John Shrader 21: Nine Years in Zambia and Still Failing

[NoneIsEnough]

They both seem to have grown kids from prior marriages, but they don't have kids together that I can tell. 

Someone correct me if I have that wrong. 

[Ozlsn]

11 hours ago, NoneIsEnough said:

Vicky and I were exhausted! We had gone a total of 58 hours without sleep!

Too much hyperbole is never enough hey Wade? Pretty sure they slept, just not well. Dozing counts. I have to admit I sleep on planes so it's odd to me that on a 15 hour flight after being up all hours prior to it they didn't just sleep. Sounds like the perfect time to do it to me.

9 hours ago, sleepygirl1 said:

Do the Mears have children?

Adult children I think. No minors that we're aware of.

[Xan]

Wade and Vicky have only been married a couple of years, I think.  Wade's wife died some years ago and Vicky's husband died more recently.  Wade and Vicky met, dated briefly, and married within a few months.  I often wonder what their children think about the entire missionary adventure.

[gustava]

Why is Wade wearing what looks like a badge/star on his belt?  And why are they going to Lusaka?  Paperwork??

[Woods Nymph]

On 6/7/2023 at 11:43 AM, Zebedee said:

I feel like a hypocrite, slagging John off for not learning the language. I've been here 6 years, and my German is atrocious. OTOH, I'm not standing up and preaching and grifting; if I were, I like to think I'd actually try to be competent *before* I tried to tell everyone they are going to hell, and, btw, can I have some money, a house, a plane, a washing machine, an ice machine, a car, sure I've missed some stuff out...

John is the type of person to think his fake Zambian accent is just as good as learning the language and if the heathens can't figure out the true gospel, well he tried! Then there will be a nonsensical post about it.

[Xan]

John put up a post about how the old hymns are better.  I guess he's back on his hymnal project trying to make sure that they only sing the ones that are doctrinally sound.

Spoiler

I bet he'll delegate Wade to do some of the regular work like visiting church members, comforting the sick, and running errands.  John will probably sit in his air conditioned office with a couple of his followers and work on the hymnal while trying to decide if Wade can really be trusted, trying to figure out why he's not getting the church support he needs, and contemplating a serious illness so he can take to his bed.  John (like JillRod and Trump) is a narcissist and, gosh darn it -- he's just not getting enough love and devotion lately.  

I think the way he was hugging Wade in those photos was a tell that John is reaching another breaking point.  Buckle your seatbelts.  It's going to get bumpy.

[Gobsmacked]

18 hours ago, gustava said:

Why is Wade wearing what looks like a badge/star on his belt?  And why are they going to Lusaka?  Paperwork??

Paper work I suspect. If they were waved through security as fast as Mr Mears would like us to think have they had passports stamped etc? He has to check on the crane too. Sadly I foresee a problem with the crane. 

[Howl]

21 hours ago, gustava said:

Why is Wade wearing what looks like a badge/star on his belt?

It's a Texas Lone Star embellishment for his belt.  Not an unusual motif for an older Texan. 

What is slightly more concerning, in a "WTAF?" kinda way, is that Wade is dressed totally in black "tactical" clothing.  Black nylon cargo pants, black nylon shirt, black T-shirt, black belt.  Could be that's his choice of comfortable travel clothing, but doesn't strike me as a good look to present in a foreign country. 

Esther hugging Vicky looks so sweet. John hasn't allowed any locals in his congregation to get close, so maybe Esther feels like she has a friend at last. 

[NoneIsEnough]

Wade posted an update on their house. It was in ROUGH shape when the prior occupants left. John, the kids, and some church members did some work. I will say it does look a lot nicer with a coat of paint. 

I hope they can get the bathrooms and kitchen up working soon. The rest will be ok, just needs their belongings

Here's the post 

There's over 60 photos so I don't want to post them here, but I posted the link for anyone who cares. It's a public account. 

Edited June 14, 2023 by NoneIsEnough

[gustava]

13 hours ago, NoneIsEnough said:

Wade posted an update on their house. It was in ROUGH shape when the prior occupants left. John, the kids, and some church members did some work. I will say it does look a lot nicer with a coat of paint. 

I hope they can get the bathrooms and kitchen up working soon. The rest will be ok, just needs their belongings

Here's the post 

There's over 60 photos so I don't want to post them here, but I posted the link for anyone who cares. It's a public account. 

Why wasn't the house in better shape?   would think the Mears would rather have a bathroom than fresh paint.  Noy very welcoming.

[anjulibai]

Anyone see this? Trigger Warning, mentions Josh and what he is. 

Spoiler

 

[Howl]

SRSLY, this is the best rent house they could find for the Mears? Nice that so many people showed up to help, but dang, what a dump. 

[Giraffe]

5 hours ago, anjulibai said:

Anyone see this? Trigger Warning, mentions Josh and what he is. 

  Hide contents

 

C’mon, Albert, really? What a stupid comment. 

[llucie]

8 hours ago, Giraffe said:

C’mon, Albert, really? What a stupid comment. 

Was Josh even John friend at some point, or they are just in-laws?

[Giraffe]

1 hour ago, llucie said:

Was Josh even John friend at some point, or they are just in-laws?

No, it’s just an asshole commenter trying to stir up shit. There’s no reason for that kind of thing. All it does is feed their persecution complex. 

