First row, first class w/ doc

First row, first class w/ doc
Originally uploaded by sillypuddy.

I'm writing from the TAM airlines VIP lounge at the airport in San Paulo, Brazil on my way home. I can't believe I'm actually an RPCV (Returned Peace Corps Volunteer). Those two years really do fly by, no matter what you might be thinking during any given day. I'll have to decide the direction, if any, this blog will take now that my service is over. It's been a great ride and I'm very thankful that I've had the chance to take it.

8/12
So hung out at the hotel. It was funny. The doc didn't want me leaving to go get food, but stopped by and saw the take-out menus and was like, "you can't eat any of this. why don't you order some soup or jello." I don't know what kind of take-out places he was thinking of, but whatever. I ended up getting chinese and it was ok, but there was a piece of chicken in my vegetables and it was overpriced and not as amazing as chinese vegetarian downtown. Eventually Kyle and Orlando came by and we hung out for a bit and walked with Jill to the mall for dinner. It was the furthest I had walked by far, and didn't really have permission, but I made it. Also wasn't supposed to eat fried food, but falafel came with french fries too and was good. After that I called it a kind of early night and slept very well without nurses waking me up to take my temperature every few hours and having a nice comfy bed.

8/13
Up at 6 to get some work done for my class before the doctor came around 9:30. I found out that the hotel, which hadn't had my reservation yesterday, only thought I wanted one night and were booked for tonight. I ended up just having Kyle and Orlando take my stuff to the hotel attic, which is like a dorm without a/c and like 8 beds that volunteers use sometimes. (Sorry family, we lied to you about it being a halfway house or next to the hospital, but its your fault for being crazy). At the office I got my COS stuff done, which involved some running around, and also went through all my stuff from my house and packed my bags for the trip tomorrow, leaving behind a nice pile of stuff I just couldn't fit or didn't want. Too bad the top half of my retainer and my comb didn't make it in the move. I went back to the mall with Carola for lunch and then we had our COS ceremony where I got presented with a wooden bull from the staff for being tough. I, unfortunately, dropped it later that afternoon and a foot broke off, but a little wood glue later should fix that right up. After the ceremony and waiting around to get my COS check, I hit TIGO to close my account and then the hotel to organize for tomorrow. I went back to the office to finish organizing and met the Doctor, who had his birthday today - what a freaking hard working guy - to change my bandages. He was surprised I had been to the hotel and back on the bus and had wanted me to go in cars. Oh well. Oh I forgot, I also weighed myself in his office - like 123 pounds. Guess I was down 20 pounds or more (usually 135-140). I'm skinny. After he drove me back I got online and did a little more work for class before heading out to drink some beer with the people who were left from my group, our old APCD Ruben and our current APCD Fernando and our coordinator Chris. We were at an empanada stand so Fernando was nice enough to take me in his car to the store down the street to buy some more vegan friendly food. We then went to another bar and had some more beer and tequila shots. I took a shot, but decided to limit it at that considering I got stabbed two weeks ago. I got a ride back to the hotel around 11:30 from Fernando and called it a night.

8/14
Up around 6 to shower and have breakfast and organize for the trip today. I left the hotel around 8:30 and got to hang out in the VIP lounge until the flight at around 10:30. The whole first class thing is nice, the vegetarian meal on the plane was good and I was in the first row of the plane with a pretty big seat, but I don't think its worth the cost. We got to the lounge here in San Paulo around 3pm and its nice too, but not that nice. Like not extra $1000 nice. Wifi is good though. Will help pass the hours until my 10:50pm flight tonight. We'll see how the service is on United, but I won't hold my breath. Speaking of airlines, my family contacted my congressional representative, again, over my ticket. While I support A Passengers Bill of Rights, I didn't think it was appropriate for them to bring it up without my consent.

Anyway, will let you know when I get home.

Today's iGoogle horoscope:

"You are in your element today because you can arrive at a logical solution and then make it happen. Luckily, you are quite flexible now and don't expect too much out of a situation. Even if your desires are not fully satisfied, you'll be able to see the benefit of what's happening. Accepting your present circumstances as they are is, no doubt, an act of grace."

Good news: I'm out of the hospital. They kind of knew I was leaving so breakfast wasn't great and I had to bug to get a plastic bag to cover my bandages so I could shower, but I made it out and am at a hotel with wifi (no more dialing through my phone!). Feeling good and glad to be free. Wish it wasn't raining out, but you can't win them all.

Bad news: Got my flight info and federal law says I have to fly US carriers. That means a 10 hour layover in Brazil and then a United flight. Peace Corps really came through to get me business class (and fly out my doctor for the long stop over to be there in case something happened) so at least I might not have to pay for water on the flight, but still not thrilled. Competition people! It's the American Dream right?

