Observations by Ryan (aka, "People Watching")

I have spent my past week in Canoa, a small beach town in Ecuador. Here I have had plenty of time to do...absolutely nothing. I don't mean to say that I have had no time but rather to say that there is absolutely nothing to do with the time that I have which is exactly why I chose this place to spend my Christmas vacation. You might think that sounds a little strange, but when I have nothing to do at all I can devote plenty of time to three of my favorite things. Thinking, reading, and observing. So when I sat down to write a blog my three options were, "Philosophy of Life by Ryan," "Book Reviews by Ryan," or "Observations by Ryan (aka, "People Watching"). Trust me, you should be glad that this one came out as the winner. Anyway, everyone who knows me well knows that people watching is one of my favorite pastimes. Airports, bars, sporting events, Wal-Mart, etc., etc., etc. You name the place and I will tell you that people watching is most certainly an option for passing the time. 

I decided the best way to write this would be simply to profile some of my favorite specimens. Okay, so I'm not exactly Charles Darwin but you get the picture. I have to warn you, these are a little bit cynical (okay, a lot cynical) and a little bit exaggerated (okay, a lot exaggerated) but hey, what fun would people watching be if you didn't get to work in a little bit of your own creativity? Anyway, my hope is not to offend anyone because who knows, maybe you are one of these people? My hope is simply to entertain myself, and hopefully others too, with this caricature of the personalities that I've been observing over the last few days. I am not trying to pass judgment and these descriptions do not represent any one person in particular. Rather, they are archetypes of characters that we have probably all come into contact with at one time or another. With any luck, you will be nodding your head in agreement as you picture your own encounters with similar people. Enjoy!

Tribal Tattoo Guy
     The Tribal Tattoo Guy is one of the most prominent of the beach town inhabitants. He can be found everywhere from the lazy little beach town to the large coastal city. I would venture to say that 90% of the time this tribal tattoo is located on the shoulder. In rare cases the tattoo may be located on the chest or back. Either way he will very likely have his shirt off as he is walking through town (usually barefoot) so that everyone can view his extremely meaningful tribal tattoo. (**NOTE: Just because the tattoo is extremely meaningful does not mean that Tribal Tattoo Guy will actually be able to explain what it means. Trust him when he says that things of this nature can not always be put into words.) If for some strange reason Tribal Tattoo Guy is wearing a shirt, he can be identified by his hair. It is ALWAYS long and wavy and streaked with blond. There are no exceptions to this rule. 

Surf Lessons Bro
     The Surf Lessons Bro is another easy to spot local. He can usually be found lurking around bars and restaurants that are geared towards tourists. Often he is also Tribal Tattoo Guy. In any case he wants first and foremost to be your best friend. Small talk is a must. Where are you from? What hostel are you staying in? How long will you be here? Have you tried the piña coladas yet? Etc., etc., etc... Then finally: Do you surf? After this he explains to you that he spends all of his time surfing (although he is never actually seen surfing) and that, as your friend, he would love to teach you to surf as well...for a small fee. It's totally worth it though because THIS beach happens to have the best waves in ________(insert country). Fortunately Surf Lessons Bro can be easily escaped as he is easily distracted by food, reggae music, alcoholic beverages, and shiny things. 

Business Gringo
     The business gringo is one of the hardest to spot from a distance as he is the chameleon of the people watching world. One day he may appear in professional attire and the next day he may appear in board shorts and a backwards baseball cap. His wardrobe conveniently matches that of the people he is doing business with. Up close, however, he is easy to identify. His conversations give him away. Within seconds his clients are also his best friends. They will have to excuse his language at times because he has no other way to describe this "f***ing awesome" deal, but it's okay because they are already practically partners. He will likely use phrases that are ambiguous enough to mean nothing and everything all at the same time (i.e., "We're doing this one Rio style," or "Just like California in the 90s"). On a particularly good deal he will pay for lunch. Don't worry; he'll just put it on his tab. 

Divorcée
     Her name is Marge...or Louise...or Loretta. She wears dark sunglasses. She smokes cigarettes (her voice indicates that this is not a new habit). She is almost always from New Jersey. She is not looking to get married again. She hasn't been here long. Just long enough to find a  nice place to stay and invite the kids down. She is good friends with a local taxi driver although she can't remember his name. She doesn't speak the local language but she speaks very loudly and slowly so that the simple locals will surely understand her. Good help is hard for her to find. It's not the easiest life for her but she gets by. She is only as interested in you as you are interested in her. 

Annual Visitor 
     This guy has ALL of the answers. He comes here every year so he knows everything about the area. And he is willing and ready to share all of his valuable information with anyone and everyone that accidentally forgets to avoid eye contact...For example, he can tell you which restaurant serves the best cheeseburgers, which hostel is showing the NFL on TV, which locals speak English, which market has the best selection of "American" food, where to best observe the "strange local traditions" like selling seashells and cooking a whole chicken! Clearly he has really immersed himself in the culture. So when he sits down next to you and starts talking away (despite your obvious lack of interest), consider yourself lucky to be gaining such priceless insight. 

