I had a party Sunday. There were 12 guests at a sit-down meal. The party was in honor of the Azerbaijani husband of a Peace Corps Volunteer. The young man just got his visa to go to America with his wife. Guests were split between American volunteers and Azerbaijanis.
The couple met when she arrived as a volunteer, survived his being gone for a year for compulsory military service, and a few months after his return they were married officially in Baku and then had a traditional Azerbaijani wedding in his hometown.
The bride extended her service a year to accommodate all of this and they will go to America in October. The groom is 24 and his wife is 27. He spent one year of high school on an exchange program, living in Florida. His English is excellent, he is a very intelligent, kind and interesting person.
My host family set the table like a wedding, with beautiful china and table decorations. Even poor Azerbaijanis have nice china. In Soviet times, china was priced so that an average family could buy it and apparently, most did. As in America, it is handed down.
I made different salads and side dishes while my family fussed about the lack of Azerbaijani food. They wanted to spend the day cooking but I told them they were guests. Why no Azerbaijani food? Well, when you invite Italians over to dinner, do you cook Italian food? Of course not, because it will not be authentic. Afterward, just when my family was ready to attack the dishes, some of the American guests began washing them. I had warned the family that this was an American tradition for some families, but they were still dismayed to see guests rolling up their sleeves and washing dishes. Our kitchen is outside and the day was unseasonably cold, which made it more interesting.
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The primary way that Azerbaijanis receive their news is through the television. Apparently, some American soldiers shot a group of Iraqi civilians, the incident was recorded on tape, including narration by the shooters as they shot, and is on YouTube. The tape is also being played here on the news with questions from my family and a general level of disgust from those who have seen it.
My family keeps asking me if Obama said he would stop the wars, why hasn’t he stopped them? Why is he allowing the murder of innocent children by American troops? Why do people still support him if he is not stopping these things? I always try to stay away from political talk with Azerbaijanis, both about American politics and about Azerbaijani politics. On the Azerbaijani side, obviously Azerbaijan is not my country and it is really none of my business. On the American side, I am not here to discuss American politics. But I don't feel I can ignore persistent and pointed questions.
If Azerbaijanis know several Americans, I usually tell them to ask all Americans they know because they will get different answers. My opinion, I tell is them that presidential power is different in America than it is in Azerbaijan and that Obama can’t do a lot of things by himself without the support of other branches. And also that we are supposed to be mostly out of Iraq later this year. They reply that Bush did what he wanted, why can’t Obama? My next answer is that when Americans are angry, some tend to think of using force for three reasons:
One is that Americans don’t understand what it is like to have a war on their own soil.
Another is that Americans don’t have to fight the wars. Our military is all-volunteer. In Azerbaijan, all males must serve 1-1 1/2 years.
The third is that Americans feel they don’t have to pay for wars. Taxes are not raised when wars are started. In fact, with these two wars, taxes were lowered.
This is one I didn’t say, but thought about: Americans feel they can prevail against terrorists by using force. I was reading something awhile back that said that there was not an instance of a powerful country defeating terrorists in the past 100 years or so. I am not sure if this is true or not, but I can’t think of an instance in which America prevailed over terrorists, probably because they are so much more committed than we are. And of course, in our own version of terrorists, we didn't win against the criminals in the Prohibition area and are not wining the war on drugs.
In Revolutionary War times, if the Brits had beaten us, I doubt we would have given up and happily accepted being part of Britain. I think we would still be fighting them.
So I explain that in my opinion, if Americans are angry, they can invade another country for free and send people they don’t know to fight it. Then they can change their minds about being there when it goes badly and leave without having anything bad happen in their American lives.
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I don’t miss a lot of American material things—a few that I do miss are central heating, having inside bathrooms in houses and nice showers with instant hot water and a good spray . Another amenity I miss is having closets. I thought most people had closets. I have have yet to see a closet in Azerbaijan.
Clothes are kept in chests of drawers, or wardrobes, some with a small closet area. I fold my clothes or hang them on a coat tree. So that they don’t get wrinkeled, I have hangers on the coat tree, which leads to crossed-up hangers and not much room for coats.
Most Azerbaijanis have few clothes, since they are expensive. Wearing the same blouse or shirt for a few days is not unusual. One of the women who lives in my home has one sweater. For the first 15 days I lived here, she wore it every day. That was excessive, in my opinion. Then she washed it and wore a robe for two days while it dried.
Sunday, May 2, 2010
Thursday, April 22, 2010
Starfish II
A post in December called Starfish (http://lindazb.blogspot.com/search?q=starfish&updated-max=2009-12-03T01%3A24%3A00-08%3A00&max-results=20) was about a dog who lived outside my house. She was not a typical street dog, feral and street-smart. Because of the way she acted, people think she has lived with a family sometime in her life. But when I met her last September, she lived outside my home because my host mother fed her every day. When I say “outside our home” I mean on the street. Most Azerbaijani homes are accessed through a gate door. When you enter, there is the yard and the house. So the home and yard are enclosed behind walls. Outside on the street, when it rained, she got wet, and she slept in the mud. She did not hide or go off to remote areas with the other dogs. We think this is because she did not know how to live on her own with other feral dogs. As winter advanced, she slept on the cold and frozen ground outside our door.
In January, she gave birth to 5 puppies and it was difficult for her to sustain them in the cold weather. But the neighbors helped by making a shelter for her in the street and giving her extra food. Of course, the food consisted of whatever food they had that was too old or spoiled to eat, such as old bread, rice and potatoes.
The pups left for who-knows-where, but she remained. Every day for 7 months she came up to me, her tail wagging. I didn’t feed her, as I hoped she would learn how to find her own food like other dogs. They root through garbage bins. But she still greeted me with excitement and a wag every day. She is only about 20 pounds and skinny.
We couldn’t take her in because the family already had a dog and the grandma had moved in and didn’t like the existing dog much. Dogs in the home (even though they live in the yard) are rare in Azerbaijan.
I grew increasingly concerned about this dog and was worried about her getting pregnant again. I saw her eating dirt several times. I decided to take her to the vet in our town. It was difficut because I didn’t know how to get her there. I got a leash and practiced with her for several days, giving her food as a reward. My neighbors stared. No one walks dogs on leashes here, plus I was squatting on the ground talking to a street dog.. I told a neighborhood taxi driver what I was trying to do. He agreed to transport us to the vet. I ended up lifting her into the taxi. She was frightened at first, but got used to the ride. At the vet, she got an immunization. He said she was basically healthy, but was eating dirt because the food she was getting did not have enough nutrition.
