Bayraminiz Mubarek (Happy Holidays)

PICTURES: This event was hosted by our site mate Jesse in his apartment. There were 16 Volunteers from vious sites mostly in the southern sector of Azerbaijan. Jesse is in the hat preparing food. It was a typical younger Volunteer gathering - 13 slept in Jesse's apartment, crowded, taying up late talking and consuming. Sleeping bags on the floor provided bedding. We enjoy talking with the Volunteers and admire their commitment and sacrifice, but we went home around 10:00 p.m. There is a natural and distinct division between the older and younger volunteers. Picutred with Linda is Todd who is here with his wife Sarah. They are a terrific couple, but have had disastrous housing experiences at their site of Kurdimer. In 2 weeks they are about to hopefully move to their 3rd residence. The present house does not provide food and they only havewhat they can prepare for themselves under very difficult circumstances. They are hoping to get into a new residence with a widow this next week. Volunteers must live with a host family for 4 months before they can consider moving into their own residence. Sarah is an experienced teacher, they are a fine couple, but housing difficulties have thoroughly discouraged them. Please give them your prayers and thoughts.

Jesse and the girls decorated with stockings.

At Jesse's the menu included your traditional Christmas foods, spaghetti, chili, mashed potatoes, cupcakes, tangerines and apple cake. We had an evening of sharing experiences and listening to Christmas music. There were 3 rooms, so there was ample space and oppotrunity to have good conversations.

Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays to all of you! This is a short posting as we prepare to go to Salyan for the day to help celebrate Christmas with Leslie. There will be 7 at Leslie's in Salyan.

The AZ7s have been on site for 2 weeks. This was their first Christmas away and Jesse wanted to make sure everyone had an opportunity not be alone. There were gatherings all over Azerbaijan. We recalled that last year we spent the morning and afternoon listening to Christmas music and watching a DVD of the 1985 FBC Archie Children's Program.

To all our friends and family in the midwest - you have our sympathy and thoughts during the snowstorm and extremely cold temperatures. The same goes for Nancy in New York, and the Goff's in Maine (unless they are in Belize).

The week before Christmas

The pictures are self-evident.
This week was quite ordinary for us with the exception that we learned that our younger son, Andrew, will be having “minor” surgery on Monday, the 21st. He will have the procedure as a day surgery in Harrisonville. Not being there for him is difficult for us. He has taken care of everything with the help of his friends, co-workers, and Matt. The technology of the cell phone gives us the ability to be in contact if necessary, but it is not like being there. We are confident that all will go well.

Winter is quickly approaching. Today I saw a heavy frost and it was very foggy. However, I hate to mention it since we have noted the cold weather in the Mid-west and all the snow to the north of Kansas City. Frank shared with us that they had experienced bitter cold and deep drifting snow. Our weather probably compares more to northern Oklahoma or southern Missouri.
We concentrate on keeping one room warm where we eat and work. It is surprising how warm our little kitchen stays with just using the gas stove and electric oven. I may have mentioned that Linda and I have never seen a working oven in an Azerbaijani stove. Everyone buys a small electric oven. We went for the slightly more expensive and it has a thermostat. The cheaper model is either on or off and controlling the temperature is quite an adventure.
Our oven gets everything done that we need, but just takes a little longer. We have never baked whole potatoes, but do cut up into small pieces, coat with oil and an onion soup mix and heat for about an hour. That is quite tasty. Usually Linda either fries or mashes the potatoes.
We eat a little rice. I prepare the rice using the method of boiling the rice for 10 minutes, pouring off excess water, and cover using a towel for a good seal on top of the pot, and wait five minutes. Linda does not eat as much rice as I. We often have black eyed peas, pinto or kidney beans with cornbread, and I add rice to mine.
Two sisters in one of my conversation clubs traveled to Baku and brought us back a little broccoli. That was quite a treat. We thoroughly enjoy the soup mixes that have been sent to us. There is nothing quite so tasty in this climate than soup.
Again, I know it is much colder in many places in the United States, but it is a different kind of cold here. The difference is that the public buildings and homes have very poor heating methods. On days when Linda has a full load at school, she comes home chilled to the bone. The school has electric wall heaters, but Linda has never experienced them on. The teachers will get a small electric heater and bring to their room, but temperature is usually about 40 – 45 in the rooms. Children keep their coats on the entire time in school, as well as the teachers. A difficult learning environment at best.
The Central Library has no heating system. The computer room has a small electric heater, and I warm up my hands with it. It amazes Linda and me that the buildings in which we work are colder than the outdoors in the winter, and warmer than the outdoors in the summer. Sometimes, I put on my coat and go outside to warm up.
We have Volunteers from Minnesota, Alaska, and other cold weather states who are used to the outdoor cold, but not the indoor discomfort. In the villages some Volunteers sleep in three layers of clothing plus the sleeping bags. The problem is when they read their hands get so cold outside the sleeping bags. Most village and mountain city Volunteers sleep in stocking caps, socks, layers, and the great sleeping bags. Many Volunteers will spend more time in their sleeping bags than out during the month of February.

