Sleep. Knit. Eat. Stretch. Eat. Knit. Sleep.

ETSY!

2008-12-16T14:08:00.001-08:00

weeds.

2007-05-30T19:39:00.000-07:00

there are just so many of them. it´s amazing. they are truly a wonder. ask my nose. my nose can´t stop talking about it. all plant life really. my nose is one chatty kathy.

while the north garden is entirely planted, the south garden is undergoing a makeover. it has many, many layers exposing themselves more and more as the days pass. some days the makeover is more of a war (but what makeover isn´t?), and somedays i foolishly think that i might be winning. i know better. i know i will never win. but if i could come in first for the coming months, it would be quite the joy.

the air today was full of travelling seeds. so many, apparently from cottonwoods, that it could appear to be snowing. white puffs drifting so slowly in the air, settling wherever they can. your hair, the kitchen, the garden. the arise in me a combination of wonder and terror.

in the news of the want-to-be tamed land, we have radishes! first thing to harvest, and fortunately i love to eat them. everything else seems to be growing steadily- mustard, brocolli raab, more radishes, carrots, spinach, lettuce, raddichio, beans, peas, marigolds, mesculin mix, beets, kohlrabi. so great! i hope my plants hear all of my sweet words for them.

knitting news

2007-05-30T19:31:00.000-07:00

i have officially learned the lesson of knitting a gauge swatch. though i almost faithfully do it, i didn´t do it this one time when the gauge on the yarn wrapper matched the gauge of my pattern. it seems my fist mistake was being so trusting of a little peice of paper. never again will a little peice of paper receive so much trust. i started knitting my baby sweater without much thought. i am not around so many babies, so i wasn´t thinking so much about size. bythe time i got to the neck of one panel, i realized the sweater i was knitting could be worn by a child on their first day of pre-school, or perhaps even kindergarden depending on the child.

it took a little while of swearing and wanting to light what was supposed to be a little adorable garment on fire before i formed a plan. the adorable baby sweater, turned toddler sweater would make yet one more formation into a baby bag-blanket. and now, it´s absolutely adorable, and i think i even like it better than the sweater it was supposed to be. the next task it is to find some time to finish knitting it....

lechuga, tomate y mas

2007-04-28T19:27:00.000-07:00

the first full week in the garden is coming to a close. we´ve created a new mountain of weeds andhave attacked what´s come to be known as "the jungle." the north garden is getting closer and closer to actually being ready to garden. i´m sure if i wasn´t so tired, i´d hardly be able to contain myself.

the most exciting part of the week however was not the weeding, but the new plants. in the toasty warm living room we´ve planted lettuce, raddichio, tomatoes, peppers, crook neck squash, zucchini, cucumbers, broccoli and celery. in the garden there is some mysterious independent spinach, and we´ve planted swiss chard, radishes, beets and onions. thus far we have lovely little lettuces sprouting, raddichio, tomatoes and radishes. so cute, so new, so wonderful. i promise to love them if they promise to grow.

the weather has been beautiful this week, so i´ve spent all my time outside and no time knitting. fortunately i finished my mancala board before moving last weekend. i´m hoping to finish the top i started in the next couple days. without the knitting group, i don´t have any designated knitting time, but i´m sure some rain isn´t too far away.

after spending a few hours in mill city this week, i´m finding it quite charming. pockets around the town are home to some nice houses with beautifully landscaped yards. the river running through town has a path next to it. the thrift store is full of crazy and amazing things. the pharmacy is full of teapots and great toys. the town isn´t at all what i imagined, but i like it.

and now for a relaxing evening...

let's go gardening!

2007-03-20T16:09:00.000-07:00

after looking for a job for two months now, i've finally had some luck. i haven't been offered a single job (though i am an extraordinarily popular second choice), but i have be been offered an internship gardening. i may not be getting rich anytime soon, but i may be getting tan.

i will be growing a half acre garden in lyons, or in the midst of absolute beauty. the garden is for opal creek, an education center in a preserved wilderness area. the believe in feeding the guests with locally grown food and in sustainability, so they have started a small garden, taking steps in the right direction. it will be a wonderful test of my gardening skills and a great learning experience. i am open to all gardening advice.

as for the compost here in prineville, it is doing well. it seems to be processing, getting smaller everyday. there are no warning signs of it not working (it's not smelly or leaking out the bottom), so i'll boldly assume that it is working. my interest in compost is becoming more obsessive, and i found myself in an in-depth composting conversation this morning in the hospital waiting room. i'm sure the people a couple chairs down were entertained to hear my talking about how great pee is for the compost pile. (really though, it is.)

it seems a much-wanted lifestyle change is on the horizon...

adventures in composting

2007-03-13T11:02:00.000-07:00

i´m trying my hand at composting after thinking about it and wanting to do it for so long. after 2 weeks i have a bin (about 15 gallons?) nearly full and ready to process. it seems that my trash is probably 75% raw food waste, and it´s great to be able to do something with it. i´m using lots of newspaper and trying not to worry too much about the carbon/nitrogen ratio. i will turn and mix the bin once a day and hope that will all the differing things i´ve read, i will have some sort of nice humus in 2-3 weeks.

snowboarding = ouch

2007-02-10T14:30:00.000-08:00

i've been thinking about snowboarding for a few months now, and yesterday i finally went to hoodoo. hoodoo is a fun little low-key place outside of sisters, or. i've only been snowboarding once before with my brother. i remember spending a lot of time on the ground, spending a little too much time in the air and not being able to move the next day. today i'm doing sort of a shuffle and knocking things over here and there, but it's not so bad.

