It's that time of year.

Imagine, if you can, Best Buy on Black Friday. Scary crowded room, full of people pushing to get the last $100 laptop? Right. Well, Mongolia has it's own mini-version, but instead of electronics, it's carts full of food stuffs.

What is the holiday?

It's TSAGAAN SAR time! :D

This was how I imagined most of the people I encountered today were thinking. People pushing past each other to get the last Super Kontiks off the shelf. It reminds me of a couple conversations I've had in the past year about the commercialization of Tsagaan Sar. I could see it getting to Christmas-sized proportions, easy. The ads on TV, the sales, all of it hints towards commercialism. Where it becomes less about celebrating the beginning of the end of winter and the new lunar year, and more about fancy things? Some Mongolians I've talked to agree.

I'm interested to see the differences between this year and last year. One of the traditions of Tsagaan Sar is giving a gift to every person who comes to your home. The more money the family has, the fancier the gift tends to be (candy, money, and phone units are common... things like clothing, decorations and American dollars are less common). Families can quite literally go broke preparing for this holiday. The trade-off is though, is that the families will probably be able to live off of whatever gifts they received during TS. Is it starting to get out of hand, though?

So, I had a fun time at the shops today. I went store to store, but everyone was out of (good) veggies. The last store I stopped in had a good pile of green peppers, so I went to town. I really love onions (for those who don't know me) but the pile was really quite sad. I asked the nice store lady if she had any more, and she went in the back to get some.

A couple of people came by to look at the onions, but were dismayed at the wilted-ness of them. Oh, but I waited there patiently. And waited. UNTIL. The lady came out with a crate with only like 30 onions in it. And they were all mine! I had my bag ready, and grabbed up a couple kilos right before the swarm of people in the back of me, who realized that there were new onions out, pushed me to the side.

But it was too late for them. I had the most glorious onions of the pile. 

And I realized at the moment, I'm more integrated into this culture than I thought.

Some of my beautiful, tasty, eye-watering onions.

(No worries, she brought out more after I went to pay. But after all the shopping, the pushing and shoving... it was my moment!) 

Until after Tsagaan Sar (which is Feb 22nd-24th)... peace!

The new day dawns, and I'm practicing my purpose once again.

So here's my in-between week. Last week, big seminar. This week, home. Next week, big seminar. I'm leaving again Saturday for UB to be the Health trainer for IST (remember last year I brought Altansuvd?), and THANKSGIVING! I'm excited that next year I'll be with my family, but Thanksgiving here isn't a poor substitute. This will be the last time before COS (close of service) conference that we're all together, so we gotta make it count!

Long photo post! Whoops.

So last week, I traveled the most west I've been in Mongolia so far- to Erdenet. I've been preparing nursing skill presentations for Laura (a fellow M21) and Gracie (a new M22 healthie). I first had a stop in Ulaan Tolgoi (literally: red head) at Laura's soum and did a two day training for the hospital there:

Laura has the CUTEST most well behaved cat I've ever met. And BIG EYES! 

Practicing positioning with Gracie as my patient!

Laura (on the left), Gracie and I with the hospital employees. (Gracie's CP, Doogie, is the one with the black dress in the back- she was my amazing translator the whole week)

I had to take a picture of this. It just says "School". The school is named "School".

We're cold! 

Sunset in Ulaan Tolgoi.

Next it was onto Erdenet! Three days of nursing skill seminars. Tiring, but it was well worth it. We covered everything from nursing ethics to constipation. The nurses were really receptive and we had some awesome discussions. It was also really nice to see the M21s I've missed (Katie, Ryan and Ali!):

And it begins! There were over 60 nurses there. Dang.

View if you were sitting in the back.

SKIN LAYERS WHAT UP

I sometimes drifted to the back to speak just to make sure people were paying attention.

Oh yeah, we had dinner! Here's Ryan and Katie shelling the shrimp.

LETTUCE.

Finished result- salad (with "feta") and shrimp pasta and garlic bread (not pictured). Mmm.

YUMM.

Gracie poured a whole bottle of something on her computer, now the backlight doesn't work. Hilarity ensues whenever she wants to do anything on her computer.

BUNNY HUGZ

Ok, ok, back to the seminar. This woman speaking is the head of nursing in Erdenet, and is best friends with Tuya and Saraa (from the health department). Small country, eh?

The ER doc showed us all how NOT to transfer a patient (Gracie). Owch. 

