February First

The first day of February, 2009. It has been dreary and cold, snowy and wintry all week. Monday and Tuesday were spent in Chisinau at program training. The actual training was low key and not too stressful. There were all of us in the Community Organizational and Development group, as well as the Agriculture and Rural Business Development volunteers. I'm not sure what the other group did, but our group time was pretty unstructured and as is almost always the case, the real benefit was getting together and talking about what is working, and what is not working, wherever we are. I did walk away with some ideas for how to be more effective and helpful here in my little village, and a new perspective on things that are perhaps more universal than I had realized about the PC Moldova experience.

One thing that was different for me was the number of very late nights in Chisinau. Here in the village, it is dark before 5:30 (although its staying light a little longer everyday!!) and I am usually creating diversions to stay up until after nine at night. I am still having trouble sleeping, but more often, I go to bed early, and then wake up before four in the morning and think (too much). The three nights that I was in the hotel in Chisinau, it was after 3 each morning before I fell asleep and as always, I am an early riser. What a change! I didn't go out on the town, but shared a room with others who did. That, plus being in unfamiliar surroundings, with unfamiliar noises, made for some long, or short, depending on your definition, nights. It was a relief that the training was not more intense than it was. I had a great time, it was great to see everyone, and it was a break from the routine of village life. The upshot, though, is that I returned on Tuesday evening, slept for 12 hours straight through(!!), and then on Wednesday and Thursday, started with a bit of a cold. Lots of vitamin C, tea, and sleep, and I think the worst of it is over. Hopefully!

So now I am back to the village life. For the next six or eight weeks, I expect to dig in to the routine here, look for some resources online for funding some projects, write some grants, and count the days until I come home for a visit. Except for a meeting in Chisinau in the middle of the month, I don't anticipate any need to leave town. Hopefully the time will pass quickly in a boringly productive fashion.

Greetings to all, and special birthday wishes in the week that was to my friend, Ed, who was my Peace Corps inspiration, and to Kirsten, way out in San Diego. In the week that will be, Brenda, my awesome and in loco parentis to Linnea sister-in-law, and my best brother in the world, David, may you all have great birthdays. I miss you all. xoxo, Jami