M&M Haley Mission

Sunday, 6 May 2018 We have almost recovered from the move and are almost back into the normal routine of things.

Mon 23 Apr - Spent most of the day continuing to settle in. Margaret went to help declutter and Mike worked at the flat. Heaps of bed clothes to wash and dry.

Tue, 24 Apr - Telstra, the local phone company, installed the phone line that will hopefully some day carry the ADSL signals for internet into the flat. Until then we limp along with what wifi we can get from the Telstra Wifi hot spot. We did some visiting. This week is a slow week as it is the last of the April holidays and includes ANZAC day.

Wed, 25 Apr - ANZAC day. We went to the parade held downtown this morning. Delivered a chair from the flat to one of the sisters. Mike went to the meetinghouse to work on the blog where the internet was a bit better than at the flat. Now we need to go shopping and get ready for Kayi to come visit for a few days. Kayi is one of the young single adults (YSA) from the Sydney ward that we were assigned to when we first got to Australia.

Thur, 26 Apr - Kayi is with us and we are glad that she has come up from Sydney to relax and decompress from Uni and her studies. We left her in the flat in the morning while we went to Family History Centre (FHC). Kayi went with us in the evening when we were back at the meetinghouse for FHC and Branch Presidency meeting.

Fri, 27 Apr - We spent most of the day with Kayi. We went out to Jackadgery area and drove on the gravel road that runs along the Mann River. We then went out to the farm where some of the members work and the Bests live. We walked around their nursery and enjoyed being out in the open air. We stopped at the Jackadgery Caravan Park and had the biggest single ice cream servings we have ever had - yummy.

Sat, 28 Apr - Again spent most of the day with Kayi. We goofed around the flat in the morning and did some sightseeing in the afternoon. We put her on the train back to Sydney in the evening.

Sun, 29 Apr - A normal Sunday with meetings and being able to partake of the Sacrament - to renew our covenants with Heavenly Father. We did take a nap in the late afternoon.

Mon, 30 Apr - 3 May - We are still trying to get back into a normal routine. We have made viists with members and also some relatives of members. Held my monthly meeting with the Primary Presidency. Worked in FHC. We went out to visit the Howards in our old (2 Acacia Street, Junction Hill) neighborhood. We are now at 169 Mary Street, Grafton NSW 2460.
Mike's blood pressure is being tested by Telstra - the local phone company who has provided sub-acceptable internet service to us while at 2 Acacia. We asked them to move the service to our new address and they have tried, but failed miserably. Mike has made arrangements for a new service with Optus and we now need to cancel the Telstra service which will be a battle in itself. And Mike has to do this while being a good disciple of Jesus Christ - a real test for him. Branch Presidency meetings have been moved from Thursday evening to Sunday morning.

Friday, 4 May - We drove up to Maclean to visit one of the new Relief Society teachers and to visit Joan Hibberd. It is always fun to visit with Joan. We grabbed a quick lunch at one of the takeaway places - I had malt/vinegar coated chicken fingers for the first time. They were really good, so we will go back there again. Then back to Grafton (Maclean is 45 minutes from Grafton) to play taxi driver for one of the sisters and do some shopping ourselves. Mike also stopped by the Telstra store to cancel the internet services. We were served by a lady that had some sympathy to our circumstances and she was nice (and so was Mike). We did not get the service cancelled yet, but we know that the locals are on our side to make it happen without incurring any cancellation fees.

Sat, 5 May - Cinco de Mayo - Celebrate!!!! We did some errands and then met some of our friends from Sydney (Keith & Anita Thompson) at the Village Green Hotel for lunch. They were up visiting friends in Coffs Harbour and took the time to drive the extra hour up to see us. It was good to be with them for a few hours, and we will see them again in the Blue Mountains when we leave Australia. We sent them on their way and then Mike went over to the meetinghouse to help clean.

Sun, 6 May - Fast Sunday. It is also the first Sunday where the Branch Presidency holds it's weekly meeting at 0830. The testimonies were good, as always. In the morning before we went to Church, we got a call from Barry Ward telling us that he had called an ambulance and would we please arrange for priesthood holders in Coffs Harbour to meet him at the hospital and give him a blessing - which we did. After our Church meetings and administrative things, we drove to Coffs (about 1 hour away) to check up on Barry. He was just coming out of a CT scan as we arrived. He was in much better shape by then, but still no diagnosis as to what was actually causing the abdominal pain. We talked with him for awhile and then let him get some rest and we drove back home. We will wait for a call from him when he is released from hospital and then go pick him up and take him home. Tomorrow is early morning seminary, so we went to sleep on the early side.