Here’s what I happened while I was neglecting my blog:

Halloween:

I had a big ol’ bag of candy special ordered from the states, and boy was it worth it. I’m still nibbling on Reese’s Peanut Butter cups.

My little guy turned 4:

Overall, great time had by all. And yes, there were cupcakes involved.

Sunday stroll:

Took a lovely Sunday stroll with the kiddos at our favorite park. Although no sugar was involved, it ended up being the perfect ending to our day.

The second night that we were in South Florida, I got the chance to sit down and watch the six o’clock news. I was curious to see which of the announcers were still there and how the studio changed (I notice things like that). Well, the studio did get snazzier with sparkly blue background and the announcers were still the same. What bothered me was what was coming out of their mouths.

First, there was the story of this young man who killed his adoptive mother. After he killed her, he called his aunt and said he didn’t know where his mom was and could she help him locate her. This is a woman who stood up for him recently in court because he was facing charges for theft. What is THAT?!

Then, there was the story of a a kid in high school who killed both his parents and then he kept their bodies in a room while he threw a party. Yes, a party. He made the mistake of confiding what he did to his best friend and thank goodness the best friend felt obliged to contact the authorities. Twisted!

What’s strange is that I don’t recall ever seeing similar stories here in Venezuela. I watch the local news in the morning and then CNN International the rest of the day, so it isn’t like I’m avoiding the news. Now, I don’t think that Venezuela doesn’t have its share of violence – it probably even has mentally unstable people like those two gentleman who woke up one day and decide to kill their loved ones. But, they choose not to show it on the news.

I think we have very little control over the information that we are given through mainstream media in general. For instance, I don’t think we see half the gang-related violence that goes on in American urban neighborhoods. So, why must we hear about every little piece of disturbing news out there. How will knowing a little girl who went missing 30 states away was found murdered enhance my knowledge? Or, why do I need to hear about a woman who cut off her husband’s penis and then put it through the garbage disposal? I guess it all depends on the reasons you watch the news, but my goal is to be more informed. These types of news stories only leave me feeling…well, disturbed.

I actually prefer the format of the news here in Venezuela. Yes, it can be biased and highly politicized. But, I don’t have to worry about coverage on the famine in the Horn of Africa being interrupted to announce that a celebrity couple is divorcing.

Am I making sense?

There are very few things that I can say I’ve done my entire life. When I was about 7, I got into gymnastics and was planning on being the next Dominique Dawes. Then when I was 10, I abandoned gymnastics to start playing the violin and was determined to join an orchestra.

I have been watching General Hospital since I was 4 years-old and my grandmother introduced me to Anna and Robert, Luke and Laura, Frisco and Felicia. When I was 8 years-old, my cousin introduced me to Days of Our Lives and the now defunct Santa Barbara. I immediately became attached to Days with its quaint little town of Salem and top crime boss with a funny accent: Stefano Dimera. Every time I’ve lived abroad, soap operas have brought me a sense of home. The fictional characters and places feel like I’m catching up with old friends. The great thing about American daytime soap operas is that they rarely end.

Throughout the years, I have held hour-long conversations with complete strangers about the story lines from my soaps. I remember watching old episodes of Models, Inc. on a 13” black and white TV while studying abroad in France. I wasn’t a fan of the show when it aired in the states, but watching those women live through outrageous story lines was a taste of the familiar. While telenovelas are very popularn here, due to their short duration I can never become a fan. After all, how else are children supposed to become adults in 5 years and how are characters going to come back from dead…several times? In my opinion, telenovela fans are not getting their money’s worth.

Below is a video of the best weddings on General Hospital. You may see the same people getting married more than once, but don’t worry – that might be their evil twin

You can find today’s post at Go Overseas. In it, I answer the question “What has being an expat taught you about America.” Let me know what you think.

After 3 years of begging, we finally gave in and bought our daughter a Nintendo DS. I don’t have anything against video games in general; I just think a 4 year-old has better ways to occupy his/her time. Now that she’s 7 and going into the 3rd grade, I figured we could introduce her to the pastime. Of course she was ecstatic about her new toy and was on her best behavior to earn play time.

The first few times that she was playing Super Mario Bros., my two year-old stood by looking at this strange little contraption that Sissy kept thumbing. Pretty soon he realized that all those thumb movements made the little guy walk, run and jump. In no time, he began saying “Kawol toon” – translation “Kharl’s turn”. I eventually gave into him and let him take a jab. Of course, he didn’t quite grasp how to maneuver like Sissy and basically jumped up and down until his time ran out. I thought it was a small price to pay so that he didn’t feel left out and I told my daughter to let him have a turn periodically.

Fast-forward two months and little bugger has figured out how to play the game – not well – but if you let him at it for a while he can actually make it through some levels. The worst is, the minute he wakes up or I walk in the door I get “Mommy, peez geme” – translation “Mommy, please game”. My mother has declared him an addict, but I’m still in denial. How could a two year-old like this inanimate object so much? I get that it’s pretty neat to have control over this little man on the screen, especially at an age where running in a straight line is impossible, but doesn’t it get old?

Now that I’ve paved my road to hell, I don’t know what to do rectify the problem. If I don’t bring out the game at all (I’ve done that for a week), my daughter is inadvertently punished. I’ve tried to have her play in her room with the door shut, but it doesn’t take long for Sherlock, Jr. to track her down. I’m not giving up though. We may have lost this battle, but…