Pics

I added yet more pictures to this album:

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2246983&l=592bc&id=10131893


Check it out!

I'm in Windhoek, then Okahandja, then Swakopmund and Walvis Bay, then Windhoek again for the next 3 weeks! It's holiday time, yay!

Hmmmm

ANALITY
These kids are so funny sometimes. They are super-anal about some things, like drawing a line in their excercize book with a ruler—no substitute straightedge will be accepted. Or I had them do collages that were supposed to be with ripped paper, and about a third of the class used scissors because they thought it looked better that way.

FRUSTRATION
Some things that frustruate me about this country:
1. Namibian men
are the most annoying on the planet. Often when Namibian women say “no” they mean “yes,” which doesn’t do me any good because when American women say “no” they mean “no.” And on top of that these guys are super persistent, which wouldn’t be so bad if I was the slight bit interested. But no. I’ve had to be crazy mean to get some of them off my back.
2. Stealing & Asking
Is a way of life here. Honestly I have no problem with stealing, if you are starving, have no money, and need something to eat, and you steal the food that is necessary for you to survive. Because the society you live in committed the crime against you first. Very often that is the case here.
But, people also steal other things that wouldn’t fit that bill: the LED light on my keychain, erasers and pencils I gave the learners to borrow, a bag of empty cans and milk jugs I was going to use for art projects, library books, etc. Just a few days ago, some guy tried to pickpocket me in Windhoek. It really rubs me the wrong way. And I haven’t yet figured out why this is so pervasive.
The only thing that makes any sense to me is a lack of agency. For so long because of apartheid, and parents lack of education, and being black, these people have been inculcated with the idea that they are worthless. So they lack agency to do anything themselves to get these things—i.e. make their own money to be able to buy things. Not that there are multitudes of opportunities here, with the unemployment rate at 80%.
But it seems that even the idea that they can change their situation does not exist, so the only way they can get things is by asking or stealing.
The only relationship my students, and even the teachers, have had with white people is one of asking and stealing. So I get asked for things every day. Sometimes it is to borrow, which means they won’t give it back unless I remind them they have it. Sometimes it is to have. The only differences between me and any other white person to them is that I don't speak Afrikaans, I let them touch my hair, and I hang out with them on weekends.
3. Flies
Are hateful here. You remember all those infomercials about starving children in Somolia with flies on their faces? They were starving, yes, but those damn flies land on everybody’s face. And if you shoo them away they just keep coming back to land on your face again and again and again! I’m writing this as one pesters me now.

NOSTALGIA
I’m finding that strange things invoke nostalgia for my old lives in America (Latin and otherwise) like:
--Post-it notes sent through the mail (now I just cut up used paper)
--French fries at a restaurant (I get french fries de vez en cuando, but it’s never like McDonalds)
--The spice aisle at SPAR grocery store
--Candy canes sent to me in the mail
--Riding in the back of a truck
--Peanut butter and jelly sandwiches

TRAPPED
I feel so trapped in the village sometimes. I get this urge to get dressed up and go out to a bar or a salsa club, and then I remember, oh yeah, there are no salsa clubs here. There are plenty of bars, otherwise known as shabeens, but they are scary.

SACRIFICE

I think of these years as a gift I am giving to others, a sacrifice of sorts. For so long, I’ve been given so much—basically everything I ever wanted was dropped into my lap (study abroad, college, grad school, internship, peace corps), so to give 2 years to the oppressed is a small price, despite all the bad days it may bring me.

SOURCES OF HAPPINESS
My astrology forecast says I need to find other sources of happiness. I had this whole chart made up with different comparative sources of happiness, but Blogger won't let me copy it here. So here is a more simple list:

US Sources of Happiness

Chatting with friends about nothing in person or on telephone Going out to dinner with Mom or friends Salsa dance Reading a good book all day.
Going out to a bar for a drink with friends.
Playing with the dogs.
Dreaming about other places I could be.
Driving.
Light and Shadow. Green grass.
Shopping in a mall.
Waking up super late.
Watch TV with choice of hundreds channels
Getting Mail!

Latin America Sources of Happiness
Chatting with friends about nothing in Spanish in person
Eating homecooked meals
Salsa dance
Taking a bus to a plaza, eating ice cream, and watching people
Going out to a bar for a drink with friends.
Talking to dogs in English.
Talking to random people on the street.
Taking a bus where I am the only white person.
Beautiful landscapes.
Shopping in a market
Chatting the night away with friends.
?
Getting Mail!

Sources of Happiness in Africa
Text messages from PCVs, free from 7 to 12! Chatting when we are together.
Eating my own cooked meals. Mug & Bean once every looong while.
?
Hiding in my house and doing old lady activities: cook, clean, sew curtains, plant garden.
Going out to a bar every 3 months or so with PCVs when we get out of the bush. Having a glass of wine at night after hiding it from my colleagues.
? (Dogs have rabies.)
Dreaming about other places I could be.
? (Hitchhiking is not a source of personal happiness.)
Beautiful landscapes.
Shopping in a mall.
Sleeping in until 8am. Yes,that’s right, 8am. God, I am an old lady.
?
Getting Mail!

SPANISH
Oh I heard Spanish in the grocery store in Swakopmund, but it was kind of in passing, so no time to chat. I think they were españoles. To explain to you how desperate I am for that language, I am planning on visiting the consulates for Mexico and Cuba! I probably won’t go in, because it would be a little weird to be like, “Hey I just wanna chat,” but they usually have events posted outside. Maybe . . .
Oh and there is a salsa scene in Cape Town. I’m dying to go there.

More pics

Hi all,

I've added new pics to the album Home Sweet Home found at:
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2246983&l=592bc&id=10131893

Enjoy!