Hey everyone, I have a new blog address which is caseydrake.wordpress.com.
This new blog is much easier for me to update from my phone and therefore will be updated more often and ill be able to post pictures and possibly videos.
See you there!
Sunday, September 25, 2011
Saturday, August 20, 2011
South Africa Moments
So one of the strange things about being in South Africa so far is how easy it is to forget that I’m not at home. Even in the village I’m currently in, I go large chunks of most days not even registering the fact I’m not at home. That’s not to say things here are just like home, but they’re familiar enough that it doesn’t smack you in the face every second of every day. From where I am now, I can be in a mall exactly like any American mall in about an hour. I’m able to watch quite a few American TV shows on my family’s TV, many people speak English, and I have internet and a connection to home basically all the time.
Despite this familiarity, I have what I will call South Africa Moments. Since Peace Corps loves acronyms so much, I’ll create my own, SAMs (South Africa Moments). One of these SAMs occurred while I was sitting on the couch a couple weeks ago watching TV and heard chanting outside. I went to the window and saw a group of men/boys dancing down the street. I later found out they were returning from the circumcision school that boys go to when they become men. I don’t know a ton about it, but apparently they spend several months in the bush where they’re circumcised and then return home. Not generally something you would see at home..
Another SAM was when I was once again sitting on my couch one night (I swear I do more here than watch TV) and heard a crackling sound that sounded like rain on the roof. I looked out the window to see if it was raining, and instead saw 10 foot flames in a wall surrounding my house. Now, being my American self, this naturally scared the living shit out of me. My brain came pre-programed with the whole “Fire-Run” response. However, this doesn’t really translate to South Africa. My host mom seemed completely uninterested in what was happening only a few yards from her house, so I calmed myself down and returned to watching 6 month old episodes of American Idol. I think for most things here I’m going to have to turn off my natural “freak out” mode and instead gauge the reactions of the people around me. By the way, the fire is to clear the dead grass at the end of winter. Not the most environmentally friendly method, but its fast and easy which is why people choose to do it.
These South Africa moments happen pretty often throughout my week and serve as gentle, or not so gentle, reminders that I am in fact living in Africa. I’m sure I’ll have many more in the future, but that’s all for now!
Oh! I also tried chicken feet for the first time in my life and they weren’t bad! Not really easy to eat as you could probably imagine if you’ve ever seen a chicken’s foot, but it didn’t taste bad. I’m sure that’s not the weirdest thing I’ll eat while I’m here, but it’s the weirdest so far.
Despite this familiarity, I have what I will call South Africa Moments. Since Peace Corps loves acronyms so much, I’ll create my own, SAMs (South Africa Moments). One of these SAMs occurred while I was sitting on the couch a couple weeks ago watching TV and heard chanting outside. I went to the window and saw a group of men/boys dancing down the street. I later found out they were returning from the circumcision school that boys go to when they become men. I don’t know a ton about it, but apparently they spend several months in the bush where they’re circumcised and then return home. Not generally something you would see at home..
Another SAM was when I was once again sitting on my couch one night (I swear I do more here than watch TV) and heard a crackling sound that sounded like rain on the roof. I looked out the window to see if it was raining, and instead saw 10 foot flames in a wall surrounding my house. Now, being my American self, this naturally scared the living shit out of me. My brain came pre-programed with the whole “Fire-Run” response. However, this doesn’t really translate to South Africa. My host mom seemed completely uninterested in what was happening only a few yards from her house, so I calmed myself down and returned to watching 6 month old episodes of American Idol. I think for most things here I’m going to have to turn off my natural “freak out” mode and instead gauge the reactions of the people around me. By the way, the fire is to clear the dead grass at the end of winter. Not the most environmentally friendly method, but its fast and easy which is why people choose to do it.
These South Africa moments happen pretty often throughout my week and serve as gentle, or not so gentle, reminders that I am in fact living in Africa. I’m sure I’ll have many more in the future, but that’s all for now!
Oh! I also tried chicken feet for the first time in my life and they weren’t bad! Not really easy to eat as you could probably imagine if you’ve ever seen a chicken’s foot, but it didn’t taste bad. I’m sure that’s not the weirdest thing I’ll eat while I’m here, but it’s the weirdest so far.
Site Announcements!!!
