Wow, it has been a while since I've written anything. Seems like I'm always saying that on here or when I write in my journal. I guess I get really caught up in things then just space out for a week, then repeat.
So why have I been so busy? Well, a lot of reasons but mostly ICT (Information and Communications Technology a.k.a. computers) work. At the end of last term I left a little bit early to head to an ICT conference hosted and put on by fellows PCVs (including myself). Now why would I be doing this? I'm not sure if I've mentioned it (I think I have) but for those that don't know, I'm moving to Mariental in December after the school year ends to take over an ICT position. I'll be replacing Debbie, a Group 30 PCV (what up Deb!). Coincidently from CO as well :) I know I'm not going to come anywhere near filling her shoes but I'll try to do what I can.
Anyway, at our conference we talked about ways Peace Corps could bring back ICT PCVs (they recently cut the program in Namibia). This included training to be offered, how to do it, utilizing PCVs strengths the best we can, etc. I think this is partially why they decided to cut the program, there really wasn't any training going on; ICT PCVs just sort of tagged along with the Education volunteers and then did their own thing. We've working on developing some materials to aid with training and help non-ICT PCVs implement ICT into their projects. There's definitely a lot of work ahead of us (Debbie and Me - even though she's back in the States) but if we can match the need, I think a lot of good things will come from it. We've already started typing up manuals for many different computer tasks and I've been collecting ICT resources from all over. Another added bonus is that this ties in perfectly with a lot of my ideas for an extension. Yep I might try and stay here a third year. So the idea is on the table, no definite plans yet but strongly considering applying for a third year and a PCVL position (PCV Leader). So now you know, more on it later as it develops and I can outline something concrete.
In the few days before and after our ICT conference - oh! I didn't even say where it was. We held it in Luderitz. That place is pretty cool but definitely really far out there. It was really nice though because I got to actually hang out with Kevin and Brad while we're here. Luderitz is 1,305 km (about 810 miles) from my site - so I definitely don't see them, ever. Well, especially now because they're both gone haha but that was a long trip to get there. I'm hoping to be able to make a trip or two there once I move to Mariental as that is possible in a day. Leah and Meagan (two 33ers) are there and a 34 just got placed there so plenty of people to visit.
Okay, so back to the days surrounding the conference. I spent them in Mariental. Was a nice stopping point to and from Luderitz. I visited my new work compound, checked out my future office, hung out with a few people in the office - it was a lot of fun. I'm pretty pumped to be working with my counterpart-to-be, Cornelia's pretty cool. We took a couple trips to Libraries, Schools, etc. to fix/setup some Tech /Na labs (computer labs), get me somewhat acquainted with the area, rediscover some old skills, etc. Was somewhat futile since that was a couple months ago and I still won't be moving for over a month, and then won't start my job until a month later. So I've forgotten mostly everything we did but at least it's somewhat shallow in my memory storage and will come back much quicker (I hope). What a fun way to spend a vacation right?!
So after all of this prep-work/training I spent the rest of my vacation being a camp counselor for Camp GLOW - the GLOW stands for Guys and Girls Leading Our World. I was so worried that I'd be incredibly burnt out, tired, and just an angry camp leader the whole time. What happened was quite the opposite, well, sort of. Campers for GLOW are nominated by other PCVs. What is nice from this is that you get an 80 kid camp that consists primarily of good kids (...you hope). For example: the first day when everyone arrived I asked everyone to be quiet so we could start dinner. I lost my train of thought immediately. I was expecting to shout, ask kids to stop talking, etc. for maybe 5-10 minutes - they were silent in 5 seconds. My jaw dropped. Was so awesome! Only way that happens in a classroom is if I'm slamming books on tables and I look like I'm about to flip some and start throwing some chairs (...this may or may not have happend...kidding! For now.)
Granted, I actually didn't get much sleep during the week but it rejuvenated me from working with such amazing kids. This is another big reason I'm really excited to move. I'll hopefully have the chance to be a part of all the camps that PCVs put on in Namibia. This is definitely where I want to try and focus my energy: into the kids that have the potential, motivation, drive, etc. to succeed. Sometimes all they need is some exposure to the possibilities and show them a path to achieve their goals. I'm just not cut from the selfless mold where teachers come from. I don't have the patience or energy to rein in 3 sets of 35 kids 6 hours a day, 5 days a week; then every afternoon dealing with a typhoon of kids in my library for 2-3 hours. Not me, I don't have that much saint blood/energy flowing through me. Maybe just a little good Samaritan blood or something - I mean, I used to always put my spare change and a dollar or so in the Salvation army Christmas buckets. That ringing bell just sucks me in I guess.
