My dad was a carpenter who had a whole trunk full of tools — a car trunk, that is, a ’55 Chevy Bel Air trunk to be more precise. One day, when I was in the fifth or sixth grade (if I remember right), we had a huge snowstorm. Our garage was in the alley and, when he got home from work that day, there was no way for my dad to get the car through the alley and into the garage. That would have required shoveling a path wide enough for the car through a half a city block of two-feet deep snow. He had to park on the street. The snow continued to fall throughout the night and the plows continued to plow.

I don't have any pictures of Dad's car, but this is how deeply it was buried.

When he tried to go to work the next morning our car, with his tools in the trunk, was buried under a ten foot deep ridge of snow and ice left by the overnight snowplows. We couldn’t even tell exactly where it was. To say that Dad was displeased would be like calling the Pacific Ocean a puddle. He eventually found a way to work and had to borrow tools from co-workers while every day, before and after school, I shoveled at that monstrous pile of snow. I don’t remember how many days it took, but I thought I’d never get done.

I’ve felt a little like that during the past two weeks since our return from vacation. This digging out is taking longer than my childhood assignment, but at least my fingers and feet aren’t frozen. Here’s a little list of our accomplishments so far in recovering from the big lightning hit, as well as some other things that we fixed along the way. It’s been a little like damage control on a navy ship, thankfully without the human casualties.

• Solidified network communications between the audio shop and the transmitter building.
• Reestablished network communications between the audio shop and the studio building.
• Reestablished network communications between the mission houses and the studio building. This is vital since the satellite dish got hit and this link is our route to the Internet and the FTP sites we have to use to get all our radio programs until the satellite dish is working again.
• Determined that it is the LNB of the satellite dish that is bad and ordered a replacement.
• Brought the FM broadcast computer back from the transmitter building to the studio on Friday. Yesterday we were finally able to have our first live Request and Dedication program since October 14.
• Installed a device that enables us to turn power on and off to some of the transmitter building equipment via a web browser from any computer on the radio station’s network.
• Replaced the starting battery for the transmitter site auxiliary generator and we are close to deciding on a replacement battery charger for that machine.
• Made improvements to over-all network performance.
• Developed and implemented a work around to re-enable auto starting and transfer of the station’s generator until we have time to get RECO to fix a problem on their high voltage lines.

Except for the satellite dish problem and the extra work that generates, I think life is nearly back to normal here. But there is still a lot to do.

• Replace the lightning rod on the tower here at the radio station.
• Install the new LNB on the satellite dish, once we get it.
• Coordinate with RECO to get us back to three phase electrical service.
• Replace our well pipe and the pump’s electrical cable and see if we can get it deeper into the well. We hope that will help us be able to go back to supplying the community with water for four hours a day. We have had to cut back to two hours a day even with all the rain we’ve had.
• Decide if we want to keep the AM computer at the transmitter site or bring it back to the studios. Since we do not do live broadcasts on AM, it will be happy wherever we put it. We just need to figure out what is best for us.

The list of things to do is essentially infinite, so I’ll stop there. I don’t think any of our listeners — or really anyone other than our staff — can comprehend what it’s been like for the past two and a half months here. I’ll just say that this sudden spurt of successes over the past week have really lifted my spirits. So, too, have some of the comments I’ve heard from listeners. One of them told me Friday how he could see that Satan would be out to get us because of all the Biblical truths people are hearing on HRGS. I guess if you’re going to take a poke at the enemy, you shouldn’t be surprised if he swings back at you. He fights dirty, too, but the battle is still ours because of Christ. Thanks for praying for us.

Cruise Ship From Plaza Mar

Here’s a look from one of the grocery stores we shop at. Roatán can be beautiful even in rainy season.

No, I’m not referring to myself, even if that does seem to apply. I’m talking about our situation following the big lightning strike last Tuesday, August 30th. With Mildred’s and Romel’s help I now have both the FM and AM back on the air with nearly normal programming. But it sure took (and still takes) a lot of work.

FM computer on the air from the transmitter building.

