Year two changes

I think in the beginning of my service I wrote a blog about how the busses work here and how they decorate the inside and out. I also was told at the beginning of my service that I would eventually like and dislike certain busses and know the right ones to take. It has taken me more than a year to understand the meaning of what past peace corps told me about the busses. For example some of the busses drive crazier than others, some are cleaner, you also learn the behaviours of the conductors. Now that I have been here a while the busses and conductors are starting to recognize me, some have started to offer phone numbers. I have learned over time how to handle people much better now. So any ways I realize the that knowing certain busses makes your life and transport a bit easer while you are on island. Making friends is nice to but you have to make sure is on a professional basis and nothing more!!!!!!


I will tell you a short story. When I first got to Grenada I would go up to another village about and hour away and I always took the same bus. The conductor asked if we could exchange phone numbers. I did not see any harm in that, I thought it might be a good idea, if I got stuck in that village I could call him. Well to my surprise I started getting phone calls all the time every day. I finally had to send him a message and tell him (I gave you my phone number on a professional basis, and that is it!!! You can not call me all the time) I never herd from him again. Its sad to me that you can not make friends or talk to the opposite sex without them assuming that you are interested in them. It took me a long time to be able to read signs and be conferrable talking to men without escalating the situation. I always tried to make a friend out of the situation.


Something ells that has changed is in my work site. It is way different to start a job in Grenada than it is in the U.S. People don't want to here about what you can do, they don't want to get to know you. They want to see what you can do, observe you. My job site I think is different thought because I hit a wall of resistance as soon as I walked into the school I even have a nick name (Pail Face) I hate it. Any ways I was very passive for the first year that I was at the school hopping that things would change and people would become more open but to my surprise people became sallow and unwilling to work with me, compromise or even help me get recyclables from home. Not every teacher is like that, their is a few that I can handle but others I don't want anything to do with. My school is to small for the problems I see happening.


Any ways as an activity I had the level 2 and 2a outside drawing on the sidewalk in their sports cloths. A teacher the main one who gossips, starts most of the problems, and no one really likes started telling my kids to get off of the ground. I looked at her and said that's the activity and its chalk, it comes off of the cloths with a damp rag. She walked away rolling her eyes. I know professional and  mature of her right well it gets better. The level 2 teacher asked what she said and as I started to tell her the other teacher came stomping in "I don't have any problem with the project but your destroying their cloths". I told her once again that come off and this is the second time in three weeks that she has interrupted my class and I do not appreciate it. I got a suck of teeth, rolling eyes and she didn't even get to finish what I was saying before her back was turned.


It was hard and a very fats decision to stand up to her. Last time I did it she told the principle because she can not communicate with adults. I think it is sad that she is working with students with disability's and yet she herself can not handle people around her without creating problems. She is a horrible influence for the children. Their is so much more I could say about her and things she has done but the moral of this blog is CHANGE. I stood up to her and I was proud of myself. Yes she wont say good morning to me but that's nothing, as long as she knows she can not treat me with disrespect!!!! 

My hobby for the Peace corps

I have been wanting to write this blog for a while now but just didn't have the time. I would recommend to anyone that is coming into the Peace Corps to have a hobby in mind before they hit their location of service.

I decided that I wanted to improve my health and joining the Peace Corps was not only an excuse to help people using what I was trained to do but a reason to start a new chapter in life and make a life change!

I have successfully lost 55lbs and I think I am 3 dress sizes. People ask what I did? Well I did a few simple things and added to them as time passed.

1-  watching what I eat, reduce not take away things that are not good for me  such as, carbs (pasta, potato's, white rice, sugar, and soda). These are the main things that  food nutritionists and dieters talk about. But I DID NOT just follow everything that people say to do and cut it out I did RESEARCH on WHY!!!! That has been the best thing for me to find the answer and the reasoning behind the answer.

2- Starts a food log. I have kept track of everything that comes in and out, when I slept, when I work out ,how I am feeling (over slept, tiered, mad, thirsty) and so on. I also marked underneath in red if it was something bad that I was eating and blue if it was good. Eventually I became a where of what was going in and all of the lines for the most part became blue!!! So I stopped underlining. I did not take away everything that I love  just used moderation. Hell yes I still have fried chicken and French fries and every now and then I have a Coke. BUT I do notice how I feel after I consume what ever it is.

example (might be to much info for some ) I only got 6hr of sleep and I had chicken and chips, before I went to bed. The next morning I was so constipated and sleepy and cranky. You really can get in touch with your body and understand why you feel certain ways. its kind of incredible if you ask me.

