Profe in the DR 10

Profe in the DR 10

Last Monday I went to the capital to learn about a program the business volunteers are doing called Construye Tus Sueños.  It’s a course on writing a business plan.  (Very similar to what I taught while a volunteer in Guatemala.)  They also have a competition for the best business plan with a prize of start up money for the winner.  I believe Plan International is supporting the competition.  I plan to give the course here in my site.

            While in the capital I saw the doctor about my wrist.  I was tripped while playing soccer and landed hard on my wrist.  I am now wearing a brace on my wrist for the next two to three weeks.

            My neighbor on the other side of the colmado just fixed up large speakers for music.  I now have blaring loud music being played on both sides of the house, often at the same time.   I have come to prefer when there is no electricity (although the colmado has a generator).

            I tried cooking broccoli for the first time ever.   I overcooked it and it was mushy.  It’s hard to get good vegetables here in my site.  They eat a lot of green plantains, green bananas, and yucca here, and they will flavor them up with lots of onions and oil.  I have been eating a lot of spaghetti, cereal, and peanut butter and jelly on biskwit sandwiches.  I just recently found out that the make a larger size biskwit (Haitian bread) in my site.    (photo on FB)

            It’s very dry these days.  It hasn’t rained in a long time.  The dust blows all around the batey.  It’s amazing how much dust accumulates on everything in my house in a matter of moments. 

            I continue to teach kids how to play chess.  There are a lot more girls and young children playing than before.  They come over to my house to play whenever I am home.  Some kids are even starting to make there own chess boards.  I am thinking that some day we should have a chess tournament here.

            Friday I was in the capital again for another meeting.  I am part of a committee planning a 5 day girl’s conference called camp GLOW that will happen in July.  I am also part of a smaller group in charge of re-writing the manual and workbook for the Chicas Brillantes program. 

            I taught the boys how to Sumo wrestle.   They really got into it.  We have done it a few times since.  (photos on FB)

            The kids don’t have school again today.  Nobody knows why.  They seem to have more days out of school than in.  The educational system here is one of the worst in the world, and things are even worse here in the batey.   Teachers are hired based on political party not ability. 

            My art club that started off so well, imploded.  No one showed up the last three weeks.  Its not that they weren’t interested, just that the kids were too young and had no concept of time.  We even went around the day before reminding them, but they still forgot.  After semana santa (holy week) I am going to try again, but this time with some older kids involved.  They can help the younger kids remember.  I had the same problem with the younger kids and soccer.  When I had a time just for them they would forget to come, but when I switched the time to the same time that the older boys and girls were practicing they never miss.