Tuesday, November 9, 2010

Halloween & Other Happenings

By insistent and repeated demand, I have Halloween wear:

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Maid Marian & The Friar: Note The Authentic Footwear

So . . . that happened. Halloween was actually a fairly early night. Something about semi-frozen tangerine jello shots and forgetting to schedule dinner into the festivities, if I recall correctly. Not to worry - the fun was hardly over. Waking up the next day, it was the beginning of Cuenca Days.

Cuenca Days is not the official name of the holiday, but it's what it feels like. The whole town is pretty much off work for 4 or 5 days depending on your job, and every night there is a major fireworks show. One night I saw five shows as each barrio (neighborhood) expressed its civic pride and one-up-manship for the year. It was like the 4th of July, Groundhog Day edition.

I attempted to take a little time off work and check things out. They had some massive Arts-In-The-Park kind of stuff, but I ended up being fairly *yawn* about it all. I was expecting . . . more/different? Not the same kinds of things in every booth. I did the street and the park shows, as well as a seriously underwhelming taste event at La Esquina de Las Artes, but I didn't come home with anything other than sore feet.

Sadly, class resumed. For the newbies, I am teaching Saturday mornings as well as four days during the week. It's not like its a heavy load, I'm just a bit out of practice with teaching! The class during the week is International Relations, and I have to study as much as they do to keep up. I laughed at myself Thursday night, finishing up my stuff for Friday's class - definitely university days all over again.

This week, now that the holidays are over, work is crazy! I have a ton of projects to finish up - far more than there are hours in a day for working. Not so good. It's nice to be wanted by the clients, but I'm struggling to keep up now that I have to play educated profesora part-time. Getting through this week should be interesting, and I'll be glad to update when it's over and I can breathe again!

2 comments:

  1. Fantastic! So glad you shared the picture. Sounds like your 12 jobs are getting in the way of relaxation. I hope you're still taking time to watch football.

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  2. Relaxation . . what an odd and foreign concept. Deadlines, now deadlines are a concept I can work with ;-)

    Missing football? Surely you jest. My dearest companion here is a rapid Notre Dame fan who will support Michigan State in a pinch. Also a fan of the pros. We have perfect harmony on the weekends as a result, because the question is never "What do you want to do?" . . . it's "Hey, what time is the game on?" We've developed a deeply soothing Saturday post-class routine. I finish with the students, proceed directly to the nearest game watch site or our pre-established viewing location, and order something to drink. Nebraska wins. I get some sleep. It's awesome ;-)

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