Wandering the Adriatic

So I have had trouble convincing myself to write things up and be a good blogger as of late but I’m trying to catch up. Here is the first project, and the big news as of late, my trip to Europe to see Katie.

When I first proposed joining the Peace Corps, Katie was a friend who was in the background of my life, although I’d be lying if I didn’t say I had interest. Anyway, as the process of applying to the Peace Corps advanced so too did our relationship. In fact, it was only a week before we officially started dating that I sat in my Peace Corps interview and said I was not in a relationship. Once it became more obvious that the Peace Corps was a part of my future we planned to enjoy our time together but consider taking a step back once it came time for me to leave. As the date drew closer we came to the realization that we really wanted to go through this experience as together as we could and I don’t think either of us regrets that decision in the slightest. I can only speak for myself, but she has been very supportive for me, and often here I find I need almost daily support :P Katie left for school in August and I left for Tanzania in September, so it had been a little of 10 months since we last saw each other face to face. I think we’re still too close to the experience to put time in perspective, but I have a new found appreciation for my grandparents’ generation and the sacrifices they made for wars. It’s easy to hear someone needing to serve overseas for 2 years but I cannot imagine what it must have been like with letters as the only form of communication and the nature of the work was life threatening. My situation seems to pale in comparison when I think in those terms. Regardless, 10 months is a long time and we were looking forward to the gathering for sure.

But naturally, it started off terribly….well that depends what you call the start. Garrett had been visiting me at site and we traveled together to Morogoro to see my host family. They were as accommodating as ever preparing us a feast for each meal and doing way more than any Peace Corps ever considers when preparing a place to sleep. We’re pretty satisfied with a pillow and a blanket if it’s cold. We were given fully made beds with as many sheets as we did or didn’t want and a fan if it was too warm, which I have to admit was closer to accurate. My range of tolerable temperatures has definitely reduced in size enormously as I think my experience here does not push my range above 20 degrees from hot to cold. Anyway, we left the next morning and my family continued to outdo themselves arranging for a ride once we were in Dar es Salaam. So, after the afternoon was spent traveling around Dar grabbing food and relaxing, our good luck was well used up.

The story from KLM is that the plane broke down and the one they sent to replace it was smaller, so I was one of the lucky 96 people who were rerouted and delayed to the next day. The real problem was the fact that I didn’t just get pushed back to the next morning, I got pushed back to the next NIGHT. So I lost a full 24 hours right off the bat. Once the struggle of reframing my next day as one being in Dar began to pass, I started to feel much better as KLM really paid off our burden by putting us up in the DoubleTree with food paid for. While I still would have traded that day in the hotel for one in Venice, I felt somewhat better. So, the result was, instead of a Dar-Amsterdam-Venice itinerary, I had a Dar-Nairobi-Paris-Venice trip. I walked on the ground in both Nairobi and Paris so to some degree you could argue I’ve been to Kenya and France now but that’s debatable. I did however see the Eiffel Tower from only an airplane window and a few thousand feet away! Anyway, after a relatively uneventful set of flights, I arrived in Venice.

We coordinated a water taxi ride from the airport to the hotel, which was crazy expensive for one but a really cool way to enter the city. If you can find a group of 5 it ends up being more worth it because it’s comparable to the Water Bus and takes you straight to the door. After a shower, and a rather lengthy wait to check out, we were finally on our way to the boat.

It was apparently the maiden voyage of the Nieuw Amsterdam and it was quite the ship. We, however, did not get to enjoy the private balcony or big windows in our room. We were on the first floor with the smallest windows. Not the smallest in the picture but the second smallest and yet, it was more than sufficient. Inside the room it took up half the wall so we had no complaints about visibility. Besides, if we wanted to look out, the upper decks provided fantastic views. We eventually made our way upstairs for departure and the boat was tugged out of its stall with very impressive maneuvering on the tugboat’s part.

We began the trip by sailing down the canal between the main city of Venice, on the left, and the barrier islands on the right.

