Week 4, No Electricity

That’s right, it’s the beginning of the fourth week without electricity most of the time. We’ve been buying candles in bulk and having to do everything by the minimal light that enters our dungeon-like apartment. Actually, our apartment isn’t too bad, it’s just surrounded by other taller buildings which effectively block most good light! I can’t complain, I guess. I mean, I live in a third world country with much more severe problems than this. However, this lack of electricity has changed the buying habits of people in Praia. We aren’t buying frozen goods or fresh goods that need refrigeration. Leftovers don’t last long without power, so it’s hard to cook much of anything. Also, we can’t actually use computers or things of that nature to get our work done unless we come to the Peace Corps office where they have a generator running at all times! At least, I have connections to an energy source! Well, wish me the best without power. We’ve been losing water access more and more, so that could be the next to go! Let’s hope not. Life without water is NOT fun.

Oh! Dianne, my roommate for the past year, will be moving to America on August 6th! I’m pretty excited to be roommate free soon and to have Max, my new dog coming on the same day. Life this past year with a “senior” roommate has been a challenge. I am now looking forward to a month break before I move in with my new, younger roommate. This one, Elizabeth, is only 64!

Happy 4th of July, Happy 5th of July, and Happy 28th Birthday to me!

It is our nation's 230th birthday on the 4th. It is Cape Verde's 36th birthday on the 5th. And it is Casey Malone Maugh's 28th birthday on the 8th.

July sure is a great month. So many birthday's of significance fall in this great month. I can't believe I will be 28 years old. When you're a little kid, it's hard to imagine being in your 20's. And in your teenage years, it's hard to imagine being older than about 21 or 22. Now that I'm nearing 30, it's hard to imagine what the next 27 years will hold for me. I've had a fantastic 27 years, so I expect the next to be great too. I do know that this past year in Cape Verde has truly been one of the most rewarding and challenging experiences of my life. I also can guarantee that this next year will be equally as rewarding and challenging. I only hope that in my next year here in Cape Verde that I can make even more strides to improve this country and improve my own life. I think it's going to be good!

For all of you readers who have been dying to send me things, now is your chance. If you haven't sent anything yet, don't worry, I'll accept belated gifts TOO! Just kidding. I know that my birthday here will be very low key, but I think that's a good thing. I'll have time to reflect on what it means to be a year older.

Electricity Problems

We have been without electricity for 5 days now.

Well, not fully without power, but for at least 12 hours a day, we've not had power. The unfortunately part is that we have been granted power during the sleeping hours of the night! Those folks at the electric company are pretty smart because they know that noone is using power late at night because they are ASLEEP! Interestingly enough, the power company leaves the power on while the World Cup games are on. For example, yesterday the power was out until about 10 mintues after the Portugal v. England game. Just when Portugal won and EVERYONE was going NUTS, they shut the whole entire city down. The lights remained off until about 11pm, and then came on until noon today. It's totally crazy and people are starting to freak out. The argument being that if Cape Verde is trying to become an internationally recognized country, then they need to get the power situation straightened out. Commerce cannot go on if people cannot run their businesses, keep their products cold, and safety is a concern when the lights are down. On the other islands, power is not an issue. Because Santiago is the biggest island and has far more people than the others, power is a problem in the summertime.

AHHH! Well, I think my roommate is about to have a breakdown because she can't use her computer and all of our food is going bad. I decided to come to Peace Corps because they have a generator and I can use the internet! GOOD DEAL! Oh, also it's hotter than Hades here and my house is a sweatbox. The fans don't work without power, so it pretty much sucks to live on the bottom floor with no venhilation. ANYWAY, I live in a 3rd world country in Africa, things could be worse! I'm keeping it postive! :)

One YEAR!!!

This past week has been quite interesting. From 9 until 5 everyday, I have been sitting in a room with 40 other people setting up the schedule for the 33 new volunteers coming to Cape Verde on July 6th and 7th. This planning session at times seemed endless, but in the end, we came together to produce a pretty good 9-week training program for these new folks. I am happy to be a part of the staff this summer that will help the volunteers get an idea of what service here is like.

One of the interesting parts of this training week was that much of it was presented in Creole. This truly tested the speaking abilities of the volunteers as we struggled to keep up and participate in the conversation. I am happy to realize that my listening and speaking skills are pretty good and that my colleagues have also improved incredibly since last year. It will be interesting to see these new faces, trying to figure it all out just like we did! I can't believe it's been a YEAR this week since I made my way to this beautiful place! I can't wait to see what the next year holds for me in Mindelo. I get to start anew and continue to learn and grow here. What a great life I'm having!

pictures of me!

My mom always says that I should post more photos of me! So, here are a few. Well, they're not great, but they're of me! These were from last weekend at my friend Alli's house. The first is of Alli and me and the second of David and me.

We're losing volunteers right and left

I think that volunteers must have a summer itch. In the past two weeks we have lost 4 volunteers, two who wanted to leave and two who did not. (two volunteer were medically separated from the PC over the past two weeks). This puts us at 16 of the 26 we began with in July. We have lost many good volunteers for many different reasons. I just wanted to write about this phenomenon as I struggle to figure out why people leave, how people handle being in another country, and as I approach the 1 year mark of my life here in Cape Verde. It's crazy to think that 10 volunteers have left this beautiful country. Beauty fades quickly and volunteers must be happy with their lives and work to remain so far from what is familiar.

I often have a hard time understanding why people leave because I have been happy with my experiences here. I can't imagine having to make the decision to leave after investing yourself in this country. I have a feeling that another volunteer will be leaving soon, and again, I am sad. I hope they find what they are looking for after this experience.

We have a group of 32 volutneers coming in just over two weeks! I know they are both scared and excited imaging what will be. I only hope they find a country as interesting and welcoming as I have.

Pictures from Santo Antao

Here are two more pictures from my trip to Santo Antao. It's just beautiful and when YOU come visit, you can see it in person.

Also, I mentioned in the previous post that my friend David's videocamera was recovered. A few days after I left, the police found his computer and speakers as well. They recovered all of his possessions that were stolen from his home 2 months ago. Come to find out, they had been stolen by his 12 year old neighbor, who had a key to David's apartment. He had a key because one night he was locked out of his home and David let him spend the night in his spare bedroom. During the night, the boy found a spare key and kept it for several months until the house was empty for the weekend!!!!

Oh, also, July 8th will mark my 28th birthday! I can't believe it either. But, I will be alone here in Cape Verde so anyone who would like to email me on that day would be a SAINT. At least the new volunteers will be here, so I can sucker them into being nice to me!!!!!

my vacation

I just returned from a wonderful 10 day trip to Sao Vicente. It was a great time to get away and just relax. My friend David took me up to the top of Monte Verde, where it was both cold and cloudy. We couldn't see much, but we met an older couple who fed us and hung out with us for a while before giving us a ride back down to the bottom of the mountain. They were really generous and very sweet. Come to find out they live very near David's house, so I ended up seeing them just about every day after that. When I move to Sao Vicente, I'll already know a couple of people!

We looked a some apartments while I was there. It was hard to find places, and we spent a lot of time just walking around chasing leads. Finally, I got to visit a place that David had already checked out before my arrival. It is beautiful. The apartment is on the 3rd floor, has built in closets, 3 bedroom, and 2 bathrooms. The roof has a view of the entire city. It's an amazing place, but might be in a questionable location. I am passing on the details to PC and they will make the decision about safety. In the meantime, David is checking out some more places for me.

On Thursday, after being in Mindelo nearly a week, we headed to the neighboring island of Santo Antao to visit the city of Paul. Paul is a 45 minute boat ride followed by a 2 hour car ride from Mindelo, but boy is it worth it. I have posted a picture here for you to see... A fellow volutneer was nice enough to take us in for the weekend and give us a great tour of the place. We went to school with Alli for her last day of classes, then we rode up to the mouth of the ribera. This is one of the most beautiful places I've been. And as most of you know, I've been a lot of places... This is an amazing island, and it is nothing like the other islands. It's crazy how different each site is. It's what makes traveling here so interesting. When ANYONE decides to come visit me, you'll get to see this place too, I promise!

Well, on an interesting note, when David and I were returning on the boat from Santo Antao, we were talking about when his house was robbed. He lost everything, including a video camera. We were saying it would be likely that the camera would show up at an upcoming music festival on Sao Vicente this summer. Just as we were finished with this conversation, David saw a guy with a camera bag that looked oddly familiar. He asked the guy if he could check out his camera because his was stolen some months ago and he was curious. SURE ENOUGH, it was his camera. David took the guy to the police station where they are holding the camera. The guy with the camera on the boat turned out to have "borrowed" it from a friend. Now they friend has to come talk to the cops, but David will get his camera back. Also, the guy on the boat turned out to be the "famous" Cape Verdean rap star, Mo Green. Weird world.

