Crrrkkk--Bing!

Cows.  Why don't we have cows wandering the streets of the city?  And horse-drawn carriages.  What happened to those?

I'm just saying...

I like it here with the cows and horses.  It's cozy.

sshhhrrrrp--bing!  Next topic...

Today we went up to one of the volcanos and took a tour called the Canopy Tour.  We climbed up into the trees, were hooked to wires, and then zipped from one tree to another. It was thrilling!  And then, at the end, we rappelled down the last tree.  Really fast.  It actually startled me, but it was so fun.  I love it when my stomach jumps up into my throat.  The road up the volcano was extremely bumpy...I can't believe their cars make that trek twice a day.  When we were ready to go back down, we discovered that the truck had two flat tires.  So rather than drive all the way back down, we walked for a little while, and then drove the rest of the way when another truck met us.  I'm sure they weren't thrilled to have flat tires, but it worked out well for us, because we got a little walking tour of the forests there.  There were these really cool birds with hanging nests and yellow tails, both of which they're named for.  We saw a monkey too!  Don't worry, didn't bite us.  He was alone, and we think he was sulking because he was all alone hunched over on a branch.  It was quite a pleasant walk, and I'll admit, much as I enjoy Granada, it was nice to get out of the city and hike a little.

ssshhrrrp---clnkfrglbrrrrr----bing!

OoPs, better have that looked at...

Yesterday afternoon we had a little party at the school with some of the old and new students, and of course, the professors.  We got Mojitos (Mother, do we still have our mint bush?  Don't get rid of it, mmkay?), kebabs (you buy kebab!), and dancing.  Pablo, the guy who taught us some dancing at the school the other day, made sure we were invited to a bar that evening with the group...and since I'm not big on going out and hoping I'll meet complete strangers at a bar (I'm boring, I know), I was happy to have the opportunity to go with a group of people I knew.  We left the party a little early to accompany our landlady/hostess/friend to a church service.  Later that evening we went to a bar with the group from school.  It was an interesting evening.  We started walking, and then they decided we would go somewhere a little farther away, so they hailed a taxi.  There nine of us.  It was a normal sized taxi.  And what do you think?  We all fit in.  It was...how shall I say...a bit crowded.  When we got to the bar, it was open, but no one was there, so we walked farther down the road to another place and sat down.  I really have to mention that I was quite the bell of the ball, and it was a very strange experience.  I danced quite a bit.  The guys at our table kept asking me, and then a man from another party asked me...and raved about me afterwards.  I find it a bit ironic, because when I go dancing at home, I never get asked.  I usually either sit on the side, dance by myself, or dance with the other girls who aren't getting asked.  So this made for a nice change, I suppose.  We turned in a little earlier than everyone else did, since we had a fairly early morning the next morning (this morning).  But it was fun.

Okay, that's all for now, I suppose.

Did ew know...?

Everyone needs a healthy level of crunchiness in their life.

Thank you for choosing Lod's Little Tidbits, and have a nice day.

Charitys:  I'm very pleased you found me.  I hate being lost!  And I'm very glad we've been reunited.

SaraBee:  Cruncy Zac...I approve.  And no, dear, I'm afraid I'm not...afraid.  Hmmm...perhaps that was poor wording on my part...

Things That Make Me Feel Crunchy

-Having people bring me things I want instead of making me get it-
We went to Laguna Apoyo with Uncle Gerard, and hung out again with his wonderfully diverse group friends (a few of which we already knew from a few weeks ago, which was nice). When we went down to swim in the lake, someone was sent to bring us lifejackets while we just waited down by the water. Not that we knew where the lifejackets were anyway...but meh. Of course, we didn´t wear our jackets...that´s totally uncool...and uncomfortable...but we did enjoy floating on them and riding the waves. I also managed not to get burned, which is a definite plus. So in that sense (and that sense only) I am not crunchy, as I was not burned to a crisp this time.

On a side note...I suppose I should mention that when I was burned before on the way to Uncle Gerard´s island, my legs grew a sense of humour. Whereas I used to burn, peel, and go back to being white, they decided to tan a little this time. The result? I now have a very splotchy and uneven tan on only one side of each leg, and a clear cut-off line just below my knee. Little scamps.

