taxi's and dogs

Hi All:
You all know how I feel about animals. The one thing that is very strong in me is to help and protect the ones without a voice. So with this in mind, I went to my friends house to help her dog who at the time was scared to bits because the volcano was erupting and brought her home to my house, my very wonderful friend who was back in Canada and would never do anything but the best for her animals could not be there to reassure her or take her away. I know that she is reading this so I have to make sure that she knows I know how she feels about her animals. (he he he) Anyway, Lady fit well in our house and was welcomed and seems alot happier and calmer. Isis of course had to be insecure and emotional for a while. Until the other day another friend came over (who will be house sitting for us while we are in Canada and is more like a sister to me) and there were blood spots on the floor leading to Lady. Oh no. So we had to wait till monday to go and see the vet in Puyo (who is very good and trustworthy). She had also gotten rather skinny and has a bit of loss of appetite. So off Dane and I went to to Puyo in a taxi having been told that other people have travelled with Lady in a taxi in the past, thinking this would be a good idea. However, Lady just didn't feel that way, in fact she decided to demonstrate to us that taking a taxi might not be a good idea. She vomitted with enthusiasm of her feelings 7 times, 4 times of which were in the unfortunately brand new taxi, she missed the blanket that I had put down to protect the seats from dog hair, not realizing it would be meant to protect the seats from pre-chewed food as well. So with the windows wide open and knowing this would be an expensive taxi ride, we finally made it to Puyo. Our vet is also the vet of my friend. I was quickly wisked into an examining room with the dog and explained to him what was going on. After the exam, he calmly said there was nothing wrong. Of course in my innocence I asked how can this be she is bleeding from her, you know... private parts..... He said that is normal for a dog in heat. WHAT.... She was fixed 5 months ago. Unfortunately, the vet whom my friend had used to fix her dogs left in the ovaries, and basicly did a tuballigation. Therefore she can still go into heat...... I felt soooooo bad for my friend as she and this dog had gone through sooooo much heart ache already and 2 other dogs this year..... The last vet had really endangered her dogs life with some complications from whatever the hell he did to the dog. Doing a tubal allows the dog to go into heat, attract boy dogs in large groups determined to ravage the defenseless female, make a bloody mess on the floor but will not conceive pups. Normally, in dogs the removal of the ovaries stops all this and there is no more issue. (I am not a vet so I am sure there are other beleifs in regard to different birth control procedures in dogs). So yikes for my friend and the thinness of the dog was attibuted to parasites, so one shot took care of that.
What I am happy about is this vet is willing and happy to work with my friend to resolve this issue and also help to dog whisper/train her two dogs who are having canine social dyfunction. This proves to me that this vet has more skill than just surgery with dogs, he is committed the their emotional needs as well. Even though I had to shower out the vomit from my hair and hose down my son who sat beside the dog in the car, I am glad that there are possibilities for my friend to resolve her dog issues and have a great life with them. Helping the dog and my friend was well worth it. Having dogs/pets means also not only having to deal with just petting and feeding them, sometimes it can get messy. Knowing this from my own dogs, especially Isis the crisis, who loves to consume and bathe in horse poop, Oh I know. We still love her even though we don't let her lick our faces.
Please remember to help be a voice for those who don't have a voice but love us forever.
Talk with you all later,
Robin

