Here comes the rain...

So it seems I might not be posting as much as I’d like – today I woke up to thunder and rain (and I did not hear the usual wake up call from my new friend, Mr. Rooster, who apparently resides outside my window). There was no power, yet I was still served a fabulous cup of tea by my housemother Shequer – whose name means “sugar” in English. Language training was tough today – we could all see our breath in the class and it becomes difficult to learn when you are losing feeling in your feet and hands. However, it’s all worth while, because on the way to school I am greeted by swarms of Albanian children, all who absolutely love to say (and repeat) “Hello, how are you” each morning. I wonder about the opportunities available for these kids – no heat in their schools, certainly no computers – they all walk to school, they don’t have ipods or extra change in their pockets… yet each day they are smiling, laughing, and thrilled to have the chance to meet someone that could possibly make an impact on their lives. That in and of itself makes this whole journey worthwhile.

In the afternoon I came home to meet more family – my host mom’s sister and her niece. As the family gathered in the only heated room, Kasey and I (Kasey is a fellow volunteer who lives right down the road from me) worked out to the tune of The Biggest Loser – Cardio Max on my laptop. The things we do to keep sane (and fit)… if only I was a fly on the wall, watching the 2 American girls doing lunges in the corridor of an Albanian house, while the family members curiously poked their heads out every so often (I think at one point my mama went out to milk the cow). But hey, we got a workout in…

Even with the workout, I couldn’t manage to get warm until tonight - after meeting my group to do homework I came home to a hot shower (heaven) and dinner with the family. When I offered and insisted that I would wash the dishes, I didn’t realize that my work would be inspected – the niece (who was rinsing the dishes after I washed them) at one point pointed to a dish and said “yo mire” meaning “no good”...doh! Oh well, I think it’s the thought that counts – my house sister was loving not having to clean up…after all, she cooks and cleans all day.

Oh – and did I mention I got a fabulous new “sport and fashion” sweat suit? LOL! Yes, I needed some more warm clothes (have I mentioned I’m freezing my A$$ off?) so I bought this orange and black jacket and sweat pants from the local market. It has some sort of glittery symbol on it, with the English words “sport and fashion”. I wore it tonight for dinner and amazingly got multiple compliments! (Yes, I will be posting pictures as soon as I can).

Yes indeed all in all it was a productive day – my group started discussing possibilities for our community project while we are here in Shales (another 9 weeks) – we are thinking about having a garbage clean-up day where the whole community comes out to help – and tie it into incentives where the kids can win toys/books, etc. – things they might not be able to afford. Shales has great opportunity when it comes to small businesses – one problem is that half of the businesses have no signs – they are just small one-room operations with the bare essentials. Remember when signage could actually bring customers through the doors? Well we might actually be able to reinvent that time. Of course it’s still early so there is a lot to learn.