Five Billion People

I recently found the newspapers my mom saved from the day I was born.  The USA Today, the Atlanta Journal and the Atlanta Constitution; all were dusty and faded sitting on the top shelf of my closet.  The headline that struck me the most was this: “5 billionth human will be born today;” That could have been me!  It’s baffling to consider that 25 years ago the world was two billion people emptier than it is today.  With the birth of the Earth’s seven billionth person just yesterday I thought it was quite timely to find that paper today.  Or completely the opposite of timely, depending on how you look at it.

That’s not it though; the headline goes on, “5 billionth human will be born today; child likely to grow up poor, illiterate.”  And just like that, it could have seemed like my fate was sealed.  As it turns out, I wasn’t that five billionth person. I was somewhere close in the lineup, but that headline certainly doesn’t describe all the blessings I’ve had in my life.  One of those blessings was being able to live in Ethiopia for two years, where I met many people who could have been that five billionth person.

My life has been privileged, but just as easily I could have been born into a life of poverty, without education.  I read in the article that "nine out of ten babies today are born in the Third World;" Nine out of ten of us born that fateful day in 1986 would be born into poverty.  The odds were against me, and yet somehow I managed to beat them.   

I, like many American children, grew up dragging my feet, not in love with the idea of going to school every day.  Now I realize how blessed I was to have had the opportunity to be educated, and even today to be able to continue my education.  It’s the lottery behind the system that puzzles me.  Why did I grow up in America? Why was I born into this life?  It's all chance.  But it’s a good reminder that you could just as easily have been born in a developing country.  We should all be grateful for the blessings in our lives and remember to show grace and love to others.

All I know is that every day the Earth's population is growing.  Every day there are more people that need assistance.  Who am I not to try to help?  I’m not sure how or when, but I can’t wait to continue working in developing countries.

My Ethiopian Dog

Anyone who knows me knows all about my lovely Ethiopian dog. I seriously talk about her like she is my child.  But, having her with me through all those stressful times in Ethiopia meant the world to me, and having her now with me in America makes me happy every day!  Exactly one year ago today I took a flight, with Arbay in the cozy cargo hold, in order to bring my precious pup all the way to America.  It is hard to believe that it has been a whole year since she has been home.  We've surely fattened her up a bit and she almost blends right in as if she's been here the whole time.

Yes, she is happily chewing on a chicken foot in this picture from Ethiopia.

In America she still manages to get just as dirty!

She's a rambunctious, hyper three-year old dog who used to live on the streets of Ethiopia.  Yes, I let her adorable flea-ridden fur sleep in my bed. 

Arbay prancing ahead of me on our last sunrise run together in Ethiopia.

I'd say she's adapted. Could she possibly sit atop a larger pile of toys?

She has been through a lot in the past three years.  I took her from her home on a street in Bahir Dar, Ethiopia when she was approximately four months old.  She wouldn't walk on a leash and she threw up on the bus ride back to my town, but she learned quickly how to act like a ferengi (American) dog since I spoiled her like one!  Her first friend was a baby cow; her second an equally-feisty Americanized Ethiopian dog.  She's been kidnapped for ransom, had rocks thrown at her by children and old men alike, and still snuggles like a toddler.  I adore this dog.  Here's to her one-year anniversary of being an African American dog! More Arbay stories can be found here or here.

The Girl Effect

I know, I haven't blogged in a while. Life and school have been a bit time consuming lately.  I really wanted to share this video though about "The Girl Effect."  I must admit that it brought tears to my eyes since I know a lot of the girls I taught and knew in Ethiopia were at risk for many issues brought up in this video.  This visual presentation says more than I could ever write about it:

You can also see the video here.

Let me know what you think of it. I hope it touches you like it touched me.

My Own Travel Posters

I mentioned a while ago that I was working on a craft from a road-side find. Well, the project is complete and ready for its grand reveal!  A few months ago I found these cabinet doors sitting by the curb, waiting to be picked up by the garbage truck.  I couldn't help but throw them in my trunk, hoping one day I'd figure out how to make them into frames!

My road-side treasure!

A little spray paint, some light antiquing with sand paper, cardboard backing, nails and wire to hang, and voila! I have two great picture frames! After some thinking, I decided to do two different things with them...

I spray-painted them with some paint we had leftover in the garage.

