You know, the last time I tried to give plants as a gift, I think that they died less than a week after Christmas. Though this time they've survived three weeks out of my hands, before giving them away. I spent the Tuesday evening before I left to the US for Christmas painting. It's so relaxing, the stroke of the paintbrush and watching something ordinary transform into something more interesting.
During my last day of work before break, I went downtown to buy the paints and paint brushes at an art store downtown that Rosa told me about. The streets were decorated for Christmas, which I admired while peering into shop windows. The arts shop was a serious art shop...not kids paints or department store selection. I guess that's why the clerk didn't smile. Perhaps artists don't like clerks to smile. You know, the stereotypical starving artist that is preoccupied and wouldn't notice. Or the quality is so good there and the shop so famous that artists will go there even if the young shopkeeper is half dead. I must say that the man in the gallery connected with the art supply store was quite friendly, smiled, and gave good directions to their other location.
Wednesday, January 6, 2010
Saturday, December 19, 2009
Let it snow...let it snow...let it snow
Mira! Ha nevado aqui...pero os tengo que decir que no es tanto. Continua nevando. A ver si esta tarde voy afuera o si me quedo adentro cocinando con mi madre para la reunion con la familia de mi padre esta tarde. He puesto unas fotos de las decoraciones que ponemos todos los anyos, que desafortunadamente no llegue con tiempo ayudar. Pero me gustan igualmente.
del porche de mi casa
pueblo que hizo mi madre
mi familia
del porche de mi casa
pueblo que hizo mi madre
mi familia
I'll Be Home for Christmas...
That song (see title) ran through my head throughout the day Thursday. Unfortunately, I only know the words, "I'll be home for Christmas...da da da...if only in my dreams." It's pretty, but pretty repetitive after awhile also. Nice reminder of where I was going.
My flight left Thursday around lunchtime, and I got into Indianapolis about 11 pm. My day went pretty much like this:
Tamy dropped me off at Barajas Airport in Madrid. Got through security really quickly, changed euros into dollars and looked happily at how much they gave me, waited an hour for the flight to take off. Translated an article, finished a book, and watched Julie and Julia. I had to pay $5 for the headphones. Which, I suppose is less than watching a movie out, but the screen is a looooot bigger in the movie theaters. The movie made me forget about the earphones, I couldn't help smiling through almost all of it; the couple was really sweet and I liked the comparison between the character Julie and Julia Child. Then, customs and a five hour layover in Philadelphia. There was a fairly interesting exhibit about collections. One woman had collected dryer lint. Dry lint? Or perhaps anything is interesting on a five-hour layover. I read "The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas" in about 1 and a half hours and I'm not sure what I did with the rest of the time. Stare at people I suppose. The day was kind of lonely. I think the 2 longest conversations I had was with an ex-pat was asking about the plane loading and then we talked for a bit. Then later in Philly by the smoothie shop, I talked for about 5 minutes to a Kenyan man. But that didn't do much for company. In Indy the plane came in about 20 minutes early and Colin was there early as well. After almost 24 hours in transit I was tired, but still managed to stay awake and we talked almost all the way to Purdue in West Lafayette.
The next morning was Colin's last exam, and I woke up a little before he finished and came back to his apartment. We left around 1, ate a really good pepperoni pizza, which probably wasn't the best possible, but tasted like heaven to me. We got to Fort Wayne a couple hours later, ahead of the snowstorm that started up last night. Dad had to go into work sometime last yet, not quite sure when since I didn't wake up all the way. We haven't got much more than an inch though, and hopefully we'll get enough snow to have some winter fun, but that not so much that Dad has to do lots of night shifts.