At this point, one of our volunteers had to leave because of health issues. Her host family was open to considering having a dog live in their yard. This and the lack of food for me at my home induced me to move there.
One of my fellow volunteers works at the national agriculture university, which is located in my city. She inquired there to see if anyone could spay dogs (the veterinarian I had taken her to for the vaccination doesn’t do this operation). She found that the head of the veterinary department is able to spay dogs. I had the dog come to the new house (using the same taxi routine, scooping her off the street) as a guest and she met my new family. They looked at her dubiously from afar and I soon returned her to the street. Nothing was said until a few days later when it was raining and I remarked that I was thinking about how wet the dog was on the street. They said we could try having her at home.
I didn’t want her kicked out before she was spayed, so the day before the operation, I scooped her off the street for the third time and brought her here. She had the operation over the weekend, and seems to be recovering okay. She lives in a sturdy dog house made out of some junk in the yard. She has eaten some peanut butter, hard boiled eggs and a little dog food. The vet said to give her soup and sweet tea after the operation, but she didn’t want it.
The reaction to the spaying by Azerbaijanis has been interesting. They are pretty horrified by the operation. When I bring up the standard argument that we use in America about limiting the number of homeless dogs and unwanted puppies, people just say that dogs deserve the chance to live. They say that many can find food, that nature wants dogs to be parents and that we should not interefere with that. The owner-pet bond that we value so much in the United States is not well-known here, and Azerbaijanis feel that dogs living on the street are not necessarily unhappy and may in fact, be happy.
While I understand this opinion and have come to accept it, I still think there should be some help for street dogs and cats who are ill and some form of population control other than starvation or sickness. I also think that while the suffering of homeless dogs and cats here there for all to see, we tend to hide our poor treatment of animals.. Chickens who never leave cages, pigs and calves raised in factories in which they can’t even turn around, universities with painful and often unnecessary experimentation on dogs and in my state of Missouri, horrible conditions in puppy mills and a law that does not even allow photos to be taken to document the bad conditions.
In Azerbaijan, many farm animals lead idyllic lives, with large pastures and chickens live outside and can wander about. Azerbaijani farmers feel no need to give the antibiotics and other medications to animals because they normally don’t live in close quarters on factory farms. Azerbaijanis probably eat more mutton and lamb than other meats. Many sheep spend their lives moving from meadow to meadow, going up mountains in the summer to stay cool.
The other thing that interested me about the reaction to spaying is that abortion is the primary method of contraception in Azerbaijan. When I asked why abortion is considered fine and accepted for humans, but spaying and neutering is not acceptable for animals, I got the answer that there is not enough money for large families since the fall of the Soviet Union and there is no choice. Dogs on the street don’t cost anything to raise, but children do. When I asked why humans can’t have operations to prevent pregnancy instead of abortions, the people I asked said that operations were considered dangerous and upsetting, but that abortions are considered safe and common.
Anyway, when I brought the dog home after the operation, my family was upset that I had gone through with it. While I checked on her in her new doghouse, my family, who had wrinkled their noses when I brought her home, tiptoed around to see how she was doing and asked me if she had accepted any food or drink. When she hadn’t after several hours, they began giving me suggestions of what might tempt her and began loudly praying to Allah for her speedy recovery. They were overjoyed when she began eating and drinking.
Now that I have the dog with me, I hope that she doesn’t get kicked out of this house and can spend the summer enjoying not being homeless anymore. But in the fall, I will need to find a home in America for her.
In January, she gave birth to 5 puppies and it was difficult for her to sustain them in the cold weather. But the neighbors helped by making a shelter for her in the street and giving her extra food. Of course, the food consisted of whatever food they had that was too old or spoiled to eat, such as old bread, rice and potatoes.
The pups left for who-knows-where, but she remained. Every day for 7 months she came up to me, her tail wagging. I didn’t feed her, as I hoped she would learn how to find her own food like other dogs. They root through garbage bins. But she still greeted me with excitement and a wag every day. She is only about 20 pounds and skinny.
We couldn’t take her in because the family already had a dog and the grandma had moved in and didn’t like the existing dog much. Dogs in the home (even though they live in the yard) are rare in Azerbaijan.
I grew increasingly concerned about this dog and was worried about her getting pregnant again. I saw her eating dirt several times. I decided to take her to the vet in our town. It was difficut because I didn’t know how to get her there. I got a leash and practiced with her for several days, giving her food as a reward. My neighbors stared. No one walks dogs on leashes here, plus I was squatting on the ground talking to a street dog.. I told a neighborhood taxi driver what I was trying to do. He agreed to transport us to the vet. I ended up lifting her into the taxi. She was frightened at first, but got used to the ride. At the vet, she got an immunization. He said she was basically healthy, but was eating dirt because the food she was getting did not have enough nutrition.
At this point, one of our volunteers had to leave because of health issues. Her host family was open to considering having a dog live in their yard. This and the lack of food for me at my home induced me to move there.
One of my fellow volunteers works at the national agriculture university, which is located in my city. She inquired there to see if anyone could spay dogs (the veterinarian I had taken her to for the vaccination doesn’t do this operation). She found that the head of the veterinary department is able to spay dogs. I had the dog come to the new house (using the same taxi routine, scooping her off the street) as a guest and she met my new family. They looked at her dubiously from afar and I soon returned her to the street. Nothing was said until a few days later when it was raining and I remarked that I was thinking about how wet the dog was on the street. They said we could try having her at home.
I didn’t want her kicked out before she was spayed, so the day before the operation, I scooped her off the street for the third time and brought her here. She had the operation over the weekend, and seems to be recovering okay. She lives in a sturdy dog house made out of some junk in the yard. She has eaten some peanut butter, hard boiled eggs and a little dog food. The vet said to give her soup and sweet tea after the operation, but she didn’t want it.
The reaction to the spaying by Azerbaijanis has been interesting. They are pretty horrified by the operation. When I bring up the standard argument that we use in America about limiting the number of homeless dogs and unwanted puppies, people just say that dogs deserve the chance to live. They say that many can find food, that nature wants dogs to be parents and that we should not interefere with that. The owner-pet bond that we value so much in the United States is not well-known here, and Azerbaijanis feel that dogs living on the street are not necessarily unhappy and may in fact, be happy.
While I understand this opinion and have come to accept it, I still think there should be some help for street dogs and cats who are ill and some form of population control other than starvation or sickness. I also think that while the suffering of homeless dogs and cats here there for all to see, we tend to hide our poor treatment of animals.. Chickens who never leave cages, pigs and calves raised in factories in which they can’t even turn around, universities with painful and often unnecessary experimentation on dogs and in my state of Missouri, horrible conditions in puppy mills and a law that does not even allow photos to be taken to document the bad conditions.