While I have a picture from pretty much every inch of the sail out, I’ll just put a couple...

Afterwards, we made our way to the dining hall and had our first dinner aboard the ship in its massive, two-floor dining room, complete with a bottle of chardonnay. Then the rest of the evening was spent exploring the ship, with the product being the discovery of one of our go to places. Called the Crow’s Nest, it was a library/coffee shop/lounge sort of place that took the top floor at the front of the ship. We decided to head to sleep early as traveling and time changes all rolled into being quite exhausted.

When we awoke we were already beginning to enter the area of Dubrovnik, Croatia. A mix of islands and sailboats greeted us on the way into the port.

After a switch to the cruise’s hired bus we drove into the old part of Dubrovnik for our kayaking excursion, which was based out of the most picturesque little cove I have ever encountered.

After instructions, the ever awkward boarding process, and getting ourselves stuck on a submerged rock we were ready to go! The old walls of Dubrovnik surrounded the city that was once an important regional port. We paddled around the bay and viewed the city from every water angle possible. It is quite a magnificent place. We stopped for some lunch and snorkeling at a small cave before returning to our launch point.

After a quick return to the ship to change out of water (and sweaty :P) gear we caught a bus back to walk through town. It had a massive fire at one point where the decided wood was no longer allowed so the old city is built entirely out of white stone, making it all seem very coordinated if nothing else.

After another light evening of drinks and conversation, we woke the next morning back in Venice. While those unfortunate 3-day sailors disembarked we were put into a “bus” (in Venice, a boat) to take to our excursion to the glass making island Murano.

After a tour of the glass factory and its incredibly expensive chandeliers (upwards of 100,000 euro) we hopped back on the bus to Burano, a small but lovely and more hospitable version of Venice. Apparently, the colors of the different houses are such a valued attribute that you do not have the right to paint your house, but the product is quite attractive. I think Katie and I agreed that any real estate investments made on our part in the Venetian community would be on this island. Dream big!

So that’s part one of the trip. Tune back in later for the rest!

Hello again, so I've once again fell behind in my blogging (surprise!) but I'm here to say I'm very much planning to catch up! I have devoting some time to my blog daily as part of my list this week and I think I have the time and the commitment to do it. And now I have the words written as well, which makes me accountable to more than just some ink on a paper which I can frequently talk my way out of :P Anyway, so much has happened since my last post I'll start with a general overview, because many of these deserve individual posts and I hope to give them.

So, if I'm not mistaken, my last post was pre-girls conference. We, about 15 volunteers, each took a group of girls to Mbeya for a 4.5 day girls empowerment conference. All in all we had almost 70 girls. Topics ranged everywhere from goal setting to social expectations to.......ladies health education. It's interesting to see the way culture affects the empowerment of women and while in theory girls are often "able" to achieve what they dream, the practical side of things tells a different story. I'll go through this week with its own post and pictures but for now I'll leave you with an internet scavenger hunt. There is on the internet somewhere a video of the volunteers dancing "All the Single Ladies" at the talent show.

Following the conference was a few days of downtime which included a hike of Loleza Peak, the third highest mountain in the region. I fully intend to complete the two coming in ahead of it in the future but when that occurs I'm not sure.

Then, Michael Garrett arrived taking the claim of my first international visitor. It was nice to see someone from home and share the wonderful world of southern Tanzania. I was initially unsure of what exactly I wanted to do during the week of his stay but it turned out to be highly successful as we reached the Bridge of God, climbed halfway up Loleza, saw Utengule, and finally Matema Beach. I've realized that in terms of the Mbeya checklist, I really only need a meteorite, a second crater lake, and two mountains to hit the big ones. We were fortunate to share our Matema time with friends including another PCV from Mali! I had intended to add pictures to this section/post as well but unfortunately we did not get to share photos and my camera was mostly inactive.

