Best and worst - term one

I'm sitting in the Trinidad airport waiting for our flight back to America. The first semester of med school is officially over. It is hard to believe. A lot has happened in the four months since we first arrived in Grenada.

C.J. learned what it takes to really make it in med school. Basically, study 14 hours a day. It was a brutal experience for him, and he is a relieved to be done for awhile.

I had the chance to explore our new home and make a lot of friends. Living in another country was an adjustment at first, but now I am feeling comfortable with our life in Grenada.

Here is a recap of my best and worst of Grenada so far:

BEST

1. Beautiful beaches - really, just like you would imagine in the Caribbean
2. The ocean - I really enjoy seeing it every day; it is serene and majestic and powerful and I think I will miss it when I am land locked again
3. St. George's - I never get tired of the vibrant atmosphere and unique old world charm of this capital city
4. Hiking - there are beautiful mountains in the center of Grenada that provide great hiking opportunities; lovely mountain streams and waterfalls and lush jungle foliage
5. SO social scene - making friends has been easy; I've had a chance to meet so many great people and therefore always have something fun to do
6. Movie theatre - it's small and the movies aren't always great but the price is right; about $5 US for the movie and the popcorn and candy is only a $1 US a piece - this is a Wednesday night favorite
7. Fruit punch and smoothies - self explanatory; they are delicious and ubiquitous
8. Mocha chillers - delicious chocolaty drink at Rituals, the Starbucks of Grenada
9. Lobster - they are big and they are cheap here
10. Friendly people - they are reserved by my Texas standards, but overall they are pleasant and helpful when you need something
11. Harold - our taxi driver; very prompt and friendly; he took us to school on the first day we arrived, and we've used him ever since
12. Music - Reggae and steel drums and anything with a good beat; sometimes it gets old but I mostly enjoy it; Grenadians like it loud which I find amusing
13. Bus system - pretty good all things considered and always a fun experience; worthy of a separate blog one of these days

WORST

1. Dorm life - living in one room with another person for four months, even when you are married to that person, is not always pleasant; thank goodness we are in an apartment next semester
2. Food - I prefer the selection in America, because of course that is what I am used to; it is disappointing when things aren't always at the grocery store such as tomatoes, eggs, milk, etc.; restaurants serve mostly bar food unless you are willing to pay a lot of money; some local food I've seen isn't appetizing such as salt fish; some popular fruit I do not care for such as papaya and mangoes
3. Language barrier - this is not really a worst, but it does make life hard sometimes; Grenada is supposedly an English-speaking country but I can barely understand what the locals are saying
4. Cost of living - you would think it would be cheap, but a lot of things are more expensive because it all must be shipped over on a barge; also, getting there and back costs an arm and a leg
5. Weather - it is HUMID; there is no hope for looking good; sweating is the norm; frizz and shine is abundant
6. Third-world nation - not quite but it's not a developed nation either; this means most things are not up to our American standards (see previous post about how that is not bad, just different); it can be intimidating, frustrating and disturbing at times and all the following worst items are a result
7. Open gutters - they are scary, especially when you are driving; I'll have to devote a separate blog to driving which we've just begun to experience
8. Pot hounds - this would also be worthy of a separate blog; they are mangy stray dogs, not dangerous but sad to see them mistreated and neglected
9. Pot holes - there are some really rough roads on the island including the road that leads to our new apartment; it makes for a jolting ride and partially explains why cars on the island are junkers
10. Process - lots of things don't make sense; nothing runs very smoothly or efficiently; lots of waiting and testing of patience when you are doing anything from ordering food to registering your car
11. Pace - it...is....slow; on Thursday I ate dinner at a new restaurant; it took almost two hours to get our food; see #10 but also people just move slower and take their time; it's a cultural thing
12. Shopping - forget about it; local stores feel like the equivalent of a flea market

I'll leave it at that for now, although there is so much more. No words can capture everything we've experienced since relocating to Grenada.

Valuabe lesson

The best part and also the hardest part of living on this island is being exposed to a different culture. It is really fun and fascinating at times and can also be very frustrating. When I am frustrated with the way they do things here, I have to remind myself that I am in their country and that I must adjust my attitude and expectations.

Therefore, I have been thinking about my last blog quite a bit and how it really is snobbish of me to think that my command of the English language is better than the average Grenadian's.

If 100,000 people understand that postal note and communicate in that way than who am I to say it is wrong? It is just not how we would write it in America.

I often feel that American culture is superior because it seems overall we are faster, more efficient and more sophisticated. But what makes that superior? If life here is slower, if things operate in ways that seem old fashioned, if standards are primitive to my liking, so what? It works for them.

I could never begin to understand the history and nuances of how things operate here and it is presumptuous to assume people here should try to achieve something similar to what we have in my own country.

Here's what happened that really got me thinking about this. After I just complained about the "walk with" phrase in the postal note, I heard two people use that phrase today within an hour.

Which makes it an island idiom and not some horrific misuse of the English language. Who knew.

First, I went to St. George's to register our new car in my name. I went with the previous owner to complete the paperwork which is standard here. He is from Trinidad, an island close to Grenada.

He forgot his records in the car and said something to the effect of "Oh, I didn't walk with that paperwork. Oh well, we should be o.k." Then, not 30 minutes later, we went to the insurance company and the underwriter told me I would need to bring C.J.'s licence in to include him on the policy. She said "be sure to walk with your papers when you come back." Meaning, be sure to bring the copy of my insurance policy when I return.

So, that phrase makes sense to Grenadians and I guess people from other islands too. Which in turn makes it perfectly reasonable to use it on a written notice. And that is just a valuable lesson for me about accepting other cultures as unique and not assuming I know how it could be done better.

They call this English

I got a notice in my campus mail box today informing me that I have a package awaiting me at the main post office in St. George's. I think the notice is a good example of how the English language can be used so differently around the world. Here is what it says:

******
GRENADA POSTAL CORPORATION

ADVICE OF POSTAL PACKET

Take notice that an ordinary Postal Packet to your address has been received and is detained at Burnspoint. Please come or send someone authorised to open for examination as it may contain dutiable matter. Walk with proper Identification.

Items undelivered after 2 months will be returned to Sender.
******

All spelling, bold type and capital letters are exactly as they appear on the notice.

Now I admit this could be ethnocentric, but is that proper English?? I guess working for so long in advertising and PR has ruined me. Coming from an industry where every word is scrutinized for correct grammar and style, it is difficult to see things like this and not be baffled.

What's up with the random caps and bolding? And "walk with proper identification" - what does that mean? Also, "advice of postal package." Huh? Dutiable is a word though, I looked it up. So I have to give them that.

Grenadians do compose sentences differently and use phrases unique to the culture here. So this could be less of an indictment on their poor writing skills and more of an example of my snobishness. But I think my old coworkers back in Austin will stand by me on this one. We need some proof reading on this island!

Merry Christmas from Grenada

Chillaxin

There is a place here, I think it is a bar or restaurant, called T.J.'s Chillaxin. It is on the road into town so we pass it everyday. Naturally, the non-word "chillaxin" is now a part of my vernacular. It so aptly describes my life here which involves quite a bit of chillin' and relaxin'.

Two days this week I went to a resort with some friends. A fellow SO had some visitors staying at this resort so we were able to use the pool. The resort is called Grenada Grand, and I recommend you stay there when (o.k., if) you come visit us. It has a really nice pool with a waterfall and swim up bar and lots of beach chairs and lush landscaping. The rooms are nothing special so the rates are fairly reasonable. It is right on the gorgeous Grand Anse beach and close to town and restaurants.

Me, Sara, Jovanna and Anna at Grenada Grand Beach Resort

So that was the new adventure I had this week. Yesterday I could have gone back for a third day at the pool but opted to stay home. When C.J. noticed I was hanging around in the afternoon he said "aren't you going anywhere today?" I said, "No, I'm just going to stay home and chill today." And he said, "Oh, you need to chill from all your chillin'?" Smart ass.

Yes, that's right. I had to take a day off from all my days off. I had a Christmas party to attend last night so I wanted to be well rested. Tonight I have another Christmas party. Tomorrow we're (SOs) having a big farewell beach day. Monday Brigit is having a barbecue at her new place.

So yesterday I needed a little chillaxin from my chillaxin. It's disgusting, I know.

Meanwhile, C.J. is studying from the minute he wakes up until the minute he falls asleep. His first final is Monday in Biochem. Histology final is Wednesday and Anatomy final is Friday at 8 a.m. It will be a week of torture for him and other med students. But then he will be done, and he'll finally get to do some chillaxin too.

