August Rush

So I hope it's not offensive to say that this blog is a chore. It's not that I dislike doing it, but more that I dread sitting here agonizing over what to write about. I really do much better with the intangibles of philosophy and theology than I do with the events of our everyday life... and now I've been far too honest in a very public blog post. C'est la vie, n'est-ce pas?

Moving onward, today's post is coming on the eve of a big weekend that begins a big month. September is the month of independence in Belize, and if reports are to be believed, the country grinds to a halt to relish in the celebrations. First will be St. George's Caye day next Friday, then will be Independence Day on the 21st. Add to that my father visiting between the 15th and 25th, and this weekend's triathlon (more on that momentarily), and this month is going to be ram-jammed.

And yes, you read it right, Kathryn and I will both be participating in this weekend's Lion-Man Triathlon in Belize City. We're on separate teams; she'll be running and I'll be swimming. She just became involved this past week as one of the runners dropped out at the last minute, and she was more than happy to fill in, especially after the indefinite postponement of a half-marathon she has been training for. Myself, I signed up in July, I believe, and procrastinated getting the go-ahead to train in the US Embassy pool before getting sick for the first part of August, incidentally the same time my clearance came through to swim. So, true-to-form, I've been training for a meager two-and-a-half weeks for the 1.5km (.9 mi) swim. (It must be mentioned that I considered writing about this long ago, except that I knew the response it would receive from certain individuals [Dad]. The response would have been something like this: "Cisco! What are you doing? You know better than that! You need to be more responsible! Geez. Enough is enough!" Well, out of respect to those responding this way, who would inevitably be wasting breath on the lost cause that is me, I waited until such comments would be of no avail and, therefore, unnecessary to actually make. You're welcome for saving your breath.)I'm pretty excited by the whole thing, though. It will be a challenge, certainly, and fun, hopefully. And there will be a good number of other volunteers with whom I can chat during the rest of the race. Good times all around.

Recently we've been busy. I've said it a couple times already today, to various people, but we're busy here, but in a relaxed way. It doesn't sound logical, but that's if you consider "busy" in the way folks do in the states. Here, you have things to do, but you don't pack them in all in one day. Likewise, there's not the same hurry to accomplish what needs to be done. You do it, you work hard, but it's like the time is not an object--or at least, it's not a vitally important object.

Last week we spent half the week in a workshop with a conflict resolution specialist from Ohio. She was invited to the country by the US Embassy, and we were privileged enough to attend. Most of the information was rehashing the things that we dealt with in the PEACE Camps last month, but we now have, literally, ten times the resources that we had for activities, games, and lessons on how to deal with conflict. Now all I have to do is filter the information, condense it, sell it to the principals of about 12 different schools, and then take it to them based on how much they're willing to invest in it. Easy, right? But truly, I'm up to that challenge.

On the home front Kathryn and I are quite happy, if a little homesick. It's going to be great to have dad here, and then mom later in the fall (fall for you, for us there's only the rainy hot and the hot hot). Kathryn has put a great deal of effort into meal-planning for us. It's been a struggle in a new environment where nothing comes pre-made to find meals that are healthy, inexpensive, and require less than 3 hours to make. To that effect, Kathryn has been making a weekly dinner schedule, planning the dishes we'll make and the ingredients we'll need in advance to make things flow more smoothly. It's been going great, and though I'm quite difficult to wow, I am particularly satisfied with the results. I've been eating like a king. Oh, and about the seasons thing, the rainy season is officially here. You can tell by a few different things: First, there are mosquitoes everywhere. Rain falls, stands in puddles for days, and breeds the pesky beasts. I am, therefore, a giant pincushion. Second, none of our clothes stay clean. Whether it's from our bikes, our feet, or the dogs' feet, we get mud everywhere, and keeping our floors clean is a lost cause. Third and finally, every other night or so, we wake up to torrential downpours. To the extent that the dog dishes are filled with water at least 3 nights a week. It's unreal.

One more thing before I go: We signed up for free Spanish classes at the Venezuelan Institute. After our placement tests we found out that, to her great pleasure, Kathryn has been placed in the intermediate group, while I, quite unsurprisingly, have been placed in the basic group. Classes will be for 14 weeks, from now until December. Kathryn's classes are Tuesday and Thursday, mine are scheduled Monday, Wednesday, and Friday. If they don't accept my plea to work extra hard in the intermediate class, the gulf between our knowledge of Spanish will continue to increase. But I refuse to spend three months without a week-night at home with my wife. It's ridiculous.

Well that's that. I hope everyone is satisfied for now. We're happy, healthy, and busy enough to keep out of trouble. I hope you can say the same. Until next time!

Peace,
Cisco