Tacogirl's travel blog has moved - www.tacogirl.com

tacogirl.com island blog, San Pedro, Belize

2009-05-17T06:20:00.020-06:00

Please visit - tacogirl.com daily island blog, San Pedro Town, Ambergris Caye Belize.

If you want a great view, tacogirl blog is pleased to offer 24h Live beach video - realtime streaming Belize webcam. Tune in to see sunrise, Caribbean sea, barrier reef dock and occasional wildlife, people and boat view Ambergris Caye Belize - streaming video courtesy of Storm Chasers Belize.

tacogirl specials - Belize discounts on Tropic Air flights, Carts Belize, Hotels, Tours, Resteraunts and more.

p.s. If you got here from a link on another site - please shoot me an email
tacogirlbelize [at]gmail[dot]com with the website so I can write them and get the link changed.

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A great ride - Extreme Adventures Belize

2009-05-16T06:01:00.016-06:00

6:00 am Saturday morning and I am back at my labels again - I have to get them done asap as we are off to parasail this afternoon.

It's been a great ride a good ride on blogger but I have outgrown being here and I am ready to let it go put my attention on the next level.

My transition is almost complete and tomorrow is my last blogger post.

8:02 am still on second page of editing 300 posts. Been at this a solid 2 h so far and almost done. Will break before the last 300 and team up with Paul on revamping my amazon store before he goes to his morning meeting.

9:30 am - still glued to my chair got slowed down by a power out - finally finished second section of work - 300 posts left to go through - and a big sigh of relief when it is over.

I wish I could fast forward to this afternoon and all our work be done ha ha - I am definitly ready to float in the sky right about now.

12:16pm I made it up to 2009 and am pushing the envelope for time. Got to get to town by 12:45.

More later

I think it is safe to say I can speak on behalf of everyone on the boat today and say Thanks to Monica Alex and Kevin for making our parasail trip with Extreme Adventures today an all around good trip. Alex and Kevin did a great job of keeping us all laughing and making sure we were safe at every step of the way.

Our flight height was 250 - 300 ft and what a gorgeous day to be out on a boat and taking turns soaring above San Pedro with a bunch of we have never met who all turned out to be really nice. We had Benjamin from Chaa Creek - Frank who lives on the mainland and Darsi Salazar & Jose Acosta 2 teachers from Corozal who were doing a tandem parasail.

Tune in for part 2 Monday on tacogirl.com for my view from the air.

8:o9 pm whew here is my big sign of relief - finally finished going through all 761 posts. Time to get ready for Helda's birthday party at Roadkill. Party was fun - lot's of friends there. Watched people take turns whacking a Belikin bottle pinata and the frenzy for candy and mini squire guns after it opened. Helda Colette and Joe did some karaoke by that time we were ready to call it a night. Party pics coming soon.

Extreme Adventures Belize 226 - 3513

Ready for blast off

Floating high up in the sky

Coming in for a landing - Benjamin's turn

Great day for a parasail

Flying high on his first trip

Benjamin touching down

Frank is up

Lift off

Frank way up there

Frank just landed - Benjamin still smiling from his 1st solo flight

Darsi Salazar & Jose Acosta go airbourne

Hanging out chating

2 thumbs up

One occasion it's ok to double dip ha ha

Darsi Salazar & Jose Acosta make smooth easy landing

Back to town

Extreme Adventures crew

On the move towards tacogirl.com

2009-05-15T11:51:00.010-06:00

I have been working hard and moving fast towards launching tacogirl.com

Thanks to Alissa's guests posts on Cayo the past 2 days - I have been able to immerse myself in wordpress and and get familiar. I found once I started it was pretty easy although I know I have just touched the surface.

I also found a good wordpress tutorial site - that walks you through some very useful stuff.

Really getting a better feel for twitter and how I can use it to help market my blog.

I just saw @tacogirl on right hand side of twitter and realized that not only do I know how to reply direct to a tweet by moving cursor to right of tweet to bring up direct reply arrow - now I can see peoples replies or who has sent direct messages to me that I may have missed.

More to come I have so many things on my plate right now and the first one needs to be food ha ha.

This afternoon I am tackling something on my blog list that has needed to be done for a while but was never quite the right timing - redoing my labels. I have come up with a few new ones and now I have to check all 761 posts 1 at a time to make sure the labels are right and add new ones where applicable. Lot of work but well worth it as I think the label option is a good search function if done well.

Sometimes when doing blog labels people get to caught up and want to stick a post in too many categories when in reality it should only be in one or 2. It can be a bit tricky deciding but well worth making sure you get it right so people get the most out of searching on your blog.

The new categories I have added are - fishing - cool stuff - 411 - Island Life - Stuff Swap and Useful Information.

I managed to get through doing 161 posts before I had to break. We were supposed to go to Lime for the chili cook off - I walked down to meet Paul at Pedro's sat down at the bar and just could not get up again. So we stayed there and ate pasties with a side of beans - played Yahtzee and bowled.

San Ignacio - part 2

2009-05-14T06:02:00.015-06:00

San Ignacio - part 2 by Alissa Reid

The bus comes to a complete stop in Santa Elena, the sister city to San Ignacio. They are separated by a wooden bridge large enough for one vehicle to cross suspended above the Macaw River. Between both cities, the population is around 16,000 people. The city looks worn and dirty compared to the countryside. We stop in the middle of the road. People start jumping out the back of the bus and the ticket agent with the gold fillings walks out the front of the bus. We wait. The bus driver honks the horn and everyone comes running, jumping back onto the bus with styrofoam containers filled with BBQ chicken and rice and beans, the Belizean staple food. It smells incredible.

We are then dropped off in the middle of town square, where the local fruit and vegetable markets are held. We are told to jump out the back emergency exit and I hold my breath until a man hands our big back packs down to us with a smile. We made it! As we start to try to close the school bus back door, the bus driver is already driving away, to his final stop at the Guatemalan border.

I hoist my bag up to my shoulders and notice that it is much hotter and much more humid that I had expected. I was actually thinking that this place was mountains and trees, dense and cold, but it is mountainous and hot, as we are still in Belizean jungle. We are immediately accosted by the cab drivers, to which I smile and say, "Maybe, gimmie a second to figure out where I am!" They smile and I start to realize that this area is much more friendly than the Island people I have grown accustomed to over the past year and a half. Steve and I scan the area. It seems there is the market area, and then up the hill the road splits into two and I can see stores up each way and the Belize Bank. Down the hill and past the market seems to be a less populated area. They have many tour operators, so we decide they might be the most helpful people to talk to first. We walk up to one of the tour operators and ask him where Casa Blanca hotel is, a hotel we have found in our guide book and it seems quite charming by the description. He points up the hill, it's not far. We start walking up the hill while the taxi drivers keep calling to us to take their offer of a ride. We realize it is literally a 2 minute walk. As we walk up the steps to the hotel, I notice an over powering sewage smell and see that beside the sidewalk there is an open sewer. So far I am not happy with our quaint nature adventure. The lady at the hotel comes out to greet us. She is very sweet and takes us through the locked gate and up a staircase to show us the rooms. There is a common area where people are able to cook in a kitchen and a small living room to watch tv or hang out. Steve finds it endearing, I find it weird, with mismatched decorations and the worst selection of books I have ever seen. She takes us down a long corridor, to our room. It is small, with two small beds, a tv and a dresser. Each room has a bathroom with a slated window for ventilation, that goes directly into the hallway. You can hear the people in the common kitchen area from the bathroom. We decide to take the room for the night, and she tells us to get settled and then come down to pay. We change, freshen up, and decide even though the room is $50US, it isn't that bad and we will survive. I can hear the traffic below. We go downstairs and pay, deciding that we will only pay for one night, and see if we can find something a little better.

The street is filled with cars and people, a strange sidewalk that doesn't go straight, but cuts off in places to allow the drains to go where they need to go. There are three small buildings across from us. One is called an icecream shop, although there is a line up at the window and people are getting things that don't look anything like icecream. The place beside it is called Hanna's restaurant and is also featured in our guide book so we cross the street and go in. The place is fairly bare, except for linen table cloths and some local art for sale on the walls. There is another traveling couple around our age sitting, already enjoying their food. The menu boasts that Hannah's has its own farm, where they raise their own chickens, beef, and grow all the vegetables. I am eagerly anticipating the food, as living on an Island does not provide the freshest of produce, unfortunately. I am having a difficult time deciding on what to order and the traveling couple suggest the fish fingers and the giagantic quesadilla they cannot even finish half of. Steve orders the quesadilla and I opt for the chicken curry with salad and their own homemade dressing. The food surpassed my every expectation as the freshest, tastiest food I have had in ages.