Alright, I'll try to write and post more from my adventures soon.

I'm moving again

No, I'm not changing houses again. I have been asked to move to the island of Sao Vicente, one of the northern islands in September. There is a branch campus of ISE in the city of Mindelo that has requested 2 volutneers. These two volutneers would be teaching and working on helping the English department become stronger. My coordinator at ISE recently visited the Mindelo campus and upon return asked me to move there. I am SOOOOO excited. This is a great opportunity for me to really work on getting our sister department working as well as we do here in Praia. I am also excited about living in a new town, speaking a different Creole, and meeting new people. This is a rare treat to get to change sites in the middle of service, so I feel very blessed. I will be helping with training this summer, and then afterward, I will be moving to Mindelo for my last year of service. I just hope I can do a great job there. I've been told that I probably won't be teaching, rather I will be coordinating workshops for inservice training and assessing the needs of the department and working with the teachers there to make a difference. I am absolutely, completely, totally thrilled. Oh, and I'm headed to Mindelo this week, on Friday, for vacation to check out the school and find a place to live!!!!!!!!!

The other exciting news is that I am getting a dog, Max. My friend and co-worker, Deanna, just left for the states today for 3 months. She will be having her first child there with her family. Her husband will be headed to the states in August and they would like me to take their dog. They feel that having the dog and the baby will be difficult. Deanna chose me to take the dog because she knows I'm an animal lover! I just can't stand to see such a cool dog without a home. Max is an awesome dog. He's fun and playful and he's loyal and sweet. I think it'll be just perfect. I will be getting him August 6th, so I have a little time to prepare for this adventure. A new dog, a new island, a new job.... so many changes and they're all WONDERFUL.

Good morning

This morning was a VERY good morning. After a restless night's sleep and an early beginning, I was walking to the Peace Corps office. In my foggy state, I walked my normal trek through my neighborhood. Two little girls were just in front of me, dressed in their blue smocks (all children in primary school wear cute little smocks to school). One of the little girls turned around and waved at me. I immediately looked behind me because I thought she was waving at someone else, but no one was there. Her friend headed off in the direction of another school and she and I crossed the street and met up. She said hello to me and asked me in portuguese if I was a teacher. I told her, in Creole, that I was a teacher at ISE. We chatted a bit longer, then she crossed the road and said "txau." I crossed the road a little farther up and we met again. This time, we chatted about how old she was. I told her I was an American. I also told her that her Portuguese was very good. She said she learned it in school. Then just before she turned off to go to her school, she looked up and said I was "Linda." I thanked her because "linda" is Portuguese for pretty. I was very flattered. I told her she was pretty too. She smiled and thanked me. I told her as she veered toward the schoolyard, to have a great day and to study hard. She was one of those children who acted very mature with me. She tried to speak her best Portuguese thinking that I too spoke the language. It was a great wake up call. It absolutely made my whole day. So, this is bound to be a great week! Happy Monday!

My weekend

It was quite an eventful weekend. If you are one of my parents, grandparents, or just people who don’t want to know what a dangerous world I live in, please do not read any further…

So, again, it was quite an eventful weekend. On Saturday I went to visit some friends in Sao Domingos. My friend Adi made a bet with a couple of other volunteers that she could drink 1 gallon of milk within 1 hour without throwing it back up. According to lore, this is an impossible feat. Apparently no one has been able to do this, it is physically impossible for the body to do such a thing. Well, Adi, being the adventurous spirit that she is and unwilling to turn down a good bet, took on the challenge. As she was consuming her first liter of milk, people began running down the streets and screaming. Some friends were already outside and witnessed a crazy accident. In Sao Domingos, there is a pretty sharp turn near one end of town. Many cars drive very quickly on this part of the road because it is newly paved. Unfortunately, on Saturday, a pick up truck didn’t slow down enough and bounced from one side of the retaining wall to the next, then flipped over. As this happened, the young child in the back of the truck flew out. The father who was driving jumped from the car shortly after it flipped, then the other child in the passenger seat was pulled from the vehicle. Amazingly, no one was hurt. The truck was flipped over and was drivable even with a completely crushed roof. Even more dramatic than there being no injuries were the people of Sao Domingos. You see, in Cape Verde when something bad happens, everyone runs to see it. Women immediately being “wailing.” This is a very traditional, loud, crying that people do when someone dies. The women of Cape Verde will wail in this sort of instance too, even before they know what has happened. They just see an accident and the wailing begins. We knew no one was dead in this particular accident because the wailing stopped after about 5 minutes. Along with the wailing were all the people present for this accident. Children were running up to the over-turned truck trying to get a look. People didn’t seem to mind that the truck could have exploded or could have turned over further. No one worried about neck or spine injuries. They just dragged the people out of the car. Things are certainly different here. But I am happy to report that the police heard the wailing and made it to the scene of the accident in record time (for Cape Verde).

Speaking of police officers….. On Sunday I was on the bus in a busy part of town and all of the traffic stopped. Then I heard a girl on the street yell “sta guera” (it’s a war). Just as she said that and began running toward a crowd of people who had gathered in the street, a gun shot rang out. I looked up and saw a guy running away from the crowd followed by a police officer running with a gun in hand pointed at the other guy. Just as I saw the cop, he shot again at the man. Also, he was shooting at this man on the street with lots of people around. It was crazy, and done with complete disregard of those other pedestrians. The two men turned a corner, so I have no idea what happened next, but I was completely shocked. This is the very first time in my life that I’ve seen another human being fire a gun at someone else. I certainly don’t ever want to be that close again. Being that I was on a bus, I should have felt safe, except that a few weeks ago, some men in a car threw rocks at a moving bus and stopped the bus, a man got off the bus and the men shot him. Praia is getting more and more dangerous all the time. I’m not sure what’s going on in this town, but I am staying inside for a while……

A final faculty meeting

Monday night was our final faculty meeting. We had it at my house and I cooked some good ole' red beans and rice for my fellow colleagues. The food was good, the conversation was good, and the plans for the future are looking bright.

We discussed some of our frustrations and successes over the past year. Looking back, the frustrations were few and the successes tremendous. Deanna, our department coordinator commented on the difference in our department over the last 3 years. When Deanna first arrived at ISE, there had been no graduates of our department, there had not been a successful student teaching program in years, and the teaching staff was not stable. Today, we have a wonderful teaching staff, a fully functioning program, and nearly 25 students scheduled to graduate this summer. It's amazing to think that so much progress has happened in a short amount of time.

I believe that ISE, in particular, our department, have a great future ahead of them. I am happy that I don't feel needed here. I am glad to see that committed people are working with me and that those with a commitment are sticking around to see what happens next. It's an exciting time here at ISE, and just as the summer kicks off, I am thankful to have made it nearly one year in this country doing something so important.

Training of the new volunteers will begin at the beginning of July, making me an official 2nd year volunteer. It will be my turn to help with training the new volunteers. I'll get to see what I must have been like last year at this time! I'm looking forward to all that is to come. I can't believe I've been living in Africa for a year, it's gone by so quickly.....

a moment of bliss

This memorial day weekend I will be house-sitting! A woman who works at the US embassy has asked me if I'd like to stay in her home while she takes a vacation to Sal.

This morning I went over to her house for a quick tour and do's and don'ts of the place. She has a pantry the size of my bed room that is filled with American foods! She has a washing machine and a dryer, which I will be using to wash every piece of clothing I own. My clothes are always handwashed very poorly by me, so this will be a chance to get them clean and the dryer will hopefully shrink some of the stretched out clothes too! Other than that, she has about 46 verdandas that overlook the ocean. She has an entire third floor devoted to "entertainment" including DVD player, big TV, and the works. Finally, and most important to yours truly, she has hot water.... and AC!

This woman is a saint. Knowing that Peace Corps volunteers are poor and need some comfort every now and again, she asked me to stay in her house! God bless her. Really.

For anyone who has considered working in the foreign service.... DO IT! The foreign diplomats from the states get hooked up! They all have awesome homes, they have generators, hot water, AC, secruity guards, and cars. AND, they get to live in foreign countries and see the world. Pretty sweet deal if you ask me. If you are unsure what to next with your life, consider taking the foreign service exam and traveling abroad!

Lunch at ISE

The lunch at ISE is great. For 150 escudos, the school serves rice, a vegetable or salad, and some kind of meat or beans. There are a couple of meals that I just can't seem to get into: iska, mao de vaca, and tripe. I'm just not that big a fan of organ meat, as I may have mentioned previously on my blog.

