Happy Halloween! I don't think Halloween is much of a celebration here in Peru. Tomorrow is All Saints Day which is a national holiday. That means no work. Except if you're a volunteer :)
Last night I went to my first Mass here. It was BEAUTIFUL! The music was absolutely amazing (and I think I'm pretty biased about that kind of stuff!) Padre Juan is a very dynamic speaker, so although the whole thing was in Spanish, I left feeling real fulfilled. A good way to start out the week!
When I was thinking about the work I would be doing here, I wanted to make sure I'd be around long enough to see progress or some results from my efforts. Last week I worked with 2 different families who were concerned about their child not walking yet. Both were under 18 months and appeared typically developing. So I guess you'd say I worked my magic haha, because both returned today to show me how their child now walks independently! More likely a random coincidence or the good work of the parents in carrying over ideas I suggested. But it sure is fun to see success!
I'm hoping to upload some pictures soon, but the computers here are pretty slow. Stay tuned!!!
Oh yeah...and yesterday I thought I was agreeing to having jelly for my bread. But what I actually got was a giant bowl of prune pudding-ish stuff ALL for me. Yikes!!!!!
Monday, October 31, 2011
Saturday, October 29, 2011
Baby I was born to run!
Leave it to Bruce Springsteen to sum up how I'm feeling right now! After a week of not running, I was itching to go! I don't know how I possibly thought I might be able to make it 8 weeks. Luckily for me, one of the other long term volunteers likes to run. So today...we RAN!!! Such a good time. It's a good thing I don't have any bad addictions!
My first week in Peru has been a good one. I can already tell my Spanish is improving and I'm feeling a lot more comfortable with things. I've even come to accept the fact I probably won't take an actual shower the whole time I'm here...just use buckets of cold water. Luckily it's warm here, so it's really not too bad. As far as the food, I just pretend everything is chicken, potatoes, and squash...cuz that's what it all looks like. Oh yeah, and rice, LOTS of rice.
Yesterday I got to have ceviche for the first time. Muy bueno! It's raw fish soaked in a lime sauce. A Peruvian speciality.
The PT part is going really well after 2 days. I've gotten to work with a lot of different ailments. It's really testing my creativity, too, which is good.
In the mornings, I usually am woken up by roosters! Unfortunately, their "cook-a-doodle-do" does not sound like the cartoons. Instead, it sounds like the rooster is getting murdered! And no dog bites yet...but TONS of dogs! Apparently if you just pick up a rock, they'll leave you alone. I'm not afraid to actually have to use the rock though!!!
My first week in Peru has been a good one. I can already tell my Spanish is improving and I'm feeling a lot more comfortable with things. I've even come to accept the fact I probably won't take an actual shower the whole time I'm here...just use buckets of cold water. Luckily it's warm here, so it's really not too bad. As far as the food, I just pretend everything is chicken, potatoes, and squash...cuz that's what it all looks like. Oh yeah, and rice, LOTS of rice.
Yesterday I got to have ceviche for the first time. Muy bueno! It's raw fish soaked in a lime sauce. A Peruvian speciality.
The PT part is going really well after 2 days. I've gotten to work with a lot of different ailments. It's really testing my creativity, too, which is good.
In the mornings, I usually am woken up by roosters! Unfortunately, their "cook-a-doodle-do" does not sound like the cartoons. Instead, it sounds like the rooster is getting murdered! And no dog bites yet...but TONS of dogs! Apparently if you just pick up a rock, they'll leave you alone. I'm not afraid to actually have to use the rock though!!!
Thursday, October 27, 2011
Mi habla espanol no beuno!
That was my common phrase today as I spent my first morning working in the PT clinic. Luckily, the other workers and patients were really patient. (haha...patient patients) Anyway, I was kind of treated like a celebrity there. Everyone wanted me to at least take a look at them or their child. Probably half the people I worked with today were children. Not to sound all gushy, but it really was a great morning. My favorite part of PT is being able to teach people things they can do on their own to manage or make improvements. And that's what I got to do this morning! That, and getting my creative side worn out. It's pretty easy at home to get an orthotic or brace or refer someone on, but that's not the case here. You gotta learn to make do with what ya got!
