So I haven’t really written anything in a week or so…haven’t felt like it. Been kinda busy; had TMT meeting, set goals; had Palm Oil Women meeting and said we need to restructure; Water Sachet group is working hard core trying to fill the U.S. orders by next week when I ship…THANKS U.S. HOMIES FOR YOUR INTEREST AND EFFORTS TO DISTRIBUTE. The ladies are excited and have been working really hard and pulling extra days this week to fill the order.
Halloween is Sunday; Saturday night we’re gonna have a local PC party…I’m gonna be a tree…go figure.I sewed another skirt this week.
What made me write today:
Today I spent the day in the village making water purses with 2-3 of the women. It kept pouring on and off all day. It was towards the end of the day, we were huddled in the lil shop room and there were about 15 kids there too (they were gathering water sachet bags for the cocoa saplings my supervisor does each year). So we’re all smashed together, chillin’, waiting for the rain to let up, starin’ out the doors when you see a man coming up the road pulling hard on a rope.Eventually a white bull emerges on the other end of the rope. This poor man is pulling his heart out, in the pouring rain, in flip-flops.The bull would start pulling and going in circles.The kids were cracking up, you see the people in the other lil huts looking out and laughing too; I start chuckling.He battles it for a while, and then all of a sudden the bull turns and hauls ass back down the road and this poor dude is being yanked down the muddy road like he’s on skis. We all start cracking up! The kids run into the road to watch him get pulled, we all run out to the porch and are laughing hysterically, as are the other people hiding in the other huts.
It catches me and makes me realize where I am.Thankful for where I am and grateful for this moment; an experience I would never witness at home. It makes me feel happy inside. It was so funny…this was the excitement for the day; a bull pulling a man in the rain.At home I’d be sitting in my office trying to find something to entertain me until 5 o’clock.Life is funny…everywhere…just in different ways.
What water sachets look like and how you drink them.
Mama Victoria helping Felicia on the machine
Group working.
Finished purses.
Most of the group; from left: Salomay, some lil girl, Gertrude, Apolonia, Felicia, Gifty some lil boy, Esther, Mama Victoria.
Homies,
I am working with a group of women in my village (The Lelabi Women’s Group of Likpe Todome) that make water sachet purses. What are water sachets? Here in Ghana “pure water” is sold in plastic pouches; this is how you get safe drinking water on the run. While this has decreased water born diseases, it has increased the amount of plastic trash strewn all over Ghana.
So, there has been an upstart in the production of water sachet purses. The women and children in my village collect discarded water sachets, clean them, dry them, and then sew them with local fabrics into little purses. The profits are invested back in the group to expand production and will later be used for extra income for the women and also for projects in the community. Also, they are WATERPROOF!!! This is awesome; when I’m hiking without a backpack and it starts pouring, I just stick my cellphone in my water sachet purse and HOLLA, it’s safe!
So this is my first stab at promotion of these back in the States, so please bear with me; there is no pressure in this; I’m just trying to see if there is a market amongst friends in the U.S. The purses cost $1.50 US dollar (I need to make sure that price includes the shipping costs); they are great for Christmas presents/stocking stuffers. Friends, please post this to your facebook page too, copy and email to your moms so they can show their ladies in their offices, churches, etc. If you have anyone who is interested please let me know via facebook message or email (jeannar11@gmail.com). I’m not for sure on all the logistics yet, but figured I’d see if you all have any interest before I get carried away.
Peace and Love, or as they say in Sekua, “Liyuh ku Lelabi”
j
nothing to do w/ the women's group...but this is the skirt I made by hand....the women were quite proud, though
Riding back from Ho today I see a goat standing on the roof of a moving tro. I assume it was tied down somehow, but who knows; tro-surfing goat…awesome. The only thing that made the trip more awesome was our tire blowing out about 15 minutes from HoHoe. Before I moved here, I had never been in a car when a tire has blown before; since I have been in Ghana, it has happened twice…
September 18, 2010
Thursdays I spend in the village with the women’s water sachet purse group. I like Thursdays…the women are funny! Today I got to sew a purse…at first I turned the wheel thing the wrong way and the women started hollering and laughing…it turned out ok in the end J Salomay made us okra stew and banku. I also helped pop dried corn kernels off the cob so they can be planted; I got a blister on my thumb. In preparation for Chris, Molly, and Laura coming to my house that evening I go in search of food to cook. I ask if anyone is having bananas, Esther talks to some people and says that some woman over there is having some. So Rose and Dixon, my supervisor and Esther’s kids, lead me to this woman’s house. I ask if she’s having bananas…and off she goes into the bush. About 5 minutes later she returns with a bunch of bananas she’s just hacked off a tree somewhere…50 pesawa…awesome…I love this place! Friday morning we hike the mountain and go to the falls. We don’t do the caves because we can’t find Boss and we’re kinda in a time crunch anyways as we are all gonna go to Chris A’s to meet his Kente weavers and have a bonfire (his mom sent s’mores stuff!!!) We tro to Chris’s in the pouring rain; the tro leaks of course; you can’t see crap and they drive too fast (all the tires are bald here…hence all the blowouts!). I prayed a few times and we arrive at the junction to Chris’s. It’s pouring ass so we run to a lil shop/lean-to thing; the name of the establishment, “I’m afraid of my friends. Even you.” We sit huddled under this lil’ thing, drink a beer and watch it pour. I love days like this!!! It makes me happy to be where I am.
Chris’s house is great; he organized drumming and dancing in his village. We all sit around in his village and watch the dancers; we then join them dancing in a circle in the dirt under the moon. It was so much fun!!! After that, we (the yevus) perform one of the dances that we learned in training; the villagers loved it! Chris also got us all a strip of kente (cloth woven here…I’ll post some pics of the weavers/looms, etc) which was super nice of him! We had a great time.
September 19, 2010
Today is Sunday; I figured church was at 9 like usual…I was super tired from traveling and was planning on sleeping late…till 7:30 am! That didn’t work. At 7 am (I’m awake but kinda just chillin in bed) there are knocks at my door, but at first I couldn’t tell if it was my door or not. So I get up and look out the window and see Nyemetchay going down the hill to church (I told her to come get me when they went). Dammit. I then hear the drums start. I decide on skipping church today. It’s two hours earlier than usual and I don’t feel like rushing and then being late. So I make breakfast, hang with the cat, and read my book.
Later in the day, I go outside on the porch to start painting the bookshelf the carpenter finished. As I’m painting, Mawuli comes to tell me that the men who are going to work on the mountain road will be coming today. “Do I need to meet with them today?” “No, maybe tomorrow. But they will come and stay at the guesthouse.” So I keep painting and here come the trucks up the hill. I see some of the people I met a couple weeks ago; we greet. They also have a couple new people with them. As I’m hunkered over painting and talking to a couple other people (2 little girls from the village showed up, Sister Naomi came by, and Mawuli was there too…like a porch party!!!!) one of the guys gives me a bottle of French wine (I so bet that it’s better than my 2 cedi box of wine!!), “ This is for you.” “Wow, thanks!!!” A few minutes later one of the guys gives me a loaf of bread….geeze. See, even strangers feed me here. Anyway…now I need a corkscrew…dammit. I made spaghetti tonight too…the wine would have been great with it…but no corkscrew…which is why I bought boxed wine in the first place J
Today I sewed some curtains for my front windows; they are half curtains that are pretty sheer, but obstruct the view from the little kids trying to stare in my windows when they are stalking me for candy!