As the traveling woman appears from the bathroom on their way out, I decide to ask her where they are planning on staying, as they are still carrying their oversized backpacks. She tells me they found a cute little place called Midas, just outside of town with little cottages and a hammock strung up on the veranda. They also serve breakfast. We thank them for the suggestion and they are on their way. While finishing our lunch, we decide that we should explore other places to stay, as our friends Jean and Doug are meeting us the next day to stay for the weekend as well so we start walking in the direction the girl pointed. We decide to walk, as we are exploring the town anyways and aren't carrying our heavy load anymore. We ask along the way if we are headed in the right direction and are greeted and encouraged by the smiling faces we meet. The small town center is gone from view within a few minutes and we are greeted by a much cleaner, greener area. We walk past a large park and find ourselves at a sort of large outdoor restaurant with gaming area for children. We decide to go and sit for a drink and enjoy the view of the wooded area. Steve asks where Midas hotel is and the waitress points through the trees, she says its right there, and then points to the road we had been walking on and says maybe five minutes and we are there.

We arrive at Midas, and find a small building which serves as the office. There is a young white teenager working. He is very friendly and has a thick Belizean accent. He tells us his name is Michael, that this is his mother's hotel and he was born in the Cayo District. We ask if he minds showing us a room and we are guided into a wooded area around back with a long winding path through at least a dozen small cottages. He shows us 4 or 5 of the cottages and the different styles and prices and we are confussed but happy, as we like them all. He asks us where we are from and we tell him Canada. He says he has family in Canada that he has wanted to go and visit, in Winnipeg. I laugh and tell him that that is where we are from. What a coincidence! He asks how long we have lived in San Pedro and we tell him we have lived here for one and a half years. He says that that qualifies us for a Belizean discount and we end up with a cute little cottage and airconditioning for $50USD. We tell him we will see him in the morning, as we have already paid at the place downtown and will be staying for three nights. As we are leaving we see the traveling couple from the restaraunt and they are happy we have found the place.

After walking around the very small town square for awhile we decide to go and have a beer or two at the pizza place, as we can't find anywhere with a patio open. Shortly after, the couple arrives again, so we ask them to sit. There names are Katie and Evan and they are from Iowa, but have great stories about living in New Orleans. We sit for a few hours until it starts to get dark and I suggest we go back to Casa Blanca for a shower and out for supper to the Italian restaurant, that we have also heard good things about. Our friends have decided to go for a night on the town. We say goodbye.

I awake in the wee hours of the morning to the sound of a fridge opening in my ear. I hear the pan go down on the stove top and realize my head is right beside the wall in the kitchen. The sun isn't up. I hear the tv go on in the common living room and people talking. I look at the clock on the cell phone and laugh. It's 4:55am. I wonder how happy the guy is that I heard come in at 2:30. Probably not. I decide I couldn't let it bother me, but then realized that I am smushed up against the wall with Steve on the other side of me in the tiny little bed with a terrible mattress that I almost thought was a water bed the night before with the way it swayed when we got in. We end up awake, showered, and packed up to leave the Casa Blanca hotel by 7:00am. We go over again and again how happy we are that we are moving to Midas cottages. We decide that we should find Evan and Katie and buy them a beer for getting us out of the downtown hotel.

At 9:00am we are already catching a taxi to Midas. We have realized we have missed every tour around and I am feeling a little down and want to find some sort of adventure to do for the day. We think maybe Michael will be able to help us. We arrive and realize to our dismay another person is working. It is another man who looks quite young as well but is of a Spanish or Mayan decent. We explain that Michael has said we could leave our bags at the front desk. He looks at us with a frown and says, "What? Reid? I don't see you guys in the computer......" then he breaks out into a grin and says, :Just kidding, you can get into your room right now! We were trying to find you a king bed, but if you are ok with 2 doubles....." We smile and still can't believe our good luck as he walks us to our cottage. I realize I didn't actually see anything about check in and check out times. We walk down the path and listen to birds chirping songs I have never heard and watch as the hotel guy points out different types of plants and trees, reciting what herbal remedy it is used for. I'm starting to think that time is not much of a factor out here.

That all we have, is time - more coming soon.

The Road to Cayo Belize - part 1

2009-05-13T06:00:00.019-06:00

The Road to Cayo Belize - part 1 by Alisa Reid

We threw our backpacks onto the back of our golf cart and tied them in for the ride to town. We decide to leave the light on outside and the TV on inside. We have also come to the realization Steve's office might be a safer place to leave our computers and passports as we live outside San Pedro town, on the more remote North side of the Island.
Our ferry boat to mainland Belize leaves at 9:30, so we decide to go into town for breakfast. We have also decided to leave our golf cart locked up in town on Front Street, as taxis are not allowed on the North side of the Island. We park in front of another real estate office, an empty space now since our English friend Peter jumped ship to fly back to reality. Something you see on the Island on a regular basis.

We go to Estelle's, a favorite beach breakfast spot where Charles serves us fry jacks, bacon, and refried beans. Our favorite beach dog, who we affectionately named Playa, walks up casually to greet the customers until I say "Playa" and she breaks out into her nervous excited dance. We "adopted" her over a month ago, took her to the vet for shots, bathed her, and let her sleep in our house. After running back to the beach three times, we now realize we cannot own her, we can just be her friend. She walks us to the end of the pier where we get on the water taxi and she quickly disappears.

Our hour long water taxi takes us bumping through blue green waters past other Islands like Caye Caulker, our more relaxed counter part and Caye Chapel, an 18 hole golf course resort where we keep trying to justify spending $200 US each to golf.

We arrive in Belize City in a bustling area where they unload cruise ships full of pasty white tourists looking for a bit of Belizean culture. Unfortunately for them, they are corralled into an area with bars and shops all owned by the cruise ships where incidentally, no locals are allowed to go. We momentarily entertain the idea of trying to sneak in for American prescriptions and booze, but can't figure out how to even get into the area.

We are quickly escorted to a van that takes us to the bus terminal for three dollars. We have read that the bus station is in a dangerous neighborhood and are feeling a small level of anxiety as we walk into the bus station.

We see a young Spanish looking Belizean man and he asks us where we are going. I notice he has gold fillings around his teeth. I say "San Ignacio" and he points to the oldest looking school bus I have ever seen.

"Leaving in 10 minutes." I ask if there is an express bus, eying the nicer bus beside us thinking it might even have air conditioning. "Nope." He smiles. We climb onto the bus, realizing our pale skin is glowing to those already in the bus waiting. We are still anxious as we put our bags in the seat in front of us. Steve looks at me and says, "It smells like tomato soup." I think it smells like Lipton noodle soup.

We are in one of the roughest areas of Belize City. Where the murders here make any hood in the States look like a playground. Then a little white haired lady gets on the bus and I let out a sigh of relief. We drive through the city, filled with tiny stores with badly painted signs, junk, construction, and destruction. where the majority of houses and shacks look condemned but have bright colored clothes hanging on the line outside, or a mother holding a baby in one arm on the porch, and a cell phone in the other. I pull out my IPod and sit back for the three hour ride, letting people on and off, all the way down the Western Highway.

Along the highway we pass small villages with rusted vehicles without tires, small shacks with nothing in the window but a curtain, two neighbors talking through the window. Plywood shacks with hand painted signs advertising rice and beans, attempting to entice the hungry traveler. The landscape becomes less tropical with more bushes, trees, and mountains in the background. I smell rain before I look up and see it splashing the windshield of the bus. I wonder if the wipers work.

Off the highway I see a dirt road leading to a village. There is a school with windows and doors wide open. Two women are walking on the road and a drunken man is sitting on the road talking, possibly to them but it's hard to tell.

As we continue to cruise down the highway we come across an accident. A white Chevy truck has rolled, many times. I would be surprised if the person lived. This gets the people in the bus talking across to each other, mainly in Creole. The only words I can make out are FUCK. I think they might be speculating who the driver was, as there are only 250,000 people in the entire country. We pass, and I hope this serves the bus driver as a reminder that this is one of the deadliest highways in Central America.

-To be continued tomorrow

Madame in Mexico

2009-05-12T12:27:00.014-06:00

Love waking up at 6 am been having a very productive morning got advance guest posts set up for the next 2 days ready and started this mornings among other things - just realized the time I better get ready for the pool. Going to test waterproof camera at the pool today and see if the memory card formatted correctly - silly me I forgot to put it in when we went out Sunday.

My underwater camera is another way of mastering patience. I have a set routine. First I run it under the tap and press the buttons a few times then I put it in a bowl of water while I go wash up. After that I rinse it off do the buttons again and set it outside in the shade to dry.

Today I am timing it by lunch - will eat sandwich and drink iced coffee then it will be time to dry it off with a small cloth followed by adding the laundry into the dryer and finally I will be able to check out today's pool pics. BY the way it looks like my memory card did not format. I will have to check it once more or try my spare.

For now I will leave you with Madame in Mexico and some hunky warriors ha ha. She said she and JD had a great trip. We were all glad to have her back - even Chunky and Ruth said they are missing Maureen's class from afar. Check out their blog to see what what Aquafit Norte is like. Funny just as I started downloading the Mexico pics One of JD's songs came on a man of constant sorrow by Soggy Bottom Boys - back to disco Madame's style with more more more.

