COS Surveys and THE NUMBERS

Before our COS conference I sent out a survey and then a poll to just gather some facts from our group. Here's what our group looked like by the numbers:

The Numbers:

23 COSing Volunteers (out of 40 sworn in)

17 female, 6 male

$83,775 USD were raised

48% took two showers daily

81.8% Had current in their house (electicity)

81.8% Had running water in their house (not us, unless you count our bucket greg put a tap on)

32% had a latrine

27% washed their clothes in a creek

14% had real washer AND dryers like from the states

45% had a cold shower/bucket

9% had AC in their house

18% had AC at their work

36% had been mistaken as Belizean at least once

4% as Jamaican

73% tried gibnut

50% tried iguana

36% tried armadillo

55% woke at 6am

50% went to bed at 10

50% slept under a mosquito net

47 weddings were attended

22 funerals were attended

56 cell phones were purchased

36% kissed a Belizean

4% were kissed by a Belizean

9% dated a fellow PCV (not counting married couples)

50% kissed a fellow PCV (excluding couples again)

23% came with a significant other back home

9% made it out with the same one

50 trips to the hospital, 3 nights

63.25 months on antibiotics

263 pounds lost

9 godchildren (two for us!)

11 animals killed (7 chickens, 2 pigs, and 2 turkeys)

4% attempeted slaughtering an animal

59% reported one or more security incident

695 books read

82% cried at least once during their service

41% cried too many times to count

68% kept a journal

86% owned at least one bucket ( we owned 5)

86%had a blog

50% have a pet

32% will take their pet back

73% jumped off a waterfall

14% ruptured an ear drum

41% were peed on by a child (4% defecated on)

18% lived in a thatch

68% can make their own tortillas

COS Survey:

Name: Gregory Albert Casaletto

Nick name/house name: Greg-pa-leg, Greg Coh/ Choc

Project Assignment: Primary Teacher Trainer at Big Falls R.C. School

Project Reality: IT expert for rural Toledo

Most Useful thing brought to country: Google search skills

Least useful thing brought to country: Germiphobia

Best “I know I’m in the Peace Corps” moment: When the guys I got drunk with the night before woke me up to go plant at 4:30am on the side of a mountain with only sticks

Funniest experience in country: Sure, I’ll share that. During training my host dad came home on his bike with about 40 pounds of flour and slightly drunk. He asked me if I wanted to go take a few beers. Since I had little “guy time” in training because my group consisted of Kevina, Grace, Amy, Carmalina as LCF and Ginnie as Tech Trainer. I was desperate.

We walked to one of the scary bars in Maya Mopan where everyone immediately started heckling the gringo, we took a nice late night walk through the dirt roads behind Belmopan trying to find another bar where “the girls are nice” but they were closed. Finally we went home.

I crawled under the mosquito net and woke Kevina up. She asked me how the night was, the only word I could think of was “weird”. I promptly fell asleep.

I was then woken up by Kevina crawling over me, she whispered something. I kind of brushed it off until I turned and saw my host dad sleeping next to me basically where Kevina was. I too got out of bed.

We stood outside the room and decided that we should try to sleep in the hammock. This was not easy with two people. Then after an hour of that we tried to grab another pillow from the bed my host dad woke up and realized what he had done. He apologized profusely as he went to bed and then got up and knocked on the door to apologize again. “I’m sorry Dreg, I’m so sorry Dreg”, is all we heard for a few minutes.

The next morning the first thing my host mom said to me was “What happened last night?”

Most memorable illness/injury: Getting bit by a dog and Kevina having to give me my last rabies shot. I know it’s boring but I’m pretty healthy.

Most Belizean habit to take home with you: Wiping off glass bottles and popping them with my finger before drinking them.

Most creative way to kill time in site: Motorcycle magazines and my ukulele

How have you changed? I used to wash my clothes, clean my dishes, scrub the shower, and toilet and now Kevina does all of that. I can now fix or at least pinpoint the problem of any broken computer. I am super patient with long bus rides. I eat meat now.

What will you miss 6 months from now? Walking to the shop for flower and eggs, coming back drunk with a can of Dak and a loaf of bread having only paid for the food.

