I feel like I’ve been away from the United States long enough to be disconnected with the pop culture. I’ve heard the new James Bond movie is out now and isn’t there some lame-looking romantic comedy about Christmas? (I’m just guessing about that lame Christmas movie – I assume there’s one every year.)
We get South Africa and British tv and they are a little behind the United States. They show American programs a season or two behind. “Boston Legal” just started season 4. One channel has season 1 of “Dirty Sexy Money” and another has season 2 (it’s so confusing to watch out of order, but I can never remember which channel is showing which season). I resisted watching that show for a long time but now I’m unfortunately hooked.
Is there a show called “Carpoolers” in the United States? If so you should check it out. I suspect it’s an American show rather than a British one because it takes place in Los Angeles and none of the actors have British accents. But I never saw it on in the States. I’m starting to love this show. It’s not as great as “Arrested Development” (nothing ever will be), but it’s filling a void left by the “Seinfeld” and “Simpsons” reruns that aren’t on here. And it has Jerry O’Connor, who I think of as the poor man’s Jason Bateman. It’s created by Bruce McCullough of “Kids in the Hall”. (All the Kids are Canadian, which makes me think it could just as easily be a British show as American.)
I kind of miss the “South Park”/“Futurama” hour on Comedy Central. I really miss “The Daily Show” and “Colbert Report”. CNN International does a half-hour weekly global edition of “The Daily Show” and it’s not nearly enough Show to keep me happy.
We have a channel called “go” that’s only on for four hours every night. It’s the Commonwealth cousin of the CW. It shows stuff like “Gossip Girl” and “Greek” and I’m positive it must have had “One Tree Hill” and “Gilmore Girls” on at one point. It seems to be stylized after an Atari game, its branding is all green and pixilated.
There’s a South Africa reality channel with the most hilarious TV-show name of all time: “Spa of Embarrassing Illnesses.” I can’t believe I haven’t found time to watch that yet.
15 December 2008
11 December 2008
Embroidery Project at Centre Guilgal Orphanage
Two posts in one day. Can you dig it? I'm going to be wicked busy for the next few days and I want to share the little write-up I did for my office about the women's shelter that does the embroidery.
At the Centre Guilgal in Bujumbura, girls and young women are learning a craft to secure their futures: Embroidery. Thanks to the collaboration of Margriet Zuure-Stolk and Suzanne Nyanzahe, the young women are creating beautiful fabrics to sell, including tablecloths, napkins, and pillowcases.
“I was roaming the streets and hardly ever had any food before I arrived at the orphanage,” Jeanine says. Thanks to the Centre Guilgal and the efforts of Margriet and all the people who buy the lovely tablecloths Jeanine will soon be living independently.
Suzanne started the Centre Guilgal in 1995 to help give homes to children orphaned by the war. But the children needed more than just a home—they needed skills that could help them gain independence. The boys were taught carpentry and the girls took up sewing.
“When I visited the orphanage for vulnerable girls and boys I saw two girls working hard, learning to sew and embroider,” said Margriet. “But what next? The centre had a problem. After the formation there was no money to let the girls move towards an independent life. I thought it would be a good idea to let them embroider tablecloths which then could be sold. From the money all my friends, colleagues, and family paid for the tablecloths I bought sewing machines. Since then the centre has received a considerable order. We started with two girls, now there 35 girls working on all the orders and 26 have their own sewing machines.”
The girls not only learn how to embroider and sew but they also learn about production, selling, and marketing, bookkeeping and other self-supporting skills, and English.
Margriet continues, “What is so wonderful about this project is that it gives young girls and women a chance at a new future. The tablecloths (serviettes, pillowcases, placemats, etc.) are truly beautiful and have been embroidered with much love and dedication. Everyone who sees them is wildly enthusiastic.”
“Create your own tablecloth” is the slogan at Guilgal. Custom-made items can include animals, palm trees, and Burundian women.
More photos at flickr.
At the Centre Guilgal in Bujumbura, girls and young women are learning a craft to secure their futures: Embroidery. Thanks to the collaboration of Margriet Zuure-Stolk and Suzanne Nyanzahe, the young women are creating beautiful fabrics to sell, including tablecloths, napkins, and pillowcases.
“I was roaming the streets and hardly ever had any food before I arrived at the orphanage,” Jeanine says. Thanks to the Centre Guilgal and the efforts of Margriet and all the people who buy the lovely tablecloths Jeanine will soon be living independently.
Suzanne started the Centre Guilgal in 1995 to help give homes to children orphaned by the war. But the children needed more than just a home—they needed skills that could help them gain independence. The boys were taught carpentry and the girls took up sewing.