Also, Courtney, if you are reading this, Lukenbach, Texas is playing on my Ipod right now J And just so you know, the chickens that run around my yard here, chill up in the mango treeJ
September 24, 2010
I woke up Tuesday (21st) all stuffed up; it’s been cool here at nights…even I’m getting chilly…I still sweat during the day though. Anyway, when I go out on the porch 2 of the road guys are hanging out, one is the American man I met before and the other is the South African man who I had just met. We sat and talked for about 45 minutes or so and then I went to town to find Boss. He wasn’t there, I didn’t feel that great, so I walked back home and started making breakfast. By the time I was finished eating, I was burning up. I ended up spending all Tuesday laying in my bed with a 102 temperature, severe abdominal cramps, and peeing out my butt. Yes I know that is disgusting, but it felt awful and you can at least hear about it! …see why PCV’s become so tight; we have to, no one else wants to hear our gross stories. Wednesday I wake up with a 101 temp; I’m contemplating calling the PC Dr, when I get up to run to the bathroom…I didn’t make it…even out of bed. DAMMIT. I feel like hell worked over and do not have the energy to wipe up my own crap and wash my sheets and stuff…by hand! As I’m sitting on the toilet, sweating, cramping, and almost crying; I realize, “ Hey Jeanna, you’re sitting on a toilet, shaking, pouring ass…but did you hear me…you’re sitting on a toilet!” I had just left Chris A’s house last week…he had to walk about 20 yards to his latrine that contained only a Turkish toilet…aka, hole in the ground you have to squat over and use. I have used several of those types of latrines and I can tell you that I have no idea what I would do at his place if I was this sick. I could not run that far without crapping myself…and at night…no. Also, being so weak and shaky and having to try and squat….geeze…this little realization made me shut up real quick and be grateful So, I pull the sheets off the bed and throw them on the floor (there really wasn’t that much on them) and figure F* it, I’ll wash them tomorrow…today it cannot be done! At this point I haven’t really eaten much in over a day and had been drinking Gatorade only. I was hoping I’d hear the kids playing around the house and send them into town to get me some bananas…but there were no kids….about an hour or so later I think I hear Mawuli. So I go to the door…and, yes!!! “Mawuli, I am sick and was wanting to send a kid to town to get me some bananas…but they are not here. Will you please go or send someone?” “Jeanna, why have you not called me? How long have you been sick? Oh, I am so sorry. What is wrong with your health...” This is why I had not called him; I know he’d be super concerned and tell everyone else and they’d be super concerned. “The children have gone to school…they will weed the school yard this week and start school on Monday. I will go and get you bananas. I will also find you medicine.” I explained I had called the PC Dr and was waiting for a call back; I just needed bananas. Ok, so off he went; I laid down. 10 minutes later, “Sister Boala…” It was Sister Naomi, “Oh, Francis told me you were sick, so I left the shop to come to you; I will stay with you until he comes back with the bananas. Oh, how are you feeling?” We sit and talk for a while…Mawuli comes back and then the Dr calls, listens to my symptoms and then tells me what antibiotic to buy. “Mawuli, where’s the closest chemical shop (pharmacy kinda)?” “There is one in Mate and one in Bala. Give me the name of it and I will go fetch your medicine.” “Ok, thank you.” They both leave and I kinda fall back asleep and about 2 hours later…. “Jeanna, are you asleep? I have your medicine. I’m sorry it took so long. I went to Mate and Bala and they did not have it, so I flagged Hayford down (a driver of a local tro) and had him get it in HoHoe when he was driving his route. Here it is...”
This is how things go here; I was wondering how long it would take for the PC Dr in Accra to get my prescription called into a store in HoHoe….uhhhhh…what prescription? None needed….ok, great. I don’t wanna get on a tro to find medicine, I’ll crap myself for sure. Mawuli and then Hayford to the rescue; I never even left the house. People are too awesome. So the fever went down by Wednesday night, but I was still peeing out my butt all day Wednesday and Thursday, but today…it’s only happened twice!!!! So I left the house and went and greeted people. My supervisor has also not been well; he had a small moto accident; so I went and saw him…and came home with a pot of cooked beans, gari, and a bunch of bananas. God love ‘em.
I stopped and talked to some of the teachers who were supervising the kids cleaning the schoolyard. I told them I’d like to do something with the school once it gets going and everything settles down; they said right on and to come and observe classes anytime. I went back into town this afternoon and saw one of the ladies I know walking away from town. “Oh, Apolonia, where are you going.” “A man has died in a close village. I am going.” Her companion, “Boala, do you want to come?” “Now?” “No tomorrow.” “Oh, I am going to HoHoe tomorrow.” “Ok.” Apolonia, who talks to me in Sekua mostly, but also some Ewe, “…….azi detsi……” All I got out of her sentence was “azi detsi” which is groundnut soup in Ewe. She starts rubbing her belly and laughing. I start cracking up. Ever since I told the women that I made banku and groundnut soup a few weeks ago, Apolonia has been giving me crap about trying the Obruni’s soup. “Oh, Apolonia! This Thursday I will bring azi detsi to the women’s group!” “Oh and banku!!” “Yes, and banku!” The two women walk off laughing and “Oh, Boala”ing me.
I keep walking and see some old man walking with a cane and I don’t recognize him so I assume he is maybe from Mate or something. I great him in Sekua…he gets all excited (before this I thought he was about 4 breaths away from death) and responds accordingly with much enthusiasm for my language efforts. He keeps walking past me and I hear him in English, “Oh, that was fine! Yes, very fine!”
I keep walking up to Esther’s shop when I hear, “Boala.” “Confidence. How are you? I have not seen you in a while.” “Oh, Sister Naomi just told me about your health…how are you? I have been away with work, I have not been around to check on you.” “I am all better; thank you.” I tell her about Apolonia giving me crap about my soup and that I’m gonna make it for the women on Thursday. “Oh, when will you make it?” “Thursday morning probably.” “Ok, I will be around. I will come and help so it does not turn out runny again.” LOL. “Great, thanks Confidence.” So much for trial and error on one’s own; automatic re-teach. It was good to get out of the house and see people. Today was good.
Anyway, that’s about all that happened this week. Monkey tried to eat a frog and it squirted him…his mouth foamed up and he kept slobbering…but he’s not sick or anything. Ok, now that really is all that happened this week J
j
September 29, 2010
My days go by pretty quickly, although I don’t quite know why. Maybe because there is absolutely no chance of a schedule or “normal day.” This is completely unlike my life in the States. While I tend to be laid back, on a regular day, a schedule and organization is natural and comfortable to me; and whether I like it or not, I got a control freak in me. This is not possible here. I have not hiked the mountain in almost 2 weeks; I have also not had a Sekua lesson in 2 weeks. This is partly because I was sick last week, Boss has been MIA/traveling the last couple weeks, and it has been raining a shit ton. This has taken away the two “normal” things that had been established in my first month here at site. I hiked the mountain most mornings at 6:15 am and several afternoons a week I had Sekua class….not so much anymore…I’m flapping in the wind again.
So, this week, I just kinda wander around the village. I stop and talk to people, go home, weed some in the yard (my arms are so freakin sore from swingin’ my cutlass…I also have blisters. My supervisor was appalled to find out I’d been weeding. “with a cutlass??!!! Where did you get a cutlass?” “I bought one in HoHoe a few weeks ago. The grass is tall; when I go to hang my laundry I get bitten by many bugs. I will weed small each day.” “Oh, Boala.” And then he shakes his head like my dad has done for sooo many years. It is the look of exasperation and saying, “Girl is gonna do it anyway, no point in arguing.”) So after I weed, I’m covered in sweat and itching so I shower, then maybe make lunch, kinda nap a little, or read a book, or study Sekua. After a while I go back to town and greet and usually sit for a while at Esther’s store. I’ve started taking different routes/footpaths through the village. I’m finding new people to talk to; so I take the same path the next day and greet the same people…meet people, etc.