Yesterday afternoon we toured Chimbote Nueva. Actually looks like a normal city (albeit poor). That's where you can see the ocean, too, with some mountains in the background. I really need to work on my geography...I'm assuming it's the Pacific Ocean, but have no idea what those mountains could be. There's med students here from UND. Next week they're going to Machu Pichu. I can't wait to hear about it...supposed to be amazing!
So, as my spanish is still less than desired, I tend to agree to everything. Then I go back and look at my dictionary to see what I said...
1. I have 2 kids (I thought I was telling them my brother, John and Nicole have been married for 2 years)
2. I 'm 22 (my birthday is on dec. 22)
3. Wyoming produces a lot of potatoes (energy...coal???)
4. Boxing is a hobby of mine (apparently my running signs looked like hitting...)
5. Wyoming is near New York City (uhh..I knew it wasn't on the pacifico coast at least)
And that's just some of what I've caught! I can only imagine the good laughs mi familia is having :) Oh well...I kind of think it's funny too!
Yesterday afternoon we toured Chimbote Nueva. Actually looks like a normal city (albeit poor). That's where you can see the ocean, too, with some mountains in the background. I really need to work on my geography...I'm assuming it's the Pacific Ocean, but have no idea what those mountains could be. There's med students here from UND. Next week they're going to Machu Pichu. I can't wait to hear about it...supposed to be amazing!
So, as my spanish is still less than desired, I tend to agree to everything. Then I go back and look at my dictionary to see what I said...
1. I have 2 kids (I thought I was telling them my brother, John and Nicole have been married for 2 years)
2. I 'm 22 (my birthday is on dec. 22)
3. Wyoming produces a lot of potatoes (energy...coal???)
4. Boxing is a hobby of mine (apparently my running signs looked like hitting...)
5. Wyoming is near New York City (uhh..I knew it wasn't on the pacifico coast at least)
And that's just some of what I've caught! I can only imagine the good laughs mi familia is having :) Oh well...I kind of think it's funny too!
Wednesday, October 26, 2011
One small step for man, one giant step for mankind?!?!
Disclaimer...my punctuation is not going to be good. But its not my fault...its the keyboard..I swear!
I MADE IT TO CHIMBOTE! When I first started thinking about doing this trip, one of the things that enticed me a little was the fact Id be stepping out of my comfort zone. I didnt realize Id actually be LEAPING out of my comfort zone! The language barrier has been the most difficult part for me thus far. Particularly in Chimbote, but also noticed in Lima, barely anyone speaks English. Its not like I was expecting that, but its been a real eye opener to actually experience it. I feel a little lost. I can only look up words in my translator dictionary so fast! Luckily, at the mission itself quite a few speak English.
Im living with an extremely kind host family, but they probably know less English than I know Spanish. This morning I spent 30 mins chatting with my host dad. To sum it up, Im pretty sure I told him Hillary Clinton was Bills sister haha. But they are a very welcoming family and doing good to help me out with vocab and such.
The poverty here is something Ive never seen before, but the people are still very kind and welcoming. This morning we toured the various missions of the Parish including medial and dental clinics, schools, refuge houses, and of course the rehab center. Looks like Im going to be constructing some AFOs soon! Tomorrow Ill actually spend the day at the rehab center doing PT work. Say a couple prayers though...nobody there knows English!
Ive only spent one day in Chimbote, so I feel like I cant make any bold statements yet. Ive gotten a great first impression though and Ive found those are usually a telling sign of what is to come.
I MADE IT TO CHIMBOTE! When I first started thinking about doing this trip, one of the things that enticed me a little was the fact Id be stepping out of my comfort zone. I didnt realize Id actually be LEAPING out of my comfort zone! The language barrier has been the most difficult part for me thus far. Particularly in Chimbote, but also noticed in Lima, barely anyone speaks English. Its not like I was expecting that, but its been a real eye opener to actually experience it. I feel a little lost. I can only look up words in my translator dictionary so fast! Luckily, at the mission itself quite a few speak English.
