Say hello to my new little niece Everly Pegs 
Sunday, October 15, 2006
Tuesday, October 10, 2006
Nostalgia
Let's have a moment of remembering together what my life was like at this time last year and read a blog archive. That first picture of the vineyard is my desktop wallpaper right now. It's almost painful remembering these beautiful days in Switzerland. But not so painful considering that I'm GOING ON VACATION IN SWITZERLAND IN 2 WEEKS!!!! Yeah, I'm pretty much stoked.
I would just like to thank my friends Missy and Amber for the role they unwittingly played in the planning of this vacation. I got two postcards of Switzerland from these ladies on the same day. I was like "Ha, ha, I should pretend like this is a sign from God that I should go back to Switzerland." But then a few days later my mom called and asked "Why do I keep thinking about you and Switzerland? Are you supposed to go back there?" I was like, "Uh, sure, I'll look into it." From there everything just fell into place and on the 23rd I'll be hopping on a plane to visit my home away from home! And there was much rejoicing! I love you Missy and Amber and Mom!!!!
I would just like to thank my friends Missy and Amber for the role they unwittingly played in the planning of this vacation. I got two postcards of Switzerland from these ladies on the same day. I was like "Ha, ha, I should pretend like this is a sign from God that I should go back to Switzerland." But then a few days later my mom called and asked "Why do I keep thinking about you and Switzerland? Are you supposed to go back there?" I was like, "Uh, sure, I'll look into it." From there everything just fell into place and on the 23rd I'll be hopping on a plane to visit my home away from home! And there was much rejoicing! I love you Missy and Amber and Mom!!!!
Random pics
Would you let your 4-year-old play with a machete?!
Awwww, cute wittle duckies.
I think it was like goat mating season or something. They kept having head butting contests. I like this photo.
Would you eat this?
These are grubs. Mmmmmm.
Let's see, which one is tastiest? 
Annette actually ate the grubs, baked into a paté like concoction that was fairly good but unable to disguise their crunchiness and still too psychologically traumatizing to tempt me :o)
Trying my darndest to post some photos
One of the fun things we did in Ouesso was have a pizza party :o) Some of our friends had heard about pizza and they begged us to bring them some from Brazza. We had to improvise a little. We brought pita bread and cheese and italian seasoning with us and then bought tomato paste, garlic and onion there in the village. It was delicious! Although the African response wasn't too enthusiastic. I think cheese must be too heavy when you've never eaten it before
Monday, October 09, 2006
I knew it was bad, but this is ridiculous!
No one told me before I came here that BRAZZAVILLE is ranked as the SECOND WORST CITY IN THE WORLD for expatriates to live in! It’s second only to Baghdad! And Pointe-Noire, Congo’s coastal city, is ranked 5th! Makes me laugh to think that many of my colleagues go to PNR for vacation…they’re not being very particular in how far they move up the scale! This article talks about the survey.
In another survey, Brazza is ranked 4th for worst health and sanitation and Republic of Congo is supposedly in the top 10 poorest countries in the world. It’s funny, ‘cause there are a lot of places I’d rather not live than here! For example, India seems like a much poorer, more disease-ridden place to me. I’d rather live in Brazza than in Nairobi where the standard of living might be better but where I’d risk getting mugged every time I set my foot on the street. On the other hand, things are pretty bad for a lot of people here and I’m glad I now have a survey to justify myself every time I feel stressed or tired :o)
It’s funny that Congo has 2 of the top 5 worst cities, because I lived in Switzerland last year and they have 3 of the top 10 BEST cities! Zurich and Geneva are the #1 and #2 best places for expatriates to live. So I wasn’t just imagining the contrast in my life between this year and last :o) See this page for the entire list of 215 ranked cities. The “quality of life“ survey based its table on criteria ranging from political, social and economic factors.
To see a lot of interesting top 10 lists comparing countries, visit www.aneki.com, although I can’t vouch for their accuracy or their sources.
In another survey, Brazza is ranked 4th for worst health and sanitation and Republic of Congo is supposedly in the top 10 poorest countries in the world. It’s funny, ‘cause there are a lot of places I’d rather not live than here! For example, India seems like a much poorer, more disease-ridden place to me. I’d rather live in Brazza than in Nairobi where the standard of living might be better but where I’d risk getting mugged every time I set my foot on the street. On the other hand, things are pretty bad for a lot of people here and I’m glad I now have a survey to justify myself every time I feel stressed or tired :o)
It’s funny that Congo has 2 of the top 5 worst cities, because I lived in Switzerland last year and they have 3 of the top 10 BEST cities! Zurich and Geneva are the #1 and #2 best places for expatriates to live. So I wasn’t just imagining the contrast in my life between this year and last :o) See this page for the entire list of 215 ranked cities. The “quality of life“ survey based its table on criteria ranging from political, social and economic factors.
To see a lot of interesting top 10 lists comparing countries, visit www.aneki.com, although I can’t vouch for their accuracy or their sources.
