You know you are in the PC when you hear sentences/questions like this:
My counterpart’s monkey died today.
I wish that bat would come back to our house and eat all the new flying bug thingies that have started coming out of the ceiling….
How many parasites have you had? Any bacteria parasite combos? How many poop samples have you had to turn in?
You made out with your brother!? (referring to host brother here people …)
They are going to kill a pig for my family when they come to visit. Trust me, it’s kind of a big deal.
I had to kill a snake last month---it was in my pila (concrete water tank) and I couldn’t leave the house to get help because I was afraid the snake would get out and I wouldn’t know where it was.
Person A: Do you know if they have a bathroom here?
Person B: Yeah, it’s over there and it’s even got a toilet!
Person A: Wow!!!—I haven’t used a toilet in a really long time!
ALSO INTERESTING: ACCORDING TO A HANDOUT WE RECEIVE THESE ARE THE EMOTIONS WE WILL EXPERIENCE DURING OUR 2 YEAR AND 3 MONTH ROLLERCOASTER RIDE:
ANXIETY, LONELINESS, FEELING INCOMPETENT, NERVOUS, MORE ANXIETY, RESTLESSNESS, IRRITABILITY, LOW TOLERANCE FOR FRUSTRATION, FRIGHT, FRUSTRATION WITH SELF, LONELINESS AGAIN, WEIGHT AND HEALTH CHANGES, HOMESICKNESS, USELESSNESS, COMPARISON WITH OTHERS, MORE HOMESICKNESS, INTOLERANCE WITH HOST CULTURE,
IN OUR SECOND YEAR WHAT WE HAVE TO LOOK FORWARD TO:
IMPATIENCE WITH PROGRAM, SELF AND SYSTEM, CONSTANT COMPLAINING, LETHARGY, HAUGTINESS WITH NEW VOLUNTEERS, PROCRASTINATION, SELF RECRIMINATION, DISAPPOINTMENT, DOWNGRADE ACHIEVEMENTS, PANIC, MORE FRUSTRATION WITH SELF, MOODINESS, FRIGHT AGAIN, CONFUSION, MORE ANXIETY, ALIENATION, GIDDINESS, IMPATIENCE, …..
Well, I would have to put a check mark next to most of those already! I can see why they don’t hand this out prior to your departure! But it does sort of help to know that the feelings are normal (-:
And indeed, there ARE moments of positive feelings too---I have felt proud, loved, optimistic, motivated, joyous, and inspired some of the feelings among them. It just seems that you really have to hold out for these whereas the others just sort of smack you in the face all the time………but maybe that’s life no matter where you are or what you are doing, eh?
Saturday, May 28, 2011
Sunday, May 15, 2011
singin in the sunshine, laughin in the rain....
Isn’t it something when Mother Nature just seems to be in tune with your emotions? (I think I will make this entry a shout out to LW, u know who you are, though probably don’t read this blog (-: )
It REALLY started raining in Quilali tonight, like 10 minutes ago…I can’t even hear myself think, but the sound of rain IS SO refreshing….there is lightning on the mountaintops and echoes of thunder in the valley---and the very best part----the temperature dropped around 10 degrees and there is WIND! Granted, with 6 months of rainy season to go---I may not feel this way too much longer (-:
Anyhow, I have felt pretty down since vacation—after saying bye to the family, missing stuff from our house, student killing themselves and just recently Matt’s old host dad passed away too---on top of work not going so well= one sad little Julie. However, this past week was really good. I keep trying to examine why, so I can repeat it….and I think it was because I was super busy! And while work/class doesn’t usually go how I imagine it in my head, I am learning to adjust my expectations and really appreciate the small successes (and the random, crazy, beautiful parts of each day—whatever they may be). Also, I spent a few chunks of time with the host family here in Quilali---this always helps!!!! ANNNND today, we woke up at 430am to take a 2 hour dirt road bus ride in order to help with an allll day workshop…..and it was really successful I would say! Not everyone that signed up made it out, but I would say there were about 40 Nicaraguan English teachers---and now they all have books!!!! And have been exposed to new ideas about lesson planning, communicative activities, and designing durable materials for class!!! What they choose to do with it, we shall see. The volunteer leading the taller scheduled a follow up visit/observation day with 3 of the teachers to check in on the results of the day. Matt, Megan (a volunteer from our group ), and I only gave about an hour and a half of the 9-2:30 taller—but it was great to participate and even though we ended the day sweating profusely and starving and running to catch the 2 hours bus ride home, I feel oddly elated. Today, just maybe, today the PC Slogan of “The toughest job you’ll ever love” rings true. Though don’t get me wrong, on my bad days I have created other rated pg13 and sometimes R versions of this same slogan (-:
So back to the whole rain thing---I feel like my bad week or two has been wiped clean---and with the lovely rain and new, fresh air---I don’t know exactly what I am trying to say (exhausted) but it just all feels right today. I have the “ganas” or the will, to work and work harder.