I cut out cardboard to serve as a backing for my frames.

I hammered nails in each side and strung a wire so I could hang it on the wall.

For the first one I inserted black cardstock as a mat, and decided to use it to display postcards.  I love receiving postcards from friends and family, but never have a place to showcase them.  Now, with a little piece of tape rolled on the back, I can hang them in this frame by the door.  Since there isn't glass in the frame I can easily swap them out as new postcards arrive! Yours can be displayed here too if you send one my way!

My new postcard frame!

The second cabinet door I decided to use as a frame for these 'travel posters' I've been working on.  Using Picasa and Picnik (both free Google programs) I cartoon-ized several pictures from traveling in Africa.  Then I added a bold country title and a cheesy tourism slogan, and now I have my own travel posters!  I printed 5x7s and cropped them to fill the 5x6 openings.

My own mini travel posters framed by the recycled cabinet doors.

What do you think??

Doing A Little Rain Dance

I overheard someone at work today say, "This bad weather puts me in such a bad mood!"

Before today I hadn't thought much about my adoration of rain, but after hearing that comment today I realized how much I love it.  This, of course, stems from my time spent in Ethiopia, where rain could change your entire day.

A heavy storm one night in Dangila, Ethiopia.

Rainy season (also known as muddy season) lasts approximately from June-September in Ethiopia. There are several months before the summer season arrives where you think every day, "Will it come today?" Prayers are sent to the heavens for a reprieve from the dust of the dry season.  The heat was torturous on some days, but mostly it was the dust and the dead plants that begged for rain to arrive.

And then one day it comes.  Within a week grass turns green and life seems vibrant once again. That quick change hit me like a ton of bricks during my first rainy season.  I was out of town for a mere moment and arrived back to a completely different scene.  Rain is life.

The green fertile countryside in Amhara, Ethiopia.

During the summer no schedule is set in stone. A downpour of rain is a viable excuse to not go outside, and therefore you never know what is going to happen when you wake up each day (or when you will return once you leave in the morning).  It could mean a meeting is cancelled and you get to stay in your pajamas a few more hours reading the rest of the Twilight series. Or it might mean you have to cancel your late afternoon movie program since you have no excuse to refuse the third round of a coffee ceremony, and stick around for the subsequent mundane ETV news broadcast.

You never know what cafe or shop you'll be walking by when the rain decides to strike.  Wherever that happens to be, get comfortable and ready to make friends because you may be there for a while.

The lovely green color that covers the rural area.

This was the daydream I had about rain today at work.  Rain was the unknown reason why I was in such a good mood today.  Last night as the downpour cooled the summer heat I noticed it was cooler outside than in for the first time since spring.  We opened the door and the fresh air rushed in to fill the house with its lovely rain smell.

You may curse the mud or the fact that you switched purses and forgot your umbrella, but you cannot deny that rain is life.  Falling asleep to the sound of rain on the roof, feeling the drops of rain on my face, and who can forget that lovely rainbow that follows; Rainy days are my favorite.

Ethiopia: Bicycle Accessories

To continue my sporadic series of Ethiopia facts and stories, here is a little something about Ethiopians and their bicycles.  Pretty much the only bicycle you'll find in Ethiopia is a Phoenix. Why? Because they are cheap and parts are interchangeable.  A lot of Peace Corps countries supply volunteers with a decent mountain bicycle, but in Ethiopia they just give you a "bike allowance" to purchase one yourself.  The best explanation is because they realized also that parts for repairing bicycles other than a Phoenix were rare.

My friend Kyle managed to figure out the bicycle things though. Check out his AWESOME adventure here.  He journeyed from the lowest point to the highest point on the African continent. How many people can say that?

Back to the focus on my blog today: bicycle accessories.  Ethiopian tend to have an odd sense of decorating style, and I believe taking a look at their bicycles pretty much sums it up. Like the flowers? They also usually have incredible bike seat covers made out of some odd carpet material with fringe.  If you look closely in Kyle's Kilimanjaro summit picture you can see it!

A wonderfully decorated bike in Ethiopia.

And another one all dolled up!

Luxembourg: Cafe-Hopping

A while back I mentioned that I was going to be writing more about Luxembourg since I've spent so much time there this year (and since boyfriend lives there).  It's taken me a while to get back into writing lately, but I was motivated by a recent chocolatey spoon indulgence which I brought back from Luxembourg.

