee later this summer. We found out a day or two before we returned that we would be returning to Eluethra after a couple of days in Nassau to interview the staff at a school where Mark used to be a disciplinarian.
On our way back to Nassau we experienced a storm at sea. It was one of the most amazing adventures I have had. The boat was subject to the will of the sea. The deck of the ship found its way to a completely vertical orientation several times causing we the unsavy sailors some concern. But our experienced captain brought the ship through the maze of water back to Nassau.
When we returned to Eleuthra this past week we were able to conduct the necessary interviews at a school with faculty and staff. I believe that the one with the principle will prove to be especially useful.
Now we are back in Nassau and looking forward to the next few weeks. Between the basketball camp and Mark's many other endeavors we should find little trouble in collecting the footage we need.
I'll share one quick adventure we had last night before signing off.... Yesterday we had more car trouble. The beast got grumpy and was stopping every 100 yards or so. Finally we gave in and decided to take it to a mechanic. This involved a Stefan and Myself navigating through the worst ghetto on the island (6 Murders in the last couple of weeks) propelled by a make-shift tow rope attached to a half ton truck ahead of us. It was pretty funny to observe people's reactions as two white guys were being dragged to a place where no one goes unless they have to. But we made it and hopefully the car will be working soon.
Please continue to pray for us as we mark the halfway point of this adventure we have just about a month left and a lot of work to be done!
For all of us hear in Nassau this is Jonathan saying Hello! and Goodbye!
P.S. Now that we are back these updates should become more regular
Thursday, June 21, 2007
Update coming soon...
Hey, we just got back from a second trip to Eleuthera, when we only had a few days between the two and the internet was down for a bit, so we weren't able to update.
We'll get back to you tomorrow with a bunch of info.
We'll get back to you tomorrow with a bunch of info.
Monday, June 11, 2007
They Drive on the Wrong (READ - right) Side of the Road Here
Well, this is Tim, from back in Upland. I had a long day of traveling Saturday and a nice day of relaxing yesterday, so I figured I'd write a little something while Stefan, Jonathan, and Jason are off sailing their way across the seven seas, diving for fresh conch, getting themselves lost trying to navigate by the stars (or whatever advanced equipment they have).
Yesterday I went to Muncie with Lissel to try to get my cell phone that went through the washer and dryer in Nassau fixed, but I need a new one. But the bigger problem was that I had to concentrate quite hard on driving on the right side of the road. Our Kia Sportage is a left-hand drive, which means that we are driving from the side, not the center of the road, in Nassau. This makes it easy to feel like I'm back there, since the car feels the same but the rules are different.
And while I'm on the car, it was quite wierd to have a vehicle that starts every time and doesn't have to be shaken to start or revved all the time. And all the windows work and none are broken out. I guess there's new reasons to be thankful for simple things.
Anyway, while driving home from Muncie, I accidentally pulled into overlook drive in Upland on the left side of a car that was going straight across IN 26. I wondered why the driver gave me a strange look until I realized that I, not she, was in error. And the whole time, I had been wondering why she was waiting for me before she pulled out.
Well, today I'm headed to Grand Rapids for a bit to see my Grandma with my mom and Lissel. We'll head to the Dunes and Michigan Adventre park, which should be good. But what that really means is that you won't hear from us until the guys get back to Nassau on Friday.
Until then, farewell.
Tim
Yesterday I went to Muncie with Lissel to try to get my cell phone that went through the washer and dryer in Nassau fixed, but I need a new one. But the bigger problem was that I had to concentrate quite hard on driving on the right side of the road. Our Kia Sportage is a left-hand drive, which means that we are driving from the side, not the center of the road, in Nassau. This makes it easy to feel like I'm back there, since the car feels the same but the rules are different.
And while I'm on the car, it was quite wierd to have a vehicle that starts every time and doesn't have to be shaken to start or revved all the time. And all the windows work and none are broken out. I guess there's new reasons to be thankful for simple things.
Anyway, while driving home from Muncie, I accidentally pulled into overlook drive in Upland on the left side of a car that was going straight across IN 26. I wondered why the driver gave me a strange look until I realized that I, not she, was in error. And the whole time, I had been wondering why she was waiting for me before she pulled out.