Two person lift from a wheelchair. Not too bad!

You can see how nervous I am. We're practicing patient falls. This is pretty much how it ended up in my hospital, too.

Alright, I'll stop killing your bandwidth with my pictures.

OH WAIT HERE'S A NICE ONE:

Children's English play... comp...compet.... competition (gaaaahhhh)
But this one was cute. (And it won)

Please tell me what there is complain about…

It has been far too long. What is wrong with me- two months and no update? Another whirl-wind of months go by, and I realize how little time I actually have left here (11 months, WHAT?!). So lets back this train up, and make a (short) list of happenings:

-My CP is preggos, but you already knew that.

-That same week, I proceeded to break my iPhone on a rock (v. bleak moment for me, but I got the whole screen replaced in the capital. Who knew?)

-Altaa is preggos too! And the baby is due around the time that Suvdaa's is!
-Also that same week, I was told I was going to move apartments (I haaaaate moving)

-Ashley left Mongolia :(

-Went to MST (Mid-Service Training), and it was actually a lot of fun, with good discussion and painless seminars!

-Went to Anhaa’s (Sarah’s CP) wedding, hung out in the houdo
-My life being spent watching episodes of TV shows:

       -I finished watching The Tudors (sooo good)

       -Started watching Mad Men (sooo good)

       -Re-started watching all my favorite shows this month (sooo good)

It wasn’t all bad… that same week I had the crazy stuff happening was the same week I had found out from Soyol that we were getting *two* new volunteers instead of one! And dearest Ashley came to the BU as a sort of “final farewell”… more like she was here for seminar purposes, but it was nonetheless so nice to have her here.

After packing up my whole life in boxes, thinking I was going to move that next Wednesday, but not actually moving until Friday and going to the capital on Sunday (with barely unpacking and Mika not getting to adjust to the new place), my brain was fried. I was a crazy hot mess for a couple weeks there!

My place is finally put together (after like 2 weeks of cleaning!), but I still have yet to get a kitchen sink and a shower. But I did get a carpet that makes my place look like there’s a runway in it, so I’ll call that a victory. The sink should be here eventually because my landlord’s (one of the doctors at the hospital) husband is going to be the one to do it, and he’s in China. Of course. Could be worse! Could be raining… oh wait:

Rain? In my apartment?

Hasn’t rained in my apartment since (scratch that- it did last night), even though it was raining this week. So, whatever. It’ll be snowing soon enough. And it has been COLD. I had a moment of “oh yeah. THIS is what the cold feels like.” It warmed up for a while, but windier than I remember it being this time last year.

Work is crazy busy and I love it. We’re really getting into the groove of regular nurse-teaching sessions, and I’m starting some cool programs in the hospital.

Enough small-talk. Picture time!

Boy racing at Naadam

Can you spot the bird?

Anhaa and Zorgoo... the newly wed couple and soon to have a baby :)

Seriously, the creepiest men I've ever met (the two on the left). They were drunk as skunks (as you can tell) and couldn't remember/get over the fact we weren't Russian. And this guy looking at the camera wanted me to call him later. YEAH. SURE BUDDY I'LL GET RIGHT ON THAT. He was also confused on why I wasn't eating a second helping of mutton soup.

Sarah and her "forever six year old buddy"

FALL! Some of the only trees in the BU and they're on hospital grounds.

Happy Fall!

I run and run as the rains come...

Nursing competition! Complete with dancing.

Mumford and Sons... never leave my playlist, please.

Oh, shame on me. Not updating in over a month. Granted, it’s been a crazy busy one. We’re getting ready for camp, and most things are coming together. We still have a lot to do, but I figure slow and steady is best at least until the teachers finish school in June.

So I wrote this a couple days ago, but I’ve sadly gotten sick since then. Luckily this is only the 2^nd time food poisoning has been this bad, and I’m really thankful I have an indoor toilet right now. I went into work yesterday for a little bit, thinking we were going to have a meeting… of course people were busy/not at work, so I decided to leave since I was about to pass out at my desk. At least now I can sit at my home desk for longer periods of time without wanting to lay down.

Bad decision of the week = watching the rest of season 1 of Dexter before bed. That show is so freaky, yet I can’t stop watching. It give me REALLY wacked out dreams. Coupled with my fever/chills combo, it kind of made for a restless night.

