Housework...

Housework takes a lot longer here. First, there's laundry. Sheets are easy: throw them in the washer, throw them on the line. The rest of my clothes take a bit longer. They still go in the washer, which I am VERY happy to have, but it takes longer to hang them on the clothesline. While hanging them, I turn all of my clothes inside out on the line. This helps keep them from fading under the intense sunshine. When they're dry, I take them off the line, shake out any dust that has accumulated, turn them rightside out, and then bring them inside to fold and put away.

Next up is dusting. You have to (or at least should) dust every day. That means dining table and kitchen counters, too. The windows are open all the time and since we have a dirt road outside... Well, I'm sure you get the picture.

Finally, there's washing the floor. Yes, that should also be done daily, but I often go 3 or 4 days between moppings. All of my floors are tile. There is a small area rug in each bathroom, but that's it. So, before you mop the floor, you must first sweep. By the time I'm done sweeping, I'm usually sweating so much I'm ready for a shower. The mop is kept outside by the pila, the outdoor utility sink. First you grab a bowl of water from the already filled pila and pour it over the mop. I usually apply soap into the mop and scrub it out a little. Then, more water and hand wringing. Once I bring the mop inside, I pour a bit of bleach on the mophead, then head to my bedroom and bathroom. After they're done, it's back out to the pila to rinse out the mop and start the process over again. It can take 5 or 6 trips to the pila for me to get the floor done. After it's done, I spend more time at the pila washing out the mop, then more hand wringing and, finally, leaving it leaning against the wall.

I'm thankful for the washing machine, otherwise, I'd have to wash my clothes, by hand, in the pila. Believe me, that's not fun. It might be cultural, but it's not fun!!

Tomorrow, I have to empty the pila, clean it, then fill it up again. Because there's a tamarindo tree right outside the door, the leaves drop into the pila. I tried to do it today, but need to borrow a pair of pliers so that I can remove the plug from the bottom of the pila.

Long Day...

Whew! It's been a long day and I still have to work on my lesson plan for tomorrow. This morning I went over to Sandi & Currie's house to make a few calls. While I was there, one of the ladies from the school came over and told me that Sandi needed me to call her in the States. So, I called Sandi and found out that Hector's son, Isaac, had broken his collar bone the night before and was headed for surgery. It turns out that it is Isaac's elbow that's broken, not his collar bone.

Well, I went over to the school and talked to Erica for a few minutes. She said that she would go over to the hospital with me. I drove. After today, I'm convinced that I can dive with the best of the Hondurans! I'm a quick study. We got to the hospital and found Hector & Sandra. Hermes was there, too. We all talked for a while. Then, Erica and I left to go run a few errands.

Our final stop was at Hector & Sandra's house, to pick up Danny and Leandra, their other two kids, and to bring them back to Enlaces. I told Sandra that I'd get them lunch and take care of them. Danny had PACEs to work on and I think he did pretty well on them. Lunch went well. But, it was difficult to keep Danny on task on his work and to also work with Jonathan, another boy I'm currently tutoring.

When it came time for dinner, both Danny and Leandra said that they wanted the same thing they had for lunch. That was pretty cool, since it was leftovers from last night's dinner: carne asada, arroz, frijoles and tortillas. But, I had already decided that I would take them across the street to Pizza Hut for a special treat. When we started walking up front, I saw Adan. Adan is a 2nd grader and is in Danny's class. I'm not sure why Adan was here. He's supposed to be at fútbol on Thursdays after school. We had Adan join us, anyway. After dinner, we put Adan in a taxi and sent him home.

Then it was back home. Jenny needed to make a cake for Josue's birthday tomorrow. She got that started. I turned on the TV for the kids. Yeah, I know... bad Susan! But I also told them that at 7pm Jenny and I were going to watch a TV show and they'd have to be very quiet. Hey, come on, it's Thursday. Grey's Anatomy!!!

Hector got here somewhere in the middle of Grey's, so I had to bring the kids to him and find out how Isaac's surgery went. It went well. And, now, it looks like I'll turn around and get to do all of this again tomorrow. Plus a few more things.

Milestones...

Although I really don't have much time to study Spanish outright, I am finding more opportunities to use the Spanish I already know. (Note to self: Susan, you MUST schedule time to study Spanish if you want to really improve.) This week I've been more encouraged than frustrated in my language skills.

