Last week cousin Jason and five of his buddies from the U of I were here in Canaan. They fit in very easily here and made some pretty strong connections with the kids. The guys left on Sunday morning and by Sunday night some of the kids told me they already missed them. While they were here the guys did some concrete work and helped make some furniture for a new classroom. It was great to have them here and I look forward to seeing some of them back here next year.
Back to the classroom.......the bane of my existence. We have a group of 30 teachers/administrators with us this week learning about the ACE School of Tomorrow. We had three days to completely redo a room that could be used as a "model classroom". Sunday night we ended up working until 2:30am and then woke up early to finish things off before the group began their training. It was a borderline miracle to get it done, although that miracle will need to have some carpentry adjustments made tomorrow night.
More importantly than the previous paragraphs.....................I had a 20oz Mountain Dew on Sunday night. Mountain Dew does not exist in Haiti, but one of the lovely young women here at Canaan had a visiting medical team stow one away for me. Much happiness.
Tune in later in the week for a special guest (by request) in the Hot Seat.
Tuesday, August 18, 2009
Sunday, August 9, 2009
The Haitian Hot Seat Part I......Part II (The Return of Wesh)
Wesh has requested that he be put back on the Hot Seat, and since I believe him to be a fairly entertaining participant I've accepted his request. Our conversation continues..........
Me: Do you have any brothers or sisters?
Wesh: I have eight sisters. One, Jennyflore, is also at Canaan.
Me: You have said several times in the last couple days that I am not the coolest American you know.........would you like to change your answer to that question?
Wesh: Definitely. My new answer is John-Marc (a guy from a group that visited last week)
(We will now take a brief break while I mop up my tears)
Me: If you could go anywhere in the world, where would you go?
Wesh: I would like to go to Israel (the Jesus factor), Egypt (see the pyramids), Italy (see the Coliseum), Greece (see the artifacts), and Turkey (see Mount Ararat.....where the Ark landed).
Me: Which animal are you........lion, otter, golden retriever, or owl?
Wesh: I'm a lion because I am a hard worker.
Me: If you could meet one person, dead or alive, who would you meet?
Wesh: I would like to meet King David because he was a good solider and a good king.
Me: Do you like my goatee?
Wesh: No. I think you should only have a mustache.
Me: Do you like playing Settler of Catan?
Wesh: No way, you guys cheated.
Me: Do you think you will make a third appearance on the Hot Seat?
Wesh: If it's possible, I'd like to.
Me: Do you have any brothers or sisters?
Wesh: I have eight sisters. One, Jennyflore, is also at Canaan.
Me: You have said several times in the last couple days that I am not the coolest American you know.........would you like to change your answer to that question?
Wesh: Definitely. My new answer is John-Marc (a guy from a group that visited last week)
(We will now take a brief break while I mop up my tears)
Me: If you could go anywhere in the world, where would you go?
Wesh: I would like to go to Israel (the Jesus factor), Egypt (see the pyramids), Italy (see the Coliseum), Greece (see the artifacts), and Turkey (see Mount Ararat.....where the Ark landed).
Me: Which animal are you........lion, otter, golden retriever, or owl?
Wesh: I'm a lion because I am a hard worker.
Me: If you could meet one person, dead or alive, who would you meet?
Wesh: I would like to meet King David because he was a good solider and a good king.
Me: Do you like my goatee?
Wesh: No. I think you should only have a mustache.
Me: Do you like playing Settler of Catan?
Wesh: No way, you guys cheated.
Me: Do you think you will make a third appearance on the Hot Seat?
Wesh: If it's possible, I'd like to.
Wednesday, August 5, 2009
Haitian Hot Seat Part II
Today we will talk with Jeanise. Jeanise is 11 years old and has a somewhat spunky demeanor.
Me: Jeanise, what is your favorite movie?
J: Ever After (Drew Barrymore.........I just don't get it)
Me: What is your favorite thing to do at Canaan?
J: Play soccer, especially beating the boys
Me: Who is your favorite singer?
J: Rihanna (the kids are constantly humming "Disturbia")
Me: What is your favorite book of the Bible?
J: Job (interesting choice from Jeanise)
Me: Are you a good dancer?
J: (emphatically shakes head no)
Me: How about singing?
