Not really, but close: it's my birthday. YAY! I meant to write this post much earlier, but decided to wait until the actual date (16th) and also I didn't have my photos from a recent trip I wanted to show.

On Saturday I had the opportunity to share an entire day with kids from Darién, the biggest province in my country, which also happens to be the poorest due to lack of roads and a high percentage of indigenous groups who live off of fishing, hunting and agriculture. Kids living in this part of the country get it rough with lack of proper aqueducts for potable water, muddy roads and lack of commercial places to buy clothing or shoes. Most kids are lucky to graduate from grade school, let alone high school because as soon as they graduate they start to try and get jobs wiping shoes or windshields for money to support their families. Some kids even have to stay at school and sleep there through the week because of heavy rain and dangerous animals.

I got involved randomly after going to college on the wrong day (I seriously thought it was Thursday and not Wednesday!) and indulging in a conversation with friends from a class I had last semester. A person came into the room asking if anyone was interested in completing community labor hours this Saturday. "It involves kids from Darién and a trip through the city" - she said. The hours were a prerequisite for graduation and I was already looking for this opportunity, so I took it.

Little did I know that the trip involved waiting for the kids at a local Hossana church at 9:00pm; yeah, when I'm usually sleeping on a Saturday? And then being assigned two boys to take care of until the day ends. That's when I met Diuliyo and Justino, two 15-year olds coursing 3rd year junior high. At first they wouldn't talk at all, and even though I tried to get conversation out of them, it was difficult. We quickly got on the bus towards the Panama Canal Administration Building in Curundu district. We had some time to chill and by the time we got to our first stop at least Diuliyo was smiling and talking to me; Justino on the other hand was sort of a loner, sitting all by himself and frequently getting out of my sight on purpose. The kids got to eat and then go up the steps in the Administration Building in a scorching 32° heat! Crazy swabbies, those kids... :)

During our time immediately after eating I took out my Nintendo DS which I didn't even remembered bringing with me, and handed it to Diuliyo with Mario Kart in it. He was hesitant at first, but after a while was driving quite decently. Here's the pic!

The rest of the trip involved going to the Miraflores Locks at the Panama Canal to watch a boat passing through the locks from start to finish, at which point we left for the Smithsonian Museum at the Gaylard Cut in the Coastway where the kids learned a bit about the fauna and flora that surrounds the coasts of our Country as well as how submarines work. We finally ended the tour at a local restaurant where the whole group got dinner and the kids got new clothes and school supplies donated by the Fundación No Te Rindas (Never Give Up Foundation) which organized the trip and accompanied us throughout the day.

Overall I felt a little bad about not going out to party any day this weekend, but I guess it feels good to do good every once in a while, and I know I'll never forget Diuliyo or Justino, no matter how quiet they were.

On a different note, the teaser for my latest project is already up and you can check it here. I wanted my b-day to be more symbolic this year, since this is something I've been cooking up for a long time. It'll kick major ass. I promise.

Finally, here's the list of kickass music I've been listening to the last week:

1. Men, Women & Children - dance on my blood
2. Head Automatica - beating heart baby
3. Superbus - radio song
4. PANIC! at the Disco - camisado
5. Billy Talent - pins and needles
6. Henry Mancini - Pink Panther's theme
7. The Slip - even rats (live)
8. Foo Fighters - next year
9. Bush - inflatable
10. Nirvana - something in the way