For those of you attending Blog Fiesta - Lobsterfest schedule coming soon. Thanks for your patience.

p.s. Sharon I mentioned to the school to send MR. Victor to get the donations. Paul never told me who they were from so if you are reading this and you dropped off 5 bags of stuff at Lime for HC school recently we all say muchas gracias.

Maureen having fun and looking Fabulous in Mexico - pool pics below

Paul doing a drive by hi on my way home

Affordable Belize Real Estate Raffle

2009-05-11T13:40:00.016-06:00

So much going on it's hard to know where to begin.

Last night I was trying get pics off underwater digi cam so I could check out how well beach and underwater settings look and get to work blogging them. For some reason it was not working this time - so I put in the Vivitar disk to ge the driver. Instead of fixing the problem it created a whole new one. It turns out the program is too old for the newest windows service pack and I kept getting blue screen error messages.

Lucky Paul thought to Google the error code so we knew what the problem was and possibly how to fix it. He tried a few things and even acer start up disks would not work so this morning he called Extreme Geeks and sent me off with a handwritten note of what he found the problem to be. Fingers crossed it is an simple and inexpensive fix - shuffles said they are really good based on her experience. I was on my way to the school anyways and would be riding right by their shop for an easy drop off.

Walking around the school it is amazing how fast things are changing. Francis took me to check out thge library again - last time I saw it in person they were still sorting. I did see pics of a more finished state but it was great to see how nice it is looking up close. What a treat for the kids to have such a big selection of books read right at school.

The main reason for my visit was to get some kids art work a couple of t-shirts and some crosses to send back to Joanne in Canada. She is working with her friend Heather to raise donations for the school and they needed some stuff to make a couple of displays in Colleges to get students interested to come and volunteer. They are the ones who make the school facebook group many of you have joined - if you haven't yet please check it out.

I also wanted to check out how the Land raffle was progressing and get more information on that. A local real estate agent has donated a piece of land to be raffled off for $10bzd a ticket to help raise money for the school - what an interesting idea. To find out information on the Belize Land Raffle hosted by Affordable Real Estate Belize - please visit the school blog.

While at the school another cool thing happened. I was hanging out in the office with Miss Linda aka wonderwoman and I realized I had forgot my water bottle in the Library. As I cut through the computer lab to go get it the teacher was talking to the kids about a pen-pal program they are involved with - likely the one set up by Heather who I mentioned above. She teaches at Greehholme Public in Toronto Canada and got Miss Knights grade 8 class to join pen-pal program with the older HC kids here in San Pedro Belize.

Amazing - look how many books came down in suitcases

Seating area for the kids to read

Teachers resource center

Teachers resource center

Easel with colorful learning material makes a handy door block

3 cheers Carole from Penguino for all her hard work in the library

Amazing artwork

Great artistic talent

One of the classes in school penpal program getting ready to take a test

View walking across the bridge

Heading south

Kids on bridge

Tole booth

Back roads home

Sunday = beach day

2009-05-10T09:22:00.014-06:00

Happy Mothers day shout out to our 2 Mom's in Canada - and mom's worldwide. Hope you are having a great day.

Nothing says happy Sunday like a day at the beach - but first come the chores lol. Paul is downstairs hacking away at the banana trees with a machete and mowing the lawn while I tackle the upstairs bathroom.

Back and forth with Dick and Carole on the coconut phone this morning - hoping to co-ordinate a snorkel at Chunky and Ruthies spot - Lara just popped up to check in on timing for the beach. What a chatty morning now Colette is saying hi.

I have a system down for cleaning the counter. Since we have a double sink with a lot of counter space I clean one half then while it is start dismantling stuff on the other side - add random blogging and packing a beach bag into the mix today.

Amazing how we all of are running on the exact same slight delay.

Afternoon was great - ended up at Catamaran for a b it then walked to Canucks to meet Dick and Carole - they were dropping Zac and his drum off after a quick Snorkel. Paul hung out at All Star Jam while Lara Dick Carole and I went out in the boat for a bit. When we got back to Canuck's the band was cranking out some great blues music today.

FYI... A few of you might want to consider reinstalling your coconut phone (msn messenger) as your cf keeps auto sending spammy link messages - not naming names so if you want to know if you are one of those people just ask.

Yard work

Watching Uncle Paul cut the grass

Now for the good stuff.....

Mini power outs

2009-05-09T08:55:00.011-06:00

Working hard all morning on lobsterfest planning - between organizing Blog Fiesta and decorating two booths I am keeping myself quite busy. Of course you can't run on empty so cooked a lovely breakfast for Paul and I this morning - eggs - fried potato & ham with toast on the side.

Message from Quick Silver Dianne... There will be scheduled power outs from 8 - 8:15 am and 4 - 4:15 pm daily until Tuesday.

Lara came by this aft and we hung out on the veranda talking about our latest dreams and schemes. It's always good to have our chat sessions we both get a lot of ideas that way.

Went to Pedro's tonight for some bowling - yahtzee and pizza. On our way there we had a fabulous happening - ran into Ruth and Monel carrying fresh made warm fudge. 2 YUMs up for that delicious goodness ha ha.

Lizard hanging out on our veranda

Change is good

2009-05-08T07:48:00.012-06:00

There is lots of change in the air right now. I see evidence of so many major breakthroughs and changes among my friends here and back in Canada.

I am glad my change is good and brings excitement instead of upsets.

Thanks to the input of Jen on Authority Blogger Forum and Ashley Morgan at Upstart Blogger - Paul I and have reached a major decision. It's time to take a big step forward and let go of blogger so I really focus on building tacogirl.com.

I will keep you all updated as the changes are happening and let you know when it is time to change your bookmarks and re-subscribe to the new rrs feed.

I sometimes wish I knew better and had gone with wordpress from the get go, Paul reminded me things happen the way they are supposed to and that I did not know better at the time I decided to blog so I chose an option that I was able to figure out for myself. Damn that voice of reason - he is so right.

Lost power for 5 minutes - glad it came back fast. There might be more to come as I am feeling chatty today but I have to get cleaned up and go take pics for someone in town.

Back from my errands. Stopped by Changes to say hi to RLD and shuffles on the way in and chatted with quicksilver Dianne in the old football field for a bit. It was nice to catch up with everyone - sometimes we get so busy we do not cross paths enough. While in town I was able to fill in Blog Fiesta schedule more - aiming to have it ready to send out next week.

Here are some pictures I took in our yard yesterday afternoon.

Fluffy clouds

Sky watching

Cloud patterns

New bloom

Fan palm

View across the road - made for a cool desktop pic

Booze Cruise at the Beach

2009-05-07T07:30:00.004-06:00

Can't say I have ever been to a Booze Cruise on land before ha ha.

Thursday Night 'Booze Cruise' at Catamaran Bar

Every Thursday Night at Catamaran Beach Bar (Caribbean Villas Hotel), please join us for our weekly 'Booze Cruise' guaranteed not to make you seasick!

Featuring Live Music by the Small World Band from 6 to 10 pm, the finest Chicken Lime Curry in the World, Fire Dancing, Raffles and much more... Win great prizes, including rooms at Pedro's Hotel and Caribbean Villas.

Roller coaster

2009-05-06T13:29:00.008-06:00

Been riding the tech Roller coaster today.

Dealing with blog things and trying to figure the best way to deal with blogspot now that I own tacogirl.com - what a headache. I have to say though I am so lucky with Paul - it is not always easy to work with someone over tech stuff. He puts up with me and is so helpful to make things look good and run smoothly.

I got some very exciting news today - Carbunkle Trumpet and his lovely wife Shawna are coming in from Memphis for Blog Fiesta in June. For all those of you who are planning to attend I promise I will get a schedule sent out soon - I am just waiting on confirmation from a few places so I can make it official.

I have just confirmed Pedro's for the meet and greet on Friday June 19th. It will be an open party - anyone who wants to come meet the bloggers is welcome to join the fun. For all you bloggers coming to the event this location has wifi option for live blogging.

I just took a short quiz to find out which adventurer I am - see comment section below to find out the answer.

Tuesday adventure

2009-05-05T10:33:00.009-06:00

Instead of going to the pool this morning I decided to have a snorkel adventure - perfect opportunity to try my new underwater camera from chunkyruth.

I decided to walk along the beach to Ramon's dock and check out how the artificial reef is doing. Have not been in way too long (last time I remember snorkeling there was with DCG)

I do miss the big palapa at the end of the dock but they have a proper ladder now which makes it easier for those who want to go in right from the end of the dock instead of swimming from shore. It is pretty good for a free snorkel spot at the beach and close to town.

I still have to play around with my camera some more and see how different settings work underwater - for now I just went with auto. It was a bit hard to tell how my pictures were turning out under water as the screen was hard to see but I managed ok for my first try.

Ruthie said the camera is a battery hog but did not find myself running short of battery life. I had rechargeable ones in so I was able to practice deleting as I went along - found a short cut for that in the manual yesterday. Another good tip I got in the manual was to keep a silica pack inside the battery area when not using the camera.