J: MHM
Me: Do you like wearing make-up?
J: No
Me: Do you have any brothers or sisters?
J: One brother named Sonson
Me: What is your favorite food?
J: Rice (which is good since she gets plenty of it)
Me: Favorite drink?
J: Sprite (the caffeine free route)
Me: Jeanise, are you a hugger?
J: No.
Me: Kisser?
J: Yes (she's very forward)
Me: What would you like to be when you grow up?
J: Pilot, with American Airlines
Me: Jeanise, do you harass me about my IPOD?
J: NO. (She does)
Me: Do you like my music?
J: Sometimes.
Me: Jeanise, what is your favorite movie?
J: Ever After (Drew Barrymore.........I just don't get it)
Me: What is your favorite thing to do at Canaan?
J: Play soccer, especially beating the boys
Me: Who is your favorite singer?
J: Rihanna (the kids are constantly humming "Disturbia")
Me: What is your favorite book of the Bible?
J: Job (interesting choice from Jeanise)
Me: Are you a good dancer?
J: (emphatically shakes head no)
Me: How about singing?
J: MHM
Me: Do you like wearing make-up?
J: No
Me: Do you have any brothers or sisters?
J: One brother named Sonson
Me: What is your favorite food?
J: Rice (which is good since she gets plenty of it)
Me: Favorite drink?
J: Sprite (the caffeine free route)
Me: Jeanise, are you a hugger?
J: No.
Me: Kisser?
J: Yes (she's very forward)
Me: What would you like to be when you grow up?
J: Pilot, with American Airlines
Me: Jeanise, do you harass me about my IPOD?
J: NO. (She does)
Me: Do you like my music?
J: Sometimes.
Sunday, August 2, 2009
Nuts & Bolts
This is the obligatory post dealing with the day to day conditions here in Haiti. First let me say that the conditions here in Canaan are far superior to what you would see in the typical Haitian village.
I sleep on a bunk bed in a mosquito net. I spend most of the night sweating and wondering what herd of animals are playing rugby in my ceiling. Visuals of the local wildlife have been fairly limited so that's a good thing. Most days are filled with trying to be somewhat productive while still trying to play with the kids. Very rarely is there power here during the day so everyone is pretty happy when 6:00pm rolls around and the generators get cranked up.
The food here is really good actually. My very attractive Mountain Dew gut is shrinking, but not because there isn't enough good food to go around. Sweating 24 hours a day might have more to do with it.
Saturday was my first real day out and about. A few of us went to Saint Marc to run a few errands and check on a baby that we had taken to the hospital a couple days before. To get to Saint Marc you have to walk down to the main road and find a tap-tap that will take you where you need to go. I learned that you definitely want to be sitting on top of the cab. It is by far the most comfortable place to be. Once you get to town you have to find a motorcycle that takes you further into the city. The key thing at this point seems to be getting the local rate as opposed to the anglo-American rate. We had to make some photo-copies for the clinic so we went to a place that turned on their generator and took 1.5 hours to make 500 copies. All in all it was a good day, and I was glad to get a few firsts out of the way.
Saturday was also the first time I had to say good-bye to visitors who left to go back home. Tyler, Melanie, and Katie had been here since May working with the Medika Mamba program. They made my first couple weeks very easy so I was sad to see them go. That is something I will have to get used to here.
That's all for now. Another edition of the Hot Seat coming soon.......featuring Jeanise I think.
I sleep on a bunk bed in a mosquito net. I spend most of the night sweating and wondering what herd of animals are playing rugby in my ceiling. Visuals of the local wildlife have been fairly limited so that's a good thing. Most days are filled with trying to be somewhat productive while still trying to play with the kids. Very rarely is there power here during the day so everyone is pretty happy when 6:00pm rolls around and the generators get cranked up.
The food here is really good actually. My very attractive Mountain Dew gut is shrinking, but not because there isn't enough good food to go around. Sweating 24 hours a day might have more to do with it.
