I'm not sure why I really thought I was cut out for living alone. I like being alone about half as much as I like being with other people. It may be a gamble finding a compatible compañero de casa, but it's one I am more than willing to take. Now it is just a matter of shopping around town for an available bedroom. Puente Geníl is not craigslist-savvy, and why would it be? It is a waste of time looking for a flat behind the mask of the Internet, when one can take it to the streets. I have spent the past weekend hunting down people who are rumored to have an open room. One such rumor is that there are a pair of English girls, who teach at a local language school, that have an open room. Without the faintest idea of either of these girls' names, I swept into the language school dropped my name and phone number with the school's secretary, pleading with her to pass it along. She cringed, I'm sure from the pungent smell of my desperation. As of now, these English girls are my only lead.
In other news, I will not be granted an ATM card from my bank, Caja Sur, until I have my foreigner's card (the acquisition of which is a nightmare not worth detailing), which will not be ready until December. Withdrawing and depositing money has become a long, drawn out affair, comparable to being held captive at the DMV on a late afternoon the Friday before a holiday weekend. I have been to the bank three times in the last five days. This has taken its toll on me, eroding at my sense of self, and at times I have felt unable to feel any joy for hours on end. During a particularly worrisome Skype chat with my mom, she ultimately suggested a short-term dosage of antidepressants. Refusing to take her seriously, I immediately resolved to stay as far away from Caja Sur as I possibly can. Since then, things have been better.
School is my favorite part of the day, the best time of the week. As of now, I prefer Monday mornings to Friday afternoons. The students are wonderful, even when they are total hyenas and refuse to let class move forward. I do hate to reject their friend requests on facebook and tuentí (another social networking site, very popular in Spain), both because I want to be liked and because I want to see their pictures, and read their walls. I constantly have to remind myself that this behavior would be considered inappropriate.
I have been bringing in music to class, such as Halloween-themed anthems at the end of October, and Beatles songs to accompany their History of Rock & Roll lesson, and have gotten some valuable feedback. The students unanimously prefer Justin Beiber (well, the girls, anyway), Katy Perry (kids erupt into California Gurlz whenever I mention my home state, or when pointed to on a map in a Geography lesson), and several boys have stopped me in the hallways to suggest I bring in some Simple Plan next time.
It's hard for me to be patient these days, because I so look forward to the end of December when Brendan will come to visit! I have been slowly crafting plans to venture around other parts of Andalucía, Portugal, and France while he's here. I can't wait.
