How many elotes locos are too many elotes locos?

This thought provoking question has arisen many times over the course of Feria in Patzún this year. Last year it wasn't an issue because I had yet to try an elote loco. I looked down upon them as a gross guatemalan combination of condiments. I ordered my elotes (corn on the cob) with lime and salt like a civilized person. But I don't know what came over me this year. Maybe I have become more open, less sensitive to varied culinary strategies, lost taste buds to sugar beverages, or gone off my rocker so to speak. But I decided that to criticize the elote I first should try it. I turned up my nose as the woman slather mayonnaise, mustard, ketchup, and hot sauce on my corn. "Just a little mayo...light on the hot sauce... parmesean cheese please," and I had my elote. I am a bit ashamed to say that it was delicious. I hope to one day take this secret recipe back to the states and make a killing. Now I am just fighting to limit myself to just one elote loco a day. This is not a breakfast food.

The elote saga opened my eyes to the flow of creative ideas that Feria sets loose. Once a year we celebrate the patron saint of Patzún, St. Bernard (not the dog) with a week or so of candy, fair food, rides, parades, dances, rodeos, etc. I have found myself commenting repeatedly with Eric (who is visiting from the US... look out for his guest blog) on all of the great ideas people have had during Feria. I dedicate this blog to these people and the creative spirit.

Great idea #1: Neon yellow suits with ankle length coats and ... wait for it... neon orange shirts




Great idea #2: How to power a mobile Ferris Wheel? Got it! TRACTOR. It even has the advantage that it can go in reverse. Really fast.



Great Idea #3: As if the idea of having all of the kindergarden, first, and second grade students from all of the villages surrounding patzún come into town parade under the midday sun wasn't already a pretty good idea... the theme was "Traditions of Patzún," pretty legit. Kudos to the really great idea of bringing goats and handing out fresh milk along the parade route. The town authorities especially like it when the goats paraded onto the brand new soccer field that was being inaugurated.



Great Idea #4: Gringa in Traje. This actually was a pretty good idea. I think it is winning me votes toward my 2016 mayoral campaign.



Great Idea #5: FIRE. and crowds. and traditional mayan sports. See if you can spot the flaming ball and hockey sticks.



You'd think a popsicle on a hot day would be a winning idea...



Oh yea... and #7... ELOTE LOCO!!

La Locura de Marzo

La Locura de Marzo, March Madness, in Spanish it sounds like some kind of illness, a time of year where everyone goes temporarily crazy- like Mal de Mayo, a time of year where more people have diarrhea. In some ways, it is an epidemic of sorts. People who never care about basketball fill out brackets and all of the sudden depend upon the final scores of games between teams they know nothing about, and chose to win because they like the mascot, or the geographical location of the university, or maybe the sound of the school’s name. Or maybe that’s just me.
Every year I participate in my family’s brackets for March Madness, and I have tried all of these tricks to pick my winning team, without much luck. Some years I even tired learning a bit about the teams or at least asking someone who professed know, but to be honest I haven’t had much success with any of these methods.
This year is going to be different. “Why?” you ask, “Surely in Guatemala you haven’t been keeping up with college basketball,” you think. And this is true. I didn’t even know college basketball was happening until March came and the catchy title “March Madness” reminded me just what mayhem was around the corner. But I still think this year will be different. It will be different because I am now a basketball player, which gives me the extra intuitive push that comes from being on the inside. Sure I may have randomly filled out my brackets, organizing them just so, so that my two favorite teams (UF/UNC) face off in the finals. But random choice and intuition may go far with my newfound love of the game.
If some of you remember, this is not my first attempt to break into the highly competitive Patzún women’s basketball league. The combustive combination of my height and lack of skill and/or knowledge of the game, which seemed to cause me to foul a lot in practice, intimidated the first team I attempted to join. I gave up on the dream for a while, but it was reborn as I watched my average height site-mate dominate the tiny Guatemalans on the court. When a kindergartener told me with wide eyes, “Seño, you’re a GIANT,” I thought of the quote, “With great power comes great responsibility,” and knew I had to use my power for good.
After mentioning my interest to enough random people, I finally hit upon someone who actually played on a basketball team and invited me to play with them (example #1 of the effectiveness of randomness and intuition). That is how I ended up playing on the Magisterio team. This is an elite, handpicked team of primary school teachers, most of whom I work with. Their patience, encouragement, and willingness to teach me EVERYTHING has been amazing. I guess it’s good that I found a team of teachers because they have had to teach me everything from defensive positioning, to how long I can stay in the paint, to how to dribble.
I have played in 3 games so far and I would say I am making great strides. In my first game I got called for traveling at least 4 times, and I don’t even hold the ball that often, but my coach said I was doing great because the other team got distracted by staring at me when I got the ball.
My second game was a Patzún classic, gringa vs. gringa- my team versus my site-mate’s. We lost by a narrow margin and I almost fouled out (according to Maggie, I still don’t know how to tell when I have been called for a foul). But I was improving; after the game I was compared to Larry Bird (by my site-mate) and Shaquille O’Neil (by me, ‘cuz I’m huge). In my 3rd game I only traveled once, and I made my first two baskets of my basketball career! When I made my first basket my team went CRAZY. They are amazing. They make baskets all the time and no one cheers, but they encourage me continuously and never tire of getting excited over the small steps of progress I show. I never really liked basketball before, but they have made me love it. And that is why I have high hopes for my brackets this year, and for another Gringa vs. Gringa face off in the city championships. I’ll keep you posted.