So Friday was the big day! We finally received our site announcements!!!! We have all been waiting patiently (some of us not so patiently) for the news of where we will be living for the next two years of our lives. This week was full of anticipation and Friday people were buzzing in anticipation of the announcements. The process started with a trivia game that had some awesome prizes. A few people were called up at a time and had to answer a trivia question, usually about South Africa. Whomever got the correct answer first got to choose a prize. The prizes were quite amazing as they were all food. Strawberries, basil pesto, corn chips, chocolate, biscotti, cheese, olive oil, salsa, pita bread, etc. Once the trivia question was done, the group who had been called up received their assignments.
I didn’t win any food, but I did find out my site which is way better. While I can’t post the name of my village, it’s in Limpopo Province and I’m within a couple hours of Polokwane, Pretoria/Joburg, and Kruger National Park. So in other words, prime touristy areas for those of you considering a trip to SA (hint hint). I don’t know much about my village but I’ve been told my housing is pretty nice. I’m really anxious to meet my new host family and my village!
We are all supposed to be leaving for a supervisor workshop Monday, then to our site visits on Wednesday for a four day visit to our villages. The supervisor workshop involved staying in a hotel for a night or two which in turn means HOT SHOWERS. Unfortunately for those of us with sites in Limpopo, the supervisor workshop arrangements didn’t work out so our workshop will be after swearing in. This means I won’t get to meet my supervisor until Wednesday when I get to my village. More importantly though, this means I will not be enjoying a hot shower this week.
After I return from my site visit next week, there’s another week of review/a couple sessions then a farewell party for our host families. The following week we have our LPI (language proficiency interview), a shopping day to pick up some things for our site (or relax and see a movie) then swearing in.
Swearing in is the ceremony in which I become an official Peace Corps Volunteer. This is going to be HUGE for me, but is just the beginning of the journey. I’ve wanted to be a Peace Corps volunteer since elementary school and I can honestly say I’m living my dream. It’s absolutely incredible to be here with my wonderful fellow volunteers, Peace Corps staff and South Africans. I’m very aware of how lucky I am to have this opportunity and experience. I can’t wait!
I didn’t win any food, but I did find out my site which is way better. While I can’t post the name of my village, it’s in Limpopo Province and I’m within a couple hours of Polokwane, Pretoria/Joburg, and Kruger National Park. So in other words, prime touristy areas for those of you considering a trip to SA (hint hint). I don’t know much about my village but I’ve been told my housing is pretty nice. I’m really anxious to meet my new host family and my village!
We are all supposed to be leaving for a supervisor workshop Monday, then to our site visits on Wednesday for a four day visit to our villages. The supervisor workshop involved staying in a hotel for a night or two which in turn means HOT SHOWERS. Unfortunately for those of us with sites in Limpopo, the supervisor workshop arrangements didn’t work out so our workshop will be after swearing in. This means I won’t get to meet my supervisor until Wednesday when I get to my village. More importantly though, this means I will not be enjoying a hot shower this week.
After I return from my site visit next week, there’s another week of review/a couple sessions then a farewell party for our host families. The following week we have our LPI (language proficiency interview), a shopping day to pick up some things for our site (or relax and see a movie) then swearing in.
Swearing in is the ceremony in which I become an official Peace Corps Volunteer. This is going to be HUGE for me, but is just the beginning of the journey. I’ve wanted to be a Peace Corps volunteer since elementary school and I can honestly say I’m living my dream. It’s absolutely incredible to be here with my wonderful fellow volunteers, Peace Corps staff and South Africans. I’m very aware of how lucky I am to have this opportunity and experience. I can’t wait!
On Excess
Living in rural South Africa has made me incredibly aware of how much I wasted in America. Everything from food to paper to napkins to water. Most of all water. Since I became so aware of how much (or how little) I use here, I decided to keep track of the amount of water I use in any given day. Now while this doesn’t include some things like washing clothes, it is a tally of the water I use on most days of the week.
3 L = bathing (bucket bath)
.5 L = cooking breakfast, morning coffee, brushing my teeth
.5 L = drinking (I know, I should be drinking more water, but I drink tea and coffee throughout the day)
2 L = hand washing and cooking dinner
2 L = dishes
It totals 8 Liters which is less than 2.2 gallons. Around 2 gallons for nearly everything I do in a day… At home I’m sure I’ve wasted more water than that just in doing dishes BEFORE putting them into the dishwasher. It’s amazing how little water you use when you don’t have the option of leaving a sink running.
As far as trash goes, my area is rural so there is no trash pickup. Any trash is put into a metal trashcan in the backyard and burned once a week. I can tell you though, it is nowhere near the amount of trash my family takes to the curb once a week at home. (Sorry mom!)