Small downside of today's adventure somehow I lost my snorkel on the way home - I retraced my steps as soon as I noticed and could not find it.

My first underwater pictures with a digital camera...

We miss you already

2009-05-04T17:51:00.008-06:00

Had my last meeting with Chunky and Ruthie - they leave tomorrow boo hoo.

Ruthie called this aft while I was studying the manual for the underwater camera she gave me and asked if they could come by with some fudge brownies - yum. I took the opportunity to get last pics from their season walking down the road towards our house.

I am quite excited about the camera - Ruthie said it will be a great starter model - I will be checking to see if those pesky jellyfish are gone so I can test it out.

Here they come

Chunky and Ruth

We miss you already and you have not even left yet

Mobile Party Posse

2009-05-03T19:51:00.021-06:00

What a fantastic afternoon - nothing like hijacking your friends front yard on the beach with a full out bbq party.

John Henry Grilled up a storm - chicken wings - burgers and pork chops we had enough food to feed a small army and then some. Chunky was agreeable to having some wings and chops for tomorrow - last day of their San Pedro season and it saves them on cooking. Molly was definitly agreeable to have the left over half burger.

After dinner some of us played Yahtzee while others went straight for the hammocks.

Party posse moved over to the hot tub at Caribbean Villas. I came home to clean the coolers and get blog done. Was going to go back and join them but they were already on the move and then everyone suddenly fizzled out fast.

p.s. Joe I somehow managed to loose that good pic of you in the hammock I swear I uploaded it and did not see it this morning. We will just have to have a do-over.

Joe holding up m&m's

Chunky helping the boys start the bbq

Molly loving the beach

Chimney starter

Dick and Carole popped by for a quick hello

Chicken wings marinated in mango tango sauce

Ruthie telling a story

Hanging out at the bbq

Burgers are up next

Coconut time - worlds most inexpensive dog toy

Pork chops in fruit marinade

Cindy and Molly

John Henry raking the coals

More coconut husk for the bbq

Chunky putting the grill back

Paul Ruthie Cindy

Chops are cooking

Cindy Ruthie Joe

Along comes Lorie

Molly looking for belly rubs

Burgers are up

Chow time

Hammock time

Back to Yahtzee

John Henry and Joe

Looking at baby fruit bats

More Yahtzee

Yard Sales and bangers

2009-05-02T09:36:00.011-06:00

Tuning in live from Lime while we wait for breakfast.

Paul read in the papers about a yard sale at Corona Del Mar so we decided that was a good Saturday morning thing to do.

First person we saw there was Nancy - she told us there was another one at TMM so we hitched a ride with Steve Lee and had a look. Happy to say that we did not buy anything from either sale - did not see anything we could not live without.

Since we were already in town we decided to hit Lime for breakfast - it's already jumpin. Sharon shared the last of a Galaxy bar with us another fringe benefit of being friends with people on the Lime Challenge. For all you banger fans Lime has a fresh shipment in.

Paul texting Cindy and calling Chunkyruth - looks like we may end up at the pool for some aquafit after breakfast.

Steve Lee has great timing on our way home from breakfast he found us again and gave us a lift back home.

We all agreed Paul's pool idea was a great one. Chunky led the class for the most part and we all chimed in with reminders of things Madame makes us do. By the time we got to the deep end we got a bit more floaty minded and did not quite make our full routine.

Cindy kept mentioning she was starving and needed to eat so it was decided the best course of action was to go to Catamaran for an after pool snack. Whole there Cindy decided we should have a bbq tomorrow and that we should do it by the water so she called Chunkyruth and asked if we could hijack their bbq in he afternoon. They were agreeable so we set to making plans.

We parted ways but not for long as we were all going to meet up again at Pedro's. Cindy had to work - Paul wanted to watch the basketball game and some of the fight and I was looking to get a few rounds of Yahtzee in before Cindy got Busy. Got to meet up with Heather and Andrew - they had a great 2 tank dive and saw 5 sea turtles.

Paul and Nancy

Paul heading to second sale

Lively crowd at the end of the bar

Yum - they do great scrambled eggs

Helda took this one

Pool time with Cindy Chunky and Ruth

Soon they will be back in Minnesota for a bit

Hungry monkeys off to Caribbean Villas for some food

Lovely day

Paul and Molly played coconut

Cindy and I played poker dice

We all ate nachos

Molly thinks the world will end if she does not get a nacho

Yahtzee with Cindy at Pedro's before she got too busy - my Dad's dice cup set

Kyle's pic of him playing a joke on his dad

mmmm pizza tonight we had 1/2 garlic shrimp and green pepper and 1/2 bbq chicken

Happy Labor Day

2009-05-01T18:16:00.008-06:00

This morning I put pics up from yesterdays Island Academy fundraiser at Pedro's - was a great time. Still need to add text but will fill that in over the weekend.

It's Labor day in Belize and I decided to take the day off. This evening I did get around to doing some work on the school blog with an April update and May wish list.

Paul aka tacoboy pointed out an interesting post on the message board this afternoon.

Short version... BEL (Belize Electricity Limited) buys electricity from a hydro-power company in Mexico. The Mexican company announced that due to problems with their own power plants, they will suspend the sale of power to Belize for 4 months, starting now. BEL advises customers to be conservative in their use of electricity. If Belize has no power at all coming in from Mexico for the next 4 months we may want to anticipate and prepare for frequent an prolonged lapses in power.

Monel just popped me on coconut phone after reading same post and asked if I thought it was going to happen. Although I am not sure if it is totally confirmed - I will not be surprised if it does. In any case it can't hurt to get flashlights and crank radio in order. Luckily we are close to Banana Beach as they have a generator.

For all those of you in the Lime Challenge tacoboy and I took a hit for you today and enjoyed a delicious high cal meal. We decided to make a late breakfast at home and had bacon with real maple syrup on it - eggs (fried in same pan after bacon was made) - cilantro & garlic home fries and toast. YUM.

Reflections of Belize by Joanne Frei aka Jobelize

Bets for Texts

2009-04-30T06:10:00.023-06:00

Nothing like a good fundraiser party - music - gambling - great prizes and all you can eat Pizza were all definitly a big hit.

The tents outside transformed Pedro's into a magical party place where everyone enjoyed the sounds of Melodyman Escobar and Small World Band - jello shots - bingo - raffles - roulette . For the more serious gamblers there were inside tables to play blackjack and poker. The Island Academy Teachers did a great job making sure we all had raffle tickets - fresh bingo cards - jello shots and everyone who came out for the event looked fabulous all dolled up for Casino night.

Birthday Shout outs to Chunky and Charles of Estel's

Pedro's was a beehive of activity all day

Bets for Texts set up

Vegas Extravaganza

Multiple tents

Handmade decorations

Roulette table

Paul helping on inside decorations

DVD with island academy kids

Poker room

Pedro Lady Dixie and the inside dealers going over details

Vegas Extravaganza

Out door party area

Yard all lit up

Pizza time

Wade got a slice

Joe and Wade

Marty won Bingo

Chunky Ruth and I played bingo - none of us won but Rebecca Arceo shared her prize with Chunky and gave him a belikin hat and t-shirt. We did invent a new version of pictionary with beans.

Fun party

Jello shots

All for a good cause

Chunky doing a jello shot

Inside gaming tables

Good turn out

Making "Bet's for Texts"

Boys in the corner watching the game

Charles and Ruth playing Wonderwoman and Monel watching them

Ruth doing quite well

Helda and JZB trying their hand at roulette

Melodyman Escobar and Small World Band

Sharon Walter Michele

Outside party

Lara wearing Chunky's hat

Chunky and Lara

Ruthie Chunky Lara and Alaina

Cheers

Walter and I dancing - by tacoboy

Walter is a good dancer - by tacoboy

I have 2 left feet ha ha - by tacoboy

Alaina Carole Walter and I

Walter and Ruthie

Ruthie Walter and Chunky

Lara and Walter

Carole and Lara

Lara and Paul

We stayed so late it turned into Chunky's birthday - By Carole

Carole and Lara

Bowling time

Chunky aka birthday boy goes first

Paul and Lara with Alaina peeking out the middle

Joe joins in bowling

Definitely a fun night had by all

Good motivation

2009-04-28T12:45:00.013-06:00

We are getting good motivation to keep exercising from all angles.

First off we have Monel dropping off peanut butter cookies to Paul at Pedro's last night - then we have all our friends texting and popping each other on the coconut phone to see who is coming to aquafit class and lastly going for breakfast with same friends at Monkey Bites afterward.

Paul Carole and I all checked our weight on the gym scale. We all decided it is kinder than Chunkyruth's bathroom scale and as a result not quite as accurate - Cindy verified which one was right from knowing her weight on 2 other scales.

