Holy Batfish, Robin!

Last Saturday, we were joined at the lodge by Jeremy, our new “intern” and all-around helper guy. Jeremy is young, just out of college, and excited to be in Honduras. He plans to do some volunteering at a school in Oak Ridge, improve his Spanish, attend a local church, and enjoy all the entrapments of a tropical paradise. He will also be our gofer. Jeremy will be staying with us until early May.

Here’s a photo of Jeremy taking “Spanish lessons” with Dalia. As those of you who have visited know (Joe, Jeff, I’m looking at you), Dalia likes to be very helpful to our guests. I believe her gold lame stripper shoes and tank top somehow help Jeremy learn better. However, I’m betting his mother would disagree.

Jeremy and Delia practicing "Spanish"
on top of the boat house

One of the fun things about having Jeremy around is that he reminds us of all the amazing things about Roatan. It’s easy to overlook the surrounding beauty when you get busy with work and the day-to-day challenges of living here. But to Jeremy, everything is new and very cool.

Earlier this week, Kevin spotted a batfish just off our dock. These things are incredibly cool, so Jeremy jumped in for a closer look.

Jeremy and our resident batfish

The batfish is a really crazy-looking little guy that hobbles around on his hind legs. Neato!

Bring Your Crocodile to Work Day

Last week, Perry showed up at work with a little surprise—a crocodile!

As the story goes, several years ago, Perry caught a small crocodile while fly fishing. Intrigued, he deposited it in the boat and promptly took it home to show his family. They, too, fell for the little guy and decided to keep it as a pet. The children named it Bambi.

Perry treated Bambi well and was quite fond of him. He took him on walks on his leash and brought him to work occasionally so Bambi could enjoy a refreshing swim in the ocean or creek.

However, not everyone was as enamored with Bambi. One day while Perry was working up the hill, another employee cut Bambi’s ropes and set him free into the ocean. Poor Perry never saw Bambi again.

But just over a week ago, Perry once again struck gold by snagging a crocodile while fishing with his son. His boy believed the new croc to be a more grown-up Bambi coming back to visit. So, of course, Perry put him in the boat and took him home. His family dubbed him Bambi II.

Miguel, Perry, and Bambi II

Perry now brings his new crocodile to work on a somewhat regular basis. He walks him and lets him swim in the ocean and creek (while I stand nearby and scream at the dogs not to go close).

Bambi II taking an afternoon swim in the creek

Thank God we don’t have workers’ comp here.

Fun With Honduran Labor Law

We’ve had several situations over the past few months that have required me to put on my human resources hat and delve into the murky world of Honduran labor law. This is always a challenge because the Honduran government does not post these laws in their entirety online (at least, not that I can find), but we are nonetheless required to comply with them.

In my research, I have found several sites that have been very helpful, but most are in Spanish (of course). I also found a site that includes short English summaries of the various related laws, interpretations, amendments, directives, etc. I love this one because it at least gives me a clue about what I am about to attempt to translate with my very poor Spanish skills.

While browsing through this site recently looking for information about probationary employment periods (fun stuff), I came across the following summaries.

Interpretation of Article 4 of the Labor Code (Codigo del Trabajo)
Decree 927-80 of 7 of May 1980 interprets Article 4 of the Labor Code (Codigo del Trabajo), contained in Decree 180 of 19 May 1959, by stating that the definition of worker includes the ones that sell frozen products such as ice cream cones, for fulfilling the essential requirements of the labor contract.

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Decree 61 of 31 March 1962 interprets Article 344 of the Labor Code and provides that barber shops are industrial establishments and, therefore, should remain closed on Sundays.

Obviously, neither of these were very helpful for my needs, but they did make me chuckle.

Side Note: I’m finally back out of my cave (the office), where I have been holed up for 2 months building a new Web site for the lodge—hence, my recent return to the blogosphere. The new site is at the same URL as the old one, so check it out if you get a chance and tell me what you think.