In Azerbaijan, many farm animals lead idyllic lives, with large pastures and chickens live outside and can wander about. Azerbaijani farmers feel no need to give the antibiotics and other medications to animals because they normally don’t live in close quarters on factory farms. Azerbaijanis probably eat more mutton and lamb than other meats. Many sheep spend their lives moving from meadow to meadow, going up mountains in the summer to stay cool.
The other thing that interested me about the reaction to spaying is that abortion is the primary method of contraception in Azerbaijan. When I asked why abortion is considered fine and accepted for humans, but spaying and neutering is not acceptable for animals, I got the answer that there is not enough money for large families since the fall of the Soviet Union and there is no choice. Dogs on the street don’t cost anything to raise, but children do. When I asked why humans can’t have operations to prevent pregnancy instead of abortions, the people I asked said that operations were considered dangerous and upsetting, but that abortions are considered safe and common.
Anyway, when I brought the dog home after the operation, my family was upset that I had gone through with it. While I checked on her in her new doghouse, my family, who had wrinkled their noses when I brought her home, tiptoed around to see how she was doing and asked me if she had accepted any food or drink. When she hadn’t after several hours, they began giving me suggestions of what might tempt her and began loudly praying to Allah for her speedy recovery. They were overjoyed when she began eating and drinking.
Now that I have the dog with me, I hope that she doesn’t get kicked out of this house and can spend the summer enjoying not being homeless anymore. But in the fall, I will need to find a home in America for her.
Tuesday, April 13, 2010
Money
When I came to Azerbaijan, I had no experience or understanding of grants. Most volunteers write at least one grant while they are here. Grants are offered by charitable organizations or governments. They outline what they will pay for and ask for applications. Those who submit the winning applications get the money.
In my town, for example, the Japanese government gave $100,000 to a local organization that trains adults in topics such as English, welding, knitting and computer skills. They used much of the money to install air conditioning and central heating so that it is comfortable for the trainees. They also bought a few new computers.
Many grants are smaller. I worked on a grant in which we asked for travel money for young people to visit other cities in the country. This idea would have sounded strange to me before I came here, but now it sounds perfectly logical. I got the idea because as I travel around this small country (the size of Maine) I am surprised at the young people who are proud of their country, but have never been anywhere. It is cheap to travel here and if they planned, most families could take a day trip to a local city to have fun and see some of these sites. But they rarely do.
What makes it stranger is that if you ask the people over 40, most have extensive travel experience, but it all happened before the fall of the Soviet Union. They can talk about travel to Russia and the other 13 former Soviet countries, as well as travel around Azerbaijan.
Part of the ability to travel in those days is that people had more money then. Everyone had a job (it was required), while now I think unemployment is more normal than having a job. The other reason is that the Young Pioneer Camps offered opportunities for youth to travel in their own countries and attend cultural events and summer camps.
I remember my mother talking about these camps when I was a child. She told me they were Communist propaganda camps that Soviet children were required to attend and they were filling the heads of the youth with lies about the West. I am not sure about that, but when I got here, I started hearing nostalgic stories about these camps from the over-40 folks. They talk about being taken to see the ballet, opera, classical music concerts, and to other cities to attend museums, go hiking and attend athletic events. There were community centers with gymnasiums and rooms set aside for music and crafts.
As I traveled in a lovely mountain area last year I saw very large, very badly deteriorated buildings on a beautiful hillside. The windows were broken and the roofs were falling in. I asked and found that these were former summer camp buildings for Soviet children. They played sports, hiked and had a great time being in the fresh air with other kids outside of their cities.
Kids today rarely have the opportunity to play any sports, travel or have cultural experiences. Our idea is that since families are out of the habit of traveling and most feel they can’t afford to even spend one day in another nearby city or in the country, we would apply for a grant, take the kids on a guided tour of another city, with some free time. They would be able to see some of their cultural heritage and history, some beautiful natural areas and may be inspired to travel again on their own.
The young man who did most of the writing of the grant studied in America for one year during high school. This is in a program that is funded by the US Government. Young people who speak excellent English can go through an application process and live with host families in America for a year and attend high school There is a similar program for college students. When he went to America and was asked to talk about his country from his own experience, he had to say that he had never seen much outside of his town. He wants better for other kids who have the opportunity to study in America and also for kids who will spend their whole lives here.
It seems that an important issued for Americans is to communicate America’s positive values to foreigners. I think a very good and cheap way to do this is through education programs. I have met dozens of kids who have been through these programs and all feel friendly toward Americans and excited about their experiences. After their eductation in the US, many become leaders in their countries. Of course, this works even better for prominent families of foreign countries. Jordan is one of our few friends in the Middle East. A big factor could be that the father of the king of Jordan married an American woman and the king has spent time in America.
Since I have been here, I realize how much other countries do for foreign aid worldwide. My perception was that the US was the world leader, but I am finding out that is not so. On a per capita basis, Norway gives 6 times more than the US for both government and private contributions. It seems to me that in Azerbaijan, Norway may be the best-known country for charitable organizations. Norwegians seem to be everywhere, from running micro-credit organizations to cultural and humanitarian organizations and hiring a lot of Azerbaijanis to work with them. Other countries that give many times more aid worldwide than the US are Denmark, Finland, France, Ireland, the Netherlands, Sweden, and Switzerland. The UK gives about 1 ½ times what we do worldwide. Of course, this is good news for many Americans and I don't have a position the issue, but I was surprised at the statistics.
We will hear in May if we have the grant money. If so, we will start traveling in June.
In my town, for example, the Japanese government gave $100,000 to a local organization that trains adults in topics such as English, welding, knitting and computer skills. They used much of the money to install air conditioning and central heating so that it is comfortable for the trainees. They also bought a few new computers.
Many grants are smaller. I worked on a grant in which we asked for travel money for young people to visit other cities in the country. This idea would have sounded strange to me before I came here, but now it sounds perfectly logical. I got the idea because as I travel around this small country (the size of Maine) I am surprised at the young people who are proud of their country, but have never been anywhere. It is cheap to travel here and if they planned, most families could take a day trip to a local city to have fun and see some of these sites. But they rarely do.
What makes it stranger is that if you ask the people over 40, most have extensive travel experience, but it all happened before the fall of the Soviet Union. They can talk about travel to Russia and the other 13 former Soviet countries, as well as travel around Azerbaijan.
