July so far... 4 posts in one

July 7, 2011

Yesterday I took a hot shower!!! So happy!  My hair feels the cleanest it’s ever felt… EVER!!!  I never realized how good Dove’s scentless body wash smells.  I got all the soap out of my hair for the first time in weeks!  It was great to stand under the water as long as I wanted, knowing that I don’t have to mop p all the water I spilled after I was down cause it just goes down the drain!  When the water was too cold, too hot, or just because they are there I could just turn the knobs.  And when I finally decided to be done instead of still being in un-insulated cement room, I turned off the water and the bathroom was full of the warm fog from my shower!  I knew coming to Africa that actual showers would be few and far between so yesterday was a very nice day!

July 12, 2011

Got my phone! It has internet!  It is ironic that I had to come to Africa to get such an upgrade!  Facebook is my cheapest way of communication or e-mail (but I don’t check that as often..Kelly.tooley@gmail.com).  The internet is great except I have had some troubles connecting to it.  The network isn’t as good here as home.  You can also text or call me.  00268-76262531. It’s too expensive for me to call home, but its free for me if you call me(but not for you).

July 19, 2011

Emotional.  I am not usually emotional, so this is weird and hard to handle for me.  My mood is usually so even and every day I feel my mood worsening and worsening and I don’t have enough coping strategies.  I feel so lonely.  Making friends is hard work.  I don’t feel part of the group.  I feel forgettable and replaceable, and insufficient.  I don’t feel good enough.  My self-esteem is really low.  I had a good cry last night, got it all out, literally. I didn’t know I had that much snot..eww.   My insecurity issues are even more amplified since I am sick and have my period as well.  Ugh.  I am a bit fed up with training.  I keep telling myself to just let the process run its course.  It will be over soon.  If I dwell on the negative, nothing will get better.  Since going home is not an option I would ever contemplate, I have got to accept what is, and get on with it.

July 21, 2011

So the other day was definitely a low point for me.  Coming to Africa, I knew there were going to be days like that.  Now I have acknowledged my feelings and am moving on.  Oprah’s voice in my head telling me how to live my best life..haha.  And FYI, yesterday and today were much better, so no worries. 

On with it…

I remember hearing about the “where does milk come from” campaign to educate inner city, poor kids about where their food comes from before it gets too the supermarket.  I thought it was such a stupid initiative.  Kids have to know that milk comes from cows; it’s ridiculous to think otherwise.  I want to give kids the benefit of the doubt that they know this information about milk, information that seems so obvious to me.

I only bring this up because I made applesauce today, from scratch.  And yes, I did know that applesauce is made from apples, but it never crossed my mind how it is made or whether it was difficult to make.  I mean, why would I need to, it’s pretty cheap and available at most every store.  I think I thought that since I had never seen it made (except way back, my Grandpa made it) I assumed it was hard, maybe there was too many steps, or it never turns out as good as the stuff in the Mott’s jars. 

So today I peeled a few apples, cut the seeds out, threw them in a pot with some sugar and let them boil until I could smoosh them with my spoon… vwoolaahhhh….applesauce… so surprised it’s that easy!  I am trying to figure out why it took coming to Africa to figure this recipe out.  Now I KNOW where applesauce comes from/how it’s made, and I especially have a lot more respect for that milk campaign.

July 22, 2011

Ate my applesauce for lunch today!!  So good..tasted just like Motts!

I started my knitting business this week.  Well actually, not really a business at all, I just sold my first hat.  $25US/160E.I like knitting and creating something pretty out of what was nothing in the beginning.  I knew I would have a lot of time here to get some knitting done. So far, since I have been here, I have made 2 hats: the first one I kept for myself(the only thing I have ever kept for myself) and the second one was my first sale!! Whoop whoop!!

I have run into a problem though.  I only brought 2 balls of yarn with me to Africa, both gone now.  They have yarn here, but it’s not the kind I like(it’s like the Red Heart 4-ply stuff) and each ball is tiny (less than 25g).  I haven’t been able to check out the ‘big’ cities yet to see what they have there.  So if you want to put a smile on my face and let me know that you are thinking about me, you can send me some yarn!  My favorite is from Michaels: Loops and Threads, Charisma or I also like Lion Brand, Thick and Quick.  And I like any color that you think is pretty/you would wear that color as a hat.

If you are going through the trouble of sending yarn, could you also send chewing gum (eXtra, Stride, or Five: blue flavor… I don’t like green or cinnamon).  Oh and JIF peanut butter is always a good option! J

Mailing Tip:  Use Flat Rate, priority mail box from the post office and send it airmail.

Peace Corps Swaziland

Attn:  Kelly Tooley

PO Box 2797

Mbabane, Swaziland H100

Africa

As I go to post this blog, I am reminded of my coworker from the Gap who thought Swaziland was an amusement park.  We all had a good laugh that day!  But as you can see, this month has been a bit of a roller coaster.  It is hard for me to write about the bad things, but it happened, I’m human.  I have got some great things to look forward to!  Swear-in is only 17 days away, then I move to the site I will be staying in for the rest of my 2 years here!  Excited and scared!  It’s in Lubumbo region.. the HOT part of Swaziland!