Cheap flights to Belize - Saw this deal on Christine's facebook then saw Pedro's added to it a bit... Air Fare Sale to Belize on now $297 Return from Newark. Add Pedro's Grand Opening Special (45% off rooms - $28 US per night) and you've got a cheap vacation to Belize. Neither one mentioned where they saw the deal unfortunately - will let you know if I find out.

Full class - 13 of us today

Molly was glad when we were done

Off to breakfast

Hola from Gwen and Dave

Sitting outside at Monkey Bites

Molly

Coconut for breakfast

1000 free business cards

2009-04-27T06:23:00.009-06:00

Funny how things work - I have been living up a few ideas to start running more contests on my blog and today I see a contest by Upstart Blogger and allbusinesscards.com to win 1000 free business cards - by the looks of it not may people have entered yet so I am crossing my fingers and giving it my best shot.

Ashley did a great post a while back about what every blogger should have on their business cards which I found to be very sound advice. Very handy card format for scatter marketing one's blog or website.

More to come I have to go the the e-vite sent out for Thursdays "Bets for Texts" fundraiser at Pedro's.

Went for a bike ride to town to drop off some stuff to be altered at Aida's shop - I figure getting 3 things altered is cheaper than buying something new. Besides it was time to cut up a couple of those granny length dresses I never wore and go above the knee ha ha.

Here are a few pictures I took on the way out of town of the face lift Wings ( our only department store on the island) is getting.

Delayed by pork chops

2009-04-26T18:25:00.006-06:00

We were planning on heading to the park for the Eco Challenge party and stopping at Sunday Jam along the way - we got totally sidetracked at Catamaran. After seeing Cindy and Beth's pork chops that we decided we needed some too - good call they were delicious. Chatted the rest of the afternoon away with all our friends and had a nice time at the beach bar.

I still feel so lucky to be at the beach within a 5 min walk of our front door.

Steve manning the grill

Who can resist bbq - not us ha ha

Burgers ribs and chops

Mango Tango

2009-04-25T13:21:00.015-06:00

1:23 pm
I just finished making 20 chicken veggie skewers for Chunky and Ruth's bbq this aft - almost time to walk across the road to Coral Bay better go get ready.

8:30pm
Was not planning on taking pictures today but then I remembered ribs + skewers + good friends = fun pics - it's the new math ha ha.

Ruthie's homemade salsa - has corn and beans in it

Boys talking bbq

Chunky showing is his chimney starter - a great way to light bbq

Watching water action

No lighter fluid with chimney starter - just a vegetable oil soaked paper towel

Presto hot coals

Ruthie

Checking the heat on the grill

Skewers first

Dick snapping picture

Yum - Lisette's mango tango sauce was great marinade

Almost time to pig out

Chunky and his coveted find on the island - hickory bits at a reasonable price

MMM ribs

Paul Dick and Carole discussing the bathroom scale

Garlic bread

Delicious spread

I just weighed in at 130 lbs on Ruthie's scale am up 9 lbs ha ha

Paul was 10 lbs lighter than he thought

Who could say no to dessert

Food Sale for Annie

2009-04-25T06:19:00.002-06:00

Today Saturday the 25th starting at 10:00am, there will be a big Food Sale in Central Park in front of the church. There will be plenty of great food and all funds raised will go to help Annie meet her ever growing medical bills. Even if you cannot attend yourself, please tell everyone you know (particularly if they are hungry).

If you know Annie Rivero, you’ll know that she has been extremely sick. She is currently having regular dialysis and is in need of constant and costly medical treatment. San Pedro has a wonderful community and they sure know how to rally round when one of their members is in desperate need of assistance. This was shown when so many turned up for the blood drive held recently to give blood to assist with Annie’s care.

San Pedro gets fit

2009-04-24T15:38:00.011-06:00

The fitness wave is still sweeping the island. It is nice to see so many people at once working towards feeling better.

It makes me happy that people are experiencing great results from their exercise efforts.

Got in some extra exercise with a short bike ride this aft and some wii bowling at Pedro's.

Road work

Paul Lara and I on our way to the pool

Back road

Walking and talking

Fit crew - Lara Cindy Paul and Molly

Exercise does a body good

Here are a few pics Dave just emailed me from the other day's class.

My own time change

2009-04-23T05:38:00.011-06:00

For some reason my internal clock changed and I am waking up at 5:30 am.

The upcoming Island Academy fundraiser was on my mind this morning so I decided to get up and get busy and post the info for Lady Dixie and Jeannie - look below.

Another thing I have been meaning to do - here are a few updates of the Bloggers who went to meet up in Merida this weekend and have posted about the fun time they had. If anyone else who was there gets pics up just email me and I will post your link(s).

What I do all Day... Still processing it all - They're Back - Wazzat
Isla Mujeres: Gringo in Paradise ... Lets go - the end
blah... blah... blah... Ginger ... We're having a blast - flickr photos
Debi in Merida ... 2and annual - Bloggers summit comes to an end

Shout out to Jack - hoiked the fence today on my way to the pool and B was working away in the yard while Rick and drummer Dan held down the fort I mean porch.

Seen some cheap flight to Belize and flight out of Cancun info posted on the message board - AA deals and Cancun to Chicago.

Island Academy - Education is a Big Deal

Vegas Extravaganza - Bingo - Black Jack - Belize Hold'Em

Pedro's
Thursday April 30th 7pm
Adults Only
Entrance $20 includes all the pizza you can eat
Entertainment Small World Band

Fundraiser to raise money for new textbooks for next school year at Island Academy.

Happy Earth Day

2009-04-22T11:53:00.007-06:00

Before Paul and I knew anyone here we did a monthly e-magazine called envision.

Envision had 7 issues before we both agreed it was more than full time work (even with Jo and Erin's help) without generating enough for us in return to sustain it so we agreed to put it on the shelf and continued to integrate ourselves into the local community and start making friends.

One of the organizations I did an article on was the Freeplay Foundation. Freeplay Foundation is an amazing organization that provides hand crank solar powered lifeline radios to people in need (primarily in Africa) giving access to education and information where there would be none otherwise. Their main focus is orphans and other vulnerable children, women, refugees and people who are ill and have given out more than 160,000 radios since 2003.

(If you would like to see a pdf copy of envision magazine with this article in it just email me via my profile.)

Earth Day message from the Freeplay Foundation...

Happy Earth Day!

In honor of this environmental day, GlobalGiving is calling on donors to "Give a Little Green." By giving on Earth Day, you will have an opportunity to provide additional clean, safe LED Lifelights to child-headed families in Rwanda - GlobalGiving will match your donation to the Freeplay Foundation by 50%. So if you give $100, GlobalGiving will match your donation with another $50!

In addition to matching funds, the Foundation is also in the running for extra funding! The three projects receiving the greatest number of donations will receive prizes of $5,000, $2,500, and $1,000, respectively.

By helping the Foundation win the competition, you will help children that have no access to electricity. These children depend on polluting kerosene and dangerous candles for light. Providing an innovative solar powered, wind-up Lifelight will enable children study, to see properly to cook their food, to safely walk at night to the toilet and to see snakes, spiders and other dangers.

Giving Lifelights will help inspire awareness and appreciation for the environment. Watch our video on YouTube below to see how your donation can help.

We are delighted that GlobalGiving selected us for this terrific opportunity. Please help us make the most of it. It's an easy way to get more impact from your donation right now!

Make a difference and provide Lifelights to children in Rwanda on Earth Day by visiting GlobalGiving.

To be or not to be Fit

2009-04-21T12:21:00.012-06:00

All around me people are taking steps towards good health and fitness. As you all know I am a big fan of the pool and really feel aquafit is good in so many ways. Many others feel the same as class was packed today in spite of the fact that it was pouring rain. Even Dick made it out to his first class which was great because Paul went because he was going. After a great work out we all enjoyed some homemade peanut butter fudge that Monel brought to celebrate Madame's birthday that just passed.

The Lime Biggest Looser Challenge is on right now and people are competing to see who can loose the most and get healthy. Monel who has become a regular at the pool and is taking part in the challenge sent in a couple of him getting fit climbing the steps at Lamanai with Ruth and some of his family. (The second pic is him and his niece Nicole on the temple steps at Lamanai.) Helda is also taking the challenge and she is loosing as well. The lucky winner is going to get a nice prize to celebrate their weight loss with a shopping spree at Sundancer / Moondancer for some stylin new clothes.

The following letter is one I got from my net friend Pax the other day she has been battling with health - weight and fitness and finally has found herself overcoming obstacles in this area.

She sent me this entry form she filled out for a weight loss contest at her gym and I found it so inspiring that I asked her permission to post it. All through her letter she mentions positive benefits of exercise and loosing weight - everything from not needing as much medication - feeling better inside and out - gaining true understanding of a balanced diet and more.

I hope it inspires all of you who are slugging it out at the gym or where ever you choose to get your fit on.

