triceps

Who needs to lift weights when you can hand wash!?

Usually I just wash 2 or 3 things at a time, the bare essentials. But yesterday I got ambitious and threw 8 shirts, 2 pairs of pants and some socks and underwear into my big purple wash bin. I think it's intended to be for painting, as I bought it at a hardware store, and it has that rippled slanting slope that you run your paint roller over to even out the paint. Well that's my new and improved washboard, that fits perfectly across the edges of the tub.

I started just after L left for tutoring yesterday morning, and was still scrubbing, rinsing, and wringing when he came back 2 hours later.

Many of you might be thinking, duh, Karen...that's life of people without washing machines. But really, it forces me to realize how EASY "modern conveniences" have made our lives at home. I've never had to hand wash. I even had the nerve to complain about saving up quarters for the laundromat. I never thought about how much time and sweat and EXERCISE it produce something we take for granted: clean clothes.

Perhaps I've mentioned it before, but I have a renewed appreciation for the hard work that falls under the blanket category of "housework." And I'm just taking care of myself, imagine if I was trying to do laundry for a family, including sheets, towels, work clothes....ahh! One thing's for sure, I'd be buff.

And allow me to mention the fact that on two different occasions I've heard of Ukrainian women asking their husbands for washing machines only to be met with the question,

"but what would you do all day?"

a great honor

"It is a distinctly regional force, hated by the majority of the country, which despite disillusionment with Yushchenko, gave fewer votes to Yanukovych in March 2006 (32%) than he received in the first round of the 2004 presidential elections (36%)."

 

This from the Ukraine report I regularly receive in my inbox. It's interesting to be here, to watch the defection of Moroz of the Socialists to the pro-Russian Party of Regions (who don't feel Yushchenko's election was even legitimate and whose ideology the Socialists opposed, at least in the ways that I understand), feel the shifting of the political climate (just look up "Ukraine horns" in Google news), and to try to understand the RAPID changes that are occurring here.  That as of this moment, P of R is in the majority, less people support them now than in 2004 is breathtaking to me. A lot of us volunteers see things in black and white as far as politics go. We don't delve in too much because we aren't allowed to and, frankly, because we don't really understand the foundations the current political climate is built upon. What I do know is that, standing on the Maidan today, watching the yellow flags of PORA (the Ukr. youth movement which lent substantial support to Yushchenko's 1st pres. bid) and Yulia Tymoshchenko's flag (red heart contrasted against a stark, white field) flapping against the backdrop of a hundred more flags flapping against tents and rows of tents and tents in rows, I was moved. Deeply. People are camping out again on Independence Square--nowhere near the 1,000,000 from 2004's Orange Rev, but hundreds--demanding democracy. Demanding their country listen to them.

 

One banner I read, hanging from the pedestrian bridge that crosses a cobblestone road that twists behind the square, said/demanded, in Ukrainian (and I dunno if your PCs can read the text):

 

сперше--про україну
потім--про себе

 

Which means: First, about Ukraine / Later: about yourself. Which pretty much sums up how I feel about what's going on.

 

To be standing amongst so many who simply want a voice is a great honor.  A great honor indeed.

small things can get you through

On the rains, we usually take coupe--a four person "room" on an overnight train. At first, not knowing the language, culture, etc... it was easier to fend of two other people as opposed to many more that you find in Platskart--a full carriage of beds with no divisions.  We had received advice when we first got her that we had to try Platskart at least once. It was an experience.  Recently, a few of our friends had taken Platskart pretty much across the country and spoke fairly favorably of it (as favorably as you can get about a noisy, bumpy, overnight ride). So, on our way to and from Khmelnytsky (where we worked in a fairly unsuccessful summer camp), we decided to try Platskart. It was well worth it not only for the presence of so many people--which makes getting away from one quite simple--but also for the kind people whom we met on the train.

On the platform, we walked the seeming mile length of the train toward our carriage. We showed the conductor our tickets and boarded. My seat was taken by a large woman and her small child. it was daytime, and I wasn't going to use the bed, so I didn't bother trying to sit in my exact seat--as the American in me is wont to do. I sat with Karen on her bed--which folded up in the middle to create a little, uncomfortable table. The carriage was half full, and we found ourselves sitting across from one of the only full berths on the train.  there sat a family headed to Simferopol, in Crimea. After a few hours, the mother of the family discovered that we could speak Ukrainian and engaged us in a very pleasant conversation. We talked about the weather, the lack of farms in Ukraine (which was strange as, while we talked, we rolled past 18 billion farms), and some ukrainian literary figures. Normal and pleasant.

Pleasant because the woman didn't treat us like three year olds because we still can't navigate the genitive case.

Pleasant because she didn't treat us like a novelty because we were Americans who spoke Ukrainian and not Russian.

Pleasant because she treated us normally like we were normal people normally riding on a normal train.

Unfortunately, that's kind of rare. Usually, we feel like fish in a bowl. Googled at because we're American. Because we speak Ukrainian. Because we don't understand Russian. Because we're here at all.

But she treated us like normal people, and I thank her for that.

tropical

The other day my mom wrote the abbreviation "A/C" in a message, and I wrote back and asked her what that meant. So quickly I've forgotten...

People always insisted that humid heat is worse than dry heat. That it's hotter, and it's harder to breathe. I thought I preferred it to dry, because my skin likes the moisture. But I'm currently rconsidering my stance. My legs were actually sweating today on the marshrutka into Kyiv, and this from a person who doesn't sweat. It's stifling hot these days, but I know I shouldn't complain. At least it's not snowing, right?

So we survived our first Ukrainian summer camp experience, and we're headed to #2 in a few days. We learned that it's important to ask for details before you make travel plans, to confirm that there is actually a camp to teach at in the first place. We got stuck in the difficult situation of teaching students who not only didn't want to be studying during their summer vacation, they didn't even know about the camp they were attending in the first place. On the first morning, Larry asked then, do you know why you're here? They all responded, "No!" in unison. We told them they were at English language camp, and they're weren't exactly thrilled. However, being that we're flexible, resourceful PCVs, we made something from nothing and it turned out not half bad.

Students created brochures for a local park, including information about plantlife, animals, park activities, scenery and a trail map. And they had to do it all in English, so we taught them the vocabulary they would need (meadow, path, grove, valley, etc), drew some pictures, played some games, and that was that. We only had 3 classes with them, but they came up with really good drafts.

Meanwhile, Ukraine eeked out an exciting World Cup victory, putting them into the top 8! All this in their first ever World Cup appearance. Looking forward to the next match tomorrow night.

heat

Perhaps my body adjusted to the cold. Since when is 75-80 degrees hot!? I think it's pretty humid here, but really. I'm getting emails and letters about record breaking heat in CA and CO, in the 90's and 100's, so this is nothing. It's like my body forgot what it's like, but I guess we'll find out at Softball Camp in a few weeks. It'll be like old times, red-faced Karen playin' ball.

This morning, L and I ventured to "Arson," a big supermarket we'd heard good things about. It has big wide isles, and more checkout stands than Costco. A lot of pre-packaged stuff like meats and dried fruits that might come in handy when we don't want to elbow our way through the crowds at the bazaars. Although, I think it's growing on me. In general people here seem more used to dealing with foreigners. They stare less. Sometimes people don't even turn around when they hear us speaking English.

Did we ever tell you what it's like buying meat at the bazaar? You enter a big cement warehouse with big chunks of meat hanging on hooks or lying on newspaper all around you. It's mostly female vendors, and they shout out to you as you walk by. People are poking the meat with their bare hands or picking up chunks to smell them. When you choose your vendor, usually someone that's been recommended to you by a friend, you ask what's fresh, or tell them what you plan to make with their meat. After asking the price and agreeing, you tell them how much you want. They then select a huge chunk of meat, still attached to a large portion of the animal, and place it on a flat surface (often a tree stump or cement block). They grab an axe and smash it into your selected chunk a few times until it breaks loose, put it on the scale, punch something into the calculator and stuff your meat into a plastic bag for you. Sometimes they even double bag it.

Short update from L-town

Sunny now. Trying to capture the vitamin D and store it away for summer. Getting a little red, but enjoying the weather.

Just hosted our two friends from P---. We trained with them and were so happy to have them here. We took them around to all of the sites in the span of two days. We live in a good location where we can navigate to any point in the city pretty well. They were impressed with the view from the top of a high fortress. From there, you can see the edges of L---, where it melts away into western Ukrainian forest. For living in such a big city, it's nice to be reminded we're really just some people living in a large community right in the middle of a forest in Eastern Europe.

In two days we take off for a 20 day tour of summer campdom. We are teaching in two different cities, one in the central Ukraine, and one in the West. We are looking forward to seeing new parts of the country, but we just love our city so much it's hard to leave it. But, there is work to be done, and that is why we are here.

Enjoy youselves. Thinking of you.

LL

dandelions

We are definitely sampling the good life. We've moved into our own apartment: 2 large rooms, a nice kitchen and bathroom, and a balcony. There's water all day, though the best pressure is during the usual 6-9am/pm. We have high ceilings and get morning sun into our bedroom and living room, when there's sun. Lately it's been cloudy and occasionally rainy, perhaps they have summers similar to Monterey here, though it's strange because we're not near the ocean (sea). You can check out photos of our new home on flickr.com (If you're not a member, let me know and I'll "invite" you).

Yesterday, during a discussion with my students about working or studying abroad, one girl asked if it was true that people in the U.S. are all fat. =) I think she was worried that this question would offend me, so she padded it with the disclaimer that she has family in the U.S. and they told her that people don't all look like they do on tv. I told her that in general, I thought it was safe to say that people in the U.S. are fatter than people here. We talked a bit about fast food and exercise and diabetes. This same girl dreams of going abroad and living in the U.S. I asked her where her family lives, thinking in my head what a rude awakening she'll be in for if she's expecting Beverly Hills, 90210. She replied, "Detroit."