Part of the ability to travel in those days is that people had more money then. Everyone had a job (it was required), while now I think unemployment is more normal than having a job. The other reason is that the Young Pioneer Camps offered opportunities for youth to travel in their own countries and attend cultural events and summer camps.
I remember my mother talking about these camps when I was a child. She told me they were Communist propaganda camps that Soviet children were required to attend and they were filling the heads of the youth with lies about the West. I am not sure about that, but when I got here, I started hearing nostalgic stories about these camps from the over-40 folks. They talk about being taken to see the ballet, opera, classical music concerts, and to other cities to attend museums, go hiking and attend athletic events. There were community centers with gymnasiums and rooms set aside for music and crafts.
As I traveled in a lovely mountain area last year I saw very large, very badly deteriorated buildings on a beautiful hillside. The windows were broken and the roofs were falling in. I asked and found that these were former summer camp buildings for Soviet children. They played sports, hiked and had a great time being in the fresh air with other kids outside of their cities.
Kids today rarely have the opportunity to play any sports, travel or have cultural experiences. Our idea is that since families are out of the habit of traveling and most feel they can’t afford to even spend one day in another nearby city or in the country, we would apply for a grant, take the kids on a guided tour of another city, with some free time. They would be able to see some of their cultural heritage and history, some beautiful natural areas and may be inspired to travel again on their own.
The young man who did most of the writing of the grant studied in America for one year during high school. This is in a program that is funded by the US Government. Young people who speak excellent English can go through an application process and live with host families in America for a year and attend high school There is a similar program for college students. When he went to America and was asked to talk about his country from his own experience, he had to say that he had never seen much outside of his town. He wants better for other kids who have the opportunity to study in America and also for kids who will spend their whole lives here.
It seems that an important issued for Americans is to communicate America’s positive values to foreigners. I think a very good and cheap way to do this is through education programs. I have met dozens of kids who have been through these programs and all feel friendly toward Americans and excited about their experiences. After their eductation in the US, many become leaders in their countries. Of course, this works even better for prominent families of foreign countries. Jordan is one of our few friends in the Middle East. A big factor could be that the father of the king of Jordan married an American woman and the king has spent time in America.
Since I have been here, I realize how much other countries do for foreign aid worldwide. My perception was that the US was the world leader, but I am finding out that is not so. On a per capita basis, Norway gives 6 times more than the US for both government and private contributions. It seems to me that in Azerbaijan, Norway may be the best-known country for charitable organizations. Norwegians seem to be everywhere, from running micro-credit organizations to cultural and humanitarian organizations and hiring a lot of Azerbaijanis to work with them. Other countries that give many times more aid worldwide than the US are Denmark, Finland, France, Ireland, the Netherlands, Sweden, and Switzerland. The UK gives about 1 ½ times what we do worldwide. Of course, this is good news for many Americans and I don't have a position the issue, but I was surprised at the statistics.
We will hear in May if we have the grant money. If so, we will start traveling in June.
Wednesday, March 31, 2010
Slow Change
This post is not about something new, strange or unusual happening to me in Azerbaijan. It is an article I wrote for our Azerbaijan Peace Corps newspaper, which we use to help each other out with different ideas and suggestions or just to make each other laugh. We are scattered all over the country and never get together as a full group, so the articles allow one person to communicate with everyone.
I wrote it to address the fact that some of us come here thinking we will make a drastic change while we are here. The Peace Corps training helps us understand that this is not usual or even desired. When we are sent to our assignments, we usually think that the biggest projects we will work on will be with our assigned organizations. Many times we find out that the things we are most interested in and proud of are activities that we do outside of our organizations.
But still, the slow pace of change weighs more heavily on the younger people. It is easier for the older volunteers to look back at history during their lifetimes and find that things do change drastically, but usually not over two years, the time that we are in our assignments. So this is what I wrote:
In the TV series “Mad Men”, a drama about a 1960’s-era advertising agency, a picnic scene stands out. The upscale family, a mom, dad and two children are beautifully dressed and having a meal in a lovely park, sitting on the ground. A fabric tablecloth is covered with tempting dishes, colorful paper plates, napkins and plastic flatware.
At the end of the picnic, the husband hurls his beer can into a grove of trees and the mom picks up two ends of the tablecloth, shakes off the remaining food and all the trash onto the ground, folds up the cloth and they drive off.
As Peace Corps volunteers, we are here to help Azerbaijanis make the changes they want to see in their country. Sometimes it can be discouraging when we and the Azerbaijanis we work with constantly run up against roadblocks to change. People say that the way things are now is just fine or that the idea is untried and probably won’t work. The family on Mad Men had no understanding of why their trashing the park was a bad idea, but a decade later, their behavior would have been unacceptable.
As an older volunteer, I think it may be easier for me to have faith that things will change. I was a teenager in the 1960’s and still remember the vociferous opposition to safety equipment such as seatbelts (“who does the government think they are telling me I have to have expensive, useless equipment in my car?”), medians and guard rails on highly-traveled roads (“they are running up my tax bill to protect idiots who don’t know how to drive!”), child safety seats (“why does the government think they know better than me how to raise my child?”) and even the law that childrens’ pajamas must not easily combust when near a flame.
As the ‘70’s arrived, a minority of women began marching for the Equal Rights Amendment. They wanted equal pay for equal work, the ability to get credit in their own names and without their husbands co-signature and protection from discrimination at work guaranteed by the Constitution instead of being in statutes, which can be arbitrary, incomplete and subject to change. Most people did not agree with these new ideas. It was common for women to say “We are proud to be women, we don’t hate men”, “Those women make me uncomfortable”, “Why do you want to try to get a professional job in the business world when you know you’re not wanted there?” Many women who did see problems for women were afraid of angering their husbands or boyfriends if they stood up for themselves or other women.
In 1976 a bill was introduced at the behest of a feminist group that would outlaw marital rape. Most people were aghast that such a thing could be considered rape and the bill was widely ridiculed in editorials, late-night talk shows, and at workplaces and parties. It took until 1993 before marital rape was illegal in all states.
Until the mid-70’s children with special needs were frequently not allowed to enroll in public schools. Passage of the Federal Education for All Handicapped Children Act of 1975 spawned the delivery of services to millions of students previously denied access to an appropriate education. There was a public outcry (“Why should I pay taxes for a kid who will never be productive and can’t learn?” “What will we do when these kids get out of school and expect to hold a job? The whole thing will fall apart then.” “I don’t want my kids in class with kids who can’t learn.”)