I'm really looking forward to next weekend when he can rejoin the living. We'll move into our new apartment and drive our new car around and try to fit in something fun before we leave here the following Monday. Then a month in America, land of plenty, and some perspective on the first semester.

Holidays, English biscuits and sailing

Thanksgiving has come and gone here on the island. Since it is not a holiday here everything went on as normal. I ran some errands and did some grocery shopping and C.J. studied. In a shoddy and desperate attempt at a Thanksgiving meal I made pork chops with Stove Top Stuffing.

I remember why we never eat Stove Top Stuffing. Because that is some terrible stuff. Just add hot water and let sit for five minutes?? What is that? Astronaut food? It paled in comparison to my mother's homemade cornbread stuffing with sausage. But C.J. actually loves the stuff, so I let him eat most of it.

Friday night I had a potluck with my SO friends and that was much better. Every key Thanksgiving dish was represented including turkey, homemade stuffing, green bean casserole, broccoli rice casserole, mashed potatoes, sweet potatoes, croissant roles, cream corn, deviled eggs and pumpkin pie. So that made up for Thursday's meal and it was just as good as anything we would get at home.

It was our first Thanksgiving away from our families but it wasn't so bad. Since the weather here is so warm it is hard to really be in the spirit anyway.

Now that Thanksgiving is over, it means we are that much closer to Christmas. We are actually leaving in two weeks from tomorrow. It is going to go by so fast. For me, anyway. For C.J., the next two weeks will seem like an eternity as he studies non-stop for his finals. He has put himself on an Internet moratorium - no Facebook, e-mail, sports, NY Times, nothing - until finals are over. So if you aren't hearing from him, that's why.

Speaking of Christmas, it is big in Grenada. The mall is decorated and everyone is playing Christmas music. There are a lot of Reggae/Caribbean Christmas songs here which is kind of fun. I also hear Dolly Parton Christmas music a lot here which is strange but good for me since I love Dolly.

This year, as in years past, we will not be buying any Christmas gifts for each other or any family. We don't have the money and we don't enjoy the stress and commercialism of selecting gifts for an endless list of loved ones. Once you start, where do you stop?

Omitting gift giving from Christmas has been one of the best things we've ever done. It allows us to focus on all the truly great things about Christmas - friends, family, faith and food (not necessarily in that order). So, a quick note here to remind everyone, please don't get us any Christmas gifts. Our time together is enough and will be the best gift of all for us this year.

Moving on from holiday talk, I've got two new goals for my life here on the island. These goals have just formulated in the last week so I have to tell you about them. First, although the grocery store frequently is out of essentials like milk, cheese, eggs and juice, there is always an assortment of English cookies here.

In the beginning, I didn't even notice all the different cookies. My eyes just glazed over when looking at these unfamiliar boxes on the chip/cookie/cracker isle. Then I met a British couple who just moved here via the US. They said they were actually happy about the grocery selection here - they can get many more British products here than they could get in America.

So I started paying a little closer attention and noticed there are literally dozens of types of British cookies (also called biscuits) at IGA. And most of them are actually cheaper than the American brands. And so I formulated my first goal for the remainder of my stay here - I must try every type of British cookie/biscuit at the grocery store. It fits in nicely with my food obsession and greatly increases the variety of sweet treats we can have at home. So every week I buy a new package or two.

Here's a shot of all the British cookies in the store and you can see they aren't even all in stock here.



Here's the two I got this week. Jaffa Cakes - "soft sponge cakes with a tangy orange filling half coated in plain chocolate" - and Country Snapjacks - "for those classic biscuit moments." Sounds yummy, right?


One great thing about British cookies is that I can't read the nutrition label very well. For example, the Jaffa Cakes have 182 Kj of energy. What on earth does that mean? With this kind of label it's easy for me to pretend these are better for me than say, Oreos.

And a lot of these cookies taste really great. We've had some good ginger snaps and jam filled biscuits and short breads. C.J. is humoring me and happily eats whatever I bring home. Although, regarding the Country Snapjacks he did say they would be considered dog biscuits at home. They weren't very sweet. O.K. maybe I won't buy those again.

My other goal for the remainder of our time on the island is to learn to sail. Maybe not really learn to sail myself but at least get on a sail boat and have someone show me how it works. Obviously, since we are in the Caribbean, there is a big sailing community here and sail boats docked all around the island. I've never been on a sailboat. It would be a shame not to try it out while I'm here.

So to reach that goal I'm helping my friend Jovanna plan a regatta in March. She's being paid as the event coordinator, and I am volunteering my time to write some press releases and other race correspondence for her. I figure this will get me a trip on a sailboat sooner or later. And it is a fun thing to work on.

Regatta planning has taken the place of the radio show. Pirate Jonny left the island to transition back to America, and I haven't had the desire to really keep the radio show going on my own. The regatta volunteering will be a better project for my skills, I think.

So those are my two new goals for Grenada living. Pretty ambitious, I know. I'm really shooting for the stars down here. Hey, not all of us can become doctors.

Island hot rod

Just in time to save our marriage, we found ourselves a car. If you think picking out wallpaper is hard with your spouse, you should try picking out a used car from a bunch of college students on a tiny island.

In total we looked at eight cars before we found one that we liked. I should say, we found one that C.J. liked. After car number seven tensions were high. I was accusing C.J. of being too picky and he was saying things like "Just buy the car you want. If you want an oil leak and bad tires." Right.

Saturday was the height of our car buying conflict when I set up a time to meet with a person named Jamie to look at their car. I assumed Jamie was a girl. Of course the posting said some bit about "runs fine, gets you around town" yadayada. Jamie turned out to be a guy that I had just seen that week at trivia.

He had told me he was selling his car but that I wouldn't want it because it was a piece of junk. When we met him on Saturday he had a sheepish grin on his face. When I reminded him of his earlier description of the car he said "Yeah, but I'd been drinking."

We got in the car and turned the key, and it died right away. Jamie said "turn the air conditioning on, it helps keep the idle up." Great. Besides that the passenger window didn't roll down and there was an ant infestation under the hood. I tell you, ants are everywhere here, even in a car engine.

So we weren't going to buy that car, and we were tired from looking and I was ready to go back to one of the previous cars we'd seen and make an offer.

But C.J. was persistent. He wanted to look at a 1998 Mitsubishi Lancer on the post that I had completely ignored. It had all these features that we do not need like Tiptronic transmission and a Pioneer stereo and a security system and racing tires. I thought it was silly to even look at a car like that even though it was in the price range.

In the spirit of compromise, I agreed to look at it and the guy was available when I called. He showed up at our house in about 30 minutes. Right away he started talking about this car being really fast and having some awesome high-performing Mivec motor and this Tiptronic thing (clutchless manual shifting) and how he's all into racing cars. And C.J.'s eyes began to glow.

The motor turned out to be really clean, no oil leak, cold A/C, everything worked, new tires. All around really good shape. And about the same price as everyone else was asking for their car. It was the first car where we felt like he could have asked more for it.

So here it is, our new little hot rod. I'm going to be the coolest mom on the island cruising in this thing. Won't a car seat look great in the back?

Obviously by American standards it doesn't look like much but if you saw what we had to sift through to get to this one you'd think it was a jewel.

We'll get it from the current owner just before we leave in the second week of December. Since we don't have a bank account here I have to draw the money out of the ATM machine. There's a limit on how much we can get out in one day so I have to go back to the ATM about eight days in a row to get out all the money. Isn't that annoying?

Anyway, I'm just glad the search is over and that we found a car we both agree is worth the money. Ironically, it will be the nicest and newest car we've ever owned. I've never had a CD player, an alarm system or keyless entry in a car.

Right now it is the one thing C.J. is looking forward to - driving this car around the island. By the way, the highest speed limit on the island is 40 mph. We'll really be able to let 'er rip!

20 weeks

Today marks the beginning of my 20th week of pregnancy, which is the official halfway point. This week the baby is the size of a small cantaloupe, weighs about 10 ounces and is about 6 inches long.

For the baby still being so little, I'm sure starting to look big. Here are some pictures of what 20 weeks of pregnancy is doing to mommy. If this is only halfway, I'm a little nervous.

It's no secret now that I am pregnant. I've gained 12 pounds since leaving the states. This is the most I've ever weighed in my life. I'm officially wearing the maternity pants with the big elastic waist band. I admit, it hurt my pride a bit to switch over but wow are they comfortable. It makes eating a lot easier.

