Going To The Disco

What would you say if you knew a missionary who got a tattoo and went to the disco?

I don't have the Tattoo yet but we have been to the disco multiple times. Disco grocery store, that is :-) And isn't that Tattoo just the cutest thing? I don't know why Ford doesn't offer them in the U.S.

I doubt we can afford a Tattoo anyway. We have Tattoo tastes on a Fiat Uno budget.

Attended my first fiesta yesterday, a birthday celebration for Graciela. She is part of a group of women who are good friends with my co-worker. And like women everywhere -- any excuse for a party!

The attempt to communicate was difficult and caused my head to hurt but everyone applauded my efforts. They're a very patient bunch! [But it helped me realize that trying to cram verbs into my teflon brain won't work. Instead I'll concentrate on a few verbs each day, creating real sentences to use the verbs in various conjugations.] Graciela's daughter brought materials so each of the ladies could make a paper flower to put in her hair (MUCH better than a party hat!). Un dia perfecto! The sun was shining (I didn't realize how much, so now I have a sunburn on my neck and nose), it was cool but not too, and the park where we met was right by a small river where some of the braver souls enjoyed dangling their feet (no, I am not brave and I do not like the water much when it is cold and it was muy frio ayer). We were both busy taking pictures all day but I'm glad we stopped and had someone take one of the two of us!

We played games (I am truly terrible at Jenga) and I was reminded of an Argentine's resourcefulness when I saw the various homemade games folks had brought. One mom filled three water bottles with different colors of water and placed them in a triangular formation, covered open circles of cardboard with pretty paper, and she had a fun ring toss game for her girls.

We also ate a lot of food, talked and talked, and sang...

One of the men plays guitar and harmonica, primarily folklore music so there was some folk dancing too. It reminds me of colonial style dances when the women and men face one another from several feet away, women in one row and men in another, and the steps are uniform. Each type of song has different steps. Folklore music and dance are very integral to this part of Argentina.

And we finished off the day with a few hours downtown, handing out tracts to some of the 90,000 young people who descended for Dia Nacional de la Juventud, always held on September 21st, the first day of Spring. Not sure how long it's been going on, but enough years that it's now Tradition with a capital T. They've had up to 150,000 attend in the past but I guess this year the economy kept some away. The city brings in a number of bands to perform throughout the day on stages in four different areas.

The hubby is attempting yet AGAIN to pay for the telephone service so they'll hook us up. This will be the fourth try since Friday. There are places around town where you can pay for all the different utilities and services. But the information the telephone company gave hubby is not working when he tries to pay. I'm leaving the whole thing up to him, since he not only speaks the language but has way more patience than I do. Getting anything done seems to be so complicated I'd be frustrated in no time flat. He'll also try to get the electric into our name, since the strike is over.

And I have a lot of homework that needs to be done before we head over to the co-workers' for our weekly planning session (a thinly disguised reason to get together and EAT). Meanwhile I'm also listening to Argentine TV. Marcela told me about a channel with cooking and craft shows. Not understanding much at all yet, but since I like to cook and craft, this should help increase my vocabulary in ways that will be truly helpful. But it's also making me hungry.

Excuse me while I go raid the fridge.