Hide Your Money

Today we started with a great breakfast in our hotel. We were served eggs and toast with fruit and yogurt. A hearty breakfast was in order because we were heading out to Zenon’s farm to “work” for the day. The great thing about teachers is that they love to talk. We did do some work, helped with the sheep de-worming, but mostly we learn a ton about how Zenon farms, after all this is an educational trip. The animal people seemed to love the time with Zenon, and we needed all 5 translators at one pointer or another. I think Neil, Corinne, and Alicia felt right at home, but Brent, Jenna, and Wilma Seem to find interesting things there too.

I got to see my favorite Bolivian things, Zenon’s cuy. I do love the idea of moving to Bolivia and raising Cuy, brings a whole new meaning to being a pig farmer. Zenon has a golden aguti boar that I remember from the first time I visited Zenon’s farm. I was looking for him, as I looked through the pens and, sure enough, in the second-to-last pen, there he was…looking bigger and fatter than before--so we have that in common.

Crystal stuck with it for most of the tour, but when the conversation turned to importing semen she decided it was time to set up her computer and do some writing. Personally, I think she just wanted to be closer to the lunch table. Before lunch, she had most of an article roughed out which is certainly more than I accomplished that morning.

One of the things I like best about Bolivia--though I am having a hard time getting used to it--is the two hour lunch. Zenon and his family were very hospitable and the food was amazing. There was no shortage of conversation albeit diverse and not what you would normally hear with company around the dining room table.

After a great day at the farm, we went to a familiar looking restaurant for fried chicken and hamburgers. Some of the group was missing dessert so, on the way back to the hotel, we stop off at a gelato store. Corinne decided to buy a pastry-looking thin g for us all to try and proceeded to dig through her money belt on the sidewalk. After being chastised by Jenna and others for flashing her cash in public, she said, “fine” and literally climbed under the tables to extract her bills. This sent the entire group into gales of laughter and caused many cameras to appear from nowhere. Everybody won; we got great dessert, blackmail-worthy photos and photos. A great way to end the day.

Until next time, keep us in your thoughts.

Spider Killer - Bolivian Super Hero

Sunday

Lyle and crew got up early today to do more work on the seeder. After another great breakfast, we all went to church--the first service ever for one of our team. It was good to see Jhonny’s family again, including the newest member, Moises, who was born about a month after Jhonny died. We sang many songs and listened to a Spanish sermon.  After the service, the community fed us a great meal.

When we returned to Hoogland’s, we finished the seeder and flipped it right-side-up while others packed and cleaned. We took one last trip to the river, and Lyle got to fulfill a fantasy of his: to quad in the jungle. (Funny how our fanta1sies change as we age. Or maybe we just become more realistic with our expectations!)

A vehicle never goes to town empty, and our bus was no exception.  We picked up many locals with their kids and produce, including Jhonny’s mom. Crystal had brought a number of copies of the Messenger magazine that contained the article she wrote about Jhonny. Erselia, Jhonny’s mom, wanted Marg to translate the  article for her. It must be very odd to read about your dead son in a magazine from a country half a world away. I am not sure how I would take that if it was my child. Do you feel honoured that someone so far away remembers your child, too, or do you just feel sad all over again?

Brent gained a reputation as a spider killer will he was still working on the seeder. He could kill just about any spider with his trusty wrench if he swung at it enough times. He earned the name Spider Killer - Bolivian Superhero! He also gained the reputation for sleeping very soundly anywhere, anytime. So, this afternoon when he fell asleep on the bus with his shirt open, someone who shall remain nameless used a Sharpie to draw a big S on his chest with a stylized spider. This took many minutes to complete with gales of laughter rolling through the vehicle the entire time. Our Bolivian guests howled along with us. Erselia laughed so hard she said her jaw hurt. Eventually Brent awoke, but it still took a few minutes for him to catch on to what everyone was laughing about. He may never have noticed his insignia if he had not had to wipe the drool off his chest. So now he is simply known as Spider Killer - Bolivian Superhero.

