So. I sold out, betrayed my English-major-'only-paper-books-are-real-books'-self and bought a Kindle. I caved in to the convenience of purchasing from the comfort of my home, particularly as there are no longer any bookstores near where I work or live. However, I've briefly jumped back on the (infinitely superior) actual book train. I've been making my farewell purchases at Border's and here are some of the winners.
One Day: I read this book without knowing about the movie. I finished it and THEN started to see the millions of Anne Hathaway + Jim Sturgess commercials punctuating my regular SATC rerun viewings. The basic premise is that every chapter takes place on July 15, following two characters for that single day through a period of twenty years. It starts on July 15, 1988, the morning after Dex and Emma have a one-night stand that morphs into a years-long friendship. The book can be annoying because the characters are not always particularly likable. However, the structure of the book is great. Realistically, the most significant moments of your life don't all happen on the same day every year - so you have to spend each chapter trying to figure out - did Emma get the job? What happened between Dex and his girlfriend? Did Emma and Dex get together last November or not? Also, the ending is phenomenal. Read it.
The Particular Sadness of Lemon Cake: This book is bizarre. The main premise centers around a girl who discovers, at the age of nine, that she can taste the emotions of people in the food that they make. No big events happen throughout the book - Rose never gets thrown into a national pie-eating contest, or saves someone from suicide based on taste of their mashed potatoes. Instead, it focuses on small things, like the heavy burden of Rose knowing that her mother is depressed, merely from a bite of her lemon cake. Worth reading, but prepare for the fact that Rose isn't the only one in her family with a unique ability.
Confessions of an Economic Hitman: Ever wondered what (actually) happens to all the foreign aid money allocated to third world countries? Or never even thought about it? This book is an interesting crash course in US relations with a number of developing countries, like Indonesia, Panama, Iraq, Iran and Ecuador. The story makes you question the US government and the intergovernmental agencies rather a bit, reminds you how good we have it in the first world and how important little steps - like recycling your used water bottles - can be.
About to start Cutting for Stone - updates on that to come!
Tuesday, August 16, 2011
Wednesday, August 10, 2011
Monkey Mailman: Not an Option
How do Pete and I stay in touch while he is abroad? Several of you lovely readers recently asked me about my long-distance communication situation, so this is my Peace-Corps-themed transition off of PCV Challenge blogging...
So. There were a lot of jokes prior to Pete's departure about staying in touch via smoke signals and a monkey butler that would run our mail. Some days, I think training a monkey mailman would be the easy option. Overall though, Pete and I stay very in touch considering he lives 3,000 miles away in a town that frequently loses its electricity.
Here are the methods:
VIDEO CHAT: We had a test phase right after Pete's departure - Google-video-chat or Skype? Google wins. He still lives in a third world country, so inevitably, during an hour long conversation, the call will be dropped multiple times, and the quality ranges anywhere from horrible and excellent.
Pete does not have internet access with his host family, so instead heads to the local ciber where he pays for hour-long sessions. This is when we talk, and also where Pete copies and pastes my emails into a Word doc, to be read later.
TEXTING: I can receive texts from Pete. But, for whatever strange Nica-communication-vortex reason, Pete cannot receive texts from me. So, I happily read texts ranging in content from I-just-saw-a-tarantula to I-ate-rice-and-beans-yet-again. He just doesn't get a reply.
Also, since we suspect his Claro-brand cell phone was built in the nineteenth century, Pete can't churn out texts like your average American with an iPhone. I get anywhere from zero to three texts day - which might seem like a lot, until you realize that my best friend and I can go on a 25-text streak about Lady Gaga.
GOOGLE VOICE: I can call Pete on his cell phone for the mere cost of $0.22/minute. This sounds cheap, but adds up quickly, so it's for the occasional, particularly exciting update. Peter can call me back on my phone, but only during the hour-per-day he has internet access at the ciber.
