Mowing Dirt

There are liter and not-literal aspects to this title. Literal: there was no grass to be seen. He is actually working in our parking lot that is being constructed. It’s just dirt and rock. Not-literal: he’s not using a mower, but it looks a bit similar. Imagine readers a mower without wheels and instead of a blade it’s a giant sander without the sandpaper. I’m sure one of my cousins could tell me the proper name for this machine but from the looks of it, it helps pack down dirt. Now to the trigger that led me to this blog…

I was walking back to the office after a busy morning of doing inventory in the science lab (a bit tricky because one, I need to learn the Spanish names for the equipment and two, I need to re-learn the English names for some of the equipment (Florence flask?). As I was walking up some steps I looked out to see the progress of said parking lot and saw this man about half-way through with ‘mowing.’ You could see the rows and everything (he did not opt for any creative pattern). And it looks just like the freshly-mowed part of your lawn compared to the week old, unmowed section – clean, crisp, neat. I wonder if he has to mow his lawn when he gets home from work (it’s Spring here) and if so, we he enjoy it as much as he would normally do (as if anyone really does)? Food for thought.

Fort Knox Laboratories

One of my jobs here at school is doing inventory and organizing the laboratory. As you can imagine, the most fun ever. But when I first got down there, I was amazed at how long it takes me to actually enter the lab. There are four separate keys that I need to get into the lab, plus an additional one I need to access the chemicals. There are padlocks, regular locks, bars – it’s crazy. It takes me a good minute to navigate through these fastenings (especially when someone puts the padlock on funny and you’re working with some gnarly angles).

Thought you should know.

Pilgrimage

On Sunday we did a beautiful pilgrimage to Saint Teresa of the Andes (Santa Teresa de los Andes as she’s called down here). It’s a 27km hike over a hill to her shrine/chapel in the mountains. A wonderful way to spend a day I thought – it could be a neat experience, have some time to think and be out in nature. I’m in.

What I didn’t know is that 79,999 other people were thinking the same thing and decided to accompany me throughout the journey! You know how crowded and sometimes claustrophobic is feels trying to leave a sporting venue after a big game? This is what it was like for seven and a half hours! I thought we were towards the end of the line when we started and then I looked down the mountain when I got to the top…nope, not even close (and I had been walking for 4+ hours). It was incredible.

It was nice to be a part of something like that; Chile is ~80% Catholic and to be in the masses of Catholicism was sort of cool because we saw all walks of believers – from monks and nuns to teenagers who really just are going because that’s what everyone was doing that day and they wanted to do what everyone else was doing. But, they were there.

And no it does not compare to the “Camino de Santiago” for you readers out there who did that and are better at everything.

Oh, and I had a great/clever idea. When you’re making a 27km journey up a mountain, who would you call upon to help you find the strength to continue? One could say the Spirit. Having thought of this, I thought it would be a great idea to get some mileage out of my newly acquired flask down here and bring some spirit that I could call on during the pilgrimage. This notion quickly evaporated as I got onto the bus in the morning and the realization that I was going with three schools that the Movement runs and would be amongst throngs of younger people. Sneaking a little sippy sip wouldn’t be kosher by my standards. So it stayed in the pack. It’s times like these that I wish I didn’t want to be a teacher and be a positive role in student’s eyes! But it did lead me to this realization (this sentence only works if you read this post before the one preceding it) –

Smoking vs. Drinking

I think that drinking really gets the bad rap. You can have a cigarette any time of the day but if you want to have a beer with your lunch, you had better wait until 12:00 (at least in the States, I found more freedom traveling amongst the British – includes Australia). Someone stops and has a cigarette and they’re being unhealthy, someone pulls out a drink and suddenly their charged with disorderly conduct.

I don’t think there’s much difference between the vileness. In fact, I would much rather see people hanging outside having a small drink on their break while chatting than having to cough through a bunch of smokers. Alas, I think this is a fight that I will not win and I have more to lose trying to fight than I have to gain – again, I’m supposed to be a positive role model and positive role models don’t drink ever.