Since my last update, I think I was in the middle of my month of straight work.  I didn’t mind, but it was nice to have a real day off after that. Between various Nursing competitions, camp meetings, and event organizing, I’ve been redonkulously busy (I know that’s not a word, but it’s my blog, darn it).

Snowing on May 21st. 

Since the start of May, it’s been COLD. Confusing to most of us, since April was so warm I had to keep my windows open most of the time. Now that the heat has shut off (back to tumpin bathing…) and the temperatures dropped again, my apartment hasn’t been so nice and warm. Sadly I cannot start fires in the apartment, so my little Peace Corps heater has been my best friend on the (now shortening) cold lonely nights. Today, however... it's 80 degrees. CHOOSE ONE, MONGOLIA. You're about as bad as Michigan!

Next came my birthday! I’m 25. Oi. My 3^rd b-day in a row outside of America (England, Japan, Mongolia!). I should take this moment to say happy anniversary to this blog, since I remember doing a birthday blog note when we were in Kyoto! Anyway, it was a nice low-key event. My birthday (May 12^th) is on the same day as nurse’s day (how appropriate?), but since we did nurse’s day activities beforehand, the teachers and Nema took me out to dinner, then my coworkers took me out for cake and karaoke. :) On Saturday, Alex brought over a cake and wine and we watched Glee with Nema.

My candle was on FIRE. And singing happy birthday!

Hospital peeps and some of the English teachers!

Cake cutting pose.

Karaoke and dancing!

Just last week I took a quick trip to the capital to do work for camp. I took my dear Mika along, so as to get his manhood surgically removed. He did VERY well and I was impressed with his ability to sleep for 10 hours. I don’t know the word for neuter in Mongolian, so my CPs and I had the code word “snip snip” with hand actions. Or “no make babies” (in Mongolian). He’s pretty chilled out now, which I’m happy about. Crazy cat. I wasn’t so excited to go to the capital (had another attempted pick-pocketing, ugh), but I got to see Tim, Ned, Justin and Ashley (actually, both of the J&A married couples!). The two former I hadn’t seen since December… although it really didn’t feel like I hadn’t seen them in that long since we talk a bunch. Tim and Ned are going to be the health trainers for the summer in Darkhan (north 3 hours from the capital). I’m hoping I’ll be able to pop by to visit, maybe in August.

And summer! Summer! Swimming, sun, car rides, camel rides, horse rides… the family is coming!!

Mom, Konrad and Monika are due to arrive in Mongolia on July 10^th! :) I have a whole itinerary planned, which may or may not actually go well (because… well, it’s Mongolia. I know this country by now). I know they’ll be great travelers and we’ll have a great time regardless, but I want things to go semi-smoothly, at least. I wish Dad could have been able to experience Mongolia too, but I bet he’ll be with us in spirit.

Other things of note:

-As much as I get frustrated in the capital city (pick-pocketers, cab drivers that rip you off, expensive everything, etc), I always know I can come back to my town and find the nicest, most caring people I’ve ever met. For example, when I pulled up on the bus, I had a bunch of stuff and right away a man with his daughter asked if I needed a ride. After taking me to my apartment, they offered to help me carry the stuff up to my place. The daughter was even brave enough to carry Mika’s carrier! (Mongolians are generally freaked out by cats) When I offered some more money because they had been so nice, the man refused but let his daughter take the money after I insisted.

-I learn something new about myself and Mongolia everyday.

-If there’s a new product on the store shelves, there’s a chance that you might not be able to buy it because the cashiers don’t know what it is.

-Community (the show) drinking games are the best. Troy and Abed in the moooorning!

-When I learn a new Mongolian song, I am guaranteed to sing it at least twice in a row on special occasions. This includes birthdays!

-Tuya is my official #2 Mongolian Mom.

-Empty milk cartons make perfectly acceptable barf bags.

-Those 10-hour bus rides are an oddly good meditation/self-reflection place.

 That's all for now. On to pictures!

Todd's going away party! 

After the bar... move to the club.

You know when it's getting warmer... out come the billiard tables! 

Nurse's Day Lunch! The doctors served us food and drink. :) That's Tsolmon pouring the tea. She's incredibly nice, and she was actually my first office-mate.

...tumbleweed? Tiemshte! (Of course!)

Sarah planning out her world adventures while Mika sleeps. D'aww :) Also, the painting in the background (right of Sarah's head), I got during the Nursing Day dinner, for my "hard work and dedication". :)

The site mates getting together for some drinking games and awesome Mexican food!