Goodbye Klamath Falls, Hello Newport! (01/05/2015)

Hi Mom,
Yeah, so I am no longer in Klamath Falls. So, I had a pretty cool companion and was super excited to serve there, but alas 'twasn't in the program. I got to Klamath Falls last Monday afternoon, helped my companion pack her stuff all night, got up and cleaned the apartment, put stuff back in the car, and drove back to the Mission Home in Eugene through the snowy mountain pass. We got to Eugene around 1pm. I was reassigned to Newport and will be in a threesome for the rest of this transfer. Newport is a city on the Oregon coast. Left for Newport at 2:30'ish, picked up some extra stuff (bed and table for me) and got to Newport at almost 6pm...'twas a long day.
Sorry I only got one picture from Klamath Falls, but I wasn't even there a whole day/24 hours. Though, I did get to meet the Bishop and his family :) He and his family are very nice, and he is from PA, so it was cool to talk to more East Coast'ers.

Sister Duenas and Sister Bonetti (Klamath Falls, OR)

Don't worry, I am staying nice and warm. At the end of this transfer I'll be sending more boxes home, since it'll be warmer come February and March out here. Oregon is NOT like New York holding on to its' winter through 'til April.
I absolutely love my new companions (Sisters Chalfant and Burrell). I am in one ward (not two) again, but it feels like there are so many people here, even though it's the smallest ward I've been in so far. My first Sunday here in the Newport Ward was super nice, especially since it was Fast and Testimony Meeting. They had me give the closing prayer since I'm new to the ward.
So, my back injury incident...I was finishing up packing my things last Monday, and as I bent down, and not lifting or moving anything, I got up and something in my back went kind of "snap twisty". I said 'ow' and just didn't slouch anymore for the next couple of days. It hurt, but it was manageable pain....and then the evil tights incident happened :(  grrrrrr    I decided to wear tights one day, even though I knew I couldn't bend very well, because it was going to be cooler that day, so I needed tights. As I was attempting to manage the tights, my back screamed in protest and I heard a very loud evil "POP". I rested for a few minutes, then get down on my knees to pray.....another discovery, Kneeling = mucho pain. We got some numbers of LDS Doctors in the area, but they are all on vacation...HAPPY NEW YEAR!! :) So, we went to a walk-in clinic and got to sit and wait in very 'nice' wooden chairs (ouch!). The doctor prescribed some pain killers, and they help, but they make my brain fuzzy and that's not good, since my brain is already weird anyways...hahaha. Between the meds, the bag of frozen corn and the heating pad, the pain is easing up. Don't worry, I got a Priesthood blessing on Saturday.

Articles of Faith (Klamath Falls)

On a happy note, I do like Newport. 
Though I truly believe that the ocean is going to eat us all, since it's just ridiculously huge :)
Love you bunches of baby elephants!
Kiana

<Mom Note:  We received an update from the Mission President's wife on January 7th about Sister Duenas' back injury. The pain is lessening and Sister Duenas will be fine, but has to be careful with her back, no lifting things that are too heavy and take short breaks if driving long distances and use a lumbar support for her back where possible.