So this is how I’m gonna begin all future posts, with updates on…
Mosquitos killed (confirmed with corpse-on-palm): 16
Snakes encountered: 0 (cha CHING!)
Hey yall, ive been without internet for about a week durin which time ive had some major changes and updates so bear with me this’ll be a long post.
I last left you when I was livin on a resort with parrots that hit on anything that walks/moves by. The resort was nice, really cush actually in retrospect but we all knew that then. IO was some fluff, some great information, and some humor rolled into one. There were times when the info they were passin to us was less relevant since we didn’t know until last second where they were sendin us in the PI (Philippines islands if you haven’t caught on to my abrvs yet). So tellin us region specifics when we don’t know which region we’re in…kind of pointless. But we got the PC policies, some great info from the Filipino staff, other PCVs visitin us, and overall just got comfortable with each other. I’ll give you some of the highlights:
-basic Filipino culture tips such as pointing with your lips, using your eyebrows to talk, and realizin the importance/difference between single and married, available and unavailable haha…those bein the relationship categories and subcategories basically
-the illuminating video on how to prepare stool samples and malaria smears…that was a cheery session
-the slideshow on all the stuff in the ocean that can harm, maim, and snuff out our lives. I quote: “This is the blue ring octopus. As it gets agitated its trademark blue rings become more intense in color. Its poison will kill a human in twenty minutes unless the antidote is applied. So always fatal to the PCV
All of IO we all just wanted to know where we were goin for PST (pre-service training). Finally in the afternoon on Thursday they told us and boy did they milk the drama. Lemme lay it out for ya. 144 anxious PCT’s sittin in a room. They blare the “LET’S GET READY TO RUMBLE” music and pull up the first trainin site on the projector. They pull a name out of a hat. That’s the first volunteer to the first trainin site. That volunteer goes up to the stage to thunderous applaud and pulls the next name out of the hat for her cluster NFL draft style…seriously. Then that person reads the next and so on until all 6 in each cluster is read off and brought up on stage. Then they go to the next cluster. They do this cluster by cluster, site by site, city by city, region by region. I was called up in the Iloilo City trainin site. Iloilo is a province more or less on the island of Panay in the Visayas (middle islands between Luzon and Mindanao). The next mornin I got up at 4:30 and we made our way to the airport.
Manila airport: always fatal to the PCV. No joke two and a half hours to check our luggage.
Iloilo is amazin. My first impression was Gainesville meets Denver. The weather and landscape is like Gainesville but there are beautiful mountains on the horizon…close even to the beach. I love Gainesville and I love Denver so this is gonna be awesome. We went to a covered gym next to the firetruck and police station where we were given a little piece of paper with a fruit on it. We then found our host family (whom were all there for an hour before). My host tatay (father) is Dudon, he’s a Barangay councilman. My host nanay is Irene and she makes sure…very very very sure…that I have lunch every day. I am an older brother for the first time, I have three younger siblings. Sapphire, who is 15 and she is an awesome chess player, Dart who is 13 and a boisterous little boy lol…he loves to play cards with me, and Anne Marie who is 10 and still learning English. They love to call me princess because I sleep in my mosquito net. Speaking of which, the surname of my family is Mosquito. No joke. It’s hilarious. They say they won’t get Dengue cause the skeeters are family haha. My family’s awesome. They raise roosters for cock fights as well as other projects and are VERY active and involved around the community. I’ve met a zillion people. Dudon, my host tatay, has even promised to take me to the farm to ride Carabaos (water buffalo), to shoot birds (his air rifle has a scope and silencer, pretty sick), to take me to the beach, and to take me to a cock fight. Culture baby! He’s already taken me to a Filipino funeral and the party afterwards. Talk about culture shock for my 2nd day in Mandurriao. That’s the thing about Peace Corps. You have to be willing to be violently hurled from your comfort zone at literally any given instant.
