Things can only get better!!

Well, this past week has had it's ups and downs - probably more downs than ups to be honest - but a new week starts tomorrow so we shall see what it brings! It has been a tough couple of weeks in school, what with work, children, politics, parents eves etc. This weekend has cheered me up somewhat though. On Friday we had a party at Ken and Sue's house. They wanted to have a party and asked Amanda and I to organise it and invite all my friends - we weren't about to argue on this one! Was good to be back in that house again having a party.

Saturday was the trip to the vet again - next vaccinations! Sooo expensive..but necessary! I have booked both the dogs in to be spayed this Friday. As I don't have any desire to breed them it makes sense to have them 'done'! As dogs live outside here - and all the other dogs actually live on the street outside their houses, having 2 dogs on heat will mean barking all night and all the daddy doggies lining up outside our fence trying to get in - no thank you! So the snip it is. However....I can't believe how expensive it is!! It is cheaper for me to have a hysterectomy (which I am NOT having!) than it is for my dogs! What is that about!? It has actually made me really sad because Amanda and I had planned to get away for a weekend, to the beach or somewhere. We desperately need to get away from things here for a bit to get ourselves together - time out etc! However, due to the cost of these darling doggies, Amanda is going by herself as I can't afford it!! Thanks Jezebel and Delilah!!
Looking back at the photos I put on here of them I realise how sick they were - they are very different now they are healthy so I shall try to take more photos this week!

Weather wise it has improved. Not nearly as much rain these days - has actually been quite sunny again some days!!

I played my flute in church today - trying to start practising for my duet from hell that's coming up at Christmas! I really enjoyed it. I do love my friends at church (but also miss my friends from home). So much fun. Tonight, we didn't have choir after the service and Martita (pastor's wife) came up to me to say that as we didn't have choir I was going to lead a dancing class with everyone!!! She's so funny!! Hilarious really considering Christian's aren't allowed to dance in this culture! We're slowly challenging things apparently! I really do feel involved here - it's great!

Let's hope this week is an improvement!

Back...and with a friend!

Yes it's true.....plastic chair man is back.

This time he had a friend....who was standing there loading his gun on the street corner!!

After we past him we heard him 'testing' his gun. Didn't look back to see what he shot.

Got to love it!

My random life

Well today brought with it more randomness! As usual. This morning I went to church by myself as Amanda needed to sleep. It was good to catch up with my friends (again!!) Then Amanda and I wandered to the market and pottered around without rushing - was lovely.
This afternoon the guys from church had a football match and so we took some of them up to the match in my car and took the dogs with us - whilst they were playing we took the dogs for a lovely walk along the quiet lanes. This is definitely not a common thing here!! Lets just say I hope our dogs get used to it!!

Then...it was time for choir again! I went with apprehension as I did not have the music I was meant to teach 'my group' or the music for the flute!!! When I arrived I was met with some disturbing news about the evening! Let me tell you that our music director is a phenominal musician! He has his own recording studio in his house and plays every instrument under the sun!! A vvvv talented man, the like of which I have never met before! So...when I arrive he joyfully tells me we are going to play a duet in the concert!! I nearly died then and there!!!! After some frantic praying, God came up trumps as he had left my music at home - thus I couldn't play tonight!! How sad! The singing went fine and I sat and belted out my part in Spanish! I really, really do love it. The ladies were still discussing what we should wear and yet again my hair colour was being used as an example of a colour we could have for a stole or scarf or something! Heaven help me! The dancing went well and good old Martita the pastor's wife got into it again! Too amusing. We don't have practise next week and so I have time to get it all sounding as it should. Talk about pushing my limits - very good for me!

Please pray it all goes well!

The countdown...

Day 7....he was there this morning, there this afternoon when I passed twice. When we came back home tonight after dinner out a Musi's he was gone! I feel my life is altering...it's just not right when he's not there!

Happy Guy Fawkes Night!

For the first time ever I really really missed bonfire night tonight!! I missed wrapping up warm and standing by a bonfire. I missed sausages - real sausages, not American hotdogs - and jacket potatoes! I missed sparklers and fireworks.

Instead? I got to fix the dogs' fence.

The man is still on the plastic chair...day 6. (was there on the way to school and on way back!)

Isn't it ironic...don't you think?

So life took an extraordinary turn this week and became not just random but surreal - in every way!

We have 3 friends who live here in town who teach at a school connected with an orphange on the highway. They are 3 American girls who arrived in August, they are still adjusting to living here. Their school has had problems with a burglar who is very malicious, has been breaking in and tearing down posters and pictures, taking things, and even went and took a bite out of every banana! Anyway, this man had a problem with the school and so when the school called in the police he had to find another way to get back at them. It turns out that this way was to get back at the teachers - our friends! He found out where they live - by following the school bus and following them home - this is what we think anyway! So their house was broken into, furniture tipped over, posters ripped down, he took their computers, cameras, money etc. The main issue is that written on the wall was a death threat and a comment about coming back again!!

So...obviously they had to get out and quick. They don't know many people here in Honduras and so we were very touched that they felt they could call on us for help. One of the girls went up to the school to stay and the other 2 wanted to get away from it all and come and sleep here. So Amanda and I shared our room and gave them hers.

It is such a horrible thing. I went to meet them in the supermarket car park and then had to drive around town for a bit before coming here to make sure we weren't being followed. Never thought I'd have to do that. We had texted all our friends here to get them to pray for us so that we'd all be kept safe!! All was good and we were safe. Since then their school has stepped up and found them a house to live in and for a week they are going to live up at their school.
Has been an odd 24 hours! All over now though!

