No saca mi yeso

sorry, we´re still writing in small letters, which means that the cast has still not been taken off. i went to the dr´s office today. after he looked at my x-ray, he thought that it would be better if i waited a little bit longer and since i´ll be traveling in 3 weeks, it would be safer if my arm was protected still.

by the way, did i mention that i´ll be going to buenos aires in 3 weeks. my friend, becky, from the us will be meeting me there. my first person from the us reunion--i am so excited! it´s too bad that i´ll be traveling in a cast though. i always thought that it would be fun to learn the tango in BA, but i suppose there are worst things in life. (um...like falling through a damn roof after being attacked by dogs while in a developing country, but anyways...)

so, yes, i will go back to site tomorrow. i will postpone the keyboard lessons for now, but i´m looking forward to the smorgasborg of meat that i will be eating in less than a month...steak for breakfast, lunch, and dinner!

Saca mi yeso!

tomorrow is a big day...the cast comes off! i am very excited. afterwards, it´ll be physical therapy for a couple of weeks. i´ve been told that the road to mend will be painful but i´m actually looking forward to it. it´ll be the first time (since i was a baby) that i´ll learn how to use a limb.

overall, i´m not in pain. i actually feel really good. i still can´t extend my arm all the way but i´ve been practicing the last couple of days. my therapy will take place in lima,which is where i´m currently at now. once i make enough progress and can endure the 20 hour bus ride then i´ll go back up to site. i plan on being a fast learner so that i can resume my life again. did i tell you guys that i already found someone to teach me the keyboard (since we don´t have a piano here)? i am very excited! i hope you guys are doing well!

ps does anyone know anything about letting metal rods stay in your arm? i actually have the option of getting both the metal rods and screws removed after everything heals, but is it just better to leave them in rather than risk the surgery again?

disculpame...

sorry, i've been so lazy and not updating my blog. it's been an adjustment to the cast. after i got back to site, i was not feeling so chipper. but, lately, i've been trying to do a lot more work and be more active. unfortunately, this is not working quite as i had hoped; my dr. has told me to cut back again because of the pain that i've been having in my hip. so i'm going to try to sit more and update more often. :)

otherwise, things are going well. i learned not to hate my cast anymore and have really tried to make the effort to not let it limit me. i handwashed my pants this weekend, have been typing in 1-hand, and my soup kitchen project is going as well as can be expected. i had a great meeting this weekend and have an appt. to meet w/ the governor's office tomorrow about what type of donations we might be able to receive.

the biggest obstacle right now is that we just figured out that the budget will not allow for gas stove cooking as i had originally planned. instead, we will need to construct a "cocina mejorada" at the school so that we can cook over fire. that will set us back another 250 soles ($90). so tomorrow my priority will remain on trying to get this project donated to us. in exchange, i will offer free english lessons. this has actually turned out to be a pretty good bargaining chip considering i am the only person who speaks english in my town. at the end of my two years, i don't know if there will be a single person who didn't take katie-english lessons.

i will spend the next few weeks working on my grant proposal, which i hope to submit sometime next month. (left hand is typing as fast as it can!) the budget section might be what kills me though. as much as i can do housewife grocery store math (for instance, i can always tell you which jar of tomato paste is the better bargain), i am having a hard time explaining the budget and finances of this project. no, i will never be voted in as the treasurer of the committee, so next week, we will devote a whole day entitled, "getting katie to understand math and the budget." because you can't be a grant person if you don't understand finances. oye. that just sounds so painful though.

ps since it's been a while since i've posted pictures, here is possibly my favorite photo from my easter trip to arequipa. the pizza was in the midst of welcoming me to his city in english. :) hello, pizza!

pss this outfit gone. it was one of my favorites, too, before the firefighters and their scissors got ahold of it the night of the accident. :(