Chompet: so close and yet so far

Across the Mekong river from Luang Prabang is the town of Chompet.  To get there you can take a ferry and then walk up a hill to get to what seems like a remote village, no paved roads and there are the terraced rice patties on the side of the road.  At the secondary school CLI is building a dormitory which will house 150 girls.  The reason for the trip was because Andy McKee, a representative for a group that works with CLI, is in town.  He is a British fellow who has been to Laos before but is getting a refresher course on some of the things that CLI is doing and his group is supporting.  We met him at his guesthouse then sauntered down to the water to catch a ferry across the river.  The first ferry came, a monk got on and then it left, with the rest of us sitting on the dock. As it drove away we saw a bumper sticker that said "Don't Monk it unless you have tried it".  Not really I just thought it might be funny if it did.  I just wonder how many of you actually read what I write.  The next one came and wasn't going to the correct dock on the other side of the river so it too left.  The third came and I was hesitant about its motives but picked us up and we got to the other side.  One of the athletes we coach happened to jump on the boat with us.  Surprisingly this is the first time we had seen any of them outside of the stadium.  It ended up he was also going to the school to see a friend so Tom and I walked with him while Bob, Andy and Sirivanh (who flew up to help show Andy around) walked behind discussing Laos. 
I will let the photos do the rest of the talking about the school.  Remember you can enlarge any photo by clicking on it.

 This was us waiting on boat number 2.  Wrong location boat.  Some lady, Bob, boat driver, Andy and Tom (left to right).

 The view from Chompet across the Mekong to Luang Prabang.

 A view of the classroom buildings.

 The unfinished dormitory.

 The shanty town behind is currently where some students live.

 Tom, Sirivanh, Bob and Andy look inside one of the current houses for students.

 Aerial footage provided by Tom's complete and utter lack of sanity.

Tom climbing down from his perch.

We glance at the school and headed back.  Always interesting to see projects and how much it could improve the current situation for students. Just to remind you a 150 female students would be staying in a single large room that is about 20 feet wide and maybe a 100 feet long.  Not exactly like the dorms you stayed in college are they. One thing to remember this school holds about 2200 people in it and those who come from out of town have to live in these dorm or the little huts in the photos.

Comments are always appreciated.  Goal for the week 5 posts of different bumper sticker ideas using the word Monk in it.

Trip to Vientiane

This last week I took a trip to Vientiane to renew my visa.  I decided against some suggests by Bob to take the night bus so I would miss the least amount of time with the team. My bus was scheduled for Wednesday night at 7:30 so naturally it left at 8:30. The reason Bob told me not to take the night bus is because there had been some stories of the driver getting hyped up on Meth to stay awake on the drive.  I just assumed that my driver was better high.  10 and a half hours later I arrived in Vientiane alive and warn out.  I sat next to a nice Lao girl named Lua who was going home to see family.  We talked and joked she laughed at my Lao.  Across the isle was a Lao woman with a child who must have been about 4 and didnt get her own seat.  Throughout the night she would adjust blankets or fan her child periodically hitting me with whatever it was she was using as a fan.  This never seemed to get old.  Later on she dropped her phone and I picked it up for her because I am an idiot.  She of course said nothing and needed my help putting her seat back again said nothing.  Politeness is lost on the Lao such as being on time.
Bob was nice enough to meet me at the bus station and take me into town.  Vientiane is the largest city in Laos and sits just a short drive from the "Friendship Bridge" to Thailand.  Vientiane gave me the same feel of Saigon in Vietnam.  It is more of the business capital and more financially booming capital city rather than the sleepy tourist focused city of Luang Prabang.  During my stay I saw a surprisingly few number of foreigners there.  I checked in and took a much needed nap before heading out to renew my visa. 

Sirivanh, is Bobs assistant and is a former olympian.  She ran the marathon in Atlanta 1996 and Sydney 2000.  Her claim to fame is that she was the final finisher in Sydney when a large portion of runners dropped out and got a standing ovation from the crowd. She was my tour guide.  We were dropped off at the visa renewal spot and got that over with then she gave me a quick walking tour of the city center before she biked off. She told me that someone Googled her so I did and here is the link to her Wikipedia page. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sirivanh_Ketavong.

I walked around the city after getting lunch and took some pictures.

 This is a photo down one of the street in Vientiane showing how much more urban it really is.