Stupid American Owned Airlines

So since I got stabbed I'm obviously not going to use my tickets to get home as Peace Corps is going to arrange my transportation. Canceling my ticket with AeroSur, a Bolivian owned airline, involved going to their website to talk with an online representative, getting an email address, sending a message, and getting a call a day later saying the ticket was refunded and they hoped I'd be better soon. My ticket from Miami to New York, on the other hand, is non-refundable. Going to cheaptickets.com did not present me with any life people and only a cancel button that said the ticket cost was not refundable.

This e-mail confirms your recent airline ticket cancellation. The ticket cost is non-refundable, however, the total airfare value can be used toward a future purchase.

Total airfare: $120.00 (including taxes)

This ticket's value, less applicable change fees, can be used toward a purchase on the same airline(s) by . You will be required to pay an airline change fee of $150.00 per ticket, a CheapTickets fee of $50.00 and any fare difference.

The airfare, with fees, was actually $5 more than that, but it still wouldn't cover the $200 fee to change the ticket so they basically get paid for providing no service what-so-ever. I <3 Out of Control Capitalism

Mentioned in the news

I forgot to mention the article from ABC Color about my incident at http://www.abc.com.py/articulos.php?pid=437441&fec=2008-07-31

Hieren a voluntario del Cuerpo de Paz

ENCARNACION (De nuestra redacción regional). Un ciudadano estadounidense, voluntario del Cuerpo de Paz, fue herido con un puñal el pasado martes en la localidad de Carlos Antonio López, a unos 140 kilómetros al noroeste de esta capital departamental.

El incidente se registró alrededor de las 20:30 y resultó víctima James Henry Ford, de 29 años, quien tras ser herido fue llevado de inmediato al hospital SAMIC de Eldorado (Misiones, Argentina), donde se encuentra fuera de peligro, según se reveló.

De acuerdo con los datos policiales, Ford recibió la estocada en el portón de su vivienda. La Policía no pudo determinar aún la identidad del agresor que se dio a la fuga.

Según versiones, podría tratarse de algún novio celoso, debido a que previamente Ford se encontraba mirando la televisión en compañía de una joven identificada como Minerva Marisel Medina (26 años), cuya madre Teresa Aquino de Medina (48) es dueña de la casa donde ambos .jóvenes se encontraban.

Got my age a little wrong and I wasn't at my house, but who knows if it was a jealous boyfriend or not at this point.

Can I haz stabin?

Maxim self defense guide
Originally uploaded by sillypuddy.

Ok, so I should've written a post some time ago, but its taken me a while to build up the energy and motivation (and sheer boredom) to do it. Usually I have all of those things (especially the boredom) at least once a week in the campo, but things have been a little different recently, as though that follow my twitter stream (twitter.com/jamesfordiv) are sure to know. Since things haven't been that interesting, though, I'll do some large scale summarizing here to spare you from the day-to-day of my life at this point.

7/20 - 7/25
In the beginning of the week I was debating a trip before my party to go see Brad and Tami before they take off on Monday for the US. It rained a little though and then the bus didn't come on Wednesday so I figured it would just be too hard to do that and try and plan my party for Saturday. I found a deal on the meat and the liquor and worked on getting everything setup. It was good I didn't leave or it never would have gotten organized. I did have to go to the bank, though, because I was out of money to pay for the party and had planned on getting it at an ATM in the city. Took the opportunity to show my computer to Antonia as she is interested in buying it. I also learned this week that I wouldn't get a follow up volunteer. My going away party on Saturday was also going to be an introduction, but because of the contraband and drugs that may or may not be in the surrounding countryside, no other volunteers were going to be placed in the area and they didn't want to put someone else like me, without volunteer neighbors or support. They said that they'd do a security study and maybe get some volunteers out next year. I don't think its dangerous, I lived without doors on my house for almost a year and never had any problem. Not to mention, I like to run all over the countryside and have never had anything happen to me. Oh well. Guess Pepita and Cleo are going to Paraguayans. I hope they'll be ok.

7/26
Today is the day of the despedida (going away party). A 10 kilo (20 pound) pig, 15 kilos of pork meat, and 30 kilos of cow meat, sopa paraguaya (cheese corn bread), mandioca, rice salad, lettuce salad, 2x12 liters of beer, 2x12 3/4 liters of beer, 12x1 liter boxes of wine, a bottle of tequila, 1/4 bottle of vodka. I had quite a party planned and went to the radio in the morning to say goodbye and invite the town to come and eat (since I wasn't going to). Other people took care of setting up my house and cooking and such so I hung out with Minerva for a bit until things started to pick up. Once people arrived I brought a table from Yeni's with Rodi and taught beer pong, which was a pretty big hit. I was actually playing pretty well too. When the table got taken over for food serving I gave out the tequila and vodka shots and then chilled out drinking beer until everyone left. I think it was over around 2:30am, so not too bad, but I was pretty done.