Contestant#174
April 17, 2009

HISTORY: First I'd like to start a little history with how I joined Gold's Gym and joined the transformation challenge. I knew I would be facing the scale at the doctor's office soon and started everything imaginable to try and lose weight. Nothing was working. So, I broached the subject with my primary care physician. While she supported my choice she asked me to confer with my cardiologist. December 3, 2008 I got on a scale for the first time in several months. I weighed in at 306lbs. The cardiologist was supportive in my choice but asked me to do a little more research first. The conclusion I came to was that gastric bypass is a drastic and permanent change to a body that often only temporarily resolves the problem.

I'd rather eat as though I had the operation than to do any permanent damage to my body. In the end, I realized that a strict diet and exercise were the only sound alternative. As I approach my 48th birthday within the next couple of months I can not help but think that this is a significant year due to my family cardiac history. My mother had a heart attack and died at 48; and my brother experienced a heart attack at 48 as well. I guess to say that I am motivated for this challenge would be an understatement.

OBSTACLES: I have many medical conditions that have made it both difficult to lose weight and difficult to exercise: Diabetes, Hypothyroidism, Hernia, High Cortisol Levels, Perimenopause, High Blood Pressure, Fibromyalgia, Depression, Osteo-Arthritis, Frayed Rotator Cuff, Carpal Tunnel, Cubital Tunnel, Peripheral Neuropathy, Degenerative Disk Disease, Migraines, Narcolepsy, Premature Ventricular Contractions, Hernia and Morbid Obesity are what come to mind. I also frequently use a walker for the first hour and the last few hours of my day.

DIET: My diet goal has been 1200 calories a day with a 40-40-20 (Protein, Carb, Fat) ratio. While I often come close to this, it seems more often than not It is closer to 60-30-10 as I try to avoid heavy carbs from about 3pm on in my day. My appetite is greatly reduced and I often find the need to supplement with a protein shake in the evening to keep my protein count up to where it should be to minimize muscle loss. In fact, these past 3 months have showed marked improvement in muscle definition and strength. I've also changed from basically eating once a day to eating small meals every few hours.

WORKOUT: Medical conditions started me in the pool as water aerobics was about the only exercise my body could tolerate. I've slowly added to my routine to the point that I found with a VLCD (very low calorie diet) it became necessary to split my workout between morning and evenings to avoid excessive fatigue.

A typical week for me now is 2-3 hours of water aerobics on Monday and Wednesday mornings. 1-2 hours of water aerobics on Tuesday and Thursday mornings along with an hour of Tai Chi for Arthritis. Friday and Saturday I may or may not take a water class. Typically, you will find me in the gym in the evenings (6 or 7 days) weight lifting. After about 45 minutes of weights, I do half hour on the treadmill followed by an hour on the recumbent bike. I try to include a late evening of steam, water jogging (stretching) and sauna before bed. I probably over-train to some extent. I realize this can work against the weight loss at times by boosting the cortisol levels. However, I have years of bad health habits to correct and am rapid approaching an age where it can make a huge difference.

TRANSFORMATION CHALLENGE: I started the fourth flight of Gold's Transformation Challenge at the end of January. My beginning weight on January 23,2009 was 265lbs. - 41lbs lighter than when I saw my cardiologist in December. By March 3, 2009 (3 months to the date) I was down to 248lbs. for a loss of 58lbs in 90 days. I had the good fortune of joining Gold's right as the transformation challenge began. Consequently, I had the help of Robert one of Gold's finest personal trainers to help me with my diet and workout plans. Robert has been a treasure in adjusting my workout to strengthen my areas of weakness and altering my workout to fit my disabilities. His explanation of nutrition was invaluable as for the first time I truly understood the importance of a balanced diet and how carbs, fats and protein need to work together.

SUCCESSES: I am expecting to weigh in with approximately a 50 weight loss at the end of this challenge(91 total weight loss since December). My diet has changed drastically and I am eating far more often and healthier than ever in my life. My doctor has been constantly amazed and thrilled to watch the muscle definition emerge. For the first time in over a year of struggling with diabetes I have had an A1C (blood glucose reading) under 7% as recommended by the American Diabetes Association. I've gone from taking eliminated 3 different diabetes medications to completely controlling my diabetes by diet alone. My blood pressure has reduced drastically. I've gone from taking 6 blood pressure medications to 1. When I started the treadmill I was hitting a pulse of 152 within 3 minutes. Now, I am topping off with a pulse of 125 during my entire duration on the treadmill. While I used to fall frequently, I am finding this is happening with far less frequency.

I still have my disabilities; but the Transformation Challenge has taught me how to adapt and live with them. My attitude towards food has transformed as well. I find myself constantly reading labels Too many ingredients and too many empty calories find me putting food back on the grocery shelf. Rather than looking at food as a source of entertainment and comfort, I now view it primarily as fuel for the body. While others may disagree, I can't say that I have become a gym junkie. But, I now understand the necessity of chosing to get up and move. I guess the old phrase use it or lose it comes to mind. When I started the Transformation Challenge I thought of it primarily as a physical transformation. I now understand it has been a far bigger transformation than anticipated. It has been a transformation of mind, body, thoughts and health.

Before I made the decision to change my life through diet and exercise I was also facing some pretty difficult emotional and psychological issues. I have struggled with depression, anxiety and poor body image for longer than I care to remember. Sometimes, the mere idea of getting out of bed was an ordeal. I seldom left the house, unless I had a medical appointment, or an important errand to take care of. I did not want to deal with people, or stressful situations, so I would choose to do my grocery shopping in the middle of the night. I avoided interacting with people as much as possible.

SUMMARY: My desire to improve my health and work out regularly, has challenged my world view and motivated me to go out and face the world, even when I am feeling depressed, anxious and in great pain. This wasn't easy, especially when I first started. I have learned a great deal about myself and others as a result. I have made great progress in coping with my shyness and fear of people. I find myself enjoying my interactions with people at the gym. I feel more positive about myself and I realize that I am not the only person struggling with obesity. Instead of feeling rejected, I have discovered that people can be very supportive and helpful. I have learned to open up more and I have discovered that people actually want to help.

I feel accepted by people and as a result, I also feel a greater sense of self acceptance. Instead of feeling powerless in the face of my disabilities, I feel that I have triumphed over adversity and gained a greater sense of self-esteem. I have also noticed that my attitude to life has become more positive. I see progress, and this has become an intrinsic reward. I have always been a strong willed person, but I now see that will can work against me, and that my stubbornness has held me captive for many years. Now, that same willfulness is what is helping me to keep moving forward even on the difficult days. I am beginning to like my body again and feel a sense of pride in my weight loss and muscle definition. I feel more attractive and therefore, also more confident.

My quest for better physical health has also improved my psychological health, and promoted a greater sense of well-being. I feel that these less quantifiable changes are the transformations that will have the greatest long-term benefits. I am still a person with disabilities, but these problems no longer define how I see myself. I can perceive them as challenges, but they no longer control me. I have reclaimed my personal power in ways I would never have believed possible. This is the most meaningful transformation of all, is a greater a sense of self-worth.

Pouring rain

Hanging out under the bridge before class

Ruthie joins in

Dick Carole and Ruthie

MMM fudge - everything in moderation

Dick and Carole

Paul Chunky and Ruth

Photo Shoot of a photo shoot

2009-04-20T11:48:00.007-06:00

As usual Pedro's is a bee hive of activity. Got texted to turn up with an extra bikini and some board shorts for a photo shoot this morning - 0f course I had to do a photo shoot of a photo shoot while we were waiting for Joe to turn up.

Shot way to many pics so I posting my 2 favs first and the rest later as we are off to Caribbean Villas to see if Cindy and Jeff are there. Missed Cindy but ended up spending the afternoon with Ruth and Chunky. We snacked - laughed a lot and watched the world go by - lots of action on the water today.

No Rest for the weary

2009-04-19T07:37:00.013-06:00

We could so easily have caught up on sleep today if it weren't for work and the 2 parties we had to attend.

1st stop was the book signing at Pages book store. Joan Fry was reading from her book How to Cook a Tapir - would have loved to have stayed longer - hear more of her reading and do the dinner at Hummingbird but we had to make our way to Madame's. You can get her book at Pages and also make donations to the Maya Scholarship fund there as well - a very worth while cause that deserves support.

Luckily we caught GwenA and Chunkyruth passing by on their way and managed to squeeze in for a ride.

More pics to come on Belize Snowbird.

Melody a shy Davin and Colette

How to cook a Tapir

Faith

Joan reading from her book

Colette Jeannie and Paul

Nap time - not so much more like play time

Scored a ride

Stopped to chat with Robbie and Helda on the way

JD heading to his house

Leg of Lamb

Veranda time

JD and Madame

Chunkyruth

Madame cooking up a feast

Appetizers on the veranda

Michele made the pate and had a food processor explosion

Yum

Sangria

Monel and Ruth turned up

Now we really have to get to aquafit Tuesday

Excuse the flash in the mirror ha ha

Chunkyruth

Dancing

After dinner conversation

More dancing

Sunrise Celebration

2009-04-18T03:02:00.030-06:00

It's 3am and I am so glad we got mostly prepared last night cause my brain is not totally up yet ha ha.