At the end of the week we traveled to Morogoro to see my host family. They were, as always, the most incredible hosts and went well over the top in terms of sleeping arrangements, food, and service. We got a ride back to the bus stand and then my host brother called a friend who picked us up at the main stand in Dar es Salaam and took us around for the day. But, as all luck must balance out, my attempt to leave the country that night failed. While this trip will be detailed much more (probably too much more) thoroughly in the dedicated post I can say that KLM kicked me off my flight and delayed me almost a full day because of airplane troubles, although they did try to make it up by putting me up, all food and room paid for, in the DoubleTree on the bay :P

When I finally did get out of the country and to Venice, I found myself on one of the most beautiful 10 day vacations I could imagine (locations and girl included!). For those who don't know, Katie and I went on a cruise out of Venice as a graduation gift/vacation/reuiniting endeavor. We traveled Venice to Dubrovnik, Croatia, to Venice (for those poor 3-day cruisers), to Olympia, Greece, to Corfu, Greece, to Kotor, Montenegro, to Split, Croatia, to Trieste, Italy, and back to Venice. Yes, I have been to Montenegro! Have you? :P I've heard of the beauties of Greece for many years but I never could have imagined the beauty in that region of the world, especially Montenegro. It was unbelievable and fairy-tale-esque and I thoroughly reccomend a visit. I could write on this topic forever but that's what the next few days are for.

And alas, now I am back. I'm sitting in my bed, with my three cats curled up and warming my legs. It's raining outside, as it is always here, and I'm debating a Chuck episode. So things are settling back down, which is good. I know there are any number of cliches about knowing more once you leave something, but it is true for sure. I don't know that I have things worked out yet, in fact, I probably never will, being a planner who always wants to tweak. But I do feel much more comfortable than I did 3 days ago, and intensely more comortable than I did a year ago. I think right now (as in the second I'm writing this because these sorts of feelings change every 20 seconds or so for me) I'm more comfortable with the uncertainty of the specifics. We shall see, but after one day back in the classroom, I'm feeling intensely better about the future!

So look for more updates to come. Two specific posts and then hopefully more consistent maintenance after that. Thanks for reading! May God Bless you and keep you :)

Life beyond studying? What's that?

I just returned from the library with a frustrating realization about the students here at the school. They study from when they wake up to when they go to sleep, or are expected to be in a study-like environment other than meal times essentially. And the kicker? Some students only sleep 3 HOURS TOTAL a night. That is ridiculous! So, the leadership of my school has shown responsiveness to scientific documentation and I think identifying the perils of such little sleep is a problem. Unfortunately, my NetID does not work for the Cornell library anymore. I’m not sure if that’s because I need to pay for it or just because I’m in Africa but oh well. What I would love, is a few articles sent that give a suggestion on how much sleep a high school student needs to effectively absorb information. Also, I think it would be great if there was some sort of study on the effects of continual studying without a break. The Tanzanian thought process is that if I study more that will directly translate to better scores, which causes them to study for an unnatural amount of the day. They do not understand that taking time off is a valuable part of the learning process, be it for sleep or just a mental break. I need to prove that point that was made at every state orchestra concert; that students who do a variety of other activities do really well in school. I know I’m not here to tell people how to do things but I feel obligated to at least present the information. So, if you know of a good article or have access to a college library search tool and can offer me a study or two, I would greatly appreciate it.