Now that we have completed a year of service plus training, we spend a lot of time reflecting on what we have and have not accomplished. Also, we try to realistically assess what we might be able to accomplish in the remaining months. At times it becomes discouraging when thinking that the entire system is flawed. An example is that Friday was a day for “control work” at Linda’s school. Control work is required by the educational system to judge what the students have learned. Essentially it is a set of statements with a blank to be filled. The students must write the entire statement and fill in the word. The teachers either provide the answers or change the answer to the correct one later. It certainly does not measure the students’ knowledge or abilities. It is a complete waste of time for teacher and student, but required. It fills the days with unproductive activity and there are not that many days of educational opportunity provided to begin with.
With the onset of the colder winter and shorter days attendance is lower in my conversation clubs. I have been assisting more with the computers which is never ending maintenance. I have been helping download and install free anti-virus software. On one computer there were 2091 files which needed to be repaired. I offer my laptop to scan flash drives with my McAfee software. Often there are as many as forty viruses on a student’s flash drive. From my counterpart’s flash McAfee removed 137 files.I was feeling quite low with the lack of people recently, but spent a couple of hours assisting a young man in applying for jobs via the internet. As we walked home, he grabbed by hand and said if he could ever do anything for me, please ask. We must always remind ourselves, drop by drop a lake is made.

Down Hill Side

The big news this week was that on Friday we celebrated our anniversary of being Peace Corps Volunteers and moving to Shirvan. The pictures illustrate how we celebrated. First was a toast to the past year and to the countdown of returning to the United States to family and friends. Our dinner consisted of a chicken grill (it looks a lot like our Thanksgiving turkey) and fully loaded mashed potatoes from an instant mix from Betty Woollums.
Next was dessert, Oreo Double Stuffs and cold milk via Nancy Erlich in New York. Finally an evening of watching House and Monk episodes by playing DVDs with Windows Media Player and external speakers. To complete the enjoyment of the viewing Linda had a Diet Dr. Pepper compliments of my cousin Melissa Williamson in Georgetown, Texas. Melissa had sent 2 plastic bottles in a care package, and Linda saved them for this special occasion. We were amazed they made the journey through the mail just fine, and you can see by the expression on Linda’s face – she enjoyed the first, and is saving the second – maybe for Christmas or New Year’s.

The last picture is of our Christmas tree which went up this week. We were inspired by Betty Woollums who sent us some Christmas decorations, and a few holiday cards. The tree was purchased in the local bazaar as was lights for the 220 current. Linda made the decorations from old Christmas cards that Betty Matheney had sent us from John Knox Village last year.
On the television are 3 gifts from Azerbaijanis that we received last year. The angel on the left lights up. The angel and the 2 figures on the right are interesting because we have no idea of their significance. The Santa Claus (Shaxta Baba – grandfather frost) sings Frosty the Snowman.
The heater is very good, and we are fortunate to have it provided by our landlord. It is the type recommended by the Peace Corps as the safest. It is an electric radiator type that heats oil inside. We can also use it to heat or finish drying clothes.
Other Peace Corps Volunteers may heat with wood or gas. The gas can be dangerous and at times in short supply. An example is that in Barda the natural gas is turned off at 11 at night and resumes at 7:00 a.m. The danger is obvious. There can also be extreme variances in pressure. In our apartment there are days where we have no natural gas (usually not consecutive days) or low pressure. There is no notice – we just try to light the stove and most of the time it lights. We have a butane gas burner we can use in emergencies for cooking.
In the villages the Volunteers heat with wood. Wood is very expensive and the Peace Corps provides each volunteer 23 AZN per month for 6 months for heating supplement. One Volunteer, Tim, ordered a season of wood for 150 AZN. It was to be delivered between 11:00 a.m. and 5:00 p.m. It arrived on the truck at 9:00 p.m. Tim and 2 fellow Volunteers unloaded the truck, then piled in the courtyard, then piled in an orderly fashion around Tim’s humble abode. The process was over 3 hours, and each Volunteer was extremely sore the next few days.