Im living with an extremely kind host family, but they probably know less English than I know Spanish. This morning I spent 30 mins chatting with my host dad. To sum it up, Im pretty sure I told him Hillary Clinton was Bills sister haha. But they are a very welcoming family and doing good to help me out with vocab and such.
The poverty here is something Ive never seen before, but the people are still very kind and welcoming. This morning we toured the various missions of the Parish including medial and dental clinics, schools, refuge houses, and of course the rehab center. Looks like Im going to be constructing some AFOs soon! Tomorrow Ill actually spend the day at the rehab center doing PT work. Say a couple prayers though...nobody there knows English!
Ive only spent one day in Chimbote, so I feel like I cant make any bold statements yet. Ive gotten a great first impression though and Ive found those are usually a telling sign of what is to come.
Sunday, October 23, 2011
Go PACK Go!
Feliz Cumpleanos a mi Papa!!! What a great way to celebrate with a Green Bay win! All 7 of us went to the game. It ended up being a little closer than I thought, but that made it even more worth it. There were quite a few Packer fans there and I think they were even louder than the Vikes fans. I didn't get to meet Aaron Rodgers...but I think it probably was a good thing. You know, I leave for Peru tomorrow...wouldn't want him to fall in love with me and make it harder for me to leave :) Okay, back to reality. It was a GREAT family weekend!
Hmmm...tomorrow is the big day. By this time tomorrow night, I should just about be in Lima. It still doesn't seem quite real, yet. Although, today it sunk in that I'm going to miss 8 WEEKS of football! No watching and no being real active in fantasy football! I tried to soak as much as I could this weekend. Sure helps that I have a fun family, especially brothers, to talk nonstop about it with! If you're looking for a good laugh, btw, check out DJ Steve with Ray Lewis or Randy Moss on Youtube...guaranteed funny :)
Tomorrow Andrew and I fly off to Denver at 7:30 and then from there I head to Houston and then Lima. Tuesday, I take a bus to Chimbote and then my mission work starts!
Hmmm...tomorrow is the big day. By this time tomorrow night, I should just about be in Lima. It still doesn't seem quite real, yet. Although, today it sunk in that I'm going to miss 8 WEEKS of football! No watching and no being real active in fantasy football! I tried to soak as much as I could this weekend. Sure helps that I have a fun family, especially brothers, to talk nonstop about it with! If you're looking for a good laugh, btw, check out DJ Steve with Ray Lewis or Randy Moss on Youtube...guaranteed funny :)
Tomorrow Andrew and I fly off to Denver at 7:30 and then from there I head to Houston and then Lima. Tuesday, I take a bus to Chimbote and then my mission work starts!
Saturday, October 22, 2011
Are you ready for some football???
This blog is going to be addicting! Alllllllll my random thoughts can be shared! And in one place. So get ready...
Flew to Minneapolis yesterday for Dad's bday weekend and the Packer/Viking game. Flying out of Gillette is always kind of an adventure in itself, but I made it! Before I left my house, I weighed my suitcase. Now...I knew it wasn't accurate, because it was awkward to put on the scale, but it came out at 22#. So I thought, "phew...there's no way it will actually be up to 50". And it wasn't, but it was 49 pounds! Geesh! I'm thinking I'm way stronger than I thought! The plane ride to Denver was uneventful, but I actually got to sit next to a fun person. Too bad I fell asleep mid conversation about 10 minutes into the flight...no matter what I do, I just can't seem to stay awake on the plane. I kind of blame that on my mom ;)
So I made it to Minneapolis, had a great pizza lunch with Nancy and Jenna, and then a wonderful night with my family last night! Uncles Paul and Pete and their families, cousin Sean, and my parents and brothers all congregated at John and Nicole's house for....more pizza!!! Then we ended the night with HOME VIDEOS. Lots of laughs there...we were pretty cute kids :) Although, I think I'll definitely stay retired as a cameraman.
This weekend is UND's homecoming. And (if you don't count the year I hit a deer ON THE WAY to Grand Forks) it is the first time since 2000 that I have missed a UND homecoming. A little bummed about missing out on Red Pepper, tailgating, lemoncello, and Lifetime Movies...but a family get together in minneapolis, dad's birthday, and watching the Pack beat the Vikings definitely trumps it!