On Thursday, I was at ISE all day long, so I decided to eat. I always ask what they are serving before committing to anything just in case it's one of the above three things. Well, on Thursday, I asked the man who works there what it was (surprisingly at that moment, no one was eating in the cantina, so I couldn't check out people's plates). He said it was "perna de vaca ku arroz e grao." So I thought, "yes, I'd love some leg of the cow with rice and chickpeas." As it turns out, perna de vaca is actually mao de vaca, cow hoof!!! YUCK! So, I get my plate with lots of rice, potatoes, chickpeas, and a cow hoof. I looked down only to regret not having a better grasp of the portuguese language. You see, what happened I was thinking in Creole, while the man was speaking in Portuguese! Nice mistake! Next time, I'll be more inquisitive!

Well, I didn't end up eating the hoof, although, many, many Cape Verdeans think it's just wonderful. They fry the hoof, they boil it, and they grill it. The little meat that is on it is supposed to be really great, but I haven't gotten up the courage to try it. The peas, potatoes, and rice were top notch, however! Just another day in paradise folks!

Education

I was at a faculty meeting the other day. We’ve been having our faculty meetings at people’s houses, which means that we get to visit with each other, eat good food, and get some business done in a less formal setting. It’s been really, really nice.

This particular faculty meeting was at a woman’s condo right on the ocean. It was really nice. It was new and had all the amenities, including a swimming pool and underground parking garage. Pretty swanky. This woman is pretty amazing. She is Cape Verdean; she got her Master’s degree in England; she was the president of ISE for 4 years; and she is the owner of the English Language Institute here. She is a wealth of information, so the meeting at her house was really inspiring.

I learned while we were there her perspective on education in Cape Verde. We were discussing the student teachers who had just finished their student teaching. We were talking about which students did well and which needed more work. This teacher began reflecting on the teaching history in this country. She pointed out that having education in a country is different than instruction. She said this in reference to the school popping up throughout the countries without qualified teachers. The teachers in this country are not required to have a college education to teach, so often times, the teachers are under qualified, especially in remote areas where teachers are hard to find. The point is that while Cape Verde is finding money to build schools, they simply have teachers who are instructing students, rather than actually educating them. Until we have more teachers graduate from ISE, we won’t have qualified teachers in the remote areas teaching students.
This whole concept of hiring teachers without proper educations seems foreign, but at the same time, I am reminded constantly of why I’m here. I have 3 students finishing their senior thesis projects. They each will graduate this year, adding to the pool of qualified, educated, dedicated teachers in this country! It’s pretty exciting when you think about the fact that I am training teachers….I mean, I know that’s what I’ve been doing the whole time, but for some reason, the other day, I was struck with this notion and understand more than ever why I’m here.

Bafatada

Bafatada in Creole means to slap.

A couple of evenings ago I was leaving the PC office on my usual walk home. Just outside the office three little kids were standing there. Two of the boys, who were about 9 years old were in a fight. But this was the kind of fight were neither boy really wants to hit the other and they are just dancing around taking fake swings at each other. It was pretty funny to watch. I noticed that the kids also had a big pile of clothing that they had clearly stolen from people at the beach. As I was walking I saw one of the house guards come out and pretend to walk past the boys. Just as he approached the boys, he turned and slapped on of them upside the back of his head. At this point I was laughing because the whole situation was hilarious. The guard then smacked the other kid as he was trying to run away. The third kid was long gone by this point. The guard quickly picked up the pile of clothes as the boys were rubbing the back of their heads in disbelief. With the stolen clothes in hand and boys shoes and shirts, the guard went back inside the gate from which he came and locked the boys out. They realized what happened and were yelling at the guard to give their clothes back. He didn't respond and just stood behind the gate laughing at the boys.

It was one of the funniest things I've seen in a while. Those little boys totally desrved to be reprimanded for what they did and for acting stupid in the middle of the street. I really appreciate the way that adults teach children lessons here. In the states, you couldn't really get away with smacking someone else's kid around, but here, it's done for the common good. I hope those little boys got a lesson that day that they won't forget. I know I won't forget what happened!

Holidays!

I know that in the U.S. we so infrequently get days off that they are treasured days of relaxation. In Cape Verde, I've come to dislike their love for holidays. They totally screw up my class schedule. This semester I am only teaching on Mondays and Fridays, which are exactly when the holidays fall. We began school in March, we just had a week off for Easter, then just last Monday was Labor Day, then next Friday will be some other holiday, which is a big festival in Praia (which I won't go to because foreigners are prime crime targets at these kind of things). This means that I'll miss another day with my students! Great. Don't get me wrong, it's nice to have days off, but so many days off gets annoying when you only teach 2 days a week and the days you teach are inevitably holiday days!

Please, everyone feel very sorry for me because I hardly ever have to actually work! I know, I know, my life is sooooo hard. Really, it's tragic!

student teaching

Much like in the US, students in Cape Verde must participate in student teaching in order to get their Bachelor's degree in a teaching field. In our English department at ISE, the students have been student teaching for a couple of months. The strange thing about student teaching in CV is that nearly all of the 20 something students are already teachers in high schools on the island. So basically we are working with them on teaching and how to do it well, but most of them are as good as we are. I have several students who have been teaching in high schools for 5 or 6 years. This means that we are giving them a grade on a skill they have been steadily improving upon for quite some time.

Being an advisor for this process is great and really inspiring because I know Cape Verde English teachers are good. They are meant to be in the classroom and they all want to be in the classroom teaching English. The best part is that teaching is not a last option here; it's a first option. Teaching is prestigious and valued. It's been a great experience, but I am happy that this semester is winding down! June 9th will be my last day of classes, and I'm not complaining one bit about it!

A gathering of English teachers

Saturday was a great day for English teachers in Cape Verde. It was the first gathering of English teachers to discuss the formation of a national english teacher's association. My roommate, Dianne coordinated the conference along with 11 other Cape Verdean colleagues. They were able to get money to fly in the English coordinator from each high school in the country. They also flew in a guest speaker, Mr. Abadou Abese Sow from Dakar. Abese is the president and one of the founders of the national english teacher's organization in Senegal. He spoke to us about the importance of an association and motivated the high school English teachers to really move on getting a recognized group formed. We had lots of speakers, including the president of ISE, the American ambassador, and the Secretary of State of education for the country. People seemed genuinely inspired and interested in holding another conference soon.

It was so nice to see so many teachers come together to help themselves. I was inspired by their commitment to change and their forward thinking. It was a great day. We had a great conference, great food, and we even sang a song together - "the more we get together, the happier we'll be"!!!!!!

It was amazing. This country is great. I am so appreciative that I could do things to help the confrence run smoothly. I feel like I was able to participate in something that will really change the lives of teachers in this country!

wedding photos

Sorry it's taken so long to post this. I have been trying to get pictures to upload for weeks! Here they are now!

Morgan and Holly are finally married. We worked hard and played hard over the wedding weekend in Destin, Florida! Everything was absolutely beautiful. I am posting there now and will put more up when I get them. I am soooo proud to have a new sister. I know Morgan is happy and that makes me happy. The two honeymooned in Jamaica. Now they are back to the real world. Morgan has a new job with Pfizer and will be spending time between Mississippi and Pennsylvania while he is in training.

The pictures turned out wonderfully. It was definitely a magazine wedding. The boys were straight out of J.Crew and the bridesmaids dresses were just perfect for the outdoor wedding. I'm just posting a bunch of pictures, so enjoy! They all turned out beautifully. The colors were just perfect. The day was just perfect in every way!

Sal at Easter

The pictures are: David and me, Nick and me, and Nick and David

Ever year on Good Friday, I head up to Purvis, MS, to spend the weekend with my family and friends. This year, I missed my favorite celebration, which I was pretty sad about. Well, I was sad until Thursday night when my friends Nick and David convinced me to fly to Sal (another island) for Easter. Even though it was last minute, I said "what the heck" and hopped on a plane Good Friday to enjoy a weekend with two of my favorite people.

David and Nick are the kind of guys who make you laugh even when you don't want to. They are the kind of friends who let you know they care about you all the time. They're just great guys. I got to spend my weekend relaxing. On Friday, we had some beers and dinner then got to hang out at Nick's just goofing off. Saturday we made our way to Santa Maria. The beaches there were amazingly beautiful. The water was perfect too. It was a little too cold to get in for me, but Nick decided to try it out! I wish I had some pictures of the beach, but I was afraid that my camera would get stolen, so I left it at home. I have some other pictures of the boys that I'll put up soon.

