Yesterday, Addison and I went to put a tree out of its misery. We needed a couple of good size trees to use as a supporting frame for when we begin the drilling process. Addison had already begun chopping a tree that met our qualifications. It also happened to be the one of the prettiest I have seen in Bolivia. Within a few minutes, the tree lay on the ground and we proceeded to chop it into manageable pieces. I noticed an ant, probably the size of a baby seal, scurrying around Addison´s foot, who by the way was wearing chacos and shorts. We knew immediately what it was and decided we needed a break and would resume at 5 pm in the afternoon. This was around 9 am. This was the first buna that we had seen, an insect which we have heard horror stories about. A bite from its mouth has been known to make women grow beards and men slip into seclusion for months. Ok. Maybe not that extreme but rumor has it they are extremely painful and may cause a fever.

      Early mornings are always crazy in Ixiamas. No one needs an alarm clock. The question of each day is ¨what sound will I wake up to today?¨ Machetes whacking? Dogs dying painful deaths? Children screaming ¨Hermano! Hermano!¨? This morning I awoke to something I have yet to experience. I was convinced for a while I was dreaming the sound, but alas I was not. The pastor had been up since 4. Sometime around 5 he began to play creepy sounding keyboard music which lead me to believe I was living in some haunted hostel or something. I later discovered that the reason he was up so early was that around 4, a group of pigs had gotten into the rice that we harvested last weekend and he had chased them off.

   I dont know where Addison is right now. He walked by the internet cafe a few minutes ago, mumbled something really fast, and left. The motorcycle is broken again and he is wandering back and forth across town trying to get the necessary parts and a mechanic to repair it.

Just an ordinary day in Ixiamas,

Jarred