Laughter is the BEST Medicine

I have had a lot of good laughs these past few days...

Thursday: Peggy came into my classroom to ask me for my house keys because some maintenance people needed to do some work on my house. I asked what work was being done but Peg wasn't sure. So I handed over the keys and when I got home my bathroom stuff was all over my dinning room, so I knew it had something to do with the bathroom. Peggy told me she thought it had something to do with the water. When I first moved into my house we didn't have running water but two weeks ago Carlos had the pipe that goes to my house fixed and now I get running water, well until it gets insanely hot again that is! But for the time being I'm really enjoying it. So Jackie and I scanned the bathroom to try and figure out what they had done. She said "OMG Bridget it doesn't smell in here anymore, I think they cleaned it" and I was thinking "What? Why would people come in to clean my bathroom?" So I checked it out only to realize it was just as clean as when I left it that morning, but Jackie was right - it didn't smell anymore. The sewage comes up through my bathroom and the toilet doesn't flush on it's own, so you can imagine the smell - it's horrible! Well twenty minutes later I went to the bathroom and to my pleasant surprise I saw a brand new toilet!!! I couldn't believe my eyes and wait for it..........IT FLUSHES ON IT'S OWN! WHAT?!?!?! Crazy stuff! Later in the evening I was talking to another volunteer about it and he asked what they did with the old one. I told him they probably threw it on the side of the road somewhere knowing how Hondurans work.

Friday: I wake up to get ready for school and as I'm drying my hair off with my towel I see something in my backyard and jump. I thought a person was out there at first, but on second glance this is what I see...

So I ran outside to get a closer look and sure enough...there were my toilets just hanging out in the backyard...

I couldn't pass up a funny photo...

Friday: After school it was time to decorate for Christmas for a few hours.

Fanny with her beautiful stocking

We had to paint glue and sprinkle glitter on a ton of snowflakes. Bessy (the Honduran 6th grade teacher) was doing all of the sprinkling because they didn't really trust us to, but she had to go paint and then I got to take over as glitter queen. I had a blast and at one point Mary looked over at me and said "Bridget, I'm sensing something very natural about this for you" Ahaha I was cracking up. I do love my crafts :)

Saturday: Jeff stopped by my house to pry one of my of my old toilet lids off because his and Andrew's broke this past Thursday. They both deny doing it so it's a mystery as to what happened. But it was a great laugh for me...I almost peed my pants watching him get that thing off with a butter knife.

After the toilet lid was successfully removed I went for a walk in town and stopped by Sonia's Vet Clinic. I wanted to take some pictures of the birds she's watching for an American man who's off traveling for five months...

Two beautiful Macaw's

Some other type of parrot that talks

They are just so beautiful, but one of them is a biter :/

After that I headed to the beauty pageant happening in town. My little Maria Jose was selected to represent Santa Clara :)! I ran into a lot of my students while I was there. Here is little Leah...

Don't I look like such a mom :)?

We support you Maria Jose...

The nuns and a bunch of the kids from the orphanage came to support her. So sweet! This little man was too cute for words...

Maria is a tomboy so it was funny to see her with make-up on. She took it so seriously though and rocked it. Check out that pose...

Some of the other little girls from the orphanage came to perform a dance number...

I couldn't stay for the whole thing because it gets dark so early now and I had to walk home alone, but I was informed today that Maria Jose WON!!! That's my girl!

Saturday night we were suppose to go out dancing. So I spent an hour getting ready because I was in a particularly great mood and wanted my outside to reflect my inside. Nine of us piled into Claudia and her husbands car, but when we got to the bar we were told it was closed for the night -- what a bummer! So then we drove around for another 30 minutes trying to find somewhere else to go with no luck. We were ready to get out of the car at that point because we were packed in there like pickles!

Carrie, Anne, Lacey, Jackie, and Angela all sitting in the middle seat.

Jeff and I in the back of the car. I think both of my legs were asleep by the time I got out.

Even though we didn't make it out to dance. I made everyone get out of the car to take a picture since I went to all of that trouble to get ready!

Lacey, Me, Claudia, Carrie, Jackie, Anne, and Angela.

So I spent my night at Lacey, Jeff, and Andrew's watching  "The Goonies" with Lacey while Jeff watched the USC vs. UCLA game. It was a fun time. Jeff had bought this hat in town that he swore was a sign that his team would win. So Lacey and I both had to wear the hat and pose with Jeff's Honduran friend "Carlos" (his number 11 Honduran Jersey koozie)...

Lace and Heffrey

UCLA!!!

Word

This weekend was filled with lots of laughter which is exactly what I needed after a long week of school!

I am inspired.hopeful.happy

"What keeps me going is the knowledge that education is the ONLY way that we can get this country in a better place. We can give them all the money in the world and the government will mismanage it. Corrupt governments love to keep their population uneducated. That way they can continue to exploit their weaknesses. The only way we can help Honduras is educate their population so that they will rise up and change the structure of their country. When I have students like Nemesis and Angela who are smart, engaged and truly think about questions, I know that we are creating leaders who will make a change for this country" - Meagan Tenety