08/31/2015 It’s been a quiet week, which is a nice change. Brenda and I tried to do a vet clinic on Thursday but the guy who was going to help us was so sick we ended up taking him to the doctor.  He had impacted sinuses and was a mess. After a visit with the doc he was on 2 nose sprays and 3 different meds. On the way back to the boat we stopped and treated a puppy, a bigger dog and a severely malnourished cat. The cat was 3 months old and weighed about 2#’s. It is heartbreaking and there is nothing we can do but try and educate the people about feeding the animals. Oh, the 3 month old kittens’ momma was preggo again too. Just what the island needs, more animals.

On Friday I had the pleasure of attending a spelling bee at the Pedro Nufio school in Politilly. I got there around 9 AM, it was (and has been) miserably hot. The school is situated up a very steep road and I had to do a 17 point turn to get my car faced downhill and then hope like hell that my emergency brake was in excellent working condition. I trudged down the dirt road then up the dirt hill to the school, which is situated next to a small cemetery. I walked to the back of the tents, searching for a seat in the shade. There were none. A young boy brought me a blue wooden school desk chair to sit on and I squeezed as close as I could into a shaded area, waiting for Nidia to arrive. In sun like this you will melt in 10 minutes flat. Maybe less if you are not Italian.

The ladies in front of me were the Pandy Town teachers, they recognized me as “the Camera Lady.” I sat there in the sweltering heat for several hours listening to the kids spell. I felt that some of the words were not appropriate words for these young kids who are just learning English, like ALLITERATION. I mean, even the judges had to look up the meanings of the word and the man saying the words didn’t always pronounce them correctly either. I wish I knew for sure the ages but I think it was 4th, 5th and 6th grade. There were a couple really good spellers in the group. You could tell the kids were extremely nervous plus the crowd was loud, lots of kids carrying on, parents talking and arguing. My idea of a spelling bee is the audience is supposed to be “Pin Drop” quiet so the kids can concentrate. Not in Honduras, it’s just not how its done. There was one little boy who knocked my socks off. He walked up, blue shirt sleeves rolled to his elbows, hands in his black pants pockets, this boy was ready to spell. I’ve never seen such confidence is such a young boy . He said the word, spelled it INSTANTLY, no hesitation, repeated it and he was always right. When they gave him the word Prosciutto, I was all WTH?? Most English speaking adults can’t even begin to spell that word but it fell off his lips instaneaously. Many people don’t even know what the hell it is, yet he spelled it. Amazeballs.

I only had to back up and pull forward 6 or 7 times to get out of the parking spot at the school. Someone had totally parked me in. I was a hot sweaty mess (and not in a good way) by the time I maneuvered my car out and started down the hill towards home.

August was a typical hotter than hell month with humidity so high you were in a perpetual state of sweat. So be it, I’m not complaining about the weather in the Caribbean, really, I’m not.  I remember when I lived in the states, way back when, 2 years ago, I loved the end of July and all of August. They were typically the only weeks I could really use my ghetto pool. We had always considered putting in a nice pool but given the fact that summer is only 6 weeks long, it wasn’t worth it. That is unless we wanted to HEAT the water. Pools here have the opposite problem. They are too damn hot. I recall going to Parrot Tree with Walter one Sunday and the only way we could be in the water was if we stood under the bridge, where the water was shaded. There was no, “aaah, this feels so awesome” when you entered the water. It was SHIT, “this is hot”.

So this is September now and August forgot to take the heat with it. The other day Bill hooked up a random mister section of hose he brought with us. It was a semi breezy day on our porch so directing the mist was not something we could do.

The pups were afraid, then curious, then fascinated, then they were sure it was their own personal drinking fountain. They were biting at the jets of mist that were spraying into the air from the tiny holes.

For the sheer entertainment of it all, I have been sewing dogs faces together, cutting off noses or paws and re-stitching. NOT A DAMN TOY IS SACRED.

Anything with stuffing meets a swift and sudden death here. There are still 2 crate pillows and 2 specially made dog beds that I am trying to figure out how to make them tooth proof. Aside from a suit of armor, I’m lost, no thoughts, so they sit in a corner of my house.

New dog treat: scrub a huge sweet potato, cut off the ends, slice it 1/4″ thick and bake for 2.5 hours in a 200 degree oven. Then let it cool. The dogs LOVE to chew on it, much better than the nasty chew toys you get in the stores.

I’m going to wrap this up because I want my bed…we took the Beach Boys down to Parrot Tree for a dip. They had their normal fabulous time. They came home, got showered, had lunch and a nice long nap.

Just hanging out for the next few days with the boys, may set the sprinkler up and see if they will play in it. Once again, it’s hot hot hot!!

Sunday will be another swim day for the puppies. This time we are driving to Paya Bay with the Beach Boys, one of their brothers and his parents. Should be a fun day. I’ll be sure to take lots of pictures. Luckily my dogs are used to my camera, Dooce was terrified of it. We always felt she thought the camera stole her soul..Who knows, maybe it did.

catch you later my friends..

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