Hello, My Faithful Readers
Blog, October 29th, 2015
18
Months Served/9 Months Remaining
Here we are in countdown mode - with “T-9 Months”
remaining of my service. Honestly, at times I am ready to leave right now; and
then that passes and I know that I will complete my full term of service. It is
still a rollercoaster!
I had an accident recently that could have been very
serious. I was SO lucky, seriously – It could have ended my service here in
Georgia. In any event, I wrote an article about it and it is published with the
OpEdNews folks that I have been writing my series for. The article will give
you the “skinny” of events. The bottom line, “all is well”. Most of the damage
was superficial; but annoying none-the-less.
Your article titled A day in the life of a Peace Corps
Volunteer
has been accepted and is now published on the OpEdNews website at:
http://www.opednews.com/articles/A-day-in-the-life-of-a-Pea-by-Catherine-Lawrence-Life-Events-151015-711.html
has been accepted and is now published on the OpEdNews website at:
http://www.opednews.com/articles/A-day-in-the-life-of-a-Pea-by-Catherine-Lawrence-Life-Events-151015-711.html
All throughout my time here in Georgia I’ve been
hearing about this hotel (a boutique hotel) here in Tbilisi. Many families when
then come to visit stay here; however, what is more important is the “happy
hour” that happens every Friday evening from 6-8pm. The bar area is really
small; but the view is awesome. Drinks are half price, so beer is 2Gel. They
also put out hot food and we (PCV’s) take advantage of that. I was recently at
Betsy’s and they had rice, beans and meat – sort of like chili. It was
delicious and it was FREE. I had three plates of food and it was a wonderful
feeling to go to sleep that night feeling that my belly was full. Many ex-pats
here in Georgia frequent the place as well as hotel guests and of course,
PCV’s. So, I have done my due diligence
of going to the happy hour – so that notch in my belt is complete. However, I
cannot forget the feeling of being filled-up. If not for the food I would not
consider going back; but then, may I will!
I recently participated in a conference sponsored by
a NGO “Helping Hand.” I was part of a volunteer panel that allowed the panel
opportunity to answer questions about volunteering and to also share our
experience. I’ve listed the link below if you would like more information.
I am told that volunteering is a new/foreign concept
here in Georgia. People don’t understand why you would do something without
being paid for it. Although volunteerism does exist in Georgia the activity
fades in and out; Helping Hand is trying to gather momentum and stability where
volunteering is concerned and to promote it here in Georgia. Here in Georgia
Volunteering is not considered work and/or work experience. I know for myself;
many times when I volunteered it lead into full time paid activities; but,
Georgians don’t see it that way.
I was part of the panel and one of the most
important questions was the age of the volunteer. I was not asked by the
discussion leader what my age was; but, I did volunteer my age. The conference
members were surprised that someone my age (65) could volunteer. Also, the conference members were concerned
about the amount of time involved in volunteering. I spoke about how
volunteering could be a very small amount of time; for example, like
volunteering to help your neighbor shop or help around the house. Another
suggestion would be to possibly volunteer maybe an hour a week to help a child
with their reading or school work.
The panel members were both Peace Corps Volunteers
as well as Georgian’s who are participating with the Helping Hand organization.
Helping Hand began in 2009 so they are very new at this also. They are trying
to get the word out about volunteering beyond the capital city of Tbilisi; but,
all these things take time. The conference was a good start. I really enjoyed
myself.
Also listed below is a link to the venue for the
conference – the National Parlimentary Library of Georgia. I didn’t get to see
much of the building (tight security); but, what I saw was just lovely.
Here is something new to add to my experience and I
am not really happy about it. I believe there is something living in the
ceiling in my room. I know this because at night I can hear the scratching and
the running over my head. At first I thought I was dreaming; but, that is not
the case. I don’t know what it is, maybe a bird or a mouse (maybe). The
scratching makes me think it’s a mouse. Sometimes there is more than one of
whatever it is as they run back and forth. It is loud and the noise wakes me
up. I am thankful that there are not any holes in my ceiling so whatever it is
cannot come out; but, Dear Reader…..it is really creepy hearing the scratching
and the running.
I spoke to my host family and they say that yes,
they hear the noises in their bedrooms.
I don’t know why I have not heard this
before now. I’ve been here 18 months; so, it is confusing as to why this is
happening now. Maybe I’ve slept through the noises. It is also strange that
there are no noises during the day. This only happens at night. I don’t feel
that the family is going to do anything about this. I may just have to put up
with it. I don’t know if I can; we will have to see about this. Although, I just found out that the family
purchased “mouse medicine”, which I would think is poison. Hopefully it is a mouse, but who knows. In my
room all the moldings around the ceiling are secure; however, in the other
bedrooms there are many holes and gaps in the ceiling molding.
When I get into bed now I feel like I have to hurry
up and go to sleep; and that, dear friends, sometimes makes it harder to go to
sleep. I have been dealing with a cold or flu; so, I have not been sleeping
well. Maybe this is why I’ve heard the noises now. I am usually so tired from
all the exercise that when I lay down I almost immediately fall asleep. Ok,
enough. I’ve heard other people talk about noises such as I am hearing. The
houses here are just not secured; in that, the doors are always open (winter
and summer) and some of the windows are broken. I just don’t know but I am
hoping that possibly they will try and do something rather than just putting up
with it. Stay Tuned…..
