29 November 2015: Interlude

Marbles still had a couple doses of antibiotics to go, but her recovery was going well, so I felt pretty good about leaving Thanksgiving morning. Nervous about leaving my home and cats, but looking forward to the opportunity ahead of me, so pretty good overall. Definitely grateful to have friends who will help take care of things while I’m gone.

After picking me up at the airport, my dad got Thanksgiving dinner ready. It was just my parents and me, at tv trays in the living room. But it was the first time I’ve been with them for Thanksgiving in years, so that was nice. The food was pretty good, too.

Yesterday was pretty mellow, with me helping a bit around the house. Then today, my brother brought my nephew Cameron with him for a visit. He was a bit shy, at first, but then seemed to decide I was pretty cool. He’s seen me before, but it’s been a couple years, and he’s still young enough to not necessarily remember previous visits.

After the boys left, I made my traditional trip to the beach. I borrowed the truck, and parked at the end of Brookhurst, not far from the mouth of the Santa Ana River. I started out barefoot, but a twinge in my right ankle told me I needed the support of my shoes. I was a little sad about that, because I love to walk barefoot on the beach, but decided walking was more important than being barefoot. I made it down to the Huntington Beach Pier not long before sunset, and walked back as it slowly got dark. It was a beautiful way to spend an evening.

22 November 2015: The power of antibiotics

The weekend is coming to a close, and, thanks to the power of antibiotics, Marbles is doing much better. As I started to write this, she wandered over to her food dish and started to eat. She’s still doing a lot of sleeping (even for a cat), but she’s clearly feeling much better.

I’ve been mostly taking it easy myself this weekend, staying close to Marbles and making sure she’s okay. I’ve done a little more work on the teaching English class I started a couple weeks ago. Through that class, I’ve discovered there are a ton of resources at American English, “A website for teachers and learners of English as a foreign language abroad.” Most of the readings for the class come from their publication, English Teaching Forum.

I did pick up a couple more books to take with me to Pohnpei, and hopefully use with my students: Favorite Folktales from Around the World and Fearless Girls, Wise Women & Beloved Sisters: Heroines in Folktales from Around the World. Both were available in Kindle edition, so no added weight!

I’ve got my orientation schedule for Pohnpei: one week of training, while staying with a host family in Kolonia. We’ll arrive Dec 1, with training officially starting the next day. Our first visit to Madolenihmw will be on Dec 5, but that day will also involve a visit to Kitti (the other smaller village where WorldTeach volunteers are placed) and a hike to Lehnpaipohn Waterfall, so I’m guessing we won’t have much of a chance to really look around. We’ll move into our new place on Dec 7. The next day, we’ll visit the high school where we’ll be teaching, to get acquainted. Then teaching starts Dec 9!

21 November 2015: Changing plans

 

 

As I was walking down my hallway yesterday morning, I was surprised to see Marbles lying there, outside Matt’s door. That’s not a usual spot for her. I knelt down to find out how she was doing, and was distressed to discover she was lethargic, and not very responsive. I immediately called the vet. They didn’t have any appointments, but, if I would drop her off, they would check her out as their schedule permitted.

She spent all afternoon at the vet’s. A minor blood panel didn’t show anything unusual. Physical exam didn’t reveal any problems. They didn’t notice anything about her behavior, although she wouldn’t eat for them. She did have a bit of an eye discharge, and she’s prone to upper respiratory tract infections, so they figured she was just down from that. The vet prescribed an antibiotic, and sent her home.

Once she was home, it was clear she wasn’t doing any better than when I had first taken her in. But she settled on my bed, and I just kept an eye on her.

I was supposed to be flying out to LA tomorrow, but I called my parents and told them I might be switching my flight, because I was worried about my cat. After a bit of discussion, we agreed I’d switch to a Thursday flight. That gave me a bit of breathing room, both to keep an eye on Marbles and make sure she got better, and to finish getting ready to leave. I’ve been sick myself, and have been pretty behind on getting things ready to go. I had a plan that would work, but this gives me time to get things in better order.

A little after 1 am, some noise woke me. Marbles was no longer on the bed, so I went looking for her. I found her in the closet, hunched in a corner. Her hindquarters were wet, because she’d urinated on herself. I called the emergency vet, and took her in.

Another exam, followed by x-rays. They were going to take a urine sample, but when they’d put Marbles on her back for the x-ray, she had again urinated on herself, so they weren’t able to get a sample. The likely conclusion is that she’s dealing with a urinary tract infection, along with the respiratory tract infection, and just feels lousy. The upside is that the antibiotic she was already on should be able to tackle both infections.

I’ve stayed by her side today, working on my computer while she sleeps. This afternoon, when the sun was coming through the window, she got up, and looked like she was showing interest in getting in the sunny bed. Matt had come in to see how she was doing, and lifted her up there. She settled in, and seemed reasonably content, if not her usual perky self.

