Home Again...

On Thursday morning, we loaded up the bus with the team of 12 from Michigan, plus 9 of us (6 adults, 3 kids) from the team here.  The goal was simple:  get the team from Michigan to the airport and through security, then get ourselves to Villa Nuria for a few days to relax, debrief, pray, play and prepare to move forward. Mission accomplished on all fronts!

After we got settled into our rooms, Sandi and I went to the grocery store to pick up a few things we needed.  In addition to having two bedrooms, the rooms at Villa Nuria include a little kitchenette, so we were cooking there in order to not spend money eating out.    We went to La Antorcha supermarket and let me tell you, that place is a haven for sensory overload.  I mean, not only did they have 3 or 4 different brands of canned garbanzo beans (think: hummus), but they had three different sizes of cans, including #10 (the food service size).  We didn't buy any garbanzo beans, but that's not the point.  We could have.

Back at Villa Nuria, I was going to take a little nap, but got involved in the last half of a movie on TV.  Then, I set up a small network for Trify, Erica and me to share the single internet connection.  There's no wireless there yet.  I also brought an extra switch and some cables so that we could set up a network in Sandi, Currie and Hermes' room.  Yes, we all brought our laptops.  There's always work to do: emails to catch up, calendars to coordinate, etc.

On Friday, we all spent time at the pool at some point in the day.  Then, after a late lunch/early dinner, the 6 adults prayed together and talked about some things for the coming weeks.

Saturday morning included a leisurely breakfast, included in the room price, a little more time at the pool for those who were interested, and then packing up the bus again for the trip back to Comayagua.


As we were leaving San Pedro Sula, we saw the effects of recent rains.  The rainy season has started early and flooding is already happening in several areas.

What you can't really see in this photo is that people are swimming back over to the houses to try to retrieve anything they can.  A block away, we saw a bunch of men sitting around like nothing was happening.  After all, this is just life in Honduras and flooding happens.  I guess after a while, the people are unfazed by it.  Maybe 'unfazed' is not the right word.  Perhaps 'resigned' would be more accurate.


When we got to Lago de Yojoa, we stopped for a meal.  Most of us decided on fish since we were at the lake.  Here's a pic of last night's dinner, partially consumed before I thought to take a picture.

No Power Failures...

It's hard to believe that it's been over a week since we've had a power failure.  ¡Increíble!  And, although I'm not superstitious, I'm sure that the fact that I've just put it out there means we will have a power failure.  Soon.   At least if we do, the team visiting us from Michigan will get a little bit more of the "missions experience".

We have a group of 12 people from the Detroit, MI area with us right now.  They've been here for about a week and a half and have a few more days to go.  They've been giving special classes in the school (martial arts and crocheting), leading the Chapel services at school, helping with work projects around the property, and have visited the local hospital and an orphanage.

Today they are in Ajuterique, building a new kitchen for the school there.  Money was very generously donated by some new friends of the ministry, to build a new outdoor kitchen, where the lunch for the school kids is cooked.  The objective of the Michigan team is to build the kitchen.  Today.  With guidance from several of our guys, Trify is confident that at the end of the day, the kitchen should be finished, or almost finished.

Here are a few pics of what the kitchen looks like now...

 What I apparently did not get pictures of is the roof over the kitchen.  It's made of wooden posts, courtesy of nearby trees, and plastic -- some of it tarps and some of it trash bags.  Much of it full of holes.

Hopefully the team will bring back a few "after" pics so I can post those, as well.  Otherwise, I'll be able to get some in September when we are out there for Día del Niño (Day of the Child).  It would be cool to be out there today and be able to say, "Move that bus", or something like it.

Here's to New Beginnings...

Well, it has been entirely too long since I've posted. Rather than beg your forgiveness and give promises to never let so long of a lapse happen again, I'll just write.  It's what I love to do!

Over the last few months, since my last post, I would often see things and think, "That would make a great blog post."  Then I would be riddled with guilt that it's been so long since I've written, that I wouldn't even know where to start.  So, I'll just write.  There.  I've said it twice now in two paragraphs.

About three weeks ago, I started teaching an adult English class to members of our team here.  Now, lest you think that I'm teaching bad words to adults, let me clarify:  I am teaching a beginning English class to adult members of our team.  The response was so overwhelming that I divided the class into two groups of 6 each.  These are members of our staff who speak no English.  Sure, they may know a few words here and there, but that's about it.   Wow!  They are doing fantastic!  Each one of them is so motivated to learn English.  They know it's a skill that can help them advance in life.  And they're very concerned about proper pronunciation.  

A side benefit to teaching the English class seems to be that my Spanish is improving.  I have to do a bit of explaining in Spanish, so I'm constantly looking up words and checking for proper usage of verbs.  I also have a classroom full of folks who are as eager to help me with my Spanish as they are eager to learn English.  To quote Dances with Wolves, "Good trade."

This first round of classes is only being offered to our staff.  There are even a few people that were not able to sign up now and will take the class at a future time.  We also see the opportunity to expand the circle to whom it is offered: spouses of team members, parents of school children, and, eventually, to those in the community.  The desire to learn English runs deep here.  Many people know it's a way to improve their lot in life, to get better jobs, and thus, to help break the cycle of poverty.  More than just teaching them English, we're excited to be able to teach people more about God and His love for each of us.  Teaching English just happens to be one vehicle we can use.

Well, I'd best end this post here.  We have a group of 12 people coming from Michigan for a missions trip.  They'll be here for almost two weeks.  We still have a lot of little things to do around here to get ready for their arrival in a few hours.  

Until next time...

I'm Back...

Yes, I'm back in the United States.  I arrived in Kansas City late on Wednesday.  I think it was well after midnight: before I went to bed, and yet I woke up at 6:20am the next morning.  That would have been 5:20am Honduran time, which is pretty much when I get up, so my internal clock was still working.
 
Later on Thursday morning, I drove back to Lawrence for a 'restoration'.  If you have to ask, you don't know and I'm not about to tell you.  The interesting thing is that as I was driving from Lawrence to Olathe, in my own car, it felt totally normal.  I was prepared for all kinds of reverse culture shock or sensory overload situations, but so far I've had none.  In fact, while I was driving, it was almost as if my car was on auto pilot.  I mean, the car has made that trip literally thousands of times in my daily commute between Lawrence and Kansas City.  Even driving around in Lawrence has not felt strange.  Sure, there are new businesses and other businesses that have gone belly up, but I haven't felt out of place.  I'm thankful for that.

It has been absolutely fantastic to see so many friends so far.  Reconnecting is fun! Last night, several friends hosted a welcome home party for me.  I had a wonderful time.  Such a diverse group of people showed up and it truly made me feel welcome!

Tomorrow, Monday, I'm having lunch with two friends from college.  Jon was, literally, the very first friend I made in Lawrence when we both moved into Hashinger Hall about a million years ago.  And, I met Susan the same day.  So, the three of us will have lunch and probably laugh hysterically until we're asked to either keep it down or leave the restaurant.

So, I'm Leavin', on a Jet Plane...