I decided the other day, when I was organizing my shelf full of books to take stock of the books I’ve read since arriving in Tanzania. It has undoubtedly been the most literature intensive 6 months of my life since the days of my monthly Animorph books (which I still semi-proudly own every single one of!) But anyway, here’s the list (and I may have forgotten a book or two):
Oracle Night, Paul Auster
The Screwtape Letters, C.S. Lewis
Moon Palace, Paul Auster
Halo: The Fall of Reach, Eric Nylund
Halo: The Flood, William Dietz
Halo: First Strike, Eric Nylund
The Secret History, Donna Tartt
The New Great Game, Lutz Kleveman
Contact Zero, David Wolstencroft
Twilight, Stephenie Meyer
New Moon, Stephenie Meyer
Eclipse, Stephenie Meyer
Breaking Dawn, Stephenie Meyer
I know. I know. The Twilight books? Well, on the one hand they’re a fast read and semi entertaining, but unnecessarily long. But really, my best excuse is that Hannah spent the money to send them here which means I needed to read them. Since I started them, however, I have received a mountain of books from a collection at Ascension (which I still need to write a thank you message for, so if you were involved, THANK YOU!). So I have read probably a little over ¾ of a shelf so far and have about 3 ¼ more shelves to go. Some titles coming soon are Mere Christianity by C.S. Lewis, a historical account of the battle for Stalingrad, perhaps The Working Poor, and any of the thriller or science fiction books that I acquired in the mail. I’m excited about my shelf and I’m realizing just how much I do still enjoy reading, both novels and things more academic. So, onward!

While we’re on the topic of extracurriculars, be they athletic or reading or otherwise, I’m realizing their role in my life. Being someone who identified with the hard science most in school it seemed like those outlets were more of a secondary tier of time usage and while that to some degree is quite true, I’m seeing that the top tier wouldn’t have functioned without them. Here I’m struggling to do any of the activities I most enjoyed in the states. My athletic outlets are very limited as the school does not have adequate space due to its urban setting and my musical outlets here are limited to the singing of religious songs since I didn’t even bring my viola overseas. It’s a struggle to balance the situation and I miss them a lot, but as time goes on and I continue to make an effort, I’m sure I’ll find a way to satisfy those wishes. I do recognize though, that I don’t have a great track record. At Cornell I found myself needing an extra push to go to a theatre production (be it a friend in the show or…..*coughfeelingsfortheproducercough* :P) but once I went, I always asked myself why I didn’t go all the time. I can see that potentially occurring here so I need to be proactive to fix it. We’ll see what I can do and if I can create an environment where athletics and fine arts are viewed as a catalyst to effective learning and being good citizens. Maybe that’s what I can offer this community above and beyond teaching. I’ve been looking for something. Maybe this could be it!

Time, Teaching, and Transit among other things

I’m finding a serious lack of time to get all my work done, including writing here, in the time spans that I assign for it. Things that I feel like I should be able to get through in a productive day require a week to accomplish, and while maybe this is just a streak of misunderstanding the volume of work in my commitments, I’m troubled by the vastness of the gap between what I think I have time for and what I don’t. I suppose I’m not being fair in considering my work for school part of the list of things to check off. It’s what I do each day and usually a good, effective day’s work requires more work on following days. I’m lacking the common sense to realize that if I get by one week and not have the time for everything, doing those things plus an additional pile of work isn’t likely to happen the next week. My admiration for my high school teachers is only increasing as I realize just how much time they spent in order to offer the level of education they did. It’s really quite amazing.

So anyway, the news worth knowing isn’t too great. I have reduced the feline population in my house to 4 but it did not occur quite like I expected. The first cat to go was actually Chichi, as she had just become too high maintenance for my situation. The opportunity we found to send her on was sudden and well timed as the kittens were eating on their own but also drinking mom’s milk. There was, however, a slight failure in the execution of the plan. My friend, and fellow PCV, was taking her to a friend near his site but needed to make a pit stop first. While attending other matters, the cat escaped. While not really a huge problem, the amusing fact is that the place he was at is about a 20 minute walk from the school I accepted her from. She found her way back and I can say the volunteer and teachers there were not terribly thrilled. The next weekend, Andrew came back with orders for two more kittens and so now I’ve reduced my population from 7 to 4, with plans to reduce to two….males! Felix and Magellan are the brothers I have left who will be staying and the two girls will in time head to new homes.