So yesterday I was wandering around after greeting people and came home on my main footpath. Patience was sitting under her tree cracking palm nuts. I didn’t really have anything to do so I went over and greeted her in Sekua. I asked if I could help…in English, she doesn’t speak English at all, so I just found a hand sized rock and sat down and started cracking. She was somewhere between amused and scared. We sat and cracked, didn’t really talk; I enjoyed it. Every once in a while someone would come by…Boala/Obruni comments. They all laugh; I smile and keep cracking. One girl that I see on the paths, but don’t know who she is, comes over and starts visiting with us; she speaks English so we start talking. “Do you know what kind of tree you are sitting under?” “Nope, what is it?” “It’s a kola tree.” “Oh, what the old people chew that makes their mouths red?” “Yes.” “Where are the nuts?” She says something and Patience goes in the house and comes back with this funky, lumpy, bumpy fruit thing. “This is the kola fruit, and you pop it open and here are the nuts. This one has 2, but some have many. You peel the white off the nut and then there is the red part that you eat. Some people make a drink from it; most just chew it.” “Can I try a bite?” “You want to try?” “Well, sure.” I took a lil’ bite…it was gross. All bitter. “This is not tasty. I do not like.” “Yeah me either. Boala, you are funny.” Of course I am. So I crack for a while longer and Patience says something and the girl says, “Boala, the rain is coming. You should go to the house.” “Ok, see you tomorrow.” So I shuffle down the path and the drops start just as I hit the yard. About 2 minutes later it pours for a couple hours. This is my day.
Today I went to meet the Palm Oil Women’s group. They are roasting/boiling the nuts so they can then siphon the oil off the top and sell it. On the way to town to meet the group, I stop off at my supervisor’s house to see if he has the key to the Palm Oil Shed. I have not ever been in it and want to see it (the previous PCV had it built for the POW group) and the nut-cracking machine that I was told was broken. So I ask about it… “there is no machine.” WTF???? Did I completely make that up? I have it written in my notes and everything...the nut cracking machine is broken….yup right there on my paper. Did I misunderstand? Geeze; communication, not so clear here. So whatever, I trudge up to Augusta’s house where the group is supposed to meet (I have been wandering why they are not meeting at the shed? Is that not the point of it??) There are a few of the women there. They take me over to the pots and show me the brown sludgy stuff that’s boiling. Then we kind of just sit around while it boils. Some of them wander off, Augusta is talking to her son, I stay sitting. I watch the goats a lot…the little ones are cute. They make me laugh. I kinda zone out in my head and think about how bizarre and unproductive my life is. How am I supposed to motivate/organize these women when I don’t really know the process, really know them, and can’t communicate worth a crap? Am I just gonna be lazy for 2 years and bumble around town and say, “well I can’t work with people who don’t show up and don’t tell me what they want.” I start getting frustrated. I didn’t come here to be lazy and sit on a stump watching goats; I need to be more proactive. “Augusta, what do we use the shed for?” “…no…nathing.” “We don’t use it? It just sits there?” “Yes.” AHHHHHHH!!!!! Then I hear her son laughing and coming over (he’s the one who told me I was old when I was cracking nuts with him…he’s lost his voice real bad…probably from talking shit about “old women”…just kidding J…I gotta make my own fun here). “They use the shed to set fire to the nuts.” “Like we are doing right now…here…at your house…not the shed?” “Yes.” And off he goes like he’s just explained everything. WTF?????? AHHHHHHH!!!! Frustration! Why are we not at the f’in’ shed? You know, the one the previous PCV worked hard for? There is just no point in asking anymore…my communication skills suck here. So I go back to watching goats. After a while, they pull the cauldron off the fire and start skimming the oil. They then put the oil into a big container. I start to wonder if they know how much money the make at doing this….profit analysis…yes, that’s a school term…aww, that finance degree may be useful!!! I get a lil’ excited inside, ditch the goats and try to talk to the women. “Do you know how much money the group makes from each bag of nuts?” “Yes. 100”…. “100 cedis? Wow. So, how much to buy a bag of palm nuts?” A girl who speaks English pretty good comes by… “Sister, please help me.” I repeat my question, she says it to the women and Augusta starts, “10 cedi. Then we get 60 cedi.” “So you pay 10 for the nuts and then sell all the oil for 60 cedi?” “Yes.” That’s 50, not 100! “So what does the group do with the money?” “We buy more.” “Ahh.” There is some talking. “Then we do it again; then make two. One goes to bank, one go to buy nuts.”
That’s about as clear as mud. And that’s where I leave it for today. I’m frustrated... I still don’t know squat. So 100 cedis? Does that mean that they get 100 cedis, 50 to bank, 50 to buy nuts? Nuts are only 10 cedi a bag? I’m confused somewhere between the 60 and 100. I also want to know how they keep track of sales and who handles the money; who deposits the money at the bank, how much is in the bank; at some point I will want to see the books, see how they are keeping records…mainly I just wanna know what they want me to do! They obviously don’t need me to show them how to make palm oil. What do they expect from me? What’s the point of the group; why not just have a couple women processing palm oil…why have the group…how is the group helping them? It doesn’t seem like there is any group or organization. Do they want me to organize them or do they just wanna do their thing? I think I should hold a meeting to get all these questions out. But then again I think that I need to just see things through slowly. Information comes in bits here…like discovering that there is no nut-cracking machine (I swear I was told we had one and it was broken). In training they told us you may have to ask a question several times to determine the real answer…they ain’t foolin’!
I don’t really know how to communicate effectively with the TMT or the POW group or anything. But I think that’s how it’s supposed to be. So…patience…that thing I’m not so good at. I think right now I’m just really wanting to feel needed/productive; I’m kinda floating with nothing to ground myself. I want to contribute and feel like I do something and make some difference or have someone rely on me for something (well I guess Monkey does, but he doesn’t count…he chases his own tail with vigor…he’s slightly damaged in the head I think). I’m also quite sure this feeling will only get more intense the longer I am here. It’s only been 6 weeks at site…anyway…
Tonight was a beautiful sunset. I grabbed my camera and started walking west…I ended up just wandering through people’s yards trying to get to the edge of the bush/houses so I could get good pics of the sunset over the other mountain range. It was beautiful. A good reminder that I am not in my “normal” life. Things are going to be hard and frustrating, but I get to look at the raw beauty of a nature that I’ve never seen before…and I end the day in a big ol’ gooshy smile J
October 4, 2010
So last week I found out that the reason we are not using our newly built (within the last year) tourism reception center is not just because we don’t have water/electricity to it (like I was told in the past), but is because we don’t have the key. I have been told that the contractor kept the key….why?… “maybe he wasn’t paid.” “Why? Who built it?” “An NGO.” “Did they not pay?” “I think they sent the money through the District Assembly. Maybe the DA used the money for something else.” Geeze…just like the POW (Palm Oil Women’s) group. Keep asking questions, keep getting new/different info. So…this sounds like it’ll be fun to work out; dealing with government agencies…always a delight. 2 new building in our little village within the last year; neither is being used!!! Grrrrrrrrrrr.
So anyway…this weekend I went to Chris’s welcoming ceremony; it was supposed to start at 10am…it started about 12…at around 3 some of us left so we could get back to our villages on time. We were standing on the side of the road waiting for a tro when a motorcycle pulls up. My thoughts, “Geeze, what bullshit is this gonna be?” Because usually in this situation there’s some level of bullshit thrown at the Yevus. So the guy has a full helmet on, but something is familiar. “Fo, John! Is that you?” “Daavi Jeanna, indo!” HA! It was my Ewe teacher from PC training! I had just thought about him the other day because I knew he traveled to visit family in HoHoe sometimes. It was nice.
So today I didn’t really have anything to do in particular, so I figured I’d go to town and see if I could practice sewing on some water sachets (because I cannot sew in a straight line. Aki wants me to take over the group when she leaves in March, so I figured I had better practice.) Also, I wanted to talk to Esther about making inventory and production sheets for the sachet bags. So first I stop by Sister Naomi’s shop to say hello. Then I hobble further up the street to Esther’s. It starts pouring and we move inside; I hold the baby while she peels sweet potatoes and we talk about different vegetables, where stuff is in the HoHoe market, etc. My supervisor (her husband) comes and he and I talk about figuring out how we’re gonna get the key to the visitor reception center. I express that I’m getting restless and we really need to do our tourism mapping project so we can set goals and I can actually get started on some work (it’s now been 4 weeks since the meeting was originally scheduled). After an hour or so the rain lets up and I head to the house to make lunch, but said I’d come back in the afternoon to practice sewing.
