The Latest

I have a lot of little tid bits to share, so sorry for the lack of cohesiveness in this entry.

Well, the bus strike ended last Friday, but Peace Corps advised us not to travel as usual. The maras didn't get what they wanted, but all has seemed to resume to normal this last week. The only scary thing is that MS-13 and 16 were united on this last front which means the gang strength is increasing. I just hope that the buses don't become too dangerous to travel on before my service ends.

Speaking of buses, I had such enjoyable experience the other day at 8am. I was sitting on the bus with my backpack in the seat next to be because the bus wasn't too full. This bolo (drunkard) comes up and slames himself down on my stuff and snuggles up real close and proceeds to speak broken English to me. I pushed him off me a bit and told him often in English. He fell on the floor and got off the bus in a few stops. Thank god. I hate dealing with men in this country. Some of them are good, but a lot of them aren't, at least when it comes to women. Ugh.

I'm planning on getting a cat soon. I told myself I wouldn't get a pet during Peace Corps, but I have to; it's the best solution to my ever increasing rat problem. Lately, it's gotten to be too much for me and my neighbors told me getting a cat is the best option. I hear them making noise all night long now, scurrying around. I think I've had enough. Gross.

In better news, the young girl who I thought was stealing from me left my community. The bad thing, she married some old guy with family in the states in order to get out of here. Maybe it'll be good for her, force her to learn something; I just hope that doesn't come with too high a price.

The other day Modestito, my little three-year-old neighbor who often proves to be a little pain in the ass, came to my door all dressed up from church and brought me a flower. It was the cutest thing I've ever seen. I adore him...sometimes.

Also, I started Como Planear Mi Vida this week and it went really well. The kids actually listened and participated. I got these bratty little kids who never listen, talking about who they admire, what their dreams are, and what is most important to them. Go figure, spice up the cirriculum a bit and you get some responses from these kids. They said things I thought would never come out of their little mouths. I guess I'll be able to humanize these kids a bit more than I thought. Then again, they never cease to surprise me with their lack of knowledge. At the end of the class, they noticed the sticker I had on my water bottle, a peace sign (I know, real cool --I got it for some charity donation I made). The kids asked me if it was the "nazi symbol." Great, not only do they not know what the difference is, they think I'm a nazi? I have my work cut out for me. Baby steps.

This next week I hope to get my HIV classes started. I tried, but failed this week. Big surprise. This week was dedicated to Central American independence, so there were all these other activities going on, preventing me from teaching. And then, the kids had Wednesday off for Independence Day. I swear, I'll be impressed if the school makes it through a full week with everyone in class.