On the academic front, lecture is continuing. My form 6 class is continuing to forge ahead and I’m happy to say we’re looking slightly ahead of my new schedule! Which at this point, is very welcome news as we’re still a month or two behind where we realistically should be. I am entering material that did not make much sense to me in college so my preparation is slow and meticulous. I always heard teaching a subject was the last step in learning it and I am being converted as I am learning far better than I ever did in my college physics class. Labs are a challenge, due to the combination of unfamiliarity with the subject significantly ahead of teaching it and the lack of experience of working out of a lab environment where everything you need is waiting for you. But we’re making our way. Another struggle is balancing teaching as best I can and teaching how the kids expect me to. I realize that the system here is different, and their approach to learning material has been drilled into them over the last 10 or so years, but is it really that hard to change gears? And, if you can’t, how do you expect to function in a world where most problems need unique solutions. It’s interesting to see the difficulties some people have with outside of the box thinking. We went through two tailors who could not decompose a jacket and skirt and make it into a long sleeve shirt before finally succeeding. Each tailor’s excuse was that it was too much work in the head. Kazi kubwa! So they wanted extra money, but preferred we go buy an entirely new cloth so they could follow the step by step process they’ve learned. Instilling creative thinking is a goal of mine but I feel as though I’m not doing the best job. I’ll have to work on that.

I’ve hit a minor bump in the Swahili process. I had a good three weeks of solid daily Swahili practice, but lately I’ve been sacrificing it when higher priorities take longer. But I have had more good moments where I feel like I’m comprehending more lately, so I want to build on the momentum and try to keep up the learning.

In outside projects, I’m approaching a finished product on my latest transit proposal. Although, anyone who knows me in this context knows it’s never done as I’ve been toying with the same basic idea for around 5 years now. I do feel like this is a better version of what I’ve had before. More practical and certainly more affordable, while still offering much of the opportunities of my other iterations. Seeing the effects of the oil spill in the gulf (admittedly through the lenses of my pro-multimodalist sources of news and analysis) makes it seem as though the dangers of a purely fossil fuel powered society are currently in the spotlight. While it’s easy for the largest cities in America to approach mass transit as a solution to congestion and increasing density, smaller urban centers see them as unjustifiable costs. However, that inherently perpetuates the current problem that only two years ago was becoming a national nightmare before the recession distracted people from it. We need to look at solutions to the problems in communities of all sizes. I think people often see transit enthusiast as anti-car but the reality is a car is a central part (and one I really enjoy!) of life in America. But what if we had an America where not every of-age person required one and people could live an effective lifestyle sharing one vehicle per household? It requires a lot of investment for sure, but I wonder if people could live the lives they want with that. That’s still way better than what people get here in Tanzania.

To continue my pattern of useless discussion, I want to point out the Royals are 9-5 since the Hillman era ended and the Yost era began. I looked back on my last post regarding the Royals and it was actually the game Hillman had been fired before but it wasn’t announced until afterwards. I’m not sure what the difference is now, but this team definitely seems more capable. It’s the same team but it absolutely is not, which brings hope for the future! Just like Billy’s .348 average :)

Well, this post has already fallen into the took-way-longer-than-anticipated category. I have a long list of things I could do today, and only lack the urgency because I have another day of weekend left. We’ll see if I can make it a productive day. Only two more weeks till my next break, which these days feels like a blink of an eye. Hope you have a good weekend!

Picture Post Number 2!!!

Welcome to Picture Blog Post Number Two!

I'll start you off with some wildlife. This was taken off my back porch, although the tree he's sitting in has since had some trouble as you will see later!

We went on a walk to see hot springs one weekend while in Mbeya town. This was the walk to the property, complete with a little piece of home!

But turns out this was the hot springs. It was about as warm as a hot bath, not that you could fit in it to take one.

But the view was gorgeous, this is Mbeya region after all!

The land we were on is a stone quarry and these massive blocks lay everywhere. They simply cut them out of the wall as it is all stone!

We were then taken to the Bat Caves, profiled as the second billing but they made up for everything the hot puddle lacked! I don't have good pictures of inside it, just this approach and the following of the hole in the top.

Inside there were holes in the floor that went down for well beyond the light of our flashlights which was quite intimidating but we were with people who knew the landscape well and all survived.

