Casa de Grapas (House of Staples) has debuted in San Rafael Pie de la Cuesta. This was a huge personal upgrade for yours truly and has completely changed my experience. I feel much more integrated into the community now that I have my own place. I have neighbors I greet every morning and afternoon as I go to and return from work, I grocery shop for myself, and - in general - I have a much larger ownership over my life. This is not to say that living with my host family wasn't enjoyable, they are really solid people, but I constantly had this nagging feeling that I was a visitor in the town.
I've started to cook for myself a bit. I make my breakfasts and dinners, and eat lunch (the biggest meal in Guatemala) with my old host family to keep that relationship going. The standard breakfast has been either cereal with banana or the occasional four-egg omelet packed with veggies. Thanks to Mac for bringing down my French coffee press because now I can start the day with a freshly brewed cup of coffee, instead of a mixture of watered-down Nescafe and three table spoons of water. Dinners usually consist of some kind of starch and some black beans. I'll mix it up every now-and-then with a pack of mac & cheese from the market in San Marcos, but that's a rarity.
Another development is that I submitted my application yesterday for the President position of the Volunteer Advocacy Committee. The VAC, as it is known, is the elected group of eight volunteers (of 178) that represents the greater group of volunteers in any administrative context and serves as a support structure for all volunteers. Election results should be released in a couple weeks.
That's the latest. I'm heading home a week from Friday for my brother's wedding. Can't wait! More than the wedding itself, I can't wait to see family and friends; especially my sister's children who - I'm sure - have grown a ton since I've been gone.
Oh, and we beat "The Machine" in last Sunday's soccer game. That puts us in third place out of twelve teams. Playoffs bound!
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