La Conclusión

A more-or-less English translation of this post is here.  

Bueno.  Ahora, estoy en Berkeley, California, menos de una semana antes de salir del país para ir a las Filipinas.  Quiero empezar a trabajar allá acerca del ambiente.  Intentaré lo que yo aprendí durante mis tres años en El Cuerpo de Paz.  Vamos a ver!  Pero que estaba haciendo yo antes?

1)  Viajando a Través de los Estados Unidos -- Después del fin de mi servicio en Panamá, yo viajaba a través de los EE.UU. solo por la tierra (el bus, tren, o carro), sin volando.  Entonces, comenzando en Washington, D.C., yo viajaba a través de los estados unidos por casi tres semanas.  Además de Washington, D.C., yo visité mis amigos (y un primo) en Pennsylvania, Wisconsin, Michigan, New Mexico, Arizona y California.  Fue muy divertido de hablar de nuevo cara a cara con ellos después de mucho tiempo. 

2)  Foto del Servicio -- Mi foto más favorito:

Durante un evento ambiental en el pueblo cercano de Las Minas

3)  La Canción del Día

Los Wilburys Viajando -- La Final de la Línea

4)  Las Noticias de Camerún -- es una noticia interesante sobre la bolsa plástica en Camerún, haciendo un mercado negro de ellos.  Parece como un artículo de Onion, pero es verdad.

5)  Lo Único Tienda de Cero Basura en Los Estados Unidos --  ¿Sabe que hay solo una tienda de Cero Basura en los estados unidos? Está en Texas, de todos los lugares.  Si yo sabría durante mis viajes, yo lo visitaría. 

6)  Eso es un poco embarazoso -- recientemente, yo envié aparentemente los solicitudes de amistad por Facebook, pero yo no sabía como.  Entonces, lo siento a las personas que los recibieron.  Pienso que yo lo hice cuando yo no estaba acostumbrando con mi teléfono inteligente. ¿Qué?  ¿Tengo un teléfono inteligente?

7)  Ahora tengo telefono inteligente -- yo decía mucho que yo no prefiera tener un teléfono inteligente.  Pero yo veo que es una buena herramienta, porque lo veo como un computador.  Antes, yo no lo querría por que necesito cargarlo casi cada día.  Pero es lo mismo con el computador.  Ahora yo uso el computador menos que antes.  El teléfono inteligente ha remplazado mi computador.  Es bueno también durante mis viajes.  No necesito sacar mi computadora solo para usar el Wifi para comunicar con mis amigos por e-mail o cualquier cosa. 

8)  No lo sabía -- en la ciudad de Baguio, se produce 360 a 370 toneladas de basura cada día.  También, hay grupos allá que hacen lo mismo proyectos como Panamá.  Finalmente, SM, el gran centro comercial, hizo una relación publico acerca del ambiente. 

Si Me Voy de Aquí Mañana …

… o en un mes.

1)  Epic Rap Battles vs SNL -- SNL is being called out for its lack of Asian cast members.  Witness Manny Pacquiao played by a white woman.  Lame.  In defense of SNL, I can think of at least two former cast members who are part Asian, Rob Schneider and Fred Armisen.  That's like what?  Two during the last 40 years.  On the other hand, Epic Rap Battles of History has had at least two Asian characters played by, well, Asians.  What a concept.  And ERB has only been around for maybe 4 years.   ERB wins. 

2)  Farewell Song for Panama  -- my PM sent me an email about upcoming reports, DOS and poop samples.  COS must be coming up.  Time to think of a song to use for a video montage (that I would never make) of my time in Panama.  Maybe a song with an accordion.  Or maybe a cover of Lynyrd Skynyrd?

Note to Giles:  record a longer version of this song. 

3)  The battery dies like a bad joke on stage  -- my dumbphone works just fine, but I was toying with the idea of getting a smartphone and that led me to an article about cellphones with a long battery life.  But this poster still makes me hesitant to get one:

Poster at the UN in Geneva

4)  Bochinche -- that's my new favorite Spanish word.  It means 'ruckus' or 'uproar', according to my Spanish dictionary, but the PC Panama handbook says it means 'gossip'.  Ex:  La chiquitita quiere bochinche. 

