― bell hooks —
― bell hooks
9 May 2013
I decided to do a comic for my friend’s birthday just to get some laughs. Hopefully you can read it.
Me: “Tomorrow is your birthday! Yah! I am going to go early and blow up balloons. Do you want balloons?”
Jimmie: I’m turning 27 years old, Danielle.”
Me: :…. So do you want balloons?”
lololol
May 5, 2013
I swear with the way things are going I might as well open a food blog instead of continuing a TEFL Blog lol. The thing is for me when I am upset with my EX, I paint and If I am just plain well missing home - then I cook. I have been cooking some daaamn good food ranging from Indian cuisine to Caribbean, from Chinese to American…. I want to get the hang of Middle Eastern and Macedonian food and I frankly can open my restaurant. I would like that. Teaching is fun but of course apart from that I do love my job, it really is to travel. I have managed to be on every continent except Africa and Australia and I intend to change that soon. In the meantime I will paint, write and document my experience and cook my way around the world. Of course can’t forget about food from the good US of A so here are some foods that I will definitely try to cook before I go home. Can’t wait to cook for my folks.
Oh yeah, Happy Easter to the Russians and the Balkans (anyone following the Orthodox Calender) and Happy Cinco de Mayo to Latin America!
Finally bought my ticket!!! May 3 2013
My former room mate in China told me that once you buy your ticket for home - it will be as if a weight will be lifted of the shoulders. And she was right. I went on Tuesday and I finally bought my ticket for Miami and Jamaica. It cost a pretty penny but after two years of no family - I figure just go for it. Unfortunately I couldn’t get to go to Istanbul or Macedonia but I figure I will make time to go when there is an opportunity. I will have layovers in Frankfort and Vienna, spend a week in Florida and then three weeks with the family in Jamaica- go back to Miami and then back here. I am excited and right now I have started making my list as to what I need to bring back here.
- Jamaican White Rum: I have been overseas and I miss the rum plus I figure small bottles of the stuff will be given out as gifts.
- Seasonings (allspice, curry and jerk seasonings): I made it but I think there are some things that are definitely lacking. I am looking forward to using them in barbecues.
- Solomon Gundy (pickled fish)
- Pork: in a place like Kurdistan, pork is a precious commodity lol
- see if I can find some of my old things
- New external drive - I need to get a new one as I noticed there were some problems.
- Possibly do some shopping for new clothes but we shall see.
- Renew my passport!! - I am a little annoyed for all the hype about security, the US Consulate has not facilities for citizens to renew their passports here. They say that we have to go to Baghdad but of course I can’t go in person to renew it because it is a Red Zone for Americans not in security AKA too damn dangerous. Wonderful use of tax payer dollars. So it is either Miami or Jamaica for renewal.
- Bank Account… I think I’m growing up I need my own damn debit/ credit card.
For my family I am making a list too:
- Pomegranate syrup: its is an integral part in Middle Eastern cuisine
- Seasonings (for dolma, briyani)
- My art piece for my mother
- The Turkish eye
- Macedonian souvenirs
- Prayer beads
- Books
- Need to ask my bro if he wants a shisha pipe or something.
- ….. me?
I booked the trip for the 3rd of July and I am very excited about that! I am now counting down the days for the trip!
This is the ad I did for some friends of mine who are DJs on the radio for Babylon FM in Erbil. I did the art probably a month ago and they finally have the art used in ads. I am really excited about that!
Last night there was an auction from the RISE foundation - the organization that helps with charities and I decided to donate this painting to the auction to raise money for the Syrian refugees. The auction went well and in total $9000.00 US was raised last night. I am very happy that I could contribute.
May 1st 2013
Thought this was a beautiful song…..
29 April 2013 - Review of EPIC Karaoke Night
I took this shot on the 28th ie last night while I was waiting on persons for Karaoke. Yes, in this area or rather this region of Kurdistan you do have a place for karaoke. As the area quickly develops, so does the night life and entertainment to accommodate the tastes of the ever-growing international community.
For persons who don’t know what karaoke is (and there are some who do not) here is the definition thanks to Websters: a device that plays instrumental accompaniments for a selection of songs to which the user sings along and that records the user’s singing with the music; also : a form of entertainment involving the use of a karaoke machine.
Over the weekend since I did not go out - I had the strong urge to go to karaoke. Now there is a group on facebook called EPIC which stands for Erbil Party International Circuit which consists of expats and locals alike networking through business, social and charity events within the Kurdistan Region. EPIC always posts about parties and events happening across Erbil and this one in particular has been running for quite some time. Now I have never been a fan of the idea of karaoke - watching persons make fools of themselves and the idea of sitting through badly sung songs makes watching oil paint dry seem like a viable alternative. Never the less I decided that a change would be good and opted to go to this event.
The event has been running for at least six months - usually hosted between DC SteakHouse in Dream City Erbil or American Bar and Cafe just outside of Erbil on the way to Massif. DC Steakhouse is a little bit more expensive but it is easier to get a cab there than to Massif. The restaurant is lovely- comfortable arrangements with a light atmosphere and and the food is alright (the focus being on mainly American and Italian dishes). The event used to be on Wednesday evenings and then it was shifted in recent times to Sunday evenings.
