Hola,
Well, I have been working for a month now, a 3 week contract with Netcorps now completed and now a week under my belt in the new job - a one year contract with CUSO.
Well, when we last left off, our hero was just beginning his new job - a three week contract with Netcorps. What is this job? As mentioned in the previous episode, our hero was to provide logistical support for a group of Netcorps interns arriving from Canada on November 6th. In other words, our hero had to investigate placements for the technology interns in Red Cross affiliates, as well as arrange their family homestays, Spanish school and things of that nature.
So, what did I do? Besides having a few of the Red Cross girls seem to become interested in me, I travelled to seven different Nicaraguan towns, visiting the Red Cross affiliates, asking them lots of questions about what they wanted this intern to do for them, deal with them not really knowing what they wanted, talk to the families and try to prepare them a bit for this foreign incursion into their home, etc. etc. It was just three weeks.
It was fun, met some fun people at the Canadian Red Cross (different than the Nicaraguan Red Cross, where I worked) - in fact, this job came from knowing the CRC delegate, Richard, who happens to live about 2 blocks from my house. Occasionally, he invites me over for rum. And now the Canada World Youth person that came from Canada to replace me, Vlad, is here and continuing in my footsteps, including the rum.
After finishing up with NetCorps, I zipped up to Costa Rica for a quick trip, mostly to sign my contract with CUSO and get back to Managua to start work on the Monday. I had doubts still about this job with CUSO and the Centro Antonio Valdivieso (CAV) but they were minor, so I signed myself up for a one-year contract, working half-time for CUSO and half for CAV.
For CUSO, I am sort of the representative for them here in Nicaragua. It has been a few years since there has really been anyone full time here, so my job is to increase our presence here and find new placements and partners for CUSO cooperants. So, I get to network and meet lots of people. Good for me, since in a year, I will be needing a new job...
Well, even before I started at CAV, I was invited to the Director's (Martha) birthday party. So, she told me about it on Thurs for the Sat, so I got all dolled up to go out and then called her as she had offered me a ride. Odd, when her maid told me she was still out of the country. Finally, after two calls and an embarrassing moment, I realised it was the next Saturday. Oops.
So, the next Saturday, I got dolled up again and called, but this time she was home. She got her friend Lillian to pick me up. Lillian was ecstatic to talk to me as she is a fanatic book reader (Mexican) and enjoyed lamenting to me that Nicaraguans don't read and look at you funny if you do like to read. Apparently there is no reading culture here. (Also there is a high illiteracy rate, but I didn't bring that up.)
Anyway, at the party, there was a loud friend of Martha's - Yazmin - and she proceeded to make fun of Martha mostly, but of everyone - a Honduran guy (that I work with - Wilmer) for having not paid his electric bill so his girlfriend couldn't iron her shirt, me, for my mathematics background, being computational, etc. And, of course, all the jokes related to sex.
I also met the other members of my team there - Maria Lydia and Nora Ligia. Only Maria Eugenia was not there from my team.
Later I got a call that we would have a team meeting on my first Monday morning at work. Sounds good, I thought.
Of course, when I arrived at work at 8am (normal start time in Nicaragua)on Monday my first day, after hurrying in a taxi because I was late, the office was empty. The receptionist arrived around 8:15am. The first member of my team arrived at 8:30am and rescued me from the reception area. We chatted a bit and wondered out loud where I would sit and work. Interesting question. Finally, the rest of the team arrived, except Martha and we all gathered in the conference room just after 9. At 9:15am-ish, Martha arrived and it started!
It was a good meeting, a good background on what they had been up, history of the project, working within a polarised society of intolerance, with body therapy, teach-ins at the university about the elections in 1996 to make an informed vote, and finally with post-Mitch victims in 98 to work through trauma from Mitch and even from the revolution and war. From all this came the idea to create community leaders from this methodology. I came in with doubts, but the more I am involved, the more useful the project seems to be. The theory is that we cannot make societal change, or even organisational change for that matter, unless we make personal changes. So, the idea is to work with the leaders of organisations to teach them about personal health - physical, mental and spiritual so they can share with their organisations. Long term, the idea is to create societal changes, like ending corruption, which is a big theme here in Nicaragua.
After the meeting, which went late, we went to lunch, not together, but ended up together. Soon, I ended up with a new girlfriend, from my team. The first questions from my teammates (females) were 1. my age, and 2. civil status. Next, we somehow got into a discussion of my criteria, of which I offered two before begging off, but this woman on my team confirmed for me that she met both of the criteria. I wasn't sure if it was a joke or not, but it had me worried. So, after all this, this woman, Maria Lydia, asked me when I was going to invite her to a beer. So, I innocently asked her if I had to invite just her or her and Marvin. You see, at the aforementioned party, she was not alone, she was with this guy, Marvin. But, apparently, she hadn't remembered me from the party. So, when I mentioned Marvin, her "bed companion" as she calls him, she turned a bright shade of red (as I have been known to do on occasion). Point for me, I guess. So, anyway, now she is my "girlfriend" but Marvin and I have to take turns, or at least that is now the office joke. I keep saying I need my schedule to know when it is my turn and the other women want to know too, so as to know when I am free. All in fun, or at least, now it is...
Well, I am tired, so we'll call this part one. More to come about our first workshop in Matagalpa, our cats and the beach. Soon...
Take care, un abrazo,
Rob