5)  This Blog Post Was Brought To You By … -- I can't say enough about safety razors.  I used it to shave my head recently and it wasn't as tough as I thought.  No more electric razors for me. 

¡Todos Estan Pasando!

1)  Take me to the River

2)  Mosquito/Scorpion Net -- Found a scorpion hanging on to my mosquito net:

3)  Pretty Surreal  -- I was recently in an air-conditioned, multi-storied mall in Panama City.  The song Freebird was playing in the background.  I had just bought coffee and a brownie for $2.65, paid with US dollar bills.  There was a Calvin Klein store nearby with a giant poster of Justin Bieber.  There was a commercial for one of Michael Bay's films playing on the nearby television.  Sometimes, Panama feels exactly like the US. 

4)  Diversión -- This video makes me want to pick up the guitar again.  Or go to a karaoke bar. 

 

5) Como se Dice 'Tinnitus'?

Heading back to post in a Panamanian party bus.  Well, seems like one.

¡Mentira!

1)  Day Trip to the Frontera --

2)  Checkpoint Differences -- in Cameroon, the gendarmes at checkpoints always asked for my identification .  In Mexico, I was asked a couple of times for my ID at checkpoints.  In Panama, I've been to 3 checkpoints and have been bypassed 3 times.  Fellow PCVs say I'm well integrated.

3)  Question of the Day -- Can you rail against corporations if you use a macbook and Facebook?  Or google for that matter?  Are all corporations bad?

4)  Where Am I? -- With images like this, I sometimes can't tell if I'm in the Philippines or Panama:

In Chiriqui

5)  Music of the Day -- I sometimes feel like parts of my life are like those 3 minute short films on fast-forward (or 4x speed) with this music in the background:

Lo Siento

1)  Current Music of the Day -- U2's I Feel Free.

2) Wahlberg Forgiven By His Victim -- "What a humble kind soul this man is to forgive."  C'mon, Mark, man up and personally apologize to the guy already.  You know its the right thing to do, so just do it!  And pay for his kids' college fund while you're at it. 

3)  Videos of the Day --  on the way to the mountain town of Guarumal ...


... to go to a fiesta:


4)  Sugarcane

Me for scale

5)  Behold -- Avocados. 

I see guacamole in my future.

El Día de la Madre

Just some thoughts during Mother's Day in Panama. 

1)  Wishful Thinking -- Ah, to be a kid again like these indigenous kids.  And have all my hair. 

in Boquete

2)  Music of the Day -- Eric Clapton's cover of San Francisco Bay Blues and his original song My Father's Eyes, both acoustic versions.  Also, Junior Brown's Baby, Let the Bad Times Be. 
 
3)  Best Comments on the Mark Wahlberg Story --  "I'd give Wahlberg the benefit of the doubt if he'd at least looked up his victims and tried to make some sort of monetary amends (when you have $200 million, you can afford to do that).  After all, 45 days in jail doesn't quite make up for being blinded in one eye.  But he never has.  He's only as sorry as it's convenient for him to be."  Or maybe this one:  "F*** him.  He can't buy him a new eyeball." 

4)  Armchair Quarterback -- I know people are really eager to get rid of 49er coach Harbaugh.  But remember where the Niners were before Harbaugh got there.  Remember the Dennis Erickson days? 

5)  Throwback to Cameroon Again -- found this picture that I've never seen before, back when my group was still a bunch of trainees:

I look like I'm ready to bolt for the exit

Incidentally, I found this photo on a fellow trainee's page, who's not even in the picture. 