We have not had any hot water now for a couple of
weeks. We can boil water with the electric pot and/or the gas stove; but, there
is no hot water to wash dishes or take a shower, wash hands/face or brush
teeth. The water is like ice. I have stopped taking showers here at the house
due to the lack of heat; but, it sure would be nice to have some tepid water to
wash face/hands and brush teeth. I wonder when we will be able to have hot
water once again.
The Tbilisi Marathon was held on Sunday, October 25th.
Of course I didn’t run, in fact I didn’t even go into the city – but it was a
success I heard. Many PCV’s ran the race more for the courage to do it rather
than to make a top finish time.
Clapping or applause is not something that is done
here in Georgia. I don’t know why and I am not sure how it even came up in
conversation; however, I heard this from Georgia citizens that it is a fact. I
wondered about this in the classroom as often I will clap after the class does
something really good. Most times I am clapping by myself. After a minute or
two and after the children look around to see who else is doing what, they
start to clap. I just wonder what that is about.
Once a year our Peace Corps Program Manager (PM)
comes to our sites to visit. The purpose is to check-in with, of course, the
volunteer; but, also to connect with the School Director’s and the counter-part
teachers. My site visit is scheduled for Friday, October 30th – so,
I will share events the next time I blog. After the visit I hope to catch a
ride back to Tbilisi with my PM and stay overnight at the Envoy Hostel. Food,
Friends and Beer…..on the menu J
Many PCV’s talk about going into a food coma when we
are away and have abundance of food available - and I can relate. I am hungry
most of the time here. Most days there is just one meal a day. I supplement
with my stock of food that I buy from the States; but, there is not much
variety in what I can purchase on line. My family believes there is an
abundance of food; but, sadly I don’t. I know I talk about this a lot in my
blog; but, that is because it’s a big piece of my service here.
Harvest time is here and there are so many grapes,
tomatoes and apples. We have a couple of apple trees in our garden and there
are hundreds of apples. It is funny, funny about what I will consider here in
Georgia that I would not consider back in the states (and I am not the only
one!). When I see a worm in the apple I just cut away the worm part and eat the
remainder of the apple. I cannot believe I wrote that admission as well as that
is what I do J.
I have no idea why because there are so many apples I could just get another
apple; however, maybe because so many of the apples have worms – why bother to
search further.
Some good news is that the family is using the gas
heater in the room next to my bedroom. This is a really good thing as when the
heater is on and the doors are kept open my room stays fairly warm and I don’t
have to use the electric heater. Gas is much cheaper to use than electricity;
so, keep my fingers crossed that they continue to use this heater. It heats the
entire 2nd floor…..
I recently participated in the FLEX testing (the 1st
round) in Tbilisi. During the course of the year there are 3 rounds. The 1st
round was an all day affair. Last year there were 750 students taking the test
and this year that number doubled. Because of the room size, only 50 students
can be tested at one time. It takes about an hour and then the next group of 50
arrives. The testing is done by the American Council (link below) and many,
many FLEX alumni and of course PCV’s.
I really enjoy being a part of this program; and I
hope to get more involved. Not sure how to do that yet; but I jokingly tell the
administrators that I want to do the FLEX program. Of course, that is
impossible; but, everyone laughs.
I’ve posted a picture of one of the bakeries I use
to buy bread at. At first glance you would think that it is really not a place
to buy food products; but, even though the outside looks pretty bad the bakers
take good care to insure that all is safe.
I always think when I start my blog about how I am
going to fill the pages; and yet, there is always so much to share about my
experience. For example; it dawned on me recently that I have learned more
about “English Grammar” than I can ever remember learning. The children really
like working with grammar; however, I don’t like it and never have. There is
not a sound in the room when they start working on grammar. It just boggles my
mind.
One of the 6th grade students asked me to
play “ping-pong” with him in the game room. There is a room on the lower level
that has been turned into a game room. There is a make-shift “ping-pong” table
that I think many of the upper class students spend more time in the game room
than they do in the classroom. The 6th grader and I played about a
10-minute game and then the older students took over. I was really sad that
they (the older students) would not leave the table to me and my student. I
just didn’t want to sit and watch these older guys play the game. They were
showing-off and I really didn’t have any interest in them. I hope that the
younger students and I can get the room without the older students. I will
enlist some other teachers to help as when I asked the older students to let us
play they just didn’t pay any attention to me. L
A final thought that makes me sad to write about.
Throughout my time in the school I always ask the teachers how they are doing.
They all mostly say “good” but their body language depicts anything but “good.”
I don’t know what to say to them; but I so see the conflict in their words and
their facial expressions and body language. They just don’t match.
As we head into November a group of PCV’s are
planning a Thanksgiving Celebration at the end of the month of November. Of
course I will write about that and I am very happy that I was invited to
attend. I will be going into Tbilisi for Halloween weekend; not for a party but
to meet up with a friend for dinner. I’ll be staying over at the Hostel (which
I really love).
I’ve not had a shower in two-weeks. That is because
I’ve just not had the strength to manage the travel. After my fall I got sick
with flu type symptoms. It just took the legs out from under me. Of course I’ve
used the wet-wipes; but I so miss just standing underneath the shower. So, my
Halloween treat will be to take at least two showers this weekend. Oh heavenly
joy!!!!! BOO!
Thank you, my Faithful Readers, for staying on this
rollercoaster with me. All is well. I am thankful for so many aspect of my life
here and feel very lucky to have the good and bad of every experience here in
the Peace Corps.
Best,
Catherine Lawrence – 10/28/15
Peace Corps Volunteer/Georgia
The
contents of this blog are mine personally and do not reflect any position of
the U.S. Government or the Peace Corps.
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