Love to all ya’ll and I hope you all have a wonderful day and if you are having a bad day---may the rainstorm arrive to wipe it clean (-:
It REALLY started raining in Quilali tonight, like 10 minutes ago…I can’t even hear myself think, but the sound of rain IS SO refreshing….there is lightning on the mountaintops and echoes of thunder in the valley---and the very best part----the temperature dropped around 10 degrees and there is WIND! Granted, with 6 months of rainy season to go---I may not feel this way too much longer (-:
Anyhow, I have felt pretty down since vacation—after saying bye to the family, missing stuff from our house, student killing themselves and just recently Matt’s old host dad passed away too---on top of work not going so well= one sad little Julie. However, this past week was really good. I keep trying to examine why, so I can repeat it….and I think it was because I was super busy! And while work/class doesn’t usually go how I imagine it in my head, I am learning to adjust my expectations and really appreciate the small successes (and the random, crazy, beautiful parts of each day—whatever they may be). Also, I spent a few chunks of time with the host family here in Quilali---this always helps!!!! ANNNND today, we woke up at 430am to take a 2 hour dirt road bus ride in order to help with an allll day workshop…..and it was really successful I would say! Not everyone that signed up made it out, but I would say there were about 40 Nicaraguan English teachers---and now they all have books!!!! And have been exposed to new ideas about lesson planning, communicative activities, and designing durable materials for class!!! What they choose to do with it, we shall see. The volunteer leading the taller scheduled a follow up visit/observation day with 3 of the teachers to check in on the results of the day. Matt, Megan (a volunteer from our group ), and I only gave about an hour and a half of the 9-2:30 taller—but it was great to participate and even though we ended the day sweating profusely and starving and running to catch the 2 hours bus ride home, I feel oddly elated. Today, just maybe, today the PC Slogan of “The toughest job you’ll ever love” rings true. Though don’t get me wrong, on my bad days I have created other rated pg13 and sometimes R versions of this same slogan (-:
So back to the whole rain thing---I feel like my bad week or two has been wiped clean---and with the lovely rain and new, fresh air---I don’t know exactly what I am trying to say (exhausted) but it just all feels right today. I have the “ganas” or the will, to work and work harder.
Love to all ya’ll and I hope you all have a wonderful day and if you are having a bad day---may the rainstorm arrive to wipe it clean (-:
Tuesday, May 10, 2011
MAY UPDATE
Mother’s Day and Beyond…
Happy belated Mother’s Day to all in the USA! Nicas celebrate Dia del Madre on May 30th…To all the mommas out there---you ladies are allllll INCREDIBLE!
