Monday

I arrived in Manila on Sunday night for my follow-up dental appointment today. I was proud to tell the dentist that I hadn’t needed to use the metal pick she gave me, ‘just in case the infection got worse and I needed to poke a hole in the temporary filling.’ I assume she entrusted me with the tool because I look so very responsible; that, or she was pretty sure my tooth was going to get worse. But it didn’t – It got better! HA!

My gum and tooth are still a bit irritated, but it’s visibly better and feeling much better, especially after I swish with warm salt-water. Thinking of salt-water as the most effective medicine for my ailment makes me wonder how far we’ve actually evolved from our fishy ancestors.

This has been the one time in my service that I am glad to be so physically far away from Keela, as I’m sure she would have pinned me down and prodded inside my mouth to get a better look. This is not the first time I’ve felt she fulfills her destiny everyday by working as a nurse (and gets paid to pop things).

This is totally unrelated to my Monday, but it is a picture from an intro to ABA seminar that I did back in December. The Dean of the Arts and Sciences at Lorma College invited me to speak. It was so nice talking to such a bright and motivated group of people! What you see is ‘waky-waky’ or, when you make cutsey faces.

Tuesday

I attended my first CouchSurfing event in Makiti – one of the wealthiest areas in the country. It was a dinner organized by a guy from London, and he did a great job. I think there were over 60 of us (from all around the world) eating dinner and chatting. Afterwards, we went out for drinks, and the girls I was with (two PCVs and a Canadian staying at the PC pension doing her doctoral thesis research) decided to start a dance party in the bar. It was so much fun watching them, and I really would have joined in if I hadn’t had a headache – I would have absolutely refused to dance in the States, but here it’s kind of growing on me. It had been so long since I went out, and I enjoyed loitering at the bar and people watching.

There was another guy at the bar who I guess wasn’t fond of dancing either, and I was grateful for the conversation. He told me he was from Norway and was patient enough to give me a fairly detailed history of Nordic people and vikings and such. He seemed like one of the most genuine guys I’ve come across in over a year, and he had a fun accent, so even though my head was pounding I tried to appear interested in the conversation so he would talk to me as long as possible. I don’t think it was until a good bit later that he realized I wasn’t quite absorbing any of what he was actually saying… It was incredibly entertaining though.

Throughout the night I met various people, and from what I could gather they all seemed like really nice guys. At some point though, nearing the end of the night (it was a 3am affair), I almost asked a guy out-right if he knew how obviously sleazy he was coming across. I went home wondering if more guys were becoming douches, but then I decided that maybe I’m just getting better at spotting them.

(Sleezers not pictured :)

Wednesday

I left Manila, happy with my improving bill of health and grateful for a fun night out with friends. And also very excited that I’ve only got 10 days left until I’m trampling around Singapore; with friends, shopping, concerts, culture, and too much food! YAY!!!

Thursday

I worked all night editing a grant proposal for my center. We’re planning a project in which the houseparents with agriculture degrees will teach some of the residents how to cultivate mushrooms. We need a new structure for the mushrooms, and a little bit of start up money to get the necessary supplies. I’m excited about the project, but after adding up the numbers, it seems more like a ‘recreational project’ than a ‘livelihood,’ since the average earnings per resident would only amount to 20 pesos a month. But it would be great to get some more hands-on activities going for the residents, especially ones that the staff have an active interest in.

Friday

Today the psychologist and I finished our last ‘special needs’ assessment! It took us from Jan 2011 to Feb 2012, but we did it! All in all we completed 52 assessments, 45 of which are currently ‘special education students’ at the center. Technically, now that the original assessments are over a year old, we should get started on re-assessing, but there hasn’t been any change to the type of services/intervention offered to the majority of the residents so I’m not too worried about reassessing just yet. I am very excited that my counterpart is focused on re-grouping and identifying activities to target specific needs of the kids. My goal is to give the houseparents access to relevant materials and activities, and then reassess a few groups before I leave. I can’t believe a year has gone by since the initial assessments and I’ve only got 8 months left! Goodness! I’ve got a lot of work ahead of me!

(these kids may not have scored very high on the assessment (think 2-year-old level), but when they do stuff like this, completely independently and unsupervised, you know you’ve got something to tap into!)

Saturday

I finished reading Gone With the Wind tonight. I really enjoyed it. Remembering my Granny’s love for it, along with the descriptions of the landscape and climate, made me a little nostalgic.

As I read, I tried to relate the class descriptions in the story to my own perception of marginalized populations around the world. I think about current issues and clashes; and how much family history, money, attitude, and personal values might affect one’s perception of happiness and social status. I wonder in an era of internet and perceived equality, what exactly the definition of ‘social status’ is.

Sunday

I should really do my laundry, but I decide that I’ll think about it tomorrow.

Instead, I eat a candied tamarind that my landlady gave me (she is very sweet, and so are those candies) and I head outside in search of somewhere to fill up my water jug. I had been getting my water refilled at the ‘120-step’ water purification shop on the way to town, I think it’s called ‘E-Z Flow’ or something like that. But last time the lady gave me a face and told me she wouldn’t deliver it because my house was too far away. They delivered it to the center, and I vowed to find a new source.

The tap water at my house looks and smells fine, but the medical staff say not to drink tap water here because even if the source of the water is clean, the pipes might be compromised. I don’t want to take my chances, so I’ve been boiling my water until I could find a more accommodating water dealer.

My quest was a success, and I found an even more convenient source of tubig (water). Apparently my landlady’s sister’s somebody delivers water from the bayan (town) into my neighborhood, and for only 2 pesos more I can purchase their water. Sold!

I felt so successful at my discovery that I decided I would by some rice and veggies to make them for dinner. I bought the vegetables from my landlady’s sari-sari (It’s pretty much a one-stop shop where I can buy small yoghurt drinks—called Yakult, laundry detergent, instant powdered coffee, cheap pastry things, and local produce, among many other things). She doesn’t sell rice, so I went down the street to the sari-sari in front of my old host family’s house.

The woman who owns the store is one of the most friendly ladies in the community, always smiling, waving, and saying good morning to me as I ride my bike to work. She seemed as equally happy to see me in this afternoon as she does in the mornings. When I asked for a ½ kilo of rice she quickly filled a bag with the best rice. As she was packing it up she told me it was a gift, and as quick as I was to object, she was to re-affirm that it was a gift. I thought of how kind she always is and wanted to give her some sort of business, so I asked if I could purchase a large packet of instant coffee. She said “Ok, but the rice is still free.” It wasn’t until she said “85 pesos” that I realized I had barely enough money on me to pay her. Once she saw that I was giving her all of my coins, she forced me to take back 15 pesos, which I was very grateful for since the trike (motorcycle taxi) drivers don’t give change, especially when you have large bills. I felt awful for taking the rice, and then getting such a big discount on my coffee, but I knew there was no alternative at the moment, and when she came around to the front of the store to hand it to me personally and give me a big hug, I felt the most love I’ve felt in a long time.

Small gifts are very popular here, especially among friends and neighbors. At first I didn’t really understand why people were just giving me things, without expecting anything in return, but now I realize that gifts are most valued when they’re least expected. I know I will never be able to return their gestures with as much kindness and generosity as Filipinos have shown me, but I sure plan to try.

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