Speaking of eating. If you thought I ate a lot before, you should see me now. I am hungry all the time. And I mean, all..the..time. In the first trimester I was repulsed by a lot of food. I cooked about five meals in the first two months we were here. All I wanted to eat was cereal, popcorn, peanut butter, french fries and frozen fruit bars.

Times have changed. Everything sounds good to me now. I've been cooking up a storm - things I've never cooked before. I look at myrecipes.com like it is Internet porn. Seriously, I have spent hours looking on that site.

I've got all these recipes saved in my favorites. Half of the recipes require an oven which I don't even have. Just last night, right after dinner, I was looking up recipes. C.J. looked over and asked accusingly "are you looking at food on the Internet?" I can't help it, I'm addicted!

The question I get asked the most is "how are you feeling?" I honestly feel pretty good except for some annoying little things like heartburn and minor back ache. I wouldn't say I have that pregnancy glow. If anything I always have a glow of sweat from living in the tropics. And I have a bunch of zits on my face which is really annoying. And of course I just feel fat most of the time.

But otherwise I have lots of energy and feel good mentally. My no-stress schedule affords me plenty of time for rest and relaxation. The actual birthing part still seems far away, so I'm not getting too worked up about the "watermelon through a tiny hole" thing just yet.

For now I'm going to stay focused on eating. Growing baby needs lots of nutrients. I didn't even make it through this blog without a snack. I just had a granola bar.

Rainy day musings

It has been seriously raining for three days now. I mean tropical storm weather where it pours constantly. At this moment it has stopped but the sky is still threatening. Brigit and I did manage to get in a walk earlier without getting completely soaked, only sprinkled on, so that is an improvement from yesterday when it did not let up all day.

Grenadians don't like rain. Which is funny since it rains half the year here. I was doing some apartment hunting and got in touch with a landlord on a rainy day to see if I could look at her property. Her response was "not today because it is raining." So, is it raining inside the apartment?? I mean, that's what umbrella's are for, right? That made me laugh.

I've noticed a slight change in the weather over the past week - it is more windy. I hear these are the trade winds that start blowing around Christmas and signify a cooler season starting - the dry season (as opposed to the wet season). So it's actually been a little more pleasant of late, not so blazing hot.

We did get an apartment. In fact, the one with the landlord that doesn't like rain. We found this place through a classmate of C.J.'s. He and his wife and child live in the building as well as several other couples with children. So this apartment begins our transition into parent land.

Actually it signifies our transition back to adulthood. Just the thought of a door separating our bedroom from the living area makes us both want to jump for joy. And we'll have two bedrooms - two!! And a really big kitchen counter that fits a microwave AND a toaster. And an oven! And a kitchen table with a circumference bigger than a quarter. And a couch to sit on. Oh, it is exciting.

We get the keys on December 1 so we can be all moved in before we leave for the holiday. I spend lots of time now on the SGU Post which as an online site where people list things for sale. All the students leaving this semester are desperately selling off everything they own - hangers, kitchen utensils, towels, books, shelves, binders, electronics, bedding, toys, cars, you name it.

So far I've picked up a whole new bed set for our second bedroom (second bedroom!), a fan, a desk lamp, a stand-up lamp, a toaster, a closet organizer, two more beach towels, an egg crate mattress pad and the game Cranium (oops, impulse buy).

In addition, I think I'll be buying my first baby things soon. I've been in touch with a mom selling a rocking chair, a bouncer and an infant bathtub. And that's just the beginning. Next Saturday there is an actual outdoor sale, like a big garage sale. I'm planning on going although I probably don't need much else at the moment. I mean, we are trying to live with less here after all. But good used stuff is hard to pass up!

We're also in the market for a car. We've looked at four so far. All of the owners say things like "it runs great" and "I haven't had any problems" but all the cars are about 10 to 15 years old with well over 100,000 miles. But they don't really lose their value because we're on an island, so these old cars are going for $4-$6K.

So far every car we've looked at has had an oil leak except for the first car which had a bad transmission. And a CV joint was squeaking on one and some radiator fluid was leaking on another and these are just the problems under the hood. That doesn't include the scratches and dents and missing hub caps and windows that don't work and other little blemishes.

We haven't been impressed with anything we've seen so far, so we're still looking. I should actually say, C.J. has been unimpressed. When I try to say something nice about these poor cars like "that one was pretty clean" he just says "oil leak." So he's kind of tough to shop with. We may have to lower our standards a bit but there is still time. We have a month left and more people will be trying to get rid of their cars as December gets closer.

Speaking of December, it's real hard to get in the mood for holidays when you live on a tropical island. Seasons really do make a difference. And I'm talking about Texas seasons so you know it's got to be bad here. The year round beach weather just throws me off. I can't really accept that it is November.

Grenadians don't celebrate Thanksgiving either so that's not helping. They do go nuts for Christmas though. They are already playing Christmas music. That ought to put me in the mood but it just feels like a joke. I guess it won't feel real until I'm back in the states and can see all the familiar holiday decorations and feel a little winter weather.

Update on C.J.

I think I've been talking about myself a lot lately. How about a little update on C.J.?

It's not much different from the last two months. He is studying. Lots and lots of studying. Right now he is sitting at his desk with his headphones on watching an anatomy lecture on the school's online student resource, which is rather cruelly named Angel.

Who thought of that name? Is that a sick joke? I guess it's supposed to be his saving grace. It feels more like the devil with all those lecture notes and PPT presentations and recorded lectures. C.J.'s selling his soul to it every night, except on the weekend when it frequently doesn't work and then he wants to pull his hair out.

Anyway, he's sitting behind me going over his anatomy. He had anatomy lecture this morning and he has a biochemistry group tomorrow morning. Wednesday was histology lab. Every day is four hours of lecture, although he rarely attends class anymore. Especially since he can watch them at his own pace on Angel. O.K. I guess it is kind of a nice tool sometimes.

There are only three weeks of class left after this one. Then a week of finals. So one month and he is done with term 1. If you ask him how it's going he will tell you he hates it. He really hates studying constantly. A non-stop nagging worry follows him everywhere. No matter how much time he puts in he never feels caught up, there's always someone who knows more in lab, there's always more information to memorize.

Even though he says he hates it, it seems to me that he has learned a lot already about how to deal with the workload. He seems to be studying more effectively than he did in the beginning, and he's been attending some study groups that provide good reviews.

He's also figured out that some of the students who seem to know everything have either already had some of these classes or are using this repository of old tests and quizzes that is officially forbidden by the university. He's been surprised at how openly some students use this "illegal" repository. I think it makes him feel better to know that these people aren't necessarily geniuses (although there are definately wicked smart people here).

The other thing about med school is there are a lot of aggresive type A personalities. It's a very competitive environment with lots of people trying to outdo each other. This is not exactly C.J.'s style. As you can imagine, it wears him out.

Despite all that, I'd say he is getting the hang of it even though I'm sure he would not agree. Last weekend we went to dinner for the first time since he started school (not counting the weekend after midterms). It was a good break for him. We didn't even talk about school once.

He's definitely getting burnt out from the constant studying. It will be nice to have a break at Christmas and get some perspective on the first semester. It will be here before we know it.

Ants

I'm going to attempt here to write a short blog for once, just to give you some relief from the pontificating.

Sometimes when I am sitting at my desk typing I get the feeling an ant is crawling on me. I will think I am being paranoid, but then I will look down and there will actually be a tiny ant crawling on me.

These tiny ants are all over our apartment. Not necessarily in the kitchen but in odd places. Crawling on my desk. Crawling by the front door. On the bathroom towel rack.

So it has become completely normal to pick ants off of myself at any time during the day. They don't seem to be harmful so I haven't really made a big effort to eradicate them. They aren't in our food at least. Funny the things you can get used to.

It's a boy

So, the word is pretty much out now. But for those readers who haven't heard, I am pregnant. I am 17 weeks pregnant, which means I am almost to the halfway point. Due date is April 15.

I already know it is a boy because I had an ultrasound last week while I was in Texas. There is a baby with arms and legs and a face and hands and feet in there. Everything is progressing normally. I'm feeling good. Starting to show.

If you are doing the math, I was pregnant before I left home. This baby's roots are in Austin, TX. If you happened to see me at our going-away party with a beer in each hand, well, let's just focus on the amazing ability of the human body to overcome some environmental forces.

You know how they say it's never a good time. Well I think I'm taking the cake. We're both unemployed and living on government loans. C.J. is busy 12 hours a day studying. We live on a primitive island that lacks cutting-edge American health care. We have no family anywhere near for 2,000 miles. Baby items on this island cost about a million monopoly dollars. And that's just the beginning. But what the hell, let's start a family!

