I need a word to say what I can't say..... [entries|friends|calendar] Enigma [ website | peace.....love.....music! ] [ userinfo | livejournal userinfo ] [ calendar | livejournal calendar ]

(2 random notes | post-it) back from long field practicum [21 Mar 2004|05:30pm] [ mood | giddy ] I had gripe (a really bad cold) for almost the whole time but I did what I could. Here is a list of the things we accomplished on our visit 1. a dental charla in the school which was a HUGE hit 2. a nutrition charla for a women's group 3. we built two fogons (wood-burning indoor ovens) 4. we made 2 losas (the cement floors to the latrine) 5. and finally we managed to partially complete a latrine for a family with 9 kids (currently pregnant with the 10th) It was an eventful week. We travelled to the department of Caaguazu to a site where a PCV named Gabby is currently serving. She is also an RHE volunteer beginning her second year of service. Its a beautiful town called San Jose de los Arroyos. I was quite taken with the scenery since I haven't seen so many green hills and so many fireflies. We only stayed for 5 days but I am glad that we got so much done and that we left something tangible. The reason the latrine didn't get done was b/c after the first meter of digging the hole, the soil suddenly turned into hard clay. It has to be 2 meters deep to be sanitary so we spent more time digging than planned. At least we got the hole and the losa done. All the dad has to do now is make the house to surround it (he chose to use bamboo instead of bricks b/c its cheaper) and put the black pipe in that kills the flies. They will soon have 12 people using that latrine and I was glad we got there when we did since the one they had now was cardboard :-(. Sad but true. The big test is now over. In a little more than a week, we finally get our site assignments! The only word to describe all of this is "finally". I can't think of anything that could sum it up better :-).....

(post-it) heavy times and things to consider [12 Mar 2004|05:35pm] [ mood | concerned ] [ music | some cachacra ] The news from Spain coincided with a building collapse here in Asuncion so the news coverage has not been as much as the other. Nico, one of the guys in my group siad that apparently, there was supposed to be a bomb in Paris too and he was upset b/c his mom is currently on vacation there. Good God, when the fuck is this all going to end?! I feel bad for being at the other side of the world right now. Then again, if I was at home, I still would be pretty far from those whom this has affected the most. Msondo and Kimya, I hope you both are okay. I can't think of any comforting words that you haven't already heard but you're in my thoughts. Next week is our long field practice. We will be heading to an actual PCV site to practice all of the things we have done. We'll be doing charlas in the schools, building 2 latrines and then building 2 fagons. I get to be one of the people who gets to spend time with the women's group which I am quite excited about. RHE (rural health extention) will be split in half for this week and my half will be traveling about 3 hours south of Asuncion. Unfortunately, I don't remember the name of the town we are headed to but I do know that I will be placed in a Guarani speaking household. I'm a little nervous but I'll have no choice but to try to adapt. Another reason for my nerves is that the majority of people who ET (early terminate) during training do so after this long field practice. They get a taste of the work its going to take and if they can't handle it, they bail. I know don't want to bail but if I truly feel like I can't handle it, what am I going to do? The thought scares me b/c I just can't take failing like that. I truly want this to work out and so far, the support system is great. Swearing in is so close I can taste it. I can't let that slip away. All I can do know is roll up my sleeves and jump right in. Wish me luck gang. I hope to pass this next test.....

