Just around the bend

A small break from Macedonia. I got approval from the Department of Public Works this week for the lots I requested for community gardens through the Adopt-A-Lot Program. This is the first major step for instituting three new community gardens in the Cramer Hill neighborhood of Camden. I hope to begin serious planning in March after my spring break, it's still too cold to do anything with the ground, but there will be some planning until then. Right now we are swamped with running a VITA Center in the office. I have become a tax preparer, though I am still fuzzy on where to put home mortgage stuff, oh yeah Schedule A.

In other news, I will be running my first ever half marathon in April. Our "team" will be running outside for the first time together on Sunday. This will be my first time running outside since Christmas. There are four of us ladies from the IPSD program, two of which are first time race runners!


Ok back to Macedonia. One of the volunteer letters in my Peace Corps packet talked about a local delicacy called ajvar, which is a type of relish made primarily of red bell peppers with eggplant and garlic. I think I would like it, hopefully someone will teach me how to make it.

I know I will easily fit into the culture there based on that fact that finding "a new friend is as simple as going to coffee, one of the most popular pastimes in Macedonia."

Here is a little bit more about the program in Macedonia. Along with doing my assigned job, Peace Corps encourages all volunteers to take on additional community projects around your interests and skills and the needs of the community. A lot of the RPCVs (Returned Peace Corps Volunteer) that I have spoken to did something with children, mostly educated them on a certain topic or did organized sports. I wonder what opportunities will await me. My main job will run normal business type hours (8am-4pm) and will be business casual dress, nothing that I haven't done before, which is comforting.

When I first enter the country I will be with other volunteers who will be serving Macedonia and we will all enter an intensive three month training session. The focus of the tree months will be language, cultural, and job training. During that time I will live with a host family which will also help me to quickly learn Macedonian and the cultural heritage. After the first three months I will be assigned a community where I will work for an NGO and call home for the next two years. Here are some non-profits I found in Macedonia through Idealist's website. Who knows I may end up at one of these.

More than likely in my community I will be living in some type of apartment situation on my own. I will have my own entrance, kitchen, and bathroom. The information also listed furniture, though every one else I have talked to mentioned having to buy furnishings. There is the possibility that depending on the community I may have to share entry-ways or kitchen and bathroom with another family, if my community does not have individual living space. So it's a toss up, but I think no matter where I am at it sounds like I will have good accommodations. It's mentioned several times that the Internet can be easily accessed, so I think I will be taking my computer after all.

For all you social media types, Peace Corps has a twitter.

Usage of words

"Your colleagues may expect that you will know exactly what needs to be done and how it needs to be accomplished. At the same time, you are simply trying to understand how things are done, why they are done in particular ways, and why things take a lot longer to be completed. Given all this, open-mindedness, flexibility and patience are perhaps the most essential tools to a successful experience."

from Your Assignment, Peace Corps

This I think may sum up the majority of my "efforts" while serving in the Peace Corps.

History of the Program

The Peace Corps program in Macedonia began in 1996 with the first group of English teachers in secondary school. Today the program has grown to include business, environment, local government, and NGO development. Due to political unrest, Peace Corps service was suspended in 1999 and again in 2001. The Ohrid Framework Agreement peace agreement ended ethnic fighting in 2001 and international assessments have concluded that Macedonia now has capable security forces that can handle the country's issues.

I will be part of the sixteenth group of volunteers to serve in Macedonia that will work in English Education and the Community Development.

Macedonia has begun the process of decentralizing their 84 municipalities. Local government will be responsible for education, healthcare, infrastructure development, and other services. One of the many challenges of the country is its name dispute with Greece and it remains unresolved, holding up its entry into NATO. The country is advancing making partnerships with neighboring countries and now citizens have visa free travel to EU countries which marks a significant step in the EU integration process.

My Primary Duties

As the government moves to a more decentralized structure, I will be helping local organizations learn organizational development, networking, grant proposal development and grant management skills, and financial sustainability. I could be doing anything from developing mission statements and strategic plans, introducing the effective use of information technology, promoting teambuilding, and identifying community assets. I may, also, have a major responsibility in assisting with the financial stability of the organization, through grants or other means of fundraising. The Peace Corps repeatedly mentions environmental improvement organizations, which excites me and could be promising. I could very well be helping Macedonians recycle or help to organize clean-ups.

Camden in the snow earlier this year

Calm before the storm

It's November 11th and Veteran's Day, which means my internship office is closed and I am having a mini-holiday right now. I made it through mid-terms without too much stress. I did however have to run to one class with my just printed mid-term clutched in my hands in order to make it to class on time. I don't want to do that again! I made good grades on them all so I am relatively pleased with myself. Long ago I abandoned my ability to get all A's, for the most part no matter how hard I try it just doesn't happen. So I am thrilled to be getting the A's I have seen and the few B's sprinkled in along the way. I have reconfirmed to myself that I am not a scholar, I just don't get excited about reading and discovering a certain topic. Maybe you could say I once was about the American fast food and food systems, but not as much any more. I am just not one to spout off knowledge about the things I know or believe. I recently felt ashamed when my favorite professor asked me what I was passionate about (trying to get me to focus my research paper) and all I wanted to say was nothing. I know if my dad reads this he can tell me "told ya so" at Christmas, sorry. I am seeing this degree as more as a means to a better job than any other overarching self fulfillment type situation, though I will be proud of myself when this is all said and done.