The truth is when I turned 30 I got myself in a panic about my ovaries drying up. Also, the movie Idiocracy disturbed me. It is about intelligent, successful couples waiting and waiting until it is the "right time" to have kids while the young and poor are procreating at a rapid rate so their kids eventually take over the world.

And in the book Galapagos, Kurt Vonnegut warns of humans' big brains being our eventual downfall. Meaning, while I'm waiting for the right time I'm wasting my childbearing years because I am worrying too much about this completely natural thing in life. O.K. I'm proving my point with all this rambling - I've been over thinking it.

So, if you're still following all this, I decided I'm getting old, I've got nothing better to do on this island, I'm tired of waiting for the right time, other people have kids and it works out, and anyway, what if it takes a few months or even years. What if I can't even get pregnant. So after a decade of birth control dependency I threw caution to the wind and was just too busy to stop at the pharmacy in July. And two weeks later....

I thought that missing my period the week before we left was only because we were stressed and packing and selling our house and leaving the country. There was no possible way I could be pregnant. No way. Then another week went by and still nothing. When I finally took a pregnancy test I was in shock.

Of course by then I had actually arrived on the island and realized it wasn't so easy living here and I was home sick and it is so different from America and it occurred to me, hey, this is why people plan having children!! So they don't have to deal with things like - am I going to fly home to have the baby and be away from my husband or deliver without an epidural with a midwife on an obscure island?? How is C.J. going to handle a newborn and an exhausted wife at home while worrying about his second term finals? How should we pay for a third person on school loans???

And that's when I started obsessing about the moment when I was just too busy to stop by the pharmacy. What was I doing??? Idiot! I went to the clinic here to see the doctor and she confirmed I was in fact pregnant. And then she sent me down to St. George's to get an ultrasound. I'll have to describe that experience in further detail at a later time. Let's just say it would make the average American woman book the next flight home.

But we saw the heart beat. In this little tiny blob on this black and white screen, we could see a small dot pulsing. And after that something funny happened. This thing that must happen to all parents, if they planned it or not. The reason why everyone I know with kids is excited for me, despite our less than ideal living situation. That thing is...complete and irrational joy.

And that is how I'm feeling now. Irrationally happy. It makes no sense at all to be excited considering how hard it will be. Even when I read about how labor will mangle my body and an infant will make me deliriously exhausted and the lifetime of responsibility...whatever. Just irrationally happy. Even when I can tell my friends here are thinking "she must be crazy, I would never want to be pregnant on this island." Even when I think of the things I'm giving up that I thought would be so hard. Like alcohol for nine months or exotic vacations for the next few years. Whatever. It's a baby!

So I planned it. I don't want to admit it, but I totally planned this really bad time to have a baby. And it is really exciting, even if it will be harder than it needs to be because of this island.

America the beautiful

My parents called tonight to see how I was doing because they haven't heard a peep from me since I returned from my trip to Texas. They were wondering why I hadn't written on my blog since I've been back.

I have been feeling guilty about letting two weeks pass without a post. But since my return I haven't been in the mood. I think the island living is wearing off on me. I'm in no rush to do much of anything. One activity a day is enough for me. Can't go to the beach AND blog. My goodness! That's just too hectic. But their call has spurred me into action. I can keep this blog thing up and juggle my busy social calendar. I can!

So America was fabulous. Land of the free, home of the brave...country of abundant shopping and eating. After only two months as an ex-pat I was overwhelmed by the retail and food options available in the homeland. Just getting off the plane in Dallas was mind blowing. The airport was so shiny and clean and I could choose from 15 different fast food restaurants. The book store in the Dallas airport literally has more books than on the entire island of Grenada as far as I've seen. And the service. I wanted to hug the cashier at Taco Bell who said with a smile "hi, how can I help you today?" I think he genuinely wanted to help me. It was crazy.

Now I know you're judging me about Taco Bell being my first meal back in America. First, Taco Bell is pretty good all things considered. I mean, if you have been living on a remote island you would think you had died and gone to heaven. So don't hate. Second, I was seeing fast food in a whole new light. It is not the dirty underbelly of American dining anymore but the gloriously abundant and delicious (again, if you have been living on an island) yet completely convenient and affordable food option when one just needs a quick bite to eat. Brilliant!! Just try to live without it. I promise, you'll miss it.

Anyway, when I got off the plane in Dallas I was faced with a serious dilemma. Taco Bell or McDonald's??? So I chose Taco Bell (plenty of burgers in Grenada) and it did not disappoint. The shells were so crispy! Not stale like they had been shipped on a barge across an ocean. And when I arrived in Austin I had me a big cone of Amy's dark chocoloate ice cream. Which is in a league of it's own of course.

And it just continued on like that for the entire trip. So much food! Affordable and delicious and varied food! And the queso. Life may go on without fast food, but Texans, I promise you, life without queso is not easy. I ate queso seven times in the nine days I was home. And I'm still not sick of it.

Enough about food though. Let's get on to the shopping. There are stores in America for everything! You can literally buy anything your heart desires at almost any time. It is incredible. Outlet malls and strip centers around every corner. Again, this is something that could be looked at with disdain - a product of our excessive and materialistic culture. But when you do not have shopping options like this it is really nice. I went shopping just about every day I was home to pick up the odds and ends you can't get in Grenada (or you can't get cheaply) - face wash, contact solution, gel pens, beef jerky, raw almonds, flip flops, movies, books, etc.

For the first few days I was thrilled to be home. I didn't miss Grenada one bit. I barely thought about my life on the island. I barely missed C.J. I was so enamored with the glitz and glamor of America. But after a few days my attitude started to change. After hours of cruising Target and Borders and Marshall's and Walmart I started to realize, I really don't need most of the things for sale.

First, all the clothes are for winter so can't buy any of those. And I can't take that much back with me. And I live in a tiny apartment so it's not like I have room for anything if I could get it back. And oh yeah, I don't have a job so I don't need to be spending any money anyway.

And the eating is totally unrealistic. Eating out adds up and all that queso was making my butt fat. And I just started to realize, all this food and shopping is...just...stuff. I'm living just fine without about 99 percent of the things available in America. I have enough to eat here even if there aren't as many options. I have all the possession I need to get me through the day.

So while I am still enamored with the modern, sophisticated, abundant, friendly and convenient world of America, after a week there I came to terms with living away from it all for awhile. I was only truly sad about separation from dear family and friends. The time I spent with them was precious. And when I drove around Austin I missed living there. It was sad to think it was not my home anymore - it is an original, eclectic, beautiful city. O.K. and the weather was great too. Seasons are cool.

But I am making it just fine in Grenada. Although I went to Texas for a wedding (super fun by the way - congrats to Cory and Jordan!) it was really more like a spiritual journey. Going there was an opportunity to evaluate what has happened in the last few months and where I am now. And when I was away from the island I realized I do have a job here. It is to be a good partner to my husband who is the most important person in my life.

While I was gone C.J. was lonely. A conversation with me is usually the only daily human interaction he has that does not involve some aspect of med school. I provide a distraction for him, an outlet, some friendship and companionship. Maybe he succeeds here not in spite of me but because of me. My purpose here is an important one and after a week I was ready to get back. All that stuff wasn't worth being away from him. And hopefully the friends and family aren't going anywhere.

So I had a great trip. But when I got on the plane to return to the island I didn't hesitate for a second. And when I walked out of the Grenada airport and C.J. was waiting with a smile and a kiss I felt like I was home. I didn't miss a beat. The last week has been full with radio shows and an orphanage visit and walks and dinners and an election-watching party and a day at the beach. I live here now. And although I'm really looking forward to being back at Christmas, I am perfectly content to be away from America for awhile.

Coming to America

Just like Eddie Murphy in that movie classic. That's right, I'm USA bound. I've got a plane to catch Friday morning to ATX where I will be attending the wedding of our dear friends Cory and Jordan.

C.J. can't make it but I realized, hey, I can. So I'm going to their wedding and then getting in some quick visits with friends and family. Last but certainly not least I will be eating lots of queso and shopping at Target.

Tonight I went to our neighborhood bar Bananas and had a typical Grenadian service experience. We were watching the first game of the World Series on one TV at the bar. There is another TV at the bar, but it was tuned to the what looked like a nature show about an African safari on the BBC. I asked the bartender if she could change the station on that TV so we could watch the game there too. Approximately 15 people were sitting around the bar watching the game. I made a gesture to these people and said "I think everyone here is watching the game."