I go back around 2:30 and start practice sewing straight lines…it got progressively better…that’s about all I can say. But the best part is Esther and I sat and talked while I sewed and she supervised. We talked about the water sachet group; I asked what the women want to use the profits for. Up until now they have been using profits to buy more sewing machines. We now have 2; plus another one that needs a part (I have seen it with my own eyes…this is not another “broken nut-cracking machine.”), and when Aki leaves in March she’s going to donate her machine to the group. That is enough machines, so we now need to decide what we should use future profits for. Aki and I discussed this on Saturday and decided over the next couple weeks we need to have the women come up with ideas and then we’ll vote. So I started asking Esther…she’s a smart lady and she’s dedicated to the group. She said that some of the women want to keep buying machines until there is one for everyone, then each person will have their own machine to keep for their own; some of the women want to start sharing the money; and some want to put it into other projects. She also says how some of the women take supplies to “practice” at home, but never return them. We keep talking; I said we’ll have Aki announce this Thursday that all group work must be done on Thursdays…no taking anything home…by anyone. Also, one machine will be used by the 3 women who are good sewers, and the other machine will be used by those who are still learning. They will practice sewing in straight lines, etc…that way they aren’t trying to make purses and wasting zippers and stuff when the purses they produce are all wonky and can’t be sold. Last week there was a new woman who came to join the group. Esther said that this woman came in the very beginning, but then quit coming after the 2nd meeting. Now she is here. Esther thinks it is because one of the women has been trying to get the others to ask that the money be shared and paid back to the women. So she is afraid that some of the women have been talking outside the group and saying that they will be getting money and so now new women will want to join because they think they will get money. If the women want to share the money fine…but only part of it…some of it needs to be saved and other to pay for supplies. Also, we will have to keep track of who comes to the meetings and works and then we’ll have to divide up the money accordingly…you’re not gonna get paid if you only show up for a lil’ bit of the time and disappear like some do.
So then I start talking to her about how the POW group is frustrating because they are not organized, I can’t communicate with them, and they aren’t even using the shed. So I find out that basically there is no group; that they have just restarted since I have come and that the reason it fell apart was that one of the women has basically been keeping the money. They don’t know how much they make on the oil and they don’t use the shed because Augusta wants to keep it all at her house…then she has control and you can pretty much figure out who’s pilfering the money. The reason many of them don’t show up is because they refuse to work if she keeps it up. Sooooo..
I’m finally getting some info. Yes, I guess this could be gossip, but it is at least information and it makes sense. So I think I’m just gonna have to take charge and be bossy with the POW group as in: I want to see the books, the bank statements, each officer must fulfill their role; the chairwoman cannot be in control of the money, we must work in the shed, the oil must remain in the shed and be sold out of the shed; we must keep track of inventory. If we do not run this as a real organization, then I’m not going to work with them and they can do whatever they want. And I’ll find a new use for the shed as for it not to go to waste.
I finally got the financial books for the TMT today. They were on the other end of the guesthouse…I’ve been asking for them for like 2 weeks…they were 60 feet from my door….anyway. Also, this Wednesday is the 1st Wednesday of the month, which means general TMT meeting…where I will plead with the members to please set a date for the Mapping/Goal Setting meeting so that we can start working on stuff. I also have a list of stuff to address.
What up? Let’s see what I can remember from the last week. We were supposed to have a general TMT meeting at 5:30 am on Wednesday…I headed to town around 6 (they never start on time), saw Mawuli. “We having the meeting today?” “Well many cannot make it. They say they need to go to farm to weed under their maize. So I think we will not have it today.” Awesome, glad I woke up an hour early. “Do they realize I cannot do any work until we set TMT goals? So that means I’m gonna just be walking around the village talking to people and not doing anything to better the TMT. Do they know that?” “Yes, they know. When farming season is over, they will come to meetings. November, December they will start coming.” Yippie. In their defense, they had community workdays last week and they are building stairs down to the waterfall since the path has been eroded pretty badly…this was also a reason for missing the meeting…some were going to work on the stairs. On Tuesday they had called for me and I walked up the mountain to where they were working. They had hauled bags of cement up from the village, the women and men were hauling water and sand on their heads to mix with the cement. Men were digging up and then splitting stone to make the stone and cement path. It was a freaking hot day, too! They work so hard. I got there, greeted them, and immediately, “Boala, we made you a nice spot to sit. Go get away from the sun.” They put a flat rock under some cassava plants and that’s where I planted my ass for an hour while I watched everybody work in the sun…weak yevu.
Wednesday I went to HoHoe and spent the night with a friend so I could get up early and catch the 6am tro to Koforidua (big bead market on Thursdays and I wanted to pick up some presents for the fam to ship home for Christmas). I get to the tro station around 5:40am…the tro that reportedly fills up very quickly did not fill up until 9:15. Awesome. The tro was a POS. I have stubby legs, but even my knees were smashed into the back of the bench in front of me…for 4 hours. Plus, they had shoved a bunch of bags under my seat and the one in front of me, so I couldn’t even move my feet up or back…and I had to straddle my bag the whole way…and the seats had no cushion to them. Am I done bitching? Nope! The tro kept overheating, so we had to stop and pour water in every hour or so. On one of these fateful stops I had to pee. I had on pants so there was no way to just stand on the side of the road and pee with a skirt; so I found a small bush area, I know the tro full of people could see through the bushes if they looked, but I didn’t really care…it was their lucky day, they got to see my sparkling white ass covered in purple bug bites! I finally got to the bead market almost 4 hours late (I was meeting a couple other PCV’s there…they were even later than me…like 2 hours later. Gotta love Ghana travel.) I spent 2 hours wandering around the market and bargaining…it was fun and I found a lot of cool stuff. There were sooooo many beads and I was trying really hard not to get ripped off…I’m sure I did on some things, but overall I’m happy with what I got for the money and I had fun. (I would have taken a bunch of pics of the beads…but my good camera broke L)Approximately 4 hours after arriving, I headed back without going to the internet and stopped along the way to stay with Mike since I was delayed for so long and couldn’t make it back to the village that day. It was weird being back in a Twi speaking area. I kept speaking in Ewe or Sekua and then would have to switch to what I remembered from a couple months ago…in a matter of 1 day I had to use all 3 languages and it had me all confuzeled. Also, on the way back I saw a ram standing on top of a moving tro…this place cracks me up.
Llast week I got TWO packages! Anner and Marilyn hooked a sister up!!! THANK YOU!!!!!! Gum, chocolate, candy, pretzels, goldfish, pringles, tuna, canned chicken/ham, crystal light, beef jerky, chunky peanut butter, velveeta, shirts, pedicure stuff, soap, lotion, yarn, crochet stuff, sketching supplies, treats and flea collars for the cat, and pictures from peops at home and also some pics of what I’ve posted since I’ve been in Ghana. Getting packages is so awesome…it’s like Christmas…so exciting…it’s stuff that’s familiar…and it makes you miss home and the people who love you. One bad thing about getting packages is dealing with the Ghana Post Office. Apparently only one guy can hand out packages…only on Wednesday and Friday…only till 3…and he takes a 2, 2.5 hour lunch.