This day had to come someday

Yesterday I received my first Spam on Gmail. I felt hurt and betrayed by Google. It's been so good to me, helpfully reading my emails and giving suggestions on the sidebar. Letting me know that I forgot to attach an attachment. But you should know better than to allow this riff-raff into my inbox. Shame on you. What happened to the beginning Google, when you were so concerned with my going-ons? Do you just not care anymore?

Milo

As I mentioned in an earlier blog, I bought some Milo the other day? What is Milo you may ask? A very bland chocolate mix (if your one for doubling the portions of Swiss Miss in your cup, then this is not for you). I used to drink it in Australia occasionally so I bought some to induce memories of a land down under (and on the other side of the globe - I need to confirm this with a GPS, but I think I'm at the same latitude - close at least).

Anyways, I bought a 400g tin of Milo only to find out two days later that one of the oblates received a shipment of food after visiting his parents (you know how this goes - they want to make sure you don't starve) containing 10 500g bags of Milo! I don't think many of the oblates here like Milo! So, I have 5.4kg of Milo to myself. I will keep you posted on how it goes (shouldn't be that long, it takes about 100g of Milo per cup if you want that chocolaty goodness).

Cheers,

Oh yes, and tomorrow I'm am taking part on a 26-30km pilgrimage. Good thing I have enough Milo.

usquebaugh

"Water of Life" for those who don't speak Gaelic.

Today was a fantastically successful day. This morning we spent our time working at the women's shelter that the Movement runs. It's nice because it is something that we get to do independent from things in a sense and it leaves us with about three hours free before lunch. This is good because Andrew and I have taken a liking to traveling to downtown Santiago to run errands during this free time. The errands today - Scotch and Hats:

After walking a bit aimlessly for a while, we found a liquor store. Here are some of the problems with the liquor stores in Chile. 1) They are small (i.e., not a big selection). 2) Everything is behind the counter. This is horrible if you are like me and just want to be left to your own devices and read various labels. 3) They speak Spanish and I have yet to meet someone who would be able to truly help me on my whisky quest (don't give much hope when the best single malt (only?) is a Glenfiddich 12; nice but overpriced here.

Anyways, this was no good. So we went back to the post office to get directions from a worker there (makes sense right? Who else knows the lay of the land better?). After pointing us off in the right direction we were off and sure enough, easy to find. Now the place he took us wasn't per say a 'liquor store' but it did have the best selection I have seen thus far (again, this is the first place I have seen a single malt here). I've been doing a bit of research on economically feasible blended scotches and at the start had my eyes set on White Horse (an Islay based blend). This was all well and good until I saw Catto's. What's Catto's? I have no idea, I've never heard of it, but for about 2 dollars more, it came with not only a 70cl bottle, but a 4oz flask and another small bottle. Clearly the best deal.

Note on taste - nothing really out of the ordinary. Like many blends, it lacks unique character. Catto's is a highland blend (I did kind of have my hopes up for an Islay) and is sweet, mellow, and fairly smooth. I do think I would take it over Red Label though (Johnnie Red and I had a bit of a falling out in Scotland. After seeing what was out there, he and I both realized that he was simply a pauper dressed as a prince, and a bit of a dick about it). Moral of the story? I now have my scotch fix for a while and found a place I can go to replenish.

What about these hats Jer? Excellent question dear readers. Well, Andrew wanted to pick up a nice leather hat, especially for the 27km pilgrimage we are making on Saturday. After finding the hat store we were taken to a few weeks ago by Rodrigo (think Men's Warehouse for hats), he had trouble with the sizing and I had trouble with the prices. We did learn some key info though - the hats they were pandering were the same hats being sold $20 bucks cheaper at the market. Off we go.

So yes, now I have a bottle of Scotch and genuine leather Chilean/Kind of counts for Australian hat. It's brown and make look awesome. Look forward to pictures!

Oh, and for those who have visited anything touched by the UK - I bought some Milo today. Think weak hot chocolate mix. I'm excited!

