Laying Down The Foundation

Hello from Puerto Rico folks!  I am typing to you from a happy, confused, disappointed and very tired place...

Happy.  Happy because I have successfully landed in Puerto Rico and have officially settled things with my grandmother.  We had a very nice conversation this afternoon and she told me that I am welcome to stay with her as long as I like.  She is simply concerned with me traveling pretty much across the island to do community service.  I plan to donate my time with Habitat for Humanity in Puerto Rico but they are located in the East...closer to San Juan while my grandmother and aunt both live in the West...closer to Mayaguez.  She's not sold on the idea of me driving 2+ hours each way however many days a week for no money and to a city that, in her eyes, is peligroso (dangerous).  I assured her that I plan on heading over there tomorrow and talking to the folks who run Habitat.  I told her my priority is learning the language and continuing to develop our relationship so if Habitat does not fit or work for me then I am sure I can find other volunteer/service opportunities closer to her side of the island.  She seemed pleased to hear that.  So, my plan is to roll over there tomorrow and see if there is an opportunity to do some work on this side of the island and that leads to confusion...

Confusion.  I have been in pretty regular contact with the Habitat folks leading up to this trip.  The last correspondence we had was an agreement that I would reach out to them the week of my departure so that they could make sure they had work for me.  It is now almost 5pm the evening before I am to head over there and I have yet to hear a peep from them.  Hmmmm

Disappointment.  I should have gotten a solid contact number and address sooner.  I should have reached out to them earlier in the week than I did.  When I thought I was going to get the Jet Blue Unlimited Flight Package I felt like meeting with them tomorrow wasn't so imperative.  But, when I logged on to actually purchase the package I found out I was an hour too late.  The package was sold out.  I had made quite a few plans with that package but I guess for whatever reason it was not the package for me...or else I would have gotten it right?

Very Tired.  I pretty much broke night doing laundry and packing and chit chatting with Manda.  Bless her heart, she came over to 'spend the night' so that she could take me to the airport at 4am!  Instead she and I got a max of 30 minutes of shut eye before we hurried out the house for JFK.  I was sitting on the plane ready to take off by 5:30am and by 5:35am I was asleep (thanks to my handy dandy eye cover from South Africa Airways and my hoodie).  I probably got a max of 3 hours on the plane and now, after a lunch with Titi Annie consisting of arroz con cangrejo, surrullitos, mofongo balls, surullitos de yuca, pescado, ensalada, flan de queso y cafe (rice with crab, fried corn sticks, plantain balls, fried yuca sticks, fish, salad, cheese custard and coffee)...well I'm pretty much running on fumes.  Now, do I take a nap for an hour and wake up groggy and cranky or do I wait it out and fall asleep for the night at around 10p?  Yo no se Kimosabe, yo no se!