After we got back from Tegucigalpa Friday afternoon, we started getting cables and other gear ready for relocating the FM computer to the transmitter building. I took it all up there Saturday morning and hooked it up. It went on the air just before the noon Request and Dedication. For reasons that should be obvious, we can’t do that program — or any program — live, so it was all voice tracked in the studios. That was another part of our Friday preparations.

AM computer on a card table next to the transmitter rack.

I managed to relax for the most part on Sunday. On Monday I gathered up a router and some network cables along with the AM computer and headed back up the hill. Before leaving, I had to make a new cable to connect the RCA plug connector on the control console to the mono phono plug input on the microwave transmitter. It’s always nice when a cable works on the first try. I put it all together in the transmitter shack and fired it up. Looked good! Needles and LEDs bouncing like they should on the transmitter room gear. So I turned on the AM transmitter by telephone remote control, went out to the truck and tuned the radio to 1290 AM. Yay!! We were back on the air on AM before 1:00. Then I had to set up the network so the two computers could communicate. We have a special little program that copies fresh files from the FM computer to the AM. Then I could just take all the new programs and voice tracks up there and feed them to the FM computer and let the copy program do its thing.

Since then, I’ve developed sort of a system for keeping all the programs up to date and not letting any slip through the cracks. As I was working on my list, I came to realize that we have a lot of programs. Including the little one and two minute vignettes like Route 66 or Portraits of Grace, we air 54 English programs. Most of them are daily. I didn’t try to count the Spanish ones, but I think it is similar. The whole thing would be a piece of cake except that there are two programs that air during Sunrise Serenade, one of them being at about 6:15 AM. Those programs don’t come off the satellite to us until the middle of the night, just before they air. That means I have to go to the station at about 5:00 AM each morning to get those programs and one other latecomer (Family Life Today) onto the portable hard drive so I can get to the transmitter before 6:00 and copy them to the FM computer.

We had hoped that Peter and Sandi would be able to bring the new data link radio with them when they come back from vacation this Saturday. But the tsunami in Japan a while back nixed that dream. Gerry Pruden, who does our buying and lots of other important stuff up in the Tampa headquarters said that the tsunami wiped out the factory that makes the radios and he had a terrible time finding someone who had one in stock. He finally found one in Canada, but it will not arrive in time to come down with Peter and Sandi. That means it will be late next week, most likely.

The good news is that I have caught up to the point where Mildred and I could get some rest today. I even did some mowing yesterday, but that turned the day into another 12 hour work day. Oh well! It was worth it to see the lawn looking more civilized. Today is our theoretical day off, so I got away with only working about four hours this morning. We treated ourselves to lunch at the Blue Bahia over in Sandy Bay. They have a huge variety of seafood, barbecue, and other delicious stuff there. The view isn’t bad, either.

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Our electrical woes are not quite over. The new wires sure seemed to make a difference, but we were getting voltage sags many times per day on one of our three phases ever since the wire got connected. So, yesterday I set up a multi-meter and an oscilloscope on the phase in question and I caught it in the act. The quick & dirty video below shows some of what I saw. Electricians call it “hash.” It’s not good.

Click here to view the embedded video.

After throwing that little video together late last night, I put it on my laptop and told Peter I was going to take it up to RECO (Roatán Electric Company) the next morning, which would be today. At 4:30 I woke up sweating. No A/C and no ceiling fan. Grrr. But we did have partial power. It took about 1 second, even in my groggy state of mind, to figure out that we’d blown a fuse again. It was the 1st time since RECO replaced the wires 16 days ago. This is the same fuse that gave us trouble before, but on a different phase on our side because two of the phases were crossed and either I or RECO straightened that out when we hooked up the new wires.

