I haven't traveled out of the country for quite some time, so the first thing I needed was an official passport. I remember a few years ago, when the government was tightening requirements for passport applications -- it was taking 3 to 4 months to get a passport. Well I wasn't going to be denied this opportunity to visit the Philippines just because I didn't get my paperwork together fast enough. So, I went online, filled out the appropriate paperwork, got my passport photos from the local Walgreens drug store, and took everything down to the US Post Office. The process at the post office was actually quite simple and painless, except of course for the payment part -- I never like to part with real money! So now I waited, assuming I would barely have my passport in time for purchasing airline tickets. To my total surprise, my passport arrived only five days after I had applied at the post office. Wow!
Next was dealing with the cost of airline tickets. Now, alot of this was handled by the agent at World Mission Builders, but I still needed to have the money in time. I wasn't really concerned about it, as my mother had passed away earlier in the year and I had received a small inheritance (and I do mean "small"!) which was enough to cover the cost. Do understand, that I am not working yet as of this time, as I had taken off a year for health reasons. Also, my wife was preparing to be laid off from her full-time administration job at a local bank. So money was not freely available -- every expenditure has to be scrutinized. Thankfully, we had three years ago completed Dave Ramsey's "Financial Peace University" course, and we had gotten our financial house in order. That made this whole process much easier to deal with -- thanks Dave! Anyway, the money for the airline tickets was sent off, and I soon had the confirmation of my flights.
I also needed to purchase a few tools to take with me - brick trowel, level, measuring tape and so on. So I visited the local Lowe's Home Improvement store and purchased the things I needed. One thing I did notice was that levels come in set sizes. I am sure I already knew this, but I had never considered taking a level with me on an airplane. It would have to go in my checked baggage, as I was certain that I couldn't carry one on board with me. The problem I noted was that, for most construction jobs you should have at minimum a 4' level. But how do I get that in a suitcase? Even a large gym bag wouldn't accommodate something like that. The next available size of level is a 2-footer . . . that would work but leaves some problems with accuracy -- the longer the level, the more "true" your work can be. I happened to spy a 4' level made of shatterproof plastic. The sight glass tubes (or whatever you call them) on the ends were set in about 8 inches from either end. Hmmmm - why not just cut 6 inches off each end? The level was only $10 so not a huge loss if it doesn't work. I put the level on the band saw, trimmed off the ends, and did a quick sanding job on the cut edges. No problem. I now had a very handy 3 foot level . . . one of a kind! I passed on my discovery to Ed at World Mission Builders -- he asked if I might bring a couple, as they would really be able to use the longer length level.
So . . . hurdles? Not really. So far, everything has gone quite well. Tomorrow I will share some interesting things that have happened since I made it public that I was going on this trip. I have no doubt that God's hand is at work here!
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