While I gripe about these things…the post office, the crappy tros (not all of them are as bad as the above mentioned one), the meetings that never happen…it’s just gripe. It amazes me how little the inconvenience/inefficiency really matters to me here. If I was 4 hours late to meet friends and stuff in the US I’d freak out!!! Here, we all know it’s gonna happen more often than not; it sucks and messes up your “schedule”, but what are you gonna do? Nothing. Can’t change it, so why get upset? Even when you can’t feel your legs or butt from the shitty tro, you don’t bitch or get pissy about it too much…there’s no alternative…deal with it. Spend an hour and half hanging around the post office waiting for the package guy? Chat up the ladies behind the counter so they get to know you; go grab some chop across the street and BS with the people there. It’s easier to be laid back when there are no real expectations. This is a fundamental difference from here and the US. I don’t think it just applies to the yevus or PCV’s; I kinda think that’s how this whole place works. Which is probably one of the reasons it’s not more developed…but I don’t think the Ghanaians really care that it’s not developed, though. I dunno…just some mutterings that have been floating around my head.
Today I met with Boss and we hiked the mountain. We hiked to the top, I swang on the stick swing for a while and then we headed back. “Oh,Boala, let’s go to the Fulani and see if he has any milk for us.” Hell, yeah!!! Fulani are people who keep cattle…I have seen the cows grazing on the mountain before…good looking cows…healthy, but I had never been to the Fulani’s cottage. So we hike up another peak to the cottage. We get a bootleg water bottle full of milk!!! Sweet. So you know how I’m a total domestic goddess, (LOL…see, I haven’t lost my sense of humor), today I made cheese!!!…on accident. I was trying to heat the milk (we have to, you can get parasites and tuberculosis, etc; and, yes, I made a makeshift double boiler) to get rid off all the funky, but apparently I heated it too much and it started to chunk up. So I threw in some salt and started stirring. I didn’t have any cheesecloth, but I did have some medical gauze, so I tripled that up and squeezed the cheese curds. Then I flattened it into lil’ discs and stuck them in the fridge. I put the remaining skimmed milk in my coffee and oatmeal J Tonight I fried the cheesel…YUMMY!!!! I could still possibly end up sick as dog if I didn’t do it right…but chances are it’s worth it…it was really good. Also, today I started cutting out and HAND sewing a skirt. I’m like a Little House on the Prairie Martha Stewart these days. I’ll post pics of the skirt once it’s done…unless it turns out completely wonky.
J
October 13, 2010
So far, still not sick from the cheese and yesterday I finished my skirt!!! It looks pretty good; I’m happy with it. Next I will try a longer piecey-piecey skirt I guess. I started with a knee length one since I’m doing it by hand…takes a while. But, all I have is time here J.
So funny story I forgot to tell you. Sunday before church, Boss came up to me, “Remember I told you I had good news and would need your help?” “Yup, I haven’t seen you around lately; I was wondering when I’d find out the good news.” “Well, my sister’s daughter has received a ring.” (not his real sister, but a good friend) “She is getting married?” “Yes, over in ******” I forget the name of the village; it starts with an “A” and is about 1.5 hours away. “Oh, congratulations!” “Yes. And there have been many weddings in that village, but there has never been a white person to attend any of the weddings. And my sister knows that I work with the tourists, so she was hoping I could get a white person to come to the wedding. I told her that we are having a white person live in Todome; and that you are very nice and are my friend and I would ask you if you would attend her daughter’s wedding.” LOL. “So you want me to be the white person so that this wedding is different than all the others?” “Oh, yes, it would make my sister very happy.” LOL “Ok, Boss. I will go; but you have to explain the Ghanaian wedding stuff to me first. It’s not 3 days like the funerals is it?” “Oh, no, of course not! It’s only 2 days.” Awesome. 2 days of being the spectacle in an organized event of which I will not be able to understand a word and will only know one person. He also said he was gonna ask Aki the JICA volunteer…if there were two yevus…holy moly!!! So the wedding is gonna be in November or December; I have a Peace Corps meeting for a week or so in November, so we’ll see.
So today we were supposed to have our missed general TMT meeting, at 5:30 or 6 am. So a lil’ before 6 I start to head out the door; and then decide to call the chairman and save a trip to town if the meeting was cancelled again. “Fo Nicho, are we still having our meeting this morning.” “I have been at the roadside, and no one was there. I have sent for Boss to see where the others are. I will call you and let you know if we will have it.” “Ok.” 10 minutes later my phone rings. “Boala, the secretary will not attend; Silencer and Hayford show’d up, but we cannot have a meeting without the secretary. I think today you and I will go to him at school and see why he is not attending. He must be there for the meetings.” “Ok, I’ll meet you at your house by 8 so we can go to him.” So the secretary of the TMT is the 6th grade teacher. We go to school and he’s not there…he had to go to HoHoe. Ok…my thought is who is teaching his class, but I don’t even entertain the idea of asking. So I talk to Fo Nicho about the POW group and said that I wanted to see the shed that was built for them. We also decide to try and set a meeting for Monday morning because I want them to decide if they want to work as a group…with a treasurer, work at the shed, keep track of what is sold, profits, bank account, etc…or just do their own thing…and I need Fo Nicho to translate for me. If they do not work as an organized group, then I am not going to work with them on a regular basis and will try to find something else to put my energy in. So, I go to Augusta’s house (the chairwoman) to see if they are having nuts to work with and also to try and get the meeting together. Her and her son are there. He speaks English well, so he helps me. She said they are having nuts and that they will have a meeting and try to get together to work next Wednesday. I told her that I want to have a meeting with the whole group and Fo Nicho so we can discuss the group organization…so please inform the women to meet on Monday at 6am. She says ok and she’ll let me know by Sunday night if the women will be at the meeting. Fine.
Her son (Sammy) starts telling me that I am doing very well at my Sekua and that sometimes the old people don’t respond because my tone is a little off (it’s a very tonal language). He says most people understand what I’m trying to say, but some people (like his mother) don’t recognize what I’m saying. “Yeah, my tonal accents are off. It’s hard for me to tell the difference, but I’ll keep trying.” “Yes. But they should understand you still. They need to try to hear you harder. You are doing well; you are trying. They need to try as well and they need to respond to you so you will keep learning.” Ok; we’ll see what we can do. “Oh, even yesterday I see you. You try! I see you walking on the village road in the hot of the day…you were carrying a violet pail. Oh! Even some of the villagers complain about the heat…but you try!!” Geeze. I had taken a break from sewing, walked to town to chop some fried sweet potatos (ntombo…learned that word yesterday) and pepe at the roadside. Ma la ntombo (I like sweet potato). Then I bought a pail to throw my vegetable scraps in, greeted some peops, and hobbled back home before the rain. Damn my shining white skin; Sammy spotted me all the way from their house! You can only see a small section of the road from there. He’s kind of a creeper.
Anyway. I met up with Fo Nicho in the afternoon to go to the palm oil shed. It’s a very nice building with 3 rooms; 2 connect, but lock separate, and one is a completely separate entrance. It even has electricity and a ceiling fan. So basically what I found out was that the shed was finished just before the last volunteer left; the women have never used it…ever! It has been sitting there; there is an electric bill stuck there showing it has not been paid since it was hooked up. “Why is there a bill if we don’t use the shed?” “I don’t know. But there is a bill.” An 87 cedi bill!! “Who will pay?” “The women’s group (whose name is on the bill) don’t have the money; so the community will have to meet and decide.” “Oh! If there is a minimum monthly charge no matter how much electricity we use, we need to have the electricity shut off until we find a use for this building.” They are thinking of using the two connecting rooms for the school (Todome has a primary school); one room will be a library and the other for a computer lab. Ok. “Do we have books for a library?” “Yes, there are books we have received, but we do not have anywhere to put them. So they are in boxes in the school office.” Sitting there…doing no good. “Ok, so we can have the carpenters and wood people donate time and materials to build shelves for the library?” “Yes, we can do community labor work.” I wonder if the kids even have time to read…they go to school, help with the house, farm, siblings, etc. “Well, we can work on that after we talk to the women’s group and then maybe I’ll start a book club or something.” “That would be good.” “And as far as the ICT…there are many things that must be done for that.” “Yes, there is a group who may be able to donate computers. We will have to write a proposal.” “Yes, Fo Nicho, but look at this building. Lelabi wrote a proposal, got the money, the community built it and here it stands after one year…no one is using it! Just because we can find someone to donate stuff does not mean that community needs it or can use it properly” He laughs.
