"Don't get stuck in the past, and don't try to fast-forward yourself into a future you haven't yet earned. Give today all the love and intensity and courage you can, and keep traveling honestly along life's path." -Someone with nice words
I have ALOT of time for self-reflection here. With all this thinking time it's all to easy for me to spend too much time dwelling on the past and worry about the future. But like Mama says, "If you have one foot on yesterday and one foot on tomorrow... well then, you are pissing on today." I am lucky to have this opportunity. I am learning so much about myself. About the kinds of things I want and need in my life...... That is me putting a positive spin on how crazy I have been feeling lately. Haha. I am just realizing how much I need and value structure in my day-to-day schedule. Being in Peace Corps, you have to make this structure for yourself. Otherwise you will just piss away every day lying in your hammock and reading books and going to the capital given an opportunity. It's a bit harder for some than others... I have sort of hit the wall. I have to get some kind of work schedule in my life here. Thank god school is starting up... I am excited to have a place to go to everyday now where I can do good things at. I spent most of my afternoon today meeting with the school director reviewing all kinds of things I can help out with there. This school is way better equipped than many rural public schools in El Salvador, but still, it needs SO much. So I'm going to focus myself on working at the school now.
Yes, I have this youth group. Well... things have taken a new direction with them. We had two pretty awesome weeks of selling pupusas to raise money for our activities. We raised a good amount of money. Then this week, we decided to sell quesadillas instead. One girl ended up doing all the work because none of the people that were supposed to help her showed up, pobrecita. And what were they doing instead? Just sitting in their houses. So we decided she should earn all the money since absolutely no one helped except for me. Participation is a problem around here. It's a shame because these are some really cool kids and I have a lot of fun with them when they are actually participating. It's just how do you motivate them, you know? We are going to have a descanso, or break, from the group until I get back from Texas. Then we will reorganize and try it over again, learning from our mistakes the first time around.
I decided I wanted to take those kids that have been dedicated to the group since we got started on a small excursion. They will get to have something nice from the money they have earned together. I asked them about going to the movies... and well, turns out not a single one of this kids have EVER been to a movie theatre. They were really excited about this idea. I was surprised that every single one of them said the same, that they hadn't been. But why should I be so surprised. Perhaps sometimes I forget how poor the people are that I live with in this town. Maybe because they all dress up, way nicer that I ever do for the campo (who wears high heels on a dirt road?), and maybe because I live with the richest people in town that have painted walls and tile floors instead of mud, and drive around in a car. Anyway, I think that it will be a really fun, unforgettable experience to take these kids (adolescents and young adults) to San Salvador to go to the movies for the first time. We will go one of these weekends before I go to Texas.
One month from now, I will be hanging out in Houston with my peeps. What? What will that be like? I have never been away from home this long in my life. 7 months it will be. I can't wait to see everyone, and I keep thinking of all my favorite foods I'm going to eat. Pho, Which Wich, Potbelly, Thai, El Tiempo... the list goes on. All of this gets me pretty excited. I already made a list of all the crap I can't get here that I am going to buy and take back here with me. LoL... This is not the Peace Corps I imagined, let me tell you that.
I have been spending a lot time talking to Don Chepito lately... he likes to preach a lot about God and the importance of the people being united. Truthfully, most of what he says is really nice, a lot of BS, but nice nonetheless. Sometimes it's a bit much, but in some ways of reminds me of the Balinese guy in the book Eat Pray Love that advises Liz on her life. I came home tonight and told Chepito I was bummed about my youth group losing it's strength, well he came at me with all kinds of pep- Telling me I can't be desanimada or triste... not losing hope, God put me here in this community to do good things, and yada yada... Let's just say it was a good talk. I like being real with them. Just don't ever tell hardcore Salvo catholics that you want to be cremated when you die... these guys gasped and haven't forgotten since the day I told them months ago. Still preaching to me all the time about how my body is in God's image and you can't burn that. But regardless, I'm getting closer with these viejitos. Still, I think I am going to have to move, so I can be closer to things that go on around here.
One more thing I learned- Don't give food to random men on the street in your village. I bought too many pasteles yesterday.... I knew I was never going to eat them all. They are like fried corn pockets with potato and cheese inside. Soon my way home I was thinking, "these are all just going to go to waste, why not give them to that guy?" So I gave them to the guy, then when he saw me walking home today he went to shake my hand and wouldnt let go and kept giving me these overyly creepy eye winks. Creep-O. I hate it when the men here do that thing where they won't let your hand go. Thank god I was with Don Macario, who is a perfectly sweet and respectable older man, or else that would have been even more awkward. Going to try to avoid that fat shirtless man with all gold-rimmed teeth from now on.
Maybe that's not the best note to end on, but I'm tired, so... signing off.