Anyway, camps are awesome. I find myself still desiring to be able to work with such kids but not on such a omnipresent basis. That's why I think starting some tutoring/after school program would be awesome for where I live (when I move back). Or joining some existing organization (I feel one of the worst parts of not-for-profit work is you have SO much competition. Everyone's trying to do what he or she wants, help in his or her OWN way, when really it's the same thing and everyone just undermines each other). This is also plays into my extension ideas and some ideas I want to suggest to Peace Corps Namibia. I think it would be nice to focus more on being a resource for teachers in schools. You still get a chance to interact with the kids, help them out, etc. but being a resource for teachers could have a far greater and more lasting impact on the youth and for education in general. What I want to focus on is ICT workshops for teachers, ministries, organizations, etc. There are a lot of resources here but not everyone knows how to really utilize them. Okay, so there's a little preview of what I want to do.
I actually did get a chance to talk to some Peace Corps - Namibia staff members about this (why am I all up in everyone's business now? When did I ever do that?). A few weeks after I got back, well, maybe even 1 or 2, I headed back to Windhoek for our Mid-Service medical exam. There actually wasn't much done. We just listed out all the problems we have had (which records already exist for) - mainly just let them know if anything was bothering us. I didn't have anything going on so it was pretty quick. Dentist visit went well, nothing bad just that I need to floss more (like always). It was actually pretty amusing because apparently Gretchen (one of the PCVs in my group) laughs hysterically at the dentist's office for whatever reason. Definitely kept us entertained. During my last day or so there is when I met with some staff members. Was really nice; I finally was able to sit down and chat with Dan Rooney, our new Programming and Training Director (or has a title something like that). He's way cool and was really helpful with a lot of the topics we discussed - we chatted for 1.5 hours or so. I'm pretty excited to have the chance to work with him, well a chance. I don't think I'll have too many direct projects under/with him but you never know!
Back to school the following week then I think the weekend after was the big event: my half marathon! And by big event I mean something I did not train for ( I probably hadn't ran since December) but decided to do since I said I would. I got there Friday and had the whole day to psyche myself up for the event. The race was set for 7am Saturday morning. We did the whole big pasta meal beforehand, and had our group of runners hanging out the whole time. There was also a fun "morale" group tagging along with us for "support". I was super nervous the day of. The fact didn't really hit me that I was running 21km (~13mi) until we were a bit in to the race. I started out with Lindsay (another PCV of course) and we stuck together for about 9-10k. I was actually pretty impressed with the pace we kept and think my 10k time would've been pretty awesome. But sadly that's when my body started to really complain and I feel very behind. I quickly realized running a half marathon when you don't have a set exercise regimen, one that is sporadic at best, is not a good idea. I realized soon after that I was only half way. Half way! I'm all pumped about how well I'm doing, thinking my body is going to pull out one of its crazy tricks and just slam this race when it dies and I have to repeat exactly what I just did. Ugh. Anyway I finished, my time was about 2 hours 15min. I think my 10k would've been in the 40's because I was definitely dragging my feel and barely moving after that 10k but still didn't have a horrible time (not good, I know, but not horrible). Either way it's a PR!! Score haha! Next year another PR! Going to train and rock that thing! So excited for it!
So after that crazy fun I had to buckle down and try to finish some ICT presentations for the new group. I was so excited that we were approved to give an ICT presentation! The topics were: "ICT and You," "What You Can Expect in Namibia," and "PC Namibia Resource Project." Definitely not the most exciting topics but on the whole I think it went rather well. We were able to give the new group a heads up on how hardware does here (gets destroyed) and plant the seeds for potential ICT projects in their communities. I think I even recruited some of them to the cause so hopefully this will become less of a solo project and more of a group project. There's definitely a lot of potential, now I just have to get my butt in gear and work hard to fulfill it.