 

As I write this, she’s curled up by my feet, under the covers. Hopefully getting better.

I am finally getting healthy, myself, after a battle with one of the more obnoxious viruses I’ve encountered. Cough drops are still my friends, but coughing is down to a minimum, and I think I actually heard my “real” voice today. Tomorrow, if Marbles seems to be on the mend, I can turn my attention back to prepping for Pohnpei.

 

13 November 2015: Paris Attack

Just as I was going to write a “normal” update, word came across my Facebook feed of coordinated attacks in Paris. Reports are still coming in. Those responsible for the attack are still unidentified and are still on the loose. The death toll is currently somewhere in the 30-60 range, and there are as many as 100 hostages at a concert.

It’s hard for me to even comprehend what it is that brings one person to justify the killing of another. I have to imagine that it involves not being able to see those others as truly being people. I believe that, if we want to bring such attacks to an end, we need to work to understand. To learn to see, and help others see, that all people are people. With similar hopes, dreams, strengths and faults.

That is part of the real power of travel, of the internet, and of education. To build awareness of the “others,” to put a face on them, to begin to understand them. To build empathy.

Offering a bit of hope that such a thing is possible, one of my FB friends pointed this out: in the face of such a tragedy, amidst what must be an environment of fear,
“Many Parisians are using the hashtag ‪#‎portouverte‬ (open door) to offer safe harbor to those that need it during this lockdown. Opening their doors when they’d be most justified in hiding behind them.”

Sadly, when I searched Twitter for the hashtag, all I found were comments on how amazing it is that people would do that. I hope the folks who actually need safe harbor are able to find it. And may we all find peace.

12 November 2015: Sick Day

I’m still sick today. I pretty much slept through yesterday. Doing better today, but still spending the day in bed, and I’d give much to stop coughing. But I’m at least able to sit up and go through e-mail. That can be a pretty random journey, and this post will reflect that.

But first: plugging “hiking Pohnpei” into a search engine turned up Pohnpei Eco-Adventure. It looks like a great resource for planning adventures. I’m definitely going to look for their published guides, which are supposed to be readily available in Kolonia.

A little while ago, I saw a featured TED Talk by Scott Dinsmore, founder of Live Your Legend. It’s all about finding the work you love and making a difference. I was intrigued, so I signed up for their mailing list. Scott was recently killed in an accident while summiting Mt. Kilimanjaro, but his wife Chelsea and the rest of the community are keeping LYL alive. Today, they announced their Start-a-Blog Challenge. I’d just started this one, but I figured that counted, so I signed up for that, too. We’ll see if that improves my blog!

I came across a few education resources that seemed worth sharing today:

It’s not available until Dec 1, but Education Week highlighted Madden NFL: Football by the Numbers (you need a subscription at some level to see the whole article, but the relevant website is visible in the free section). This resource for teaching math and science concepts to 5th-9th graders will be free to educators, parents and students. I’m not much of a football person, myself, but I could easily see this as a way to get some reluctant learners interested in these topics!

Another article I came across, on teaching math understanding versus math knowledge, used a fun video by Minute Physics on why PEMDAS is Wrong. It works, of course, but his point is that it’s a recipe for churning out answers that doesn’t require understanding of why the rules are what they are. If the rules are understood, there’s a lot more freedom in how one goes about solving a problem.

Hour of Code is a program that encourages students (of all ages, really, but primarily kids) to learn to code. Their newest initiative has a Star Wars theme that’s sure help drive up interest in this skill. Looks like fun!

9 November 2015: Resources

I’m home sick today. Picked up a cold last week that hasn’t ever knocked me down too far, but isn’t leaving me alone, either. So I haven’t been getting too much done around the house. But I have been going through e-mail, and I came across a class on Coursera that caught my attention: Paths to Success in English Language Teaching. It’s being offered by the University of Oregon, and it just started today, so I thought I’d check it out.

The three required readings for week 1 presented some interesting ideas. The first discussed learning languages through stories, an idea I had already been toying with, but that this reading helped develop further. It suggested that it’s important to start with stories the students might be familiar with, or that otherwise came from their own culture. I don’t know many Micronesian stories, so I went poking around on Amazon, and found Micronesian Legends and Pacific Island Legends. I would like to go from those (if that works well, anyway!) to a broader set of world stories. I’m still looking for good options on a world story collection, though. There are a few I’m considering, but I’m open to suggestions, too.

The other interesting thing I got out of the class was a pointer to a couple global networking sites for education, Global SchoolNet and iEARN. The video from the class touched on a couple iEARN projects that looked interesting. The organization’s tagline is “Learning with the world, not just about it.” It would be very cool if I could hook up my students through one or both of these networks.

