A Saturday Night, and I Ain't Got Nobody

I'm in Kisumu again, the only place to be. The only place to be for internet, at least! Damn the Posta and their humungous debt to the internet provider!! Rumor is, they have no plans to pay and reinstate the internet. Seems a great opportunity for some new business in Kenya, right?? Open your own little cyber cafe (pronounced phonetically here, no accent) and serve the needy people. Nope. Not yet, at least.

I may have mentioned before, I'm reading books like they're going out of style. I think my tally is 15 since arriving in Kenya. Turns out, the PC library has a lot of African books - about white residents or visitors in Africa, some fiction, some memoirs. Turns out, I have an interest in African books. I like being able to say "I've been there!" or "Man, I know exactly what you mean." Also, turns out, reading two African books, back to back, that criticize the development and the role of aid workers on this continent is a really bad idea.

I read Dark Star Safari, by Paul Theroux. Very good book, very good. He was a PCV in Malawi back in the day, and takes a stop at his old village to see how things have progressed. They haven't. If anything, things have regressed. The aid workers throughout the book are rude. There is an on-going comment on the damage that has actually resulted from this well-intended aid and donation. It makes people to be totally dependent on their next donor, never looking to themselves as a means to escape poverty.

The second book, Zanzibar Chest, was also really good. That one is the memoirs of a journalist in Africa, who has been in Somalia and Rwanda during the really bad times. I learned a lot from that book, which is always good. But, again, it had a negative comment for the aid workers that come in and force people to change and take on Western ways. I read these two back to back and was a mess for it. I was depressed, without hope, angry, and resentful of the PC and the people in my village who continually ask me for money. I took it out on one poor fella, who was asking me to connect him to a Christian group in the US to sponsor some projects. He had to go and pray for a while with the Secretary by the time I finished with him.

The good news: I'm sorta starting to do real work here, and work that I think can make more of a difference. I see teaching as having a stronger impact than setting up a small business, as our education always lasts longer than our interest in the summer lemonade stand. Last Wednesday, I went to Kilingili Secondary to meet all 340 of their co-ed students. We started a talk about sex and AIDS and keeping healthy. I really like their guidance counselor, so she and I will be setting up a long-term program where I can meet with smaller groups (like, 50 or less, PLEASE!) and teach this Life Skills program that's about assertiveness, AIDS, and delaying sex. A really positive approach, I think.

Martin and I went over to Eshinutsa Secondary, and they are in desperate need. They don't have a guidance counselor at all, nor do they have a female teacher. It's been a problem, as they can't access the students the way they need to. I'm very eager to get started there.

I'm here today to do some research on some projects and get some business done. I'm also trying to get the hell out of dodge for a breather, a shower and some food I didn't have to cook myself. One thing that has come up a few times is the topic of why female students don't last in Secondary. One reason is they are "sick" once a month, having to stay home because they can't afford tampons or pads. Just imagine how much you learn when you are only getting 75% of what the boys get. I'm hoping to either find a sponsor (ack, I know) or a means for women to solve this. I'm going to stop writing now and go check out LunaPads' site to see what they might suggest...

Needed: Witty Titles

Greetings from Kakamega, today!

I got up damn early today (5:30am) so I could hitch a free ride in the Pastor's matatu into town. It sucked, but sure beat the alternative of walking an hour, waiting ages for a matatu to pass through Kilingili, and then trying to find space in a vehicle going north. I got "sold" in Chavakali, but it was okay, as the driver lent me his newspaper to pass the time.

There's a PCV here that is SEDICT and was the PCT in Mama's house before me. It's nice to visit someone new and hopefully, ideally, he will have good advice for me on how to deal with all the SEDICT issues that have come up at site.

Speaking of which... I went to Nukuru last week, for business. I stayed with some of my fellow peeps who are living in a HUGE, nice, stema-fied house on KITI, the Kenyan Industrial Technical Institute. I was totally jealous, at first. The weather was cool (or cold, depending), there was water and stema, pavement, actual variety in the market, etc. But, the downer, town isn't that great. Crowded and smelly, as many cities are. My orgs people were Totally clingy, and that drove me insane. I'm going to have to wear a disguise the next time I try to go there!

I think I will be getting to go there every few months, on business, which is just awesome. Business trips dont count against vacation days, and the travel is paid for by Alpha. There are some big national parks there that I need to visit, especially before my visitors begin to flock to me. I want to be sure it is worthwhile before we spend some hard-earned greenbacks.

A highlight of my Nukuru trip: the market had zucchini!! I bought 6, way to many, and have delighted in eating them everynight. I made Pasta Pazoo that lingered for 3 meals, and then did a spicy stir-fry that I tacoed into chapatis last night. Damn tasty!!!

A quick thanks for letters and packages! I came home to quite a few, which was a real treat! I have some on the way out, too, so don't fret. Hopefully I can get the money to buy some aerograms and make the mailings cheaper and easier and maybe increase my output. So, the best way to RECEIVE a letter is to SEND a letter!! You dig??