Bye for now

The Seedier Side of Bolivia

Today started with the sun, parrots, and Jake’s great porridge! After a great breakfast and a much-needed coffee (thanks Marg!), Lyle started the assembly of the seeder with one group and another group started in the gardens. Both groups started with the same activity: the gardeners by digging out weeds and the rest of us by digging out seeder parts. I don’t know when Jake planted the seeder parts, but they did not germinate!

Before lunch, Jake took us on a plant tour. Corrine kept eating the plants, including the leaves full of arsenic! Jake stopped her from eating the leaves containing cyanide.  There is a new rule for her now: ask before you eat. On the theme of food, lunch was very Bolivian and very good. It was the highlight of Brent’s day he said, and I believe it because the only picture he took all day was of lunch. We had my favorite, yuca frita, fried bananas and fresh fish from the river.

After lunch, Wilma, Jenna and Corinne when into the jungle to harvest peanuts. I tagged along to see the process and try my hand at peanut picking. Now, that is one more thing I don’t want to do for the rest of my life. The ladies did very well and showed up later in the afternoon with their harvest in hand. The peanuts were spread on a tarp to dry, and it was time to go back to the river to cool down and wash up.  The group followed Wilma into the river; she went with a stick in hand, and so there was no biting incidents this time. We all washed our hair and walked home through the jungle in the waning evening light. 

Goodbye for now. Keep us in your thoughts. 

Never Put Your Feet Down

The flight from Miami was, for the most part, uneventful. Crystal caught most of the travelers enjoying a relaxing airplane sleep. Lyle seemed to have the best plane sleeping technique. All the bags showed up in Santa Cruz, but someone opened my plane box and took the transmitter out. They did put it back, but did not strap it in, so it smashed around lose in the box  and broke the plane to pieces. I am not happy, but I haven’t had time to make a good assessment of the damage. 

Marg met us at the airport and off we went on our micro. All the luggage fit inside the bus, so there was no need to lash any of it to the 

roof! Corinne embarrassed Jenna right off the bat with a packing story which I won’t repeat here; suffice it to say, “don’t burn any garbage or pack any bags without checking them first.” Jenna returned the favor by describing all the items her mother had packed that Jenna then had to remove for her dear mother before they left. The highlight of the list for me was the 8 mile long ball of binder twine, but I will let Corinne tell you why she thought it was necessary.

We left the Viru Viru airport in Santa Cruz at about 9 a.m. and continued to drive, stop, eat, drive, stop, buy (repeat often) for the next 7 hours. Our final stop for today was the Hoogland homestead where we got settled in. We then decided to go for a swim before dinner since we were all very  was  hot and tired. Walking 

through the jungle to get to the river provided Wilma with the opportunity to take many fungus pictures. Once at the river, Marg and Corinne were first in followed by all except Lyle. I think the talk of the hook fish scared him, but eventually we had him wading in up to his knees. At one point I looked over at Brent who still had a grin on his face you couldn’t  have knocked off with a 2x4! When I asked how he was feeling, he simply replied “I don’t have words for it.” After 30 minutes of great swimming, 

Wilma thought that things were getting a bit dull, so she stepped on a stingray and took a nasty stab to the leg, and that was the end of that. Lyle felt vindicated, but he didn’t gloat too much. Marg is preparing a great supper as I write this, then I suspect we will all fall asleep. That is all for now, I will try to post again soon.

Flying the Friendly Skies

The flight from Calgary to Dallas was one of the best flights I have ever had! I got an exit row to myself; it was nice and cool; Brent didn’t throw up on his very first flight; and we were mostly on time! I hoped that this would be an indicator of things to come. I was wrong. The flight to Miami loaded on time and then sat on the tarmac for 1.5 hours. It was hot and crowded, and you had to pay $3 for a cookie, but we all got to Miami eventually and even found our team member from Toronto. Brent has completed two flights like a pro. I think there is the potential for a world traveler in him.