 I wish I hadn't eaten right before finding out about the Laos Festival. 

 Looking down one of the main streets the food festival is on the left and the large building is the Cultural center built by the Chinese.

 The Presidential Palace which I thought I would get to tour. Sadly I was mistaken.  They locked me out.

 Another main thoroughfare which was six lanes wide and the arch at the end is the Victory Monument.

This is the That Dam (Black Stoopa) which is in the middle of the city and the US Embassy is about a block away.

During my walk I tried to do the tourist thing.  I hit the presidential palace but couldn't go in.  I saw the national museum which I hate to say needs some work.  They have some models which I think a 3rd grader made. These models were supposed to be representations of maps and layouts of cities but they were just paint wildly thrown onto a mound of clay.  The best part was the tour started with dinosaurs. 

Around 4:15 I made my 6 block walk to the Chao Anouvong Stadium where the Vientiane team was practice and I ran with Sirivanh.  We talked about running and coaching she is the assistant coach for distance.  I now understand the hierarchy for coaching the national team.  On the top there is Sitysai who works for the sports committee and oversees everything track related.  This is Mr. No's boss and the man I had spoken to on the phone about getting blocks and equipment for LP.  He is a really nice guy and we would talk in more depth later on.  Right below him is a Foreign coach primarily Cuban because they have a strong connection (might it be communism).  This connection is also the reason many Lao coaches go over there to learn their trade.  She is a nice older lady who doesn't speak much English or Lao but is learning.  She was selected by the government not someone who is involved in track and field.  Below her is a series of Lao assistant coaches. Each one with their own specialty.  When I first showed up I was blow away by a few things.  First all of their athletes looked like pro athletes.  They seemed to be the biggest Lao in the country.  Second the field was beautifully manicured.  Unlike our athletes which look like high school kids and the stadium which has about foot high grass in the shot put pit. 

 This is a view of the stadium from one corner.  Not my greatest photo sorry.

This is the front entrance to the stadium which houses some of the specific sports committees.

To my relief I found out that the reason some of the athletes looked like pros was because they are the national team and not the Vientiane high school team.  Also most of their assistant coaches still competing, in good shape, and would do some workouts with the team.  This made me feel much better about my team. 
Speaking of my team we have been making great strides.  The team tries hard and these few days I was away Tom took over coaching and I found out that he was the only coach there.  I sent him the workouts and he said they went well.

The next day was spent checking out getting everything ready for the trip back another long night bus.  This time Sitysai had given me a set of blocks, shot puts and a few discus to take back with me. Bob had given me signs for CLI and a set of golf clubs.  I came down with 2 bags and left with 6.  Luckily this was Laos and no one cared.  The trip back was much more rough because the guy I was sitting next too kept fighting me for leg room.  Most of you all know this person they are the one either on a plane or at a ball game who take up more then their allotted space which is clearly defined by the indent between seats.  We jockeyed for space all night and I had a poorly design cup holder jabbing into my other leg. This was an un-winnable war and I lost  by not getting much sleep and a bruised leg from the cup holder.  I was happy though that this Methed up (yes I just created Methed up) driver seemed to like speed more so I made it back ahead of time left 8 pm and arrived at 5:30am.  Just in time to sleep for a few hours before starting my day.

Fact: Chanta's husband is a great man because he woke up and picked me up this morning.  Either he is a great man or Chanta has complete control over him.

Random Playlist

I have been using my time as efficiently as I can obviously on this Sunday with no practice or Lao lesson.  During this time I was trying to think up a playlist for my Ipod.  This playlist is for those times driving through the rural Lao countryside sitting in the back of a truck with the wind blowing in my hair.  Small villages pass by and I have no idea what lies ahead, literally because I am looking backwards.  Rice fields abound, livestock, farmers, trucks and pants free children line these roads.  Sometimes we are stuck on a dusty road with seemingly no end, other times its a brisk ride on a more well maintained road with the Mekong on our side.  I have created a playlist which I present to you below.  I hope that in your free time on this upcoming Sunday, which you will be waking up to soon, you will look at this and think about your own personal playlist.  I invite you to check out the songs you haven't heard of and to reintroduce yourself with the ones you have.

I would love additions, comments, and thoughts.