On Saturday night, I cooked my famous enchiladas. This was quite a process because I had to hand make the tortillas first, which takes some time. But, David and Nick helped with everything, so it wasn't so bad. HOWEVER, a couple of hurdles occurred as we were cooking. First, I was cooking some brownies. This isn't a problem, except the glass window in the front of the oven fell out of place, letting out all of the heat. So, I decide to try to cover it with cardboard. Then, I decide that this would work fine, except the brownie wasn't cooking at all. As I'm trying to figure out what to do, the gas stops. GREAT! Gas tank is empty. Nick and David have to carry the tank to get a new one. Then they have to bring the newer, heavier one back. Okay, mission accomplished and while they were gone, the oven cools down enough to repair the fallen glass. When David returns, he and I use pliers, knives, and teamwork to pull the glass back into place. After about 30 minutes, we were back on track. At any rate, we finally got to eat dinner at about 9:30. I'm pretty sure that my enchiladas were a hit. The boys ate several at dinner, more after we returned from our night out clubbing, and then the rest for lunch the following day! I'd call that a satisfying meal.

So, by Sunday, we were pretty worn out from the events of the previous day. This led to a rather uneventful Sunday, which was nice. We finally made it out of the house for a spaghetti dinner at about 8 at night on Easter. Monday morning came too fast. David had to leave before 8, which was super sad. I had a few more hours with my boy Nick, and then I too headed to the airport with a few other volunteers who were visiting the island and Robert (Nick's roommate).

It was a perfect weekend with two great people. I'll try to post a few photos from the weekend soon. Txau, ti logo.

Poverty

Sometimes in my daily life here in Cape Verde, I'm able to forget that I live in a very poor country. I mean, people go to school. Some people have cars and nice houses. People dress nicely even if they don't have money. In my daily walking to and from places, I tend to see the beauty of the people and the land. However, today, I was caught off guard. I saw something that made me uncomfortable and reminded me of where I am. I saw a little boy standing next to a dumpster. As I approached him, another younger boy was inside the dumpster. This little boy was handing his friend a half full bottle of water that he had found in the dumpster. And it wasn't enough that the children were resorting to this kind of scavenging, but they were doing it right in front of one of the ambassador's homes. This sharp contrast between wealthy and poor saddened me as I walked along the road. I watched the children as they continued to retrieve things from the filthiness of the dumpster, and I wanted to cry. These children need help. The kind of help that other countries should be giving. Unfortunately, the only help these children were getting today was the trash from an ambassador. I am reminded, just as I forget, that there is a reason I am in this country.

Ulisses

A student, a wonderful, sweet, smart, kind, interested student lost his father yesterday. Ulisses' father died of a sudden heart attack yesterday morning. I am overwhelmed by this information. Ulisses came to class today and told me what happened. I asked him if he would like to go home, but he said he'd rather be at school today. He was in shock and barely able to hold it together. It is so hard to comfort and console someone when such a major loss has occurred for them. Capeverdeans want to be with people when someone dies. They like to have large crowds of people around them, making them feel comforted. This society cares about community and togetherness. Ulisses is so special to me that I hate to see him in pain. I hate to think of him as he suffers. I plan to visit his home today with the other second year students. Although I have reservations about showing up at his home, it is the Capeverdean thing to do. And as I learn how to live as a Capeverdean, I do things that remove me from my comfort zone in order to make others feel more comfortable.

Theater

When you think about 3rd world countries, you probably don't think about great theater. That's fair enough, I don't really equate Cape Verde with excellent theater either. However, this past weekend I went to an excellent play at the national auditorium. It was about the history of Creole in Cape Verde.

First, the play began during the times of Slavery. The "Master" spoke in Portuguese and the slaves in Creole. It was pretty cool. As history progressed, Creole advanced. There was a part of the play where a local performance group danced and sang on stage. It was amazing. To watch the history of the country on stage was incredible. I was so impressed by the creativity of people who have so little. They are able to do an unbelievable amount with what they have.

Oh! I was sitting just behind the President of the country, Pedro Pires. He just walked in and sat right in front of me and talked to everyone. This is just slightly different than G.W. walking into a place! People were just saying hello and little kids were playing around him. It is soooo different here than in the states!!!!!!!!!!!!!! txau.

Cape Verde, again for the first time

Being back in Cape Verde after 6 weeks away has been different than I ever could have imagined. I got off the plane after 24 hours of traveling only to smell the ocean breeze, again for the first time. I returned to my home only to find dust everywhere, as usual. I walked through my neighborhood and all of the old feelings of familiarity were different. When I left, after 7 months here, I felt as if I blended in with my surroundings (even if others still noticed me). Now, I feel like people are again staring at the American girl. I feel conspicuous in a way that I forgot about. Also, Cape Verdeans have no problem telling you that you have gained a little weight. I was sitting on a couch for a month, so I gained maybe 5 pounds and everyone is pointing it out! Thanks folks. But here, it's a compliment, not a critique. When you are heavier, you are healthier. I understand that in theory, but hearing it stinks. I also have lost my swiftness with the language. I mean, I still understand and can communicate, but I forget words that I know I knew before I left! It's a little frustrating, but I'll be back in tip top shape before you know it.

The best part of being back so far was going to class this morning at 7:30. My wonderful students threw me a surprise party today. They made cake, pastels, and quiche. It was excellent. They made me big signs that said "We missed you, casey" and "We love you, Casey." It was soooo wonderful. They gave me presents and lots of hugs. I have a student, Alice, who made me 3 peices of "renda." Renda is very intricate knitting. The Cape Verdean women sell these for quite a bit of money because they are elaborate. These renda are similar to lace and they are to be placed on coffee tables and dining tables, as lace is in the states. A long time ago, Alice wrote in an essay that she makes renda. I told her that I wanted to buy some of her renda to remember CV. Today, she gave me it as a gift. I was so moved. The three peices she made are georgeous. They are elaborately made with flower shapes and they are yellow! I love them!

This has been a special return made wonderful by my friends, colleagues, and students. I am so blessed.

Going back

I want to post quickly to let everyone know that I will be returning to CV on Monday morning at 11:30. I'm out of here a little sooner than I had anticipated, but I'm happy to be returning to my friends and work in CV! Sorry, I don't have a lot of time. I'm off to Morgan's wedding this weekend!

Cape Verde... I'm headed home

I have just been cleared to return to my wonderful life in Cape Verde. I met with the surgeon yesterday, and he has given me the thumbs up to go back. I cannot express just how happy I am to know for certain that I will be returning. I am also with a heavy heart to again have to leave my home in Mississippi. I love the South, my family, and friends, and after seeing what remains after Katrina, it is that much harder to leave. I only hope that the hurricanes steer clear of this area in the upcoming season so that everyone has time to rebuild and recover in peace.

For Garber!

This is a short post for my good friend Josh Garber! He will be married soon... in the Virgin Islands. I'm not sure how Sheila, his fiance, is able to put up with him, but it seems to be working out well for them! Josh, I hope you're happy that I gave you a shout out on my blog! Stay in touch.... buddy.

This is the only picture of Josh I have on my computer! He only dresses like this when he goes to his Sig Ep fraternity meetings!

Recovery

Two weeks post surgery, I'm getting around really well. Last Tuesday I had an appointment with my surgeon. He told me that I had a cyst in front of the broken bone. The cyst was benign and the bone was "dying." But, that's all been removed, so I guess this means that I'll be up and running in no time! Now that I'm getting up and moving around, things are looking up. I'll get my stitches out tomorrow, which will help with my walking.

On a different note, the day before yesterday, I took a ride down the beach, past my old house. The house is going to be knocked down this week. It was surreal to go there. I saw my old home completely destroyed. The windows were all broken, the house had big holes in it where the water crashed through. Most of the other houses on the beach are gone, which is impossibly difficult to see. Our bridge is tattered and unusable. I have yet to make it to Biloxi to see the beach there, which I hear is even worse. But really only worse because all of the historic buildings are gone. Visiting friends and family who are living after the storm has been strange. People who used to live in wonderful homes are now living in FEMA trailers. People are living in their old homes without kitchens, alongside racoons and birds who have taken over the house. People are so amazingly resilient. They have survived the actual storm and are now dealing with the storm that remains. It's just so insane being here now. In so many ways, I wish I could have been here when this all happened. Though I've loved my life in Cape Verde, I feel as if I could have helped more here than there.

hand dryers versus paper towels

Based on a recent comment on my blog, I did a little research. It seems that there are varying opinions on which is more environmentally friendly, paper towels or electric hand dryers. While paper towels kill trees, the electric hand dryer uses energy. It seems to me that killing trees is a bigger problem than using energy. First, electricity if it currently is not, will eventually be from renewable resources. A paper towel's source (a tree) is non-renewable. Secondly, people generally use more than the needed amount of paper towels to dry their hands. Thirdly, someone must ensure that the paper towels are constantly available.

So, in my opinion, paper towels are wasteful. There is no clear consensus on this issue, so it is not true that paper towels are more "friendly" than hand dryers. I would just like to make this clear for the record that I choose to use the hand dryers because I believe that technology is both more effective now and will be even more so in the future when our energy sources are renewable. ALSO, people should get used to using hand dryers and limit their use of paper products. :)

someone is a jerk

someone is consistantly posting mean/rude/unnecessary things on my blog. The following are comments that I consider such:

Tuesday, February 14th 2006 - FYI: hand dryers use more energy/ resources than paper towels.