Yes, it's true.  All my bags are packed; I'm ready to go.

So, in my last remaining minutes before turning off the computer, possibly until I land in the US tomorrow, I thought I'd do a quick update.

Rain.  Rain.  And more rain.  Wow!  It rained buckets last night.  In fact, it rained in my kitchen!  I was on the computer and happened to look up and behind me.  Don't ask my why;  I just did.  A leak that had previously been fixed was leaking.  I got out a towel and a pot.  Then I started looking at the other places in the house where it's leaked in the past.  They're easy to spot.  The one over the dining room table was getting a bit wavy and water soaked, so I moved the table a bit so that if it started leaking after I went to bed, at least the table would not get ruined.  It didn't leak.

I didn't actually make it to bed until well past midnight, and got up at 5am, but don't feel tired at all.  Now, let's see how it goes later today!!  But, I think I've accomplished all that I needed to.  My suitcases are packed.  The linens on my bed are changed for houseguests who are arriving on Thursday.  Trash is taken out.  Dishes are done and put away.  Yup, I think I've got it all covered.

Yes, I have my passport.  Don't worry.  Hmmmm, maybe I should go double check any way.  Yup.  It's there.

So, now it's time for my good-byes:

Good-bye, avocado.  I will miss your rich, buttery goodness.  I'll miss you with salt and lime.  I'll miss your cheapness -- cost, that is.

Good-bye, mango.  Our time together has been all too brief this season  The fault is entirely mine.  I fear that you shall depart before I return.  Well, I will patiently wait for your return next year, dreaming of you longingly.  Perhaps I will even plan future trips to better accommodate your seasonal appearance.

Good-bye, guanabana.  I wonder if you'll still be hanging around when I come back. 

Good-bye, fresh tortillas.  I shan't forget you and will quickly come visit your hot, steamy goodness in June.

OK, that's enough good-byes.  I've just made myself hungry again.  And, that's after enjoying two avocados this morning.

¡Increíble!...

Yes, ¡increíble!  Absolutely incredilble!  In a strangely funny twist of irony, our Denton-shipped container is scheduled to arrive here in Honduras on May 8 or so.  Ironic because I leave for six weeks in the States on April 28. So, my things will finally get here, after almost 9 months, but I won't be here to start going through them.  Oh well, the boxes will be waiting for me when I get back.  Box after box after box.  I'm sure I will hardly know where to start.

No, I know exactly where I'll start: setting up the TV and BluRay player.  Wait, I should probably start by filling the bookshelves with books.  But the kitchen needs to be set up, too.  On second thought, maybe I have no idea where I'll start.  Actually, I'm sure I'll start by sorting, again, and thinning out my stuff some more.

While I was packing to move here, I thought I had done quite an admirable job of getting rid of a lot of my stuff.  I mean, I gave away, threw away or sold more things than any one person really needs.  Yet, my remaining things filled my one-car garage and then filled a decent sized moving truck.  Yes, I can rationalize and say that some of those things are for the ministry here, that they're not really for me, but let's face it -- I still have too much.

Well, this will be another opportunity for me to see just how attached to physical things I really am.  I hope I pass the test!

One thing that I'm a little sad about is that my cycling sandals, my Keen cycling sandals are among my things.  That means that I won't have them when it comes time to do some rides in the States.  I'm glad that I still have a pair of cycling shoes waiting for me in Shawnee.  Plus, I can't remember where my bike helmet is.  Did I pack it to come down here? Or is it waiting for me, as well?  I'll know the answer to those questions, and more, by this time next week!

Recent Bike Rides...

Thankfully, I've been able to spend a little more 'saddle time' recently.  I went for rides on Friday, Saturday and Sunday.  I planned to ride today, but that got waylaid by the tyranny of the urgent.  Although, in today's case, I think the 'urgent' was the incredible desire for an afternoon nap.

I'm still not sure how long my bike rides are.  On Saturday and Sunday, I upped my mileage to five laps, from four.  However, when I have no idea how long a lap is, the whole thing is kinda moot.  At one point, I thought a lap might be three miles, but I suspect I'm overestimating and a lap is more like two or two-and-a-half miles.  That would make five laps a measly 10 miles. 12 1/2 miles, at the most.  Pitiful.  At this rate, I have no idea how I'll ever survive on the Cottonwood.  I'm just hoping that riding my incredibly heavy mountain bike will translate well once I throw my leg over the top tube of my trusty Steelman.  That's trusty -- not rusty!

I do enjoy being out there riding.  On Saturday, I had two ladies that were counting my laps.  That was kind of cool.  I also had one guy yell out to me, "¡Muy bien! ¡Muy bien! ¡Muy bien!" as encouragement.  I couldn't help but smile as I thought of Manolo Saiz of the now defunct Once team yelling out, "¡Venga! ¡Venga! ¡Venga!" in his attempts to spur his riders on to victory.  OK, OK, maybe I'm overdoing it, but when you're on the bike, strange and silly things often enter your thoughts.

On Sunday, I saw a young boy lead a small herd of pigs across the boulevard.  Once safely across, the pigs just kept right on running.  I don't think there was a cliff around for them to rush off of, but again, lots of thoughts enter your mind while on the bike.

Occasionally, I have a student, parent or teacher say that they saw me riding my bike on the boulevard.  Yeah, I guess a gringa on a bike, doing laps over and over, really does stick out.

Technology. The Good and the Not-So-Good...

I love technology.  I think most people know that about me.  Whether it's building a cool, new computer, watching a movie on an iPod, ditching hard copy maps by using a GPS, or downloading books to my computer via Kindle for PC (at least until I actually have my own Kindle), I love technology.  But all that technology has a down side: it needs electricity to make it work.

And, therein lies my problem.  Last night I went to bed, having written a test for my 6th graders, converted it to Word 97-2003 format, and stashed a copy on my thumb drive so that all I'd have to do this morning is run to the office and print off 27 copies.  The problem?  The power went off at 1:32am and had not been restored when I got up and got ready this morning.  Ugh!  No power means no printer.  Well, I can deal with that.  I figured I'd just bring my laptop to class and read the questions to the kids as they wrote the answers on sheets of paper.  (That brought up a whole different set of problems, but I'll leave that for another post.)

I also had planned to go online this morning to look up some Scriptures on Bible Gateway, but again, no power means no internet.  OK, I could deal with that, too.  I borrowed a Strong's Concordance from Sandi and found the verses I was looking for.  Unfortunately, I couldn't look them up in the New Living Translation, which has become a version I use a lot for Chapel.  Still, I could deal.  Plus, I've resolved to buy a copy of the NLT when I get back to the States.

Showers were out of the question today, too.  Although we have our own well here, it uses a pump to get the water to faucets.  You know the rest of this story, I'm sure... No power means no pumps for the water.  OK, we keep more than a gallon of water in the fridge, so at least I could wash my face and brush my teeth.  See? I'm still dealing quite well with the whole no power thing.


