The Adventures of Familia Bajaboy

  Monday, August 30, 2021 A lot has happened since the last time I wrote. I have started working at a taco-stand, we went to San Diego, and I turned 13. Ever since we talked about moving to Asuncion, one of the things I have wanted to do is work at our friend's taco stand. And while he has agreed it was not until about six weeks in that I started to work there. Not long after my father and I returned from San Diego, we had a night where we did not want to cook and would rather just get take-out. So, we went to Chiquiringis for some tacos. That night I decided it would be a good time to talk more about me working with him. With some help from my parents we decided I would work with him Fridays and Saturdays doing various tasks. After that I helped him with our order a bit and we went home. Two days later was my first night. When I got there I started with cleaning the tables. It was a slow night but that night I ended up making Papas Rellenas for one of our old friends. Papas

I came across this today while reading "A Runner's High" by Dean Karnazes.  Profound and powerful words from a man I deeply respect and admire.  “Our actions in life ultimately shape who we are, though perhaps our inactions exert more of an everlasting influence.  Many people are not happy with what they do, yet possibly worse, many people simply tolerate what they do and never take the initiative to do anything about it.  Either out of fear, complacency, or sheer exhaustion, they go through the motions day after day of living a life that is less than what they’d hoped.  Inaction become permanent, and suddenly it’s too late.  Perhaps the only tragedy approaching that of a young life cut short is a long life left unlived.”  --Dean Karnazes

Just a quick tour through the garden this morning.  Everything is so happy!  To date, we have the following items growing:  ·          Multiple varieties of tomatoes ·          Potatoes ·          Strawberries ·          Cucumbers ·          Orange and red butternut squash ·          Peruvian peppers ·          Bell peppers ·          Spaghetti squash ·          Brussel sprouts ·          Cantaloupe ·          Lemon drop melons ·          Beets ·          Pumpkin ·          Grapes           Dragon fruit           Chard As for trees, we have ·          Lime ·          Sapote ·          Mango ·          Blood orange           Peach ·          Mandarin ·          Pomegranate We are in the early stages of building a new planter box.   We intend to plant ·          Broccoli ·          Cauliflower ·          Banana peppers ·          Basil ·          Kale Tracy and I are having fun repurposing scraps from our neighbor's building proje

  Yesterday was one of those great days, though we have found ourselves saying that a lot lately.  Zac, Gabriel, Zeus and I started the day with an early morning hike in San Roque.  We caught the sunrise and enjoyed the cool temps along the coast.  We were treated at the end of our hike to some smoked fish, from Fernando, who was keeping watch of the fishing village.  It was also nice running into some friends who were camped on the beach. We had breakfast and decided to take a day trip to La Bocana.  According to Gabriel’s calculations, La Bocana is 49.4 miles from our house.  3.7 of those miles were on pavement, the rest was dirt roads.  Up to Punta Prieta (20.5 miles) the road was in great shape, though the same can’t be said for the remainder of the trip.  From our door to La Bocana it took us about 2 hours, and Zac drives very conservatively.   Rancho San Rafael Zeus enjoys anytime he gets to ride inside the truck! This is a dry lake bed.  If conditions are dry, it's a great r

  We’ve been on this journey, now, for 7 weeks.  In some way it doesn’t seem possible, in other ways it seems longer.  After unpacking, finding places for all our things, getting pictures hung, I quickly relaxed.  Like really relaxed!  I’ve slept ridiculously amazing most every single night, and often take some epic naps.   My friend, Angela, often asks me if I miss our old life.  At this point, not at all.  I’m finding there are so many things I’m enjoying that I woudn't have considered before. Grocery Shopping- Ever since COVID, going grocery shopping has been really stressful.  Waiting outside in lines, trying to follow the flow of the store (directional signs) while others do not, drove me crazy!  Then I’d forget something in an aisle I’d passed and would need to completely transverse the entire store.  I’d also go crazy at people who just didn’t get the concept of social distancing. Here, grocery store trips are a daily occurrence.  Oftentimes we’ll get snacks to go to the bea

 Yesterday we went to a neighbor’s birthday party.  It was a fun afternoon of laughter, food, and of course lots of cold beer.  My neighbor, Tarraya, was busy cleaning a crate of radishes, or rábanos in Spanish.  I asked him where he got them and why would anyone want a crate of them.  He began to tell me a story that only seems normal for here. He said he got a call from a ship’s captain.   The ship was headed for Hawaii but was sidelined due to a hurricane or poor weather, I don’t exactly recall which.   The ship was full of produce that was spoiling and the captain asked Tarraya if they wanted to make a trade.   I’m not exactly sure of the details but it involved cases of beer in exchange for the produce and diesel fuel.   I guess late at night the exchange was made.   I noticed about five crates of produce in the back of Tarraya’s truck.   It was spoiled and he was going to take it to the dump.   I suggested I would take it off his hands.   He agreed in disbelief.   This morni