a resignation

Perhaps you have heard by now, but I gave my notice of resignation as ACM at CASA yesterday. I am slightly heartbroken at the decision I have had to make, but after a lot of thought I decided that it's the right one. I am trying to remain positive and reflect upon the extraordinary experiences that this opportunity has afforded me. I've had the chance to meet amazing people, work with a huge range of species from the numerous birds to the sweet little margay, and grown personally by leaps and bounds. Not to mention, I have been at the forefront of conservation in Belize for the past 9 months. I never imagined I would have ended up here doing the things I have done. I am grateful. My heart is full. And one day, I will return to visit all the places I didn't have a chance to see during my short time here.

I am taking days off next week. I was hoping to go to Caye Caulker, but other things take precedence now and I'll be visiting people instead. While I will absolutely miss everything and everybody here, I'm looking forward to returning to the States and figuring out what direction in which my life is going.

Thank you, dear readers, for all of your moral and financial support. I couldn't have done it without you. My only regret is that I am leaving my post as ACM a few months before I had expected.

I'm sure I still have at least a few more blog posts left in me to share what's happening over the next few weeks... stay tuned!

rain

This is week has been full of rain... literally and figuratively. Tropical Storm Karl just missed us down here but it's been monsoon-ing for short stints almost every day.

Patient-wise things are just about the same. Thanks to the kindness of a Belize Bird Rescue friend (I wasn't allowed to transport her myself), the Parakeet was transferred to BBR. She had started losing some of the weight she gained, likely due to the fact that she didn't have any other Parakeets to socialize with. The squirrel is still a squirrel. I'm now just waiting for him to be completely weaned so that I can take a trip to Caye Caulker. The Robin should be released in a week or two.

I have nothing else to say CASA-wise since I'm currently almost at my breaking point with everything that I have to deal with and I'm afraid I will write something that I shouldn't. I'll just say that I'm counting down now... 13.5 weeks, 94 days to go and I won't have to feel like I'm beating my head against a wall. I was so adamant, after seeing the state of frustration that the former ACM was in when I arrived, to not let these frustrations get to me. It saddens me that the ridiculousness has affected me and I now don't even feel like trying to change anything. Must.. keep.. it.. together.. for the birds. That's really all that matters anyway, right? Right. Insert sad face.

On a more upbeat note, I trekked into town on Friday for the Independence parade. I was told about five different starting times for it but it finally started at 4 or so. It was a parade. There are pictures on Facebook. And then I spent longer than I should have at Greedy's for their happy hour. Anguish and frustration leads to more alcohol being consumed. Oh dear. Such a positive blog post, this one!

I'm pretty excited about my little excursion to Caye Caulker. It's a tiny island off the coast of Belize City. Go ahead and google it... and feel free to make a trip here to join me! I would like the company for sure.

aces crocodile sanctuary

Nothing new here... everything is the same. The Parakeet is gaining weight, the Yucatan Squirrel is getting vicious, the Clay-colored Robin is still growing in her feathers and cannot be released until she is finished doing so. The Woodpeckers are around less but they're still being annoying and needy at times. The Chachalaca.. well.. might just be a permanent resident. At least she's cute? I tried so hard to make her think she's a Chachalaca!

Instead of droning on about my current uneventful and lackluster life here in Belize, I'm going to share a little about the torching of ACES Crocodile Sanctuary down in Punta Gorda this past weekend. If you're friends with me on Facebook, I may have inundated your news feed with links to different articles about this tragedy (sorry!). The news has made it on to CNN and it's a fairly good article. Sadly, the majority of the comments are lacking facts, extremely ignorant, and upsetting. I've had to force myself to stop reading all the garbage people are saying because it's only succeeded in making me depressed and hopeless for the future of the human race. Dramatic? I don't think so. Just realistic. The truth is, you cannot really have an honest opinion about this unless you are here and have experienced the need for all aspects of conservation in this country.

