False Advertising

I know, I know....I promised a post about my experiences so far in the FS as a singe parent (or, to be more accurate, a single, custodial parent of a school-aged child).  But after some reflection and drafting and editing of a post, I realized that there was no way for me to come out of that without sounding like a whiny brat.  Look, I knew what I was getting myself into when I signed up for this gig, and while it certainly hasn't been easy and I'm sure that folks think I'm anti-social because I didn't go to every happy hour, there is no getting around the fact that the Mini Menace and I are about to embark on a massively exciting adventure.  Whatever my experience has been so far, it's all worth it.  And hey, the fact that domestic help is incredibly affordable (almost embarassingly so) in Nicaragua means that I'll have even less to complain about.

So, many apologies to anyone who might have been expecting an angry screed, but my judgment got the better of me.  Man, sometimes this maturity thing is kind of a drag.

Instead, more Spanish adventures! At orientation, the Spanish section managers told us to expect that the classes would be shuffled around once instructors got a better sense of the students' abilities, so that students at similar levels would be together, etc.  On Monday, I was moved to a new section, which I thought was going to be a good thing, even though I liked my instructor and my classmates.  Why?  I'd already taken two Spanish classes at FSI, so I'd been through at least half of the overall course before, so I was ready to work on new material.  BUT DEAR MOTHER OF GOD!!!!! I am not ready for the section they put me in....one guy (an A-100 classmate and one of the nicest guys on earth) is married to a native Spanish speaker and has been speaking Spanish at home for 20 years.  Um, I've been to Spain twice and can manage to get myself a beer and a meal.  Either FSI has a lot more confidence in my abilities than I do, or they've made a terrible, terrible mistake and just haven't figured it out yet. 

My new instructor might just be the most charming and fascinating man I've ever met, though, so I'll stick around until they kick me out.  Honestly, after fleeing Spain during the Civil War, settling in Latin Am and having to flee another dictatorship, and who knows what else....at 82, this guy has some amazing stories to tell.  If only I spoke enough Spanish to understand what he was saying.....

Oh, and a Mini-Menace update for my family:  he was selected for the all-star soccer team, and won 2nd place at his school's art contest.  He's a regular renaissance menace, that kid.