Rather embarrassingly I’m apparently a bit of a heart throb amongst high school girls and high school gay boys. First of all let me say that gay culture here is far different from the US. Boys, at least, come out far far far earlier than is common in the United States. Even by elementary school and by high school most have come out. High school girls whispering every where I go and boys grabbing my arm and saying ‘hi’ or ‘bye bye’ is mildly embarrassing. The worst instance of this was when we were introduced at Mandurriao National High School. The school came out, we were on this stage in a court yard. We went one by one to the mic to introduce ourselves and before I could even say my name, in part I believe to the chicka-chicka efforts of my younger siblings who go to MNHS, I got a boy-band esque squeal/cheer from the high schoolers. I catch endless flak from my training cluster mates and the PC staff over it. As my host family puts it “you have many friends at Mandurriao national high school”. I hear “gwapo” everywhere I go…which means handsome. Oy. They love pale skin, blue eyes, and big noses.
My only complaint so far is how obsessed everyone is with how much and what I eat. I actually like bucket showers, I can deal with the toilet situation (prolly have a future post dedicated to that alone…then again maybe not. We love to talk about our comfort room experiences in PC but I know that might be TMI in the states haha). And the poverty, pollution, and overall level of life is fine with me, I’m adapting. And don’t get me wrong, I love the food here, it’s all fried, meaty, and served with rice. The soups are especially unbelievable. I was not a soup person, never have been, but the soups here are ridiculously scrumptious. And the fruits. But they always want me to eat more. It’s actually irritating. I’m pretty sure all my host grandma knows how to say in English is “Eat More”. But I’m well fed and not sick so far so what more could I ask for.
I have more to say, and more stories to tell but this has dragged out long enough.
p.s. GATOR FOOTBALL SATURDAY!!! I HEAR RED HAWK TASTES LIKE CHICKEN!!!
Showing posts with label Peace Corps. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Peace Corps. Show all posts
Thursday, September 2, 2010
Wednesday, July 28, 2010
Serial Killers, Facebook, and something you definitely won't find at Cracker Barrel
It just started rainin cats and dogs here as frequently happens during the long summer months of Florida. I figured this is as appropriate a time as any to post about the Philippines. Honestly, I’m gonna be right at home in the rain, bugs, and humidity.
An entertaining article (well…I find it entertaining, I know momma-dearest most certainly will not) has been passed around what I’ve dubbed as the ‘Philippines crowd’ on facebook. There’s a serial killer in the Philippines that seems to be killin foreigners to steal their ‘gadgets’. Click here to read the whole article. The opening to this article sounds like what would be reported if James Bond’s shenanigans were in the newspaper: “Police in Philippines are on the hunt for a “gadget-obsessed” man suspected of murdering three foreigners in separate attacks in the northern city of Angeles.” Can’t ya see that bein James Bond gone mad on a rampage? The only thing missin is the Walther PPK, killer one liners, a car chase, and vodka martinis - shaken not stirred. Anyways the article outlines how this man, Mark Dizon, has broken in and killed an American couple, a Brit and a Canadian and then stole all of their electronic gadgets and gizmos. Police are huntin him down, an American ex-pat has offered 100,00 pesos for information leading to an arrest, etc etc. On a serious note, I guess it is a reminder for me (and other PCVs) to be aware and careful about people I meet and not go flauntin any expensive possessions…although you’d have to be crazy to kill and rob a Peace Corps volunteer and expect to get a big payoff for goods and items. More like cotton slacks, a swiss army knife, one desperately treasured box of easy-mac and a poncho.