7/27
Woke up very hung over with Rolando at my door in the morning looking for his jacket or something he left last night. He took me down to the store to pick up some water and bread to for breakfast to help my hangover and some toilet paper and soap (bathroom was destroyed). I spent pretty much the rest of the day cleaning my house and taking long breaks to nurse my headache. Mostly stuck with the bread for food. Visited Yeni a little in the afternoon. Her dog just died. Probably because all the hormones they injected into it so it wouldn't get pregnant even though it was already in heat. They'll want Pepita when I leave even more now to be security, but I really don't want to leave her there to be chained up all day and probably have the same fate at Ponchy. Poor thing.

7/28
Got up early to catch the 6am bus. I didn't have any food for breakfast really and wasn't feeling a chipa stop somewhere (pure animal fat and cheese) so bought some sugary cookies that were at least vegan. The lady said the 5am bus is the direct one and the 6am would go everywhere before hitting Encarnacion and I'd do better to take the other bus to pavement and change there, which I decided on. It only saved me about an hour, and cost me about double, but I still think it was kind of worth it. In Encarnacion I went down to zona baja to visit the post office and ask how much it would cost to ship one of my bags to the US so I didn't have to take it on the plane. I found the old location closed and no sign to say where the new post office was. I passed a DHL and the bag would cost like $250 with them so would not be worth it at all. They said I'd need around 50Kg. to make it worth it. From there I went to a restaurant across from the plaza and had a really good lunch of veggie ravioli with peso sauce and a big salad with strawberry juice to drink. It was a big splurge, but I felt it was very deserved. From there I went to the supermarket and picked up the dog food I wanted (meant to get cat food later at a vet to be cheaper, but I forgot) and since I was about back at the terminal for the 4pm bus I decided to skip out on yummy Japanese food for dinner or staying the night and ran to get Clara's dance shoes for her birthday present, some supplies for Cesar, Antonia, and Yeni that they had asked for, and the new Batman and Wall-E dvds. The bus home was uneventful and the last leg was almost empty so we got home pretty fast. I dropped off the supplies I had bought and went home for a nice shower and rest.


7/29
I don't really remember what I did during the day, but I started out with some yummy oatmeal and kiwis that I had picked up in Encarnacion. I think I probably got a run in and did some hanging out, reading more of "Buddhism without Belief," which I had never finished. I also hung out at Cesar's a little to watch the new Batman, which I had also picked up in Encarnacion. I didn't get to enjoy it too much, though, as Ornella wanted to play during it and it seemed really long. Minerva sent me a text when she was on her way back from Encarnacion that she would need help with all the stuff she bought for the pharmacy. When she got off the bus I went down with Pepita and we waited for Carlos, Teresa, and Javier to show up with the wheelbarrow. Carlos took a big box in that and Minerva and I carried a large bag together to her house. I was probably around 6pm and about dark out. I wanted to watch Wall-E, which I had also brought from Encarn, with Luz and she wanted to watch it at Javier's house, which I wasn't thrilled about. I decided to think on it and went back home with Pepita. I decided it'd be fine and went back down, leaving Pepita at my house. Luz, Javier, and I started the movie while Minerva watched her telenovela in the other room and Teresa went out for dinner at a neighbor's house. Luz eventually left and Minerva joined us to finish the movie. After it was over Javier wanted to go to bed and I wanted to head home so went to leave saying goodbye to Minerva in her living room and going out the front way. After I closed the gate to her patio behind me a guy ran up from out of the shadow at the side of her property. He had a blanket over his head so I could only see kind of around his eyes and he had a big knife in his right hand. He pushed me a little and made threatening gestures with the knife and toward the gate like he wanted me to open it. I was a little taken aback, obviously, but strangely not panicked or anything like that. From what I've learned in Jujitsu and the way he held the knife high over his head it would have been easy to disarm him, but instead I just kept looking at him and said I wouldn't open the gate, that it wasn't my or his house, and that I didn't have the key (even though there is no lock). When I finally thought that it must be a joke I asked if he was Rodi, even though they didn't look alike I assumed it had to be someone I knew pulling something. It is about there when I got stabbed in the lower left gut and pushed to the ground in front of the house. It was kind of a slash and some of my intestines came out a little. I thought the assailant started to leave so I started to call for help from Minerva when he came back. I said, "Look what you did to me," showing my guts, and he stabbed down two more times hitting my mid-right gut and my shoulder. I got the point that this guy was no good and got up and ran, loosing my flip-flops in the street. Strange enough, I was thinking to myself, "I've felt worse than this running before." I went about half a block around in front of another pharmacy on the corner of the street and hit the bells and lay down in front. It didn't look like anyone was home, but I wanted to be immobilized so I wouldn't bleed too much. Prof. Alberto happened to be passing and I waved his car down and when he saw me bleeding he took off to inform the Espinolas. I took the chance to grab a quick cellphone picture (see my flickr or facebook albums). Yeni freaked when she ran over and saw me but I told her to calm down and not try to pick me up and bring me to the hospital and they got me in Alberto's car and we made the trip to the clinic in Major Otanho. I met the prosecutor there to describe my attacker and they got some photos (I'll try to get copies). There wasn't much pain besides a king of knot in my stomach like I was going to have diarrhea. In the car I tried calling the PC doctor, Doctor Luis Valiente, but didn't get through so called Jason, the acting head of Peace Corps Paraguay, who coordinated things. At the clinic they couldn't do much besides sew up my shoulder, which was bleeding a bit from a cut vein, and put something over my guts for the trip to a bigger hospital for surgery. I didn't have to think twice to say Argentina. The ride there was pretty painful with all the bumps on the rocky dirt road, but we made it across the river. I wasn't really happy waiting for the ambulance on that side, but I eventually made it to the hospital. The worse thing there was the feeding tube up my nose that made me puke up everything I'd eaten since at least lunch (tasted of the apple I'd had at Minerva's though) and then just waiting for surgery. The knot in my stomach got worse and I was telling them to put me under up until my last moments of consciousness on the surgery table when they finally did just that. All in all it wasn't that long - I got stabbed probably around 8:30pm and was in surgery around midnight or 12:30, but obviously were not my favorite 4 hours ever.

