Back in the day...

Just going though old pics -- decluttering -- and found this gem. Me, somewhen in the early 1980s, I think.

Classes Start Tomorrow

But first, an update! I DID go with the OCC college kids to Guatemala for the last week in May... it's only money, right? Very different from my last time in this country: stayed in HOTELS with hot water and swimming pools, ate mostly at restaurants, and (BIGGEST DIFFERENCE) traveled with a large group -- we were 19 people at most meals. It was crazy at times, but good, and I'm glad I got to spend the time with the young folks and Josh, one of our ministers. Most of the time was spend working on a dormitory that will make it easier for the mountain kids to attend high school -- right now the ministry there is paying for them to stay with families in the "flatlands" and the project will make a big financial difference. So our team worked on tiling four large bedrooms... except me, who got to do electrical wiring -- guess I was there for a reason. We also spent one day in Antigua to do the requisite visit to el mercado... I exercised some restraint: I only bought a machete (all the boys were buying them, mom) and a hammock (much more my speed). Maybe I'll get around to posting some photos... later.

Summer quarter '08 I've been invited to teach again at International Academy of Design Technology -- four classes, a "full" load for an adjunct: English Composition II, College Success, Speech, and tutoring students on writing and English. Thankfully I've taught EngCompII and College Success before, and the tutoring doesn't require lesson plans or grading, so I will hopefully not be as swamped as my first term here back in January.

When I last spoke with Molly of Powersystems Coaching I decided to switch to a monthly "meeting" -- she's very helpful and I'm making headway, but it's just fiscally foolish of me to keep spending like I'm earning a full-time salary. So that's it for now.

I've also joined a couple of meetups at www.meetup.com: Central Florida Messies, about dealing with clutter and organization in our lives, and Orlando Spanish Cultural Language Group, where we get together to practice our Spanish-language skills and experience some of the local arts, music, &ctera. AND I just remembered to join the Florida Kayak/Canoe Meet Up, started by my friend and neighbor, Greg, of Adventures in Florida... and, of course, while browsing I had to join the Florida FairTax Group, something I feel strongly about.

What else? My son Charles is on his way home from Dublin, Georgia right now -- took the long Fourth of July weekend to go visit his new girlfriend at her parents home. And he even called me about 1:30 this afternoon to tell me he was on the road; what a great kid!

I really should be doing more prep for the classes starting tomorrow.

Stuck in O-Town Again

Like a bug in amber, or a mastodon in a tar pit, I've been staying close to home for far too long. I'm tempted to join the OCC youth group on their upcoming trip to Guatemala, but it would be a foolish financial decision.

Much has happened since I last posted, but I'm not going to play catch-up for the whole time -- jeez, it's been almost a year!


The biggest pieces of the puzzle are that my construction project hit some bumps in the road, is still months away from finished, and may get started again soon. Stevie gave me a friend's phone number; Rich is a remodeling contractor and seems to be very professional -- and so far his numbers seem reasonable.

But I just quit the job I'd been doing for 4-1/2 weeks, teaching at Orlando Marine Institute, an alternative school of about 50 teenagers assigned there by Florida's Department of Juvenile Justice. It was touch and go as to my staying there, but it ended up with "go" when I found myself getting too angry at a few students' behavior. So now I'm unemployed again, kicking myself for leaving so soon instead of finding something else first, and scared that my money's running out. Crap.

After I met with Rich today and talked about prices for finishing the mother-in-law suite project (even though I'm divorced and have no prospective m-in-l's waiting in the wings), I spent most of the day searching job listings on the web... bummer...and feeling depressed. Talked with Janice today -- messed up yesterday: I had offered to cook at the coalition on Mothers' Day but forgot in the turmoil of fresh joblessness, M-day lunch with Chas and Yaya at Red Lobster's, and my usual bring-Andrew-lunch afternoon. Anyhow, she was very forgiving, kind and pleasant.

Enough for now. Maybe more tomorrow. Hopefully I'm back on track with this blog. For the select few, there's also www.stinkincats.wordpress.com, but it's a secure, invitation-only blog, mostly about my thoughts on clutter and organization and my adventures in being coached by Molly of Powersystemscoach.com.

Almost Home...

Looking from Flores to the mainland


Almost sunset


Breakfast view


The staircase


Looking down the staircase

Just another 8 to 9 hour bus ride on a "luxury liner" with Linea Dorada, the maybe-premium coach tour company here in Guatemala. The trip here was horrific: my next-door neighbor overflowed into my seat; my carefully chosen 'avoid sitting near the bathroom' location failed miserably (never assume... the bathroom was in the center of the bus!); I spent 6 hours trying to call SpiritAir (yes, I procrastinated) to change my flight to Friday (successful, thank you, Lord!); and at 3:00 a.m., when I'd finally been asleep an hour and a half, we had a stop at a "departamento" border to check for illegal transport of fruit. Next time I'll either fly or take the "camioneta" (chicken bus): the first one is only financially uncomfortable, and the second is clearly designed to be as miserable as possible, so the pain is expected, understood, and somehow more tolerable.

