Shake, Rattle, & Roll

Yesterday, Oriana and I were both trained in various administrivia-related tasks. So, I was on database duty for the morning, and Oriana took her turn in the afternoon. I worked on some other projects that were more interesting.

As the work day came to a close, we made dinner plans with Franklin and Jessica. We walked down to the neighboring town of Ciudad Vieja to pay a visit to what I would call a street barbeque vendor. I asked for chicken and cheese on tortillas. That was served on a little plate that then gets piled high with beans, guacamole, salad, and salsa with another tortilla on top to make sure nothing falls off. So this outdoor establishment has plastic stools for its customers and we sat down and ate. Except I didn't sit down. There were neighborhood dogs everywhere eyeing us for a piece of meat. I stood and ate for a while, but when our drinks came (yummy hot chocolate) I drank and held my plate up. Eventually, I drained my cup and asked the vendor for a bag--and I finished my grub when we got back to the house.

Once back at the house, our clan played Spades. For someone who didn't know how to play two days ago, I'm doing pretty well--only misplaying twice. My partner (Jessica) and I won both rounds. Oriana and Franklin are sore losers. They will likely get their tooshies whooped again tonight.

The most exciting part of the night was not the Spades game. It rains pretty hard at night--so much so that we have to yell to hear each other over the noise (rain on tin roof, remember!). And last night was no different, except that in the middle of our second round the floor started to shake. Much to my surprise, I sat through a 4.7 on the Richter scale earthquake. It was a bit scary, but not as bad as I would have thought. Franklin told us that had their been less fog, we could have seen the volcano erupting a little.

So, we finished our Spades game and Oriana and I were goofing around before going to sleep when the rain and thunder subsided a bit, and then the power went out. The best part was that I have (in my Brooklyn apartment) about 14 flashlights. I didn't bring any with me--I didn't think I would need one. So, we fumbled around in the dark for a while and finally found a crank flashlight. We then proceeded to search for a second flashlight because the before bed bathroom operation would be far more difficult without light.

So, just as we were about to panic (okay, not really, but we were anxious), Franklin and Jessica came out to tell us that the electricity was back on. We just had to turn things on.

Oriana and I then got ready for bed and took turns killing annoying moths. The thunder and rain got progressively louder and so we read for a while before eventually crashing for the night.

Today, like the other mornings so far, Oriana and I get up around 8 AM, shower, get dressed, make coffee, and run across to the bakery for pan dulce (sweet breads). Then Laura shows up around 9 AM--and that's our cue that it's time to start working.

So, I was on database duty most of the morning--not the most exciting, but crucial for As Green As It Gets. Oriana got to work with Francisco, AGAIG's jade artist, to build a saw. At lunchtime, I asked folks to pick up a sandwich for me. We've been eating the same sandwich all week. It's pretty good. But, they got to the sandwich lady too late, and I got a bean and cheese sandwich with ketchup...not quite what I wanted. The ketchup was definitely not good with beans and cheese.

After lunch, we went over to our new apartment to see if we could move in tonight. So, surprise surprise, our apartment is not quite ready. The previous tenants (and our landlords) were fixing the electrical wiring, painting, and cleaning out their belongings when we showed up to see if we could move in tonight. It did look much better than it did when we saw it. According to my sources here, it's pretty normal for things to take longer than expected. So, we'll be at Franklin and Jessica's for another glorious night.

Until next time!

Guatemala: The Adventure Begins

Yesterday's arrival was full of fanfare, we ran into about half of the As Green As It Gets producers. Some remembered us, some didn't. We managed to stay up relatively late last night given that neither Oriana nor I had slept the night before we left.

We had dinner at this really cute comedor (a restaurant in someone's house) where you only had one choice. Ours was a chile relleno with beans, cheese, and homemade tortillas. I could get used to this.

Sleeping here is slightly difficult. There's lots of new noises: roosters, cats on the roof, really loud rain, fierce crickets, and kids playing next door. Also there's the problem of wiggling out of my borrowed cocoon-like sleeping bag in the middle of the night to pee in the outdoor bathroom. In case you are interested, you only flush your business--not the paper, because sewage systems here get clogged very easily.

So, it's the end of Day Two of my summer adventure in Guatemala. Oriana and I spent most of today looking for apartments for our stint in this fine country. It's amazing that we'll each be paying about $130 a month on a two bedroom house with everything we need. Our pick is one that is behind an internet cafe that is about a block from the As Green As It Gets office in San Miguel Escobar. One of the coffee farmers, Filiberto, was our broker on this deal--and the house we'll rent is significantly nicer than his place.

After seeing all of the apartments, Oriana and I had fun buying food to cook for dinner at La Bodegona (a grocery store in Antigua). Most of today we were slightly disoriented and have yet to pick up on the directional nuances we'll need to survive here. Our groceries in hand, we hopped in a tuk-tuk for the ride back to San Miguel. A tuk-tuk is a small three-wheeled car with no discernible doors. Imagine a motorized tricycle, where the driver is in the front and we were in the back looking for oh-shit handles to hold on to for the ride.

When we got back we cooked dinner and asked Filiberto, the coffee farmer, to eat with us. A good time was had by all. We spent much of the dinner conversation yelling over the incredible noise that rain on tin roofs produces.