Then it hit me:  No power means I can't brew any coffee.  Excuse me?  Those heavenly beans, picked at their peak ripeness and air roasted to perfection, called to me from the freezer. Taunting me. Teasing me.  Mocking me.  I managed to drown out the medium roast chorus escaping from the freezer and begrudgingly opened the refrigerator, pouring myself a glass of iced tea.  No, it really wasn't the same, but it would have to do.

I went over to the Center, where we were going to have our Chapel service (sans sound system) for the teachers and staff.  Mr. Alan shared this morning and I actually understood about 75% of what he said.  Wow!  That was a victory.

Then it was time for the 5th-10th grade Chapel.  Mr. Elvis, Miss Marjorie and Miss Cindy led a time of praise and worship, a cappella, and it went quite well.  When I was about to begin, I started in almost a whisper so that I could get the kids' attention.  It worked.  They saw my mouth moving, but couldn't hear what I was saying, so everyone needed to be quiet.  Then I was able to use my 'outdoor voice' so that I could share the Word of God with them.

Chapel service over, I headed to the 6th grade classroom.  As Mrs. Juanita opened the door, the power came back on!  There still wasn't time for me to print off their test, but at least they now had air conditioning!

Las Alfombras...

Finally, it's here:  Semana Santa (Holy Week) and, most importantly, Good Friday. In Comayagua, Good Friday means one thing, and one thing only ~  Las Alfombras.  Traditionally made from colored sawdust, in recent years, the carpets have seen the addition of other natural materials, such as pine needles, various seeds, flowers, and more.

So, with no further ado, I bring you my window on Las Alfombras de Comayagua...

I got up early this morning because I wanted to start walking down toward las alfombras early, while people were still working on them and before there were thousands upon thousand of people walking around.  I left the house at 6:15am, enjoying the quiet and stillness of my neighborhood.  Within a few blocks, I encountered my first alfombra as a work in progress.  I knew that this carpet would be seen by relatively few people, being well off the Zona Processional.

But here it is, still being worked on.

A few minutes later, I was walking on the edge of the mercado, which looked so very different with no booths, people, cars, etc.  Empty.  Vacant.  Of course, it was only 6:30am.

From there, I walked past La Iglesia Merced, where there were about 5 or 6 ladies in orange construction vest sweeping and cleaning up the trash in front of the church.  As I got closer to the Cathedral and the blocks all around it, there were more and more alfombras.  Almost all of them were still being worked on, but I was able to get some good shots.

This one used real thorns for the crown and wood for the cross.

I was intrigued by the alfombra that used egg shells and dried flowers in its design.

 But I think my favorite was the depiction of the Last Supper.  This creative alfombra used tamarindo shells as its border.  Rice, seeds, and sawdust were used for the rest.  And, yes, that is real bread on the table.

Some time after 9:00am, the processional started.  By this time I had met up with Sandi, Samuel and Adan and we were at La Iglesia San Francisco, waiting for the processional to start.  Men and boys, dressed as Jesus, and each carrying a cross led the way, followed by men with incense, priests, the bishop, candle bearers, etc., culminating in men dressed in robes and hoods that are, frankly, reminiscent of KKK garb, and carrying a huge display.  This year, it was a boat with Jesus in it.  Behind it was another boat with fishermen, which I assumed represented the calling of some of Jesus' disciples.

As the processional goes by, they stop along the way, praying over various alfombras (not all, we found out) and stopping at areas marked for the stations of the cross.

 Once the official processional has passed by, others from the crowd join in, thus the processional continues to become longer and longer.  As you can imagine, it only takes minutes for each alfombra, and the many, many hours of work to become nothing more than a lingering memory.

The processional takes many hours to wind its way through the streets, praying and blessing as they go.

I'm so glad I finally got to see las alfombras in person.  It is truly a slice of Comayaguan culture.

La Libertad... Again...

Now that I'm back from Central American Student Convention 2010 and even mostly caught up on sleep, I can start to get caught up with semi-regular blog posts.  Or, at least I can plan on it.

Last week I spent 4 days with 42 of our students and 6 other sponsors, taking our kids to CASC 2010, which was held at Campamento Palabra de Vida (Word of Life Camp) in Zambrano.  It was a great time.  I'm so proud of our students and how well they mostly behaved and of how many medals and trophies they won.

After four long, adventure-filled, sleep-deprived days and nights, we arrived back at the school by 1:30 on Friday afternoon.  The bus was unloaded and I was in the shower by 2pm.  Interestingly, as exhausted as I was, I couldn't actually sleep when I tried to take a nap.  So, after about an hour and a half of tossing and turning, I got up, only slightly refreshed, and started to make a mole hill out of the mountain that had become my email inbox.

On Saturday morning, I decided to take myself out for breakfast and then a leisurely motorcycle ride.  But first, laundry.  I actually had two loads of laundry washed and on the line quite early.  Then, I straightened up the house, which really didn't need much work since both Jenny and I were gone for most of the week.  I decided to wait until later in the day to mop the floor, and here it is, Monday, and I still haven't mopped.  Shhh.  Let's keep that as our secret because floors need to be mopped daily here.  Sometimes twice a day.

OK, so about the motorcycle ride.  I went to La Princesita for breakfast because baleadas sounded great. And cheap!  Just after I ordered, paid and sat down, John and Debra walked in.  Good.  Now I would have some company for breakfast.  John and Debra are from Texas and teach at Ruach, another bilingual school here in town.  Like Enlaces, Ruach is an ACE school and was at CASC with us.  John went as a sponsor, but Debra didn't go.  During breakfast we talked about the convention: the location, the things we liked, the things we thought should change, etc. etc.  In many ways, it was your typical Monday morning quarterbacking.

After breakfast, as I got back on my motorcycle outside La Princesita, I decided that my ride's destination would be La Libertad.  That was actually an easy decision since I was already near the end of the boulevard and didn't want to battle the heavy traffic on it to head back to the highway to go to Ajuterique.  The last time I went to La Libertad, I started out a bit earlier in the morning and saw lots of people out and about on the road and in their yards and fields.  However, I got a late start, so it was much hotter now and that meant that fewer people would be out.  There were more cars and busitos, but fewer people.

The drive to La Libertad is beautiful, even in the harshness of the dry season.  Mountains, pine trees, winding curving roads, scenic views.  There were several times where I found my mind drifting back to the Bicycle Tour of Colorado 2003.  So much reminded me of riding my bike in the mountains of Colorado.  But, just about the time that I would think how similar this all looked to Colorado, I'd be jolted back to reality, reminded of my real locale by banana and palm trees, worn out, run down adobe houses or an ox cart carrying a load of watermelons.  No, I definitely was not in Colorado.

Before I knew it, I had made the final twists and turns into La Libertad.  At one point, I had planned to just drive to the edge of town  and then turn around and head home.  However, my moto just seemed to find its way to the center of town and to the pulperia I had been to last time. As I backed the moto in to park, I was keenly aware that all eyes were on me.  The sight of a gringa on a motorcycle definitely has that effect on many people.

As I walked in to the now familiar store, I said 'good morning' to the weathered, frail looking woman sitting at the table, eating a plate of rice. 