The end of this semester is approaching and I have two small papers and two large papers left to do. Not so bad except that research eats up a lot of time. One paper is my choosing (that passion one) and I guess I have settled on international cattle trade/industry. Can't say I am super excited or that I have discovered anything really new. It's similar to the American system just in other countries that are poorer. The one for budgeting is this long thing looking at budgets in various states. I picked Georgia. Not super thrilled about this one but it's gotta get done.

Well, that's the state of affairs concerning school right now. I've felt absurdly at peace the past few days even though I know there is more work I should be doing. By the time I get home from class at 9pm I just don't want to do any more work. That will have to change soon even if I don't feel like it.

Last weekend I ran a 10k over the Benjamin Franklin Bridge and around Camden. It was fun, though doing it by yourself isn't really fun. There were over 4,000 other people with me but I didn't know any of them. They had run out of my shirt size but they gave everyone a medal at the end, which made up for it. I wore the thing the rest of that day.

We do things different

My mom was in the bathroom when I heard a gasp. Crap, I thought, maybe she saw a roach or even worse a mouse! "What's wrong?" I asked. "Your sink, it's not finished." Oh, was that it? "Yeah." "Well, is it going to get finished any time soon?" "No...we use the gray water from it." "Oh" she said, sounding less than pleased.

Yes, the water from the sink in my bathroom goes straight into a bucket underneath. Once the level in the bucket reaches a certain height the water is used to flush the toilet. That means we don't flush every time we use the facilities. That might be gross to some, but I had some practice at Gabe's house this summer and at Polestar. We are also encouraged to use less water while showering. This could take the form of bucket washing, where you fill a bucket of water up and use a little cup to wet yourself and rinse (I have not made it to this level yet). In the third floor shower (the shower I use) we turn the water off while soaping up and then back on for the final rise. Not sure if I will be able to pull this off in winter, I have a fear of freezing in place. There used to be a bucket in the shower that would capture water while we were waiting for it to get warm, but the bucket has since disappeared and I haven't gone looking for it yet.

There are laundry lines outside of the house in the backyard and also zig-zagging across the front sitting room. These are used to dry clothes after washing (obviously). There is a dryer here at the house, but it is more energy efficient to use the lines. I think drying my clothes outside is actually faster than in the machine. I haven't officially timed it yet so don't quote me, I don't want to be held liable. It certainly makes my clothes crispy though. There should be a campaign to put softener in the air so that my clothes are softer when they dry outside, thus undoing the environmental benefits of air drying my clothes!

What else do we do different (from the average house hold)? We compost our vegetation scraps (and egg shells and the nectar of the gods, coffee). Our composter is a deep freeze, not my first choice but I guess it works. Dealing with the composter is not my chore and I have no motivation (as of right now) to rally everyone to change the composting device. Our produce comes from the local farmers market (I was informed two weeks ago that most of the produce is not organic, sigh) and our dairy (well not the yogurt) is also local. Ah yes, we drink raw milk (sorry parents). So far it hasn't killed me, but if that's what does me in I'll make sure you all know. I did promise my mom as she was leaving after Labor Day Weekend that, "cross my heart I would not die, I would fight for life." That was mainly in reference to the seedy company that sits outside our front steps most of the day drinking and doing drugs. Back to the food, we hardly have any packaged food (mostly the sauces and condiments and the yogurt) and we make our own tortillas. Oh, there's no air conditioning, which is no longer an issue, but there is heat (praise God). We take our shoes off at the door to cut down on dirt in the house. So not a bad way of living really. The only thing I would do different is save less stuff, there is a lot of miscellaneous items around the place that I am sure could find a better home.

On a side note, I am missing Nashville like crazy. I miss my friends, church, places I would go. I don't regret moving here or choosing to go to school, I just wish I could have both. In the end I know moving here is right and a good change for me. I just haven't had the need to feel homesick and so of course it's a shock to my system. As always I also struggle with the fact that I have no money. My biggest complaint that I dealt with this summer and continue now is why does it cost money to be friends with people? I was thinking about it this morning some more. In your adult life entertainment focuses around things that cost money - let's go out to eat, how about a movie, what about that show tonight? When I was a child you just played in the back yard, watched a movie at home or played a board game. Why can't we as adults do that now? Suggest something like that and eventually you are labeled as boring. It's not that I don't want to go out and do things (I love to! Let's have another cup of coffee), it's just that I can't, especially not three times a week (at a minimum). I am kina excited that Lori now lives over in Philly and has no job. So now I have someone I can be cheap with. I have to figure out how to ride my bike across to the other side. That is my near future goal.

PS: Read this article it made me sad...http://www.nytimes.com/2010/09/21/world/asia/21gender.html.

What's in a name?