we started out our day with a lesson that nearly bored us to tears. it ends up that B hates snowboarding and i love it. i spent the afternoon on the bunny hill by myself, going in a non-stop cycle up the lift, down the hill and up again. i would tell myself it was the last time or that i would rest a moment, but before i knew it i was on the lift again. miraculously i even made it down the hill a few times without falling. i love it. i even love my shuffle today. i want a little mountain in my backyard.

so today is for recovery and knitting. i am working on the mancala board and a little pad for the tea pot. i will beg the cooperation of the washing machine this afternoon to felt. and perhaps i'll get around to knitting some more of the lace. so tedious, but sooooo good.

ineligibility

2007-02-04T10:53:00.000-08:00

it seems that i am ineligible for unemployment. why? because for unemoployment qualification they look at your work history/income/hours from two quarters ago. so, they looked only at my work from jul/aug/sep. it just so happens that i started in late july and worked july and august 32 hours/week part time. i can refile for unemployment in april, when they'll look at my work from oct/nov/dec, and then i'll qualify. obviously i'm pissed, i'm not quite sure how to take this. so, please share your unemployment stories with me to cheer me up.

have i ever mentioned how much i hate looking for a job? truly. es lo peor de lo peor. i think i'll look for something in farming... i've been looking at farming internships, but so many of them offer next to no money. i realize they are "learning opportunities," but if i'm going to work my ass off...

i'm open to suggestions for wonderful things to do in the near future. any ideas?

9 months later....

2007-02-03T10:05:00.000-08:00

so much and so little can happen in 9 months that it's hard to know where to begin. here's the month-by-month synopsis.

MAY: back in the u.s. after 9 months of travelling. recovery. began the hardcore job search. planted the garden.

JUN: continued the hardcore job search. uneventfully turned 27. tended the garden. obsessive knitting. weeklong camping trip and job interviews around oregon.

JUL: ate an absurd amount of cherry tomatoes in the the garden. family is convinced the cherry tomato plant never produced. officially ran out of money. modified the job search to local. started working pt for prineville public works.

AUG: rode my bike to work. learned that in prineville only people with DUIs and kids ride bikes. started the apartment hunt. learned that in prineville a 27 year old woman looking for a one bedroom apartment is considered a spinster. started a knitting group.

SEP: got promoted to full time. moved into new apartment. like a crazy woman, i started going to every yard sale i could find. furnished my apartment.

OCT: B arrived in oregon. lance and melissa got married. weekends on the coast. discovered yachats.

NOV: thanksgiving with the parents. visited ghost towns of oregon. the dalles christmas parade, seaside christmas parade, newport lighted boat parade.

DEC: winter weather. cold walks to work in the morning. christmas with B in prineville. new years at the sand dunes. knitting group yarn exchange.

JAN: sitka open house. elimination of my job, became unemployed. prineville city council meeting with over 150 people, all irate. filed for unemployment. start the job search again.

this month: uncover local government corruption- finding the information to support the theories. starting to become an actual prineville resident. going on the job hunt, again.

more to come shortly....

I drove on the wrong side of the road.

2006-04-20T01:01:00.000-07:00

It wasn't in Belfast, it was in Ballyboughal a few days back. We went out in the morning (a quiet morning, thank goodness), I turned out of the driveway of our B&B and began driving on the right side of the road. Right as in the opposite of left, right not as in correct, right as if I were driving a car on another continent altogether. One would think that this may have felt a bit strange, seeing as the steering wheel is on the right (not left) side of the car. I felt nothing of the sort. In fact, I drove this way for 5 minutes or so. (Once again, thank goodness it was a quiet morning.) It was not until we hit a stretch of road of some significant legnth that I saw a car coming at me in what I had thought to be my lane. I will stress that it was some distance away, and we were by no means in any danger. First confusion ran over me, then the realization of what I was doing, and finally the oh shit I'm driving on the wrong side of the road and need to get into my own lane. My mother didn't even notice it. Apparently there is more than one reason why I am doing all of the driving.

2006-04-19T01:24:00.000-07:00

"I'd rather go to a movie than Scotland right now!"

Upon entering Belfast and seeing a Movie House, one of the two in the car exclaimed this...

Ireland

2006-04-13T00:36:00.000-07:00

Things I've learned since being in Ireland:
- The churches here are all amazing, beautiful stained glass and lots of gothic architecture. The only strange thing we've seen with the churches is the occasional statues of saints being all covered up in something that looks like a giant silk sack. If anybody can explain this to me, I'd be forever grateful.
- Driving is insanity derived from the small roads, poor road signs and driving with my mother.
- Ireland is more than green, rolling hills. It's actually has a quite varied and beautiful terrain.
- Sheep in Ireland are EXCESSIVELY hairy. Really. It's almost creepy. I asked for a baby Irish lamb for my birthday.
- Mom needs a pair of bifocal sunglasses so she can read the map (attempt to read the map rather) without switching out of her sunglasses. Hopefully thinking on my part that this would help.
- Castles lose their charm after you've seen a few of them. Unless maybe you grew up dreaming about castles. But I didn't.

Off again

2006-04-05T02:12:00.000-07:00

It feels like I just arrived in the states, and I'm off again. I'm leaving for the airport in 15 minutes for a 7:45 am flight to Shannon, Ireland via New Jersey. 3 weeks in Ireland with mom. And now my dad has to look at the computer to find out how to get us to the airport. Wish us luck.

Back.