Local Shop Owner
     (**NOTE: This one might be specific to Ecuador but I had to include it!) First of all let it be known that The Local Shop Owner is selling good things and they are absolutely NOT selling good service. Thus, it is a complete inconvenience for them when you walk into their store. And don't even think about asking a question. They are there to collect your money as you silently exit their store, not to engage in conversation. If, however, there is something that you absolutely cannot manage on your own, a battle of wills must ensue. You will politely try to make eye contact or some sort of motion with your hands signaling that you need assistance while they will impolitely ignore you and busy themselves with other important things such as snapping beans into a basket. If you are persistent enough (sometimes this takes several minutes) you just might elicit a head nod, an eye roll, or in rare cases the Ecuadorian mouth point to guide you in the right direction. Victory. you may collect your things, pay your fee, and exit the store. But you better have exact change...
     
So there you have it. That is what I've been doing with my time over the past week. Productive, right? Sure, I left out some of the usual suspects like "The Study Abroad Girls," "The Gringo That Married a Local," and "The Travel Bum," but those can always be amended later. I still have two more weeks here after all!

Passing the Time...

Time in the jungle doesn’t seem to pass by in the same way that time passes in other areas of the world. Especially for someone like me who is accustomed to the steady passing of seasons and changing of weather that happens in the Midwest. Okay, it’s not always so “steady” in Indiana, but I can certainly tell a difference between summer and winter. Not here. I have been here almost three full months now and the only change that I’ve noticed is the daily change in the height of the Napo River; it’s not exactly something that marks the passing of time.

So whether it’s due to that or just due to the nature of the work that I’m doing while I’m here, it is sometimes very hard to think in terms of time. One minute I’m thinking, “It’s December already?!” and the next minute I’m thinking, “It’s only December?!” What makes it even stranger is that no one else around me seems to be that concerned about it. In the U.S. we are constantly surrounded by our “time is money” culture. Anyone who has visited Latin America will tell you that is not the case here. Here time is freedom. Do with it what you want. All of the work will get done…in time. It seems like such a liberating concept that anyone would love the opportunity to have. I’m slowly finding that it’s harder than I thought…

For my whole life I had been used to having a long-term plan; a plan with items next to little boxes that I could check off daily to show myself and everyone else that I was in fact making progress in my life. This mindset gets old. Yes, I was making progress, but towards what I had no idea. So when I arrived here three months ago I came with the understanding that I would have to adapt to a new culture of time and pace. I was eager for the change, and for the first few months I was thriving in my new approach to time. I had time to read the books that had been piling up during four years of college, time to write a blog, time to learn about a new environment, time to get to know my students, and time to take a nap in my hammock. It was great. However, I also have lots of time to think and therein lays the problem… What do I think of when I have time to think? I think about exactly what I have set out not to think of. I think about a plan. What’s next?

Fortunately, this check mark that I’m on currently lasts another seven months. Regardless of what happens I’m here until the end of June when the current school year finishes. What scares me is that at this point I don’t have another little box to check-off on my life plan after this, and I like to plan ahead. Yikes! That hasn’t happened for a long time and I’m realizing that it’s a difficult idea for me to face. So in the last few weeks I’ve been trying to fix it. Listing, searching, writing, planning, weighing pros and cons, researching, studying, etc… Old habits die hard. I can’t help myself. But while I thought I came here to get away from my old habits, maybe what I’m learning is that these habits are just a part of who I am. Maybe no matter what environment I’m thrown into I will always fall back into the same routines because that’s how I’m programmed to be. Is that the worst thing in the world? In all honesty, I don’t have an answer and if I can’t figure it out here then I probably never will. I am constantly reminding myself that for better or worse every experience is an opportunity to learn. Maybe what I am learning is that I can’t change who I am. Maybe I will always be a very programmed and routine driven person. It’s not for everyone, but maybe it is for me.

One excellent piece of advice that I received recently, was that every step that I take in my life does not have to be perfect. As long as it is in a generally positive direction I have nothing to worry about because there is always time for a change. With that mindset, I don’t have to worry about my experiences being right or wrong but only positive or negative. I think of this experience in Ecuador as an example. Maybe I will get to the end of the year and decide that living in the jungle is not what I want to do for the rest of my life and now it’s time to do something else. So what? Have I wasted a year of my life? No. I have gained invaluable experience and decided that this is not what I want to spend my life doing. When I look back on my experiences and choices, there are very few things I can think of that I regret having tried but there are a lot of things that I can think of that I regret having not tried.

So today I’m going to start a new list. A new plan. A new routine. I won’t think of it as a list of “things I have to do” but instead a list of “things I want to try.” This list doesn’t go one step at a time and it doesn’t have an end and instead of guiding the way that I live it will only serve as a reminder of the things I have experienced and learned from. I will still get the satisfaction of marking off boxes without the stress of worrying if I picked the right one. It’s the best of both worlds for me and if nothing else, it gives me another way to pass the time.