Truths I May Have Exaggerated...

 Truths I May Have Exaggerated to the Other Students in My Study Abroad Program:

• There is only corn in Indiana: This came up in Spanish class because I was asked to talk about what Indiana is like since the other students in my program are all from Oregon. No one has ever asked me that and I quickly realized that my Spanish vocabulary was limited to maiz, so I might have just said that's all there is there. When they asked me to tell them more about Indiana in English I couldn't think of anything else to add to my description. I did finally tell them that paved roads run between the cornfields so that's a step up, right?
• I am afraid of camp: This came up because some of the students from Oregon are camp counselors. One day, they were talking about the kids that wake up in the middle of the night crying and I told them that I would be that kid. I cried at day camp because I disliked the whole experience so much (and I'm sure it only would have been worse at overnight camp, thank goodness Linda and Dan had the sense to never send me). In Spanish one day, I was asked if I had any fears and I said no (because I couldn't think of any in the moment). Then, it came up in a later activity that I didn't like camp so then they just assumed that because I didn't like it I'm afraid of it. Which is not how it is at all.
• I can't live without Starbucks: If you had a Starbucks rewards card, you wouldn't leave it at home to miss out on drink rewards, would you? Sorry I brought my card for a company known around the world to a different country. I'm rather enjoying my cafe con leches in the quaint cafés here, and I'm surviving just fine without my frappucinos, thank you very much. I found the Starbucks last weekend (it's only like 5 blocks away from my apartment!) but it's super expensive. 27 pesos for a coffee? I still want to go to say I've been there, and I think Mary and I are planning an excursion there this weekend.
• I only do the 'sorority lean' in pictures: I just really like putting my hand on my hip when I have one arm free in pictures. Otherwise, what am I supposed to do with my hand? Let it hang awkwardly (although we all know how much I love awkward things)? Cain initially asked if I would teach him the sorority lean, but now it has caught on and we need to tone it down a little - our sorority leans are getting a little out of control. Karie looked through the photos I brought with me from home and said that the lean is the pose I do the most. When I went back and reviewed the 25 pictures, only 5 contain the lean in some form, 3 contain the sorority squat, and the rest are semi-normal. Since the majority are semi-normal can you really say that I do the sorority lean in every picture?
• I am afraid of elevators. I have two irrational fears that come up every time I have to ride in an elevator: that the cable supporting the elevator is going to snap while I'm riding in the elevator, and that the elevator is going to get stuck with me inside. I don't know where these fears originated, especially because I'm not claustrophobic and neither of these horrendous scenarios have ever happened to me. Because of these irrational fears, I usually try and take the stairs when I have that as an option. Not only are stairs safer than elevators, but they also promote wellness by improving my cardiorespiratory endurance. Anywho, so the elevators in Argentina are sketchier than elevators in the United States. There are no doors that open automatically when the elevator arrives at a floor: you must first open what looks like a regular door in order to enter the elevator, shut the door behind you, then move the grate across the doorway to keep you inside. The elevators take off and come to a stop with a halt, which continues to freak me out even though I know it's coming every time. Also, the elevators are TINY. I can barely fit myself, my backpack, my suitcase, and one other person in an elevator at one time. Now that the other students know about my fear, every time that we take an elevator, they apologize for making me take the elevator. It's totally unnecessary because a) I've never made a big deal about taking the elevator instead of the stairs, and b) elevators don't freak me out enough to not take them. Although maybe the elevators in Bracken Library should make me reconsider - they seem to be broken every time I go to the library, which is a lot. I guess maybe I should say that instead of being afraid of elevators, I simply distrust them because of their sketchiness and ability to break down often. That would probably be more truthful.