“When I visited the orphanage for vulnerable girls and boys I saw two girls working hard, learning to sew and embroider,” said Margriet. “But what next? The centre had a problem. After the formation there was no money to let the girls move towards an independent life. I thought it would be a good idea to let them embroider tablecloths which then could be sold. From the money all my friends, colleagues, and family paid for the tablecloths I bought sewing machines. Since then the centre has received a considerable order. We started with two girls, now there 35 girls working on all the orders and 26 have their own sewing machines.”
The girls not only learn how to embroider and sew but they also learn about production, selling, and marketing, bookkeeping and other self-supporting skills, and English.
Margriet continues, “What is so wonderful about this project is that it gives young girls and women a chance at a new future. The tablecloths (serviettes, pillowcases, placemats, etc.) are truly beautiful and have been embroidered with much love and dedication. Everyone who sees them is wildly enthusiastic.”
“Create your own tablecloth” is the slogan at Guilgal. Custom-made items can include animals, palm trees, and Burundian women.
More photos at flickr.
Some notes
It’s been just about a year since we found out we were moving to Burundi. We found out right before Christmas.
What a year it’s been. While I’m not a huge fan of year-end retrospectives, I think I have a few things worth mentioning.
We lived at four different addresses this year. Five if you count that while we lived in a hotel for three months they had us in two different rooms (the first one flooded). Remember, we started the year in California? Then lived in the Virginia and D.C. area for 8 months or so before arriving in Bujumbura.
We moved to freakin’ Africa. That’s pretty cool. Bujumbura is just about the exact opposite of Walnut Creek, San Francisco, San Diego, Washington, D.C., or any place else you can think of in the United States.
It still blows my mind to think about actually being here. It’s frustrating that I can’t have everyone come visit and see for themselves what it’s like. It’s so hard to put into words sometimes. Plus you get immune or desensitized to certain things and at some point they don’t seem noteworthy any more. Par example, Mike points out proudly now that not only can I tell the difference between gunshots and a car backfiring, I don’t panic when I hear the sounds. As long as it didn’t hit you or your house, you go about your business. It’s a talent I never really thought about having to acquire before coming here.
Bits of things I’ve been meaning to blog about for awhile:
I love the Burundian two-handed wave. Our gardener gives it to us every morning and I’ve caught myself waving two-handedly back at him. Burundians are quiet and reserved, yet can be quite cheerful, especially when the Primus is flowing.
It cracks me up that one of the few American movies our cook has seen is Pee-Wee’s Big Adventure. How random is that? Bicycles are coveted here.
We know a guy named Jesus. He works with Mike. That’s Jesus, pronounced the English way, not the Spanish way. It’s not his real name but it’s what everyone in town knows him by. (I only just learned his real name last week.) He’s one of the company drivers and it never ceases to amuse us to say “Jesus is my copilot.” He’s in one of the running clubs here, so it’s also amusing to say “We run with Jesus.”
Have I mentioned that there are driving schools here and I’ve seen cars labeled “Student Driver” on the road, but if they even have traffic laws here they’re never enforced?
There’s a boucherie next to my office, some of the best meat in the city and some imported cheeses and European chocolates. But every afternoon it smells like meat outside. At first I thought that was better than some of the other smells that could be around (the men’s bathroom is around the corner from my office door and men’s rooms here don’t always have doors), but now the daily meat smell makes me a little queasy. I briefly consider vegetarianism every afternoon. It’s not necessarily the smell of spoiled meat. It’s just the smell of meat.
That leads me to my last note of the day: Men’s rooms here don’t always have doors. Sometimes they aren’t even rooms, just urinals stuck to a wall in a hallway. I don’t have to worry about using them obviously. But it’s a little jarring to be at a restaurant looking for the ladies’ room and walk by a urinal stuck to a wall, or worse, walk by someone actually using it.
What a year it’s been. While I’m not a huge fan of year-end retrospectives, I think I have a few things worth mentioning.
We lived at four different addresses this year. Five if you count that while we lived in a hotel for three months they had us in two different rooms (the first one flooded). Remember, we started the year in California? Then lived in the Virginia and D.C. area for 8 months or so before arriving in Bujumbura.
We moved to freakin’ Africa. That’s pretty cool. Bujumbura is just about the exact opposite of Walnut Creek, San Francisco, San Diego, Washington, D.C., or any place else you can think of in the United States.
It still blows my mind to think about actually being here. It’s frustrating that I can’t have everyone come visit and see for themselves what it’s like. It’s so hard to put into words sometimes. Plus you get immune or desensitized to certain things and at some point they don’t seem noteworthy any more. Par example, Mike points out proudly now that not only can I tell the difference between gunshots and a car backfiring, I don’t panic when I hear the sounds. As long as it didn’t hit you or your house, you go about your business. It’s a talent I never really thought about having to acquire before coming here.
