Dec 19 - Kicking Off The Eve Of Two Weeks Of Vacation

Kate's thesis is done
We celebrate with pizza
The wine flows freely

Dec 18 - Thoughts On The First Lady After A Wander Down Avenida Bolivar In The Festive Season

She's clearly a fan
Of abundance and colour
Electric Christmas

Dec 17 - A Very Last-Minute Change In Plans Scraps Our Chance To Hear Christmas Music At The Cathedral

Beer and tiny snacks
Not as good as Mejias
But Yami wants it

Dec 16 - In Which We Go To La Otra Embajada To See "We Live In Public," Which Would Have Been Better Viewed Without The Nicaraguan Nerd Trio Playing Loud Games At The Table Next To Us

Prescient genius
flickers on the wall amid
the crash of Jenga

Dec 15 - The Benefits Of Our Small But Comfy New Habitacion

Fresh air on two sides
And no landlord wraithing past
Small room? No problem

Dec 14 - Lucky And I Walk To Metro Centro, But Other Than That The Day Is Unremarkable

I want a pool day
Sadly, work calls, and packing
On the move once more

Dec 13 - A Day At Laguna Apoyo

By bus and by cab
We arrive at the crater
To swim in warm silk

Dec 12 - Who Starts A New Job And Then Six Weeks Later Finds Out The Place Is Closing Down Early For Three Weeks Of Holidays? Me, I Guess

It's a bit early
To embrace Christmas spirit
But I'll work with it

Dec 11 - A Concert At The Catedral Metropolitana, Where We Confusedly Arrive Early Enough For The Evening Service

Promise of gospel
Leads us to the cathedral
We greet the faithful

Dec 10 - In Which I Get My Own Sign-In To Access The Ancient Web Site

Finally, I'm in
Daily nagging does pay off
The wall has fallen

Dec 9 - If All I Get Is One Day Of My Workmates Thinking I'm The Cat's Meow, I'll Take It

My star has risen
A video, a story
For now, they like me

Dec 8 - At The Museum Of The Revolution, Which Looks As Neglected As The Skinny Vet Who Shows Us Around

This place needs some love
Viva la Revolucion
But don't skip the paint

Dec 7 - The Rather Puzzling But Exciting Gritaria In Leon, Which Leaves Us With Fireworks Ash On Our Faces And Uncertainty Around How It All Relates To The Virgin Mary

Thousands crowd the square
Then dash to private altars
For suckers and soap

Dec 6 - An Otherwise Uneventful Bus Ride To Leon Turns Really Strange As We Head To Silvia's Beach House

Chikungunya days
Bats dart above our heads, like
someone's fevered dream

Dec 5 - A Day That Starts Out Somewhat Irritating Turns Fun With The Addition Of A Lot Of Rum And Chihuahuas

Gender talk bugs me
But then we all drink too much
And stuff dogs in bags

Dec 4 - The Day Of The Volunteer Provides A Good Workout For The Volunteer Photographer

Up, down, knees to floor
I'm Cuso's photographer
Grateful for yoga

Dec 3 - The Taxi Will Be Waiting At The Bus Terminal, They Said. I Knew Better Than To Believe Them

Bye to the bunk bed
I'm back on the people's bus
Sweating my way home

Dec 2 - In Which A Facilitator Alternates Between Putting Me To Sleep And Making Me Really, Really Angry

Rip-my-eyes-out bored
But the Purisima's sweet
With Halloween treats

Dec 1 - I Admit, I Was Hoping For A Little Better Class Of Accommodation

This is a hotel?
Six to a room, my poor hips
Pressed into the bunk

Nov 30 - I Think This Might Be My 7th Shutterfly Gift Calendar, And They Never Get Any Easier

It makes a nice gift
But lordy, the work! Twelve months
Of jigsawed photos

Nov 29 - Kate's Boss Marina Drives Us To The Coast Past Dirimbia For A Very Nice Day

One beach, two beach, three
One to swim, one to explore
The third for sunset

Nov 28 - Bad News Makes Its Way South

This day breaks my heart
Though I knew it was coming
Son, I weep for you

Nov 27 - In Fact, We're Not Going As Hungry As Our Steak-Devouring Ways Made Us Look When The Cuso Woman Came To Town And Paid The Dinner Bill

Does Sophie notice?
Kate almost licks her plate clean
Hungry volunteers

Nov 26 - Cursing The Day I Got Involved With A Very Difficult Project That Never Ends