(post-it) week 5 [03 Mar 2004|06:18pm] [ mood | tired ] It's hard to believe that I am almost at the half-way mark training-wise. As much as I complain about Guarani being hard, I think I have still managed to retain some pretty well. Mba'echapa everyone! I hope you are all ipora. We have gone past the honeymoon stage as well and we now realize the hard work it is going to take. It finally hit me yesterday when we were doing a charla (tech lesson) about local politics and resources. We will be working WITH communities rather than FOR them. I knew this all along but sometimes the way to go about the final goal is not quite what you expected. For instance, it is a good idea not to bring in outside funds for a major project (I wasn't planning on it) but in order to fund something, you will need to go to the local municipal office and/or have fund raisers. I have never been in charge of a fundraiser before so the idea is a little scary. I didn't come here not knowing that this sort of work will be involved but not guessing completely before-hand can startle you one the facts are laid out before you. I am startled but I am still looking forward to getting to my site. We will know where we will be placed at the end of this month and in the first week of April, we head over there for a visit. We begin serving during the first week of May after swearing in. PC encourages us to integrate into the community for the first 3 months which is fine with me but I know that being the way I am, I may see it as a waste of time at times. Sitting out and drinking terere and just popping in for random visits is not me since I am the kind of person who feels the need to constantly do something productive. I know that those first 3 months are crucial since during that time, you need to gain the trust of the community and there is no other way to do that but to just jump right in. I look forward to that time since I know that in the evenings, I don't have to be anywhere and I am free to listen to music and read books like I normally would in the States. Training has been such a packed schedule anyway so a bit of breathing room is welcome. Now that the honeymoon is over, I am glad that reality has set in. Tomorrow I have to do an informal Spanish charla about funerals. The cemetaries here are amazing! I know it sounds ghoulish, but I would like a tomb like the ones they have here :-). Stange I know but they are so elegant and dignified that I have not felt sad anytime I saw one. Just respectful really and I think it is a beautiful sight. Training has had its ups and downs. Its fascinating and its boring. Its misunderstandings too. Most PCV's and RPCV's tell me that training is not what you remember afterwards and that its a good thing. I may feel the same so we'll see. I have to admit that some concerns have seeped in. I have not succeeded in communicating with anyone and it seems that no one has communicated with me. I understand that my situation is different but I would have hope that being here by this point I would have at least heard something from someone. I can't get too worked up about that since I still have the two years after this but I think the feelings are unavoidable all the same. Other than that, things are still going well. I would like more time to update this but I will do the best I can. Everyone, take care.

(3 random notes | post-it) Paraguay observations [21 Feb 2004|04:49pm] [ mood | chipper ] I would have liked to have updated about 2-3 weeks ago but training has been quite busy. Its rigorous (6 days a week for about 7-8 hours a day) but fun. Guarani is still kicking my ass but we're about to start our 4th week in language so I am hoping that it will improve. Now for observations (or things that will get some getting used to). 1. It is impossible to be germ-phobic in this country. If you are germ-phobic, you don't belong in this country. Its as simple as that. You won't always know what was in your water or where it came from but if you are thristy enough, you will drink it. Sure there are things to be weary of (such as jardia) but sometimes the cure is worse than the illness so if you're strong enough, you can let it run its course. I recently went to the city of Villarica and I may or may not have had contaminated well water but in 4-6 weeks, I will know for sure. I'm not worried though. 2. I went to Villarica to see a volunteer in the same sector as me who has been here for a year. Its basically 5 days to observe what my life could be like. Sine the road leading out to her site was all mud when I got there, it was 4 days before I could actually see the place. In that time though, I did get to see just how good we have it in our training sites since there are so many different standards of living in this country. The PC is doing a good job of essentially "de-glaming" our surroundings. First we were in this posh 4 star hotel in Miami. Then we were at this retreat camp place in Asuncion, and then we are now in several small towns surrounding the capital. I guess these are what we would call suburbs since everything you could ever need is in the town. Out in the campo, you realize that where you will be living and what you will be dealing with are entirely different than your pampered training site. Sure, we are used to more luxurious surroundings but most of us PCT's were missing our towns and not our homes in the US. Its funny how that happened and we now see just how privilaged we are. 3. It has bearly been 3 weeks and we are starting to incorporate Spanish and Guarani words into our everyday English! The most common word we keep using is "chuchi" which is a Guarani word that means extravagant. We now describe anything fancy as "chuchi" and no one raises an eyebrow when we do. I expect that the more words we learn, the more that will occur. Al pelo ;-)! 4. Latrines. I won't go into detail here but let me say this: a latrine is NOT an outhouse! There is a trick to it and if you're sqeamish, then you're screwed, hee hee! I don't have one in Tacuruty (my training site) but that what we will have in the campo. 5. Certain things I had to see to believe. Namely: yes the toilets do flush the other way and yes it is currently summer here. The heat is unbearable at times but that's b/c I lived in Texas but stayed indoors for the air-conditioning. I am currently some orange-tan color (nat flattering BTW) so you can imagine that I am anxiously awaiting autumn (I think that starts in March). If the weather is good this March, I might just plan a trip to Cuzco in Peru (home of Machu Pichu) by that time next year. I'm keeping my fingers crossed for that one. 6. Driving here is crazy! Monterrey in Mexico was much worse but here, if you let someone else do the driving, you'll be hanging on for dear life. If you drive yourself, you won't be assertive enough in their eyes so you may get lots of people mad at you anyway. We're not allowed to drive while we are down here and personally, I wouldn't want to. The buses here are just as bad. I'm sure a vehicle here has a certain weight capacity but that doesn't seem to matter. You cram as many people as you can to maxime the profit. A crowded bus goes much slower obviously but my concern would be the tires coming off! Like it or not, the bus system will be a part of my experience. Fine.....as long as we don't crash *shudder*. Other than that, no culture shock for me really. I've been in Mexico for long periods of time so I got a taste of what a peripheral country is. I didn't come here expecting the exact same thing and I certainly didn't get the exact same thing. I am enjoying my time here though. My host family is great, my peers are all friendly and we hope to be sworn in as volunteers at the end of April. I hope to update more on the process before then :-).

