Peace Corps Sour

I'm even having a hard time believing I got lazy about blogging so early.  But really, the last few weeks have been a normal routine.  Spanish, HIV, farm school, sharing a few pisco sours (the only cocktail this girl drinks sans bloody marys) with friends.  Things get crazier starting tomorrow.

Tomorrow night the whole health group goes to Ancash for a 5-day field-based training. It's going to be sick! We get to learn how to build latrines and improved kitchens. Maybe I'll get to take my first shit in a hole in the ground. It's a little intimidating. Thanks for the Go Girl, Heather and Annette. That'll make life a bit easier.  I get to see the mountains!! It's a coincidence that's the place I want to live, so I'll see if it's everything my thought bubbles promise.

One of my best friends here left last week. It's very sad, but it was the right choice for her. Stay in touch Karie. We miss your presence already.

I'm brewing something up with someone who has a soft southern drawl.  Life got more interesting. Lucky me; the gender ratio is about as balanced as the US budget. Or maybe we're in the black- I haven't read anything about news on many weeks.  Big news in my world is when someone has diarrhea.

So I have a few best pals here and one, Laura, is a really cool lady who likes science and beer. We get along really well.  We're scheming up a natural science curricula for kids in the campo during their summer months as we're integrating into our communities.  For any of you at home (Alex, que mas?) who might have any ideas about how to teach kids about evolution, ecosystems and the cosmos, holler.

Things I wish I packed: my french press (they grow coffee here but drink instant stuff. I plan on changing that) and Extra gum. Thank you mom for spending way too much money to make my life better.  Although I'd trade in a pound of rice for a pint of a strong IPA. And that can't really be shipped.

I moved up to Intermediate Low in Spanish. Bam! I can definitely get around but I don't know much past or future tenses yet. My strategy has been to begin sentences with 'in the past, I go' or 'in the future, I go'. It works well enough most of the time. But we just got our 501 Spanish Verb books last week, so I hope my comprehension accelerates in the coming weeks. I gotta be in Intermediate Medium to be sent out into the world.  I'll make it.

I don't miss home. I'm surprised by that some. Of course, I miss people, but everyone's so far out of context that it's not too bad yet.  I have been listening to my dark, dreamy, shoe-gazing, dissonant Minnesota local scene music of late and I get thrown back through a worm hole to those crispy mornings walking along University where you begin to see your breath. I can feel the cool air enter my body as my unearthed boots hit the pavement in front of me.  I can taste Oktoberfest and pumpkin brews, see leaves wearing their autumn uniforms, feel the sticky juice on my face from Honey Crisps and smell squash and clove soup.  For those in the frozen tundra, am I over-romanticizing Minnesota in October, or is it as lovely as I remember? It's getting hot here and I need this mountain trip.  And not to make St Louis jealous, but this summer ruined me from fantasizing about any weather there. I could go the rest of my life without swimming in the atmosphere.

Hopefully I'll have glorious climatic diatribes next week about the beautiful mountains. And for real, how do I put iphotos on this g-damn blog???