Dorado the Squirrel

Like a proud mom I'll give you all an update on my cat. Dorado is spastic, to say the least. The past few days he has turned into my 6 AM alarm clock, only this alarm clock playfully (and painfully) attacks me while I'm trying to sleep. If I don't respond he goes for my face! I repeatedly throw him off my bed, which he apparently takes as playful as well. Other than that he is a model-kitty. He loves to be the center of attention, playing with the kids. He runs fast where-ever he goes and the people constantly refer to him as an ardilla or squirrel, with his long tail whipping behind him. Overall, he's pretty fun to have around.

Cabbage, Corn, Beans.

Frijoles Follow-Up


Since I talked so enticingly about the beans we have right now in a post a few weeks ago, I thought I should include some photos to back up my description. Even my most flowery language couldn't do justice to beauty of these beans! During a recent bean de-shelling session with my neighbor-grandma and the kids, grandma took a call on her cell phone and the kids and I messed around taking pictures for awhile.

Finished!

Maiz


Corn. I've already raved about the corn here, how beautiful and tasty it is. I decided to make popcorn. Healthy snack, fun to make - right? I got some dried corn from my neighbor and tried to pop it in oil on my stove. No success, it burned and didn't pop! Neighbors inquired about the smell coming from my kitchen and I tried to explain to them what I was doing. I think there was a mis-communication, though, with the word for popcorn. First, I don't think anyone has actually ever eaten popcorn. Second, the word my dictionary gave me for popcorn is palomita. The root ("paloma") of which means bird in their vocabulary, and -ita means something small. They all thought I was cooking little birds of corn. That's cute, right? A literal descriptive translation. One women suggested the solution was to toast the corn, then cook it in oil. I had my neighbor-grandma toast it for me and I tried again. No better success. I'm about to Google it, but does anyone have any experience with making home-made popcorn? I don't understand what form of corn it takes to "pop!".

Cabbage Rolls

One night while thinking about what to make for dinner, I realized I had all the ingredients necessary to make cabbage rolls! I leaned how to make them last year, honing in on my German heritage. I improvised only a little (Enchilada seasoning? Sure!). They tasted a little like home. 

Arts & Crafts

Kra

One of the crafts of the Ngabe women is to make chakras, or bags. These bags are looped from any sort of string. The traditional way uses a hand dyed plant fiber. The bags come in all sizes- from large enough to carry firewood, to bitty-sized for a cell phone. Both men and women use them as purses. When carrying a large chakra with cargo the strap is placed on the forehead and the bulk is carried on the back. This takes a very strong neck! I decided to try my hand at making a chakra with some ugly plastic string I had. I made a bag for my yoga mat. The women were so enthusiastic about helping me, but they couldn't understand what a yoga mat was (I finally called it a sleeping map) or why I would make a bag for it. 

Compost

I'm trying to make compost out of my food scraps. I'm using a 5-gallon bucket with holes punched in the bottom. Everyone in my community thinks I'm crazy. They wander by the outside of my house to sneak a peak inside the bucket. They just don't get it. It's been about 2 weeks and I'm patiently waiting for something exciting to happen, to show them I'm not more crazy than I know they already think I am. I scanned a few how-to compost sites online to get started. I'm now soliciting advice from my green-friends (you all, if it applies) to see if I'm on the right track. The physical characteristics of my compost are: dark in color, smelly, attracts flies, has maggots. To keep it moist I add coffee & grounds every morning and occasionally some urine (nitrogen, right?). I set it in the sun every day to make sure it stays hot. I've added dried leaves for a carbon input. Recently it has become more consistent in color and I can tell the material is breaking down. How long should it take? Does it sound like I'll have myself come rich compost soon? 

No Peace

Do you remember the last time the government took away your cell phone service to deter you from demonstrating against their agenda?

The last time the police dispersed unarmed protesters and people were killed from gunshot wounds?

This is not the first time being here reminds me how much I appreciate the USA.

Our staff had sequestered us volunteers to our sites to avoid the protests of the indigenous people with whom I live. They were protesting the unauthorized development of a copper mine and hydroelectric dams on their land. Visit The Prensa website for more articles. Everything has calmed down, cell phone service restored, and I'm free to come and go now.