Boquete

1)  Biking in Boquete --  Peace Corps gave us two days off for Thanksgiving, which gave me the chance to check out a bit of Panama.  In this case, the cool climate of Boquete with fellow PCRV William:

2)  Staged Photo of the Day

"Reading" Plato's The Republic in front of a church

3)  Hmmm...  -- according to this Coke poster in Boquete, 2 liter Coke bottles are now returnable:

4)  Quote of the Day -- "Life is too short for me to be piddling around."

PCRV William's translation into Spanish

5)  Music of the Day -- Sublime's Santeria, only because I heard music in Boquete that sounded like the song. 

We Have To Go Back …

… and reminisce.  Not actually go back.  Just reminisce.  About Cameroon, I mean. 

1)  1 Year Anniversary -- about a year ago, I was giving stool samples to Peace Corps as part of my medical check-up to wrap-up my service in Cameroon.  How time flies.  Ah, Cameroon … one of the most unreal or surreal things I've ever experienced.  Its hard to put into words those two years.  Maybe "Its complicated"?  The highs, the lows, the weird, crazy, awesome and life-changing experiences, the friendships and yes, the frenemies.  When I got back to the states, I wondered, "Did that actually happen or did I just have a crazy dream for 2 years?"  A lot has changed one year later.  Except, well, I'm still in the Peace Corps.  This time, the dream is not as crazy.  And in Spanish.

Stickers since I left Cameroon

 2)  Quote of the Day -- "Until you start believing in yourself, you ain't going to have a life."

3)  Cake News -- I don't know if this is good or not, but I've been getting a lot of my news from Cake's newsfeed.  Sometimes, they have posts about one of their upcoming concerts, although I can't remember the last time that happened. 

4)  Cameroonian Food --  In Ebolowa, there were a couple of merchants from the North who made a dish, which was some type of stir fried beef and then mixed with pasta and plantains or potatoes.  Add mayonnaise, of course.  C'est magnifique. 

5)  Media Coverage -- On a more serious note, check out this article about how the media outside the US is covering the Ferguson story. 

No Puede Ser

1)  Quote of the Day -- "I get it, you don’t like science.  And you don’t like science that interferes with the interests of your corporate clients. But we need science to protect public health and the environment."

2)  Pacquiao - Mayweather - Marquez -- watched the Pacquiao-Algieri fight (or sparring session?).  Who should Pacquiao fight next?  The old guy Marquez who knocked him out?  Or Mayweather?  I say Mayweather.  If Pacquiao and Mayweather don't fight each other for their next fight, then viewers are just throwing their money away if they pay to watch that fight.  My proof?  Mayweather's last fight was dull and Pacquiao's last fight was a mismatch.  The only interesting fight they have left is against each other.  Besides, Mayweather already beat Marquez, so why not fight Pacquiao?

3)  Awkward-Pose Photo of the Day -- after assisting my counterpart with an enviro ed activity:

4)    Music of the Day -- Tito Puente's El #100. 
 
5)  Things to Do With Your Free Time at Post -- make a wallet out of the Peace Corps newsletter thanks to youtube.  After I learned how to do this, I showed it to my counterpart who wanted to know how to make one, so I ended up spending about an hour teaching her how to make one using newspapers:

¡Chuleta!

1)  Cellphone Case Completed! -- only took a few days compared to a few weeks for the laptop case:

Sabina is one of my counterparts (a recycling artisan) who helped
me make the case out of plastic grocery bags

2)  Captions of the Day -- any meme with Yoda.  Awesome they are.

3)  Actual News Articles NEVER Recommended by Me -- Snapchat personnel (CEO or founder?) buys a house and pretty much any 'news' involving a Kardashian.  No links provided, because, really, who gives a sh*t? 

4)  Music of the Day -- Romeo Santos' La Diabla/Mi Santa and Jimmy Fallon's cover of Desire.

5)  Things They Make in Prison -- in Cameroon, they make prison bags.  In Panama, they make prison wallets:

Apparently made from raffia plastic

Chiwi

Counterpart: Debe ser un ingeniero. 
Me: ¿Ingeniero de chiwi?

Chiwi means 'junk food bag'.