Speakin of crazy, how about the power of social networking on the internet? What I called the ‘Philippines crowd’ is actually damn impressive in that it even exists. Thanks to facebook I’ve been in touch with a high school friend livin in Manila, a fellow UF grad PCV already in the Philippines, a friend of a friend who’s workin in the Philippines, two acquaintances who will be visitin the Philippines within the next 13 months, and then of course all of my fellow future PCV’s and an assortment of current PCV’s, who are bein extraordinarily helpful to us, through a facebook group for our PC training batch. It’s awing to think that complete strangers who have never met much less exchanged a few words over a beer can make plans for meetin up and splittin cab fares in a city hundreds of miles away from where they live…all a month in advance (I’m referring to when all of us descend on Philadelphia for training). I don’t think this was possible even as recent as six to seven years ago. Not to mention this entire blog. I could do another whole post on the amazin impact that the internet/social networks have had on the English language too, but I’ll spare you my linguistic nerdiness for another rain-soaked time. I’m grateful for how much I know and how many people I know before goin to the Philippines, all made possible by the likes of facebook.
Finally, here’s a little segment I like to call “Filipino Cuisine-O of the day”. Take a little gander at this lovely piece of a tongue-teasing gourmet dish known as Dinuguan. Sure it looks inconspicuous enough. It could be some kind of black-bean stew or just heavily seasoned chili perhaps. Take a moment and ask yourself what you think could be in this asparagus-garnished bowl? But I warn you my friends there’s a metaphorical snake in the weeds - this dish is not all it seems…or rather there’s way, Way, WAY more to it than what meets the eye. Now click here and read the short wiki about Dinuguan. Yikes. The stomach, and the intestines, and the heart, and the ears, and the snout of a pig simmered in its own blood. Yummy yummy guts, heart, nose, and ears in my tummy? It sounds like this poor piggy fought Westley from the Princess Bride ‘to the pain’ and lost…and was made into stew for its efforts. It sounds like the Steven King version of the three little pigs. It’s Babe’s worst nightmare. I could probably keep makin jokes but I’ll just leave it at this: I had best not be told what is being served to me until after I try it because the word ‘Dinuguan’ is now imprinted in my brain which, interestingly enough, happens to be just north of my mouth, which is where my tongue cowers at the mere thought of Dinuguan. My palate has never found adventure to its taste.
An entertaining article (well…I find it entertaining, I know momma-dearest most certainly will not) has been passed around what I’ve dubbed as the ‘Philippines crowd’ on facebook. There’s a serial killer in the Philippines that seems to be killin foreigners to steal their ‘gadgets’. Click here to read the whole article. The opening to this article sounds like what would be reported if James Bond’s shenanigans were in the newspaper: “Police in Philippines are on the hunt for a “gadget-obsessed” man suspected of murdering three foreigners in separate attacks in the northern city of Angeles.” Can’t ya see that bein James Bond gone mad on a rampage? The only thing missin is the Walther PPK, killer one liners, a car chase, and vodka martinis - shaken not stirred. Anyways the article outlines how this man, Mark Dizon, has broken in and killed an American couple, a Brit and a Canadian and then stole all of their electronic gadgets and gizmos. Police are huntin him down, an American ex-pat has offered 100,00 pesos for information leading to an arrest, etc etc. On a serious note, I guess it is a reminder for me (and other PCVs) to be aware and careful about people I meet and not go flauntin any expensive possessions…although you’d have to be crazy to kill and rob a Peace Corps volunteer and expect to get a big payoff for goods and items. More like cotton slacks, a swiss army knife, one desperately treasured box of easy-mac and a poncho.
Speakin of crazy, how about the power of social networking on the internet? What I called the ‘Philippines crowd’ is actually damn impressive in that it even exists. Thanks to facebook I’ve been in touch with a high school friend livin in Manila, a fellow UF grad PCV already in the Philippines, a friend of a friend who’s workin in the Philippines, two acquaintances who will be visitin the Philippines within the next 13 months, and then of course all of my fellow future PCV’s and an assortment of current PCV’s, who are bein extraordinarily helpful to us, through a facebook group for our PC training batch. It’s awing to think that complete strangers who have never met much less exchanged a few words over a beer can make plans for meetin up and splittin cab fares in a city hundreds of miles away from where they live…all a month in advance (I’m referring to when all of us descend on Philadelphia for training). I don’t think this was possible even as recent as six to seven years ago. Not to mention this entire blog. I could do another whole post on the amazin impact that the internet/social networks have had on the English language too, but I’ll spare you my linguistic nerdiness for another rain-soaked time. I’m grateful for how much I know and how many people I know before goin to the Philippines, all made possible by the likes of facebook.