Flew to Minneapolis yesterday for Dad's bday weekend and the Packer/Viking game. Flying out of Gillette is always kind of an adventure in itself, but I made it! Before I left my house, I weighed my suitcase. Now...I knew it wasn't accurate, because it was awkward to put on the scale, but it came out at 22#. So I thought, "phew...there's no way it will actually be up to 50". And it wasn't, but it was 49 pounds! Geesh! I'm thinking I'm way stronger than I thought! The plane ride to Denver was uneventful, but I actually got to sit next to a fun person. Too bad I fell asleep mid conversation about 10 minutes into the flight...no matter what I do, I just can't seem to stay awake on the plane. I kind of blame that on my mom ;)
So I made it to Minneapolis, had a great pizza lunch with Nancy and Jenna, and then a wonderful night with my family last night! Uncles Paul and Pete and their families, cousin Sean, and my parents and brothers all congregated at John and Nicole's house for....more pizza!!! Then we ended the night with HOME VIDEOS. Lots of laughs there...we were pretty cute kids :) Although, I think I'll definitely stay retired as a cameraman.
This weekend is UND's homecoming. And (if you don't count the year I hit a deer ON THE WAY to Grand Forks) it is the first time since 2000 that I have missed a UND homecoming. A little bummed about missing out on Red Pepper, tailgating, lemoncello, and Lifetime Movies...but a family get together in minneapolis, dad's birthday, and watching the Pack beat the Vikings definitely trumps it!
Thursday, October 20, 2011
If God dwells inside us like some people say, I sure hope He likes enchiladas, because that's what He's getting
Ahhahahaha..gotta love Jack Handey, right?! Aaaaand enchiladas...and God :) Anyway, the pressure is on. People now KNOW about this blog. Now my stories need to be interesting! With maybe a little humor or inspiration thrown in for good measure. Am I up to the challenge? Heck yeah! But instead of stressing out about making every blog post AMAZING...I'm going to make cheat sheets. So today, here is my funny cheat sheet. You can refer here when I don't write something funny, cuz these jokes are guaranteed, GUARANTEED to make ya laugh! Well...they make me laugh :)
Why do golfers where 2 pairs of pants?
-In case they get a "hole in one"!
Why are stoplights red?
-Well, you'd be red, too, if you got caught changing in an intersection!
Why did Tigger stick his head in the toilet?
-He was looking for Pooh!
Why did the man run around his bed?
-Because he wanted to catch up on his sleep!
2 cannibals were eating a clown. One looks at the other and says "this tastes kinda funny"
Horse walks into a bar, bartender says "Why the long face"
Did you hear about the guy who lost his left side?
-He's alright now!
Two muffins are baking in the oven. One says to the other, "Boy, it's hot in here!" The other says, "Holy smokes!!! A talking muffin!"
What do you call a deer with no eyes?
-No eye deer
Why was the calendar depressed?
- Because its days were numbered
Why don't they play cards in the jungle?
-Because there are too many cheetahs!
What did the tree say to the mountain?
-Stop peaking at me
Why do golfers where 2 pairs of pants?
-In case they get a "hole in one"!
Why are stoplights red?
-Well, you'd be red, too, if you got caught changing in an intersection!
Why did Tigger stick his head in the toilet?
-He was looking for Pooh!
Why did the man run around his bed?
-Because he wanted to catch up on his sleep!
2 cannibals were eating a clown. One looks at the other and says "this tastes kinda funny"
Horse walks into a bar, bartender says "Why the long face"
Did you hear about the guy who lost his left side?
-He's alright now!
Two muffins are baking in the oven. One says to the other, "Boy, it's hot in here!" The other says, "Holy smokes!!! A talking muffin!"
What do you call a deer with no eyes?
-No eye deer
Why was the calendar depressed?
- Because its days were numbered
Why don't they play cards in the jungle?
-Because there are too many cheetahs!
What did the tree say to the mountain?