I hate real research
The citations, references
Give me newspaper

Nov 25 - A Lot Of Alternative Personalities Hanging Out At The Fundraiser For The Women's Shelter, At Which I Buy A Cake

Ruta Maya calls
We eat caballo bayo
While mujeres sing

Nov 24 - My Second Language Abilities Really Let Me Down When It Comes To Understanding Someone Who's Speaking Angrily At Warp Speed

This woman's upset
She gestures, and says "Puta"
What's up? Not a clue

Nov 23 - A Fairly Unsuccessful First Pool Day At The Crowne Plaza

OK, there's no sun
But damn it, I'm not leaving
Even when it pours

Nov 22 - A City Prepares For La Griteria

The cultural palace
Can't compete with Mary's shrines
They'll soon sing her name

Nov 21 - This Is What Cooking For A Crowd Of Hundreds Looks Like: A Day At The Annual Feria

Throngs of visitors
Keep the kitchen team hopping
Eyes damp from the smoke

Nov 20 - The Instructive Experience Of Helping Set Up For Tomorrow's Big Feria

Gone at dawn's first light
I pick up garbage, and rake
While men dig deep holes

Nov 19 - Is It Me, Or Is Mercury Retrograde? (But Then I Checked, And It Wasn't. Damn)

With a screen gone black
Asus is clearly not well
Please, buddy, don't die

Nov 18 - My Co-Workers Cut Me In On A Traditional Pile O' Chicharron

The thing about home
Is that you can't get pork rinds
And never for lunch

Nov 17 - Strange What Can Feel Thrilling These Days

Could this do the trick?
Chasing database fixes
Makes the day fly by

Nov 16 - We Almost Lose Our Chill Granada Energy After Returning To Managua In The Front Seat Of A Micro-Bus Hellbent On Getting Back Quickly

Morning meander
Then a harrowing bus ride
What's your hurry, guy?

Nov 15 - Weekend in Granada

This is a town of
Churches and cemeteries
We eat cheap meat plates

Nov 14 - Strike One For Communications As We Debut A YouTube Channel

We make history
Campesinas on the web
Their stories preserved

Nov 13 - Lucky And I Start A New Morning Routine Of Exploring Managua

She jerks me around
But I let it go, happy
To have a dog pal

Nov 12 - My Enthusiasm For Getting Back To Running Leaves Me Injured And Achy As I Make My Very Slow Way Down Avenida Bolivar

In my mind, I fly
But in truth, I limp along
My rush to run foiled

Nov 11 - How Fortunate To Discover "The Fantastic Mr. Fox" Playing At La Otra Embajada Just Blocks From Our House

Wherever we go
I want a bar-cinema
For drinks and movies

Nov 10 - The Difficult Choice Between Being Really Hot While I'm Working Or Deafened In A Small, Bleak Space With A Horrible Air Conditioner

I prefer sweating
Over being roared to death
By the loud aire

Nov 9 - An Hipico On The PriceSmart Road

High-stepping horses
Dance to the nip of the whip
Dodging errant cars

Nov 8 - In Which We Take Our First Taxi Ride And Head To The Roberto Huembe Public Market

So many samples
Sadly, they're all rosquillas
Mind you, those purses...

Nov 7 - At The Rich Lady's House

An odd reception
Rum and coke, yes, but not much
We rock in chairs, mute

Nov 6 - Las Mujeres Gather At The Communal Farm Near Matagalpa

We're on a road trip
I stuff into the back seat
Oh, so familiar

Nov 5 - We Head To The Little Radio Station So I Can Watch The Weekly Show

Radio Mujer
Valentina shares her tales
A hard life gone well

Nov 4 - My New Boss: One Tough-Talking, Revolutionary Campesina

I think she scares me
She hates the way the world's gone
On that, we agree

Nov 3 - First Day Of Work, Complicated By A Long Delay Paying The Rent, A Meal I Ate Only Because I Was Confused, And A Ridiculous Amount Of Walking On A Stinking Hot Day

Stuffed from a big lunch
I'm dozey in my weird space
Reports all 'round me

Nov 2 - The Joy Of Unpacking All Of Our Bags, Going To PriceSmart For Groceries, And Feeling Like We Live Somewhere

Few things feel better
Than having your own housing
Four months in one place!

Nov 1 - We Finish Up A Not-So-Tough Training Week With A Day Trip To Granada And The Masaya Volcano

The smell of sulphur
Vultures soar on ragged wings
Buoyed by the hot air

Oct 31 - The Very Long Process Of Opening A Bank Account In A Latin American Country

You don't know waiting
Until you go to a bank
Questions. Concerns. Doubts