Little update from Nica-land-- We recently went to Jalapa, nearby town, (3 .5 hours on bus) to use bank, hook up with other veteran TEFL volunteer there, and then went together to the town of Santa Clara to check out the facility where our teacher taller we are giving will be on this coming Friday. We spent a few hours over coffee, beans, tortillas, cuejada etc. hashing out the details/deciding who will present what etc. Just to give you an idea, one of the things on our list to bring on the bus is 50 bananas (-: fun times! I am looking forward to the taller, but at the same time, it will be a brutally long day---the teachers that live in Quilali have to leave at 530am due the bus schedule……this means we will be in the little town almost 2 hours early…..but the next bus we could take would get us there an hour late……fun times again! Also due to the bus schedule, we will all probably have an extra hour AFTER the taller…..putting us back in Quilali around 6pm. Just in time to give our adult community class…… It seems in Peace Corps those random days you find yourself with very little to do, you make up for it somewhere down the road (-:
I will say that some of the moments I enjoy the most in PC thus far have actually been during these long periods of waiting…..waiting for the bus….or the next bus…..or on the bus….or waiting for someone to show up……sounds sort of frustrating, and it can be, but most of the time, I meet really interesting people and have really random strange conversations…..or play with gorgeous little kids or a family shares their mangos with me etc.
This week I have survived my Monday, which for me is the toughest---on my feet from 7 until about 530…includes a sort of grueling 2 hour r/t bus ride…..but it’s getting easier. I have about 33 million thousand things I would like to work on with my counterparts, and like many other volunteers, I sometimes feel overwhelmed and just don’t know where to start…..but I guess that’s why this is a 2 year and 3 month commitment….
The next couple mths should be fairly busy, lots of reports are due to the Ministry of Education…class as normal….the teacher taller….and coming up soon another Peace Corps training week….
Not much else to report—rainy season is supposedly around the corner. People are saying that the TV and paper in the states show RAIN RAIN RAIN already in Nicaragua—however, it really has yet to begin here in Quilali….though folks are saying it’s going to be a rough season—we’ll see. For now, it’s just HOT. In hot, I mean that by 930 or 10 am we are in the upper 90’s or low 100’s….sigh, I can’t wait for the rain! Though I may regret that statement later (-: esp. because it seems it will be raining INSIDE our house a good bit….
As always, I miss home. A lot. Especially the people. We love you guys…..stay in touch POR FAVOR!!!!
Happy belated Mother’s Day to all in the USA! Nicas celebrate Dia del Madre on May 30th…To all the mommas out there---you ladies are allllll INCREDIBLE!
Little update from Nica-land-- We recently went to Jalapa, nearby town, (3 .5 hours on bus) to use bank, hook up with other veteran TEFL volunteer there, and then went together to the town of Santa Clara to check out the facility where our teacher taller we are giving will be on this coming Friday. We spent a few hours over coffee, beans, tortillas, cuejada etc. hashing out the details/deciding who will present what etc. Just to give you an idea, one of the things on our list to bring on the bus is 50 bananas (-: fun times! I am looking forward to the taller, but at the same time, it will be a brutally long day---the teachers that live in Quilali have to leave at 530am due the bus schedule……this means we will be in the little town almost 2 hours early…..but the next bus we could take would get us there an hour late……fun times again! Also due to the bus schedule, we will all probably have an extra hour AFTER the taller…..putting us back in Quilali around 6pm. Just in time to give our adult community class…… It seems in Peace Corps those random days you find yourself with very little to do, you make up for it somewhere down the road (-:
I will say that some of the moments I enjoy the most in PC thus far have actually been during these long periods of waiting…..waiting for the bus….or the next bus…..or on the bus….or waiting for someone to show up……sounds sort of frustrating, and it can be, but most of the time, I meet really interesting people and have really random strange conversations…..or play with gorgeous little kids or a family shares their mangos with me etc.
This week I have survived my Monday, which for me is the toughest---on my feet from 7 until about 530…includes a sort of grueling 2 hour r/t bus ride…..but it’s getting easier. I have about 33 million thousand things I would like to work on with my counterparts, and like many other volunteers, I sometimes feel overwhelmed and just don’t know where to start…..but I guess that’s why this is a 2 year and 3 month commitment….
