Saturday, November 28

Usually the 6th graders get a trip to the zoo or some other like excursion at the end of the school year. This year, because dthe government said there was “seismic activity (????),” instead of fun excursions, the sixth graders got to sit in the sun while the volunteers gave them juicy tidbits about their native countries, such as “there are a lot of mountains in Austria” and “We enjoy skiing.” Then they received prizes (some of them got watches (1 size fits all…girl or boy) or a very large box of chocolates that had been melting in the heat. Then we served them lunch (rice and beans, which everyone seems excited to eat, even though that’s what they have for breakfast, lunch and dinner. But this is a very poor school in a very poor neighborhood out in the boonies, so perhaps it is exciting to see rice and beans. The large group is a bunch of teens who came all the way from Australia to build a classroom for the school. they toil in the torrid temperatures cementing blocks.This girl has a least 6 braids in there. I can barely get one braid of my hair. After Little Miss Salsa Shimmy danced, Pauline remarked to me, “No wonder they’re pregnant by the time they hit high school.”Thanksgiving with Karina. Margarita’s spread included pretty much all of the traditional Thanksgiving dishes, except they copped out on dessert. The buffet only included cookies and cupcakes. Not a pie to be seen. In addition to a big turkey, there was ham, although I don’t recall pilgrims and indians pigging out on ham. The unfortunate woman behind the turkey needed the carving expertise of Kathy. No one can slice up a gobbler like my sister. The woman had a long line and a dull knife. Karina, who lives on rice and beans, was a good sport about trying everything except she drew the line at stuffing. It tasted really good but didn’t look particularly appetizing. We chatted for 2 hours in Spanish. She’s 18, her father split when she was little (as most here do…except for Daniel) and, when I asked how many people live in her house, she had to count up to 13 assorted relatives. Her task is to cook dinner for 8 of them every other night. She attends university in Managua on Saturdays and is the first in all of her family to go to college. She wants to make a career of fixing computers and cellphones. Chrissian, my housekeeper, asked when she could bring her 2-month baby to meet me. I thought saying, “never” would be rude. Her 12-year old daughter came with her. Fatima immediately immersed herself in her phone which is what I wanted to do, rather than coo. I find babies singularly uninteresting. I did pry interesting information from Chrissian about Casa Pilas. Apparently, the owners decided to wait until I go home rather than making me vacate for the 10 days of Thanksgiving. They’re coming for Xmas instead. I’m hoping maybe she’ll make some additional improvements before I return in March. At some point she must notice how annoying it is not to have a door on the master bathroom. Daniel and I use the honor system. How about toilet roll holders? Light in the kitchen would be too much to ask.