Well she looked at me and she said "No they're not. Some people are watching the BBC." I looked around and started to say "who?" but then I realized she was talking about herself. I said, "you're watching it?" and she said yes which I'm pretty sure also translated to "go to hell" in her book. O.K., so much for that.

About 20 minutes later Brigit tried to order food from the same bartender. She told Brigit to go to the restaurant side. When Brigit went to the restaurant side the waitress said "you should order at the bar." Brigit insisted so the waitress took her order.

Later our food came and Brigit asked the waitress for an extra plate. The waitress said she couldn't bring it, Brigit would have to go to the Cave to get a plate. The Cave is the outside area of the bar.

Then at 11, even though the World Series was in the sixth inning and the only people in the bar were watching the game, the bartender started playing loud, thumping club music. That's about the time I decided to head on home and hope the Phillies could make it without my support.

So they're not big on service here. I'm looking forward to American wait staff that actually want to accommodate their customers. If you are into service, you would be horrified at some of the things that go on here.

That experience made me glad I'll be going home for a week. Although I think I'll miss my adult summer camp life here. And I'll miss my husband a lot. Some things you just learn to live with, like a little bad service.

It's a small island after all

C.J. had last weekend off since all his midterms were finished Friday. After his last final he had some much deserved beer(s) and we watched baseball playoffs with some friends. It rained all day so we didn't get to hit the beach.

Saturday we woke up and it was still raining. We planned to go on hike that day, but we were concerned the weather wasn't going to be ideal. Anna had sent a note that it was on rain or shine, so we weren't going to wimp out if she was still in. We met her and other friends at 11:30 a.m. and hopped in a taxi for a ride into the interior of the island to Grand Etang Forest Reserve.

By the time we were on our way it had quit raining. And it turned out to be perfect weather for the rest of the day. It was overcast so we weren't too hot but it never rained on us. From the top of the mountain we could see clearly for miles, which apparently isn't always the case. And as we hiked upward the breeze became very cool - the coolest weather we've felt on the island. Almost like a fall day back home.

We hiked to the top of Mt. Qua Qua which is at about 2,370 feet above sea level. From the top I realized I live on a really small island. This seems obvious but it doesn't feel that small when you are down at sea level. It takes awhile to get places while driving around in a car and there are lots of little separate towns that feel spread out.

But from the top of the mountain we could see the East and the West coasts and the ocean all around us. It seemed only a few miles across even though the island is actually 12 miles wide. It made me think - hmmm, Grenada is a remote and tiny island in the middle of a gigantic, powerful ocean. That's kind of freaky.

Anyway, it was a really great day with a good group of people. We made about a 500 foot climb from the beginning of the trail to the top, so it wasn't too strenuous although it was slippery in some parts because of mud (lots of mud - see pic below). It only took about three hours round trip.

And did I mention we saw a monkey?? At the park headquarters a monkey came out of the forest and took a few bananas from us. I've never seen a banana eaten so fast. This little guy was quick. He wouldn't get too close to anyone but he would grab a banana out of your hand. My hand actually. C.J. told me the monkey was going to rip my arm off. Well, I assure you, that did not happen. My arm is still fully in tact.

It was the first day C.J had been off campus in probably six weeks. He enjoyed the taxi ride into the rain forest and just seeing all the local people out and about. And of course he loves hiking. I was glad he got to enjoy himself for once.

The only unfortunate thing is that we missed one of the best games in recent college football history - TX v OU. I have to admit I had doubted that Texas could pull it off. I'm not missing the TX v Missou game this weekend that's for sure. There are lots of Texas fans here so I think we'll be at a bar tomorrow night somewhere for the game.

But we still did not regret going on the hike because it was such a great day and one of the only chances C.J. will have to get out and explore the island.

Hiking Mt. Qua Qua

Ladies hike - me, Jovanna, Lindsay, Anna, Teresa

View of the rain forest, coast line and ocean beyond

This is what happens to your shoes when you hike in a rain forest

Mona monkey

Settling in

It has been so long since I've written in my blog. I am trying to figure out the cause for this dry spell. When I think about it, I realize, I have just been having a really good time here. I've been feeling comfortable with this new life. It is starting to feel normal while I am also appreciating the adventure more.

I am keeping myself really busy with the radio show and trivia night and volunteering at the orphanage and pool day and lots of other activities. I've made some good friends here who are easy to hang out with.

This week we went on a snorkeling cruise and went on a day trip to two waterfalls. We also went to a great restaurant here, the Aquarium, for Sunday barbecue and music. Anna planned these excursions while her sister Teresa is visiting this week. So it has felt a little bit like I am a tourist here too.

Today I went to the pool with SOs and afterward we had lunch at a restaurant with a great view of the ocean. I went for a walk with some friends. I'm meeting some folks at 8 to watch baseball playoffs.

I have a job interview in the morning at the Department of Educational Services (DES). I don't actually know yet what the job is - I think clerical work. It sort of fell into my lap when an SO friend mentioned they were hiring, and I should send in my resume. It pays $10US an hour, which is big money here. Locals get paid on average about $2US an hour (slave labor!).

Even though I'm enjoying the carefree life, I'd like to be bringing in some money. So we'll see how the interview goes. It is 25 hours a week. Surely I can handle that.

On the cruise last weekend we went to two areas for snorkeling. Snorkeling, by the way, is so fun. I love it. All you have to do is put on this mask and this breathing thing and you feel like you are transported into an underwater world. I just love how simple the whole thing is for such a great view of sea life.

We saw a lot of beautiful fish and coral. We also saw an underwater sculpture garden, which is a big attraction here. You can see the sculptures at this Web site www.underwatersculpture.com/. I actually met the artist at a barbecue last Friday night. It is a small island.

Reggae band called Roots at the Aquarium restaurant (notice the beach behind them)

Folks hanging out at the Aquarium on Sunday afternoon

The boat we took for the snorkeling cruise

Fun times on the snorkeling cruise - Teresa, me, Anna and Brigit

Anna and I at Concord Falls

Hiking to the Seven Sisters Falls

Valley we hiked through to reach the Seven Sister Falls

Bottom pool of the Seven Sisters Falls - great swimming hole!

SOs having lunch after pool day

Meanwhile, C.J. has midterms this week. Anatomy was Monday, Histology was Wednesday and Biochem is tomorrow. Brutal. He has been studying nonstop. He will have this weekend off, which will be his first since school started. We are going on a hike on Saturday and then doing whatever else he wants to do. I'm glad he is getting a little break - he deserves a rest. He is working so hard.

Tribute to ACL

Last night I made a playlist of songs I have from bands I’ve seen at Austin City Limits Music Festival. I’m going to play the CD at the radio show tomorrow. I am running the show because Pirate Jonny is in the states for 10 days.

Last week I learned all the controls but I’m still a little sloppy. It’s hard to be on top of cuing up the music, turning the mikes on and off, playing the soundbites, playing background music, etc. It’s a little nerve racking. We’ll see how I do on my own. Whatever, it’s not like they can fire me. Although wouldn’t that be humiliating if I did get fired from a job I don’t even get paid for?

Anyway, here are the songs I put on my playlist for tomorrow:
The Allman Brothers – Ramblin’ Man
Kelly Willis – Heaven Bound
Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers – American Girl
Ben Harper – With My Two Hands
Beck – Where It’s At
The Gourds – Do 4 You
Iron & Wine – Resurrection Fern
Guy Clark – Dublin Blues
Lucinda Williams – Change the Locks
Robert Earl Keen – Corpus Christi Bay
Patty Griffin – Rain
South Austin Jug Band –Sweet Sue
Van Morrison – I Will Be There
Steve Earle – City of Immigrants
Amos Lee – Arms of a Woman
Willie Nelson –Mamas Don’t Let Your Babies Grow Up to Be Cowboys

I have seen almost all of these artists at ACL except Beck, who played this year. I like to make a joke that I have “two stove-top burners and a microwave” instead of “two turn tables and a microphone” in my little efficiency, so I had to play that song.

I am sad to have missed ACL this year, for the first time in six years. We've had some great times at that festival. I remember calling C.J. last year while watching Robert Keen play Corpus Christi Bay. He loves that song but he had to work that day. And Amos Lee was awesome, and I’ve seen Patty at least twice and of course the Allman Brothers were legendary even if all the brothers aren’t with us any more.

We saw Guy Clark in the Gospel Tent. He played Dublin Blues - love that song. Kim and I drooled over Ben Harper last year, and I became a fan of Iron & Wine when I heard them for the first time at ACL. South Austin Jug Band was the first band we saw on the first day of the very first year – that year was the best weather ever.

