welome to albania! - again

a bit of time has passed with my last blog...but something happened this week that provided me another spark and give me another dose of energy for my upcoming service.  The new group of trainees arrived in Albania this past thursday.  41 new volunteers, and possibly three more on the way shortly made there way to albania from all of the US and landed successfully in albania, finished orientation, and are now at their host family houses!  (oh, the arrival of the new group obviously means i've been here for a year also)

you might wonder how this could possibly jumpstart me, or give me energy, but it's quite simple; their arrival brought back all my memories from staging, orientation, moving in with my host family, and training...it reminded me of how excited i was to meet 49 new people in philadelphia, of the night before the flight to albania, and how nervously excited i was, of flying over albania and seeing it's natural beauty, of going to a store my second night in town, and having no idea what the clerk behind the counter was asking me (if i wanted a plastic bag)...all of those things were so new and exciting...then came the move in with the host family which is a very exciting/nerve wrecking/awkward time, especially when nobody in the family speaks english...

things that were once foreign and strange are now common place...for instance, drinking an expresso shot slowly over the course of half an hour (considering i never drank coffee to begin with), or sipping raki (which i could barely stand when i first arrived),  2.5 hour bus rides are now the norm, and the time actually passes very quickly...

i could go on and on about all the things that i've slowly become accustomed to in my year here, but i really am cherishing this new found nostalgia after the arrival of group 14...it reminds me of how far we've all come here in albania, and pushes me to continue to try and do better...to be successful, and to overcome my current challenges, just like i've overcome my past challenges here...

with all that said, just want to say thanks to everyone for all the support over the last year i've been here...i'm looking forward to a productive next 15 months!  

Call me a cynic. I did.

Call me a cynic.  In fact, I'll call myself a cynic just to be fair.  I came across this article about the Superbowl and it spoke to me about something larger.  (I hope the NFL doesn't come after me for using the word "Superbowl.")

Fans with tickets miss Superbowl

For a quick summary, some fans who had purchased tickets for the Superbowl were unable to take their purchased seats because they weren't ready/safe in time for the game.  As a mea culpa, the NFL refunded three times the purchase price of the tickets, allowed the fans to go on the field after the game, and the fans will be "guests" of the NFL at next year's Superbowl (if there is one, which is what got me thinking...), among other perks including merchandise, food and beverages, although probably not beer.

So now I'm going to give you my completely biased, cynical opinion on this whole situation, and the NFL's intentions.  (Btw, does believing we shouldn't have a Columbus Day make me a cynic?)  So, upon reading the article I couldn't help but think that something was awry.  The NFL was going above and beyond the call of duty with these perks.

The generosity they showed to the ticket holders didn't match the image I've gotten from the NFL lately.  They appeared to be a caring, responsible organization.  This would mean they put fans, and players first, profits and bottom lines would fall in line accordingly, but wouldn't be the drive behind critical decisions.

But what are we used to?  A league that wants to increase the length of the regular season from 16 games to 18 games.  Why? Very clearly to boost revenues, and not one single other reason.  When I read about players who are paralyzed, or who have difficulty walking after playing years in the NFL I can't think of a single good reason to extend the season for two more grueling games besides a lust for MORE money.  Never-mind that the owners are multi-millionaires and potentially billionaires.  Never-mind the fact that the NFL is a billion dollar meal ticket.  When is enough, enough?

So, for those that follow NFL news, you know that the current collective bargaining agreement is ending and there may be a potential lockout if the owners and the players union cannot agree on a myriad of subjects.  And this is where the Superbowl mistake comes in.  What better P.R. can the NFL get with its fans than what this turned out to be.  Going over the top to correct a mistake that was only made for one reason, that dirty little word comes up again, GREED.  They tried to pack as many people as humanly possible into that game, and again, for those who follow the news, ticket prices were ridiculous, then resell ticket prices were even worse.

So, in an attempt to bolster their image before the upcoming labor negotiations, the NFL went over the top.  Which takes me back to intentions.  To me it just feels like the NFL is trying to pull the wool over our eyes, paint themselves in this positive light.  Yes these people missed watching the Superbowl, and should be compensated appropriately.  But, since when did the NFL put fans first, before revenues?  What about all the controversy surrounding the NFL network, and the cable subscribers who don't have the option to get the network without switching to satellite television, what about the regular black-outs that occurred throughout this season.  What about the fact that teams have been known to abandon cities when they don't get "sweet" deals where tax payers assist in paying for a new stadium?  I'm not buying it.

