And is burnt hair my penance?

It's been a quiet few days in Gallegos and we spent much of today around the kitchen table with the mate having a little arts and crafts session. Negra's ten year old sister was showing me some kind of braidy ropey thing she and all her friends make with string, and asked if I wanted her to put it in my hair. All the cool kids are doing it, she assured me.

As I've always wanted to be a cool kid I said sure, go for it. Unfortunately I'd missed the part where she'd said it had to be "quemado" to my hair - burnt to my hair. Didn't pick up on that detail til she was waving a lit match two milimetres from my scalp. If you want it out you have to cut it out, she informed me cheerfully.

After that vision into the flames of Hell I spent the entire afternoon reading the Spanish dictionary and am proud to say I can conjugate the verb "to burn" with my eyes closed.