Things I am used to now.

1. Waking up to the sound of a shot gun, a cattle drive or small low flying airplane. Yes, it is almost rice harvesting season and the farmers have to wake up very early (pre-dawn) and stand in their fields shooing the birds away. My neighbor on the left hits a metal board really hard with a big wooden stick (shot gun sound) and the farmer in the front field takes a large plastic flag-type devise and waves it about (small plane flying) with gusto, walking up and down the paddy! And the next field over I hear "hah," "ohh," or "hee" calls, as if there was a herd moving to pastures. And walking out to my carpool this morning I encountered yet another device. This one was the most clever I thought. The farmer had set up a series of poles around his field, all with a bunch of cans tied to the top of each pole. Then he held a string that when he pulled set all the cans shaking and clanging away. Very little effort and quite effective.

2. Driving my motorbike feels so easy now. I still have no desire to drive on the bypass or in busy gigantic intersections, but I feel more comfortable for sure. For example, I now bike all the way to my house, inspired by a little snake poking its head out of a rice paddy a few weeks ago while I was parking in the dark near my trail. Snakes are something you want to avoid here. I have been walking out to my house every day (1/4 mile) but after that night, well, I changed.  Constantly thinking that a cobra or pit viper was near, has accelerated my learning curve. Now I mostly bike out all the way on the skinny trail between rice paddy drop-offs to my house. No worries. A fatal bite or a few rattled nerves on a trail. Easy decision. Actually I love the walk, so if I have a flashlight I still try and walk. The stars are beautiful, the fire flies incredible, the frogs entertaining and it is relaxing despite the snake worry. And in the daylight I meet and say hello to all sorts of farmers, workers and tourists I see on the trail. The least favorite part on the trail is when you almost have a head-on with another biker coming around a corner or workers carrying large piles of stone on their head. Not that I have done that. Nope. Not me.

3. Not sure if I can ever get used to the heat completely, but it is better. We are now in the dry season again and without the rain clouds dousing us, the sun is brilliant and strong. It is hot. I know that to diminish my heat rash, I need stress less about work and change up the diet with less heat inducing foods (cayenne) and more chilling foods (watermelon). Bringing a Western work style into this climate is silly, as you will rarely see a Balinese working between the hottest afternoon hours. We should all be sitting under a shade tree, fanning ourselves, sipping coconuts and taking naps. But we are slogging through our jobs without AC (not green) and sweating. So I don't feel ashamed when I say how much I enjoy lying around in a hotel room with AC, while watching a mindless movie or two and writing emails. I had a few hours last weekend before we checked out on Sunday. My main choices were to go for a walk, get a massage for my birthday (thanks Teri!) or hang in the room. I chose the room since it was blazing hot out, I can get a massage anytime in Ubud and I can't zone out in AC. My heat rash completely disappears, the mold leaves my clothes and my attitude shifts to calm. I never thought I would be that person but constant humidity and heat will do strange things to you.

Side note: I kept my birthday really under the radar here. We just celebrated the biggest Earth Day event at GS and I didn't want to follow with any major planning or such to celebrate. Had a lovely weekend with a small group of folks and not one knows I turned 35! Ha!  :)