Thanksgiving 2006

Hi everyone! I hope everyone had a great Thanksgiving and that your pants aren't too tight after the traditional bout of national gluttony. We Peace Corps volunteers kept true to our roots and spent the day before cooking up a storm in the pcv house in Santa Rosa. I myself made with my friend Sarah 5 pumpkin pies, a cherry pie, a blueberry pie, a pecan pie, 2 pie crusts for friend Aaron's peanut butter cream pie and Eric's wild rice quiche, and I made mom's famous sweet potato casserole also. We got two butterball turkeys from San Pedro Sula, ordered 2 cases of wine (that's 24 bottles, although I sadly didn't partake, everyone else did), had 5 or 6 kinds of potatoes, veggie dishes, layer dips, veggie trays, baked bread, cheesy biscuits, stuffing, gravy, salad, chili, broccoli casserole, and a ton other stuff. About 35 people showed up to eat, mostly volunteers but also some Hondurans and a couple local Americans and English teachers (here I'll say hi to Allison's mom!). It was pretty crowded but very fun. It was good there were so many warm bodies because it was super cold. I had on a hat, scarf, and gloves on almost the entire week, and dreaded washing a dish because the water was so freezing cold that my fingers would go numb. I took the space heater mom brought me last year but the main room at the Peace Corps house is so open that it doesn't do much except for the lucky person sitting directly in front of it, but it was better than nothing. The local massage therapist from my town who also works in Santa Rosa did massages all morning for the equivalent of 6$ an hour, and she is as good as any massage giver in the states, I'll tell you that. I didn't get one on turkey day though because I get one in my house in Dulce Nombre every two weeks or so...ah, the Peace Corps life is so hard sometimes ;) I ate so much at dinner that I seriously couldn't move afterwards. Everyone else started drinking the wine and our invented "hot toddies" (cheap rum, apple cider mix or other fruit mixes, cloves and cinnamon...mainly the hotness being the desired thing) and generally got pretty tipsy, but I was lame and get under the best sleeping bag and hung out in my bed for a few hours talking to people and went to bed early. The day after I was gonna make turkey soup for everyone but there was no power all day, and I wanted to get back to Dulce Nombre, so I left the recipe for the people staying and went back.

Now that Thanksgiving is out of the way I am ready to go home for Christmas! I am so excited to be in my house again and enjoy the awesome holiday atmosphere that mom and the rest of the fam always create. I'm also gonna try to make some progress on my grad school applications while I'm home with access to internet 24/7....can't wait. Also for those of you who don't know Lester, the guy I have been seeing down here, has gotten a 6-month visa to go to the states over the holidays and will be with me. We had to go to the embassy in Tegucigalpa, which was a terrifying experience, even though I am a citizen. Very intimidating, all those serious people down there with the power to say "yes" or "no" to people's dreams and plans. He only knows a little English but is learning more every day so it should be interesting. It'll be his first time on a plane, let alone the states, so I am very excited to see his reactions to everything. I would like to take him to see UVa and DC, but other than that, we will mostly be around the Richmond area.

Until then I am gonna be busy. Since my stove project got fully funded I have made little progress, but am planning to buy the materials this week with the mayor and then get them all welded as needed. The ladies in the project are raring to go and I feel bad with every delay. Also I am going to Siguat all next week for the Youth Without Borders project, which is a youth directed HIV/AIDS prevention program in my community. By the way, Thursday, December 1st, is World AIDS Day, people. This year's theme is "Renew your promise". Basically we should all make a resolution to help with education and prevention, even if it's talking to our best friend about practicing safe sex or waiting, or talking to sons and daughters and even parents, or reaching out to love and support people living with HIV/AIDS. Take a moment to think about the millions suffering from this epidemic and families of or orphans of victims, often in our own backyards or down the block or families.

Ok gotta go, it's late. Love you all and can't wait to be in my own country for Christmas, as silly as that sounds.