This is the most frustrating aspect of development work (so far…to me…)! The villages want anything that will be considered development even if they don’t know how to use it or it doesn’t make sense. Things are donated and then wasted or not used efficiently. Money and items are flowing to underdeveloped countries throughout the world; but that doesn’t mean they are the right things needed for SUSTAINABLE development. It’s hard. Like right now, I want to start working on something; I’m about to say F it and start getting things done…but that does no good. That’s just me getting things accomplished; but once I’m gone….nothing. Talking to Esther this week about the Water Sachet Group… “some of the women think that when Aki leaves in March the group will be finished and they all want to have a sewing machine.” “Well if the group wants to keep working I would like to work with you even after Aki leaves. We can expand the products we make and the production and business skills the women have.” “Yes you will be with us; so we can keep going.” “Esther. The women have the skills. There is nothing that Aki or I do that you all cannot do on your own. You women can run this all by yourselves. That is the point of this group, so you guys have a way to make money on your own…long after we are gone. You can have Fo Nicho drive you to drop purses at the shops and take you to the bank…the group can do it all.”
Back to the palm oil shed….The POW group doesn’t want to use the palm oil shed because it is too far (it’s below my house…across from the church). “Did the women say this when this plot was decided for the shed?” “No.” “But now that it’s here they say it’s too far. That is not acceptable. They are being lazy! This was a waste of time and money. We will not do this again.” Library books that have been donated…sitting in boxes. You do not have to have a complete library in order to provide books to the kids! AHHHHH. Where do I start? How do I motivate? My head feels crazy…it starts pouring rain, I sit under the eave and think in circles. The women do not want to use the shed; we can use it for a library; the books are sitting in boxes; do the kids have time to read; would a book club be a waste; computer lab; who would teach it; how would we afford all the voltage regulators etc; I am not writing proposals for them…the community can put that money up if we get computers donated; do primary school kids really need to learn computers here; if they go on to secondary school yes; if they do not go to secondary school they’ll just end up on the farm and never see a computer anyway…….
I don’t know. It’s hard to decide where to start…what will be beneficial and sustainable; how to actually make a difference…not in a big, prolific way, but just in a way one person thinks. To see real development in a person who “gets it.” That tangible things are not always the answer and that just because there are projects and they “look good on paper” does not mean that they are actually helping the community or the villagers’ livelihoods…and that is the very definition of successful development.
Confidence making groundnut soup with the spices mom & dad sent
Me stirring the banku…Confidence was so proud
Confidence balling the banku…she’s so cute!
Me eating the groundnut soup and banku…my nub is not conducive to banku shoveling.
My kitchen complete with new shelf the carpenter made and I painted.The big barrel on the left is filled with water for when the water quits coming, the 2 small blue barrels are used for washing clothes (one for wash, one for rinse) and also for rinsing dishes, the orange pan is used for washing dishes, my kick-ass 2 burner propane stove, the laundry line for when it rains and also to hang my fruit/veggies from so the critters/ants don’t get them. Note the big ass yams and pineapple on the floor.
Me sweeping my kitchen (diggin the batik here…the fabric)
In the village; Todome
one road thru town
Our tourism reception building
Boss the tour guide and my Sekua teacher and general buddyJ
Esther, my supervisor’s wife, and 2 of kids, Rose and Dixon. Esther is making water sachet purses from the thrown away plastic sachets.
Today is Sunday and I woke up around 3:30 or 4am to pouring rain. Tin roof is loud…I love it! It rained all morning. I laid in bed till about 6:30 or so, got up, decided to properly (instead of jankity rigged) hang my mosquito net since my counterpart had brought me a hammer and some nails. After that I swept, cooked breakfast and then it was about time to get ready for church…it’s supposed to start at 9:30am.
I’ve decided to go to church on Sundays, not for riveting sermons in Ewe, but it’s a good way to spend time in the village and meet people. So I head down the hill around 9:35 because I heard drums. I get down there and there’s only like 3 adults and 8 kids in the church…the kids were drumming. Anyway, church actually gets started around 10:30. After the service my supervisor tells me that some men from Accra are going to come today because the village wants to build a road up the mountain for something like Jeep tours/moto tours, and that when they come, I should join them. Ok, do I need to wear hiking clothes? No, ok cool.
So I get home and fiddle around a lil bit and he calls. It’s raining and kinda chilly (the Ghanaians think it’s cold and have sweaters and stuff on) so I throw a 2-yard around my shoulders (over my dress), grab my chacos and umbrella and head to the tourist office. Some of the elders are there, but the Accra men are not. I sit in the office with the old guys and we kinda nod off for a while; the people show up almost 3 hours later…I spent the three hours sitting on the steps of the office talking to people and getting language lessons. Also, YaYa, Confidence’s aunt, came to town and brought me a big bag of rice…she sells raw rice in HoHoe----I told you people feed me all the time. I still have a ton of rice that I was given at my naming ceremony.
Anyway, the people get there and there’s one guy from the Likpe area, a British dude, a Belgian guy, 2 people from the US, and 1 Asian guy from Spain. Introductions are made, libations poured, shots of gin/schnapps taken. After a bit of jabbering they say ok, we will go up the mountain. I wanted to go so I could figure out what they were planning on doing, but wasn’t gonna invite myself because only the men were going. So one guy goes, “Boala, you coming?” “Yes.” So I walk outside, wrap my 2-yard around me like a towel/sarong, pull up my dress underneath (I had leggings on too) so I can take big steps and hike…off we go. As we start to ascend I see that they have cut down a ton of stuff in order to show these guys where the ROAD will go. What??? Ahhhhh…I keep my mouth shut, but my tree-hugging side is starting to get scared. So as they take off through the cut down area, “Boala, don’t walk through here, please. Meet us at the path junction.” Fine. One guy, Israel, walks with me. We keep walking and up ahead are a bunch of young guys sitting around…they were slaughtering a cow and drinking. “Boala, you are welcome.” Thanks…I greet them in Sekua. I have no idea who they are and they don’t look familiar, but apparently they know me. They start talking about a pusu (cat) and one guy says, “I hear you are looking for a cat.” “Yes, I heard you just talking about a pusu…I understand.” “We have a small one, do you want it.” “Sure, where is it?” And then he describes the house I went to last week that told me that they already sold the 2 kittens they had, but that the other cat should be having babies soon. So I dunno what he’s talking about and I told him that. Then he says, “You are staying at the guesthouse, yes? I just came to town today and heard. Should we come visit you?” About that time, rest of the hiking crew show’d up. “Uhhhh…we are going. Bye.” And then we kept hiking.
So up we go and the men start talking about bulldozers…ahhhhh…and then I remember that I need to keep my mouth shut…this is their village and their mountain. But all I think of is 1) why would someone want to hike up a road instead of a path and 2) where are you gonna get the 4-wheel drive vehicles you’re talking about that will be driving up this proposed road? There isn’t anything but jankity tros around here. Anyway, we keep going and we’re hauling ass to get up and down the mountain before dark. The Asian dude is like, “You’re really strong!!!” Thanks, can you tell my village that…they’re afraid to let me do anything….I didn’t say that part.
Anyway we get to the top and our chief is with us and he’s all excited that we all hiked up there…he’s super cute, his laugh cracks me up. One of the two “road guys” goes, “Look at all that wasted land. There’s nothing there.” Ahhhhhhhh….noooo…my mouth stayed shut no longer, “Ahh, yes there is, look at all those fantastic trees. That’s the reward for getting to the top…the beautiful view of nature!!” He says, “She wants to leave it that way…don’t touch it, right?” “Yes, sir, that’s right.”