Darn!  No Coca Light in glass bottles.  I settled for a bottle of Sprite.  There's something wonderful about drinking pop out of a glass bottle.  Unfortunately, few places seem to have Coca Light en vidrio.  With my Sprite and pajilla (straw) in hand, I went back outside and asked the diminutive woman if I could sit down with her.

She motioned with her hand and uttered a few sounds at me.  It was then that I realized she was mute.  Hmmm, this might be a bit more difficult than I had thought.  Well, I tried as best as I could to speak with her, but of course, it was a fairly one sided conversation.  I did figure out that she was wanting me to eat something and that she seemed to be pointing me toward a place across the way.  I figured they must have the rice.  I told her I had just eaten in Comayagua.

A minute or two later, one of the two younger guys who were at another table nearby came over and told me that the woman couldn't speak, but that she always came to the church to pray.  We were at the parque central, which usually has a Catholic church as an anchor.  I asked if she lived nearby and found out that she did not, but comes to town all the time to pray.

Then, the young man pulled a 20 dollar bill, a US 20 dollar bill, out of his wallet and asked me if I could change it to Lempiras for him.  I checked, but didn't have enough money with me.  When I asked how he got a 20 dollar bill, I found out that he sells hammocks and had been in Comayagua, selling there.  By the time I turned my attention back to my new friend, she had her carnet (identification card) out, showing me who she was.  Then, she motioned to me, asking me to give her some money.  I'm sure she had been paying close attention when I looked to see if I could make change for the other guy.  Well, I tried to ignore her request, and suddenly became very interested in my bottle of Sprite for a few minutes.  I excused myself from the table and went to bring my empty bottle back inside.

In the store, I asked the ladies there if they knew the woman.  I found out that she lived in one of the colonias and was very poor.  I told them that she had asked me for money, but I never give money to someone.  I inquired as to whether they had sugar and rice, and was told, 'yes'.  "Démelo, por favor" (Give me some, please.)  I ended up buying small bags of sugar, rice and beans for the woman.  Frankly, she was so small and frail that she looked like a strong wind would blow her over.

Back outside, I put the bag on the table and told her that this was a regalito for her.  A gift.  She looked at me, confused.  I said it again, "this is a gift for you.  It's all yours."  Then, I took out the sugar.  Wow!  Her eyes got huge and I knew that sugar probably didn't appear in her house too often.  I also showed her the beans and rice, repeating that they were for her.  I prayed for her, and then gave her a hug and kiss before getting back on my moto.  As I did, the young guy I had been talking to earlier, said "thank you".  Without thinking about it, I had apparently touched more than one heart.

As I rode back to Comayagua, I found myself mentally creating a MasterCard commercial ~~


     Glass bottle of Sprite: 8 Lempiras (42¢)
     Small bag of food: 54 Lempiras ($2.85)
     Investing in the Kingdom of God: PRICELESS

It's Mango Season...

Well, almost mango season.

I went for a bike ride this morning, just to keep my legs fresh.  I had ridden on Saturday, and when I first got on the bike today, my sit-upons were feeling a little, well, sat upon.  Within a few minutes I was feeling better, though.   It was cool and there was just a bit of misting going on this morning.  Then, there was a headwind during the parts where I go slightly uphill.  Ah, it felt like riding in Kansas.  Almost.


Yes, the temp, wind and mist all combined to make me feel like I could have been riding in Kansas, maybe on the Wicked Wind.  Except for the part where we all had to slow down because there were two different ox carts creating a traffic jam.  Or the part where I had to ride through the vultures on the corner that were munching on some roadkill.  At least the vultures had managed to drag the dearly departed dog a bit further onto the sidewalk, rather than where he and they were yesterday: right in the roadway.  Or the part where a lady was burning her trash in the road in front of her house. I guess maybe the Kansas comparison quickly fades, huh?

After my ride, I showered, did a load of laundry and headed out toward the post office.  My parents' anniversary is in three weeks and I'm hoping that the card I sent out today will actually get to them in time.  It's the first time I've mailed things from here, so I'll just take the ever popular 'wait and see' approach.  It cost 42 Lempiras to send my Hallmark wishes northbound.  Yup, Hallmark.  When Sandi and I were in HiperPaiz last week, I looked for anniversary cards and actually found one I liked.  Mom & Dad may have to take it to their church to have the Assistant Pastor translate it, but I was glad that I managed to find a card.


As I left the post office, I was rubbing excess glue off my fingers.  Oh, I forgot to tell you that you don't lick the stamps here.  They weigh your letter, sell you the stamps and then offer you the glue.  Basically, it was a bit of Elmers in a cap from a spray paint or hair spray can with a Popsicle stick in it.  After sticking on your stamps, you need to wait just a little bit so that the glue can dry and your letter won't get stuck to others.


Excess glue off my fingers, I continued walking back toward the mercado and home.  When I got to my friend Walter's corner fruit stand, I stopped to talk to him for a few minutes.  I saw that he had some mangos, but they were the small ones, the ones that are picked green, cut and served with salt, vinegar, hot sauce, etc.  But at least these ones were a bit more ripe.  I asked Walter if he had any of the large mangos yet.  He said that he did.  I asked if they were sweet and ripe.  He said, "yes" and plopped one down in front of me.


Honestly, the mango looked a bit sad.  It was starting to wrinkle, from being old, and was yellow and green with no signs of red.  But Walter assured me it was a good one.  I paid my 10 Lempiras and put the mango in my purse.  I knew that the price was super expensive because it's so early in the season.  I also know that once mango season really gets under way, people will be giving them away by the bagful -- kind of like the over-productive cucumbers of a Kansas summer.  Still, I didn't mind paying 10 Lemps if I had a good piece of fruit to consume.


Once home, I got out my mango splitter, ready to christen it on the first mango of the season.  I'll be darned, but the skin seemed too tough for the splitter.  Maybe I should have peeled it first? Plan B was to follow AB's foolproof mango cutting instructions.  Sorry, I couldn't find an actual Alton Brown demo of it, but this video is pretty much the same as I remember AB cutting it.


Mango cut and released of its skin, there was nothing left to do but taste.  And, oh my, was it tasty!  I stood over the sink and quickly consumed ('inhaled' might be a better word) the whole thing.  Walter's record of never selling me a bad piece of fruit remains untarnished.


I am absolutely convinced that it was not an apple, but a mango, that satan used in the garden to tempt Eve.  And with fruit as heavenly as a mango, it's at least a bit understandable why she gave in to the temptation.  OK, not really, but I stand by my assertion that mangos are heavenly!


So, for the record: Let mango season begin!

Ready for Convention...

