Memorial what now? IT’S THE DAY BEFORE JUNE!

May 31, 2010

It feels like awhile since I’ve written an actual blog entry. The last time might have been a month ago at my all volunteer conference. Funny how time flies when you aren’t exactly busy. Although I guess that isn’t entirely true. As you all saw from my last entry, my world map is finally finished! Thanks to the hard work of everyone who helped me at one time or another, the primary school now has its first map. I say first because just today I started my second map, a map of Ghana. Doing a map of just one country is proving to be MUCH easier than doing one of the whole world. Or maybe I am just so much more experienced now… or maybe it’s due to the fact that I didn’t grid anything and just drew it all free hand (there’s no book for a Ghana map- maybe I should make one!). Either way this map should definitely be finished within the week… that is, if I were going to be around at site to paint it. But no, based on my newly revised (and dare I say) hectic schedule starting tomorrow I will be gone from site for almost a week.
But let’s rewind a little first. It’s like I’m looking at the calendar, about to flip the page to June and do my “Oh my god its June” happy dance (16 days!!!) and I haven’t even told you all what happened in May. This shouldn’t take too long: I spent way too much time in the medical unit only to find out there was nothing wrong with me. I finished the map. I finished my PEPFAR grant for the girls camp and tried many times to turn it in (more on that later). I met Stephen’s brother who was visiting for a week. I went to the beach for the first time in a year (yeah, a year… what is wrong with me?). I learned how to make coffee cake. I bought AMAZING fabric for Morghan’s wedding! aaand that’s about it, OKAY FLIP TO JUNE!!!
As I said before, my grant is finished and I’ve been trying to get it turned in before the end of May, but I guess June 1st will be good enough. Tomorrow I am going to Accra where I will begin my little adventure. Darren is running this huge student conference (STARS) in Kumasi this week and for whatever reason, the t-shirts he ordered weren’t ready in time. Since I was already going to Accra and apparently don’t know how to say no, I will be picking them up and bringing them to STARS. I was already planning on going to STARS because I got them a speaker, who I am now realizing I have not yet mentioned. I guess I can add meeting Fent to the May list. So anyway, I’ve befriended (through the Elon girls who came to visit me) a University of Ghana student who also studied abroad at… Elon! Small world. They were friends with him before they came here and must have told him about me. Anyway, I thought he would be a great speaker for STARS since the point of the conference is to motivate students to continue with their studies and go to university. So I told Fent that I would come to STARS to support him and also meet him (in person). I am also planning on visiting and staying with my friend Kelli whose site is right outside of Kumasi. Also I will do some shopping at the cultural center for my visit home (16 DAYS!!!) and whatnot. I also hope to visit Ann and check out her newly finished library (which I saw about a year ago). Throw in a visit to Sam and that about rounds out my week. I’ve been travelling a bit more than I thought I would before coming home but to be honest, it’s making time go SO MUCH FASTER! I’m still getting work done, or at least, whatever work it is I have to do… but I’m so restless at site, just staring at the calendar, making plans for home and counting the days.
16 days till three weeks at home. I still can’t believe it. It feels like an award I don’t really deserve. I told myself I would never do this and here I am counting down to it. I’m also a little nervous about the whole culture shock part, of course. I mean it’s been… over a year and a half now. Over two years for seeing some people. I can already tell by looking at my schedule that I am going to be absolutely exhausted (seriously, I’m used to sleeping for 10+ hours a night), fat fat fat from all the food I’ll be eating (but hopefully not too fat because Morghan’s wedding is OF COURSE the LAST weekend) and completely overwhelmed by a few of the following AMERICA things that you all probably just don’t even think about:
Cold beverages. Hot showers. And running water EVERYWHERE!
Children actually wearing clothes. Make that adults too. Especially old ladies. Yikes.
Toilets with toilet paper. ALWAYS.
A variety of food in a restaurant. Not just rice. Not just fufu. YES!
Sidewalks, streets, and cars actually adhering to driving laws. LAWS! WOW!
White people. Lots of white people! White people everywhere! Not just me!
LAWNMOWERS. Think about it.
Finding what you want. Exactly what you want. All in one place. A STORE! A MALL!
Time: the concept of actually FOLLOWING IT.
Leaving food out without worrying about ant invasions. No bug invasions in general.
Being LEFT ALONE when out in public. Not being a SPECTACLE.

I CANNOT WAIT!