Wednesday, September 27, 2006
God's Motivational Seminar
So today God came through for me in a big tangible way. I’ve been really unmotivated lately and I woke up this morning thinking, “Is there any reason for me to get out of bed today?” This didn’t really seem healthy, so I was a little concerned for myself. Later I was reading the book “Primal Leadership” and it seemed rather ironic that I was on the chapter called “Motivation to Change.” It told the story of this little boy Logan who went on vacation for a week at his uncle’s house and every day he would spring out of bed at 5am because he was so excited to work with his uncle on the farm. The point of the chapter is basically that you need to get in touch with yourself and evaluate where you’re falling short of your ideals, because you may have slipped into habits that are creating inertia in your life. It talked about the “Logan test” and asked the question, “Do you awake each morning excited about the day, not wanting to sleep any more than absolutely necessary?” It hit just a little too close to home and I wondered “God? What are you up to here?”
The thing I’m struggling with is that I’m doing the kind of work I’ve dreamed of and planned for since high school! This has been my goal for SEVEN years, yet here I am and I don’t even want to get out of bed? What’s that about? I tried to think of things that I get excited about and compare it with what I actually do here. One of the things that has been on my mind for a long time is how much I miss ministering at my church. Before I went to study French in Switzerland last year, I was leading a 7th grade girls small group. It was so awesome! In my mind, it was the most fruitful time of my life. Since then I haven’t really had a ministry. I’m a “missionary” but my work involves sitting in an office a good part of the time. Sure I interact with people and can invest in them in little ways from time to time, but I miss that set apart time at church where I have the freedom to minister directly, teaching the Word of God and praying for people and experiencing the presence of the Spirit together. I wrote to an old friend today that I feel like I need to get back into a more hands-on kind of ministry, like maybe that would make life feel meaningful again. So back to God coming through for me in a big tangible way…
I went to my local church today for a seminar. I noticed that about half the people present were young girls! For a good part of the sermon I couldn’t even listen ‘cause my mind was racing over all the cool things I could do with these girls. They don’t have anything geared towards them and it’s a bummer that they only teaching they get is a sermon from the pulpit on Sunday. I know most of them a little bit and after the service they all gathered around me. It was weird ‘cause it was like they were all just waiting for me to ask them to do something together! So I was like “Uh, we should get together some time.” We had started arranging what day would be good when the pastor came over (a man who also works with me at SIL) and he said, “This is Jessica. She’s going to be your leader now. You will meet with her and she will teach you things.” Just like that!!
So I feel like maybe God likes me a little bit :o) He set things up so that I would realize this deep need in my life and just when I was feeling the most distressed about it, He comes through with this God-sized gift! He is good.
The thing I’m struggling with is that I’m doing the kind of work I’ve dreamed of and planned for since high school! This has been my goal for SEVEN years, yet here I am and I don’t even want to get out of bed? What’s that about? I tried to think of things that I get excited about and compare it with what I actually do here. One of the things that has been on my mind for a long time is how much I miss ministering at my church. Before I went to study French in Switzerland last year, I was leading a 7th grade girls small group. It was so awesome! In my mind, it was the most fruitful time of my life. Since then I haven’t really had a ministry. I’m a “missionary” but my work involves sitting in an office a good part of the time. Sure I interact with people and can invest in them in little ways from time to time, but I miss that set apart time at church where I have the freedom to minister directly, teaching the Word of God and praying for people and experiencing the presence of the Spirit together. I wrote to an old friend today that I feel like I need to get back into a more hands-on kind of ministry, like maybe that would make life feel meaningful again. So back to God coming through for me in a big tangible way…
I went to my local church today for a seminar. I noticed that about half the people present were young girls! For a good part of the sermon I couldn’t even listen ‘cause my mind was racing over all the cool things I could do with these girls. They don’t have anything geared towards them and it’s a bummer that they only teaching they get is a sermon from the pulpit on Sunday. I know most of them a little bit and after the service they all gathered around me. It was weird ‘cause it was like they were all just waiting for me to ask them to do something together! So I was like “Uh, we should get together some time.” We had started arranging what day would be good when the pastor came over (a man who also works with me at SIL) and he said, “This is Jessica. She’s going to be your leader now. You will meet with her and she will teach you things.” Just like that!!
So I feel like maybe God likes me a little bit :o) He set things up so that I would realize this deep need in my life and just when I was feeling the most distressed about it, He comes through with this God-sized gift! He is good.
Sunday, September 24, 2006
Pious missionary talk
So long as we're on the topic of soul mates and such, I thought I'd give you a little window into my world:
The other night I was walking down to the icecream shop with my friend Elizabeth, her parents who are here visiting, and the Humber family—Paul, Kristin, and their 3 little girls. Elizabeth’s parents were walking hand and hand and Kristin was holding one of her girls’ hands, so Elizabeth and I wanted to get in on the action. We held the other girls’ hands and I remarked “Well, we’ll take what we can get.” Kristin said, “Beggars can’t be choosers, right?” I said, “Single white women in the Congo can’t be choosers!” “Are you saying you are beggars?” “I’m saying you married folks don’t understand our reality,” I said teasingly.
I went on: “I’m starting to worry about myself. I see so few good looking white guys that when I do see one I have to wipe the drool off my chin. What’s gonna happen when I go back home?” Elizabeth chimed in, “Oh I know! On Tuesday I saw this really hot French guy while I was shopping at Score.” Kristin cut in, “Wait a minute, you saw this guy on Tuesday? This is so funny! You’re talking about it like it was the highlight of your week!” Elizabeth retorted, “Highlight of my week?! That was like the highlight of the last 3 months!”
