Lay down in your new town, walk the ground

So I'm back! I've actually been back since late last month, but work comes first, and I never seem to have the motivation to write down daily happenings.

Welp, I have zero shortage of work for the rest of my service. I'm not complaining, I realize I'm one of the lucky ones. I just finished two proposals last week, which along with Children's Camp this summer... I'll be set. Doesn't seem like a lot, but things go pretty slow here. Gotta give it time.

I feel sad that I've been away from my town for so long. I'll be spending more time in UB in the spring, and I fear what I'll miss then. I said I wrote my last blog post before I left. When I arrived back in the BU, I had found out that Altansuvd had lost her baby while I was gone. I thought about changing my post, but left it as it was... I feel like it would have been cheating if I changed it now. I've been able to see her a couple of times since then, and she's doing well. She told me the other day that her family won't have Tsagaan Sar this year, because of the grieving period (I think she said 45 days?).

In other news, in a couple of weeks I'll be on my way to Florida to see the grandparents and take a vacation to the US Virgin Islands with mom and Monika... vacation well deserved, the calm before the storm that is the rest of my time here in the BU.

Some pictures from my trip:

Woman in the traditional medicine hospital. She had a stroke, and the doctor said with traditional treatments, she was able to walk again. Interesting, no?

Children at the Disability Center in Bayankhongor.

Old house in Arvaikheer!

A desk that was donated as a part of G.W. Bush's Millenium Challenge (Mongolia was selected as one of the countries to receive grant money)... I think it's interesting that the USA is translated literally as "America's 1st Country". Maybe I'm just reading it wrong. 

Seabuckthorn wine! It actually tasted pretty good.

Creepy old hospital wheelchair.

Seminars! It's fun to give each other the heimlich, right? 

Always remember to call for help.

Jess and I did a mini-photoshoot thing for fun!

Looking out a window is always a good way to look amazing. Fact.

Warning: EXTREMELY HOT

This, my friends, is a young Stephen Colbert:

Taken from an article about a young Jon Stewart at a Dead Kennedys concert.

Yeah, you're welcome.

New Year.

**NOTE: I wrote this before my trip, just after new years. I didn't have time to put in the pictures, so I left it until now.

2012.

I've always enjoyed even years more than odd years, is that strange? Although some even years have been the absolute worst of my life, I've liked them better. Fun fact: Mongolians believe that how you'll spend the NYE is the same as how you'll spend the upcoming year. So spending last NYE alone with my cat seems pretty accurate, no?

This year, Jess and I traveled down to Dariganga to ring in 2012 with our own Sarah K. This means I'll be surrounded by friends this year, yeah? Since this year marks the final stretch of my Peace Corps service, it makes sense.

So how did I do on my new year's resolutions? Pretty well, I thought. Get shit done, genee (I said). I think I successfully got shit done. I'll mark that as a check. Taking more photos, genee. That is a not check. Jess and I are planning to keep each other creative this year (her passion being poetry). I've already started the year out pretty well:

2012 Resolutions:
-More photographs, even taking shit ones and not being so hard on myself about them
-Get even more shit done and finish my PC service out right
-Get healthier!
-Read more, watch less crap, dammit
-Swear less!   no.

I'm getting ready for a mini tour of Mongolia next week: A week in Altai, and a couple days in Bayankhongor, Arvikheer, and Khar Khorin. All for nursing seminars and CPR/first aid classes, but it'll be nice to visit with friends... and work on those new year's resolutions.

Yesterday was weird. That's seriously the only word to describe it. I was so pleased with myself that I got so much work done, but yet downer things kept happening like tearing a huge hole in my nice pants because I got too close to a metal trash can (seriously, what). At least the day ended off well, with a wine-filled evening with my CPs, although I had planned to do laundry (and I did end up doing later), I decided to let it go. I haven't done that in a long time, isn't that sad? I've become a grouchy-pants. I then stumbled to the store half-drunk with a coworker who I thought didn't like me that much, but there we were, arm-in-arm making our way to the center of town and having a nice conversation.

Shin Jil was a lot more low-key this year, and a bit of a downer. I was still sick, so I wasn't drinking (mistake! but at least I didn't have a hangover). Altansuvd wasn't there because she had just had her baby (?!?!?! it's a BOY!! You guys don't know how excited I am about this), and Mukhzul wasn't there because of a family death. I enjoyed the time, anyway:

Happy New Year, folks.

Scarves. Scarves. SCARVES.

Now I've done it. I've gone and bought another scarf. I want to show you my scarves. Here we go:

Too fast? OK IMA GONNA SHOW YOU ONE BY ONE.

