Put your good to use

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Well, I've take a little bit of a retreat from blogging. The days are similar and I have little to report of any real importance.

Yesterday was Thanksgiving. It was honestly one of the best I've ever had. All of the students helped cook the most incredible food. I'm not used to eating really thanksgiving food, but rather lasagna, and really really enjoyed having turkey, sweet potatoes, mashed potatoes, veggies, salad, PIE... I had a great time dressing up, eating good food, and enjoying dinner for the first time in a long time inside the center walls.

Everyday begins exactly how the day before began. I've been doing directed reserach with Annemarie aka studying habitat complexity on coral reefs and how that relates to fish assemblages (species richness and abundance) across mulitple families. Because I am only a lowly snorkeler, I have to do the fish ID work everyday rather than trade a do the SCUBA transect line stuff that doesn't seem as fun. I've become a real fish expert. I can ID a miriad of beautiful reef fish and snorkel like it's my job, possibly because it is. Unfortunately, with the perk of resident fish IDer I also get to jump in the COLDEST pool EVER, every flippin morning at 8:15am. Once submerged, I have to estimate the approx. size of wooden fish, a task I also complete during research out in the field. I do enjoy it, I just wish A. I didn't get tan lines so quickly so my one piece wasn't permanently tattooed on my body, B. I could not jump in the cold pool regularly, C. I got to sleep in just once this week. Fortunately, we are now done with data collection. All that is left is one paper and one presentation and then I'm done for the semester.

I have 13 days left in the TCI. Its really difficult to believe my time here is coming to an end. I love it now, just as much as I did 2.5 months ago. It is still beautiful with even better weather that I'm acclimated to (I'm nervous about going home, 60 DEGREE DIFFERENCES ARE NOT OKAY). I love the sunset and I still enjoy the people in the community. I've even been having fun on saturdays dealing with children! Wow, weird. I've convinced the majority of the kids I'm a witch. This of course started on Halloween, when I was in charge of playing with gloup (corn starch and water). They actually took this to heart and great me on the street as "the witch". They even whisper my true being to each other in spanish slang to avoid envoking my rage. I informed them that any misbehavior in my presence would result in being turned in to a frog. The things kids believe...

After research, I lay out until lunch. Following lunch is usually reading, tanning, or napping. Then maybe a run, dinner, and going out to Trench or Chicken to hang out with the locals. We've gotten pretty close to a few of them. They're really nice, generous, and fun to be around. I did, however, receive a love letter from Gucci (Ginario), a 17yr old gangster kid who thinks we don't know how young he is. He is the MOST annoying person I have encountered on thsi trip thus far. The letter is short and sweet and to the point, "I can not I like have babies with you, I like Savannah you dance smooth, etc.." He asks me to marry him in the end in his broken english. Really effective educational systems around here, clearly.

I'm really excited for the next two weeks of relaxing followed by a wonderful yet cold reunion in Indiana. This trip has fulfilled me in more than one way. I am so thankful for this opportunity to learn so much about myself and to experience something completely different that once made me uncomfortable but is now as comforting as home. This opportunity was gladly not wasted on me.

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