SNAIL MAIL: The classic option, and perhaps my favorite. Because letters are so rare, they are that much more exciting. It takes a letter from Pete about one month to travel from his town in Nicaragua to my Lincoln Park apartment. For whatever reason, my letters only take two weeks to get to him. Chalk it up to the efficiency of the US postal service.
I have been a fan of snail mail since elementary school when I wrote letters to my cousins and my grandparents. This continued through middle and high school, when Stephanie and I sent each other letters, despite the fact that we lived in the same hometown - excellent practice for her departure to Mongolia. Now, with two friends abroad, I have ample targets for my snail-mail obsession.
CONCLUSION: Pete is in the Peace Corps. We don't get to always talk as much as we'd like, and there can be days-long communication gaps. In all though, Pete still gets to hear way too much about the chick lit I'm reading, my trips to the dry cleaners and my thoughts on the latest celebrity gossip.
Well, that's it, readers - and of course, there is the approaching visit. 72 days and counting!
So. There were a lot of jokes prior to Pete's departure about staying in touch via smoke signals and a monkey butler that would run our mail. Some days, I think training a monkey mailman would be the easy option. Overall though, Pete and I stay very in touch considering he lives 3,000 miles away in a town that frequently loses its electricity.
Here are the methods:
VIDEO CHAT: We had a test phase right after Pete's departure - Google-video-chat or Skype? Google wins. He still lives in a third world country, so inevitably, during an hour long conversation, the call will be dropped multiple times, and the quality ranges anywhere from horrible and excellent.
Pete does not have internet access with his host family, so instead heads to the local ciber where he pays for hour-long sessions. This is when we talk, and also where Pete copies and pastes my emails into a Word doc, to be read later.
TEXTING: I can receive texts from Pete. But, for whatever strange Nica-communication-vortex reason, Pete cannot receive texts from me. So, I happily read texts ranging in content from I-just-saw-a-tarantula to I-ate-rice-and-beans-yet-again. He just doesn't get a reply.
Also, since we suspect his Claro-brand cell phone was built in the nineteenth century, Pete can't churn out texts like your average American with an iPhone. I get anywhere from zero to three texts day - which might seem like a lot, until you realize that my best friend and I can go on a 25-text streak about Lady Gaga.
GOOGLE VOICE: I can call Pete on his cell phone for the mere cost of $0.22/minute. This sounds cheap, but adds up quickly, so it's for the occasional, particularly exciting update. Peter can call me back on my phone, but only during the hour-per-day he has internet access at the ciber.
SNAIL MAIL: The classic option, and perhaps my favorite. Because letters are so rare, they are that much more exciting. It takes a letter from Pete about one month to travel from his town in Nicaragua to my Lincoln Park apartment. For whatever reason, my letters only take two weeks to get to him. Chalk it up to the efficiency of the US postal service.
I have been a fan of snail mail since elementary school when I wrote letters to my cousins and my grandparents. This continued through middle and high school, when Stephanie and I sent each other letters, despite the fact that we lived in the same hometown - excellent practice for her departure to Mongolia. Now, with two friends abroad, I have ample targets for my snail-mail obsession.
CONCLUSION: Pete is in the Peace Corps. We don't get to always talk as much as we'd like, and there can be days-long communication gaps. In all though, Pete still gets to hear way too much about the chick lit I'm reading, my trips to the dry cleaners and my thoughts on the latest celebrity gossip.
Well, that's it, readers - and of course, there is the approaching visit. 72 days and counting!
Sunday, August 7, 2011
Final Reflections: The Live Like a Peace Corps Volunteer Challenge
We are officially winding down day seven of the 'Live Like a Peace Corps Volunteer Challenge', and it's time to give some final thoughts on the experience.
As a reminder, my roommate and I both gave up use of air conditioning, microwaves, refrigerators and television for one week (August 1-7). We also committed to a 'reduced living space' (accessing only our family room, kitchen and bathroom) to support my boyfriend Pete, serving in the Nicaragua Peace Corps and our good friend Stephanie, currently in the Peace Corps in Mongolia. In addition to Caroline and I, nine other friends gave up first-world luxuries this past week in order to better understand the PCV experience, and to bring attention to the Peace Corps itself.
