Well, after a crazy first week home, I am finally going to try to get back to all my projects. My first few days I finished editing my section of our volunteer magazine. Then, I spent the rest of the week hanging out with all my PCV friends. It was good times and I am lucky for the wonderful friendships I have made here...
Aqui estoy y ahora, I have a huge to-do list that I just put together. First and foremost, I start teaching English full-time again in the school as I did last year. Once again the students are without a ministry-hired teacher for a few months so en vez de classes right now they have 3 hours a week free to do nothing...which sucks because they only go to school less than 20 hours a week. So... I am going to step in and fill in at least 2 of those hours every week. I can't commit to all 3 simply because I have a million other projects and I like to have Thurs and Friday to take care of other business. Right now, I am trying to figure out where to buy softball equipment with the money I got from a grant, organize the softball program at school, find kids for an International Conflict Resolution Camp (how cool does that sound??), plan a kids art project where they will paint electrical and telephone posts all around town, and then of course my health projects- stoves and health clinic.
I finally feel the crunch of time. It's officially February tomorrow which means I have as little as 8 months left in country. It's putting a nice kind of pressure on me. Not one that stresses me out, more like I will finally see the fruition of all the crap I have worked on.... and it kind of excites me.
Health-wise I continue to feel perfectly normal. My community insists I not do anything strenuous which is sweet.
I am home here in El Salvador and its a weird feeling. The first year, you fight and fight the culture until it finally consumes you. I have no complaints now and I wonder if something will/can shake me to the extent that some things did my first year.
Time is a winding down...
Sunday, January 31, 2010
Tuesday, January 19, 2010
Still here...
Well, I have officially been in the United States for nearly a month...roughly 1.5 weeks more than I anticipated. The deal is that we have been waiting for the results of the labs they got during my surgery. Those apparently take 2 weeks so in the meantime....I have been watching every Law & Order ever made, laying around in my pajamas, fascinating my Dad's wife with how much hot tea I can consume, and occasionally venturing out for food or doctor's appointments. It has been one of the most boring times of my life...and I live in a village in El Salvador! I never thought I could beat the boring days I sometimes spend there.
Now, I am praying for my labs which hopefully will come tomorrow and hopefully Delta will let me take the first flight out the next morning. Seriously crossing my fingers....
PS. Recovery has been just fine. No more major findings and my scars are healing great. All I can say is thank God for lathroscopic surgery these days....
Now, I am praying for my labs which hopefully will come tomorrow and hopefully Delta will let me take the first flight out the next morning. Seriously crossing my fingers....
PS. Recovery has been just fine. No more major findings and my scars are healing great. All I can say is thank God for lathroscopic surgery these days....
Monday, January 4, 2010
Crazy Emergency Surgery!
Well, there is nothing like a night of partying with your favorite little sister in Austin and then an encore at the ER the next night! Yep, January 1st Sarah took me to the hospital with what I swore was a really bad case of indigestion only to find out that a cyst ruptured and I needed emergency surgery. Thank God I was here in San Antonio with my family and we got it taken care of just in time to not have any major/permanent damage. I am fine here in San Antonio and will be on medical leave until my doctor clears me to return to El Salvador.
Sunday, December 27, 2009
Home in Texas
I cannot even tell you how good it is to be home. The cold has been nice, seeing my family and friends has been great, and just the luxury of a really nice house with all the norms of American life has been amazing. Since my first two trips home weren't really "home", it is like the first time home. And, I have noticed things that make me feel just a little bit weird. Here is a little list I have compose:
- little kids who can speak English
- lots of strangers who can speak English
- young women's fashion
- paying $4.50 for a water bottle at a movie theater
- not speaking spanish to the hispanic waiter
And, something that makes me feel great instead of weird is windows down, driving fast on the highway, blaring hip-hop music. That is probably the feeling I realized I missed the most without knowing it.
As good as it is, I find it somehow comforting that I will be going back to a much slower-paced El Salvador. It's weird to say and even weirder that I actually mean it but it's the truth.
- little kids who can speak English
- lots of strangers who can speak English
- young women's fashion
- paying $4.50 for a water bottle at a movie theater
- not speaking spanish to the hispanic waiter
And, something that makes me feel great instead of weird is windows down, driving fast on the highway, blaring hip-hop music. That is probably the feeling I realized I missed the most without knowing it.
As good as it is, I find it somehow comforting that I will be going back to a much slower-paced El Salvador. It's weird to say and even weirder that I actually mean it but it's the truth.
Monday, December 14, 2009
Having one of those good days...
So, as stressed as I was about my week-long curso de verano everything went really really well today. I had twelve kids turn out (out of the 18 I invited) and I was so well-prepared with extra activities that we had no down-time. There were a couple of moments where games didn't really go over well, couldn't find a track on a CD, etc. but I through in the Hokey Pokey and a few rounds of UNO cards and the kids were asking to stay for the whole day! I was so relieved. With one counselor and a boring subject like English you can never really tell how much interest you are going to be able generate and hold.