The Central American Student Convention begins on Tuesday morning, and I think I'm pretty much ready for it now.  Except for packing.  After church today I went to the store to buy some of the clothing I need for it.  Flip flops and sandals are unacceptable footwear, so I ended up spending 330 Lempiras to buy a pair of closed-toe dress shoes.  Then, I also bought a pair of warm-up style pants so that I'd be dressed appropriately on athletic competition days.  I even found a pair of knee high stockings so that I don't have to wear regular stockings.  Even the thought of wearing a pair of stockings is repulsive, but since the skirts I have don't cover my ankles, I have to wear hose.  So, I'm going to fudge it a bit and wear knee highs since I have a skirt that should be long enough to accommodate them and still not have to wear the real thing, the completely restrictive, utterly repressive-in-this-heat stockings.  What?  You think that perhaps the clothing standards might be a bit restrictive and puritanical?  But wait, there's more.

Today I found out that if my blouses/shirts expose the bones at the top of the rib cage (clavicle, I think, but the ones less than an inch from my thyroid neck scar) they are considered too low and revealing?  Seriously?  Now, that's downright puritanical.  I mean, I dress quite modestly already, but am starting to feel that maybe I should head down to the Catholic church tomorrow and see if the nuns have a few habits I can borrow.  Thankfully, it will all be over by Friday afternoon and I can go back to being myself.  Dressing like myself!  Total cost for today's purchases: 724 Lempiras ($38.33 USD).

The good part about my afternoon shopping trip is that after I was done, I just took a bit of a leisurely spin on my motorcycle.  My packages were safely ensconced in my mochila (backpack), so I just rode.  I took the road that heads up toward the Oki.  I rode until I ran out of pavement and then drove just a little bit further before turning around and heading back.  It felt great to be out there in the sun.

On my way back, I decided to stop by a store to try to buy a second helmet. They were closed, so I'll try again either tomorrow or Saturday.  Right now, I can't (legally) have a passenger with me unless they happen to have their own helmet.  Although, you might be surprised at some of the motorcycle "helmets" I've seen people wearing.  I've seen bicycle helmets, hard hats, and even toy fireman's helmets.  Yes.  Really.  Toy fireman's helmets being used as a motorcycle helmet.  And, apparently that's just fine, because I've never seen any of those people being pulled over.  I'm sure my passengers will appreciate the fact that I value their lives just a bit more than buying them a party favor and calling it a helmet.

Actually though, I'm really hoping to buy myself a new motorcycle helmet when I'm in the States.  I don't really trust the ones here.  There are no DOT or Snell certifications.  Plus, it seems that most of the helmets here are full-face closed helmets, which I find really limit your vision.  I'm wearing an open-face helmet with a shield and I actually like it, but, it's black and very, very hot.  I can't get it in white or any other light color.  So, I'll be checking out a few places to see if I can find a helmet.

How about that?  From clothing to motorcycle rides and helmets in just one post.

Excuse Me, Can You Spare a Few Days?...

A few extra days would be awesome.  So, if anyone has some just laying around, not being used, please pass them my way.  In fact, if you have a couple of days that are only slightly used, with plenty of hours left in them, I'll take those as well.  That's how it often feels around here.  I find myself saying things like, "It's Thursday already?  What happened to Tuesday and Wednesday, because I know that yesterday was Monday?"

Those lapses of time are simply amazing, especially in a culture where it seems that relatively few people value the ticking of the clock.  Except when they're driving.  Then, everybody has to be somewhere NOW!  And, they're bound and determined to get there before you.  It doesn't matter if I'm going slow because the 18-wheeler in front of me can't muster any more steam to get up the mountain, and I'm too cautious to pass him on a blind curve, in construction, in the dark.  The dude behind me will pass us both, usually getting back into our quasi-lane of traffic mere micro seconds before being flattened by the oncoming 18-wheeler that only has one headlight.

On the road.  That, my friends, seems to be the only time most Hondurans give a flip about time.  Personally, I think they're all just Dale wannabees.

So, if you happen to find a few extra days, let me know.  I can probably even pack them into my suitcase when I'm back in the States in SIX WEEKS. 

A Hug and a Kiss at the Supermarket...

Today has been a long day, and even though I should make another entry about the medical brigade, I'm tired.  But, something happened this evening that I thought would make for a good blog post.

This evening all four of us ladies were headed toward the grocery store.  Sandi was driving and Brenda, Jenny and I were opening the gate.  The other two girls went through, to get into the truck, when we spotted a very drunk, very shirtless guy coming toward us, a bottle of Tatascan in hand.  Tatascan is Honduran rot gut.  I've never tried it and have absolutely no intention of doing so.

Anyway, the dude was walking directly toward us.  I told Brenda and Jenny to get in the truck with Sandi.  But the guy was also trying to get in the back of the pickup.  I told him to get down and go, but he just said something in Spanish which I couldn't understand.  Currie came out and tried to run interference for us.  I locked the gate, and got in the front of the pickup.  Then, so that Currie could get back inside, Sandi called the drunk guy over to her window, which was cracked open just enough to talk.  She distracted the guy while Currie went back inside.  Then we headed to the grocery store.  Just another average day in Honduras.

At the grocery store, we all kind of separated so that we could get the things we needed.  I was happily picking out some of the incredible produce they had tonight: zucchini, summer squash, bataste, carrots, etc.  Suddenly, I was being hugged and kissed by a man.  No warning, just a hug and a kiss.  It turns out that it was Wilmer, from church, and was totally innocent, but it shocked me anyway.  I mean, I must have been so caught up in my veggie euphoria that I just didn't see him.  I quickly composed myself and told him that we were all there this evening.  He said that he had already seen Sandi and Jenny.  Whew!  Tell Doris that I said 'hello', Wilmer!

Medical Brigade, Part 2

After Sunday's clinic at the garbage dump, Monday we were headed up the mountain to La Oki. About a week before we were there for the clinic, the mountain had suffered a fire which melted the tubes that bring water to the community.  One of the Bridge Ministries partners had been up there with us right after the fire and he told us to buy the tubing that they needed and that he would pay for it.  So, along with lots of medical supplies, a generator, a welding machine, new iron gates for the school, two new bookcases, school supplies and about 25 or 26 people, we loaded the plastic tubing onto the chicken truck for the ride up the mountain.  What's a chicken truck?  So glad you asked...

Here's the chicken truck being loaded with stuff at Enlaces:

And here it is being loaded with people:

Then it's time for a 45-minute ride up the mountain, mostly in 4-wheel drive territory.  Yes, we stand in the truck.  After arriving at the Oki, it was time to unload the chicken truck:

The people were waiting patiently for us when we got there, even though the sun was already blazing:

The team got set up and began the triage process:

By the end of the day, the doctors had seen about 200 people.  The ride down the mountain seemed a lot faster than the ride up!  It was a great day!

Medical Brigade, Part I...

It's been a long week and I know I have a lot of catching up to do, so here goes...

Last Saturday evening, a team of 21 arrived in San Pedro Sula.  Because their flight didn't get in until almost 9:30pm, and they would still need to go through Immigrations and Customs, we all stayed in San Pedro for the night.  Sandi & I had their rooms ready and waiting to go when they got there so that all they needed to do was sleep.

Up early on Sunday morning, the whole group had breakfast at the restaurant in Villa Nuria.  Then it was time to load up the Enlaces bus and head back to Comayagua.  I was riding with Currie and Samuel in the pickup, and Sandi rode on the bus with the group to give them a bit of an introduction.  Between the bus and the pickup, we had a great game of leap frog going for a while.

