A great day...

So last night, most of the team went out to a club, drinking and dancing. Mel, Katy, Marie and I decided to stay home...so did Steve and Lionel. I decided to take a shower (in the 3rd floor boys shower, the only one with running water, since the pump to the main house was broken...and we had been completely without water for 2 days...just.like.camping)...halfway through shaving my first leg, the power went out. I quickly wrapped in my towel, and tried o make it safely down the stairs. The power came back on, but only for a short while, so I was left with one unshaven leg and a hairy knee!

The conversation that ensued was interesting to say the least...we shared more about ourselves...and then Steve decided to tell us about the LDS 12 step program...he proceeded to tell us that everyone has an addiction, and tried to diagnose each of us...I definitely shared my differing opinions on many points he made, but there was ever a dull moment...

The team came home, and one of the girls proceeded to puke all over the floor and wall in our room...there were chunks...ewww...

Maggie and I took a ride with Noel and a couple other guys to get Diesel for the generators...while at the gas station, they bought a few beers (Prestige...THE Haitian beer, and most stores have been out)...we got back on the road and quickly had to pull over so Noel (the driver) could open his beer on the side of the car...HILARIOUS!

We drove around town this afternoon...in the city center where the worst damage is...the Capitol and Courthouse were awful...General hospital was damaged, but still running...Noel showed us the market where his daughter was trapped for 3 days before he got her out...he laid there awake with her for 3.days.straight!

It is incredibly amazing to me to devastation and chaos around the city, yet most people are quietly and normally going on with their lives, laughing, functioning, continuing their businesses out in the streets...It really makes you think about what is really important in life. The tent cities are little functioning communities, sticking together and loving each other...

We went to the Olafson Hotel, where we listened to RAM last year. What an incredibly beautiful building...we missed so much being there in the dark last year. We shared stories, had a drink (I shared mine with 2 other ladies...and we each were sufficiently buzzed...possibly because we are lightweights, possibly because Haitians make VERY strong drinks...). For a moment, you could imagine just being in a Caribbean island, enjoying drinks and the sun, seeing the ocean off in the distance...just for a moment...

We then went to Petionville, where we stimulated the economy a bit by doing some street shopping. We enjoyed the paintings, soap stone sculptures, wood carvings, metal art, etc. There are some amazingly talented artists in Haiti!

It really was a wonderful day off...We are back to work tomorrow for another 6 days...helping some amazingly strong and resilient people...I feel so blessed to be a part of this!