Monday was Esperanza's birthday. Antonio and Esperanza are pastors of the Vineyard church here. We've been attending that church. So, Jenny made some brownies for us to take over that afternoon. We drove out to Tres Caminos and visited with them for several hours. Pastor Antonio was asking me about my church in the US, what type of church, how large, etc. Esperanza asked me if I play any instruments and was immensely pleased when I mentioned guitar and trumpet. I didn't mention that I can play others; I thought listing two was plenty!! Antonio loved it when I told him that the Mustard Seed is very similar to Vineyard churches. I think they both almost fell out of their chairs when they heard that I spent 9 months teaching on spiritual gifts to our ladies' group. That's exactly what they have been wanting to teach on here. They told me that they'd love to have me help teach that, and that Mariel, their daughter, could interpret for me. Both of their children, Mariel and Josue, speak very good English. Well, I told them that they should pray for my things to arrive quickly from the States since all of my teaching notes are packed away in boxes, just waiting for the US to start Denton shipments here again. By the way, all of this transpired in Spanish, with relatively little help from Jenny or Mariel.

Last night we went back to Tres Caminos for small group. We were having a much larger celebration of Esperanza's birthday. At one point, Esperanza invited me to sit near her and one of the other ladies. Well, I was able to pretty much stay a part of the conversation. I even understood several of the jokes. It was a good night!

Then, this morning in Chapel, Hector was sharing and I actually understood about 70-80% of what he said. 70 to 80 percent!!! That's huge. To me, at least. Aftewards, I told him. I was pretty excited on two levels: my understanding today AND that he shared a great message from the Bible!

I know that not all days or weeks go like this one, so I'm going to revel in the fact that it's only Wednesday and I've already had a very good week language-wise.

Aloe, Mariachis, and Other Random Thoughts...

Earlier this week, Jenny and I were making some tacos. Honduran tacos are more like what we would call taquitos, although they can be quite large. Anyway, they're rolled up and deep fried, or at least, pan fried. So, I went to put one in the pan and it splattered all over my hand. Ouch! Wow! That really hurts. I put it under some running water for a bit. Then, I remembered that I have a huge aloe plant in the ground right by my clothes line. I went out and cut off some. Ah, relief in the form of yellowish-greenish goo. I left the aloe on for a few minutes and then I remembered something else: I have an ice maker in my fridge now; I have ice cubes. So, I put some ice cubes into a plastic bag and put that on my hand, as well. By morning, there was no sign that I had even burned my hand.

Last night, Jenny and I were sitting at the table, working on our computers, while dinner was finishing cooking. I thought I heard a trumpet, which Jenny confirmed. I opened up one of the windows which face out onto the road and, sure enough, a small mariachi band was across the way: accordian, guitar, big bass-type guitar, and trumpet. They were actually quite good; one of the better mariachi bands I have heard here. In fact, the trumpet player was really, really good. He reminded me of... me! It was so nice to have live music playing while we ate dinner. All was well until they played a song that included some live firecrackers. That was probably as close as I've come to pooping my pants out of fright. It happened so fast, then it was over. Thankfully, none of their other songs required firecrackers.

This afternoon I was taking my laundry off the line. As I walked back toward my door, something squished between my foot and flip flop. Eww. It was a small frog or toad. The poor little guy apparently hopped while I was walking. So, I'm standing there on one foot, looking at this apparently dead frog stuck to my flip flop, and then I started shaking my foot to get the thing off my shoe. As I shook it onto the grass, it actually started to hop away. I guess they make frogs or toads pretty sturdy here!

New Roommate...

Yup, I have a new roommate. No, I hadn't planned on having one, but it just sort of happened and is going to be a good thing. I've known Jenny since I was here in 2006. Despite our age differences (she's 25 years younger than I am), she and I clicked and became good friends. Anyway, Jenny's had a few things happen here, like being robbed at gunpoint, that have understandably been sources of stress and distress. Interestingly, Jenny had been praying about wanting to move in with someone, but the options open to her were with people with whom she knew it wouldn't work.

So, recently, Sandi and I were talking about Jenny's situation and I said, "what do you think about her moving here, into my house?" Well, Sandi had already been thinking of that as an option, or of having Jenny move into one of the apartments here on site. When presented with the possibility, Jenny jumped at the opportunity. Her future in-laws, Antonio and Esperanza, are also immensely pleased with the arrangement. Jenny will be getting married to their son, Josue, in July, so the arrangement is temporary. Plus, if either of us feels that the roommate situation isn't working, there's always the apartment as an option.