Beside the heater, notice our feet. Because of the dirt and dust no one wears their shoes past the entry way. During the winter it is important to have some warm slippers to wear around the house.

It is quite a psychological lift to realize we are only a year away from returning

Holiday Travel Adventures

PICTURES: The first is of Linda, Bill and Dorothy at the Mingachevir reservoir. Second the reservoir with the mountains in the background. Third is of the beautiful river running through the center of Mingachevir, and note the fantastic river walk – outstanding. Fourth, I could not resist a shot of the public toilet with the semi-private door. Bill has a better picture with me inside looking out at everyone with the door closed. Finally, even the most beautiful spots on this earth has to have a few turkeys.
We had another busy week following Thanksgiving. We were very fortunate in that Matt and Andrew called on Thanksgiving evening after we had published the last blog. It was good to hear their voices.
During the Qurban bayram (Sacrifice Holiday) Linda and I traveled to Barda to visit with our friends Bill and Dorothy Colcord. We left our home about 10:00 a.m. and arrived at Bill and Dorothy’s a little after 2:00 p.m. which means it was a great trip, and we did not have to wait long for bus connections.
When we arrived at their home there were 2 of the younger Volunteers finishing up a Scrabble game with Dorothy. The rest of the afternoon and evening was spent in great conversation and good food. Bill and Dorothy are much like us and receive many delicious offerings from the U.S. Linda had brought a Duncan Hines Brownie Mix and they turned out perfect. We also learned a new use for lavash, which is a flat bread much like a flour tortilla. We cut the lavash into squares or diamonds, coat with a little olive oil, season, bake 3 minutes on each side, and then we have cheap warm chips – tasty.
On Saturday we all four traveled north and east to Mingachevir. Mingachevir is celebrating its 61st year as a city. A new city it is very clean, has wide streets, and has a reservoir which also produces hydro-electric power. There is the large reservoir with mountains in the background. The river then runs through the center of the city. It has become quite the Azerbaijan tourist spot. Mingachevir is one of the choice assignments for Volunteers. There is abundant housing, clean, great bazaar, hotels, and good restaurants by Azerbaijan standards. The weather can get a little cold in the winter, but there is water recreation in the summer. The reservoir is a beautiful shade of blue.
After returning in the early evening (we cannot travel outside of site except during daylight due to road and mass transit conditions) we again enjoyed good conversation, food, and then movie time. Dorothy had access to a projector and Bill connected his laptop. Bill projected the movie A Christmas Story, which if you can believe they had never seen. Yes, the movie A Christmas Story about Ralphie and Red Rider BB gun, they had never viewed this masterpiece of the cinema. I, on the other hand, recited the dialogue along with the actors.
Dorothy and Linda went to sleep while Bill and I enjoyed the second feature, Pretty Woman.
Sunday we returned home and Monday was still the holiday, so Linda spent the day washing, cleaning, and I ground meat, shopped, and defrosted the fridge. All in all a great holiday was had here in Azerbaijan.

Recently Linda broke a tooth, but was in no pain. She contacted the Peace Corps Medical Officer, Fuad, and he arranged a dental appointment for her. Since we are due for an annual examination and cleaning, Fuad made an appointment for both of us. The dental work is contracted to a group named American Dental Transplant Clinic. The dentists are graduates of dental schools in the United States. The clinic has the latest technology. The x-rays are digital and are viewed within seconds. Linda had her tooth repaired, but we both need further work done. I will have a couple of fillings and a root canal. Linda will have a couple of fillings, but one is complicated. We will keep everyone posted, but the dental care is impressive.

When I went to the post office after the holiday, all the Hopewell cards had arrived for Linda. In all she received 25 birthday cards – thanks to each and every one of you. Linda and I are back at work until the Azerbaijan World Unification holiday on December 31, and then the New Year celebration.

Next week a picture of our Christmas tree! Thanks to Betty Woollums for giving us the inspiration, and Betty Matheney for sending all the old Christmas cards which we are using for decorations!