Bits of things I’ve been meaning to blog about for awhile:
I love the Burundian two-handed wave. Our gardener gives it to us every morning and I’ve caught myself waving two-handedly back at him. Burundians are quiet and reserved, yet can be quite cheerful, especially when the Primus is flowing.
It cracks me up that one of the few American movies our cook has seen is Pee-Wee’s Big Adventure. How random is that? Bicycles are coveted here.
We know a guy named Jesus. He works with Mike. That’s Jesus, pronounced the English way, not the Spanish way. It’s not his real name but it’s what everyone in town knows him by. (I only just learned his real name last week.) He’s one of the company drivers and it never ceases to amuse us to say “Jesus is my copilot.” He’s in one of the running clubs here, so it’s also amusing to say “We run with Jesus.”
Have I mentioned that there are driving schools here and I’ve seen cars labeled “Student Driver” on the road, but if they even have traffic laws here they’re never enforced?
There’s a boucherie next to my office, some of the best meat in the city and some imported cheeses and European chocolates. But every afternoon it smells like meat outside. At first I thought that was better than some of the other smells that could be around (the men’s bathroom is around the corner from my office door and men’s rooms here don’t always have doors), but now the daily meat smell makes me a little queasy. I briefly consider vegetarianism every afternoon. It’s not necessarily the smell of spoiled meat. It’s just the smell of meat.
That leads me to my last note of the day: Men’s rooms here don’t always have doors. Sometimes they aren’t even rooms, just urinals stuck to a wall in a hallway. I don’t have to worry about using them obviously. But it’s a little jarring to be at a restaurant looking for the ladies’ room and walk by a urinal stuck to a wall, or worse, walk by someone actually using it.
10 December 2008
Get ready for the feats of strength
Holiday party planning is in full swing. The party’s on Friday, so once it’s over I get to sleep until Christmas.
Not really.
I’ve thrown myself into activities to divert my attention from… I’m not homesick exactly but I feel a bit off. Of course there’s the party on Friday. I’m also working on toy donations for local orphanages. (Check out Toys for Tots in your neighborhood! If we can do it in Bujumbura, you can do it wherever you are.) We may do the toy delivery on Christmas morning! Not that these kids have much of a notion of Christmas, but it’s a day we have off and there’s no big family meal to prepare for, so it’s a day of free time.
Today I hosted a woman who works with a local women’s shelter that does embroidery for tablecloths, napkins, and other linens. She came into the office with many products and also took custom orders for more. It was a great success! A lot of people stopped in to see the embroidery and learn about the shelter. I’d like to do events like this with more local artisans and organizations. It’s convenient that the shopping comes to you and you’re supporting local enterprises.
I’m also organizing talks on avian flu and malaria next week. Fun!
I sound so great, don’t I? As George Costanza once said, “I could be a kick ass philanthropist!” That reminds me, Festivus is coming up soon too. There must be an aluminum pole around here somewhere.
Not really.
I’ve thrown myself into activities to divert my attention from… I’m not homesick exactly but I feel a bit off. Of course there’s the party on Friday. I’m also working on toy donations for local orphanages. (Check out Toys for Tots in your neighborhood! If we can do it in Bujumbura, you can do it wherever you are.) We may do the toy delivery on Christmas morning! Not that these kids have much of a notion of Christmas, but it’s a day we have off and there’s no big family meal to prepare for, so it’s a day of free time.
Today I hosted a woman who works with a local women’s shelter that does embroidery for tablecloths, napkins, and other linens. She came into the office with many products and also took custom orders for more. It was a great success! A lot of people stopped in to see the embroidery and learn about the shelter. I’d like to do events like this with more local artisans and organizations. It’s convenient that the shopping comes to you and you’re supporting local enterprises.
I’m also organizing talks on avian flu and malaria next week. Fun!
I sound so great, don’t I? As George Costanza once said, “I could be a kick ass philanthropist!” That reminds me, Festivus is coming up soon too. There must be an aluminum pole around here somewhere.
05 December 2008
Yay!
I've been busy at work. Thanksgiving came and went. I had a lovely dinner with some co-workers and friends. I had a boring weekend while I sat around thinking about our last shipment of belongings that arrived on that Friday but didn't make it out of customs quickly. It finally got delivered on Wednesday morning.
I have my sewing machine! Yay!
We have a three-day weekend this weekend. Yay! I'm going to sew and bake cookies for the upcoming office holiday party all weekend long. (What a happy homemaker I am!)
Mike should be home one week from today. Yay!
Lots to "Yay!" about today.