Paintings have their own characters

Hi all
Well after stressing and straining of working on the three panel painting of the jungle and finally finished the darned thing. So with the need to challenge myself more, I decided to paint what I thought would be almost impossible for me to do. What was I thinking, but the painting was calling me and I have a number in my head that I want in terms of paintings to be completed (obsessing and sweating here, nights of not sleeping without my goal being met, .... really!) I decided to paint a green sea turtle in the water so mostly you see the head and the water. I thought no way will I be able to do this. I thought there is no way I can paint water, not like this. I won't be able to do it. This is how I approach most painting though. I have no confidence and think I can't do it but with stubborness, and fear of never even trying I continue onward....uphill. For those of you who know me, I am sure you believe that I have nothing but confidence, but in truth I don't. I have this energy that gives people this impression. I also can be quite outspoken and firm in my beliefs so that also gives this impresson. Anyway, I digress once again,....... I thought first thing to do when I have this white canvas glaring at me and a near impossible painting to do, put paint on the darn thing and cover as much as possible. Get out my frustrations and get rid of the oppressive white!!!! White for me is hard to take, it is a void of emptiness of unanswered potential, the possiblity of inability. So to block in paint means there is now space to make mistakes, change and grow.
Now realize, I do follow certain patterns prior. I do pencil in the drawing, then protect the drawing with a layer of moldmaking latex to mask the area much like people do with watercolors and then I covered the area as much as possible. This moldmaking latex is a must try for acrylic painting artist and watercolorists alike. It is waaaayyyyy cheaper that watercolor friskit, however if it is on the canvas for longer than a week or so, it can yellow the underneath and for some of you this might not be a good option for me I just paint over the saved area anyway so no worries for me. I also take a stiff brush once I have removed the frisked area to firmly brush away the acrylic film that is not meant to be part of the painting to keep the drawing fresh. Acrylic film is kind of weird stuff it is stretchy and rubbery color, but it can't stick to the rubber. So I use the stiff brush to cut off this rubbery edge. It takes a bit of practice but it works, I use a stippling brush that people use for stencil work. I run the brush parallel to the edge of the drawing so I don't scuff up the background painting.
I have a tremendous amount of Azul Ftalociannia (in English Phthalo Blue doesn't is sound nicer in Spanish?). I don't know why I have this color in majority or its kissing cousin in green but I do. I don't often find alot of need for this color but it is very pretty, and often quite seemingly unnatural in many paintings. Maybe for me, it is like buying cookies in the grocery store, you don't really need them but it is a nice treat. I am going to have to paint a few blue paintings and green paintings to utilize this stuff. So if in the future you see alot of this in my paintings, you know why. I just hope that people are buying furnature to match the color because my paintings will match well. Sorry, that is an old joke amoungst artists. This is often the excuse a painter will hear the buyer say so as not to buy the painting.....The buyer would buy the painting if it matched their couch. The artists perspective is this good art doesn't always match your couch, but matches you. Sorry I digress again and this time really badly. Sorry!!! But the Pthtalo blue paint really worked on this painting here as a base, shockingly, it worked great. First step complete.