Back at home, this was the morning after a Kumbi Kumbi attack, which is a 4 winged termite (I'm told) that comes out this time of year. They died attacking my front porch light. Chichi was quite content however as she really enjoys these snacks!

Next is our hike to Kaparogwe Falls, just southwest of Tukuyu. It was sold as a nice waterfall....which is a ridiculous understatement. First you walk through farms along a footpath and cross this creek.

Then you walk up a hill and around a corner and it all of a sudden is visible. A massive waterfall that you can walk back underneath. This is the view from in the indention in the rock behind the falls about halfway down it's fall.

Looking out from underneath.

And my favorite the whole falls. Now to give you an idea of just how big it is, if you can zoom in at all, Katie and Linda are sitting behind the falls in the indention, and they aren't very tall (relatively of course :P)

Next Stop: Matema Beach! This relatively quiet resort is on the northern shores of Lake Malawi. It is absolutely gorgeous and a wonderful mix of real Tanzania and resortiness. It was a nice break from school and everything else but it wasn't out of Tanzania at all.

It's pretty cool because from the right vantage point, as far north as Tukuyu and Mt. Rungwe, you can see these mountains and the lake shore on a clear day.

It was a relaxing weekend full of kiti moto, volley ball, and beach campfires, which it's advisable not to step in barefoot as Theo learned.

During my In Service Training in Iringa, Chichi gave birth to six kittens. This is them maybe 2-3 weeks old.

The rainy season caused some of the soil near my house to weaken and problems happened. We got it down without causing too much damage but it could have been much worse!

Recently, we've been doing a better job visiting each other. Granted it helps when Katie's school is having a dance with Theo's school and they provide free (and direct!) transportation!

Finally, this was our trip to Ngozi Crater. Hiking began at the highway through generally open plains until we reached what looked like a little path headed under a small group of trees. It became a legitimate jungle and this was one of the more open spots.

Our path turned much denser when we started to actually climb the mountain.

After about an hour, we finally reached the the rim of the caldera. The picture doesn't do it justice but it was quite a drop on both sides of the narrow path!

This is the clearest picture we got of the lake. It's quite a ways below the overlook but still way above the surrounding countryside.

This is Katie, Tristan, and I at the top. Tulishinda!

Taking into consideration that my comments here are really just a microcosm of my current emotions, but also considering the fact that I’m more inclined to write when I am trying to wrestle through things in my head, I’m frustrated. I tend to only want to write when I feel like what I have to say is something worth listening to, although I’m making the rather brash assumption what I deem worthy is what others need/want to hear. So, my point in all this drivel is that I’m going to try to stop saying anything “meaningful” and start saying….something.

So the last two days have been somewhat unusual in terms of my life so far as a Tanzanian teacher. I have been invigilating (fancy British English – I think – term for proctoring) exams. And today I acquired 5 rulers, two erasers, and very nearly two ripped up tests during the exam. I saw every way of cheating I could have imagined possible and then some more. I’m pretty sure one girl had some notes in her shirt and then when she needed them pulled her arms inside like she was cold and kinda stretched out her sweater so she could read between her shirt and her sweater. What can I do for that one? So I feel the need to give her props on her creative ingenuity that massively outshone the girl who turned around to compare tests with her friend.

