Title...

Hi! I'm too lazy to think of a title right now, especially since this blog post is going to be super random. My list of "stuff to blog about" is growing long and I'm nowhere close to coming up with some sort of theme or title to tie it all together so... here is a bunch of random stuff I've been doing or thinking during the last couple of weeks!

Last Friday night, my sister and I were planning on going out dancing, but something happened (I think  the bars got caught letting in minors) and every single bar/club/restaurant that sold alcohol in the city closed down for a week. So we went to my cousin's house real late to celebrate his birthday instead! (since his was one of the restaurants that was closed).

My cousin's birthday! And his adorable daughter Rafaela helping him blow out the candles.

At work I've been continuing to do random things! One day, there was a workshop for midwives (and lucky for me, the subject was nutrition!) and so the day before, my boss told me to get 50 bananas because we were all going to get food and share it at the workshop. So I bought 50 bananas on the way to work the next morning (only $3!) and lugged them up the stairs to the workshop. Turns out the whole food thing got cancelled, so there I was, with 50 bananas. Luckily I managed to give 10 away, but had to bring the other 40 home. I'm not sure what my host mom did with them after she gave me 4 for breakfast the next day...

bananas on bananas on bananas

Traditional midwives at the workshop!

So far Fridays have seemed to be our most interesting days at work. Two Fridays ago, we painted that room (in an older blog). Last friday, after I got back from an interview with the head of the nutrition department at a university in Ibarra, we built a huge wooden frame to help hang a giant sign about hearing aids and check-ups outside the building. Today, we went to Ibarra to stand in the bus terminal and hand out information about our clinic. And of course the second half of my work day continues to be stolen by little Emily :)

I'm sawing!! That was hard. 

Darwin and Anna nailing the sign together!

Aaand the finished job.

Anna and I in the terminal handing out info.

Emily "giving me a manicure." Which means, gluing balled-up pieces of toilet paper to my fingernails.

The health sciences building at Universidad Técnica del Norte. I miss campuses, even though this one was not nearly as pretty as Lawrence.

I went to a talk that a nutritionist gave to a sort-of day-care for old people. It was all stuff I knew, and it wasn't super interesting, but it gave me another source for my paper so whatever!

One thing I found interesting is that on the bus home from Ibarra, a woman who was sitting next to me asked if I spoke Spanish, and then started explaining about Jesus! I quickly told her I didn't need the tract she was giving me since I already am a believer, but it made me think. So far I think I've been evangelized to twice in Rwanda and twice in Ecuador, and it reinforced something that I've been feeling about missions for a while - that it is no longer the stereotypical "white man goes to the wild to preach" type of thing that is often associated with it. I think it's awesome to see how every person in the world in any place can lay claim to this truth and share it with others, and I felt honored to see that at work in these situations! It shows the true global nature of missions - everybody being called everywhere, not just missionaries flowing in one direction.

Lately, as I've been spending a lot of time alone here, I've been thinking about how to take control of my life more and get the most out of each day. I have been going on lots of walks between periods of hard work on my paper, and they're way more refreshing than just sitting on the computer to take a break. I've been trying to get the most out of little things, and have become quite content with staring at things like mountains or randoms cows for a long time :) And I have been learning how to take more joy in the silly things that happen when you're in a foreign place like the chicken that I heard on my bus or the third dog I just found in my house after 3 1/2 weeks of living here!

My favorite volcano, Mamá Cotacachi :) Isn't she beautiful?

Ice cream :)

Swings a ways behind our house. Obviously they do a lot of good! 

The sunset outside of my room!

Soon I'll post a blog about Lake Cuicocha, a beautiful crater lake I hiked around with Kat and Janay. I'm waiting for my family to go to Peguche falls first so that I can post them together!

Also, I'm definitely learning the truth of the phrase "absence makes the heart grow fonder"... I miss everyone back home a TON! I always said I was not the type of person to miss people while I was gone, but it turns out I was just never gone long enough :)