Bullet points...

Aug 14, 2010

for pics of Bribri: http://www.flickr.com/photos/47509639@N05/sets/72157624754765934/

Journal entry: I am grateful for life. I am here and alive and well. Not only do I have the gift of life, I am living a life full of love, of joy, of freedom, of abundance, of friendships, of very good health, of travel, of wisdom, of dreams, of good memories, of safety, of grace, of family, and of laughter. Thank you Universe. Thank you.

• I am back to my exercise routine in the mornings. Going to try to build muscle to make up for the weight I´m losing.
• Still tired of eating beans and rice.
• Interestingly enough, although I am absolutely surrounded by banana fields, it´s pretty challenging to buy bananas around here...
• August 15th is Mother´s Day in Costa Rica. I got a little something for all of the mamas that have helped me settle into Bribri.
• We didn´t have phone, cell phone, or internet access for a week due to the fire earlier this month in Limón at ICE. That meant no way to call 911 in case of an emergency and no way to use ATMs or buy things with credit cards.
• I am slowly but surely getting over my fear of spiders... I watched an entire episode about a guy that got bitten by a huge hairy spider. I was jumpy but I did it. AND, I continue to kill spiders in my room. Still working through my fear of the big, hairy ones...
• The water goes out A LOT in this town. A LOT. They say it is because too many people have moved into this area, but other people say it´s due to some kind of corruption with the municipalidad. Whoever is responsible, it´s annoying not having water. Those of you in the States, be grateful you just turn on the tap and hardly think about if there is enough or whether or not you can drink it.
• Unwanted visitors that have entered my room include but are not limited to: Spiders, huge june bugs, a variety of mosquitos, chickens, big toads, huge roaches, large beetles, a bat, bugs I cannot identify, kiddos from the neighborhood. There is also a family of big mice, maybe rats that live in the ceiling above me and make a lot of racket at night.
• I rode a horse last weekend at a friend´s ranch --- almost worth the thirty something chiggar bites I got all over my body because of it.
• I went camping last month at a beach called Manzanillo with my counterpart Miriam and her family (she has 9 siblings, tons of brother & sister in laws, and nephews & nieces). Tons o fun. I even slept in a tent!
• I have had a few “ready to pack my bag and go home” moments, but am determined to press on. I am SOOO looking forward to our In Service Training at the end of this month in which I will meet up with all my peers for a whole week in San Jose to catch up on how we´re all doing.
• Potential projects I forsee are building an activity or rec center for the youth in town, awareness of children´s rights for children, parents, and service providers, community service activities involving children and youth, a women´s group, Chicas poderosas or Voces valerosas, a soccer league (no I don´t play but I´ll support it), some kind of self run fitness or exercise group