Corinne has not stopped telling stories and laughing the whole trip. She has made both Jenna (her daughter) and Brent blush a couple of times. I just love vet stories! She engaged a Spanish-speaking seat mate on the last flight by butchering his language. He then very kindly tutored her for three solid hours. Nothing like a patient seat mate! Lyle, on the other hand, drew a minister as a seat mate and may have gotten saved by the time we touched down in Miami. The couple sitting next to Wilma quit bitching to her about the cold temperatures in Dallas when she informed them that it was snowing at her house two days before she left.
So now we sit in the Miami airport waiting to fly to Bolivia. We are very full, a little bit tired, punchy tired, and bored, writing a blog. At least the seats are comfortable and you can pick your seat mate in the lobby. I will have to wait to get to the jungle to get a reliable connection to post this—go figure! Bye for now.

The Final Shave

The final page has been turned on the Shave to Save saga. A good time was had by all (with the possible exception of Brent). Jack, just trying to be helpful, I'm sure, brought the hedge trimming shears, but Bob the Barber couldn’t hold them high enough long enough to get the job done, so the sheep shears had to come out.

As it turns out, Bob's barbering skills are dubious at best. He took the first few swipes at each head, but Wilma needed to finish the job. In the spirit of giving,Wilma even offered to let Bob take a few swipes at her, in the end offering up half her hair--the bottom half!--to the cause.

When the tally was done there was $1,025.34 on my head. Not too shabby, I thought. The amount that is; my head was plenty shabby! I was a little concerned when Lyle pulled out a brown envelope, but, although it made the competition closer, it was not enough to claim all my hair! I managed to get $1,378.00 on Brent’s head, so he lost it all, so to speak! That makes a total of $2,403.34 going to Bolivia for various projects! Thank you, Thank you, Thank you!

What I am most pleased with is Brent offering to do this for no monetary reward to him. He was not raising funds to subsidize his trip or to pay for new travel equipment. ALL the money goes somewhere else. $2,400.00 CAD C will go a very long way in Bolivia. So, thanks to all of you who gave, but especially thanks to Brent who gave of himself.

Sign Your Donor Card

I was involved in transplant surgery this past weekend, a surgery led by Dr. Joe. This is the second transplant surgery I have been involved with but the first time I’ve dealt with a scenario where there has been one donor and many recipients. I have mixed feelings now, after the procedure: sadness for the donor but happiness for all of those who benefitted.

Part of my role on the transplant team was to escort the donor to the procedure on that fateful Good Friday morning. (Well, it was a “good” Friday for some; not the donor!) It was eerie knowing that I was the last to have a conversation with the donor before Dr. Joe began. I found it odd that the donor willingly proceeded to the site of termination. I questioned the ethics of assisting in the act that would end a life even though I knew that the death would save many. I could intervene and save the donors life, but at what cost? Is terminal really terminal? What if a treatment was found and the effects of time could be reversed? Would the death of one on Good Friday really save the lives of others? If so, how many would benefit? Could such matters be reduced it a “score card” type of evaluation?

With the donor immobilized and then terminated, Dr. Joe began to remove the heart. I had the honour of helping by removing many other vital organs. Even some cosmetic donations were made. It took only a few hours to take the donor from fully functioning, albeit worn out, to a stripped-out shell. This was the saddest part for me. I hate to think that we are only a few boxes of good parts in an aging, decaying case.

But with death comes life! A younger recipient with a bad heart now has a new heart, (new to them at least) and the opportunity to live again after years of convalescing. To see her come to life again, reborn , and leave the surgery under her own power was very rewarding. But the death of one on Good Friday meant life for not just one but many by Sunday. A new heart for one, yes, but a new front end for another and a new brain for a third and boxes of hope for many more yet to be touched by Friday’s Sacrifice.

Thanks to Dr. Joe for giving life to our newest and best-looking shiny blue firefly, for fortifying the front end on my dear old friend and driving partner (515,000 km and still going), and for adding a new CPU to Heather’s pride and joy. My shelf of pretty-good parts is also growing, and has inspired me to begin planning a little cosmetic surgery on my old girl.

Sign your donor card, and you, too, can bring life where only death looks likely. Remember those who have made sacrifices for us, and always be nice to your mechanic!