So that brings us up to now, more or less. Group 30 PCVs have started to wrap up their service and move on. I'm definitely sad to see them go, I really liked a lot of their group. I've tried to meet up and hang out with a few before they leave, attend going away parties, chat a bit, etc. That's life though, chapters finish, new ones start. Just have to enjoy opportunities while you have the chance.
For what lies ahead, I'm just going to finish up teaching. We only have classes for another month or so then exams start. So I'll be busy closing any open business here and at the same time begin preparing for my work in Mariental starting next year. And in between the two I have vacation! I'm going to try and explore a few parts of Namibia I haven't had a chance to see yet and then maybe try to make my way over to Tanzania/Zanzibar, Malawi, or both (if I have the time and money). Hopefully I'm more punctual/consistent about my updates as well!
!Gaise i re!! !Gaise ha re!
Monday, October 24, 2011
Monday, September 26, 2011
So pretend it's late July when you read this, I forgot to post this :(
Okay, my apologies again for my long hiatus. I've had a few things going on but have mostly just been pretty apathetic. As I said before I am sure I won't be teaching in any large capacity when I get back to the States, no take-backs, if's, and's or but's. If you see me trying to slap me in the face.
Needless to say it has been a little stressful and difficult these past few weeks excluding the past week - so let's talk about that. Last week we had our mid-service conference just prior to our 50th Anniversary conference. Both were a lot of fun, the latter more so than the former.
During our Mid-service conference we went over a few details and the administrative staff just touched on a few pieces of information they wanted to share with us. We also got the chance to talk with each other about how our sites are doing and any successes or challenges we've had. For the most part PCVs are having challenges with teaching, mostly just the same as myself. The other challenges, well, I'll spare you those details as I'd rather not have this be a vent session with no moral at the end.
As always it was nice to see so many faces again that I haven't seen for months, some up to the 8-9 months since our training. It's funny how our time spent together is - at least for me. As I've said before, the PCVs in the North (with the exception of Edward) are pretty closely clustered compared to me. They bump into each other in their shopping towns, pay weekend visits to each other, etc. Maybe that is why these past 11 months have seemed to fly by. I'm partially measuring them in my time spent with Americans. During this conference and our 50th Anniversary conference we were all trying to figure out the times when we would next see each other - the time inbetween seemed just to be "work" or "the middle stuff". Edward is a big inspiration to me in that regard. I know he has integrated incredibly well into his community, much more so than I have accomplished. He spends most of his time at site, and most of his day working. I feel I spend most of my time trying to last until lunch to where I retreat to the library for the rest of the day. Granted some learners (students) come into the library during study hour but it's pretty minimal - well, the ones I let in that actually study. There's plenty that want to come in and make a mess of things. There are a few more points I would like to mention in this regard but I'll keep the lid on them for the moment.
The 50th Anniversary All Volunteer Conference (AVC for short) was a blast. We had 103 of the 115 PCVs (I think that's our total here) in attendence. There were many PCVs I saw for the first time, sadly I didn't take the initiative to meet many of them but I did get to see a lot of PCVs that I rarely see, if ever. We had a few celebratory sessions such as PSA (public service announcement) videos over the years. Some of them were ridiculous. "If you think the glass is half empty, don't even bother. If you think the glass is half full, you might have a chance at making it." "Do you want to work 16 hours a day for people you've never met? If so, join the Peace Corps." Yeah, motivational my butt. Although there were definitely some that were motivational and made me feel a little bit guilty about my service so far. One thing I did notice is that a lot of them were NOT teachers even though currently 1/3 of all Peace Corps positions are for teachers. Probably smart marketing on their part. Though I will say I think PCVs that are teachers, and enjoy what they do, probably have some of the most rewarding experiences during service from the sheer number of relationships they establish. I have formed some strong bonds with a few of the students and a couple of the staff. Granted I feel mine is a somewhat small fraction, if I worked to have strong relationships with 100% of my learners my service would be something else entirely.