The next couple mths should be fairly busy, lots of reports are due to the Ministry of Education…class as normal….the teacher taller….and coming up soon another Peace Corps training week….
Not much else to report—rainy season is supposedly around the corner. People are saying that the TV and paper in the states show RAIN RAIN RAIN already in Nicaragua—however, it really has yet to begin here in Quilali….though folks are saying it’s going to be a rough season—we’ll see. For now, it’s just HOT. In hot, I mean that by 930 or 10 am we are in the upper 90’s or low 100’s….sigh, I can’t wait for the rain! Though I may regret that statement later (-: esp. because it seems it will be raining INSIDE our house a good bit….
As always, I miss home. A lot. Especially the people. We love you guys…..stay in touch POR FAVOR!!!!
Thursday, April 28, 2011
Post Vacation
Wow, I cannot even begin to express how absolutely amazing it was to see family last week!!!!! I sort of feel like I dreamt it all now that we are back to our regular lives…..We saw some amazing sites, swam in the ocean, went to a Mass, ate all kinds of yummy food, went zip lining and had some run ins with the law (-: All in all, it was awesome. Thank you family. Indeed, it was heartbreaking to say goodbye….lots of tears….that part, well, it just sucked.
So re-entry into life in our site has been a little rough, though I am sort of back into the swing of things now. One of my students committed suicide on Monday….I went to her burial on Tuesday….we had some things go missing from our house while we were out of town…..I am having some stressful issues with some folks I “work” with….all these things on top of just saying Good Bye to our families made the beginning of the week a little tough…..but I am feeling surprisingly more optimistic today.
It was awesome to give our host family and counterparts presents from our real families----they loved everything!!!! Our host family here, even though we don’t live with them anymore, really knows how to make us feel good (-: Their house is one of the places I go when I am feeling down, and I am sure to feel better after a visit.
Our adult community class is going well—every time we have to miss a Friday class, they insist we have a makeup class on Weds AND regular class on Friday=More work for us but it is SO AWESOME how motivated they are…..we gave them a list of the 300 most frequently used words in English, and over the holiday one student looked up every single word! We are thinking of adding some more Community Classes since they seem to be one of the things that make us happier (-:
We have a workshop coming up in a few weeks in a nearby (2.5 hour bus ride) town. Really Matt and I are just giving an hour and a half presentation with another volunteer about communicative activities. A volunteer who has been here a year longer than us is really leading the event. All of our counterparts plus all the other English professors from our municipality say they are going to attend. Supposedly, about 40 Nicaraguan teachers have signed up. It is super exciting because they will all be receiving a Teaching English Manual----complete with activity ideas etc. Right now, most English teachers here have no books….they are given a topic to teach, such as Human Rights etc….and they just have to decide what to teach! I also think it will be great for all the teachers to have the same book. They are paying a fraction of the price, thanks to US AID and PC. I am excited about this, even though it means lots more bus time )-:
Ok, sending the biggest hugs you guys can imagine….I really can’t wait to give them in person….please keep the updates, cards, phone calls, emails etc. coming!!!
So re-entry into life in our site has been a little rough, though I am sort of back into the swing of things now. One of my students committed suicide on Monday….I went to her burial on Tuesday….we had some things go missing from our house while we were out of town…..I am having some stressful issues with some folks I “work” with….all these things on top of just saying Good Bye to our families made the beginning of the week a little tough…..but I am feeling surprisingly more optimistic today.
It was awesome to give our host family and counterparts presents from our real families----they loved everything!!!! Our host family here, even though we don’t live with them anymore, really knows how to make us feel good (-: Their house is one of the places I go when I am feeling down, and I am sure to feel better after a visit.