Today's my last day of classes and I'm looking forward to having some more free time to explore the things we've been wanting to see in L---. Though I'll actually miss teaching my students. They're so interesting and fun to talk to and motivated. I'm sure the summer will fly and I'll be back in the classroom before I know it. I'll be doing an English Club in the library once a week here; we'll see if anyone shows up.

Yesterday we bought a bit pot to make soup in, and Larry cooked up some corn chowder. It's by far the best recipe we've found in the "Babusya's Cookbook" PC gave us. It's delicious, and it just gets better each day. Looking forward to a bit bowl of that for lunch later.

Wishing you sunshine and smiles from beautiful Ukraine. Happy day.

ramblings on a friday afternoon

Three days ago was the hottest day yet in Ukraine. For Karen and I, it was beach weather. As there is no beach here, or anywhere near here, we made do by going to our schools and doing our jobs--as much as we wanted to just stroll around the center, take in some outdoor sights, or just park ourselves on a bench and eat some ice cream.  Of course, upon arriving at school, we found that our students had done just that. In some classes, I was teaching three students. In others, six. Such is the life here.

All those commercials say it is the toughest job you'll ever love, and it is tough some days. But other days, man, let me tell you, it ain't so tough. Standing beneath the cupola of a 14th century church, admiring the, unfortunately deteriorating, frescoes depicting priests and lay people....and the disembodied--and screaming--head of Jesus. Discovering a new pizza joint--pizza, having recently been rediscovered as our favorite food--and watching my excited wife order pepperoni, a rarity here, and watching her smile decline as a pizza wheels out of the kitchen, replete with hot, red chili peppers (and no the kind that play guitars with socks dangling of their dangles). (Upon receiving the bill, we saw, written, "pepperoni," which ended our debate of whether I had ordered wrong, or if they really though that was pepperoni was hot, red chili peppers. At least, in that new place, themed like a European football hangout, pepperoni has a different meaning.) Taking in a beer (Guinness!!) and a Margarita (Karen) at a newly discovered pub, Irish themed, and meeting with a fellow PCV and new friend to us all, a Ukrainian named Roman who works for a Dutch firm and has a former moto-cross & tennis champion for a father in law. (When info on tennis courts in L--- pans out, I'll let you know if that is fact or farce). So, no, it ain't always tough.

But when everyday you've got to run around the school, finding someone who might know of someone who has the key for your room--because copying them would make too much sense, it's a little tough. When you're getting yelled at on the marshrutka in a language you barely understand (Karen's story), it gets a little tough. When you've got four summer camps looming on the summer horizon, it gets a little tough.

But, man, when those kids get all excited cuz your actually there, cuz you actually understand them, cuz they actually understand them, and cuz you're actually, actually, actually there and will actually be there for another 18 months, it is worth it.

Anyway...rain now. And lots of it. The reason: It's L----. Kinda what we always said for Humboldt County.

"Why's it raining is freakin' June?"

"Cuz it's Humboldt."

This weekend, some folks coming in from the East. A Birthday. Meeting my language tutor on Saturday.

On Tuesday: One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest. In Ukrainian.

Next week, the last week of regular school. Then a 10-day day-camp. Time to bust out my newly purchased guitar.

Oh yeah, and in the next 10 days, we're moving again. And for the last time until we move back to the US.  Moving to a nice 2-room apt near the center of town.

Love,
LL

Yay.

[P.S. Congrats and golf claps to Scott Webb for getting the accept into MIIS. Too bad we won't be colleagues--as you'll surely finish before we're back. You're at a great school in a great part of the state.]

a sat morn in l---

A bright sunny day in L--, a fitting epilogue to yesterday's downpour. Monuments and church-tops are drying off in the heat--and hopefully so are my clothes.

I went to class in the morning, bez umbrella, and taught a killer lesson on advertising. End of class rolls around as my students are ready to unveil a slogan and an intended audience for their own products--like a cell phone that doubles as a fork--and the bell rings. I tell then I'll see them during the 3rd lesson, and we'll finish up the presentations. They tell me they don't have class because there will be a history test--scheduled eons ago before I existed in this historic town--that they have to take. This was confirmed by the vice-principal, and I finished editing a few pages of a colleagues Am. Lit. text that I'm in charge of, and then stepped out into the rain. This was at 9:30am. It was still raining when I stepped out of "Tsukerhya," a fabulous cafe near the center where I ate apple strudel and had a perfectly mixed mug of Irish Coffee, at 3:30pm. I'd been trying to hold out against the weather, exploring the new--and dry--markets and shops of my new city, so that I could meet a new language tutor at 5:30pm. We were going to walk around and do the first talking in Ukrainian I've done in weeks. Unfortunately, the rain got to be too much, and I, unfortunately, had to cancel. Boo!

Heading into the summer here. Got a number of camps lined up. Will be working in the old training town of P---. Then off to K---- for a softball/leadership camp. My new site has a plan cooked up that'll take me to Poland for another camp in July. We've been having a go about that because my site kinda thinks it owns me for more than the 18 hours a week they are entitled to. nothing to complain about with a free trip to Poland, though. Of course, I've done 24/hour summer camps ( I.E. Concordia) and I'm not anxious for a repeat.

Anyway, we're off soon for High Castle--again. This time, we'll actually see the castle and avoid the bribing.

LL

[p.s. As I have more frequent access to Internet, I'll be sending more frequent updates. If you want off the list, please let me know. no hard feelings.]

[p.p.s. Congrats to Cris Elder for securing an ELF in Guatemala!!!!!]

L-town week one

Yes.

We have arrived safely.

Yes.

We finally have an apartment.

Yes.

We have to move again in a month (into our 6th domocile in the goold ol' Ukr).

Okay, now that that is taken care of, welcome to L-town. It's a big city in the west if you don't already know the name. Pretty much tourist central right now. Watched a huge concert in the city center yesterday. One of my favorite Ukrainian bands, Друга Ріка (Second River, I guess), was playing, along with a few other decent bands. The city put up a stage right in front of the historic Opera house, creating a real interesting contrast between old and new, between were we came from and where we are now. the center was filled with 15 year olds, just packed. Most of them drinking--those kind of laws aren't really enforced here. No problems of note, however.

 

Some friends from the surrounding area acme in to join us. It's nice to be in a place now where we can talk to some of our friends and realize that the shit we went through is some of the same shit everyone else is going through. Or went through. We were so isolated in S-town.

 

I'm working at a school of international relations. The English spoken there is really good, so I feel like I'm going to be a able to do a lot of good work in getting the kids to a higher level. 

 

Oh, friends just came in. Gotta jet.

 

LL

next stop

After a mid-semester vacation while we waited for our site transfer, we are finally headed to our next home. We have played tourist for nearly two weeks now, and we are looking forward to playing teacher again. We are anxious to feel settled, to be in one place for longer than a month or two, but we have (at least) one more move before that happens.

When we arrive in our new city I will pass along a mailing address through email. Speaking of email, we will likely have much more frequent access to ours where we are headed.

Feeling excited and lucky and, as always, very well taken care of by PC.

updizzle

So I didn't really surprise her, but surprise is the same word in Ukrainian as it is in English. What I'm trying to say is that surprises are kinda common.  So I went with what works: I walked her around the Andrivska street market and watched her eyes. She's hard to shop for not because she's got expensive taste and not because she wants a hundred things. якраз навпаки, вона часто не хоче нічого. (Exactly the opposite, she usually doesn't want anything.  I'm the consumer of the relationship; she can talk herself out of buying anything.

 

So today, I talked her out of talking her self out of buying anything. Except I bought it, of course. 

 

We picked up a piece of art from a local guy. At first, I had to track him down through the other street vendors whop had set up shop near him. He was engaged in a chess game near the middle of the cobblestone street which dipped--suspiciously like a hill in this flat, flat land--down past a 18th century church which gorgeous matte teal onion-domes. He started in on us in Russian, as they all do. Then he asked if e understood. We said we understood Ukrainian better. He said he saw we were foreign and thought we'd understand Russian; I think he was surprised that tourists could understand/speak Ukrainian. We told him we lived here, which explained our ability. [Once the switch went over and we were getting all Ukrainian, we understood nearly everything].

 

He quoted us some prices on his really good, part-abstract work. Some really reasonable prices. As we'd already passed buy his place on the street, his work hanging from a black, cast-iron gate, I knew which pieces Karen was interested in. Once Karen knew I was indeed going to buy one of his pieces, and that it was better if she choose it rather than me doing an eenie-meenie-moe number of the ones hers eyes lingered on, she chose one titled, "View from the other side of the moon." It shows the earth in the distance. In the foreground is the side of the moon that we never see. The artist rendered his thoughts of what exists on that side of the moon in his print.

 

So, happy birthday Karen (a few days early). Now we just gotta find a way to get it to L-town safely.

 

And find a wall we can truly call ours for longer than two or three months to tack it to.

protests across america

It's pretty nuts to be sitting in downtown Kyiv and watching images and news of the protests gearing up in America.  Seeing photos today of supporters of undocumented workers was uplifting today. I hope the national dialogue changes to one of inclusion. And not into a nation-wide race riot.

 

All the rich people, poor people, every people who are afraid of the influx of immigrants in America need to look in the mirror. America is a nation of immigrants. We can see it in all of our faces.

 

And we always will.

 

It's time to respect ourselves, our ancestors, and those living and dying everyday trying to make a life for themselves in America--or anywhere.