ACES is the only (legal) crocodile sanctuary here in Belize. They work closely with the Belize Forest Department to relocate problem crocodiles (made problematic through people feeding them) and provide sanctuary to those that cannot be released. They're also involved in education, research, and conservation, thereby doing the people, the environment, and ecosystems of Belize an invaluable service. It's unfortunate that there are many, many people out there who cannot see the great work that they have done. Thanks to a mob believing a psychic, thinking that limes on a table were sufficient evidence that the missing (neglected?) children were at ACES, and general ignorance, Vince and Cherie lost everything. Some of the crocodiles on site (endangered species, mind you) were killed and their house and guest lodge were torched. Cherie had been working with the locals to start a Humane Society in Punta Gorda. Stray dogs and cats run rampant around here and the majority of them are not spayed or neutered - you can see the problem. Recently donated veterinary supplies to go to the shelter were also burned. How is that beneficial to anybody? What is the point?

I could go on and on about how ridiculous this entire situation is but I will spare you. You can check out ACES website for updates and here is another article in which it tells you how to donate and help Vince and Cherie rebuild.

Way to go human race, way to go.

psittacines, the squirrel, and independence month

Since I couldn't do anything else for the essentially one-eyed Red-lored Parrot, he was transferred back to Belize Bird Rescue on Monday. Good luck, kiddo! You'll be much happier over there AND you won't have to be subjected to my man-handling any longer. In exchange for the Red-lored, BBR brought me a juvenile Olive-throated Parakeet. I've gotten in two of them previously and neither of them have been able to be fixed... this one will hopefully be a different story. He was kidnapped a couple of weeks ago and had his wing and tail feathers clipped. Thankfully, they handed him over to BBR. He wasn't eating and is ridiculously skinny so he was sent here for some extra love and weight gain. So far so good.. he's definitely a fan of plantains, pitahaya, and egg. Yum.

I totally forgot to mention that I released the Aracari! She was released about two weeks ago on-site into the wild flock. She hung around for a few days with one of the wild individuals and then disappeared for a week or so. She stopped by on Tuesday to spend some time with Elmo. She's getting so big and her bill is starting to get the adult coloration. What a little dinosaur. I still haven't gotten used to the fact that my patients are basically all species I've never even seen in the wild before I came here.

The Woodpeckers are refusing to move on. Really, their instincts have to kick in soon... right? I have no idea of what to do with them if they don't stop begging and being a nuisance. Ideas? Anybody? Sigh. They're stressing me out. A lot.

In non-avian news, the little Yucatan squirrel is somehow almost thriving. My impromptu formula appears to be working so far... I'm always paranoid about MBD with babies though. MBD is Metabolic Bone Disease which is when the bones are weakened due to incorrect nutrition while they're growing. I've seen it happen with squirrels before. They can look completely healthy but then they jump and severely fracture bones. Only time will tell, I guess. Poor little experimental squirrel.

My excitement this week consisted of a completely random Tuesday night. My nights are pretty slow as of late; I typically take my computer to Greedy's so I at least have a little bit of social interaction. Just as I was leaving on Tuesday, I got sidetracked by the offer of some free beer and conversation. This somehow led to me spending the night "hunting" for tarantulas in a tour guide's yard with a bunch of American tourists from California, Florida, and New York. Hooray for spontaneity? And also tarantulas.

Belize's Independence Day is September 21st. Since Belizeans love to celebrate, September is basically Independence Month. Belizean flags are showing up all the over the place - on cars, buses, houses, buildings, etc. There are supposed to be a lot of festivities and parades coming up soon and I'm hoping I'll get to help celebrate! ... whatever that means.

A constant gnawing of homesickness has taken up residence as of late. It's hard to shake it since I'm generally by myself and don't have very many distractions. Tonight was the first University of South Carolina football game of the season and I have to admit, I actually miss all the Gamecock craziness. We're about to kill Southern Miss though... Go Gamecocks! Oh America, I will see you in 15 and a half weeks.

Last Friday I didn't actually do anything except go into town for a bit. Maybe tomorrow I'll walk up to Cahal Pech. It's been so hot though I'm not entirely sure I would survive the trek or make it back in time to feed the squirrel. Life would be less frustrating if I had an actual vehicle. Multiple days off are coming up SOON though.. I'm excited to explore outside of Cayo!