Trouble in the Rubbish Box

The city of Diosd picks up our trash on Friday mornings. That means on the way to school, we girls drag the trash can out to the side of the road in hopes that the garbage men will take it all away. It's always a fun time, especially when I don't get anything gross on my school clothes!


Today is Friday, and we faithfully took our trash can to the curb this morning. This afternoon, however, we forgot to bring it inside. I thought it was going to be a very uneventful Friday night until Kati, our landlady called. The conversation went something like this:


Me: Hi Kati, how are you?


Kati: I am fine, but Emily, there are animals in your rubbish box.


Me: What animals? What is a rubbish box?


Kati: Your rubbish box that you put your rubbish in.


Me: You mean our trash can?


Kati: Yes, there are animals in your rubbish box.


Me: What animals?


Kati: I do not know their names.


Me: Ok. What should we do?


Kati: Fill your rubbish box with water. And Domestos. (aka. Draino)


Me: Uhhhh.....


Kati: Then wash it out. Make sure you do it right away. It is very hot. You do not want the animals in your rubbish box.


Me: Ok, Kati, we'll take care of it. Have a great night.


So a few minutes later, Hannah, Kim and I went to check out the trash can. I wasn't brave enough to do it alone. We weren't sure if there was a racoon in the trash can or maybe a snake or who knows what.



It turns out we had maggots.


So we got out the water hose and the draino and went to work. After letting our trash can sit for a while, we decided we should dump it out. It was quite the adventure. But don't worry, we took some photos!

St. Istvan's Day 2009

St. Istvan's Day has become one of my favorite traditions here in Hungary. Celebrated on the 20th of August, this holiday honors St. Stephen, the first king of Hungary in 1000AD as well as the person credited with bringing Christianity to the region. (You can compare it to July 4th in the US.) Since school workdays usually begin on the day after the holiday, I like to think of it as my last summer celebration as well.

This year (YEAR 4!) was no different. We piled 5 teachers in my car and 7 more in a van and carpooled into the city after lunch to watch the Red Bull Air Race, meander through the city, and watch some awesome fireworks.

The picture below is of a few teachers and me on the banks of the river.

As we were wandering through the crowds of people, I bumped into my walking buddy Becky and her family. Becky's husband is the math teacher for our middle schoolers, and they brought their children into the city as a surprise to watch the air races. I decided I needed a picture one of my favorite little people in the ICSB community. Isn't she a cutie!The air races lasted from 2 until about 4:30, but to be honest, we only lasted until about 3! It was hot, and we have a favorite cafe that sells cold lemonade. We enjoyed our spot there for as long as possible and then transferred locations to a pizza place for dinner. It was fun to catch up with friends before the marathon we call a school year begins.

The fireworks started at 9 and were one of the best shows I have ever seen. They were shooting explosives of some kind off two bridges, a hillside, and 2o pallets in the middle of the river, and it was all choreographed to Hungarian classical music. Amazing, and totally worth it!And now begins the start of school. I'm going to dream of bouquets of freshly sharpened pencils tonight!

Shaq and Me

I know I'm not normally a basketball fan, but who wouldn't want to have their picture taken with a life-size LEGO version of Shaquille O'Neal?

Internet and Teacups

First, my wireless is fixed! Praise the Lord! I went to the Toshiba service center this morning and they replaced my card for FREE!!!!

Second, the HS Bible teacher and his son came over this afternoon and installed my two little shelves. I've been collecting teacups as I travel and wanted a place to put them in my new room. Thanks, Linc and Caleb!

Since When is Hell an Energy Drink?

There is no such thing as a quick errand. This evening all I wanted was to develop a few pictures at the local Kodak store. It should have been easy (famous last words, I know). You put your card in the bright yellow computer, make a few decisions, and pick up your photos 15 minutes later from the very unhappy lady behind the counter. But tonight it didn't happen that way. Tonight it took over an hour. Ah well.

That meant I had an hour to meander through the mall and exercise self-control. Below is a photo of my most fascinating find, or at least a portion of it.

Yep, that's right. I've seen "Hell" energy drinks before, but tonight in Tesco there was a display so big you can probably see it from outer space. At first, it made me chuckle (and take a picture). Who would want to drink something called Hell? How could Hell possibly be a good thing? Yuck.

And then I realized it must be appealing to a whole lot of people, otherwise it wouldn't be for sale. Lots of people must think a drink called Hell is exactly what they want. Seems crazy to me.

Wow. What a reminder that without Christ, Truth is just plain foolishness, completely distorted. Join me in praying that God would continue to draw Hungarians to Himself. Pray they would find satisfaction and refreshment, not it a can of caffeine, but in Jesus!

A Visitor From Home, Computer Glitches, and a Hungarian Wedding

It's been a busy but good week around here. Sonja, one of my closest friends from college, came to visit! It was great to share my Hungarian life with a friend from my American life. We had a blast being tourists and even got the chance to spend a day in Vienna. This pic was taken at the summer palace in Vienna. Here we are on top of the Basilica in Budapest. It's one of my new favorite views of the city!
One of the more frustrating parts about my return Hungary has been computer trouble. When I was in the US a few weeks ago, my computer decided to call it quits. Thankfully, I have amazing and technologically advanced friends who helped me purchase a new one on short notice. I love it - very cute and snazzy if I do say so myself! The only problem is that after about three days in Europe, the wireless stopped working. (Sigh!) It's a good thing I've had lots of hours to spend dealing with it and even a better thing that I have an international warranty. (Yay!) Now I'm just waiting for the English speaking employee at the Toshiba place in Hungary to order a new wireless card from Germany. Let's hope this fixes my problems!

On a brighter note, my friends Meg and Gabor got married "Hungarian style" this weekend! Meg and I have been in a Bible study together for the last two and a half years; I am so thankful for her friendship. Gabor is a great Hungarian guy who helped me find an awesome car to buy last fall. I am going to miss them a ton when they move to the US next month. (And I'm going to have to find a new mechanic!)

The pic below is of the Hungarian wedding coordinator. We don't have anything quite like him in America. It's this guy's job to direct all the festivities while speaking in riddles and rhymes. He even has a stick with ribbons from each couple he's helped with wedding madness. Those of you who know me will be impressed to learn that I stayed at the reception until 1 AM! By that time I was pooped and tired of killing mosquitoes, but I'm pretty sure the party was going until about 4 - yikes!