Well, today I'm headed to Grand Rapids for a bit to see my Grandma with my mom and Lissel. We'll head to the Dunes and Michigan Adventre park, which should be good. But what that really means is that you won't hear from us until the guys get back to Nassau on Friday.
Until then, farewell.
Tim
Sunday, June 10, 2007
Sailing on the Ocean Seas
Good Sunday Morning Everyone!
First off as you know, we were delinquent in blogging yesterday. Not because we were too busy... Because we did very little. Yesterday was the first day that we have done absolutely nothing. It poured all day long keeping us from visiting parents of kids involved in the ministry. We are trying to stage most interviews outdoors to remind the audience of the tropical location throughout the film.
Since it was Saturday most offices that we could have visited for research were also closed. So... We watched several movies read and generally lounged around. It was really odd compared to the fast pace that we have become used to. The most notable event of the Day was driving Tim to the Airport. He has an important meeting back in Indiana that he cannot miss. He will be returning a week from Tuesday.
In other news.... This morning we will be leaving for a trip that will take us to several other islands. We will be traveling via sailboat with a missionary couple that will be hauling cargo back and forth between the islands. Many of these islands are largely uninhabited. The ones that are often lack general utilities in most homes such as plumbing and electricity.
This is important to the ministry/documentary because it will allow Mark to prepare for several missions groups that will be on those islands later this summer. It will also allow us to get some footage of the ocean and islands that we would not otherwise have. We should be returning sometime Friday so that Mark can have the first basketball camp on Saturday. So unfortunately friends you will not be hearing from us for some time.
Until then... This is Jonathan Saying "good day" from Nassau!
First off as you know, we were delinquent in blogging yesterday. Not because we were too busy... Because we did very little. Yesterday was the first day that we have done absolutely nothing. It poured all day long keeping us from visiting parents of kids involved in the ministry. We are trying to stage most interviews outdoors to remind the audience of the tropical location throughout the film.
Since it was Saturday most offices that we could have visited for research were also closed. So... We watched several movies read and generally lounged around. It was really odd compared to the fast pace that we have become used to. The most notable event of the Day was driving Tim to the Airport. He has an important meeting back in Indiana that he cannot miss. He will be returning a week from Tuesday.
In other news.... This morning we will be leaving for a trip that will take us to several other islands. We will be traveling via sailboat with a missionary couple that will be hauling cargo back and forth between the islands. Many of these islands are largely uninhabited. The ones that are often lack general utilities in most homes such as plumbing and electricity.
This is important to the ministry/documentary because it will allow Mark to prepare for several missions groups that will be on those islands later this summer. It will also allow us to get some footage of the ocean and islands that we would not otherwise have. We should be returning sometime Friday so that Mark can have the first basketball camp on Saturday. So unfortunately friends you will not be hearing from us for some time.
Until then... This is Jonathan Saying "good day" from Nassau!
Friday, June 8, 2007
Rainy Days in Paradise
I'll start with a quick run down of yesterday the 7th...
We woke up early and ran downtown to the national courts again. This time we planned to capture a few shots of kids being marched across the street for trial. Maggie (mark's wife) also came along to secure an interview with the judge responsible for trying all juveniles. He promised an interview which we look forward to getting his unique perspective on the youths of the Bahamas. Later that day we interviewed the mother of a student involved with the program. When we got back Stefan slept over and we watched blood diamond and ate pizza.
Friday the 8th... We slept in late today- till 9:00 which was nice after yesterdays 5:45am wake up call. We allowed ourselves to wake up slowly since we didn't have any pressing responsibilities. We left at 11:00 for the office of the superintendent of Nassau schools to drop off a letter requeseting rights to continue filming in the schools once they let out for the summer. After that we went to the public archives to search for the dates of important gang related events in the news. It was depressing and encouraging at the same time. Encouraging because we found plenty of what we needed. Depressing because we spent the afternoon reading about 14 year-olds being shot to death and teenagers being caught with thousands of dollars worth of drugs. Now that we have identified the dates when those events took place we can request footage from local television stations to use in the documentary. When we finished we stopped for a late lunch at Wendy's and returned home to review footage accompanied by the sounds of a summer rain storm.