-Sitting in a pool drinking coke and whisky-
Farther back from the lake, they had a covered patio with food and drinks, and right next to that was a sort of private pool with a little water fall, and then a small corridor of water that led to another small pool with a stone bench built into. So Elizabeth and I sat in the little pool with our drinks feeling very crunchy indeed.

-Understanding conversations in Spanish-
Sometimes I´m completely lost, but if I pick up on the context and I listen really closely, I can actually follow the vein of some conversations. It´s very exciting. It helps when they pronounce their ´s´s. Here in Nicaragua, they have a tendency to drop a lot of their ´s´s, which makes it difficult to follow. So I´ve just started mentally adding an ´s´to every other word and it usually makes more sense. It´s so silly, really. I mean, i´´s no´like I´d ever drop-r-slur ledders in English. Psh.

-Being a VIP
Well, okay, that might be overstating it a little...but some bratty little part of me enjoys the fact that when that group from our Spanish school went to Laguna Apoyo, they were in the public restaurant and beach area. When we went, we were in a private area with a private pool, hammocks, music, etc. And, of course, excellent company. Come on, you´d feel crunchy too. What can I say?¿? I know people.

-Being told I have nice lips-
Well, that doesn´t really having anything to do with...anything. But since I´m so fond of lips myself, I admit it is a compliment I particularly appreciate. Rather like Anne Shirley feeling crunchy because of a compliment on her nose, I suppose.

Well, I´m sure there are plenty of other things that make me feel crunchy. But I´ll leave it at that for now.

Did ew know...?¿?
One should be able to center one´s title if one wants.
Thank you for choosing Lod´s Little Tidbits, and have a nice day.

SaraBee: I´m sorry dear, your angry face just doesn´t scare me. I think you were going to work on making it scarier. Have you gotten a round tuit yet?¿? Would you like to borrow one?¿? Besides which, I´m sure you´re only angry over the "government employee" thingy because you know it´s really true. Truth hurts, doesn´t it? And regarding sarcasm, never fear, I´ve found ways. I will have Spanish completely mutilated by the time I get home. We´ve already worked on saying things like "Don´t you feel crunchy?" and "Arrow´d!!!" It´s great fun.

Sanna: Tired of Zac´s face?¿? Not possible, I tell you. He´s much too pretty. And Smart Zac is now just Other Zac? Hee hee. He´s been demoted. Now that we know he doesn´t really have to work hard at all. :-)=

Throwing Up Isn´t Fun

Two days ago, I insulted pharmacists, engineers, and government employees...and then I threw up all afternoon and evening. But I´m sure they´re not connected...I´m sure it wasn´t some big payback...right?¿?

So, yeah, that was my last two days. I threw up. I watched House. I tried to eat. I threw up again. I went to sleep. I refused to eat the next day. Finally ate dinner. Went to sleep...and I´m mostly better now. I´m pretty sure there was some more sleeping mixed in there somewhere. Wanna guess what the highlight of all that was? No, not sleeping, silly pants. Not that I´m knocking sleeping. It can be quite pleasant...depending on the dreams...but House wins hands down. Unless it´s House I´m dreaming about. Aaaaand...yeeeahh...if I ever had more to say, it´s gone now. Sorry. Throwing up was kinda my major event.

Did ew know...?
Water is kind of important.
Thank you for choosing Lod´s Little Tidbits, and have a nice day.

Cas*: re. The ice thing: What a seemingly random suggestion. Don´t get me wrong...it made me laugh. A lot. And granted Scottish dancing on a block of ice sounds like a very appropriate thing to do. The imagery...it´s fantastic...but...what?¿?

Pharmacists

I scoff at all of you who bothered going to school to be a pharmacist.  That's right, consider yourself scoffed.  I'm a pharmacist now.  And so is my sister.  We volunteered at a pharmacy today, and it was a piece of cake...taking pills out of their containers...dumping them in bigger containers...labeling the containers...closing the containers...psh, child's play.

Really, you're all just like government employees, aren't you?  You talk big about how hard and complicated your school and work are, but the only training you actually receive is how to make your job sound hard and complicated.  Government employees play solitaire all day, and you play around with pills all day.

...

