On Sunday I spent something like 12 hours cleaning my room from top to bottom to make sure it's ready for my sisters visit in July. Plus, I hadn't cleaned my room, I mean really clean, in a really long time so I was over due. I had noticed a few cockroach infestations that I wanted to eradicate for my sake as well as my sisters. While I was cleaning I had a few gagging moments when I discovered a new hiding places for the disgusting little suckers (at least they are the little ones, not the big ones) - in a six pack of bottled water and my duffel bags were by far the worst. I'm sure my neighbors wondered what the crazy white woman was doing outside: I kept throwing the bags against the ground to get all them out and then danced around stepping on as many as possible. After I moved everything out of the room and swept 9 times and got on my hands and knees to scrub the floor, I sprinkled Blue Death all around the edges of the room and in strategic places. Blue Death is supposed to be amazing and help keep all kinds of critters away.
I woke up today and bathed (not the gross part, I do bathe regularly) and washed my hair. It was really freakin' cold so I decided to blow dry my hair. I haven't used my dryer probably since last September. After I turned it on I smelled something a little funny. I quickly turned the thing off and shook it – only to have a few last straggling cockroaches come tumbling out. DISGUSTING! I screamed, jumped around trying to stomp and kill them before they scurried away to find a new hiding place. I banged the dryer against the floor for 10 minutes before I was convinced that no more were coming out and that it was ok to blow dry my hair again.
What a way to start my day!
Tuesday, June 10, 2008
Wednesday, June 4, 2008
Just another day in the village...
Susan and I went to Enable today. She lives next door to me so if we’re working together for the day, we’ll leave together. Today she comes out sporting white high heels. She introduces them to me by saying she’s on top today – she’s taller than everyone else. She looked hot but I shook my head as I looked down at my sensible village shoes, my chacos. Lucky for her we got our ride to Enable but while we were walking through the village to the office, she tripped and almost fell. She said that when you’re on top you have to be careful because you’ll always fall. We laughed when we both caught the double meaning.
As usual, I was frustrated with Maria (my supervisor) because she failed to communicate again, not just to me but to Susan and Charity as well. But I found her when I was on my way to the Kodumela office and we were able to catch up and chat about everything that we needed to. We disagreed on some things but agreed on others. Our talks always seem to take place in a car and today was no different. At least I got a free ride.
Later on I was in a meeting with our committee members and down from the rafters a lizard fell right square on my head. I squirmed and then he was on my chest. I let a little “eeek” escape and shook him off. Right in the middle of the meeting! But two seconds later, we were right back on topic, no one really phased.
After the meeting I offered catering to the committee and they declined. Two minutes later they decide they want cold drink and bread at least. I send one of the committee off with R100 for food, not thinking he would spend it all. He returns with 7 bottles of cold drink and 7 loaves of bread, successfully having spent all but a few rand. There were only 8 of us in the meeting. I got upset with them because that was way too much food and a waste of the money but they don’t seem to do anything in small portions when it comes to food. And after I gave them the money for transport, they all piled in the truck and got free rides home.
As I was packing up and planning to go buy a grilled chicken (it’s delicious, grilled outside over a fire and smothered in hot sauce) to bring home for dinner I heard the far off growling of thunder. Lucky for me I had left my rain jacket at the office the other day when I actually thought it might rain (and of course it didn’t). By the time I got to my village the rain was coming down but I had my jacket and ended up getting a ride to my street so I wasn’t too drenched.
When I got home Annah asked who told me that it was going to rain today, how did I know to be prepared? No one told me, it was just luck that I left it at the office the day before. We laughed together at my good fortune.
And now the storm is here, complete with the loud reverberating sounds of thunder and the threatening streaks of lightning. I’m already cozy in my pajamas just about ready to dig into my dinner of fresh picked green beans, hot juicy chicken and a loaf of white bread (yes, I took one from the committee!). Just another typical day of village life…
As usual, I was frustrated with Maria (my supervisor) because she failed to communicate again, not just to me but to Susan and Charity as well. But I found her when I was on my way to the Kodumela office and we were able to catch up and chat about everything that we needed to. We disagreed on some things but agreed on others. Our talks always seem to take place in a car and today was no different. At least I got a free ride.
Later on I was in a meeting with our committee members and down from the rafters a lizard fell right square on my head. I squirmed and then he was on my chest. I let a little “eeek” escape and shook him off. Right in the middle of the meeting! But two seconds later, we were right back on topic, no one really phased.
After the meeting I offered catering to the committee and they declined. Two minutes later they decide they want cold drink and bread at least. I send one of the committee off with R100 for food, not thinking he would spend it all. He returns with 7 bottles of cold drink and 7 loaves of bread, successfully having spent all but a few rand. There were only 8 of us in the meeting. I got upset with them because that was way too much food and a waste of the money but they don’t seem to do anything in small portions when it comes to food. And after I gave them the money for transport, they all piled in the truck and got free rides home.