I have my sewing machine! Yay!
We have a three-day weekend this weekend. Yay! I'm going to sew and bake cookies for the upcoming office holiday party all weekend long. (What a happy homemaker I am!)
Mike should be home one week from today. Yay!
Lots to "Yay!" about today.
26 November 2008
The holidays are here
Ha ha ha ha ha at all of you back in the U.S. who have to go grocery shopping today. I don’t envy you in the slightest. It seems like a million years ago -- a totally different life yet only one year ago -- that I was trying to go to the Whole Foods in Walnut Creek on the Monday before Thanksgiving and already, that early in the week, the parking lot was so crowded there was a wait around the block for spaces. (I ended up driving home and BARTing/walking back -- mmm, and stopping for a gingerbread latte at Starbucks for the walk home.)
This year on the Monday before Thanksgiving I went out to see what I could find for Christmas decorations on the local market for my office holiday party. The pickins’ are pretty slim. And weirdly priced. Some strands of lights are 15,000 bufers ($12.50), while others are only 4,000 or 5,000 bufers ($3.33 or $4.17) and I can’t for the life of me figure out why the difference. So far I’ve only found two stores that even carry Christmas lights.
Now, I could use some of the lights I packed up and brought with me, but there’s a slight issue of the power conversion and plug adaptors. Plugging in my American lights would need quite a hefty converter.
Then there’s the issue of the party taking place in the afternoon outdoors. It’s either going to be blindingly bright from the sun or pouring rain. Lights may be a “moo” point.
Glass balls on a palm tree and Vince Guaraldi Trio playing in the background is festive yet tasteful, right?
I also had the idea that the Americans in the office could bake Christmas cookies for the Burundians as a way to share an American aspect of the holiday. That could potentially backfire and leave me up to my elbows in cookie dough if no one else volunteers to help out.
Just for the kitsch value, I did buy a couple strands of lights for my own home and office use. Every package looks like it’s straight out of 1955 and they’re all dusty. It’s a little depressing and Charlie Brown Christmas around here.
It’s a tad early for me, but I started on Christmas music today. My first song of the season? Wham’s “Last Christmas.” Right now the Beach Boys’ “Little Saint Nick” is on. I'll be hunkering down and starting the holiday movie viewing this weekend. My dad likes to watch White Christmas after dinner on Thanksgiving. I'll definitely be watching that first this year.
This year on the Monday before Thanksgiving I went out to see what I could find for Christmas decorations on the local market for my office holiday party. The pickins’ are pretty slim. And weirdly priced. Some strands of lights are 15,000 bufers ($12.50), while others are only 4,000 or 5,000 bufers ($3.33 or $4.17) and I can’t for the life of me figure out why the difference. So far I’ve only found two stores that even carry Christmas lights.
Now, I could use some of the lights I packed up and brought with me, but there’s a slight issue of the power conversion and plug adaptors. Plugging in my American lights would need quite a hefty converter.
Then there’s the issue of the party taking place in the afternoon outdoors. It’s either going to be blindingly bright from the sun or pouring rain. Lights may be a “moo” point.
Glass balls on a palm tree and Vince Guaraldi Trio playing in the background is festive yet tasteful, right?I also had the idea that the Americans in the office could bake Christmas cookies for the Burundians as a way to share an American aspect of the holiday. That could potentially backfire and leave me up to my elbows in cookie dough if no one else volunteers to help out.
Just for the kitsch value, I did buy a couple strands of lights for my own home and office use. Every package looks like it’s straight out of 1955 and they’re all dusty. It’s a little depressing and Charlie Brown Christmas around here.
It’s a tad early for me, but I started on Christmas music today. My first song of the season? Wham’s “Last Christmas.” Right now the Beach Boys’ “Little Saint Nick” is on. I'll be hunkering down and starting the holiday movie viewing this weekend. My dad likes to watch White Christmas after dinner on Thanksgiving. I'll definitely be watching that first this year.
24 November 2008
Take a hike
We are really doing it! We reserved and paid for our Tanzanian vacation in February. Thirteen days of Kilimanjaro and the Serengeti. We’ll be on the mountain on my birthday. (I would love to summit on my birthday, but the schedule didn’t work out that way.)
Now I really have to focus on fitness for the trek. My pack, boots, and poles should be arriving with the rest of our stuff later this week, so I can workout with all my gear. We have a mountain right here in Bujumbura that I can walk up and down all day long to my heart’s content.
Now I really have to focus on fitness for the trek. My pack, boots, and poles should be arriving with the rest of our stuff later this week, so I can workout with all my gear. We have a mountain right here in Bujumbura that I can walk up and down all day long to my heart’s content.
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