7/30 - 8/2
So I woke up from the surgery and was pretty in and out of it for a bit in the therapy (kind of ICU) unit at the public hospital in ElDorado. I didn't have my own room, but things were separated by walls so I could only see the nurses station. The nurses and doctors were all very nice. Yeni stayed the whole time and came to see me during visit hours and Doctor Luis from the Peace Corps was also often there. The feeding tube really hurt my throat and I was very happy when I got that taken out. The tube for urine was good to get out, I guess, but then meant I had to pee on my own (homer simpson impression: "like a sucker!"). I didn't get shaved for the first few days I was there and the sponge baths were not that great (I was still pulling dirt out of my hair and wiping if off of my neck), so I took a picture. When I was around enough for the nurse to ask me if I wanted to wash my own junk I took pride in telling her I was there for the full service. I did eventually get one nurses' email address, but it was a different one. There was no entertainment beyond the radio that they nurses station had, but they generally brought pretty good music (it was kind of torture one night when they played all latin romantics though). The doctor lent me a book called "Confieso que soy Argentino," which I didn't get to finish, but really enjoyed the part I read. I also learned how bad some Paraguayans treat the Argentine staff, who are doing them a humanitarian favor in the first place by admitting them to this hospital. There was no love lost, though. When I told the head nurse how my doctor was planning to take me back to Asuncion, she said, "Why? The Paraguayans with money come to Argentina for treatment." It's true, and Peace Corps even recommended San Paulo for my next stop, but my doctor is Paraguayan and knows the Paraguayan hospitals and has contacts so I trust his judgment. Security came by to ask me some questions about my attacker and such, but overall it was a lot of trying to sleep for as many hours as possible during the day in the kind of dim room without any windows at eye level. On Saturday the 2nd I was put in an ambulance and brought about 2 hours to Puerto Iguazu airport, where I had flown in with Melissa, and boarded a private plane ambulance where we got a bird's eye view of the falls and I got a yummy sprite - the first food that wasn't a tiny portion of instant breakfast that was keeping me hungry. We got to Asuncion about an hour later and it was a quick ambulance ride to my hotel/hospital. The people that really need thanking during this time are Yeni, Doctor Luis, the nurses and doctors, and the people from my town who came to donate blood as I apparently lost a good amount (1.5 liters I think the nurse said). Now I share their blood and am really Paraguayan.

8/2 - 8/10
I'm in a private hospital in Asuncion, Paraguay. I have my own room, which is bigger than my room at my house. I have cable tv, a bed that I can control the tilt of, a fridge, my own bathroom, and seating for visitors. I also have a little button to call nurses, though they don't always show up right away, or the first time you press it. Its kind of like a nice nursing home or something with my 3 opening windows that give a nice view of the nearby neighborhood with blooming trees. I'm told it isn't for old people, though, and mostly just people with money who are visiting the hospital for things like pregnancies or other medical issues that need to be monitored. I received a lot of visitors here and want to especially thank Mabel, Jill (vegan oatmeal cookies and strawberries!), Carola (who brought my flowers from her and her husband!), Jason, Fernando, and my host family from Las Piedras. I wasn't too thrilled when Mabel's aunt came two times to try and sell me a pyramid scheme called Forever Living, which is out of Texas, but is getting big here. I was also pretty weak when I first got to the hospital and having visitors was pretty hard on me, giving me a fever one day after talking all morning. For that I put up a restricted visitors sign, which helped get the point across. It was also a shame that people wanted to visit more in the beginning, but now that I'm feeling better I don't get so much. I just wanted to mention the card on the flowers that Carola brought me, of which there is a picture on my flickr account, which says "OK, OK, we get it, you're invincible... No need for further proof, eh? :) Mejorate pronto." So sweet. So after a day or two I was taking a few steps and by the 8th I was even showering myself under the shower. I was supposed to leave that same day to stay in a nearby hotel, but I started to feel pretty bad in the afternoon and lost my appetite. I had been off the IV drip and was taking my antibiotics by pill and so it was thought that maybe they were just too strong for my weak stomach. Also, the waste exit (use your imagination) that they made for me in Argentina was a little small so I was backing up a little. It was decided I'd go back on the drip and stay at least the weekend. On the 9th they used a little electric cutter to open the hole a little more. Apparently there aren't any nerves on the intestine so I just lay there and listened to an electric popping sound with a little burned hair smell. I didn't feel like much dinner, but by Sunday the 10th was still showering for myself and walking around. There hasn't been much to do, but got some homework done for one of my online classes, the other teacher letting me suspend my work until I'm back in the states. I'm still not a big tv fan and there isn't much on, but a lethal weapon or steven segal movie now and again keeps me from going out of my mind and the BBC Worldnews channel has been good for a different perspective from CNN. Oh, and the hospital has been pretty good about my vegan diet (though I have to remind them about eggs and cheese sometimes). My doctor said my diet should help my condition and I attribute it (along with being in shape) to my fast recovery.

