Friday, November 26, 2010
Monday, October 11, 2010
Madagascar Update: Lessons in Malagasy
Some words that (I feel) are important for you to know if you ever come to Madagascar:
Fetsy (pronounced fete-see): clever/micheveous
Hafa Hafa (pronounced ha-fa ha-fa): Strange/weird
Mandoa (pronounced mawn-do-ah): to vomit
AND
Mandoa Vola (pronounced mawn-do-ah voo-la): to pay (or, literally, to vomit money)
Mikiki (pronounced me-key-key): to shred
Mitutu (pronounced me-too-too): to grind
(the last two are super fun to say out loud - try it)
Fetsy (pronounced fete-see): clever/micheveous
Hafa Hafa (pronounced ha-fa ha-fa): Strange/weird
Mandoa (pronounced mawn-do-ah): to vomit
AND
Mandoa Vola (pronounced mawn-do-ah voo-la): to pay (or, literally, to vomit money)
Mikiki (pronounced me-key-key): to shred
Mitutu (pronounced me-too-too): to grind
(the last two are super fun to say out loud - try it)
Monday, October 4, 2010
Madgascar Update: Things to aspire to
Here are a list of some unbelievably noble things I wish to accomplish while in Madagascar:
1. Figure out the Malagasy equivalent to: That's what she said.
2. Figure out the Malagasy equivalent to: Don't tell me how to live my life.
3. Bring the phrase "Dude, let's go Mikiki some waves" to the breaks of Madagascar (Mikiki means "to shred")
1. Figure out the Malagasy equivalent to: That's what she said.
2. Figure out the Malagasy equivalent to: Don't tell me how to live my life.
3. Bring the phrase "Dude, let's go Mikiki some waves" to the breaks of Madagascar (Mikiki means "to shred")
Madagascar Update: Original Email Sent September 23, 2010
It's official, I'm a Peace Corps Volunteer. 42 Swore in at the Directors Residence. 42 Volunteers, the exact number we started out with which has only happened one other time in the history of Peace Corps Madagascar. We're all pretty proud of ourselves :D
I ended up scoring fairly well on my final language exam, Advanced Low, though Jacob scored the highest at Advanced Mid. The language learning is interesting. There are some days where I feel like I really "get it" and other days where someone will be talking for several minutes and all I can think is "omg, i did not understand a single word they are saying". Let's just say my 'smile and nod' skills are coming along nicely.
I did have an awesome conversation with my host sister the last evening i spent with my family. We were cooking at the window and she taught me the word for stars and then explained to me that when you could see a lot of stars in the evening it meant there would be good weather the next day. I told her that in the US when the sky is red in the evening it meant good weather, but if it was red the in the morning that meant bad weather. I then told her that I loved Montasoe because you could see so many more stars here than in San Diego City. All of it in Malagasy :D
I'll be moving up to Vohemar on October 6th, I'm really, really excited.
I was not able to kill a chicken. As a carnivore, I feel shame.
I ended up scoring fairly well on my final language exam, Advanced Low, though Jacob scored the highest at Advanced Mid. The language learning is interesting. There are some days where I feel like I really "get it" and other days where someone will be talking for several minutes and all I can think is "omg, i did not understand a single word they are saying". Let's just say my 'smile and nod' skills are coming along nicely.
I did have an awesome conversation with my host sister the last evening i spent with my family. We were cooking at the window and she taught me the word for stars and then explained to me that when you could see a lot of stars in the evening it meant there would be good weather the next day. I told her that in the US when the sky is red in the evening it meant good weather, but if it was red the in the morning that meant bad weather. I then told her that I loved Montasoe because you could see so many more stars here than in San Diego City. All of it in Malagasy :D
I'll be moving up to Vohemar on October 6th, I'm really, really excited.
I was not able to kill a chicken. As a carnivore, I feel shame.
Madagascar Update: Original Email Sent August 21, 2010
Let me explain. No, there is too much, let me sum up.
Peace Corps is ultimately what I hoped it would be. Not in the details, necessarily, but in the experience. I wanted something that would push my boundries. I got it.
* Living in a none first world country is HARD. I take cold bucket showers, eat rice every day, have been sick since pretty much I got here. Those of you who have received phone calls know that I've been miserable and scared a lot of the time. However, my perspective is starting to change a little. It's best summed up, I think, in something one of the other volunteers said recently:
"I think I'm becoming less self centered. I mean, I used to go into my host families living space and just cringe because it's constantly filled with smoke and it made me cough all the time. I just realized, a BABY lives there pretty much 24/7" (Paraphrased from something another volunteer said)
* As hard as the physical act of living is, the emotional aspect has been even more draining. Not being able to communicate the first couple of weeks was heartbreaking in a way I can't really explain, I felt bereft and alone and really really missed all of you.
* I have been placed in Miandrivazo, it has the "dubious honor of being the hottest place in Madagascar". I visited this week. I was pretty happy with it when I left. After speaking with the other volunteers, my site is FANTASTIC. I have a huge room (it used to be a classroom, there's still a blackboard on the wall). The people are really nice and super happy to have a Peace Corps volunteer there again. They value the work Peace Corps does - without expecting Peace Corps to save them (no joke, another volunteer had a mayor say "now that you are here you can fix everything"), my town is big enough that most of my staples I can get in town without too much trouble and they don't mind that I run.
* Will be the English teacher for 300 Malagasy students in the 4eme and 5eme grades. 6 classes, 50 students per class.
* Some highlights:
-- I have picked out the Chicken I am going to murder (it's one of the requirements of my homestay that I kill a chicken) I'm going to murder the one that pooped in my room.