In the 1980’s indoor smoking bans in workplaces started to take effect, to the dismay of much of the public (“Big Brother shouldn’t try to tell me what to do in my own office” “I own the business—I should make the rules, not the bozos in Washington”). Leaf burning was outlawed in most communities, which was portrayed as an assault akin to banning apple pie (“what will they say next—carving pumpkins is too dangerous?”).
And in the 1990’s The Family Leave Act, which allowed unpaid time off for family medical emergencies (up until then, parents with terminally ill children could be fired if they took time off to take care of their child) made millions angry (“it will weaken American business” “people will be taking months off any time they can manufacture an emergency.”)
Over the years I have seen that progressive initiatives are rarely supported by the general public, but are supported by those individuals who are talented, educated and informed. When the tipping point eventually occurs and the change is made, there is a backlash that can take years or even decades to subside. My grandmother in the 1960’s still complained about the existence of Social Security (which she received and spent, but didn’t pay into) and the interstate highway system (“an expensive boondoggle—we never use those roads.” “Why build a road in the middle of nowhere?”).
Today, most of the American public supports trash pickup, safety equipment in cars, marital rape laws, special education, smoking bans and the Family Leave Act—everything except the Equal Rights Amendment, which has never passed. Some new hot-button issues are rights for gays, abolition of the death penalty and the right to health insurance—issues which have been supported in more progressive countries for years.
As we try to help Azerbaijanis make the changes they want to see in their lives, we can remember that in the past 40 years we have come a long way in America. Forty years from now, I hope that both Americans and Azerbaijanis will look back and be grateful for the changes we have seen in our countries.
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Which reminds me of a question that I have that you may be able to answer. All my life I have been surrounded by Republicans and so when I want to know what the Republican position is on an issue I ask or already know. But few Republicans seem to join the Peace Corps or else they keep quiet here, so I don’t have anyone to ask.
My question is about the new health bill. It seems to me that it is all about the Republican value of personal responsibility. For example, now if people don’t have health insurance and have a medical emergency, they are treated and then the hospital most likely doesn’t get paid. This can drive a hospital out of business and raises prices for everyone else. Forcing people to be responsible for their bills by buying private insurance doesn’t seem like socialism to me.
Republicans are fine with parents being forced to pay support for their children and to buy auto insurance so others don’t have to pay their bills. What is different about health insurance?
Republicans like to have an even playing field for American businesses with foreign businesses. So why should GM and Ford have to pay for insurance for their employees when Honda and Toyota don’t?
I would like to buy private insurance when I get out of the Peace Corps, but because of my health history, no company will sell to me. So if I have an emergency, I can either not pay or empty my IRA and have no savings when I am older. With the new health bill, I can buy insurance. I am not sure why Republicans would think my paying for my own medical care is a bad idea. So email me or leave a comment on my blog to explain. Thanks.
I wrote it to address the fact that some of us come here thinking we will make a drastic change while we are here. The Peace Corps training helps us understand that this is not usual or even desired. When we are sent to our assignments, we usually think that the biggest projects we will work on will be with our assigned organizations. Many times we find out that the things we are most interested in and proud of are activities that we do outside of our organizations.
But still, the slow pace of change weighs more heavily on the younger people. It is easier for the older volunteers to look back at history during their lifetimes and find that things do change drastically, but usually not over two years, the time that we are in our assignments. So this is what I wrote:
In the TV series “Mad Men”, a drama about a 1960’s-era advertising agency, a picnic scene stands out. The upscale family, a mom, dad and two children are beautifully dressed and having a meal in a lovely park, sitting on the ground. A fabric tablecloth is covered with tempting dishes, colorful paper plates, napkins and plastic flatware.
At the end of the picnic, the husband hurls his beer can into a grove of trees and the mom picks up two ends of the tablecloth, shakes off the remaining food and all the trash onto the ground, folds up the cloth and they drive off.
As Peace Corps volunteers, we are here to help Azerbaijanis make the changes they want to see in their country. Sometimes it can be discouraging when we and the Azerbaijanis we work with constantly run up against roadblocks to change. People say that the way things are now is just fine or that the idea is untried and probably won’t work. The family on Mad Men had no understanding of why their trashing the park was a bad idea, but a decade later, their behavior would have been unacceptable.
As an older volunteer, I think it may be easier for me to have faith that things will change. I was a teenager in the 1960’s and still remember the vociferous opposition to safety equipment such as seatbelts (“who does the government think they are telling me I have to have expensive, useless equipment in my car?”), medians and guard rails on highly-traveled roads (“they are running up my tax bill to protect idiots who don’t know how to drive!”), child safety seats (“why does the government think they know better than me how to raise my child?”) and even the law that childrens’ pajamas must not easily combust when near a flame.
As the ‘70’s arrived, a minority of women began marching for the Equal Rights Amendment. They wanted equal pay for equal work, the ability to get credit in their own names and without their husbands co-signature and protection from discrimination at work guaranteed by the Constitution instead of being in statutes, which can be arbitrary, incomplete and subject to change. Most people did not agree with these new ideas. It was common for women to say “We are proud to be women, we don’t hate men”, “Those women make me uncomfortable”, “Why do you want to try to get a professional job in the business world when you know you’re not wanted there?” Many women who did see problems for women were afraid of angering their husbands or boyfriends if they stood up for themselves or other women.
In 1976 a bill was introduced at the behest of a feminist group that would outlaw marital rape. Most people were aghast that such a thing could be considered rape and the bill was widely ridiculed in editorials, late-night talk shows, and at workplaces and parties. It took until 1993 before marital rape was illegal in all states.
Until the mid-70’s children with special needs were frequently not allowed to enroll in public schools. Passage of the Federal Education for All Handicapped Children Act of 1975 spawned the delivery of services to millions of students previously denied access to an appropriate education. There was a public outcry (“Why should I pay taxes for a kid who will never be productive and can’t learn?” “What will we do when these kids get out of school and expect to hold a job? The whole thing will fall apart then.” “I don’t want my kids in class with kids who can’t learn.”)
In the 1980’s indoor smoking bans in workplaces started to take effect, to the dismay of much of the public (“Big Brother shouldn’t try to tell me what to do in my own office” “I own the business—I should make the rules, not the bozos in Washington”). Leaf burning was outlawed in most communities, which was portrayed as an assault akin to banning apple pie (“what will they say next—carving pumpkins is too dangerous?”).
And in the 1990’s The Family Leave Act, which allowed unpaid time off for family medical emergencies (up until then, parents with terminally ill children could be fired if they took time off to take care of their child) made millions angry (“it will weaken American business” “people will be taking months off any time they can manufacture an emergency.”)