But my frustrations of late have to do with more than that, as I’m still struggling through the material and being a good, effective teacher isn’t quite the process I thought it would be. It’s humbling to say the least. I consider myself someone who thinks through problems logically and I feel like one of my greatest strengths is the ability to break a problem down and see it in parts. I thought if I introduced ideas the this way with a focus on the atoms building up to the molecule it would be clear and digestible the first time through. Oh, what little do I know. The funny thing is, I keep coming back to the problem of the parent, where because I said so is what you want to say because you know you’re right and because right now, you just can’t think of a really solid explanation. But that wont fly, and you’re expected to have reasons and explanations on the spot. Partially I brought this on myself, as I encouraged students to ask questions and press for the why. But now the stereotypical Tanzanian give the students notes to copy approach seems really nice.
It’s a struggle, battling between this idea of who you want to be to these people and the parts of your life you didn’t imagine sacrificing for it. I would consider my situation one of constant flux where I’m on a teeter-totter walking from one seat to the other constantly on the ground, and never in the middle balancing. I think I’ve expressed my discontent before but like what I said when I started, this is a little bit of self-therapy. Honestly, I’m not upset with the students (ok my students, I am upset with the testing students) or the administration or any of that. As a matter of fact, my relations with my peer walimu are only improving J. I’m upset with myself because I’m pretty sure I know what I need to do to get stuff done and I just can’t sometimes. I find it amusing how much of the personal growth you’re supposed to get in college, I can see happening to me here. I don’t know that it didn’t happen in Ithaca, but this sort of second go-round is nice. Theo, another volunteer in my area, and I were chatting over lunch one day about how we find ourselves surrounded by textbooks writing our lesson plans and we realize this is what we should have been doing for the last 4 years. Sadly, it takes having someone else depend on me to get myself adequately motivated, and like I said before, I still can’t make myself do it all the times I need to. And I’m spent….

On to more interesting things. We left Seattle and moved to the heartland in terms of weather. After that freaky week-long rain (which was apparently about a third of its usual length) we’re now seeing crystal clear mornings with increasing clouds during the afternoon and a return to cloudless skies in the evening. For some reason, Rungwe looks much more ominous without the clouds. There’s one particular view of it in town where every time I see it from that angle I realize it’s a pretty large mountain and it’s a volcano on top of that. Dormant for a long time of course but it’s fun to imagine myself as a young Pierce Brosnan in Dante’s Peak 2: African Killer saving people in the final minutes before the eruption.

Lately, I’ve been helping type exams. It’s strange how copying something from hand written to a screen in front of you can be way more soporific than reading news articles on that same screen. I suppose there’s the subject matter but it’s surprising how quickly I find myself nodding off when typing

I still have seven felines in my house. One option to get rid of a kitten fell through and I’m waiting for my others to as well, it only seems appropriate. Chichi brought in a mouse earlier, she looked rather pleased with herself but the kitten that took it just growled at anyone else who came close so I’m not sure we’re promoting good family values in this house.

I also got the box of books sent from the youth group at church this week. Let me rephrase, the 3 boxes of books and 1 box of signs are now taking up my living room. I will be sending a more formal thank you but the Peace Corps Volunteer book network appreciates your gifts! Books are passed around here like gossip so they will get good use.

In other news, the Royals have been awful. Zack’s in line for the win right now but we haven’t given the ball to the bullpen yet. Check that. They just put Tejeda in for Greinke. Let the fun begin! This internet is both a blessing and a curse. It allows me the freedom to write when I want to (not that I do as much as I should) but it also allows me to monitor severe weather outbreaks during the evenings in Kansas which translates to 2 am here. So, there are some downsides :P Not that I could do anything to change that, I mean it’s really out of my control. I HAVE to watch.


I welcome questions in the comments sections, or through email if you want to know something but I just haven’t touched on it. I lose sight of the fact that me living in Africa seems mysterious and far away because it’s all so normal now, but if you have questions about culture, lifestyle, or anything in particular, I’ll be happy to narrate excessively for you. Ok, back to a good mood! Partially due to talking it out, and partially due to a double play by the Royals where they’ve had runs scored against them so far this year.

Small updates and too much thought

So things are progressing slower than I might have liked out of the gate but it’s probably to be expected. Current plans for post-IST projects are still in the planning stages and we’ll see how things progress. But in general school news, I’m not teaching the Advanced Math portion of the PCM (Physics Chemistry Math) combination. While a little bummed, I think this is a very good thing. I have a bad habit of biting off way more than I can chew to balance out my laziness at times and I think diving into 4 different syllabuses in 5 different classes would have been a bit much. So now, I instead have 3 syllabuses in 4 classes which looks to be plenty large a load, especially if I’m successful in getting outside projects off the ground. Which projects will be successful? We will see. I’m currently putting my focus on getting off to a strong start with teaching in the classroom and improving the library as a resource. I think that after these two, projects involving a garden and perhaps HIV and AIDS education could be in the works. I’m learning that I am not going to be told what to do beyond teach these classes and if any of these projects are going to happen, I need to be assertive. And since assertiveness is something I’ve always lacked, this will be a good exercise!