Alas, I sit here during my lunch with my grade 8 class in detention. I forgot/didn't get time to make my lunch so I'm in a particularly sour mood. Definitely pretty funny when they just sit here asking me to beat them in the office instead. Oh the temptations.....kidding. Though there is some definite animosity towards them, and as much of a challenge it can be at times of anger, beating children is not part of my character. Though I am getting less and less concerned for their well-being. Parents, or some sort of guardian, have come up to me asking about why I keep them late, during lunch, etc. Well, so far it's only been two, that I know of, but they've been really short conversations after telling them that the kids aren't doing any homework, making noise (being loud and don't stop talking), disrespectful, etc. "Oh, he/she didn't tell me that." Yeah, I'm sure they didn't. Just like the angry parents we had for kids getting kicked out of our hostel (they were sleeping with each other). Just kids being deliquients, not anything different from the rest of the world.
Okay, there is some definite bitterness here and I'd like to steer away from that. I think I mentioned that we got internet at our school, actually I totally haven't. It was about 1.5 weeks ago and I haven't written in like a month, so yay! Internet! Will be a lot nicer being able to get my nights back for sleep. The USB modem was nice because I can use it anywhere but only using it from Midnight to 6am (we got 2 extra hours but have to pay N$10 for the ENTIRE time....bah, corporations) definitely left me pretty tired. I'm hoping I can try and catch up on some things so I can upload bunches of pictures and maybe even some movies! Should be possible now that we have internet 24/7, and it's not even that slow! We need a few cables and I need to find the ethernet drivers for half of our computers but I'm hoping soon. They've managed to be pretty elusive. If anyone reading this ever donates computers, please send along the drivers with them. I want to install Ubuntu on them which I think would have everything working but I also want to keep Windows on them so they can have something more familiar. Plus I can monitor and hand off Windows easier than Ubuntu, which would take a decent amount of training and it's a lot easier to mess up.
I have downloaded some manuals on the subject though, both Windows and Ubuntu, and plan on trying to make some sort of training presentation. The question is just getting the time to do it. I have a busy couple weeks ahead as it's the end of term again but this time I'll have a week to just work at site with little worries, that is after I submit my grades. At least this time I won't be super stressed and pressed for time. I'm hoping then I can finally catch up with some of the IT work I have to do here. Then it's off to Camp GLOW, which I'm pretty excited for. Maybe I'll feel a little less guilty about my service giving up my vacation for a kids camp. I think it'll be pretty fun. Will be a good break to work with a new group of kids that are really trying hard in school. I'm assuming Liz is pretty thorough and selective during the application process. At least I hope so. Will be refreshing to have some energetic kids that I don't have to pester to do their homework everyday.
Speaking of vacations I need to finally get to planning my next one - December. It should be a long one and I definitely want to take advantage of it which means budget, budget, budget. We will hopefully get our cultural weeks again so I think I'll try and visit the North for a little bit. I also want to collaborate with a couple PCVs on some joint IT-Educational stuff. The previously mentioned thing I'm keeping a lid on may have some affect on my vacation as well (in a positive way) which would mean lots of studying - good studying though, that will be really useful. More skills I want to learn that I can finally scratch off my to-do list. Sadly, my guitar has seen little practice. Maybe I'll do that this week sometime, or next weekend. Would definitely be some solid stress relief and way more constructive than watching Television shows and movies. If you have any recommendations, please feel free to suggest them. I think I have everything figured out and what I want, it's just where I am. So if that changes then I think I'll be good to go! As for now, I'll try and allocate some pictures to post and see if I can get my youtube stuff updated again. So many things to do but hopefully you can finally get a better picture of life here in just a short while!
Needless to say it has been a little stressful and difficult these past few weeks excluding the past week - so let's talk about that. Last week we had our mid-service conference just prior to our 50th Anniversary conference. Both were a lot of fun, the latter more so than the former.
During our Mid-service conference we went over a few details and the administrative staff just touched on a few pieces of information they wanted to share with us. We also got the chance to talk with each other about how our sites are doing and any successes or challenges we've had. For the most part PCVs are having challenges with teaching, mostly just the same as myself. The other challenges, well, I'll spare you those details as I'd rather not have this be a vent session with no moral at the end.