Oh ACL. I haven’t always said the most favorable things. After year two I said you were too crowded and too hot and too much money and we could see lots of good music year round in intimate clubs for cheap. Why go through the torture and crowds and dust and heat and thirst and cash at the beer stand?

But every year I returned because, really, how can you miss it? It is a right of passage. It is a requirement for the die hard music fan. It cannot be missed no matter the harsh conditions or the hurting feet or the dirt in your nostrils or the stage that looks like a spec of light in the far off distance. In the end that’s part of the fun.

Even last year, we could not miss it. We returned from Russia Friday night and were scalping tickets at the gate Saturday by noon. Music lovers cannot be stopped.

I remember the year we met up with Paula and Bubba at the end of the night and walked from Zilker to the Omni building downtown. Our feet were killing us. We stopped at Taco Bell on Barton Springs and ate a pound of tacos and processed cheese. I didn’t want to eat Taco Bell for a year after that.

And the year of Coldplay. It’s a true measure of your resilience and persistence as a music fan. Were you at Coldplay the year of the mega dust storm and two bazillion people crowded at the stage? Kim and I followed Noni (aka Shrek) as far as we could to the front until we were literally crushed in the crowd. That moment is followed closely by, did you wait for Tom Petty to come back after it started raining and he had to take a break from his show? Of course we did.

One of my personal favorites was the REM show several years back. I’ll never forget Michael Stipe’s blue-rimmed eyes and the fan who held a huge tree branch up and kept waving it close to the stage. I didn’t realize I knew so many REM songs.

Did I mention the food? All I can think about is the crispy chicken tortilla wrap thingy from Hudson’s on the Bend. I think I had one every day for the past two years.

I love going with C.J. because he and I like the same music and we like to be really efficient and hit up lots of stages. We like traveling light – no chairs. Just a back pack to carry some water. And we don’t ever hang out in a crowd of friends too long. It slows you down and you miss the music.

Another fun thing about ACL is running into your friends in a crowd of 70,000 people. You never know who it is going to be but you always run into someone. This is good since our phones almost never work inside the park. I can think of so many friends that likely went to ACL this weekend. They are probably the only ones still reading.

So I’m going to do a little radio tribute tomorrow. To all the ACLs past and the one I missed this year. I hope everyone at home had a great time. Post a comment and let me know what your favorite show was this year.

Get a massage from a blind guy

Today C.J. woke up at 7 a.m. to his alarm blaring and got dressed in scrubs to go to anatomy lab at 7:45. I woke up about 10:30 (because the phone rang) and went down to the radio show to hang out with Pirate Jonny about 11.

When I got home at 12:30 C.J. was packing up his book bag with 400 pounds of books and heading to the library. I put on my bathing suit and walked to the pool. I proceeded to hit the bar for a birthday drink with fellow SO, Jenn (well I just had a water but she had a Pina Colada), and then went with her to get a massage at a place called Soothing Touch on Grand Anse Beach.

All the therapists at Soothing Touch are blind. They've been specially trained through a program at SGU and make a living giving messages. I had a fabulous 30 minute message from a man named Joseph. It was only 60EC or about $20. I decided this massage place was one of my top favorite things about Grenada, right up there with the movie theatre here where all snacks are a dollar and movies are half price on Wednesday.

Jenn and I left feeling super relaxed and happy and then went to IGA to get the special ingredients for her famous and delicious spinach dip, which is the best I've ever had. I think it is because she puts Ranch in it. Let's get real, everything is better with Ranch dressing.

We will be eating the dip tonight for the season premier of Grey's Anatomy, which we will all be watching at her house. I have never watched Grey's Anatomy before but so what, I'm not going to miss a party with spinach dip.

After the grocery store I came home and read for a little bit. I'm reading a dime-store mystery novel about a park ranger who solves murders in national parks. My dad gave it to me. It is pretty good. It makes me want to be a park ranger big time.

Anyway, then Jonathon and Kyla knocked on the door to see if I wanted to go for a walk. I was so glad they stopped by since I was thinking I should exercise but wasn't feeling motivated. So we went on a long walk along Lighthouse Road which is on a peninsula just outside the campus gates. Good views of the sun setting over the ocean.

Now I'm going to shower and get ready to catch the 8:30 bus over to Lance Aux Expines where Jenn lives. I haven't seen C.J. since we parted ways around lunchtime. There are no signs that he has been home since then. I expect he'll be along soon because he has to be getting hungry. After dinner he'll go back to the library for a bit. I'll probably be home around 11:30, which is about the time he'll stop studying for the day.

And that's just another day in the life, folks - reporting live from the island of Grenada.

C.J.'s haircut

I'm sure there is a barber on the island, but C.J. doesn't really have time to find one or worry about getting his hair cut. We brought the clippers just for this moment when his hair got too long and shaggy to bare.

I tried out my new skills as a hairdresser. Watch the video below. What do you think? Isn't the Mohawk cute?

O.K. just kidding. I shaved the rest after this video. Now he has a buzz cut. I've determined I am not going to pursue a new career in hair cutting. I keep seeing little hairs I missed and have to use the scissors to trim it up.

Octopus

Today Brigit and I walked from a lunch spot to the grocery store. So we got to see a few more things than we would riding the bus. Mainly some street vendors selling corn cooked over little charcoal grills. However, we did come across a guy selling octopus. He was holding two in his hand. They were about two feet long. Slimy little creatures. He was standing right at the edge of the road holding them up to passing cars.

We stopped to take a look. How could we not? Octopus on the side of the road! He had caught them today. He showed us a long iron hook. He said he swims down to where they live in the rocks and hooks them and drags them out. He said it is hard to get them out. I bet! He was a friendly guy, probably in his 40s. I wanted to ask how you cook octopus or more importantly who would buy it from him on the side of the road, but I didn't want to be too rude. I guess he has a market for them or he wouldn't bother. I wish we had taken a picture but we didn't think about it until we had already walked off.

Anyway, that's something you don't see in America. Also, Grenadians love this stuff called salt fish. Which is just fish salted until it is preserved. It looks and smells, well, disgusting. I saw several locals buying it at the store this morning. They have bananas here that aren't really bananas which they call plantins (different from plantains). They don't eat them raw, they fry them. There are a lot of other fruits and vegetables I can't identify here. The oranges are actually green. The grapefruit are about twice the size of the biggest grapefruit in Texas. There are passion fruit and papaya and mangoes and guava and chin ups and a whole lot of other foreign things.

Also, there are no dollar bills here. Only dollar coins. Anything less than five dollars is a coin. I take this for granted but C.J. just noticed yesterday. Which tells you how often he makes a financial transaction here. Seriously, that is a lot of library time when it takes six weeks to notice currency.

Check out these pictures

Take a look at this Web site for some amazing pictures of Grenada: http://www.moderndaygilligan.com/archives.html

This is the site of a photographer I met through Pirate Jonny. He lives on the island with his wife - a super nice guy and obviously very talented.

These pictures will make you jealous that I live here and you don't. But I am still jealous that you get to eat queso and shop at Target. So we're even.

By the way, if you read the comments under the photos on this site you will learn a lot about Grenadian culture. The description under the bus terminal photo is very accurate and you should check out the recipe under the "pot of stew" picture to learn about a local dish.

Mt. Carmel waterfall

Here are some pictures from a hike I went on Wednesday to Mt. Carmel waterfall.






When I say hike, it was really a short walk. There were a few small hills made treacherous by some serious mud. It had rained earlier in the day and everything was soaked. The mud caked on our shoes several inches thick until it was like walking in snow shoes made of mud.

Mt. Carmel waterfall is up the coast from campus probably about 10 or 15 miles. That translates into a 45 minute drive on a winding, narrow two-lane road. The scenery is gorgeous - lush rain forest foliage along a hilly coast line. Colorful concrete houses dot the hillside with spectacular views of the ocean.

The trail head to the falls is between several road-side store fronts. I think there was a restaurant and little convenience store and maybe some one's house. Several men were hanging around outside the store. One man told us the fee was 2.50EC, so we all paid him, even though he didn't look official. I think he is just a local collecting money. This is how things work in Grenada.

We slipped and trudged down to the falls which turned out to be beautiful. A few of us got under the falls for a refreshing shower after the hike. I got all wet even though I was not wearing my bathing suit. We all sat around and had a snack and explored the area a bit.