Saturday was my first real day out and about. A few of us went to Saint Marc to run a few errands and check on a baby that we had taken to the hospital a couple days before. To get to Saint Marc you have to walk down to the main road and find a tap-tap that will take you where you need to go. I learned that you definitely want to be sitting on top of the cab. It is by far the most comfortable place to be. Once you get to town you have to find a motorcycle that takes you further into the city. The key thing at this point seems to be getting the local rate as opposed to the anglo-American rate. We had to make some photo-copies for the clinic so we went to a place that turned on their generator and took 1.5 hours to make 500 copies. All in all it was a good day, and I was glad to get a few firsts out of the way.
Saturday was also the first time I had to say good-bye to visitors who left to go back home. Tyler, Melanie, and Katie had been here since May working with the Medika Mamba program. They made my first couple weeks very easy so I was sad to see them go. That is something I will have to get used to here.
That's all for now. Another edition of the Hot Seat coming soon.......featuring Jeanise I think.
Tuesday, July 28, 2009
The Haitian Hot Seat......Part I
Today is the first installment of "The Haitian Hot Seat." The hot seat will be occupied by Wesh this evening. Wesh is a very precocious 11-year old who is fond of asking me very interesting questions about American history. He is an extremely smart kid and actually helps as a translator down at the clinic. He has agreed to answer all of my questions as honestly as he possibly can. Let us begin.
Me: Welcome to the hot seat Wesh, how are you feeling?
Wesh: Good, I'm feeling good.
Me: Question #1. What is your favorite movie, and why?
Wesh: I have many favorites, but one of them is "The Forbidden Kingdom." It is very funny and I think Jackie Chan is cute.
Me: What do you want to be when you grow up?
Wesh: I want to be a pilot. When I first saw an airplane I thought it would be super cool to be a pilot.
Me: What is your favorite Bible story?
Wesh: David & Goliath. (he said this right after joking that it was David & Bathsheba)
Me: What is your favorite thing to do at Canaan?
Wesh: Eat. Especially mashed potatoes.
Me: Do you have any bad habits?
Wesh: I occasionally lie and cheat. (Have to appreciate his honesty)
Me: Who is your favorite actress?
Wesh: Angelina Jolie.
Me: What about Disney princess?
Wesh: (with enthusiasm).....Princess Jasmine
Me: Why should the people love Wesh?
Wesh: Because I am so smart and a cool guy. I am also romantic and fabulous.
Me: If you could have one superpower, what power would you choose?
Wesh: The power to make women fall in love with me. (Seriously, that was his choice)
Me: What animal are you most scared of?
Wesh: Tarantulas......well, all large spiders
Me: Finally.........who is the coolest American you know?
Wesh: You. (this answer was not coerced in any way)
Wednesday, July 22, 2009
So It Begins
We are coming to you from the multi-purpose (eating, working, general loitering) building here at Canaan. I arrived without incident on Monday night and have had a good couple days since. It's been good to reconnect with some of the kids that I got to know in February, and also get to bond with a few new ones. They are helping me with my Creole, and making fun of me while doing it, which I find totally acceptable.
I will indeed be helping with the school here, but I'm not exactly sure what that will look like. Apparently Canaan is being looked at as a model for several other schools in the country so I will be involved with that somehow. My feeling right now is that I will be doing more administrative tasks than I had expected, which is fine with me.
Yesterday I helped out at the clinic. Tuesday is Medika Mamba day which means the people who are in the program bring their kids in to get weighed and measured. It's a little startling to see some of the kids. The kids at Canaan are well fed and well taken care of, but things down at the clinic are quite different.
Internet is a bit fickle tonight so that's it for now. Thanks for reading and thank you to those of you who are praying for me.
I will indeed be helping with the school here, but I'm not exactly sure what that will look like. Apparently Canaan is being looked at as a model for several other schools in the country so I will be involved with that somehow. My feeling right now is that I will be doing more administrative tasks than I had expected, which is fine with me.
Yesterday I helped out at the clinic. Tuesday is Medika Mamba day which means the people who are in the program bring their kids in to get weighed and measured. It's a little startling to see some of the kids. The kids at Canaan are well fed and well taken care of, but things down at the clinic are quite different.
Internet is a bit fickle tonight so that's it for now. Thanks for reading and thank you to those of you who are praying for me.
Monday, July 13, 2009
Soon, Very Soon
This blog will become more interesting next week. I make the move to Canaan a week from today, so my next post will come from Haiti. Many thanks to those of you who have been so supportive over the past few months........which would probably be all of you.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)