Why not?

Well, I haven't been very good at keeping up blog entries at my site lately so I thought I'd just put up some random pictures and tell stories about them.... Why? Well, why not?



This is my host-dad's normal repose by the television most every night. He starts around 8 or 9pm (gotta get your eight hours in!) and sometimes makes it until 2-3am in the morning before heading off to the actual bed (pretty amazing actually, I know my back couldn't take all that...). If I'm a particularly light sleeper that night, I run missions to the kitchen and swipe the remote, turn off the light, turn off the TV with the remote... and run.

There is a fabuluous tradition that all American High Schools should add to there list of events. It's the induction of the freshmen into the high school. A "godmother" or "godfather" (sponsor, if you will) accompanies each freshman for the ceremony. Guys get a tiny lock of their hair cut and girls get lipstick drawings on their faces. Um, yes?! Who thought of this marvelous custom? Anyway, the another unfortunate custom in Peru is stealing people's stuff so I don't have photos of that ridiculously awesome event. But no fear, guys. I recreated it in the kitchen one day. It actually worked better because Jesse had no idea what I was doing so I got a lot more of my creative work accomplished. And then, I let her have a go. Always a good big host-sis, I am.

The mountains behind my house, Bronce Gaga, is what they're called. And today they actually had snow on them and a cloudy cap. And for a moment, I witnessed what life may have looked like without global warming...

The brave Ancashinos... fending off smoke inhalation and fecal conamination with a single SPA grant. Oh yes, we're that good.

Next time your glass sweats onto your table for want of a decorative and useful coaster, think of all the ingenuity floating around my Peace Corps site... We made these out of plastic bags!

Plastic bag "chullo." A traditional Peruvian hat, made miniature for ornaments or your miniature head. I'm buying one! Don't you want one too? Recycled plastic... what. what.