(7 random notes | post-it) 9 hours [25 Jan 2004|09:11pm] [ mood | bouncy ] Last entry before I go :-). Its been business as usual this week but for the past two days we've been feasting on chicken, fajitas, mashed potatos, and rice. The last good meal I'll get here and it was so much that it had to span over 2 days heh. I'm glad. I leave with a good memory and I hope to create a few more along the way. I feel that there is nothing more I need to add. To all who read this: think of me and wish me luck.....

(1 random note | post-it) more at ease [17 Jan 2004|12:17pm] [ mood | content ] I've got a little more than a week left here and I think I may have put my parents more at ease by introducing them to one of my old Spanish teachers from high school. Mr Buchanan happens to be married to a woman from Paraguay so that's all he ever talked about in class. We never used Mexico as a reference, we used Paraguay ;-). My mom and dad liked Erik and Elida very much and they were relieved to hear that Paraguay is a much safer place for travel than some of the other Latin American countries. It was nothing formal but we met for coffee and shared stories. I was obliged to speak Spanish which I still have some trouble with sometimes but I needed the practice. As soon as we get to the training site, I get the feeling that I will be placed in Guarani classes instead of Spanish since they think I'm fluent already, hee! If I'm going to end up in the rural part of the country, I may as well. I found out that my flight to Miami on the 26th departs at 6:15 AM. On the 28th we board a flight to Asuncion with a lay over in Sao Palo, Brazil (where I am sure we will all get fingerprinted) for a total of a 14 hour trip. I have never been on a plane for more than 2 hours and Margie told me that it took her 22 hours to get to Spain when she went so this could be interesting. I'm sure we have regular access to PC's during training so if I can, I'll let you all know how it when, heh. About 8 days left and I'm beginning to get a little nervous. Not as much as I should be so maybe that is a good sign.....

(post-it) last day alone [03 Jan 2004|01:39pm] [ mood | rejuvenated ] I don't remember whether the family is supposed to be back from Mexico tonight or tomorrow morning. Who knows? They could be there right now but I wouldn't know it since I haven't been at the house all day. I've had to get up early on my days off to take my uncle to the construction site where he stays all day to supervise. The house is looking fantastic, everyone! The decorative tile is in place and they are going to stop for a bit after that's done to raise some more funds. If I do get the chance to come back to the States while on duty, I look forward to finally seeing the finished product. It doesn't feel like January. I have been expecting winter weather since the offical first day of the season but its been quite pleasant actually. I wake up and my blankets are on the floor b/c I didn't need them during the night. Its all good :-). That's apparently supposed to change tomorrow so I'm glad that it lasted while it did. I had a good experience this morning. After dropping off my uncle, I drove over to Gabe P Allen so that I could sit on the steps and reminise for awhile. I couldn't bring myself to crawl under the fence to the playground b/c I have never done that w/o my partner in crime *sigh*. Those were some of the best times not counting my school days there. I sat on the steps and enjoyed the fog until it discipated. It was quite a romantic atmosphere that I hadn't experienced in a while. I miss the simpler times. I would like very much never to forget my time at Gabe P Allen since that was a rewarding period. That's the only period of my childhood that doesn't hold any bitter or sad memories for me and I'm quite grateful that I lived it. I plan on going back there right before I leave since that's the last picture of my neighborhood that I want to see before I head out. 3 more days of work. 3 more weeks of preparation and then the next chapter begins. How scary/exciting is that?

