I am currently enjoying a two week break here in the United States with my family. Unfortunately, I have had plenty of work to do, but the change of scenery has been nice. Here is an extremely scientific list of things I have missed while in Honduras:
1. American football: I went to the Ravens game in Baltimore against the Giants (the atmosphere was electric), and their away game against the Bengals (pretty subdued). I would have been able to go their playoff game against the Colts and see Ray Lewis's final home game had the NFL scheduled the Ravens game for Saturday, but instead the NFL put forth the most boring playoff game of all time, the Bengals vs Texans, on Saturday. The Ravens game will of course kickoff during my flight, but I should be able to catch the second half. You know, if there is power. Which there won't be because its Sunday in Honduras. Fuck. Note: I actually did realize this just now as I was writing. Damn you Roger Goodell.
2. Hot Showers: Yeah, they are awesome. And now I don't smell or look like Phillip Seymour Hoffman in Along Came Polly.
3. I have a car: As an avid proponent of the benefits of public transportation, it mildly pains me to include this on the list. And if I lived in a safe city that had a wonderful metro system, I probably wouldn't care about my lack of automobile (aka Madrid 2010), but I live in a rural town that only has a bus system. And these buses are considered the place to be if its past 8pm and you are looking to get robbed or murdered (one of my favorite students had an uncle murdered immediately after he got off one of these buses). But getting beaten or killed isn't my thing, so yeah, I really like having my new car that my parents generously bought me.
4. Movies: I am a film buff, cinema nerd, movie geek, or whatever the hell you want to call it. But in Honduras, I am movie starved. Without a local theatre or adequate transport (see #3), it is very difficult for me to see recently released films. And art house theatres don't exist. But at home I've gorged on a number of cinematic delicacies, including Life of Pi (Ang Lee is the world's most versatile director), Silver Linings Playbook (didn't know Robert DeNiro remembered how to act, didn't know Bradley Cooper could act at all), and Lincoln (intellectually intriguing, deeply moving, probably the film of the year).
5. Better Toilets: It's nice not to take a shit next to a wastebasket full of toilet paper stained with, well, your shit.
6. My family: Because they are nice, and I love them.