 

Living in another culture, being the outsider, gives me a perspective I wish more people in our country, our island, had.

walking with the dead

Still in Kyiv. Today is labor day, so the town--except for Khreshatik--is like a ghost town. In the words of my friend describing Poltava, "It's post-apocalyptic." Yeah, that.

 

Took the Funicular--a short tram that crawls up a hill near the river Dnipro--today. Thought it would be like a touristy view of the city. Walked up to the kaca to buy tickets for the journey. 50 kopeks each; the same as riding the Metro. Gave the lady a 1 and got two tokens in return. When I looked at them, I realized they were just 50 kopek pieces. Nothing special. Turned out to be just a way to get from the river, over the hill, and down to Khreshatik. Of course, we got a pretty nice view of the river and wound up in a beautiful park which leaned up against old church grounds--one of the churches had an onion-dome made out of wooden shingles. Lots of cool sites up there, and of course today's the day we leave the camera in the hotel.  Oh well.

 

Went to another ancient church ground the other day. The Kyiv Pechescka Lavra in downtown Kyiv. Part of one of the churches on the grounds dates back to 11th century AD.  We'd heard about the underground monastery. I wanted to see that.  When we finally found it, after winding around the epic churches which crawled above us and into the sky, Karen couldn't go it. She didn't have a head scarf and didn't want to buy one for 15 UAH. Neither did she have a long skirt. Orthodox up in here. So I entered alone. Well, I entered with a large group of Ukrainians. They all had candles and rosary looking devices. The journey into the first part of the cave was slow as everyone stopped to pray at every official looking prayer stop. The narrow, rounded path got narrower as we wound into the earth (really only about 20 meters down).

 

Then, the stops and the prays got more frequent. Women and men were throwing themselves on top of these box things that were lining the walkway, praying, and clicking their beads against the boxes. Then they'd kiss the boxes and move onto the next. The next of like 20 or 30. As I progressed, I discovered the boxes lining the narrow corridors were actually wooden framed coffins paned with glass. Inside, hermit priests from the 11th - 15th centuries, some replete with oil portraits of how that looked in life hanging above  their final resting places. From some of the dried, blackened hands poking out of the burial shrouds, I had a pretty good idea what they looked like in death. In some other rooms were ancient artifacts that we couldn't look at. Some famous holy relics. The tour wound further into the earth, but I a route out the first exit. Being a little claustrophobic and having a different relationship with the dead than most Ukrainians do, I decided to bail before I really let out the screams I'd been holding in.

 

Off to L in the west on Weds--so we hear.

a friday afternoon

Another big holiday weekend coming up. Almost half the year is holidays, I swear. Kyiv might be really busy this weekend or really dead. Being coming to the city to celebrate or people leaving the city to celebrate. Really, it could go either way.

In the middle here--Kyiv and really any adjacent oblast--and our Ukrainian language skills kinda fall outta favor. They can get us around. We can od what we need to do, but the lingua franca is definitely Russian. And I can get around even in Russian. Can do what I need, just from what I've picked up from the Surjik (a blend of Ukrainian and Russian) I hear. But I am much more comfortable in pure/almost-pure Ukrainian.

Living in the West as we did, we rarely heard Russian in large doses. Just on TV, which we didn't watch very often. Our langauge usually came from talking or reading, and most of that was in Ukrainian. It got to where I was even thinking in Ukrainian.

So we're glad to be headed back out to the west. We're having a good time in Kyiv, taking in some theatre (Don Quixote ballet, translated into a ballet--PHENOMENAL), visiting the touristy places in town, and taking a much needed rest. We saw Hetman Ivan Mazepa's house yesterday. And today, being the dorks that we are, are attending a seminar in downtown Kyiv being given by Peter Master. He'll be talking about how to teach the English article system in a more coherent way.

Like I said: dorks.

Before that, we'll prolly head over to the underground monasteries.

Yeah, life.

a more robust update

priviet

In Kyiv. In the sun. Gotta say, Kyiv is a much different city in the
sun than it is in the snow. Don't get me wrong. The snow is beautiful.
But as all y'all who spent some good portion of your lives in the
midwest/northern plains/east/anywhere besides bila okeana, the snow is
beautiful til you gotta do something in it. Til you live in it for a
few days. Then it gets to be "that g-d snow" instead of just "snow."

We're hopefully headed to our old host family in P-town for Easter.
Got some meetings and stuff to handle in Kyiv with PC. Site
reassignment. For those of you who havent been in semi-constant
contact with us, I'll break it down real quick. Our sites, while
consiting of a number of wonderful people and unbelievable students,
was unable to procure us an apartment to live in for two years.
Despite some pleasant nudging, later turning into threats to take us
out of site, our sites could not find us a place to live. No
apartment, no teachers. Really, really sad for the kids because our
coordinators and directors didn't think we'd seriously leave. Even as
we were closing down our bank accounts, getting the notary to make up
some new rules so we could get our packages at the post office that
are still coming, people were still saying, "Oh, you'll be back in a
few weeks when we find something." Well, my sites were. Karen's
director couldn't be bothered to find an apartment, yet he quickly
found us a taxi back to Kyiv. My sites will probably be getting
volunteers again. We helped pave the way for a stronger relationship
between S-town and PC. Karen's site...I don't know.

So, there wasn't ever a safety concern for us there. Nothing more
serious than a lack of commitment to us. So now we will talk about a
new site tomorrow. As we speak Ukrainian--pretty well, I'd say, for
only studying six months--they're leaning towards the West, if they
can. We'll be coming in at the end of the semester, so we might not be
teaching til next semester, which is rough. We love teaching. I really
come alive in the classroom--in front of a class or with a pen in my
had are the times I really feel like I've tapped into some secret
energy from the Earth.

Leaving, I had, at each of my sites, all of my students in one room.
Then I had to break the news to then. Then cried. I cried. My
coordinators cried. I told then have much I did to get here. How long
I waited, how excited I was, and how crushed I was that I couldn't
stay. Crushed. Then, to watch them all run out to the front of the
school, crying and waving. Makes you feel all good and all bad and all
at the same damn time. Alive and dead.

Staying at a hotel in Kyiv currently. Taking the Metro back and forth.
Always fun. Buying fresh, poppy-seeded breadfrom the street vendors.
Taking in the ancient landscape heavily salted with modernity.
Standing on the escalator, hand on the thick, black rubber band that
serves as the handrail, my feet on the metal, moving steps, I find
that the handrail moves faster than the steps. So, if you lean on it,
your arm will eventually pull forward and you'll be leaning at a weird
angle. And that's kinda how it is here. Only the world Ukraine proper
so desperately wants to be a part of is the handrail.

And Ukraine itself is the steps.

--
http://www.peacecorps.gov
Our Ukraine WebBlog: http://klukraine.blogspot.com
http://www.lawrencelawson.com
http://news.google.com

In Kyiv

In Kyiv. Awaiting site reassignment. Things turned for the worst, I
suppose, and now we'll be headed to a new city. That's exciting at
least.

Off to relax after a fair bit of stress. Hope to respond to you all
personally soon. The important thing is: we're safe and happy.

Love to all.

LL & KH

Ukraine in April

Okay, so I really don't get to the internet.

First of all. http://www.perigee-art.com . 15 April 2006. My next
installment of my Peace Corps work for that magazine. You gotta pay $1
for the priveledge, but it's only a buck. I getting right famous and
stuff.

Enough with the plugs.

It's getting warm hear. Actually, it's done got warm here. Snow's
gone. The river's full (of water and trash). The ground is all sand,
like we're at the beach or something. It's getting easier and easier
to live here. The language is really coming on at a good clip--thanks
to four hours of tutoring a week and us still living with our host
family. I'm writing stories again, entered some of my work, and moving
forward with that.

The teaching is going good. really taught some good classes lately.
I'm really settling down in the classroom and working with a style
that the students really respond to. The novelty of the American has
pretty much worn off for the students, so I'm just their teacher now.
But one they seem to like, which is nice. School ends the end of next
month. Then we've got a summer to look forward to. If any of you want
to visit, that would be the time.

We'll be going back to P for easter (a week later than yours) and we
are excited to see out old friends and family. We'll be going back
there in the summer, we hope, to work on a camp.

though things are good here, things are also slow. It's a real small
town mentality here. All there is to do for the youth is
drink--drinking laws are not enforced. We're hoping to provide some
alternatives--I've started a basketball thing on Saturdays. Of
course, we're real scatter brained because we don't have an apartment
yet. The people we work and live with have had a hard time finding
empty apartments--and have had a hard time understanding the urgency
of living on our own. We're three weeks past the date we should have
moved and still waiting. We've went from patient to angry to angrier
to amused to complacent. I've learned a lot about myelf during the
process, but I feel our contacts here are a little slower in wanting
to learn anything about us.

When the sun is shining here, it's beautiful. Well, not the city so
much. It's utilitarian. But the weather is beautiful. I've missed
the sun.

Post office here doesn't believe it can send postcards, so we're
having to package them all up and send em in letters. Jim, your
stamps are finally coming--though all the beautiful stamps are not
available in my town. Or anywhere it seems. They have posters for
them, but they don't have them for sale.

Wish you all well,
Larry

--
http://www.peacecorps.gov
Our Ukraine WebBlog: http://klukraine.blogspot.com
http://www.lawrencelawson.com
http://news.google.com

Onward

All you warm ones (except Celeste),

Well, we're marching ever onward. The cold that hit the country while
we were in America didn't sweep away with our arrival. The following
monday, we got hit with -28c weather. Only one day, and the day I
happened to be walking around downtown with nothing to do. I'm sure
some of you have been in weather where, when you bearth, your
nosehairs stick together. Where you face feels like you're laying it
on a block of solid ice. All of this, and the sun was still shining.

