A Jordan Update

Well as promised last summer here are some more pictures of Jordan. If some are a repeat I apologize. I really need to take a computer class! It took me 2 hours to figure out how to get the slide show up and running. But enough of that. Jordan, as of this writing, is still in Northern Resistencia. He really enjoys the area and the people. We had a nice chat with him on Christmas day and he said the weather has been hot. We asked him how cold it gets in the winter and he said it can get pretty cold. I don't think as cold as the Northeast but once your body adjusts to over 100 degree summers anything below 40 could be cold!!
One of the things he treated himself too was a pair of custom made leather shoes! There are a lot of leather goods in Argentina due to all the cattle that are raised there. When Jordan's brother heard this he requested a pair too!
If you have been wondering about the worth of a peso to the dollar. Jordan said that 40 pesos is equal to $10.00 US dollars. Another words 1 peso = 1 quarter.

El Mono

Hi Everyone,
Well, I am over a month behind with this post. I apologize but time got away from me. Time is flying for Jordan too. He can't believe he has less than a year to go! Jordan is doing well and as of this writing is still in Resistencia. The weather is heating up as it will soon be summer. Winter wasn't too bad. Jordan said there were times that it was chilly and he was glad he listen to me and packed an all-weather coat w/lining. ( Mom's do know best!)
As promised here is the picture of the monkey that Jordan made friends with. As you can see there is a chain leash attached. It is someone's pet. Maybe Jordan needs to rethink his major from Music to Animal Science. Just a thought.

A recent experience that Jordan had was one of the missionaries in his Zone was playing soccer on their day off. He injured his back and he had to be moved into Jordan's apartment. Jordan then had to communicate with the doctor, who was in Buenos Aires, which was OK as the doctor spoke English. But then he had to translate what the doctor said back into Spanish so that he could tell the Mission President, who doesn't speak English. Jordan said that he ended up spelling a lot of the medications and procedures because those technical terms were not part of his vocabulary. Everything worked out OK and the missionary was sent home so that he could get the proper medical care.
In his emails to us Jordan has expressed how much he has grown as a person through the experiences he's had on his mission and how he has grown to love the people he has met. As his brother (who served in Ecuador) expressed,"Studying a semester abroad doesn't even come close to what one experiences on a mission."

HUMP DAY! or HAPPY ONE-YEAR MARK!!

It was a year ago today that Jordan entered the Mission Training Center in Provo, Utah. To those who know the lingo of missionaries, this day is known as "Hump Day". Time is flying by and before you know it Jordan will be back at home. One year to go!
In our last email from Jordan he indicated that he made friends with another exotic creature. This time a monkey! And yes we have pictures. At present we are unable to download them so I will post them next week.
Jordan is doing well and busy with his responsibilities as Zone Leader. He did say that he was able to play basketball on a real court on his last preparation day. That made his day!!
Stay tuned for new photos in the coming week.

Writing Jordan

I received a note regarding sending letters to Jordan. If you don't want to use the address posted above his name (snail mail) you can go to the website----dearelder.com---Just follow the instructions. His mission is Argentina Resistencia. This website lets you send a letter for free and Jordan gets it in a timely manner.

This and That

Just some other tidbits that Jordan shared with us. It is currently Winter in Argentina. He said that the days are pretty nice but the mornings and evenings are a bit cold (in the thirties). Now being from upstate New York you would think he would be use to the cold, but as his sister learned, being in a warm climate for a long time can "thin the blood" and so you get cold a bit quicker.

He can get pretty much any kind of fruit. He hasn't seen a banana tree yet, but hopes to in his travels. And speaking of food--Jordan was ill, first time since he left, a couple of weeks ago. Seems he ate some bad Empanadas and was sick for 3 days, 1 day spent in bed. Bad case of food poisoning. Quote, "I ate them...they were good...they almost killed me!"

Another story, "At a lunch appointment one day there was a discussion about the tooth fairy and sharing stories about when we were kids. In Argentina instead of a tooth fairy they have a Raton de dientes (tooth rat). It is a Mickey Mouse type rat not a sewer rat haha."

He is now serving as Zone leader. Which means he is over two districts. (He was previously a District Leader). Each district has a District Leader with Elders under each of them. So Jordan has more responsibility, does more traveling and has the job of making sure all is well. His new companion is Elder Castro from Argentina and he is serving on the other side of Resistencia.

World Cup

As you all know, Argentina is a very big soccer country. The picture at the right is a professional soccer arena. On his day off Jordan was able to play soccer here. Jordan is pictured here with his companion Elder Campos (right) and another missionary standing in the arena field. Jordan wrote this about what he observed in his area during the World Cup, "Here is another story about the World Cup (el mundial). When Argentina plays in the World Cup it basically turns into a national holiday. If you go to school you watch it there. And if you choose to stay home and watch it with your family...you do not need a note from home saying what you are doing..nope, most teachers just say if you don't come tomorrow I won't mark you absent. And very few people work. The buses still run but that is about it." Jordan also said that when Argentina scored or won there was much shouting in the streets.

Things You Shouldn't Tell Your Mother

We received this little gem of a story a few weeks ago. "I don't know if I told you when I was electrocuted. But anyway a few weeks ago I fixed our shower which is heated by electricity. Don't worry I didn't get electrocuted in the shower, but I was looking at where the wires had separated that I had fixed earlier. I was like, 'No wonder it broke last time there is a lot of power that goes through this' I was touching both of the wires. As you know you are fine with electricity until you touch the ground, but lucky for me all the wires here are just open haha. Then right when I was saying 'No wonder this happened' I touched the ground too...and it was the strongest shock I think I ever had!! It knocked me down. Luckily it was strong enough that I lost control and gravity pulled me away from the wires haha. My companion saw the whole thing."