time to fly

tonight is my last night in spain. kristen's family took her to the beach, and sam's family had a special dinner for her. my host family left me dinner on a tray and peaced.

please do be jealous.

the apartment is dark and empty. i could very well turn the lights on, but then that wouldn't be as dramatic now would it?

it's been like this all semester, very business-like. for 500E/mo they give me a place to stay and regular meals. i also get unlimited amounts of coffee, free internet at night when i sneak into the computer room, and a desk fan.

by not mixing business with pleasure it makes it easier to leave because there are no attachments to my "family" for the past 6 months. i haven't taken any pics of them, and i probably won't. i don't think they'll remember me, and my memories of them are pretty set, perhaps unjustly so.

there's antonia the doting housewife. cooks, cleans, and laundries. pepe the hardworking insurance salesman husband who sits at the head of the dinner table and skips meals just so he can finish watching the soccer match. he also kills the gynormous cockroaches whilst antonia (and i) sequester ourselves in the bedroom. oh and can't forget pepe jr, who is out "studying" all day...but really who is in the library at 2am and what kind of mother believes that?

there is also nacho, marta, and rosana, but they've moved out years ago. i'm sure they'll fade away soon enough, and i'll remember this family as a trio. there's more depth here, but i never got around to seeing it.

maybe it's a defense mechanism on both our parts? i'm the 13th exchange student they've had. the only other student they've ever referenced is some kid named tim who liked to stumble in late at night and drunk off his ass. i'm not exactly sure what i did to trigger that story and remind them of him.

today the council of international educational exchange threw a goodbye party for all the advanced liberal arts kids. there are some people whom i'll never see again, and that makes me sad. then there are those i know i'll see again, as well as those whom i just don't care about. not even in a negative way, but i can honestly say that i don't think about you aside from when you're physically in my face, and i have to admit to myself that i don't know your name. ok, well maybe there was that one time at the one place and that one funny thing.

and life moves on.

my flight home is tomorrow. see you soon.