Not much other news on the home front. My kittens are starting to look outside of their sleeping space. They level of cuteness is nearing its maximum as they begin to act like cats but still have that baby waddle and fall on occasion. While it’s all very fun to watch, I’m constantly nervous about when they start looking for more food beyond mom’s milk. I could see that being a very expensive situation once they start to grow and have to eat to maintain that growth. Hopefully I’ll have found suitable families for homes by then.

In other news, I just finished reading a book called The New Great Game about oil and its impacts on the Central Asian region. While intended to be first a snapshot of the situation in the area and how oil access dictates it, it certainly paints a dark picture about American intentions in the region. I suppose everyone has their own opinion about why the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq are ongoing but I’m feeling less optimistic about our motivations entering them. Regardless, that’s not really my point. The fact is that almost every major player in the region is inevitably tied to oil as it seems to be the only source of money. Often, that money finds its way into the pockets of the country’s elite and not to the public coffers, empowering a ruling class that frequently does not have the well being of their constituents in mind. Those facts made our deals with the governments, allowing bases or other concessions for the war in Afghanistan, worse as we legitimized very undemocratic and oppressive governments. But in addition to that, the book highlighted just how much of our foreign policy, much of it big brotherish in nature, was focused on ensuring a supply of cheap oil. It also highlighted how foreign public opinion of Bush Administration America was decidedly negative as a result. This all got me to thinking about my responsibilities as an ambassador of the US. As much as I’d like to not think so, I am the most powerful image of the US to my students and fellow teachers. The media can say what it wants, and if that’s the primary source of information they’ll probably believe it. But if I contradict the message, my one-on-one relationship is going to have significantly more power. The perception is often that Americans are arrogant and self-centered and sadly, that can easily be proven. Making an effort to balance between giving help and humility can be a challenge at times, especially when you feel like you know the right answer. Americans used to be perceived as the forefathers of democracy and freedom, the shining light in darkness, etc. but now, many see that freedom as something deteriorated to a greedy monster which will only help you if it’s in its best interests. Regardless of our motivations for our actions, I feel like our ability to do good in the world is entirely dependent on the belief that we stand for a free way of life. Without others looking up to us, we can’t carry out our foreign policy, good or bad. Therefore, I see the value of organizations like Peace Corps beyond simply educating some 150 students. But the nation also has to consider sacrificing some amenities like $1.50 a gallon gas in order to maintain the respect and positive feeling from the rest of the world.

I’m getting tired so I can’t say too much more, but I do want to mention something to all my Sedgwick County Readers. I saw on the Wichita Business Journal website the other day that the Intrust Bank Arena ranked in the 45th in the world for ticket sales in the quarter. Now I know it helps that it’s a new venue etc. but let’s remember that it’s generally considered about 5000 seats too small for a major arena. I acknowledge that I haven’t been in town, but from what I see in the news, parking has not been the ridiculous disaster it was supposed to be. And if I remember right, the project was on budget with the tax ending when it said it would, and the opening was only slightly behind the original schedule. So, done right and well is the moral of the story. Perhaps I’m missing things, I’m sure someone would have a list for me if I asked, but that seems like success story based on increasing taxes slightly for a very specific purpose. So instead of using the name of an event that occurred because of a lack of representation not a lack of your own ideas having the majority of representation, let’s sit at a table, talk through things and get stuff done. I’m tired of American politics, or what the media wants to show me. I really hope this is a byproduct of the recession and everyone is just being more vocal about fixing the problem and people can actually have an open debate with reason, understanding, and compromise once things improve. I really really hope.