"Duck, Duck... um.... qué?"

Things to do when there is no power at night:
-boil some water (because there's gas)
-take a shower (because there's water) but you have to make sure that you know how to tell shampoo from conditioner bottles in the dark
-turn on some lanterns in the kitchen and go fly hunting (because fly swatters don't require electricity)
-read with a headlamp
-curse the name of Daniel Ortega, who is probably responsible for the fact that you can't wash your clothes
-write a blog until your computer battery runs out
-make hand shadows with a flashlight
-listen to someone play guitar
-taunt neighbors' dogs a safe distance from their fences
-stand on your head

So, there's actually quite a bit you can do for five hours a day when there is no electricity here in Managua. It's not so bad.

In other news, Dane and I have started the first official new program of MPI's Team Nica 07-08! There were already two beginning English classes rolling when we got here, and at one of them, there was a handful of younger kids who hung out during the class, and I think some summer volunteers had worked with them a little to teach some greetings and numbers and "dog" and "cat." Dane worked with them one day and asked if they would rather play games or do more English worksheets, and they nearly unanimously voted for worksheets. Who can deny that kind of enthusiasm? So on Wednesday, we had our first Kids' Beginning English class! We learned greetings and farm animal vocabulary and then played a matching game with a flash card puzzle and did a crossword worksheet. Copying seems to be the main method of teaching in Nicaraguan schools, so getting the kids to try to figure out solutions on their own is a bit of a challenge, but they eagerly grab their crayons (sometimes from each other's vice-like grips) and try real hard. We finished up with a game of Duck, Duck, Goose to cement two of our new vocab words. Sometimes the kids would forget the word "Goose" and ask for help before they tapped their victim on the head, which gave the chaser an unfair advantage, but it was fun. Good things ahead.