To my surprise, when I arrived in Flores and waited the expected 1.5 hours for the shuttle to Tikal, we did not get our rooms or a chance to shower, etc. Instead, we got a running commentary from a guide named "Nixon," and then dumped our bags, and took off for our tour of the ruins. It was all very interesting, and was perhaps even more surreal having had only two broken hours of sleep. Photos to follow.
The hotel was nice, but like life on a tour-ship, everything was a la-carte after the "package, Plan B" wore off... so no agua-pura in the room (Q20), nor shampoo (brought some), and electricity only was on from 6:30 pm to 10:30 pm (expected, diesel generators). But the pool smelled wonderfully of chlorine and was delightful, the food at the restaurant wasn't bad, and I met some very nice folks along the way: Julie and Brian of Berkeley, CA, Frank and Marty, teachers; and Guiermo and Laura, de Buenos Aires, Argentina. And our guide, Constantino, was knowledgable and interesting.

Once back, I found the town of Flores to be quite touristy, but not as bad as Panajachel... no children following you around insisting you buy their trinkets, just the requisite number of stores with Gallo-beer t-shirts and the like.

Need to run for the bus... hurry up and wait... then sleep in Guatemala tonight and fly home tomorrow, Lord willing... I'm really looking forward to home.

P.S. almost missed the stupid bus back to Guatemala City; my ticket reads "Departure Time: 10:00" but that meant from the bus depot on the mainland, not the pickup spot on the island of Flores... that departure was at 9:30. After a couple of frantic phone calls and a wild tuk-tuk ride across the bridge and past the busy market, I made it with a minute or two to spare.

Blue Plastic Tarps and 24 People in Bill's Old Truck

More on the transportation here... 'cause I just can't get over it: just rode here to Columba in the rain with 4 other friends and about 15 other strangers (now family)... in the back of a 20-year-old mini-pickup. When the rain really got going the people in front pulled the large blue sheet of plastic over the metal framework (for holding onto) and hunkered down. Me being one of the tallest people in town, and in the back of the truck bed, I got to be an anchor point - yee-haw!

I'll try to get a photo of this arrangement before I leave, but the camera's at home (where it's dry).

Clearly I've got a mixed-up westernized view of life here... I'm certain every person in the truck would love to have their own convenient and dry form of transport... but there's still an amazing power of life, of overcoming, here in rural Guatemala.

A few more days to school here in the mountains, then back to (stinky) Xela-Quetzaltenango, and then... who knows?

Maybe a trip to Tikal, to see some centuries-old ruins (and a lot of tourists, I assume).

Hope everyone is having a great 4th... I'm sorry I'm missing the cookout (I would LOVE one of Greg's monster burgers right now!)

Take care!

Volcanic Dandruff

Just rode into Columba in the back of a very crowded pickup with Jennifer, a Kansas City, Missouri teacher. This morning brought a cloud of fine volcanic ash, much like the oak pollen of central Florida, except white instead of golden, so all of us passajeros have a fine coating of dust... and I'm grateful for my eyeglasses for a change.

The transport system here is something the USA could take lessons from... just add an automatic disclaimer, "I will not sue the vehicle's owner or operator," and this totally privatized network seems to move people and stuff to the various destinations with moderate efficiency and next to no comfort. And if ever there were a place that could use clean fuel, like electric or hydrogen, it is Guatemala.

I cannot rave enough about my satisfaction and gratefulness to be here at the Mountain School... bugs are a, to me, slight problem, but the teachers, living arrangements, and scenery are spectacular. My only slight complaint is that in living in the hostel-like environment of the school and eating alone in a family's home, one student per family, I greatly miss the lack of communal cooking and eating (most of the families eat at different times and serve the students seperately). This came into focus when we enjoyed the weekly Cena International (Int'l Dinner - I made veggie chili with Valerie, a grad student from NY... ) I can't wait to get back to the Marks Street Pot-Luck Suppers!

Yesterday morning I took a hike to a waterfall, el cataracta (? no dictionary handy?) with Jorge a strong, small man who knows a lot about plants and wildlife... I've got a few pages of notes on medicinal herbs from his garden tour. Round-trip to the waterfall was about 2.5 hours, not too strenuous, but the altitude still has me struggling with the uphill parts. The three good-natured and extremely stinky dogs from the school came with us, and we all were a bit tuckered out by the time we got home. After showering and washing (by hand, on a stone 'pila' or sink) my filthy clothes, I lay-laid down,and the afternoon rains pounding the metal roof overhead were a perfect lullaby.

Jorge at the waterfall



Yours truly

Fresh Air, at Last... but a Dark Side, too.

Leaving the city was a great decision, and I'm very grateful it worked out... the air is much better up-down here (The 'mountain school' is actually at a lower altitude than Xela...). The folks running both schools are great, and the teachers are fine, too... but I don't miss the smell of diesel smoke at all.

All is not tranquil here in the mountains, though... yesterday morning I arrived at the family's home for breakfast and was greeted by the news that the baby girl next door, 'Esperanza' (somewhat ironic - it means 'Hope') had died early that morning. In Nuevo San Jose, this small community of roughly 35 families, everyone is affected by this event. The school took a collection to help with things, as is the custom here, and most of the day yesterday centered on this depressing event. Apparently, the little girl had a fever for a few days prior, but her mom, Maura, didn't realize it was 'fuego,' which may or may not be scarlet fever... it's very hard to tell. The funeral is later today in a nearby town where most of the families attend a Catholic church. Prayers for the family... and your choosing to learn more about Guatemala's horrible infant mortality rate... are all very welcome. I don't know how many children died while I was in Xela, but the size of this place and the nearness bring things into a very differnt focus.

I'm presently in Columba, the nearest town with a market and internet. My visit today is to check email and write this blog and buy some groceries for the upcoming (tomorrow night) Cena International (international dinner).

Catch you all later.