Over the years I have seen that progressive initiatives are rarely supported by the general public, but are supported by those individuals who are talented, educated and informed. When the tipping point eventually occurs and the change is made, there is a backlash that can take years or even decades to subside. My grandmother in the 1960’s still complained about the existence of Social Security (which she received and spent, but didn’t pay into) and the interstate highway system (“an expensive boondoggle—we never use those roads.” “Why build a road in the middle of nowhere?”).
Today, most of the American public supports trash pickup, safety equipment in cars, marital rape laws, special education, smoking bans and the Family Leave Act—everything except the Equal Rights Amendment, which has never passed. Some new hot-button issues are rights for gays, abolition of the death penalty and the right to health insurance—issues which have been supported in more progressive countries for years.
As we try to help Azerbaijanis make the changes they want to see in their lives, we can remember that in the past 40 years we have come a long way in America. Forty years from now, I hope that both Americans and Azerbaijanis will look back and be grateful for the changes we have seen in our countries.
--------------------
Which reminds me of a question that I have that you may be able to answer. All my life I have been surrounded by Republicans and so when I want to know what the Republican position is on an issue I ask or already know. But few Republicans seem to join the Peace Corps or else they keep quiet here, so I don’t have anyone to ask.
My question is about the new health bill. It seems to me that it is all about the Republican value of personal responsibility. For example, now if people don’t have health insurance and have a medical emergency, they are treated and then the hospital most likely doesn’t get paid. This can drive a hospital out of business and raises prices for everyone else. Forcing people to be responsible for their bills by buying private insurance doesn’t seem like socialism to me.
Republicans are fine with parents being forced to pay support for their children and to buy auto insurance so others don’t have to pay their bills. What is different about health insurance?
Republicans like to have an even playing field for American businesses with foreign businesses. So why should GM and Ford have to pay for insurance for their employees when Honda and Toyota don’t?
I would like to buy private insurance when I get out of the Peace Corps, but because of my health history, no company will sell to me. So if I have an emergency, I can either not pay or empty my IRA and have no savings when I am older. With the new health bill, I can buy insurance. I am not sure why Republicans would think my paying for my own medical care is a bad idea. So email me or leave a comment on my blog to explain. Thanks.
Sunday, March 21, 2010
The fun is beginning
Things are beginning to be fun again in Azerbaijan. For me, nothing is fun in the winter because I don’t like cold weather. You can’t be inside and pretend it isn’t cold, like you can in America. There is one heater in most homes and when you are not near, it is cold. Stores are mostly unheated, although my workplace has central heating, which is rare.
For a week, my office is closed for Novruz. This is the spring holiday and it is great. Compared to this, the one-day holidays in America just don’t make it. For almost two weeks, families get together, massive amounts of tasty food and cooked and eaten, people dance, party, and build bonfires. It is all about spring coming, new beginnings, forgiving people who have wronged you, and welcoming everyone.
I have spent the first three days visiting my first family in my training village. Azerbaijani hospitality being what it is, I was welcome everywhere, ate a meal at every home, got caught up on everyone’s lives, and enjoyed being with everyone. I didn’t speak English for all three days. My family accepts my broken Azerbaijani for what it is, just grateful that I can speak at all. When I arrived to their home in September 2008, I could say hello, goodbye and thank you.
Now I am at the Peace Corps office in the capital city of Baku waiting for my night train, which leaves at 11:05 p.m. It will get me home by 7:30 a.m. tomorrow. The compartment sleeps four and the other three will be strangers, as they were when I boarded the train to come here.
The trip usually goes like this: I get on and find three people, usually a family group, putting away their bags. They realize I am not Azerbaijani, look very surprised, say hello in Russian. I tell them in Azerbaijani that I don’t speak Russian and we have a conversation. It is usually about me first—they want to know what I am doing here, how old I am, why I came, how much money I have, why I abandoned my children before I married them off, how much my pension will be. Once I answer enough questions and parry off some others, I find out about them—they are usually traveling together to a family event and want to talk about that. Then the porter brings our fresh bedding in bags and we make our beds. Some of us change into jammies (not me) and everyone goes to sleep.
In the morning, we are awakened by a porter banging on the door for us to get up and in the next half hour we get our things together and talk again. They invariably invite me to their homes for tea, a meal or to stay as long as I want at any future date. They give me their phone number and we hug and say goodbye.
This week, without a job or regular activities to go to, I will visit people I already know in my town to celebrate the holiday, visit other volunteers, catch up on some work for when I get back, wash clothes and clean. And I will think about next month, when I can wash clothes without ending up with frozen fingers, be inside without a heavy sweater and not hunker down next to the furnace all the time.
For a week, my office is closed for Novruz. This is the spring holiday and it is great. Compared to this, the one-day holidays in America just don’t make it. For almost two weeks, families get together, massive amounts of tasty food and cooked and eaten, people dance, party, and build bonfires. It is all about spring coming, new beginnings, forgiving people who have wronged you, and welcoming everyone.
I have spent the first three days visiting my first family in my training village. Azerbaijani hospitality being what it is, I was welcome everywhere, ate a meal at every home, got caught up on everyone’s lives, and enjoyed being with everyone. I didn’t speak English for all three days. My family accepts my broken Azerbaijani for what it is, just grateful that I can speak at all. When I arrived to their home in September 2008, I could say hello, goodbye and thank you.
Now I am at the Peace Corps office in the capital city of Baku waiting for my night train, which leaves at 11:05 p.m. It will get me home by 7:30 a.m. tomorrow. The compartment sleeps four and the other three will be strangers, as they were when I boarded the train to come here.
The trip usually goes like this: I get on and find three people, usually a family group, putting away their bags. They realize I am not Azerbaijani, look very surprised, say hello in Russian. I tell them in Azerbaijani that I don’t speak Russian and we have a conversation. It is usually about me first—they want to know what I am doing here, how old I am, why I came, how much money I have, why I abandoned my children before I married them off, how much my pension will be. Once I answer enough questions and parry off some others, I find out about them—they are usually traveling together to a family event and want to talk about that. Then the porter brings our fresh bedding in bags and we make our beds. Some of us change into jammies (not me) and everyone goes to sleep.
In the morning, we are awakened by a porter banging on the door for us to get up and in the next half hour we get our things together and talk again. They invariably invite me to their homes for tea, a meal or to stay as long as I want at any future date. They give me their phone number and we hug and say goodbye.
This week, without a job or regular activities to go to, I will visit people I already know in my town to celebrate the holiday, visit other volunteers, catch up on some work for when I get back, wash clothes and clean. And I will think about next month, when I can wash clothes without ending up with frozen fingers, be inside without a heavy sweater and not hunker down next to the furnace all the time.
