Nadie, not even the lluvia, has such small manos

Your daily literary reference in Spanglish. You're welcome.

It's the rainy season here at Lake Atitlan. That means it rains. A lot. The mornings are usually okay. Sunny, temperate, perfect. The clouds roll in after lunch and the rain hits about 4 or 5. The other night it rained so hard that it started raining in my room. We put a bucket under the leak and carried on with our lives. It's a good thing I live in a house in Raleigh that is always on the verge of falling down, one where we've had our fair share of dramatic roof leaks. I was able to cope pretty well.

This morning it is raining so I've ventured out to my favorite place, Moonfish. Moonfish is a hippie restaurant right on the lake that serves lots of tofu, tempeh and other delectable hippie food. The coffee is amazing, and I can get a good Internet connection with my cellular modem. The only drawback to Moonfish are the hippies. Actually, I should say hippie posers. These are those insufferable blowhards that talk about how bad and wrong everything is, like money, work, mankind, the man. (Think the Tim Robbins character in High Fidelity.) What they really are is privileged, lazy jackasses who just want to get high and pontificate. Somehow, they are able to enjoy the relatively expensive coffee and food while "dropping out." Puh-leaze. I've started surreptitiously taking pictures of them for later enjoyment.

I want to note that I love a genuine hippie. I think I have much in common with them - concern for humanity, concern for the planet, embracing diversity. Stuff like that. I have a little more trouble with the composting toilets. I get how great they are in theory. However, here at Moonfish when you go to the toilets you must declare your business before going in. There are two toilets that are not separated for mujeres y hombres, but by what you intend to do. The two basic actions are separated. The whole business makes me a little uncomfortable. Except for this blog, I'm not very public about these kinds of declarations. (I realize that I have spent an inordinate amount of time discussing the various bathroom situations but it's a really important part of everyday life. It has been a daily focal point for me on this trip. My apologies to those who may read this while eating.)

Well, the rain is lifting and I may head out to get my homework done for tomorrow. (Yes, I have homework. It's a study abroad program, not some hippie boondoggle.)

Peace out. More later.

KF