Sickness, teeth, and babychowers

Last week something I ate/drank/touched/breathed made me sick so I spent all of Wednesday in bed. It was actually kind of a nice break (I do not recommend the movie Love in the Time of Cholera, it is uncomfortable at best). My stomach was all messed up and I all wanted were some saltines and Gatorade but naturally my host mom wanted to stuff me full of foods that were “suavecito.” The foods I was offered included mashed potatoes, pupusas, and (the worst) atole. For those of you that don’t know, pupusas are tortillas stuffed with cheese and atole is…well I don’t even exactly know what atole is but it is a hot corn starchy-liquidy concoction that has some cinnamon in it and for some reason the particular type my host mom gave me was bright pink. The other frequently offered beverage was coffee (don’t even get me started on the coffee…I’ve heard people proudly say they put in two scoops of coffee and three of sugar, I miss black coffee). Although I appreciated the care and concern, the food did very little to settle my stomach.
Despite the fact that I was still feeling a bit green, Thursday I decided I couldn’t take another day in bed so I pumped myself full of meds and set off to work. I needed to get a signature from the girl I work with at EDUCATODOS so I met up with her and her friend. Her friend (Oneydah) works for the government (sort of?) and is in charge of projects promoting healthy schools. She is not officially one of my counterparts but I would really like to work with her since I am interested in health issues. So, naturally, when she asked me if I would give some charlas within the next couple weeks I agreed. She asked if I had any sort of supplies/props/manuals and I assured her that I did back at my house. Then she asked if I wanted to come to a couple schools with her that day. My stomach was still doing somersaults but I really want to work with her (and am a sucker) so I said yes. We hoped in the back of a pickup truck and started off. In retrospect, getting into the back of a pickup truck to drive 30 minutes down a road made mostly of boulders and mud when I already felt sick was a bad life choice. I spent the journey clinging for dear life on the outside and inwardly willing my stomach contents to stay put (I’ve already thrown up on a church; I didn’t want to move on to vehicles/people). We arrived at the first school and gave out the anti-parasite pills we were there to deliver. Then we started walking to the next school. Oneydah told me it was kind of far away and then asked what my charla was going to be about…Excuse me? What charla?... Apparently when she asked me if I could give some charlas in the next couple weeks she also meant that very day. I awkwardly stood in the road and stammered that I didn’t have any props, nor did I know a whole lot of Spanish. She looked so disappointed that I suddenly found myself agreeing to wing it. We continued walking, my stomach now doing somersaults at an alarming rate. Then a pickup truck turned the corner towards us. She stopped walking, gave me an apologetic smirk and said “I think we should just take this ride, because it is a three hour walk home, do you mind giving the charla later?” Saved by the pickup.
The next day I went with Oneydah to another school, this time I thought I was prepared to give my charla on dental health. Naturally, the school turned out to be significantly larger than I had expected so I didn’t have enough handouts, but I made due. I talked (mimed and stuttered would probably be a more apt description) to grades 1-6. Basically all I told them was how to brush their teeth, how often to do it, what food to eat, and that it was a good idea to see a dentist every now and then if you can…not the most inspired presentation but I did the best I could with my limited language skills. Halfway through my 3rd grade presentation Oneydah informed me that she was leaving…thanks, see you later. I finally finished up and began the hour long walk home. (Don’t worry parental figures, although I walk alone sometimes, every now and then an old woman or kid pops out of nowhere, and I am certain they are all prepared to administer a hefty dose of atole and/or coffee should some ill befall me).
When I got home, I was pretty exhausted but I ate a quick lunch and then dragged myself to the colegio so I could sit around and pretend to be working in the hopes that someone would have something for me to do. That night, I had the pleasure of attending my first Honduran baby shower (or, as they call it, a babychower). It was a pretty standard baby shower, with a couple of surprises thrown in. We played a lot of games that I assume are pretty typical at baby showers, although I don’t frequent them so I cannot say for sure. During one game people had to run around the room getting the signatures of people with certain characteristics (i.e.: person wearing a red shirt). People immediately sprinted towards me and thrust their papers in my face to sign. I didn’t have a sheet but I assumed it was something like “the gringa-est person in the room.” Then I looked at the sheet and to my surprise, it was “the tallest person in the room.” What! Never in my whole life have I ever been the tallest anything! I hadn’t really noticed my altitude until that moment. I can’t imagine what they would do if they met Jess, KT, Jenna, or Carol. In between the different games we ate food. The first course was half a mystery chicken sandwich, a dollop of nacho cheese and tortilla chips, a cookie, coke, and one marshmallow. This was soon followed by a tamale and coffee. Which was followed by cake and more coffee. Keep in mind that I was still sick at this point and I personally give myself a lot of credit for holding it all down. My favorite moment of the evening was the toast. Everyone had a little glass full of none other than Boone’s Farm, strawberry flavor. When I saw the Boone’s Farm label I literally started laughing out loud, talk about memory lane (and of course this particular lane started December 3, 2006). I hope to attend more babychowers in the future.