So, I did my first-thing-in-the-morning stuff and, by that time, the generator was running. I then went back to the shop to rearrange wires like we had been doing before RECO replaced our service entrance wires. And then I was able to shut off the generator to save fuel. After that, I had breakfast and took my laptop to RECO for my little dog and pony show. Lots of head nodding, chin scratching, and rapid fire Spanish between the engineers. They said they would get out today to replace the fuse and see what they could see without killing power. Then they would come back either Thursday (our day off) or Friday to either investigate further or fix whatever they might have found today. As of now, the fuse is back in place, but I have not put the wires back. I want to watch it a bit without a load on it to see what it does.

I’ve been so wrapped up in multiple critical and mysterious issues that I forgot something this week that I’d never forgotten before. On the way up to RECO at about 7:20 this morning it dawned on me that I had not voice tracked today’s program log, which would become public knowledge in about 20 minutes if something wasn’t done about it. That meant no song or program introductions. Not good! I called Peter (PTL for blue tooth!) and he scooped up my fumble and I was soon hearing his voice on the truck radio. So, after I got back and got a couple chores out of the way, I went right to the studio and voice tracked Friday just in case I have another bad day.

Sunrise over Coxen Hole, Roatán

But it isn’t always all work. Every time I leave the house, I look to the east — partly because that’s the way our door faces and partly because that’s the direction our weather generally comes from. This morning, when I looked to the east I said to myself, “Self, I don’t care if there’s a fire in the studio. Go back and get the camera!!” Here’s what I saw. For the photo buffs, I shot this at ISO 100, 1/2 second, f/5.6. I didn’t have my tripod, so I sat on a rock and made one with my knees.

OK, here’s this week’s HRGS Update. You’ll get to find out what some of our new Christmas music is.

I kept at it – a little at a time – and I’ve finally finished sorting and editing my scenery pictures from our furlough. Along with seeing great friends, we saw some great stuff along the way. If you want a full screen slideshow, just click the full screen icon in the bottom right corner of the slideshow. For the full effect, get a 27″ iMac.

It’s been a good week here at the Sipes farm, but a wet, cool week. In between rain showers, I got to drive Mildred’s dad’s big mower for a while. I even got to break it and fix it. I was almost done mowing and was starting to make that last left turn, but the right wheel didn’t turn with the left one. So Dad & I went to town & got a new tie rod end. Easy fix, but kind of surprising for such a new tractor.

Mildred’s dad has been rather miserable lately. And no wonder! He just learned that his kidneys are at level four of chronic kidney disease (CKD) and headed rapidly toward level five which would mean dialysis. So he’s working hard with diet changes to slow that down and balance those changes without affecting his diabetes.

Mildred’s parents are both amazing people. As a matter of fact, they were a big factor in my decision many years ago to love and marry their daughter. It wasn’t just that I was pretty certain we’d get along; it was the fact that they are such great examples of fully devoted Christ followers. Mildred’s dad has the kind of top-down, Christ-like perspective on life that I’ve always admired and sought to have in my own life. And as for patience and perseverance, I don’t think I’ll ever come close to his example. And her mom is the epitome of steadfastness and faithfulness. Parent’s like that tend to raise daughters that guys like me want to spend the rest of our lives with.

We’ve enjoyed our week on the farm, but it’s time to hit the road again tomorrow morning. We’ve had the chance to see quite a few relatives, friends, and supporters here. We did miss a few, but time got away from us. We got to speak in two different churches Sunday morning. Now we travel to Michigan and then Wisconsin before we travel west on I-80 to little West Branch, Iowa, birthplace of President Herbert Hoover.

We’ll be spending the weekend there at my sister and brother-in-law’s home. As a special bonus, we’ll get to spend Mother’s Day with my mom. Mom has been in the hospital for a few days. I talked to her a little while ago and she says she will get to go home tomorrow. Mom is 83 years old and she’s been battling heart problems and clogged arteries for about 40 years. But she’s amazing; they auger her out or patch her up and send her home and she just keeps going. It will be nice to get to have several days with her instead of the brief and infrequent phone calls we’ve had to settle for since our last trip to Iowa a year ago. If you’re wondering who’s to blame for my goofy sense of humor – it’s Mom.

Now for a few photographic highlights. We didn’t manage pictures of all our friends, but we caught a few of them.

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