Thursday, March 11, 2010
Mud on my Coat
One of the strange feelings about living in another culture is that I get to experience American news and culture from afar just like everyone else in the world. And now I understand how strange ideas and negative feelings about Americans can develop.
A couple of weeks ago when I went into my regular fruit store, the owner began yelling about airplanes and America and pointing at the TV. He was trying to find out if I knew about the guy who flew the plane into the IRS office. The store was full of people. I said I had heard (everyone at work told me) and he wanted to know why an American would do something like this. I said that I didn’t know and that there are many crazy people in the world. The customers’ opinions were that no one in their country would ever do something like this.
They may have a point. There is very little crime or violence here. I am sure crime happens in my town of about 350,000—I just don’t know anyone who has been a victim. (Someone at work asked me, if this man had lived, would he have been sent to Guantanamo to be with the other people who wanted to destroy the American government!)
When I read about the financial crisis that happened shortly after I left for Azerbaijan and then read a month later people were stampeding each other to death at Wal-mart on Black Friday, I first wondered what is wrong with people. Then I realized that in America, there are crazy people, but my friends and family are mostly normal and so is most of America. Naturally, though, people who don’t know Americans can think this behavior is normal in America. For those who remember the Bobbitt story, just image what foreigners thought of American women when they heard about Lorena Bobbitt!
Of course, it’s not just Americans who can be thought of poorly. The same week, I was walking home down a muddy, potholed street and it was getting dark. I slipped and fell. Two women behind me saw me fall and one woman remarked in Azerbaijani that the “Russian woman” must be drunk.
I popped up, irate, mud all over my coat, and told her that I am not Russian, I was not drunk, that I don’t drink and that I am American and clumsy. She apologized, but said that Russian woman are bad women and drink too much.
Among the American things that Azerbaijanis frown on are the ease of obtaining guns, the perceived sexual permissiveness, the fact that parents stop living with their children and supporting them in early adulthood, high divorce rates, the death penalty and the wars we start in other countries. But you have to know an Azerbaijani really well to find out any of their opinions on world events and issues.
One of my Peace Corps friends is staying an extra year, so she got to go home for a month. One of the “reverse culture shock” things she noticed while she was home is that Americans like people to know what they think about different issues and want to press their views on others in loud voices. She said she didn’t like this anymore and preferred to have people keep their opinions to themselves.
On the other hand, there is no word for “nosy” in Azerbaijani because nosiness is not considered a bad thing. So while Azerbaijanis don’t care to say what they think about issues, strangers still want to know how old you are, how much your house cost, do you think your ex-wife was fooling around on you while you were married, why you have no children, or if you do, could there be a chance your son will marry their daughter, how it feels to be fat or 25 and unmarried, how many of your teeth are real and why you have mud on your coat.
A couple of weeks ago when I went into my regular fruit store, the owner began yelling about airplanes and America and pointing at the TV. He was trying to find out if I knew about the guy who flew the plane into the IRS office. The store was full of people. I said I had heard (everyone at work told me) and he wanted to know why an American would do something like this. I said that I didn’t know and that there are many crazy people in the world. The customers’ opinions were that no one in their country would ever do something like this.
They may have a point. There is very little crime or violence here. I am sure crime happens in my town of about 350,000—I just don’t know anyone who has been a victim. (Someone at work asked me, if this man had lived, would he have been sent to Guantanamo to be with the other people who wanted to destroy the American government!)
When I read about the financial crisis that happened shortly after I left for Azerbaijan and then read a month later people were stampeding each other to death at Wal-mart on Black Friday, I first wondered what is wrong with people. Then I realized that in America, there are crazy people, but my friends and family are mostly normal and so is most of America. Naturally, though, people who don’t know Americans can think this behavior is normal in America. For those who remember the Bobbitt story, just image what foreigners thought of American women when they heard about Lorena Bobbitt!
Of course, it’s not just Americans who can be thought of poorly. The same week, I was walking home down a muddy, potholed street and it was getting dark. I slipped and fell. Two women behind me saw me fall and one woman remarked in Azerbaijani that the “Russian woman” must be drunk.
I popped up, irate, mud all over my coat, and told her that I am not Russian, I was not drunk, that I don’t drink and that I am American and clumsy. She apologized, but said that Russian woman are bad women and drink too much.
Among the American things that Azerbaijanis frown on are the ease of obtaining guns, the perceived sexual permissiveness, the fact that parents stop living with their children and supporting them in early adulthood, high divorce rates, the death penalty and the wars we start in other countries. But you have to know an Azerbaijani really well to find out any of their opinions on world events and issues.
One of my Peace Corps friends is staying an extra year, so she got to go home for a month. One of the “reverse culture shock” things she noticed while she was home is that Americans like people to know what they think about different issues and want to press their views on others in loud voices. She said she didn’t like this anymore and preferred to have people keep their opinions to themselves.
On the other hand, there is no word for “nosy” in Azerbaijani because nosiness is not considered a bad thing. So while Azerbaijanis don’t care to say what they think about issues, strangers still want to know how old you are, how much your house cost, do you think your ex-wife was fooling around on you while you were married, why you have no children, or if you do, could there be a chance your son will marry their daughter, how it feels to be fat or 25 and unmarried, how many of your teeth are real and why you have mud on your coat.
Friday, February 26, 2010
Wind Whistling Through the Kitchen
I won’t have to file taxes this year as taxable income will be under $300. My living allowance, which I pay to my host family isn’t taxable.
Sales taxes in Azerbaijan aren’t added on to the price of an item, they are included. Whatever an item is priced, that is what you pay and the storekeeper pays sales taxes out of the price of the item.
I live on what the Peace Corps gives me except for (of course) exceptions. They are the occasional vacation trip, US expenses, such as gifts, and unavoidables such as dog food. The dog food I have bought lately is for the dog I wrote about in my Starfish post a month or so ago. This little dog that lives outside my door had five puppies. My family and a couple of neighbors feed her scraps, like old bread, but I figure she needs the nutrition to feed the pups. I still hope to find a good home for the mom and now with the pups . . . . . ? My sister is coming in April. I really hope she will return to America with a dog.
Tangerine season is coming to an end. A kilo--2.3 pounds is 1 manat—about $1.20. Sort of sheepish to admit, there are days I have eaten a whole kilo.
The winter weather has not been cold for very long—usually milder than St. Louis and no snow once. But inside, you know it is winter. The gas heater that the family has does not keep the house anywhere near comfortable everywhere. It is okay within 15 feet if you are dressed warmly. Until the first part of December, there was no heater, so I am grateful for what I have.
