My New Normal Part 1

I have been meaning to make a post dedicated to things that are the new normal in my life..... and the longer time passes the more normal these things seem to be and the less interesting they appear to make themselves worthy of their own blog post.....but here is a compilation of things that seem very normal to me now.... (including a few pictures) So what is normal in Honduras?????

1. Water in a bag. Bottles are more expensive to produce and distribute, so if you are thirsty just reach in the fridge at the local shop and grab what is about the size of a zip lock bag filled with water. You cut a hole in the corner with your teeth and squeeze out the water. As well You can buy just about any of your favorite sodas in a to go bag. Which means a plastic bag with a straw out the top. 
2. Hitching home from school in the back of a parents car. If your lucky one of your own kids will drive by and they will for sure offer you a ride home.
3. Living in what used to be stores.... Our house is in the back of what would look like a strip mall sort of thing.... new normal.
4. Bulls and cows grazing on every bit of free grass around. On the side of the road, on the soccer field or next to school.
5. Checking the fruit and vegetable stands nearly every day for when they will get Mexican avocados in not the antacid ones. If you did not know there are more than a few types of avocados in the world and the antacid ones taste like medicine.
6. Manually placing the hoses in the barrel of the washing machine. If you forget then you flood the house. (We have all flooded the house before, some of us, I wouldn't dare say names have done it more than a few times.)
7. Listening to the bats in the roof. Above our heads. You have already heard me tell of the rat mouse hybrid thing that is in our house here and here
8. Our one shower that is in the kitchen of our house. So you shower with lots of people cooking, eating dinner or breakfast. 
9. Our one shower that has a electric water heater that hangs above our heads without grounding wires (Because that is very safe....NOT).
10. The toilet in our room is flushed by a string that I connected to the flap in the bottom of the back of the toilet. (I am a plumber)
11. Hoping in a taxi, even if it is full of people already going different directions. Its like carpool. The taxi may drop off ten people before you get out. 
12. You can buy everything in single quantities at the store..... meaning, one egg. Yes one egg, or one stick of gum. You can separate packs of things and buy a single. I have seen a man buy one single cigarette from a pack, at the gas station.
13. Seems as though every other man in town carries a machete. They carry them to work but it can throw you a bit off guard when you see if at first.
14. The bank surrounded by 8 men with heavy machine guns, all day every day.
15. Hoping in the back of the police car to hitch a ride. Personally it makes me feel safe (although I know they have their fair share of corruption problems in this country) if something is going down I know I in a vehicle with 6 men with big guns.
16. Buying oranges from the back of someones pickup truck. The truck is filled to the top with the sweetest juiciest oranges. So good.
17. Best of the 80s jams on the radio on the way to school. Hondurans love classic rock.
18. Creatures crawling everywhere... flys, ants, small insects or large ones.... so normal. Unless it seems big and poisonous we simply ignore them.. too many to kill them all.
19. Boiling water. To kill bacteria. Used to that.
20. Filling up our water jug at school with filtered water. Twice a week my roommates carry the jug to school and home. 
21. Seeing Hondurans wearing t-shirts that say everything from Greenville YMCA to Oklahoma Sooners, to DARE and to Race for the Cure. You know those old shirts you just took to goodwill last week..........you can be sure they will make there way south soon..
22. Howdys eyelashes.... Look below. Howdy has honestly the most beautiful eyelashes, longest I have ever seen. Moments before this picture I was just taking my finger through them and he did not even blink. So long and incredible. I adore his sweet face.

18. Watching Louisville game from my computer. Getting used to it. They keep playing I will keep on streaming.

 19. The park in our towns every changing merchandise and produce selection... See the below pictures of the watermelon stand that just appeared today at the park. It is now watermelon season and you can get a giant watermelon for 20 limpiars. About $1.00. I bought one today. So good.

As well please notice the swimming pools for sale in the background.... apparently now is the time to buy your new pool for your house. Even some with special features.... :) (We are so tempted as the temperature continues to increase to buy one for our porch).

I am sure there are many many things that I may add to this list but for now I will post this one... The new norm is good. Hard to believe I have been here since August. Time is flying by.

Warmest to you today... Tomorrow is the last day of preparations for the Science Fair that take place Thursday. Wish us all luck, we all need it, it has been exhausting..... night to you!