See you soon Texas!!!
Paz y Amor.
Tuesday, January 25, 2011
Thursday, January 20, 2011
Stand. In the Place Where You Live.
You know what I finally noticed and appreciated tonight? The beautiful view of a volcano that can see from the front porch of my house. And everyday when I catch the sun setting upon it, it is very... wow! When I notice things like that, I am reminded of reasons to love being here. Lately I have just been looking out of my porch and noticing the copious amounts of shit in the field. There is more cow dung than ever before! Is it because the mama cows have been popping out babies or what? I suppose it's the dry season, there's just nothing to make it go away. It bakes and stays there. hard patties all over the field. Looking forward to rainy season! Out of no where, it rained last night! I haven't heard the sound of rain in over two months! It was a real shocker. A wower. I walked outside and stood in it just to be sure. And the smell of rain, oh it's nice! But, hehe, we'll see what I say about rain come may when I have tons and tons of it everyday.
Meet Don Tulio. A 60-something year old man, maybe close to 70, who suffered some serious injuries during the Salvadoran civil war. He works for my host parents, cleaning up cow dung, watering plants, working the corn in their field. My host parents' kids all ran off to the states illegaly as soon as they could, so they send plenty of money and they make Marinita and Chepito high rollers here in the campo. Well Tulio... he's not quite right in the head, because of his war experience I am told. A soldier cut out part of his leg and tortured him and that is why he walks funny.
So he calles me Jaimita... which sounds something like Amy I suppose. Well he has been in love with me ever since the day I arrived I think, when he brought over his guitar and I played him Pink Floyd's "Wish You Were Here", the only song I can play entirely on guitar... When I leave for several days to hang out with friends or do things out of site I come back and he tells me "Oh Amy it is with so much pleasure that I am able to see you again. Your absence was weighing me down. If you werent here now I think I would die." Oh boy. He is a character. Marinita and Chepito are constantly keeping him in check around me. Well he found out I have a boyfriend... and yesterday he came to my porch asking me if it was true. "Do you really have a boyfriend Jaimita?" Yes Don Tulio, I do. He said how celoso (jealous) he was... he just might die... Ay dios mio. He is just one of many in this town badly affected by the war. Or he is just a creepy old man. He has been cleaning off my back porch today. Said he found two chinches. The bugs that bite you on your face while you are sleeping and kill you. Great. At least he killed them. And Gracias a Dios AGAIN for my mosquito net.
I had that dance workshop with my youth group last week and it was fantastic! So many kids came and almost all participated and had lots of fun! I would love to keep dancing with them. But this week we did an artistic workshop and made bracelets for all the kids that said they weren't interested in dancing. It went well... but not as well as the dance workshop. We have sold pupusas the last two tuesdays and we have been doing great with that. All the kids help and we are making an OK profit... next week they want to sell Quesadillas instead, so we will see how that goes. I am a bit worried about how there are a few kids that are pulling the weight for many of the others. Is that fair? That a few kids do all the work but the other kids get to enjoy the benefits and fruits of the others' labor? ummm... no. But everyone here is so used to it being that way. I talk about it with people, and they say, "well thats just how people are here." Ooooh. "?"
So I went to Copan, Honduras last weekend with Noel and some of his friends. The drive there wasn't too bad, about 4-5 hours from San Salvador. I didn't realize we had to go through Guatemala first to get to Honduras. So for the first time ever I got to cross a border of a country on land, and then I got to do it again! But I tell you, Guatemala had this terrible smell while we were driving through it. Smelled something like vomit. It was coincidental that I ran into my Santa Clara host sis Ceci at the Guatemalan border! That was a fun moment. One thing I was surprised about- on the way back, passing through the border of Honduras into Guatemala... we just drove straight through without stopping or anything. I'm pretty sure that is not allowed. Hmmm... Or it shouldnt be.
It was beautiful there though, a little gray and cloudy the first day, but it was nice to be cool and have a break from the sun. Copan is an adorable pueblo... pretty touristy and therefore toursity prices... but still, totally worth seeing. The coolest part of the trip was seeing the Mayan Ruins. The best, well and only, Mayan ruins I've ever seen. I saw some ruins that were kind of similar in Mexico but they were of the Zapotecs, the people of the clouds. Well, Central America is gorgeous. I saw an article from a facebook friend about how El Sal, Honduras and Guatemala are supposedly in the most dangerous part of the world. El Salvador made it to the top of the list of the world homicide rate I think. But living here, I can't tell. I haven't felt threatened much in this country. Sure, I've had some money taken from me on the bus, and almost had my cell phone stolen from me, but that could happen anywhere.
I love it here. Still hate the food. But love living in this tiny developing Central American country. I do need to study my spanish more. It's better than before I came but not where it should be.