Finally, here’s a little segment I like to call “Filipino Cuisine-O of the day”. Take a little gander at this lovely piece of a tongue-teasing gourmet dish known as Dinuguan. Sure it looks inconspicuous enough. It could be some kind of black-bean stew or just heavily seasoned chili perhaps. Take a moment and ask yourself what you think could be in this asparagus-garnished bowl? But I warn you my friends there’s a metaphorical snake in the weeds - this dish is not all it seems…or rather there’s way, Way, WAY more to it than what meets the eye. Now click here and read the short wiki about Dinuguan. Yikes. The stomach, and the intestines, and the heart, and the ears, and the snout of a pig simmered in its own blood. Yummy yummy guts, heart, nose, and ears in my tummy? It sounds like this poor piggy fought Westley from the Princess Bride ‘to the pain’ and lost…and was made into stew for its efforts. It sounds like the Steven King version of the three little pigs. It’s Babe’s worst nightmare. I could probably keep makin jokes but I’ll just leave it at this: I had best not be told what is being served to me until after I try it because the word ‘Dinuguan’ is now imprinted in my brain which, interestingly enough, happens to be just north of my mouth, which is where my tongue cowers at the mere thought of Dinuguan. My palate has never found adventure to its taste.
Saturday, July 24, 2010
Snakes - The Rebuttal
In the "My Five Most Irrational Fears Going Into Peace Corps Philippines" post I got round to revealin my trepidation at runnin across some sneaky serpentine slitherers in the Philippines. I find my comical serpent-phobia just as amusing as most of you so I have no problem discussin it some more, for general entertainment, and since I've gotten a lot of feedback in person and in comments about that part of the post. Hence I’m fixin to respond...en masse...here and now...to what yall have said :)
So off we go!
-Yes, I’m aware there are pythons in the Philippines.
-No, I don’t think I’m gonna get killed by a python, thank you for askin…all of you.
-No, I really don’t hate snakes. Truthfully! They’re free to go about their business of swallowing cute furry animals, just somewhere else please. In fact the only species I really hate isn’t serpentine at all…its ants (with all due apologies to Jeremy who only ever wanted an ant farm as a young lad). And hate might be too strong of a word, it’s more of a cold blooded interaction. They bite the hell outta me so I retaliate by wiping out ant piles when I come across them. A clear-cut evolutionary transaction.
-No, I won’t be chowin down on some snake. My culinary philosophy of big and beefy not green and leafy does NOT include snakes.
-Thank you Rebecca for this ridiculously appetizing image you discovered. (The google search used was: "philippine snake bbq")
-No, I don’t think I’m gonna get killed by a python, cheers.
-Yes, I’m aware there’s a snake in that region that can kill in two seconds (get some knowledge: the yellow lipped sea krait) but I mean as long as we’re talkin about snake-related deaths I’d much rather have the two second nibble than the agonizing 15 minute death-by-blood boiling-venom with accompanying bite wound. Fifteen minutes aint long enough to get rescued by the antidote prolly but plenty long enough to suffer. Besides two seconds happened so fast you prolly didn’t even know what hit ya.
-Yes, very good advice, and I will to continue my live and let live policy for snakes. I don’t see a snake and think kill it, in fact I don’t really think at all I just want to get out of that particular scene faster than Mike Meyers did when Kanye said "George Bush doesn't care about black people". As far as snakes are concerned if you stay away from me I’ll try like hell to stay away from you. I’m hoping for the snake-free existence mentioned in Brandon’s comment.
-Yes, I’ve seen this video of the snake that tried to eat a hippo, oh sorry did I say tried? I meant did eat a hippo, as well as this picture of the snake-alligator M.A.D. (oh yes, that’s a cold war reference) battle in the ‘glades.
