Long Semana

Well, folks... it has been a long, long week. Not only did my vacation in New York end, and I had to say good-bye (once again) to my family, but upon returning to Guatemala I was faced with early mornings and long days at work, a New Year's overhaul of our website, unusually chilly weather, and a nasty flu, too.

On the upside though: none of my stuff broke en route from New York City ("the Big Apple") to Guatemala City ("the Big Avocado"). That said, however, a US customs official destroyed the zipper while searching one of my checked bags... they must have been threatened by the Linden's cookies I had packed. Chocolate chips in the hands of terrorists is no laughing matter. By the way guys, "nice" refolding of the stuff you tossed. Sheesh.

At least my flight arrived between the erupting volcanoes and the striking air-traffic controllers.

The cultural shift is another tricky ingredient in switching countries. After a month of speaking English, trying to hablar the español isn't easy. It feels as if your tongue is swollen. Add to that a head full of icky flu stuff, and, well, let's just say that I'm lucky the cab driver at the airport was able to figure out where I lived. (He probably thought I was speaking German).

As for work, the tough transition from laziness to labor has pretty much passed, and I'm back in the proverbial saddle again. (Well, ok, I did hit the snooze button 26 times this morning, but I still made it to the office on time. Giddyup.)

Thankfully, though, tomorrow is Saturday. Or, as we like to call it here in Guatemala: "el weekend". No big plans... but you can bet that movies, coffee , and reading are on the agenda. Maybe study some Photoshop. Write some long overdue emails. And make a trip to the upscale Hiper Pais supermarket to buy some peanut butter.

Yep, sounds like a plan. I hope your weekend is wonderful, too!