The new group of volunteers arrived today. That means I am no longer one of the new kids. That's cool. I was at the office today and met some of them. It was fun to see how they were... how I probably was 6 months ago. Wide-eyed. Asking me all kinds of questions. It makes me realize how far I have come.
I definitely still have a long way to go. Give me another year (at least) and I might finally be able to tell you what's really going on here.
Paz y Amor.
P.S. Pictures of Salvo kids Dancing and Honduras and Cow Dung to come....
Meet Don Tulio. A 60-something year old man, maybe close to 70, who suffered some serious injuries during the Salvadoran civil war. He works for my host parents, cleaning up cow dung, watering plants, working the corn in their field. My host parents' kids all ran off to the states illegaly as soon as they could, so they send plenty of money and they make Marinita and Chepito high rollers here in the campo. Well Tulio... he's not quite right in the head, because of his war experience I am told. A soldier cut out part of his leg and tortured him and that is why he walks funny.
So he calles me Jaimita... which sounds something like Amy I suppose. Well he has been in love with me ever since the day I arrived I think, when he brought over his guitar and I played him Pink Floyd's "Wish You Were Here", the only song I can play entirely on guitar... When I leave for several days to hang out with friends or do things out of site I come back and he tells me "Oh Amy it is with so much pleasure that I am able to see you again. Your absence was weighing me down. If you werent here now I think I would die." Oh boy. He is a character. Marinita and Chepito are constantly keeping him in check around me. Well he found out I have a boyfriend... and yesterday he came to my porch asking me if it was true. "Do you really have a boyfriend Jaimita?" Yes Don Tulio, I do. He said how celoso (jealous) he was... he just might die... Ay dios mio. He is just one of many in this town badly affected by the war. Or he is just a creepy old man. He has been cleaning off my back porch today. Said he found two chinches. The bugs that bite you on your face while you are sleeping and kill you. Great. At least he killed them. And Gracias a Dios AGAIN for my mosquito net.
I had that dance workshop with my youth group last week and it was fantastic! So many kids came and almost all participated and had lots of fun! I would love to keep dancing with them. But this week we did an artistic workshop and made bracelets for all the kids that said they weren't interested in dancing. It went well... but not as well as the dance workshop. We have sold pupusas the last two tuesdays and we have been doing great with that. All the kids help and we are making an OK profit... next week they want to sell Quesadillas instead, so we will see how that goes. I am a bit worried about how there are a few kids that are pulling the weight for many of the others. Is that fair? That a few kids do all the work but the other kids get to enjoy the benefits and fruits of the others' labor? ummm... no. But everyone here is so used to it being that way. I talk about it with people, and they say, "well thats just how people are here." Ooooh. "?"
So I went to Copan, Honduras last weekend with Noel and some of his friends. The drive there wasn't too bad, about 4-5 hours from San Salvador. I didn't realize we had to go through Guatemala first to get to Honduras. So for the first time ever I got to cross a border of a country on land, and then I got to do it again! But I tell you, Guatemala had this terrible smell while we were driving through it. Smelled something like vomit. It was coincidental that I ran into my Santa Clara host sis Ceci at the Guatemalan border! That was a fun moment. One thing I was surprised about- on the way back, passing through the border of Honduras into Guatemala... we just drove straight through without stopping or anything. I'm pretty sure that is not allowed. Hmmm... Or it shouldnt be.
It was beautiful there though, a little gray and cloudy the first day, but it was nice to be cool and have a break from the sun. Copan is an adorable pueblo... pretty touristy and therefore toursity prices... but still, totally worth seeing. The coolest part of the trip was seeing the Mayan Ruins. The best, well and only, Mayan ruins I've ever seen. I saw some ruins that were kind of similar in Mexico but they were of the Zapotecs, the people of the clouds. Well, Central America is gorgeous. I saw an article from a facebook friend about how El Sal, Honduras and Guatemala are supposedly in the most dangerous part of the world. El Salvador made it to the top of the list of the world homicide rate I think. But living here, I can't tell. I haven't felt threatened much in this country. Sure, I've had some money taken from me on the bus, and almost had my cell phone stolen from me, but that could happen anywhere.
I love it here. Still hate the food. But love living in this tiny developing Central American country. I do need to study my spanish more. It's better than before I came but not where it should be.
The new group of volunteers arrived today. That means I am no longer one of the new kids. That's cool. I was at the office today and met some of them. It was fun to see how they were... how I probably was 6 months ago. Wide-eyed. Asking me all kinds of questions. It makes me realize how far I have come.
I definitely still have a long way to go. Give me another year (at least) and I might finally be able to tell you what's really going on here.
Paz y Amor.
P.S. Pictures of Salvo kids Dancing and Honduras and Cow Dung to come....