Our documentary is supposed to reveal the "true" Bahamas beyond the cruise ships and beautiful beaches that are pictured in many tourists minds. As I consider my own picture of the Bahamas I realize that I have misunderstood just as much as any tourist. Even though I came here to shoot an exciting documentary about gangs in the ghetto of paradise, I have been frustrated with the true nature of the Bahamas. My mind has been fighting to find its way to the sunny shores that my imagination promised. This place couldn't possibly be as despairing as it has appeared to my senses! I am beginning to realize that this is a place where the curtains of reality are pulled open to my minds eye. Here in "paradise" I can see the world (not just the Bahamas) as a whitewashed tomb. A beautiful place with intoxicating scenery. But a mile to the interior you stand next to dilapidated shacks that you would imagine finding in a third world country. This place is as fallen as the next and regardless of how nice the resort you stay in is, you can still see the truth from your hotel window. I feel as if my heart is rebelling against what my head is telling me. I want desperately for this to be the paradise that I imagined it to be. But that wouldn't be the truth... This is a place that needs God as much as any other.
In other news... We are all healthy and Jason's hand seems to be healing well. We are happy to have sheets and fans. We all can't wait to depart for our boat trip to the family islands on Sunday.
Until Next time... This is Jonathan saying goodnight from The Bahamas
We woke up early and ran downtown to the national courts again. This time we planned to capture a few shots of kids being marched across the street for trial. Maggie (mark's wife) also came along to secure an interview with the judge responsible for trying all juveniles. He promised an interview which we look forward to getting his unique perspective on the youths of the Bahamas. Later that day we interviewed the mother of a student involved with the program. When we got back Stefan slept over and we watched blood diamond and ate pizza.
Friday the 8th... We slept in late today- till 9:00 which was nice after yesterdays 5:45am wake up call. We allowed ourselves to wake up slowly since we didn't have any pressing responsibilities. We left at 11:00 for the office of the superintendent of Nassau schools to drop off a letter requeseting rights to continue filming in the schools once they let out for the summer. After that we went to the public archives to search for the dates of important gang related events in the news. It was depressing and encouraging at the same time. Encouraging because we found plenty of what we needed. Depressing because we spent the afternoon reading about 14 year-olds being shot to death and teenagers being caught with thousands of dollars worth of drugs. Now that we have identified the dates when those events took place we can request footage from local television stations to use in the documentary. When we finished we stopped for a late lunch at Wendy's and returned home to review footage accompanied by the sounds of a summer rain storm.
Our documentary is supposed to reveal the "true" Bahamas beyond the cruise ships and beautiful beaches that are pictured in many tourists minds. As I consider my own picture of the Bahamas I realize that I have misunderstood just as much as any tourist. Even though I came here to shoot an exciting documentary about gangs in the ghetto of paradise, I have been frustrated with the true nature of the Bahamas. My mind has been fighting to find its way to the sunny shores that my imagination promised. This place couldn't possibly be as despairing as it has appeared to my senses! I am beginning to realize that this is a place where the curtains of reality are pulled open to my minds eye. Here in "paradise" I can see the world (not just the Bahamas) as a whitewashed tomb. A beautiful place with intoxicating scenery. But a mile to the interior you stand next to dilapidated shacks that you would imagine finding in a third world country. This place is as fallen as the next and regardless of how nice the resort you stay in is, you can still see the truth from your hotel window. I feel as if my heart is rebelling against what my head is telling me. I want desperately for this to be the paradise that I imagined it to be. But that wouldn't be the truth... This is a place that needs God as much as any other.
In other news... We are all healthy and Jason's hand seems to be healing well. We are happy to have sheets and fans. We all can't wait to depart for our boat trip to the family islands on Sunday.
Until Next time... This is Jonathan saying goodnight from The Bahamas
Wednesday, June 6, 2007
I can't choose a title, so "Memento" or "Tim the Facebook fiend"
What is today...Wednesday? Why hasn't anyone updated the blog yet? Well, I guess i better take care of this. Let's work our way backwards to try and jog my memory. Well, we just got back from getting gas at the gas station, before that we stopped at Wendy's to get a frosty. Before that we were interviewing different parents of kids in the program and getting different footage. Before that the maid was here cleaning so we went to the straw market and bay street and realized how there isn't really anything worth buying. Before that we were around bay street area at the court system where they were dropping off kids in the morning that were juvenile dilinquents and we got some footage, but missed the main footage we needed, so we're going back tomorrow morning to get that footage. We'll also be meeting with a judge possibly and a few different people trying to get other things signed and interviews to get footage we can use.