Food is also not wasted, at least not in my family here. Every single thing is eaten unless it is way too spoiled to consume. Food rarely gets to that point, however, since my family eats it faster than it can rot.
I know it’s hard to do at home since everything is so easy to consume, but try to take a look at how much you actually use in a day and how much is wasted or thrown away. I know I consumed tremendously more than I would have ever thought without the stark comparison of my life in SA.
3 L = bathing (bucket bath)
.5 L = cooking breakfast, morning coffee, brushing my teeth
.5 L = drinking (I know, I should be drinking more water, but I drink tea and coffee throughout the day)
2 L = hand washing and cooking dinner
2 L = dishes
It totals 8 Liters which is less than 2.2 gallons. Around 2 gallons for nearly everything I do in a day… At home I’m sure I’ve wasted more water than that just in doing dishes BEFORE putting them into the dishwasher. It’s amazing how little water you use when you don’t have the option of leaving a sink running.
As far as trash goes, my area is rural so there is no trash pickup. Any trash is put into a metal trashcan in the backyard and burned once a week. I can tell you though, it is nowhere near the amount of trash my family takes to the curb once a week at home. (Sorry mom!)
Food is also not wasted, at least not in my family here. Every single thing is eaten unless it is way too spoiled to consume. Food rarely gets to that point, however, since my family eats it faster than it can rot.
I know it’s hard to do at home since everything is so easy to consume, but try to take a look at how much you actually use in a day and how much is wasted or thrown away. I know I consumed tremendously more than I would have ever thought without the stark comparison of my life in SA.
PST Continued
This and the next couple posts are going to seem pretty long and possibly rambling as I try to catch up on all that I’ve forgotten to write about up until now. Things are going great here and I really feel like I’ve gotten into a routine and found a certain comfort level here. Training is pretty intense in that it’s an enormous amount of information to absorb in such a short amount of time. I’m trying to soak up as much as I can before stepping out into the great unknown of Peace Corps service. I’m really enjoying training and I’m amazed by how organized it has been. The Peace Corps South Africa staff has seriously done an awesome job of dealing with 56 trainees every need.
I must say I feel sometimes that we’re pretty spoiled as a Peace Corps training group. We are staying in a village that has a mall only a 30 minute combi ride away. I have gone to a medium to large shopping mall nearly every weekend that I’ve been here. I’ve had a cell phone since week 3 of training and I’ve had internet on my blackberry since week 3 as well. So, while I didn’t expect to have these things when I signed up for Peace Corps I’m not going to not take advantage of the fact that I have access to them. I brought my blackberry with me from the states so all I had to do was get a SIM card and pay the R60 for the unlimited internet on my phone. That’s a crazy good deal because 60 rand is less than 10 dollars.
So aside from being mall rats, we actually are learning a lot here. We had our LPI midterm which is our Language Proficiency Interview midterm. In a couple weeks I will have to take the real LPI before swearing in as a volunteer. We have had sessions on everything from alcohol abuse, to transportation safety to classroom management. Several current volunteers have come to teach sessions and answer our questions. And believe me, we have questions. Every volunteer we’ve met at PST (pre-service training) has been incredibly upbeat and so helpful.
We’ve had a couple field trips lately which have been really helpful in understanding South Africa. First we visited the Voortrekker Monument in Pretoria then two weeks later we visited the Apartheid Museum in Johannesburg. I really enjoyed the Apartheid Museum, although it was a pretty emotionally exhausting experience to go through the museum. Seeing the videos and pictures and facing the reality of what Apartheid was and a small window into how it affected the people of South Africa is a pretty intense experience. If you’re ever in Joburg though, it’s definitely worth going to. We also had a fieldtrip to a game reserve near where we were originally staying when we arrived in South Africa on Women’s Day. We rode in the Peace Corps vans and got to see zebras, giraffes, wildebeest, rhinos, hippos, etc. No lions but it was still a great time!
The weather is finally starting to get warmer here, which is much appreciated during my 6 am bucket bath. I’m getting the hang of the whole bucket bath thing, but I’m sure there’s a section of my back that’s about to start sprouting plants because it hasn’t been reached with a washcloth in a month or so.
Only a few weeks left of training and then I’m officially sworn in! Woot!