After the hike back our shoes were again caked with mud. The guy we paid washed all of our shoes off under a spigot on the street. I guess that comes with the entry fee. I actually thought he could have charged a little extra for the shoe washing. He had a little brush and everything.

Regardless of the clean shoes, we were all a muddy, wet mess on the ride back. My shoes now smell faintly of mildew. Unfortunately, they are the only pair of tennis shoes I brought. I put them in the washing machine but it didn't help much. Note to self, get a back up pair of tennis shoes for going on muddy hikes.

I take my chances

I'm listening to Mary Chapin Carpenter right now - I take my chances. I LOVE this song.

This song is on a special mix tape my book club made me before I left. I love listening to it. It puts me in a good mood. Thank you book club!!

Today I went to the radio station to hang out with Pirate Jonny for a few hours, as I've started doing almost every day. Pirate Jonny is Jonathon Young, a fellow SO. His wife is in her last term of med school here. He has a show most mornings from 10:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m., except on Friday which we started doing from 4 to 6 p.m. to kick off the weekend.

He just put up a Web site today where you can listen to pod casts of the show. Check out http://www.piratejonnyfm.com/. You can hear me on the radio with him. Listen to today's show if you want to hear me telling a story about a hike I went on yesterday. Start it at about 40 minutes, since that's how late I showed up this morning. Yes, of course, 10:30 a.m. is a stretch for me, but I get there as soon as I can.

When you hear this you will be tempted to say, "Julie, keep your day job." Well, since I don't have a day job, being an amateur radio host is no problem. Lucky for all those listeners out there! Actually, I suspect there are no listeners. Except C.J. on his lunch break. Sometimes he calls in on the show to chat. Aww, anything to amuse ourselves.

Anyway, check it out. We always read stupid news stories which are posted on the site. Don't miss the picture posted today of the shortest man standing underneath the woman with the longest legs in the world. Thank you Guinness Book of World Records.

After the radio show I came home and it started to rain. So SO pool day (which is every Thursday) was canceled. I spent the day at home reading and surfing the Internet and then I cooked dinner. Black bean tacos. Poor people food. Yum.

Happy Birthday, Mom!

Today is my mom's 60th birthday. Happy birthday to you, Mom! Sorry I am not there to help you celebrate. It stinks being so far away. I did send some flowers. Did you get them?

In honor of your birthday, I slept until 10:15 a.m. I actually had a vivid dream that I found a Texadelphia in Grenada. I went inside and ordered a cheese steak with mustard sauce (just like Paula and Chris brought us on our last weekend in Austin) and chips and QUESO! Before I could eat it in my dream, I woke up to go to the bathroom. Grrr. That was at about 7 a.m. but I went back to sleep for a bit after that.

Once I woke up I went to the SGU radio station and sat in on a fellow SO's radio show. I've been doing that a few days a week. We sit around and talk about weird news and trivia and celebrity gossip and play some music. It's fun. My radio personality is Lonestar Julie. I think we have about five listeners, including the station manager sitting in the next room.

Then I came home and talked with C.J. for awhile while he was on his lunch break. He loaded up his back pack with what seemed like 200 pounds of books before he went to the library. He says his knee has been hurting him. I wonder why!

Then I tried to download Microsoft Office on our new computer but gave up when the Internet stopped working. I washed the dishes and then got back online for some Internet browsing. I couldn't get MS Office to download so I just used a 60 day trial to hold me over until November. The maid came and cleaned the room and mopped the floor while I sat at the desk. Two mosquitoes came in while she was here and now they are swarming around my head. Can only two mosquitoes swarm? Yes, yes they can.

I'm going for a walk with neighbor SOs Brigit and Kyla in about 20 minutes. Then at 7 p.m. I'm going to trivia night at Prickly Bay restaurant with my Texas friends.

It's a tough life, I know. I will try to call you later on my fancy Skype phone. Hope you are having a good day. Love you!

Ike, you are a bully

The storm passed and from what I can tell from my Internet browsing Southeast Texas is a mess. If you don't want to get your blood pressure up do not look at the pictures. Thankfully our family and friends are safe. Unfortunately, the storm wasn't gentle on property. The family in Bmt had some serious roof damage and fallen trees and torn up yards and car damage. They will be out of power for several weeks.

Jason and Karen's family homes in Channelview fared o.k. but they can't get back to Galveston to check on their house yet. Correction on my last blog - Jason's fishing cabin is on the West end of the island. They live on the East end. Still, not looking good for either locations. Here's hoping they didn't get water in their house. Who knows when they will be able to get back to find out.

So that is that. Nature is powerful. It is unbelievable how much damage some wind and water can do. I have read some blogs where people are critical of those who stayed behind. Some are saying our tax payer dollars should not help to rescue those people. Well, I think it was silly to stay behind, but I don't want anyone to suffer and die either. That's not humane, it's not Christian, it's not ethical. So for the record, I am o.k. with helping people who made a mistake. I'm not thrilled about the money and time and effort it takes, but I can also empathize that people want to stay with their property, don't have the means to leave, don't have anywhere to go or just underestimated how serious this storm would be.

That's why we established institutions like police, EMS, fire, national guard, FEMA and other organizations to help everyone recover swiftly and safely when disaster strikes. There is no way to avoid some rescues and damage and crisis. The point is to take care of it effectively so as not to prolong human suffering.

For those who say, why do so many people live near the coast where a hurricane like this can strike, um hello, our economy depends on it. If you put gas in your car you need all those people living in the Houston and Beaumont area to refine your oil. And if you've ever been on vacation to the beach, well did you sleep in a tent on the sand? No you stayed in a hotel and shopped at cute shops and went to a nice dinner. People live in these areas to make money and enjoy all the great recreation and beauty afforded at the coast.

Even though disasters happen, that doesn't mean we should clear the coastline of human activity for 50 miles inland around the nation. We all depend on and enjoy the economies and activity in coastal towns.

It is unfortunate that hurricanes can bring so much devastation. But tornadoes strike Kansas and blizzards hit Colorado and earthquakes rock California. Shit happens.

Bottom line is I feel for everyone dealing with this situation tonight and the rest of the week and the coming weeks and months. All those people right now who are trying to sleep in their dark homes. People whose houses may be damaged. People feeling vulnerable, looking out the window at an eerily dark street with branches and power lines and debris strewn on the ground. People listening to the sound of a whirring generator that is keeping the fan running or the refrigerator cool or the TV on for comfort. People thinking about how long the gas will last, or when the grocery store will open, or when the water will recede or how long it will take before they can patch the roof or the work they will do at sunrise to clear the yard. Or worse, people sitting in a shelter waiting to asses the damage. Knowing it may be days before they might discover their house isn't there anymore at all. It must be a jarring and scary place to be right now, in the aftermath.

Like I said, don't look at the pictures. They will freak you out.

Anyway, enough of that ranting, I promise to get back to regular programming ASAP. Stay tuned for more pictures and stories from the island of Grenada.

Get back Ike!

I'm getting very upset sitting here in the Caribbean of all places watching Hurricane Ike pummel my Texas coast. Since I don't have anything better to do, I've just been reading all the articles on CNN and the Houston Chronicle Web sites which are getting me in a near state of panic. I looked at all 103 photos on the Chronicle site. There were multiple pictures of flooding on Galveston Island. The Strand is already under water! That picture broke my heart. Here's what one article said:

"The storm surge at Galveston's Pier 21 has already reached 8.5 feet this evening, and we're still probably six hours from landfall, and nearly seven hours from high tide."

Oh Lord, help Galveston! I'm thinking of our dearest friends Jason and Karen who live on the island while she attends UTMB. I'm hoping they have a house to go home to. Jason's family has a cabin at the East end of the island that will likely not make it through the storm. And what will happen to the school and all Karen's classes? And Jason's job at the University. It sounds like the island is going to be in pretty bad shape.

Jason and Karen are with their families in Channelview which is not necessarily in the clear either since it is in Houston and not far from the channel, hence the name. So it may be a rough night and day tomorrow for them.

Then there is our family hunkering down at home near Beaumont. Although they probably won't get flooding their going to get some bad winds and be out of electricity for many days. I'm hoping they make it through the night without too much trauma.

It's sad to be so far away, even though there isn't much we could do. At least if we were there everyone would have a place to stay in Austin if they needed it. I'm also hoping the rest of the state doesn't get any severe weather or storms as a result. I hear they canceled the UT game in Austin and they are worried about tornadoes.

Just looking at the pictures makes me home sick too for the familiar places and big trucks and Texan faces. I have to stop writing now before I get any more dramatic. Back to my obsessive Internet reading. Hang in there, Texas!