My flight left Thursday around lunchtime, and I got into Indianapolis about 11 pm. My day went pretty much like this:
Tamy dropped me off at Barajas Airport in Madrid. Got through security really quickly, changed euros into dollars and looked happily at how much they gave me, waited an hour for the flight to take off. Translated an article, finished a book, and watched Julie and Julia. I had to pay $5 for the headphones. Which, I suppose is less than watching a movie out, but the screen is a looooot bigger in the movie theaters. The movie made me forget about the earphones, I couldn't help smiling through almost all of it; the couple was really sweet and I liked the comparison between the character Julie and Julia Child. Then, customs and a five hour layover in Philadelphia. There was a fairly interesting exhibit about collections. One woman had collected dryer lint. Dry lint? Or perhaps anything is interesting on a five-hour layover. I read "The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas" in about 1 and a half hours and I'm not sure what I did with the rest of the time. Stare at people I suppose. The day was kind of lonely. I think the 2 longest conversations I had was with an ex-pat was asking about the plane loading and then we talked for a bit. Then later in Philly by the smoothie shop, I talked for about 5 minutes to a Kenyan man. But that didn't do much for company. In Indy the plane came in about 20 minutes early and Colin was there early as well. After almost 24 hours in transit I was tired, but still managed to stay awake and we talked almost all the way to Purdue in West Lafayette.
The next morning was Colin's last exam, and I woke up a little before he finished and came back to his apartment. We left around 1, ate a really good pepperoni pizza, which probably wasn't the best possible, but tasted like heaven to me. We got to Fort Wayne a couple hours later, ahead of the snowstorm that started up last night. Dad had to go into work sometime last yet, not quite sure when since I didn't wake up all the way. We haven't got much more than an inch though, and hopefully we'll get enough snow to have some winter fun, but that not so much that Dad has to do lots of night shifts.
Wednesday, December 16, 2009
Spring Cleaning
Twice a year every Spaniard (well, every grandmother at least) cleans their home from top to bottom. Luckily, they're apartments and don't have as much space as our house. Thank you Mom for not making us do so. Angelita is giving me a free education in all of the traditions, even the cleaning ones.
Bathroom: Grab a bucket and rags. Wipe down the walls from the ceiling to the floor with soapy water, then with wet rag, then dry. Move the furniture from the wall, clean floor and wall behind it. Undo the lamp and clean it. Wipe down door.
Room:Move furniture, dust corners, clean blinds, wipe down furniture with damp rag, sweep, mop, dust, feather dust the corners of the walls and ceiling, clean windows.
I suppose the cleaning is fairly normal, but I haven't done it before and I would say that it took me awhile. Luckily I just have my room and the bathroom!
The reward for cleaning was going to Noemi and Armando's house, the pastor's family for lunch. They're from the Canary Islands...their accents remind me of Señor Delaguardia...Cuban accent almost. We had fiesta arroz. Mom sometimes makes something really similar: Frito chips on top of meat, cheese, lettuce. I can't for the life of me remember what it's called. Since last Sunday was my last Sunday here before Christmas, we needed to organize things to give the kids their prizes for the semester before I left. New cheap toys that the kids earned by earning stickers bringing their Bible and memorizing the Bible verse. I'm going to miss teaching them next semester.
I spent the evening catching up with Sara, a friend that took English classes from me and led the small group I participated in last year. She got married a few weeks before I came to Spain this past September, so we had a lot to talk about. The summer, being married, and teaching. She teaches evangelical religion classes in an elementary school in Madrid.
Bathroom: Grab a bucket and rags. Wipe down the walls from the ceiling to the floor with soapy water, then with wet rag, then dry. Move the furniture from the wall, clean floor and wall behind it. Undo the lamp and clean it. Wipe down door.
Room:Move furniture, dust corners, clean blinds, wipe down furniture with damp rag, sweep, mop, dust, feather dust the corners of the walls and ceiling, clean windows.
I suppose the cleaning is fairly normal, but I haven't done it before and I would say that it took me awhile. Luckily I just have my room and the bathroom!
The reward for cleaning was going to Noemi and Armando's house, the pastor's family for lunch. They're from the Canary Islands...their accents remind me of Señor Delaguardia...Cuban accent almost. We had fiesta arroz. Mom sometimes makes something really similar: Frito chips on top of meat, cheese, lettuce. I can't for the life of me remember what it's called. Since last Sunday was my last Sunday here before Christmas, we needed to organize things to give the kids their prizes for the semester before I left. New cheap toys that the kids earned by earning stickers bringing their Bible and memorizing the Bible verse. I'm going to miss teaching them next semester.
