as the months go by

I go online so rarely now, that it is kind of overwhelming when I get the chance. This is part of the reason my updates are so infrequent and rather scatteredly written when they do occur.
Anyway, I am now well settled into my community. I moved into my own house about 3 weeks ago, and the new found sense of privacy is wonderful. Last week I started planting my first ever garden, and acquired a 2 month old puppy. The weather is finally changing and we are entering fall. It’s a welcome change from the heat, although I frequently find myself cold at night and yet sweaty during the day. My little house is very simple although I now have a few luxuries such as a refrigerator and a table. I still don’t have a stove, so I have been doing most of my cooking on a brazero… kind of a little barbeque or by building a camp fire under the thatched roof structure outside my house. Several things, such as a shower, a latrine, and a sink, are still missing from my house, but tranquilo, Ill get around to building those things eventually.
I have several photos on facebook, most of them involve me making the fence to my garden, of which I am very proud. Here is a link if your are interested:

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?fbid=529484646586&id=22500047&aid=2038478&l=75cf2c3064

My Spanish is much better now. I can really communicate with people as long as we stay on subject that I have vocabulary for. My Gurani, on the other hand, has not really advanced at all. I can pick out a word here or there, but I don’t speak myself.
My parents are in the Middle East right now, in Oman. My mother got a Fulbright scholarship (que guapa!-“How hardworking!” in Paraguayan Spanish), and I have decided to take some vacation time and go visit them. I am leaving Paraguay on May 1st and returning May 14th. While it seem a little crazy to leave one obscure, beautiful country to go visit another obscure, beautiful country, I am glad I have such an opportunity. How many layers of culture shock can I experience at once?
I am successfully getting letters at my local address, in the near by town. But every so often, a letter addressed there still ends up being routed to the Peace Corps Office in the capital.
If you feel like writing me a letter, or sending me a package the best address to send it to is:
Fiona Martin,
Cuerpo de Paz
Punta Suerte, Santani
Codigo Postal: 8210
Paraguay, South America
Have a wonderful spring! Ill be thinking about you all as I head into autumn down here in Paraguay!