In alphabetical order particular order:

1. Day Tripper    The Beatles
2. Fairwell Ride    Beck
3. Blowin' In The Wind    Bob Dylan
4. Against The Wind    Bob Seger & The Silver Bullet Band
5. Green Onions    Booker T. & The MG's
6. Born To Run    Bruce Springsteen
7. Going Up The Country    Canned Heat
8. Through The Grapevine    CCR
9. Up Around The Bend    CCR
10. Dueling Banjos    Charlie Daniels Band
11. Clocks    Coldplay
12. I Feel Free    Cream
13. Hotel California    The Eagles
14. Go Your Own Way    Fleetwood Mac
15. Sunshine (Go Away Today)    Jonathan Edwards
16. Mississippi Queen    Mountain
17. Sinnerman (Stereo)    Nina Simone
18. (Sittin' On) The Dock Of The Bay    Otis Redding
19. Wind of Change    Scorpions
20. Keep On Running    The Spencer Davis Group
21. Drift Away (With John Kay)    Steppenwolf 
22. After Dark    Tito and Tarantula 
23. Draggin' The Line    Tommy James & The Shondells 
24. Is This The Way To Amarillo    Tony Christie   
25. Domino    Van Morrison 

As you can see there is a theme and its teenage angst.  Just kidding!

A Week in the Bag

I must start this post by saying thank you.  This thanks goes out to Mr. No for letting me help with the program and basically take over when he was gone.  Thank you to Sumlat for translating and listening to a guy who was never a national champion.  (I am pretty sure I have been mispelling his name since I got here but for continuety sake I am gonna keep at it.)  Thanks, Chanta for not mocking me mercilessly for having Lao lessons go in one ear and out the other.  Thank you to the athletes who show up everyday at 5pm to have some goofy Falang wearing glasses and a stop watch yell at them in pseudo Lao when they are trying to get through a workout and drills.  Seeing them show up everyday to work toward a goal of being a better athlete is something that many athletes in the states take for granted.

As with starting anything new especially in a foreign language there is some trepidation about the undertaking.  Depending on the situation you may either sink or swim.  If I was basing this last week on my Lao comprehension and communication then I sunk like the titanic except with more mockery.  There is no way of quantifying how I did as a coach after one week because in running these things take time.  I would like to say that in the coaching arena my boat is still afloat and setting course for the high school games although a potential storm is always looming...I honestly hope that isn't foreshadowing.  The team is responsive and does the drills and workouts mostly without question.  This has lead me to feel more confident in my coaching ability partially because they have made it so easy.  Sure there are some who will fight me about how many repeats but most are just happy to do what I say.  They joke with me about my Lao and probably at me. Sometimes I would prefer things done differently but such is the case with anything. 

One week, 6 practices, 5 of my written workouts, 16 athletes, a few discussions, one recruiting trip, many miles ran (in my case watched), repeats run (I timed), drills done(I critiqued), laughs had(at my expense), sadly a few injuries(I don't think I caused),  and many memories.

In writing this post I was hoping to convey that many of my fears were not unfounded but the people surrounding the program have allowed for success.  I may continue to have some doubts but those are mostly personal and hopefully resolved with a post a about a high school champion (PLEASE be Foreshadowing).

The First Day

Yesterday was the first day of coach for Tom and I at the LP Stadium.  We had seen the team before but never the coach.  His name is Mr. No (SP?) and at first when Sumlat described what we were there to do he looked reticent at first.  Mr. No is Lao but has been trained in Cuba, speaks fluent Spanish, and although Sumlat says he doesn't speak English he understands most of what he hears.  Mondays as it turns out is the one day each week that he team runs a time trial.  This is something that I am not particularly a fan of doing each week but right now I just assisting.  A time trial is where you run with your team the race that you will be competing in to give a sense of what type of shape you are in.  I feel they should only be done a few days a season because that day is essentially a short workout and without real competition they are not a true show of what an athlete can do. There were 13 athletes who showed up 2 girls and 11 boys competing in 4 races.  The first race had four men running the 1500 meters.  Tom, Sumlat, Mr No and I all timed them and they ran faster than last week which is a good sign.  Mr. No seemed to lightened up to us during the race.  The race finished and we showed them their splits and I pulled one of them aside and started to try to give him advice.  He seemed to listen and appreciate what I said and throughout the rest of the day that is what I did giving athletes advice with Mr No looking on and helping translate. The races finished and it seemed that we had gained some respect from not only the athletes but Mr. No also.  The team isnt great but the ones who show up try hard which right now is all that matters.  The high school championship is in April and will be the first test for the athletes.  Today Tom and I will meet with Mr. No and discuss his workout schedule till the games which is a good sign we will be working together and not against each other which can sometimes happen with differing coaching styles.
Below are some photos of the LP Stadium:

 A look at the stands and the new hotel in the background.

