Monday musings

I jumped out of the stereotype that I created and bought a couple of pairs of corduroy pants over the weekend. I am also on the way to finished my gray poncho! I think I'll put a row of beads on the lower edge and also on the neckline, then finish it with fringe. This weekend was so dreary and dark that we didn't go out of the house much. It has been cold, drizzly, and windy since Friday. We were planning to go to the movies to catch the third of the Pirates of the Caribbean, but we were both too cold and tired to go. We made supper at home (Omar cooked and it was great), did laundry (that was my fun for the afternoon), and played with Celeste, who pushed too far and peed on the living room floor. She got spanked, then pouted for the rest of the evening. This morning, she's still pouting and acting like she's done something bad.

I have figured out that Celeste takes advantage of Omar when he's home. Normally, she's got ME to deal with during the day, and I watch her all the time. I know her little bag of tricks, and she knows that. When Omar's home, my attention is usually diverted to Omar, not Celeste. His attention is on the TV, on what he's doing, on everything EXCEPT on Celeste, unless she pees on the floor. Aha. It's usually when Omar's home that Celeste decides she's going to try to destroy something, too.

I've begun taking the vitamins. I feel MUCH better, after just two days of them. I wonder if this is the placebo effect. It's still gray outside, I'm still here with my scarf wrapped around my neck and a sweater on in the house. I'm still dreading my bath, even though the water is heating on the stove as we speak. I've finished the laundry, so I can use the laundry tub as a make-shift bathtub, although it's tiny, and skip the shower. What I wouldn't give for an electric blanket right now. Or even a heating pad. It's too bad that they haven't decided there's a need for them here. But I'm not as bummed out now as I have been. I think I'll continue with the vitamins and see how I feel later in the week.

And yeay! Today I get to wear a pair of pants to work! Woohoo! I won't be so cold and I can wear some regular shoes for a change. I wonder what they will think at the institute. I hope they don't think I'm trying to turn myself into a Peruvian, just because I'm wearing pants.

This week, we HAVE to get another blanket for the bed. It's too cold with only one blanket over the sheets. We have Thursday evening free. I hope we can go to the market and pick up another blanket. It's either that, or I'll have to get busy crocheting and make a double afghan to put on the bed. I think a blanket would be warmer and quicker to get. So here I am, saying we need a second blanket and look what's going on in the mountains of Peru:

There's a big concern about the people who live in the highlands this winter. Usually, the livestock is a big indicator of whether there will people dying up there. When the llamas and alpacas can't take the cold and die of exposure, it isn't long before the people follow. They have made no shelter for their animals, and the people have no means of heating their homes, both of which seem ridiculous to me, when they live and HAVE LIVED in that climate for centuries. They have a means of fuel - alpaca and llama poop - but they haven't thought of building fireplaces or chimneys in their homes to be able to take advantage of the potential heat source. Poop burns long and hot, and would provide heat a good portion of the night, if they would use it - they could have built fireplaces in the houses over the summer, using the traditional adobe method, and then they would have heat for the winter. I wonder why they don't do that. In Lima, they are asking for people to donate clothing, coats, blankets, but why not ask them to help with the construction of fireplaces or fire pits in the houses or wood-burning stoves so they could take advantage of the animal waste as fuel? The news interview over the weekend showed that they have plenty of blankets - sometimes SIX blankets piled on the beds, but it isn't enough. They need a HEAT SOURCE to keep the people from freezing to death in their beds. They said last winter was bad, and it's already even colder this winter. I think if my kids were in danger of freezing to death in bed, I'd at least get the dog to sleep on the bed with them.

Okay, the water's hot - I hear the tea kettle whistling!