Let's start with a short story from this spring, when my parents came to visit Europe. Their visit allowed me to spend a lot more time in the city center of Luxembourg City. We had a whole day of cafe-hopping, and once caffeinated to the brim, we braved the cold weather and walked the city. We found ourselves walking a little bit around the pedestrian area, and then escaping after just 30 minutes into a cafe to warm up again.  It was such a pleasant day; I couldn't imagine a better way to explore Luxembourg in February!

Chocolate House in downtown Luxembourg.

My favorite stop that day wasn't a random cafe at all, but a must-see for every visitor (or local) in Luxembourg.  The "Chocolate House" is just as decadent as it sounds.  Known for their chocolate spoons, this cafe is just across the street from the Grand Duke's palace in the pedestrian area.  They also have delicious rich cakes arranged for you to drool over as you enter on the first floor.  Most of the seating is then up a small spiral staircase, but both floors can get awfully crowded during certain times of the year.

Mom, enjoying her chocolate spoon and choosing more to bring home!

The term "chocolate spoon" may be misleading though, since it's not merely a spoon coated in chocolate, but a chunk of chocolate attached to a wooden spoon.  Genius.  The cafe serves the chocolate spoons with a warm mug of milk, and you dip and swirl (and lick the gooey chocolate) until it's all melted in!

My "Brownie" chocolate spoon I had the other day.

 And, like you can see from the photo of my mom above, it's not just your normal average milk chocolate.  They have classics, of course, but they also have creations such as Bourbon Vanilla, Brownie, Almond Raspberry, and even Hot Chili!  The cafe is apparently dutch-owned; More information here: Chocolate Company.  Is your mouth watering yet?

Yum.

Photo-Finish

I'm finally finished with another of my photograph projects! This project was to frame a set of three elephant pictures I took in Tanzania, which I discussed a couple weeks back.  Since the holes were 7x7 I had three 8x10 pictures printed and then I cut them once I got them.  Take a look at the before and after:

Before...

After!

Since the frame was from Ikea, and not so much a frame as artwork, I had to use a screwdriver and pliers to open up the back.  I glued the new pictures down with picture glue on the white backing provided. It's a bit hard to tell in a photo, but the pictures sit about two inches back from the glass, giving them a sense of depth.  I wound up cropping my prints to 8x8 instead of the original 7x7 window since you can see more than a 7x7 from different angles as you peer into the two-inch-thick frame. Does that make sense?

Stapling the backing back on.

Even harder than prying off the original backing back putting it back on! I used a normal office stapler to replace the heavy-duty staples I took out, hoping they would suffice. It seems like I was able to get them close enough to the edge and it worked!

The new staple on the back of the frame.

Now I just have to find a place to hang it!  I've also been working on making a road-side find into something fun. I'll be writing about that as soon as I find a little more time!

Hips Don't Lie

I've been pretty nostalgic lately thinking about my time in Ethiopia and hence a lot of late nights sorting through old photo files on my computer.  I came across this video where I was out in my town with high school students promoting an HIV testing event.  I was sitting on the side of the road that leads to the market with a big stereo system -- music was blaring -- and the students helped by talking about the testing event into the microphone every now and then.  It soon turned into madness due to the large number of people heading to the Saturday market coupled with the white girl sitting by the road.  And before long it was one big children's dance contest. I have several videos of that day, but here are two short favorites! Enjoy!

Here is a video of one of the students helping a child dance. It's not common for Ethiopians to dance with their hips (usually it's mainly shoulder dancing) so I thought it was particularly cute to watch.

 

This second video is more traditional Ethiopian dancing from my area of the country (Amhara). These small children can do things with their shoulders that I never thought possible. Two years later I still was never able to master the skizta.

The story about the HIV testing event is here if you want to read all about it.  It was my first big project in Ethiopia and something I am still very proud of, plus, it came with the added bonus of watching these cute kids dance for a simple lolly pop prize!