That was the bulk of today backwards. What was yesterday? Oh, first, we also got sheets today to cover up with so I don't have to put one hoody on my torso and the other on my legs, and tim and jonathan don't have to sleep on itchy fleece blankets and what not. Yesterday we got fans and mosquito repelent inscent things and a couple of fold up camping chairs. We spent a lot of time reviewing footage yesterday seeing what we did well and didn't do well and what not. Nothing else jogs my memory about yesterday at the moment, so we'll move onto the day before.
Let's see...I think that was the last time since we blogged. We were in the schools shooting with the principal's permission to a certain extent, but then Lincoln Bains "Mr. Controversy" of Controversy TV was with us, so it stirred everyone up and we had to stop shooting until we got the written permission, because they thought we might be trying to expose some dirty stuff going on with the school like we were working with Lincoln Bains. Which we met him the day before which may or may not have been blogged, which he's a really cool guy. Really trying to stand up for those without a voice against those oppressing people. So he's going to help us get certain footage we need and help us in certain legal issues and things as far as what footage we can and can't get, technicalities of everything.
I think in a nutshell, that's pretty much everything. I'm sure there's more that happened, but I can't remember. My hand is doing better, scabbing up, doesn't hurt as much when i put peroxide on it. Stefan picked out my sheets, Jonathan got green, Tim got something that was alright too, I got pink. Hats off to Stefan on that one. Alright, I'm signing off because we have to get up early. That's the bulk of what's been up. Tim's going to try to get rid of his farmer's tan tomorrow.
-Jason North (Like the direction)-
That was the bulk of today backwards. What was yesterday? Oh, first, we also got sheets today to cover up with so I don't have to put one hoody on my torso and the other on my legs, and tim and jonathan don't have to sleep on itchy fleece blankets and what not. Yesterday we got fans and mosquito repelent inscent things and a couple of fold up camping chairs. We spent a lot of time reviewing footage yesterday seeing what we did well and didn't do well and what not. Nothing else jogs my memory about yesterday at the moment, so we'll move onto the day before.
Let's see...I think that was the last time since we blogged. We were in the schools shooting with the principal's permission to a certain extent, but then Lincoln Bains "Mr. Controversy" of Controversy TV was with us, so it stirred everyone up and we had to stop shooting until we got the written permission, because they thought we might be trying to expose some dirty stuff going on with the school like we were working with Lincoln Bains. Which we met him the day before which may or may not have been blogged, which he's a really cool guy. Really trying to stand up for those without a voice against those oppressing people. So he's going to help us get certain footage we need and help us in certain legal issues and things as far as what footage we can and can't get, technicalities of everything.
I think in a nutshell, that's pretty much everything. I'm sure there's more that happened, but I can't remember. My hand is doing better, scabbing up, doesn't hurt as much when i put peroxide on it. Stefan picked out my sheets, Jonathan got green, Tim got something that was alright too, I got pink. Hats off to Stefan on that one. Alright, I'm signing off because we have to get up early. That's the bulk of what's been up. Tim's going to try to get rid of his farmer's tan tomorrow.
-Jason North (Like the direction)-
Monday, June 4, 2007
Q is for Quinten
I am kind of tired and don't really want to write a blog tonight, but I wanted to take the time to say Jason North is really cool and I'm incredibly privelaged to know him.
-Timothy Q. Sutherland-
-Timothy Q. Sutherland-
We didn't eat fast food today
This morning we got up to go to church and take a day of relaxation. Jason and Stefan went to church with Mark while Jonathan and Tim went to visit New Providence Community Church.
Afterwards, we came back to our place before Maggie cooked us a good Bahamian meal: beef spare ribs with macaroni and cheese and rice. It was so nice to have something different than Wendy's, Bamboo Shack (local fast food) or Domino's.
