The Long-Short of It
Hello friends.
How nice to feel like I am temporarily sharing the same cyber space as you
I have just recently achieved a new contentment as I imagine our next five months here in Guatemala. It has taken me these six weeks to calm down and slow down. I think I am learning patience more than anything- from laundry drying time and language learning to my idealistic expectations. For our first month it felt like we were dealing with a different catastrophe everyweek but even those situations have calmed and we are growing tiny roots. Still no fix for computer of yet but thankfully computer geeks all speak the same language. We also experienced nearly 10 rainless days which was really nice in retrospect. I think I actually used lotion twice last week. We are still in hurricane season and the clouds seem to be making up for lost time. They say only one more week and then we will be wishing it would rain. I doubt it.
Waves of stuents come and go every week but our first and closest friends will all be leaving this week. I was really dreading it but am actually at peace about it now and looking forward to inviting the new crew over to our place for BBQ this Sunday. Funny note: there are a lot of DCers here in language school. I even met a girl that knows Rivendell and common friends. Sometimes it is a small world (but thankfully without the corney disney music).
Antigua is a city of 30,000-ish but we haven´t outgrown it in the least. A few times we have been identified as the gringos with the red scooter. Everyweek we make new discoveries including: Dyslexia bookstore for the reading black market, the worlds best banana bread and granola mana from Doña Luisa, focaccia bread from Y Tu´Piña Tambien, and last but not least- the monkey´s *ss smoothies (banana, chocolate & pbj) at Cafe No Se. I am keeping my eyes open for job options but most places pay about a dollar a hour. There aren´t really Starbucks like jobs floating around. It has been recommended that we consider the hostal route as a way to have jobs for food and lodging with travel to boot. Hmmmm...
Luke and I both have dropped down to four hours of Spanish class a day. We have drained dry every pen we brought from the states and are each on a second notebook. We are progressing bit by bit. Last week I looked over at luke´s class to see him banging his head on the desk. Today was my brain wilting /resolve crushing day with the perfect tenses. There are those fleeting moments when the clouds roll back, casting Thomas Kincade rays of light upon my efforts. Then, Spanish flows in a land of milk and honey. Alas, in the next moment, it is all lost and I am once again only a sputtering wooden doll. I estimate that I have reached the age of 5 in Spanish years. Horray!
Loads more- but another time
thanks for listening.... and feel free to write
Hello friends.
How nice to feel like I am temporarily sharing the same cyber space as you
I have just recently achieved a new contentment as I imagine our next five months here in Guatemala. It has taken me these six weeks to calm down and slow down. I think I am learning patience more than anything- from laundry drying time and language learning to my idealistic expectations. For our first month it felt like we were dealing with a different catastrophe everyweek but even those situations have calmed and we are growing tiny roots. Still no fix for computer of yet but thankfully computer geeks all speak the same language. We also experienced nearly 10 rainless days which was really nice in retrospect. I think I actually used lotion twice last week. We are still in hurricane season and the clouds seem to be making up for lost time. They say only one more week and then we will be wishing it would rain. I doubt it.
Waves of stuents come and go every week but our first and closest friends will all be leaving this week. I was really dreading it but am actually at peace about it now and looking forward to inviting the new crew over to our place for BBQ this Sunday. Funny note: there are a lot of DCers here in language school. I even met a girl that knows Rivendell and common friends. Sometimes it is a small world (but thankfully without the corney disney music).
Antigua is a city of 30,000-ish but we haven´t outgrown it in the least. A few times we have been identified as the gringos with the red scooter. Everyweek we make new discoveries including: Dyslexia bookstore for the reading black market, the worlds best banana bread and granola mana from Doña Luisa, focaccia bread from Y Tu´Piña Tambien, and last but not least- the monkey´s *ss smoothies (banana, chocolate & pbj) at Cafe No Se. I am keeping my eyes open for job options but most places pay about a dollar a hour. There aren´t really Starbucks like jobs floating around. It has been recommended that we consider the hostal route as a way to have jobs for food and lodging with travel to boot. Hmmmm...
Luke and I both have dropped down to four hours of Spanish class a day. We have drained dry every pen we brought from the states and are each on a second notebook. We are progressing bit by bit. Last week I looked over at luke´s class to see him banging his head on the desk. Today was my brain wilting /resolve crushing day with the perfect tenses. There are those fleeting moments when the clouds roll back, casting Thomas Kincade rays of light upon my efforts. Then, Spanish flows in a land of milk and honey. Alas, in the next moment, it is all lost and I am once again only a sputtering wooden doll. I estimate that I have reached the age of 5 in Spanish years. Horray!
Loads more- but another time
thanks for listening.... and feel free to write
posted by Luke & Andrea at 1:22 PM
1 Comments:
Can you possibly imagine that here in buttoned down Washington the image of you both speeding through mud puddles on the scooter is absolutely joyful, funny, bouyant and a general blast. Reminds me a bit of time I spent in Italy once long , long ago . . . hmmm . . . divulging too much personal info . . . ok . . . feel like I should send you some clorox to take care of any mold/continued rain issues . . . news from Rivendell - Friday the 13th assembly - Mr. Swenholt performed death defying feats - walking under a ladder, breaking a mirror and even crossing the path of a stuffed black cat! All to much applause. Miss you. Love you.
Jaime
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