The irony of it all? We are supposed to live in the dangerous part of town and yet they took refuge with us here!

It's just not that bad...

All this talk about being unsafe but I have the LOVELIEST neighbours ever! Tonight, about 9pm, as I was sitting on my bed working on my computer I heard them calling my name from the gate. I went out and Irma and her daughters were waiting there with a big plate of steaming hot corn and tamales for us!
How many people have landlords who bring them over plates of food at night? They are so kind and they take such good care of us!
I have no problems living here.

Ebenezer choir...or Sister Act??

I jumped right into the deep end yesterday and joined our church Christmas Choir!! Turns out lots of my friends are in it and I wanted desperately to join in with the church at Christmas. Amanda is going back to Canada for the festive season and so I will be here on my own (tho will go to Sue's for Chrissy day). So along I went, I sat in the back row with my friend Karina (at this point may I point out I am the only white person there) and with the Pastor's wife Martita. Now Martita is fantastic, so much fun. Well, everyone was fairly serious, this was their second practise. Then along comes me!!

Well, Danny (Music man) had made some of the carols really groovy and latino style - well how on earth was I supposed to stay sitting still for music like that - was impossible! So I start grooving away in my seat - surprisingly Martita joins in. Now, again let me point out that dancing in church is somewhat frowned upon! In general actually. Slowly my back row of friends all start joining me and we are having a great time clapping away. Including the pastors wife. Danny thought it was great and before I know it I have been declared the choreographer ....hilarious...me!?! In jest I may add! At any rate I ran with it and got everyone moving to the music.

Now in this choir - which I was LOVING - we were singing some of our English carols but in Spanish. It turns out only 3 of us could read music (of which I was one) and Danny wanted us singing in 3 parts and so he stood and announced that I was going to be teaching one of the parts next week! Agghh! Nothing like asking me first! But heh I wanted to get involved. Then dearest Jorge and Adony pointed out to him that I play the flute too and so I am now going round to Danny's house with the band this week to play my flute and practise for the carol concert! Heaven help me.

How did all that happen? Not sure! But...it gives me something to do over the Christmas hols and it gets me more involved!! And to be honest ...I love it!!

So the choir has gone from a serious choir to more of a Sister Act style just from the addition of an over enthusiastic choir member with blonde hair!! All in one night - but they all love it too. Only problem I foresee....I have to wear a black dress and don't possess one! Hmmm...

Is all good for me and for my Spanish....am definitely putting myself out there!

Barrio Campo Alegre

Our neigbourhood (or Barrio) is called Campo Alegre. Now I have mentioned before that it is the old Red Light District. Now, we have been told on many occasions that our neighbourhood is dangerous. We just laughed it off as people not really knowing or going on hear-say. That may well be true - but then again...! It has been bought to our attention this week just what people think. Yesterday Kike came round and we were all going to go to church together after watching a movie. I suggested going in my car and leaving his at the house til afterwards...however...he refused to leave his car outside our house with no-one there! He didn't feel safe enough leaving it there! I leave mine here all the time!! Then, later that evening at church ,Adony was teasing me saying he was going to come and scare me over Christmas when Amanda is back in Canada, by breaking in and making me jump..blah blah...(he would never do it - just teasing)..then...he said he wouldn't dare break into our house because he would get attacked doing it! Didn't feel safe enough in our neighbourhood to do it!! Great!! Basically, a whole load of people winding us up about where we live, the cemetery etc! We still feel safe enough here. The druggy men across the road leave us alone now. Keeps everyone else amused apparently.

My favourite neighbour is the man around the corner, he is a young man, wears a woolly hat and sits outside his house on the corner on a plastic chair. He is ALWAYS there. Whatever time of day or night I pass he is sat out there on his plastic chair! Amanda and I are going to start a count of how often he is there. It's hilarious -he clearly doesn't work!

So feel free to pray for us here.

Only in Honduras!

There I was sat in my Spanish class, learning the Irregular verbs in the future tense - fun eh? - when Amanda calls me to tell me there are 3 men in our house disconnecting our electricity! Hmmm... They had come round to say the bill had not been paid so they were disconnecting us. Amanda pointed out we had not had a bill - so first he cut the cable and then he gave it to her!! He then cut several houses in our block - including our landlady opposite. It is very unlikely that they hadn't paid. These men were quite unpleasant to Amanda and me thinks they wanted the money from the re-connection fee.

So after my Spanish class I went on a candle hunt to get more candles to see us through the evening. When back home (and had met up with Amanda by this point) we spoke to Dona Irma next door - she couldn't even get her car into her drive because her gate is electric!

Anyway...this is Honduras isn't it? When they disconnect you they don't just flick a switch to turn off your power, they come and actually cut the cable - so she simply called her handyman friend Geovany and he just wired the cables back together again for us...thus electricity!!! Who needs to pay a reconnection fee or the company?? She's going to talk to the electricity people for us tomorrow!!

Only in Honduras....

Happy Saints Day!

I had no idea it was Saints Day until half of Siguatepeque started walking past my house to the Cemetery! There have been hundreds of people all passing by with flowers, and on the streets there are people selling flowers and decorations for the graves. Our road, however, has now turned into the biggest mudbath ever!

Is clearly a very big day here and if you have a member of your family who has died you have to go visit the cemetery with flowers. You can learn so much living so close to a Cemetery!!! Who knew?!

I know I have good friends around me here in Honduras when in their emails they say things like this:

"bueno caterin que el señor te bendiga,portate bien................y si te portas mal me invitas!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"

Translated means:

OK Katharine, God bless you, be good....and if you behave badly, invite me!!!

My kind of friend!!