I must say I feel sometimes that we’re pretty spoiled as a Peace Corps training group. We are staying in a village that has a mall only a 30 minute combi ride away. I have gone to a medium to large shopping mall nearly every weekend that I’ve been here. I’ve had a cell phone since week 3 of training and I’ve had internet on my blackberry since week 3 as well. So, while I didn’t expect to have these things when I signed up for Peace Corps I’m not going to not take advantage of the fact that I have access to them. I brought my blackberry with me from the states so all I had to do was get a SIM card and pay the R60 for the unlimited internet on my phone. That’s a crazy good deal because 60 rand is less than 10 dollars.
So aside from being mall rats, we actually are learning a lot here. We had our LPI midterm which is our Language Proficiency Interview midterm. In a couple weeks I will have to take the real LPI before swearing in as a volunteer. We have had sessions on everything from alcohol abuse, to transportation safety to classroom management. Several current volunteers have come to teach sessions and answer our questions. And believe me, we have questions. Every volunteer we’ve met at PST (pre-service training) has been incredibly upbeat and so helpful.
We’ve had a couple field trips lately which have been really helpful in understanding South Africa. First we visited the Voortrekker Monument in Pretoria then two weeks later we visited the Apartheid Museum in Johannesburg. I really enjoyed the Apartheid Museum, although it was a pretty emotionally exhausting experience to go through the museum. Seeing the videos and pictures and facing the reality of what Apartheid was and a small window into how it affected the people of South Africa is a pretty intense experience. If you’re ever in Joburg though, it’s definitely worth going to. We also had a fieldtrip to a game reserve near where we were originally staying when we arrived in South Africa on Women’s Day. We rode in the Peace Corps vans and got to see zebras, giraffes, wildebeest, rhinos, hippos, etc. No lions but it was still a great time!
The weather is finally starting to get warmer here, which is much appreciated during my 6 am bucket bath. I’m getting the hang of the whole bucket bath thing, but I’m sure there’s a section of my back that’s about to start sprouting plants because it hasn’t been reached with a washcloth in a month or so.
Only a few weeks left of training and then I’m officially sworn in! Woot!
Wednesday, August 10, 2011
I'm now into week five of training and things are going well. We had yesterday off for mwomens Day so Peace Corps took some of us to a game reserve. It was a great time and we saw zebras, giraffes, rhinos, wildebeest, and warthogs. On saturday we will visit the apartheid museum in Johannesburg and next Friday we learn our permanent site! I know I will be going to Limpopo but I'm eager to learn exactly where. A week from Monday we will travel to a supervisor workshop in our province followed by a four day visit to the site I will be living in for the next two years. We had our midterm LPIs or language proficiency interviews. In case you haven't realized by now Peace Corps loves their acronyms.
On saturday a large group of us attended a local wedding that was a blast. I tried a traditional home brewed beer that wasn't too bad. We also danced and ate wonderful food. Speaking of food I have recently had the pleasure of trying chicken feet. They tasted fine but its a lot of work for a limited amount of meat.
Training is flying by now! The first two weeks were a huge challenge for me but now that I'm settled into a routine the days are going very quickly. I'm learning so much every day I'm surprised my head hasn't burst. Its an astounding amount of information to try to retain. Everything from language to culture to teaching skills to safety and health. The long days are a little rough but still better than being bored. However I am desperately looking forward to sleeping in someday in the future.
Not much else interesting has happened so ill try to write again soon.
On saturday a large group of us attended a local wedding that was a blast. I tried a traditional home brewed beer that wasn't too bad. We also danced and ate wonderful food. Speaking of food I have recently had the pleasure of trying chicken feet. They tasted fine but its a lot of work for a limited amount of meat.
Training is flying by now! The first two weeks were a huge challenge for me but now that I'm settled into a routine the days are going very quickly. I'm learning so much every day I'm surprised my head hasn't burst. Its an astounding amount of information to try to retain. Everything from language to culture to teaching skills to safety and health. The long days are a little rough but still better than being bored. However I am desperately looking forward to sleeping in someday in the future.
Not much else interesting has happened so ill try to write again soon.
Saturday, July 30, 2011
Dumelang!
Greetings from South Africa! I've been in country for about three weeks now and its definitely been a rollercoaster. I apologize for the rampant mispellings and nonsense words that are bound to be part of this post. Blogging from a cell phone is an art I have yet to master. So quick rundown of my trip so far.
We arrived in south africa on July 8 after two days in DC. We drove in buses from the airport in Johannesburg to our first sight two hours away. when we arrived we were all exhausted and jet lagged. We got off the bus to be greeted by our LCFs (language and cross culture facilitators) who were singing and dancing. We stayed in dorms essentially for four days. During those four days we had group language lessons in four languages, got lots of shots and safety lessons. We also were totally spoiled with massive amounts of food and several tea breaks a day. One of our last days at that site we learned which language we would be learning and I was assigned Sepedi. My group is awesome and our LCF is amazing.