Then, me, another volunteer friend, and Cleopatra all headed to Gotera. Laura and I needed to ask the military base to collaborate in our clean stove project. We have to bring them cross-country and to save delivery costs we are hoping the Comadante at the base can help us out. We got there and the guy in charge of transport was really nice, gave us a number when we can call back after the big guy has read our letter, and sent us on our way. He was super nice and made it seem like it would happen easily especially since we were giving them a month's notice...which he testified was rare for Salvadorans.
After that, Cleo and I waited for the vet so he could check out her stitches which she has been messing with so they have been falling out and getting gross. But, good news was that he said she looked just fine. He gave us some new medicine that doesn't taste as good and sent us on our way...until we missed the bus which passes every hour. So, the very nice vet decided since Cleo and I are so cute that he'd give us a ride all the way back to our house. On the way, I discovered he is also an agricultural engineer which is not that surprising considering he is a vet. I asked about a few projects I have been looking into like a greenhouse and a rabbit farm and he seemed totally up for helping which is cool.
Oh, and my neighbors moved back in after a 2 week absence. The owner (his uncle) came back from the States and this place was over-run with people other than my usual neighbors...huge mad house. But, the baby and the cute family are back so I am more settled. It's a bit frightening sleeping in a house by myself.
Now just gotta wrap up my english camp then I head home for the States for 2 1/2 weeks. So, if you are in SA, Austin, or Amarillo you just might see me! Of course I have no phone numbers but email always works well so let me know!
Then, me, another volunteer friend, and Cleopatra all headed to Gotera. Laura and I needed to ask the military base to collaborate in our clean stove project. We have to bring them cross-country and to save delivery costs we are hoping the Comadante at the base can help us out. We got there and the guy in charge of transport was really nice, gave us a number when we can call back after the big guy has read our letter, and sent us on our way. He was super nice and made it seem like it would happen easily especially since we were giving them a month's notice...which he testified was rare for Salvadorans.
After that, Cleo and I waited for the vet so he could check out her stitches which she has been messing with so they have been falling out and getting gross. But, good news was that he said she looked just fine. He gave us some new medicine that doesn't taste as good and sent us on our way...until we missed the bus which passes every hour. So, the very nice vet decided since Cleo and I are so cute that he'd give us a ride all the way back to our house. On the way, I discovered he is also an agricultural engineer which is not that surprising considering he is a vet. I asked about a few projects I have been looking into like a greenhouse and a rabbit farm and he seemed totally up for helping which is cool.
Oh, and my neighbors moved back in after a 2 week absence. The owner (his uncle) came back from the States and this place was over-run with people other than my usual neighbors...huge mad house. But, the baby and the cute family are back so I am more settled. It's a bit frightening sleeping in a house by myself.
Now just gotta wrap up my english camp then I head home for the States for 2 1/2 weeks. So, if you are in SA, Austin, or Amarillo you just might see me! Of course I have no phone numbers but email always works well so let me know!
Sunday, November 29, 2009
Cleo Spade, Mom here
It's been a super busy couple of days. Mom got in town and we had a whirlwind 2 days meeting everyone and their brother, watching the A&M/Texas game, staying in a random hostel bc we watched the game too long, then getting my kitty spade.
The last part, Cleo getting spade, has been kind of a dramatic experience for me. One, I don't feel all that comfortable taking her to a vet here just bc I don't know any vets personally and people don't exactly take animals to vet here regularly. Two, I am a first time pet owner and very emotionally attached to my cat. So, needless to say I have been a bit of a nervous wreck much to the dismay of my mom and bf. She didn't pull out of the anesthesia like the vet said she would. She was in her little coma until around 4 am the next day. Even then, she couldn't walk and even now only is able to walk drunkenly and falls frequently. But, mom has convinced me its normal and she looks fine. The harder part is mom and I are leaving to travel around El Sal this week so I am gonna have other people looking in on her. Hopefully by tomorrow morning she'll be eating/drinking/walking more normal and I won't continue to bother everyone around me....
The last part, Cleo getting spade, has been kind of a dramatic experience for me. One, I don't feel all that comfortable taking her to a vet here just bc I don't know any vets personally and people don't exactly take animals to vet here regularly. Two, I am a first time pet owner and very emotionally attached to my cat. So, needless to say I have been a bit of a nervous wreck much to the dismay of my mom and bf. She didn't pull out of the anesthesia like the vet said she would. She was in her little coma until around 4 am the next day. Even then, she couldn't walk and even now only is able to walk drunkenly and falls frequently. But, mom has convinced me its normal and she looks fine. The harder part is mom and I are leaving to travel around El Sal this week so I am gonna have other people looking in on her. Hopefully by tomorrow morning she'll be eating/drinking/walking more normal and I won't continue to bother everyone around me....
