some things that are an adjustment for me. most of them not better or worse, just different:
taking a shower 3 times a day and changing clothes because we sweat so much.
someone is clapping at my door. oh wait, that means i’m supposed to let them in!
i want my friend to know i am waiting at her door. it feels wierd to clap. i’m supposed to clap. okay i’m telling myself to clap. this feels wierd. oh hey, it worked. she told me to enter.
i’m sweating and its 7 am.
there’s no water coming out of this faucet. oh wait, now there is. oh…sort of. that’s because its an upstairs apartment. good thing there’s another faucet coming from the tank on the roof.
no wonder alot of people in the states don’t think kale is wonderful. the kale here is WAY better!
which rice do i want? i don’t know which rice i want. they all look like the same rice to me. from one end of the aisle to the other, top shelf to bottom shelf, all full of…the same rice? please can someone just tell me which rice i want because i’m not really sure what the question means.
this is not cheddar.
all the milk here is powdered or else the kind in a box – the UHT ultra-pasteurized stuff. even the yogurt we bought was made from reconstituted milk. i miss halverson milk! in fact i would gladly drink walmart milk right now!
i’m used to everyone in cars being all polite, taking turns at intersections and taking care not to kill anybody. apparently that’s what my friend from southern brazil is used to, also. i guess this crazy way of driving is a manaus thing, not necessarily brasileiro. i’m just so happy i’m not driving.
now there’s sidewalk. now there’s not. lots of people walking, though.
ah…i think thumbs up at the driver means “can I cross here? are you going to stop?” if he gives you thumbs up go ahead. if he doesn’t, don’t move. if his windows are dark glass..guess.
no carseats. seatbelts? maybe. depends what car you are hitching a ride in.
people are really really nice to you if you are holding a baby. they will put you on the front of an insanely long line. people will touch and talk to the baby.
you cannot flush your toilet paper.
the guest house hostess apologized because the water in the laundry sink where i was giving Isaiah a bath was warm. she explained in portuguese and hand motions that it sometimes heats up sitting in the pipes in the sun, but if you run the water a minute it will be cold again. she ran the warm water out and said something akin to “there, that’s better.” hm…i think i won’t tell her that i always gave isaiah a bath in warm water in the states. besides the cold water will cool him off.
you never have to worry about running sink water or flushing the toilet when someone is in the shower if there is only one water temp anyways. but we are blessed with a water heater in one place in our new apartment – the master bedroom shower. jevon still uses the cold water but i feel blessed to have warm.
rocking a baby in a hammock is more relaxing for the parent than rocking in a chair. in fact you might have to be careful not to fall asleep before the baby. 🙂
instead of excess tomatoes or zucchini piled on the table and someone urging everyone to take what they can use – bananas.
i think the acai juice in the states probably has two tablespoons of acai in it to heal all your diseases and the rest is probably apple and grape. lol. i really like acai juice. the real stuff.
bars on all the windows. yes. thank you Lord for the protection. glass? maybe, maybe not.
houses are built more open to breathe more. this is a blessing but you can also hear more. at first i kept thinking the people i heard on the street were in my house. now i know better. 🙂
its good that all the floors are tile. that way the black, sooty street dirt that blows up into the house washes off easily.
my mop is a squeegy with a rag wrapped around it. i kind of like it because then i can wash the rag more easily than a mophead.
the houses i’ve been in are all kept very clean on the inside. the dirtiness in the streets is a big adjustment for me. people say it is alot better than it used to be.
my bread pans are longer and skinnier. i wonder if its the same size but different shape? i guess i’ll find out the first time i use them.
my cocoa powder has sugar in it already?
i don’t know where to find stuff here. or how to ask. i figured out by listening how to ask “where can I buy?” but then i realized how useless that question is at the moment because i could not understand the answer. no matter how many times or how slowly she repeated it. “desculpe, aiunda no fala portugues.” (did i say that right? i’m not sure)
some people seem offended or exasperated when i speak english or when i don’t understand what they are saying. i don’t blame them. how can i tell them i’m so sorry, i mean to learn as fast as i can to speak your language?
everybody touches my kids hair.
people here walk really close together, stand really close together, touch each other more…they are very personable and friendly. actually when someone i barely know takes me by the arm and walks with me i feel alot better in this new place.
this is just the beginning.
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