Super Squeakers (I and II) is dead. (I named the mouse living in my room.) But as it turns out, there were two mice, now both nicely disposed of. I thought my 17 year old host brother was going to scream when I walked out of the house this morning. But, now I can sleep in peace! :)

Cambodian youth culture is still something I can't understand. Cambodians love karoke. Just a minute ago, a kid in another part of the internet shop was screaming one of the karoke songs at the top of his lungs. Argh! But I must say Top Teen, the Cambodian version of American Idol, is quite interesting. Each singer has backup dancers, which can't stay or beat or together, but sometimes I am surprised. The dancing consists of waving your arms and twirling in circles, while the main singer stands rigid on the center star. But prehaps I have just been desensitized by American pop culture. Their outfits are quite another thing. One girl was wearing black leggins, army boots, striped jumper straps on her t-shirt that had huge mickey mouse faces around the bottom. To top it all off, her hair was pulled into a ponytail on top of her head and surrounded by a silver tiara. Maybe for Asians, she was in style; matching is not their strong point.

Speaking of clothing, I ordered a dress to be made for Seiha's wedding next weekend. My host mother and sister went with me to the market on Sunday. Cambodians love bright colors and try to stick as many sequins and bows and frilly stuff as humanly possible on one dress. I managed to get a lavender that isn't so bright for the top with only a little bit of embroidery around the neckline and bottom. The bottom is the traditional Khmer silk, which is a variation of a diamond pattern. The first bodice I chose had an empire waist and cap sleeves which my host mother quickly told me I couldn't get because my chest is too big. It's kinda humorous, I have never considered myself large.

Moving on, my garden is doing well. The corn, beans, califlower, and cabbage have sprouted. I think there may be something wrong with the lettuce as it has not come up yet. I am quite pleased despite the rocky start.

For New Years, I didn't do anything special, but Barb, one of the expats living in Prey Veng, invited us over for a BBQ Sunday evening. It was divine! She has western food, including potato salad. I definately like the Khmer food, but sometimes, you just want to eat potatoes or a raw cucumbers, instead of rice. But my family doesn't understand that as they have begun to slowly increase my rice portion once again.