We're being trained on the database and other administrivia tomorrow for our day at the office. There is also talk of us staffing games & recreational activities for local kids once a week. Oriana and I are both pretty excited about the idea. Hopefully, tomorrow we'll be able to move into our new accommodations.

Woulda, Coulda, Shoulda

So, once again folks, it's Sunday night, after midnight. And magical, I know, but I'm not finished my work for the week.

I've made a dent in the reading for one class--and did a few other important items, filling out my FAFSA, applying to be on the board of a student group, etc. But I did not manage to get my actual school work done.

I also did not manage to cook something to take to work tomorrow. I'm going to have to make a lunch now--with nothing exciting in it.

I need to actually get my work done--and it's going to become more important because in the next few weeks, I have midterms and other assignments. I'm not ready, but I also need to be finished with all of it by March 14th so I can go to Guatemala.

Here's to hoping that I can get lots done this coming week and be more productive than ever!

Procrastination at its Best

After a long week of emotional drama--wondering if I'll ever love again, etc., I have become a professional procrastinator.

I feel my credentials need not be touted--I've earned them. Last night I was up until 3 AM working on a paper that was due this morning. I read all the material and wrote what I hope is coherent and intelligible. And, of course, I'm procrastinating again with the quick presentation on this paper that I must give tomorrow in my 6:30 class. Granted, I'll have some time tomorrow afternoon to prepare--and I'm definitely in no shape to work on it now. But the procrastination must stop!

This has become a more common theme with my school work than I would like to admit. I'm not particularly interested in two of my classes--and unfortunately, it probably shows. And yet, I was on the phone with my accountant today--and reminded of just how much money I am spending to be here, in this graduate program.

It's time for me to get my shit together and act like I want to be in school. If I don't start dealing with this soon--the semester is bound to become one long drawn out nightmare. And to be honest, I think I can only afford to have nightmare status in one part of my life at once. Currently, my relationship status/personal drama has cornered the market on nightmares.

The frightening thing is that I am not really getting too nervous about my procrastination--that makes it all the more unnerving. I'm hoping my presentation will give me an appropriate kick in the pants tomorrow. And the fact that I have to wake up in 5 hours.

Dream: Superhero Band-Aids

More dreaming. I was in a weird place like a giant strip mall and people are...? I don't remember, I got up and started to write this right away, thinking I would remember and be able to jot it down. Too bad, I guess the shelf life on this dream was short.

In my dream the other night, Lizzie, Jamie H., Carrie, Jenny W., and some others were all superheroes. I don't think we had crazy outfits, but we had super powers. We also had band-aid, that after you had them on for a while turned into chewing gum. So, at some point in the dream, I asked, "Do I have to put this on first, or can I just eat it?" Just like me to not have any patience with waiting for food.

The Waiting Game

There's a Bittersweet song that I love. It's called "The Mating Game." Over the last week, I've been hearing this song in my head and changing the words to the chorus, so that I end up singing about "The Waiting Game."

On Monday of this week, my public policy professor sent an e-mail to my class apologizing for the delay in posting our final grades. He attributes this delay to the fact that many students, he didn't disclose how many, have instances of plagiarism in their final exams and final policy memo projects. As a result, he and our "teaching colleagues" what my department calls TAs, are running all of the final exams and the memos through plagiarism-detecting software.

As with any witch hunt, those accused tend to second-guess themselves throughout the process. While I re-read my submissions and believe that I'm not one of the students they will accuse, the ordeal is entirely frustrating. And so with a new-found rigor, I have been checking my grade-posting website as if it's my job. My anxiety is beginning to reach new heights. Grades were supposed to be available today. Magically, my grades have not yet been posted.

My frustration with this situation exists on many levels. First, let's assume that the witch hunt turns up some real offenders. I'm sure there are students in my academic community who have knowingly or unknowingly failed to cite sources appropriately in their final exams and memos. Unfortunately for them, we are in graduate school. The standards should be high. I've seen this happen in two group project situations.

I participated in two group papers for two different classes this past semester. In both cases, there was a student, who lifted large passages from a text and presented that writing as his/her own work. In one situation, I noticed the plagiarism. In the other, my group members picked up on it. Both groups were able to weed out the plagiarized text. I can only hope that it is this type of infraction that my professor is trying to prosecute.

Both of these students in my group projects were international students. This is of concern only because the standards of citation are higher in the U.S. academic world than the home countries of these students. Were these students adequately prepared for the level of citation/sourcing they would be required to do? If so, are these students that are just turning in half-ass work because they aren't great students? Or did the prep work just not sink in?

Not sure what conclusions I should be drawing from this experience. Right now, the only conclusion I can draw is that I still don't have a grade for this class. My second semester starts in about a week.

1/20 UPDATE: I got an A on my policy memo and an A- in the class. But I didn't get the grade until 1/18. Talk about last minute...the semester starts on Tuesday.

Heart Swap

Last night I listened to an episode of This American Life that included an incredibly moving story, Sara and Lucas. Lucas, mistaken for his older brother, was killed by gang members. Sara was waiting for a heart donor. Sara received Lucas' heart. The story details the connection between the two families and the connection Sara feels inside her chest.

The story was really interesting. Suggest looking for it on This American Life's website.