The clear starry nights in the shower.

Kriol text messages.

Favorite Belizean clothing: Echo unlimited ¾ jean shorts and a mesh tank top

What won’t you miss? The heat, long staff meetings, people getting way too drunk to carry on a conversation, corn, teachers asking me to find a lesson on the three types of weather, the library, the heat, rum, corn, all the kids, latrine splash back, reporting “out of site”, being the only white person on a bus, looking like a tourist everywhere I go just because I’m white, slow internet, corn, having one spoonful of coleslaw be my vegetable for that meal, rats, mosquito net, wearing a helmet on my bicycle when riding through PG, corn, waking up at 5:30 am on a Saturday, corn, jock itch, and corn.

What’s next? 2007 Harley Davidson Sportster 1200 custom with a blue and silver two-tone paint job. Going back to vegetarianism…and losing thirty pounds.

Number of trips to the US: 3

Number of guests who visited you: 6

Belizean phrase I will most likely still be using in 6 months: right now, maanin

Most interesting creatures found in your house: tarantula, large Mohawk lizard, feuding rat family,

Favorite Belizean food: cahoon cabbage

First thing I will eat in the states: the closest fast food restaurant to my connecting flight, and it will be awesome!

Favorite book read in PC (optional 3 sentence summary) Harry Potter #7

The movies suck don’t even bother watching them, read the books.

Experience that changed my attitude or perspective: Watching a group of white people come in and donate a shipping container of old/broken computers and children’s toys seemingly just to get pictures of them doing it.

I am most proud of: Teaching computers to people

I will most likely be remembered for: Loving dogs and teaching them how to sit and shake

Most important lesson learned: Life is hard, animals die, babies die, and people die and we are sheltered from most aspects of death in the states. Taxes pay for wonderful things like bridges. Next time I hear a little punk kid complaining about the U.S. I will tell them to move somewhere for a couple years, and if they still don’t like it, stay away.

Countries visited: Mexico, Canada, USA, Guatemala

After two years of service what I know for sure: I’m proud to be an American!

COS Survey:

Name: Kevina Casaletto

Nick name/house name: xKeveen, kev, kay, ma-na(literally translates to are you my mother?)

Project Assignment: Teacher Trainer at Silver Creek R.C. School

Project Reality: Teacher Trainer/ Library Facilitator/ Computer God

Most Useful thing brought to country: Hanging Shelves

Least useful thing brought to country: Chocos and American business casual

Best “I know I’m in the Peace Corps” moment: After a two-week stint in Belize for medical stuff we came home to a rat infested house. One night I felt a rat at the bottom of the bed. If you kick your feet they will run away, so I did a little shuffle with my feet. At this point Greg woke up, arms flung wide protectively and simultaneously scooted me back to the corner of our mosquito net while screaming, “WHAT’S A MATTER?” “IT’S OKAY!” WHAT’S A MATTER?” “IT’S OKAY!” in rapid succession. This continued until he had me safely barricaded behind his body in the corner and I could finally get out, “there was a rat but it’s gone.”

Funniest experience in country: During my sister’s visit we took a mini vacation in Placencia. We had a great night and went to bed early, around 10:00. We did not book in advance so we were in a tiny room with two twin beds, one tucked 3/4ths behind the wall of the bathroom. In the middle of the night kaylyssa woke up because there’s a light on. At first she tries to ignore it, then finally looks around and realizes it is not our room’s light but the hallway’s!! She immediately sits up (choosing not to make a sound) and realizes there is someone in the bathroom. After carefully counting and recounting the four legs in the twin bed across from her she deduces it is indeed an intruder (again choosing not to make a noise). She later told me her plan was simple. Wait until the person comes out, give him a ‘what –the –f” stare and he, realizing he’d made a terrible sleep walking mistake would simply turn and go onto his own room.