One month down, three to go

By the way, today we have been here a month. It went by fast I think. This is C.J.'s fourth week of school. He has a first round of tests next Monday. They are benchmarking tests that help him gage how he is doing in each class. They don't count for much but are supposed to help him get on track before mid-terms.

He is studying like mad now every single day. He stopped going to class. This sounds counter intuitive, but many students opt to skip class completely and study on their own. There are four or five hours of lecture every day. It cuts a lot of time out of your schedule, and C.J. feels he doesn't learn a lot watching professors flip through slides. He would rather read the material on his own. So everyday he goes to the library and reads and studies for about 10 hours, except on the days he has anatomy or histology labs, which he can't miss. Yeah, intense. The guy has not even left campus in over two weeks. Library to home to lab to library, that is it.

The good thing is he studies on the third floor of the library where there is a great view of the black sand beach and the ocean. In between cramming his head full of body parts and biochem problems he can look out the window and reflect on how beautiful the world is outside. Ha, ha.

So we will see next Monday how he is doing with his classes. There is so much material to cover you can't know it all. Hopefully he will know enough. And if he doesn't, hopefully he can make some adjustments to figure out the right things to learn. Keep up the hard work, babe!

Some things I miss

Overall I think I'm adjusting well to life here. The first two weeks were rough, but I'm getting used to the idea of this semi-permanent vacation. I stopped feeling guilty about not working and am enjoying doing whatever I want, whenever I want. And island life is not bad. Nice friends, beautiful beaches, a movie theatre, good restaurants, fun bars, what more could you want?

Well, there are just a few things that I do long for. I will try to be patient. I will have them all when I get home in December. For now I can only say that I love my first world America, land of plenty. Here are just a few things I can't wait to get back to:

Queso - I would like to stick my face in a bowl of queso right now. How do people around the world live without this Tex Mex deliciousness? I need some Kerbey Queso stat! Or Polvo's or Guerro's or Hula Hut! Anywhere with some warm liquid cheese - nectar of the gods! And some nice thin, crispy tortilla chips. Which brings me to the next item.

Tortilla chips - As far as I can tell they sell one kind of tortilla chip on this island. It is equivalent to the very cheep brand in America, beneath the HEB brand. They are round and thick. NOT thin and crispy. Not like El Milagro in Austin or the chips at Hula Hut.

Milk - I don't even drink that much milk. However, when you can't get fresh milk at the grocery store it starts to bring you down. They sell milk in cartons that sit on the shelf warm. What is that? Is that even safe? We get it for our cereal, cause it is usually the only option. But it's not as good as the fresh cold stuff. They do have the fresh cold stuff sometimes but it sells out FAST. You have to get there the day it comes in which may be Wed, or Thurs, or Friday. Who knows. I never seem to get there in time.

A haircut - Where is a girl supposed to get a hair cut around here? I haven't seen a single salon on the island. I am cringing at the thought of waiting three more months for a hair cut. In this heat I am dying to trim some inches off. Oh well, pony tail, again.

Book stores - This one is for Brigit who is trying to buy books for the kids she is teaching at Montessori school. Please do me a favor. Go out today to the nearest Barnes and Noble or Borders. Walk in the door and look around at the hundreds of books. Smell the new, clean paper and the scent of coffee treats wafting from the Starbucks counter. Soak it up! Sit in a chair with a book and a latte for a few hours. Browse the never ending shelves of fiction, non-fiction, DIY, photography, calendars, journals...ahh! Live it up for me! There are two book stores that I know of here. They are stocked about half as much as the tiniest B Dalton's book store that used to be in the mall. You know what I mean. Nowhere to sit either.

Target - This could be the most important thing behind queso. Target, I have never taken you for granted. I have always professed my undying love. I have spent many hours cruising your aisles for household goods and shoes and purses and clothes and jewelry. You are the light of my life. Our separation is almost unbearable. Please wait for me. I will be back in December!

Lobster boil, snorkeling, Fish Friday, oh my!

Yikes, I've been neglecting my blog for the past week. Sorry people! I have much to catch you up on. I've been busy (well not really) on various social outings, reading, sleeping, and a little cooking and cleaning. I devoted a lot of my time last week to finishing the monster novel Atlas Shrugged, all 1,100 pages. If you've read it, let's talk. Otherwise I won't get into it here although there is a lot to be said about Ayn Rand and her philosophy of objectivism.

Anyway, moving on to a recap of last week, last Friday night I joined some new friends to grill lobsters at Quarantine Point. This is a park on a rocky peninsula overlooking the ocean between campus and St. George. Beautiful views of the coastline for several miles in both directions. The leader of this event was a marine biologist at SGU who I met through an SO. He got several fresh lobsters from a local fisherman that morning. He grilled them right up and we had a little camp-style dinner. Delicious! The price for this lobster feast? 30EC or about $10. Yes, we are getting ripped off in the states!

Lobster on the grill

Fresh lobster with a butter mixture, yum!

Last Wednesday we went to St. George, the capital city, population approximately 7,000. It is about five miles from campus. To get there we take a school bus to a roundabout and then get off and wait for the number 1 city bus to pick us up. The city bus takes us into the heart of the city where there is a large bus terminal, a fish market, a produce market, a mall and lots of small shops and street vendors.

St. George is like an underdeveloped version of San Francisco. It is built on steep hills with gorgeous panoramic views of the ocean. The streets are narrow and winding. People are walking everywhere along with the occasional stray dog or rooster. The gutters here are open. It's hard to explain, but basically there is a huge ditch on each side of the street where water runs. It isn't as gross as it sounds but not as civilized as America and also requires that you always look down when you are walking or you are likely to break an ankle falling into a gutter. All of the buildings seem ancient and are charming and full of character in a dilapidated sort of way.

At the fish market you can watch ladies cut up and bag fresh fish brought in from the ocean that morning. The smell is intense and they don't put the fish on ice which makes you wonder a bit about sanitation. But the Grenadians don't seem to mind. The produce market is an outdoor market with dozens and dozens of booths where local farmers sell all kinds of fruits, vegetables, spices and souvenirs.

I like going into St. George's. I think the culture and the people and the buildings are fascinating. It's alive and bustling with activity. In the afternoon there are dozens of school children all wearing uniforms walking home after school. I could watch people on the street for hours wondering where they are going and what they are doing. It feels very different from home, but in a good way.

Steep street in St. George

Fish market

Lady working in the fish market

The edge of the produce market

Walking along the Carenage - the main harbor in St. George

Last Tuesday I went to trivia night at a pizza place called Prickly Bay with my new friends from Texas, Craig and Adrea. Adrea works here at the vet school and Craig is her husband who is a retired (for the moment) firefighter. Adrea is from Burleson and Craig is from Cleburne, which means that Craig knows the husbands of two of my good friends who happen to be from Cleburne. And he knows the husband of my other friend's sister and the cousin of my friend's husband. So basically he knows everyone I know from Cleburne. How do you like that for small world? And of course we hit it off right away because we're all from the greatest country in the world, Texas!

Anyway, trivia night was really fun so I'll probably be going back tomorrow (it's every week). We had some tough questions like what is the largest citrus fruit in the world (grapefruit) what English company was the first to box chocolate (Cadbury) and what decade did the French outlaw the guillotine (1980s - who knew?).

Last Monday we went to a new beach (new to me anyway) at the Grenada Rex Resort. All beaches in Grenada are public so you can go to any resort beach even if you are not a guest there. At the Rex there are awesome lawn chairs where we lounged for a few hours. We also snorkeled and I saw some beautiful fish, urchin, coral and an eel that looked just like a snake. What I need is an underwater camera!

Not a bad view
SOs chillaxin
The beach where we snorkeled

Two Fridays ago I went to Fish Friday which is basically an outdoor food carnival. It is a major attraction on the island. Vendors (are they restaurant owners or individuals? I don't know.) set up tents in an alley and sell all kinds of food. Fried fish and fish sandwiches and fish kabobs and shrimp stir fry and fish balls and fried breadfruit (tastes like french fries) and other things I could not identify and rum punch, of course.

It happens every Friday night in a town about 45 minutes from campus. Nine of us crammed into a bus taxi for the ride there. Cab fair was 20EC ($8 US) for the ride there and back (cheap!). The food was good although after an assortment of fried things I felt a little ill. Just like at the fair when you eat a bloomin onion, a funnel cake and a turkey leg all in the same night. You know what I mean.

Cooking up the fish

Making shrimp stir fry
Lots of fried goodies
SOs at Fish Friday

Typical menu