At the Bakery

Wednesday, January 19, 2011

4:48 PM

Sitting at the bakery eating a papaya salad and a fresh coconut shake in hopes that I can eat them without upsetting my stomach. They’re both quite good, but I think I’m eating too quickly, so I thought I’d take a break and write. Diana and Mark pulled up on a motorcycle as I was waiting for my food, and Diana immediately started asking about my well-being. She’s worried about me and offered to do some Foot Reflexology or Reiki to help me adjust to the climate here a little better. I’ll be SURE to write about that if I decide to let her help me.

All of the volunteers were incredibly kind to me today—in fact they’re the ones that suggested I leave the home early to get some rest. NZ Paul kept checking on me to make sure I was drinking plenty of water, and even gave me a pack of electrolyte powder to mix in with my water. He thinks that my body is adjusting to the climate change, and that I’m probably dehydrated. I think that’s probably part of it….that and lack of sleep, and food that I’m not used to.

I couldn’t bring myself to eat anything at the home today. Just the smell of the food made me sick to my stomach. They have pretty much the same meal for breakfast, lunch, and dinner every single day—rice with some kind of boiled vegetable or mixed vegetables, tofu, and something that they call “protein sponge.” It didn’t bother me the first day of eating it—remember my “This is what I do now” mantra—but because my stomach got so upset after eating last night, I wonder how long it will take to bring myself to eat it again. Hopefully not long because, despite cheap food prices, I can’t afford to spend three to five dollars a day just to eat.