Highlights from the week

So from my last post, I guess you can tell I have been having a hard few weeks. So after talking with my mom( why does talking with your mom ALWAYS help) I have started a gratitude book. it’s a book where I mark the highlights of my week. So I would like to share some with you.


I went to mumias for the weekend and had a run in with a very stubborn tout( someone who works on the matatus taking money and hustling people in). Well my friend and I were traveling from mumias to Kakamega where the fare should only be 80. So we both gave the tout 100ksh. Then the tire blew out. As we are waiting for another matatu, we are asking for our change. The tout refuses. We try to argue with him for a good 10 min. A second matatu arrives and tries to push us on, however, we still havint gotten our change. So I have had enough. One of the teachers at my school told me of a method to use incase of a problem on a matatu. So I separate from the group and take my phone out ready to take down a certain number where I can then give it to the police who will then deal with it. Well my plan worked, the driver got scared, called the tough and made him give me our change. Funny thing was, I had no idea what number to take down. So my bluff worked! DANIELLE vs. TOUT. Winner? DANIELLE!!!!!


Sitting outside of the local supermarket eating 500ml of ice cream…alone. I mean by myself. I was with a friend. I wasnt depressed and sitting outside eating ice cream.  Now before you judge, kindly remember my site has NO ice cream, it’s a hot day and sometimes you just have to do what you have to do.


I brought my new kitty puma home.


While playing, Puma jumped into a large tub of water. So now I have a rat instead of a cat.


Puma f*%@ked up my computer when he decided to play with the reflection cat he saw in my screen. Now I have a pink screen, no internet and no movies.

Had a great night class with my class 6, 7, and 8. They asked for a review before their life skills exam the next morning. So I had all 55 students in one class. Half way through the deputy head teacher asks to join. This is the same teacher who thinks my teaching about condoms is bad. He stayed the entire time and even participated in the game with the students. The next morning, he told me it was a good class and that I was a good teacher! GO ME!!!!!

For 3 hours I was squished between 2 mamas with their little ones. It wasn’t till we reached the matatu stage that one of the little ones decide to throw up all over everything…ECEPT ME!!!!!


On the hippo tour:
Tour Guide: “hippos shit in water.”
Me: Did he just say shit?
Tour Guide: “Hippos shit in water. You know toilet? They use their tails to swish it around.”
Me: Yup. He said shit.
Tour guide: “ male hippos have sex with the female hippos for 45 min. The water makes them light.”

I bought Ritz crackers.

 I think I got married. However, I dont remember ever agreeing to it. But supposedly his family agrees. Thats a plus...right?

Rough Day

Had a rough day today. Pictures were found on the vocational school camera of primary girls in inappropriate positions. Frustrated with the deputy ‘s take no action stance, the heaping club brought the girls in to talk with them. We started with 3 and learned who their boyfriends were, where they have sex, and how many times they have sex. Little did we know how bad it was. 3 girls turned into 6 and 6 turned into 10 and 10 turned into 16. We were shocked by who the girls were and who their boyfriends were. Some had only had sex 1 time while others had sex 9 times. Some had only one guy while others had multiple guys and some even shared guys. Most of the guys who were named were from vocational While the girls ranged from class 8 all the way down to class 2. This has all been happening since I have really focused on my life skills class. I guess the only good thing is all of the boys used condoms except 1. I understand abstinence should be enforced but I feel like the teachers are going about this wrong. They still look at these kids as children in primary school and vocational students as big bad men in their 30’s. They see the girls as the victims and the boys as the predators. But the truth is these girls are really having sex with their peers. All of the girls from the 1 in class 2 - class 8 are around 14-17 yrs of age. While the vocational boys are around 18-21.By the way, there’s no age limit for sexual consent. So, what do we do? These children are no longer children. They are sexual adults. They may be in primary school just like their hearing peers but you can’t compare the two. Take for example a hearing student in class 8 to a student who is deaf in the same class. The student who is hearing is usually around 13/14 yrs of age while the student who is deaf can be anywhere from 14-17 yrs of age. I find it frustrating when the only time the teachers get in an uproar about it is when the kids have gotten caught, otherwise the teachers lips are zipped, its just a problem for another day. Where as I have been trying to teach them life skills, HIV/Aids, how a condom works, how its used properly and I get criticized for it. I go up at night to work with the students and then there’s talk that I am only doing it for my own personal gain. I don’t care anymore if the teachers want to blame me for their students having sex and using condoms, Im going to do what I came here for, to teach my students how to make smart choices regarding sex and HIV.
P.S. Any ideas that might help this situation would be greatly appreciated.

