30.04.10
This morning I woke up, climbed out of my mosquito net, stumbled into my flipflops and headed towards the bathroom. On my way back through the kitchen I noticed my host mom and started to make breakfast. Usually I am up before she starts making breakfast and I make my own, but today I slept in a little bit longer. I bought plantains from the veggie truck a few days before because I was craving them, and my host mom was frying them up this morning. I thought to myself, “maybe I will eat breakfast with my host family today.” And then I noticed that she was frying the entire package of manteca (lard) in the pan (plastic and all). I was appauled. So surprised in fact that I turned to her in english and said “That's plastic¡” I corrected myself after and said “es plastico¡ porque está cocinando el plastico?” She then told me that it's ok because if you heat up the package then the manteca will melt. I was so disgusted i actually gagged in front of her. (I couldn't help it. I had just woke up, my guard was down, and that is disgusting). I told her I would not be eating the platanos this morning and proceeded into my room to process what had just happened.
A few minutes later I decided I would make scrambled eggs and coffee for breakfast. I went back into the kitchen to find a pot of water for my coffee already boiling on the stove. While this sounds like a nice thing to do, it sent me over the edge. She didn't know I was going to want coffee. She used tap water, and I buy bottled water for this purpose. Also, I was going to make it differently this morning because I finally bought non-instant coffee. This whole thing unfolded literally with 5 minutes of waking up. Those of you at home know I am no princess when I roll out of bed, so you could imagine. As my emotional breakdown began I was consumed with the following thoughts.
“There is nowhere else for me to live in this community, I'm stuck. Yesterday my boss offered me a site change on three occasions without me asking. And finally my family loves me and my host mom doesn't know any better.” The point of this story is I broke down because of my lack of control over the simplest thing, making my coffee in the morning. I decided I should leave the house and go read by the lake.
Reading by the lake is my refuge. There is usually no one there, and I only occasionally get bit by biting flies. After I read and journaled, I realized that there are certain things over which I lack control. However, my body is not one of them. I will not be consuming lard voluntarily. Therefore, I am taking the steps necessary to put a little kitchenette in my room. Problem Solved.
I am going to run a 10k on Sunday, meaning I won't be able to walk on Monday. Until next post...
¡Salu!
Chelsea
2 comments:
I really love your blogs Chelsea . . . sorry I never take the time to respond to them.
Do you have to live with a family? I know its a fantastic cultural experience, but I know its insanely stressful. All these little things really add up . . . not that cooking plastic is a 'little thing' though. Yuck. I tried the family thing in Nicaragua and Uganda, I couldn't do it, just too much. You're much stronger than I.
P.S. Boil water, save plastic.
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