Wednesday, January 12, 2011
Things are looking up, my friends....
Sold pupusas with my youth group Tuesday to raise money for our activities. We sold over $50 worth of pupusas- which is really great when they are 35 cents each or 3 for a dollar. Unfortunately to buy what we needed to make them all was probably about $25 so, the profit wasn't stupendous... but if we do it every week, poco a poco, we'll get somewhere. It was great to see all the kids helping out in their own way too. Each had their own responsibility, salsa, curtido, taking orders and delivering, etc.
And tomorrow we are having out first ever dance workshop. My volunteer friend Alayna has a dance group in her site and a lot of dancing experience, so she's going to come and teach us some moves. I'm excited to see how the kids do with it... I hope they won't be to penosos, shy or embarrased, to actually move and get jiggy in front of everyone. I hope this group keeps going strong, we are off to a really great start. I bought Alayna lunch today as a thank you for helping me... and where did she want to go? To the torta stand where lunch was less than $2. LoL, Cheap date! But they were good tortas!
It's been getting hotter and hotter here. Dry season. There is just dust and dirt everywhere. My house is a dust box. I need to put another tarp over my mosquito net to prevent so much of the dust and dirt from falling on my bed. I get in my bed, breath it all in, and don't want to move around to much and feel the grainy rough dirt underneath me. I know, I could try and not be too lazy and shake out my sheets before i get in at night. But when the hour comes that I am finally tired, I just want to crash. Some nights I just sleep in my hammock to avoid it all together. I keep my toothbrush in the fridge... otherwise I'm sure it would be covered with dirt and I would just be rubbing it all over my teeth. I should probably mop my floor though, I've only done it once or twice since I moved in. But the way I see it, people here live in huts with dirt floors, they never mop those. LoL ok i should mop my floors soon, keep my house looking pretty.
We haven't had running water in my site for days, which isn't too fun when it's as hot as it has been and I've covered in dirt all the time. I run my hand through my hair and it's all dry and dusty. And touch my finger to my eyebrow to brush out, yes, more dust. I resorted to using the cows drinking water from their trough to bathe the other day. And yesterday all of that was gone, so it was a baby wipe bath. I came to the training center prepared today.... they have showers, so I've got to take advantage of them! I'm sure it won't be hot, but yay! Water? That falls on you from above! Lovely!
I was walking down in the centro of the community yesterday though, and saw this adobe house- you know, walls made of mud. I noticed it had a beautiful very new looking pila, the big cement thing that people store their water in. I said to my friend "Who lives there?" she said "No one." So I was like "hmmmmm....." Maybe I'll move there. It's a really ugly hut of a house... but at least it would be all mine. It is really right in the center of things though...
Good thing though- I am now completely acostumbrada to the chicken/cow/dog noises at night I don't even have to sleep with ear plugs anymore. Although, when I went to Jamie's site last week I did hear a different animal noise throughout the night that completely threw me off. Apparently she has pigeons living under her bed and they make this odd coo-ey noise. Now you might ask, Why the hell does Jamie have pigeons sleeping under her bed at night? Well her family's answer to that is that they have to sleep inside or the chuchos, dogs, will eat them. She tried to create a barrier by running the tape from her med kit across the legs of the bed.... but the palomas just broke right through.Oh Jamie, givin' you props girl. I could not live like you do. I feel like it's bad enough just have the chickens and gallinas living on my front and back porch. Under my bed? hell no.
This weekend I'm off to Honduras, just for a couple of days with Noel and some of his friends. I never knew I wanted to go to Honduras... but after looking into the place we are going to, I'm very excited! I can't pass up the opportunity to go... going in a car and not by bus and we're going to stay at a nice place near some ruins and hot springs and all kinds of beautiful things. Going to be so much fun :) YAY! Love my life.
Paz y Amor.
And tomorrow we are having out first ever dance workshop. My volunteer friend Alayna has a dance group in her site and a lot of dancing experience, so she's going to come and teach us some moves. I'm excited to see how the kids do with it... I hope they won't be to penosos, shy or embarrased, to actually move and get jiggy in front of everyone. I hope this group keeps going strong, we are off to a really great start. I bought Alayna lunch today as a thank you for helping me... and where did she want to go? To the torta stand where lunch was less than $2. LoL, Cheap date! But they were good tortas!
It's been getting hotter and hotter here. Dry season. There is just dust and dirt everywhere. My house is a dust box. I need to put another tarp over my mosquito net to prevent so much of the dust and dirt from falling on my bed. I get in my bed, breath it all in, and don't want to move around to much and feel the grainy rough dirt underneath me. I know, I could try and not be too lazy and shake out my sheets before i get in at night. But when the hour comes that I am finally tired, I just want to crash. Some nights I just sleep in my hammock to avoid it all together. I keep my toothbrush in the fridge... otherwise I'm sure it would be covered with dirt and I would just be rubbing it all over my teeth. I should probably mop my floor though, I've only done it once or twice since I moved in. But the way I see it, people here live in huts with dirt floors, they never mop those. LoL ok i should mop my floors soon, keep my house looking pretty.
