Skillz and Failure

Sure, joining the Peace Corps has helped me gain new skills (Like speak Azeri, go over a week without a shower, I.R.B.-ing, and drink dozens of cups of tea a day!) but I have started to notice a decline in many of my other abilities. My English-speaking skills are going in the crapper and new to the list of things I am getting worse at: Multitasking! I had t meeting at 6:00 last night, which meant that it was almost 8:00 when I got home. Still feeling motivated I decided to try and accomplish the list of things I had set out for the day. So I lit the water tank to shower, unpacked some stuff, started to make cookies for a club today, and then even got around to ironing a shirt for next week’s presentation. This is where the problem came in. The iron was heating up, the cookies were in the oven, and I was putting away some books. Then I started to iron my shirt, check to see if the shower was warm, then put on some water for coffee. I forgot about the cookies (some blame rests on the new oven with a celsius dial that I haven’t mastered yet) anyway, the cookies failed.

My Kick-Ass Family

Perhaps you don’t know this, but I have a pretty amazing family. Sure we fought when I was growing up, but I think we all turned out better because of it. Now that I am halfway around the world, my brother and his fiancé send me bacon and my Mom Dad and Sister send me text messages; which makes my day. I love and America, it’s awesome who wouldn’t, but in the 14-ish months I have been in Azerbaijan I had never had the true sense of missing something so much I thought about going back, just for a weekend. I was sitting in my apartment when I started to realize how much I miss my Dad (it’s a lot). It occurred to me that things like Christmas, Birthdays, Thanksgiving, none of that has set off the homesickness for me. I’m really looking forward to spending my last Christmas in Azerbaijan with my friends here, but I can’t just go get bagels with my Dad on the weekends and that fact (I know it took me a long time to realize it, hey my Dad travels a lot, it isn’t totally out of the question) makes me feel very far away. Things like when my Mom can’t sleep at night so she talks to me because she knows I’m up, or going to wine sales with my Dad, those are the things I miss, and as much as I love my friends in Azerbaijan (again, a lot), that is a void you just can’t fill over here.

We never really do the family portrait thing, so in lieu of that, please accept this photo of me with a bloody nose. Enjoy!

Halloween

So, as many of you know Halloween was last weekend. And as many of you can probably guess, Halloween is not a holiday in Azerbaijan. That isn't going to stop Americans from celebrating though. I made the trek up to Zaqatala (2 hours on a bus to Baku and then 13 hours on a train) for some festivities. After making and eating some amazing food at Loki's (I couldn't find the umlats Loki, sorry) we headed over to Josh's haunted mansion of a house. By haunted I mean unfinished. After bonfire and the world premiere of Xachmaz slasher along with dancing and general PCV shenanigans it was time to head back to Loki's house, in the pouring down rain. Part way through the walk a PCV who shall remain annonymous decided it would be fun to splash around in the streets-turned-rivers instead of fording them Oregon Trail style. We were pretty mushed soaked by the time we arrived back to an apartment that was experiencing electrical failure. Good times.

Somehow I ended up with a knife safety pinned to my long johns.

Playing in the rain

New House, New Post

A few weeks back I moved into a new apartment. It is pretty sweet. Right in the middle of town, close to stores and work and only on the second floor. Here are some pictures:

My super sweet bathroom!

My hood'

I live in a cartoon

I recently moved into my very own one bedroom soviet cement box of an apartment, and it's great. I get to live completely alone with indoor plumbing. However because of the newly remodeled bathroom, there are still kinks to be worked out. Last week I had no water in the bathroom sink, but had it in the kitchen. Last night the gas stove didn't work, which has nothing to do with the bathroom but was annoying none the less. This morning I went to use the bathroom sink and the handle of the cold water came off. Water then shot across the room onto the opposite wall. I've only ever seen this on television. Add that to the colossal noise coming from my ceiling that can only be TNT going off or an anvil dropping and I am starting the think I should look out for road runner traps.

Bad day in the baijan?

I have bad days. Lots of them actually but we won't get into that. Last Friday was a particularly bad day and at about 10am I was ready to call it quits. I didn't. Instead I found a solution for those troubling times. Here is what you do:

1.) Take a shower (photo omitted but note the wet hair in coming pictures). Being clean always makes PCVs happy.

2.) Get yourself a yellow star shaped tambourine. Nuf said.

3.) Find an x-ray on the road and put it under your zip up hoodie. Hand your sunglasses to people and tell them they are x-ray specs. Once the person puts them on unzip sweatshirt. Hilarity ensues.

4.) Have awesome finger mates. The first finger people rock out loud, and they know why.

For Vikki

I have two random pictures of Jake.

Jake thought he could play Jenga upside down. He lost.

BBQ inside Chris's shed because it was raining outside.