Our adult community class is going well—every time we have to miss a Friday class, they insist we have a makeup class on Weds AND regular class on Friday=More work for us but it is SO AWESOME how motivated they are…..we gave them a list of the 300 most frequently used words in English, and over the holiday one student looked up every single word! We are thinking of adding some more Community Classes since they seem to be one of the things that make us happier (-:
We have a workshop coming up in a few weeks in a nearby (2.5 hour bus ride) town. Really Matt and I are just giving an hour and a half presentation with another volunteer about communicative activities. A volunteer who has been here a year longer than us is really leading the event. All of our counterparts plus all the other English professors from our municipality say they are going to attend. Supposedly, about 40 Nicaraguan teachers have signed up. It is super exciting because they will all be receiving a Teaching English Manual----complete with activity ideas etc. Right now, most English teachers here have no books….they are given a topic to teach, such as Human Rights etc….and they just have to decide what to teach! I also think it will be great for all the teachers to have the same book. They are paying a fraction of the price, thanks to US AID and PC. I am excited about this, even though it means lots more bus time )-:
Ok, sending the biggest hugs you guys can imagine….I really can’t wait to give them in person….please keep the updates, cards, phone calls, emails etc. coming!!!
gettin somewhere
This title makes me laugh. Mainly because it is actually physically quite difficult for us to “get” anywhere but where we live. Thanks to a dirt road that winds through the mountains kickin up more dust than you can imagine and full of holes and rocks…..Matt likes to say the bus ride is like being on a boat…..and it kind of is….
It feels good though to look back on the past 7 and then some months and see a little progress in SOME areas.
Living situation is great still—in the garage and super happy about it—though it has recently become a stale kind of hot….and living in a garage with a tin roof doesn’t help much-----
We got a new sitemate! Welcome new friend! He is young and full of energy and optimism—it is pretty refreshing (-: He lives with our old host family and must be 6 foot something----but since he is from India originally he blends in a bit more here than us pasty white chelas.
We had a site visit—meaning a supervisor of sorts (an old volunteer who has climbed the chain a bit) came allllllll the way to Quilali to spend some quality time with us and observe some classes. This was really great and gave me a fresh perspective on some things. The class she saw me teach with one of my counterparts went REALLY REALLY well, so that was a definite bonus, although, sadly, it is sort of more the exception than the norm. But at least I know how possible it is to have a class like that now! Work is…..still pretty frustrating at times, but baby steps are being made. Having a great class makes the whole week sort of shine. Despite all other difficulties or frustrations.
We are really REALLY looking forward to vacation with our families in a week!!!! Cannot believe it! Only worry it will make it hard to get back into the swing of things after, but well worth whatever may come!
It feels good though to look back on the past 7 and then some months and see a little progress in SOME areas.
Living situation is great still—in the garage and super happy about it—though it has recently become a stale kind of hot….and living in a garage with a tin roof doesn’t help much-----
We got a new sitemate! Welcome new friend! He is young and full of energy and optimism—it is pretty refreshing (-: He lives with our old host family and must be 6 foot something----but since he is from India originally he blends in a bit more here than us pasty white chelas.
We had a site visit—meaning a supervisor of sorts (an old volunteer who has climbed the chain a bit) came allllllll the way to Quilali to spend some quality time with us and observe some classes. This was really great and gave me a fresh perspective on some things. The class she saw me teach with one of my counterparts went REALLY REALLY well, so that was a definite bonus, although, sadly, it is sort of more the exception than the norm. But at least I know how possible it is to have a class like that now! Work is…..still pretty frustrating at times, but baby steps are being made. Having a great class makes the whole week sort of shine. Despite all other difficulties or frustrations.
We are really REALLY looking forward to vacation with our families in a week!!!! Cannot believe it! Only worry it will make it hard to get back into the swing of things after, but well worth whatever may come!
Thursday, March 10, 2011
adelante
So, among schedule changes and general chaos being part of the first month of school, our community suffered a loss yesterday. We had a professor lose his younger brother---twenty something--in a bicycle accident. I was pulled out of class to visit the house, view the body, and see the mother crying for her lost child. Intense. Yes. Surreal. Yes. All the kids from the high school eventually made their way over to view the body and show support for the family. Is this strange? I am not sure anymore....(i feel this way a lot lately)....I just know it was heartbreaking and it feels odd to be part of something this intimate.