Today's random thought.

While eating my requisite avocado of the day it dawned on me that at today's Sunday market $1 US bought me 2 avocados, 2 mangos, and a pound of blackberries. Life is good.

this will really beef up my resume

Has anyone ever heard of divining or dowsing? The method of finding water under ground using a tree branch or metal rods? Until today I was pretty skeptical about this method of choosing a location to dig a well. If you are going to invest a few thousand quetzals to dig a well wouldn’t you want a bit more of an expert opinion, like say from an engineer? Well we got the expert opinion from the engineer, and according to him this method is about 95% accurate. So today I woke up at 5 am to go out to our farthest community where the school has little to no water and meet with the diviner.

We have been very lucky to have the opportunity to work with an NGO called Agua para la Salud on a variety of water projects in our schools, so we were very excited to find out that they want to keep working with us with another grant proposal in September. Taking advantage of the fact that the engineer is staying in our site for a few weeks, we started visiting potential project sites this week. When we went out to Pachut, the farthest community in my municipality, the director of the NGO decided de una vez that he could fund the well that the school had been hoping for. So we began to scout locations. From him I learned that it is not just the metal rods that help find the water. One can also look for an area that is green all year and where wetland plants grow, such as elderberry (just part of the random knowledge I have accumulated by following him around). We also looked at where the other wells had been dug and mapped out the possible trajectory of the water running down from the mountain to the spring.

And then it was time to bring out the big guns. Except that they are not so big. When the man arrived today with two little pieces of bent metal sticking out of tubes from a regular ink pen I was surprised. I was also surprised that the man that carried these precious tools was not actually the community diviner. The diviner was sick and had been very reluctant to lend out his tools, claiming at first that he didn’t know where they were. I have to remember that trick next time I don’t want to lend something out. But they were finally found and the fact that it didn’t actually take a professional to operate them gave me great hope for my future in the well digging business.

As we tested out the rods around the school and nearby wells it was amazing to see that when they approached a well they began to cross. At a very shallow well they crosses so strongly that they began to turn all the way back towards the man that held them. When it was my turn to try near a well, I was very disappointed to find that they didn’t work, apparently because of my un-guatemalan-ness. I lost faith for a moment, but on a second attempt with more instruction on the proper angle at which to hold the pen tubes I had success! (see attached photos).

I am excited to say that not only did I gain a new skill today, but that we hope to begin construction next week on the well and if I am able to get funding we will be able to buy a pump and run water to a school that has never had it before! Then hopefully they will buy soap.

Here is a list of other random things I have learned recently that may or may not be useful in real life:
⇒ What to put in a pit latrine to combat odors: limestone, ash, tp
⇒ How many wheelbarrows make up 1 cubic meter of sand or gravel: 15
⇒ What to do with a baby if its head starts falling in from being vertical too much: hang it upside-down and dip it in water
⇒ How to cure a sore throat with marshmallows and coke: boil, then drink
⇒ How many inches are in a vara: 33 or 36, depending on which old-time king you favor

A case of the Mondays

Sometimes here the weeks run together and Monday is just another day. This week was different in that Monday marked the start of an important week. First off, we were back from a great weekend at the beach, nursing sunburns, but glad to be home. The volcanic sand beach was beautiful and we stood out as Floridians among a bunch of mid-westerners because of all the time we (wiley) spent playing in the waves. In site we successfully initiated a string of water infrastructure projects that will wrap up in April (si Díos quiere), and this is the week that Reyna’s (Laura’s host mom’s) baby will be born!