Ok, now I'll get off my soapbox.

a jenny jones makeover!

so for those of you who haven't noticed...i gave my blog a little makeover...it had been a while since i posted anything, actually, since before new year's...so i had to get  a post in before i let an entire month go with nothing...and while i was at it...i changed the layout a bit..

in any case...the new year has been good thus far in albania...i have had a few grant writing projects to work out, which although the translation part is a bore, improving the language, and the idea that i may be able to help this city acquire some funds does make me feel good...doing any kind of work really...

in january i also continued my quest to visit all the volunteer sites while i'm here in albania...so, i went with my sitemate kim to erseke where we visited with katie and marie...we had a good time there...its always nice to see what other cities have to offer...erseke is very small compared to gramsh, and not many people were out when we were there..it's supposed to be one of the colder cities where volunteers are placed, but we lucked out, and the weekend we were there i only needed to wear one pair of long johns..

the latest news in albania has been the demonstrations over the control of the democratic government...i'm not going to pretend to know the entire history, but i was able to watch things unfold live on television at my counterparts house...needless to say, it wasn't pretty...there were plenty of peaceful demonstrators, but there were also those who were throwing rocks, tipping over cars, and burning things...the question now looms whether or not the protests will continue, or if things will die down...today should be telling if the demonstrations continue, and how large they are...

for the time being the demonstrations have been limited to tirana, and i haven't had any concerns over my own safety (for those concerned)...

here are some articles on the news:
http://www.balkaninsight.com/en/article/uneasy-calm-returns-in-albania-following-deadly-clashes

http://www.balkaninsight.com/en/article/albania-opposition-protester-clash-with-police

fier...fear...and football

(note...i was waiting to post this post until i got a picture of the marines we were lucky enough to eat with, but it hasn't made it my way, so i'm posting pa-picture...)

so it's been a while..a little over two months ago I sort of realized that it was time for me to get out more..do some travelling, visit some volunteers and get to see more of the country...so in a nutshell, that's what i've been up to..

a few weeks back i went to fier..got to hang out with quite a few volunteers there and had a great time.  quick thanks to susan for hosting...and chris and kristEn for hanging out...one of the things i like most about peace corps are the conversations i have with the other volunteers, learning more about them and what they've accomplished...i'm lucky to be surrounded by some amazing people...

more recently, we had thanksgiving in tirana...fortunately for the volunteers we had the opportunity to be hosted by american families or the marines for dinner...a group of four of my friends..they treated us like royalty..which was weird, because usually when you're around servicemen you want to do the work for them...the food was amazing as well...all in all it was as best a substitute for being home that i could've hoped for...


oh, and before the festivities we also got to play a little football...i think this game is an annual tradition, and the volunteers hadn't won in the past..but we put together a good squad and pulled out the win..had we played tackle i think the marines would've had the advantage...but we represented for the finessers our there...here are some pics..

 

Benny Buttons

so i watched this movie for the first time and the quote just stuck for me...the movie is based on a short story by f.scott fitzgerald, and i guess this sorta sparks a little interest in me to read books other than non-fiction...

"For what it's worth: it's never too late or, in my case, too early to be whoever you want to be. There's no time limit, start whenever you want. You can change or stay the same, there are no rules to this thing. We can make the best or the worst of it. I hope you make the best of it. I hope you see things that startle you. I hope you feel things you never felt before. I hope you meet people who have a different point of view. I hope you live a life you're proud of, and if you find that you're not, I hope you have the strength to start all over again."


i guess the scary thing is the thought of starting over again...but if that's what it takes, that's what you gotta do

What do you wear? WINTER

undershirt...underarmor...sweater...jacket...gloves...beanie...scarf

pants...long johns...long johns part II

and it's still cold...

burrrrreeezyyyy

so i have a post all good and ready for to explain what i did on thanksgiving..just waiting for a picture from a friend before i post...so don't worry..i did something..missed the normal celebration from the states...but still had fun..

in any case...it's starting to get much colder here...i woke up this morning and it was mid forties in my house...i'm guessing that means outside it was high 30's....it's been really brisk here lately...reminds me of a few winter days i've spent in nebraska...difference being, i don't have a heater in my house..i can get one..and may once it gets really cold..but for now i'm saving money on electricity, and i can stand it...as long as you guys can stand to hear me complain..

one thing i always took for granted was socal weather...i'd been in freezing temperatures before, and deserts...and i hate deserts...now i realize it's much different to visit cold...and to live in the cold...it affects a lot more things than you realize...

for instance..i workout in my apartment, using some weights i bought and a pull up bar i brought from home, with my personal trainer, tony horton...(if you don't get the reference, google it)...anyway...now that the weather is so cold in my apartment, when i workout, my tile floors gather up all the moisture in the room and get extremely slippery...i figured i could work my way around it until recently when i almost fell and busted me head open..so i bought this wonderful rug for 20 bucks, and now i feel a bit more safe...

on top of that, the cold air really does a number on my endurance, lungs and appearance...take a look at this shot, post workout, i felt and looked a bit like nick nolte from the old pic...

finally, here's a picture of my windows crying cuz it is sooooooo cold outside...haha..