I was scared, yes scared thinking this would be another long and enduring painting and one that was way beyond my capabilities. For me, long and enduring is over a week. For the average bear, it would be a considerable time longer. Being OCD (Obessive Compulsive Disorder, hey it works for me, I can get ALOT done) this means that there is maximum focus possible by one human being condensed from hours to minutes. Here is the funny this I also have Attention Deficit Disorder along with other disabilities like dyslexia both auditory and visual. When needed the OCD counteracts the ADD and I am off like a rocket.... Fun Hey. Soooooo, the painting was started this morning really, pthalo blue literally slapped on as a base coat last night, so that today in good light not night light. I could paint in peace in color as I had slept off the nightmare of white glare. With my OCD armed at the ready, and my Add suppressed with my coffee, I tackled the painting, now 7 hours later it is done and signed. I am shocked and happy. FYI, ADD people use coffee to help them focus and focus to calm their energy, it is a phenomenon, another cool perk. Normal people use coffee to give them more energy but it can scatter their energy and give them the shakes.
I love this painting to the point that it is hanging in my studio rather than in the house. In the studio, I have hung paintings that for the most part inspire me to carry on. That does not mean that the ones in the house aren't that way too. I am a person to likes things in order, this means all the monkeys are hanging together and the blue sea paintings are together, except for the new painting, it will hang there when I can't stand the disorder anymore.
OK, for those of you who don't know me very well, I have a tidy painting room. I don't like a mess. I don't like clutter or confusion in my painting room, other places not so much..... well really only where my clothes are.... They are not really a priority for me. When I work, I work hard and intensely and NEED all my supplies at the ready!!!!! I also like things, I am embarrassed to say..... color coded. All my paints are on their own shelf according to general color. There is the green shelf and the red shelf and so on. On you tube, I saw this one womans work art space, there was no where to work with the mess and unneccesary garbage. I would have loved to gone in there with a shovel and had at her. I almost fainted, really. In fact I was so distracted by the mess, I had to shut it off, after swearing and having a good rant. OMG, I don't know how those type of people get anything done. Thank god, other artist have their world and I have mine, because the two should never meet. I would be chomping at the bit to throw stuff out and organize and panicing trying to find the color I NEED to PAINT with NOW and they would be trying to collect more. Now I do collect paint, and art books and pictures and supplies that I need and use. So I guess I do collect also.... Hmmmm but everything had/has their own special space!!!! When we left Canada, I gave away lots of art supplies, but for the most part I had used them at one time or another and they were all neatly put in their proper place. I was also given alot of supplies and didn't have the heart to throw away gifts. I just hope that whoever has them is using them well and respecting them too. Saving art supplies is wasting potential to create more art. I am glad that I have lightened my load of having the distraction of other art supplies, but I do miss working in other mediums. I especially miss my sculpting and sculpting tools. I loved those tools. I had this wonderful tidy little set of drawers...... sigh.... Oh well, on to the next painting......I think I will work on a spectacled bear. I had this arguement with a local biologist about what was more beautiful the Canadian Grizzly or the Speckacled Bear of South America we agreed to disagree. I happen to think the Grizzly is breathtaking..... Thank god Canada sees fit to protect them. I hope Kharma also bites those people in the but who hurt them (the bears) and use their parts and bits and peices. I just don't understand that kind of thinking.
Sorry about the disjointed thinking today. I know that this is one of those days that maybe I should have not written as after the OCD kicked out the ADD kicked in, and this is the result..... I don't know how my family and friends can stand it but I thank them for loving me through my eccentricities.
In life paint your canvas from white with lots color, don't be afraid to tackle life, you will be surprised at your successes.
Be good to each other,
Robin