So, here is the break-down:
1). Air conditioning: By far, I expected this to be the biggest sacrifice. Chicago has experienced heat wave after heat wave this summer, and the start of the PCV Challenge was no exception. For instance, on Tuesday, August 2 the temperature climbed to 93 degrees, and although the heat did abate somewhat later in the week, it never dropped below the mid-80s.
To stay cool, we used fans and slept in the minimum layers possible. Unfortunately, however, on the days it finally did cool off, our apartment still felt like an oven. Living on the first-floor (sans screens) we did not feel sufficiently safe from mosquitoes or hobos to open our windows, thus trapping the hot air inside with us.
This one was survivable, but I prefer using the AC, plain and simple.
2). Reduced living space: This was my biggest challenge. Without access to our bedrooms, my roommate and I both slept on one Ikea couch for the length of a week. Our sleeping arrangements were the worst part - I am too tall for my section of the couch, and my feet hung off the edge by at least a a foot and a half. Also, in such close quarters, if my roommate was awake tossing and turning, I was soon awake with her.
Powering through a work-week without a solid night's sleep was miserable. I know during training Pete did not have a mattress and was often woken up at 5:00am by chickens, thunderstorms or neighbors chopping wood. I can't imagine doing this for more than a week - kudos, Pedro.
The remaining aspects to 'reduced living space' proved inconvenient, but definitely tolerable. For instance, we have nothing resembling a closet or dresser in our family room- so a week's worth of clothes, shoes, accessories and laundry have slowly exploded in this small space. Check it out:
I also have more of an appreciation for privacy as a precious commodity. For instance - if I wanted to Skype Pete, and Caroline was reading in our family room, my option was a). force her to listen to my hour-long conversation or b). retreat to the floor of the kitchen.
3). Television: This did not end up being much of an inconvenience. Yes, Caroline and I are hopelessly addicted to The Glee Project, True Blood and pretty much any reality show produced by TLC/E!. However, for one week, it was easy to switch to books, the internet and yes - even a night of Mad Libs. We also watched several movies, but viewed them on our laptops as opposed to our TV.
4). Refrigerator & Microwave: I think giving up use of microwaves or refrigerators would have been quite a bit easier. Combined, though, our dining options for the week shrank considerably.
The obvious solution was to eat out for every meal. First, however, my bank account does not allow for this, especially since I am putting money towards both Google Voice calls to Pete and my October Nicaragua trip. And second, this probably would have defeated the point of the PCV Challenge. So Caroline and I pushed through a week of mundane, repetitive food choices - peanut butter sandwiches, bananas, fruit snacks, pasta sans sauce. While I think this was excellent perspective on the misery that is Pete's repeating menu of rice-beans-rice-beans - or Stephanie's diet of constant mutton - I cannot wait to open my refrigerator tomorrow.
Unexpected speed bumps: Caroline and I both (unluckily) got sick this week. She started off the week with a bout of the stomach flu, and I ended it with a Saturday morning migraine. These experiences in particular showed us how miserable it can be to get sick without the luxuries of the first-world. Doing without air conditioning, a bedroom or (god forbid) indoor plumbing are difficult enough when you're at the top of your game...powering through without these amenities while under-the-weather takes a whole different level of willpower. Definite props to the PCVs of the world!
I have stayed in close contact with Pete and Stephanie since their departures, so initially, I wanted to do the PCV Challenge to raise awareness among our other friends - and even people that have never met them - for what they are doing. However, I ended up getting a lot of perspective myself (as you have seen).
Looking forward to getting even more insight to the PCV life when I visit Pete in October!