[Gobsmacked]

Unless there was a problem getting the keys, surely John and guys from the ‘church’ could have gone in and sorted the house prior to the Mears arrival? 

[Xan]

I understand that the last tenants didn't move out until late May.   It does look like, however, someone should have checked on the condition of the house before it was vacated.  That house is a mess.  And I would've thought that more could have been accomplished before the Mears actually arrived.

[Howl]

I find the "the landlord said we could do any renovations needed!" comment fairly entertaining. Like, "Yes, of course you are welcome to sink your own funds into this unlivable dump. I'll eventually reap the rewards!" Subtext: "I'll raise the rent because it's now such a nice house!"

I had another thought about Wade's sartorial choices when I was mid bike ride this morning. Are the black clothes possibly related to his love of Harley motorcycle riding and that's just what he wears?

Then I had a fantasy that Wade could start a Ride for Jesus motorcycle/scooter/Mo-Ped bike club.

Really, it's in the realm of possibility.  

Edited June 15, 2023 by Howl

[NoneIsEnough]

To me it read like John and the church members did do some of the work before the Mears got there, it just wasn't finished. Ground clearning and painting at least.

"The guesthouse was not quite as bad so Brother John had us pick out some paint over the phone and had Mr. Daka and another man paint all the rooms." 

"Brother John had a workday at our property and over 40 people came to help. Everyone cleared the trash and debris, cut grass, and leveled the ground. They even rebuilt the front steps of the guesthouse to make it easier to walk up them. They cleaned the inside of the guesthouse from top to bottom and planted flowers in the flower beds in front of the main house. A man named Mr. Chico who attends the church, has spent countless hours working on our property. So grateful to him as well for all the work he has done. We are truly humbled by all the love that has been showed to us both before and after our arrival in Zambia."

Now that they're there, they're making design decisions, but it sounds like the demo of the bathroom was done before they got there. 

"The bathroom was in bad shape though and had to be completely gutted. Now that we are in Zambia, we are in the process of picking out tile and fixtures for it. We have gotten someone scheduled to do all the work. Thanking our Lord for being able to find someone who will do a good job! Once the bathroom is completed, we will be moving into the guesthouse until the main house is done. This may take a long while because of its condition and the extent of the renovation needed. Please pray God will work out all the details so we can get into the main house as soon as possible."

But let's be honest, the boys and the church members did all the hard work while John "supervised". 

[Xan]

7 hours ago, Howl said:

I had another thought about Wade's sartorial choices when I was mid bike ride this morning. Are the black clothes possibly related to his love of Harley motorcycle riding and that's just what he wears?

To be fair, Wade wear dark shirts and pants in most of his pictures.  Maybe he gravitates towards those colors since he wore a military uniform for so many years.  He may think it makes him look more like he's in law enforcement.  I think he spent at least part of his service time with the military police.

[anjulibai]

As much as a dump as the place is, that's a nice sized property. 

[Xan]

Wade has put up a couple of posts.  The women of the church welcomed Vicky and it was sweet.  We see Esther singing with the women so she at least knows some of the local language.

Spoiler

Also, the shipping container arrived intact and they were able to get a crane to get it off the truck.  Wade gives full marks to God for making sure everything got there safely.  Good to know that the Almighty who might have been busy with mass disasters, childhood illnesses, and casualties of war was able to carve out some time to make sure nobody opened Wade's carefully packed shipping container.

Spoiler

 

[Howl]

On 6/15/2023 at 6:54 PM, Xan said:

To be fair, Wade wear dark shirts and pants in most of his pictures.  Maybe he gravitates towards those colors since he wore a military uniform for so many years.  He may think it makes him look more like he's in law enforcement.  I think he spent at least part of his service time with the military police.

I'm going to go totally Pollyanna about this but perhaps Bro. Wade and wife will have a positive experience and be a positive influence on the Shraders. 

I'm reading between the lines a bit here: ex-military man Bro. Wade  appears to be very disciplined person man who likes structure. I hope that translates to him being organized and organizing others to get things done, and not to being simply rigid.

Also, as a man who's had an actual career that wasn't based on God Bothering, perhaps he can be a role model of sorts for the Shrader boys and get them to think about a career and skills. 

I truly hope he and Vicky prioritize learning the local language and  simply succumb to the sweetness of the Zambian people.

So that's my wish for them, because any of those things has the potential to be of benefit to the Zambian people, who should not suffer from these interlopers. 

Here's something else to think about.  Bro. Wade will be getting $$$ every month from his military retirement.  Don't know if Sister Vicky has any income from whatever.  Will John expect them to tithe give John money for Truthy Bible Church John?

 

 

[Giraffe]

There’s so much cringe in that post! Mears and John strike me as people who would be loudly proclaiming how #blessed they were that day there weren’t many people at the businesses they needed to visit. The pic where John has his arm around a guy’s shoulder is so creepy to me! And if course people are smiling and “nice” to them. They probably come across as people who will want to see the manager if they don’t get what they want!

[gustava]

A few random thoughts.

Kafue is hoping against hope that the Mears are replacing John the Arrogant Asshole, and that is why everything has gone so smoothly.

To assume that the women who gave gifts to Vicki are without means because they don't have full time jobs is the height of white male American arrogant idiocy.  He doesn't know these women.  He doesn't know what resources they might have. 

This will not go well.