The Plan...sort of

Hey all,
It's 10:30ish Sunday night. Today we went to mass, which I always enjoy. Since I understand the translation, it's easy to see how universal the Church really is. It's a comforting experience, that also invokes a little home-sickness. So you all are in my thoughts and prayers tonight.
We tried putting pics online on facebook, but the internet isn't cooperating. Then Andy tried downloading them onto his google pics page (picasaweb.google.com/andy.elder), and only 5 made it...so, those are there to enjoy if you so desire.
Sobral, the city we're in right now, will pretty much be our home base from here on out. There are two villages outside of Sobral called Serrinha and Serra Verde. We'll be doing projects (hopefully) in both and the biogas digester here in Sobral. We're going to Serrinha tomorrow and will probably be there for a week or so. 7 water cisterns are being installed for the farmers there so that during the dry season they still have water. Our first project is to determine the local for an underground dam. This'll hold the water back under the earth and keep their well full instead of dry in the coming months. These projects are important because this is the rainy season, so if they want water in the coming dry months it has to get done. They're in the midst of a 5 year drought, and all the families are subsistence farmers. So they live off of what they grow. The other possible project is some sort of rain collection system off of some rocks. We'll have more specifics when we get back!
In Serra Verde John is thinking about some sanatation projects: bathrooms and a shower. He already has some good designs, so we'd really just be along for the ride. We're excited either way!
So, we should be back online in a week or so, with pictures and stories to tell! It's exciting to finally be getting started (don't get me wrong, I love the beach, but I also like be productive, you all know that :o))
We'll leave you with a picture (if it'll work). We got to see a seahorse refuge area when we were in Jericoacoara. This is Andy and I holding one in half a coconut shell. They're super fragile so we put him right back (Don't worry).
All our love
Beijos