People need to understand that no one is playing with marked cards;

sometimes we win and sometimes we lose. Don’t expect to get anything back, don’t expect recognition for your efforts, don’t expect your genius to be discovered or your love to be understood. Complete the circle. Not out of pride, inability or arrogance, but simply because whatever it is no longer fits in your life. Close the door, change the record, clean the house, get rid of the dust. Stop being who you were and become who you are. ~Paulo Coelho, The Zahir

Thursday, November 23, 2006


Becca and Mom, shortly after surgery...
and Dad's famous patio
and beautiful New Mexico











Cabin in Zancuro, Marcala where we stayed for two very cold nights visiting fellow PCV, Josh's rural tourism. Raul asked us to make a face as to how we felt about this adventure...
Erin and I in Zancuro
Raul and I overlooking Josh's site

Erin, Bridget and Stephanie making Erins famous picture face.

Wednesday, November 01, 2006

Stuck in the Capital

Today I am stuck in the capital one more time. I came up yesterday for my (what has become) weekly discussion with the doctor here, and again, she was unable to meet and I had to stay the night. There is discussion of them keeping me one more day here. I wish I knew these things when I leave my site with little more than a book and a couple hundred Limperas (like 10 bucks).

This past weekend for Halloween Raul and I and a couple of our friends headed to the west past Marcala to a little town on the border of El Salvador. We have a friend up there who has opened up some cabins in a Rural Tourism project and we were the first customers. It was cold beyond imagination and with no electricity, we were unable to shower, or even change our clothes for the three days we were there. But we made the best of it, smores, games of Mafia, and a little rum made the whole adventure worth it. On Sunday we drove into El Salvador and ate pulpusas at a local comedor and got rid of a bit of our american dollars we still had lying around. It was a wonderful experience and I will post or send pictures as soon as I can.

We are still in the process of making plans for Thanksgiving, but it is looking like picking the largest house, which would be at our friend Stephanies in La Paz, La Paz and cooking up a chicken as turkey is hard to come by here. I had plans to stay in my site until then, but with the bureaucracy of the American Government, I was called into the capital and probably will be next week too. I am trying to work, but I feel a lack of opportunity, as I live in a perfect little community with most luxuries...other than bread. So I read a lot, see a lot of my friends, and have officially become cuerpo de paseo. I hope to change that soon. Maybe when they let me get back to my site.

Now for the real news. Mom is doing great. Her white blood cell count has been wonderful which means they can continue the treatment as ordered. She has returned to work for the majority of the day, and aside from beginning to loose her hair, she seems to be keeping together better than any of us. We will know more around Christmas as far as the tumors go, but she is feeling great and that is the most we could have hoped for.

My number here is 011-504-894-9829
Not that I expect any of you to be calling as it is expensive, but just incase anything comes up that I must know about.

I love you all and appreciate everythign!
xoxo