We haven't had running water in my site for days, which isn't too fun when it's as hot as it has been and I've covered in dirt all the time. I run my hand through my hair and it's all dry and dusty. And touch my finger to my eyebrow to brush out, yes, more dust. I resorted to using the cows drinking water from their trough to bathe the other day. And yesterday all of that was gone, so it was a baby wipe bath. I came to the training center prepared today.... they have showers, so I've got to take advantage of them! I'm sure it won't be hot, but yay! Water? That falls on you from above! Lovely!
I was walking down in the centro of the community yesterday though, and saw this adobe house- you know, walls made of mud. I noticed it had a beautiful very new looking pila, the big cement thing that people store their water in. I said to my friend "Who lives there?" she said "No one." So I was like "hmmmmm....." Maybe I'll move there. It's a really ugly hut of a house... but at least it would be all mine. It is really right in the center of things though...
Good thing though- I am now completely acostumbrada to the chicken/cow/dog noises at night I don't even have to sleep with ear plugs anymore. Although, when I went to Jamie's site last week I did hear a different animal noise throughout the night that completely threw me off. Apparently she has pigeons living under her bed and they make this odd coo-ey noise. Now you might ask, Why the hell does Jamie have pigeons sleeping under her bed at night? Well her family's answer to that is that they have to sleep inside or the chuchos, dogs, will eat them. She tried to create a barrier by running the tape from her med kit across the legs of the bed.... but the palomas just broke right through.Oh Jamie, givin' you props girl. I could not live like you do. I feel like it's bad enough just have the chickens and gallinas living on my front and back porch. Under my bed? hell no.
This weekend I'm off to Honduras, just for a couple of days with Noel and some of his friends. I never knew I wanted to go to Honduras... but after looking into the place we are going to, I'm very excited! I can't pass up the opportunity to go... going in a car and not by bus and we're going to stay at a nice place near some ruins and hot springs and all kinds of beautiful things. Going to be so much fun :) YAY! Love my life.
Paz y Amor.
Thursday, January 6, 2011
HERE I AM!!!
Hello World!!!! I know, I have been a little MIA these past few weeks. You have probably been wondering to yourself Where is my favorite blogger Amy? Well my friends, for a number of reasons, I needed to take a break from blogging. I maybe was over doing it a little. Maybe. I dunno. It is mi pasatiempo favorito in the Peace Corps. But it's good to take a break from time to time.... let you all miss me a little :) lol... well I hope you did.
So what's been going on in the Salvador del mundo?
The rodeo came and went... wasn't too crazy. The second day, when my friends Jamie and Alayna came I found myself dancing on the stage for a little while with the rodeo host and the singer of the Ranchera band. I might think I am a better dancer than I really am. But it got a lot of the people in my community talking about how the gringa was dancing with bolos. But I was just having fun... it was very PG. And I love being on a stage :) The power went out for a little over an hour at the rodeo. I think they were running the sound from an extension chord from Chepito's house.... My friends gave me a talk about how I need some kind of internet intervention because they know how much time I spend with my computer here. It's a lot less time than I spent in front of the computer back at home, but I kind of agreed with them. Hence, my absence on the blog. I was focusing on spending more time out in my community and visiting people and being productive. It worked a little. But you know, having the internet and being able to stay in touch with home and everyone keeps me sane here. Just trying to find a balance. Still miss my Macbook terribly.
What else? I had the best time for New Year's at Playa Tunco in La Libertad. I love that place. Just relaxed on the beach with my best girl friends, ate a lot, drank a lot, danced a lot, saw a lot of fireworks... at midnight they were going off like crazy. We were at this beach front club and we were getting hit by the fireworks that people were setting off on the beach. Drunk people and fireworks... that sounds more dangerous than the little kids with the fireworks. But luckily, we all walked away with minimal damage. Well except Jamie lost her shoes... When Esther and I went to leave at the end of the night she was like "Someone took my shoes!" because we had been dancing barefoot in the sand... So she ended up taking someone else's shoes. Then in the morning Jamie looks at the foot of her bed and says, "these are not my shoes!" They were Esther's and Jamie had left her's. Ok not the most exciting story, but it was really funny to us. Esther also got her phone jacked by some teenagers when she was out on the beach.... The guy she was with lost $10. I have yet to have anything stolen from me. Knock on wood.
