Random Comics

Quick, Cheap and Easy

I`ve decided to start writing down all the different meals that i create. I`m not really into creating huge meals, but when i cook something for myself, its always pretty easy, and almost always delicious.
So here`s the first one from a few days ago that cost about 10 pesos. (1 buck)

Ingredients:

2 "shots" of rice(i don`t have measuring cups so use a double shot glass)
2 "shots" of lentils
12 "shots" of water
1 cube of 3 chiles flavor (like chicken stock)
1 chile rojo

Put all the above ingredients in a pot and cook them about 20 minutes. Meanwhile chop up the following ingredients:

1/2 jalapeño
2 cloves of garlic
1 green pepper
1 onion

When the rice and lentils are almost all cooked, add the veggies and cook until they are the desired consistency. About 15 more minutes. You might need to add a little bit more water.

It was absolutley delicious! This amount will probably feed 2 people with small appetites or one person who can eat alot.

As I create more, i{ll post them. Maybe i{ll even create a recipe book eventually.

Is it really October already?

I guess one of the really good things about living here is that even though time is flying the seasons never change. It is perpetually summer. I can´t believe we´re halfway through October already!

Well, just for a quick update...

I´m teaching at a really prestigious school called St. John´s. Right now I only have 2 classes. 9th grade English and Level one English. Level 1 is all of highschool. They´ve split them into 2 levels depending on how they did on the placement test. So, its a pretty big class.

I´m enjoying it, though. Who ever thought I´d be a Highschool teacher. LOL

I just moved into my own place... or I guess you´d just call it a room. I don´t have any shelves or tables yet. just a bed and a bunch of stuff on the floor. my clothes are still in my suitcase. i´m working on buying some furniture... it´ll come eventually.

Manzanillo is beautiful and hot and I love it. My Spanish is improving despite how it feels. I´m understanding way better now, but my speaking still sucks. Practice makes perfect right?

I´m trying to get some private lessons going, but people are so wishy washy. They say, yes, teacher, give me lessons. Then they don´t show up. You HAVE to make them pay monthly or they just won´t ever come.

I´m making some friends... finally. One just moved to León, so that leaves me with 2. haha. It takes time.

April and Edgar´s wedding is soon. 2 weeks! I´m looking forwaard to seeing people from Canada. I hope they have fun here. :D

Not too much has happened in 3 months. With not having friends and working and stuff...

That´s the thing though... yes, i live in an exotic place, 5 minutes from the beach, but i still have to deal with life. I have to pay bills and make sure that I´m on time for work and eat and everything. Life is the same, i´m just in a different location. Life isn´t just a beach here. Yes, that´s part of it, there´s still life.

Anywyas, its good. I´m trying to get my papers here, so i don{t have to leave in January. Plus, i don{t know how i would leave. Usually, if you don´t have any money, they won´t give you a plane ticket.

Well, i doubt anyone is still checking this, but there´s the update...

Bad Blogger...

I´m really horrible at keeping these up to date... I guess it´s because the last few months I´ve been tossing around different ideas as to what I was going to do. Every day I would´ve posted a different ´decision´ that I´d made. Stay in Tacna, go on a cruiseship, go to Manzanillo, go to Cancun... I´m really bad with the indecisiveness.

So... here I am in Manzanillo. The weather is hot and sticky and I love it. No more bundling up, no more layers. What´s worse? To be cold and not be able to warm up? Or to be hot and not be able to cool down? For me, it´s definitley the first one. Being cold is like torture. So, here I sit at 7:45 am at 29C and with a 75% humidity, it feels like 41C. AHHHHHHHH. :D

April got me a job at Universal Languages where she works, so I started right away on Monday after arriving Sunday night. It worked out well, though, because I didn´t start unitl 2pm. It was a nice break. I haven´t seen anything before 10am for weeks (unless I was still up from the night before).

The school here is very relaxed and there´s a lot of improvisation which I´m not quite used to. But I´ve only worked 2 days so far and I´ll get the hang of it.

The Lopez´s are doing well. They love the transition they´ve made from Mexico City to Manzanillo. Their house is adorable and the girls are so big. Well, Josie is still a little peanut, but she´s walking around. I´ve got some pictures, but I don´t have internet (i´m on a computer at work) so I don´t know when I´ll get a chance to upload.

There´s a scorpion like creature out here that is apparantly deadly. I can´t recall it´s name. I´ll have to hear it a few more times first. That´s my problem with Spanish, I just can´t seem to remember words. When someone talks to me I know what they´re talking about, but when I need to speak, I can´t pull the words out. It´s frustrating.

Well, my first student has showed up, so that´s the update and I have to go. I know, I´m a bad blogger. What can you do?

I don't think it's just me...

I woke up this morning a year older. But really, how can you age a whole year overnight? I never really understood that part.
I went to the bathroom mirror and started searching for unwanted wrinkles and hair that might be where it wasn't before. Fortunately, I have neither of those things. Apparently my only signs of aging are my stray grays... and I've had those for years. I think the first one popped out when I was around 23. So that really doesn't count.
Everyone asks me how old I'm turning and I love making them guess. Because they always say 25, 26... it's probably because I've never had kids. I'm pretty sure they age you.
So today, I will be thankful for my youthfulness and keep enjoying life as I have been. I look forward to lunch with friends and later drinks with more friends. Pleasant, laid-back and friendly.
I think turning 27 was the hardest. I felt almost thirty and like I hadn't done anything with my life. Just hopping around from city to city.

Now I'm content. Peaceful. Doing what I'd always dreamed.

Thanks for all the well-wishing...

mini-update...

I know... i'm horrible at keeping this thing updated, but right now i'm changing my mind every other day that there would be so many different and conflicting thoughts on each page.
first, i needed to leave cuz the school was going to shut down, then i got the job in Cancun, then i was going to be with the Lopez's in Manzanillo... now, i figure i'll just stay where i am... for now... that is until i change my mind again. I have my tax return in my account, so i'm not worried about money at the moment.
I've applied for this resort photographer position in Manzanillo, and i think that would be SWEET!!! But we'll see... who knows what could happen between now and when i hear about if i got it or not.
there's still the option of getting on a cruise ship. i haven't forgotten about that. its nice to know i have options. i feel stifled if i don't, but when i have TOO MANY options, i just get lost and confused and worried that i'll pick the wrong one. well, not so much the wrong one, but not the BEST one. I want to do the best thing for me.
but for now, since my job seems to be secure, i might as well stay. i've made some good friends and i would be sad to leave them right at this point.
but lately, i've visited Tarata and Moquegua. Tarata pics are posted on facebook, i'll work on the Moquegua ones tomorrow.
short and sweet, but there ya go.

The Weight is Gone!!!

Phew!!! All that weight I gained last year before i left for Mexico is now GONE!!! I feel so much better. I think there were maybe only a handful of pics taken of me over the year. i just did NOT want to be in any pictures looking like that but now... yes, i'm back to normal.



The other night a friend of mine was having this dress up party andi really didn't want to dress up, (cuz i hate it), but I found something semi-comfortable (thanks to Elisa) and went out for the evening. We danced, we drank, we ate. It was good times.
I'm still not really used to the Peruvian music. Honestly, i don't really like it all that much, but good times can still be had.
That's really all i had to say about that.



As for the whole job thing, i haven't heard back from Cancun and one place in Mexico rejected my application. jerks. but the institute here is trying to stay open so now i'm just trying to figure out how i can save money. i might be able to save about 200 soles/ month but that's only about $80 dollars. yeesh.
so... lets all hope that something good can happen so i can get to mexico for April and Edgar's wedding in october. *fingers are crossed*