Sad to say this winter I have watched more DVD’s than I watched in the US. I can recommend the first three seasons of Mad Men, the 1960’s era show. It is as absorbing as The Sopranos. I also liked Julie/Julia with Meryl Streep. Not sure if this and Season 3 of Mad Men is available in the US. All of the DVD’s sold here are pirated, so they come out quickly, but without bonus material. Earlier I said that I use my own money for exceptions. Each DVD is about $3, so a season of Mad Men is about $15. I can’t afford that on my living allowance, so I buy them with my own money.
Kids rarely drink milk and many families have very little yogurt and cheese. No one seems worried about kids’ bones. Anecdotal evidence tells me that this may be okay because I don’t see any more bent-over old women here than in the US.
It is surprising how many times clothing can be worn in the winter without washing it. I wear jeans 10 or 15 times. Wool cardigans can be worn on and off for two months. I have a wool coat and no dry cleaner. So I use a stiff brush on it and the coat is actually quite clean. I’ve started thinking how much water is wasted and chemicals are used to clean things that aren’t really dirty. And if you avoid white clothes in the fall and winter, the number of outer clothes you wash after each wearing or two is minimal.
Tte other night when I was in the kitchen cooking potatoes, I could see my breath. One burner was on, so the kitchen was getting some warmth. I am not sure why our water pipes haven’t frozen this winter. I started to feel sorry for myself until I thought of a fellow volunteer who is older than me. Her family’s kitchen is outside. Yes, in the yard is the gas stove,counter and sink. Inside is the refrigerator.
Her family washes dishes, cooks and prepares food while the wind is whistling through the yard and she does too when she wants to cook for herself. But this setup is pretty appealing in the summer.
The laundry is another matter. I have found that even when the clothes are frozen stiff on the outside clothesline, they still lose some water somehow. But on non-sunny above-freezing days in the winter, the clothes get to a clammy level and stay there. So then they must be brought inside and draped on furniture to complete the drying process.
While I was in the kitchen seeing my breath and cooking potatoes in the near-dark, my family—grandma, mom and two girls—were gathered around the gas heater looking at the People Magazine my sister sent. It was the annual Sexiest Man Alive issue. FYI the SMA for 2009 was Johnny Depp. They can’t read English but of course, it is totally not necessary for this issue.
There are over 100 fabulous-looking men in this magazine. When I returned shivering with my cooked potatoes, they were arguing over who is better-looking, but complained that there were no Azerbaijani men in the issue.
After hearing some of their arguments and giving my own opinion, I went upstairs and brought some of my clothes down from the line. They were frozen into strange shapes. I hung them on different pieces of furniture in my room, ate my potatoes and read a book.
Sales taxes in Azerbaijan aren’t added on to the price of an item, they are included. Whatever an item is priced, that is what you pay and the storekeeper pays sales taxes out of the price of the item.
I live on what the Peace Corps gives me except for (of course) exceptions. They are the occasional vacation trip, US expenses, such as gifts, and unavoidables such as dog food. The dog food I have bought lately is for the dog I wrote about in my Starfish post a month or so ago. This little dog that lives outside my door had five puppies. My family and a couple of neighbors feed her scraps, like old bread, but I figure she needs the nutrition to feed the pups. I still hope to find a good home for the mom and now with the pups . . . . . ? My sister is coming in April. I really hope she will return to America with a dog.
Tangerine season is coming to an end. A kilo--2.3 pounds is 1 manat—about $1.20. Sort of sheepish to admit, there are days I have eaten a whole kilo.
The winter weather has not been cold for very long—usually milder than St. Louis and no snow once. But inside, you know it is winter. The gas heater that the family has does not keep the house anywhere near comfortable everywhere. It is okay within 15 feet if you are dressed warmly. Until the first part of December, there was no heater, so I am grateful for what I have.
Sad to say this winter I have watched more DVD’s than I watched in the US. I can recommend the first three seasons of Mad Men, the 1960’s era show. It is as absorbing as The Sopranos. I also liked Julie/Julia with Meryl Streep. Not sure if this and Season 3 of Mad Men is available in the US. All of the DVD’s sold here are pirated, so they come out quickly, but without bonus material. Earlier I said that I use my own money for exceptions. Each DVD is about $3, so a season of Mad Men is about $15. I can’t afford that on my living allowance, so I buy them with my own money.
Kids rarely drink milk and many families have very little yogurt and cheese. No one seems worried about kids’ bones. Anecdotal evidence tells me that this may be okay because I don’t see any more bent-over old women here than in the US.
It is surprising how many times clothing can be worn in the winter without washing it. I wear jeans 10 or 15 times. Wool cardigans can be worn on and off for two months. I have a wool coat and no dry cleaner. So I use a stiff brush on it and the coat is actually quite clean. I’ve started thinking how much water is wasted and chemicals are used to clean things that aren’t really dirty. And if you avoid white clothes in the fall and winter, the number of outer clothes you wash after each wearing or two is minimal.
Tte other night when I was in the kitchen cooking potatoes, I could see my breath. One burner was on, so the kitchen was getting some warmth. I am not sure why our water pipes haven’t frozen this winter. I started to feel sorry for myself until I thought of a fellow volunteer who is older than me. Her family’s kitchen is outside. Yes, in the yard is the gas stove,counter and sink. Inside is the refrigerator.
Her family washes dishes, cooks and prepares food while the wind is whistling through the yard and she does too when she wants to cook for herself. But this setup is pretty appealing in the summer.
The laundry is another matter. I have found that even when the clothes are frozen stiff on the outside clothesline, they still lose some water somehow. But on non-sunny above-freezing days in the winter, the clothes get to a clammy level and stay there. So then they must be brought inside and draped on furniture to complete the drying process.
While I was in the kitchen seeing my breath and cooking potatoes in the near-dark, my family—grandma, mom and two girls—were gathered around the gas heater looking at the People Magazine my sister sent. It was the annual Sexiest Man Alive issue. FYI the SMA for 2009 was Johnny Depp. They can’t read English but of course, it is totally not necessary for this issue.
There are over 100 fabulous-looking men in this magazine. When I returned shivering with my cooked potatoes, they were arguing over who is better-looking, but complained that there were no Azerbaijani men in the issue.
After hearing some of their arguments and giving my own opinion, I went upstairs and brought some of my clothes down from the line. They were frozen into strange shapes. I hung them on different pieces of furniture in my room, ate my potatoes and read a book.
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