It's a cruel trick, looking outside the window and seeing sunlight,
long forgotten here, creeping through the snow bound tree limbs and
thinking, "Today will be a find day to wear my non-artic clothing." A
quick trip back inside to change back into that artic clothing, and
the day finds its start...

So our first full week back, we taught as much as we could, but the
cold weather drove most of the students away. It's like snowed-in days
back at home, only here the snow's constant. We've got "too cold to
move; foolish to go outside days." I think I taught maybe nine classes
the first week back. Karen, less, but not just because of the cold.
She's got some schedule problems at her site. Something about two or
three classes shoved into the same time slot. The confusion is
understandable if the schdule there is anything like the schedule at
my school. Take graph paper and draw along the x-axis (is the
horizontal axis really x? It's been so long since imaginary numbers
and parabolas) all of the grades (or forms) that study at the school.
Along the y-axis, draw all of the of the tiem slots available,
grouping each day of the week seperately. Now, on different colored
pieces of cardboard--some the designs of christmas wrapping paper,
others all cardstock from Soviet times--type the names of all of the
classes. Each class gets it's own color--some of my English classes
have this weird chess-piece design. Now, spend a whole day arranging
those tiles on the graph paper so that none of the classes conflict.
Impossible, say I , but they manage to get it almost right. Of cours,
my schedule changes every week. Of course, of course, I haven't
really been at that site much because of going home to America and the
language conference we just had in Kyiv.

Oh yes, language conference. PC sent us to Kyiv for a Ukrainian
language refresher. We'd have four days of content-based language
instruction while staying at that fine Ukrainian resort, P-sok. All
the egg-dipped chicken and egg-dipped beef and egg-dipped mystery meat
we could eat. So, we're at the conference, and we get to see our
friends again. Kris and Jen and Ben and Nate; names meaningless,
maybe, to you all, but pure joy to us. So we have our classes, which
were quite good. I got to do in a class what I do at home--read
newspaper articles, practice ukrainian cursive, sing along to
Ukrainian songs, etc.... Good stuff, but I felt, once again, like a
second grader. I've really come along with the langauge to a point
were I feel realy comfortable with what I know--that plateau thing.
Being there, and taking the advanced course, the world was once again
laid bare to me; the skeletons of the earth that I saw were made up of
every bit of Ukrainian I (a) still don't know and (b) didn't know
existed. One class I attened was more a philosophy of the language
than anything tanglible or useful (now, although on work for my MA at
MIIS it'll be invaluable, I feel). I learned how the three genders of
the language (male, female, and neuter) give way to a fourth gender
(spilny) which is really the hermaphrodite of the language as words
that fall within its orbit take both male and female gender. Oh my God
I'm boring you with nerdy word facts....

Anyway, it was good to see our friends. Ben got a (not!!!!) pirated
copy of Brokeback, and we watched that one night. Good movie, but I
liked the story better, I think. I played chess (finally!!) all three
days and got my ass royally kicked by my former Ukrainian teacher. It
was cool though, cause we did it all in Ukrainian, and now I know how
to say the useful word "castling" which some people don't even use in
English and I'll barely

(oh, oh, just gave an impromptu English lesson in the Library)

be able to use the word in normal conversation with people here. I
thought here'd be some chess playing fools, but I've only seen people
playing once. And that was while they were trying to exchange Dollars
for Hryvnia in the street.

Anyway, back in S-town now, and we're thinking about the way of things
here. How much easier life could be for people if only a few things
were to change. How our work here is really affecting our students.
Our we really helping them? Is knowledge of authentic English really
going to help them when they teach with the Ukrainian variant of
English like "to go in for sports" and "the US is washed by three
oceans" ? If the students don't go anywhere but here, are we really
helping them by teaching them Englosh as it is really spoken by native
speakers? Or are we hurting them because they'll use words that even
their teachers don't know? And will later correct out of them? ?s ?s
?s

Started working with a Ukrainian tutor. Got off to a slow start
because she wanted to take me back to Ukrainian 101 when I'm already
in 301. Had to really convince her that I already knew what she was
talking about (and that I really wanted speaking and writing practice,
not listening practice and vocabulary drills). I'm starting with a
second tutor today, so I'm up to four hours a week, which really isn't
much, but coupled with actually living in the culture I'll use the
langauge in, it's a big help. In a few weeks, I'll get that piano
tutor. One lives across the hall from us. I'll learn piano, something
I've always wanted to do, and I'll learn some language at the same
time.Just gotta find a patient teacher.

Well, that's enough for now. Gotta teach in 40 minutes. Hope all's
well with you and yours.

Your friend (or relative) in Ukraine,
LL

a new start in ukraine

Though it's been only a few short days since I've seen some of you, and I apologize for not being able to contact more of you while I was home, I feel I should take advantage of the Internet while I have it and send in an update. Access is limited, and I've probably got something to say.

 

Home was bittersweet. I was overwhelmed by seeing my family, whom I dearly miss, and by watching the woman who raised me, who loved and was loved, lowered below the earth. It's been an emotional tilt-a-whirl. After four months in Ukraine, I got to go home. After 24 years as a grandson, I am grandparentless (excluding the spiritual side of the matter). At home, I was lucky enough to have two weeks with the most important people in my life. We were able to grieve together. To laugh together. To remember together. And to share the occasional beverage together. There was a lot of closure in my trip that I never would have had if I weren't allowed, with Karen, to fly home.  I am indebted to the PC Ukraine staff for the work they did to get us home. I owe them what I've already given them: two years of my life.

 

It was hard to leave my family again, but I knew I had to.  I didn't belong in America.  At least, not yet. I was embedded in Ukrainian culture just enough to experience some culture shock upon returning home.  It's hard to put into words that make sense but there were so many things that I had gotten used to not having. Having them again, all again and all at once, shocked me a little. It was an important lesson to learn: having everything I wanted, doing anything I wanted was hard to get used to...after four months.  I can't imagine what it'll be like after two years.

 

I felt in a dream, stuck between the American culture I knew and the Ukrainian culture I was getting to know. From buying a bottle of water with a $20 and not being harassed for exact change to being transported anywhere I wanted to go (a) in a timely fashion and (b) without being squished up against a hundred people, all the little things added up, giving me a glimpse of how I'd feel returning to America in December of 2007 (or Dec 2006, if I go home for Christmas).

 

Being back here is just as strange.  Having to come up with exact change. Slipping on the ice. Being forced to speak Ukrainian again. Adding to that the jet-lag, which is befuddling my mind. [Example, last night, in the hotel, Karen's cell went off, and I began grilling her about when my grandma would be calling]. So, some of the things are the same. But there are also some things that are different. It's kinda like having a new start. Some of the negative things we've experienced, or the negative attitudes we have, we can reshape or redefine.  It's like coming to Ukraine for the first time, only being very informed about what it's going to be like. We know a lot about the culture, so we can react better to those things this time around.

 

After 19 hours on various planes, living through delays and such, we returned to Ukraine, flying low over the same patch of land I saw back in the beginning of October, only this time fitted with layers of snow instead of naked, burning fields. Back at the office, we learned from the Director of PC Ukraine that we had missed the coldest winter he'd ever seen in Ukraine. Everyone here is talking about the black frost, the -25 to -30C weather, the snow. The coldest winter in years--and hopefully the coldest for years.  I don't feel too bad that I missed that part of the winter.

 

Back in Kyiv, everything's the same.  Snow falling in sheets. Slush and ice of the ground. Women freezing in the streets to sell their wares (mobile phone cards or jars of pickles). Men wandering, talking into their cell phones. Today, on the street, we heard a Brit talking into his cell phone. Two weeks ago, I would have died to hear him talk; after being home for two weeks, listening to all the English I could handle, it wasn't such a treat. I realized, though, in another couple of months, I'd be back, roaming the streets of Kyiv, listening for that man's voice again. Until you're in another country, living under a different language, you might not understand the joy in hearing your native tongue.

 

The political parties are out on the streets, gearing up for the elections. It's nice to see people out on the streets, supporting causes that are important to them. Everyone has his or her flag, scarf, or banner in support of their candidate. There are so many parties, I can't even begin to count. But they must be worthy candidates because these people are standing out in the freezing cold, waving their flags all day.  Worthy or else rich.

 

Karen and I are in Kyiv for another 24 hours. Then we take a train up to S-town. We'll get in at 11pm, so we'll get to lug our suitcases home in the dark. Looking forward to being in our new home--as we've just switched host families. We didn't even have the chance to unpack; we were there less than 24 hours before I found out about my grandmother and had to go home.

 

Anyway, I should end this before I ramble on some more.  Missing in all and wishing you all health, love, and life.

 

back in ukraine

Just writing to let you all know that we are safely back in Ukraine. Jet lag is crushing my brain, but other than that, we are okay.  It was nice to be home in Cali, although I wish it wasn't a funeral that took me home. It was nice to see my family and my friends. Also, it was nice to avoid the -25C weather here.

Hope all is well.

airborne

Somewhere between two places, we are airborne.

This time at home has allowed me to reflect on the positive things, the simplicity, that I am growing to love about Ukraine.

And when in Ukraine, I was remembering fondly all of the advantages and conveniences of life in the U.S.

When fully immersed in one or the other, it's easy to become frustrated by the day-to-day challenges. When far away from either I find myself focusing on the good.

Today we are somewhere in the middle.

68

Is how many times a day I think about her.
Is how many times a second I wish she were still here.
Is how many warm memories I have every moment I think of her.
Is how many kisses I wish I could still give her.

Is how many wonderful years she had lived.

My grandmother was an amazing, strong, beautiful, unique woman who I wish you could have met.

Who I wish I could have met again when I came home.

