Hm.

Yesterday on our co-worker tour when we visited the food centre I thought, "thank god I don't work here this looks so boring and awful." And at supper Paule told me I would be working in the food centre every morning. Forever. Coooool. I started coughing up a storm last night and this morning I slept right through the breakfast bell and Phil had to wake me. I hurt all over. I don't know if it's from the farm work or the apple picking, or the kids jumping all over me and making me give them piggy back rides...but god am I sore. After breakfast I changed Emily and Stephanie's sheets and made their beds for them and then set off for my new job. Five minutes in I realized I scored. Working in the food centre is the wonderful kind of monotony. Wiping and drying jars of jam. Tea break. Putting labels on jars. The end. But the main reason I scored is because Angelica, the girl from Columbia who speaks no English, works there every morning too! I was really insecure about my Spanish speaking abilities at first because I was sure I would butcher every sentence, but then I thought, wait even if I suck at it, she's gonna love that someone speaks Spanish. And boy did she! She was so nice and really greatful that she could talk to someone, and I was suprised that I actually understood everything she said. Sometimes I would have to ask ehr to repeat thing slower and more clearly though. But we established that I would only speak in Spanish and she would only speak in English so we can both practice. I'm teaching her how to say things, and I plan on writing down some helpful translations for her.

The rest of the day was pretty normal, except that at lunch Nick told us that a man who often worked in Botton had died. He created some sort of special sewer system for the village and I think he had family living here as well. So tonight there was a special gathering in the church, and Nick insisted that everyone attend, even though I never met him. But I was glad I went. I even squeezed out a few suprising tears when an old lady started playing the harp. I kept thinking, "Am i crying just because I'm supposed to be sad?" But then I realized I was sad because everyone else was. But people were actually rather cheerful. Hm.

On the farm in the afternoon we pulled out bracken and weeds from among more hawthorn trees dividing two fields, then moved to the other side of the dale to rid a hillside of briars and nettles. It was very satisfying work, but I ended up rubbing my whole arm in nettles and damn do thsoe suckers burn! Its like the stinging nettles we have in PA times a million. I rubbed duckweed and yarrow on it and it helped. Louis and Lisa speak to each other in German all the time and Luke and Neil are pretty annoying...Luke follows me around a bit and stares at me intsead of working, and neil works but talks incessantly. Like, those of you who think I talk a lot/too much...you should meet Neil. The man puts me to shame. I think Louis and Lisa think I'm a little strange...or maybe not, they're just very exclusive. My favorite thing right now is hanging out with Molly...who is a cat. And Rufus the bull and Ice the bullock and the calf that I haven't named yet. I named Ice (he's solid white if you hadn't guessed) but not Rufie.

Katherine, another co-worker, arrived last night as well. She's really nice, and I think she's in her late twenties. She was on holiday for a few weeks and now she's back I think just until Sunday when Paule comes back from Amsterdam (she left this morning).

So that's all for now. Time for a shower and bed. I smell like barn.

Cheerio.

PS I tried to put up a picture but the internet is so awful it might not happen :(