message for caribean p

Hi there all you might just want to forget this message unless you are caribean p.

Hi there caribean p:
I am going through my memory banks and I am thinking that you and I met once at my house in Enderby with Denny and Ivy, discussing about you and coke the cola. I tried to send you back a message through this blog but as I am a computer dinosaur, I couldn't figure which button to push..... Yeah, I know what you are thinking right now and I admit to it before you even have to say anything. So using an poor choice and realizing that because I am so clever that my sneaky spy system to try and answer your question would never allow me to get into the FBI or anything.
The mountain range of Ecuador is an range that is topped with volcanos. Although some are not active and some are really active it is part of what is Ecuador. The last eruption that I was worried about had sent a cloud of ash to Guyaquil and shut down the airport much like the Icelandic volcano did to Europe. But remember that Ecuador is truely a beautiful country with lovely and friendly (tourist friendly and curious) people. Ecuador is a country well worth visiting or stay in for however long you want (working with the travel visas of course) on your world travels. So getting away from the volcanos would be missing apart of Ecuador. Oddly enough, living next to one is not really a big deal. Our volcano is one that you can't help but to start to love. She is beautiful majestic, and magical. I suppose if you'd want to get away from the volcano, you could go just about anywhere really. There are so many options in such a small country, that if you like dessert it is close, mountains close, sea close, jungle close, whatever you like....
A note about Quito as a port of entry.... Quito is high in the Andes and some people experience altitude sickness or if you are dealing with High blood pressure or heart issues you would have to take precautions and talk with your doctor about precautions. No biggie really. Often it is just a bit of a head ache that with a little tylenol and a coffee, it can be gotten rid of quite easily. The breathlessness due to altitude and physical exertion may take a few days to adapt to though. However, if that is something that you do not wish to experience or would like to miss this amazing city, Guyaquil is a good option for point of entry and you could start your journey through the coast first. I haven't spent alot if time in this city as it can be extremely hot and you have to be more careful as a tourist here.
Ecuador is also a very inexpensive and cheap place to live. You can often get a hotel room for $5-12 per day and meals can be as low as $1.50. There is always fresh fruit around and like any of the countries that you are traveling in you have to be careful of water, everywhere except Banos who treats their water and you can actually drink water from the tap.... Besides, if you are who I think you are you are young and would love it here, also you should learn the salsa and have fun dancing. You are also Canadian and it is just one more adventure that is calling your name. If you do come and want to do some extreme touristy anything like rafting or climbing, I recommend only ever use Geotours, they are the most reliable tour service in Ecuador and their only hire trained guides. This is very important!!!!! There have been some problems ..... trust me..... We live here and we know!!!!
I hope that I answered you Questions for you.... Have fun in Vietnam and Korea. Just send a note if you decide to come to Ecuador if you want more info. or want to visit. Travel South America you would love it!
Talk with you soon.
Robin