And so goes the pious talk of missionary women. They’ll probably leave those kinds of details out when they write biographies of our heroic lives. I’m telling you now, so you’ll know the real story :o)
The other night I was walking down to the icecream shop with my friend Elizabeth, her parents who are here visiting, and the Humber family—Paul, Kristin, and their 3 little girls. Elizabeth’s parents were walking hand and hand and Kristin was holding one of her girls’ hands, so Elizabeth and I wanted to get in on the action. We held the other girls’ hands and I remarked “Well, we’ll take what we can get.” Kristin said, “Beggars can’t be choosers, right?” I said, “Single white women in the Congo can’t be choosers!” “Are you saying you are beggars?” “I’m saying you married folks don’t understand our reality,” I said teasingly.
I went on: “I’m starting to worry about myself. I see so few good looking white guys that when I do see one I have to wipe the drool off my chin. What’s gonna happen when I go back home?” Elizabeth chimed in, “Oh I know! On Tuesday I saw this really hot French guy while I was shopping at Score.” Kristin cut in, “Wait a minute, you saw this guy on Tuesday? This is so funny! You’re talking about it like it was the highlight of your week!” Elizabeth retorted, “Highlight of my week?! That was like the highlight of the last 3 months!”
And so goes the pious talk of missionary women. They’ll probably leave those kinds of details out when they write biographies of our heroic lives. I’m telling you now, so you’ll know the real story :o)
Thursday, September 21, 2006
Portrait of a Compatible Soul Mate
My soul mate finds truth in whimsical, slightly odd films. He speaks a foreign language...or 2 or 3. He prays like there's no tomorrow and worships like eternity isn't long enough to love Jesus. He will work in Congo but he's not Congolese. He'll be able to make me laugh until I cry. He is hot. He has a sense of style. He won't be a party pooper.
I guess. I mean, I've never seen a soul mate before. I think I'll recognize him though.
I think he's like 5'10" with really cool glasses and light brown messy hair. He wears t-shirts from Goodwill and expensive jeans that his rich friend from college handed down to him so he'd stop wearing his favorite cargo pants from high school. He turned down Yale and Princeton to go to a local seminary. He's often found by the river, eating an apple and reading a good book or playing his guitar (I never realized my soul mate was a yuppy hippie!). He’s not into sports, but he kicks butt at Ultimate Frisbee. He can school me at pool, but only about half the time. He loves his dog. He goes to the dentist every 6 months and has nightmares that his teeth became crooked. He likes to shop at Trader Joe's, but he never checks out my hot friend Carrie 'cause redheads just aren't his type; plus he’s just too happy about all the free samples he just ate and the box of truffles he bought me. He offers to pick his friends up at the airport just to get that exciting feeling of going to the airport and to see all the funny people there. I guess he must be from Portland.
I'm just making this up as I go along. If anyone out there reading this matches this description, don't worry, I'm not talking about you. I'm talking about my mystical soul mate who isn't a real person. I probably wouldn't like to meet a real person like this because they would smell sometimes or say annoying things or want to take me out, and that's just not very mystical. My soul mate is very mystical. On the other hand, if you or anyone you know matches this description, please write to me, or feel free to stop by my office in Brazzaville. I take soul mate appointments every Monday.
I guess. I mean, I've never seen a soul mate before. I think I'll recognize him though.
I think he's like 5'10" with really cool glasses and light brown messy hair. He wears t-shirts from Goodwill and expensive jeans that his rich friend from college handed down to him so he'd stop wearing his favorite cargo pants from high school. He turned down Yale and Princeton to go to a local seminary. He's often found by the river, eating an apple and reading a good book or playing his guitar (I never realized my soul mate was a yuppy hippie!). He’s not into sports, but he kicks butt at Ultimate Frisbee. He can school me at pool, but only about half the time. He loves his dog. He goes to the dentist every 6 months and has nightmares that his teeth became crooked. He likes to shop at Trader Joe's, but he never checks out my hot friend Carrie 'cause redheads just aren't his type; plus he’s just too happy about all the free samples he just ate and the box of truffles he bought me. He offers to pick his friends up at the airport just to get that exciting feeling of going to the airport and to see all the funny people there. I guess he must be from Portland.
I'm just making this up as I go along. If anyone out there reading this matches this description, don't worry, I'm not talking about you. I'm talking about my mystical soul mate who isn't a real person. I probably wouldn't like to meet a real person like this because they would smell sometimes or say annoying things or want to take me out, and that's just not very mystical. My soul mate is very mystical. On the other hand, if you or anyone you know matches this description, please write to me, or feel free to stop by my office in Brazzaville. I take soul mate appointments every Monday.
Oregon, how do I love thee, let me count the ways
Just ran across this blog entry on BookFinder.com. I love that Powell's bookstore in Portland is famous. I think I love it because I somehow feel I have a personal relationship with Powell's, though I have no more claim on it than your average Powell's-loving-Oregonian.