Who I wish everyday that I could see again.

hello

Apparently i've been sending my blog updates to the wrong address!  Here's an update from several weeks ago!

 

I'm glad to be writing to you all.  It's been quite a while since I've
been able to send an update. Karen and I are settled into our new site
in the Northwest of Ukraine. We are speaking a lot of Ukrainian here,
and we are learning some Russian along the way.

Our new host family is nice.  The house is small, but comfortable.
There isn't a lot of room for our stuff (and we togther have less
stuff than many single volunteers do), but we'll make due for three
months.  We are located on a road that I used to dream about, so I
feel comfortable that this is a good place for us.  And the host
mother, who works at the local hospital, calls me Laren.  Those of you
who confuse my name and Karen's name will find humour in this.  The
host family is very nice.  The food is very good.  The host daughter
speaks very good English, but only speaks Ukrainian with us.  We are
happy to be where we are.

We spent a week in Kyiv after we left our previous city. We didn't see
much besides the poorly illuminated walls of the Santitorium Prolisok.
 We were glad to see our friends, some of whom we dearly miss now, but
we weren't sad to leave that building.  Of course, we'll be going back
there soon for a language refresher in Feb.

It's cold here.

Cold.

I just want to emphasize that. Ice on the road and all.  Ever walked
on ice--some of you surely have.  If not, go to your local ice skating
rink, put on some boots (no fair cheating with skates!) and take a few
steps forward.  Fun, eh?  Now, do it all the way across town!  Yes,
not so fun anymore, eh?

Life is good here, and we are doing fine.  We miss our families over
the holidays, but, then again, we miss our families everyday. We are
settling in here near the Belarus border--hoping we don't accidently
cross it--and finding that work at our sites will be fun and
challenging. Our coordinators are nice. Every woman we meet wants to
be our mother.  Those of you who know how well I work with being told
what to do will find this especially funny.  But, it's also nice. Nice to be taken care. Nice to be
worried for.

We spent Christmas on a train.  That was not so bad as we were able to
talk to our families back at home.  Thank god for cell phones in Peace
Corps.  Lucky us.  We also played cribbage on the train with some
fellow volunteers.  I 15-2'ed all up in that mother.

To end, I want to wish all who read this, and everyone you know, a
very merry holiday season.  I'll share one last thing before i go:

ukrayinska jittya

Or: Ukrainian Life.

Whenever somethign happens that didn't go quite according to plan,
everyone says, "That's Ukrainian Life!"  Missed the bus?  That's
Ukrainian life. Fell on the ice? That's Ukrainian life.  Walk into
your house and find men you didn't expect to see building a new door?

You guessed it: That's Ukrainian life.

Until next time, pohkah.
 

Old/New Year

A few of our previous posts didn't go through, so we'll have to get you up to speed.

We are getting settled in our permanent town. It's smaller than where we lived during training, but grows on me more each day. We've made friends with some of the shop ladies and the woman at the bank who understands when we try to explain our transactions. People have been welcoming and patient.

An interesting note on people's obsession with feeding us here...they adopt the "do as I say, not as I do" policy. They continuously say "eat, eat," "it's necessary to try everything," "you haven't eaten anything," and we are chowing down Thanksgiving-style, while others are sitting there with maybe a few bites of salad or potatoes on their plate. No fair! Some people don't seem to realize that when I'm hungry...I eat. And when I'm full, I usually stop. We've also discovered it's not good to call them out on the fact that THEY'RE not eating anything. That would be too logical. ;)

We've been overwhelmed with your mail. Christmas cards, postcards, etc. Thank you so much! If you don't have our new address, check your email, or let us know and we'll send it again.

No reliable access to internet yet in town. So this will be sporadic, at best.

Happy New Year! (it's old new year here now...long history, different calendars...)

We'll try to get some photos out to you soon.

xoxoo

December in Ukraine

Trouble accessing email today, so I will try here.

We had a great Ukrainian lesson today. Lots of talking, not too much conjugating or figuring out what cases to use. This language is amazingly complicated, which makes it beautiful yet frustrating at times.

Have been meaning to mention that they use abacuses (?) here! You remember, those little metal rods with different color beads that you move up or down to count things. Every time I buy an international stamp at the P.O. the woman uses an abacus to add my 3,30 to 3,30, and it always comes out right!

They also use "real" brooms. Not those plastic things we have, actual branches from a once-living thing all tied together. They work really well too. We've been using one to wipe the snow off our shoes before entering the house.

The snow melted last week during our "head wave" (haha), I think it got up to 10 degrees C. This morning it was 1 degree (plus) and I thought it wasn't so cold. Imagine that. It snowed again a few nights ago, but now it's mostly slush. I'm getting better at walking on it, though we're all destined to fall eventually.

Headed home to study and plan our community event. We will hold an "English Teachers Appreciation Night" on Wednesday and invite local teachers from different schools. It's a chance to share ideas and get them together to chat. Then Friday L and I are teaching a seminar on how adapt an old-fashioned textbook and make it more communicative. Should be a productive, yet super busy, week.

Hope you are all well and staying warm. We think of you often, especially now that it's becoming holiday time.

Big hugs!

peace corps ukraine rocks

PC Ukraine does an amazing job of taking care of its volunteers. So to all our friends and family, please know that we are in good hands--and know that the writing has been sparse lately because we've been SUPER DUPER busy!

Three weeks til swearing in!

--Staying warm in Ukraine: LL & KH

site announcement

We are assigned to a city in the Rivnenska Oblast.

Near Belarus.

The city started life as a train station.

I'll be teaching at two sites, a Lyceum or Economics and Law and a Collegium. I'll be teaching English, Business English, and US History (if nothing changes, which is impossible). Karen will be teaching at a pedagogical college.

We leave for our site visit tomorrow.

Monday in Kyiv

Little did we know, today is a special day in Kyiv. We passed by hundreds of demonstrators in the center, and our driver had to take a very long detour. More on that in email (perhaps).

We are in Kyiv for one day, to find out where they will send of for the next two years. If it were up to me, I would have us stay exactly where we are in P-town. Our host family is incredible, and we are learning our way around town. This morning as we were leaving to catch the 7:15am marshrutka, babusya told us that she has gotten used to having us around the house and she feels pity that we will leave. We assured her we would return in 2 weeks after our site visit, but it was so kind of her to tell us that. We even got a hug from our host mother when we left. It was the first for each of us.

I have been getting your letters and emails. Thank you. Dyakuyu. It is so nice to hear news from home.

We might be sent to a place with internet, or we might be sent to a place with outhouses and no hot water, so you may not hear from us for 2 weeks but please don't worry. We are healthy and happy.

Speaking of hot water...the other night when I went to take a shower (we have to sit down in the tub, but it's closer to a shower than a bath cause you have to wash with the trickle of water that comes out of the spout) I turned the hot water heater up too high, and the water actually began to boil in the pipes. I knew I had done something wrong, but I wasn't sure what to do about it. Babusya came over and turned off the hot water entirely, so at first it was freezing, then hot again, then freezing, and you get the idea. I opted not to shampoo my hair, in case the water was too hot to rinse it out. Hehe...maybe too much information, but you can appreciate the small differences (luxuries) of being home.

All our love. xoxoo

metro

10 cents to ride the metro to Kyiv.

 

A million dollars worth of stories.

voda or vodu

In about six days or so we head towards the capital to discover where our permanent site will be. We will stay with our future host family for a week and then come back for some technical sessions. I am hoping beyond hope to go to a place in Ukraine whee I can make full use of the Ukrainian language. You can read into that how you will.

 

In other news, it is nice to receive letters from friends and family back home. I haven't heard from my family yet, but I am hoping their words are on the way. We've heard from some friends of ours from school; it is so nice to keep in contact with what is going on back in the States.

 

The language here is picking up. When I first got here, I walked into a shop hoping for a pencil and some tissue. I walked out with a pen and some beer. There days, I more or less get what I want if the shop attendant can understand my jumbled words. Yesterday I bought some slipper and journals. One journal was an adventure as the shop keeper dug through her pile until she could find the right one for me. I stuck it in my bag and didn't look at it really close until I got home. There I found that I had an American Chopper journal, replete with Paul Sr. My uncle would be so proud.  In case you don't know, there is only one self serve shop where I live.  Everywhere else, you have to ask for what you want. It turns each trip for bread or toilet paper into a life or death task. It was really hard when I had zero/nul/NONE of the language, but it was a great way to practice the language.  I didn't realize how badly I could fuck up asking for water in a second language, but with all the cases in Ukrainian, one sentence can vary about 70 different ways. Voda or vodu or whatever ever else it can be.

 

That as it is, the days of death are fewer these days.

 

Wishing you love from Ukraine.

blood in ukraine

They tell us that Ukraine will seem the same, but you'll eventually find the differences. It's like a picture puzzle in the newspaper, sectioned off near the jumble and the crossword puzzle, where you have to find the five differences between the two pictures. Between the US and Ukraine. Yesterday, I began to find the differences.

 

On the train from I to P, three fisherman boarded. They sat down next to this girl who asked them, I think, to leave. They did not. They were sitting directly across the aisle from me. They began to attack her with questions. Then, eventually, to make a long, long story short, the men started to fight with each other. By the end, the one nearest the window wound up with a bloody nose.

 

The first difference: no one stood up to break it up; no one really noticed.

counterstrike

When I was a Freshman, a Sophomore in college, I studied. Don't get me wrong. I read a lot. I also, however, played a little game called Counter-Strike. After many months of long nights eliminating the terrorist scum, I gave up my drug and studied more earnestly. As a result, my grades went up.

Every now and again, home in FOrtuna, I play CS with my cousin. He still plays, now that he's a freshman in college. Once I boarded the plane for Ukraine, I knew that part of my life was behind me.