(2 random notes | post-it) long time, no write [27 Dec 2003|01:57pm] [ mood | chipper ] I tried to keep up with all of you in the span of 20 minutes but to no avail. Instead I read the entries of a select few which I will not mention, heh. I am ticking off the days! The ones at work that is. My family would rather not have me tick off the days to PC (less than a month) but I look forward to the 6th and I look forward to my time off. The farewell potluck is a given which is nice. I got one for my birthday which was unexpected. I've even found myself actually connecting with some people there. Its funny how that works out and those things happen toward the end. I hope that won't be the case with this next experience. Has everyone here seen Return of the King? If not, shame on you! Go see it now! I've only seen it twice. We saw it on midnight openning day of course and I functioned at work the next day on about 4 hours sleep. Well worth it. Great movie though there were 4 specific points when I thought it was going to end but it kept going. I now own the books and when I flipped back for a peek, sure enough the movie ended just like the written word. Maybe a 3rd and a 4th time will come soon. I must go to the IMAX at least. Last year the Helm's Deep sequence on that jumbo screen gave me a major headache so I know the same thing will happen with the one at Minas Tirith this time around. Bring it on I say! I hope everyone is doing well. Merry belated Christmas and Happy 2004! I will be free soon.....

(4 random notes | post-it) note to Dallas people: read the first paragraph at least! [07 Dec 2003|01:38pm] [ mood | rejuvenated ] Interesting fact: the rubble being dumped in our backyard at the new house came from the Bronco Bowl! My dad struck up a deal with the guy tearing down the Bronco Bowl to use our land to house it and the guy will bring in bull dozers to even it out. Its looking great and I'm thrilled that anytime I step into that backyard, I will be standing on a Dallas musical landmark! I saw the Smashing Pumpkins, Garbage, Moby, and Zwan play at the Bronco Bowl so I will make it my mission to find the rubble that Mr Corgan stood on the two times I saw him play there ;-). Exactly one month from yesterday will be my last day at Parkland :-). I mentioned this to a few co-workers and they said I should take advantage and vent my true feelings anytime the spirit moves me, ha! Maybe I will, maybe I won't but I have been a descent employee so far so another month won't kill me. I do know that the money has been good but no amount will convince me to stay. Its time to focus on what I want rather than what is expected of me. I think 20+ years of the later is enough of that. New changes are coming :-). My aunt and uncle remarried by the Church yesterday. Now their's is a relationship I have admired. They have been married for almost 20 years and I have never heard of a major argument between them. They take their commitment to each other not not just to their children seriously. They are truly wonderful people. Their's is a relationship that I would hope to emmulate myself one day. I do see it as a shame that I speak this way about my aunt and uncle and not my parents but it is the truth. My mom and dad will be married 25 years this month and yet they never even acknowledge their anniverseries. Neither do their children so we skip ahead and do Christmas gifts. A pity but one we've learned to live with. Enough about that. Speaking of Christams, I can't believe it's almost here. One month after that, I'll be heading out on my journey. I think I will create an email mailing list to share my expereinces will all of you who are interested. More news to come later.....

(1 random note | post-it) there one where I caught the bouquet [29 Nov 2003|04:08pm] [ mood | peaceful ] It’s a funny story really but I’ll get to it in a minute. Yesterday was msondo and kimya’s wedding. It was beautiful and simple and moving. Everything a good wedding should be. It was quite something to be amongst their families and friends and the backyard. There was this energy that I don’t think I could ever describe accurately so I won’t try to. I will say that my sisters and I had a good time. As my title suggests, I caught the bouquet, hee hee! Now let me tell you something about me and weddings. A long time ago, my mother would practically shove me into the crowd when it was time to go catch the bouquet. This was as early as when I was 13 and 14. At first, I resisted but then I reluctantly went but I would either duck or step aside when it came flying towards me. Finally, I got to the point where I would look like I at least made the attempt to catch it. That was my intention this time around but lo and behold, I caught it (three beautiful cala lilies, FYI). I couldn’t help but laugh (though I do wonder if the aim was intentional). Am I next? We’ll see about that, ha ;-D! We couldn’t stay long because my sisters and I had to go to another activity involving another wedding coming up next week (my aunt and uncle are renewing their vows) but we did have a great time nonetheless. I’ll miss Frank and Gema when they move to Seattle next week since they are two of the greatest and most genuine people I have ever had the privilege to meet. Best wishes you two! I will think of you often.