After we ate, we picked up Mark's son Little Mark and his friend and headed to our place to get ready for the beach. On the way back, the car stalled in the parking lot of an old Shell Gas station that was supposed to be our shortcut. Since we couldn't get it started back up again, Stefan, Jason, and Little Mark started throwing a football around. Stefan led Jason a bit too far, and he fell on a loose rock, landing with his chest on the curb while bracing the fall with his right hand, which got pretty torn up by the pavement (pictures coming later today). It's a good thing Jason was planning on hanging here while we went to the beach, since he had to clean his wound.
At the beach we just hung out and tossed the football around and relaxed in the water. The weather was just about perfect, it didn't feel hot and there wasn't too much wind, and the sun felt great. Tim is working on getting rid of his farmer's tan you probably saw in the picture of his tatoo (which he loves so much he's thinking of getting another one across his full back - Jason has been working on convincing Tim to do this since he got the first one).
After we retuned from the beach, we just relaxed here and watched part of two documentaries for ideas/inspiration: Beyond the Gates of Splendor and Revoluc!on Five Visions. After that, we went to bed around 10:30 to get rested up for the morning when we head back to C.H. Reeves Junior School to continue shooting.
Afterwards, we came back to our place before Maggie cooked us a good Bahamian meal: beef spare ribs with macaroni and cheese and rice. It was so nice to have something different than Wendy's, Bamboo Shack (local fast food) or Domino's.
After we ate, we picked up Mark's son Little Mark and his friend and headed to our place to get ready for the beach. On the way back, the car stalled in the parking lot of an old Shell Gas station that was supposed to be our shortcut. Since we couldn't get it started back up again, Stefan, Jason, and Little Mark started throwing a football around. Stefan led Jason a bit too far, and he fell on a loose rock, landing with his chest on the curb while bracing the fall with his right hand, which got pretty torn up by the pavement (pictures coming later today). It's a good thing Jason was planning on hanging here while we went to the beach, since he had to clean his wound.
At the beach we just hung out and tossed the football around and relaxed in the water. The weather was just about perfect, it didn't feel hot and there wasn't too much wind, and the sun felt great. Tim is working on getting rid of his farmer's tan you probably saw in the picture of his tatoo (which he loves so much he's thinking of getting another one across his full back - Jason has been working on convincing Tim to do this since he got the first one).
After we retuned from the beach, we just relaxed here and watched part of two documentaries for ideas/inspiration: Beyond the Gates of Splendor and Revoluc!on Five Visions. After that, we went to bed around 10:30 to get rested up for the morning when we head back to C.H. Reeves Junior School to continue shooting.
Saturday, June 2, 2007
Old friends new lessons
Today began with a trip to a local television hosts office. His show is called controversy TV it is a sort of political commentary. They discuss various social issues. It was a really beneficial trip in that the man we met with has done a lot of work to help the poor and needy as well as working with ex gang members. We were there for most of the morning.
This afternoon we stayed at the house and spent time sorting through the footage we shot this week. This was really helpful because it is very easy to become overwhelmed by the amount of video we have shot. If we are able to keep up with the capturing (saving footage on the computer) then it will make life much easier when we begin to edit. It is also helpful in that it allows us to gain perspective on what we are learning.
This evening we called some Bahamian friends from Taylor and hung out with them at the Atlantis resort. It was a really odd feeling to suddenly be back among white people. I realize that sounds funny but we have been in the vast minority all week. As we drive through many of the poorer neighborhoods and schools we are often called names and stared at. The most obvious result of our skin color is that people immediately assume we are in the ghetto for drugs. I think that is a part of why we were taken in to custody initially. Even the police assume we are up to no good. I recognize that what we have experienced is nothing in comparison to the oppression other people feel world wide.
In other news when we got to the Atlantis tonight to meet our friends we mistakenly pulled into the valet parking area. We were going to have to pay ten dollars for the night except that the car broke down and they didn't want to deal with it. So we parked for free. It was kind of hilarious in that we were pushing a nasty looking kia through one of the classiest hotels in the world. We were pretty convinced the car wouldn't start when we got back because it responded less than it ever had. By Gods grace it did start and we made it within a mile of our house before it broke down again. At that point we pushed it all the way back to the neighborhood where it finally started again and we drove the last several hundred yards back.