You can Paul's secret surprise which to the left hand side. Yesterday I went and bought up all the floaty rings that easily go around your waist from Caye Supply. Last night We played warmer colder game till he found where I hid the stash.

Lara just popped me on coconut phone I told her time is moving really fast and I am feeling super slow ha ha. I see Carole now she just came online. Paul is texting back and forth with Cindy.

Morning laugh - Lara's blueberry muffins gone wrong - they are a bit on the hard side. Dick Carole and Zac should be here any minute - we decided to start the party together and all leave from here. Can't wait this is going to be a kick@ss boat ride - of course you know there are pics coming. It's about 3:30 am and Walter just called to say he and Shanelly will be there.

What a ride we ended up going past Long Caye.Walter drove the boat for a good chunk of time - Elito pointed out things along the way - told us great stories and talked about the island. We all marveled at the sunrise and all the amazing sights we saw. Pot luck was great we had enough food and drink to feed a small army. Thanks to Chunkyruth Monel and Ruth for sending stuff even though you could not come. I am sure everyone who was on the boat would agree this definitely rates as one of the coolest things we have done since moving here - it definitly got best birthday party status and Paul has not stopped talking about what a good time he had.

6:25pm Back from Catamaran and managed a very brief nap. We are in process of a bed party watching star wars with Jeff Molly Cindy Paul and I - amen for king size beds and good friends. Trying to get ourselves together meet Colette and Maya at El Divino in 15 min.

Uploaded pics but no way I can start wading through them at the moment will start that tomorrow morning.

Party was off the chart we all had such a good time.

This post still under construction - breakfast is mandatory right now all still feeling like zombies - was so worth it ha ha.

Tried to finish all the pictures but have to go to book signing and Madam's dinner now - to many things going on and I still have not caught up on my sleep yet.

Happy boy - wake me up when we get there

Up before dawn

Birthday Boys Jeff and Paul

Power nap

Yeah we did it

Here comes the sun

Shutterbugs

Brilliant sunrise

Happy Birthday Paul

Elito telling us a story

Walter pointing out his location

A very talented Walter driving the boat - nothing he can't do

Happy Zac

More smiling faces

Whoo hoo sunrise cruise - what a fabulous time

Cheers all from Walter

Lara having fun

Rock on Walter

Caye Chapel

Rescue mission

Time for some water fun

Giovany

mmm cake thanks to Monel and Ruth

Chunkyruths deviled eggs were a hit - Mary's pink cake for Paul

Birthday boys having fun

Walter and Giovany

Looking for Carole's towel

Birthday boys getting a beer

Back to San Pedro

Pile up

Last min rescue

Box neatly packed before tacoboy decides to help carry it - crash ha ha

Jeff point out some sort of strange zebra looking tracks on the wall

Off to catamaran beach bar

Heading for home - maybe see you later but probably not

One happy sleepy tacoboy

See you soon

2009-04-17T14:02:00.024-06:00

Wow time flies - Mary1220 and Crew are already leaving from their 9 days in paradise. Mary texted me to see if I wanted to do breakfast at Hummingbird before they left. I did not have to think twice about trading in pool time for bacon & eggs with good company at Hummingbird Cafe and I was definitly not disappointed in my choice. Breakfast was good and we got to try the new bagels which are a great food addition to the island. Mary said that they were going to be doing some occasional but regular food nights as well so will find out about that soon and keep you posted.

More to come

Packing my bag for tomorrow morning it's 10:30pm and 3:00 am is coming fast. Paul is downstairs making the last of the sandwiches. We are going to have a total feast the small fridge is loaded and ready to be put into a printer box for easy transport - reuse recycle ha ha.

Monel and Ruth dropped a birthday cake off earlier and Chunky and Ruth came by with deviled eggs for the boat and a huge piece of Madame's cottage pie for Paul's present. Secretly we are both hoping they show up at the dock. Either way is fine but Ruthie did ask if they could still come if they happen to wake up at that time - of course I said yes please.

Last goodbye's

Driving to Hummingbird Cafe

Mary1220 Chase and Crews

MMMM bagles in San Pedro

Fancy coffee drink

Joan Colette and Lee sighting

Who needs toast when you can have fry jacks

Fresh baked toasted bagels are delicious

Grilled cheese and ham

Tropic air building is coming along fast

Pedro and Mary

Last min internet at Lime before hoping on puddle jumper

The "I don't want to leave" walk

Waiting for puddle jumper

Peace all

Green boarding passes gate b

More " I don't want to leave" walk

Bye all - see you soon

Advanced planning not so advanced

2009-04-16T08:15:00.009-06:00

For all of you planning to come to Paul and Jeff's birthday party we are still going with our original plan. Still waiting on a few minor details regrading how long we have the boat and at what price before I can send out e-vite - will let everyone know asap.

I am really excited now and can't keep it a secret any longer. We got Seaduction Catamaran from 4:30 am - 12pm.

More to come have to get ready for the pool now.

Nothing is ever set in stone. Boat plans are up in the air again - will be a surprise in a few ways right down till the end. It's not always easy staying unattached to outcome - just focusing on Paul having a good birthday and Jeff to of course and being open to how ever that is meant to come about.

Other news for those of you into social media Pedro is on twitter.

Courtesy of Gurustu

Show some love for the High School Band

2009-04-16T06:15:00.001-06:00

Note from Nancy...

Come one, come all... the High School Band "Rock In Peace" will perform at Wet Willy's tonight Thursday April 16th 5PM

Donations welcome (door prizes) and 50/50 draws
Hosted by All Cayed Up and Wet Willy's
All Musicians are welcome to come and Jam after the Kids have performed...

5pm... Rock In Peace, followed by "All Cayed Up"... followed by "Musicians... who want to Jam... goes til no one wants to play no more! (likely 8 or 9ish)

All funds will go to... Rock In Peace... San Pedro's High School Rock Band... for GEAR and Festival Trips...

Image courtesy of rowox.com

Go with the Flow

2009-04-15T10:05:00.007-06:00

It is a very random day orderless day.

I been consciously focusing on the things I can do and not worrying about the stuff I have no control over. As we all know patience is a must living here - makes life so much easier.

So instead of Planning Paul's birthday party because I am waiting on a few key details - I have been uploading to taco shop. Found a whole bunch of cool ipod and shuffle gear. We just got the read speaker shown on front page and for the price (16.99) it is totally worth it as a portable hand held speaker. Now we can both enjoy my shuffle while walking to the pool - also works well placed on bathroom counter.

Zac just dropped off some island ganouche. His recipe is totally yum and he made extra for Paul's party - thanks Zac. Off to Marina's for tortilla chips we are still batting 100% buying them there and never any perfumed taste to the flour.

Cat and Dog submitted by Nicky

Post-it® Digital Notes

2009-04-14T08:11:00.007-06:00

Another step forward in my ongoing quest for some sort of organization ha ha.

I decided to find digital post-it notes this morning for my lap top. There were many options out there but I went with the 30 day free trial from 3m - a reliable company. Their cost is $19.99 - not terribly expensive. At the end of my 30 free days I would likely consider buying at that price if I fall in love with their product or I know I can always just find a free one on download.com.

Find out more about the usefulness of Post-it Digital Notes.

Pool was great as always - there were 9 of us today. Back to work - cleaning and food sometime soon. about 3 hours with digital post-it notes and already have 9 things on my post-it list. Will have a go at setting up a bulletin board later with multiple notes on it. So far only downside is a slightly annoying buy now or remind me later pop up but I can deal with that.

Leaving you with a musical interlude from Melody Man Escobar and Small World Band by Video Paul at Tackle Box recently. Note to self... I really do need to get a copy of their cd.

Feuding friends

2009-04-13T19:18:00.010-06:00

Been an interesting day - after last night Paul declared war to Cindy on facebook then we met up with her for breakfast to discuss the details.

It all started last night when Paul threw Cindy in the pool fully dressed after she slapped his leg which is badly sunburned from Saturday's beach day.

Today it went a bit further when Cindy posted a picture of Paul's dumbass bur n on facebook and her blog - I have to say he was clearly posing for it ha ha. She forgot that since Paul is our # 1 web guy he had her blogger password. He proceeded to hijack her post and added a pic of his own for fun.

After a few texts back and forth we ended up at Pedro's tonight and he was continuing to razz her about having made his next move but not letting her know what it was. Fred was there with his laptop so it did not take to long for the cat to come out of the bag. We all had a good laugh and Cindy made a new post. We all agreed that the slap and throwing in the pool canceled each othher out and the 2 pics same so for now they are on level ground and both willing to call it even.

Pedro's new building

30 rooms - some long term rental and the rest short term

Went up really fast - first floor is already being rented for short term stays

Walters handy work

Walter setting up wii for Chase and Cruise

Libby and her friends

Mary and Jeannie's kids with Mary and Fred

Walters kids are in town till Wed

Cindy laughing at Paul's hijack of her blog.