Ethiopia Reads

While in Ethiopia I read more books than in any other two-year period. I suppose living in an environment where you are inside your house by dark every night without many electronic options supports the habit of reading.  Some of my favorite books though happen to be about Ethiopia.  I know, I know, what a surprise! But I don't think these books were particularly engaging because I was living in Ethiopia, but rather because Ethiopia is such a fascinating country.  Here are my top three that I think you should check out:


There Is No Me Without You by Melissa Fay Greene
Greene writes about one special woman in Addis Ababa who starts an orphanage for children without anyone to turn to. The stories about the children living with HIV and women left on the streets in Ethiopia are gripping.  This book communicates what living in Ethiopia is really like for so many struggling people and tells stories about adoptions from abroad.


I Didn't Do It for You by Michela Wrong
This book is about Ethiopia's small neighbor, Eritrea, and their battle for freedom through colonization until their recent independence.  It's hard to write a book about Eritrea and their lack of independence without really writing a book about Ethiopia though.  This dual history of these two countries tells lively stories about why this part of Africa is the way it is.  It leaves you with a better understanding of these countries without feeling like you read a history book.

Cutting for Stone by Abraham Verghese
A novel based in Addis Ababa during the reign of Emperor Haile Selassie that really highlights life in Ethiopia and the history of the 1940s.  The descriptions of the streets of Addis Ababa haven't changed much since these times, so I could still picture exactly what Verghese writes about.  The story follows doctors and nurses from India who work in a hospital in the city and the patients who have walked days to the only hospital around.

Atlanta: Southern Eatery

Atlanta is filled with trendy cafes and restaurants that seem to pop up on random corners every week.  Asian fusion, tex-mex, pizzeria, you name it. But, one place you really shouldn't miss isn't a trendy hot-spot at all, it's just an all-time favorite traditional southern cooking establishment called Mary Mac's Tea Room.

Don't be confused with the name though; While their sweet tea will fill your sugar quota for the week, it's not what you think a "tea room" would be.  What used to be a small tea room in 1945 has grown and expanded into a bustling southern kitchen where traditional southern hospitality comes first.

I was going to lunch with a friend of mine who is relatively new to Atlanta, and remembering Mary Mac's from my childhood, I decided it was the perfect place to go.  Sunday at 1pm is anything but idle for most lunch places, but we decided to brave the crowd anyway.  We walked inside Mary Mac's to find a waiting room filled with church-goers dressed to the nines.  Luckily, with a party of two, we were seated after just a couple minutes.

The menu is filled with more southern goodness than you can imagine. After sorting through the variety of fried items you have to make your selection and write it down on an order card given to you by the waitress.  I really like the traditional parts of Mary Mac's that haven't changed in over 65 years!

Basket of goodies for our table.

A basket of goodies was placed on our table after we ordered: bread rolls, corn bread mini-muffins, and cinnamon rolls! Everything was so delicious, and we still had so much food coming.  I ordered fried chicken with my two sides of fried green tomatoes and cheese grits.  My friend had fried shrimp with fried okra and the sweet potato souffle. Everything happened to be in the same color family, orange-ish brown, but is was so delicious that we just didn't think about it!

My meal: fried green tomatoes, cheese grits and fried chicken.

Somehow the picture of my friend's food didn't turn out, but you can imagine it very similar in shade to mine, but in the shape of shrimp.

If you are in the Atlanta area I definitely recommend finding your way to Mary Mac's to experience this classic Atlanta establishment.  Just enjoy the calorie-fest and don't even try to count them; That's what southern cookin' is all about!

The Perfect Carry-On

Finding the perfect hiking backpack takes time and patience, but finding the perfect companion packable daypack is equally difficult. I looked for so long in June for a hiking pack, and finally found the L.L. Bean AT55 that I received for my birthday.  Coincidentally, while at the L.L. Bean store in Maine I happened upon a great day pack that was on sale early this summer.  I was at the check-out counter with my mom and there it was, a pretty pink packable backpack sitting behind the counter as someone else's reject.  With a sale price of around $20 I was convinced to get it.

It sat in my room for about a month before I finally used it as my carry-on luggage for my trip to Europe in July.  At first I just thought of it as a nice backpack, but by the end of the trip I was convinced how wonderful this pack really is!  Here are the things pointed out in the picture above that I love so much.

A. One large zippered pouch in the back.

B. One smaller zippered pouch down the front.

C. Two external pull-tie pouches on the sides.

It also has small chest and waist straps for hiking.

It doesn't hold a lot, but all the essentials for an airplane fit perfectly without leaving extra room (because, for me, extra room means I should pack even more -- not good!).  Look below at all the things I took with me on the airplane.