On the 13th we left the college to go meet our individual host families. The first few days felt a lot like summer camp but the first night of homestay was a reality check. I love my host family but that first night was the first time I really felt like I was really far from home. Things got easier as I adjusted to living with a South African family. My host mom is wonderful and is so patient with me. None of my skills from the states are particularly helpful here. I don't know how to cook food like them, do laundry or even bathe myself. Certainly a reality check for someone who considers herself pretty self sufficient.
Now were into the thick of our PST which is preservice training. Here is a rundown of my typical day of training.
Wake up at 630 and make my lunch. Then I get my bath ready by getting water from the stove or electric kettle. I then bathe which can be a painful process depending on the temperature. Then I eat breakfast and walk with Nick to our LCFs house where we have a language lesson. Then we walk to a nearby primary school where we have cultural sessions or observe at the school. Sometimes we have another language lesson and we end around five most days. Then I walk home and help prepare dinner for my family. After dinner I do dishes and then Generations is on! By the way Generations is a super popular South African soap opera that I'm hooked on already. After Generations I usually head towards bed since I go to bed pretty early here usually. Saturdays we sometimes have classes but today we went to Pretoria on a field trip. Its a pretty hectic schedule but I'm enjoying my language classes a lot.
I will try to post more often but I'm trying to do it all on my blackberry so its somewhat of a painstaking process. More soon!
We arrived in south africa on July 8 after two days in DC. We drove in buses from the airport in Johannesburg to our first sight two hours away. when we arrived we were all exhausted and jet lagged. We got off the bus to be greeted by our LCFs (language and cross culture facilitators) who were singing and dancing. We stayed in dorms essentially for four days. During those four days we had group language lessons in four languages, got lots of shots and safety lessons. We also were totally spoiled with massive amounts of food and several tea breaks a day. One of our last days at that site we learned which language we would be learning and I was assigned Sepedi. My group is awesome and our LCF is amazing.
On the 13th we left the college to go meet our individual host families. The first few days felt a lot like summer camp but the first night of homestay was a reality check. I love my host family but that first night was the first time I really felt like I was really far from home. Things got easier as I adjusted to living with a South African family. My host mom is wonderful and is so patient with me. None of my skills from the states are particularly helpful here. I don't know how to cook food like them, do laundry or even bathe myself. Certainly a reality check for someone who considers herself pretty self sufficient.
Now were into the thick of our PST which is preservice training. Here is a rundown of my typical day of training.
Wake up at 630 and make my lunch. Then I get my bath ready by getting water from the stove or electric kettle. I then bathe which can be a painful process depending on the temperature. Then I eat breakfast and walk with Nick to our LCFs house where we have a language lesson. Then we walk to a nearby primary school where we have cultural sessions or observe at the school. Sometimes we have another language lesson and we end around five most days. Then I walk home and help prepare dinner for my family. After dinner I do dishes and then Generations is on! By the way Generations is a super popular South African soap opera that I'm hooked on already. After Generations I usually head towards bed since I go to bed pretty early here usually. Saturdays we sometimes have classes but today we went to Pretoria on a field trip. Its a pretty hectic schedule but I'm enjoying my language classes a lot.
I will try to post more often but I'm trying to do it all on my blackberry so its somewhat of a painstaking process. More soon!
Wednesday, July 6, 2011
Last Day in the United States for a While!
I got to Washington D.C. yesterday around 9:00 and got to my hotel. Staging was today and lasted about five hours. It was amazing to get to meet my fellow volunteers. I feel like I've known some of these people far longer than a few hours and I can definitely see us being great friends as our adventure continues.
Tomorrow we get up, check out of the hotel, spend a few hours in the airport, fly to Atlanta then off to Johannesburg! I get to South Africa at 5 pm. I'll probably not have internet or a phone for a while, so don't count on hearing from me for a while. I will do my best to update when I have internet, but no guarantees it will be soon.
Thank you to everyone who has supported me through this long application process, I'm finally off to live the adventure! It's definitely surreal to be so close to my dream, but now the real work begins. After a 16 hour flight I'll be on the ground in Africa for the first time in my life! Wish me luck. Love you all!
Tomorrow we get up, check out of the hotel, spend a few hours in the airport, fly to Atlanta then off to Johannesburg! I get to South Africa at 5 pm. I'll probably not have internet or a phone for a while, so don't count on hearing from me for a while. I will do my best to update when I have internet, but no guarantees it will be soon.