2006-03-26T19:06:00.000-08:00

I'm back in the United States. There doesn't appear to be anything that I missed terribly or was happy to get back to. Instead there are things that I missing about other places, mostly Argentina. I miss the good coffee. I miss the spanish. I miss my love. I miss the clouds there. I miss things not being so easy, but having small hurdles to accomplish little daily things.

Here I'm seeing that: Americans are quite overweight. Quite. Strip malls are growing at an exponential rate. I had no idea they could pop up so quickly. My hometown is so completely changed that I don't belive I could navigate it, and I have no desire to. Americans talk loud, not only on their cell phones, but to the people right next to them. There is a failing effort to beautify the towns that have grown into small cities. All the cars here are new. All strip-mall parking lots, as well as mall parking lots are designed for people to get into their cars and drive from place to place. Pedestrian traffic is unwelcome and highly discouraged.

I'll be heading up to Oregon on Tuesday. I have a week to prepare for my trip to Ireland with my mother. We're going to Ireland (and hopefully we'll squeeze in Scotland and Wales) for 3 weeks. It's our first time travelling together, so I ask everybody to think good thoughts for us. Perhaps if you make a wish on a dandelion or an eyelash or over railroad tracks, you can make a wish for me. I promise to return the favor when you need a wish. I am thinking positive, that we're going to have a good time and things will go smoothly. The only pending thing that needs to happen before we leave is me getting a new drivers license. I need to take and pass the Oregon driving test sometime over the next week. I'm not worried, but some previous residents of California have been known to fail their first time around...

2 lessons from me to you

2006-03-19T11:25:00.000-08:00

1. Do not, by any means, eat fried empanadas before boarding a bus of which condition and your seats are unknown. In the end, you will be pacing down the aisle of the bus hoping not to vomit. If you are lucky, you will recover after the bus stops and all will be good and fine. However, by experience I will tell you that you will not be lucky. You will befriend the bus station bathroom and delay your future travels for one day. So, even if you're hungry, don't let the empanadas tempt you. Even if they are from Pachamama.

2. Do not, by any means, get too comfortable. If you do, you are likely to have a lapse in judgement. In your lapse of judgement it is likely that some evil person will steal things from you. Something like your bag with your camera, wallet, and new llama pendant from someone special. You will be irritated, blame yourself, and have many annoying logistics to follow. So, even if you're having a wonderful day where you feel like everyone is wonderful and all you want to do is frolic and be happy and relaxed, remember that everyone is indeed not wonderful. Not only are they not wonderful, they will indulge in any opportunity they have to remind you of how unwonderful they are.

Things you might learn:

To be zen and acknowledge that things are just things, that you've really lost nothing of value other than your trust of people. And the llama, because that was special.

That you can speak spanish in a time of crisis. You can find the words you want, use them and people seem to understand you just fine. Thank goodness.

That you still love Argentina. It will take more than vomit and theivery to change your mind.

Salta

2006-03-10T05:17:00.000-08:00

I've finally made it ou t of Buenos Aires. After a 20 hour bus ride I'm now in Salta, which is in the northwest of Argentina. It's a very small city and quite different from BsAs. Everything is beautiful and well kept. The grass is green, there isn't dogshit anywhere, people are friendly and there is fabulous scenery all around. We haven't done much yet, just wander around the city mostly, but we have a week to explore the area. We're both crossing our fingers that the weather.com report is wrong and it won't rain the entire time...

And now...

2006-02-27T14:57:00.000-08:00

Went to dinner last night and meet the artist/thinker behind United Transnational Replublics. The website is http://www.transnationalrepublic.org

It looks like my travel plans are starting to take some shape. On the agenda is Iguazu Falls, San Ignacio, Salta, Chaco and Cordoba. If I can possibly get all of that in. I also have a Argentine travelling companion, and I know that we're going to have loads of fun together. I can't wait.

Life.

2006-02-21T11:22:00.000-08:00

I'm a little behind with the posting... I've started being a bit more settled here. I have a favorite café that I go to in the morning, where I don't have to order anymore. I have my routine of spanish class and tango class. And I've started dating. Yep, dating. It's strange and funny, but I'm loving it. It's so wonderful to be single again and enjoying life how I want to. And so, I've been distracted.

It looks like I may be spending my last 2 weeks in Argentina travelling a little bit around the country. I keep trying to sit down and do some reading about where to go, but my attention span is betraying me. If anybody knows anything about Argentina and has any reccomendations, I will love you forever. I'll take some pictures for you and buy you some cheap plastic souvenir of 2 tango dancers or something just as horribley cheesey.

2006-02-09T20:03:00.000-08:00

I didn't think I've posted in a while... I think it's because I'm settling into a bit of routine. Routine can definetely feel good and nice and cozy, but it also has a tendency to make me lazy. So, I have to fight that and continuously remind myself that I'm in BsAs, and I want to make the most of it.

Last weekend was good, but nothing too crazy. Went out on Saturday night with the intention of going to Klub Killer. I've intended to go there for I think 3 weeks now and still haven't made it. I went out with 2 of my roommates to Fin Del Mundo for a couple drinks before we were going to head over to Klub Killer. We ended up talking to some locals that convinced us to go to another "better" bar. The bar was okay, and it was a long and strange night.

On Sunday I went to a movie in Puerto Madera. They have free outdoor movies. I couldn't believe how many people were there. The movie started at 9:00, and even though it was in spanish it was such a stupid movie that I understood the whole thing. But it was a beautiful night, and I'm glad I went. There's also a market and food and stuff going on at Puerto Madera all weekend. It's crazy that they still have the markets going on at 9:00. Most of the venders were starting to pack up, but I would have expected that they would have been long gone.