As a reminder, my roommate and I both gave up use of air conditioning, microwaves, refrigerators and television for one week (August 1-7). We also committed to a 'reduced living space' (accessing only our family room, kitchen and bathroom) to support my boyfriend Pete, serving in the Nicaragua Peace Corps and our good friend Stephanie, currently in the Peace Corps in Mongolia. In addition to Caroline and I, nine other friends gave up first-world luxuries this past week in order to better understand the PCV experience, and to bring attention to the Peace Corps itself.
So, here is the break-down:
1). Air conditioning: By far, I expected this to be the biggest sacrifice. Chicago has experienced heat wave after heat wave this summer, and the start of the PCV Challenge was no exception. For instance, on Tuesday, August 2 the temperature climbed to 93 degrees, and although the heat did abate somewhat later in the week, it never dropped below the mid-80s.
To stay cool, we used fans and slept in the minimum layers possible. Unfortunately, however, on the days it finally did cool off, our apartment still felt like an oven. Living on the first-floor (sans screens) we did not feel sufficiently safe from mosquitoes or hobos to open our windows, thus trapping the hot air inside with us.
This one was survivable, but I prefer using the AC, plain and simple.
2). Reduced living space: This was my biggest challenge. Without access to our bedrooms, my roommate and I both slept on one Ikea couch for the length of a week. Our sleeping arrangements were the worst part - I am too tall for my section of the couch, and my feet hung off the edge by at least a a foot and a half. Also, in such close quarters, if my roommate was awake tossing and turning, I was soon awake with her.
Powering through a work-week without a solid night's sleep was miserable. I know during training Pete did not have a mattress and was often woken up at 5:00am by chickens, thunderstorms or neighbors chopping wood. I can't imagine doing this for more than a week - kudos, Pedro.
The remaining aspects to 'reduced living space' proved inconvenient, but definitely tolerable. For instance, we have nothing resembling a closet or dresser in our family room- so a week's worth of clothes, shoes, accessories and laundry have slowly exploded in this small space. Check it out:
I also have more of an appreciation for privacy as a precious commodity. For instance - if I wanted to Skype Pete, and Caroline was reading in our family room, my option was a). force her to listen to my hour-long conversation or b). retreat to the floor of the kitchen.
3). Television: This did not end up being much of an inconvenience. Yes, Caroline and I are hopelessly addicted to The Glee Project, True Blood and pretty much any reality show produced by TLC/E!. However, for one week, it was easy to switch to books, the internet and yes - even a night of Mad Libs. We also watched several movies, but viewed them on our laptops as opposed to our TV.
4). Refrigerator & Microwave: I think giving up use of microwaves or refrigerators would have been quite a bit easier. Combined, though, our dining options for the week shrank considerably.
The obvious solution was to eat out for every meal. First, however, my bank account does not allow for this, especially since I am putting money towards both Google Voice calls to Pete and my October Nicaragua trip. And second, this probably would have defeated the point of the PCV Challenge. So Caroline and I pushed through a week of mundane, repetitive food choices - peanut butter sandwiches, bananas, fruit snacks, pasta sans sauce. While I think this was excellent perspective on the misery that is Pete's repeating menu of rice-beans-rice-beans - or Stephanie's diet of constant mutton - I cannot wait to open my refrigerator tomorrow.
Unexpected speed bumps: Caroline and I both (unluckily) got sick this week. She started off the week with a bout of the stomach flu, and I ended it with a Saturday morning migraine. These experiences in particular showed us how miserable it can be to get sick without the luxuries of the first-world. Doing without air conditioning, a bedroom or (god forbid) indoor plumbing are difficult enough when you're at the top of your game...powering through without these amenities while under-the-weather takes a whole different level of willpower. Definite props to the PCVs of the world!
I have stayed in close contact with Pete and Stephanie since their departures, so initially, I wanted to do the PCV Challenge to raise awareness among our other friends - and even people that have never met them - for what they are doing. However, I ended up getting a lot of perspective myself (as you have seen).
Looking forward to getting even more insight to the PCV life when I visit Pete in October!
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