Wrong.

Every internet cafe I go into, regardless of time of day, there are little boys playing CS. I see the drug working its magic. I see the addiction.

I also see that these kids have some 1337 skills. R0}{oR and all that.

It's strange for me to see. Ukraine is in such a transition. Counterstrike along side of babucyas selling sunflower seeds on the street. Old brick buildings falling down on the main street while new, modern buildings get put up on secluded side streets.

It is an experience I find hard to depict.

poor kids

When we first arrived, our host mother introduced us to babusya T and she said "poor kids."

So far I disagree. This place is really growing on me.

Went to church with our host family on Sunday. Stood in a line while people lit candles and the main guy sang and swung an incense ball. Then went to a huge bazaar that reminded me of a super-crowded swap meet. Met our host father's sister and her husband. When he heard we were from CA, he asked what we grow there. I'll have to learn that in Ukrainian.

We're studying food now, so I can finally say, NO REALLY, I'M FULL! Every time I serve myself, they say "Malo!" which to me means bad (Spanish), but they're saying I'm not serving myself enough. They worry every time I sneeze, but I try to convince them for me it's normal.

My body feels especially healthy here, and my spirits are high.

We look forward to hearing from you.
xoooo

Week 2

So we've begun to get a routine, but are still adjusting to our new life.

This morning we woke up around 7 and ate breakfast with our host mother L. We had oats and a Kix-like cereal covered in yogurt. Tasty. We've finally convinced them that we don't need greasy, meaty heaps in the morning. We dressed and met the fellow married couple volunteers (who live across the street) to walk to our language instructor's home together. We stopped at the bazaar to buy some snacks, and I got some peppermint tea.

We spend about 5-6 hrs per day studied language, and it's coming slowly. Larry is nearly putting together correctly-conjugated sentences but I'm still pointing and naming words. It will be a long process, but we're determined. We remind ourselves it's only been a week.

The food continues to be tasty, and our host family so kind. We wash our shoes in the bathroom sink when we get home because they are muddy. I am perpetually asked if I am cold, while Larry is scoffed at if he wears a hat.

More soon. We love hearing from you.

xoxoo

meeting

Met with the mayor of P-town today. He is a very nice man....

 

Observing my first class tomorrow. Karen is too. Then we start teaching soon.

Very soon.

alive in Ukraine

Here.

 

Sick.

 

Here.

Day 1 of Staging

We arrived in Chicago with no problems. Larry even got up and walked up and down the aisle on the plane. There was crazy rush hour traffic when we arrived, so it took nearly 2 hours to get to the hotel, but some deep-dish Chicago pizza was waiting.

We've checked in and begun our paperwork. In a few minutes we're meeting with half the group (58 people) in one of our hotel's meeting rooms. Most people we've met seem really nice; a lot of Californians.

After our free breakfast this morning we went in the jacuzzi. That felt great on my legs, tired from a long travel day yesterday. Trying to appreciate all the amenities that will soon be luxurious or maybe even impossibilities.

More soon.

xoxoo

aqui en chicago

Supposed to be in training. Filling out forms and what not. just realized we needed some different loan forms, so we snuck away.

 

Sneaky, sneaky, sneaky.

 

Everything is going great in Chi town so far.

 

Mas despues.

tomorrow

I'd take a picture, but a picture doesn't do it any justice. Standing in the kitchen, booting the scale, balancing ourselves on the balls of our feet so we can read the red, digital numbers.

I've got one bag at 46 lbs. Karen's got one at 46 lbs as well.

We're each allowed one more at 50 lbs, but our second bags are small duffels and only weigh 20-25 lbs.

Off to Chicago tomorrow. All the goodbyes almost behind us, though they get no easier--no matter what we say. I've been waiting years to say this:

Tomorrow.

If I can't get to the blog again for a while, remember 16 October 2005. That's the day you can go to Perigee-art.com and read the first installment of my quarterly on my PC experience.

 

Save the date!

tres dias mas

I said last night at dinner that it seems as though we're on vacation here in SD. It seems like we'll be returning to our regular lives and routines once we leave.

 

That, however, is not the case. No more regular life for a while.

 

Three days.

blood in disneyland

First full day down in SD.  We went to Disneyland yesterday. I had so much fun there, but I imagine I'm the only one to ever draw blood on the Tarzan Treehouse (formerly the Swiss Family Robinson treehouse) in the history of Disneyland. That was a fun one to explain to first aid.

 

Because we went on a Thursday, ther were hardly any lines. We just walked into Space Mountain (twice), Indiana Jones (twice), and only had to wait 20 minutes for Splash Mountain. Man, I had a fun time.

 

Today we're going to try to organize all of our crap while we have a free day.  We don't want to take away from hanging out time in order to get packed and stuff, so we are going to do it today while everyone else has lives to live.

not relevant, but noteworthy

So we're moving. Dust and boxes and cashish. But that doesn't matter.  Check this out.

Karen's done with the golf course. No more putting up with rich people bs. No more grilling up some cheese sandwiches. No more manufacturing tuna salad--which, I might add, she never made for me. It's over. Done.

But before the end, she received a gift from her work. She won it at a company picnic she never went to. Have I ever mentioned how much she hated that job?

Anyway, what she won was a $50 gift certificate to Sticks, a restaurant at Spanish Bay in Pebble Beach--the same inn we stayed a for our honeymoon. We made a reservation a few weeks ago for tonight, and tonight we went made our grand appearance.

So we sit down at this table in the corner. There's windows on all sides. As we eat--other than watching the Giants trounce the Nationals (this ritzy place had a sports bar theme--just substitute golf and other bs old people sports for real sports)--we can watch the Pacific smash into the Monterey Bay coastline. This scene was the same view we had nine months ago when we woke up, rose petals plastered all over our bodies--in our ginormous suite. I don't like many rich people, or the lives that they lead, but this place was okay with me for one night.

Our waiter comes over, and we hand him our gift certificate. He asks us if we know what the certificate entails. Of course we say no.  So he tells us we get two appetizers, two salads, two entrees, and two desserts. All drinks, except alcohol, are covered too.

Here's the dinner breakdown:

Karen orders mozzarella sticks ; I order calamari. $20 total

I order salad. $7 total

Karen orders a bacon hamburger; I order new york steak. $37 total

Karen orders a sweet ass chocolate chip cookie thing; I order cheesecake. $16 total

I also ordered a glass of Morgan 12 clone Pinot--the very same we celebrated my first place, prize-winning short story with. $9 total

Bill: $9 total (+ the fat tip we left)

Freaking, freaking, freaking sweet.

It was a pretty amazing experience to have as the one last big one we'll have of this area. I'm thankful for it.

Tomorrow, we're out of Monterey for a coupla years.

sonic boom for my brother

In Berkeley. We're in that part of the calendar that sees us in SF for the final time.  Last night, we were in Daly City with all of our friends.  We bowled.

 

My brother and my nephew made it out early in the day, so we hung out with them and our friend Ken most of the day. Video games and comida mexicana. Then we went to the bowling alley around 9 pm. Everyone, except us, was a little late--Greg was late because he was recording the song he wrote and played for the first dance at our wedding in January, so we can have it on our iPod. (It's a good song; ask us to listen to it on the plane.) Aw we were early, we ordered some bowling food.  My brother and I played Street Fighter II Turbo in the arcade. I kicked his ass; no one mess with my Guile.

 

Yep. It was bad-ass.

 

We haven't played video games together since we were 15.

 

Bowling, Ken got over 200. The rest of us, we were fighting to get over 100. Out of two games, I accomplished that once. We yelled and drank and threw balls around until midnight. So fun.

 

Off to Golden Gate Park for a Peace Corps festival. I think we're meeting a chick from UA 29 there today. Greg and my brother and nephew are coming too. Should be fun. Then Thai food tonight. Albatross afterwards--a bar where you can check out board games.

 

More later!

Reality Check

It's starting to set in.

15 days!
2 weeks from tomorrow we'll be on a plane to Chicago.

I finished my last shift at Quail today...thank goodness. That's one thing I won't miss about our life here. Although driving into Carmel Valley in the morning, clear sunshine in stark contrast to Monterey's fog, can be breathtaking.

We bought an iPod (yay!) and are busy getting our music onto it. The "shuffle" mode is very interesting...as Larry's music and mine can be pretty humorous together. Not unlike us at times. I just had Nirvana, followed by Weezer, then Garth Brooks, Greg Milholland, Rod Stewart, and now Lauryn Hill (phew).

We'll be out of our apartment in one week. Wow. But we're doing good, packing a bit each day...and I think it will all fit in my car. Let's hope, cause there's really no other choice. Larry donated his backpack to "We've got your back" that gives school supplies to Katrina victims. We've given more than half our clothes to Goodwill so far. Most of our furniture will sell for $5 - $10, and the rest of it will get put on the street with a "FREE" sign.

I feel like my mode is on fast forward. Soon we'll have said all our goodbyes and will be looking back from the other side of the bowling ball.

The iPod just went from Blink-182 (from Poway, like me) to Ben Harper (from Claremont, where I went to college). It's magically charting my forward progress. Luckily, Larry's music tastes and mine intersect somewhere in musicland around Dave Matthews and Ricardo Arjona. For now we are content with the shuffle mode, but I'm certain we will be longing to hit "Pause" soon enough.

washers

Not only do you get some hot little arse shots of my cousin and I, you get to see one piece of the washers board. I'm in the throwing position. My cousin is waiting to the side, about to be beaten. Pure ownage captured on film.

Greg was my teammate and, despite him, we pulled into the winner's circle in a best of three series.

