Today was the most challenging day so far.  I was feeling very lonely last night – I think partly because BTs lady friend is back in town and it made me miss M, plus it was raining and the lack of transportation was frustrating me.  It poured all night long and I was cold and a bit anxious about the rain ruining the electronics, as we hadn’t tested that out yet.  When it got to be about 5:30am I went and checked down below and everything was dry so I went to make a cup of tea and we had NO gas!

I checked and the tank felt really light – CRAP. I checked all the lines and nothing seemed remiss so either the tank wasn’t full to start with or we have a gas leak somewhere, or both.  I waited til noon to visit BT and told him about it.  Why do these things always happen on Sunday – even at home?!  To top things off, LT is in a foul mood – his clothes don’t fit and his shoes are too dirty.  I am just frustrated at feeling powerless…time to take it back and get my own problem solving skills in order!

After chatting with M, and making a plan to get transportation and gas, things seemed a lot brighter. I was expecting a day of feeling not great, and if this is the worst I’ll face, it’s not so bad.

UPDATE:  Got the tank refilled, found a small leak near the fridge, and figured out normal gas useage, etc so we can plan ahead next time -back to sunshine!

Surpise trip into town. BT asked if we wanted to go to town as his friend Ma flew into Guatemala and took a bus home, so he didn’t have to drive to BC airport.  It was pouring rain so I didn’t grab my purse, just have $35 in my pocket (BZ, not USD)  We’ll see how far it gets us.

We have to hang out until 1pm while BT has lunch with Ma.  So far I bought us all a drink (2 cokes, 1 OJ) at the gas station for $6, then a pound of tomatoes at the market for $3 (got a deal, she gave me .50 off) and a fruit danish pastry at the French Bakery for $2 – not to get some burritos at Menchos, maybe a lime juice, too.  Hoping to have $4 left over for gelato, too!

Ok, two chicken & bean burritos and 2 lime juices $7 and YUMMY!  Next, two medium cups of gelato (3 smalls scoops), 1/2 sour sop and 1/2 strawberry, $4.  While we were eating the gelato, BT walked by and said his friends just arrived so we need to hang out yet again for awhile.  We’ll go to Greedy’s and get an ice tea.  They have expats, free wifi, and a bathroom. With the Kindle and iPod Touch we’ll be all set!

Well, the Kindle browser sucks, but got a bit done. We used the Touch and TalkATone and T called Adam and I called Mark which was pretty cool.  BT came by as we finished, and we headed off for home, with a stop at Ma’s so she could get some things to bring for the weekend.  We also stopped at the grocery store for spaghetti, tomato sauce, and milk (for baking) which used my last $9 plus .80 from BT.  Quite a lot for my $35, and a good day!

I had to stop and think for a minute what day it is. Yesterday was a long day on the road. We left at 7 to take M to the airport in Belize City.  It’s somewhere between a 2-3 hour drive but we left extra time. With just one paved highway if something goes wrong like an accident, you just have to wait. We said our sad goodbyes then headed to Bennie’s – think Target Superstore – in Belize City, with BT.  Driving into the outskirts of Belize City feels like driving into almost any Florida small town.  We got a few remaining items on our list and some butter for BT’s mom. BC is the only place you can get real butter, there is a non-real version available to us here in western Belize.  They use protectionistic practices, so other dairies are prohibited from competing. Often we end up with inferior or mono-variety being our only choice.  Right now that feels like an adventure, but someday may be something we resent – hard to say.  It’s a shoulder shrugger at least.

We made our way to BT’s folk’s place via Spanish Lookout, where we got a few more things (finally, natural peanut butter!) After visiting Computer Ranch, I saw a niche M and I could fill pretty well. We arrived at BT’s folks place as his mom B was making a chocolate pie!  I immediately felt at home with both his parents, who are closer to my age. Bt’s dad reminds me so much of a dear friend in TC, MI.

We toured their extensive property which is along the Mopan river in Bullet Tree, just outside San Ignacio.  They have a beautiful pond that serves as a holding tank for their water, lots of fruit trees, and other ornamentals.  B invited me to the women’s group lunch on the 19th. I’ll see if I can swing that, it sounds perfect for me.

We headed home to find that the excavator had pretty much finished the pond/natural swimming pool. It’s huge, deep and very cool.  He terraced the pile of dirt so it sort of resembles a Mayan temple, and  you can see the whole milpa (gardens/small farm) from the top.  We imagined all the plantings around it, and pond filled with water and some plants and fish, just waiting for us to jump in for a swim.

T & I had a nice dinner but missed M being here with us. We fell asleep pretty early. I wasn’t too anxious at all, but I did move the machete over by the bed! 🙂  Now I am enjoying a quiet misty morning with a cup of tea while T. sleeps in… ahhhhhh…

No firecracker 5K, parade or hotdogs for us today, but it does feel like we’re finding our freedom here. This morning the sun is quickly burning off the mist. I can see the mountain tops and hear the waterfall in the distance. I wonder how long before I stop confusing it with distant traffic on the turnpike?

There’s a woodpecker here that does a quick ratatat at a time, every minute. Guess with all the insects here he doesn’t have to work too hard.

Yesterday Mark got the batteries and charge controller all hooked up. This will allow us to run the generator a couple hours a day then run off batteries the rest of the day. Today he is going to put a small solar panel on to top off batteries & keep them from getting too low when we’re away. Eventually we’ll have more solar to fully power the batteries.

One of my very favorite things we have here is a gas fridge. It’s so quiet – no compressor – and it doesn’t dry out the food like an electric one. It cost a bit more, but well worth it I think.