Went to tango class on Tuesday as usual. Went to a gay milonga last night. That was interesting. It's a weekly event in a small place. It's very different to watch two men dancing tango together, and I quite like it. People there looked they were having a lot more fun than those I saw at the traditional milonga I went to. It's much more lighthearted. I didn't dance. I don't feel like I know enough yet to even embarass myself. Maybe by the time I leave I'll be able to get my ass on the dance floor.

24 hour make out session

2006-02-02T16:07:00.000-08:00

The people here are something else. Public affection is like a religion. Every other person you see is making out. And if they're not making out it's because they're by themselves. In that case, if they are a woman they are most likely pregnant, and if they are a man they are leering at you like they want to make out. I just can't get used to it.

2006-02-01T17:31:00.000-08:00

I had a night last night that I've been waiting for since I arrived in BsAs. I was at tango class, the same queer tango that I've been to a couple times before. I'm acquainted with most of the people there by now, but that didn't seem to matter last night. I felt completely isolated from everybody. I couldn't figure out how to say anything that I wanted to, and it didn't seem like anybody wanted to spend their night struggling to understand what the foreigner was saying. I can't blame them. I would rather just have a carefree conversation too, but it's just not possible now. And so I felt like the outsider, completely isolated and alone. It sucked. I knew it was coming, I just didn't know when. I didn't expect that the more spanish I learned the harder it would get. I thought it would get easier. I now know just enough to get frustrated when I can't get the words out. It was the first time I wondered what I was doing here in Argentina, why I came to a country where I couldn't communicate with words and how I thought I was going to get by.

We were supposed to take a class field trip to the delta today for a relaxing day of swimming, however it poured down rain. We were going to have class as usual, but after last night I just wasn't feeling up to it. After 3 1/2 weeks of spanish class every weekday I just needed a break. I slept in until 11, went out for coffee and went to see a movie in english. I felt guilty doing it, but it still felt good. It was a much needed escape. And now I can go back to spanish class tomorrow, and in theory I'll be a little refreshed and ready to learn again.

My view

2006-01-29T14:33:00.000-08:00

Off of my bedroom I have two little balconies. From one balcony, I have a view into the city, and I can watch the sunset. It's wonderful. From the other, I see onto the deck of somebodies very nice penthouse. Everyday an old man with saggy breasts wearing only boxers pulled up to his chest spends a good deal of time watering plants and sunbathing. That's my view.

Like Water

2006-01-26T18:22:00.000-08:00

This week I've been super-busy taking a semi-intensive tango course (on top of my 4 hour spanish course), which means class every night for 2 hours. After class on Monday I wasn't so sure about it. I liked the tango part, but the teaching feels a little new agey. We kept doing exercises to relax our bodies, and one of them was pushing your partner on different spots of their body, seeing how their body reacts and trying to get them to be loose where they seem to be tense. Weird. I don't particularly like pushing strangers, and I really don't like being pushed by strangers. I'm just not that touchy, and I don't know these men. And I suppose these exercises are exactly what I need considering I am tense as can be, but it's still strange.

The tango is coming along well though. I can definetely do more now than I could on Monday. Tonights class had highs and lows. It started out great, and I was dancing like a tango star until I had to be like water and occupy spaces that were made me for me. This made no sense. In order to get to spaces that were made for me I had to take a million steps fumbling over my partners feet that always seemed to be in the water. And I most certainly didn't feel like water, nor could I imagine water every being in this situation. Of course, my confusion was followed by everyone trying to tell me how to be like water in different ways. Nobody ventured another analogy. So, I failed at trying to feel like water and succeded in feeling like my partner was throwing me around the dance floor. That was the low. It sort of leveled out to nuetral after that.

Tomorrow is the last night of the tango course, so we're all heading out to a milonga afterwards. I'm not sure if I'll be dancing or not. I think I'll be too nervous to dance, but I might give it a go with one of the men from class. This will also be the first time that I get to watch tango since I started learning. Should be interesting.

All things BsAs

2006-01-19T13:02:00.001-08:00

Every other tile on the sidewalk is broken with high potential for danger for jandal-laden feet. All of the subway stations have televisions in them, mostly playing 30 seconds of pop music videos very loudly. The bus drivers hardly stop for you to get on and off the bus. You have got to be ready, no pussyfooting or you'll be in serious trouble. In my very very concrete urban neighborhood there are about 5 places to buy lawn-mowers. There are no lawns within any vicinity of my neighborhood. Kids here have the whole selling things on subway trains down. They walk up and down selling notepads, flashy light thingies, toys, anything. Kids here also have the whole selling things anywhere they possibly can down. Eating inside or outside of a restaurant there's usually at least one kid that will pop in with their box of whatever. I haven't stopped in any dogshit yet, which is some sort of miracle. I'm sure that when time comes I'll be in jandals though.

On a completely different note, living with boys sucks. I know that it's person specific and all, but right now it's 3 boys and no good. They don't know how to dry off before they get out of the shower. They got out and get the floor soaking wet, so the next person can walk in with their shoes on get it all muddy. They leave used floss in on the bathroom counter. Gross. I don't know them well enough to deal with seeing used floss. They assume that I am not a red wine drinker and that the bottle of red wine on the kitchen counter must be theirs because it's been there for a few days. They also have heart to heart talks with each other that make me want to die. Boys are weird.