(post-it) its that time again! [27 Nov 2003|03:11pm] [ mood | thankful ] Happy Thansgiving everyone! I've been MIA b/c I have not found the time (or a safe computer) and also b/c I've been doing much thinking. I think about the things I never say publicly here but that will one day change I hope. This is a trasition period and I'm learning to let go and make my peace with certain things. I've been handed second opportunities and I intend on clearing both my mind and my heart of all negativity before I go (2 months and counting). Negativity is unhealthy and I need all my strength for what is coming. That said, as soon as I find a large block of undistrubed time, I will being deleting the entries from this journal that I see as wasted words/space. I want to be more selective and more descriptive of not only myself but of my feelings. I won't be able to update much once I am abroad but I do want to make sure that when I do get the chance, what I share is quality. I don't want to just give a brief synopsis and be done with it. I want to share the expereince with those who read this log and who are interested in what I am doing. My research on Paraguay has been limited but I will approach it from another angle after the holiday. I'm feeling better now. Some of you sent your concerns after my last entry and I appreciate your good thoughts. I will be more at ease at the end of next week. Transition will be over then after a long time in coming. Sad yes but necessary. That's the pre-determined course in life and that's how things should be. Again, happy Thanksgiving. The Cowboys are about to play and I'm off to join the annual game watching while we eat :-). Have a good one.

(4 random notes | post-it) [10 Nov 2003|10:37am] [ mood | contemplative ] Beware of the flu shot! I didn't get the flu but it was quite something for the past three days. Not fun. I hope it wasn't one of those tainted shots. Pretty sad considering they were giving them at the hospital I work at. Blah! Glad its over. Since we are moving into a new office this week, Updates will be few and far between. I'm begining to wonder if there is any point to keep doing it at all. The number of people I know on here has dwindled and I seriously doubt they check. I may stay dormant until after I'm abroad. More excitement up ahead so that seems like a good idea. Speaking of that, I'm going to go see one of my old high school teachers today. He was my Spanish teacher and he happens to be married to a woman from Paraguay so I know he has gone there many times. I haven't worked up what questions I wanted to ask him but I found it was always easier to just let him talk. It'll be interesting to see the old stomping ground again. I was at Anna's school this morning dropping her off and as we were walking together down the hall, people kept asking if we were twins. Heh, why not? I'd give anything at a second shot at my teen years. I don't think I could screw it up twice. I got some surprising news about one of my cousins this week. Jorge Jr was born when I was 8 and I remember he was the first I was allowed to hold. I did form an attachment to him early on and he grew up to be a great kid. Not a trouble-maker and he took good care of his younger siblings. He just made an error in judgment and now he's going to be a father soon at 17 :-(. I did choke up when my mother told me that b/c there are times when I still think of him as 10 or 11 still but he's a young man. Its just that he was a part of the group in my generation that most of my relatives believed was going to "make it" in life. I know that pressure. That group included my siblings and myself, Jorge and his siblings, two of my uncle Gregorio's daughters, and my aunt Elena's two daughters. That's 11 out of close to 30 cousins! We were the ones who were supposed to set the example and beat the odds. Jorge still has his entire life ahead of him and if he still believes that he has what it takes he can do anything in life but this is a major setback. That's a terrible thing to say about a child but it is the truth. All we can do now is support him and hope he does the right thing. I know my aunt and uncle are heart-broken and they could use all the support they can get. Its funny how I envied their family for many years. I had often wished that Jorge Sr (my mom's brother) and Yolanda had been my parents. They were calm and supportive always. Jorge had lived with us when he first came to the US and I remember being little and following him around everywhere. At the time, he was like the significantly older brother and later he became a father-figure. I will never forget that. Its just unfortunate that they had to find out now just as he and Yolanda are preparing to remarry by the Church next month. I can't imagine what they must be thinking but I see that these things happen even to the best of families. And finally, I am compelled to share that I have been feeling detached lately. Not me detached from the world but everyone seems to be detached with me. I will readily admit that I am the type of person that needs to be checked on every once in awhile and it does sting when that doesn't occur. Maybe its just me. It seems like these days all I do is eat, sleep, work, and come home so sometimes I get lonely and forgotten. It will pass, it always does. I just wish it wouldn't keep coming back.....