Tunco is great. I want to go surfing there sometime... Jamie scored free surf lessons from a Salvo that looks like Tarzan. I would have tried but my strapless bathing suit no sirve for surfing. One of my favorite things about Tunco is the coffee shop/cafe there that has BAGELS AND LOX with cream cheese and CAPERS and the whole real deal. WOW! It's owned by some gringos of course.
So I eventually made it back to my site... a little bit tanner and a lot more tired than when I left. The day I got back I went and played soccer with my girls that I'm trying to start a soccer team. I was even worse than the first time, but probably just because I was so tired. Then the next morning I woke up and went for a run. I'm back on the exercise boat. Trying to do some kind of exercise everyday and abs every morning. All the eating and drinking from the holidays is showing. But I know that one day I will eat or drink something bad and it will all come off in a flash. The other night I was in the park watching some strange religious theatrical performance, was SO thirsty and without my water bottle. So I went to a nearby house and drank their nasty water... churria ever since. I think you know what that is. It's lovely. not.
Anyway, then yesterday my body was seriously hurting from exercising, so what did I do? I went salsa dancing! With my friend Matt who needed a partner. I mostly went just because I needed to talk to the instructors about finding someone who could come to my site to teach my kids hip hop dancing. And I found a hip hop instructor! Que chivo, no!? I am going to go take one of his classes on Monday to make sure he actually knows what he's doing before we pay him a lot to come out to our community. I'll bring some of the kids with me... So they can see if it's what they really want to do. They say they want to dance hip hop. But I'm not sure they even know what hip hop really is.
In other news, I have also gotten a group of younger kids together for my Art Club! I'm excited about that. We're going to meet every Wednesday and I will teach them various arts and crafts. Yesterday we were just coloring from the Sesame Street coloring book my grandma sent me. There were different animals in there, and I asked them "how do you say this animal?" wanting to know what the word is for squirrel. Well they said chucho which is the word for dog... They have never seen a squirrel I guess. I saw one in San Salvador about a week ago. So I know salvo squirrels exist... but maybe not in the campo. Maybe they get eaten by the coyotes and chuchos. There are also a number of 7 and 8 year olds in my club that do not even know how to write their names. I am practicing this with them... and I plan to start a reading/literacy program in my school this year. It's pretty sad they make it to 1st and 2nd grade without being able to read, let alone write their names.
Lastly, I have been strongly considering moving out of my casa aparte I have with Chepito and Marinita. For several reasons. I love my house... it is very spacious and comfortable with my two hammocks and big field of cows out front. But it's kind of far from the centro where all my people are and the school. It sometimes feels like too much of a hassle to walk the 25 minutes to the centro, sweating from the hike up the hill in the afternoon heat. I just think I would be happier if getting to the school and seeing everyone were more convenient. The casa aparte that I'd move into is right up against the house of this sweet little old lady who lives there by herself. She could use the company. She has a store where I can conveniently buy things. And she has a washing machine that I can wash my clothes in! WOW right!? It may not be as safe as where I am now, right next to the police station with two host parents that come out and walk around my house whenever they hear noises at night. But you know, I'll be fine. Marinita cares for me a little too much. It's smothering sometimes.
And yesterday, I was in my house after a long afternoon of entertaining about 20 children... I was exhausted. It was time to relax. Shut the door, put on some music, took my pants off because it was hot, and was swaying in my hammock when I heard someone opening my door with a key. In walks Chepito telling me he needs to rest in my house because there is too much noise in his house. Excuse me! No knock, no asking me if he could enter. No nothing. I feel like I deserve a little more respect than that. I understand that he wasn't feeling well and wanted to rest, but please ask me. Please let me know you are at the door instead of barging in. It makes me wonder if they come and hang out in my house when I'm not here. Go through my stuff maybe? I called him out on it and told him he needs to knock on the door. He said he thought I wasn't here. Ok but I was here. And only half clothed. I know it was only the first time it happened but it's just a culmination of things that make me want to leave.
I want a house that is MY house... Marinita and Chepito store stuff in my house and come in and out of it all the time for their plastic chairs and their beans. I don't want to live around anyone else's stuff. I want to be the only one with a key and for no one to come in my house unless I invite them. So yes, I need to move. But I think I will wait until after I get back from Texas in mid March.
One more thing about Chepito. This man is in bad shape from an entire life of bad nutrition and not caring for himself. He's diabetic and he has no idea how to properly care for his disease... continuing to eat the same way he has been for his entire life. No meds, no nothing. So no wonder his condition has only been getting worse and worse since the day I got here. Drinking lots of beer at the rodeo was also a bad idea... isn't drinking a lot of beer lethal to a diabetic? So for days he had been complaining to me about not feeling well, his chest or heart hurting, difficulty breathing, his vision... I would say "go to the doctor, Chepito. go to the doctor." He asks me questions about what he should do, I don't know, you think I know medicine?