While my computer and phone (the glorious iPhone4 is causing problems, who knew!!) are syncing I thought it would be a good time for Internet diversion, so here's an update!

I have successfully been to all my classes once! The week was a little chopped up because of Labor Day Weekend, but now it is full steam ahead! I can confirm my previous thoughts that this masters' degree thing is going to be a lot of work. I think mainly a lot of reading. Using my time wisely will definitely be something I will have to keep my finger on! Not only do I have class, but my program requires an internship and I have signed up for work study. Some how they will all fit in, like clowns in a car. I think I'll be setting my alarm clock soon. I haven't had to yet because all of my classes are in the afternoon or at night.

Here are my classes:

Fundamentals of Policy Analysis
Law and Public Policy
Public Budgeting and Finance
International Community Development
International Economic Development

At first glance I think I'm going to like all of my classes, ask me again when I have to start writings papers and taking tests. Each professor is likable, but with their own set of quirks. Take today's professor, suit and tie but wearing crocks. I told him that I LOVED his shoe choice for today's outfit. He was ecstatic and I gave a big grin, glad to make his day! If I had to choose now, I think the finance and economic development classes might be my favorite. I am thankful that I do not have class on Friday, because that will give me a good day for getting work done, that is if I'm not at my internship or work study.

I have my first meeting with my potential internship this Friday. The organization is Cramer Hill CDC. Yeah, my heart skipped a beat when I heard CDC too! Unfortunately it's not a branch of the Centers for Disease Control, but it actually stands for Community Development Corporation. The Cramer Hill CDC "is dedicated to building a thriving, safe, family-oriented community that is economically and culturally diverse. Cramer Hill Community Development Corporation believes that development is most successful when there is continuous input from residents." Cramer Hill is a neighborhood of Camden that is North East of campus. I was matched up with this group based on my interest in community gardens and the environment. When I called and spoke with the director he told me that there were four areas that were targeted as places for me to help out. The director seems like he's gotten a lot done for Cramer Hill and I am excited to see what he has in mind. Before our meeting I need to read more of their site so I can be informed about the organization!

One great thing about my program is that I get along with all the other students. We are already talking about hanging out when we aren't in class. There is a total of nine (3 males and 6 females) of us that will be going to class together and then onto an international service after a year of classes. We have all the same classes together, but each of our classes have at least three people, if not more, from another program. I think this is a good thing because it will bring some diversity to class.

Well folks it seems like the phone is still acting sick. Looks like I will have to visit the Apple store soon. I would have posted some cool picture (I wanted to write about the endless pool and the gym here or about the house I am living in) but I just learned that restoring your iPhone means deleting all the data from last time you synced :-( Good-bye pictures. I will take new ones soon...some I won't be able to recreate (so if I sent you one feel free to send it back to me!). For now I've put a picture of my view from one of the windows in my room. It's Wednesday and the week is more than half way through, happy it's-almost-the-weekend-again!

Waiting to connect

I have always been terrible about writing and that's why blogging has always been difficult for me. I would much rather spend my time reading, who wants to read about my life anyway, why take the time to write it out? And I agonize over writing, making sure I choose the right words. Am in the correct tense? Wondering if I sound too passive.... I also want order to things, making sure I cover certain topics in the correct order that they occurred. Well, today I am saying screw that! This is all in an effort to make sure I write again, period, because according to my mental calendar I should have written at least three other entries by now and this one isn't even on the books. So, let's go!

Eight hundred and eight. That's how many miles I drove on Monday, August 23rd. According to google maps the drive should have taken me 13 hours and 26 minutes. I think I hit that somewhere in there. My destination was Camden, NJ. According to Wikipedia, Camden suffers from urban dysfunction. I like how that is put, it makes it sound more pleasant. Granted I really don't think Camden is as scary as everyone who I know from Philly makes it sound, but the city is not a bustling center of growth. There are people who do not do anything all day except sit on our front steps (well they aren't suppose to). When I feel lead, I am suppose to ask them to please find some where else to sit.

As I keep that in mind, I have moved onto other things, like combating the resident mice population. Right now there is debate on how many there are, but I am convinced that this is the last one! My project of completely cleaning and organizing the kitchen is almost done and I hope that this sends a message that mice are no longer welcome! The kitchen is just the start of what I hope becomes a whole sweep of cleaning and throwing out things in the house. It's hard when dozens and dozens of people have come and gone through those doors the past seven years.

Why did I move to Camden? The obvious reason is for school, I am sure as time unfolds there maybe other reasons that reveal themselves. Oh and school starts tomorrow. It still feels very imaginary (just like getting on a plane to HI was a month ago). I am sure it will begin to feel very real very soon... I will be attending Rutgers University and pursuing a Masters in Public Administration focusing on International Development. I will end my year of classes in the Peace Corps. So there you have it folks...the next three years of my life as far as I can see it, but for right now I am going to help water the empty lot next door. When I was here in June we planted flowers in it to make it look nicer. Then I am going to run over (yes really RUN) to my first yoga class at my new studio - Yogawood. Wish me luck and positive thoughts!