More training sessions

Today we had a couple of interesting guest presenters: one from the US Foreign Agricultural Service and another from the West African Trade Hub. They talked about exporting to the US and opportunities for volunteers to get involved on the ground, at the local level (like with farmers or something). This was cool because a) it made me optimistic about work possibilities when I get back to my site, and b) it reminds me that there is life after Peace Corps and it doesn't have to involve a boring accountant job or whatever. Hell, I almost applied to a pretty sweet FAS internship back in 2005. [I'm currently playing the "What if...? game in my head.]

But I'm wavering here (between optimism and depression) because the prospect of going back to my site, feeling so goddamn isolated and frustrated and dealing with jerks/creeps and other generally poor work partners, does not inspire the enthusiasm and motivation to go back. Argh. And I'm still really, really tired... which might explain why this post is so uninspired. [I probably stayed up too late watching those HIMYM episodes. ;)]

WAIST+IST = sleepy

Ok, so it's a little unusual that I should be so sleepy right now (it's only 9pm on a lazy Sunday!), but the last two weeks have been exhausting. The All-Volunteer conference in Dakar was very interesting and, more importantly, WAIST (West African Invitational Softball Tournament, read: drunken softball party) was an absolute riot. I'll post some pictures from that part of the week to Picasa.

We've been back in Thies for almost a week now and our training sessions have been going fairly well. Some have been less successful/informative/worthwhile than others. [Note to self: don't try to teach about the importance of intimacy in an adult classroom while you yourself are wearing dark sunglasses and ignoring questions.] A session we had on food security and the process for certifying artisanal food products was fascinating. We learned that only 30% of market transactions here are in the formal sector, so any effort to formalize more of it could be kinda cool. I'm just grateful to finally get some relevant training to take back to my community; hopefully I CAN do something productive in the next 21 months.

And...I'm starting to lose focus (a bed and an episode of How I Met Your Mother are calling me). Anyway, we are staying in the center this weekend instead of our homestays. This morning a whole bunch of us took advantage of the day off to go to a nearby monastery known for its goat cheese. We sat through an exceptionally long Lenten mass and were rewarded with delicious, delicious goat cheese. We all ate too much and were happy happy happy (I swear I'm not just speaking for myself here).

Ok. That's all I can do. Goodnight!

Permagardening

I'm in Thies right now for a few days of Food Security-related Permagarden training. For a SED/Eco-T volunteer, this has actually been loads of fun: a chance to get dirty and green and actually feel productive. If I'm especially motivated, maybe I can take some of this stuff back to my site and start a small garden there. [Ha. You never know...]

There are pictures on Picasa. You can check out the permagarden plot my group prepared today. You can see what happens to a white shirt when you're dumb enough to pick up a sack of charcoal. And you can see just how happy an Eco-T vol can look when she has something to show for the day's work.

Next up: Dakar for the All-Vol conference and some drunken softball playing. Back to Thies next week for the rest of our In-Service training.

Gratitude

Thank you, thank you, thank you.
I am so grateful (and lucky!) to have this surrogate family.
:D