But I don't think that's going to happen. Like I said, Jenny and I clicked when we first met. In fact, I met her on a Saturday and 3 or 4 days later I was staying with her in Tegucigalpa the night before taking the bus to Costa Rica.

Another cool thing is that Jenny doesn't know a lot about cooking, so this is an opportunity for us to prepare meals together and have her learn a bit. We've already started. Tonight we made rice, pataste and fish. It's simple, but it tastes good, and that's a great hallmark of meal preparation: keep it simple! Jenny's said that Josue is glad she's going to learn to cook. Yeah, that's just like a guy!

La Piscina...

Thursday morning I still got up pretty much at my normal time of 6am. Even though we had the day off, I wanted to go for a bike ride. So, I got dressed, ate a little breakfast and then headed out. I ended up doing 4 laps instead of my now normal three. One of these days I'll figure out what the mileage is for each lap, but for now, who cares?

Shortly after I got back to the house, Sandi called me and asked if I wanted to go to the pool. Um, yeah. So, we spent several hours at the pool at Campo de Golf, including having our lunch there. It was nice. I hadn't been to the golf course yet, so it was nice to see someplace new. My friend, Jenny, is getting married out there in July.

The pool was great. I just kind of lounged around in the pool for a while. When I needed a break, I got out and laid on one of the lounge chairs and then back to the pool. I also spent time writing out postcards. Sandi & Currie are heading back to the States tomorrow, so they're going to mail them for me.

The break was nice, but when we were back in school on Friday, the kids were so totally wired they were barely manageable. At least, that's the way my 6th graders were. I guess it's also not much help that I have them on Friday afternoons, AFTER lunch. At that point, all they can think about is either playing fútbol or just going home for the weekend.

Yesterday, Saturday, Jenny called me and we ended up meeting for lunch. Baleadas. Yum! Then, in the evening, Jenny and Josue brought their youth group to the Center to hang out. It was a bit of a disappoint since it was raining so hard yesterday. Oh well. Otra vez.

Cape Town, Here We Come...

¡Viva Honduras! We're going to Cape Town, South Africa for World Cup Soccer! We, being Honduras, that is. And, we got a little help from the US. Honduras played El Salvador tonight, and won, 1-0. But, we also needed the United States to win against Costa Rica to secure our entrance to Cape Town. Well, the US tied Costa Rica, which was enough for Honduras to make it on points! So, come next year, Honduras will be represented in World Cup Soccer.

After the game, things got really crazy around here. Fireworks going off, horns blaring, people screaming, etc. Currie, Sandi, and I decided to get in on the celebration so we went up to the front gate and went outside. There were tons of people over at the Esso. In trucks, cars, on foot, you name it. Cars and trucks full of people were driving by, waving Honduran flags, shouting, celebrating. What a blast! We yelled and hooped and hollered, all decked out in our Honduras jerseys. Of course, it reminded me of times when the Jayhawks have won the NCAA championship. Finally, we went back inside. A few minutes later, Sandi got a phone call and she quickly ran to the TV. We heard the last few moments of Roberto Micheletti, the Honduran president, thanking God for the victory, and declaring tomorrow as a federal holiday.

Then, the phone really began ringing. Off. the. hook. Everyone wanted to know if the school would be closed since we're a private school. Sandi said something like, "Who are we to argue with what the president has just declared?" So, it looks like we don't have school tomorrow. Woot!

Buying Contraband...

Currie, Sandi and Samuel are heading back to the States next week, so I took the opportunity today to buy something my brother wants. Sandi said she'd bring the gift to the States for my brother. There's a great souvenir shop close to the cathedral and the lady in there seems to give me good prices since I buy a lot of stuff in there and because I've brought others in to do the same. Today was no different.

I went out for my now normal bike ride, but got out there a bit later than usual. That one hour made a huge difference. Although it was only 8:30a when I started, the sun was up higher and it was much hotter than it's been. So, I sweated through three laps and then came back to the house. After relaxing, drinking water and taking a shower, I decided to head down toward the cathedral. Originally I had planned to ride my bike there, but thought I might enjoy walking instead. So, I walked.

I made it down to the cathedral and around the corner in no time. I knew exactly where "they" were. Actually, "they" are right on the counter, in view of everyone. I picked up a few different boxes, looking for just the country of origin I was seeking. I found a box of ten from that country with which the US has no trade relations. A military base and a prison, yes, but trade relations, no. In addition to the box of 10, I also bought a box of 25 Honduran-made ones. They're also good quality, but I suspect that for my brother and his friends there's just something special about lighting one up if it's also illegal. Yeah, I think you all know what I'm talking about. I bought my brother a gift from the country that gave us the Cuba Libre.