Other news, we moved into our own place, well sort of our own place. I lovingly refer to it as the garage....see pics on FB. My mom says it looks like living in a strip mall...we share it with a little store that is connected, so there are other people about during the day...our giant garage door opens right up to the street, so if we want air we keep it open and the entire world is pretty much at our house...it is also on the same street as one of our high schools, so alllll the kids pass by. but we love it. there is some uncertainty whether or not we will be able to keep it, but we hope so. we are lucky enough to get running water 2xs a day, an hour in the early early morning and an hour in the afternoon. my best day is when i catch the water and i get a cold shower with running water!!!
also, we will be returning to masaya, where we had our training, for a week of intense Spanish classes and an exam at the end, well, an oral interview, to see how our language ability is coming along. I am very excited to take a little break from our site, but at the same time, sad because establishing a school routine and getting to know the kids will be further hindered.
I am tired. and full of thoughts. happy mostly and busy mostly. Miss you guys as always ALLWAYS. please keep the emails, comments, cards, letters, phone calls comin´. every one means more than you know!!!
LOVE
Other news, we moved into our own place, well sort of our own place. I lovingly refer to it as the garage....see pics on FB. My mom says it looks like living in a strip mall...we share it with a little store that is connected, so there are other people about during the day...our giant garage door opens right up to the street, so if we want air we keep it open and the entire world is pretty much at our house...it is also on the same street as one of our high schools, so alllll the kids pass by. but we love it. there is some uncertainty whether or not we will be able to keep it, but we hope so. we are lucky enough to get running water 2xs a day, an hour in the early early morning and an hour in the afternoon. my best day is when i catch the water and i get a cold shower with running water!!!
also, we will be returning to masaya, where we had our training, for a week of intense Spanish classes and an exam at the end, well, an oral interview, to see how our language ability is coming along. I am very excited to take a little break from our site, but at the same time, sad because establishing a school routine and getting to know the kids will be further hindered.
I am tired. and full of thoughts. happy mostly and busy mostly. Miss you guys as always ALLWAYS. please keep the emails, comments, cards, letters, phone calls comin´. every one means more than you know!!!
LOVE
Wednesday, March 2, 2011
aiy senor
The beginning of an era blog…aka beginning of the school year….
Rendida! Or worn out! Even though we don’t put in nearly as many teaching hours as our counterparts, I find myself well worn by the end of most days. Even though school has been “in session” for 2 weeks, the schedule is still changing and classes are still added and dropped….mainly because kids can still enroll until April……it’s fun (-: I have given up on everything making sense or ever staying the same, and am trying to focus on making myself consistent. (The one thing I can control).
In other news, there is a group of students visiting here from the states as part of a church group and tomorrow I will accompany them to a nearby community to look at a latrine project they have out there. Supposedly, I will also get to help translate some. The group is small but fantastic—and they have done a few things here already like paint the Casa Materna, hand out food bags, and play with the neighborhood kids.
My schedule for now is something like this
Monday- take a bus at 10am—arrive in nearby community to teach at 11am…wait an hour for class to start ( unfortunately there is no other bus I can take…) Teach from 12-415 or 445, this is uncertain still. Take bus back at 430 or 5---I am home by around 530. I had my first go at this today and I am super tired.
Tuesday—my one free day!!!! For now….except tomorrow I will be with the church group from 1-530 or so….and maybe will be starting up another English community group in the afternoon…..LAUNDRY day!
Weds—I teach from 7-12 at my other school that is actually in my town. I try to plan for our adult community English class on Weds. afternoon.
Thursday—something like teach from 7-10 30 in town, then I meet and co-plan with a professor for a couple hours for the University class I co-teach
Friday—teach 8-10:30, often there are teacher meetings that take up the last couple hours of class and I go to those to until 12. Then I co-plan with a different professor for 2-4 hours. THEN Matt and I have our adult community English class from 6-8pm. Usually when Friday night rolls around I am beat.