Sadly, this Monday also marks the beginning of Wiley’s last week here. Time has gone by too fast and I am starting to realize how much I will miss having him here. Ever since I got my invitation from Peace Corps we have been scheming about how he could spend his interim here. It’s strange that its almost over. This trip was really the first time that I have gotten to spend extended one-on-one time with Wiley, and its nice to come to the realization that I actually like being friends with my brother. He helps me out when I go to work and leave important things at home (that happens more often than it should), he washes dishes, and most importantly, he makes me do Insanity. When he leaves someone is going to have to call me everyday at 5 and yell “Dig Deeper!!” He cooks which is a plus (he is making eggplant parm right now), but he also wants to teach my new mouse friend to cook instead of trapping it, which is definitely a minus.

As for the water projects, well they got off with less hitches than were expected, but that’s not saying much. The 6 masons and 10 ayudantes arrived bright and early at the work site to find that the Muni hadn’t delivered the materials they had promised. Disappointing, but not altogether unexpected. After chasing around at the hardware store and the Muni I finally (and accidentally) ran into the right man who explained some kind of mix up, wrote the materials we needed on a piece of scrap paper, and had them at the school within next few hours. I note the detail of the scrap paper because after all the official letters we had written and signed by various authorities in order to get the materials turned in on-time, it seems that all we actually needed was a note scribbled by the right person.

Well that’s about all for now, as I feel I should go spend some quality time with the lil bro instead of us both sitting at computers in different rooms. This weekend we are headed to the lake, so keep an eye out for an update on his blog!

Don't read this unless you are REALLY interested in what I am doing here

Well, after an amazingly restful and fun vacation, I am finally back to work. Sometimes Peace Corps volunteers complain of not having enough work, but this month that doesn’t seem like it will be a problem for me. So instead of sharing with you some insightful cultural commentary, in this post I thought I would fill you in on what I am up to work-wise here. This post will also serve as a reference for me during future job interviews when I am bragging on how I am able to manage multiple projects at once.

This first week back, Laura and I have planned a giant workshop on Project Design and Management for our schools. The idea is that Peace Corps gave the workshop to myself and one of our directors, and together we replicate it for the director and a parent from each school. They in turn share the information with their schools and communities. We will see how successful that last step is. These past few days we have been frantically trying to make sure that all 25 directors know where and when the workshop is, and that yes, they are expected to be there. Seems like a relatively simple task in a world where everyone regularly checks their emails, answers their cell phones, and keeps the same number. It doesn’t work like that here. So we have tried every form of communication short of smoke signals and I am sure that at the end of the day tomorrow some will show up at the wrong place, with the wrong people, or not show up at all. Another complication of this mission is that directors can change year to year, so hopefully we have the most updated director list and phone tree ☺.

This month Wiley is also here visiting for his Interim, for which he is supposed to complete some kind of service project. For his project he is going to do a World Map he in one of the schools I work in. Today we went out to meet the director and choose a space for his map. Hopefully it will keep him busy, but not too busy to cook for me.

Infrastructure projects: We have been working on these practically since we got to site 10 months ago, so we are very excited to be getting started this month. The only thing is that we had expected to start in May or June, not in January. This is probably the only example I know of something starting ahead of schedule in Guatemala. In two weeks we are starting on two tanks and hand-washing stations in our big urban school, and one hand-washing station in a rural school. Our site has been chosen to train masons for other projects, so we have to find qualified masons and get the city to deliver on the money it has promised us for the projects.

We also still have the proposal underway for the new water system in one of the surrounding villages. Every January villages change mayors, so I am just hoping that either the old one stayed on, or the new one is in agreement with the project. I heard a rumor at the hardware store that they have been ordering materials to build on their water system… so who knows what is going on there.

The new Healthy Schools Peace Corps Trainees arrived in country last week and are beginning their training program. Because we live close to the Peace Corps Center we get to be involved in their training! Next week the group is coming out to spend a day at our site, and through the month of February I will get weekly visits from a group of 5 trainees to whom I am expected to impart some manner of useful knowledge about Healthy Schools and life as a PCV. Too bad I still feel in need of some useful knowledge myself.