The door knob begins to turn and she fashions her face and hands in her WTF stare. As the intruder (tall white male in only boxers) enters the room he stops for one second and then proceeds to try to get into bed WITH my sister! She feebly starts to say “what? What? No no!” as she slaps her hands in a doggy paddling motion in front of her face. Finally, since there is a little ruckus now Greg wakes up. Now here’s where it gets interesting. Instead of making or saying ANY normal action/thing he begins to flap his arms up and down fully extended starting from his thighs up way above his head fingers rigged and hooked while screaming, “RRRAAAAHHHHHHHAHHH! RHHHAHHAAAAAHHHHH!!!!” (Picture a tyradayctle impersonation). This wakes me up and I think that sound is some intruder trying to have his way with my sister and I start to go bizzerk jumping up and down and from bed to bed trying to swing at him saying “GET THE F OUT!” in an ultra sonic voice. I however, cannot get any his in because greg is flapping all in his face (actually he pushed the man down ontop of kaylyssa). The man is clearly frightened out of his mind and in shock, his eyes are the size of saucers, his mouth is completely open and his hands are up in defense as the two of us surround him. Finally Greg lurches back, grabs the dude by his shoulders and throws him in the hall shutting the door. The battle of two primal brains, appear larger, make loud sounds vs. fight or flight.

Most memorable illness/injury: Doctor diagnosing my kidney infection by punching me in it, my face being paralyzed, and having to run out of the hospital to vomit as the pharmacist explains how to take a pill every 8 hours (mainly how you don’t start over with 1 when you get to noon, you just keep counting).

Most Belizean habit to take home with you: Thanking everyone at the table after meals.

Most creative way to kill time in site: Pouring cup after cup of water into the desert cracks during the dry season

How have you changed? I’m not lazy anymore, for the first time in my life I know what hard work is. And I kill and eat animals for food.

What will you miss 6 months from now? Swimming in the creek every day, hammock time, the sweet smell of scrubbed people on the morning bus, interacting with so many people each day.

Favorite Belizean clothing: ‘Ninja turtle’ skirt also, all cabañerous clothes

What won’t you miss? Everyone assuming I’m an expert in EVERYTHING

What’s next? That is the question...language school, beyond that ???

Number of trips to the US: 3

Number of guests who visited you: 6 (my sister came twice though)

Belizean phrase I will most likely still be using in 6 months: right now, jo'wan (wait in ketchi)

Most interesting creatures found in your house: Bat, cat, duck, chicken, scorpion, baby human, lizard, and a puppy.

Favorite Belizean food: rice and beans with stewed chicken (with fresh coconut milk) and cahoon cabbage (the center of a cahoon palm tree)

First thing I will eat in the states: that salad with pears, blue cheese, walnuts, apples, and the raspberry vinaigrette!!! Also all cold weather fruits; pomegranates, grapes, apples, strawberries, and squash.

Favorite book read in PC (optional 3 sentence summary):

Stiff: the curious life of cadavers by Mary Roach. Talks about the many interesting uses and history of cadavers; from fertilizer to test dummies.

Experience that changed my attitude or perspective: After shouting, “good try” to one of my girls playing volleyball she turned and told me, “but I missed the ball, Miss!” Perhaps we praise a little too much in the states. Do we really need to tell kids they are doing a good job sitting??

I am most proud of: My husband for sticking it out and being so integrated! He is THE man in the village, "Yeah Mr. Greg!"

I will most likely be remembered for: Falling through our village bridge in front of everyone.

Most important lesson learned: Development is a very tricky field and looks totally different to the people being ‘developed.’

Countries visited: Mexico, Guatemala, Canada, USA

After two years of service what I know for sure: is that I have an unending amount left to learn. It is always better to listen for a long time before voicing your opinion, or choose not to say anything. 'Doing good' isn't always so 'good.' Also, there are always two sides to every story.

HAIKU CORNER

“No Want to buy?”

Wangla, panades,

Casava, donuts, pan tul

Watermelon, ik

-Greg

To be more, meet more

I am part of those I’ve met.

To meet more, go more.

-Amy

corn, corn, corn, corn, corn.

Children everywhere I look

Corn, corn, corn, corn, corn

-Lilly

Da wat you meh say?

Dis da one crazy fun time!

