Missing some students

This was an interesting week. Of course the elections in the states. I hope my absentee vote was counted. Thanks to everyone for voting. Even if your candidates didn’t win – informed voting and otherwise supporting democracy remains critically important to our future. Stick with it – the only way our country will improve is with active and intelligent participation from people who care about everyone.

The second goal of Peace Corps is to show American culture to citizens abroad. As Grenada has more personal exchanges with the states than Ghana I don’t get questions like “Does everyone own a big house in America?” I have recently been asked about the elections, press conferences, mass shootings, military troops on the Mexican border and such. Like other volunteers I try to give short answers about such questions without getting into political discussions. A lot of “I don’t understand either”, “People are divided like they are here”, “Good and bad in all countries”, and “People are trying to change that.”

Volunteers are required to stay out of local politics completely. This past Tuesday Grenada was voting on a referendum about the final court of appeal. Our school is a voting location and as I said before people are not allowed to hang out within 100 yards of the location – so no school on Tuesday.

Painted each election

There was also no school on Monday and Wednesday while the teachers in the union stayed home to rest and think about a pension reduction from 25% of salary to 2%. We had school on Thursday, but I only had one student in my class, so he got very tailored lessons. Two thirds of my students, 4 out of 6, were present on Friday and I got to teach my math lesson that I planned for Monday. I’ll have to figure a time to teach the other two students the topics covered.

The “industrial action” will continue this coming Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday. So another broken week with about a month of school left. As any teacher knows this is very difficult. Teachers are teachers because they want what is best for the children. They desperately want to teach at this point. But they also have to think about their financial security. I guess all over those in power use the love of teaching and children against teachers when it comes to negotiating fair compensation.

Next Friday we are scheduled to move to the new school. So we might have class on Thursday. “God willing” as the saying here goes.

I also have a Peace Corps meeting Friday morning that I’m trying to get access to via Skype on my computer and the school wifi. I don’t want to miss helping the school move.

Rainy weather, but no snow anyway


We’ve been having a some rain for the past few days. Not nearly as much as Dominica which is dealing with slides and flooding. However, with heavy rains my water tends to get a bit off before they turn off the flow. So while trying to do laundry on Saturday ...  (And yes, I always use my filter for drinking water.)

Yes, I'm sure my clothes are going to get clean.  At least not whites today.

Yes, that is a scary claw
On Friday night I noticed this little guy on my back porch. On Saturday while doing laundry I was walking in and out of my kitchen and left the door open. One time as I was going out to work on the laundry I noticed that the little rascal had come into the kitchen. I took my broom and showed it the exit. It seems to have taken up residence between my small water barrel and the wall.

Not the one I tossed.  But you get the idea.
With the rain I’m also back to a plague of mosquitoes and those millipedes. My mosquito bat is being used a lot. I had to scoop a millipede, they are not dangerous, up from my bathroom and tossed it back out. Rains in the tropics – always interesting.

Next week I hope to have some pictures of the new school, God willing.

Love always,
John

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