So back down the mountain we go. We get to the bottom and all the old men and women waiting were like “Boala, you went the whole way, oh, you are strong!!!” They are so ridiculous. I’ve hiked that mountain at least 3 times a week for the past 3 weeks. One of the “road guys” said, “ Oh, congratulations, you did very well.” Ah, geeze. Boss (the man I hike with all the time) was very proud that his yevu could run with the big men.
I don’t really think this road is a good idea. Maybe I’m wrong, I dunno; they’ve been here longer than me, but creating a road that is gonna take away some of the farming land, hack through rock and trees…also, who has the vehicles to take tourists? If you drive, then is the guide gonna sit in there and try to tell the story? Is there even a market for this? Have they checked? Most travelers in Ghana are voluntourists, adventurists, or budget travelers…to me, these people would rather hike than take a 20-30 minute road trip up the mountain to just take pictures and then come back down. If the people are too lazy to hike the mountain they sure enough are too lazy to scramble through the caves. The caves are the most strenuous/uncomfortable/least safe part of the whole deal. I dunno. I dunno if I should ask questions or just keep my mouth shut. I might try to do some low key poking around. I think they should try to fix the safety issues around the caves before they start bulldozing a road, but…I need more details, but details seem to be hard to get here…I don’t know if my community really knows the details or if it’s just some idea …
Anyway, Happy Sunday to you.
j
September 7, 2010
So this morning Boss and I walked to Bakua (a neighbor village) to check on some cats we heard about. They were already gone...dammit. So on the road back we are talking about stuff. A tro comes by and we get off the road as to not get hit. The road is “paved” but there are huge pot holes/abysses so the tros swerve all over the road to miss them. There are usually some close calls with people walking on the edge of the road…and of course with goats, etc. So Boss starts telling me about how cars are scary and that they can just lock up and then they can bump you, and then you are dead; so he always gets off the road when they come. Ahh, it’s true. So we’re walking along. We walk/hike a lot together and so we only talk some times and other times we both go off into our heads. Anyway, we’re walking along off in our own worlds and hear a tro coming. Boss climbs into the weeds and I start cracking up. He starts laughing and explains, “Life is small. I like to be alive, very much. I want to keep the air in my belly. I do not want to get bumped and die. I watch when tros come; if the tires come at me, I will run away into the bush fast!” HE CRACKS ME UP!!!! I was laughing so hard I could barely breath.
You know how sometimes you get images in your mind and you just can’t stop the giggles? I could just see Boss’s old, bony body hauling ass through the bush, running from something that looks like the Mystery Machine. It still tickles me.
As we walk back through town and greet, I see a guy who, as of yesterday and with 2 colleagues, is staying at the guesthouse in the room next to mine. I say hi as we pass and then ask Boss if he knew this man was staying at the guesthouse. He says no, who are they? I explain that I spoke to one of them yesterday and they said they worked with the School District and they were auditors, but that the man we just saw told me he was going to farm yesterday. Boss makes a funny face…yup, that’s kinda what I thought...he’s a weirdo. So we progress with our greetings and stuff and when we get back towards the house, Boss says, “Oh, there is that man. Is he normal?” LOL. I doubt it, Boss.
So I spent some time today nodding off in bed while it rained; then I tried to study Sekua, but kept getting distracted with my thoughts. I texted some other volunteers to see if I was the only one who felt like they stay in their house a lot, simply because they have no where to really be and roadside convos in the village can only last so long…I am not the only one, phew. It’s weird; at home, I could wad up in my apartment for 2 or 3 days and not go out and not feel bad/weird about it. But then I also figure that I spent most of my days at work or hanging out with people; so 2 or 3 days of solitude and peace were great. Here, I don’t have anything I HAVE TO DO. I’m supposed to work, but it’s not like a real schedule or anything; and everything I do relies on the people in the village participating, and right now almost everyone is harvesting at farm, so therefore no time to do projects/meetings with the yevu. So, I did a lot of wandering around in my head today. Not much serious, just let my mind wander where it felt like. Two years of this and I could turn into an astounding writer/philosopher or a raving lunatic. We’ll see.
This afternoon some of the girls who have taken to coming to my porch to draw and in turn help me with my Sekua, came over. They drew, I practiced my language. Then they said they had come from their rice farm down by the stream (utubi in Sekua). “Oh, will you take me? I see women going to fetch water there and I haven’t been yet.” They start laughing. “You want to go today?” “Yup.” “Now? Ok we will go.” So off we go. We get to the almond tree and Akos says, “We’ve heard this is your people’s kind of ground nut.” Ground nuts are peanuts…same, same. So I told them that Americans call these nuts, almonds; we eat them plenty, but we also have ground nuts. So we pick one off the ground and smash it open…yup almond
They take me down the path to the stream; along the way we pass coco trees and pineapples…apparently the pineapples (ablobe in Sekua, atoto in Ewe) grow wild in that area, so if I find one I can pick it Next, they take me back to their rice (molu in Ewe, kamu in Sekua…has the language lessons gotten annoying yet?) field. I have never been in one before; this one is newly planted so I’m excited to see the process through.
Anyway, we come back to my porch and they quiz me on what Ewe I know and then try to teach me Sekua words. It’s getting to evening time and they leave. I walk into town to visit Augusta, the Palm Oil Women Group’s chairwoman, and see if we will still meet tomorrow to crack nuts, and if so when. As I hit the main road I run into a man and his son; the man starts talking to me in really good English like he knows me. I’m sure I’ve met him before, but can’t place him. Turns out he’s a teacher I met back when I was here on site visit at the beginning of July. His name is Richard and he remembers my American name…even my last name…damn, I’m impressed. Anyway, we walk and talk and he tells me that he was just teaching here as his national service (you do one year of national service after you finish university) and he will be leaving; his service was over in August. “Oh, who will teach form 4?” “Oh, Jeanna, you can teach it. Do you want to? You could do it!” “Uh….I do want to help at the school, but I don’t know about teaching full time. Isn’t there someone coming?” “Yes, they will send someone else who is doing their national service. So I will stay until they come.” Ok…whew, got out of that one.
I see Esther, my supervisor’s wife and 3 of his kids; they are sitting by Esther’s shop/hair place. So I go over and sit for a while. We talk about food. Dixon (he’s 4) has someone’s cellphone held up to his ear blaring music. Michael Jackson comes on; I start bustin a move to Dixon’s great delight. It was fun. I asked the word for “dance” in Sekua, they told me, but I’ve already forgotten it.
I head to Augusta’s compound. A bunch of lil’ kids are sitting outside and her one older son is there. I greet, ask if she’s home; I hear her in the kitchen room. We jabber a lil’; as in they laugh at my Sekua. “Oh, Boala, you are trying!!” Yup, sho’ am. I ask if we are gonna crack nuts tomorrow…what time? If it doesn’t rain we’ll meet at 8am. Ok. “You will teach me?” “You will crack palm nuts?” “Sure, why not?” More rounds of laughter at the yevu. “Ok, see you tomorrow. I will come strong to crack nuts.” Off I go, take the footpaths through the village and greet the usual people I see on that route. “Oh, Boala, you are trying.” Yes…it’s true, I am.