1) Things I Don't Understand -- why do people say someone "cleaned up nicely" if they're dressed nice, like for a wedding? Does that mean they normally look like slobs when dressed in their everyday clothes? "You cleaned up nicely because normally you look like a homeless person."

2) Recycled Laptop Case Finished! 

One of my counterparts and the laptop case

After I showed the case to a couple of PCVs, they joked that I don't seem to have gained weight and one asked if I was going to do a health talk soon. Well, if you are going to make a laptop case out of junk food bags, cardio does help keep the weight off.

3) Quote of the Day -- "By the way, what have you done that's so great? Do you create anything, or just criticize others work and belittle their motivations?" - Steve Jobs

4) Chalk One Up for the Tropics (Again) -- recently discovered a coconut drink here in Panama called 'pipa'. Gotta love the tropics.

5) Music of the Day -- Jaco Pastorius' Liberty City. 

Demasyao

1)  News Articles Recommended By Me -- Peace Corps is going to send volunteers to Burma while Obama tells Burmese gov't to let Aung San Suu Kyi run for president and the Pope says not to buy presents for people for X-mas. 

2)  25% done -- I've already been in Panama for about two and a half months, which means I'm 1/4 of the way done with my service.  That's kinda crazy.  That's like 6 months of regular Peace Corps service.  Pretty soon, I'll have to get my resumé ready again.  Now THAT's crazy. 

3)  Respect! --  So I gotta give props to Sarah, an RPCV I served with in Cameroon.  She recently did an open mic to do stand up.  Talk about ballsy.  All I know is that she is one funny gal.  May she follow in the footsteps of comedic geniuses like Tina Fey, Mitch Hedberg and Norm MacDonald.  No pressure. 

4)  Song of the Day -- this song reminds me of Billy Bean, who said in the film Moneyball, "Would you rather get one shot in the head or five in the chest and bleed to death?"



5)  Comment of the Day -- a fellow PCV showed me this old article about what they found in a drug lord's house, like gold-plated guns and rooms full of cash.  This comment from the story is, well, the comment of the day (even if its from a day several months ago): "Criminals like this can thrive because we have laws that ensure that things people want are sold by criminals. Drug prohibition doesn't work." 

No Hay Título

1) Site Visit Pics

Talking shop with the boss and a counterpart

At my porch with the boss, my counterparts and new PCRV,
William.  What is the deal with my pants?  Looks like I'm sagging
against the Man.

  

2)  Baseball in the Tropics -- watching a game in town amongst the banana trees plants:

3)  The Grocery Store Next Door -- I'm practically next to a grocery store and that may not be good.  All that junk food.  Easy access.  And I can only say "I'm promoting the three R's since I'm reusing the packaging like potato chip bags to make a laptop case or whatever" so many times. 

4)  Throwback from Cameroon -- that time we played soccer during training:

I've only played soccer maybe 3 times in Cameroon even though I had like 3 soccer jerseys.  My bad. 

5)  Song of the Day -- Mr. Big's cover of Wild World

Now back to regular programming ...

1)  ¡Qué Bárbaro! -- how can I forget the greatest invention to come out of Cameroon -- the bean omelet.  I just now remembered this after pondering what I was going to do with some leftover lentils.  Just add them to an omelet, of course and make a lentil omelet!

2)  News Articles Recommended by Me -- then on the 9th day, God created the ozone layer so it can be politicized, thrift stores hurting more than helping?, and An African Spring?, Not so Fast with a cameo from Paul Biya.

3)  Se Mezcla -- for some reason, I always want to say 'regarder' instead of 'ver', e.g. Quiero regarder el juego.  Also want to say 'dommage' instead of 'lastima.'  I don't know what you call that.  Franspañol?  Espaçais? 
 
4)   Comment of the Day -- "Everything is as it should be."  I think Baron Baptiste said it.  Or maybe Deepak Chopra.