I spent the evening catching up with Sara, a friend that took English classes from me and led the small group I participated in last year. She got married a few weeks before I came to Spain this past September, so we had a lot to talk about. The summer, being married, and teaching. She teaches evangelical religion classes in an elementary school in Madrid.
Tuesday, December 15, 2009
My Compassion Girl
Did you know that I've adopted a little girl? (awkward pause) Okay, well, she isn't mine and she doesn't live with me...in fact I've never met her...and I guess you can't say that I've adopted her because she lives at home with her mother. She's ten years old, lives in Mexico, has two sisters, and coincidentally wants to be a teacher. Or perhaps it's that lots of little girls want to be teachers.Her name is Zurihsaday. I started sponsoring her through Compassion at the end of last spring. I went to a Michael W. Smith concert here in Madrid and they were raising support for the new branch of Compassion International in Spain. My heart went out to the kids they talked about. That day last spring I started thinking about all the privileges I have that have given me a leg up: two loving parents, money for food, clothes, and school supplies, a college education, music classes and time to spend reading and practicing, the support to go abroad. I think realizing how many kids don't have that and how much I still have is why I decided to sponsor her. I hope that through the years I can see her grow and perhaps someday meet her. And give her some more options and hope in her life as well. I'd love to see if she goes on to study at the university and what she becomes as an adult. I hope to hear from her soon!
Thursday, December 10, 2009
Holiday Cheer
I haven't got much in terms of holiday decorations, but what I do have I've put up this year, keeping my room festive till I head home for the holidays. I took some pictures...I know they're not good...but it's the only way you'll get to see my attempt at decorating!
Tuesday, December 8, 2009
Frog and Toad
I'm sure you're burning with curiosity to know the story behind the toad themed birthday presents. Or perhaps not. If not, you should politely stop reading now. Better. Well, it goes back to the youth group's fall retreat. I had just finished my first week of work after the summer, and the kids' Spanish germs had already gotten to me. Sniffles, headache, fatigue, sore throat: I had a bummer of a cold. All this heading into a weekend where I knew I wouldn't sleep much, but I was determined to make the most of it.
The first evening, after deciding that I couldn't take any more that day, I laid down across some of the chairs in the gym and decided to rest a bit while the others played Sardines, the hide-in-seek variant where everyone ends up hiding in the same corner by the end of the game with the last lonely person wondering where everyone went. Isma sweetly decided to stay and keep me company. Enter Miki..or Micah if you want the English form of his name, the youth pastor's oldest son. With a toad.
I take one look at it and almost jump with excitement. I love animals. Even toads. Or perhaps especially things like toads, frogs, turtles, and pet insects. Wrinkling his nose, Isma looks at the toad disgustedly and says, "Touch it, and I'll have to leave." Do I listen? Nope. The rest of the weekend the others teased Isma about how I left him for a toad...that perhaps I could have kissed it hoping it would turn into a prince. And so now, it's just a funny memory between us. The day I left him for a toad.
The first evening, after deciding that I couldn't take any more that day, I laid down across some of the chairs in the gym and decided to rest a bit while the others played Sardines, the hide-in-seek variant where everyone ends up hiding in the same corner by the end of the game with the last lonely person wondering where everyone went. Isma sweetly decided to stay and keep me company. Enter Miki..or Micah if you want the English form of his name, the youth pastor's oldest son. With a toad.
I take one look at it and almost jump with excitement. I love animals. Even toads. Or perhaps especially things like toads, frogs, turtles, and pet insects. Wrinkling his nose, Isma looks at the toad disgustedly and says, "Touch it, and I'll have to leave." Do I listen? Nope. The rest of the weekend the others teased Isma about how I left him for a toad...that perhaps I could have kissed it hoping it would turn into a prince. And so now, it's just a funny memory between us. The day I left him for a toad.
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