-Yes, I’m rather preoccupied with them but I mean while I’m just sittin stateside waitin to go over there’s not much else to think about except the Philippine what-ifs, right?
-No, for the last time, I don’t think I’m gonna get killed and then eaten by a python.
And for kicks and giggles I made a little motivational poster for the plane ride over:
So off we go!
-Yes, I’m aware there are pythons in the Philippines.
-No, I don’t think I’m gonna get killed by a python, thank you for askin…all of you.
-No, I really don’t hate snakes. Truthfully! They’re free to go about their business of swallowing cute furry animals, just somewhere else please. In fact the only species I really hate isn’t serpentine at all…its ants (with all due apologies to Jeremy who only ever wanted an ant farm as a young lad). And hate might be too strong of a word, it’s more of a cold blooded interaction. They bite the hell outta me so I retaliate by wiping out ant piles when I come across them. A clear-cut evolutionary transaction.
-No, I won’t be chowin down on some snake. My culinary philosophy of big and beefy not green and leafy does NOT include snakes.-Thank you Rebecca for this ridiculously appetizing image you discovered. (The google search used was: "philippine snake bbq")
-No, I don’t think I’m gonna get killed by a python, cheers.
-Yes, I’m aware there’s a snake in that region that can kill in two seconds (get some knowledge: the yellow lipped sea krait) but I mean as long as we’re talkin about snake-related deaths I’d much rather have the two second nibble than the agonizing 15 minute death-by-blood boiling-venom with accompanying bite wound. Fifteen minutes aint long enough to get rescued by the antidote prolly but plenty long enough to suffer. Besides two seconds happened so fast you prolly didn’t even know what hit ya.
-Yes, very good advice, and I will to continue my live and let live policy for snakes. I don’t see a snake and think kill it, in fact I don’t really think at all I just want to get out of that particular scene faster than Mike Meyers did when Kanye said "George Bush doesn't care about black people". As far as snakes are concerned if you stay away from me I’ll try like hell to stay away from you. I’m hoping for the snake-free existence mentioned in Brandon’s comment.
-Yes, I’ve seen this video of the snake that tried to eat a hippo, oh sorry did I say tried? I meant did eat a hippo, as well as this picture of the snake-alligator M.A.D. (oh yes, that’s a cold war reference) battle in the ‘glades.
-Yes, I’m rather preoccupied with them but I mean while I’m just sittin stateside waitin to go over there’s not much else to think about except the Philippine what-ifs, right?
-No, for the last time, I don’t think I’m gonna get killed and then eaten by a python.
And for kicks and giggles I made a little motivational poster for the plane ride over:
Wednesday, July 21, 2010
Philly to Philly - Staging and Itinerary from Philadelphia to Philippines
My staging information flew into my inbox today tellin me when I’ll be flyin out of the country. I’d been assumin that’d I’d be headed to Cali to fly out to Manilla. Instead I’m headed to the Always Sunny City of Brotherly Love for orientation and staging. I’m flyin out of Gainesville Regional Airport (and by regional we mean two gates, two airlines, two possible destinations, and...fortunately...no cows) at 6:15 am on the 19th of August. That’ll be rough, I do mornings about as well as France did in the World Cup: grumpy grumblings, lack of coordination, one angry tirade, flaky croissants instead of a real breakfast, and an early plane flight out. Complicated analogy, but appropriate. I’ll change-over in Atlanta (cause as the joke goes, if you die in the South you have to connect in Atlanta to get to heaven) at 8:40 am and then fly into Philly arriving at 10:54 am. Orientation begins at noon so it’s gonna be a tight fit.