All the contents of my backpack on the airplane: purse, jacket, book, netbook.

It doesn't have an inside hydration bladder pouch for hiking, but you can slip water bottles easily in the outside pockets.  Unfortunately I've realized why it was on sale in June: they were discontinuing the backpack! I've scoured the website trying to find this backpack to recommend to friends, but I can't find it. There are a few that seem similar, so if you want something like this, try the following backpacks:

• Mountain Heather Daypack
• Pocket Daypack
• Stowaway Daypack

One of my favorite things about the pack is that it folds up into the small front pocket! I love stowaway bags like that which you can carry inside a bigger backpack and take out to expand.  I actually don't even know the name of the pack I have since my mom took it with her on their trip to the Baltic Sea this month.  But, I suggest any of the L.L. Bean packs, especially since they are guaranteed to last!

All folded up!

Zucchini vs. Tomatoes

It's been a while since I've mentioned my garden, so I figure it's time for an update.  In the battle between zucchini and tomatoes in my garden this year, there was no competition.  The season started out fairly even and at the end of June we had one delicious zucchini and four plants that seemed to be thriving.

First and only zucchini of the 2011 season.

Before I knew it though, I went out one day to find my zucchini plants rotting from the inside out.  I was so upset since I loved picking my lovely zucchini from my garden in Ethiopia.  I'm not sure what kind of critter got into the system, but whatever it was the zucchini plants didn't have a chance.  The good news is that the rest of my garden seemed to survive the invasion.

All of my zucchini plants looked like this. Any idea what happened?

I left for Europe in July just as the tomatoes were starting to ripen, and they haven't stopped since! Chances are, if you've come to my house in the past few weeks, you haven't been allowed to leave without a bag of tomatoes!  I have more than I could possibly eat by myself, so I'm glad my friends like them too.

My garden, July 2011

I'm also still hopeful for the green onions and I think a few carrots survived too.  The basil is flourishing in the garden, and doing well in the pots on our porch as well.  I've been cooking up a storm with all that I have, so check back to see what I've come up with!

Tomatoes galore!

Displaying Travel Photos

One of my favorite things to do while traveling is to take pictures. And once I get home I just can't wait to look through all of them to pick out my favorites! But what do you do once you pick out your top 20 pictures of a trip? Good question!

You can only have so many pictures of vacations on your walls. So, I've had to start coming up with creative ways to express my photographs as artwork, and not just a collection of vacation pictures.  Here is one of my recent projects from pictures of elephants in Tanzania.

Photos of elephants I took in Tanzania.

I purchased a frame at Ikea a few years back (pre-peace corps) and arriving home I realized it wasn't a frame, but artwork. No offense to the person who took these fine pictures of New York, but I just wanted a cool frame for my own pictures. Off to the basement it went to await my return from Africa so I could finally  fill it with the photos I've selected above. Side note: I would have just returned it, but Ikea is in downtown Atlanta and not worth the drive to return something small!

The Ikea artwork I purchased a few years ago.

Then came the hard part.  Using a screw driver and pliers I have taken off the stapled backing and figured out a way to mount my pictures in the same place as the Ikea pictures.  The pictures are currently being printed at Costco, so I will update you with the final picture once I'm finished!

Taking the backing off of the Ikea frame.

Right now in my bathroom I have a simple picture frame filled with some of my favorite pictures from Australia and New Zealand.  This is the easiest thing to do with your favorite pictures, especially since you only have to print 4x6 pictures.

My frame with Australia and New Zealand pictures.

I also have a collection of frames in my bedroom from pictures taken in Asia and America in 2008. I like this collection, but the frames are just cheap black plastic and they easily tilt and wind  up all crooked, like in the picture.  For now I like having the pictures, but one day I will collect nicer frames for a grand collection!

Collection of pictures in my room.

For Father's Day this year we gave my dad canvas prints (from Costco it was a great deal) of three pictures taken during our safari.  We had a blank wall in our foyer that needed some artwork and these canvases proved a great addition!  The canvases are 18x24, which we thought would be plenty big, but the wall is so large we could have actually gone bigger.

The 18x24 canvas prints from Costco.

I have a couple more works-in-progress, so be sure to check back for more travel picture ideas!