Saturday- Mornings I have free for now! I try to go to the market/stock up on household things we may need/check my email. Then in the afternoon I spend a couple hours co=planning with my third counterpart.
Sunday- Co-teach in the University from 10-12ish….matt has a class from 12-2, sometimes I stay to observe.
So that, for now, is sort of what my week looks like. I try to do my laundry every other day, since things just take a little longer by hand etc (-: and maybe cook some meals in advance when I have a gap in time, since cooking takes awhile too. (the danger there is that the power will go out and all that food will go bad!!!)
Our sitemate leaves soon, and we will miss her dearly!!!! They are going to send a new person in her place, but we won’t meet them until they arrive in the end of March.
I feel like I could go on quite a bit but my mind is already wandering…..feel free to shoot us any questions
SCRATCH THE ABOVE SCHEDULE!!! Today is 2 days later, and EVERYTHING has changed again—ie. classes eliminated, new classes formed, new schedules for everyone---me at school 4 hours early….taking buses places and sitting for hours, not being able to teach etc. I am learning to be more flexible than I ever thought was possible for a human being!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Rendida! Or worn out! Even though we don’t put in nearly as many teaching hours as our counterparts, I find myself well worn by the end of most days. Even though school has been “in session” for 2 weeks, the schedule is still changing and classes are still added and dropped….mainly because kids can still enroll until April……it’s fun (-: I have given up on everything making sense or ever staying the same, and am trying to focus on making myself consistent. (The one thing I can control).
In other news, there is a group of students visiting here from the states as part of a church group and tomorrow I will accompany them to a nearby community to look at a latrine project they have out there. Supposedly, I will also get to help translate some. The group is small but fantastic—and they have done a few things here already like paint the Casa Materna, hand out food bags, and play with the neighborhood kids.
My schedule for now is something like this
Monday- take a bus at 10am—arrive in nearby community to teach at 11am…wait an hour for class to start ( unfortunately there is no other bus I can take…) Teach from 12-415 or 445, this is uncertain still. Take bus back at 430 or 5---I am home by around 530. I had my first go at this today and I am super tired.
Tuesday—my one free day!!!! For now….except tomorrow I will be with the church group from 1-530 or so….and maybe will be starting up another English community group in the afternoon…..LAUNDRY day!
Weds—I teach from 7-12 at my other school that is actually in my town. I try to plan for our adult community English class on Weds. afternoon.
Thursday—something like teach from 7-10 30 in town, then I meet and co-plan with a professor for a couple hours for the University class I co-teach
Friday—teach 8-10:30, often there are teacher meetings that take up the last couple hours of class and I go to those to until 12. Then I co-plan with a different professor for 2-4 hours. THEN Matt and I have our adult community English class from 6-8pm. Usually when Friday night rolls around I am beat.
Saturday- Mornings I have free for now! I try to go to the market/stock up on household things we may need/check my email. Then in the afternoon I spend a couple hours co=planning with my third counterpart.
Sunday- Co-teach in the University from 10-12ish….matt has a class from 12-2, sometimes I stay to observe.
So that, for now, is sort of what my week looks like. I try to do my laundry every other day, since things just take a little longer by hand etc (-: and maybe cook some meals in advance when I have a gap in time, since cooking takes awhile too. (the danger there is that the power will go out and all that food will go bad!!!)
Our sitemate leaves soon, and we will miss her dearly!!!! They are going to send a new person in her place, but we won’t meet them until they arrive in the end of March.
I feel like I could go on quite a bit but my mind is already wandering…..feel free to shoot us any questions
SCRATCH THE ABOVE SCHEDULE!!! Today is 2 days later, and EVERYTHING has changed again—ie. classes eliminated, new classes formed, new schedules for everyone---me at school 4 hours early….taking buses places and sitting for hours, not being able to teach etc. I am learning to be more flexible than I ever thought was possible for a human being!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
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