Miners

As you know, unless you work at Blick Art Supplies, the miners rebirthed from the formless void of the depths of earth last week and are now all safely back on the surface. I’m sure many of you kept tabs and saw things and probably know more than I do. While I tried to keep up with what was going on, we watched the news at home in Spanish so it was hard to follow. So it led me to a different appreciation for what was happening.

Not being able to understand what the commentators were saying let me watch what was happening without any influences. 33 men, who were in the earth for 68 days, saw their first person from the outside world. They went from the darkest, most isolated place they could be (for even in Space you can at least see the earth) to undulating crowds of celebratory joy. Here are 33 men who are suddenly being watched by the entire world. This led to a few thoughts which I will dispense now:

How did they feel when they saw the rescue capsule for the first time. It gave me shivers when I saw it go down live. I can’t imagine how they felt.

Now how are they going to go about living. How do you put “Trapped in a mine for 68 days” on your resume? Does it go under community experience, abroad experience, or is it just mining experience?

In any case, it was exciting to be around a bunch of Chileans as events unfolded. The first night of the rescue I was up to see the first miner escape but went to bed when they sent the capsule back down. At that moment a bottle of wine was opened and my housemates stayed up several more hours to celebrate with their compatriots. Hizzah Chile!

A Charge to the Readers

Recycle. Please recycle extra hard. There is very little recycling down there and it's the main driving force why I don't drink beer anymore down here because I can't in good conscience throw away an aluminum can. So I beg of you - go the extra mile in recycling things. It's so easy to do in the states. It was second nature for me to sort my recycling - here everything goes to the trash. The city is a little different but out where we are, no dice. So help me reconcile some of my recycling sins and at least try to make your neck of the woods a little more pretty. As for me I stick with wine. At least glass breaks down a little bit easier - or at least that's what I tell myself...

Iron Chef Chile

Yesterday was my turn to serve dinner. It also turned out to be my turn to cook the dinner. All eyes were on me and expectations were high. I made some eggs earlier this week that received high praise - could I repeat such a feat again?

My supplies were chosen for me. I had chicken breasts and anything else I could find in the kitchen to add plus some frozen French fries.

The plan:
double bread the chicken with flour and breadcrumbs. Bomb. Stuff them with some cheese. Boom. Fry them up for some added deliciousness? Why the hell not. Topped it off with some delicious sautéed onions on which I added some spices that I didn't quite know what they were (EXCEPT - I found black pepper! Sidenote: Chileans love their salt, but you NEVER find pepper anywhere. No shakers. In the spice rack, there was a bag labeled "pimiento negro" And the Lord was pleased.)

Dinner went off quite well, despite being a little later than usual because my timing was off. My patrons didn't mind, we kept them happy by serving beer and peanuts. I think what really set me over the top was my desert - an icecream log. Now I didn't make this, it was in the freezer and one of the oblates (the one that usually cooks) told me to use it. But I got some mighty high praise and will be forever remembered as Chef Gringo.

Getting the Itch

Not that kind of itch - I use seat covers.

It's been quite a while since I've last enjoyed a nice dram of whisky (and yes that's spelled correctly Canadians!). While I haven't realized quite how much I've missed it until I caught up briefly with my Penguin Friend (she is not a penguin, rather a friend of penguins) who recently went to a whisky shoppe in New Zealand and has I think 4 bottles to tide her over in Antarctica. All I can think of is how my lack of foresight is catching up to me. Why didn't I bring a bottle!

Also, I just found out that my little brother is a member of a whisky society and has nightcaps of Laphroaig occasionally! What am I doing??

This weekend we went into "town" (a street with some shops on it) to get some bread. I convinced our driver to take us to a store that would sell whisky. He did, but the selection was quite limited; all blendeds with nothing higher than green label. I found some rather affordable ones but I have never heard of them so I decided to do some research before committing. It looks as though White Horse may be the brand for me. Next week I plan on hitting up downtown where I hope the prices are low and the selection is high.

The Goldilocks Distance

Do you like Geology? Well, I don’t care if you do or don’t, I like geology. And here’s an example as to why:

Mountains are incredible things. They can invoke feelings of awe from anywhere, they can deceive you in the distance and smother you up close (also, they can kill you up close). They’re colorful, old and dull, young and sharp, and give an example of what the earth can do. But there is a narrow window of distance that lets you truly appreciate their history.