 There current weight set, yes those are tires and stumps.

 Tom getting psyched up for the practice which lies ahead.

 A photo across the field at the main entrance/home stretch near ground.

 Finish line and south side of the stadium.

This is me looking my best in my CLI t-shirt ready to coach.

Funny aside: Tom and I would meet new people and introduce ourselves. Translated to "Hello my name is David, Hello my name is Tom".  It seemed like every time Tom would say that people would snicker a little bit and we had no idea why this was.  It turns out depending on how you pronounce Tom it means gay.  So what Tom was saying was "Hello my name is Gay".  This made sense and now Tom has changed his name to Thomas.

CLI Clarification

Robert Anderson, Founder and International Director of CLI commented on a post of mine clarifying what CLI is and does.  As not everyone checks the comments I would like to re-post an abridged version here.

Our focus is not literacy, though improved ability to read and write is a byproduct of what we do. Which is "education," broadly defined. To support the formal education system (a system that varies from nonexistent to meager to basic) we: start and support school libraries; circulate more than 100 "book bags," mini libraries of 200 Lao books each, to village schools; we build village schools; we built "dormitories' (not your image of a dorm - 100/150 students living in one looong room) for girls from remote villages to stay in so they can continue their education at district high schools.

Separate from the formal system, we supplement rural kids education via operating two Lao Children's Library Boats going to more than 100 villages along the Mekong and Ou rivers. And we have established and operate 6 Learning Centers at rural district towns that provide a mix of library, early learning, and child-youth development activities (something there is a lot of in the developed world, virtually none here.)

CLI is basically about "creating opportunity where there is little." We have done several small pilot projects in youth sports. David's role will be to build on that, using his knowledge, experience and open, caring personality to help young Lao athletes and would-be athletes develop their potential and reach for the opportunites that can result, both in sport and in other endeavors.

- Bob Anderson, CLI founder and International Director

Trip to Nong Kiau

From Wednesday morning until Thursday afternoon Robert Anderson, Chanta, Tom, Myself and books took a trip from Luang Prabang (LP) to Nong Kiau.  On the route would be three schools and one potential future project site. The trek is paved and the four of us would be driving up in a truck.  Sitting in the back of the truck gave an interesting perspective of the countryside.  We started our drive at 8:30am and the weather was cool.  the drive is through a few villages most of which are no deeper than a house or two off of the main road.  As you can see by the pictures posted before.
An hour and a half or so into the drive we drove through Nam Bak one of the larger cities on the route.   We would stop on our way back tomorrow.  We did stop at Nam Thouam.  This was my first foray into the meetings that CLI is involved in. We pulled off the main highway down a local road the turned into a major complex which houses a large school which has around 2400 students and a CLI funded Community Learning Center/Library.  As we drove in a PE class was going on a some children were stretching and others were doing a long jump of sorts but running into a large sunken pit.  Tom and I jumped out of the truck and carried some boxes of books (aka our foot rests) into the library.  The meeting consisted of our travel group and two librarians(pictured in the post below).  It was interesting to see how much the people appreciated all the work CLI had done.  Mr. Anderson then asked about anything they would need help with in the future and they presented some ideas.  The meeting ended they opened the boxes and we headed on our way.
On the way to Nong Kiau we needed to take a break to "shoot the rabbit". Shoot the rabbit is what the Lao say for using the restroom on the road.  Next time you use whatever slang you may use think about shooting the rabbit.
We arrived at the city of Nong Kiau. Nong Kiau is a small city that is cut down the middle by the Mekong river.  A majority of the city is on south side and many different houses/bungalows are on the high banks of the river.  With the high banks of the river and the high mountains that seem to appear out of nowhere it is quickly becoming a tourist destination.  After lunch we pulled into the school to see the Community Learning Center CLI built with the NGO  Pencils of Promise based out of the US.  This building (pictured below) may be the piece de resistance for CLI.  Not only is it in a picturesque location but is a beautiful 2 room school house run by 3 very capable librarians and is set to expand.  This meeting was similar to the last except a local official showed up.  Khomdy and Mr. Anderson have a great rapport and have worked so well in the past.  They discussed some upcoming projects such as a few new schools and a local well for a village in the area. We retired for the night after a nice Indian dinner.
Nong Kiau is also home base for the second library boat. This boat is captained by a Lao man who looks 17 yet is actually in his 40's. The boat was 42 stops which it makes regularly bringing books to remote villages some only reachable by the water.   We meet with the captain after driving out to a village which maybe a future project site for CLI (Pictured).  This site is a 2km drive up a road to a village that is very tiny with stilted homes and no industry and maybe only 10 families.  The school house is in need of repair.  The captain ask for a pad to sleep on at night like one that you would use for camping and that was all he asked for. 
We rolled out of Nong Kiau heading to Nam Bak with "Green Onions" on the Ipod.  Truly setting the feeling as we drove through rice paddies, mountains, and tiny villages.
Nam Bak is a larger city with a huge school.  CLI has a library here and this meeting had more local representatives asking for a new library so they could use the current one as a classroom.  The new library would take over the current petanque court.  Which they are happy to move!  This school is going to be one of the main sites of the running program so we discussed that for a while and they were happy to help out when Tom and I head back up in a few weeks.
Having taken all of Toms seat away we headed back to LP and waved at kids as we went.  Something is funny about falang riding in the truck bed for a reason.  We arrived at home feeling as though I now have hands on experience in how CLI deals and what meeting are like.  My Lao even allowed me to understand 1% of what I heard which is nice.