(post-it) transition [31 Oct 2003|10:33pm] [ mood | hopeful ] [ music | No Doubt - Waiting Room ] First off, Happy Halloween! The holiday season has officially begun as I have indulged in the first treats of the season, mmmmmm! It is sure to get worse later, ha! Watch those waistlines people. In just a few hours, we will be on our own again. Mom and dad decided the house need more tile so they are off to Laredo with the trailer in tow. Everything is cheaper towards south of the border. Cheap materials, cheap booze and cheap labor (that don'y agree with) but I digress. My father is a stickler for progress no matter what the cost. While I do sometimes share in the philosophy, I do consider the costs of certain actions and exploitation of your own is not something I would voluntarily do. At least I think I have persuaded him to give certain things a second thought. That will do for now since that could be as far as I get *sigh*. The big news is that Margie is moving out. The parents are sad, of course and a bit surprised since she has been supervising the designs for the new house. She has her own room there and now that I think about it, she has designed every room except the one that was designated for her. I know that she will eventually since she'll stay there on during her visits (and I will in my designated room during mine). I'm happy for her though. I put that off after plans in Atlanta fell through and now that I've looked back and seen how long Peace Corps took, I can't help but have regrets over that. All this time I've reasoned that I didn't have sufficient finances but I realized that I overestimated and that wasn't necessarily true. I would have changed my mind but then I lost my car. I actually couldn't afford another one, not if I wanted to save up to pay off a good part of my education like I will soon before I go abroad. Margie doesn't have much when it comes to capital but she does own the car our parents bought her and think having that is the key to true independence. its a shame that when I came to that conclusion, mine had to die on me. Oh well, soon my time will come. I've been having much more optimistic thoughts about what my new life will be like and what can happen afterwards. Let's hope that I can reach that full potential. That's all I want. I want to see who I am capable of becoming and what I can offer in this life. Too many years felt wasted. I don't want that anymore.....

(3 random notes | post-it) no fair! [29 Oct 2003|10:14pm] [ mood | annoyed ] We've been cut off from the world at work. No more free high-speed internet, no more magazines, no more books. Anything we persue in all three areas has to be medical content. Dammit, the weekends get so boring and one can only read our employee handbook so many times before wanting to rip up everything in sight! We are moving in 2 weeks to our new office and besides the ban, we will have cameras poised over each work station to record our every move. Great. Just great. Its times like these that I am glad I have so little time left there in a confining and oftentimes hostile environment. I believe I deserve better and its been long enough. Until further notice. I'll just steal Margie's laptop every once in a while *sigh*.....

(post-it) from now on..... [27 Oct 2003|06:08pm] [ mood | giggly ] Okay, I'm back and I've decided to share the scheme my sister Anna (who is 6 years younger) and I have cooked up ;-). Someone (I forgot who) made the comment at Commencement that Anna and I looked incredibly similar. As an off-hand joke, I said that she and I were fraternal twins and that I was 6 minutes older. This person flipped out and demanded to know why I had never mentioned I was a twin! I had too good a laugh with that one but I remembered that while the two of us were goofing off in the paint section of Home Depot yesterday. We plotted that anytime we met new people, we would say that we were 21 year old (we meet in the middle) fraternal twins, hee! We both find easy ways to amuse ourselves so if anyone here happens to be with us while we are messing with people's minds, please do not be alarmed. Its just been a long time since I've played a game of let's pretend and this could be one people actually believe ;-).....

(post-it) leaving the blanks [20 Oct 2003|05:54pm] [ mood | listless ] discobelle left completely. brookeish and somagordon don't update much and now msondo has announced that he won't update anymore :-(. The number of people I actually know on this forum has dwindled fast, *sigh*. I guess I'm disappointed b/c for awhile now, I've had to rely on livejournal to know what they are actually doing since I don't see them much. I've been losing interest here myself but I figure that once I am abroad, I will actually want to update rather than feel obligated to. That's it, I should quit the obligatory posts and just wait for the inspiration to come. If I have any random thoughts I want to share, I'll do it but I'm tired of just describing what I do from day to day. That won't keep me from reading and commenting but this shouldn't feel like a chore.....

(1 random note | post-it) dislexic [19 Oct 2003|11:35am] [ mood | geeky ] I'm an idiot! I have some sort of reflex now where if I make my lunch to take to work that morning, I somehow always forget to take it out of the fridge and I'm half-way to work when I realize what I have done! Sometimes the same thing happens when I make it the night before but these days, by the time I get home I'm so tired that I blow off anything important until the next morning. Its sucks though b/c today, I have no cash so it looks like I will walk across the street to the Wendy's that takes debit cards, grrrr! That's my complaint for today. Things that put me in a better mood: 1. The weather is absolutely gorgeous today! I've been waiting for this weather ever since summer began since I can't stand the heat. I plan to savor as much as I can 2. This month is half-way over which means that if time keeps passing this quickly, I'll be off to Paraguay in no time :-). 14 weeks and counting.