J
September 8, 2010
So today I was supposed to meet the Palm Oil Women’s group at the chairwoman’s house at 8am so we could crack palm nuts. I show up around 8:15, knowing good and well that I’d probably be the only one there that early. I get there and sure enough, no one is there except the chairwoman, her son, and his friend. Apparently people were called to work at the chief’s farm that day. So Augusta (chairwoman) tells me to go with her son into the mud shed thing and he’d show me how to crack nuts. Awesome. So there’s an overturned wooden fufu pounding bowl with a very large, flat rock laid across it. 2 small stools and 2 small (hand size) flat rocks. Sammy (her son who is somewhere between 25 and 35ish???) sits down and shows me how to crack nuts; lay it on the big rock and hit it with the small rock. Ok, got it. A special note is made to watch for the flying shells as they can hurt…good to know. So we start cracking. He, his friend, and I sit and talk while we crack. They both speak pretty good English and the talk in English mostly so I’m entertained. Kids and adults come by and see the Yevu cracking and get all excited, “Boala, you are trying!!” Yes. So as we’re cracking, Sammy asks me how old I am. “28.” “Oh, you are old!” “What you talking ‘bout?” “You are old; not married, no kids.” Wow, you’re a charming fellow! So we keep cracking…they keep talking, I kinda stare out the cut out/window thing at the kids playing soccer with an orange. Then some woman with a new baby comes by and talks for a while. Sammy, “Boala, one day soon you will have to have a little one of your own.” “Uh, yeah, sure, maybe.” He laughs at me. Dude, if you start talking about my womb like my homestay brother did, I’m gonna chuck my nut-crackin’ rock at your head. He doesn’t say any more…so we crack nuts for 2 hours. They tell me (as did about 3 other people who came by to watch my progress) I need to stop because this is my first time and my arm will be sore. Ok.
September 9, 2010
Today Boss came to my door and said that yesterday he found a house in the village that has pusus. He went and saw them…there are 3. Ok, so I throw my shoes on and off we go. And it’s true! There are 3 lil kittens running around outside these people’s compound. So I start looking around to see which one looks healthy. Boss has apparently already scouted them for me, “Boala, look at this one. It is very clever; it will do good for you.” Ok. So he nabs the kitten and I flip it over to see if it’s a boy or a girl (I want a boy; they don’t spay or neuter here and I don’t want a prego cat). I think he’s a boy from what I can tell…there’s a bump in the right area…but I dunno. The kitty is tiny! Barely bigger than my hand. So now I have a kitty. He is brown and white and after a few days with him I think I will call him Monkey. He jumps around all goofy and chases his tail and attacks his own feet. He will grow to be a great mouse assassin! He spent his first night crying all night long…no sleep…this is why I’m afraid I do not have the mothering nature…I wanted to snap his neck at about 2 am…but of course I didn’t.
September 10, 2010
So today is market day in Bala (two villages over) and HoHoe (my big market town). I usually go to Bala first because I get fruits and veggies there much cheaper. So Nymetchay said she wanted to go too (Muwali’s cousin who is in town until she goes back to school in Accra next week). So we decided to walk because she had to drop something off at Mate, the village in between mine and Bala. So we carry a basket of stuff to Mate. As we’re walking through Mate a couple boys (probably around 13 or so) start yelling, “Obruni, lady. Oh I love white lady…” I just kinda wave them off and keep going. On the way back to the main road we see them again, “Oh I love white lady…” “Boy, you ain’t old enough to handle a woman of any color…” and as my mouth is flapping I realize he has no idea what I’m saying and instead throw out, “Obimini.” Which means black/African child. I figure calling him a child in his language is the best comeback I have. This cracks Nymetchay up. Anyway…
We get to Bala and start walking around. I’m buying stuff to make groundnut soup and banku and Nymetchay apparently just wanted to go on the trip because she buys nothing and just jabbers to cute boys. So I go to the dried fish area of the market (it smells something awful) to buy some lil dried fish for Monkey. As I’m buying a disgusting baggy full of dried fish, I can tell the market ladies are talking about me. So one speaks in Ewe, “Yevu, efoa?” Which means how are you. I respond in Ewe, “Mefo. Wo ha efoa?” Which means I’m fine. How are you? Before I even get the ‘mefo’ all the way out, the market women start hollering. “Eh, mese evegbe.” Yes, I hear Ewe...so quit poking fun at the Yevu! So they all start talking to me in Ewe…which of course most I don’t understand. But with Nymetchay’s help we determine that they want me to take them to America. I said sure, I will be in Ghana for 2 years…after that we will all go. They enjoyed that…it’s a fun game to them. Some days being the butt of every joke is okay, some days, I just don’t have the mindframe for it…
After that I hop a tro for HoHoe. I spoil myself by buying chocolate soymilk and REAL chocolate chip cookies. I spent 6 cedis on the 2 of them. For one more cedi I could have bought another flat of 30 eggs. It’s sad when I weigh my purchase decisions on how many eggs it costs.
Chris A. comes back to the village with me and we’re gonna hike and go to the caves tomorrow. Tonight we made Asian noodles, swapped movies and music, jabbered, and shared a 2 cedi box of wine
September 11, 2010
Happy Birthday Marilyn!!!!
So today Chris and I woke up, made breakfast and went to hike the caves. Boss was not feeling well, so he had Joseph, one of the chief’s twin sons, take us. We hike fast up the mountain; Chris and I are sweating are asses off. Then we go to the caves. We had so much fun. It really is a great hike; the caves require some mountaineering and questionable rock climbing, but they are awesome! We had a good time making fun of each other. Chris is scared of bats; cave 3 has plenty bats. This is the cave that you climb through a small hole and descend a ladder into the cave about 6 feet below. You climb around down there and listen to the story of the ancestors as bats fly around you. So Chris is freaking out and yelping and Joseph is cracking up at us and calling him “Batman.” Chris asks Joseph to climb back into this little room off the main part and take a flash picture of all the bats in there. Joseph says sure and Chris flies up the ladder at top speed so they don’t all fly out while he’s in there. I also climbed out; I don’t mind the bats, but I don’t want a shit ton of them flying at my face either. So we climb out to the ledge area and wait…you can hear the bats fluttering in the cave underneath of us. Then several come flying out of the main hole. A little while later Joseph emerges, unscathed, with good pictures, and laughing at us.
Then comes Chris’s turn to laugh at me. You have to descend into the ravine and they have ropes tied so you can kinda repel down. It’s very steep and the rocks are always slippery due to all the rain. So you know I’m short and stubby, so it’s hard for me to find footholds sometimes. So I’m hanging onto the rope, repelling backwards, I have lowered my body to find the next foothold so that one knee is up by my ear; I still can’t reach another foothold that’s not slippery. So I figure f* it. I release my one foot and decide to just kinda slide down the rock face with my arms holding onto the rope and my belly skimming the rock. The 2 guys are below me and are laughing their asses off. Whatever…I made it. Chris does have some entertaining video though; complete with me yelling at him to stop video tapping me and him doing his evil/shit-eating laugh.
So we progress through the caves; hearing Chris’s “Oh, Mylanta” comments assure me that I’m not a pussy and certain parts really are challenging. So we climb through the final cave, which is a vertical climb, and then comes the part that I hate. You have to shimmy across a small ledge for about 20 feet with nothing to hang onto except the rock and a questionable wire. It scares me! Joseph goes first and then I start. I tell him that this part is very scary for me so he talks me along and when I get close to the end he grabs my hand (which is noticeably shaking) and helps me over. “You are safe! You are scared, I can feel you shaking!” Yes, it scares me. Then I hover on the other side of the bend and I hear Chris, “Oh, Mylanta.” We made it across and then comes the feeling of knowing it is over!!!
So we descend the mountain and are both exhausted. We bumble through the village covered in sweat, dirt, and bat shit. “Sia bidzi?” Where are you from? “Budzi kotini.” We are from the mountain. “Oh, you have tried.” Yes, we have. So back at the house we shower and then take a stab at making banku and groundnut soup. Turned out pretty good. The soup was a little runny, but the flavor was good. Anyway, that’s about it.
I have created this blog to share with friends and family once I depart for Ghana, Africa as a Business Advising Volunteer with the Peace Corps.
Staging is June 1-2 2010,
Training is June 3-August 12, 2010, Service is August 12, 2010 - August 11, 2012.
I'm originally from Jefferson City, MO.