*ducks head to avoid volley of tomatoes*

That's weird...wonder where those came from...

Anyquien, that's what we did today.  We helped out in the pharmacy for about four hours organizing pills and what-not.  It's monotonous work, but I enjoy that kind of work, so it's all good.  I'm also pleased with how much Spanish I can understand.  We will be going back tomorrow morning, but I gather she's going to vary our tasks a little so we don't get bored.  Next I'm going to find out that doctors spend their time having wheelchair wars...

Did ew know...?

A is for Bee.

Thank you for choosing Lod's Little Tidbits, and have a nice day.

Mother:  Please don't go there.  I don't know what possessed you to give your son the same initials as my Dark Conflicted Men...it's a little strange...but I just prefer not to think about it.

Cas*:  Requests?  Just keep commenting!  I love reading comments.  :-)=  Oh, and also, you can tell me why I can't seem to comment on Susanna's blog site.  OoPs.  Never mind...it worked that time.  Oh, and one more thing.  Can you make it snow here?  :-)=

Graduation Day

Yesterday, we graduated from our intensive Spanish course. We got certificates and everything. Tomorrow we´ll start volunteering at Clinica Alabama, probably starting out helping in the pharmacy...I think. Which means that today...erm...I have nothing to talk about. Stuffs tomorrow, stuffs yesterday, but never ever stuffs today.

So my exciting k-news for now, is:
-We finished watching Buffy season 7, and have now started Firefly. Both shows have Dark Conflicted Men, so I´m a happy girl.
-We´re going out for one more activity with the Spanish School this afternoon, where I think we´ll be learning to make a traditional Nicaraguense bread thingy. But I guess I could be way off...we may be learning to pick mangos with our toes...blindfolded...
-I got to watch House, which was a treat because the connection at our house is really slow and it would take too long to load a show...and believe it or not, we´re not here to spend all our time on the internet. But the connection at the school is much faster, so we loaded it there and watched it a couple nights ago. While eating mangos...mmmm...
I had a conversation with a sales-guy at the Masaya market we went to on Monday. In Spanish, of course. The downside, obviously, is that I had to talk to a man, but the upside is that I carried on a conversation in another language. A fairly simple one, but still...
-I´m on pins and needles to watch the new Doctor Who special. If all goes well, I´ll get to watch it tonight.

Mmkay, enough k-news. Cheerio.

Did ew know...?¿?
The Spanish language doesn´t register sarcasm.
Thank you for choosing Lod´s Little Tidbits, and have a nice day.

Me-Translation:
Since I know it´ll be asked, my tidbit is based on our viewing of Buffy in Spanish. A remark that in English was something like, "Sure, of course we can do that (in sarcastic tone)," was translated to, "No, we can´t do that." I thought it was funny. Ergo, the tidbit. I´m pretty sure there is no higher authority than Buffy. Except maybe The Doctor.

Mother: Well, as a matter of fact, I did get a bit of a tan. You can even see it if you compare me to...well, me. My arms to my legs. Lovely.

Cas*: I won´t have eye candy for long, since the classes are about over. And then what will I look at? Well, aside from the fact that we´re going through Firefly now, and Mal is one of my Dark Conflicted Men (TM). But hey, if you want to send me a care package, you won´t get any arguments from me!!! :-)=

I´m an Islander

Well, er, no, I´m really not. I´m too white. And I don´t wear bikinis.  Or even a bikini.  But I did spend the weekend on my uncle's island.  The Spanish ambassador and his family came to visit on Friday.  We spent a lot of time relaxing, swimming, drinking coke and whisky, and visiting with friends from other islands.  And how snobby do I sound?  It's all true.  I can't believe how wonderfully pampered I've been over the last weekend.  Uncle Gerard and Maria Celia (I hope I spelled that correctly) have been so generous.  Much as I enjoyed myself, I have to say that coming back to Granada was a bit like coming home, which was nice.  I suppose one can only relax so much.  Or, well, at least I can only relax so much.  And after moving around every couple of days for six months last year, it is fantastic to be able to unpack my stuff.