The plan for this week is to see how I'm doing tomorrow and drop the IV and move me back to pills and maybe move me to the hotel. I, at the very least, want to go to my swearing out ceremony, which is probably going to be Wednesday at the Peace Corps office. I'll then probably be flying back to the states on Thursday to hang out at home and consult with a surgeon there about putting me back to normal digestive and scar wise. These reversals usually have to wait a couple of weeks or months, but hopefully I'll have it all fixed for my birthday.

So I just look up and say its monday? Oh, but its past midnight thats why. Probably the reason my entries this time around are so short is I don't remember anything, maybe from lack of sleep. I try to remind myself what I'm up to with tweets, but that isn't always effective. Anyway, I'm currently running low on money and food and want to head into Asuncion this week to say goodbye to Brad and Tami before they head to the states. Also, if (I might not be getting one because they are worried about the security situation where I live) I'm getting a follow-up they will be coming back with me for Saturday. I'd also like to plan my going away party for this Saturday. We'll see. Anyway, this is my 200th post on this blog and I have just about 25 days left in country. Wow.

7/12
After I got off the computer I went for a run and had lunch and then met up with Minerva to drink terere for a little bit before they headed off to a fashion show in Otanho where Marcelo was going to be singing. I wasn't really dressed for it or anything so just hung out instead.

7/13
Got up with the cat in the morning and still feeling a little head cold, but not too bad. I got my run in and everything before heading to Otanho with Rolando to visit Hiroshi, who wanted to make me a going away lunch. His family was a little freaked out I didn't eat meat, they are a little more campo then where I live, but thats ok. I picked the cheese off the pizza and it was still good. We hung out and talked for a while and Hiroshi brought up a couple of interesting questions over terere after - did the moon landing really happen? is 9/11 a government conspiracy? doesn't bush's brother own a cleaning company that shut down the world trade center on 9/10 and planted bombs? Ummm, ok? I dunno, but I'm not really put off by these kinds of questions because there are still people that think I'm gathering intelligence. I'm not sure about what or who would care, but I could very well be! Bwhahaha. Anyway, I finished reading the Argentine Maxim I picked up and was a little taken aback that they've gone softcore porn - very much more Playboyish now - and I'm not sure how I feel about that. The articles were still good though, but I was second guessing myself if I wanted to pass it on to the Espinolas afterwards.

7/14
Happy Birthday Amy! Got to text this morning a little, but not sure how expensive it is for Verizon (its the same price as a regular text for me, but I just assume that services are always worse or more expensive in the states). Had a pretty good day and got some work done in the yard and a run in and terere with Minerva, Marcelo's sister who is visiting from Spain. Lunch at 4pm was a little late though.

7/15
Got some good gardening done in the morning, though I cut my thumb on something while breaking up dirt and weeding with my hands. I've got a good amount of peppers and cabbage - to to mention peanuts, potatoes, and beans, that it looks like I'm going to miss out on. At least I'll leave a little something to whoever moves in after me. On the way walking to the store in the morning I found out that they got more birth control shots at the vet so I took Pepita in the afternoon. She was not thrilled to be held down, but I eventually found a position to keep her still for the actual shot, which she didn't seem to even mind that much. Had some terere at Teresa's and let Minerva use my computer to talk to her boyfriend online.

7/16
Morning at home with a run at midday and then hung out with Minerva some more at her house. They were doing a chicken dinner and I helped by keeping the fire going and watching that it didn't burn the food so got a little cred from the senhoras there. Wasn't very vegan, though, so I took off as they were preparing to eat and had some food at home.