Saturday, November 21, 2009
November, The Month of Closure
School has ended and with it many of my main projects such as English class, small business class, and softball games/tournaments. It's been a change I have yet to have time to acknowledge due to big changes in the country and elsewhere.
As many of you know, El Salvador was hit by Hurricane/Tropical Storm Ida. While my site was not effected, the storm hit the families who care for us while we are in training in San Vicente. Peace Corps lost two of these families in Verapaz, a small town outside of San Vicente in the central part of the country. It was a really hectic and sad day. At the time, I was in a meeting planning a camp with some other volunteers and students at the American School in San Salvador. During the meeting, wardens like myself were notified to put everyone in our regions on "standfast" and then conduct a head count of volunteers to make sure everyone was safe. That took the better part of the day to get done since lots of volunteers have bad cell phone service in their communities. In the end, only a few volunteers were displaced with just one unable to return to his community for at least several months due to the security risks and massive destruction to infrastructure there. But, things have cooled down, highways are still being cleared, volunteers are signing up to help out with the clean-up and rebuilding effort, and life in El Salvador continues.
Soon after, we finished our American School camp successfully at Lago Coatepeque (see all my new pictures). The kids I brought had a really good time and that was the important thing. For a couple of them, it was the first time outside their community and for all of them it was the first trip to one of the most beautiful places in their country. They loved riding in a boat probably more than any other part of the 3 day camp-out in cabins.
This past week was spent in the Capital completing my Mid-Service Medical Review. Which means I have officially been here a year and they wanted to make sure I am healthy. Results show I have great teeth with no cavities STILL and a perfectly functioning body with sometimes weird fungus and bug bites that seem to really like me in a this tropical climate. All in all, a good report.
Now, I am here at home with my cat Cleo who may or may not be pregnant but was definitely missing me a lot. I am a terrible mother who has been gone for the better part of the month and will be gone for most of the next 2 months. My neighbor has been feeding her so that's been nice...I need to find them a really nice "thank you" gift...
My mom comes in town next week for Thanksgiving. The agenda is packed with dances, soccer games, rodeos, turkey dinners, waterfalls, hiking, food festivals, surfing, and more. She'll be here for 12 days or so and I am sure she will be more exhausted leaving then she will be coming. I am really looking forward to having her here and promise to post lots of pictures of our Salvadoran Vacation. Maybe the pics will lure some other guests down here to visit me :)
As many of you know, El Salvador was hit by Hurricane/Tropical Storm Ida. While my site was not effected, the storm hit the families who care for us while we are in training in San Vicente. Peace Corps lost two of these families in Verapaz, a small town outside of San Vicente in the central part of the country. It was a really hectic and sad day. At the time, I was in a meeting planning a camp with some other volunteers and students at the American School in San Salvador. During the meeting, wardens like myself were notified to put everyone in our regions on "standfast" and then conduct a head count of volunteers to make sure everyone was safe. That took the better part of the day to get done since lots of volunteers have bad cell phone service in their communities. In the end, only a few volunteers were displaced with just one unable to return to his community for at least several months due to the security risks and massive destruction to infrastructure there. But, things have cooled down, highways are still being cleared, volunteers are signing up to help out with the clean-up and rebuilding effort, and life in El Salvador continues.
Soon after, we finished our American School camp successfully at Lago Coatepeque (see all my new pictures). The kids I brought had a really good time and that was the important thing. For a couple of them, it was the first time outside their community and for all of them it was the first trip to one of the most beautiful places in their country. They loved riding in a boat probably more than any other part of the 3 day camp-out in cabins.
This past week was spent in the Capital completing my Mid-Service Medical Review. Which means I have officially been here a year and they wanted to make sure I am healthy. Results show I have great teeth with no cavities STILL and a perfectly functioning body with sometimes weird fungus and bug bites that seem to really like me in a this tropical climate. All in all, a good report.
Now, I am here at home with my cat Cleo who may or may not be pregnant but was definitely missing me a lot. I am a terrible mother who has been gone for the better part of the month and will be gone for most of the next 2 months. My neighbor has been feeding her so that's been nice...I need to find them a really nice "thank you" gift...
My mom comes in town next week for Thanksgiving. The agenda is packed with dances, soccer games, rodeos, turkey dinners, waterfalls, hiking, food festivals, surfing, and more. She'll be here for 12 days or so and I am sure she will be more exhausted leaving then she will be coming. I am really looking forward to having her here and promise to post lots of pictures of our Salvadoran Vacation. Maybe the pics will lure some other guests down here to visit me :)
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