Things I take for granted in the US

Air-Conditioning - My room averages between 87 and 89 degrees. I know this from my alarm clock with thermometer. My family recently put a fan in there. Then I turn the fan on, it is a cool 84-85 degrees. (And this is the colder season! I've been warned about May, June and July.) I'm becoming a little bit accustomed to the heat. For example, when I first arrived I laid on my bed dying of head. Now at night, I have to turn off the fan and cover up. I've seen my room get down to 79 degrees on cooler nights. That's really cold for me. Then I have to put on pants and a long-sleeved shirt and use a heavier blanket.

Warm/Lukewarm Water- I take a freezing shower here. Most of the time from a bucket. In Santa Lucia, I had semi-warm running electric-shower water. In Cantarranas, I had a lukewarm bucket shower (because my host mom would add a bit of boiled water to the bucket). But here, I have a bucket of very cold water (sometimes I have cold running (better described as dripping)water). I'm starting to get used to it, but it's definitely not something I look forward to.

Not getting eaten alive by mosquitoes - So there is one window in my room without a screen. Why? I have no idea. I asked my host family if I could put a screen in it. We'll see... Also, some of the other screens have holes in them. So here is what I do every night. So I'm in my bed reading and about to go to bed when they come... Bzzzz...Bzzzz...Bzzz... Just a mosquito, right? No we're talking about a mosquito herd. There are always between 5 and 15 mosquitoes in my room at night. So I spend about an hour a night mosquito hunting. I used to chase them with my bugzooka, but that's just too hard and inefficient as there are always so many. So I've resorted to using my Peace Corps folder to smash them against and wall or floor. The thing that sucks is that my ceiling is very high and they hang out there where I can't reach them. So I wait sneakily and sometimes I throw stuff at them to make them scatter so I can't reach them better. When they're high on my wall, I have to stand on my bed and jump to hit them. I'm sure this must be humorous-looking. Then when I think that I've killed them all I lay down to go to sleep. Then, Bzzz... there's one that I didn't get. So I turn on the light and start hunting again. Hopefully this weekend I can put up my mosquito net up. The problem is that with such a high ceiling, putting the net up is logistically complicated.

Privacy- What's that? There is no lock on my bedroom door, so people just come and go as they like. The grandchildren are always in my room and that's probably why I haven't had a chance to write blogs. My windows do not shut, so if I am talking on my phone everyone listens in. I spend all day with other people. Good thing I like people, because in Honduras, there is honestly no way to avoid people or get a small bit of privacy. Everyone wants to know exactly what you are doing at all times. Gossiping is huge here. If you are walking down the street with someone on one side of town, within 24 hours everyone on the other side of town will know.

Silence- That doesn't exist here. Here are just a few sounds in the 5 am -9 am range. Roosters going crazy, chickens pio-pioing, pigs whining in a high-pitched voice, dogs barking, children screaming, people welding and sawing in the metal workshop, the neighbors reggaeton music on full blast, guy chopping firewood in our backyard. Lady singing while she's cooking, car honking, doors slamming, TV blasting, people eating breakfast and talking loudly on the back patio (right outside my open window that doesn't close. So let's just say that sleeping in on Saturdays is not an option. I might invest in some earplugs.

Fruits and Vegetables - They are just not really eaten here. The food is good but very bad for you and very fried and greasy. The only fruit that I've had in the last 2 weeks: grapes and apples that my friemd Luis gave me because he felt bad for me. Here is what I have almost EVERY meal, minus 1 or 2. Tortillas, beans, rice, hard stinky cheese, fried or scrambled eggs, avocado, mantequilla (that sour cream and butter mixture) and fried plantains. Everything is also fried in manteca (lard). So the avocado is the highlight of my meal, as it is the only thing that hasn't been fried. However, when I live in my own house or apartment, I will be able to cook. They do have broccoli, cauliflower, carrots, green beans, tomatoes, apples, grapes, pineapple, bananas and watermelon here.