More updates to come later.

Photos of the trip to Nam Kiaw

 The road to Nam Kiaw

 The community learning center at Nam Toung. (Left to right) Robert Anderson, Chanta, and local staff.

 Staff at Nam Toung and the books we delivered.

 Rice fields on the way to Nam Kiaw

 Community Learning Center at Nam Kiaw.

  Community Learning Center at Nam Kiaw.

  Community Learning Center at Nam Kiaw.

The school and potentially future site of a project 2k outside of Nam Kiaw.

 On the road in the back of the truck 3 hours each way sitting on books

A Christmas tree in February, LP.

ITS OFFICIAL

....I am still out of shape.  Since moving into the house Tom and I have found new running routes that avoid the busy traffic of the tourist section of Luang Prabang.  We have been heading out to Mouhots Grave (pictured on the right in 2008) but haven't made it there just yet.  "Henri Mouhot was a French naturalist and explorer of the mid-19th century. Mouhot is credited with "rediscovering" Angkor in Cambodia. Mouhot died of a malarial fever on his 4th expedition, in the jungles of Laos"(Wikipedia).  It is one of the attractions in the Lonely Planet Laos dealing with Luang Prabang.  Not many tourists make the trip out and I cant blame them.  This keeps it relatively quiet and the road much less busy.  In stark contrast to the Stadium we had been running it this is a very hilly and paved for the first few miles then becomes a dirt road winding through the jungle.  I will try my best to make a video of this soon.  It is peaceful out there just Tom and I with the occasional car.  The hills really do test the legs in a way that a track never could.  I think I prefer it because time passes quicker when the scenery changes.

As per my few readers I will now discuss our culinary exploits. 
Breakfasts have been in the more Parisian vain.  I most breakfasts we have eaten consisted of fresh fruit, baguette or muesli, yogurt, coffee or tea, fruit shake or orange juice.  If we are in a rush to get to class then this gets thrown out the window and we find little pastries, one day this was a delicious chocolate croissant other it was a mini loaf of banana bread my personal favorite.  The price range for meals has been 3 dollars for the full meal and 75cents for he pastries.
Lunch has been a mixed bag of random eats.  More recently we have been getting into the street baguette sandwich.  These are found almost every where and for the chicken, cheese, tomato, lettuce, onion (if you like), cucumber and sweet chilly sauce (a nice mix of sweet and spicy).  This will run you just under 2 dollars.  Other meals at restaurants have been anything from pad thai, noodle soup with beef, spring rolls, and sometimes curry.  The options of course are more expensive depending on where you go. 
Dinner has been a meal where we have had everything from pizza (I know not very creative), Indian food (really good chicken tikka masala), laap (a traditional lao dish), and Chinese food (the pig snout was some of the best fall off the bone meat I have ever had).
Laap or Larb is most often made with chicken, beef, duck, turkey, pork or even fish, flavored with fish sauce, lime juice and fresh herbs. The meat can be either raw or cooked; it is minced and mixed with chilli, mint and, optionally, assorted vegetables. Roughly ground toasted rice (khao kua) is also a very important component of the dish. The dish is served at room temperature and usually with a serving of sticky rice as is customary in Laos. (Also wikipedia).
Chanta was kind enough to make this for us.  She made both the cooked and uncooked versions.  The Lao eat this dish with there hands making a ball of rice and then dipping it in the laap.  After dipping they pinch some of the laap with their thumb and the ball of sticky rice.  It is delicious. I do prefer the cooked though.