Monday, January 23rd 2006 - life is hard sometimes - you'll deal.

Tuesday, September 27th 2005 - fortunately, your person wasn't *devastated.*

I sure wish that whoever is posting these comments would at least sign his/her name. It would be nice to know who would write such things to me. I was telling a friend of mine about these and he said I was being overly sensitive. That may be so, but I still wish the person would leave a signature!

AMERICA

Geez! I'm in America. Let me tell you that I am in culture shock. First, I got onto my flight in Cape Verde at 4 a.m. I was the only person to board the plane that had come from South Africa. After they got my one peice of luggage on the plane and I was seated, we headed for Atlanta. I rarely see television, so when I got on the plane and had my own TV, I was interested in watching new movies. So, I started a movie and fell asleep in about 1.2 seconds. I slept until we were about 2 hours away from Atlanta. I woke up, started to watch another movie, then the plane landed with about 2 minutes left in the film, so I missed the final scene! GREAT!

Real culture shock set in when I got to the Atlanta airport. First, everyone was speaking English. Second, everyone is FAT in America. Third, there are more restaraunts than necessary in the A terminal of the Atlanta airport, thus the overabundance of overweight people. Fourth, I could flush the toilet paper down the toilet. Fifth, there were actually paper towels in the bath rooms to dry your hands and more than that, there was actually running water. I, of course, used the hand dryers because I don't believe in wasting paper, but I digress. Let's see, next I sat in the DC airport and listened to the news about the winter storm on CNN and about Cheney shooting his hunting partner in the face! What an idiot.

Sidenote about Dick Cheney: You mean to tell me that this man is responsible for running our country? Now I know I want to get back to Cape Verde - and fast! I mean, I even took hunter's saftey in junior high and know enough to always know where your hunting partner is at all times. Sounds like a conspiracy to me. I can hear it now, "Hey Bill, let's go hunting together." "Sounds good Dick, see you in the morning." "Oh, Bill why don't you head over there and stir up some quail for me to shoot." "If you say so Dick, you're the Vice President after all, so I trust you." Next thing you know, Dick shot the poor guy in the face and he didn't even die, which I'm sure wasn't calculated into the plan.

Returning to my story of culture shock. I got into a cab after landing safely in DC an hour late. I got to my hotel room! I got to watch some television last night. Thank goodness there were great programs like the Bachelor: Paris on! I went to the grocery store and just stared at everything. I had an almost impossible time deciding what to buy. I finally got a pre-made ceasar's salad and some grapes and called it quits. In Cape Verde, if you want bread, you just get the one loaf that's there. If you want cheese, there's only one kind (if they have it at all). In America, they have 500 of each thing. It's ridiculous. So, after my mildly successful trip to the grocery store and after spending an hour just walking around and looking at everything, I got back to my room.

I finally got to shower. A nice warm shower was wonderful. Even better than that were the washers and dryers in our hotel. Even though I had to pay about a million dollars to use them, my clothes are SUPER CLEAN. Hand washing sucks and it doesn't get your clothes all that clean (espcially the way I do it, I am too lazy to scrub). The dryer was heavenly! My clothes all shrank back to their proper sizes! It was awesome. My jeans actually fit again, mostly! It was excellent!

Now I'm at the Peace Corps office where I can make free phone calls to anyone in the US. SO, send me an email with your number if you want me to call you. You can also call me at the Virginian Suites hotel. The number there is (703)522-9600. Just ask for me at the front desk. I meet with the specialist today at 1:00 to decide my Peace Corps fate! Once I know more about that, I'll post again! Txau!

A poem from a student

I have a student, Jose Luis, who turned in a writing assignment the other day. This assignment was meant to be a reflection of a Maya Angelou poem. Instead of writing about the poem, Jose Luis wrote a poem about me. I decided to post it here so that you could see what great, amazing students I have.

Everyday in my life I wonder
Who you are,
Who passed next to my door
And instead of knocking on it,
Just broke in.
You came slowly and mighty;
You talked, you sang, you taught;
You went and your words,
Remained, untouchable and unfinishable
But things you did, songs you sangs and sounds
you produced were soft, careless, and pleasant
I enjoyed finding out things through you;
I entrinsically motivated myself;
I found out wyself,
How important I am;
Receiving your patience and your dedication.
Everything you did was creating
Conditions and a sense of tolerance.
I want to take your blessing
And if it is possible
Give it to me while it is in time
Because your example is a good way
to be followed and also it si one of your treasures.
Takind serious the admiration you cause
Gives me the courage to say that
Someone created you and have lost the shape forever.
You are one of a kind!

Jose Luis followed this kind poem with these words:

Instead of writing a short essay about the poem you gave us, I made you a poem. For your dedication, the admiration I have for you as a teacher, as a woman, as a friend, as a human being.

Thoughts on going home after 7 months away

Before I type my "actual" post, let me note that as I type this email in our library at school, a cow is outside of my window staring at me. This cow has somehow found its way into the school yard and is just checking out what is happening inside!

Okay, now the real post...

I mentioned in an earlier post that I am both excited and nervous about going home after 7 months. This anxiety about going home is compounded by my feelings about what is left of my hometown and the surrounding areas. Yesterday my father, who for those of you who do not know him or know of him, is a Methodist minister in Vancleave, Mississippi, sent out a short piece that he wrote for a journal. His reflections on what happened days after the storm were amazing. Not having been there when Katrina hit or in the aftermath of the storm, I don't quite have a sense of how much has changed. Reading my father's words made me cry. It made me reflect on the reality of his world. It also prepared me for what is to come as I return after 7 months in Africa. It won't be the differences between Cape Verde and the US that will be shocking, it will be the "new" Mississippi that will be the hardest to see.

Here is a copy of my father's reflections for you to read:

In the days after Katrina I found myself wandering around the church property assessing what needed to be done to protect the buildings and to make life as livable as possible. The vent turbines had blown off the parsonage and I immediately used some shingles that had been stored in the shed to patch the holes. I was aware that many of the shingles were missing over the Sunday school classrooms and began to ponder the best plan to protect the classrooms. As I began formulating a plan, I passed my time raking the yard around the parsonage, pulling large limbs away from the house in an effort to reclaim part of the yard.
In the first days of the storm the phones did not work, even the cell phones were of no use in communicating with the outside world. I felt isolated and afraid. I say ‘afraid’ but it was more of an uneasy feeling that I needed to do something. I could not voice what needed to be done it was just a haunting feeling that persisted as I tried to do what I could to make a difference in my life. While working I would take a break occasionally and return to the house. Each time I was always aware that my sister-in-law, who was staying with us, would be glued to her battery powered portable television. I’d glance over her shoulder and hear snippets of the reporters saying that New Orleans was flooded and Pass Christian, Bay Saint Louis and other towns of the Gulf Coast no longer existed. My mind would not let me comprehend what I was hearing. I would feel the tears welling inside of me. I quickly went back to work thinking that I could do nothing to change the pain and suffering of friends and family that lived in the towns apparently now destroyed. I thought if I stayed busy everything would work out.
It rained on the Wednesday after the storm and the roof over the Sunday school classrooms had not been attended to and there was leaking. Thursday morning I was determined to “dry in” the roof. I needed to protect the space that we use to teach our children about Jesus. I had called one of my sons to help me. I intended to cover the roof with visqueen and son, Nathan, agreed to come and help. As I climbed on the roof I realized the damage to the roof was so widespread that the visqueen would not be an effective way to repair the roof. I knew from past experience that the plastic would leak, the wind would tear it and we would continually fight to keep the roof from leaking. It was at that moment that I decided to patch the roof with shingles. It would be harder and take longer, but would last. I went to town with Nathan, we purchased the materials, and over the next couple of days we patched the church roof. My brother-in-law spent a day helping us and after a few days we had finished.
The whole time I worked on the roof, I thought about the storm and the people affected. My wife, Celeste, continued to ask, “Larry, what can we do to help the people?” Celeste was sure we needed to do something and soon! On the last day of the roof repair, as I climbed down the ladder, it came to me. I knew what I had to do to help the people of the Coast. I met Celeste on the sidewalk that connects our house with the church and said to her, “We are going to house mission teams!” How did I discern the direction of my help? God’s Spirit gave me a vision, one that I could not deny, nor ignore. I was called to house those who would come to help. Making it possible for them to help restore the broken lives of our neighbors. I have never had a clearer vision or call than the one I received that day. If I had looked at all the things I did not have and needed to house people I would have given up on that day. We did not have what we needed to be successful. There were no showers, beds, linens, or pillows. We didn’t have the food we would need to feed them or the staff to run such an operation. We began anyway, with a handful of church members who responded with positive affirmations when we shared the vision with them. Each time a need was lifted to God in prayer, God answered.
We have been in ministry for five months now and as I watch the mission teams come I see that God’s will is to be in relationship with all of God’s people helping neighbors and sharing God’s love. This ministry of housing and caring for volunteer work teams has been a challenge, but a challenge that God has met time and again. We have learned much from the over 1,000 people we have housed here in Vancleave. Each of them came as a response to God’s call. Each came offering his or her self as a living sacrifice to God. The ministry has not been about rebuilding houses, but one of offering hope to people who hurt, people who need to know that God still exists in the hearts of others. The people of Vancleave, Mississippi are doing just that as we partner with the world. Thanks be to God.