The event was to start at 8:00pm but everything finally started at about close to 9:45 pm. I got a little restless but when it started, it was actually great fun. Even while waiting I must say relaxing with the persons at the dinner table was a great change of pace than sitting at home around my computer. For karaoke the facilities were good and there was quite a reasonable selection of songs from English, Kurdish and Arabic to even French. It was great fun and there were a lot of good moments laughing, singing and dancing (one member from our table was a superb belly dancer and it was wonderful seeing her dance). Overall I must say that I enjoyed the evening thoroughly. There were some downsides:
- the long wait for the songs to be chosen from
outour table; in fact some people chose their songs and did not even get a chance to sing. If karaoke is supposed to be inclusive for both locals and expats, then there needs to be a balance for everyone to get a chance - not one English song and then five Arabic or Kurdish songs. - (As a personal opinion) The fact that there was an overwhelming amount of men in the restaurant which can be a little uncomfortable for me as a single expat woman. I know it is a very male dominated culture, but in order for expats to feel comfortable coming, there needs to be an atmosphere comfortable enough for professional men and women to be in the same space.Though I was with friends, it would have been nice to have a more balanced atmosphere of men and women.
In spite of this, I recommend this as a great change of pace if you are not too tired from work and want a good laugh while making new friends and connections.
Home…. May 1, 2013
I have been thinking about the concept of “home” for a while but it finally sink sunk in when I was explaining a grammar point - the difference between ‘house’ and ‘home’.
“Teacher - I am going to go to home.”
“No,” I replied, “I am going to go home. I am going to go to the house but not to the home. For house, it is a building; a residence whereas home, is a concept that you cannot touch or feel. So I go home and I go to the house.”
I was only guessing when I said this so I decided to check it online with the Learning English BBC site and I found this: House describes a particular type of building. Home is the place where you live and feel that you belong to.
I like to watch people, interesting to learn… and I found each person has one place where they wish they could go back and live… home. One American teacher J - his home is Thailand as he lived there for seven years and even has a wife there. Another good friend MX, his home is Laos and he lived there for four years. My friend who loves to cook - her home is the Czech Republic although I wonder if that has changed as meeting someone you love will do. Another friend here DJ -J has made Kurdistan his home as his wife is from Kurdistan. You have one guy who is Canadian but his heart in in Russia and my roommate well she lived in Kuwait for many years so it is between Kuwait and Texas. My bosses though Canadian now call Spain home and have a house there. It is interesting that one can travel and still have one spot to call home. I did not care for my experience in China but I have friends who have lived in China for up to seven years and they can’t see themselves living anywhere else.
Persons who travel not for pleasure but strictly for work have this concept a bit more clear cut. Like my friends from the Balkans - they reside here out of necessity but their home is in the Balkans - Bosnia, Macedonia, Serbia… Sometimes one can be divided between two places - and for one place there will be a love hate relationship between the place you reside which is different from home. For Kurdistan, the expats here will complain and or comment about the differences between their own country and here using examples from daily experiences to weave a tale of the expat life here. Secretly though, people love to complain and talk about the drama of the moment and creating the link to memories, reactions and ideas brought to the surface at the time. But in reality, they will stay out of necessity, or even because they have made a little space for themselves here in their own way.
Sometimes ‘home’ is not in a space but with people. For me at this stage ‘home’ is with my parents - who are currently in Jamaica.Then because of my capoeira group and the bonds I made at the UPTC in Colombia; I thought of making my life there whether teaching English or opening a restaurant. Then I met my EX when I came to Kurdistan and I thought at the time, I would always want to be this happy and if he went anywhere I would find a way to go with him. I had lost my urge to travel just because I was content. But when we split, I fell apart and I found myself in the dilemma that I had as a child - where is home? I tried to make a home out of a person not from the family and that was wrong. You put yourself at risk to be a shadow of your former self….
I don’t know where is home. I am American but I was born and raised in Jamaica… but I never considered it home. It is a love hate relationship I have with this country even if others outside of the country sit in shock saying it is a paradise. In the USA, my home is Florida because of the house and my brother. I at one point and maybe I still do- thought that my home was Colombia. It was a fantastic experience for me and I still long to see Colombia again. But Colombia is one of those places that if you go - you either want to run away as quick as possible or you live there. I wanted to see the world and I am glad that I left to travel even if it pains me that every year passing makes the yearning for the country wane. That’s the thing with home. You don’t love the literal place, you love the feelings stirred, the bonds made and the comfort of the lifestyle. Since my EX was is from Macedonia, I decided to explore the country for myself and for the time I visited; I loved it. But it reminded me of Colombia - not a place to save money but a place to live if you saved enough money to live your days out comfortably. Kurdistan is the house of necessity for a lot of expats - businesses are booming and people come to invest and make enough money to make a life and build or find a home. Some eventually made their home here and they are content.
I hope one day I can finally find home. Maybe I am my own home.
Saturday April 20 2013
My access students last Thursday made lunch cause they thought and I thought that the classes were going to end. It was really good food. We ended up having a lesson on food. With food I taught vocabulary, recipes and covered countable and uncountable nouns and ways of measurement when reading a recipe. Four of the girls were excited and one was not as enthused since she is more interested in clothes and books. Well we have 4 more classes and the next class is supposed to be about clothes.
My friend and I were discussing how the books that we use teaching English and so different from the young girls’ cultural experience and wondering if maybe it was better to choose things the girls can relate too. It is easy to change what I teach because
- there are only young girls.
- there are only 5 girls in the group.
Much different from my afternoon class where there are 14 people in my class, majority of them young teenager boys who are close to the age where in their society they are seen as men where as I see them as my young students. The dynamics in managing that class are a lot more dynamic and strict versus my morning batch with only girls.
This guy did a case study which I thought was fascinating and thought it would be interesting for others to see.