For the game, there are two boxes--I'm standing on one in this picture--connected by a length of chain. In each box are cut three four-inch (I think) diameter holes. Into these holes you--and your opponent at the other side-- toss three three-inch diameter (I think) washers. First to 21 without going over (holes are worth one, three, and five points in the order of how far away they are from you) wins. Each person has a partner standing at the other box ready to do the same thing. Last scoring team from the previous round throws first. The other team has a chance to cover your washer and steal your points. If building the boxes sucks, you can always dig holes in the ground [probably what I'll do in Ukraine when I have washers club after school--don't doubt me!].

I win sometimes; I'm really good at games that go to 21.

Really good.

grey days

The grey ghost is gone.

Sold.

I've hit the place in my life where I've sold my first car.

I kept the memories though; I pulled them out of the glove box at the last second.

Barstow. Vegas. St Paul. Omaha. Fortuna. Missoula. Reno. Riverside. Los Angeles. Rohnert Park. Life.

le sigh

laundry list

Right now, I've been assigned the task of cleaning the house. Ridding it of clutter. Piling up the stuff to sell; readying the pile to pack.

Right now, I'm ripping CDs for the (one day to be purcahsed) iPod.

Karen and I spent the last week (Wed-Wed) travelling up and back to my family's places in Humboldt. It was a good time where I was able to spend quality time with everyone. It was normal. None of that we-know-this-is-the-end-and-we're-going-to-act-like-it stuff. It's nice to have the goodbye be more of a hanging out. My family threw a bye-bye/b-day party for us on Labor Day. It was nice to see everyone together. Having fun. Drinking beer. Playing washers.

The final final adios was okay. I didn't tear up til we were 20 miles south. Those first 30 miles were tough; I'd never wanted to turn a car north so badly.

Stayed at Steve's in Rohnert Park for the night. Hung out, had some good food, good spa.

Back to Monterey yesterday and work. Only a few more sessions of that, most of them small on the planning side. Finally got a paycheck for that job, so I'm in a better mood. Should be getting another check soon.

Saturday is my Bday; next Saturday is our party in the Bay.

Perigee piece is due Saturday.

Thirteen days til we're out of Monterey for good.

Lots and lots to do.

katrina

http://www.redcross.org/

 

Money ain't nothin' but paper, but sometimes it can do good.

 

Please, do good.

30

And the countdown reaches 1 month.

It's my turn to weigh in. DING (the bell)! Just so you all know that Larry's not the only one getting excited.

I've bought some boots from LL Bean. They should arrive soon. They seem warm and comfy, but we'll see.

We're on the first leg of the Bon Voyage Tour, to Joy and Odette's tonight and then heading up to see Larry's family tomorrow. It will be our first big goodbye. The Going Away party should be fun though. Greg and Anne will be there, along with George and Donna. Hooray! Hopefully I won't be too allergic to Foxy.

Things that I'm getting most excited about:
1) Having my first conversation in my (soon-to-be) 3rd language
2) Salty bread at the welcome ceremony
3) Learning customs and superstitions
4) Being cold (that will last about 5 minutes)
5) Receiving mail from the U.S!
6) Meeting adventurous new friends

Time for Joy to make us some dinner....mmmm!

passin go and collectin two bills

Dental clearance!

No more holds!

I'm rich, biatch!

diversion

In 1967, Robert F. Kennedy, in the course of a campaign speech, said the following about measuring value:

"Our gross national product, now, is over eight hundred billion dollars a year, but that GNP - if we should judge America by that - counts air pollution and cigarette advertising and ambulances to clear our highways of carnage. It counts special locks for our doors and the jails for those who break them. It counts the destruction of our redwoods and the loss of our natural wonder to chaotic sprawl. It counts napalm and the cost of a nuclear warhead, and armored cars for police who fight riots in our streets. It counts Whitman's rifle and speck's knife and the television programs, which glorify violence in order to sell toys to our children."

"Yet the gross national product does not allow for the health of our children, nor the quality of their education, or the joy of their play - it does not include the beauty of our poetry or the strength of our marriages or the intelligence of our public debate. It measures neither our wit nor our courage, neither our wisdom nor our learning, neither our compassion nor our devotion to our country. It measures everything, in short, except that which makes life worthwhile. And it tells us everything about America except why we are proud to be Americans."

29

Back from Yosemite. What an amazing trip. We climbed to the top of Vernal Falls, the Sentinel Dome, and went down to the base of Yosemite Falls. We also stayed up late one night and went to a star show in the valley. We camped in the North Pines grounds, so we had a good view of Half Dome for almost all of our trip. It had been two years since I'd been to Yosemite. Oh how I missed it.

Amazing.

Amazing.

Trying to sell the Nova. not having so much luck so far. Maybe soon? Headed up to HumCo again on Thursday. Would really like to have it sold by then.

Having a going away party at my parent's house on Labor Day. Friends and family and beer and washers--If you don't know how to play washers, I'll show you if we meet in Ukr. What more could one want?

Just realized today--don't know why I didn't notice sooner--that our anniversary date is the same number as our Ukraine group.

29.

Weird.

Also, my Mom's 48th falls on the day of our swearing in. My last day as a Peace Corps volunteer--bar injury--will land on her 50th.

What a present for her!

Lastly, writing that piece for Perigee is harder than I thought. It's been a while since I've picked up a pen with any real intent, so the doubt--Lamott's "KFKD"--blaring at 10 in my head.

Bah...more planning for class to do.

lull

It's so close, but I'm finding that I'm giving it relatively little attention.

Too busy travelling and working, but I know it's creeping up.

In fact, I think I'm aware of it enough to know that I'm probably avoiding looking at that little countdown clock in the corner.

Off to my favorite place on Earth tomorrow with my favorite person on Earth (sorry Justin): Yosemite & Karen.

tooths

FedExed the confirmation of completed crown and filling work.

Ready to get dentally cleared a second time.

That or scream a lot--right here.

Stay tuned. Same bat-time, yadda yadda.

let's do the time warp again

Just for the record, I can't even believe it's 18 August.

 

This month has freakin' flown.

 

Home in HumCo getting the crown on my right middle molar. Then it'll be back to Monterey.

 

Monday, I get to see my beautiful wife again.

 

That Friday: Yosemite.

 

The following Wednesday: back to HumCo.

 

September will be here before I know it; I'll be 24 before I can adequately reflect on being 23.  Then we'll be gone.

 

It still seems like so far away, though I know it isn't.

 

I'm getting to the point where I wish i could do the time warp dance and slow the clock down. I'm really going to miss everyone.

 

le sigh....

do meni

So, Gmail just added the ability to switch all of the text (except for email text) into Ukrainian.

I don't think you needed any further proof of how amped (or sad or nerdy) I am to be learning a new language, but there you go.

it's my birthday...early!

Such good news today.

First, I flew back from SD this morn'. Saw the in-law folken and all that. I had a good time, though for one of the days I was pretty silent--something I'm usually not. Usually I open mouth and think of things later; there, I think a long time before I say anything. I guess I'm afraid of saying the wrong thing--dunno why.  I love her 'rents.  Anyway, I'm not used to thinking so hard when I speak, so I usually say nothing. Not good with 46 days left. Next trip, I'll talk--all else be damned.

Next, Jocelyn, this girl from our group, turns out I've met her before.  She worked for Concordia Language Villages the same year I did--check me out in this CLV video http://clvweb.cord.edu/prweb/english/video/elv_lg.mov (high-bandwidth only); I'm the sexy red-head with the crappy guitar. She was with the Russian village we trained with. Small f'in world.

Further, Perigee wrote back.  The text of their letter:

Dear Lawrence,

Thanks for thinking of Perigee as a venue for your non-fiction, and for your proposal. After some discussion, all the editors agree this sounds like a viable recurring contribution to Perigee. More than that, something which will interest our readers.

So we are interested in taking this to the next level--and if all goes well, establishing your Peace Corps writings as a regular part of Perigee--under the understanding that Perigee reserves the right to edit the work (we would communicate with you during this process) and even to decline it. This will be particularly true with the first "installment."

Keep in mind that we have found prose longer than 3,500 words to be difficult to present in an online fashion; this word limit is flexible (for you), but we suggest you consider it.

The editors normally meet three to four weeks before an issue is released. We would need to have your writing in our hands prior to this meeting. The time frame of deadlines would therefore be September 15th, December 15th, March 15th, and June 15th.

If all of this sounds reasonable to you, let me know so we can look forward to receiving your first installment.

And congratulations on embarking on this new and exciting journey!

Kind Regards,

Robert Judge Woerheide

Perigee Editor in Chief

www.perigee-art.com

**************************************

Jesus jumping Christmas, such a day!

Lastly, they've just released Gmail in Ukrainian. It's all Cyrillic on my screen.

I know, I can't read it very well yet....

So?
  

class, class, and lonely planet

Overstock.com has the new Lonely Planet Ukraine guide on the cheap. It's a really good guide; probably the best one I've read. Or maybe the only one I've read--I never really "read" the others, just used them as a, surprise, guide.

Ukrainian is coming along nicely. My students at the DLI say I'm in a good position to remember the new language simply because I am younger than they are. They like to bring my age up at least once a week. Doesn't bother me cuz the class is going fantastically.

My ESL class up near Santa Cruz ends tomorrow. Graduation and tears. These girls make up the best class I've ever had.

Ever.

We had a portfolio party today--Peter S. would have been so proud. All eight students got to show off the work they've done during the summer semester. I am so proud of them.

Tomorrow: CinderReiLa--a play of Cinderella starring Rei and the rest of the class.

Back to PC, we received a list of Ukraine 29 email addresses today. There's something like 109 people signed up and ready to go to Ukraine with us.

The group is making to be the biggest in PC history.