5)  Welcome to heaven, here's your harp -- I'm trying to see if I could get accordion lessons.  I know what you're thinking: "Me too!"  Anyway, I just thought it'd be fun to learn the accordion since its so popular down here.  I asked my colleagues if they knew anyone who could teach me.  One said he knew someone but he also said I should buy an accordion so I can practice it at home.  He said I can get a good one for like $300-400.  He said if I had my own, I could be a really good accordion player.  I just looked at him, smiling (almost laughing) and saying, "No, no voy a comprarlo."  But I like how my colleague has such high hopes for me.

¡Alla La Vida!

1)  Spanish Subtitles -- Lately I've been watching TV shows or movies without Spanish subtitles.  Its time for me to stop relying on subtitles.  There's no subtitles in real life.  Either I understand it or I don't.  I need to figure it out for myself. 

2)  Cardio for the day -- planting plantains with some students:

3)  Songs to air drum to -- Rancid's Journey to the End of the East Bay, Smashing Pumpkin's Cherub Rock, U2's All I Want is You (the live version), The Police's Every Little Thing She Does is Magic.  I need to meet a drum teacher in town.  Supposedly, there's one who plays at church. 

4)  Three News Articles -- A short history of the media and the Washington team, the D-bag (former) tour guide, and an eco-friendly wedding.  Also, the headline (Reuse, Recycle, Romance) couldn't be any better. 

5)  Possible careers in the Philippines -- start a recycling business, teach people how to make recycled crafts, sell recycled crafts, teach (Latin American) Spanish or French (with a Cameroonian accent), teach English to Koreans (or other foreigners), and of course, Peace Corps. 

I Wrote a Blog Post and You'll Never Believe What Happened Next

Well, I posted it.  That's what happened next. 

1)  Side Gigs -- I was listening to my brother's senior recital from his saxophone playing days.  He had a pretty good original piece there.  You know, bro, Joshua Redman was accepted to Yale law school but ended up deferring.  The rest is history.  Just sayin'.

2)  Enviro Ed Topic? -- There's nothing like trying to read an article in Spanish about making plastic bags from cow farts.  If there is, you'll have to tell me.  I wonder what my counterparts think of this. 

3)  Dinero -- When I left Cameroon, I made the mistake of not converting about $200 worth of CFA into dollars.  So if anyone's going to Cameroon and you're passing by Panama or if I'm going to see you when I'm visiting the US, I gots what you need.  I'm just glad I don't have to exchange currency in Panama since I can use the US $ here. 

4)  Question(s) of the Day -- How is it that most of the supermarkets in my town (and apparently in most of Panama) are owned by the Chinese?  Supermarkets are so associated so much with the Chinese that the locals call the supermarkets 'Chino'.  e.g. "you can buy X at the Chino."  How have they come to dominate the supermarket business?  Are they all part of a business association?  Do they get incentives back home to set up shop in Panama?  More importantly, where did they learn Spanish?  Well, I suppose I can always just ask them these questions instead of wondering on my blog.   

An ethnic Chinese student in Panama with my counterparts.

5)  There's friends and then there's Facebook friends --  Every once in a while, I unfriend/block people on Facebook.  Although I realize now that that's a little harsh for some of them.  Some, not all.  I probably should've just unfollowed some of them.  Its just weird to be Facebook "friends" with some people I've never met in real life or with people I barely know.  Come to think of it, using words like "unfriend" and "unfollow" is weird.

Sunday Cinco

1) Cooking Panamanian Food -- just like in Cameroon, I tried to learn how to cook the local food. Here, my counterpart is teaching me a Panamanian recipe with lentils:

The only thing I always change after learning a local recipe is to make sure to not add MSG.  In Cameroon, the locals are always shocked when I don't add MSG (aka maggi cube).  Here, they also have maggi, but they're more like a bar instead of a cube.  My "cooking teacher" used a broth type powder in a packet, but it was essentially MSG. 