7/17
Woke up early with Pepita wanting to play at 6:30am. I had some mate and made some bread before getting my run in. In the afternoon I tried to start painting my house, but the roller I bought had a cheap plastic handle that broke right away and the paint brush was just so freaking slow I gave it up. Got a good amount of reading done for class.

7/18
Looking out of my window while preparing my breakfast, I caught my neighbor hacking away at the trees that line the road along my house. I asked what he was doing and he said he wanted to protect his electric cable and had asked permission to cut the branches near it. I said that was find and got along and went for a run. When I got back I found that he had hacked my trees down to their trunks and confronted him about lying to me. He just blew me off, which wasn't a good move - even if I was still in my running shorts and he was holding a machete. If he wasn't old and frail I might have hit him. Anyway, I told him he better at least clean up all the branches and put them in front of his house since last time he trimmed trees - on his property - he left all the refuse in front of my house. He said it wasn't my property and the town would clean it, but I told him no and he agreed to clean it up, but seeing as how he cut his electric cable (while trying to "protect" it!) he would do it after the electricity got fixed. Went and hung out with Minerva for a bit. She was in a bad mood, though, because her boyfriend didn't meet her online yesterday and today was going to have dinner with "some slut." It was amusing hearing her chew him out over the phone and then after hanging up turning to me and Marcelo and saying she always does that when she is mad and that he'd call back. Women. Worse - pregnant women - hormones and such. Seeing how it didn't look like anything was going to happen at night so I went home to do some reading for class. Rolando came by to invite me for a beer and he hung out a little, but I was already ready for bed so didn't go out.

7/19
Went and picked up some food and dropped off my medical kit at as a gift for Teresa. Visited the coop and Rolando's aunt Celina a little before going for a run. After my run I was still ticked off about all the branches laying outside my fence so I made a pile of them in front of my neighbor's house. He wasn't too happy, obviously, but because he had used the excuse that it was municipal property and they would clean it up for leaving it all in front of my house he had no reason for me not to. He stormed down to Teresa's house, since her daughter is the owner, and Minerva came to check it out and said what I was doing was fine so I made a nice, neat pile and felt better. The old guy and his wife apparently traded their farm for their house and haven't learned how to live with neighbors yet so I cut them some slack - even when they tie up their mule outside my window and it eats my bananas on my side of the fence (but it's tied up on muni property!). I'm as brave as a wasp according to the guy, who has more teeth then manners and not much of either, and I take that as a compliment. After cleaning up and eating I went to look for a birthday present with Minerva, but we didn't find anything. We went to her house and I shined my shoes and Javier's shoes while she ironed my shirt. I went home and got ready and when I came back, surprise, the women were still fussing around. We finally got going and just as we were making the turn about a block away the suspension went out and we had to call a cab. This, at least, gave us time to find presents at the store. Teresa and I made the church service before the party and it was a pretty good night. I think this 15th birthday was bigger than Brad's wedding and I'm told it probably ran around 50 million guaranis (about $12k). I danced with Minerva a bit - probably getting a lot of looks like I was the father since her belly was really showing with her dress - and we headed out around 1:45 to get the bus. The 2am bus was delayed with a flat tire, of course, so when I finally made it to bed around 3:30 I was good and tired.

7/20
Got woken up at 7:30 by very loud Paraguayan polka music, which after I got up mysteriously shut off. Made some mate and got to work on my homework, which was due today and managed to finish up by noon. After my run and some food I tried to take a nap, but Pepita wasn't having it. I went and visited with Cesar a little in the afternoon and then blew the rest of my free evening on the computer. What a waste.

Almost forgot

Also during my haircut I heard that at Mabel's brother's house in the San Francisco neighborhood a few kilometers away they had a jaguarete show up and scare a bunch of people. I'm happy to know this animal can still find somewhere to live with all the cleared land and pesticides they use. I hope the people don't hunt it down out of fear.

Picture source: http://www.wwf.org.py

As for today: after I got off the computer I went for a run and had lunch and heard back from my group about a class project and came back online to check it out. I haven't heard from anyone about English class today so I assume no one is interested. Oh well.

Getting nostalgic already

Beautiful weather recently. I already miss it.

7/10
After running around mid-day I went and had terere at Teresa's house with her daughter Minerva, who is visiting from Spain. Hiroshi came over to invite me to a bbq at his place on Sunday for my going away and so we had an American, a Japanese, a Paraguayan, and a Paraguayan/Spaniard (she is getting her papers after living there like 5 or 6 years). Also heard about her boyfriend who is from Peru, but is kind of a hippie and has traveled all over and they met in Spain. She is 4 months pregnant with another son (Javier is her son too) and since she couldn't work at the restaurant she was at in her condition she came back to visit her family. I ended up staying for dinner (vegan cream of squash and salad - they added cheese to their soup) and a couple beers (Teresa bought some dark beer, but it was the Brazilian Colonia beer that is almost as sweet as soda).