Project Library

Since being for 8 months, I have noticed 2 problems at my school. Granted there are more than 2 problems, but at least these 2, I have the chance to fix. The 1st problem is nocturnal activities among the students. Now Im trying to teach HIV and sex education but its not enough. The students are primarily alone at night, after school and on the weekends. They have no organized activities to keep them out of trouble. So a teacher and I had 2 ideas that might be the answer to our problems. We have a library that is never used and we have books that are never read. So we thought to open it back up but as a recreation room where students could come in, read, play games, and do arts and crafts. Our 2nd idea was to have 1 or 2 nights a week when teachers would stay late and play games or lead projects with the students instead of them watching T.V all night till bedtime. We would rotate teachers to supervise it and the students will hopefully be kept busy and maybe even form a better relationship with the teachers. So, even though I came here with the intention of NOT asking fro help from the US, I guess Im asking for help. I know times are tough but to make this work we need games, coloring book, arts and craft ideas and any children’s books you have lying around. I know it’s past spring cleaning but if you happen to see a garage sale sign, maybe head over and see what’s available. Im not asking for you to go out and buy all new games and books although if you want to, I wouldn’t refuse them. Again, I know times are tough with the job cutbacks still happening but any little thing you could donate would be much appreciated. Thank you. Danielle


Wish list
Coloring books
Puzzles ( for older and younger kids)
*Games( checkers, shoots and ladders, candy land, pictionary etc)
Cards
Jacks
Children’s books( again for younger and older kids)
Posters to hang on the wall
Arts and craft ideas
Magazines( doesn’t have to new. Highlight, national geographic, Newsweek etc)
Markers( big and little)
stickers
stencils

* Even if it’s just the boards, we can improvise the pieces

BCC Work

I have been in a slump regarding teaching but my other job as a behavior change communicator has picked up. I have reached my 8th month mark and things are starting to look up. 6 really great things have happened regarding my job as a BCC.
1st - Word has spread that a peace corps volunteer is in the area..I know, about time. Well, this means groups are coming out of the woodwork to ask me for favors. So far it’s only been coming to talk to their group about HIV/AIDS which is part of my job here. So yesterday I was called by one of the teachers I am working with to sit in on a meeting with a headmistress from a school in the nearby village. I had gone to look at the school last month. That’s when the visit I thought would be quick ended up being singing and dancing for 3 hours. Well, I guess I said something inspiring, hell if I know what, and she took the big step in telling one of her parents to get their child tested. Turns out he was positive. So, she came to my teacher scared about what her next step should be and seeking advice. Her teachers didn’t know what to do with this student and the students guardian( hes an Orphan whos parents both died of AIDS) was thinking about giving him up. So my counterpart and I head over. It was a small class of 5 teachers. I was so nervous. Talking about HIV in my community is difficult. it’s a disease that is attached the sex and sex here is pretty much taboo so getting people to talk about a disease that’s really personal is a really difficult. But I was surprised in the end. All teachers were very open minded about the information and it sounded like a lot of them were going to go get tested. Now the headmistress wants me to come to the school again and talk to the students. How do I talk to 7yr olds about HIV? Im going to have to get pretty creative. Any ideas would be greatly appreciated.
2nd - Like I said groups are coming out of the woodwork. I was approached by another teacher asking if I could talk to the Police station. I agreed and again I was surprised how well it went. The captain, or whatever the head police officer is called, asked if I could do a status day where all the officers get tested!
3rd - One of my friends at the school wanted to get tested and asked me to go with him. Little did I know he wanted me to go as an interpreter not for support. So I went and he and I both got tested. It was great experience for him and Im hoping now he can use that experience to pass on to the rest of the students.
4th - A small group of volunteers including myself have started to make a deaf friendly video for the local VCT’s. This video, which can be shown in schools or at the VCT, is supposed to help those facilities that do not have an interpreter for the deaf community. So the group and I went to Kisumu where there is a deaf VCT to research what happens when someone goes to get tested. It was a success and now we are planning on going to Nairobi where we will start filming it. Our hope is to produce it and send it all over the country.

VCT - Like a planned parenthood with counseling and testing for HIV and other STD‘s.
5th - After talking with my counterpart, we have decided to create a mural for our school. This mural will be about making smart choices regarding sex, ie say no and MEAN no, avoid being alone with the opposite sex, focus on school etc. Since a lot of my students are into the nocturnal activities this mural is not supposed to stop them but to be a reminder to them.
6th - Another teacher and I are thinking of reorganizing the library. Right now, its just a place to store crap. But we plan on turning it into a rec room filled with books, games, and other activities to help the students keep busy. One of these activities that is in discussion is bead making and trying to sell them in the states as well as around the community.
So that’s whats been happening in a nutshell. A lot of these things are still in discussion but Im hoping some will come to be actual activities. If you have any ideas or advice please let me know.

Goat Heads

So I was all set to write about my slump that I seem to be in. I haven’t seemed to want to go to any of my classes. Even the thought of the kids hasn’t been able to lure me. I spend more time at home then I do at school. I feel like the “honeymoon” period is finished and I am finally seeing teaching for what it really is. So to try to get out of it, I decide to go for a walk. A fellow teacher blamed my slump on being horney and she recommended getting laid. For a country where sex is so taboo, my teachers think sex will fix all of my problems. As I was walking past the butchery, I notice a head of a goat hanging in the window right next to it‘s carcass. Well, Im still in my slump....but I feel better knowing I could have my head on display and my body diced up for mans consumption instead. Things could always be worse.