Still waiting for a puppy

I didn’t make it to Gobabis for the Fourth of July BBQ and I didn’t get my puppy this past weekend either. I actually skipped the BBQ so I could get the puppy and then the car that had my puppy broke down on the way from Keetmansoop. I ended up going to Dr. Lemmer High School’s entrepreneurship day and rugby game to see if I could get any ideas for my own. The thing that was most noticeable was the income disparity between my school and their school. Most of the teachers here want to sell cakes, sweets, and other food items. When I went to Dr. Lemmer they had professionally made cakes donated from local bakers. My school can’t get any food donated to it. They also had an inflatable slip and slide which I thought was awesome, though I decided it was too cold for it. While at the entrepreneurship day I ran across some Americans who were working at Oanob Primary School. They were missionaries from California and invited me to a braai on Tuesday. Some of them went home Wednesday and another group is showing up Friday. Most of them will be here for about a month working at the school and helping out with various church functions. The group is comprised of mostly high school students and early college students. It was good talking to them and sharing some of my wilder stories about school and traveling.
Last Friday I went with the grade 10 classes to Windhoek on a field trip to show them that the world is greater than just the town of Rehoboth. For many of them it was their fired time to Windhoek. The trip was an overall success with only a few minor delays and setbacks. We went to Hero’s Acre, The State House, Parliament, NamWater, University of Namibia (UNAM) and then ice cream. I was not allowed in The State House due to the fact that I am not a Namibian citizen. My favorite place was NamWater the water utility for Namibia. They were exceptionally kind donating 10 computers to the school and giving food to all the learners and teachers. They also offered me a job when I made an offhand remark about having a degree in chemistry and looking for a job. I don’t plan on taking it, but still, it was nice to get the offer.

it goes

So my roommate showed up a few weeks ago and she’s pretty cool. After living alone for several weeks it feels weird having someone else around sometimes. I can’t play my music as loud as possible anymore or walk around naked. Not that I would actually want to, it’s freezing, but still it’s nice to have the option. My puppy should be arriving this Friday and I think I’ve decided on the name my friend Martin gave me, “Ernest Rufferford”. This is a play on Ernest Rutherford the famous chemist/physicist who theorized about neutrons.
Last weekend we had Christmas in June in Mariental. Almost 20 volunteers got together to eat chicken, stuffing, macaroni and cheese, and egg nog. We had a gift exchange that was entertaining with everyone going for different types of gifts. Some people gave funny, others gave useful, and other just gave the universal gift of alcohol. This coming weekend I’m going to Gobabis for a Fourth of July Bar-B-Que. Here in Namibia a BBQ is often called a braai but because it’s Fourth of July we are making hamburgers and having a BBQ.
As far as school goes I’m working on a secondary project because my teaching load has been lightened by Mitra (the roommate/other volunteer) which is taking some time to get off the ground. We are having a entrepreneurship day/HIV awareness carnival. My job is to make sure each class has an item to sell and collects $N500. My garden hasn’t been able to take off the ground yet and has suffered another delay because of poor timing. Many of my weekends are full and same with my counterpart Mrs. Pretorius. I think in August we will start clearing the space and in September or October we will start planting. We want to plant before rainy season but not so early that there is no water and everything dies. So far I’m just playing it by ear.

Ps mmmm… bacon

Little things

This week I came across information that changed my life. Nay, it changed my world view! This week I came to the realization that hash browns were merely chopped up potatoes that I could easily make myself. With this newly discovered knowledge I made breakfast, scrambles eggs, sausage, hash browns, and a banana. Now I know it sounds crazy to be so excited over a simple breakfast. Some of you might even be saying “Rob we don’t care about breakfast, tell us about Africa.” But I argue that breakfast is the most important meal of the day and I’d be useless here if I didn’t start my morning off right. When I eat a good breakfast, I exercise more, and think about December when I come home and next April when I summit Kilimanjaro. Oh yeah, a group of us might be going to Kilimanjaro next April. But until I finalize all these plans, I like to focus on the little things like breakfast.
As far as teaching (and everything else in my life) there have been remarkably few changes. Our school has had a discipline problem lately. Discipline problems here are mostly dealt with by corporal punishment. I talked to some of the teachers about why they use a “stick.” They said it was because these learners don’t understand anything else. They also told me at other schools they didn’t need to use corporal punishment. They are under the impression that this area just has worse discipline than other areas and needs more drastic measures.
I like my new schedule because I teach less often and have more time to practice the piano and surf the internet at school. My new roommate is suppose to show up on Monday and the dog won’t be here for several weeks. I have narrowed my list of dog names down to two: Schrodinger or Optimus Prime. I also wondered if my new roommate would have a problem with a dog. Then I realize the roommate will only be here for 6 weeks after the dog gets here and I don’t care, unless the roommate is allergic or something. Then I would give the dog to Mrs. Pretorius to take care of for a few weeks and I would just come over and play with the dog every day.
Also it’s pretty cold here these days. Some mornings when I get up there is frost on the ground. I saw a dead horse lying on the side of the road one morning. It looked like it froze to death in the middle of the night. I feel bad for the female learners because they have to wear school uniforms that involve skirts. They’re allowed to wear pants if they are the school approved uniform pants but most of my learners either can’t afford it or have parents who simply don’t want to pay for it. Needless to say I went out and bought a space heater for my bedroom and some good winter blankets and clothes.
On a very positive note my sister got to meet the Obamas and I’ve been bragging to all my Peace Corps friends about it ever since.

