Back in action (10/1/09)

Hello dear readers! It has, indeed been a while, which generally means things are either so great and busy that I don’t have time to write or so tough that I don’t really feel like writing about it. In this case, it’s been a little bit of both. So I went back to the US on September 11th for 10 days with the main purpose of being a bridesmaid in my cousin Ryann’s wedding in LA, but I stopped by New York City and got to see many friends and hang out in some of my favorite neighborhoods and take the subway and experience the incredible water pressure in Dan’s apartment. Then in LA I got to see more friends and my entire mom’s side of the family and much of my dad’s and eat brisket and noodle kugel and ride my bike on the beach in Santa Monica. The wedding and all of its related events were really beautiful and I couldn’t have been happier to see my cousin so happy and to get to be a part of the event. So all in all, it was a pretty perfect trip home.

Which of course, made coming back pretty difficult. It really hit me for the first time that I have now these two entirely separate existences and worlds that I am a part of. I hardly thought about Costa Rica or the Peace Corps or my projects while I was home, and the first few days I was back in Quebradas it just felt totally out of context. It was nice because everyone noticed I was gone and asked how my trip was so I felt missed, but nobody here really has any idea what my life was/is like back in the US, so it made it harder to share exactly how wonderful it was to be home. Anyways it took a few days to snap back into things, and let’s just say a few tears were shed at inopportune moments, BUT then last Sunday was our river clean-up day, and that’s when things finally turned around for me…

So I really didn’t know this about myself before I got here, but apparently I really enjoy picking up other people’s trash. I have become somewhat of the recycling police in Quebradas; little kids come up to me with coke cans and milk cartons and ask me what they can recycle, and I find myself eying a plastic bottle in somebody’s trash can and being very tempted to go dig it out. Anyways on Sunday about 80 volunteers from the Red Cross, the Cerveceria de Costa Rica, and from the community met at the school and we broke up into groups and picked up trash from FUDEBIOL all the way to San Isidro along the river, and we ended at this big sports complex in town with an arroz con pollo picnic. It was just really fun because people were enthusiastic about cleaning up and recycling and it’s always better when you’re working with a motivated group rather than on your own, which I have found myself doing too often.

So from there I’ve gotten back into a rhythm. Last night I had my first “Exploring the Internet” class with six women from the local women’s group that hosts volunteers who want to learn how to maintain their web page and communicate with clients via email. So we have to start with the VERY basic, like how to turn a computer on, use a mouse, etc. But they started googling stuff by the end of class and were so excited when they found bread recipes, pictures of waterfalls, and love advice. So I’m hoping that continuing to show them how much is out there will keep them motivated. We also had our first sale of recycled materials to the Cerveceria de Costa Rica today and made – wait for it - $12! Yeah, that’s six weeks of separating trash and cleaning the ants off the inside of milk cartons. So clearly we have to be in this for the good of helping the environment and not the cash, but it was still exciting to get paid! The sixth grade teacher said she would photocopy the receipt and frame it in her classroom…

Tonight is my final conversational English class, so we are all bringing food (I made oatmeal chocolate chip cookies) and are going to play trivia and listen to American music. In two weeks I am going to start a more formal class with textbooks from an organization called Centro Cultural that has a relationship with Peace Corps so we get them for much cheaper than any student could in a city where the classes are offered. And tomorrow, si Dios quiere, our community newspaper is going to be all ready to distribute! I did all the final edits the day I got back from the US, and the guy who designed it did a really good job, so I am hoping next blogpost I have good news about how it was received in the community, or at least that it was received. Until then, it’s good to be back!