6 November 2015

 I’ve gotten about halfway through Making Sense of Micronesia, and I’ve found it a fascinating read. I think it could be a great choice for a discussion text in a world cultures or society class, whether one was planning to go to Micronesia or not, because it exemplifies a rather different perspective than most of us in the United States might be used to.

Here in the US, the individual is paramount, and we consider our individual rights to be sacred. The culture described in this book is much more community-focused, in which individual aspirations (if they even manage to exist) are often sacrificed for the good of the lineage, or (loosely interpreted) family group. “In the minds of many, the modern advocacy of rights is one of the most pernicious contagions that the West has unleashed on traditional and proud societies: the misguided emphasis on ‘me’ rather than ‘us.’ I have to admit I’d not really looked at such things that way before, and I’m going to have to digest it a bit before reaching a conclusion.

Another contrast is the focus here on the accumulation of material wealth. Based on this account, that’s a foreign idea that still hasn’t really taken hold. The book mentions an old Palauan saying that I rather like: “What I gave, I have. What I spent, I had. What I kept, I lost.” Rather than material wealth, the islanders traditionally accumulated social capital: those people they helped by giving material goods away were then obligated to reciprocate when the situation called for it.

It will be interesting to see how much of what is in the book still holds. Some of what I’ve read resonates with my own experiences on Rota, but certainly not all. My understanding is that Marianas have been subjected to a stronger Western influence than some of the other parts of Micronesia. Guam certainly resembled the US in many ways, even 20 years ago. Pohnpei is much more off the beaten path.

3 November 2015

When I got home this evening, I was tired. I’d been a substitute teacher in a first grade English class today, and then put in a couple hours at the YMCA after-school program. I was pretty beat. But then I saw the packages that had arrived: new sandals I’d ordered from REI (verdict still out on them), and a package from WorldTeach. I lit up with joy on seeing that second package, and was even happier when I opened it: A WorldTeach tote with WorldTeach luggage tag, and (more importantly), two books. Making Sense of Micronesia (a book I’d been eyeing on Amazon already) and Poor Economics (which I hadn’t previously been aware of). I’m a bit short on time before I head out, so I was glad to see KCLS had the second as a downloadable audiobook. I’m looking forward to checking these out!

Preparations: Health details

One of the requirements for taking a WorldTeach position is that a volunteer be in good physical and emotional health. Today, I had my doctor’s appointment, which gave me a clean bill of health. My doctor signed off on my medical release forms, and wished me a wonderful journey.

It’s also advisable to have good dental health. I hadn’t been to the dentist in a while, because I’d gotten to the point where I didn’t trust my dentist to do a good job, and hadn’t found a replacement yet. Today, I tried out a new dental office, and was pretty happy with how the appointment went. I was impressed with the level of professionalism, and, even better, while they found a couple things they want to keep an eye on over time, they didn’t see anything needing immediate work. So I have a follow-up cleaning appointment, and I’ll be good to go.

On an entirely different front, I’m working on putting together a jam at the house sometime before I go. I know I’ll miss the community here while I’m gone, and it would be fun to have a good send-off to remember folks by. Of course, with all the other things that need to happen before I go, I’m not sure I’ll pull it off. I’ll sure try, though!

Preparations

I didn’t get to writing a post yesterday, because Ethan, the newest member of the household, came out to see the place and meet us, and we wound up chatting for a while. He’s a travel nurse with a background in ecology, anthropology, and political science, and he used to be involved in the music scene, producing a national radio show. I think he’ll fit in pretty well around here.

Ethan officially moves in tomorrow. In the meantime, Peter is finishing shifting his stuff downstairs, and Matt is moving upstairs. Lots of changes going on in the house, but we’ll get it all sorted out.

I’m starting to get my packing list together. Thanks to Brian on Buy Nothing Kirkland, I’ve got a phone I should be able to unlock and use when I get there. I’m planning to take the little laptop I got for my trip to Kenya. It’s slow, but I’m told Pohnpei is tough on electronics, so I don’t want to take anything I couldn’t replace. I’ve got my Kindle, and I’ve been loading my Zune up with audiobooks (and music, of course). I ordered a solar USB charger for my smaller devices. I also ordered a cheap waterproof digital camera. I’m hoping it will work for snorkeling, but also figured it might be more durable for tropical conditions in general. I also ordered a sun hat and some sandals.

Some things I still need include mask & snorkel, a sewing kit, a suitable skirt or two (mid-calf), and whatever school supplies I might decide to take. I also need to figure out the luggage situation. On the one hand, I need to take stuff for a six month trip. On the other hand, I need to be able to carry my luggage six blocks and up four flights of stairs (or so the WorldTeach packing guidelines tell me). Will be interesting to see how I manage to strike that balance!