As I was packing up and planning to go buy a grilled chicken (it’s delicious, grilled outside over a fire and smothered in hot sauce) to bring home for dinner I heard the far off growling of thunder. Lucky for me I had left my rain jacket at the office the other day when I actually thought it might rain (and of course it didn’t). By the time I got to my village the rain was coming down but I had my jacket and ended up getting a ride to my street so I wasn’t too drenched.
When I got home Annah asked who told me that it was going to rain today, how did I know to be prepared? No one told me, it was just luck that I left it at the office the day before. We laughed together at my good fortune.
And now the storm is here, complete with the loud reverberating sounds of thunder and the threatening streaks of lightning. I’m already cozy in my pajamas just about ready to dig into my dinner of fresh picked green beans, hot juicy chicken and a loaf of white bread (yes, I took one from the committee!). Just another typical day of village life…
Sunday, May 25, 2008
trusting humanity
I haven’t told you about my friend Ahmed. I met Ahmed one Saturday, right in the middle of the weeks when I would say that our dear old friend Murphy was visiting – everything that could go wrong was going wrong, or so it seemed at the time. Ahmed is from Pakistan and he repairs cell phones. And I happened to meet him because my nice little Ferrari phone that liked to jump out of my pocket and hit the ground from various heights, decided that it had one too many thrills and died on me. I went to sleep one night, plugged and tucked it in only to wake up the next morning to a cold, expensive paperweight that still made the cool engine sound but was otherwise useless. I couldn’t let myself get too emotional, it was inevitable but of course it wasn’t a convenient time, it never is really but was worried because it was the end of the pay period (read: no money left in the bank).
So my plans changed and Nick (the new PCV working for my organization – not sure if I’ve introduced him yet) and I headed to Tzaneen with less than a plan, only hope that something would work out and I could have a working phone at least by the end of the day. Well, town proved to be a challenge – Nick had to eat as soon as we got there and I said I would but shouldn’t have, considering I was having serious intestinal problems (all day long was dealing with that unpleasantness). Then it turned out Nick ended up leaving his card in the atm machine and so we ran around trying to figure out a solution to that issue as well. We attempted to solve the phone issue but ended up running from one end of town to the other chasing a store that kept changing locations, depending on who you asked for directions. By the time we found the Vodacom store it was closed and all I could do was sit down and cry for a moment. Nick was sweet and let me do my thing and then he suggested we find one of those hole in the wall stores that advertise cell phone repairs. The first one was a bust but the second one we found proved to be the bright spot in an otherwise gloomy day.
Enter my new friend Ahmed. He said that he would look at the phone, right then and there and he even asked me how much I could pay. I warned him that I was a broke volunteer and then suggested R50. He laughed and said that if he could fix it, he would only charge me R100. I pinned my hopes on this very nice Pakistani man and proceeded to wait and chat with his friends for about an hour. When he finally came back he didn’t have good news but my spirits were lifted because he said there was a chance he could fix it if I came back during the week when his shop was actually open. When I asked him where I could go to buy a cheap phone so I could have something for the weekend, he said that I shouldn’t worry, he had a phone he could loan me but we would have to go to his apartment above his shop to get it.
Now I know what you’re thinking because I could see it in Nick’s face but I agreed and decided to trust my new friend (and hoped that if anything went wrong, Nick would help protect me). The 3 of us proceeded to an un-chartered territory of the city, right above the Checkers grocery store. Along the way he asked if I was a Christian and I said I was undecided at this point in my life (whole different story) and he was surprised to hear that. We talked about his Muslim faith for a little bit and he promised to give me some reading materials. We got to his apartment and chatted with his friend while the phones were being sorted out and he again expressed his surprise at an American that did not claim the Christian faith. He showed off his phone gadgets and I listened to some of the prayers that are beautifully changed. Before we left, I promised to come back in a few days to bring his phone back and actually get a new working phone.
He called a few times to make sure I was fine and reassure me that whenever I could get to town it would be fine (and also to assure me that he was not trying to hit on me). I finally got to town but was unsuccessful in buying a new phone (but I did get a modem for work so at least I was going to be connected again) and he assured me he would help get me one for a decent price and that I could continue to borrow the other phone until I actually found a phone I wanted. His hospitality and generosity were amazing and renewed my faith in humanity. I made a promise that I would be back soon and that we would have dinner with him and his friends.
