What If I chose my Homer Alaska?

12.6.2010

What If I chose my Homer Alaska?

What if I just started living immediately?  What if I chose My Homer Alaska over my Anchorage?  It would be the first time for me.  To choose to live the quieter side of my life.  I have chased life, I have taken it by the horns tied it in a knot, told it what to do and threw it!!!!  What if this time, in this new place, I just stop trying … what if I chose that?  Im going to explore this in the next 10 days and we will know more later. 

Sunday

Today we are at home and going to our first movie today this afternoon.  Julia is with us for 5 days.  She is our cousin and she is great!

Change of Plans

12.04.2010

Change of Plans

Thank god it is now time to travel.  We made some changes in our schedule today and now we are going to explore the Beaches and have good times in Brasil.  Honestly, until now it has been work, work, work!  

Culture Shock!

12.03.2010

Culture Shock!

I have been diagnosed by many who have lived abroad!  Culture Shock it is!  Like any disease, putting a face to it makes it easier to work with.  Just when I finally broke down with my first cry of the move an amazing thing happened. 
I went to class that day, did I mention I have the most wonderful teacher in Brasil.  Dani is her name and she has live abroad and has walked in my shoes.  However I do not know how she managed to live without Beans and Rice everyday.  :)
It was to Dani that I cried.  She was so nice and supportive.  I felt better soon after my cry and thought I am ready again to study Portugese and soak up the culture again.  I had hit a wall as you may have seen in my blog.  I didnt want to talk to anyone.  Nodding and smiling is something that I could only do for a while and it was killing me that I can not communicate.  It still is but I am feeling ready to try again. 
That day after class Dani called and invited me to her Conversational English class.  Honestly, I was still trying to pick up my broken pieces but said YES because I knew it was important for me to get out of the house.  I am so glad that I did.  I met the most wonderful people.  They made me feel so invited.  They decided to have a party and spend the hour talking and asking me questions about America.  I have been invited back and to their end of the year party.  I am so excited to go.  It is the people who make all the difference here. 
This one goes out to the Class and a Huge Thanks for lifting me up. 

Rua Java! Rua Java!

12.01.2010

Rua Java! Rua Java!

I have many new things to say but this tops them all.  Today we took the kids out for beers.  Ok, we fed them suckers, pizza, pop and hamburgers to keep them entertained while we drank beers at the Padaria.  They sell a liter of beer for 3.90 reis (like dollars).  We share one at a time and drink out of little juice glasses.  After we couldn’t take it anymore.... the kids were driving us nuts :).  We took off for home walking.  We could see the storm clouds behind us but here you never know when it is going to pour down rain.  Last time it rained a tree fell on a car in front of the house.  Tropical thunder storms are vicious.  So as we are walking, we saw a gym.  A very expensive gym of course but this is not important either....  So we went in to check out swimming lesson prices and it started to pour rain.  10 minutes later we decided to take a chance.  It was the four of us with the dog running down the middle of the streets in the pouring rain and there was at least 3 inches in some places or more as we were sloshing around yelling Rua Java together and laughing.  It was a blast and a time to remember.  When we got home the kids took off their extremely wet clothes and played in the rain that gathered in the drive way.  It was so much fun.  Now showered and had dinner, I wish we could do it again right now.  It was a Rua Java day.  BTW this is the street that we ran on.