Easter Funday

2009-04-12T10:49:00.018-06:00

This morning I told Paul the Easter Bunny did not find me but I was wrong Bunny was just on Belize time - she and her helper turned up with 5 pairs of sandals in all colors and 1 pair of runners.

Colorful Easter shoes

Got 2 kites made in record time for today's competition - both using recycled materials

You know there is more to come so stay tuned...

So many pics to edit ha ha. Kite competition was way to much fun - so much that we could not leave. We still managed to make it to 3 of 4 party invites but we were on Belize time for sure in getting there.

Huge round of applause to Eiden and Moose for creating this annual kite competition.
Congratulations to all kite makers - you did a great job.
Thanks to all business who donated prizes.

Don't forget kites and kite making supplies are light and easy to pack for a general island donation item.

Shout out to Chloe from Moose and I - you were the first one to officially introduce us.

Judging

Sam and Carole

Sam's turn to fly

Moose and Eiden overseeing the competition

Group flying

Arceo's

Announcing the winners

Moose and Eiden congratulating winners and handing out prizes

All star Jam band

Chase and Crews

More prizes

GwenA and her fancy kite

Band rocked the house

All Star Jam Band Sundays from 1 - 5 at Canucks

Don joins in
Paul taking video on Mary1220's flip

Jeanie and Shuffles hanging out

Moose playing horse shoes

Mark Ben Vicky Carole

Ran into Gino while heading to the pool

Happy Birthday Veronique

Last Stop Sharon's

As you can see by the shoes the party was definitly not over

A day of rest

2009-04-11T10:52:00.010-06:00

We all agreed today would be a quiet day - perfect for lounging at the beach. We are off to Catamaran to meet Cindy Dick and Carole and who ever else turns up.

Lots of windsurfing

and kite surfing

Adam Christine Cindy and John Henry

Lara came out to chill and play a few rounds of boggle

Paul and Ruthie

Perfect beach day

Grant Kyle Mike Helda and Bella all stopped by

Carole Adam and Christine

Dick Lara and John Henry

JoBelize passing through

Paul and I taken by Christine

Last but not least Molly

a Good Friday

2009-04-10T08:19:00.012-06:00

St Michael's mission team is back at HC School to help out and do vacation bible camp. For many of the members this will be their 3rd time back. They do a fabulous job with the kids and have been a big help in the construction process over the course of their visit's.

I got a chance to reconnect with John and had we an interesting conversation - he is a meteorologist and is on the foundation board for HC school so lots to talk about. I also met Nanci and Susan Jo 2 really nice people and they shared how they have all been enjoying their time at the school.

I have said it before and will say it again you could not have paid me to go to school while on vacation but St Michael's crew did a great job of keeping the kids busy and making Easter Holidays special.

From the pics below you can see how happy both the kids and parents are making crafts for Good Friday. Today's project was making shakers from plastic beads and paper plates. At the end of the day all kids got a special certificate for attending Vacation Bible Camp.

You can see more Good Friday fun on the school blog.

Onto the night time fun. Went to a potluck bbq and bonfire at Carole's.

Jacques on the grill

Molly saying hi to Ruthie

Jo and Chunky chowing down - Molly waiting for something to drop

Video Paul Lara Dave and Gwen were there too

Yum

Dick and Chunky

Lyle

Looking for a small piece of Lyle's guitar

Molly looking for playtime with Jack

Still looking

Made a replacement part from a stick

Fabuloso musicians

Molly taking a break

So much fun - what a Good Friday

Holiday preparations

2009-04-09T09:30:00.008-06:00

Being in Catholic country this means Easter is one of the biggest Holiday's. It also means that planning ahead is well advised especially with all the pot luck's happening this weekend.

Right now I am just thinking ahead to Carole's bbq tomorrow afternoon and trying to figure out what to bring. Hopefully shopping for that will give me some ideas for the other potluck parties coming up.

Ended up meeting Carole Jacques and Linda at the fire show - it is always nice to hang out at the beach with friends and we saw many of them last night. The full moon parties at Catamaran are drawing a good crowd - great for people watching.

Full house

Full moon Fire show and drumming at Catamaran

Easter Sunday fun

2009-04-08T06:09:00.008-06:00

Got the official details about this weekends Kite Competition so I figured I may as well post it sooner than later so you can mark on your calendar. So far we have 4 invites for Sunday afternoon definitly planning on this event as I can't wait to see the kites - will have to see which of the others we make it to.

Eiden Salazar and Reef Radio presents....
Moose's Children's Annual Kite Competition
Easter Sunday (April 12)
From 11 am on at Crazy Canucks beach

Top prize
Moose will open a $200 savings account in the winners name at Belize Bank

Second Prize
Eiden Salazar will donate $100 to the second place winner

Other prizes will be given for largest kite - smallest kite - prettiest kite - most creative -best overall flyer - highest flyer - longest time flyer friendliest flyer.

Rules
1. Each contestant must build their own kite (parental assistance only is accepted)
2. each contestant must bring a really big smile and use it during the competition.

In addition to all the competition fun there will be live music with Drummer Dan's Beach Jam and bbq - burgers hot dogs and more.

Prizes have been donated by these fine local businesses...
Pirate Pizza - Georges Kitchen - El Patio - Pelican Internet and Properties - Pepperoni's Pizza - Pulse Music - Caribbean Connection - Devon's Pizza - DandE's Ice Cream and Mouse Pad.

To get some kite making ideas you can check out How To Make a Kite blog or follow the diagrams below.

Diagram courtesy of Aloha.net

Diagram courtesy of abc.net

Diagram courtesy of Chest of Books

Pink Slips for Pedro and Charlie

2009-04-07T12:45:00.010-06:00

Aquafit class was great today Madame and I had the pool all to ourselves. Not sure what happened to Chunkyruth. Cindy - Carole and Paul all pulled it it's too cold card this morning. I almost did that as I was a bit slow this morning after Jam night at Sweet Basil yesterday.

Paul was surprised I was going (it was pretty windy) but I needed to clear my head so I made the effort. It was a good thing I did too as I made a deal with Madame and am getting a medium sized cottage pie on Thursday. We also found out there will be no pool time Friday due to Easter Holidays.

Chatting with Carole on the coconut phone about doing a bbq at their place and thinking about lunch. Found out some interesting news when I got home.... Word on the street is Pedro and Charlie have been given their pink slips and Cindy and Molly are now in charge.

How to Cook a Tapir

2009-04-06T05:55:00.011-06:00

Award Winning Author Launches International Book Tour in Belize

Award winning author Joan Fry came to Belize as a 20 year old American girl in the early 1960’s to live in a Kekchi Maya village in Punta Gorda. Nearly 40 years later, she has written about her experiences in the book How to Cook a Tapir – A Memoir of Belize, an extraordinary story of how she learned so much from the Maya about life and love – but even more importantly, she learned how to cook.

Newlywed to the first anthropologist to study the Kekchi Maya in Belize, her honeymoon involved sharing a boat with livestock from Belize City to Punta Gorda and arriving to discover that her new home was a thatched hut, with a dirt floor and the only available toilet being ‘bush’. Unable to speak the language and feeling ridiculous at times for not being able to accomplish the simplest tasks, such as
carrying water from the river or making corn tortillas, Joan Fry struggled with trying to create a life for herself, find acceptance by the Maya people with whom she lived and learning to cope with an increasingly unsatisfying marriage.

How to Cook a Tapir is a book of sensory experience. The author ensures that you share the sights, smells and sounds of her Belizean adventure – especially through food. Every chapter, set against the exotic background of village life in the rainforest, gives the reader the opportunity to accompany Joan as she develops lifelong friendships with her Maya neighbors, teaching their children, nursing their wounds, sharing their losses and dancing all night with them during celebrations. Every chapter ends with a recipe, some of her earlier attempts being both hilarious and pathetic, but as she learns they become a true representation of authentic Maya cooking.

Joan Fry will be visiting Belize on a national book tour prior to her tour of the United States, offering people a chance to meet the author, attend readings and even taste some of the recipes. One special event, which will be held in San Pedro, will raise funds for the Maya Educational Foundation, a non profit organization which runs a scholarship program for Belizean Maya secondary school students in financial need.

How to Cook a Tapir – A Memoir of Belize book tour is as follows:

Belmopan 14 April 2009
Belize Bird Rescue
Welcome party and reception.
Meet the author, readings and book signing. By invitation only.
(for more information call Belize Bird Rescue on 610 0400)

San Pedro 19 April 2009
Hummingbird Cafe and Pages Bookshop

How to Cook a Tapir Culinary Experience - Fundraising dinner for the Maya Educational Foundation, Belize Scholarship Program. Meet the author, readings and book signing.
(to purchase tickets call Conch Creative on 624 8251)

Belize City 22 April 2009, 10:00am
Museum of Belize

Meet the author, readings and book signing.
(For more information contact Lita Krohn: on 601 6919 or The Museum of Belize on 223 4524)