I also write down recipes, and what the nutrition's say that make cense and have evidence behind them. Good proteins, good carbs, good sugars, snacks, workouts that are good. Anything you can add to your log. I decorated mine, added calendars, challenges, what the muscle's look like, what my plate should look like, I added quotes and reflections as well. Make it fun make it something you want t fill out every day.

3- Switched to whole wheat and cut out one meal of crabs a day. They make everything in whole wheat its just hard to get a hold of down here. I cant find brown rice to save my life. I also have been making recipes healthier switching out white flower with whole wheat and honey instead of sugar. it makes for a fun evening of cooking.

4- What you cook, you know what's going into your body. Their is not that many places to eat out in  Grenada but we do have KFC, Subway and the chicken and chips truck. Mostly everything you eat that's considered a junk is fried, or a carb! You cant escape it some times. So I started cooking more and changing things like I mentioned in number 3. It makes me feel better that I know what I am eating. I also started besides more whole what eating more fruits and veggies, low fat yogurt, counting calories, sugar, sodium and asking questions when I go out. Do you have a calorie pamphlet? Most places will say no!! Is their a website I can go to? Again most places will say no but I ask any ways. 

5- Walk everywhere and pick harder ruts to walk. If its longer has a hill and stairs then I will walk that way. I don't take the bus everywhere I WALK!!! That has made all of the difference in the world. Also working out.. You can YouTube HITT work out and get a million and one results. You need Cardio, Circuit Tanning, HITT , and Waits to tone. Also Netflix has some work out videos that you can follow. People cant say they don't have time anymore to get in shape because the HITT workouts are 10min in some cases.

6- I have hit my Plato and needed an extra boost. I joined the gym. Some days I got for 3hrs at a time. Spinning class, dance fit, waits, step aerobics, yoga,!!!!! You name it we have it. Its fun and I am making some new friends. I know some people are saying three hours no way. Well YES WAY!!!!! I do two one our classes and then work in the gym on waits with a personal trainer friend that I have. Its been amazing and I can already see the differences in my body.

I can tell that it has become a life change because my  wardrobe is mostly work out cloths and I would rather look good for the gym than work at this point.. Every one has noticed a change in me. I am happier, I have more self confidence I feel good about myself and it has been a long time since I have felt that way about myself. I just have some tummy left to lose and about 20lb more.

So point being if you have a hobby that you think you want to start be ready and bring what you need because most things will be expensive and hard to find. I hope I didn't bore people to much but also of people wanted to know the secret well their it is. This is what I chose to help me change myself for the better get rid of stress and feel heather!!!!!  

White Cane Sign Feild Trip

I don't know if I have mentioned that I got asked to paint two signs one for White Cane on the Carnage and one for the new booth that is in town by the mall. Any ways I wanted to include my painters, so we went on a field trip as I called it into town, with the measuring tape and some paper. I had the boys look at different signs around then and explained to them what a logo was. I used common signs such as the grocery store, and the buss sign. Soon the boys where showing shapes, colors, symbols and having a grate time. So one of the boys was measuring the booth when he came up with a brilliant idea of making a folding standing sign. That was a grate idea because all of the booths are owned by the government and you can not change the color or add anything to the outside so a standing sign was perfect. The boys had a grate time.

When we got back I had the boys and the one girl brainstorm what they would like to see placed on on the sign. I had a crazy amount of ideas from nutmegs to penguins. When we had are list i started scotching and having them decided where the placement of everything would go, it looked grate and the head worker basket weever who has been their 30 plus years loved it as well so that made us all feel grate. So now we are weighting for the go a head and the bored to come in so I can start screeching and have the boys sand a do the background coat for me. It was a much needed change for the afternoon.

little things like that make up the peace corps experience. You definitely will have ups and downs and today was an UP for sure!!!!!!

Introducing Bottle cutting to White Cane

This week was a good week.