All in all it was a good day and fairly restful. We could really use some prayer from all of you who are reading this and supporting us. Pray that we are wise and discerning as we evaluate the story. Pray also for team unity. In situations like the one we are in it is easy to become annoyed with one another. We need to be gracious with one another so we can effectively reach the goal set before us.
For all of us in the Bahamas.... Have a good night.
Jonathan
This afternoon we stayed at the house and spent time sorting through the footage we shot this week. This was really helpful because it is very easy to become overwhelmed by the amount of video we have shot. If we are able to keep up with the capturing (saving footage on the computer) then it will make life much easier when we begin to edit. It is also helpful in that it allows us to gain perspective on what we are learning.
This evening we called some Bahamian friends from Taylor and hung out with them at the Atlantis resort. It was a really odd feeling to suddenly be back among white people. I realize that sounds funny but we have been in the vast minority all week. As we drive through many of the poorer neighborhoods and schools we are often called names and stared at. The most obvious result of our skin color is that people immediately assume we are in the ghetto for drugs. I think that is a part of why we were taken in to custody initially. Even the police assume we are up to no good. I recognize that what we have experienced is nothing in comparison to the oppression other people feel world wide.
In other news when we got to the Atlantis tonight to meet our friends we mistakenly pulled into the valet parking area. We were going to have to pay ten dollars for the night except that the car broke down and they didn't want to deal with it. So we parked for free. It was kind of hilarious in that we were pushing a nasty looking kia through one of the classiest hotels in the world. We were pretty convinced the car wouldn't start when we got back because it responded less than it ever had. By Gods grace it did start and we made it within a mile of our house before it broke down again. At that point we pushed it all the way back to the neighborhood where it finally started again and we drove the last several hundred yards back.
All in all it was a good day and fairly restful. We could really use some prayer from all of you who are reading this and supporting us. Pray that we are wise and discerning as we evaluate the story. Pray also for team unity. In situations like the one we are in it is easy to become annoyed with one another. We need to be gracious with one another so we can effectively reach the goal set before us.
For all of us in the Bahamas.... Have a good night.
Jonathan
Friday, June 1, 2007
Well, hello there all you blogger fans! Welcome to today's episode of our blog straight from Nassau, Bahamas. Last time you found these troublesome whiteboys in a black neighborhood breaking into houses, today you'll find us troublesome whiteboys being taken into custody by police officers to a police station.
Yes, it's true, after we finished interviewing a kid in the program, we were driving around briefly while Tim was getting some footage of the houses and everything in the area. When we passed the police station, a police car happened to be there at the same time seeing us with the camera and pulled Tim, Mark, and Stefan over in the car ahead of Jonathan and I (Jason North [like the direction]). So we pulled in behind them, and Jonathan and I noticed one of the officers very large handgun he was putting his hand on. He was yelling at them to get out of the car and put their hands on top, while the other on who was cool was just saying no they don't have to just stay seated in the car. And, since our kia didn't start back up, Jonathan and I pushed the kia into the compound parking lot. We were taken inside the office of whoever was in charge of that police station who was on a power trip. He asked for Mark to explain who's permission we had to shoot, then when Mark tried to answer, he would cut him off and say he didn't care. And he would say he likes to keep things short and only talk about the facts, but then he went on and on talking about nothing relevant, only things about himself mostly and trying to tell us how he's worked with Navy seals and the air force and some stuff like that. What else did he say, "Everything's changed since 9/11" and "non citizens don't have rights to shoot video footage" (tell that to all the tourists on paradise island) and "we deal with national security" (which they have nothing to do with national security) and other outrageous comments.
We didn't get to explain things to the head guy, but when he left the room the cool cop started understanding what was going on as we were talking amongst ourselves. Really we didn't do anything wrong or break any laws. Jonathan and Stefan were trying to keep themselves from laughing. They broke protocal with not doing a check on us with immigration to see that we were legally in the country and all our video stuff was approved with customs and we had permission from the inspector of police to get footage. So after we left, Mark made a phone call and the guy who was treating us pretty unruly got a call, and may possibly have to write us a letter of apology.
We ended up erasing our 20 seconds of footage that wasn't really usable anyway that the police station was in because that was the easiest thing to do. Had we desired, they could have kept it in their custody until after the weekend when they talked with the inspector and find out we had permission, but it wasn't worth the hassle. Also, they didn't have any equipment to view our footage on with it being in DV cam mode, so we could have given them a blank tape if they were just going to destroy it or whatever.