Powell's is one of many reasons I am looking forward to next summer. I am coming home to TA at Oregon Summer Institute of Linguistics. It's been held for the last 20 years in Eugene, but is planning to move to P-Town in 2007! I've lived in Salem, Newberg, and Eugene, but never Portland, so I'm excited!
Other things I'm looking forward to in Portland: visiting churches (like Donald Miller's, author of Blue Like Jazz, Imago Dei) and making a study of the whole post-modern "emerging church" scene, spending time on 23rd Street (esp Papa Hayden's, Pizzicato, Starbucks, Lush, Pottery Barn), attending summer evening events at Pioneer Square (I don't actually know anything about this, but one time I watched the Goonies on a big screen there and it was cool), spending time with my great friends (Sarita, Stephanie, Carrie, whoever else I know in the Portland area), and you know, basically discovering how cool it is to be from Oregon.
I feel like Oregon is an often over-looked state. CA, NY, TX and states like that are famous, but OR? Lately, however, it's been getting the glory due its name. "Blue Like Jazz" seems like it's pretty much one of the most popular Christian books right now and it's full of Oregon propaganda. The lead character of my new favorite movie "Elizabethtown" is from Oregon, and there's funny jokes all the way thru where the Kentuckians keep accusing him of being from California. I guess if you're into the independent film/independent bookstore/independent political scene, Oregon is probably like Mecca or something.
OK, that's all I have to say about Oregon right now. Except that it's one of the most beautiful places on earth. I heart Oregon!!!
(Sorry about my verbose blogging of late. This is what happens when my photo program refuses to post.)
Powell's is one of many reasons I am looking forward to next summer. I am coming home to TA at Oregon Summer Institute of Linguistics. It's been held for the last 20 years in Eugene, but is planning to move to P-Town in 2007! I've lived in Salem, Newberg, and Eugene, but never Portland, so I'm excited!
Other things I'm looking forward to in Portland: visiting churches (like Donald Miller's, author of Blue Like Jazz, Imago Dei) and making a study of the whole post-modern "emerging church" scene, spending time on 23rd Street (esp Papa Hayden's, Pizzicato, Starbucks, Lush, Pottery Barn), attending summer evening events at Pioneer Square (I don't actually know anything about this, but one time I watched the Goonies on a big screen there and it was cool), spending time with my great friends (Sarita, Stephanie, Carrie, whoever else I know in the Portland area), and you know, basically discovering how cool it is to be from Oregon.
I feel like Oregon is an often over-looked state. CA, NY, TX and states like that are famous, but OR? Lately, however, it's been getting the glory due its name. "Blue Like Jazz" seems like it's pretty much one of the most popular Christian books right now and it's full of Oregon propaganda. The lead character of my new favorite movie "Elizabethtown" is from Oregon, and there's funny jokes all the way thru where the Kentuckians keep accusing him of being from California. I guess if you're into the independent film/independent bookstore/independent political scene, Oregon is probably like Mecca or something.
OK, that's all I have to say about Oregon right now. Except that it's one of the most beautiful places on earth. I heart Oregon!!!
(Sorry about my verbose blogging of late. This is what happens when my photo program refuses to post.)
Wednesday, September 20, 2006
Soul Mates
"Finding a soul mate on your own and knowing if you're really compatible has never been more confusing or difficult."
The above statement really hits me the wrong way. What do you think? This is a statement made by eHarmony, a very popular and surprisingly effective match-making site. Their aim is to help people find their "soul mate." I think this kind of match-making is valid in this day and age, but the idea of selling soul mates is a little disturbing to me. First of all, I'm not sure I believe in soul mates. Second of all, why should it be harder today? Do we think God has dropped the ball in the soul mate department?
Define, "compatibility" for me. In many cultures, compatibility consists in family status and wealth, or coming from the right branch of the family tree or the right tribe. Maybe this is why everything is confusing and difficult for us westerners, because we don't have such structures in place in our society to tell us who we should marry. For me, I am not on a quest to find my soul mate. "Soul mate" sounds rather mystical, and if it is, then it seems like that person will come to me. God will cause our paths to cross. He has been doing this throughout history so I don't really feel panicked that our society has messed things up over the last few decades with our lame ideas of dating and compatibility and soulmates.
The above statement really hits me the wrong way. What do you think? This is a statement made by eHarmony, a very popular and surprisingly effective match-making site. Their aim is to help people find their "soul mate." I think this kind of match-making is valid in this day and age, but the idea of selling soul mates is a little disturbing to me. First of all, I'm not sure I believe in soul mates. Second of all, why should it be harder today? Do we think God has dropped the ball in the soul mate department?
Define, "compatibility" for me. In many cultures, compatibility consists in family status and wealth, or coming from the right branch of the family tree or the right tribe. Maybe this is why everything is confusing and difficult for us westerners, because we don't have such structures in place in our society to tell us who we should marry. For me, I am not on a quest to find my soul mate. "Soul mate" sounds rather mystical, and if it is, then it seems like that person will come to me. God will cause our paths to cross. He has been doing this throughout history so I don't really feel panicked that our society has messed things up over the last few decades with our lame ideas of dating and compatibility and soulmates.
