Joe Barnes Blog

Melanie came home the other day and told me that I got another check for $100 for the mission trip. To the donor, I want to say thank you so much. You are a very special lady!
So, here is an update. I have purchased 4 wireless access points off of eBay. Yeah for eBay! Now I have to get the antennas for these, that is going to cost around $300 - $400, yikes! I have also purchased a used Dell laptop from eBay. Yeah for eBay…again!!! I really need a computer to use while I am there, plus, I am going to leave it there so they can get some good use from it.
I started doing some really heavy thinking last night and realized that the power in DR Congo is 220. The access points that I got are 110. The power supply cannot handle the 220. So now I have to buy some converters….it never ends!!! I found a website that has the converters for around $13 each. If anyone knows where I can get them cheaper, email me.
Magic Jack…this thing is really cool. I wrote a small post about it the other day. It has been working great. So what does the Magic Jack have to do with the mission trip? By the way, the Magic Jack is a VOIP phone service that cost $50 the first year and like $20 each year after. So, what does it have to do with the mission trip? Well, I am going to buy another one and take it with me. I bought cheap telephone from Wal-Mart today, one that does not require external power, to see if it worked on my Magic Jack…it did. That was great news. So I am going to take the phone and Magic Jack with me so the mission team will be able to call back home for free! Including me! My plan is to keep the Magic Jack there this way the communication from DR Congo to the USA is free. Isn’t technology wonderful…isn’t GOD wonderful!!!! I just hope that the government over there isn’t blocking certain Internet traffic, so please be praying that this works. This technology is going to be HUGE for them if it all works. Anyways, that’s all for now.
God Bless Your Day!