7/11
Besides leaving for a run around mid-day and then to get my haircut and pick up some groceries I spent the whole day at home reading for class (with some procrastination measures thrown in of course) and then did an assignment and took a quiz and before I knew it it was 4am and I was looking at laptop reviews online. In the meantime Pepita and Cleo had wandered into my room and were snoring comfortably on my bed. I grabbed my sleeping bag and tried to work out a space for me too and got to bed - not without waking up Pepita who went on a 30 minute loud flea search, but oh well. The upside of the day was probably the mate and then fried soy with middle easter spices that somehow reminded me of these turkey burgers with swiss I used to get from a diner next to KPMG. Something about the texture and spices. Anyway, I'm happy sticking with the soy, though will probably try not to do it in such a fried/oily/unhealthy manner. They day was good overall, but if there was a downside it was Mabel telling me I was balding and that my hair is super fine and almost transparent and talking about it with another guy waiting for his haircut while I'm there. I guess it was good she took a break to stop complaining about how much better Caaguazu is than Lopez, but still kind of annoying.

Oh also, for those looking for an investment opportunity in Paraguay - a few days ago on marketplace (marketplace.org) they talked about the coca cola/cargill partnership to sell stevia and stevia sweetened products in the US. When I told Brad about it he said that the Stevia factory his wife used to work at in Asuncion was bought by Cargill so you are getting a Paraguayan product (now in New York, soon to be all over the US under the Truvia brand). I think it will do well as "natural" products are really in. I like ka'a he'e (stevia) in my mate with other herbs, but it is pretty strong.

7/12
Got up with the cat and dog pretty much on me with a text message asking if there was English class today. Sure, it was only around 4 hours of sleep, but I wasn't getting back to bed so I made some mate and started reading for my class. By the time I took the quiz and got other stuff done online that I wanted to it was already noon. These lazy Saturdays are nice.

Today's iGoogle Horoscope

You may have already missed your chance if you withheld the expression of your desires because you were afraid of the possible consequences. But all is not lost, for you will have ample opportunities ahead. In the meantime, however, you might do better transforming your cravings for personal love into something more spiritual as Venus now moves through your 12th House of Soul Consciousness.

Playing catchup

Time is winding down. Scary.


6/28
Hung out on a pretty boring Saturday. Went online to check the Argentine Pumas' rugby match. In the afternoon I hung out with Rodi at his place and we watched the Matrix, TNT was showing all 3 of them in a row, and drank mate.

6/29
Cleaned my house in the morning and was waiting for someone to come over, but they ended up having a lot of work. I got tired of hanging out so headed over to the health post and hung out for a while with the secretary. After that I visited Yeni's and then had mate at Mariela's before heading home.

6/30 - 7/1
Not much went on. I visited the muni to see if the secretary of the environment would come talk at the school and he said it would be better after the winter vacations are over in a couple of weeks so we could prepare something. I continued talking to some girl that Lili, the girl at the coop, gave my number to. This other girl, Celina, is super skinny, though, and needs to eat something. Oh, I also had an English class with a girl Georgina (Yorgina?) and her sister at their house that went pretty well, but I'm not sure if there will be a follow up.

7/2
Got into Asuncion around 6 and headed to the office where I got my workout, run, and shower in. I was happy to have baked some bread yesterday and brought it with me for breakfast. I then had my dentist appointment and went and had the lab work done that I needed for my Peace Corps medical papers. After finishing everything up, I met Jen for a yummy vegetarian/vegan chinese food lunch. After lunch, I left Jen and went and got a massage, which was nice-if not a little painful. After the massage I headed to the office where it seemed like everyone was working on the photo project for the embassy party Friday and their COS materials. I went back to the hotel and met up with Claudia, who wasn't feeling that well. It seems like pretty much all the volunteers are either sick or just getting over being sick. I'm so glad I'm a healthy vegan and am impervious to their diseases! bwahaha! Anyway... we made it out to a cafe and met up with Jen and had some tapas and some wine and I think we called it an early night from there.

7/3
Since tomorrow is a holiday I wanted to try and get as much work done as I could at the office. I got my physical and some other paperwork done, but didn't finish all of it. I also wasn't able to get my language test done so after lunch I decided to postpone the rest of it and I headed to the park to get a run in, which was very nice. In the evening people went out so I had the hotel room pretty much to myself. I started a bottle of wine I had picked up and started writing a paper about my Peace Corps service that was due. I managed to finish the paper, and the bottle of wine, and started reading for my accounting class, but it was pretty late and the reading was not that interesting after the wine so shortly after Jen made it back with her date I was in bed and asleep.