-Stop peaking at me
Tuesday, October 18, 2011
It's the Fiiiinal Countdown
This time next week, I should be on a bus from Lima to Chimbote! Hopefully all my luggage and money will still be intact at that point ;) Nerves might be starting to kick in a little bit, but I'm just enjoying my last few days here spending time with friends and getting excited about the weekend with my family. Go PACK Go!!!
Today started out a little rough...got a flat tire on the way to piano lessons. But things always work out...my student's dad had it changed by the time the lesson was over! Thank goodness for kind, handy people :) My big accomplishment today though...I am officially PACKED for this trip! And everything fits in the suitcase woo hoo!!!
Once I get to Chimbote, I'll be staying with a host family. A little nervous about how communication will go as I don't really speak Spanish, but it will be nice to have a family down there! Last week I found out the time difference is only one hour ahead of Gillette time. For some reason, that makes me feel good. Kinda like I can't be THAT far away...it's the same difference as Gillette and Fargo :)
Well, I guess that's enough random thoughts for today.
Today started out a little rough...got a flat tire on the way to piano lessons. But things always work out...my student's dad had it changed by the time the lesson was over! Thank goodness for kind, handy people :) My big accomplishment today though...I am officially PACKED for this trip! And everything fits in the suitcase woo hoo!!!
Once I get to Chimbote, I'll be staying with a host family. A little nervous about how communication will go as I don't really speak Spanish, but it will be nice to have a family down there! Last week I found out the time difference is only one hour ahead of Gillette time. For some reason, that makes me feel good. Kinda like I can't be THAT far away...it's the same difference as Gillette and Fargo :)
Well, I guess that's enough random thoughts for today.
Thursday, October 6, 2011
Time goes by..so slowly...
Leave it to Madonna to get that song stuck in my head these last few days haha. 2 weeks from tomorrow my adventure will begin! How great is it that before I go to Peru I get to swing by Minneapolis for a weekend with the fam to celebrate Dad's 60th birthday?!?! And the topper of it all will be watching my first "in-person" Packers game as they battle (battle is probably a strong word in this case) the Vikings. And all 7 of us are going!
Anyways...back to slow time. Besides packing, I really can't think of anything else I need to do before this trip. Everything else is lined up. Well...there is that Spanish I still have to learn, but I think that's going to be chalked up to a "good try" :) So while I wait, I've decided to paint my bathroom and fix stuff around the house...with help of course! I've learned my lesson in 3 years of home-owning!
Sometimes I can't believe how calm I am about all of this. Everything has fallen into place really well, but there's still a lot of unknowns. And for this chronic over-analyzer (I AM a girl ya know!), I'm really feeling good about just going with the flow :) Just goes to show how God's hand truly is guiding this part of my life and I couldn't be happier about that!
So for now, I'm just going to fix up a bathroom and slowly count down the days until my adventure begins! In Spanish of course :)
Anyways...back to slow time. Besides packing, I really can't think of anything else I need to do before this trip. Everything else is lined up. Well...there is that Spanish I still have to learn, but I think that's going to be chalked up to a "good try" :) So while I wait, I've decided to paint my bathroom and fix stuff around the house...with help of course! I've learned my lesson in 3 years of home-owning!
Sometimes I can't believe how calm I am about all of this. Everything has fallen into place really well, but there's still a lot of unknowns. And for this chronic over-analyzer (I AM a girl ya know!), I'm really feeling good about just going with the flow :) Just goes to show how God's hand truly is guiding this part of my life and I couldn't be happier about that!
So for now, I'm just going to fix up a bathroom and slowly count down the days until my adventure begins! In Spanish of course :)
Saturday, October 1, 2011
Reasons to not google Peru travel dangers...
Sometimes I don't get cliche sayings right, but isn't there one that goes "what you don't know can't hurt you"? As I prepare for this trip, I'm starting to learn that's a good motto for me! That, and the internet can be a dangerous place! Case in point...the other night I decided it would be "fun" to check out the safety/dangers of traveling in Peru. Now, I'm sure I could replace Peru with a lot of different places and get the same results and obviously I'm only getting the worst of the worst, but I've got brother Tom on standby to "Liam Neeson it" if needed...
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