Beside those few things on the agenda, we are also strategizing our plan of attack for the year with our schools in the Healthy Schools program. It’s the first full year in the program for most of our schools, so we will see what kind of initiative they take in setting up Health Corners, planning lessons, and implementing schedules for teeth brushing and hand-washing. I also hope to keep working with the youth group I worked with over the summer, and start a moms’ cooking class.

So there you have it. Instead of a day in the life, it’s a month in the life (mas-o-menos). Although it seems like a lot to me now, I am sure that I will still find time for 2 hour lunch breaks, the required 9 hours of sleep a night, and a trip to the beach with Wiley. Unfortunately, season three of Veronica Mars might have to wait until February.

An old old post finally hitting the blog-o-sphere

I come inside from washing dishes and try to figure out how I am going to thaw out my frozen fingers. Hot dishwater and inside sinks- some things I miss. Despite the frozen fingers, I have been glad to be back in Patzún after my short trip to the US. I realize I haven’t written about this experience, MY FIRST TRIP BACK TO THE US, quite a big experience for all PCVs. Since I am about to head back to the States for Christmas, I figure it is about time to thaw out my fingers and sit down to write about this momentous occasion.

In my youth group, we spent some time a few weeks ago talking about roles we play- sister, daughter, friend, student, etc., and the impact they have on our values and decisions. The first role that jumped to my mind to use as an example was FOREIGNER. Without really realizing it, this has been my primary role for the past year. I am taller and whiter than everyone, dress differently, and live on my own. As I walk through my town, I wonder what people think of me. Do they recognize me? Do they wonder why I am here? Do I look as out of place as I imagine?

Of course its different with people I have come to know, but with them my FOREIGNER label still applies. I may be one of the few Estadounidenses that they will get to know. For them I may represent an entire country and culture, and they will probably grow to dislike American food through my cooking (today’s chili was a bit heavy on the chili for my host fam’s tastes).

So after spending so many months in the role of FOREIGNER, I was excited and curious to see what it would be like to shed the weight of being the GRINGA and go back to my more familiar labels- sister, daughter, and friend.

When I arrived in the US, the Miami airport was overwhelming to me. I felt small in a sea of diversity. So I made a beeline for Starbucks, and sipping my Q40 Peppermint Mocha Frappachino, I sat down to stare at people (I think “people watch” is the more polite term). Lesson #1 from the US: DON’T CONVERT PRICES TO QETZALES. You will cry. Lesson #2 from the US: staring is less culturally acceptable there than in Guatemala.

From there on, a lot of the trip is a blur. I remember extreme excitement at the prospect of being able to wear what I now consider my “short dresses,” getting a stomachache from trying to eat all of my favorite (and random) foods in just 3 days, and being able to run a long time now that I was back at sea level. I was so happy to see my extended family and share Thanksgiving with them. I also remember thinking how nice the bathroom was.

It was wonderful, but it no longer felt like my life. The best way to explain this weird feeling is that I felt like I had stumbled upon someone else’s life that happened to fit me quite nicely. Or, I could compare it to an old pair of favorite jeans that you find at the back of a drawer after a few years. You want to wear them, but bedazzled jeans just aren’t in style any more.

Being here in Guatemala, I forget how different my life is, because most differences are subtle. I don’t live in a shack in the campo without electricity or water. I have wireless Internet for God’s sake. But being in the US, I worried that with my longer trip home in December I could get used to that familiar comfort and forget that I no longer live there.

Flying home (to Guatemala) I pondered these thoughts while taking in the view. Flying into Florida all you can see is flatness. A vast flatness covered in ocean, and houses and forests. But flying into Guatemala, the mountains rise out of the clouds. Towns run along the edges of ravines, snaking every which-way, as dictated by the topography. A mushroom cloud of black smoke is suspended, immobile, among cottony clouds and tops of volcanoes. It is breathtaking. And all of the sudden it was clear why I made this choice, and why I will come back, despite the comfort that I may find in my old home.

Flat is easy, it is comfortable, but mountains are beautiful, with all of the obstacles and challenges they present. The mountains are what make life interesting. So while I look forward to a well-deserved rest at sea-level, I am also excited for the challenges and opportunities that await me in my next year here in Guatemala.