Mikey's Second Blog

This blog is called Mikey's Second Blog because it's the second blog that I have written. It's about the time when I was in Bolivia also, but it has different information than the first blog that I wrote, which was also about the time I was in Bolivia, which is now. My brother told me I should start a blog. So that's what caused the blog to be started. In actuality, the blog was caused by the existence of the medical clinic at which I am currently working for. But enough about blogs.
So, Edith the former coordinator has been gone and I have taken over for her. She is dearly missed, like when a train misses a truck by just a few feet. I am doing an alright job so far, just getting my feet wet. I can speak more Spanish than before, can drive a manual transmissioned car, and have driven patients around the city of Santa Cruz so that they can get to their appointments. Daniel, the son of Dr. Douglas Villarroel (one of the founders of the clinic), says that he likes manual transmissions more than automatic ones because he feels like "I am in control of the car. When I drive an automatic, the car is in control of me." I said, "That's great. Now, can I control the radio for once?!" We had a good laugh about that, until I changed the radio station and he got mad. Then, we pulled over and had a good talk.
My parents were here. They also started the clinic. Their names are Dr. Molitch and Dr. Hou. My friends and neighbors ask me how it feels to have parents with the same first name. I always reply, "That's the least of my problems!". Everyone seemed happy to have them. My dad didn't fall asleep during anything that I'm aware of and my mom got to dress up in a lot of bright colors. I broke a bottle on the road that leads to the clinic. I thought everyone was going to yell at me, but when I was crying they said that it was okay because I was supposed to break it and that people always break bottles of champagne to christen things. That made me feel a whole lot better and have since felt completely comfortable christening just about everything. I even christened a man I met in a bar using a beer bottle. I know it's not the same, but I'm not too picky!
We had a big party for the anniversary of the clinic, celebrating six years. There was dancing and singing of the national anthem and speeches thanking the doctors who started the clinic. It was very nice and sweet. There was an old couple from a town called Warnes that did a cute dance that made me look forward to being an old man some more. The group from a town called Yapacani did a dance using really brightly colored masks that looked like monsters. I like monsters so I was a bit biased towards their dance. Also, there was a soccer tournament in which one of the medical volunteers participated. In fact, her team, the team from Palacios where the clinic is located, won the women's tournament and all the players got to take home watches as prizes.
Oh, that volunteer is new. We're currently the only two volunteers from the States here right now.
Alright, bye.