As always it was nice to see so many faces again that I haven't seen for months, some up to the 8-9 months since our training. It's funny how our time spent together is - at least for me. As I've said before, the PCVs in the North (with the exception of Edward) are pretty closely clustered compared to me. They bump into each other in their shopping towns, pay weekend visits to each other, etc. Maybe that is why these past 11 months have seemed to fly by. I'm partially measuring them in my time spent with Americans. During this conference and our 50th Anniversary conference we were all trying to figure out the times when we would next see each other - the time inbetween seemed just to be "work" or "the middle stuff". Edward is a big inspiration to me in that regard. I know he has integrated incredibly well into his community, much more so than I have accomplished. He spends most of his time at site, and most of his day working. I feel I spend most of my time trying to last until lunch to where I retreat to the library for the rest of the day. Granted some learners (students) come into the library during study hour but it's pretty minimal - well, the ones I let in that actually study. There's plenty that want to come in and make a mess of things. There are a few more points I would like to mention in this regard but I'll keep the lid on them for the moment.
The 50th Anniversary All Volunteer Conference (AVC for short) was a blast. We had 103 of the 115 PCVs (I think that's our total here) in attendence. There were many PCVs I saw for the first time, sadly I didn't take the initiative to meet many of them but I did get to see a lot of PCVs that I rarely see, if ever. We had a few celebratory sessions such as PSA (public service announcement) videos over the years. Some of them were ridiculous. "If you think the glass is half empty, don't even bother. If you think the glass is half full, you might have a chance at making it." "Do you want to work 16 hours a day for people you've never met? If so, join the Peace Corps." Yeah, motivational my butt. Although there were definitely some that were motivational and made me feel a little bit guilty about my service so far. One thing I did notice is that a lot of them were NOT teachers even though currently 1/3 of all Peace Corps positions are for teachers. Probably smart marketing on their part. Though I will say I think PCVs that are teachers, and enjoy what they do, probably have some of the most rewarding experiences during service from the sheer number of relationships they establish. I have formed some strong bonds with a few of the students and a couple of the staff. Granted I feel mine is a somewhat small fraction, if I worked to have strong relationships with 100% of my learners my service would be something else entirely.
Alas, I sit here during my lunch with my grade 8 class in detention. I forgot/didn't get time to make my lunch so I'm in a particularly sour mood. Definitely pretty funny when they just sit here asking me to beat them in the office instead. Oh the temptations.....kidding. Though there is some definite animosity towards them, and as much of a challenge it can be at times of anger, beating children is not part of my character. Though I am getting less and less concerned for their well-being. Parents, or some sort of guardian, have come up to me asking about why I keep them late, during lunch, etc. Well, so far it's only been two, that I know of, but they've been really short conversations after telling them that the kids aren't doing any homework, making noise (being loud and don't stop talking), disrespectful, etc. "Oh, he/she didn't tell me that." Yeah, I'm sure they didn't. Just like the angry parents we had for kids getting kicked out of our hostel (they were sleeping with each other). Just kids being deliquients, not anything different from the rest of the world.
Okay, there is some definite bitterness here and I'd like to steer away from that. I think I mentioned that we got internet at our school, actually I totally haven't. It was about 1.5 weeks ago and I haven't written in like a month, so yay! Internet! Will be a lot nicer being able to get my nights back for sleep. The USB modem was nice because I can use it anywhere but only using it from Midnight to 6am (we got 2 extra hours but have to pay N$10 for the ENTIRE time....bah, corporations) definitely left me pretty tired. I'm hoping I can try and catch up on some things so I can upload bunches of pictures and maybe even some movies! Should be possible now that we have internet 24/7, and it's not even that slow! We need a few cables and I need to find the ethernet drivers for half of our computers but I'm hoping soon. They've managed to be pretty elusive. If anyone reading this ever donates computers, please send along the drivers with them. I want to install Ubuntu on them which I think would have everything working but I also want to keep Windows on them so they can have something more familiar. Plus I can monitor and hand off Windows easier than Ubuntu, which would take a decent amount of training and it's a lot easier to mess up.
I have downloaded some manuals on the subject though, both Windows and Ubuntu, and plan on trying to make some sort of training presentation. The question is just getting the time to do it. I have a busy couple weeks ahead as it's the end of term again but this time I'll have a week to just work at site with little worries, that is after I submit my grades. At least this time I won't be super stressed and pressed for time. I'm hoping then I can finally catch up with some of the IT work I have to do here. Then it's off to Camp GLOW, which I'm pretty excited for. Maybe I'll feel a little less guilty about my service giving up my vacation for a kids camp. I think it'll be pretty fun. Will be a good break to work with a new group of kids that are really trying hard in school. I'm assuming Liz is pretty thorough and selective during the application process. At least I hope so. Will be refreshing to have some energetic kids that I don't have to pester to do their homework everyday.