One of the unruly guys comments was something about us possibly getting footage to make an attack on the station which is a joke on so many levels, but now everyone makes jokes about us being associated with Ben Laden making attacks on the Bahamas.
What else happened? Same old drug offers as usual. I'm having a lot of fun driving down here. Lots of round abouts, on the left hand side of the road that you forget sometimes utnil you see a car coming at you, alley type streets that twist and turn everywhere making you feel like you're in a movie car chase like in the bourne supremacy or something, a car that's an aoutmatic that we use as a stick shift so the engine doesn't die when we slow down, so many different factors that conglomerate to make a mega pie of funness. And as usual, we had Wendy's again today. That seems to be the trend of the week.
Alright, that's some of went on today. Tim loves his Bob Marley tattoo. He's thinking about getting one on his other pectoral muscle. There have been so many misquitos here biting me, I think I only have a few spots left on my skin they can possibly bite me at. Alright, I'm signing off. Tune in next time.
-Jason North (Like the Bahamian)-
Yes, it's true, after we finished interviewing a kid in the program, we were driving around briefly while Tim was getting some footage of the houses and everything in the area. When we passed the police station, a police car happened to be there at the same time seeing us with the camera and pulled Tim, Mark, and Stefan over in the car ahead of Jonathan and I (Jason North [like the direction]). So we pulled in behind them, and Jonathan and I noticed one of the officers very large handgun he was putting his hand on. He was yelling at them to get out of the car and put their hands on top, while the other on who was cool was just saying no they don't have to just stay seated in the car. And, since our kia didn't start back up, Jonathan and I pushed the kia into the compound parking lot. We were taken inside the office of whoever was in charge of that police station who was on a power trip. He asked for Mark to explain who's permission we had to shoot, then when Mark tried to answer, he would cut him off and say he didn't care. And he would say he likes to keep things short and only talk about the facts, but then he went on and on talking about nothing relevant, only things about himself mostly and trying to tell us how he's worked with Navy seals and the air force and some stuff like that. What else did he say, "Everything's changed since 9/11" and "non citizens don't have rights to shoot video footage" (tell that to all the tourists on paradise island) and "we deal with national security" (which they have nothing to do with national security) and other outrageous comments.
We didn't get to explain things to the head guy, but when he left the room the cool cop started understanding what was going on as we were talking amongst ourselves. Really we didn't do anything wrong or break any laws. Jonathan and Stefan were trying to keep themselves from laughing. They broke protocal with not doing a check on us with immigration to see that we were legally in the country and all our video stuff was approved with customs and we had permission from the inspector of police to get footage. So after we left, Mark made a phone call and the guy who was treating us pretty unruly got a call, and may possibly have to write us a letter of apology.
We ended up erasing our 20 seconds of footage that wasn't really usable anyway that the police station was in because that was the easiest thing to do. Had we desired, they could have kept it in their custody until after the weekend when they talked with the inspector and find out we had permission, but it wasn't worth the hassle. Also, they didn't have any equipment to view our footage on with it being in DV cam mode, so we could have given them a blank tape if they were just going to destroy it or whatever.
One of the unruly guys comments was something about us possibly getting footage to make an attack on the station which is a joke on so many levels, but now everyone makes jokes about us being associated with Ben Laden making attacks on the Bahamas.
What else happened? Same old drug offers as usual. I'm having a lot of fun driving down here. Lots of round abouts, on the left hand side of the road that you forget sometimes utnil you see a car coming at you, alley type streets that twist and turn everywhere making you feel like you're in a movie car chase like in the bourne supremacy or something, a car that's an aoutmatic that we use as a stick shift so the engine doesn't die when we slow down, so many different factors that conglomerate to make a mega pie of funness. And as usual, we had Wendy's again today. That seems to be the trend of the week.
Alright, that's some of went on today. Tim loves his Bob Marley tattoo. He's thinking about getting one on his other pectoral muscle. There have been so many misquitos here biting me, I think I only have a few spots left on my skin they can possibly bite me at. Alright, I'm signing off. Tune in next time.
-Jason North (Like the Bahamian)-
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