Bueno/Menos

I took a Creative Writing class back in college. Journaling was one of the assignments, and we had to write a few entries every week.

I didn't have a clue what to journal about.

(Especially since the course instructor would be reading the whole thing.)

Somehow I decided it would be painless enough on any given day to come up with one highlight and one unfortunate event from my life - the "Hi" and the "Lo" of the day. So, at the end of the course, my journal had several pages devoted to a brief entry about just that. It worked out, and I even wound up enjoying that part of the assignment.

Not sure what made me remember that now, but I'll take it as a sign that this blog should include Hi/Lo posts. And in honor of my goal as a language learner, I'll label the posts Bueno/Menos. Here's the first!

Friends: do not take such things for granted.

Bueno: There was a really nice married couple studying at the language school this week. Both from the states, both doctors.

Today was their last day, and guess what they did before they left...
They gave me a gift!

And a valuable gift at that - they handed me their stash of antibiotics for treating any stomach issues Central America might provide. Without a doubt the best leftovers I ever received!


Menos: Speaking of gifts, the other day I stumbled across something that could be suitable as a gift for my teacher on the last day of language school next week.

I had heard (and seen) that you can't find good chocolate in any stores here at all, so I was really glad to run across a stack of five boxes of Ferrero Rocher in a little shop in the center of town.

I knew I needed to sample a piece or two so I wouldn't end up giving a gift that turned out to be melted or stale (many shops in Copan lack air conditioning and other features that are built in to the way businesses in America operate). So I bought a pack, unwrapped and tasted the chocolate, and realized my search for a gift continues.