If you too far away, you can’t see the gradations in the rock – you only take in the general view of jagged rocks covered in snow. If you are too close, then you can see some gradation, but it is isolated. Being close enough where you can see an entire mountain from base to tip but also high enough are looking at it at eye-level (not craning your neck to see the peak) - this is where you can see how awesome a mountain is. You see a set of layers span an entire mountain; you see some are buckled and facing odd angles. It’s an incredible sight and makes you really appreciate the geologic forces at work. All those layers used to be ground level and flat. It takes a bit of umph to get them where they are now.

We spent the other day having a lunch amongst the mountains via an old pass to Argentina. Imagine dear readers a road of unparalleled squiggles. 28 hairpin turns to the top; passing giant semis and squealing each turn as if you’re in a battle with the giant itself. Halfway up the mountain relents, and lets you pass through without much more climb. You think you may have won, but the avalanches occurring a little higher makes you think that perhaps by conceding now, the mountain is doing the noble thing and allowing you to live. Thank you Mountain.

Fútbol Fever

So I'm in the process of picking a team to support in the Premier League. What brought this on you may ask. For those of you readers who have ever watched any sport with me on TV, you know that I don't really 'get into it.' It does provide an excellent opportunity to get some of my knitting done though - I've made some sweet hats during football games (even sold a few). But to actually pay attention, watch SportsCenter, etc. Never for me. Until now.

I've decided to become a fan of soccer because one, that's the sport I used to play and one of the few that I do enjoy watching, so long as it's not to excess and two, because my two older siblings are huge supporters of English teams (Man U and Chelsea). I think this will be a good way to regain some of the sibling rivalry that one looses when they grow up and don't live under the same house anymore. Time to pull some metaphorical pigtails.

I want a season to have time to get a feel and understanding of the teams before rashly choosing one. I've narrowed it down to three teams: Everton, Liverpool, and Tottenham Hotspur.

General good things: None have these teams have ever been relegated and are all founding members of the league.

General bad things: none were in the top four.

Specific good things:
Everton - has pink away jerseys. Also, they have the tallest man in soccer.

Liverpool - historically a powerhouse, but wait for specific bad things. Also, they hate Man U. Getting bought.

Tottenham Hotspur - ridiculous name, seems to be on the rise (currently 5th) and has the tallest man in soccer (Crouch).

Specific Bad things
Everton - in the bottom 3 right now. Haven't won since my birthyear. Although, maybe a good thing - I could be what they need right now

Liverpool - Have been crashing and burning. There is a legacy there though. But am I willing to start with a team that has to recover before making many strides?

Tottenham Hotspurs - their logo sucks. The ball looks like a basketball. Also, their biggest rival is Arsenal and I don't know any Arsenal Fans.

Why I didn't consider Arsenal - For some reason I just hate them. Unexplainable. Maybe this is a hint to hop on with The Spurs.

Why I didn't consider Man U and Chelsea - siblings. I can't follow in their footsteps. This would like wearing their clothes (so I would naturally choose Chelsea).

And Man City - Not only are they fair-weather, but they seem a bit dickish.

So here's to the new season!

Sterility

I just finished up a nice little email to send out tomorrow as a bit of an update and a secret way to try and hear back from friends I haven’t spoken with for quite some time. Hopefully, if you’re reading this, you have gotten the email because I would consider you a person I want to stay in touch with. If you didn’t get the email, awkward. Email me.

My computer seems to get quite warm when it is on. Sometimes it’s nice because I have sat it on my lap and I stay quite comfortable. But I think there are some drawbacks. One drawback, I think that I’m becoming sterile. Think about it. I have this electronic device placed, at times, right on the family lineages. All that heat and God-knows-what-else that is being emitted from this device is being absorbed by my creative juices. The only conclusion I can come to is this: either I’m going to have techno-babies who always seem to be cold, or no babies. I will keep you posted on the outcome. Be patient.