Sunday, November 11, 2007

Ce? Nu poti gasi lucru in America?

Literally translated my title means...What? You can't find work in America?

So yes, as many of you now know, yet my blog has failed to reflect over the past few months is that I am still living and working in Moldova. Still with Peace Corps, still cranking away. Why you ask (everybody else has)? Hopefully to try and open a new "branch/program/sector" of PC Moldova. Sounds kinda lofty in a way, and the more I dig into it, the more I realize that... yup, it is.

While most of the Moldovan's I talk with can't possibly imagine why I would chose to stay here and work for no money...I do actually kind of like it here. Plus it was very exciting to propose an idea and have the higher ups give you the go ahead to run with it and find out what can be done.

Some friends and I noticed that the Information Technology sector is somewhat undeveloped here, especially in rural areas. While there are some NGOs and governments giving away hardware to schools and communities, there aren't many folks out there teaching the recipients of these gifts how to actually use them. I watched this process happen in my village (along with a great many more technical abominations), and decided that perhaps we could do something about it. That and the realization that a lot of volunteers (myself included) were dabbling in technology assistance programs anyway, so why not make it something more formal.

My job, as I have understood it when I signed on, was to do a needs assessment and pilot project for a technology assistance program here in the old RM. Sometime when I have more patience I will outline how things are going so far. For now lets just say it is not what I expected, but there is hope for the future.

Just a quick update now to let folks know that I am still alive and doing well. I have moved into the capitol city, and have a quaint little pad on the outskirts. A flushing toilet and automatic heating are some of the niceties that make it seem like I am no longer a real volunteer. I feel spoiled by having my own kitchen too. (I hosted a small brunch at my place today just to celebrate the fact that such a thing is possible now)

The plan at this point is to head back to the states in early summer of 08 unless something drastic happens (ex: I get appointed ambassador). Hoping to take a month or so off and then head to grad school in the fall. I may end up coming back for interviews sometime this winter, but I haven't heard from anyone yet, so who knows. I will actually, truly, really be updating my blog from now on though, so I will be sure to let everyone know once I decide if/when I will be crossing the pond.

Hope all is well back in the states. I'll try and post something more interesting soon.
Pakah,

Tuesday, May 22, 2007

Blog to a blog

An interesting blog link for those who just can't get enough of Eastern Europe.

http://edwardlucas.blogspot.com/
International reporter with writings on issues in Romania, Moldova, Ukraine...etc.

Saturday, May 12, 2007

la sfirsit

Yup, still alive.
Been busy as of late due to a conference I was helping with in Albania, but I have returned safely and will do my best to get some posts up about the experience there. While I was gone though, my fellow Volunteers that entered Moldova with me had their close of service contract as yes indeed we have been here for almost 2 years now and most folks will be headed back to the states very soon.
As with any good graduation ceremony there were some superlatives. Mine was read in my absence, but was delivered to my cubby at the office for my perusal.
The consensus here was that it fit me to a T, so I figured I would let the rest of you who have been inflicted with my presence over the years in on the author's creative observations.
And I quote:
Ian Spain - Most likely to---
"Sail around the world while removing his own appendix, building a motherboard out of driftwood, and reforming juvenile delinquents; serving them a 7-course meal made from scratch (lit by candles rendered from the blubber of a whale he harpooned himself) featuring fish he caught with his hands while SCUBA diving. He will then write a how-to manual describing his experiences and translate it into Romanian."

All the best to all of you out there still hanging with me on the blog. I will make no promises as to when my next post will be, but I will do my best to get some pictures up at least. I have about 15 posts in waiting.
Pakah, toate cele bun.....Ian

Wednesday, April 18, 2007

Ocupot dar bine

Hey folks, thought I would test out the email submission version of blogging, as I never seem to get the time to actually log into blogger's bogged down servers to do a post. I will be in the capitol this weekend so I promise I will do a photo posting and an update on life. Until then, to satisfy your insatiable curiosity about Moldova, I want to let you know about a neat little online project www.peacecorpsjournals.com . This is a directory of PC blogs worldwide, with quite a respectable showing from the crew here in Moldova. Thus, should you want to know a little bit more about a place from a grass roots perspective, check out one of the couple hundred blogs listed. Will write again soon. I promise.
Pakah

Sunday, April 01, 2007

Banana (it's the same in any language, kind of)

Life has been wicked busy as of late, and I have opted to sleep during the precious free hours I have rather than do blog postings....please forgive me.