Once everyone arrived in Comayagua, the group checked in to their hotel and then walked over to Enlaces for lunch.  Rosy fixed a fine meal of tacos catrachos (Honduran tacos) for us! With full bellies, the team was now ready to head out to the day's clinic destination: the garbage dump.  I planned to drive out to the dump on my motorcycle.  In retrospect, that may not have been one of my wisest decisions. 


After we (the bus and the moto) turned off of the main highway, we were in four wheel drive territory all the way.  The bus quickly dropped me as I hung back a little so as not to eat dust.  The rode grew increasingly rough and soon I couldn't see the bus.  I started to get a little worried because I didn't remember the active dump area to be so far back.  I finally caught up to the group and Hermes told me that my memory was correct, that the 'working' part of the dump used to be much closer to the highway.


It only took a few minutes for the team of nurses, doctors and the pharmacy folks to get set up and acquainted with their translators.  All in all, it was a great first day.  39 people were seen for medical issues and 6 of them gave their lives to Jesus, as well!!  I was surprised that the number of people out there was so low because we know that there are about 80 people who actually live at the dump.


In the picture below, you can see huge bags and piles in the background.  The bags are filled with plastic that has been recovered from the trash and will be taken to be be recycled.  By doing this, the people earn a few centavos.  How they manage to eek out even a subsistence completely baffles me.

Before leaving that afternoon, we also handed out some food that we had brought with us.  It wasn't much, but it was food that we did not want to go to waste and the people were grateful to receive it.


In this picture, Belen is talking to a patient as we use the side of the bus to offer a little shade and protection from the wind.

 

And Other Places...

It's been a busy week and it's going to continue on for another week.  After our trip to Ajuterique on Monday, we went to La Esperanza and Intibucá on Tuesday.  That was about a 3-hour drive each way.  I've got lots of great photos and I really will post them.  Eventually.  Right now, though, I'm just trying to get this update out on the interwebs before I need to head out to get some groceries with Sandi.

We're going to get the groceries for the school for next week and for a group of 22 that arrives tomorrow.  I imagine we'll have three carts full of food!!  The group arriving tomorrow will be doing medical brigades and some construction projects.  The group arrives in San Pedro Sula about 9:30pm tomorrow, so by the time they all get through immigrations, luggage pick up, and customs, it will probably be about 11:00pm.  So, we're just planning to spend the night in SPS.  

The four of us (Currie, Sandi, Samuel, and me) will head up there sometime tomorrow to get the last minute shopping done.  We'll also check into Villa Nuria and get all the rooms assigned and ready.  Sunday morning, breakfast is provided by Villa Nuria.  After that, it's on to the Enlaces bus to head back to Comayagua.  We should make it back here right around lunch time.

Lunch will probably be something light, then we all head out to the garbage dump for a medical clinic.  Yes, I'll be taking lots of pics.  Don't worry.  Once the clinic is finished, it will be just about time for dinner.  Then probably group devotions and bed.

Monday morning, it starts all over again.  And that will be our week.  Some members of the team will also be doing various construction projects, including building desks ('offices' in ACE lingo) for the school.  So, yes, it will be a busy week. 

Well, that's about all for now.  Time to go shopping!

Ajuterique...

Today the 7th grade class was planning to take food and school supplies to Ajuterique.  I decided to join them, but rode there on my motorcycle so that I could get out and enjoy the sun a bit.  Ajuterique is one of the areas where we have a feeding program.  Basically, it works like this:  if the kids will attend school, we will feed them.  It's pretty simple, really.  Kids learn better when they have food in their bellies.  

All of our food programs have been started in areas where there was no school or just a feeble attempt at a school.  Usually within the first year of starting such a program, the government takes notice and often sends in a teacher.  Ajuterique is no different.  The teacher there is very dedicated to seeing his kids and the community succeed.

Today when he was asked what needs they have, the teacher was honest and said that they don't have any pots big enough to cook for the 31 children who are now attending school.  He told us that several mothers bring their pots each day so that the food can be cooked.

After returning to Comayagua, Sandi, Nubia, and Jimmy, who is visiting from the US, went to the market and purchased two very large pots and some utensils for Ajuterique.  Later in the afternoon, we made another trip back there.  The reaction among the teacher and several of the mothers was as if we had just given them gold.  They were thrilled.  The teacher told us that he had a community meeting later that day and he was going to show everyone the new pots they had.

It was great to see such joy on their faces, but it made me wonder: Do we miss opportunities to be thankful in the midst of seemingly simple things?

Happy Anniversary...

...to me!  It's been one month since I bought my motorcycle, so to celebrate, I went for a nice long ride on Saturday, which was, coincidentally, my six-month anniversary of arriving here.
 
And, now, we interrupt this blog to give you some breaking news ~~ This just in:  I have received a 60-day extension of my visa!!!  That's right.  Ana Rut and the OIM seem to have come through for me.  The 60-day extension will take me up to April 20, and when questioned about the 8 days from then until I head back to the States on April 28, Ana Rut said that we'll have my carnet by then.  So, now all I need is to have my passport back in my hands and then wait for more news of my carnet.

We now return to your regularly scheduled blog...

So, Saturday was a fantastic day.  I started out by going to breakfast with Jenny.  We chose La Princesita's Super Baleadas.  I mean, any time you can get a great breakfast for 32 Lempiras (18 for the baleada and another 14 for a bottle of pop), is a good day!!  Oh yeah, 32 Lempiras equals $1.69, based on an exchange rate of 18.895 Lempiras to the dollar.

After breakfast, I dropped off Jenny at the mall so that she could print out some stuff.  Yes, we went on my moto.  Jenny trusted me enough, even though I haven't purchased a second helmet yet.  I think we did just fine on the bike, especially considering it was my first time having a passenger.

Then I was off to La Libertad.  It's about 40km away.  I had been on that road for a short while about two weeks ago, but turned back before long since I didn't know where it would take me, or how safe it was.  Finding out that it was a safe road and incredibly beautiful, I quickly put a trip to La Libertad on my 'to do' list.  I was going to go last week, but a bit of a nasty sunburn on my lower back put a damper on those plans.  The thought of the sun hitting my back, even through a t-shirt just was not pleasant.

Besides, as it turns out, going to La Libertad on Saturday was so much more symbolic.  Not only was it the one-month anniversary of my moto purchase, it was also the six-month anniversary of my arriving in Honduras.  The drive out there was breathtaking.  Truly.

Comayagua sits in a valley (called the Comayagua Valley, as it happens) so no matter which way you drive, you quickly hit the mountains.  The road to La Liber, as I heard it called today, was no different.  I was only a few short kilometers outside of town when I began ascending, twisting and turning.  And around each curve there appeared a view even more gorgeous than the one before.  So, I just kept right on driving.  My mind was wandering and all of my senses seemed on heightened enjoyment: the mountain views, the somewhat scraggly fields, the smell of the earth, the warmth of the sun on my arms and legs, the sound of the wind.  It was glorious.

