Back to the Future

As I was preparing to write the May newsletter, I opened up my Mailchimp account and put in my user name and password. A notice came up that said, "It seems that your system clock is set too far into the future."

Huh? What does that mean?

I was scratching my head over it, thinking that if this were the future, "A Million Sticky Kisses" would already be a Nº. 1 Best Seller. Hollywood would have called, and my friend would have sent his tux out to the cleaners so that he could accompany me to all those Oscar parties.

Then I remembered that Chile is in its own time zone which, apparently, doesn't exist. At some point last summer, the government declared that we were not going to move the clocks around any more. We are forever stuck in a Daylight Savings Time warp.

Right now, if we weren't renegades, we'd be at GMT-4, but we are renegades, so we are at GMT-3, which none of my electronic devices recognizes on its own. Therefore, I have to manually set my computer to Buenos Aires time, thrusting myself...too far into the future.

As for the other, a girl can dream, can't she? In the immortal words of Bloody Mary in Rodgers & Hammerstein's South Pacific, "You got to have a dream. If you don't have a dream, how you gonna have a dream come true?"

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~~Sally Rose
Author of Penny Possible & A Million Sticky Kisses
iamsallyrose.com

Beat the Clock

I leave for Chile on Saturday and I am in "end game" mode. In a perfect world, I would have two of everything. One set in Chile and the other in the US. That way, I could just walk out the door with a toothbrush and a flight confirmation.


Alas, that's not my reality, so I am sorting through closets, cabinets, and drawers. Some things will go with me, some not. Some will be thrown out. Others, just stored for next time, whenever that is.

I'm eating down on food, rummaging through the fridge to create meals out of leftovers and frozen food. Asking myself how long flour lasts. Graham cracker crumbs? Should I try to save them or throw them out? Can they be stored in the freezer? Would spices still have any zip in six months if I stuck them in the freezer now?

Then, there are the things I want to bring back with me. I have accumulated so much s...tuff.

Not to mention the copies I ordered of "A Million Sticky Kisses." Worried that they wouldn't arrive in time to go with me, I paid extra for two day shipping. The two days were up on Tuesday. Today's Thursday and I still have no books. Lost in the mail, they say.

I'm running around here with my fingers crossed, playing another round of Beat the Clock, pushing everything right down to the wire, and wondering if taking copies of "Penny Possible" and "A Million Sticky Kisses" will make my suitcase overweight.

Coming Soon

Ever since my first volunteer visits to Chile, I've been threatening to publish a book about my experiences.

That was back in 2009 and 2010. The story was written then and has sat, forlorn, in a computer file until now.

Last September, I returned to the US to publish this book. Little did I realize how long it would take to actually get it done. I was blissfully ignorant of the endless edits, the delays, the waiting. The revisions. I have read and reread the manuscript until I am cross-eyed.

Now, I can see light at the end of the tunnel. I've approved the cover and the final "big" revision is done. "A Million Sticky Kisses" is now being formatted.

It's a good thing, too, because I want to have this book in my suitcase when I board the plane to return to Chile. With less than three weeks to go, I feel like I am playing Beat the Clock.

Coming soon, very soon, "A Million Sticky Kisses," the story of a gringa teacher in Chile.

Best of Both Worlds

I've just spend six months away from Chile, the longest period of time outside the country since moving there in 2011.

At the end of next month, I'll be returning to Santiago. People ask me if I miss it. I'm happy and somewhat relieved to answer, "Yes."

There're my friends, of course, but I also miss other familiar things: my Pilates studio, my manicurist, my hair stylist, my massage therapist, my students. I miss more natural food. I'm ready for an empanada and pastel de choclo, and while traditionally plain, Chilean cuisine is becoming ever more varied and interesting. I'm anxious to investigate all the new bars and restaurants that have opened during my absence, many of which I can walk to.

Heresy for a Texan to admit, but I dislike driving. It's stressful. I miss decent mass transit and plentiful, inexpensive taxis. I miss my barrio, a little gem in the heart of the hustle and bustle.

"I'm a big city girl, but I was born and raised in a small town..." begins my soon-to-be-released book, "A Million Sticky Kisses." With over 6,000,000 residents, Santiago qualifies as a "big city" and my neighborhood reminds me of a "small town." Best of both worlds.

Happy anyway

The following is an except from my upcoming book, A Million Sticky Kisses.

"After school, I was invited to go with the chorus to the annual Christmas concert at a nearby cathedral. Students from each of The Network’s schools participated. My kids were partnered with girls from the adjacent high school.

We left from school in a large van, zigging and zagging down narrow backstreets to arrive at the church just in time. In the 90-degree heat, my clothes clung to me as we hurried the kids inside to find our pews. I left summer temperatures behind as I stepped into the ancient church where it was blessedly cool. The air smelled of candles and furniture wax.

I sat with the mother of one of my students and kept an eye on them. In our chorus were eighteen girls and one lone boy. They were the only ones wearing their “every day” uniforms, the same tired, gray sweatsuits that they wore to school. Choir members from the other schools had on school uniforms, too, but they were cleaner, dressier, and more expensive. White shirts, navy pants for boys and white shirts with navy jumpers for girls. I had never seen my kids in any uniform except the sweatsuit and I wondered if my school might be the poorest in The Network.

Hearing commotion behind me, I turned around to find little girls pushing off one side and sliding to the opposite end of the polished pew. I gave them a look that included an arched eyebrow and they settled down again, giggling.

The concert began, only fifteen minutes late, with "It Came upon a Midnight Clear." I recognized it from the melody, not the lyrics, since it was sung in Spanish. My kids were next. I'd never heard their song before, but it was beautiful with their young voices echoing strong in the vaulted cathedral. They accompanied the song by clapping their hands in flamenco-style rhythm as the youngest girl pinged on a triangle.

Out of the twenty or more songs that were sung, I only recognized five. The rest were traditional Chilean Christmas songs, unknown to me.

After the concert, we were dropped off back at school. It was later than usual when I boarded the Metro to go home. The train car was crowded and, at first, I didn't notice the man who had followed me in..."

Merry Christmas, Happy Hanukkah, Happy Holidays, Happy Whatever-You-Celebrate or even if you don't, Happy anyway.

Checking in

It's been pretty quiet around here lately. I haven't blogged in a long time and I could blame it on laziness, but that's not strictly true. It's more from feeling a bit disillusioned and disappointed.

If you've been reading this blog for awhile, you know that the school in Santiago, Chile, where I volunteered last year was sold. Try as I might, I did not find a new school to volunteer in this year. Rather than sit idle and stew about it, I decided to do something that I'd been talking about doing for a long time.

I returned to the US and have been busy compiling the stories of my first visits to Chile to be a volunteer. My book will soon be published under the title, "A Million Sticky Kisses." It will be available as an ebook as well as a print version.

I will also be publishing a children's book based on the adventures of Penny, a Golden Retriever, who recently "graduated" as a service dog. It will be titled, "Penny Possible" and the proceeds from sales of it will be donated to Warrior Canine Connection. Details will be posted here once these books are ready for purchase.

Ironically, just after I'd bought my airline ticket to return to the US, I was introduced to a friend-of-a-friend who is director of a school in Chile. I visited there before I left and I think it might be a volunteer possibility for next year. Time, that pesky enemy of the impatient, will tell.