from yellow to orange.

Hi there all:
We are still here in Banos. The other day I made mention of having the city of Banos practicing a city wide evacuation. Well according to my informers... there will be another city wide evacuation practice,but it will be at night. I am sooooo looking forward to that. My heart rate still is a little more rapid from the last one. But it is a good thing that the city's fathers are wanting to make sure that everyone is ready.
Unfortunately for Banos, this vocanic excitement has not lead to more business. Many people are afraid of the volcano,.... and if you think about it, if you were to look for a nice relaxing holiday it would not be next to a volcano. However if you are into excitement, well have we got the volcano for you. Actually, she has been changing tacks again so maybe not the place. By this I mean that the volcano has decided to become more quiet. However like me I suppose, if I get more quiet, you had better watch out. And so it is with the volcano. The other day the kids and I went to Ambato and on the way back I noticed the volcano, as I always do. I can't help but look at her when we are driving back as she just looms over all she prevails over, she is after all 5,000 ft. Anyway sorry for the outtake once again. As she was doing her looming thing, I notice in broad daylight, an orange streak running down her. As it turns out I was not the only one to notice. What I was looking at was lava. Normally, you have to wait till evening to see lava flow and glow but there it was in the daylight. So, I guess it was a copious amount and also quite hot by lava standards...... Hence the authorities have decided that this cranks up the notch for safety warnings for Banos from Yellow Alert to Orange Alert to be in sync with the color coding of the lava. Actually, I feel rather safe somehow.... shockingly. There has been alot of rain and it has been quite cold here so I am sure that the lava will cool down as necessary but the height of the volcano will continue to increase and she builds up. This is making Banos a bit of a sore spot for the business people of Banos, as I am sure it will continue to drive out the visitors with weak knees. As a true blue Canadian though, I will not actually respond until necessary and when I do it will be quite the spectacle I am sure. Again though, the town is a bit spooky and only the real Banians (people from Banos)Banyanios...... not sure on the spelling or pronouncement of that one, and other property owners are staying. There are really some words that in any language that I just can't pronounce. It is a dyslexic/add thing.
So on I plod, I am struggling with a painting that is a three panel on black of the jungle. What I have done is a painting that has no umfff. What I think that I need to do is step out of the safe beige head space and embrace some daring and unusual color for shadows and highlights. Right now this is a painting that, I am sorry to say, god please forgive me for what I am about to right, but really.... one that you would find in a house with the majority of the walls would be builders beige or builders of white and this painting was hung to try and spice it up a bunch as it matched the sofa and side table..... Home decorators, I apologise, I know that it is very important to do that but it does not make for a very interesting or even exciting painting. As an artist safe is not better, safe is .... welllll....boring. It is making me rather poopy. I will decide what I need to do to make it pop. I think purple and red could make good high lights or reflective lights or underlights. I used to have this boy friend years ago, whom was very gifted. He was a sign painter. I never said it to him but he opened my eyes to something lacking in me and that was the under lights of color. I saw him paint only once but what he did stays in my head forever.... for his shadow as a reflective light and contrasting color, he added a simple streak of red on a sign. He was the only working artist that I ever dated but who says that all the men that you have dated are not to be remembered, and that is just one wonderful thankfulness (sorry about the grammar on this one, I know it is a booboo but it is the only proper description that works here) that I will take with me fron that experience.
Which brings me to another stream of thought. Sorry. warning. runaway tangent. Even though we have had relationships, there was something in that relationship that was important for our growth. That relationship may have not have ended as kindly as it could have, that relationship was still somehow worth it. I like to think that they (my relationships)made me a better person. I do my best to try and remember the former boyfriends fondly, some are easier than others of course. I had one really not OK relationship and even though I have still no respect for that man, I learned a great deal. Secretly, I am glad for Kharma here as I know it will bite that guy in the butt. I just hope that comment will not hurt my kharma. I thank them for having been in my life so that I can be the person that I am now with the man I am with now, and to better appreciate him too. So thank you, fellows and dear ones.
Another note. This is in regards to going to Ambato in the first place. I took a young lady with some kind of female discomfort to the doctor. She put it off until she no longer could. She was scared and frightened and felt that she could not go with, or have her mother even wish to go with her to the doctor. She felt that she was dying or atlease very sick and the doctor would only ever give her bad news. This is very sad to me as a woman. I like to think that family, especially family could support each other like that but I know that it is often not possible for any number of reasons. So I gratefully, took her to a fabulous hospital in Ambato called Millenium, where we had all kinds of tests done and after she felt like a pin cushion and urine factory, but I think that they nailed the problem. I say that I was grateful as she honored me with trusting me to take her somewhere where they would help her and also trusting me to support her. I also had them do a number of other tests just to make sure and elimate other possibilities. Having std tests are rather scary for people especially in this culture where the only time you even think about that place, you know that--- place, is procreation. So in this country where the percentage of children born out of wedlock outweighs the number of children born within, embarassment about STD's should be addressed alot more with out shame. Sex is normal sex is natural yadahh yaddah, but sex information and confidence about sex should be public without shame, but also accompanied with responcibility, honesty, and privacy. The line between privacy and information and openess is very blurry and difficult to draw. This is the information age however, and this line needs to be clearer. I think that that is anywhere in the world though. The misunderstanding of, you know, wink, wink, nudge, nudge, (for those who can't read between the lines, sex). This behaviour ultimately increases STD's and ignorance about sex. I remember in Canada as a Massage Therapist and having women open up to me about sex, and having to council a number of them and advise them with my heart aching for them about having the supposedly wonderful act of sex as being such a burden, simply because they were uninformed about sex and sexuality. Because of the lack of information about sex, they were easier to manipulate, conn, hurt and because they did not chose to become informed they by their own making were easier to victimize or made bad judgments or ruined relationships. That part of doing massage therapy was sad for me. Fortunately out there especially in places like Canada there are endless places to go for information and help where people are will and happy to guide you, with compassion and care. So I take my hat off to those people who armed themselves with information and take the responcibility for their own health and those who help to educate others (hopefully without judgement) and guide the searchers to where they need to be.
Be compassionate with everyone and try to focus on the positive so that you can possitively influence the world. Think constructive thoughts rather than destructive thoughts....
Robin

Introducing "Lady"

