It's hard to explain what it feels like to want personal space from mosquitos. People generally understand the idea...even dogs can sense when you're not up for playing, but mosquitos are the newest annoying tagalong species in my daily life. First thing in the morning, they swarm and chomp down on my sleepy sweaty skin on the way up to Lucy's house, then gorge themselves throughout the day while I work in the sun or shade or even indoors, and at night, when I am tired, fed, and retired to the porch with my book and a glass of vino, they sense their opportunity to feast upon a vulnerable walking buffet, and after ten minutes of frantic slapping and swatting and scratching, I finally concede defeat, breathless and covered in welts. 

I do not like the buggers.

Moving on. Hello from Akumal! Ranch life is picking up a bit, and I've got a nice rhythm and routine to my days now. I spent most of yesterday deconstructing Lucy's compost bin...which had been shoddily erected by a previous WWOOFer using rotted wooden planks and rusty wire. I built two new ones with concrete and cinder blocks and moved the compost to them, then mixed it with the manure from the horse corral. Sweaty work, but ultimately rewarding, since now Lucy has a rich and nutrient-laden mound of dirt to pull from when she wants to plant new seeds. 

Simon, my fellow WWOOFer from Ireland, has been my main company for the last ten days while his sister Elaine (also a worker) went back to Europe for a few meetings. However, life got really interesting yesterday when Lucy announced she'd forgotten that we were getting a new worker that very same day. Misty arrived, covered in tattoos and scars with tattooed raised eyebrows and a tongue ring. She's from Seattle and has a lot of experience with forestry and horses, and despite our first physical impression of her, she's turned out to be really down to earth. It's nice to have another girl here from the States, especially one that is as young, transient, and stick-out-like-a-sore-thumb looking as me. Hey, if I'm not going to "blend" in Mexico, at least there's safety in numbers, right?   :)

Que mas... Tomorrow I'm working in Lucy's restaurant across the highway on the beach in Akumal proper.... which we've dubbed Gringostan, as it is populated mostly by vacationers from Canada and the States that all walk around scratching their pale, pasty heads and saying things like "Boy, that beach was sandy."

This weekend I'm heading to Tulum with Misty and Simon and Elaine to stay at a super cheap hostel and go salsa dancing... Finally! After all the contra and waltz I'd been doing in Asheville for the last few months, this two week hiatus feels like a million years. At least I'm still using my legs to bike the 2.5 miles into town and 2.5 miles back every day.

Okie doke. I think that's all I have to report for now. More to come as things unfold. Love to you all and an early Merry Christmas, Happy Hanukkah, Winter Solstice, and Feliz Navidad tambien!