7/4
Happy Independence Day! So I wasn't too festive today and skipped out on the party at the Embassy, but what good are hot dogs and hamburgers to a vegan anyway. I spent the morning getting work done for class on the computer and the headed to the park in the afternoon to get my run in. By the time I got back people were starting to show up from the embassy party. Our plans weren't to go out for a little while so some people, including my roommates Jen and Claudia, were thinking of taking a nap. I changed their minds with a bottle of wine and some snacks (vegans have to be prepared before going to new restaurants). The deal was that Jen's new boy toy could stay the night without having to pay for the hotel (we wouldn't charge him for last night because it wasn't planned) if I brought someone back too. It didn't end up happening, but I still had a fun night regardless. The actual going away party for my group was pretty lame. The restaurant we went to might have been nice, but the wine they recommended and hugely overcharged for was nasty and my salad was small, expensive, and lame. I had made a much better one in the hotel room the night before for a lot cheaper. From there we went to open mike night and Kyle and Doug were awesome, as always, but most of the other music was so slow (or bluegrassy) that it just didn't put me in a festive mood. Brad had been planning on going dancing late night, but everyone was being lame and didn't want to pay the cover charge for the clubs or anything so I took off on my own around 2 and hit a nearby club. It was a little expensive, but very much worth it. Like I said, I left alone, but still had a good time and got back to the hotel around 4:30 or so.

7/5
Got up early, around 3 hours of sleep, so I could make sure my class work was done. After finishing that up on the computer and having some breakfast at the hotel I headed out to take my Spanish language test, which was really just an interview. I had to take two buses to get there, which was about an hour away, but at least I got it done. The lady said I was very close to superior level (the highest, which is basically native), but that I still have to work on some grammar issues so I got advanced high, which is basically that you understand people and they understand you, but you still make some errors. After the interview I met up with a girl from my training community at the mall for lunch. After she left I went with Jen and Claudia to meet Brad at a cafe. I was super tired at this point and had 2 black coffees to little effect. I really liked the fruit juice blend I had though. It was a nice cafe I'd never been to, but not too vegan friendly on the food and deserts. There was no way I was going to make the 7pm bus back to site so I had to figure out what to do. I considered staying another night and going to the expo with Brad and Tami the next day and maybe visiting Brad's site on Monday with him, but I was out of clean clothes and if I had stayed another night I would have felt pressured to go to the club again and might not have survived from lack of sleep. Instead I went to the hotel and packed up and showered and had a bottle of wine with Claudia and Jen and hung out until heading to the bus terminal to catch a midnight bus to Encarnacion.

7/6
Slept really well on the bus and got into Encarnacion around 6am. I could have used a couple more hours, but it was ok. I bought my ticket for the 8am bus to my site and then walked around a little while before going to the supermarket, which opened at 7. I managed to pick up some dog and cat food, which I hadn't gotten in Asuncion. I thought about getting some more stuff for me, but decided I'd get it in Argentina when I got back to site. The bus ride to site wasn't eventful, but I didn't get to sleep really. There was some idiot who thought the ringtones on his cellphone were music and kept playing them over and over, which got old really fast. I made it to site around 1pm and got a short run in. Visited Yeni's house in the late afternoon and watched Kung-Fu Panda and another movie, which I had brought from Encarnacion.

7/7
Borrowed the (m) from Yeni - first time with manual - and went to the port to go to Eldorado. I made it ok and picked up a bunch of food and said goodbye to the health food store guy. The magazine place didn't have this month's cosmo yet or the sewing magazine that Yeni wanted, but I got my Maxim. I made it back on the last boat before lunch and was able to get a run in before eating back at home. I got a call from Lucas that he wanted me to look at his new computer and from some kids that they wanted English class so we all met at the school at 3 and we had class and I looked at Lucas' computer. He brought me a bunch of really yummy oranges too, which was awesome. After class I went to the coop to pay my bill and pickup a package that the school in the US sent me full of thank you cards. It was really sweet. After that I went to Yeni's and we watched another movie that I brought from Encarnacion.

7/8
Felt pretty energetic in the morning so I ended up hoeing my whole back yard, which had become pretty overgrown with weeds. Hoeing is pretty tiring. I managed to get a workout in after, though, so by the time I headed down to teach English I was pretty tired. Class was kind of a joke, but whatever. I wanted to get my haircut afterwards, but there was someone already there so I went to go buy paint for my house. It was pretty heavy walking back, but luckily I didn't have to go far as Rolando helped me get it to my house. When I went back to the hair salon (Mabel's), Yeni was there with Clara and Luz and after waiting a little bit it was clear it was going to be a while so I went home and washed my floors and organized a little before watching Iron Man and going to bed.

7/9
Got up and wasn't really sure what I wanted to do in the morning. There were a lot of options - painting, gardening, fumigating, class homework, getting a haircut, etc. Ended up taking it a little easy and got some emailing done and a little bit of catching up on the blog (almost 2 weeks without writing anything) before starting the day. My phone's connection isn't that great anymore. I don't know if I dropped it too much or if its just being saturated from other people using their phones to access the internet (there aren't any other options around here). Either way, its been a year and is probably time for a phone upgrade.