Monday in level one I cut out supper big paper ties and I outlined different design such as poke dots, zigzags and lines. I took each student one at a time and I had them use the puff paint to make the design stand out more. Then the paint dries it stays pronounced and you can feel where the paint is, I thought this would be grate because the kids in level one are the low functioning students. They really need more one on one help but there is not enough teachers to make this possible. Any ways they can use the ties we made for their fathers day cards.

In Level Five we worked on popsicle stick fish. Each student got six sticks and they had to paint them. When they where dry we had to assemble them so they would look like a fish, and add a goggle eye. They turned out cute.

After lunch is Level Four, and they had started a project all ready so we continued to work on that. They had gotten a nutmeg bag and cut up pieces of cloth so that they could make a doormat. Their class was only three students because the others went to a sports event. It really does amaze me how important sports are here. I also makes me sad because most of the students are to low functioning to even attend the Special Olympics that they are trying to get into place, so in my opinion they are loosing valuable education in the classroom when they are constantly being pulled away from school. It was a realizing class I can say that at least.

Tuesday

I was a bit nervous to bring the bottle cutter to White Cane because I have not gotten a hang of it yet myself, but I decided that it was time to introduce that to them. It turned out to be a fun breath of fresh air and a science class all in one. They had a grate time. Each of my students got a bottle of their own to score and cut. I first went over how the cutter worked and all of the different pieces. Then each one went threw and scored their bottles. It was a bot challenging for one of them because he only uses one hand, but for a first try he did grate. Then I lit the candle and they started one at a time heating up their scored bottles. It was so much fun to watch how exited they got when the bottle broke. It was like a new addiction to them. When it was time to go they could not wait for the next day to come so we could continue are lesson.

Wednesday

I started with Level Two I was testing them to see if they could follow along with a color by numbers sheet. It went better than I thought it would some of the smallest kids in the class where understanding what to do. I was disappointed that numbers where so small though on the sheets that made it hard for them as well.

Level Two A, we hung are big apple tree that we painted all together a few weeks ago and then I measured all of the kids on the trunk. This is a billion and one thing that we can use the tree for (Science, Math, Colors) and more. I want to get it laminated so that we can stick things onto it but its like six feet tall so it will be expensive. Any ways I also had the kids color their owls and birdhouses for the tree. It was fun. I am hopping that some day I can paint it on the wall and them maybe do an under the water seen that was requested by the teacher.

I also was exited to see that some of the upper level classes seven and eight where working on the project that we started last week. We where making newspaper rolls to put together for a picture frame. That was exiting to me because that shows that they were interested in what I was doing with them.

Wednesday is my half day so at lunch I headed down to White Cane and I wanted to test their skills with the bottle cutter that was so much fun to watch them try and remember what I had thought them the day before, and they did good so I think that means we can keep going with it.

Thursday I worked with level four on father’s day cards again, but they had different ones than the other classes they made little t-shirts and then cut color ties out of paint swatches. They loved it and when they where done I used a letter stencil to write Happy Father's Day inside that took a lot of time because I had them each one at a time identify each letter and then they traced it. It went well.

Level six, seven, and eight are working on rolling their news paper around the pencil to make tubs, and we will line them up to frame a picture frame. It was a good week all in all.

My blog is back

It's back blog!!!
I herd from little bird that a lot more people read my blog that than I thought so have been brain storming from last month and this month that are the highlights that will be going into this blog. I do apologize for missing last month I got busy and lazy I will admit. So here is a little re wind and add on of April enjoy!!!!!

So let's start with April. We finished sports with a bang competition with the teachers as always not so good for the kids but they had a good time. My school had a dj and cooked roti for lunch! I also attended another sports day in Woban that was fun. They we're much more organized has Lars of food to chose from I had a hot dog that was yummy. I got to see a lot of my friends kids doing their sports running and jumping that was fun. Also this month I started trying to reach out to new people and make some new connections so I ended up going with a group of people every other Sunday to the beach. One of my friends we will call him ken he has a van that's reminds me of me and my moms old golf, that's the kind of car that we had in Berkley CA! You had to do a billion different things at once. Any ways his can is the same it's fun though we call it the manic school buss boy is that thing durable. Any ways everyone brings something and we swim eat and hang out. Some of them gamble and that's funny because they are all related so they win each others money, not much bit it's funny to watch. We went to a beach that had a rope swing so the girls pushed me on it and the boys played soccer it was nice. Not to much other exiting stuff happened I have been painting my bottles like crazy trying to get cough up. I had a few orders from peace corps that needed to be finished before May and I sold some ones at the stores I'm know so I need to replace those. I am doing well.