My new house...again

I've moved...again. House #2 is great, except for the lack of hot water. The showering with cold water leaves much to be desired. I have to heat a bucket of water just like I used to do when I lived in Sao Domingos! I can't wait to get to DC to take a long hot shower (but I probably won't enjoy it because I'll feel guilty for leaving on the water and using up all the energy).

Other perks in house #2... It is much, much, much quieter than the former house. We have much better lighting than in the former house. My room is WAY bigger than in the former house. I have a new desk. We don't have ants invading our kitchen at the new house. Our friends that lived in the house before us left all of their kitchen supplies, so we have great utensils, bowls, pots and pans! This new house seems to be much safer than house #1, which is the whole reason we moved in the first place.

Things seem to be working out for the best. I've already found a great market near our house and we have several really good restaraunts in our neighborhood. I can't complain, except about the mosquitos, which kept me up last night as they were feasting on my arms while I slept.... Oh well. I can deal with a few pesky bugs. Things are working out well....even if I am leaving for a while.

Vistors

Over the New Year break, two volunteers from Senegal came to Cape Verde. Jenn and Dave flew into Praia and got to visit our little island. This past week, two other Senegalese Volunteers, Courtney and Karly, visited us as well. These visits were a great opportunity for me to hang out with people from an entirely different Peace Corps experience than my own. They live in mud huts in the hottest parts of Africa and work on farms. It's pretty different than living in an apartment in a capital city. The best part about their visit was that it made me realize how much I absolutely love what I am doing. Telling others about your life and introducing visitors to my world here was wonderful. I was able to have each pair of visitors have Sunday lunch with me at my homestay family's home. It was great for them to see how Cape Verdeans live and eat the food that is indigineous to this part of Africa.

Having visitors come see where you live makes you realize how much you love (or hate in some cases) where you are stationed. As you all know from previous blog entries, I love where I live. I love my life here and am so happy to be in Cape Verde. I will be flying out of here on February 12th, and I will miss this place terribly while I am away.

Washington D.C., here I come

Thanks to my wonderful country director and our PC doctor, I am being given an opportunity NOT to be kicked out of the PC. This is excellent news. I spoke with my country director earlier this week about the decision for me to leave PC. He agreed with me that I didn't have enough information to make an informed decision on the matter and that PC wasn't giving me any options. So, my country director was able to make some calls on my behalf to the folks in DC and on February 11th, I'll be flying there to speak with an orthopedic specialist about my foot. This means I can have all of the different options presented to me before I decide what to do.
Everything seems to be falling into place. I will be "medically evacuated" rather than separated so that I will not be removed from the PC, rather I will just be on medical leave. I won't have to quit my job or close my bank accounts just yet! This does not guarantee anything, but it gives me a little time to make up my mind (I have 45 days medical leave time). I am soooo thankful that people here at PC, Cape Verde have gone to bat for me to the folks in Washington. I think sometimes administrative decisions are made without thinking about the person who is affected by them. I have been assured by everyone at PC here that they will do everything in their power to get me back here! Life is good.

question of the day

In an effort to not think about my broken foot and leaving the Peace Corps, I have decided to try something new, inspired by my wonderful friend Bekah. In her most recent email, Bekah decided to send me a question to answer about my experiences in Cape Verde. I have decided to post her question and my response for everyone to read. I think this might be entertaining and at the very least informative. Here is her question:

"I think I will institute a new practice with my emails to you. One random question about your experience per email. Is that annoying? Well feel free not to answer if so. Here is today's question? What are a few of your favorite regional foods? Or, what are some things that you eat very frequently, either because they are available or because they are good, or both? "

Excellent question, Bekah! I love to talk about food. My favorite Cape Verdean foods are:

1. Cachupa, the most famous Cape Verdean dish. This is a "stew" of sorts. It contains beans, corn, onions, potatoes, sweet potatoes, cabbage, and sometimes pork (all parts of the pork, mainly intestines). I tend to pick around the pork parts as I am not a fan of organ meat! This dish is served with rice. It is my absolute favorite dish in Cape Verde!!! My host mom makes the BEST cachupa in the country (of course, everyone says that their mom's cachupa is best, but my mom's really is).

2. Churrasque, grilled chicken. This dish is just basically grilled chicken that is basted with olive oil and spices while being grilled. It truly is the best grilled chicken I've ever had. Traditionally, you are served a half of a chicken and a plate of french fries and some veggies (tomato and cucumber and lettuce). At any given restaurant this dish is very inexpensive, about 400 escudo ($4).

3. Pastels. A pastel is fried dough with a bit of spicy tuna fish in the center. The women make these on the street here. They usually pound out the dough, put the tuna in the middle, and fry them while you wait! They are an excellent snack.

4. Any of the fish! Cape Verde, as you might imagine, has wonderful fish. On any given day you can buy fresh fish in the market. My favorites are grouper, tuna, and serra. These are all amazing and easy to find.

5. Kouve. This is basically collard greens. As a true Southerner I can't help but love Kouve. Kouve is a little different than collards, but equally as yummy. I cook these about once a week! YUMMY!

6. Bekah asked about things I eat frequently. I have to say that I eat Lima Beans as often as possible as well as red beans and rice. These are readily available and SO GOOD. The food in Cape Verde definitely is wonderful. I never tire of beans and rice, which you can find everywhere. It's great!!!!!!!!!!!!

Okay, so that's my LONG answer to Bekah's question. Please feel free to ask questions. I'll happily post your questions as well and my answers. Txau, ti logo.

ch, ch, ch, changes

Recently (about 3 days ago) two volunteers left Cape Verde! This married couple, Nick and Kimberly, lived in Praia and left behind a great home. Since Dianne and I were slated to move due to security issues, this presented a perfect new house for us! We are in the process of moving to a nearby neighborhood in an area that I like very much. Our new home in Achada, is on the first floor of a building, but it is not on a main road like our current place. I think we will be much happier and feel much safer in our new place. Right now we are in the process of having someone clean the house so that we can move in really soon.

Another major change in my life concerns my foot! As many of you know, I have been waiting on word from Washington, D.C., about the possibility of surgery on my foot. I found out that I definitely must have surgery! Wow, that means I will have the bottom of my foot cut open and a bone will be removed! Sounds scary, huh? As if it isn't bad enough that I'm to have surgery, I also am faced with something far more difficult. The people in D.C. said that I have two options: have surgery in Dakar or be medically separated from the Peace Corps. After speaking with doctors here it seems as if surgery in Dakar is not even an option. Effectively the powers that be have given me no choice but to leave the Peace Corps. This is extremely difficult news to deal with. I am NOT ready to leave. I love my life here, absolutely and completely. Aside from the broken foot, I have had one of the greatest experiences of my entire life. I love Cape Verde. I love my students. I love what I'm teaching. I love the people. I love my friends and colleagues. I love it all. I don't want to put this part of my life behind me and move home. I'm just not ready. I will be medically separated (kicked out) in a few weeks (when I get things squared away here). I will go to Mississippi, have surgery, and then asked to be "reinstated" into PC when I am healed. The healing process should take no longer than 12 weeks. The first 6 weeks will consist of my being on crutches and in a walking cast. Then I can start wearing real shoes and within another 6 weeks be back to normal activities.

Okay, so this means I'm headed stateside. I'm leaving the life that I love to return to a Mississippi different than I left it. I am nervous about return to a place devestated by a hurricane. Life there is different and I will be confronted with that for the first time. I am also nervous about heading to the states because things are so different here. We throw our used toilet paper in the trash can because the sewage system can't handle the trash. We bleach our fruits and veggies. We boil and filter our water. We take cold showers. We never ride in cars. Not to mention the fact that we don't have Wal Marts or Target stores. The overabundance of things in America is said to be one of the most overwhelming parts about returning. I have heard stories of volunteers going to the grocery store and leaving because they were too overwhelmed to make a decision. I also know that I am really getting good with my language abilities. I am getting better all the time with my Creole. I am really bummed that I will have to take a break from speaking with my friends in this new language. Basically, I am bummed about the entire thing. I wish that things were different. I really just want the PC to keep me as a volunteer, send me to the states for the surgery and bring me right back. But, unfortunately, beauracracies don't exactly function as they could or should. It's sad that I am caught in the middle of a decision that has nothing to do with what I want. It is also a shame that I have to leave my job that I have been sent here to do. Wish me the best of luck during my last couple of weeks here. I am sad, very, very, very, very, very sad to be leaving. I wish things were different.