Thank you to everyone who has supported me through this long application process, I'm finally off to live the adventure! It's definitely surreal to be so close to my dream, but now the real work begins. After a 16 hour flight I'll be on the ground in Africa for the first time in my life! Wish me luck. Love you all!
Tuesday, July 5, 2011
Final Post from the US for a while!
So the time has finally come. I'm getting on the plane for Washington D.C. in a matter of hours and I can hardly believe it. I'm excited, yes; but right now the sadness of leaving my wonderful friends and family is a little overwhelming. I love you all and I am eternally grateful for your love and support! This will be a short post, and I'm not sure when I'll be able to post again. Remember (especially you mom) one thing I've learned through this whole process with Peace Corps: "No news is good news". Oh yea and "Be patient!".
To conclude my farewell post, here are some packing pictures. Note: I'm almost embarrassed to post these since I've seen many of my fellow Peace Corps group members with far less stuff than me.. I want it to be known that I did my best and that the big bag is only about half full and has a big jacket and pillow in it.. Also, on the picture with everything laid out about a quarter of that stuff got cut and didn't make it into the final pack. Now on to the pictures!
To conclude my farewell post, here are some packing pictures. Note: I'm almost embarrassed to post these since I've seen many of my fellow Peace Corps group members with far less stuff than me.. I want it to be known that I did my best and that the big bag is only about half full and has a big jacket and pillow in it.. Also, on the picture with everything laid out about a quarter of that stuff got cut and didn't make it into the final pack. Now on to the pictures!
Monday, June 20, 2011
Packing Madness
I've been back in Phoenix for 2 days. While my vacations were awesome and it was great to see some family before I leave, I was definitely getting antsy to start preparing to move. Since I've been home, I've knocked out a majority of the things on my to do list. I cleaned my room (a much more daunting task that it sounds), set out all of my Peace Corps stuff, finished some paperwork, got insurance, in the process of finding a phone, loaded up my kindle with new books, and faxed my yellow fever vaccine info. I still have a lot to do, but the major things are taken care of.
Now that the departure date is getting closer, and I've booked my one-way plane ticket, I'm getting nervous. It's a stomach-killing mixture of excitement, anxiety, doubt, and more excitement. Leaving is constantly on my mind, but I still somehow manage to forget I'm moving in a couple weeks. Then I get all scared and excited all over again when something reminds me, like an ad for a movie that comes out after I leave (which is most movies at this point).
It definitely doesn't seem real yet and I'm not really sure when it will. I apologize in advance to whomever I am seated next to on my flight to D.C. I can guarantee I'll be a sobbing mess for a majority of that flight.
However, I may have managed to cure my rampant procrastination tendencies. I've accomplished more in the last two days than I usually do in a month. Now back to preparing.. I'll post some pictures of my packing pile soon since those are always interesting.
Now that the departure date is getting closer, and I've booked my one-way plane ticket, I'm getting nervous. It's a stomach-killing mixture of excitement, anxiety, doubt, and more excitement. Leaving is constantly on my mind, but I still somehow manage to forget I'm moving in a couple weeks. Then I get all scared and excited all over again when something reminds me, like an ad for a movie that comes out after I leave (which is most movies at this point).
It definitely doesn't seem real yet and I'm not really sure when it will. I apologize in advance to whomever I am seated next to on my flight to D.C. I can guarantee I'll be a sobbing mess for a majority of that flight.
However, I may have managed to cure my rampant procrastination tendencies. I've accomplished more in the last two days than I usually do in a month. Now back to preparing.. I'll post some pictures of my packing pile soon since those are always interesting.
Thursday, June 2, 2011
Last Day of Work
Yesterday was my last day at work. It really doesn't feel real yet. I've been totally consumed by this job for the last 5 months and now that it's over I kind of miss it. I grew really close to my coworkers and have made some amazing friends. I'm going to miss the kids, the stress, and the insanity of it all. This was by far the most difficult job I've ever had, but I learned more from it than I could have ever asked for.
Now begins the fun part of my summer. I have three vacations this month, as well as the frantic task of preparing to leave in July. I'm going to San Francisco this weekend with my mom, Florida after that, then Nebraska on my way back from Florida. Once I'm back in Phoenix, I have around 2 weeks to get everything ready to go. It doesn't seem like much time, but since I won't have work or any other obligations I should be able to get everything done.