I could spend a lot more time giving details on my weekend, but quite frankly, I'm not inclined to spend hours on the internet, nor could I really even if I wanted to...so suffice it to say that my weekend was great, and it's good to be back in Granada now to learn more Spanish.  So in case you were wondering where we were (Cassie, ya little minx), that's where we were.  Can you believe it...no wireless connection on the islands.  Psh.  :-)=

Okay, that's enough typing for me.  I'm far too distracted.  Being in the school instead of the house equals mas distracciones.

Did ew know...?

A cold shower when it's hot can be as heavenly as a hot shower when it's cold.

Thank you for choosing Lod's Little Tidbits, and have a nice day.

Susanna: Alas, the connection here is slow, so I may not be able to watch the new Zac movie online. But I fully intend to see it as soon as I get the chance. Sure, the movie may be completely predictable, but hello...it´s Zac!  Now if only there was a poster above my head right now that had Zac on it so I could think about him some more.  Oh, look, there is!  No seriously, I'm at the Spanish school right now (my class just ended for the day), and I'm using their internet, and there's a High School Musical 2 poster on the wall in front of me.  How pleasant.

The Plot of the Pugnacious Pests

I know, I know. After a title like that one, you´re waiting for a tale of epic proportions. Well, I´m sorry. I´m tired. My brain hurts. My blood hurts. And I really just pulled the title out of a hat (yes, I have hats in my head...don´t you?). It has nothing to do with anything I really wanted to talk about. I´m going to eat lunch. Maybe when I come back to this I can give you a story worthy of the title.

I downed a truckload of water yesterday. Yesterday being the date of this post, since that´s when I started it. But today, the day after the date of the post, is the day I posted this...post. Yeah. I felt like I was on the verge of a headache all day yesterday, and was barely fending it off with...a truckload of water. Anyway, what I really wanted to talk about was that I saw my first gato (cat) yesterday, when we went and helped make tortillas. It was this adoroble, teeny little kitty, all thin and scraggly. And very feisty. She kept jumping all over the perro (dog) and biting and batting, and the dog just sat there...and sat there...it was really funny.

But if you want a story about the title...
We have an ant problem in our room. And they´re not just after the food. I´m not exactly sure what they want, but almost every night they crawl across the wall, past Elizabeth´s bed, to the shelf next to my bed, and swarm. Over nothing. Just the water pitcher...and a few books. When we wash dishes, we have to dry immediately, or they´ll swarm to the dishes. They´re so weird. I think eating isn´t enough for them. I think they´re holding meetings. I think they want to take over the world.
But that´s all. No worries.

In other k-news, yesterday, for the second half of our class, we walked to a woman´s home and helped make tortillas. And then we helped eat them. In the afternoon, for our activity, we took a boat over to one of the islands and relaxed and chatted. It was nice. We sat in the shade, and there was a breeze, so it was very pleasant. And we got una cerveza (a beer) and un vaso de jugo de mango (a glass of mango juice...or something like that) for a dollar each. Which is completely uninteresting, but hey, not everything here can be exciting, can it? I´m so sorry I don´t have any exciting stories about the mango juice. Stop pressuring me. But one of the teachers with us, Josue, is a very good singer and dancer, and he´s also very...energetic...and happy...so that was a lot of fun. I mean, I didn´t dance, but I had fun watching others have fun. Wow. I´m such a waste of space. I´m gonna go rethink my life...

Mmkay, enough thinking. But enough typing too. I obviously ran out of things to say...mmm...about fifteen minutes ago.

Did ew know...?
Tortillas in Nicaragua are easier to make than the tortillas in Mexico.
Thank you for choosing Lod´s Little Tidbits, and have a nice day.

Cas*: Hmm. I think you may give me too much credit of forethought. Either that, or I´m so brilliant that I plan things like that without thinking. Really, it´s more likely, since this is me we´re talking about, that I simply forgot to tell you the name of the book. But who knows...I could be a closet genius. And as far as the translation...give a few months, mmkay? And yes I have seen that website...and love it...and thanx for thinking of me! :-)=

Mother: Oh, I was nice. Believe me. I didn´t mention any names, did I? And it won´t be me, because even if I do know a lot by then, I won´t have a superiority complex. Or at least I´ll hide it better. :-)=

Cas*: Ha ha. You thought I forgot the name again, didn´t you? Hee hee hee. The book´s called Ender´s Game.