Speaking of vacations I need to finally get to planning my next one - December. It should be a long one and I definitely want to take advantage of it which means budget, budget, budget. We will hopefully get our cultural weeks again so I think I'll try and visit the North for a little bit. I also want to collaborate with a couple PCVs on some joint IT-Educational stuff. The previously mentioned thing I'm keeping a lid on may have some affect on my vacation as well (in a positive way) which would mean lots of studying - good studying though, that will be really useful. More skills I want to learn that I can finally scratch off my to-do list. Sadly, my guitar has seen little practice. Maybe I'll do that this week sometime, or next weekend. Would definitely be some solid stress relief and way more constructive than watching Television shows and movies. If you have any recommendations, please feel free to suggest them. I think I have everything figured out and what I want, it's just where I am. So if that changes then I think I'll be good to go! As for now, I'll try and allocate some pictures to post and see if I can get my youtube stuff updated again. So many things to do but hopefully you can finally get a better picture of life here in just a short while!
Sunday, September 25, 2011
Yep, I'm doing pretty poor at this again...
BUT! I have at least a workable excuse. Yes, I have had time to be updating here for which I am sorry I haven't. These past few weeks- change that, months have been pretty busy.
I may have mentioned to some of you about a possible site change to to Mariental in Southern Namibia, it is now a confirmed change. I will be moving sometime after the school year ends, not sure if that's immediately (I hope so) or before it starts up again.
Part of the reason I haven't updated recently is that has been taking a LOT of my time and effort.
I'll skip the venting of how I (and nearly everyone involved) wanted the site change to be sooner but didn't get it (a lot of work was put into trying to make this happen). Instead I'll just briefly mention that this new site comes with a lot of added responsibilities, ongoing and newly developed.
I'll talk about those later but some topics among them are discussing the status of the ICT program here (it's been put on hold, future status unknown and not looking good), trying to possibly start a new committee, training myself for the new site, still maintaining my work at my current site, etc.
But my last 2 months or so went like this (each item roughly a week or so): prep exams, end of term exams, marking (a.k.a. grading) exams, Mariental, Luderitz, Mariental, Windhoek, first week of term 3, mid-service medical (I'm healthy), 3rd week of school...and that brings us to the present, the 4th week of school. Also Group 30 is finishing up their service here so I've been trying to see some of them before they set off.
Speaking of end of service, I might actually be trying to extend mine. Lots of planning has been going into that too among other things.
So yeah, super busy, I'll try get a good long entry or two in this week but thigns don't look like they'll settle down until after my half-marathon next weekend (or full).......that I haven't trained for. Yeah, wish me luck!
Chris Janes, signing off.
I may have mentioned to some of you about a possible site change to to Mariental in Southern Namibia, it is now a confirmed change. I will be moving sometime after the school year ends, not sure if that's immediately (I hope so) or before it starts up again.
Part of the reason I haven't updated recently is that has been taking a LOT of my time and effort.
I'll skip the venting of how I (and nearly everyone involved) wanted the site change to be sooner but didn't get it (a lot of work was put into trying to make this happen). Instead I'll just briefly mention that this new site comes with a lot of added responsibilities, ongoing and newly developed.
I'll talk about those later but some topics among them are discussing the status of the ICT program here (it's been put on hold, future status unknown and not looking good), trying to possibly start a new committee, training myself for the new site, still maintaining my work at my current site, etc.
But my last 2 months or so went like this (each item roughly a week or so): prep exams, end of term exams, marking (a.k.a. grading) exams, Mariental, Luderitz, Mariental, Windhoek, first week of term 3, mid-service medical (I'm healthy), 3rd week of school...and that brings us to the present, the 4th week of school. Also Group 30 is finishing up their service here so I've been trying to see some of them before they set off.
Speaking of end of service, I might actually be trying to extend mine. Lots of planning has been going into that too among other things.
So yeah, super busy, I'll try get a good long entry or two in this week but thigns don't look like they'll settle down until after my half-marathon next weekend (or full).......that I haven't trained for. Yeah, wish me luck!
Chris Janes, signing off.
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