Sept 30 - In Which I Discover That If You're Going To Walk 10 K A Day In Managua Heat, You Don't Really Care If Your Footwear Looks Stupid

Garish turquoise shoes?
Not me. Or so I once thought
But comfort wins out 

Sept 29 - What I Was Thinking While In Fact Saying Something Much More Stumbly, Mild, And Friendly Sounding

Let's get this job done
We've been spinning our wheels here
This old site's grown stale

Sept 28 - The Rainy Season In Managua Brings Crazy Downpours That Shake Us Awake

These are stormy nights
Wind rattles our blinds; the sky
sparks a noisy white

Sept 27 - I Still Can't Believe That This Whole Damn Country Has No Proper Street Addresses

Alexis, thank you
for guiding cabs to my 'hood
Without you, I'm lost

Sept 26 - An Outing With Matt And Kate To The Beautiful Libreria Hispamer And Then The Hectic Roberto Huembes Market

Our new Cuso pals
lead us to a puppet show
Market meats scare them

Sept 25 - At The APEN Trade Fair With My Workmates, Which Turns Out To Mostly Be An Excuse To Eat Free Samples And Blow My Taxi Fare On A Big Plate O' Ribs

My foot is blistered
But my love of ribs, unchanged
I eat purple mousse

Sept 24 - I Try Out My New Los Robles-To-Bolonia Commute To Work

Everything is good
about my one-hour walk
Except how I smell

Sept 23 - Here I Am!

Tostones for lunch
My old pals are welcoming
The desk will come soon

Sept 22 - Pilar Runs Us Through The New VOICE Program As We Prepare For Heading Back To Work

Bilingual brains
We read English, speak Spanish
And it all makes sense

Sept 21 - We Move Into Our New Place In Los Robles In A Record Three Days Post-Arrival

Our landlady says
we live in the Manhattan
of Managua. Nice. 

Sept 20 - Yes, The Lomas De Valle Hotel Pool Looks A Little Sketchy, But Who's Complaining?

Pretty kiskadee

Come join us for a pool dip

We’ll sun together

Sept 19 - Crushed By The Disappointment Of Having Our Bank Accounts Closed And Our Move Delayed, We Make The Odd Decision To Walk 6 Km to Metro Centro At Noon

Trapped in this small room

We go off on an explore

I sweat off five pounds

Sept 18 - We're Getting Better And Better At Landing In Strange Places And Finding Housing Fast

Miracle: A house
With a yard, and three bathrooms
The Fates are smiling

Sept 17 - Up At 3 A.M. For The The Long Trek South, Which Takes Us From Victoria To Vancouver To Houston To Managua

I can handle planes
It's the airports that get me
Sunless and hectic

Sept 16 - My New Least Favourite Day

I hate the last day
A million chores, tears to cry
Fearful that I'm wrong

Sept 15 - Advance Voting At The Elections Canada Office, Which Somehow Changes The Act Into A Much More Weighty And Serious Process

No 'X,' the man says
This time I must write the name
No worries. I know.

Sept 14 - Fleming Beach, Where Rosetta Came On The Day She Was Born

Does she remember?
Face out, she takes in the scene
Calling to the wind

Sept 13 - In Which I Finally Walk Paradise Meadows For The First Time And Puzzle Over How It Could Have Taken This Long

Whiskey jacks stalk us
Drawn by chicken scratch and seeds
They're strangely fearless

Sept 12 - Daniel Cooks Up Some Swell Fish From His Last Trip Out As We Get In One More Valley Visit

This halibut died
for science. I eat his flesh
And damn, he's tasty

Sept 11 - The Thing About Doing Journalism-Type Work Is That It Never Gets Dull

I bike to my chores
Photographing a sweet boy
atop his fake feet

Sept 10 - The Snacks Never Quite Materialize, But What The Heck

Down we step, into
the place where the plants once were
Paintings Christmas-wrapped

Sept 9 - I Am Able To Look Up Again On My Evening Walk Through Banfield Park

So long without birds
Have I forgotten stillness?
The world rushes past

Sept 8 - An Overdressed Walk Around The 'Hood With My New Small Friend

The fall chill retreats
And I'm suddenly too warm
to wear this baby

Sept 7 - The Annual Visit (Well, Mostly) To The Saanich Fair Renews My Appreciation Of Claritin's Role In My Life

Fuzzy bunnies, you
are the reason I take drugs
before I visit

Sept 6 - A Chilly September Day That Hints At What's To Come And Reminds Me Why I Resist Putting Roots Down Again

A day to hole up
Paint my toes a fuchsia shade
For their winter south

Sept 5 - Me And My Bike Make The Most Of Our Short Time Together With A Long Peninsula Ride

Free time and sunshine
are rare commodities now
Seize the day to ride

Sept 4 - And Just Like That, I'm Off To Get Gage At Commonwealth Pool And Paul's Buying More Burger Meat

Surprise visitors
We make room on the barby
And eat Wilkie corn

Sept 3 - And Now We're At Val's House, Which Is Full Of Memories Of Rachelle's Wedding

Lily brushes past
Aloof, but not unhappy
Might she remember?

Sept 2 - A Night On Stroll With My Peers Pals As I Psych Up For "Rolls For Strolls"

These girls are rowdy
I would blush at their cake jokes
Were this my first time

Sept 1 - Chinese Food Feast At Kassie's House, Where The Difference In The Energies Of Little Boys Versus Little Girls Becomes Very Clear

Laden with takeout,
we dine while the boys run wild
Ms. R looks aghast

Aug. 31 - Hello, Cinecenta! How Long Has It Been?

Things happen. I work.
Then a night with six brothers
Who shine through madness