Students can make your day sometimes

Today a student, Joana, came up to me after class to speak with me. She asked me if I would be willing to spend time with her on the weekends so that she could work on improving her English speaking skills (her writing is quite good). I, of course, said YES (It's not all that often that students want to be even better and improve outside of class). The best part of the story is that she thanked me for agreeing to help her. Just before she left the room, she turned around and said, "oh teacher! One more thing, I love you, teacher". It was soooo sweet. She just made my day! I can't believe how kind and generous and caring my students are. They constantly tell me that I can't leave them, even in two years! They want me to stay until they complete their program at ISE.... Teaching can be so wonderful.

surgery...or not

So, I have to have surgery. I am in Dakar and have met with the podiatrist, the orthepedic surgeon, and had a series of Xrays. This all led to the conclusion that surgery is inevitable. My fracture has gotten worse not better. At this point the PC doc wants me to have the surgery here with the French orthopedic surgeon I met with today. I am a little nervous about this prospect. I have some time to think it over. I'll need to have the surgery during my school break in February. Keep me in your thoughts and prayers! I'll write more later. Now I have to go try to get a flight back to Cape Verde! Txau.

Addendum: Apparently there have been a few "red flags" in Washington. I am now waiting for my Xrays to be sent to DC for evaluation. It seems as if there are some questions about the diagnosis given by the doctor in Dakar and about how long the bone has been broken. I'll just trying to remain calm while the powers that be fight it out. Hope for the best...whatever that is...

New House??

I don't know if I'll have time to write before I head to Dakar, so I thought I'd write a little this morning (it's Saturday at 8am). Yesterday the medical officer for the PC came to our home to do a "site visit." During this visit we walked through our home and around the outside of our home. The medical officer asked us about the multiple break-ins that have occurred and asked us to descibe them to her. We talked a lot about safety and our neighborhood because recently a man was shot just behind our home (it was related to theft). Anyway, both my direct supervisor and the medical officer agreed that we will need to move. Our house, though it is comfortable and pretty, is located in an increasingly dangerous part of town. In Praia, neighborhoods can change rapidly and that is what has happened where we live. In fact, our next door neighbor his having a wall built around her home!!!! Housing is not easy to find in Praia, especially in safe neighborhoods, so it may take some time to relocate us. It seems that the excitement never stops here in Praia... I hope all is safer in the states.

We've lost a good man!

Okay, noone died, but my friend Sarin has decided to terminate his service early. Sarin is a great guy, and I'm going to miss his frat boy ways (Sarin went to UNH as an undergrad so Kathleen and Bri know what kinda crazy kid he is)!

Sarin came in as part of my group and will be the fifth member to leave us early! Sarin has been living on this island (Santiago) in a town called Calheta. He was living with another volunteer, Adam and working for the youth center there. It really, really sucks when people from this island leave because that's one less friend around for hanging out and going to parties. I completely understand all of his reasons for leaving. He plans to try to get to Cambodia to visit his extended family and try to do some volunteer work there if possible. I know he'll do good things! This is definitely a memorable 6 month mark. Today it has ben exactly 6 months since I left Mississippi! I sure hope noone else decides to leave, it's harder on those of us who stay in some ways! The people who leave return to normalcy and convenience. Those of us who stay just miss those who left (and are a little jealous too). Well, school begins tomorrow and then I'm headed back to Dakar on Monday! I hope all is well as you all try to keep up those new years resolutions! I'll write more soon. Txau.

battle of the broken foot

It looks like my foot problems will not be over soon. The last attempt at "fixing" my broken foot did not exactly work out as planned. I will be returning to Dakar, Senegal next week to have my case reevaluated. This basically means that I will have the orthotic insert reformed for my foot. The doctor in Dakar believes this is just a matter of the insert not properly fitting me, so the podiatrist will refit it. I really, really hope this works. I was extremely disappointed when I realized that the last attempt at correcting the problem had failed. It is very difficult to deal with constant pain and with not being able to run. I hope everyone will keep me in their thoughts as I continue to deal (both physically and mentally) with this broken foot.

It's the small things...

Just about every day I am amazed by some small thing in Cape Verde. Some days I see a beautiful child sitting on the bus or a pack of dogs up to no good. Well, on the eve of Christmas eve, I spent my day in the market. December 30th was an election day here in Cape Verde (which is a strange day to have an election). I was in the market and people were playing drums and all of the women were clapping and dancing. It was amazing. The spirit of the election was everywhere. In the evening after the election, cars were driving through the city, honking horns and waving flags of the winning party. Then there was a concert in the streets. It was sweet (but I didn't get to go to the concert because volunteers can't participate in political events).

It was a wonderful day. I decided to shop for some cheap clothes in the streets where I saw tons of people out and about preparing for the New Year's festivities (which last 3 days in Cape Verde). I was fortunate enough to buy some cute new things for about $10.00 (clothes are really cheap). I also bought some freshly hulled lima beans on the street, which turned out to be magnificent. I also saw a young boy walking with 2 live chickens in his hands. The chickens were calmly hanging upside down and the boy was broadly smiling at me while I watched him. It was awesome, in a weird sort of way. Things are just sooo different here, and I love it.

It's hard to express my daily life. Every single day I smile because I've seen something amazingly different; I mean, there is a goat living on a roof near my home, on the ROOF. It's all amazing. Next week I will have been here 6 months! I can't believe how time flies. A half of a year and I wouldn't change this experience for the world. Things are great. Life is great. Cape Verde is great. BUT, I miss my friend and family! Txau...ti logo

Pictures of my family in Sao Domingos

Ami Soldadi Abo

Today is Christmas, so I would like to take up a little web space filling you in on the holidays in Cape Verde. As I’ve mentioned in previous posts, the Christmas spirit is decidedly different in Cape Verde. The commercialism is not present, the Christmas carols aren’t really very popular, and it’s about 85 degrees outside today! At any rate, things are actually quite good aside from the fact that I miss my family and friends TERRIBLY. It’s really, really hard to be far away during the holidays… it’s just not the same.

Basically, this holiday season has been filled with familiar faces, which has been nice. I was fortunate enough to spend Christmas Eve day in Sao Domingos with my host family. I helped them prepare for Christmas dinner. We made cakes and ice cream and pudding! I really enjoyed just hanging out with my mom, grandmother, sisters, and nephew for the afternoon. After returning from Sao Domingos, I was invited to Christmas Eve dinner at Vanda’s house (that’s my PC friend Jacob’s girlfriend). In CV the Christmas Eve dinner is held at about midnight! The family gathers and eats really decadent foods and desserts. Vanda’s house was lovely and the food was out of this world. I was lucky to spend this time with her family. It touched me deeply to be invited to participate as part of their family. Unfortunately, I had to return to my empty house (my roommate is away), and I woke up Christmas morning alone for the first time in my life. You see, when I was younger my brothers and I would sleep in the same bedroom on Christmas Eve and as I got older, we always woke each other up on Christmas morning to open presents. It is ritual that I miss. I didn’t know how much I’d miss it until this morning when I woke up at my house without anyone to share in the excitement of Christmas. BUT, I did have wrapped presents from my Mom that I saved until this morning. I sat on my bed and had my own Christmas morning! It was a pretty sad sight, but alas, I am sacrificing a lot to be here doing what I’m doing!

After having my own personal Christmas, I headed over to Jessica’s house to make a Christmas lunch, Southern Style! I fixed Jambalaya, collard greens, and mashed sweet potatoes! It was awesome… It was also wonderful to get to cook for other people and share a little bit of time with my fellow Americans and a couple of Cape Verdeans. At about 2 I headed back to Sao Domingos for more eating! I hung out with my host family and some of their extended family in the afternoon/evening. I also went to see a friend, Zuka, who lives in Sao Domingos, but he wasn’t home, so I ended up watching TV with his dad and drinking a beer! Oh well, it was an adventure and added to the weirdness of this Christmas season…

Well, that’s about it. The title of this post means that I miss y’all. It’s been really tough to be away this year. I hope all is well. Boas Festas, feliz natal, feliz novo ano.

more pictures

My fam in Sao Domingos! I just found out that my host mom is PREGNANT! WOW. She's 45, not married, barely has a boyfriend, and is 2 months along. But, she's really happy and despite my reservations, it's really nice to see her sooooo cheerful.