Orientation is roughly a seven hour fun fest, following seven fun hours of flying, of things you need to know before goin. “Who we are, What’s expected of you, What you expect, What’s next” etc etc. Check out the next mornin is at 5 am where shortly after we will bus to NYC and fly out of JFK…to Tokyo…to Manilla. Talk about long days. The flight time says 20 hours, 20 minutes. I think you can watch all of the Star Wars movies and still have time to try and fail miserably to fall asleep on a miserably uncomfortable plane…I can still recite lines from Pocahontas II from the time I watched it 3 times home on flight back from Europe cause I couldn’t sleep (their movies system was screwed up or something).
Anyways, I can’t wait to get to Philly and meet the other education volunteers (the youth development and coastal resource people will be stagin outta Detroit)!
Orientation is roughly a seven hour fun fest, following seven fun hours of flying, of things you need to know before goin. “Who we are, What’s expected of you, What you expect, What’s next” etc etc. Check out the next mornin is at 5 am where shortly after we will bus to NYC and fly out of JFK…to Tokyo…to Manilla. Talk about long days. The flight time says 20 hours, 20 minutes. I think you can watch all of the Star Wars movies and still have time to try and fail miserably to fall asleep on a miserably uncomfortable plane…I can still recite lines from Pocahontas II from the time I watched it 3 times home on flight back from Europe cause I couldn’t sleep (their movies system was screwed up or something).
Anyways, I can’t wait to get to Philly and meet the other education volunteers (the youth development and coastal resource people will be stagin outta Detroit)!
Sunday, July 18, 2010
Treading Water
In exactly one month and one day I’m leavin for distant Pacific waters. I’ll travel cross-country manifest destiny style to the west coast for orientation…and a few days later Training Batch 269 will leave for the Philippines. Over the past month I’ve said countless times that I’m excited and can’t wait to go, but that falls more than a few feet short of a mile in explainin what goin really represents to me.
Applyin to Peace Corps gave me something to work towards during my last year at UF. I finally got some bearin on what direction I wanted to move in. Gettin invited to Peace Corps, truthfully, blew gettin accepted into college out of the water. On a scale of one to excited I was the rookie that just called up to the big leagues. But since then I gotta admit I feel as though I’ve been just treading water. This summer has been out of this world and beyond. I have some unforgettable memories with family and friends as parting gifts for when I leave. But without classes and without a job the listlessness creeps in and just galls me. I’m tired of treading water and not goin anywhere. I’m tired of bein debilitated since I know any endeavor I undertake I must leave unfinished in a month’s time. I know many volunteers get over seas and drown in the culture, the language, the job. Some volunteers immediately plunge into every aspect of their new life and surge forward. The fear of drowning and the excitement of excelling cannot, today, compensate for the stagnant straits I’ve been treading in. I want to go and start movin towards my future goals, professional and personal, that for now, I want to achieve in life.
That, in short, is the butter between the biscuits when I say I’m ridiculously excited and can’t wait to go over to the Philippines.
But. A whisper of a breeze has pierced the ennui doldrums…I’ve begun organizing all of my worldly possessions for storage and Packing!
Applyin to Peace Corps gave me something to work towards during my last year at UF. I finally got some bearin on what direction I wanted to move in. Gettin invited to Peace Corps, truthfully, blew gettin accepted into college out of the water. On a scale of one to excited I was the rookie that just called up to the big leagues. But since then I gotta admit I feel as though I’ve been just treading water. This summer has been out of this world and beyond. I have some unforgettable memories with family and friends as parting gifts for when I leave. But without classes and without a job the listlessness creeps in and just galls me. I’m tired of treading water and not goin anywhere. I’m tired of bein debilitated since I know any endeavor I undertake I must leave unfinished in a month’s time. I know many volunteers get over seas and drown in the culture, the language, the job. Some volunteers immediately plunge into every aspect of their new life and surge forward. The fear of drowning and the excitement of excelling cannot, today, compensate for the stagnant straits I’ve been treading in. I want to go and start movin towards my future goals, professional and personal, that for now, I want to achieve in life.
That, in short, is the butter between the biscuits when I say I’m ridiculously excited and can’t wait to go over to the Philippines.