Still waiting to hear from Perigee about doing a quarterly non-fiction piece for them about my experiences in Ukraine.

The fingers are slammed together, hoping they say yes.

50 days left!

independent since 1981

Reading a new blog Karen pointing me toward, I tripped over these lines:

"I must be like a turtle- and not be afraid to wave my legs wildly if I flip over! This is hard for us independent Americans who would like to feel that we are strong enough to handle things on our own."

I never really thought that the American tendency towards independence--which I most certainly embody in every way I can think of--would be tested in Ukraine. I guess with all the advice, the packing lists, the preparations, and the history, I never really stopped to think about how a key--and well loved--piece of my personality might affect my cross-cultural experience.

Hrm....

no definite article

I read an article about Ukraine from my daily Google alert.

It was all about the Ukraine.

The.

The.

The.

Soviet era behind us, the collective American conscience still clings to the definite article.

I tried to write a letter to the editor of that newspaper, but it bounced back. Apparently, they dislike constructive criticism.

In other news, Karen had completed her last teaching job before we hit the Peace Corps. I'm still working on both of mine, but my biggest ends on Friday. Once Friday is done, we're headed to San Diego to see the family. Then the weekends we sat down and planned for six weeks ago start hitting. Between visiting nearly everyone we know, buying stuff for Ukraine, selling everything else we own, and packing we'll be just as busy as we've been over the past five weeks.

Only this time, with more fun.

Not that teaching isn't fun.

But fun is funner or, as Karen says, "More fun."

lemme tell you about some bs

In case you hear in the news that the law that allows military personnel to serve in the Peace Corps was unknown to the entire Peace Corps organization, I just want you to know that that line is

total

bullshit.

Karen and I knew about this deal over two months ago, and we aren't privy to information PC brass like Vasquez isn't. We're the peons entering this goddamned organization, remember?

Military in the Peace Corps makes Karen and I LESS SAFE.

And I'm not just saying this cuz I'm not a fan of the president of the USA.

Host country nationals already suspect PC volunteers as military or intelligence operatives. This action makes it worse.

Join with me; write your senator. Tell them that Peace Corps needs to maintain the seperation from the military and intelligence communities that Kennedy intended when he created the Peace Corps.

Here's the links:

To listen to the news report: http://marketplace.publicradio.org

To read the news report: http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/08/01/AR2005080101310.html

Locate contact info for your congressional rep:
http://www.house.gov/writerep/

For your Senator:
http://www.senate.gov/general/contact_information/senators_cfm.cfm

I don't usually implore people to run with my politics, but I am now.

Write and help keep us safe.

Enchantment of the World

I've picked up a great book called "Ukraine: Enchantment of the World." It's aimed at teens, but much more my style than the long, dry history books Larry goes after. This book has pictures and everything!

Some things I've learned so far from my new book:

-CDs and ice cream cones are much cheaper in Ukraine than the U.S. (except for maybe in Kiev)
-About 20% of Ukrainians work on farms
-Their major crop is sugar beets, with potatoes and wheat close behind
-Ukraine is the largest European country, slightly larger than France
-Ukraine's name comes from the Slavic word okraina, meaning "borderland"
-People have lived in Ukraine for about 150,000 years
-Ukraine has 24 regions called oblasts and one autonomous republic (Crimea)
-Soccer is the national sport of Ukraine, its first match was in 1894
-Ukrainian weddings can last 3 or more days
-Ukraine celebrates International Women's Day in March
-Average temperature extremes: 18 degrees F in January, 77 degrees F in July

Larry and I try to study some Ukrainian in the evenings. We've both got the alphabet down, and are learning greetings and emergency words. The pronunciation can be tricky, especially the backwards "N" sound.

Happy studying! About 2 months left!

45 rpm, slow speed

First, I can't believe it's still July. Jesus, this has to be the longest month of the year. Someone once wrote to me and said that, in Ukraine, I'll understand what, "The days seem like months and the months seem like days," means. I think I've begun my understanding of that phrase. Work has made the weeks fly by, but each day seems like an eon. I haven't figured out if it's the wait for Peace Corps that has made this month crawl or if it's really just God dragging his finger along the July 2005 vinyl, eking out a few extras tones on his stereo.

Bah. In one month, I'll be saying, "Jesus, I can't believe August is already over!" Just you wait.

In other news, Karen and I met with a fellow from Ukraine 28 (back in the states for a few months because of some needed hearing aids) at the Mucky Duck--Karen hates that place, but you sure as hell can't beat the Happy Hour there. We met for a snack and some drinks. I purchased two Sierras right off the bat, one for each of the following reasons: (1) we knew it'd be a long talk and (2) Happy Hour ended at seven pm and we had arrived at 6:45pm.

So we talked [...] almost the entire time, which was fine with me considering I was excited to hear anything about Ukraine. Karen, I believe, tuned out. There was sports (and this really great sports show) on the tele.

This fellow did tell us that we wouldn't see Kyiv--except for the bits from the plane and in the airport--for about three weeks. So, we must find a phone card and call home from somewhere other than the capitol.

Next, we learned that fish and radishes are high on the Ukrainian food ladder. I hate radishes. Karen hates fish. Guess we'll be getting over that.

We also learned that it was a good idea to buy a cell phone once we got to Kyiv. Never thought I'd have a cell phone in Peace Corps. Outgoing calls to the US are ridiculously priced, he said, but incoming is free...for us. Also, if we have one with text messaging, we could text around Ukraine and to the US. The phones, he says, have English and Ukrainian characters. Once we get there, we'll see if this cell phone business is really necessary.

[...]

Next day (yesterday), we met with our PC advisor at MIIS. She laid out our class schedule for when we return from PC. If we start as soon as we can, we'll begin classes about three weeks after PC ends. I don't like that idea, but we may be ready to get it over with by then. If so, Karen's got a large load the first semester--if she decides to stick with the LPA biz. We shall see.

In other news, I want to take the Trans-Siberian Railway (TSR) some time while I am in Eastern Europe. I'd take it from Moscow and ride it all the way to Beijing. Lofty, maybe. Exciting, yes. Right now, though, that's my big plan. Want to read about it? http://www.hostels.ru/

That's all for now. Just getting a little more involved with PC again. Finishing my dental in 21 days. By then, August will be halfway over.

By then, it'll seem like today was only yesterday.

[...] [At the behest of my wife, I've edited some comments].

racing

Time is flying. I've still been checking our Yahoo groups and reading the pre-service training CD that Peace Corps sent, but I devote much less time each day to thinking and learning about Ukraine. We are so busy teaching, and it's hard to believe it's already almost August.

August!??

The countdown ticker seems to have sped up. I imagine soon I'll get the urge to slam on the brakes. September used to seem so far off. We've filled up our time left in the States, scheduled our weekends nearly full. The best advice I've read from current or past volunteers is to spend time with your friends and family, eat your favorite foods, and relax. No matter how much of this difficult language I learn, I will feel lost at first. No matter how much macaroni and cheese I eat, I will miss it. No matter how many emails or postcards I send, my family and friends will be far.

So I try to enjoy each day and not think about how quickly the countdown is moving. It will soon be time to pack and say goodbye. And I will.

so true

From Peace Corps 2:

illipse <> wrote:
"this is a dumb question, but when you arrive in country, does the PC
have anything arranged so you can call your family and let them know
you arrived safely? Do they let you use their phones? Or do you have
to hunt down a phone card and some free time and do it on your own?"

Response:

"Free time, do it on you your own and on your own dime.

Remember, they certainly would let you family know if you DIDN'T arrive safely!"

If we don't arrive, Peace Corps will be calling you. If you do not hear from us or from Peace Corps, please rest assured that everything is probably fine. My mom doesn't read this, but other important people do. So keep this in mind. I'll be repeating as the days tick away!

No call, no worry.

Call (and it isn't me), worry.

Chicago

Hope you didn't take the bet, cause Larry was right (like usual).

We're going to arrive in Chicago on September 30th, to begin staging. Unfortunately both the Cubs and White Sox will be on the road. But we probably wouldn't have had much time, between shots and paperwork, to catch a game anyway.

Approaching the 2 months left mark....

rediculously shameless

I took first place in a pretty cool fiction contest. They also pub'd two of my poems.

The issue goes live manana.

Check 'em out if you can deal with vulgar language, crude sexual situations, and thoughts you'd (not) expect to come from my mind (if you know me).

www.perigee-art.com

P.S. If you're my mother-in-law, I hearby take leave of my (Karen's?) senses and invite you to read. I'd like to share this part of my life with you. I sincerely apologize in advance.

a lull

The roller coaster analogy could not be any more perfect for how Larry and I have been feeling toward Peace Corps for the past month or so. It definitely applied during the application process, with the frustration and waiting and excitement and the unknown all mushed together.

The days when he was staying up late reading every line of new information he could find about Ukraine have slowed, or perhaps I should say, completelly disappeared for now.

I feel pretty positive about the fact that we WILL go, and that they WON'T find some random, illogical reason that we shouldn't end up there.

Peace Corps has sent language practice materials to other volunteers in our group, so perhaps in a few days we'll know if we're learning Russian or Ukrainian. I assume we'll learn both eventually, but we will know which to focus on more intently at first.

We take turns feeling excited and pessimistic. We take turns not really wanting to think about it. We take turns asking each other what we can't live without when we go, and what we'll miss.

For now, our teaching consumes us. I am learning valuable knowledge every day that you cannot learn from books or even from being told. I'm learning through doing, through messing up. I'm learning to teach young people who may not be too different from my students in Ukraine.

And we continue to ride the ride, get off and wait in line, and ride it again. Right now I'm on the ride and Larry's in line watching. Soon, I know, we'll be on it together.