Just Give Me Water!!!

The wedding was a blast.  It turned out to be a great October day and the thing went off without a hitch….well except for the two that got hitched.  Having to be in a tux most of the evening, I was pretty happy it was a nice cool day.  The reception was great as we watched these crazy people from Charles and Mindy’s family dance.  It was pretty entertaining.  But my best friend is now married, which is a little weird.  I’ve actually known him longer than I’ve known my sister and she’s only like 3 and a half years younger than I am.  I’ve known Charles a long time and I’m glad that he is happy.  He really did marry a great girl and I wish them the best.  He just better get ready to wait to be my best man because this guy isn’t getting married anytime soon!

I spent some time with family and friends while I was home which was great.  It had only been 3 weeks since I had been there but it’s still a long time to be away from the ones you love.  When I left at the beginning of October we all knew I would be back in just over 3 weeks.  This time it was a little different though since I’m not sure when I’ll be back, makes it a little harder to leave.  I guess that just means they’ll have to come visit me next.

I didn’t get to leave though without bringing back a souvenir from the States.  I got a cold or something while I was there and it is sticking to me like glue.  I can’t seem to shake the thing.  Over a week now and this thing has my head wanting to explode.  If the medicine won’t make it go away I bet the Honduran water will make my head the least of my worries haha. 

Oh and I have a truck now!  I knew the truck that I wanted/needed but was quite a bit short on being able to buy it.  Money was given last week so that I could buy it!  I was pretty stoked and at the time I was told my head hurt so bad that I couldn’t think of anything to say except Thank You.  Sometimes when a blessing like that comes your way, you know that words can’t really express how thankful you are and this was one of those times.  It didn’t matter what I said, it wouldn’t have expressed how thankful I really was and am.  Before funds were given for this truck I had debated on whether I should just get a 2 wheel drive truck instead of a 4x4 to try to cut the cost down a little and boy am I glad I didn’t do that.  Sunday night I was backing out of a driveway right after it had rained and slid into the small ditch on the other side of the road.  It wasn’t anything bad but it was just muddy enough to make the tires spin.  I actually said out loud, “4 wheel drive, ENGAGE” and with the turn of a button she pulled herself right out of that ditch.  Then just to test her, I got her stuck in ruts in the road trying to turn around in Mololoa Monday and once again she proved that she’s up for the challenge.  A 2 wheel drive truck and I’d have been enlisting some people to help push.  I’ve just about learned my way around the city too.  Well, except for the occasional wrong turn or the “wait where am I again”.  Those are getting fewer and fewer. 

The daycare repairs are looking great.  The exterior walls are nearly done that are going to allow for better drainage and extra support for the existing wall.  I’m still interested to see exactly how they are going to make it work but the walls definitely look good.  I’m sure it’ll all come together and work like they are planning.  The big hole that we dug inside this summer looks like a kiddie pool compared the one they’ve dug in the last week.  Like half of the building is now on big hole.  Everything is still on schedule since the rains have held off so hopefully by the beginning of December it will be finished.  I know the ladies are getting a little excited that they’ll be able to work up at the actual daycare again.  Things at the kitchen are still going great.  We were planning to have a 7 year anniversary party, to celebrate the kitchen being open for 7 years, a few weeks ago but since everyone was sick we decided to wait until everyone could go.  So this Saturday we are going up to the Jesus Statue for a picnic style lunch, which will be a lot of fun.  I think the ladies will all enjoy it. 

My Spanish still sucks but it is getting a little better.  I’ve been staying at my apartment since I got back last Thursday.  Those of you who have been here know that you have to buy water to drink, like in the big 5 gallon jugs.  Well everything you buy at the store you just go, pick it up, put it in the buggy, go to the cashier, she rings it up and you pay.  It’s that simple, you don’t really even have to talk to anyone.  Well to get jugs of water you have to know what you are doing because they are separate from everything else.  You ask for them, pay for them, then they get them for you.  They ask if you are buying bottles or refilling bottles.   If you are buying then they tell you that you can bring your old bottles back and they’ll refill them to keep you from buying new bottles.  It’s not just as simple as picking it up and taking it to the counter.  So I’ve been watching how other people go about this for 5 days, I’ve learned this formula of questions they ask and in what order so that I know how to respond.   But I’ve been buying small bottles of water to keep from having to endure the confusion that I was going to create by asking to buy water.  Earlier today at Walmart I gave it a try.  The guy said something back to me about his manager and then pointed to the other side of the store and I was like no just forget it, you aren’t sticking to my formula of success for this!  Then he said something and I said no again and then there was an awkward pause and he said ok and gave me my receipt for the things I had bought and I left.  BUT tonight I was going to eat pasta and when I got home I realized I was completely out of little bottles of water and thought, “It’s go time”.  Operation ‘get water’, take 2.  So I went to another store to avoid the guy at Walmart.  I went to La Colonia and I don’t know how it happened, I really have no idea what this lady was saying but I ended up leaving with two 5 gallon jugs of water!  I just kept saying Si, 2 bottles and it somehow worked. HAHA, well I understood a little of what she was saying because she stuck to the formula that I had seen other people do.  It was great.  For like ten minutes my head didn’t seem to hurt anymore and I had this smile on my face.  Guess who’s looking at their two new 5 gallon jugs of water right now, this guy!  This really is sad though…..but it’s a win for me nonetheless.

We’ll see if shopping for a shower head tomorrow to replace the one that fell off the pipe a few minutes ago is as exciting as getting water.  That thing was pretty rusty. 

Thursday, two elders from Palmetto will be here.  They are staying until Monday to see how things here are going.  It should be a fun time especially since one of them is coming here for the first time.  Forget bus rides, he gets to ride with me!!  I’ll give him all the Honduras road experience he wants….Actually he might be reading this so what I meant was that it’s all going to be just like it would be if we were in the States haha.  No worries.  But it will be good, I know they are looking forward to coming and I am too.