Mid service traning

It has been a year since we all lived and had turning in St. Lucia. This last week May 13-18th was a grate re visit back to see all of are trainers, the island, and the people that we first started this adventure together with. Let me tell you that the trainings in the beginning of service where dull and very general, now that a year has passed and we have dug deeper into are sites and jobs we have all become new people and have stories to tell. This training was more based on up coming events, accomplishments and working as a group. We stayed at the hotel called Palm Haven near Rodny Bay. Training was Tuesday- Friday, we also had are mid service training check ups, I got blood work done, an eye check and my physical. I had also been sick for three weeks with a cough so they cheeked that but they did not fin anything so that was good.


I think that people had more time to catch up at dinner and lunch rather than during training, we got to eat some really good food at the restaurant and hotel. Breakfast and lunch were provided and then for dinner was all went out as a group. The first night we went to Sushi!!! Oh how I miss all the food choices in the states but I've grown in my healthy choices of food. Any ways Sushi was sooo good. The second night we had Indian food, and the third night I went out and I got Italian food. One other interesting thing about where we where staying is that the marina was close by and they had one of the original boats from Pirates Of The Caribbean. They turned it into a bar and I got to go on and take pictures of the boat. It was so much fun.


One of the trainers had a catamaran (boat) I got to drive it from the house where it was parked out to see it was so much fun and I did not crash into any other boats. When we where on the water the sun was going down and we saw the green line. I thought it was fake from the Pirates Of The Caribbean movie but its a real thing. Its a little flash right as the sun goes down.


Thursday night  a big group of us walked to the Director of the Caribbean Peace Crops house she cooked dinner, we had lasagne, garlic bread and salad. For desert I had a cup cake and a small piece of brownie. It was a very good night the ones who could sing played their guitars and sang songs. The rest of us talked and mingled with the staff.


Friday night was a review of grants to raise funds for the up coming camps, and a step over a line into the last year of are service. It was a good day and then we went out to Grossy Lett street fet to dance the night away.


Saturday was the big day for me I got up and got ready to go and meet my host mother who had come to pick me up. She and my host brother Arron did not even recognize me because I had lost so much weight. When I got to the farm they had added a security gate, painted the walls and added some new woman to the staff. I was so exited that they had a woman supervisor now. I was the first woman to my knowledge to work on the farm other than my host fathers wife. I was so exited to be back, except my favourite good friend that I made on the farm was on break. to my surprise he came down from the north of the island just to see me, he barley recognized me either, that was funny. We got to catch up latter after lunch. I had a grate time talking to my host father and sisters.


Sunday I got to sleep in and then I got ready for church. I knew that it would make my host mother happy so I decided to go. It was fun getting all dressed up with the girls. Sunday was good I ate lunch when I came home and then went to help Kervin on the farm. Then I went to go see some other friends and say good buy. I met the other peace corps volunteers at the air port. My host brother started to cry, he is very close with me when I am around. It was a fast flight home and I was happy to be back in Grenada.    

Possum

Something that is coming up is hunting season. You might be wondering what we have to hunt on this small island, well let me tell you what people eat here. Possum is what they call a Manicu here. Guns are not used and also are rare to see on the island outside of the police, so they use pellet guns to stun them basically so they will fall from the trees or where ever they are hiding. Then to eat it you have to burn the hair off, their is a bit more to that but all leave it out. I have not yet eaten it but I know my day is coming very soon, all let you know how that goes. Also they like to eat iguana. They do have seasons for that as well. I have not eaten that either. Something I will never eat is turtle because they are endangered and I don't want to contribute to that. One of the local boys said that he catches regular small lizards fry's them and eats it with catchup. Strange to me but I guess thats like chocolate covered ants. I tried cow huff and that was strange I did not like that at all. I think thats about all the strange food for here, unless you count eating almost every part of the pig and chicken. I also saw them catch a squid and they will eat that too. I learned a lot about what people eat onside of what the of what the americans would have in their food group.