Fútbol...

I'm glad I was out on my bike early this morning. I did my riding and was back at Enlaces before 8am. Even while I was out, the traffic was getting really crazy on the new boulevard. Pretty much every taxi is flying a Honduras or Honduras fútbol flag. Many other cars are, also.

After cooling off and taking my shower, I grabbed a taxi and headed for La Princesita. Baleadas were my target. Baleadas are basically a bean burrito, and are one of the few times that flour tortillas are used here, rather than the more traditional corn. La Princesita is actually a bakery, down near the center of town, but they've opened up an additional location and are bringing in the cakes from the bakery. But, more than that, they are making awesome baleadas at the new location. The fresh flour tortilla is made after you place your order. Today, I had the baleada mixta, which includes frijoles (beans), queso (a parmesan cheese-like product), mantequilla (like sour cream, but more tart) and huevos (eggs). The baleadas there are huge and one was plenty for a meal. Including a bottle of Pepsi Light (Diet Pepsi), I spent 29Lps ($1.53USD) for my meal. The baleada was only 15Lps!!!

Before grabbing a taxi back to Enlaces, I walked across the street to check out one of the many, many, MANY street vendors who are out today, selling Honduran fútbol shirts, flags, and hats in preparation for tonight's soccer game in San Pedro Sula against the US. So many people are already wearing Honduras shirts, including me, but it doesn't seem that there is any lack of customers for all of the vendors who are out. There's a guy hawking his wares not too far from our front gate, so I may go over there a little bit later to check out his prices.

Tonight's game is critical for both teams, as it brings the winner closer to being in the finals of World Cup Soccer in South Africa. We'll be watching the game here at the Center. My friend, Jenny, will be watching it in person at the stadium.

Everything Changes...

Yup, things change here all the time. Just two days ago I was writing about the government decree that all schools must be finished next Friday, all grades submitted, and all students must pass, regardless of their grades. Well, the very next day, the government said, "Uh, you private schools don't have to do this. You can still continue as scheduled." So, we're back to our normal schedule. Who knows what will happen tomorrow?

I went out for another bike ride this morning. It feels so good, even though my saddle needs to be raised a bit (no quick release parts on my bike). Maybe this afternoon I'll ask Antonio to help me with it, or at least borrow some tools from him.

I did three laps on the boulevard again. Tomorrow, I think I'll go out and do more laps, but maybe I'll start by riding to the old boulevard and having a baleada for breakfast. Who knows? That's tomorrow and there's no sense in me trying to decide or make those plans today.

While I was riding, I was looking around at the surrounding mountains. Beautiful. I also like to look at all the different things on the boulevard. I've been watching the progress of the people who are setting up for the feria (fair). I don't think the feria starts until December, but it looks like they're making good progress. Several rides are in place: the ferris wheel, the pulpo (octopus), some "go round and round" ride, etc.. Today I saw that they have several little eating booths going up, including one that will be selling pupusas. Hmmm, it should be fun.

Schools, Bikes, and the Like...

First the bike... On Monday I went for another bike ride out on the new boulevard. I ended up doing three full laps and it felt great. While I'm out there I get some interesting looks: I'm a gringa, on a bike, riding for exercise. That's not something they see every day around here. I figure that within a few weeks the people there will get used to seeing me riding back and forth, up and down the boulevard and say something like, "There's that gringa loca again."

The cool thing is that Monday must have been Wear an American Sports Team Ballcap Day. Shortly after starting out, I spotted a guy on a bike wearing a faded Michigan cap. Now, his cap wasn't nearly as faded as my brother's, but it was still a good effort. I think Bill would have been proud. A lap or so later, I saw a KC Royals cap. That's right, the Kansas City Royals are representing right here in Comayagua. OK, maybe you'll think it a bit strange, but seeing those caps made me smile and feel a bit closer to being in the States.

About the schools... Yesterday the government declared that all schools must be finished by next Friday (instead of the normal early-mid November), and grades submitted. Oh, and the real kicker? No student is allowed to be failed. If they are currently failing, or won't finish their school work on time, tough. They must pass anyway. I guess it's kind of like the failed No Child Left Behind. Sandi told me that something like this usually happens during an election year. Although, this is the first time that the "no fail" clause has been inserted. So, I'm thinking that if they know it's an election year and that they're going to shorten the school year anyway, why not just build that in to the school calendar on election years rather than scrambling at the end? I dunno; makes sense to me to plan ahead.