-- Went to a Malagasy Exhumation. It's a huge party where everyone gets really drunk, digs up their ancestors, wraps them up in new shrouds, dances around with the bodies above their heads and then reburies. Not even one month in country, I got clocked in the face by a dead body. Dude, Malagasy Exhumations are where it's AT yo. I am never missing one of those things.
-- I scared the living daylights out of some poor Malagasy kid while running through the rice fields. He came up and grabbed my shoulder and I screamed at the top of my lungs. He probably thinks all Americans are jumpy nervous things.
-- The vice principle of the school showed me a photo of one of the old volunteers, Elizabeth. A blond haired white girl. Her commentary: "you look like her". Only in Africa, could I be confused for a white girl
-- Every single action I take here is a spectacle that's better than TV to people. I dropped my ice cream by accident and got an "ooooooohhhh" reaction from no less than a dozen people. It's a good thing I don't embarrass easily.
-- One of the education volunteers that is here told us that she got sick of malagasy men coming into her classroom to ask her out. So she taught all of her students to say "DENIED" anytime it happens.
Anyway, things are looking up. I feel like I'll be able to live in Miandrivazo happily for two years.
Peace Corps is ultimately what I hoped it would be. Not in the details, necessarily, but in the experience. I wanted something that would push my boundries. I got it.
* Living in a none first world country is HARD. I take cold bucket showers, eat rice every day, have been sick since pretty much I got here. Those of you who have received phone calls know that I've been miserable and scared a lot of the time. However, my perspective is starting to change a little. It's best summed up, I think, in something one of the other volunteers said recently:
"I think I'm becoming less self centered. I mean, I used to go into my host families living space and just cringe because it's constantly filled with smoke and it made me cough all the time. I just realized, a BABY lives there pretty much 24/7" (Paraphrased from something another volunteer said)
* As hard as the physical act of living is, the emotional aspect has been even more draining. Not being able to communicate the first couple of weeks was heartbreaking in a way I can't really explain, I felt bereft and alone and really really missed all of you.
* I have been placed in Miandrivazo, it has the "dubious honor of being the hottest place in Madagascar". I visited this week. I was pretty happy with it when I left. After speaking with the other volunteers, my site is FANTASTIC. I have a huge room (it used to be a classroom, there's still a blackboard on the wall). The people are really nice and super happy to have a Peace Corps volunteer there again. They value the work Peace Corps does - without expecting Peace Corps to save them (no joke, another volunteer had a mayor say "now that you are here you can fix everything"), my town is big enough that most of my staples I can get in town without too much trouble and they don't mind that I run.
* Will be the English teacher for 300 Malagasy students in the 4eme and 5eme grades. 6 classes, 50 students per class.
* Some highlights:
-- I have picked out the Chicken I am going to murder (it's one of the requirements of my homestay that I kill a chicken) I'm going to murder the one that pooped in my room.
-- Went to a Malagasy Exhumation. It's a huge party where everyone gets really drunk, digs up their ancestors, wraps them up in new shrouds, dances around with the bodies above their heads and then reburies. Not even one month in country, I got clocked in the face by a dead body. Dude, Malagasy Exhumations are where it's AT yo. I am never missing one of those things.
-- I scared the living daylights out of some poor Malagasy kid while running through the rice fields. He came up and grabbed my shoulder and I screamed at the top of my lungs. He probably thinks all Americans are jumpy nervous things.
-- The vice principle of the school showed me a photo of one of the old volunteers, Elizabeth. A blond haired white girl. Her commentary: "you look like her". Only in Africa, could I be confused for a white girl
-- Every single action I take here is a spectacle that's better than TV to people. I dropped my ice cream by accident and got an "ooooooohhhh" reaction from no less than a dozen people. It's a good thing I don't embarrass easily.
-- One of the education volunteers that is here told us that she got sick of malagasy men coming into her classroom to ask her out. So she taught all of her students to say "DENIED" anytime it happens.
Anyway, things are looking up. I feel like I'll be able to live in Miandrivazo happily for two years.
Madagascar Update: Original Email Sent August 6, 2010
Things have been fairly insane here.
Some highlights:
* Communicating in Malagasy with my host family last evening.
* One of the volunteers gave her family a frisbee, they're using it as a plate :)
* There are instructions on how to kill a chicken in my cook book.
I've been placed in Miandravazo for me two year stay. It's really hot. More to follow once I have more time online.
Some highlights:
* Communicating in Malagasy with my host family last evening.
* One of the volunteers gave her family a frisbee, they're using it as a plate :)
* There are instructions on how to kill a chicken in my cook book.
I've been placed in Miandravazo for me two year stay. It's really hot. More to follow once I have more time online.
Thursday, June 10, 2010
Love
Patrick: I just, I don't want to be the reason that you stay.
Emily: Why would you be?
Patrick: Because, well, you've said you love me ...
Emily: So? I hate when guys get like this. Yes, I love you, I feel love for you, I'm in love with you. So what? It doesn't mean that I'm willing to do anything out it. Don't you get it? I Love you enough to feel something for you, not to act on that feeling.
Patrick: Then I guess then that my feelings for you are deeper than your feelings for me. I am willing to act on them.
Emily: Why would you be?
Patrick: Because, well, you've said you love me ...
Emily: So? I hate when guys get like this. Yes, I love you, I feel love for you, I'm in love with you. So what? It doesn't mean that I'm willing to do anything out it. Don't you get it? I Love you enough to feel something for you, not to act on that feeling.
Patrick: Then I guess then that my feelings for you are deeper than your feelings for me. I am willing to act on them.
Tuesday, April 6, 2010
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