Ouesso Diary #2
At times I found taking photos wasn't enough to capture a moment. I wrote this on 8/23/06
A lady walks intently across the soggy field, a long stick helping her make each step. The scarf on her head, her t-shirt and skirt are all faded and worn from many long days of toilsome labor. A man saunters by in a new bright blue outfit with red chickens on it, music streaming from a walkman in his pocket. From somewhere a rooster crows, and the sounds of humans emerging begin calling across the courtyard. The plunk, plunk of water dripping from tree branches is accented by the occasional distant rumble of thunder. With rhythmic steps and hands marking an inaudible beat, a girl zigzags carefully over the puddles. The air is cool and smells fresh. The village awakens after another impressive rainstorm.
A lady walks intently across the soggy field, a long stick helping her make each step. The scarf on her head, her t-shirt and skirt are all faded and worn from many long days of toilsome labor. A man saunters by in a new bright blue outfit with red chickens on it, music streaming from a walkman in his pocket. From somewhere a rooster crows, and the sounds of humans emerging begin calling across the courtyard. The plunk, plunk of water dripping from tree branches is accented by the occasional distant rumble of thunder. With rhythmic steps and hands marking an inaudible beat, a girl zigzags carefully over the puddles. The air is cool and smells fresh. The village awakens after another impressive rainstorm.
Sunday, September 17, 2006
Cab Conversation
To get around Brazza I often take taxis. This morning my ride to church was very typical, so I thought I’d share with you:
Taxi: You are Swedish?
Me: No, American.
Taxi: You need to take me to America.
Me: It’s expensive.
Taxi: How expensive?
Me: $2000, just for the plane ticket.
Taxi: You need to have faith.
Me: What about all the other Congolese people who have already asked me this?
Taxi: What?
Me: You’re not the first.
Taxi: You need to have faith
Me: Why would God want you to go to the United States?
Taxi: Because it’s my wish.
Me: God doesn’t give me everything I want.
Taxi: Of course not. Only God is big enough to have everything. No one man can have everything. Isn’t that right? If someone had everything that would make them God…
At this point I checked out of the conversation while he continued sermonizing on having faith and how God is the only One big enough to have everything. He might have asked me some more questions, but I don’t really know. I don’t like it when people hit me up for a ride to America when all I’m doing is trying to get across town to go to church. Do they actually think they’ll get something from me? I think the principle here is always ask. Ask for more than possible. Who knows? Maybe you’ll get something out of the deal. If they find anyone handing out tickets to the United States, I want to get in on that deal too!
PS: It's not that I don't want to help people fulfill their dreams, but I think the dream to go to America is usually misplaced. People here don't realized how absolutely miserable they would probably be in America. They wouldn't be marketable, they wouldn't have family, they would find both the culture and the climate extemely cold. It's not a ticket to prosperity and happiness. I wouldn't wish America on most of these people.
Taxi: You are Swedish?
Me: No, American.
Taxi: You need to take me to America.
Me: It’s expensive.
Taxi: How expensive?
Me: $2000, just for the plane ticket.
Taxi: You need to have faith.
Me: What about all the other Congolese people who have already asked me this?
Taxi: What?
Me: You’re not the first.
Taxi: You need to have faith
Me: Why would God want you to go to the United States?
Taxi: Because it’s my wish.
Me: God doesn’t give me everything I want.
Taxi: Of course not. Only God is big enough to have everything. No one man can have everything. Isn’t that right? If someone had everything that would make them God…
At this point I checked out of the conversation while he continued sermonizing on having faith and how God is the only One big enough to have everything. He might have asked me some more questions, but I don’t really know. I don’t like it when people hit me up for a ride to America when all I’m doing is trying to get across town to go to church. Do they actually think they’ll get something from me? I think the principle here is always ask. Ask for more than possible. Who knows? Maybe you’ll get something out of the deal. If they find anyone handing out tickets to the United States, I want to get in on that deal too!
PS: It's not that I don't want to help people fulfill their dreams, but I think the dream to go to America is usually misplaced. People here don't realized how absolutely miserable they would probably be in America. They wouldn't be marketable, they wouldn't have family, they would find both the culture and the climate extemely cold. It's not a ticket to prosperity and happiness. I wouldn't wish America on most of these people.
Monday, September 11, 2006
Check out the new fall GAP ad
My cool big sis' just tipped me off to this. If you don't have a TV like me, then check it out: http://www.gap.com/browse/home.do
"I rather feel like expressing myself now. And I could certainly use the release! If a girl wants to dance, a girl wants to dance."
My only regret is that if clothes designed for Audrey Hepburn are in, most of us are out. I mean, wasn't she so skinny because she had a disease or something? Yeah, that's a look I'd want to promote!
"I rather feel like expressing myself now. And I could certainly use the release! If a girl wants to dance, a girl wants to dance."
My only regret is that if clothes designed for Audrey Hepburn are in, most of us are out. I mean, wasn't she so skinny because she had a disease or something? Yeah, that's a look I'd want to promote!
One of the highlights of the trip was being able to deliver a tricycle to our friend Faustin. He is a faithful member of the Bekwil translation team and he would limp several miles into town to work. Now he zips around on his new wheels! We were so thankful for the Harrisons' supporters who jumped on the opportunity to give money to have the bike made.
Ouesso Diary #1
OK, folks, I'm getting pretty disgusted with my photo program. I'll try again tomorrow, but for now you'll just have to be happy with this story from my journal on August 25th...