Soon gwen from here

-Emily Allen

Where visit and walk

Are one and the same, where all

The kids shout my name

-me

Chickens, dogs, children

All roaming in my front yard

But none belong here

-Cali

COS: Close of Serivce

Peace Corps Volunteers

2009-2011 Belize

All 41 one of us moments after arriving in Belize at the airport.

The 23 that remain. As of today there are 20 of us left.

We made it!

Checking in with the COS committee!!

Similar to a blue packet I got over two years ago...

COS was a 3 day whirlwind of activities and meetings. We had all the paperwork involved in ending our service in the Peace Corps and also we had to begin to reflect and make an 'exit strategy' so we don't disengage and ignore the fact we're leaving forgetting proper goodbyes. There were sessions on the benefits we receive and have available as RPCVs (Returned Peace Corps Volunteers), panels, discussion about final medical exams (you have to poo in a cup three days in a row!) and so much more. On top of all this we had a great COS committee that organized activities for the rest of our waking time at COS. We had scheduled pool time, random fact, white elephant exchange, superlatives, jeopardy (which turned into a heated 2 hour hotly debated event), kumbaya circle where we shared what we felt and then tied a friendship bracelet on the person to our right. Lastly, my favorite was the PROM!! We had a PC Prom with a garifuna drummer and EVERYONE danced!! We bought special outfits and put on make up and did it right! The drummer was impressed by our dancing abilities and even passed the drum to Greg for a song or two as he danced with us! Greg amazed us all as we forgot it was him that was drumming...he was that good! There were slide shows, videos, cake, tears and laughter. A bitter sweet end representing the last time we will all be in one room together. I sure do love my fellow PCVs and couldn't have made it without them.

Our accommodations,

not unlike home but with a/c and a 4 channel TV.

There were pools!

Starting the goodbyes...

Pizza party with the Kibs!

Saying goodbye too our first host family.

So what are we doing this summer...

1. Spending entire days fixing things.

(and I mean an entire day)

A trip to the waterfalls during Amy's visit...Sheldon wearing my lem (ketchi for glass/mirror)

2. Trip, after trip to the waterfalls to swim and eat watermelon.

18 pounds of watermelon...no problem!

3. Hanging around with Steve

4. Working with Yvette on the library stimulation month.

At the start of movie night. We made 44 dollars!

G sitting as they bring back 3 desktop computers from death!

5. Fixing computers!

'G' AKA Alberto Choco Jr., Greg's little apprentice/ protegee came to us the other night asking for a reference letter to the technical college IT Vet for entrance into the computer program they offer. He has been a constant at Greg's side these past two years whenever Greg is working on computers. quietly watching, helping, and fixing along side Greg. I am so proud of Greg because yesterday at the creek he beamed as he told me, "I got it keveen, I am doing computers!" He was accepted after his interview and will start the two year computer technologies and repair courses this August! So proud of Greg!

This guy jumped in over our gate,

the same night a bat got trapped in our house.

Oooh living in a thatch.

*Hopefully I will post more photos and stories from COS soon, time permitting...78 days!*

Bits and Pieces

Goal 2: Teach host country nationals about Americans.

Lindsford, one of Greg's little proteges, came over the other night (as he does every day) to tell Greg about his trip to the San Miguel Internet Lab. "Mr. Greg when I was on the Internet, I typed in 'motorcycles' into google and there were so many clean pictures!" (clean means cool in Belizean). Greg's motorcycle magazines have now been placed on our game shelf and it is not unusual to see 2-6 boys in a circle on our floor with a few of the mags out between them silently flipping the pages.

Lynette the 'modern maya' cleaning her beans

Life in a Cartoon

It's fourth of July, and Greg is on a mission to attempt to find relish for our 4th hot dogs. His fruitless search is coming to an end, as he has tried the only 3 shops in town that might carry such fancy substances. Well it is the rainy season, not raining at the moment, but puddles abound. Greg is on Erica's bike, and is approaching a large puddle. He looks back and checks if she has a fender, she does not, so he slows down right before riding in the puddle. Thank goodness he did. As he entered the puddle he quickly realized it was not some surface puddle on the road but a huge waist deep hole filled with water! He rode both tires in, sunk the bike up to the seat, AND lost both shoes in the mud at the bottom. It had to look like a cartoon, a man riding up to a puddle, disappearing IN the 'puddle' then spending 10 minutes retrieving all his belongings from the bottomless mud pit. *see below*

Our table-scape and Greg, myself and Erica!