Jardin Botanico

2006-01-18T15:52:00.000-08:00

Now that I'm fully recovered from my weekend, I'm back out and exploring the city. Yesterday I took a trip to the botanical gardens. I saw some great gardens in Australia, and I had high hopes for the gardens here. My first impression of the garden was that it was a little sparse. As I wandered around I saw some trees, some plants, some statues, some cats. And then I saw some cats, some cats and some more cats. I saw an old glass house with some broken windows that some cats were crawling in. I usually like wandering in greenhouses and checking out all the plants, but I wasn't so sure with all those cats. So, I skipped that. And what did I see when instead? Some other cats. At first it was just one cat here and there, then there were like 5 or 6 cats together and then they were everywhere. Seriously, everywhere. I was dodging them on the path. I've never been so creeped out by a garden. I ended up rushing through and couldn't stop thinking about how horrified I would be if I were trapped in there at night. Gives me the chills.

Last night I had my second tango class. It went very well. A girl took me aside and gave me a private lesson of the basic step, and now I'm catching on. It makes a whole lot more sense when you the basics. I'm good until I have to give leading a go. But I avoid that at all costs. Just as last week, I stayed after class for some drinks and pizza talking with a couple of Argentinian girls. I think I may be starting to make some friends here, which is just what I wanted.

2006-01-17T11:53:00.000-08:00

My day started out absolutely brilliant today. I ditched my roommates in the morning and opted to take the subte instead of a taxi. The taxis here are cheap, but it's about 3 times more than the subte, and I think I should be saving money wherever I can. And I don't particularly like taking taxis everywhere. Really not for me. So, I had a coffee and went into the estación to wait for la trene. I was sneezing like crazy, and the woman next to me asked if I had allergies. Now, normally this would be nothing. However, she asked and I understood. I was even able to reply to her. We continued to have a whole conversation en español while waiting for the train. Mind you, it was a little botched, but I actually understood her and she actually understood me. I was and still am totally amazed. It was the confidence booster I needed. Yesterday I was feeling how hard this was not being able to communicate, and today I feel like I am more than capable of making it happen. Feels good.

I have a tango class tonight again. It's the same one I went to last time. I am going to try to take more classes starting this week. The same teacher may come to my spanish school and teach some classes. They'd be pretty small classes, so it would be pretty cool. But I think I'm going to look into some other tango schools also. They're everywhere so I shouldn't have a problem. I'll just have to start dancing with boys.

Nothing juicy

2006-01-16T12:03:00.000-08:00

I have nothing juicy to tell about my set up. While she was a very nice woman, the chemistry just wasn't there. I did however have a great night out. After the photo exhibition we went to a very obscure bar in some obscure neighborhood. I still have no idea exactly where I was. And I certainly wouldn't be able to make it back there on my own. The bar was very hip and doubled as an art space. BsAs is apparently a very gay city, but I haven't noticed. It was great to go to a bar and see that there a ton of lesbians in the city, and I just need to open my eyes. No exciting stories to tell about the night, just good fun.

Saturday night was a bit crazier. I went with the women from my school to one of their friends apartments for some drinks and then headed out on my own to a party. The bar that I was at Friday night has a big party about once a month in some theatre. Everything in BsAs functions on a completely different time schedule than I am used to, so I didn't even leave for the party until 3 am. I'm still not sure how I even was still awake at that time. The party was big and crazy. I ran into all the people I met the night before. I'm not sure what the limitations are on age at these things, but I was sort of on the upper end. Nonetheless, I stayed and danced until 5:30 and headed home with the rising sun. I think I was probably one of the first to leave. I walked by cafés that we're packed on my way home. These people seem to have no concept of time. A whole different world.

hmmm...

2006-01-13T13:25:00.000-08:00

There's certain things that come along with not knowing the language where you are. Conversations that I have with people, or particulary groups of people, are only half understood on my part. Half is probably a huge over-estimate. 5-10% is more like it. So, sometimes I don't really understand completely whats going on or what I am saying. The whole point of this is that I've been set up. I am going to a photography exhibit tonight and meeting one of my spanish teachers single friends. I knew that they wanted to set me up, but I didn't think they'd work so quickly. I don't think I've ever been set up before, and I have very mixed feelings about it. I'm feeling a little nervous to say the least... For many reasons that I'm sure you all can guess, so I won't bother listing them. Think good thoughts for me.

Normal?

2006-01-12T18:39:00.000-08:00

I went out to dinner tonight with my German roommate Peter, and things were back to normal. I asked for a menú, and the waiter brought it. I ordered my food, no questions were asked and I got what I wanted. I asked for the bill, the waiter told me how much, and I understood. So, I am not crazy and the waiter that I had at lunchtime is. I feel much better. I also ate lunch at the same time that locals do, which is like 10:00 pm. I've been trying to go out for dinner later and later each day. When I went out at 8:00 I would be the only one in a restaurant. Tonight going out at 10:00 there were actually waits. I have to wonder what time these people go to bed when they are eating this late. I'm convinced that their 8 hours of sleep are broken up between the early morning hours and an afternoon siesta, or they simply catch up on missed sleep during the week on Saturday and Sunday when things don't seem to open until afternoon. Slowly, but truly I'm adjusting to how these people live. Though I do think it's a little crazy.

I can't learn spanish fast enough.

2006-01-12T11:53:00.000-08:00

I had the most frustrating experience ordering food today. I went to a restaurant and sat down. There was a board on the wall with some meals listed, and I tried to ask the waiter if that was the entire menú. He didn't get what I was trying to say, and we went back and forth for what felt like years. All he did was look at me like I was absolutely crazy. And it's not like menú is some crazy hard word, it's the same! I think the most frustrating thing is that I knew what I wanted to say and I pretty much knew how to say and he didn't get it. Before I've known what I wanted to say and had no idea how to say it and had no problem at all. I ended up ordering some food and whatever, so the situation was salvagable, but frustrating enough that I wished I could hide under the table. So, I'm back at my apartment, and I think I'm going to force myself to go get a coffee and do some writing so I don't completely avoid interacting with people en español. I must be able to communicate.