Last night I went out just before dark to buy more kerosene. Judging by the huge sinister billowy clouds, I knew I didn’t have much time. I walked briskly to the store and by the time I left with my bottle of green fuel in hand, the rain was starting to fall. I was in a hurry and the streets were nearly completely dark and my glasses were blurred with rain drops, so I turned down the wrong street and ended up lost in the midst of some houses as the rain really began to pour. A man stopped me to say, “Lady, you better hurry.” Yeah, thanks.
Once wet, my slip-on plastic shoes were useless for getting anywhere fast, so I took them in my hand and ran down the dark sandy roads in the general direction of the house with rain dumping on my head, praying I wouldn’t step on anything sharp or gross. I made it home not having gone too far out of my way and without being completely soaked, feeling a healthy sense of satisfaction at my little adventure. It’s not every day a white girl runs barefoot in the rain down a Congolese dirt road in the dark!
Last night I went out just before dark to buy more kerosene. Judging by the huge sinister billowy clouds, I knew I didn’t have much time. I walked briskly to the store and by the time I left with my bottle of green fuel in hand, the rain was starting to fall. I was in a hurry and the streets were nearly completely dark and my glasses were blurred with rain drops, so I turned down the wrong street and ended up lost in the midst of some houses as the rain really began to pour. A man stopped me to say, “Lady, you better hurry.” Yeah, thanks.
Once wet, my slip-on plastic shoes were useless for getting anywhere fast, so I took them in my hand and ran down the dark sandy roads in the general direction of the house with rain dumping on my head, praying I wouldn’t step on anything sharp or gross. I made it home not having gone too far out of my way and without being completely soaked, feeling a healthy sense of satisfaction at my little adventure. It’s not every day a white girl runs barefoot in the rain down a Congolese dirt road in the dark!
Sunday, September 10, 2006
Living it up in Brazzaville
On Friday my teammates and I staggered back to the SIL center in Brazzaville after 4 long weeks in Ouesso, northern Congo. Within minutes of arriving, I was sitting at my dining room table under a fan, drinking a cold glass of water and petting my cat while downloading my emails. I live a life of contrasts.
I'm really disappointed that my photos are refusing to upload for some reason today, but hopefully over the next couple weeks I'll be able to pictorally describe for you our continuing adventures in Congo.
I've been in Africa for 8 months now and while we were in Ouesso I seemed to have reached a critical point where I've rubbed up against this culture for long enough to get irritated with it. It didn't help that my sister had her baby (hooray!), leading to serious pangs of homesickness. I wondered for months as I was just coasting along when this phase would come. I'm actually glad that it's arrived because now I can push through it and move on to another stage of adjustment.
Despite the struggles, there were highlights on our trip and good progress in our work. Going back to Ouesso after being gone for just 3 weeks was cool. It felt like cries of joy were erupting all around town upon our arrival. It was so fun to have people squeal with delight at the sight of us. Astride’s mom came running up the steps to hug me crying “Jessica! Oh Jessica’s back! Astride is going to be beside herself!” We were able to build on previous friendships and ended up with several meaningful relationships.
I'm really disappointed that my photos are refusing to upload for some reason today, but hopefully over the next couple weeks I'll be able to pictorally describe for you our continuing adventures in Congo.
I've been in Africa for 8 months now and while we were in Ouesso I seemed to have reached a critical point where I've rubbed up against this culture for long enough to get irritated with it. It didn't help that my sister had her baby (hooray!), leading to serious pangs of homesickness. I wondered for months as I was just coasting along when this phase would come. I'm actually glad that it's arrived because now I can push through it and move on to another stage of adjustment.
Despite the struggles, there were highlights on our trip and good progress in our work. Going back to Ouesso after being gone for just 3 weeks was cool. It felt like cries of joy were erupting all around town upon our arrival. It was so fun to have people squeal with delight at the sight of us. Astride’s mom came running up the steps to hug me crying “Jessica! Oh Jessica’s back! Astride is going to be beside herself!” We were able to build on previous friendships and ended up with several meaningful relationships.
Thursday, August 10, 2006
Tuesday, August 08, 2006
Shout Outs
Hey, here's just a few shout outs to some important people in my life. I'll be gone most of August, but I'm thinking of my loved ones on their special days!
This white chick just got hip
I came home tonight with that alive feeling. Like I'm actually present in this place and a part of life here. It came over me as I was getting on a bus (that broke down 2 blocks later) on my way home from Charisma Gospel. That's right folks, this white chick has joined a really popular Congolese choir. Whoa, my life is way cooler than I am! Oh wait, it gets better...The director of the choir has another little combo group and it's really that group that he wants me to be a part of. He wants to teach me all about African music! I'm like, "Duh...OK." These groups travel and constantly get invitations to perform. So yeah, I can just see the headlines now: Random white girl tops African music charts. Yeah right, but it's seriously an amazing opportunity! Besides the music part, I'm super thankful for the chance to meet and mingle with local people who are around my age and share common interests. Thanks God! Just be in prayer for me that I'll get some rhythm and not make a total dork of myself :o)
Tuesday, August 01, 2006
Can you find Freckie? I have a cat! Well, she's just on loan for a year. Her owners are back home in Europe on furlough. She's a very pretty fluffy grey cat with green eyes. She's actually the mother of Fiver (the Psycho Terrorist black kitten I used to live with). She's not crazy like him but she sure does know how to meow.