I was lost in my own thoughts when suddenly I saw something unexpected heading down the highway toward me, coming from the opposite direction.  What?  Two guys on road bikes?  Really?  Then, three more.  Hmmm... I realized they were all gringos and then thought that they might be from the base.  Slowing down quite a bit, I raised the visor on my helmet and asked the next two guys, "Hey, where are you all from?"  Somewhat startled, the guy looked back and said, "Soto Cano."  Yeah, I was right.  Within seconds I saw the last few guys, followed by a military van.  But, oh, the lust and longing that stirred within me: those sleek road bikes, such skinny tires, helmets, gloves, spandex shorts, lycra jerseys, and cycling shoes.  When I finally roused myself from my cycling induced fantasy, I had an epiphany, an aha! moment.  There was absolutely no reason why I can't use that same road and do some Cottonwood training on that very same road.  Yeah, it'll be on my 75 lb. mountain bike, but, it's doable.  Even without clipless pedals, helmet or padded shorts.  I doubt I'll ride all that way to La Libertad, at least not at first, but I'm gonna head out that way on my bike next weekend.  I think.

A woman on a  moto is definitely somewhat new here, but a gringa on a moto?  Now that's almost scandalous. Almost.  Actually, here in town, there are a decent number of ladies who are riding motos or scooters, but it was obvious to me that most of them don't ride to La Liber.  As I passed by people on the roadside or in their yards or fields, they stared.  All of them.  I tried to wave to as many as I could, and most of them waved back or at least smiled.

I arrived in La Libertad and rode around just a little.  There are lots of one way streets and the town is on the side of a mountain, so there are some steep grades on several of the roads.  A few of them were easily 14 or 15% grades.  They would have been killer on a bike.  I wondered if the military guys had ridden all the way out there.

After making it to the parque central in front of the church, I relaxed for a minute while deciding what to do.  I drove across the way to a little pulperia, took off my helmet, trying to pretend I didn't see everyone staring at me, and walked inside.  They had Diet Coke in the cooler, but it was in plastic bottles so I opted for a glass bottle of Fresca, even though Fresca here is not sugar free.  The woman asked if I wanted it in a bolsita, which would have been 'to go', but I told her I was going to drink it here.  I paid my 8 Lemps and walked back outside.  All eyes were back on me.  It wasn't unsettling, though.  To my right was a small table, but it was occupied by a young woman, her baby and her mother or grandmother (sometimes it's nearly impossible to tell).  I started talking to them, and after a few minutes, they asked me to please sit down and join them.

Even with my limited Spanish, I love trying to talk to people.  I guess I'm not quite as limited as I think I am, but, yes, my lack still frustrates me.

When I finished my drink, I said my good-byes, put my empty bottle in the rack on the floor and was back on my moto.  I drove around the town just a little more and then made my way back to the highway.

Unfortunately, the ride back to Comayagua seemed to be over much quicker than the ride out.  Isn't it always like that?  At one point, though, as I was riding, I saw some people ahead of me at a little roadside eatery.  They were furiously waving at me as I passed.  I smiled and waved back, realizing that I had first waved to them on my way out.  They must have seen me coming from quite a ways and started waving.  Maybe it was the most exciting part of their day to see the gringa on the moto.  Twice.

As I left the country air and attitude behind me, I made my way through the crowded, noisy streets of Comayagua.  I opened the front gate of Enlaces, and by the time I had my moto through, the guard was right there, ready to lock the gate behind me.

All in all, a beautiful day, and it wasn't even noon yet!

Where Things Stand...

...for now, anyway.

In the ever frustrating, ongoing, and even possibly humorous saga of 'Susan and her carnet' or 'Susan and her visa extension', today I write a new episode:

Yesterday morning, Sandi tried to call Ana Rut.  It was 10:30ish, but Ana wasn't there.  Later that afternoon, Sandi called and even made contact.  In fact, Ana knew exactly who Sandi was and why she was calling within about a half second of recognizing her voice.

A short while later, I was in the school and Sandi came to talk to me.  "Well, I've got news, but I'm not sure you're going to want to hear it" was Sandi's greeting to me.  Hmmm, I immediately had images of packing my bags and hopping a bus to Costa Rica.  Thankfully, it was nothing that drastic.  I'm still not convinced that I like our interim solution, but, it is what it is.

Ana Rut, in talking to her boss about my situation and the limbo that I find myself in, told Sandi that if I would send them my passport and $40US, Ana would personally take my passport to Immigrations and get me another extension of my visa.  Sandi mention that I'm flying back to the States on April 28 for a visit and asked her if she could get my extension until that date.  "No problem" was the response.  

So, I went to my house and got my passport and $40US.  I was getting ready to go to the FedEx-equivalent office to express my passport to Ana Rut and the OIM.  We got the address, but it was a PO box, meaning that my passport would be sitting there until someone went to the post office.  

Now, I was already greatly suspect at even sending my passport.  I mean, you hear it all the time: Don't give anyone your passport.  Don't let it out of your sight or control.  And these folks want me to send/give them my passport for an indeterminate length of time?  Plus, the OIM needs to leave my passport with Immigrations for 3 days.  That would be the same Immigrations who lost the passport of an Enlaces intern a while back, only to have it show up a day or so before she was set to leave the country.  So, yes, I was more than a bit apprehensive about sending my passport to Ana Rut.

As it turns out, Erica, one of our school administrators, is heading to Tegucigalpa today and will be in the same neighborhood as the OIM office, which has moved and is now located inside the United Nations building.  She offered to bring my passport and money and hand deliver it to Ana Rut.  Whew!  That's a huge relief, especially since Erica knows how much and how long we've been dealing with this whole mess.

Sandi wrote a note to include in the envelope, reminding Ana Rut that the extension needs to be until April 28.  She even told Ana Rut that we would be willing to drive to Teguc to pick it up when she gets it back.  We'll see how that goes.  I'm hoping it will be next week, but, who knows?

If ever there was a time to say...  "I don't think I'm in Kansas anymore."

Tick, Tick, Tick...

That ominous sound is the passing of time.  A daily reminder that, now, my current visa expires in three days and we are STILL waiting for an answer.  If something doesn't change soon, as in, right away, I will need to leave the country on Saturday and spend three days somewhere else.  The really bad part of that is that I can't get any good airline deals at this time.  The bus?  To Costa Rica?  I've done it before.

On Monday, Sandi called Ana Rut at the OIM and was told that she (Ana Rut) would have an answer by Tuesday.  Sandi was also told not to call back, that Ana Rut would call her.  Oh, there are times I wish I was a betting woman.  I could have cleaned up had I only bet against a phone call.  No, of course Ana Rut didn't call.  So, I'm still waiting.

It can get pretty frustrating: inconsistencies, laws that change with no notice, indecision, mucho corrupción, etc.  That has been one of the hardest things to get used to here, especially for a take-charge kind-of-person like me who is used to having all her ducks in a row.  Hopefully, we'll get some answers, positive answers, when Sandi calls Ana Rut this morning.