That what I have for now any other questions I will do my best to post about.  A special thanks to Wikipedia for defining what I could not.

Running at the Stadium

Much has happened since I had a chance to update you all so here goes. 
First off we started Lao lessons with Chanta who is the head librarian and one of CLI's right hand people.  Along with being our Lao teacher she is our landlord of sorts.  She lives next door and we are staying in her sisters house.  Chanta has a very good handle on English so she has been helpful answer questions and translating for us.  We have been moving at a pace where at even just one hour a day I will be fluent in Lao, if I remember everything we go over. Lao is such a difficult language that we are learning everything tonally which is to say we cant read squat.  Not surprising when the words look like this ໂດຍໃຊ້.  Yeah not an easy thing to learn.  We go over sentences and then write down how we hear her say things so I have a notebook full of a language that only I understand. 

After Lao lessons each morning we get a chance to rest and do homework.  Around 4pm Sumlat, another CLI big man, has been  taking us the national stadium in LP (also known as the site for the national games).  The first day we showed up, in our matching jackets that Royal College of Hong Kong gave to CLI, we walked over to see the LP team sitting stretch.  Of course we caught them off guard being that we were the only foreigners there.  Sumlat ran for the national team and was a 2 time national champion in the past so some of the guys there knew him.  We said hello then stretched trying to be as intimidating as possible.  Since you all know me that is probably something you just laughed at....and rightly so.  Off we went after stretching the goal Sumlat said was 10 laps which is 2.5 miles and something that Tom and I scoffed at.  Sumlat has put on some weight since his super star days and has also like many ex athletes found the enjoyment a beer can bring, not unlike Tom or myself.  The first few laps were filled with us discussing our glory days.  He was a national champion but my times were better.  The best part being that Tom is in the best shape of all of us.  After a few laps Sumlat thought it better to slow off the torrid pace we were setting and dropped back.  Tom and I kept the hammer down at 8 minute miles (haha) as the runners and soccer players (also training) stared on very impressed.  When the ten laps was over I was relieved.  I had survived the first run at the stadium without looking like a complete idiot and felt pretty good.  Tom felt better so he continued on showing off of course.  Sumlat decided that after stretching we should show some drills.  Tom and I did drills and without telling them the team quickly followed suit.  It was funny to see them mimic what we were doing.  One must take into account that this was a group of high school kids who have probably never had a coach.  In the corner of the stadium is their weight equipment which consists of some logs with a bar in the middle and tires.  While we were doing drills some of the guys put a rope around a tire tied it to themselves then sprinted with it.  It was actually a pretty interesting training technique.  Drills finished up and then a older man came over talking to Sumlat.  Sumlat had known him from his national team days and we got to talking.  He was a nice guy who spoke english fluently.  He had come up from Vientiane to see how the training for the games was going.  We got to talking about our running past and he asked us to help coach the team.  We appreciated the offer but said we must decline.  We are not able to coach anyone until the right steps are taken through the correct channels.  He left and Sumlat then told us that he was the first person in Laos 35 years ago to start up the national athletics program.  We had met some Lao athletics royalty and didnt even know it. 

The daily schedule has been the same each day with learning Lao in the morning and then running at the stadium in the evening.  We have slowly gained the respect of the people there and if it were up to them we would officially be their coaches. 

That first day Groundhog Day was also my birthday and my second spent on the Mekong in the last 4 years. 

Thank you all and hopefully this can satiate your thirst for the knowledge of the program until my next post.

Remember comments are always appreciated and sorry for any grammatical errors.