2)  Deforestation -- there's been a lot of deforestation in the region where I'm posted.  My boss says the current forest is 10% of what it once was.  I can only imagine how forested this place used to be:

Slightly askew

3)  Current music in my head -- Sherry Darling by Bruce Springsteen, George Michael's cover of I Can't Make You Love Me and Herbie Hancock's Gentle Thoughts.

4)  El Lagarto en el Lago -- the lake next to the office where I work is rumored to have alligators, but I've never seen any.  Until now:

Pretty cool.

5)  SNAFU -- on a serious note, hostages kidnapped in Cameroon were recently released by Boko Haram  .  Especially telling is this sentence: "No details were given on the circumstances of the release or whether a ransom was paid."  That sounds like a ransom was paid.  If so, then that would just make things worse, according to this NY Times article.  An effed up situation all around.

Seis Pensamientos del Momento

1)  Food -- in Cameroon, it was rice and beans.  In Panama, its rice and lentils. 

2)  Things I am Tired of -- links to articles on the sidebar about wives and girlfriends (WAG) of athletes while I'm trying to read the sports page.  Who gives a sh*t?

3)  That's a Switch -- I'm living with a host family whose members all have smartphones while I have a dumbphone.   

4)    Quote of the day -- I think Buddha once said that life is suffering.  Life is pain.  Or as Sgt. Barnes would say, "Shut up and take the pain!  Take the pain!"



5)  Music in my head -- Jonathan Richman's True Love is Not Nice, U2's Elevation and Bruce Springsteen's Badlands. 

6)  "… and that has made all the difference."

Panamá

Well, I've now been in Panamá for a few weeks -- a week in the capital and some weeks at post.

So far, things have been going well.  Some thoughts:

1)  Húmedo -- its quite humid where I am even during rainy season.  The fan is almost always on in my room.   My mom says it sounds like Manila.  Or my post in Cameroon.

2)  Los Contrapartes -- My counterparts seem motivated.  I just talk to them about some of my ideas and they run with it.  I don't get the "We can't do that" answer.  Of course, its still early, but hopefully we can keep things moving. 

3)  Teléfono Inteligente -- I returned my smartphone after 1 day.  Well, I couldn't actually return it for some strange no-return policy reason.  So a fellow PCV, who felt sorry for me, bought it from me.  The smartphone was just too much.  The only fancy feature I wanted on the phone was a flashlight.  Back to using a dumbphone.   

4)  El Cuerpo de Posh? -- at my post, I have constant electricity, a cellphone network, a decent internet connection and running water that's potable.  Oh, and street lights.  Yeah, pretty posh. 

5)  La Musica -- current song in my head, Richard Thompson's Keep Your Distance:

Cinq Choses Dont Je Pense

Because I couldn't think of 10. 

1)  COS Conference -- we laughed, we cried, we played trivia, we got extensions, we got denied extensions, we drank, we got together one last time, we called people out, we danced.  Our last hurrah together since most of us will be leaving Cameroon in November.  Bittersweet. 

2)  Song About Math -- My new favorite song is Wizboyy's One Plus One, not only because the singer's name sounds funny, but because I also learned that one plus one is apparently one.  Also, the song has the following lyrics:

Is a dream of every man
to get a finest girl like you,
we go be like Rice and Stew

And:

You are the personality,
The sugar in my tea,
My testimony…
See, the probability is equal to unity of our matrimony..
This love is raised to the power of infinity.

You should really hear it:




3)  Star Trek Into Darkness -- just recently saw the latest trek movie and it seemed more like an extended SNL skit than an actual film.  But I've gotta say I'm biased since I prefer the original cast.  You just can't replace the original Khan or Kirk or McCoy, etc. 

4)  Things I Didn't Know Before -- According to Jared Diamond's Guns, Germs and Steel, Pinoys originally came from South China thousands of years ago.  The same book also says that the people of Madagascar originated from Asia.

5)  Green Corps -- I think Peace Corps should look into becoming more green.  For instance, how about replacing the current PC vehicles with hybrid vehicles?  Or have the staff take public transportation?  How about "Bike to Work" day?  Hey, I'm just throwing it out there.