I am trying to get my feet wet again with blogging, so I thought I would do a quick and dirty cultural observation that a Moldovan brought to my attention.

“Americans eat bananas backwards”.

This has been confirmed by independent Moldovan sources who observed our apparent weirdness. In my nearly two years here I had never really noticed it, but Moldovan's typically use a fingernail to pierce the skin on the opposite end of the stem, and just go from there. Nothing radical, they don't eat the peel or anything, but they have a completely different viewpoint on opening a banana. When I tried to explain that it was much easier to open it with the stem end I was greeted with head shaking and a face full of consternation from my Moldovan cultural guide. He felt that it was much more difficult with the stem end, that the stem would break off most of the time, and that it bruised the fruit.

In my eyes of course it seems as if the stem was there just for the opening, as if by divine command a natural pull-tab had been placed there for our convenience. Nothing could dissuade him from his current method though.

I guess my thought is though, if we have such different and unchangeable ideas about how to unwrap a fruit, just imagine how the cultures differ on more complex issues.

My partner teacher and I are doing a class on abortion for our 9th graders this week. Should be interesting.

Wednesday, February 21, 2007

Question Response

So, my lack of a computer meant that my posting for the basketball grant went up about two weeks too late. This does not mean that folks can't donate, it just means that I didn't leave much time for folks to donate. We are supposed to open the season the second weekend in March, thus closing the grant at the end of this month.
So, grab those credit cards and make some Moldovan teenagers happy. Really, 5 bucks is a huge contribution when multiplied by the power of many. Just like PC, this is grassroots donation...and you know exactly where the money is going.
Gotta sleep, but I will try and post tomorrow....WITH PICTURES!!!!
Pakah,
Spakoina noche,

Tuesday, February 20, 2007

Basketball 2007

Warning, this is a begging post.

So, one of my projects here is coaching a couple of basketball teams in my village. Due to a lack of equipment, and constantly deteriorating gym floors...oh and the fact that no one knows how to play....basketball hasn't been real popular in Moldova.
the volunteer in my village a couple of years ago got a team off the ground though, and it has grown in popularity since. I am now coaching three teams in my village, and spend just as much time on the court as in the classroom teaching health. This may seem strange to some folks, but it my opinion it is one of the most valuable things I do here. First of all it keeps a gaggle of teenage boys off the streets and out of the bars, perhaps at least slowing the process of them becomming a vodka soaked, chain smoking, bitter old man...by the age of 20. It also is a great opportunity to teach what folks in the industry refer to as "life skills". You know, those little things that make the world go round, like communication, discipline, showing up on time, anger management, teamwork, respect....the little stuff. Since a lot of these kids don't have parents at home, because they are off working illegally in another country just to put food in their mouths, there isn't a lot of parental influence, and Russian MTV and movies have an even stronger influence than they do in the states.
Anyway, the kids may not be real good at bball, but it has become their drug...which is way better than the norm of alcohol and nicotine. They show up to every practice, and actually are starting to change their behavior so that they work as a cohesive unit.
I am kinda proud since I am neither built for bball or have much experience, but they are actually catching on. (I am actually a basketball god in my village, just to give you a picture of their experience level...for a while this actually made me think I was kind of good...then I played with some other Americans).
So, those of you who are still with me...this is where the begging comes in. Peace corps has set up an online grant program that lets everyday folks contribute to community efforts in locals served by PC volunteers. Thus we can find money to support our programs without having to find a major donor. It is an idea just like PC, funding from the grass roots, and we need your help to fund a national basketball tournament that will give these kids a taste of real competition.
My village is the farthest flung in Moldova, thus we are the most expensive team to have in the league. I also have 11 boys on my senior team, thus we will be hitting the budget pretty hard this time around. If a bunch of folks will give just 5 bucks a piece though, it will make a big difference. My boys live for this competition, just the way the high school sports inspired me to show up for class every day when I was a teen. We really want to be able to give them this opportunity.
Ready to donate....if not, I will put more begging blogs up soon, I just have to get going now and get some work done. Please skip Starbucks for a day though and help us out. Here is what you need to do. (copy and paste this link into your browser)
http://www.peacecorps.gov/index.cfm?shell=resources.donors.projdetail&projdesc=261-151&region=europe
If that doesn't work, just go to www.peacecorps.gov, click on "Donate now" on the bottom left, select Eastern Europe as your region, then search for the grants in Moldova. This project is the Moldovan National Basketball League, thought there are many other worthy programs out there, and I encourage you to donate to as many as you are willing.

