Mutha Effa and a Fandango Mango

I broke my toe! Really nothing else to say. It just sucks the big weiner. It’s like having a cold – you’re a wimp to moan and groan about it, it’s not enough to keep you home from work, but…you feel like shy-eete.

The day started perfectly. Daniel, my Nico friend, arrived for English class, by way of walking to the beach for outdoor vocabulary, at nine. The walk was great, a few hills for the tush, not too hot, Daniel’s a great student. The walk takes you to the beach the back way along dirt roads (watch out for snakes near the swampy part). There’s two spots where the jungle opens in order to take in the view of the ocean down below. The pain in the butt is worth the buena vista. The jungle covers you for the remainder of the trek and then poof and opening to the beach appears. We emerged, sun shining, still not too hot, this is where the shoes come off. All was peaceful, Daniel had many new words to add to his notebook, and then about half way down the beach…CRACK! My toe against a rock. Like all stubs the initial shock and funny-bone like pain buckled me over for a sec. The difference is that the laugh that comes with a funny bone bump never came. Instead came more pain and a purple hue over my digit.

It really shouldn’t matter. I mean, I’ve got 9 more. But, as the day goes on I’m sure that this is going to cramp my dancing style for a while. Can you say …wahhhhhhhhh. Not to mention that we were supposed to go to Playa La Mancha tomorrow. It’s a secluded beach that requires a hike. Wahhhhhhhhhh!

Part 2 - Fandango Mango
So, I got me a mango. It’s ripeness couldn’t haven’t been more perfect. Instantly I knew it was going to be the perfect addition to a lovely day (sans the toe incident). First of all it was nice to be sitting, eating without emails ringing up in front of me, without the phone beeping and without the pressure of being late for my next meeting.

Then, with the first bite, it DID get more perfect. Instantaneously, I was brought back to a summer day at Titi’s house a long time ago. Lee was just a babe, still is a babe, sitting in one of those must-have jiggly baby seats on the counter. I could see his hands clearly – round and pudgy like little finger foods great for dipping, his bracelet stuck in his cute baby creases – holding on so tightly, juice running from wrist to shoulder, to a mango. How nice it was to have such sweetness in my mind and on the plate in front of me. The only piece missing was the fantastic mango corer that my bro Eric got for me. What a great invention! Gets you in to the treat that much quicker and with half the mess. I recommend it as a great stocking stuffer for a loved one.

Moral of today’s story is about balance. “You take the good, you take the bad, you take them both and there you have the facts of life…the facts of life” C’mon you know you wanna sing it with me...

Entonces, tengo nueve mas dedos, un mango y una memoria bonita de mi Leebo. (So, I have 9 more toes, a mango and a beautiful memory of my Lee). Good day to me.