In other news, it's been raining in Buenos Aires for the past 3 days, so I haven't done too much exploring. It's nice knowing I have so much time, so I don't feel pressured to go go go. It rains, so I stay in and read or siesta. I think I'll forever be ruined for short vacations. I don't know how people could only go somewhere for only one week. It's so wonderful not to feel rushed, but that I can explore the city on my own time. Besides, if I felt rushed I would probably be stepping in dog shit all the time. It's everywhere in this city, totally disgusting. But the sidewalks are such a mess with broken concrete and trash that you pretty much walk looking down anyway. You have to look up to see the beauty in Buenos Aires though. If you always look down you would find it disgusting. And so, you have to stop and look around.

Queer Tango

2006-01-10T20:26:00.000-08:00

Tonight I had my first queer tango lesson, and it was wonderful. It was at a hip little bar in San Telmo, my very own neighborhood. I danced with maybe 5 girls over the course of the night, most of whom were able to translate the teachers lessons into english. Thank goodness for them. And I would tell you more, but it is late, and I am tired.

habla español?

2006-01-09T17:09:00.000-08:00

Um, no. I don't think the people at the school believed me when i said i knew absolutely no spanish. They somehow thought when I said none, that what I really meant to say was that I understood a little. I started out class this morning with a few other people so they could assess me. I think they learned quickly that I was telling the truth about knowing nothing. I wonder if it must be painful to teach somebody like me. Because I'm the only beginner starting this week, I get private lessons. It's probably a good thing. This way I only embarass myself in front of my teacher, not other students. I can still pretend that I'm cool in front of the students.

After my spanish lesson, I had a chat with the owner of the school. She was more than excited to hear that I was a lesbian. The schools website mentions that it is queer friendly, but they've apparently only had gay men. So, she's giving me info on the scene here. And she wants to set me up with someone. I think that's pretty funny, but I'm not so sure... However, it is wonderful to meet lesbians in this city and learn that there is a scene. It makes me look forward to the next couple of months even more.

When I left the spanish school I planned to take a long walk and check out the Botanical Gardens. In the middle of that long walk there were several shoe stores. There were also several small clothing stores with wonderful tank tops. And then there happened to be a coffee shop with air conditioning. I never made it to the Botanical Gardens. I think I maybe acting out with all of this shopping that I'm doing. Part of it is that everything is cheap, though it's not so cheap when you buy everything. The other part of it is that I've been wearing the same 2 shirts for the past 5 months, and I am so incredibly sick of them. I'm on a rampage to have a whole new wardrobe that consists of more than two shirts. So far, so good.

Tango=Sex

2006-01-07T21:56:00.000-08:00

I just came back from my first milango, which is basically a night of tango dancing. Not yet knowing how to tango, I just sat and observed. And do you know what I learned? Tango is sex, albeit sex with clothes on, but sex nonetheless. Everything down to the looks on their faces: sex. So, now I'm thinking about learning the tango, and I'm a little nervous. I'm really rooting for the queer tango bit, because I'm not so sure about learning tango with a boy. Very scary.

Walk, sleep, walk, sleep

2006-01-07T17:51:00.000-08:00

This morning I checked out of my hotel and moved into my apartment. It's amazing that one month in the apartment cost just slightly more than 2 nights in a hotel. Isn't that disgusting? It's great to be in the apartment. I put all of my clothes in the wardrobe and my books on a shelf. I'm more at home than I've been in months. I had lunch with my new roommates, took a long nap through the hottest part of the day and headed back out into the city.

Today I explored San Telmo a bit more, Defensa and got just over into La Boca. I keep running into amazing art everywhere. I'm going to rework my budget to incorporate purchases somehow... My neighborhood (San Telmo) is filled to the brim with all of these crazy antique shops. Some of the stuff looks like absolute junk, but for the most part it's pretty cool. On Sundays they have a huge antiques market, or so I hear, and I will definetly check it out tomorrow. I have to figure out when to go though. People don't seem to get moving here until late in the day. They party too hard all night long. Defensa has all sorts of fun little shops, art galleries and cafés. I really didn't get to see much of La Boca, but I think I'll head back tomorrow. At first I got sidetracked by a market (I just can't resist the markets..), but then I got sidetracked again by a rock show in the park. The band playing was pretty good. Of course I had no idea what they were saying, but who listens to lyrics anyway? So, I stayed and listened to them for quite a while. I was trying to figure out the crowd, but I couldn't quite do it. I have a hard time telling peoples ages here. The younger ones in the crowd were doing some sort of moshing something or other. I alsmost wanted to tell them that moshing is sort of over and that the music wasn't really the moshing sort anyway. But they were happy, and if I really wanted to tell them I wouldn't be able to anyway.

Success!

2006-01-06T18:28:00.000-08:00

Today was my first full day in Buenos Aires, and it was a success. I am so happy to be in this city. It's huge, and I am constantly getting lost, but I think that's the best way to learn my way around. The city is huge however. I think I could walk around every day that I'm in this country and still get lost. I'll just have to give it a try and see. My success today was two-fold. I found a spanish school that made me feel warm and fuzzy and I found an apartment that did the same. I am moving into the apartment tomorrow and staring spanish classes on monday.