You can also call the Peace Corps' Washington office and donate at(800) 424-8580 ext 2170. Tell them that you want to donate to theMoldovan National Basketball League, project 261-151.
Thanks folks. We appreciate your support. Don't delay, donate today.
Will do a posting with a life update soon.

Sunday, February 04, 2007

ca normal

So who didn't see that coming, my utter and complete failure to keep up with a blog marathon, starting exactly the day after I hatched such a crazy scheme. I couldn't even keep up with it for two days straight. At least now though it has only been four days and not four months like some of my past blog hiatuses.

This is definitely a good symbol for how my service feels here: lots of ideas, some of them interesting and perhaps even useful, but neither the time nor the resources to really follow up on them. Granted this is not always my fault, but my penchant for overcommitment certainly adds to my lack of check-marks in the "success" column.

I currently have a to-do list that would make and workaholic-insomniac cry. These are of course mostly self imposed tasks, and I realize that the world will go on if I fail to get everything checked off.

I was once told that I am an optimistic cynic, meaning that I feel the world is going to hell in a handbasket, but if I work really hard I might be able to save it. While in some ways I feel I am fairly realistic about my abilities, I also seem to have a genetic inability to say no to just about any request. This combined with my ADHD attention span means that I spend a lot of time completing tasks that fall into the category of "working procrastination". In other words, I take on a task, add another one halfway through, and then start another one in the midst of that.

Moldova has proved to be an environment that exacerbates this problem. Not only does just about every organization in town need help, but they need help with just about everything. There literally is enough work for six volunteers in my village, and this is just with what little I know about what is going on here. Crumbling infrastructure, schools without basic sanitation, 15 y/o computers, massive unemployment, ignorance of environmental and health issues, human trafficking, government corruption...the list goes on.

I, being the idealist that I am, have been trying to fill in all those gaps, and of course have not been successful in getting all of it done. Throw in my perpetual dash of perfectionism and you have a recipe for continual frustration.

Speaking of which, I should probably stop procrastinating and get to work. Sorry this was more of a vent session than an entry, but at least it is accurate in describing my service.

Will post again soon....no really, I promise. :-}

Pakah

Tuesday, January 30, 2007

Zapada lucitoara

I'm glad I know how to laugh at myself. Last night was a perfect example. I get back from basketball practice and rush through dinner with my host brother. I am rushing because I need to get to the gas station on the edge of the village by 7pm so I can get my phone back from the bus driver who found it Sunday evening after I disembarked.

I know he found it, and that I will get it back because he called my school on Monday morning to let me know. I hadn't arrived yet, so the person who answered I guess decided to let everyone know...just in case. Thus the cleaning lady stopped me on the way in to let me know, then my partner teacher told me, the school director popped in after my first class to check if I was in the loop along with three other teachers, and finally a couple of my seventh graders included a warning not to be late in their departing words on their way to lunch. I was half expecting a call from the mayor's office and the police, if only I had my cell they probably would have tried to reach me. Ah the joys of living and working in a small community.