I don’t know why I trusted him immediately but I didn’t get a bad feeling about the situation – he said that he knew he could trust me because of my smile (Nick says that he’s a bit enamored with me and that probably has something to do with it). Maybe it’s the women’s instinct or maybe not but I do know that we can’t be too afraid to open ourselves up to new people and new experiences. That’s what I want my life to be about and it would be a shame if I never trusted the world and people every now and again.
So my plans changed and Nick (the new PCV working for my organization – not sure if I’ve introduced him yet) and I headed to Tzaneen with less than a plan, only hope that something would work out and I could have a working phone at least by the end of the day. Well, town proved to be a challenge – Nick had to eat as soon as we got there and I said I would but shouldn’t have, considering I was having serious intestinal problems (all day long was dealing with that unpleasantness). Then it turned out Nick ended up leaving his card in the atm machine and so we ran around trying to figure out a solution to that issue as well. We attempted to solve the phone issue but ended up running from one end of town to the other chasing a store that kept changing locations, depending on who you asked for directions. By the time we found the Vodacom store it was closed and all I could do was sit down and cry for a moment. Nick was sweet and let me do my thing and then he suggested we find one of those hole in the wall stores that advertise cell phone repairs. The first one was a bust but the second one we found proved to be the bright spot in an otherwise gloomy day.
Enter my new friend Ahmed. He said that he would look at the phone, right then and there and he even asked me how much I could pay. I warned him that I was a broke volunteer and then suggested R50. He laughed and said that if he could fix it, he would only charge me R100. I pinned my hopes on this very nice Pakistani man and proceeded to wait and chat with his friends for about an hour. When he finally came back he didn’t have good news but my spirits were lifted because he said there was a chance he could fix it if I came back during the week when his shop was actually open. When I asked him where I could go to buy a cheap phone so I could have something for the weekend, he said that I shouldn’t worry, he had a phone he could loan me but we would have to go to his apartment above his shop to get it.
Now I know what you’re thinking because I could see it in Nick’s face but I agreed and decided to trust my new friend (and hoped that if anything went wrong, Nick would help protect me). The 3 of us proceeded to an un-chartered territory of the city, right above the Checkers grocery store. Along the way he asked if I was a Christian and I said I was undecided at this point in my life (whole different story) and he was surprised to hear that. We talked about his Muslim faith for a little bit and he promised to give me some reading materials. We got to his apartment and chatted with his friend while the phones were being sorted out and he again expressed his surprise at an American that did not claim the Christian faith. He showed off his phone gadgets and I listened to some of the prayers that are beautifully changed. Before we left, I promised to come back in a few days to bring his phone back and actually get a new working phone.
He called a few times to make sure I was fine and reassure me that whenever I could get to town it would be fine (and also to assure me that he was not trying to hit on me). I finally got to town but was unsuccessful in buying a new phone (but I did get a modem for work so at least I was going to be connected again) and he assured me he would help get me one for a decent price and that I could continue to borrow the other phone until I actually found a phone I wanted. His hospitality and generosity were amazing and renewed my faith in humanity. I made a promise that I would be back soon and that we would have dinner with him and his friends.
I don’t know why I trusted him immediately but I didn’t get a bad feeling about the situation – he said that he knew he could trust me because of my smile (Nick says that he’s a bit enamored with me and that probably has something to do with it). Maybe it’s the women’s instinct or maybe not but I do know that we can’t be too afraid to open ourselves up to new people and new experiences. That’s what I want my life to be about and it would be a shame if I never trusted the world and people every now and again.
Thursday, May 22, 2008
rocks and rockers
Did I mention that my birthstone is the ruby?
500 raffle tickets are being sold for R200 each. I think I’ll buy 1 and ask for a couple for my birthday. This reminds me of a time back when I was working as a Resident Director for Western State. I went to a res life conference and they had all these furniture and other dorm necessity reps there. At one point I passed a guy that had a glider rocking chair on display. I sat down and was in immediate heaven. Just my luck, they were raffling off that chair later that evening. I was the first person to put my card in. AND I WON! To this day, that is the only piece of furniture I own, that and a butterfly shaped coffee table one of my friends made for me (thanks Erik – I still have it). I just knew deep down inside that rocker was destined to be favorite piece of furniture.
Maybe if I believe enough, the same will come true for me and this jewelry set.
What’s really cool is that regardless of who gets to walk home with the jewelry, PhediĊĦang will make R100,000 once all 500 tickets are sold. That’s almost 2 months of operations for us. We also have an 18 month wall calendar/family organizer for sale for R200. Beautiful pictures of the kids and some volunteers and good through Dec 2009. Let me know if you’re interested in either!! (exchange rate is roughly R7.5 to $1)
500 raffle tickets are being sold for R200 each. I think I’ll buy 1 and ask for a couple for my birthday. This reminds me of a time back when I was working as a Resident Director for Western State. I went to a res life conference and they had all these furniture and other dorm necessity reps there. At one point I passed a guy that had a glider rocking chair on display. I sat down and was in immediate heaven. Just my luck, they were raffling off that chair later that evening. I was the first person to put my card in. AND I WON! To this day, that is the only piece of furniture I own, that and a butterfly shaped coffee table one of my friends made for me (thanks Erik – I still have it). I just knew deep down inside that rocker was destined to be favorite piece of furniture.
