Gasoline Pajamas

So I guess I'll be using oil paint for some stuff in the rooms, and you have to mix gasoline into it. Which solves the mystery of why Fernando was concerned about my getting gasoline onto the wood finish, but creates a whole new mystery: why is anyone making paint that you have to mix with gasoline? I went to buy some today, but the hardware store, like most stuff in town, closes from 9 am to 6 pm for lunch, which makes it a bit tricky to be a customer.

I had a Spanish lesson today, which was excruciating. I'm surprised I didn't break out in hives or something. Nothing like having a native Spanish speaker "finding out what you know" by speaking to you in advanced Spanish to make you feel real dumb. I could have told you I have no idea what "future future" tense is if you had asked. In Cusco there were two other students, so the spotlight wasn't on me all the time, and we could play off each other. It was way better for me, in fact it was fun. This lesson felt like an hour long test. So I've nixed the idea of paying someone to make me feel like I'm trapped in a steel box with no ventilation, but I might try and find group lessons again once I'm settled in La Paz.

Which may happen someday, but in the meantime Fernando keeps finding more stuff he wants done in the room I'm working on (room 6). Today he decided the balcony needs to be refinished and repainted, and he's already talking about room 4. I said let's wait and see how long it takes me with 6 (I'm anticipating two more weeks for everything at this point, but I'll probably skip out before then. In fact I have to, because I need to get my visa renewed). It might be nice to be here for Christmas though, because there's going to be turkey. So maybe if I take a few days off next week to go to La Paz, I can come back, eat turkey, finish the room, and leave before New Year so wifey can have her precious room back. I was a walking dollar sign in Cusco, but here I'm more like a walking black hole of currency, symbolizing the money that COULD be made if only my waste-of-carbon personality wasn't in the way.