But, for now, I wait.

New School Year...

Well, the new school year started today.  I think it actually started yesterday for public schools and most other private schools who keep to the Honduran calendar.  But, our school week is only 4 days long for kinder through 5th grade.  It's not until they're in 6th grade that our students start for 5-day weeks.  Plus, this week, they only have half days.

I'm going to be teaching a Language Arts class to the 6th - 10th graders.  I'll have three separate classes, which meet twice a week each.  That should work pretty well.  I'm also planning to help the upper grades with their English PACEs, as needed.

We had opening exercises this morning and I saw quite a few new faces, not just among the kinder and prepa kids, but in the upper grades as well.  I know that we've had an influx of students from other schools.  After opening exercises, I spent some time in the Center, talking to many of the children as they ate their merienda.  I met a family of 3 kids who are from Saginaw, TX.  Their father is a contractor on the base.  English is their first language, but they also speak Spanish.

Last weekend, we were in San Pedro Sula for a teachers' convention.  It was held on the grounds of an incredible bilingual school in the north part of San Pedro Sula.  Heck, if it was any further north, it would have been ON the mountain.  The campus was just gorgeous.

On our way back to Comayagua on Saturday, Sandi and I stopped near the lake to buy some beans.  We ended up with a 110 lb. sack of red beans and a 5 lb. sack of black beans.  The only area I've seen actually use black beans is the Taulabe area.  Everyone else seems to use the red ones.  In fact, while I was walking through the mercado today, I was paying attention to the beans.  The shops that sold beans had 5 or 6 big sacks of red beans and only 1 sack of black beans.

After the beans, we went to Luis' house to pick up some coffee.  Both Sandi & I were getting low.  We got 5 more pounds and are hoping to get some coffee from Sandi's friend, Pam.  If that coffee is as good as Pam says, I'll be bringing some of it back to the States on my trip.  The proceeds of Pam's coffee goes to support the orphanage there, so that would be a great thing.

If I Could Save Time in a Bottle...

I know.  I know.  It's wishful thinking.  But, seriously... where does the time go?  I really do have very good intentions of keeping this blog somewhat current, but then the day to day stuff just happens.  Plus, I often think, "Who really wants to read about my life here, or about us painting or whatever?"  No, I'm not having a pity party -- had one of those the other day and I was the only one who showed up!!  

Well, it's been super busy since I posted last week about Grey's Anatomy.  Yes, we watched the show.  Yes, it was a new one.  Unfortunately, I probably won't get to watch tonight's episode because we're having a parents' meeting for school and I don't know if we'll be done before 8pm.

School starts next week and the teachers have been here getting their classrooms ready.  I just went around and took photos of many of them.  I'll be posting them on Facebook, on the Bridge Ministries - Enlaces con Cristo - Honduras page.  So, if you're on FB, feel free to mosey on over and take a gander.

Last Sunday, I rode up to San Pedro Sula with Currie, Sandi & Samuel.  Currie & Samuel were heading back to the States and I didn't want Sandi to drive home alone.  Plus, a trip to the city = a trip to PriceSmart!!  We got to the airport in plenty of time and the boys got checked in and even paid their departure tax (which has gone up to almost $37/person).  Then we all got some baleadas for a bit of a merienda.  After a while, Sandi & I left the airport and headed toward PriceSmart, with a planned stop at Diunsa first.  

Diunsa was having an incredible sale!  A LOT of the sporting goods were 50% off.  In fact, just two days earlier Hermes and I were at the Diunsa in Tegucigalpa, saw some really awesome ping pong tables (which we desperately need), called Currie & Sandi, and ended up buying two of them.  But I digress... While at Diunsa, we found some fútbol nets which were also 50% off.  Sandi made some calls to Charley and found out that it looked like the nets were good ones.  The normal price was more than 50% less than what we usually pay for the nets, and we were able to get TWO complete sets of nets for the price of one.  It was awesome!

Before we could check out, however, everyday life in Honduras took over.  Sandi got a call from Currie saying that they (Honduran officials) weren't going to let Samuel leave the country without permission from his mother.  Excuse me??? He has a US passport, not a Honduran one.  Sandi tried talking to the officials, but it was to no avail.  She ended up leaving me at Diunsa, so as not to take the time to check out, heading back to the airport, talking to the officials, who wrote a quick note saying it was okay for Samuel to leave, signed the note, and then came back to Diunsa.  I mean, really, was all that necessary?  Samuel has traveled with just one parent before; this is not new -- but the president is.  And, it looks like any/everything that can change will.

Back at Diunsa, we also ended up buying two basketball backboards.  Yup.  50% off on them, too.  So, over the course of the weekend, Diunsa made quite a bit of money from Enlaces: two each on ping pong tables, basketball backboards and fútbol nets, plus the fútbol uniforms Hermes bought for the school on Friday.  Then there were the personal purchases that he and I each made.


After Diunsa, we made it over to PriceSmart and were able to get in and out of there in probably record time.  We really didn't have a lot to get there.  Tomorrow will probably be different since school starts next week and they need lots of food.


We're leaving at about 4am tomorrow to make it up to San Pedro Sula for a teachers' conference.  Most of the teachers are going and we'll stay overnight in Villa Nuria, which is a pretty nice ApartHotel.  Basically, they are residence hotels.  Each unit has two bedrooms, a small living room and a small kitchenette.  They're located very close to the airport, which works really well if we have late evening or early morning flights.  They even have shuttle over to the airport.  And, the pool's very nice, too!!


Well, that's about it for today, but I'm going to do a better job of updating.  I promise.  Or, I promise to try.

Grey's Thursdays...

Yes, even here in Honduras, we watch Grey's Anatomy.  Thankfully, our cable company rebroadcasts WABC from New York City.  So we've made Thursday night "Girls Night".  Sandi comes over, and then she, Jenny and I watch it together.  I'm glad that we're finally back to new episodes.

This week, we've spent a lot of time searching for ceramic tiles for the counter top in the Center.  You would not believe how hard (impossible, really) it is to get black and white tiles in the same size.  We've tried to get 15x15(cm), 20x20, and 20x30.  It should be simple, really.  White tiles and black tiles.  But it seems that if we find black tiles, we can't get the same size in white and vice versa.  Yes, of course we've tried to buy the black from one place and white from another.  It's just not working.  Believe me, if we could find a way, we would.  So, we've settled for white tiles and black grout.  It should look pretty cool.

If all goes as planned, I'm heading in to Tegucigalpa tomorrow morning.  I need to get a few things done for my motorcycle.  Hermes needs to pick up more of our curriculum and also buy some chairs.  It looks like a trip to PriceSmart is in our future!

The weather here is starting to get pretty hot.  Most days it get up into the upper 80s or lower 90s.  Shortly, however, it will get much hotter.  And, we're in the dry season now so any rain showers will be few and far between.  Already, I can see how the grass is starting to dry out.  The up side of all of that is that it's almost mango season!!  Yes, I love mangos!  I'm already planning to buy enough to peel and freeze so that we have some later in the year.

Well, that's about it for tonight.