You Must Tell Them Your Name:

I was visiting with Ms. Ico the other day and we were on one of the villages' favorite topics, illness (the top conversation topics being weather, food, and sickness (other people's sickness too). She brought up my 'face sickness' and said that I most likely caught obia that was left for someone else. Obia is like black magic, evil spirits, that is attributed to most illnesses. Two people have moved from this village while I've been here due to obia. She said that what I could have done was when I first came, tell the 'ancients' my name. She said an old belief/tradition is that whenever you traveled away from your home you would find out some of the ancient names and call them, say your name, what you are doing on their land, and apologize if you have to defile it in any way (such as bathing in the creek, or relieving yourself on their land). I told her I thought that is a pretty nice thing to do in general, so I have taken it up and think it's a good idea all over this world. She said I should say something like this, "Ancients of this land, my name is Kevina Casaletto. I just came to this place to do some works, I won't be staying here forever. Please let me leave as I have come."

My 'works' Almost all the cloths

Comparing all the work

I No Want Tell You Keveen:

You may remember when, several month ago we traded one of Dobby's remaining puppies for a chicken. Our chicken was brown and gold and beautiful. Since I came back from Canada I haven't seen it, there are about 35 chickens that live at our house so I thought I just wasn't paying good attention, or it was wandering far for bugs and worms. Wrong. Mrs. Cecilia came to my door the other day and said, "Keveen, I no want to tell you from long, but your chicken, she's gone." She explained about the chicken sickness that is sweeping the village. Chickens are fine and eating one day then dead the next morning! Villagers have been slaughtering troves of chickens 10,14, 20 at once to get food out of them before the sickness gets them. They don't get sores or weak just good one day, dead the next. I told her I understood and that it was okay. They said they didn't want to tell me because they know I 'cry after puppies' and since Ms. Cecilia cries when her chicks or chickens get killed (not by her hand) she thought I surely would be distraught too. She said they never did find my chicken, they went all around the village looking and asking after her, but I assured her it was okay. She said my chicken had laid just 4 eggs, just starting her life, and she wanted to try to roost her and see if she was a good mother hen or not. "I ma tink maybe keveen da have plenty chicken." (I was thinking maybe kevina would have lots of chickens.) Alas, no more chicken.

I Hope My Wasp Isn't Dead

Over the past few weeks we have developed a certain fondness for this one little wasp. Greg discovered it while bathing one day gathering wood pulp from the top board of our shower. Greg would watch it, research how mud wasps build their nest, then bring me out at 6:00am to show me and explain his little actions. He would carefully point out the tracks the wasp has made slowly chewing the wood into a pulp and mixing it with his spit to form a little ball which he then caries between his chin and chest to a clothespin on our line he's chosen to build his nest. We've carefully tracked his progress over the days, spending many minutes together in the shower standing, our faces inches away from the little wasps busily doing his hard work. Now his work is finished, and he's gone.

Double Digit Count Down

Our official COS (Close of Service) date is October 14th! Two years, it is a long time, a long long time and now we are nearly finished. The villagers only talk about this; when I'm leaving, how I will feel, will I come visit, and don't I want to just find work here and stay. I have so many different feelings. Excitement about being back in the states, convinces, and most of all family and friends. Sadness about never living here again, about leaving my rock at the creek, about the children forgetting us, about forgetting hard work. This time in our life is nearly finished, two whole years! The 22nd of this month we will have spent exactly half our marriage as Peace Corps Volunteers. The hardest thing we've ever done in our lives.

Email from our friend Rachael: "I was totally reminded of this while reading Kevina's description of your puddle incident:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1PA1J0oDphc

Did you see any manatees while diving for your shoes?"

"Kevina, rocks are heavy!"

July: Library Stimulation Month!!!

