Sunday, June 29, 2014

Day #8: First day of Data Collection!!

Yay saw so much………………..except capuchins -_-

Friaje is over, very quick, thank god cause I only have a sweatshirt ……so I was wearing two pants and 4 shirts THEN the sweatshirt and was still cold. Needless to say wasn’t surprised when I was coughing in the morning, sore throat, and yep diarrhea. Popped a cortisone which means no malaria medicine (can’t be taken with antibiotics) but apparently there’s no threat -_- Late information is always fun.

Breakfast was two pancakes………..or really just thick crepes lol. Smeared a tiny bit of strawberry jam on it, but eh it was getting gross at the end haha. Headed out with no camera …or glasses today, which the camera is fine cause I needed to focus on data collection, the glasses just make me blind. Thankfully, not walking into tree blind.

SO headed up trail 19, to 25, then 24, down 10, up 22, and hit 1 right under the airfield…………..ZILCH!

Walk out on to 1 and I hear squirrel monkey calls and oh look a nice troop jumping slowly on through so I hung with them for about 10 minutes. Headed up to the airfield……ran into the same troop lol and heard capuchin calls GREAT! Bush wack through the forest and oh look a tangle of vines with no way through -_- Really should’ve just jumped on in to be honest.

Found Titi monkeys eyeing me in the airfield and hung out with them for ten minutes, but then nothing else. Ran into Seamus on the way back down 1 and we talked about our morning hikes. Continued on found more Titis….great. Then went up 10 again to try again, but was behind these two girls moving WAY too slow to find capuchins. Capuchins are loud, like you’ll here them before they hear you and I don’t mean run through the forest but you don’t need to creep, maybe for tamarins but not capuchins. Anyway, I spotted some creature up a tree digging out the bark but I couldn’t tell what it was, people think either another kuwati or a species of ant eater that can climb.

Anyway I pack it in for lunch and try DESPERATELY to download more books. I’m dumb and forgot to buy them before I left haha……It was a lot of troubleshoot, re enter information, re install ugh! Which on pretty much zilch internet means like hours to come up with nothing xD I definitely glared at the person on facebook killing the internet.

So far for the year I’ve read 8 books as of now. 4 for school, but The Tings They Carried, Into the Wild, Beloved, The Beautiful Things That Heaven Bears, Hunger Games, Catching Fire, Graceling, and Matched. I did get two new books to download so yay!

Anyway lunch was fun, would you believe it chicken noodle soup haha with big bow tie pasta. Then like grilled chicken or seared chicken I dunno definite like diet cookbook looking chicken, with rice of course, and a vegetable medley of broccoli, carrots, and green beans. No sauce…..sad.

*side note: this is how desperate people are for energy. Yesterday with the lentil lunch this complete ‘Murica Midwest guy sits across me and drizzles ketchup all over it. Which I’ve seen that and mayo so I’m like “oh I’ve heard from people that’s good, but I haven’t tried it” he just laughs and goes “I just do it for extra calories” ….yup.

Back on track, umm we got watermelon for dessert can you say YUUUUUM! We each got two piece yay!

Got ready to go back out and we found Titi monkeys outside our dorm. One attemped to fly as it jumped a pretty precarious distance from one tree to the next it scared us. Looked like it fall right on me but it grabbed the TINIEST branch and scurried up. There was a total of like 6. One was right in front of me eating away at a fruit bigger than itself so I got good pictures which made me happy J Anyway headed out on 10  and planned another long hike. Heard some creature tearing away at bark again, near the ground this time, but I couldn’t get a good visual of it anywhere. Continued on and found Saki monkeys yay……..they totally made capuchin sounds so excitement for nothing. Sakis are cool, any monkey is cool, but I need capuchins!!

Last week they were all around the area I was checking, but according to everyone else‘s sighting they were up higher so I have a LONG hike tomorrow morning. The afternoon hike I cut short I was just tired. As of 6:04 PMI have walked 9.56 miles.

When I got back, there was a soccer game going on which was fun to watch and take pictures. It’s still pretty cool out which has been refreshing, but I’m looking forward to not freezing to death again at night haha! I also have books YAY!

Unusually short blog I guess today, waiting for dinner and right after is lecture. Seamus has Wolf of wall street on his laptop so we may hook it up to the projector in the classroom and watch it, two parts of course haha.

Showers are a no go as of now because the water is below freezing in the pipes. Thankfully, it isn’t raining tonight which meant I could do laundry. Thank GOD cause that laundry back was smelling like something died. I checked to make sure nothing wandered in and suffocated from the stench, but it was clear. Again I have no minutes on this local phone and there’s no way to recharge it. So mom and dad, you’ll get quick calls tonight and then every few days so as not to rack up a huge bill, if possible. I’m sad this entry is so short, and I mean I saw a good amount of stuff, but it was not what I was looking or hoping for :/ a week for data collection is NOTHING, hence why people are here for their 4th year still researching J But I love it, everything about it, even promising Gideon that if I see a capuchin poop I’ll grab it for him.
Listening to Gideon talk about his tamarins is hilarious though. They are tagged with beads so each has a unique code so one of the girls was like “I saw a copulation with GBL today” and Gideon just sits up “With who with who” like an utter gossip session it’s very amusing to listen to J

Anyway that’s about it for me, no further injuries or anything as of yet and I’m taking care of the cold before it gets too bad. Which means I should be smart and wearing a sweatshirt right now :D

Lessons learned:

#1: Insulation is fun…….so are windows that close.

#2: Cookies are put out, in few amounts, with the saltines before breakfast and lunch. My stash is ever growing MUHAHAHAHA

#3: Always bring winter hats and sweats and such for the friajes which USUALLY last a few days…….I got lucky…..for now J

I can’t think of anything else off the top of my head aside from those L My computer was dead this morning so I couldn’t write throughout the day to make sure I don’t forget. You should all know I have a field book of every single sighting I have witnessed and where I’ll keep my data which I’ll also post here as well….when I have any -_-

We are all collaborating data and keeping eyes out for each persons monkeys so that’s good. I’m not worried J Capuchins are the most popular here and are of “least concern” of the fancy shmancy endangered list.

The teacher handed back our proposals so I’m going to go look that over now :) 

My sweatshirt is damp L It’s all I have don’t roll your eyes, it’s better than nothing! Haha

Also, I'm sure everyone’s assuming I’ll lose so much weight. I’m not really lol I’ve measured my “waist” really where my belly button is, waist is about an inch above the belly button. It lowered while in Puerto significantly  and after my first full day here where I walked 10 miles it jumped back up. Figured it was Aunt Erma but she’s a no show, people say it’s muscle mass but I doubt it. I CAN say that my pants were a bit tight at the top of my thighs and they are now looser and more comfortable and I had to tighten my watch and fitbit cause I guess my wrists shrunk. So who knows xD I’m starving hours before our meals I haven’t even been eating protein bars recently and like zero cookies, honestly. Should be drinking more water but maybe it’s just me that doesn’t see it xD We’ll find out when I get home


Yum yum dinner is soon, speaking of starving hours before meals I’ve been listening to my stomach scream at me for the past hour and a half…..need fooooood xD
And it is......*drumroll* OMG.......chicken noodle soup to start :) I moth landed on my cheek as I was eating :( Mmmmm rice with that quinoa ....red sauce ....thing......it's good at least :D

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