This is part of my abnormally large Mongolian scarf collection.

This is the other half.

I have many kinds of scarves. Regular scarfs:

Why haven't I gotten my Hogwarts letter yet? (Seriously, this is a Ravenclaw scarf. Suck it, Hufflepuff!)

I would tell you where I got this one, but then I could have to kill you.  (It was free... found outside of the infamous FACE nightclub... probably a men's scarf. But I took it anyway because UB has taken too many pairs of gloves from me.)

Arguably my favorite scarf. I love the color.

Christmas present from my #1 sister :)

Mongolian sheep and camel wool scarf!

The only scarf that came with me initially from America.

Shawl-like scarves:

I got this one in Sunday Market in UB last Thanksgiving- apparently I'm really happy about it.

I got this one in Mars this past Thanksgiving- is there a trend here?

Hat and scarf sets:

I never wear the scarf (it came with the hat!), but you can tell by how dirty the hat is that I wear it ALL THE TIME.  Not pictured: the little pom-poms attached to the back of the hat.

And, my personal favorite of the moment, square scarves!!

This is the scarf that prompted this conversation. I got this in the market. Only $1.50!!

I got this one and the next one in UB. Only $3.50 each! 

Work it work it

Winter scarves:

I'M READY AGAIN FOR -40 TEMPS! This is actually supposed to be a summer shawl. Oh well.

Ok, not a scarf, but gaze upon my Mongolian rabbit (??) fur hat. Warm as hell.

And finally- a goat wool poncho type thing. Still trying to figure out where I can wear this.

Lastly!! Very big congrats to Melissa and Nick who got ENGAGED this weekend!! So freaking awesome! :D LOOK I found an old picture!!

D'awww :) Love you guys!

Can you shake it up, just once for me?

If you've never heard Gregory Alan Isakov, you should check him out. Excellent chill out music.

Anyway, what happened? Thanksgiving happened- in a blur. Lots of good times with friends. I made my amazing mashed potatoes again, and despite making something like 5 pounds of it, it was eaten so quickly I barely got any. And best thing to come out of Thanksgiving week: OLD BLAIN (sorry real not-old Blain!).

IST happened as well, which was pretty darn exhausting, I must say. I'm glad I was able to be a trainer, but I'm not sure how the summer people do it. Six weeks of that? Oy. It was nice finally getting to meet the new healthies for a longer period of time, and I got some good ideas for projects as well. Oh, and I totally had my camera the whole time but didn't use it. Bad bad bad Kate.

Speaking of projects, I have about 8-ish months left. How nuts is that? It feels so far away, yet at the same time it feels like I just got here. Katie L (fellow PCV, full-frame camera owner, and all around awesome person) made a good point in her blog- there's such thing as a "third quarter phenomenon" in which:

...I took a screenshot because it wouldn't let me copy and I was too lazy. Read the rest here. This completely explains the weird frustrations that I had a couple months ago. It's been better lately. I've been talking to other PCVs and I even had a chat with our country director, Ellen, about it. I'm glad to hear astronauts feel the same way... makes me feel a little more human.

So. I never did give ya'all a tour of my new place. Something about what I saw today made me want to:

SOMEONE had a little too much to drink and lost his head. This was in my hallway today.

 So anyway, here's the rest of my place:

My kitchen! My new place is a studio. This is possibly the cleanest it's been. There's also a bookshelf to the left.

Turn around, and it's my bed and my desk! Nice and cozy. I can now watch TV and cook dinner at the same time. MULTI-TASKING WHOO. Also, I have Christmas stuff up now.

Turn a little more, and here's my clothes area! (?)

My awesome runway carpet from the hospital, complete with mysterious black stain.

My... uh... coat and random stuff area. I have no more large room to hide all of it.

BATHROOM.

Hallway outside my place. Scary.

Door on the end of the hallway, to keep it nice and warm! How smart! Alas,  two problems: 1) I'm too tall for the door and 2) now the neighbor kids play in the hallway instead of outside.

Neighbor kids' doing? Kinda cute.

Someone's been drinking!

I'm now in the 3-8, WHAT UP NOW, 4TH BAG?!  

So have you ever wondered how our heating gets to our apartments? Wonder no more! They shovel coal into a large fire at all times of day and night. That's right- Titanic old school style. Those are steaming piles of coal bits. 

And here's my work! My commute is about 30 seconds, or I imagine 15 if I run. Also, that sand pile in the right-middle is currently where I get Mika's litter under the cover of night so people don't look at me weird. 

And one bonus picture from the Erdenet seminar I forgot to add:

Pharmacy for the WIN.