(2 random notes | post-it) [no subject line] [18 Oct 2003|12:20pm] [ mood | awake ] Dammit! I forgot to watch Letterman last night to see Radiohead, grrr! But then again, I spent 3 hours on the phone with msondo so that part wasn't bad at all ;-). I keep reading reviews that they looked broed anyway which is not surprising if you're familiar with the scenes from "Meeting People is Easy". Oh well. After over a month, I finally have my birthday gift: a new larger piece of luggage. I'm pretty sure I could fit all my clothes (everything I own) in there. That won't be the case but its a good investment. Then I got the idea that my whole life can fit into this one small space. Mighty scary! It looks as if the house could be done by Christmas. I have the bedding and my color scheme (light green, creme, and dark red) picked out. Margie politely suggested that I get away from the blue, heh. The whole thing is looking great though. I can tell my dad can see that all the sacrifice and hard work is close to the end result. I have no idea how he will occupy his time after this thing is finally over but he likes to be productive (like me). I'm sure he'll never be satisfied and will come up with other projects/additions. I'll just be glad when this gets done since we've all been waiting a long time! Right now though, it seems like its way too much for one family and we've never been extravangant people. I may change my mind once I see it done though. Everyone here is invited to the housewarming party :-). And finally, I got my schedule for the holidays. Just as I requested, I got Thanksgiving and the day after off. I work the rest of the majors. No regrets and a big bonus in store for me, ha! No one here is allowed to say "I told you so" if this turns into a disaster but I don't think it will. The next few months will be crazy enough.....

(2 random notes | post-it) *yawn* [14 Oct 2003|05:58pm] [ mood | working ] Done and done. I finally sent in my PC aspiration statement and updated resume. The resume was no problem but the "aspiration statement" reminded me too much of college application essays. Its been a long time but I had to outline what my expectations are, how I plan to adapt to a new culture, and what my professional goals are. I don't do too well when I write about myself so I struggled a bit. Sometimes I wonder what it would have been like with an English degree ;-). Nonetheless, its done and now I have to wait for my next PC mailing to complete. I got a quick email from Dr Allende. That was nice b/c not only is it Black Cat week at ASC, its also time for midterms. He forgot that I was not one of the students he spoke Spanish to but I had no problem deciphering what he said ;-). I am not worthy of the label "Latina" sometimes. Hell, I'm not even worthy of the "Hispanic" label even though it is a colonialist term, heh. Time will tell if I ever will be, ha! And finally in some surprising good news, I found someone with my recent Radiohead show who wants to trade! That was easy, hee! It could probably be my last trade. At least the last one I persue. How cool is that? Sometimes I can't believe what good fortune.....

(4 random notes | post-it) radiohead! [07 Oct 2003|09:38am] [ mood | ecstatic ] You know, the situation started badly enough but I was not upset at all. brookeish and I got stuck in the traffic getting there and we missed the first 4 songs. 99x was broadcasting it so we heard them. Hell, by the time we finally parked the car and ran to our seats, we we being treated to two of my favorites: Where I End And You Begin and Exit Music. Setlist is here. We didn't actually sit down in our seats when we got there. Lots of people were in the aisles so we got to move up a bit. Despite the fact that we didn't always have a clear view, the show definitely ranks high among all of my live experiences. I was singing off key all night and I let out these ear-piercing shrieks right before Paranoid Andriod (one for the lighters) and right before Creep. Damn, they played Creep. I got a little teary-eyed b/c they've only done it twice this tour and I think they pull that one out if they dig the crowd. They LOVE us, yes :-D! Another highlight for me was You And Whose Army. The last time I had seen them I was front row and I was not quite sure why people were cheering and laughing behind me. I saw this time b/c of the screens. Thom had a camera proped up next to his mike on the piano and he kept making faces at us, hee hee! See, he does have a sense of humor people! I could write a lot about the rest of the set but to sum up, they NAILED it. Everything comes alive in a live setting and they seem to be enjoying themselves. Good sign ;-). I got a lot of my dream setlist though I am quite surprised that they didn't play Lucky or Street Spirit. I was thinking the other night how their catalogue is growing so eventually, some of the old favorites won't be in the set if they tour to promote an album. That's fine though. The show was great. I was singing and yelling until I was hoarse and I was dancing around like Thom. It could have been a disaster but no need to panic. It was truly memorable as is.....

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