Tonight I'm having friends come over and look through all of my Goodwill piles before I dump them off tomorrow. I also bought 4 large storage bins which is what I'm limiting myself to for things I'm keeping until I come back.
I successfully completed my first dry run on packing. I didn't pack carefully, basically just shoved stuff into my bags to see how much it weighs. I'm happy to say, that with everything I have so far I'm still 15 pounds underweight and I have plenty of room left. Hopefully I didn't forget anything major in my test-pack.
I'm hoping to have some staging information soon, since it's only a month away at this point. Now to relax and enjoy my vacations!
Now begins the fun part of my summer. I have three vacations this month, as well as the frantic task of preparing to leave in July. I'm going to San Francisco this weekend with my mom, Florida after that, then Nebraska on my way back from Florida. Once I'm back in Phoenix, I have around 2 weeks to get everything ready to go. It doesn't seem like much time, but since I won't have work or any other obligations I should be able to get everything done.
Tonight I'm having friends come over and look through all of my Goodwill piles before I dump them off tomorrow. I also bought 4 large storage bins which is what I'm limiting myself to for things I'm keeping until I come back.
I successfully completed my first dry run on packing. I didn't pack carefully, basically just shoved stuff into my bags to see how much it weighs. I'm happy to say, that with everything I have so far I'm still 15 pounds underweight and I have plenty of room left. Hopefully I didn't forget anything major in my test-pack.
I'm hoping to have some staging information soon, since it's only a month away at this point. Now to relax and enjoy my vacations!
Sunday, May 1, 2011
The Waiting Place
It's been a while, but not a lot has happened since receiving my invitation. I've been incredibly busy teaching since January that I haven't really had time to obsess about Peace Corps stuff. The job I'm in now is incredibly stressful, but definitely fantastic preparation for Peace Corps. I'm the only science teacher in the school and I teach every student (that's around 150). I write all of the curriculum for 7th grade and our school day is LONG. I'm usually at school from 6:30 am until 5:30 or 6 pm. That doesn't even include the amount of time I spend once I'm home writing lesson plans, grading papers, etc. In total, it usually ends up being around 70 hours a week. It's a lot of teaching, very few resources, and a lot of students. I really do love my students and I love being in the classroom teaching.
Because of my crazy school schedule, it took me a really long time to get my passport and visa paperwork sent off. Luckily that got done last week and hopefully it wasn't too late. Aside from that, I've just been sorting out what I will take, writing packing list after packing list and buying things I will need as I find them. I have both of my bags I'll be taking, and most of the clothes but I still have quite a few things to round up and even more things to get rid of. I sense a huge garage sale coming.
It still doesn't seem real to me that I'll be moving to AFRICA in two months.. Being in the Peace Corps is something I've dreamed of for years, and it's becoming a little frightening now that I'm so close!
Because of my crazy school schedule, it took me a really long time to get my passport and visa paperwork sent off. Luckily that got done last week and hopefully it wasn't too late. Aside from that, I've just been sorting out what I will take, writing packing list after packing list and buying things I will need as I find them. I have both of my bags I'll be taking, and most of the clothes but I still have quite a few things to round up and even more things to get rid of. I sense a huge garage sale coming.
It still doesn't seem real to me that I'll be moving to AFRICA in two months.. Being in the Peace Corps is something I've dreamed of for years, and it's becoming a little frightening now that I'm so close!
Tuesday, February 22, 2011
Invited to South Africa!!!!!!!
I received my invitation for South Africa staging July 5th 2011!!!! My official job title is Resource Specialist, but from the description it appears I'll be teaching and teacher training. It's such a relief having my invitation in hand, but kind of daunting because of the amount of work involved now. I'm also pretty excited that I got to be the one to update the peacecorpswiki page with the staging date for south africa. So excited!! But now I have some work to do.. Yikes!
Wednesday, February 16, 2011
INVITED!!!!!
I've been invited to serve as a Peace Corps volunteer! I can't even tell you how exciting this news is for me. It's been almost exactly a year since I started my application.
I was at work yesterday about to teach a class when my phone rang and I saw the 202 area code. Of course my heart about jumped out of my chest and I answered and attempted to sound as composed as possible. I asked my placement officer to call back later when I would be able to talk. She did and I had my final placement interview which only lasted about 30 minutes. It was much more relaxed than my initial interview with just a few questions about why I switched universities twice and how supportive my family has been of my decision to apply. Other than my phone cutting out during the interview, it went pretty smoothly. She told me about a couple potential placements, one in Africa for science education leaving in July, one in Asia for community development leaving in July and one in Eastern Europe for community development leaving in July. Science education and Africa are my first choice, so she said she would be inviting me to that program. INVITING me! She said my invitation will be here in 7 to 10 days, but I'm hoping it gets here sooner. All of my medical paperwork was sent quickly so I can't imagine that my actual invitation would then be sent through regular mail. Fingers crossed that I'll know my country by Friday!