It's kind of nice always having someone around. She kind of participates in whatever I do (except for when she sleeps in the closet!). I was cleaning house the other day and when I swept the living room, she sat on a chair; when I swept the bedroom, she sat on my bed; when I swept the bathroom, she watched from outside the door. She's just always there. It's cute. And sometimes annoying. When she's on the outside of the mosquito night she wants to be inside with me, but when she's inside awhile then she wants to get out. I'm like, do whatever, just stop meowing!!!
Monday, July 31, 2006
Cultural Relativity
Cross-cultural living never ceases to amaze. There’s so much that is new or different. What’s really fun, though, is when you come across something that is the exact opposite of your own culture. It really throws you for a loop. What is real? What is true?
Example: what do you do with a sick person?
At home it’s obvious, it’s common sense, that you don’t go to visit someone who is sick, with the exceptions of things like being laid up with a broken leg or having a surgery in the hospital. And even for those exceptions, only close family members and a few friends would dare to make an appearance. Our thinking is that a sick person needs lots of rest, shouldn’t be over-stimulated, could spread sickness to others, etc. Here, the idea of leaving a sick person alone is a horror. I’m not sure what all their thinking is, but it’s like if you leave the person alone with their sickness, the sickness will take over. If you let a lot of people come see the person they can all give advice for what to do until someone’s advice is what does the trick and the person gets better. Sick people lay on a mat in the living room and all the neighbors, friends, family, etc. come through all day to greet them or sit with them for a while. I’ve heard that westerners who get used to this find it very lonely to be sick back at home.
"The other promise of anthropology, one less fully distinguished and attended to than the first, has been to serve as a form of cultural critique for ourselves. In using portraits of other cultural patterns to reflect self-critically on our own ways, anthropology disrupts common sense and makes us reexamine our taken-for-granted assumptions." (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cultural_relativism)
Example: what do you do with a sick person?
At home it’s obvious, it’s common sense, that you don’t go to visit someone who is sick, with the exceptions of things like being laid up with a broken leg or having a surgery in the hospital. And even for those exceptions, only close family members and a few friends would dare to make an appearance. Our thinking is that a sick person needs lots of rest, shouldn’t be over-stimulated, could spread sickness to others, etc. Here, the idea of leaving a sick person alone is a horror. I’m not sure what all their thinking is, but it’s like if you leave the person alone with their sickness, the sickness will take over. If you let a lot of people come see the person they can all give advice for what to do until someone’s advice is what does the trick and the person gets better. Sick people lay on a mat in the living room and all the neighbors, friends, family, etc. come through all day to greet them or sit with them for a while. I’ve heard that westerners who get used to this find it very lonely to be sick back at home.
"The other promise of anthropology, one less fully distinguished and attended to than the first, has been to serve as a form of cultural critique for ourselves. In using portraits of other cultural patterns to reflect self-critically on our own ways, anthropology disrupts common sense and makes us reexamine our taken-for-granted assumptions." (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cultural_relativism)
Saturday, July 22, 2006
I went with my teammates Byron and Annette. It was sort of an experiment in transportation and visiting villages. We will be better equipped now to plan our research in the future. It's fun getting to know the country better and it seems to help me in every thing I do. Even back in the big city of Brazza, just having that knowledge of some of the rest of the country informs my interactions with people.
From one village we hiked into the forest to a neighboring village just a few minutes away. The "villages" are basically just clearings in the woods. We hiked down another trail just to see some of the forest. There were these posts every so often and we were told they were marking out territory that the president's daughter chose for her tourist resort she wants to build. Like that will ever happen. She's married to a man from Morocco, so they referred to her as the "Moroccan Princess."
I love this photo. Wish I'd been the one to take it, but this came from Byron. They told us we could take pictures, but I was still a little hesitant to do so. It is very typical to see kids taking care of younger kids. Works out great for the parents! And by the time they have their own babies they know all about taking care of them. Unlike our society where people my age have grandma do the work 'cause they don't have a clue :o)
Monday, July 17, 2006
Congolese Cuisine
Well, of course one of the most interesting things about travel is the food. Here's a blog entry with photos all dedicated to my eating experiences in Northern Congo. My friends know it's one of my favorite subjects :o) I have weeded out a lot of the pictures for the sake of my vegetarian sister. I love you Cathie Jo!
The grossest food I saw people preparing was antelope head. The grossest thing I tasted was probably porcupine. The best new experience was eating elephant! It had been dried and then can be prepared like beef. It was really good! Supposedly the animal is so big that after they kill it the hunters basically go inside it to cut out the different parts.
I found out that the Congolese are basically hunter-gatherers. Fishing and some cultivation (manioc, peanuts, fruit, and sugar cane) are also important.
Despite signs posted around saying not to touch monkeys, people still eat them and have them as pets. Supposedly the hunters are being careful about ebola virus by not killing any sick monkeys or picking up ones that were already dead. We refrained from touching/eating/whatever. Just say no to ebola.