Days later, he is still complaining. I said "Chepito, do you want to die? No? Then go to the Doctor?" So he goes to the doctor- and I'm sure the doctors in San Vicente are not the best but hey it's something. He comes back with a huge bag of pills, he has no idea what they are for, and with doctors orders that he should not drive anymore because of his vision. Don't diabetics go blind if they don't care for themselves? I think I remember something like that. He also got knifed in the eye during the war and can see mostly just out of one eye. I surely won't be getting a ride from him anymore. Peligroso.
He had to go back to the clinic today for more tests and samples. So what did he do? He got himself in his car and drove himself there! Ay Ay Ay Oy Vey. Seriously? We have buses. He can ride the bus just like the rest of us. But what can ya do? He's a grown man, and if he wants to put himself in danger, ok. It's more about the other people on the rode that might be in danger. Shoot, I wish I knew how to drive a stick... I would love to drive his car around. Of course... I'm not permitted by Peace Corps to drive. I would give anything for the freedom of a car.
So ok....Think I've caught y'all up on just about everything now. Its time bucket bath before heading to meet up with Jamie to go to Alayna's site for her birthday dinner.
My wish: Emails from home! You know it's been too long since I have heard from you! So please write me, let me know what's going on in your life! I don't get enough letters.... with the exception of my rents, Katie and Sarah... Love you guys!
Paz y Amor!
So what's been going on in the Salvador del mundo?
The rodeo came and went... wasn't too crazy. The second day, when my friends Jamie and Alayna came I found myself dancing on the stage for a little while with the rodeo host and the singer of the Ranchera band. I might think I am a better dancer than I really am. But it got a lot of the people in my community talking about how the gringa was dancing with bolos. But I was just having fun... it was very PG. And I love being on a stage :) The power went out for a little over an hour at the rodeo. I think they were running the sound from an extension chord from Chepito's house.... My friends gave me a talk about how I need some kind of internet intervention because they know how much time I spend with my computer here. It's a lot less time than I spent in front of the computer back at home, but I kind of agreed with them. Hence, my absence on the blog. I was focusing on spending more time out in my community and visiting people and being productive. It worked a little. But you know, having the internet and being able to stay in touch with home and everyone keeps me sane here. Just trying to find a balance. Still miss my Macbook terribly.
What else? I had the best time for New Year's at Playa Tunco in La Libertad. I love that place. Just relaxed on the beach with my best girl friends, ate a lot, drank a lot, danced a lot, saw a lot of fireworks... at midnight they were going off like crazy. We were at this beach front club and we were getting hit by the fireworks that people were setting off on the beach. Drunk people and fireworks... that sounds more dangerous than the little kids with the fireworks. But luckily, we all walked away with minimal damage. Well except Jamie lost her shoes... When Esther and I went to leave at the end of the night she was like "Someone took my shoes!" because we had been dancing barefoot in the sand... So she ended up taking someone else's shoes. Then in the morning Jamie looks at the foot of her bed and says, "these are not my shoes!" They were Esther's and Jamie had left her's. Ok not the most exciting story, but it was really funny to us. Esther also got her phone jacked by some teenagers when she was out on the beach.... The guy she was with lost $10. I have yet to have anything stolen from me. Knock on wood.
Tunco is great. I want to go surfing there sometime... Jamie scored free surf lessons from a Salvo that looks like Tarzan. I would have tried but my strapless bathing suit no sirve for surfing. One of my favorite things about Tunco is the coffee shop/cafe there that has BAGELS AND LOX with cream cheese and CAPERS and the whole real deal. WOW! It's owned by some gringos of course.
So I eventually made it back to my site... a little bit tanner and a lot more tired than when I left. The day I got back I went and played soccer with my girls that I'm trying to start a soccer team. I was even worse than the first time, but probably just because I was so tired. Then the next morning I woke up and went for a run. I'm back on the exercise boat. Trying to do some kind of exercise everyday and abs every morning. All the eating and drinking from the holidays is showing. But I know that one day I will eat or drink something bad and it will all come off in a flash. The other night I was in the park watching some strange religious theatrical performance, was SO thirsty and without my water bottle. So I went to a nearby house and drank their nasty water... churria ever since. I think you know what that is. It's lovely. not.
Anyway, then yesterday my body was seriously hurting from exercising, so what did I do? I went salsa dancing! With my friend Matt who needed a partner. I mostly went just because I needed to talk to the instructors about finding someone who could come to my site to teach my kids hip hop dancing. And I found a hip hop instructor! Que chivo, no!? I am going to go take one of his classes on Monday to make sure he actually knows what he's doing before we pay him a lot to come out to our community. I'll bring some of the kids with me... So they can see if it's what they really want to do. They say they want to dance hip hop. But I'm not sure they even know what hip hop really is.
