Sunday, May 30, 2010

Project updates....

Well, the spay and neuter your pet clinic has yet to happen, but it's already been super successful. I have 17 animals signed up with appointments and room for up to 8 walk in's. I'm really excited to see how it all works out. Already there are more people signed up than I thought we would see. Thanks to the donor I think there is the potential for another clinic, I just need another donor... Anyway, if I can somehow find support the idea will be to have the clinics every 2 or 3 months to catch all the new puppies and kittens that were too young this time and to make it possible for all those that there was no room for this time. It has potential.

Guias y Scouts are coming along really well. We had our final training for the board of directors last week and now we are preparing for our final training for the leaders. I'm hoping that within the next 2 months we'll be ready for some kids. I was thinking of trying to find a grant to pay for all of the uniforms for both the kids and adults. Each uniform is about 4,000 colones, which is around 8 dollars, that may sound like very little to you, but the reality is that here at the end of the month most families have 0 left over. It's a pay check to pay check life for most so throwing 8 dollars which here is more like 30 is a pretty big burden. I'm hoping to make is possible for all of the kids to have the uniform (they can join with or without it).

Computers....I'm not hopeful.

English classes are going really well. Last night we listened and translated a song (which is always a hit). They loved it and hopefully they learned some new vocab. My students are lots of fun and though we don't always stick to the book, they are learning a lot. The hard part is getting them to talk. I honestly don't know how to teach that. I learned how to speak Spanish in Spain because I had to. I lived with a family and if I wanted something, anything, I had to speak Spanish. They all want to learn how to speak, but it's hard because I learned, but only by living in a Spanish speaking country. I think it is possible, just really difficult. Hopefully we get there.

Thursday, May 13, 2010

Quick updates:

The giant spider that I thought was a tarantula and saw a few months ago, do you remember that? Well, he's been spotted again only this time he's way bigger! The body of the spider was about the size of a silver dollar and the legs made it huge! I went to open my back door in the morning and down drops the spider. I quickly yelled for my host dad, mom, Oscar, who ever to come and kill it. All three came to see what the Gringa was yelling about and said, oh, that's no tarantula that's a pico caballo (a horse bite spider) then Oscar says, no, it's not a pica caballo, it's a pica gringa. Haha. Sadly we did not kill it, it is still behind my sink but my host dad did spray a bunch of poison so hopefully it will die. I'm not a fan of this squatter. My rabbit has yet to be lost or killed, this is really saying something because everyone else that I know who got a rabbit around the same time as me has lost it or it has died. Currently I'm out sourcing my rabbit care to a neighbor who had 2 and one died so he asked if I could loan him mine so his wouldn't be so lonely. Sadly, his one remaining rabbit has been lost, but I haven't gone back for Cadburry just yet, he's got a good thing going over there but I'm guessing the neighbor is going to get sick of rabbit sitting soon. I'm impressed with the rabbit, I just let him run free almost all day and there are dogs everywhere, maybe it's because he's so big... Arroz con conejo anyone? Tigre is doing well, she's starting to settle down a little which is good because she's been super hyper. I guess this is more of an animal world update.

Sunday, May 9, 2010

Faces and Places # 5 - Meet Tigre!!!!


This is Tirgre my new little kitty. I have a really cute video of her playing in a box and will post is next time I have the cable to my camera so I can transfer it. Tigre was brought to me by my host nephew who found her in the street. Apparently she had been dumped there since she was a female (nobody wants kittens and nobody spays their animals). So, he brought her to me and I couldn't resist her, she's just too cute and she was soooooo young. She was taken away from her mother much too early. Anyway, I've had her now for a month or so and she has become a really great cat. When I walk through the gate towards my house she runs to meet me and now she follows me everywhere I go around the house and yard. I'm planning on taking her with me when I leave so don't worry and also, she has an appointment to be spayed in June when she will be old enough. Which, brings me to my next and newest project, I'm currently organizing a spay and neuter your pets project for La Palma. There is a vet in Jimenez who is willing to come to La Palma for the day, sadly, it's pretty expensive to spay or neuter your pet here. I was really lucky last week to come across a donor and we are going to be able to have the clinic at a very low cost. I've been telling everyone I meet in my community that it will only cost 2.000 colones (4 dollars) per animal and everyone gets excited and asks to be signed up. Depending on how the clinic goes, I'm hoping to be able to hold a clinic every 2 or 3 months so that the puppies and kittens that are too young right now can be taken care of before they become pregnant. Hopefully this will help to reduce our street dog population and the lower the number of kittens thrown away. Depending on how the clinic, you should consider being a donor for the next (hint, hint), I'll keep you all posted.