For me, it means that we have cancelled my Literature class with the 6th, 7th, and 8th grades so that they can concentrate on getting their core work done. My class was something extra that was added when I got here. Since I won't be teaching those classes, they're asking me to spend my time in various classes, trying to help the students there finish their work. (Sorry, that first "they're" just kind of came out of nowhere, but I decided to use they're, there, and their all in one sentence.)

And the like... Well, I didn't really have anything in mind for the "like". I guess I just "liked" the sound of it when I was thinking of a catchy title for this post.

It's Beginning to Look a Lot...

...like Christmas.

At least it is here at the Center. Over the weekend, we decorated the Center for Christmas. Sandi decided that NOW is the perfect time to get the place decorated and get people's minds off of the stuff going on with the government.

The first step was to find all of the Christmas decorations. Some stuff was packed in with the wedding ministry things, other stuff was in the bodega (warehouse). Then to the task of untangling lights. That, in itself, was quite a feat.

There are now at least 8 different Christmas trees, of various sizes, lit and decorated, all around the Center. Stockings and garland line the railing across the top level. We even changed the lighting of the Center last night to highlight the trees and garland. It looks great. Plus, it really gives us an opportunity to talk with the kids about the REAL meaning of Christmas.

Most families here do not have Christmas trees for their homes. It's not that they don't want one, it's more that they can't afford one. So, we're going to be giving away most of the trees in the Center before Christmas -- lights, decorations and all. As word of the tree giveaway gets out, our attendance at the Center will continue to increase between now and December. And as word of that spreads, we'll be spreading the Word of God each hour that the Center is open.

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Gecko poop update: I still haven't seen any more gecko poop on the counter. I have geckos on the walls, but none of them seem to be venturing on to the counter at night. This morning, when I walked into the kitchen, with my eyes still somewhat shut, I saw something I thought might be gecko poop. Upon closer inspection, it turned out to be a small spider. He's dead now...

Well, I'm off for another bike ride this morning. I think I'll go for three laps on the boulevard.

Bikes on the Boulevard...

First, a "gecko poop update" ~~ Nothing. It's been almost two weeks since I've had any gecko poop on the counter. I dunno, maybe it really is connected to the time that Mel has been hiding out in the Brazilian Embassy.

This morning I decided to go for a little bike ride. I really needed to stretch my legs and lungs. I threw on some clothes that need to be washed and headed for the kitchen to make a quick breakfast. I figured that baleadas would be good. They're quick, easy, good bike food and are actually a traditional Honduran breakfast. Baleadas are basically bean and cheese burritos. It's one of the few times that flour tortillas are used here. There's a new baleada place over by the Jumbo supermarket, so one of these days I'll check it out.

Back to the bike ride... After a couple of baleadas, I headed for the front gate. Then I rode the short distance to the new boulevard and maneuvered through traffic to get going. I had already planned to just do a couple of laps for my first time out. Within a short distance of starting, I stopped at a little shop. The guy had bicycle tires hanging up outside, so I stopped to see if I could get some air in my tires and ask about buying a bomba (pump). A hand pump, kind of like a frame pump, will set me back 36Lps (about $1.90US) and I can get a floor pump for 115Lps ($6US). I think I may get both. That way, when I eventually give away this bike, after my GT arrives from the States, I can give a pump with it.

I did two laps on the boulevard, riding it from the highway to the end, which is just past where the gym is. I'm not sure of the distance since the bike I have here doesn't have a computer on it, but I estimate it at about 4, maybe 4 1/2 miles total, back to the gate at Enlaces. Once my bike gets here, I'll be able to get a more accurate reading of the distance.

The concept of riding a bike for fun or exercise here is pretty well lost on most people, but now that we have at least two different gyms in town, some people are starting to understand a little bit about working out. When we were out last week, with the ladies who were visiting, we saw one person jogging in the opposite direction we were going. That really struck me as odd because it was a Honduran -- AND a woman. But slowly, things are starting to change here.

It didn't feel too warm while I was riding, but after I got back to my house and brought the bike inside, the sweat started pouring off me. The sun was much brighter and it was much hotter than I realized. I grabbed a few sips of water and then started to cool down a bit. Then, a shower and some more water.

Now, I'm getting ready for my next adventure today: a haircut. I'm afraid.