Monday, January 10, 2011
Keeping my RAS in Check
So, since graduation I've been incredibly busy. Tons of family in town, big graduation party, Christmas, more family in town, New Years, even more family in town, and I started my volunteer teaching position. It's been utter chaos for the last month and I'm incredibly grateful that my departure date is no longer February. I can't fathom leaving the country in a mere three weeks. However, this relief does not temper my RAS (restless applicant syndrome). The only thing that's been keeping my mind off of it is not reading peacecorpsjournals and convincing myself I wouldn't hear from placement until probably March for my new June departure. However, this week I caved and started reading journals again and found some unexpected hope! It seems a few other people with June departures are hearing from their placement officers and even receiving invitations!! Now of course this coincides with a terrible RAS flare up. Luckily I've been too busy teaching and entertaining guests that I haven't been able to do much about it.
Speaking of teaching, I absolutely love the school at which I teach. They have such a unique approach to teaching and classroom management and it is incredibly effective. The school is located in one of the worst school districts in Arizona in a bad part of Phoenix, and in one year have managed to test higher in math, writing and reading than any other school within that district. They do this all without textbooks, extremely limited access to computers, and in a school that used to be some sort of thrift store. The teachers are absolutely amazing and all student work is done with pencil and paper. While I'm sure they have much better access to resources than any school I would teach at in the Peace Corps, it is nice to have some experience teaching "from scratch". Plus I'm eternally grateful that they've allowed me to not only design my own class, but teach it completely by myself.
Their last period of the day is for enrichment, since they don't have P.E. or art or music. Volunteers from the community come in and teach the last period of the day 4 days a week to a set class of anywhere from 25-30 students. I helped teach an art class last quarter, and when they approached me about teaching art again this quarter I suggested the idea of a science based enrichment. Once I got an ok from the school directors I designed the class and wrote up a lesson plan. Being a science nerd myself, I designed a class I would have died for in junior high. It's completely experiment based and very hands on. While we've only had 3 classes so far, the students seem to love it. They're involved, contribute actively in the discussions, and are genuinely excited about doing the experiments. I have 30 students, and the teacher who would normally sit in the back of the room and help manage classroom behavior stopped even coming into the room after the first day. I'm seriously excited every day I get to go in and it's completely because of my students' enthusiasm. One of my students actually told me today that I'm awesome. Talk about a self-esteem booster. Haha. I hope to have some good news about Peace Corps soon, but until then I will be reading journals and keeping myself busy!
Speaking of teaching, I absolutely love the school at which I teach. They have such a unique approach to teaching and classroom management and it is incredibly effective. The school is located in one of the worst school districts in Arizona in a bad part of Phoenix, and in one year have managed to test higher in math, writing and reading than any other school within that district. They do this all without textbooks, extremely limited access to computers, and in a school that used to be some sort of thrift store. The teachers are absolutely amazing and all student work is done with pencil and paper. While I'm sure they have much better access to resources than any school I would teach at in the Peace Corps, it is nice to have some experience teaching "from scratch". Plus I'm eternally grateful that they've allowed me to not only design my own class, but teach it completely by myself.
Their last period of the day is for enrichment, since they don't have P.E. or art or music. Volunteers from the community come in and teach the last period of the day 4 days a week to a set class of anywhere from 25-30 students. I helped teach an art class last quarter, and when they approached me about teaching art again this quarter I suggested the idea of a science based enrichment. Once I got an ok from the school directors I designed the class and wrote up a lesson plan. Being a science nerd myself, I designed a class I would have died for in junior high. It's completely experiment based and very hands on. While we've only had 3 classes so far, the students seem to love it. They're involved, contribute actively in the discussions, and are genuinely excited about doing the experiments. I have 30 students, and the teacher who would normally sit in the back of the room and help manage classroom behavior stopped even coming into the room after the first day. I'm seriously excited every day I get to go in and it's completely because of my students' enthusiasm. One of my students actually told me today that I'm awesome. Talk about a self-esteem booster. Haha. I hope to have some good news about Peace Corps soon, but until then I will be reading journals and keeping myself busy!
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