In other news, I have also gotten a group of younger kids together for my Art Club! I'm excited about that. We're going to meet every Wednesday and I will teach them various arts and crafts. Yesterday we were just coloring from the Sesame Street coloring book my grandma sent me. There were different animals in there, and I asked them "how do you say this animal?" wanting to know what the word is for squirrel. Well they said chucho which is the word for dog... They have never seen a squirrel I guess. I saw one in San Salvador about a week ago. So I know salvo squirrels exist... but maybe not in the campo. Maybe they get eaten by the coyotes and chuchos. There are also a number of 7 and 8 year olds in my club that do not even know how to write their names. I am practicing this with them... and I plan to start a reading/literacy program in my school this year. It's pretty sad they make it to 1st and 2nd grade without being able to read, let alone write their names.
Lastly, I have been strongly considering moving out of my casa aparte I have with Chepito and Marinita. For several reasons. I love my house... it is very spacious and comfortable with my two hammocks and big field of cows out front. But it's kind of far from the centro where all my people are and the school. It sometimes feels like too much of a hassle to walk the 25 minutes to the centro, sweating from the hike up the hill in the afternoon heat. I just think I would be happier if getting to the school and seeing everyone were more convenient. The casa aparte that I'd move into is right up against the house of this sweet little old lady who lives there by herself. She could use the company. She has a store where I can conveniently buy things. And she has a washing machine that I can wash my clothes in! WOW right!? It may not be as safe as where I am now, right next to the police station with two host parents that come out and walk around my house whenever they hear noises at night. But you know, I'll be fine. Marinita cares for me a little too much. It's smothering sometimes.
And yesterday, I was in my house after a long afternoon of entertaining about 20 children... I was exhausted. It was time to relax. Shut the door, put on some music, took my pants off because it was hot, and was swaying in my hammock when I heard someone opening my door with a key. In walks Chepito telling me he needs to rest in my house because there is too much noise in his house. Excuse me! No knock, no asking me if he could enter. No nothing. I feel like I deserve a little more respect than that. I understand that he wasn't feeling well and wanted to rest, but please ask me. Please let me know you are at the door instead of barging in. It makes me wonder if they come and hang out in my house when I'm not here. Go through my stuff maybe? I called him out on it and told him he needs to knock on the door. He said he thought I wasn't here. Ok but I was here. And only half clothed. I know it was only the first time it happened but it's just a culmination of things that make me want to leave.
I want a house that is MY house... Marinita and Chepito store stuff in my house and come in and out of it all the time for their plastic chairs and their beans. I don't want to live around anyone else's stuff. I want to be the only one with a key and for no one to come in my house unless I invite them. So yes, I need to move. But I think I will wait until after I get back from Texas in mid March.
One more thing about Chepito. This man is in bad shape from an entire life of bad nutrition and not caring for himself. He's diabetic and he has no idea how to properly care for his disease... continuing to eat the same way he has been for his entire life. No meds, no nothing. So no wonder his condition has only been getting worse and worse since the day I got here. Drinking lots of beer at the rodeo was also a bad idea... isn't drinking a lot of beer lethal to a diabetic? So for days he had been complaining to me about not feeling well, his chest or heart hurting, difficulty breathing, his vision... I would say "go to the doctor, Chepito. go to the doctor." He asks me questions about what he should do, I don't know, you think I know medicine?
Days later, he is still complaining. I said "Chepito, do you want to die? No? Then go to the Doctor?" So he goes to the doctor- and I'm sure the doctors in San Vicente are not the best but hey it's something. He comes back with a huge bag of pills, he has no idea what they are for, and with doctors orders that he should not drive anymore because of his vision. Don't diabetics go blind if they don't care for themselves? I think I remember something like that. He also got knifed in the eye during the war and can see mostly just out of one eye. I surely won't be getting a ride from him anymore. Peligroso.
He had to go back to the clinic today for more tests and samples. So what did he do? He got himself in his car and drove himself there! Ay Ay Ay Oy Vey. Seriously? We have buses. He can ride the bus just like the rest of us. But what can ya do? He's a grown man, and if he wants to put himself in danger, ok. It's more about the other people on the rode that might be in danger. Shoot, I wish I knew how to drive a stick... I would love to drive his car around. Of course... I'm not permitted by Peace Corps to drive. I would give anything for the freedom of a car.
So ok....Think I've caught y'all up on just about everything now. Its time bucket bath before heading to meet up with Jamie to go to Alayna's site for her birthday dinner.
My wish: Emails from home! You know it's been too long since I have heard from you! So please write me, let me know what's going on in your life! I don't get enough letters.... with the exception of my rents, Katie and Sarah... Love you guys!
Paz y Amor!
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