Occupational Hazards

A while back, Simeon and I were discussing machetes as we were walking out of the forest together. He asked me where I got mine, and I said that I got it in the US before we left. I made some comment about how it was actually a bit difficult to find a machete in the US, since not many people have them. He seemed perplexed. “People in the US do not have machetes?” he wondered. “Well, then, what do they use?” Obviously, life in the US is difficult for Nicaraguans to imagine!

At any rate, I’ve been keeping busy since Rob is gone. I went out into the forest on Saturday and Sunday. On Sunday I was all proud of myself because I went and found the North Group, which was strangely silent, even though it was tempting to head straight for the South Group, which was making a lot of noise. The day was fairly decent, though towards the end, there was some confusion as I think I got mixed up in an encounter with a different group—the North-North Group or something like that. They appeared to be going off into a thin corridor of trees along an abandoned field. I wanted to see where they went, and as I was trying to squeeze myself through a barbed wire fence, a bug flew into my ear. That wouldn’t have been a huge deal, except that the bug seemed to be stuck. The bug was freaking out, so it started buzzing and flapping around. That was incredibly painful. So I start screaming and trying to get it out, at which point, I impaled my pant leg on the barbed wire. There I am, with a buzzing flapping insect in my ear, impaled on barbed wire, screaming bloody murder, and all I can think of is that this thing is going to burst my eardrum. Its amazing how in a few seconds your mind can process so much. I became intently aware how far up the volcano I was (and hence, how long it would take me to get down) and also how long it would take to get to the hospital if I was even able to drag myself back to the Hacienda. Then, just like that, the bug found its way out. I untangled myself from the barbed wire and stood there panting a moment. That’s when I decided to call it a day. On my way down the volcano, I tripped and fell—landing on my “bad” hip (the same hip that prevented me from running the Chicago Marathon in 2002).

I was all set to go out and find the North Group again today, but when I woke up, my eye was all red, swollen, and watery again. Another eye infection. I do recall walking through several spiderwebs yesterday, but everything had seemed fine. I guess the extended-wear contacts in a tropical climate are not the best idea. I might have tried to go out anyway, despite my compromised vision, but there were several other strikes against me. I have a Mystery Sting on my left hand, which now is a bit swollen, plus my hip hurts more than I want to admit. Hopefully a little bit of rest will get me back to normal in no time. Until later then.