Yvette and I

With school being out the library has become kinda my main project. Meredith and I have been meeting with Yvette and with our three brains combined we have come up with some pretty amazing things! First of which the inaugural year of 'Library Stimulation Month' to be held hence forth every July. So far the main events are:

-Women's Craft Day

-Library Beautification Day

-MOVIE night

(to be held in the community center with pop corn and juice for sale)

There are lots of other projects for the month in the works and we've already had great success with the first activity! We were all in the library on Thursday, even several women and teenage girls, discussing the Craft Day. Between Meredith and I the weekend was totally out so it was suggested we just do it for the next day. We wrote up a little invitation letter and sent out two girls to scour the village to see if any women would come. Eight said yes that day! However, I wasn't getting my hopes up. Well, come 2:00 there were already two women with their children waiting with their 'ring' (embroidery hoop) to start making the signs! By 2:30 we had 13 women all working and chatting. There was much joking and teasing. Women were constantly asking to see each other's sign, asking if their's was good, and giving tips and lessons to one another. Yvette thought it would be good, after much hinting by the ladies, to treat everyone to a soda. She has collected quite an amount of money from fines and I think the cloth for the section signs is awesome and worth a little soda each. The women were very grateful and worked hard up until 5:00. We hastily cleaned and cut off pieces of thread to finish our signs and went home agreeing to meet later to turn in and do a final compare of all our signs (we did 21 signs total!)

First day of holiday hours!

Look at Amir in the bottom right, he is 4 and comes every day.

Tearing the cloth into sections

I love how Ms. Che brought her 'lem' (glasses)

Choosing thread

After sewing for 3 hours here's what we got so far:

A. (adult) Fiction, Local, ?

C.(children) Poetry, C. Reader

C. Adventure, C. Fairy Tales

C. Sci Fiction, C. Conc

Y. A. Fiction, C. Humor

Everyone agreed to take it home as homework and set Wednesday at 2:00 as the due date.

Ladies Trip to the Farm

Lynette invited me to join them on a short trip to the farm to get more stones for their fire-hearth. Since it is vacation time I jumped at the opportunity. We packed our bags (I was the only one that brought water). We started walking down farmers road towards their farm. Lynette chatted with me pretty much the whole time. We stopped briefly to look at the late Estevan's house (her son). Cecilia told me of her days, "when I first start life, only rice and pig and work" She would help harvest rice, beat it and cook it. She says she doesn't know why her children are so lazy now, they don't even have hard work (this on the way to pick and carry back 10-30 pounds of rock each).

Right past the village there is this lovely creek, both going and coming back we stopped to play. Even Cecilia was frolicking and we were all swimming around playing in all the different waterfalls. The water was crystal clear and cool.

lynette on the way back

Lynette finding a good rock

On the way back with each of us 'backing' a few rocks each lynette, after I just rearranged the corn sack protecting her back from the rock, "Kevina, rocks are very heavy." I had to laugh.

Boston to Belize: By Greg

Backstory:

Several months ago two women from a University in Boston came to Belize and found one of the students at Big Falls who could not speak. She is in the preschool class but is six years of age. They did a few speech therapy sessions with her while they were in country. They had a meeting and I was asked if I could facilitate video chat to provide further speech therapy sessions. It took a while to get the materials necessary (web cam and a mic). However, once school finished, this became one of my main projects. For the last fourmonths I have been working with the mother on a crash course on computers. She had never touched a computer, has only a standard 6 education and is very young (early twenties). So over those four months she learned how to operate a computer on her own, how to set up and maintain an email account, and how to activate a video chat on gmail. She would come to school once or twice a week for her lessons.

Yesterday, I made the arrangements with the speech therapist, Ms. Chris, through emailing to coordinate times and dates for therapy. Today, July 1^st we had our first session. It was a success and I am looking forward to more sessions. The mother was able to get to gmail and gchat by herself!!! Then the session lasted about 10 minutes before the little girl got scared or overwhelmed and started to cry. We then made arrangements for next Tuesday (including some homework for myself and Kevina…printing things in town, and Kevina making letter cards). Hoping Tuesday goes just as well or better.