Gossip ain't nobody's friend...

Ok so it's been a while. Mostly because Semana Santa came, El Salvador's holy week, and I spent most of it doing gringa things, that I wasn't left with much blogging material. Still, it was an awesome week! Got to spend a lot of time with two of my favorite people in El Salvador, Noel and Jamie. I even went to the movies! Twice in one day! Guess how much a movie costs here? Like 3 bucks! Awesome huh! And then popcorn and a soda? About $4. It doesn't taste like the movie theatre popcorn at home, but I'm not complaining! We saw "Just Go With It" with Adam Sandler and Jennifer Aniston, and then "Hall Pass" the movie about the guys that get a week off from marriage. Both were funny and entertaining but Just Go With it was better...not as much guy humor. Anyway, I am super lucky that I have the option of going to an American style movie theatre so close to me that has new releases. Well... actually, I dunno... Those are new releases right? LoL I dont even know anymore.

The rains have been picking up here and there! Which means the hottest days of the year are pretty much past us. Hallelujah! By the second week of May we should be in the definite rainy season. I can feel the climate changing. I got used to the very dry air... after a few heavy rains in San Vicente... I'm rediscovering the feel of humidity. I'm looking forward to days and days of rain that I can spend relaxing in my hammock and reading good books :) I'm not looking forward to all of my things being wet and mildewed all the time. But I will do my best to keep things safe and dry... This is when ziploc bags are essential! I'd also love a bunch of those disposable Glad-like tupperware things. Would be great for storing and organizing my stuff! ;)

I have been getting to know my community better... in a way I'm not sure I want to know. It is impossible to avoid the gossip of the community... People love filling me in on the dirt. And I get my ears filled with what are sometimes very entertaining stories. I just don't know how much of it is true, and I don't want my opinions of certain people who are really nice and good friends to me changed because others want to tell me about things that happened long ago. Anyway- The tales are nonetheless pretty juicy so.... Let me tell you about...

Nina Alicia. My good friend and maker of the best pupusas and food in town. She has been so good to me... Big Loving Latina momma she is. One of the few people I can sit with and have a relaxed conversation with. And she is always giving me food. I love her. Well,  She has 5 kids... and she had told me the father of her children died about  5 years ago of kidney failure. What I didn't know what that he was the husband of Nina Elba who lives arriba in the centro, whom with he also had many children. Well back when he was alive, Nina Elba had decided one day she had enough of her husband banging this other woman... So she hid out in the trees in the field in front Chepito's house and waited for Alicia to leave from visiting the neighbor... Upon her exit she started to shoot! And the chase began... Elba was chasing Alicia and shooting at her all over the property right in front of my house. Chepito said her aim was terrible... He was sitting on the pot in the latrine when a bullet flew through the wall of the outhouse, right past his face, and through the other side. How crazy! You wouldn't want your last moment on earth to be spent taking a crap would you?

Antonia. She is a really good kid that lives next door to me. Beautiful, Smart. Has a lot of potential to really do something with her life. She is about to graduate from 9th grade and no one has the money to pay for her to go to high school, so I am going to do the best I can to help get her a scholarship. All one needs to go to high school here is about $250 dollars, to cover the costs of daily transportation and their uniform and books and lunch while they're there. That's not much money to you and me. Well now it is to me, almost my monthly salary... But before Peace Corps I would blow more than that in one day shopping at the mall. I will soon be setting up a fund for Antonia and other scholars in my community for people to donate to their education. All these kids need is the opportunity. Antonia is a gem in this community... I don't want to see her get pregnant right out of 9th grade like her sister, Roxana- Who by the way refuses to leave her home because she is too embarassed for the community to see how pregnant she is... It's sad, but I can't say I blame her... These people are vicious with their gossip. But she won't even leave the house to go to the clinic for prenatal care. I'm gonna go visit her today, poor baby... A baby havin a baby.

But what's the juice? Last night I found out that my host mom, Marinita thinks Antonia might be her granddaughter, daughter of her son Vladimir. But they're not sure, because Guadalupe was sleeping with about 4 men around that time... I was looking at their son's picture, and there is a resemblance. Marinita really is a very forgiving and loving person. She has treated Antonia like her own since she was born... But all of this- not knowing who the baby daddy is... Sounds very Jerry Springer doesn't it? Anyway, I want better for Antonia, I really do.

I also heard about the guys in town that have gotten their wives and their daughters pregnant at the same time. WTF? Thats disgusting and pisses me off... I'm sure the daughters didnt want that. I'm not sure if the daughters are under 18. But if they are... this monster might need to be reported to child protective services, which actually does exist in the country.

There is another girl in my community that was so distraught about her husband cheating on her that she committed suicide by eating rat poison.

And I have heard a number of stories about men and women in this town who have two separate families. Children with one person, and many children with another person.

In a way it feels necessary for me to understand who is family with who... Although it seems like everyone in this town seems to be related to one another somehow... But maybe I need to know this stuff, as ugly as it sounds, because if I'm working with these people, it helps to understand why some don't want to work with others. Still, there is a lot of dirt I don't know about them... and that I'm sure I don't want to know. I'd rather look at everyone with a clean slate, you know? Gossip is mean and evil and ugly. Chambre ain't nobody's friend. Sure, it might feel good and entertaining in the moment you are gossiping... But afterwards especially if I am the one sharing the info- I feel worse. Like I shouldn't have said all that. And with as much gossip as I hear coming from people around here... I'm learning it does not make you look good. Whatever bad things you say, they stick to you... You are the person that shared ugly things. OY! Is that not what I just did in this entire blog? But I'd like to think of this blog as different... Like I'm just a reporter or something.

I know... it's so hard to avoid...And when you live in a small town like this, everyone knows everyone's business, there's no such thing as privacy. But everyone deserves to make mistakes... I mean, I'm not saying it's ok to have two families at the same time, or impregnate your daughters... but JEEZ it's not really any of our business to be talking about with everyone we walk by the on the street.

On a ligher note... THIS IS MY 100th POST! I feel like I should celebrate or something! Maybe you can celebrate with me by sending me an awesome care package :) LOVE!