Jessica's 30th Birthday

This past Saturday was Jessica's 30th birthday. I did not get any photos of Jessica, but I did get a few others, so here they are. The two with me in them are: Sarin and Jonah, Adi and Jay, a Cape Verdean friend Odayer, Jacob and his girlfriend Vanda, Jay and Christie (Christie is from Harvard here on fellowship studying Cape Verde), Jacob and me, my student Esmael and me.

Two cameras were stolen at the party, so these may be some of the few photos that remain!

Speaking of stealing things... our house was "broken" into the other night. Our screen was cut and through the bars on our windows, our nice curtains were stolen. The thief was kind enough to leave the wooden curtain rod, however..... Will the stealing ever end??? Hopefully the desperation of Christmas will be over soon and people will go back to not stealing things!

Creole Poetry

A little while back a guy came to ISE looking for a job. His name is Imez, he's Cape Verdean, he's 27, and he studied in the states. I have spent a little bit of time with Imez since our first meeting and he's a wonderful person. After spending a little time with this man, he told me he was a poet and that he had published several volumes of poetry. His most recent work is entirely in Criola! This is amazing because there is very little work existent in Creole. There are many reasons for this, not the least of which is that the language is not "formal" meaning there are no agreed upon spellings or ways to write things. SO, Imez moved from the US back to Cape Verde just a little over a month ago, and night before last he presented his new book at ISE. He read some poetry, his cousin (and my neighbor from Sao Domingos) played the guitar and sang some of his work. He also invited a professor from ISE to speak about the importance of the Creole language. I bought his book and am impressed by this poetry (even though my Creole is not perfect, I get the gist). I am soooo happy to have met someone who is giving back to his country. This is the kind of thing that I hope happens more and more. Cape Verdeans need to return to their country after studying elsewhere and work at places like ISE. We don't currently have a job for Imez, but I really, really hope that next year we can hire him. We need to see Peace Corps people replaced by well educated Cape Verdeans. I am so excited to see this kind of shift happening. I am also thankful that Creole is being recognized as a beautiful, wonderful, unique lanugage that needs to be made more formal and readable. I just thought I'd share my recent excellent experience! I hope all is well.... it's almost Christmas time! Feliz Natal.

New Computers, Bad Feet, Christmas presents, and stolen Sunglasses

First things first... Today I received a package with a computer in it from my wonderful mother. As you know, I killed the old computer that my father graciously gave to me just before coming to Cape Verde. My mother has given me her laptop to use for the remainder of the time I'm here. So, what a wonderful thing! It will be so nice to again have a computer at my home.

Second, my foot is not better. It has been exactly a month since my return from Dakar and my foot has been hurting consistently for about 3 weeks. I spoke with the doctor here today and she is in contact with the doctor in Dakar and with the doctors in DC to see what the next step is. It looks like they want me to return to Dakar to have my orthotic refitted. It may be a simple matter of the orthotic being out of place and causing pain in my foot. I sure hope that's what it is! At this point, I am getting a little nervous about the whole situation. This has been going on for a long time, and I just want it to get better. It is difficult to live here in CV and not be able to get around easily.

Third, I recently received wonderful boxes of Chirstmas presents from friends and family! It was sooooo nice to have things to open and some of the presents were even wrapped giving me things to open on Christmas day. I am planning on spending Christmas Eve and Christmas day in Sao Domingos with my family there. OH! Another Christmas surprise.... my host mom is pregnant. She is two months along (45, unmarried, and caring for 3 children already)! She is very, very excited about the whole thing.

Finally, I've decided to alternate good news and bad news in this post, as you may have noticed. Last week I received several packages at one time and had to go to the post office to get them. I carried them onto the bus, which was a pain and while fussing with all of the packages, someone unzipped my bag and stole my sunglasses!!!!!!!!!! How annoying. My sunglasses were really nice and I purchased them especially for my life in CV! I am sooooo sick of people stealing stuff. In fact, this past Saturday was Jessica's 30th b'day party at her home and someone stole her digital camera as well as another persons digital camera! Absolutely disgusting! This time of year is particularly awful....

Well, that's all for now. I want to end on a positive note, so I'll just say that my brother and Holly will be married on March 25th in Destin, FL. It should be a small, intimate ceremony and sounds like it will be tons of fun.... Txau, ti logo!

Christmas Spectacular!

On Saturday night the English Language Institute in Praia had a Christmas show (The Annual Christmas SPECTACULAR). ELI is a place where Cape Verdeans go to learn English. Children beginning at about age 3 begin learning English there and adults take classes at night to work on their English. Well, my friend Adi, a former Peace Corps volunteer, works at ELI, teaching the teenagers (who by this time in their lives are very proficient at English). I was invited to attend this wonderful event where the Christmas spirit was in the air. It definitely helped make things feel a little more "Christmassy" around here. The show only lasted about 20 minutes, but the children performed all of the Christmas classics. Then at the end of the show the adult students from ELI sang with the kids, "We wish you a Merry Christmas" which was a great way to end the show! It was just lovely!!! Merry Christmas Everyone. Feliz Natal!

random pictures!

Our group

I meant to publish this picture some time ago! It is a shot of our entire group of trainees (minus Sarah, who came two weeks later).

We have since lost 4 people: Elliott (behind me in the picture to your left), Kay (right of me, green shirt), Todd (second guy from the right), and Rebecca (kneeling beneath me in a yellow shirt)

Amanda and Joey!

I also wanted to post a quick message about my other best friend from high school, Amanda. This past Saturday, she and Joey, were married! I just wish I could have been there for the wedding. I truly am so sorry I missed it and will be home soon (March 25th) to celebrate with them. Okay, just wanted to make public my most recent good pieces of news!

It's a GIRL!

Kathryn, one of my best friends from high school, and her husband, Patrick, recently had their first child. On October 26th, Aislyn Lee Leary was born! I am including a picture of here! She's adorable and I'm soooo happy for Kathryn and Patrick. They will soon be moving from the Coast to Jackson, MS, which is good for them, but sad too! Congrats Kathryn and Patrick!

I rule...

Every year I get this HILARIOUS email from some random friend. Since I was feeling really down about having my wallet stolen (see previous email for the complete story) I decided to try to track down this website for a good laugh. Please check it out if you want a good laugh. I always am in tear when I read this thing. Check it out: http://www.thebestpageintheuniverse.net/c.cgi?u=irule

When you get to the bottom of the page, you'll see Crappy Art #2. Click there for more fun!!!

I thought bad things came in threes....

If it's true that bad things come in threes, then I should be in the clear after the broken foot, the broken computer, and the broken IPOD. BUT NO! Last night, while dining at a local restraunt, my wallet was stolen!!!!! I was sitting at table with my friend Adi. We had just sat down and I set my wallet on the table (BIG MISTAKE, I KNOW, I KNOW). We were seated outside and a man approached the railing of the restraunt, leaned over, grabbed the wallet and ran off into an alley. It's Christmas time so crime is high in Cape Verde, especially in big cities like Praia. I am just sooo upset because I've never had anything like this happen to me. I've never had anything stolen from me. I lost my ID card, my bank card, and about 25 dollars (which may not seem like much to you people in America, but trust me, it's a lot to a volunteer).

Needless to say, I'll be much more careful in the future. I couldn't sleep at all last night because I kept dreaming about the incident. I also have been scaring myself often, every little noise or strange look gets me nervous. I hate feeling this way. I am just thankful that I wasn't harmed physically in the process.

I went to the bank and stood in line for about an hour and a half in an effort to get a new bank card and some money. I wish he would have taken the money and left all of the other things so that I wouldn't have to go through all of this!!! Well, this is turning out to be a terrible Christmas away from home. I miss you all soooooo much. I'm off to fill out an incident report to let the people in charge know what happened!

Txau, ti logo.

My students

kittens!!!!

the kittens!

So it's been a couple of weeks since I took four kittens into my home. At this point I am ready for them to find a new home. They are super cute, but they are becoming increasingly active! They recently decided to destroy my room and wake me up in the middle of the night with their playing, so I kicked them out of my room. Now they have taken residence in our spare bedroom. We, of course, had to move everything out of that room because they were tearing things up. My roommate is being extremely patient with this whole process, but I think her patience and mine are wearing thin. I think they will have a home very soon in Principal with Claudia, one of my fellow volunteers. Keep your fingers crossed that they find a good home really soon! I really want to post the pictures I have but for some reason every time I try to put them up, the darn thing freezes! AHHHH.... computers.

And just as soon as I get rid of the cats, I'll be petsitting for a couple of friends who will be spending Christmas in South Africa. They have a very cute little dog, Chloe, who will be staying with me for a couple of weeks over the break. It will be nice to have a house trained animal around!!!! Well, I seem to be innundated with pets, none of which I am keeping... thank goodness.

Okay that's all for now. Txau, ti logo.