Last night was a true milestone for me here in Costa Rica. Let me start off by saying that this has been a frustrating past few days, and last night was a big part of what I needed to relax and stay focused.

Last night, on her request, I snuck away as Dena was getting Micaiah ready for bed and took a taxi downtown. I walked amongst the crowd, weaving in and out of the Ticos who were out for a leisurely stroll down the national boulevard and then as the crowd parted, almost as clouds to reveal a beautifully sunset, I saw what I had come to see. Wendy's. My lady in red!

With a small in my heart and a growl in my belly I ordered my regular: 2 Jr Bacon Cheeseburgers, large fry, medium coke and a frosty... oh sweet glorious forsty!

If it hadn't been for the guy with the lotto tickets outside screaming at my to buy his product, I could have been back home in Yarmouth, hanging with the Landers after youth group.

I was grateful for the nostalgia and after licking the foil my hamburgers came on to be sure I left no cheese behind, I headed back into the street. After walking a few more minutes I turned into the large department store se llama "Universal". It hit me like a slap in the face with a ttwelve pound Tuna. I had to stand adjusting my hearing aid for a minute, (only one as the other one is broken) because I was sure that I heard something that just couldn't be. But as I strained to hear over screaming children and frantic customers, I realized my sub-par ears were in fact not playing tricks on my, I was hearing Christmas carols. My fears were confirmed after turning a corner and seeing 1/4 of the lower floor taken up by Christmas decorations. Dancing Santas, fake tress and oh yes, the ultimate symbol that Christmas is upon us. I saw a store clerk giving a demonstration of TMX Elmo. If it would not have been culturally incorrect, I'd have thrown my arms up and ran from the store screaming about the upcoming apocalypse, but instead I purchased a small toy for Micaiah (dump truck ...argh argh argh) and walked quickly back to the taxi... ok, so I stopped at Wendy's and got another frosty on my way out, but so what!

So that was my evening.

On another note, you can all be praying for me. As I mentioned above my hearing aids have begun to surrender to the climate of Costa Rica and have virtually been destroyed by the constant humidity and rain. This week I am actually only using 1 aid as the other is being repaired, and even the one I have works only sporadically. As you can imagine, this does not lend itself well to language learning. So I have applied to various areas for assistance in purchasing water resistant hearing aids. This will require approx. $3,000 in aid, so please start praying! For now I am doing my best trying to not let this setback keep me from advancing in my language learning, but believe me... it's difficult!