The start of term 2

School “started” back up last Monday. My school has a serious problem with learners taking extra vacation days. The first three days of school we didn’t change classes but instead just took roll. Out of my class of 25 we only had 13 learners. I also spoke with my head of department; I am no longer a register teacher for my fifth graders. Peace Corps doesn’t want us to be register teachers because they are supposed to follow the learners through several years of school. We can, at most, follow the learners for two years. He also changed my entire schedule by giving my favorite class (tenth grade math and physical science) to the other teachers and giving me another grade eight math class.
The other big news is that a World Teach volunteer is coming to my school to help out in the computer lab for three months. The World Teach volunteer will also be staying in the spare bedroom in my flat. I’m excited to have a little more company. It is highly recommended that Peace Corps volunteers don’t go out at night due to the statistically higher probability of being robbed. It’s winter now so by 5:30pm I have to be in my flat. Essentially I have no life and go to bed around 9pm. Also, it’s really cold at night. Every night is probably in the 30’s or 40’s and my flat has no heater or insulation. It’s not a problem because I have a nice sleeping bag. The problem comes in trying to get up at 530am while simultaneously trying to stay in my nice warm sleeping bag.

Holiday travels

My travels this last holiday break began in Gobabis for my friend Martin’s birthday. After a few days hanging out in Gobabis I went back to Rehoboth to meet up with some friends. We took day trips to Windhoek for Zambian visas and other necessities. On Friday April 29th we went to Windhoek, saw a movie, and boarded the Intercape bus system. The Intercape is a business that sends charter buses all through southern Africa. Twenty three hours later I arrived in Livingstone Zambia. The following day myself, Edward, Sam, and Quinn went into Botswana on the Chobe National Preserve safari. The morning was a boat safari along the Chobe River where we say hippos, impalas, crocodiles, elephants, and a whole host of other animals. It was the most expensive part of my journey and well worth every penny. We were given lunch at a really nice lodge and then preceded to the car safari. In the car safari we got to see all the same animals except much closer. We also got to see lions but they were too far away to get a good picture.

The following I went with Barbara, Quinn, and Sam to the Zimbabwe side of Victoria Falls. Victoria Falls is one of the greatest things I have ever seen in my life. My favorite part was called Eastern Cataract and was not for weak hearted. In this area there are no barriers to keep you from the falls and we actually walked out on a cropping of rocks, slippery with algae. I describe that area as standing in the middle of a tropical storm because of the force of the wind and rain. It was nearly impossible to see the falls through the mist but if you stood there long enough the mist would dissipate for a few seconds and a view of the entire falls would appear. While standing there I’m pretty sure my brain exploded.

The next day we traveled to the Zambia side of Victoria Falls. This side had several hiking trails that we did, and a large craft market. I went with Nikki and Sam, and the scariest thing that happened was when a baboon charged us. So many people come to the area with food in their backpack that if you open your backpack, the baboons will charge you and try to steal food. And trust me; it’s terrifying when they come right at you.

I needed a break, so the next day I stayed around Livingstone and I got a pair of pants made out of a chetenge. A chetenge is a traditional African clothe/skirt that many of the guys got made into pants and the girls use it as skirts. My last morning was spent in a constant state of terror as our group prepared to go bungee jumping in front of Victoria Falls. I did not bungee jump. I zip lined from Zambia to Zimbabwe. A feat not easily accomplished by me due to an extreme fear of heights. In the afternoon our entire group (about 20 people) went on a final cruise. I then ventured back to Rehoboth after the craziest week of my life.

World

Dear World,

I have replaced the greatest fear that one can conquer. I have stood among, the winds whirling around me, the force of a storm splattering against my face, and felt nothing but the unbelievable beauty, that soaked me in the misty rain. I have tried, in multiple attempts, to explain, how amazing life is along the Zambeza River/Victoria Falls. As much as I have tried to explain things in words, I simply cannot. There aren’t enough words in any language to describe it. I am however, exceptionally proud of my buddy Shane. Who now has been nominated for Guinea Peace Corps. I wish him the best, and may be visiting him at some point soon.

Force feeding my learners Ritlain

A long time ago my brothers and I were known as “Those damn Neiberger boys.” Like many kids there were several adjectives associated with us, the nicest of these were things like “adventurous” and “Rambunctious,” the worst (and more common) was things like “pugnacious” and “a terror in my classroom.” A friend of mine once told me, during a Boy Scout meeting, that his parents had, at one point, forbid him from playing with us on the church playground because we were too rough. Elementary school, for us, was a time of rough housing and fighting. However we were lucky enough to miss the Ritalin craze of the late 90’s and early 2000’s and just enjoy our fighting. Eventually my brothers and I all used sports as an outlet for our aggression and what a great outlet it was. Now let me tell you; there were teachers who wanted the three of us to be on ADD medication or at least mild sedation. I would love those teachers, psychiatrists, and concerned parents to look at my learners. My learners don’t often listen to me or anyone else. Some of their favorite games involve punching each other in middle of my class. Another game is slightly like dodge ball but instead of teams throwing big red balls at each other they throw anything that is available. It could be a dirty sock or it could be a rock. Whatever is available. It reminds me of a game that we use to play in our neighborhood called “Pinecone War,” where we would throw pinecones at each other as hard as we could. Although it is usually infuriating when my learners do these things while I’m teaching, I find I often have more in common with 5th and 6th grade learners than I do with many of the kids back in the states. It could be one reason why I hate kids, with the exception of my amazing niece Gabby. That kid is adorable.