Maybe if I believe enough, the same will come true for me and this jewelry set.
What’s really cool is that regardless of who gets to walk home with the jewelry, PhediĊĦang will make R100,000 once all 500 tickets are sold. That’s almost 2 months of operations for us. We also have an 18 month wall calendar/family organizer for sale for R200. Beautiful pictures of the kids and some volunteers and good through Dec 2009. Let me know if you’re interested in either!! (exchange rate is roughly R7.5 to $1)
cows going home
Today I got annoyed for no reason. I know that the people around me contributed to my annoyed-ness but they shouldn’t have, I should have let it go – I wish I could just not little things effect me. So I left work later than I wanted to (my own fault) and just didn’t feel like socializing. However being one of the few white people in this area, most of the time, people want to talk to me. The novelty may have worn off for me but it will never wear off for those in this area, there are just too many people! I even ducked out the view of this little kid who was staring at me in the taxi. Usually I love all kids but when they interact with me it’s a little bit more welcoming than just getting bug eyes.
As I made my way home, I slowly started to feel better. I was convincing myself to go for a run and as I made my way down my main street, I ran into some of the little kids I adore from the village. And each one let me swoop them up in my arms and we giggled together for a few moments. That’ll break any rotten mood wide open and only leave room for a big smile. I also knew that getting the physical activity would help my mood so I quickly changed and set out. It’s amazing how I dread exercising and will talk myself out of doing it many times yet when I’m out there doing it, it feels so good to be moving my body. I realize this every time I run for the first time after a hiatus of a few weeks, despite my good intentions of sticking with it this time. Here there are a lot of factors that keep me from running and I hope that when I move back to a city, maybe I’ll be better about keeping it up but I know that there will always be something getting in my way, so I guess I just need to stop making excuses.
Anyway, I was running with a couple of the girls and we ended up behind these cows that were on their way home. We freaked them out and they started running as if we were coming after them with hot pokers or something. Lucky for them, we turned left and they turned right. I got such a kick out of this for some reason. It’s hard to explain why these little things bring me such joy but they do.
We finished the run, and even though Refiloe thought I was torturing her by running a bit longer than our usual route, I felt good. Another thing I can’t quite explain, just hanging out with these girls lightens my mood. We have nothing in common, they are 10+ years younger than me but I still call them my friends. They are who I seek out here in the village when I just need a break from thinking about work. I’m not sure they realize it but they are going to be what makes it hard to leave in September. How do I say goodbye to people that have had such a profound impact on my life? Hopefully it really won’t be goodbye, just see you later. For now I can’t worry about these things, I have to be here, enjoying the last few months that we have.
As I made my way home, I slowly started to feel better. I was convincing myself to go for a run and as I made my way down my main street, I ran into some of the little kids I adore from the village. And each one let me swoop them up in my arms and we giggled together for a few moments. That’ll break any rotten mood wide open and only leave room for a big smile. I also knew that getting the physical activity would help my mood so I quickly changed and set out. It’s amazing how I dread exercising and will talk myself out of doing it many times yet when I’m out there doing it, it feels so good to be moving my body. I realize this every time I run for the first time after a hiatus of a few weeks, despite my good intentions of sticking with it this time. Here there are a lot of factors that keep me from running and I hope that when I move back to a city, maybe I’ll be better about keeping it up but I know that there will always be something getting in my way, so I guess I just need to stop making excuses.
Anyway, I was running with a couple of the girls and we ended up behind these cows that were on their way home. We freaked them out and they started running as if we were coming after them with hot pokers or something. Lucky for them, we turned left and they turned right. I got such a kick out of this for some reason. It’s hard to explain why these little things bring me such joy but they do.
We finished the run, and even though Refiloe thought I was torturing her by running a bit longer than our usual route, I felt good. Another thing I can’t quite explain, just hanging out with these girls lightens my mood. We have nothing in common, they are 10+ years younger than me but I still call them my friends. They are who I seek out here in the village when I just need a break from thinking about work. I’m not sure they realize it but they are going to be what makes it hard to leave in September. How do I say goodbye to people that have had such a profound impact on my life? Hopefully it really won’t be goodbye, just see you later. For now I can’t worry about these things, I have to be here, enjoying the last few months that we have.
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