Hello folks
We have a visitor staying at our house for a while. Her name is Lady. She is a lovely dog, with same said temperament. Rachelle, boyfriend and I went to check on her for a friend today (as our friend is in Canada for a bit). We found her alone, and very scared. I think that the volunteers had stepped out for lunch and she being who she is needs people and I think adding the sounds of the volcano, well there was that scared puppy. I think that she is a real people person (dog) and with the sounds of the volcano, especially in that area, we all decided, including my friend in Canada, that it would be best for her to stay here at our house. The people who are volunteering at that woofer farm, for Lady's safety, had her tied up, because the booms from the volcano would make her run and they were afraid she would run away. Really this was very kind of them as it might be possible she could get lost and that would be sad for her. These people were very kind to her but they were also very busy working and finding out about Banos and such so coming to stay with us was a good alternative. Needless to say, I now have three dogs in my house. I have to say though that it is always a bit ifffy and exciting as to whether the dogs will get along. It is in the first 10 minutes that we cross our fingers and hope for the best. Shockingly, it was our little one (Sparky the size of a small coyote) that decided she was going to be the agressor. After a bit though, wisely Sparky saw the light and realized that Lady was about 3-4 times her size. All three are calm now, and sleeping in the same room and probably will be sleeping together in no time. I love how dogs figure stuff out real quick it goes kind of like this..... I am bigger than you are or I am faster than you are and that is the end of that....accept for those little rotter fuzzy slip of dogs, those I can do without. They are not really dogs anyway so I don't think that they count. Sorry to all those of you who have that kind of dog and can say otherwise and I have to the core insulted but I am sorry, the only dogs that I have ever had a problem with biting people are small dogs. I will be honest I am small dog prejudice. But that is besides the point, the dog hotel is full again and there is a bit of a shift in the air in terms of personality dynamic of dogs. It turns out that I am the prize worth fighting for now, as Isis thinks that I am hers and Lady thinks that that also. So now I will go around the house with two dogs following me. I promise you I will not get lonely. And here I thought that I would only have Mr. Potatohead to keep me company in the art studio.
We make our own dog food a commitment shift we made to our animals when my two dogs died of cancer in Canada. I was informed by a wonderful well informed person that although we had bought the best dog food possible, bagged food was bad for the dogs and she kindly gave us recipes for dog food. So once every few days we make a fresh batch of dog food and everyone is happy, healthy and all have shiney, beautiful coats and eyes and other signs of good health. So today I fed Lady along with our dogs and it was rather funny as Lady was trying to pick around the carrots in her dish. However much to her dismay, we shred up the raw carrots so she wasn't very successful in eating around the vegies. To inspire her I poured a little milk on her food and no more problem. Yes, I know, we spoil our dogs..... Yes, I know. I could hear her complaint though of wishing I would leave our the carrots. I have this to say about that.....fiber fiber natures broom.....
We are still hearing the window rattling booms of the volcano so we still have our bags by the door. This time we could be packing 3 dogs.
I am still a bit distracted though, but I hear the painting call my name. I hope to be painting tomorrow. I have that jungle scene to get going. All the plants are done and it is the animals and insects that are required. I love this concept of jungle scene at night it really is helping to highlight the life of the jungle. The color on the black contrast is really helping the color to pop. So tomorrow after I talk with my friends worker about stealing her dog, yikes, I will come home to paint.
Now that school is almost done except for provincial exams. The kids will start on their journey of finding their contribution, volunteer work. Dane will be going for a interview to find out what his contribution to the foundation "Arte Del Mundo", might be and then he has salsa dance class. So he is doing good. Rachelle is looking for her contribution as well and there are several choices. Soon both of them will be doing their thing and the when we get it all figured out we will be leaving for Canada and upsetting the whole thing again. Such is life.
Such is life is a good theme for the day. So I guess this is another moment to learn to be flexible and always remember to be loving.
Talk with you all later, live with love....
Robin

Yet another posting in one day, saints preserve us.

