6 Months Down
Dedicated to Mom - may your Peace Corps experience be as fun, frustrating and fulfilling as mine!
And so time passes. 6 months in Jocos have come and gone and life here gets easier and easier. I can´t believe its been nearly 7 weeks since I was in Cajamarca. Though, if I´m honest with myself (and you all), the days leading up to this trip were missing much of the anxiety and excitment of the previous trips. By Golly! I think I´m finally settled in Jocos! Cajamarca is a vacation now rather than a neccesity for my emotional health. I can get everything thing I need in Cajabamba - food, internet time, contact with my other life. And now that Meredith´s shower is spitting out hot water, I don´t even need the hot showers there anymore! Though, I will be buying a heater for the shower at the Health Post in Jocos once the electricity gets turned on (nope, still no electricity. Maybe when I get back. . .). Scary things, really, the water heaters. They consist of an electrically heated shower head that heats the water as it runs through the nozzle. Without expection, they are wired haphazardly and often have exposed wires hanging at exactly the height to zap and unexpectly elbow going about the business of shampooing. Thankfully, I haven´t heard of any volunteers being seriously electrocuted - just zapped in some uncomfortable places.
I´ve finally arrived on the scene out here! I got my first profession of love the other day! I was beginning ot feel left out and rather old. Okay, so maybe he professed his love for me to Meredith (who, in her infinite wisdom adviced him against telling me about his feelings), but still! And all coming from a guy I´ve exchanged all of 5 minutes worth of words with! I really was beginning to feel left out! Just about every other female volunteer has received several such professions and at least one offer of marriage. In truth, its a part of the culture that completely baffles me. Since dating is not at all practiced out here, the romantic progression goes from meeting to hanging out (chaparoned) to I love you. Often the 2 involved have never even spent time alone together. Of course, I fully acknowledge that the Gringa Contingency is in effect for many (but not all) of the professions of love to volunteers. The Gringa (or Gringo) Contingency, for those of you who don´t know, is the effect the presence of the "whitey" has on any given situation. Basically, everything works just a bit, or, in some cases, completely, differently when a Gringa/o is involved. It doesn´t matter how integrated you are, how little you see yourself as different from the people around you, the Gringa/o Contingency is always in effect.
In Kíon news, he has now reached goddie puberty. Oh joy. No, actually its rather funny. One of the female dogs in town is going into heat - of course she also happens to be Kíon´s best canine friend. He knows something is up, knows he´s excited, but doesn´t have a clue what to do about it - wrong end, wrong dog, wrong sex. . .poor little dude. My heart goes out to him. He´s not the happiest of campers right now.
And what of my handy-dandy pursuits? Well, I´m still knitting and crocheting, though not as much. My afghan is coming along - I´ve started the second phase of colors - and I´m knitting a gift scarf and a couple hats, but as of yet, I haven´t start a sweater. I did finally buy the yarn for it, though (a pretty greyish burgundy color). I´m tired of everyone asking when I´m going to start my sweater since Senorita Mery (Meredith) is almost finished with hers!
True to my form, much of my Peace Corps experience is puncuated with guilt - guilt that I´m not doing enough. These feelings arise most often when I hear of a project in Jocos that I had no idea was happening - school olympics, textile projects, improving cattle stock. I feel guilty not so much because these are projects I wanted to do, but rather because I didn´t know they were going on. Its as if I would have known about them if I was truly integrated, truly working well with the community. But then, I´m greeted by everyone I pass, people ask where I´ve been if I´ve been traveling and they ask after my friends and family. That must count for something! And I am working! I have to remind myself of that. While it looks like the latrine project will have to wait until next year (Peace Corps funding takes a while and the adobe has to be build during the dry season), I´m setting up a tech exchange on beekeeping for the people of Shocorco in Jocos. There are several people in Jocos who keep bees and its better coming from them than me! Sustainability and all.
I´ve fallen victim to an unexpected consequence of life in Peace Corps - I´ve gained weight. I know! I know! Those of you who know me probably find that hard to believe, but its true! I´m the heaviest I´ve ever been. Much of it is muscle - I finally have buns of steel! - but the distribution is different than I expected. From the midrift to the knees. I´ve gone up a pant size and feel myself carrying my body differently. The weight itself doesn´t really concern me - my frame and body image can handle it - but it feeds a larger issue. Not just for me, but for a lot of volunteers, not feeling pretty, sexy, attractive is a common lament. A different diet, modified bathing/shaving practices, the excesses of stress - food, cigarettes, alcohol, wakefulness - and the ever present gastrointestinal quirks that plague volunteers all take their toll. Some of us resign ourselves to it (we´re all in the same boat anyway, right?), some of us fight it, and some of us (the lucky buggers) weren´t worried about it before so are unphased now. For my part, I try to keep it in perspective - no one really cares if my hair has split ends, if I haven´t shaved my legs in 7 weeks, and I´m the only one who has noticed the weight gain. Traveling and impending visits from home aggrevate the Ugly Feelings, but in the end who can really argue with buns of steel?