After travelling around for nearly 5 months I cannot wait to unpack my bag somewhere. I am going to make my new room beautiful. Anyone who's known me for a while knows that I never do anything in my bedroom. I always leave it pretty bare because I know that in a year I'll have to take everything down, and I know that a year will go by pretty fast. I'm not sure if I've changed or if it's just the situation, but I want to make this room mine. So, after I've unpacked my bag I'm going to the market to get some plants and somethings to put on the wall. I'm so excited. I'll post pictures sometime after I move in.

The start of spanish classes will be a good thing indeed. I keep avoiding eating until I'm starving because I know that I'm going to have to make a fool of myself trying to order in a restaurant. It's the simple things that are really confusing. I still can't figure out if I seat myself or if I should wait. And sometimes trying to ask if I seat myself gets all weird and confusing. It is getting a little easier though. I look frantically through my phrase book before I go into a restaurant, but then of course they talk back to me, and I'm clueless again. The funniest exchange though had to be when I was looking at the apartment. The landlord speaks no english, not that he would be expected to. The conversation consisted of a lot of smiling, a lot of laughing, the occasional writing and one opening of the spanish phrase book. Without any spanish I was able to talk him down on the price though. I thought that was pretty good. I can't wait to be able to have normal conversations with people here though. Hopefully with 20 hours a week of spanish classes that will happen sooner than later.

I think this is getting a bit long. I'll stop so everybody reading at work can get back to their jobs. Remind me why you still have jobs again?

Buenos Aires

2006-01-05T16:05:00.000-08:00

So, I'm finally in Buenos Aires. It only took two days or something like that... My flights got off to a great start when the 10 year old in front of me flung his seat back so fast that I got smacked in the head. But I don't mind so much because I slept nearly the whole flight to LA. I have to say it was a little strange to be back in the states, even though it was for such a short amount of time. While I´ve been gone I´ve made a very conscious effort not to support American companies and suddenly I was faced with all American companies, and I was hungry so I supported them. It felt strange though. In LAX everyone was speaking loud and yakking away on their cell phones. I did not miss that one bit. But by the time I got to Miami things weren´t feeling very American anymore. It was a good way to ease into Argentina. I think it´s likely that there are more spanish speakers in Miami than english speakers. I did have one moment of panic in Miami when they called my name over the loud speaker to come the desk. I was terrified that I fucked up some visa requirement and they were going to break my little heart tell ing me I couldn't get on the plane. Luckily, that was just my imagination and they only needed to look at my passport.

And so I´m in Buenos Aires. So far I love it. I have no idea what anybody is saying so I´m spending a lot my time smiling as I say "no entiendo." I think I should learn how to say "I´m starting spanish classes on Monday," so I don´t feel so bad as we struggle to communicate. Tomorrow I´m venturing into the city to find a spanish school. I've got my eye on one that offers tango lessons of the queer variety. Very interesting... In other news the key boards here are different and you'll have to excuse my typos. And now I´m off to get some much needed sleep. Buenas noches.

Goodbye english.

2006-01-03T17:48:00.000-08:00

Today is my last day in New Zealand. I have not made my NZ highlights list yet, but I'll share it with you when I do. There's a few things that I'm going to miss for sure, one being english. I'm also going to miss some of the people I've met here in New Zealand. All of my WWOOF hosts here were spectacular. And the couple that I met at Waihoihoi Lodge and stayed with here in Auckland I will be forever grateful to. I think we'll be friends for life. Part of me doesn't even want to leave NZ, but I think the government will give me the boot. And if the government gives me the boot I'll never be able to come back.

Anybody hear about the earthquake in Fiji? It was a 7.1 on the richter scale, but apparently too deep to be felt or to cause a tsunami. Still, it makes me glad that I wasn't there. I can't tell you how many signs were pointing to not going to Fiji and how many times I've been reassured in my decision not to go. I'm guessing that Jen feels the same. But I'll never know seeing as we're not talking anymore. So goes life, eh?

I'm excited and absurdly nervous about Argentina. Fortunately I've got 2 nights booked at what should be a nice hotel. After 30 hours of flying and airports I plan on passing out for two days. I also plan on somehow waking up refreshed and ready to tackle Buenos Aires with my spanish phrase book until I can learn some spanish. Wish me luck.

Anybody make any good New Years resolutions?

2005-12-31T14:18:00.000-08:00

Alright, the dramatic moments are over. I may have gotten a little carried away, but I'm feeling back to myself now. After all the changes in the last two days my itinerary has made yet another change. I'm leaving New Zealand on the 4th and heading to Buenos Aires. I'm a bit nervous about the whole not knowing any spanish, but being somewhere where I know nothing is seeming exciting and right. With any luck I'll find a spanish school in the first few days and throw myself into it. And with any more luck I'll find a tango school right afterwards. Then again, if I learn how to tango do I really need to know how to speak spanish?

On the other side of things, Jen is going back to the states, and I've been asked not to make any contact. Sort of strange, but I suppose that's the way it goes. Our contact over the past month has been pretty minimal so I was at least eased in. And now it's time to get used to being single again. I think it will be good. In fact, it already feels quite good and right and what was well needed and overdue.

I hope you are all celebrating a fabulous New Year. Have a good time. Love you all!

Things are a changin.