Got an email about our neighborhood parade, and I’m really sad to miss it this year – but I think we’ll dress up in red white and blue and march around the jungle in solidarity.

Sunrise here is about 5:30am (2 hour time difference from EST right now) Today I slept in a bit because it is so foggy/misty. I can’t even see the mountains across the river, and even the howlers and bird sounds are subdued. The sun is just starting to burn through, and behind is a bright blue sky.

We have a couple of days we don’t need to drive anywhere and we can just sit and enjoy the last few days of M being here. I started knitting socks last night. This attempt has started much better than my last!

Today I’ll take the compost down to the upper milpa (farm/garden) and maybe visit the lower milpa to get some avocados that are ready for picking. The workers are going to start building a seed house so we can get some new veggies going. BT has made me a sourdough starter that’s almost ready, and then I’m going to get a lesson on baking with it.  I’m already wishing we could just stay here all fall and see everything unfold.

We’re going in to town today. Since we don’t have a car this summer, we’re bumming rides with BT when he heads in, and trying to plan ahead for our food and supplies. We get to learn a lot about living here, talking with BT and doing errands for the community.  I really like feeling like a bigger part of BIB as I learn more about how it all works, and the things to come.

We’ve stopped at the woodworker’s place so BT can work things out with him. BIB will help stock his shop and keep tools, etc. running so that he will be available for building as more houses get started.  His ‘shop’ is sort of like a lean-to, with a couple of old tarps for a roof, and a lot of older woodworking equipment underneath, along with beautiful pieces of wood lined up.

After the woodworkers, we plan to check out a couple of vehicles for sale, and then will have time to pick up a few things we need in town and grab a bite to eat.

There are certain challenges with establishing a new community – basically a new little village – here in Belize. The main folks are in Canada right now, and BT is in charge, but often things need approval through a chain of command (and money) that can seem slow to our fast-paced, always connected ways. Good learning all the way around, and we’re thrilled that L & M have left BIB in such capable hands as BT’s.

After looking at the two vehicles, I had a longing for a vehicle of our own. We will need to save up and have one soon, for sure by next summer. Maybe the community will have a couple of shared vehicles that we could use – a group purchase of some sort. I’ll ponder on how that might work – after I look at the birds awhile.

(and Happy Canada Day to all my Canadian friends!)

Well yesterday ended up being an interesting day and a learning experience. The guys showed up to work @7:30 or so and brought F’s daughter J with them. We met her on our first trip here. It was nice to see her, she is pretty, kind and smart and just a bit younger than T.

E. began asking M to give him things and M felt pretty uncomfortable with him. I went down to work on a client’s site and later J came down and chatted with me. Then M & LT came down. They locked our important stuff in drawers first.  When we went back a few hours later, someone of the workers had taken several beers and some rum and coke from the cabin. The things they built after that were put together badly.  M had to confront them and try to use his Spanish to convey that it was not cool. Pretty stressful.

Later we talked with BT about the best way to handle it all, given that we still have anther day of work to do. We got a game plan in place. It’s all part of the learning process, and no great harm done in the long run.

Later at night BT and his friend M came by to get a tool and had a beer with us, which was a really nice end to a tense day.

I slept pretty well with a dream that I went to work at a corporate job to make some money but it was no fun at all.

This morning came with a beautiful sunrise but is mostly cloudy now at about 8am.  We’ll have the workers finish building the stuff down at the big house, and can do some internet while there. (including getting this blog posted).  I’m hoping for a pretty relaxing day after that – may even start knitting my socks or do yoga!

Things that would help other people:  There is a lot of setup that you just can’t plan ahead for. Our most stressful piece has been the need to make several trips to various stores and our lack of transportation other than having BT give us a ride (and advice).  It’s making us all a little nuts because we didn’t have it adequately planned ahead of time and weren’t clear with everyone on our needs and what was available.  Now that we have most everything we need, it seems a lot less stressful.

We stocked up on food yesterday and so can lay low and just enjoy ourselves for awhile E &  F will be building us a few things – shelves for bathroom and our electronics, a place to hang clothes and a bench for our back/front porch.  It’s nice to have the work for them and is pretty inexpensive overall.

I plan to read, explore the gardens a bit and just chill out. Then earn some money.

Knowing more Spanish would also be helpful!

We’re really settling in now and finding our pace. Can’t believe M is leaving on Thursday, that will be another whole adjustment.  More motivation to get back here for good.  Today we go into town – paycheck day for the crew plus some shopping for groceries til Tuesday.

We made a pot of beans yesterday and I added veggies to make a soup with the broth.  BT, LT and M went swimming yesterday, but I took the chance for some time alone. I really do feel at home here, and I’m excited for the possibilities of what the community can be.  I hope that we, as one of the first families, can be a strong guiding force for helping BIB stay true to its mission. I know there will be hard times and frustrating times, but I love it here and the natural beauty needs to be preserved. We need to avoid having a subdivision of McMansions at all costs.

Sometimes things just take longer or are more complicated here.  We’ve been dealing with lots of typical stuff the past few days – the truck had suspension issues, the big generator at Toucan had motor issues, the internet got slowed down, gas and diesel mixed up in the cans, etc.  Everything takes a little longer to fix or gets a little worse, but it feels ok to be dealing with all that. Reading my friend’s blog the past two years about her life in Haiti has helped prepare me mentally I think.

We had a HUGE storm Monday night – lots of thunder and lightning and downpour. Our house felt safe & strong, but I still felt a little anxious.

I’ve really been enjoying setting up the house and it’s really so comfortable to live in, too.  BT is very helpful in getting the lay of the land and being acclimated to life in Belize.