A short note

Thanks for everybody who has been appreciating the blog. I've sort of been settling into the routine of school lately, so things have been a little less exciting. You know the drill. Homework, classes, having to stop our nights at around 3:30 instead of 6:30 in the morning (Kidding Mom and Dad) (To all my friends, not kidding).
So I thought I would give anyone curious a little taste of my daily routine. I wake up in the morning, go downstairs and grab some breakfast, shower, and then head out to my bus. It's the 152 Olivos a Boca Linea that I grab on Suipacha Street. There's so many buses here that they all have their own specific color coding system. It makes it feel like every bus on your line is part of a specific club or something. I have a lot of 152 Line pride. I've also been considering starting a gang war with the 39 bus line, who have been encroaching on our turf lately. As soon as I can I'll definitely put a picture of them up. (Sorry about the pictures, I'm a little flustered and I haven't had time to do the real tourist thing). But anyways, on the bus line, there are three fares, 1.10, 1.20, 1.25. When you get on the bus you just tell the guy which fare you want to pay. I'm still unclear on why anyone chooses the more expensive fares. It must have something to do with distance but it's bizarre because the bus driver has no way of knowing how far you're going. So I just always tell him "peso diez." The other thing that's awesome about the bus is that the guy never really comes to a full stop. You have to furiously wave him down on the street or he just won't pull over for you. Sometimes he pulls over halfway and you have to run out into traffic to get onto the bus. Sometimes the minute you get on he just pulls away. Yesterday because there was a payment line I just had to hang onto the open doors as he sped off down the street. Anyways, I get to class, spend a good long time at the academic center, and then catch a bus home.
Once I got home yesterday I tried to take a jog. Felt nice but kind of a bad idea. The place I had to jog was down an 8 lane street called Libertadores. There are no smog regulations here so every car spews a tailpipe of smoke whenever they take off. I also had to run by the bus depot, where they leave all the old diesel buses idling all day. I get back from the jog, shower, get fed my daily dinner of some massive meat dish with no vegetables or salad. (Last night it was flank steak roasted in the oven with potatoes). It's like a 6 year old's dream. Then I usually spend 30 minutes arguing with my host-mother about something. Last night it was religion. She believes in God, none of her real sons do, and I tried to explain to her that I don't either. She knows I'm Jewish and Catholic and kept asking me which side did I feel more pulled to. I finally acquiesced and said Catholic, but that the Jewish ceremonies were a lot more fun (sorry Ma).
After my host mom and I have gotten in some bizarre conversation I have to take a nap to recharge the batteries. Sometime around 11, once all the homework is done, we may go out for a little. Last night we got drinks for a friend's 21st birthday. The scene is crazy but you never miss anything if you head home a little early, like 4 or so. Still gives me plenty of time to sleep and be chipper for class in the morning. Once the homework gets heavier I doubt I'll be able to keep that schedule up, but as of now it's been just fine.
One more note; It's really hot here. Like 90 degrees every day. Right now it's 82, but with humidity it feels like 88 (I didn't just ballpark that, it's an official weather.com statistic). And there's just no air conditioning, at least not at the spots I've been hanging out at. Our room is like a sauna. We have one rotating fan, and you guys all know how that is. 10 seconds of sweating, 3 seconds of a little relief from the heat, and then another 10 seconds of sweating, repeated all night. I can't complain though, I'm sure it's better than the New York winter. Hopefully this weekend I'll get to do a little sightseeing, get to take a couple pictures, maybe get to fill you in on something more important than my schedule. Until then.

Alex