2005-12-30T01:45:00.000-08:00

So, things have taken such a dramatic turn over the course of the day that I'm feeling a bit lost. I think this is the first time on this trip that I really wished I was home and with friends. I miss you all. A lot. Jen and I meet back up today, but after talking and crying and talking while crying, it looks like she's leaving tomorrow. New years is called off, Fiji is called off, it looks like friendship may be called off. I'm not sure what I'll do for New Years, but it looks like it's just me and the rest of Auckland. Maybe somebody else will be in the poor state that I'm in. Maybe nobody ever gave me the advice that sometimes people don't want to hear the truth. I still can't decide if the truth is good or bad. I'm off for a sad sad night. If all of you that I love on the other side of the world can send me some positive energy, that'd be great. I'd be forever grateful. Oh, and don't worry. I'll be okay.

Fiji?

2005-12-29T22:23:00.000-08:00

Remember all that business about going to Fiji? Well, it's all been called off. Jen and I are spending New Years together in Auckland and then going our own ways for good. I'm booking my ticket to Argentina tonight, and I can't wait. It's all happened pretty quick, but something about Fiji seemed so dreadfully wrong that I don't care. So, spanish and tango are happening sooner rather than later.

Happy New Years everyone!

Merry Christmas!!!

2005-12-24T11:38:00.000-08:00

It's a beautiful Christmas morning, and there is everything around me to remind me that I'm in New Zealand. Yesterday Rosemary and I went out into the forest and chopped down a Christmas tree. I'm used to going to the Christmas tree lot and scrutinizing all the Douglas Firs. (Except of course for the last few years when I've gotten a pointsetta and called that in that spirit) I don't know what kind of tree it is, but after we put all the decorations on last night, it was no doubt meant for Christmas.

Before we got to the tree decorating last night, the group of women at the Waihoihoi Lodge piled into cars and went down to the annual Waipu Christmas parade. Everything about the parade lets you know that it's Christmas, but at the same time lets you know that it's summer.... A Christmas parade with a wheelbarrow race, people in shorts and beach lifesavers, and it's in the evening but the sun is still shining. Weird.

And now it's Christmas morning and the sun is shining, and it's likely to be a glorius day at the beach. I am crossing my fingers to hope that I can make it there sometime today. Some sad news about today is that I scratched my Christmas scratch ticket, and I did not win $10,000. But I'll live, and I am sure that whatever present I end up with in the yankee swap will be enough.

I hope you all enjoy your Christmas and are able to spend it with your family and friends, eat lots and lots of food and relax all day. I'll be thinking of all of you today (and when I say thinking, I really mean terribly missing). Merry Christmas!!!

Women and weeding

2005-12-16T23:10:00.000-08:00

I'm off of the Lavender Farm and onto a women's lodge in Waipu. I spent last night in Auckland, and it seems much better than any of the other New Zeland cities. It's certainly much larger. It actually feels like a city. I look forward to getting back to Auckland for New Years. I have a feeling that they know how to celebrate there...

Waihoihoi Lodge is were I'm staying now, doing more WWOOFing. So far, so good. It's great to be around lesbians again. Just great. Somehow very relaxing. I think the next 10 days will be just fine. Today I did a bit of weeding, and I think I'll be doing a good deal more weeding. I also get to ride around on a little quad bike and shower without my jandals on. Now that's good. I'll update again as soon as something exciting happens. Oh, and the title is a link to the lodge webpage, in case you hadn't figured that out.

Lavender

2005-12-14T14:42:00.000-08:00

Lavender farms are absolutely lovely. Beautiful purple flowers everywhere and the scent of lavender is on absolutely everything. Even after a day on my knees picking lavender it still seems lovely. Maybe after a few years of the work it wouldn't seem quite so lovely, but lucky me doesn't have to worry about that.

My week at Our Patch Lavender has been great. My hosts Michael and Marion are of the personable and funny sort, which suits me just fine. But alas, it is time to move on. Tomorrow evening I will head up to Auckland and stay for only one night before heading up to the Waihoihoi Lodge in Waipu. This I where I'll be spending almost all the rest of my time in New Zealand, including Christmas. It's an all women's lodge, and I'm not quite sure what exactly that implies yet.

I hope all of you are not going too crazy in this holiday season. If you are, I recommend a trip to New Zealand. While everyone is still running around getting ready for Christmas, it's hard to get too caught up in it because of the weather. Seeing santa in board shorts and having the sun shining puts me in good spirits, but not necesarily of the holiday sort. Happy shopping and I promise to think of you while I'm on the beach, if you promise to think of me while eating your delicious turkey.

Tongariro Crossing

2005-12-11T13:04:00.000-08:00

Yesterday I hiked the Tongariro Crossing, which is supposed to be the most spectacular day-walk in New Zealand. The walk goes along all sorts of volcanic craters and amazing sulphuric hot springs and lakes. I would love to be able to tell you just how amazing and beautiful it was and how I've never seen views like those before, but it rained through most of the walk and the majority of my views were blankets of fog in all directions. After climbing up for an hour and half the winds were strong enough that I had to make a choice between crouching down or being blown over. Needless to say, I was unable to take a peek at the edge of the crater and examine it's depth. If I did, I would be in the crater right now instead of writing this blog. Fortunately, I did get a fabulous glimpse of the Emerald Lakes, which are a striking, vibrant green and just came out of nowhere. You could smell the sulphur much sooner than you could see the lakes. By the end of the day, the sun made an appearance, my pants dried and we were so far from the craters that it was hopeless. But seeing the Emerald Lakes made it all worth it. Though I don't have a picture to show you...

In other news, this is my new blog for obvious reasons. Jen should have her new blog up and running soon. I think. She's at a new WWOOF host in Northland, and I presume it depends on whether or not they have internet access. She's WWOOFing at a huge cattle farm. I'm leaving National Park today to go WWOOFing at a Lavender Farm. Doesn't that just show how different we are.