I had to add another posting today, due to the summing up of driving here in Ecuador. Ecuador is big on road repair, for a number of reasons, first of all because this land is built on ball bearings of the volcano's the roads are usually in need of repair. This means that yesterday when we decided to take a break in
Ambato, we had to take a bus there. I don't how to describe the driver this time, maybe idiot is a good one, or perhaps Lara Croft Latin style. This ..... driver.... took that poor driven the hell out of bus over a overused dirt country road full of dips and holes and occasional sheep or cows. Then he decided to take another
"short cut" through an area, we all agree should only be used by sturdy goats, and this goof decides to take a full bus full of people on it. As it turns out, other buses and camiones (trucks) have decided that would be fun to do too. Silly people. Shockingly, there was a cola grande (large stopped line) which no one can pass. So, being wise and experienced to the ways of drivers of Ecuador, the kids and I disembark. We wave a happy, calm goodbye, and start a walking. The other choice would be that the bus would have to back up through that goat trail, and we just thought it would be more scenic to walk. As we were walking there was a huge area that was slippery with snotty muddy and again shockingly there was a choca (car accident). There was also a large dip in the road that a large and full bus was straddled over like a beached whale. The kids and I congratulated each other on our wise decision to walk. On the way, as we are good Samaritans, we warned all the other dare devils to turn back and take an alternate route.
On the way back, we decided to take a taxi. Now here is the difference from North America to here, I haven't seen alot of accidents and that is because they know that there is no insurance.... not really, if they are injured they might not be taken care of. So this means there is frequent and friendly use of the horn (Peepa) and though you can pass cars on areas in Canada that would no way been possible, the move over as much as possible so as not to have head on collisions. In Canada, people often feel like the right of way means, "I own the road" and "Get out of my way" but here... not so much. We are finding sometimes it is like driving in Nascar, we have angels driving with us or on the bumpers keeping away. There are also several saint monuments along the way that bless the roads, and it is not uncommon for the driver to give a Hail Mary and crossing of the cross and kissing of the crusifix. (For Real). So there you go... a second posting from the rumbling country.
Write you all soon
Robin

still on shakey ground but with sirens.

Hi All:
Life is still good but rather off kilter, really. This morning seemed to go along as usual, except that the volcano was a bit more quiet than she has been for some time. The kids went to town to go get minutes for both phones and check on some things in town. All seemed well and calm, as normal as can be. So I was alone in the house just playing a few games on my computer, enjoying the rare moment of being alone. When out came a horrific siren, the Volcano evacuation siren. However, oddly enough, the volcano was quiet. I waited for a while as the other day there was a siren check, but not nearly as loud a this time or persistant. Sooooo, hmmmmm, look out of the yard and there are people leaving in droves...... hmmmm still siren,,,,, 5 min go by and of course I an getting concerned for the kids,,,,,, I decide to talk with Rodrigo, our neighbor, in the phone business, who is also a bombero (fireman). He has his radio on and is not leaving anytime soon. We talk and he tells me is it a city wide volcano drill a simulation drill and everyone is going to the evacuation site. Let me tell you, it is disconcerting when the entire city bails out, and still no kids, my kids that is. Still siren a wailing, 15 min later and no kids, hmmmmmm,,,, relax, find inner peace and commune with the volcano. Rodrigo asks to come in to take photo's of the street below for, I think, the newspaper. We both talk and pass the time. He tells me of his phobia of dogs, of which we have 2, who are happily wagging their tails and sniffing his trouser legs, of which I think he might have soiled himself a bit. Most people here are phobic of dogs, which makes me more comfortable at night in the house. He decides to leave as his phobia is starting to wear on him and the dogs have no interest in leaving him alone as they both want him to stay and pet them. He leaves rather quickly. Suddenly, both dogs run to the gate and excitedly barking, signaling to me that the kids have returned. It is good to know that the city is practicing for evacuation, and that the kids would come home first so that we could get the evacuation bags to make our evacuation easier and safer. We have all naturally created out own evacuation plan. Everything went quite smoothly. Meanwhile, the siren continues. The siren has now gone on for 25 min. I now know what it feels like to hear a bomb warning in Europe during the war. The siren lasted for at lease 30-40 min and there were actually to or more of them wailing away in different parts of town. Oddly enough, several hours have past since the sirens finally stopped but my nerves still a bit on edge. I can understand what people might feel like post war with bombs going off and sirens warning people to find safety. It has been quite the education and sympathy creating experience in regards to understanding what the victims of war must feel like.
Anyway, I will have some tea later to calm my nerves, and try some yoga to chill out. But needless to say, we are still here and feel more prepared than before both emotionally and physically. Life still continues, people calmly walking in the streets and cars making their horns peeping in the streets. I think a nice salad would be good for supper. Maybe we will be wine with supper...... Hmmmm. or should I say Ooohmmmm.
Be good to each other, and understand that patience is needed when dealing with new experiences.
Robin