During our time in Ouesso we usually ate lunch in one of two restaurants. To make sure there would be something edible for us, we'd place an order the day before or in the morning. We often just ate rice and beans, which was tasty and satisfying. But we could order anything available in town, including wild boar, antelope, and beef. In the evening we'd eat something simple at home. Simple usually meant semi gross and unhealthy. Bread with Vache Qui Rit ("Laughing Cow," a spreadable "cheese." The cow is laughing that we actually ate it), beignets (doughnut balls fried every morning and night by women all around town), pasta noodles with onion and garlic (that was actually good). That was about it. Oh, towards the end we discovered a woman who grills chicken legs every night. It's super good! We can't figure it out though because there's a ban on imported chicken right now, but hers was so tender there's no way it was local.
All that to say that by the time we got back to Brazzaville my mouth was watering for some American food!
The grossest food I saw people preparing was antelope head. The grossest thing I tasted was probably porcupine. The best new experience was eating elephant! It had been dried and then can be prepared like beef. It was really good! Supposedly the animal is so big that after they kill it the hunters basically go inside it to cut out the different parts.
I found out that the Congolese are basically hunter-gatherers. Fishing and some cultivation (manioc, peanuts, fruit, and sugar cane) are also important.
Despite signs posted around saying not to touch monkeys, people still eat them and have them as pets. Supposedly the hunters are being careful about ebola virus by not killing any sick monkeys or picking up ones that were already dead. We refrained from touching/eating/whatever. Just say no to ebola.
During our time in Ouesso we usually ate lunch in one of two restaurants. To make sure there would be something edible for us, we'd place an order the day before or in the morning. We often just ate rice and beans, which was tasty and satisfying. But we could order anything available in town, including wild boar, antelope, and beef. In the evening we'd eat something simple at home. Simple usually meant semi gross and unhealthy. Bread with Vache Qui Rit ("Laughing Cow," a spreadable "cheese." The cow is laughing that we actually ate it), beignets (doughnut balls fried every morning and night by women all around town), pasta noodles with onion and garlic (that was actually good). That was about it. Oh, towards the end we discovered a woman who grills chicken legs every night. It's super good! We can't figure it out though because there's a ban on imported chicken right now, but hers was so tender there's no way it was local.
All that to say that by the time we got back to Brazzaville my mouth was watering for some American food!
Someone gave us a big bag of peanuts, a common crop here. So we had the brilliant idea of making our own peanut butter. First they had to be cleaned. Then roasted over a coal fire. Then the skins had to be removed. Finally they were ready to be taken to the lady with the grinder. It cost just a little for the coal and the grinding, but we called it our $40 PB after we calculated the man-hours it took to make! I have a new appreciation for JIF :o) Later we decided to just buy it at the market from the ladies who sell it out of big bowls. You get a pretty good sized lump for $1 and they wrap it in a banana leaf.
Everyone kept giving us sugar cane from their fields. It usually ending up going bad before we'd eat it. It's so much work! You gotta get off the outside (which requires a knife, unless you're an African and you've been getting it off with your teeth since you were 5) and then you just gnaw on the inside. It is nice and sweet, but we're not particularly into it.
Here's a VERY typical Congolese meal: fish (sitting in lots of palm oil, which is actually kind of tasty with a little tomato sauce and veggies cooked in it) and kwanga/manioc (a plant that takes a ton of work to prepare and yields a not very exciting result in my opinion, but it's the staple here). "Give us today our daily kwanga..."
This was a really special meal. These bowls are full of Kwanga (manioc--to be explained pictorally at a later date), rice, chicken with palm oil and potatoes, plain chicken, and sakasaka (uh, I think it's some kind of leaf cooked and put with oil and salted fish, not bad overall). We had amazing papaya and pineapple for dessert.
Friday, July 14, 2006
This is me and my Lingala language helper Lili at our going away celebration last week. I never knew I was so white! After 5 weeks of working together, she was very sorry to see me go. But I will be going back to Ouesso again in August so for now I'm just glad to be back in the city eating hamburgers, drinking cold water, taking hot showers, and enjoying the cool dry season.
B-b-b-back to Brazza!
Hi friends. It's been a long blogging pause. Did you know that there are places in the world that still don't have Internet? Well, I found one of those places and stayed there for 5 weeks. But I just consider that I was gathering wood for the blogging fire. Now I have stories and pictures that are sure to please. I've posted a few pics below just to give you a taste, but never fear, there is much more to come. Think "antelope head" and "pygmies" and "parasites." Oh yes, the stories will make you laugh and the photos will capture your hearts. OK, that's enough publicity for now. Enjoy!
This was one of our first language sessions. We had one language helper assigned to us, but often the yard would fill up with kids or else some random man would come and try to take over the lesson, as in this photo. By the end, though, people were used to us so we usually got some quality time without interruption. And our language helper was faithful and patient right to the end. We really praised God for her.
"Ouesso" means "sun" in one of the local langauges. It certainly lived up to its reputation! Very hot and sunny and just 1.3 degrees north of the equator! I enjoyed seeing the Africans using parasols. This is Byron and Pastor Akoula after we'd gone to visit the mayor and regional governor's offices. Imagine wearing a suit in this climate! I like all the red dirt roads and greenery.
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