The necessity of necessity.

The first week of the second trimester has come and gone in a few classes, with a flurry of meetings, rainstorms, and a little bit of getting stuff done.  And the downtime that accompanies Peace Corps life.  Oh, and the zero attendance at my new attempt at community English classes.
After spending an hour and a half in the Community Center (Casa de la Cultura o Casa Comunitaria), with a nice big whiteboard that an actually helpful community member arranged for me.  Not that he came to the class, despite repeated interest in the class.  HOWEVER, despite how this may appear, despondency only lasted a few hours.  Ok, one more complaint; I've talked to a couple community members about the class afterward, and was told that the class time was too early (9:30am) on Saturday morning, which is when my potential students would be cooking.  Except that any time I can think if would be right before a meal (cooking), right after a meal (clean up), that brief time in between clean up and cooking, which is occupied by laundry, cleaning, tv, and sitting around on plastic lawn chairs.  Actually, sitting around and shooting the breeze, as it were, is pretty fun, but it's frustrating when I know that some people who've asked me repeatedly about when I'm going to have English classes don't show.
Now I'm done.
So, after I got home, it soon began to rain, and I proceeded to watch 4 or 5 movies, and make random shapes out of some random wire, including a couple rings, an armband, a kitty, and a thingy.  Some of it may get shown in public!  Unfortunately, my internet being what it its, you don't get pictures- sorry.  More's the pity that I can't do pictures, because in one interval in which the power went out (it was off and on from about 3-5), I got some neat rain-splashing-into-puddles shots.  Yay messing with my camera settings!  With luck, I'll be able to upload them before long.
In the midst of my messing around with random stuff, it led me to contemplation about the rampant boredom which seems to be an inherent part of Peace Corps.  Also, leads to the gratuitous consumption of...no, I'm done complaining for now.

Aaaanyway, I was sitting around doing nothing in particularly, I was thinking about the wonders of modern technology and the conveniences of grab and go, easily prepared meals.  Particularly on how having all of these fabulous things stymies creativity.  Not that convenience is a bad thing, but having to make do with what you've got can lead to novel and exciting creations.  But free time and raw materials aren't necessarily enough.  Without any training on how to think creatively, a newspaper is just for reading, plastic bags are just for carrying things home from the store, and rain is for ruining outside plans.  Training can come from parents, friends, siblings, acquaintances, classes, and occasionally, personal inspiration (but that one is hardest, at least for me).  Once started, I can keep going, but it's challenging to sit around and look at the various things and stuff that I've accumulated here, and I have to wonder, what can I do with that.  And sometime, maybe I'll figure out how to make something useful.  In the meantime, I'm newly inspired to teach recycled art classes here - so if you have ideas, send them my way, particularly if they use things like plastic bags or 6-pack rings.  Maybe someday.
But about the subject of this post, I ended up thinking about "Necessity is the mother of invention", and how lack really is inspiration.  Now, I had ramen noodles for dinner tonight, and it was good.  But it isn't nearly so rewarding as cutting up the random vegetables I have in the fridge and frying them up with honey to mix with the chow mein noodles that I'm slowly figuring out how to fry without half of them sticking to the pan.  A little necessity is a good thing, but only once you have an idea on how to make something happen; otherwise, in my experience, we'll just sit around and gripe until something happens to us.
Tangentially, I had my 1-year meeting with one of the TE office staffmembers, and she encouraged me to spend more time out of school and work on some secondary project(s).  So, I'm looking at continuing to work with my teachers, but less intensively, and see what else I can get myself into trouble with.  Crafts, dance classes, strongly considering a book grant for my schools...still currently brainstorming, but I'll probably let you know what I end up doing.

In conclusion, it's kinda entertaining to hear the chorus of groans up and down the street when 'se fue la luz' aka, the power goes, and the corresponding chorus of cheers when it comes back.

On returning to Site

Last week, I had the very great pleasure of visiting home for about a week.  I got to hang out with friends,  my immediate family, and extended family, including some semi-extended family that I got to meet for the first time!  There was silliness and swing dancing, and games and galavanting.  We touristed with out-of-town visitors, and celebrated my cousin's first step into her next stage in life in her gorgeous, lovely, perfectly suited wedding.  Also, it was freezing until the last day in which we went to a Reds baseball game, which didn't get rained out, and culminated in a win for the home team!
After a brief 6 days on the ground, it was time to come back to real life.  Side note here: It amuses me to think of taking a vacation from the beautiful tropical paradise of Panama to go to Cincinnati, Ohio, Midwest.
Here is Tuesday, May 28th.
4:30AM: my dad and I got up to get me to the airport for a 7AM flight.
               Mental state: ughhearlyyy.
6:30AM: everything is in order and on time, and lots of sleepy people start boarding.
               Mental state: goal- find seat and sleep.
8:00AM: starting to approach Miami.
               Mental state: commence sinking feeling- "I'm not ready to go, turn around!!"
9:30AM: ish, at least.  In Miami, find new gate, find food, wait.
                Mental state: "Oh hey, this is the same part of the airport where we took off last January!  That was so different...oh, for the days of ignorance"
11:00AM:  getting on the plane to leave the country.
                Mental state:  "Please don't make me go.  It's nice and cool and clean here, and people pay attention to meeting times!  I don't want to go back to work!"
1:30PM: (After time change), find out that my Colombian seat-neighbor is in the Panamanian sugar business, and learn about the random things that sugar cane can be used for.
               Mental State:  decidedly sunken feeling in my stomach, turning to resignation that I need to prepare myself for the flying bugs, ants, wall lizards, spiders, heat, humidity, communication issues, and job challenges coming.  "Wargh."
2:30PM: Going through immigration and customs (woohoo diplomatic lines!)
               Mental state: "Is it really too late to get on a plane back to the States?"...but with less sincerity.  I'm way to proud to willingly admit defeat and surrender.
3:00PM: Made it out of the airport, and start walking THROUGH THE RAIN to the metrobus stop.
              Mental state: "Ok, I'm here, may as well make the best of it."
5:00PM: Somewhere in between the City and Anton: still rainy
              Mental state:  "Let's do this!  9 1/2 more months!  It's on!"
7:30PM: A selection of busses later, I arrive at my house.
             Mental state: "No water.  no food.  Too late to go to the store.  Mrarg."
Next day: got water back; "Let's go!"

And since, I made bread with a couple other PCVs for a fundraiser, finally met the owner of my house, went to Regional Meeting (trimestral provincial meeting), met the new Coclesanos/as, went to the beach, and now, getting ready for the afternoon session of school, starting work with a new Teacher!