But. A whisper of a breeze has pierced the ennui doldrums…I’ve begun organizing all of my worldly possessions for storage and Packing!
Wednesday, July 14, 2010
My Five Most Irrational Fears Going Into Peace Corps Philippines:
5. Seafood. I am moving to an island chain and I have never had a palate that was acquiesable to seafood. I’m afraid the only type of seafood I like is southern…deep fried and battered. Gets the fishy taste right out. I will make a rare exception to this anti-seafood agenda, BUT the important facet of the exception is that it must not taste like seafood. Has to be heavily seasoned/sauced (like bang bang shrimp at Bonefish…WHICH I LOVE!). If I wind up with a family of fishermen I’m going to be bummed.
4. A host family of thunderous, earthshattering, earsplitting, cosmos sundering snorers. I am a retardedly light sleeper. I will wake up if my roommate rolls out of bed and moves around his room at the opposite end of the apartment. It’s not like my host family can help it either, which makes it a difficult issue to solve. I am taking the best pack of ear plugs I can find just in case...but with the sincere hope I won't need them because I don't want to be sleepless in Manilla.
3. The ‘Golden Era’ for my favorite sports teams. As soon as I leave all of my favorite sports teams for whom I have lived and breathed for the length of my fanhood go on championship winning tears, and I can’t see any of it. I’ll break it down easily: The Gators win something like 4 national championships combined within the following sports: FOOTBALL, basketball, baseball. The Colorado Rockies win their first ever World Series. The Denver Broncos are led to a Superbowl by Tim Tebow. If that happens and I’m not there to see it I will be seriously devastated. It’s rough enough surrendering Saturdays in the Swamp for 3 seasons…
2. The death of my iPod. I love my music. My iPod’s already pretty old and if it goes and I have to wait on a replacement, if it’s even possible to get a replacement, I will probably be, inexplicably to my host family and community, exponentially more grumpy.
1. SNAKES! I have long had an extremely…tangible…fear of snakes. Like all good phobias it goes back to a childhood scarring incident involving a wayward football, my unsuspecting hand, an unsuspecting and probably startled garter snake, and close contact of the wrapped around my hand variety. I don’t want to see them, hear them, feel them, EAT them, or have anything to do with them. Go ahead and google search ‘snakes in the philippines’…two of the first seven links have to do with giant snakes.
4. A host family of thunderous, earthshattering, earsplitting, cosmos sundering snorers. I am a retardedly light sleeper. I will wake up if my roommate rolls out of bed and moves around his room at the opposite end of the apartment. It’s not like my host family can help it either, which makes it a difficult issue to solve. I am taking the best pack of ear plugs I can find just in case...but with the sincere hope I won't need them because I don't want to be sleepless in Manilla.
3. The ‘Golden Era’ for my favorite sports teams. As soon as I leave all of my favorite sports teams for whom I have lived and breathed for the length of my fanhood go on championship winning tears, and I can’t see any of it. I’ll break it down easily: The Gators win something like 4 national championships combined within the following sports: FOOTBALL, basketball, baseball. The Colorado Rockies win their first ever World Series. The Denver Broncos are led to a Superbowl by Tim Tebow. If that happens and I’m not there to see it I will be seriously devastated. It’s rough enough surrendering Saturdays in the Swamp for 3 seasons…
2. The death of my iPod. I love my music. My iPod’s already pretty old and if it goes and I have to wait on a replacement, if it’s even possible to get a replacement, I will probably be, inexplicably to my host family and community, exponentially more grumpy.
1. SNAKES! I have long had an extremely…tangible…fear of snakes. Like all good phobias it goes back to a childhood scarring incident involving a wayward football, my unsuspecting hand, an unsuspecting and probably startled garter snake, and close contact of the wrapped around my hand variety. I don’t want to see them, hear them, feel them, EAT them, or have anything to do with them. Go ahead and google search ‘snakes in the philippines’…two of the first seven links have to do with giant snakes.
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