So, I am rushing to get out the door as I don't want to miss the bus as it ambles through town, though technically there is about an hour long window in which they may arrive. I can't find my keys, and assume that I left them at the high school after practice...probably in the door, a classic thing for me to do. Thus my host brother scampers off after the spare key for my little house so I can dress more warmly for the wait on the edge of town. By the time we rouse the whole family for the search and actually locate the keys it is a bit too late, so I decide to risk it and just head out in my school clothes and parka.

I get there in plenty of time luckily, or unluckily depending on your opinion, as this means that I will simply be standing out in the cold in the windiest spot in the village.

Thankfully the guys who work there know me, and are amused eternally by talking with me, so they mercifully invite me in to chat while I wait.

We pass through the normal topics...my age, job, marital status, why I don't want to marry any of my 18 year old students (this baffles them), and are just getting into politics when the bus shows.

The driver knows me well. Not only have I done the 11 hour circuit with him innumerable times, but under his watch I have lost a variety of items... and had two laptops stolen. I have even in one case successfully placed my baggage on board the bus only to subsequently fail to be present when they left the station (I caught up with them 2 hours later). Thus, he has gone through just about every crisis with me, and barely bats an eye when he hands my Nokia back over to me. He doesn't even bother to admonish me, just gives a few accounts of folks who have called and been confused with the level of Romanian proficiency the person on the other end displayed. Thank god he is a patient individual, and one who realizes just how much money he has made off of my all too frequent forays into the capitol.

I bid him a good evening and safe travels in the worsening weather, then trudge off into the darkness on the path back home. I get back and discover my lost keys in my left back pocket (I had only checked the right). My elation is short lived though as I discover that today's cold snap has frozen the padlock on my door. Twenty minutes later I am huddled over a cheap plastic lighter trying to protect it's weak flame against the none too gentle breeze that has been sending our normally flightless domestic foul aloft all day long.

Luckily, the gods seemed to be delighted at the fact that I was still viewing my situation with mirth and let me off the hook. My lock ground open and I trudged in with my three sacks of stuff that accompany me on basketball days.

Today passed a bit more smoothly. English classes, grant reviews, computer repairs, and doing my best not to laugh at my school director who informs me that I am charged with finding $35,000 to build a bathroom for the school. I almost convince him he is ridiculous by pointing out that a complete house can be had for less than 10 grand around here, and other schools have done similar projects for less than $4000.

I get home in time to set up my fire before dinner and actually chew before running off to study Russian. The walk to my tutor's house is greatly improved by the falling temps, with the normal sea of mud a now passable layer of quasi permafrost.

The lesson goes well, but I have gone back to feeling like a linguistic idiot, bumbling through at a level of understanding and capability far below your average 2nd grader here. Thank goodness my tutor is one of the many warm and patient people I have encountered here, as I probably would have lost my mind having somebody repeat pronouns in English as many times as I have slogged through them in Russian.

My efforts in tongue calisthenics are rewarded though during my walk home. Not really directly, but I am treated to one of the best nighttime vistas in recent memory. It had stopped snowing and the moon was doing its best at drowning out the stars. There was about 2 inches of fresh undisturbed powder on the ground, and the day's persistent wind had shifted and was at my back the whole time.

I walked home through the silence and enjoyed having the village to myself for a few brief minutes. The outlines of the houses with their blinking windows clearly visable in the whitewash of the moon.

---So I realize that I haven't written in a bit....ok a good long bit. In remittance I am going to try a bit of an experiment, writing one entry per day for the next month. So many times I decide not to write because doing an entry is a long process, and thus some of the fun little tid-bits of life get overlooked. Thus, for those of you who haven't completely forgotten this web address, or simply given up on me, I am hoping to give you a bit more of a picture of everyday life here in the old Mold.

Don't forget to check out the links of my fellow PC Moldova bloggers (to the right-->). Some ain't too shabby with a keyboard, and most are more diligent with their blogs than I am.

Toate cele bun.