And so time passes. 6 months in Jocos have come and gone and life here gets easier and easier. I can´t believe its been nearly 7 weeks since I was in Cajamarca. Though, if I´m honest with myself (and you all), the days leading up to this trip were missing much of the anxiety and excitment of the previous trips. By Golly! I think I´m finally settled in Jocos! Cajamarca is a vacation now rather than a neccesity for my emotional health. I can get everything thing I need in Cajabamba - food, internet time, contact with my other life. And now that Meredith´s shower is spitting out hot water, I don´t even need the hot showers there anymore! Though, I will be buying a heater for the shower at the Health Post in Jocos once the electricity gets turned on (nope, still no electricity. Maybe when I get back. . .). Scary things, really, the water heaters. They consist of an electrically heated shower head that heats the water as it runs through the nozzle. Without expection, they are wired haphazardly and often have exposed wires hanging at exactly the height to zap and unexpectly elbow going about the business of shampooing. Thankfully, I haven´t heard of any volunteers being seriously electrocuted - just zapped in some uncomfortable places.
I´ve finally arrived on the scene out here! I got my first profession of love the other day! I was beginning ot feel left out and rather old. Okay, so maybe he professed his love for me to Meredith (who, in her infinite wisdom adviced him against telling me about his feelings), but still! And all coming from a guy I´ve exchanged all of 5 minutes worth of words with! I really was beginning to feel left out! Just about every other female volunteer has received several such professions and at least one offer of marriage. In truth, its a part of the culture that completely baffles me. Since dating is not at all practiced out here, the romantic progression goes from meeting to hanging out (chaparoned) to I love you. Often the 2 involved have never even spent time alone together. Of course, I fully acknowledge that the Gringa Contingency is in effect for many (but not all) of the professions of love to volunteers. The Gringa (or Gringo) Contingency, for those of you who don´t know, is the effect the presence of the "whitey" has on any given situation. Basically, everything works just a bit, or, in some cases, completely, differently when a Gringa/o is involved. It doesn´t matter how integrated you are, how little you see yourself as different from the people around you, the Gringa/o Contingency is always in effect.
In Kíon news, he has now reached goddie puberty. Oh joy. No, actually its rather funny. One of the female dogs in town is going into heat - of course she also happens to be Kíon´s best canine friend. He knows something is up, knows he´s excited, but doesn´t have a clue what to do about it - wrong end, wrong dog, wrong sex. . .poor little dude. My heart goes out to him. He´s not the happiest of campers right now.
And what of my handy-dandy pursuits? Well, I´m still knitting and crocheting, though not as much. My afghan is coming along - I´ve started the second phase of colors - and I´m knitting a gift scarf and a couple hats, but as of yet, I haven´t start a sweater. I did finally buy the yarn for it, though (a pretty greyish burgundy color). I´m tired of everyone asking when I´m going to start my sweater since Senorita Mery (Meredith) is almost finished with hers!
True to my form, much of my Peace Corps experience is puncuated with guilt - guilt that I´m not doing enough. These feelings arise most often when I hear of a project in Jocos that I had no idea was happening - school olympics, textile projects, improving cattle stock. I feel guilty not so much because these are projects I wanted to do, but rather because I didn´t know they were going on. Its as if I would have known about them if I was truly integrated, truly working well with the community. But then, I´m greeted by everyone I pass, people ask where I´ve been if I´ve been traveling and they ask after my friends and family. That must count for something! And I am working! I have to remind myself of that. While it looks like the latrine project will have to wait until next year (Peace Corps funding takes a while and the adobe has to be build during the dry season), I´m setting up a tech exchange on beekeeping for the people of Shocorco in Jocos. There are several people in Jocos who keep bees and its better coming from them than me! Sustainability and all.
I´ve fallen victim to an unexpected consequence of life in Peace Corps - I´ve gained weight. I know! I know! Those of you who know me probably find that hard to believe, but its true! I´m the heaviest I´ve ever been. Much of it is muscle - I finally have buns of steel! - but the distribution is different than I expected. From the midrift to the knees. I´ve gone up a pant size and feel myself carrying my body differently. The weight itself doesn´t really concern me - my frame and body image can handle it - but it feeds a larger issue. Not just for me, but for a lot of volunteers, not feeling pretty, sexy, attractive is a common lament. A different diet, modified bathing/shaving practices, the excesses of stress - food, cigarettes, alcohol, wakefulness - and the ever present gastrointestinal quirks that plague volunteers all take their toll. Some of us resign ourselves to it (we´re all in the same boat anyway, right?), some of us fight it, and some of us (the lucky buggers) weren´t worried about it before so are unphased now. For my part, I try to keep it in perspective - no one really cares if my hair has split ends, if I haven´t shaved my legs in 7 weeks, and I´m the only one who has noticed the weight gain. Traveling and impending visits from home aggrevate the Ugly Feelings, but in the end who can really argue with buns of steel?
posted by Kellie | 11:55 AM
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