Well, this is just a simple song...

HEY GUESS WHAT it's Nurse's Week! So here's a themed post because it's the little things in life that make me happy, like THEMES:

A couple weeks ago, we hosted the regional nursing competition among the eastern aimags. It was great fun, and of course I got to take lots and lots and lots of photos. Have you ever wanted to put on your own nursing competition? OF COURSE. So let me show you how:

Bright, sunny and in the 70s is exactly how you want to start your competition.

Line 'em up, listen to some opening remarks... 

This is one of our schizophrenic patients. This is actually the same woman from last year who would yell at me in Russian and follow me places. This year, however, she must have forgotten about it... because right after she caught me taking the picture, she came up to me and said (in Mongolian), "are we friends?" I said, of course. We shook hands and continued to watch the speeches. 

Next, you do a little presentation on your hospital (this is where I got shout-out #1)

Oh yes, you must remember to put up your hair to perfection....

See?

Last minute chatter/cramming...

NURSING TESTS!!

Next, have your nurses test out the skills... 

This is Ghanaa, one of the nurses on my hospital's team, and also my neighbor! 

Reminds me of skill checks in nursing school.... ugh.

Oh hey, remember that nice weather the day before? Scrap that shit because here comes SNOW for the second day of the competition!

Yeah, you know why I took this picture.

This game is called, "count how many people are photoshopped into the picture." Hint: it's way more than you think.

FINALLY back to the competition. Here comes the real fancy stuff.

First some kind of introduction. Which could include a song/poem...

Or some kind of ethnic dance bit... (that woman with the mic is supposed to be playing a Russian)

Or have a Florence Nightingale impersonator...

... complete with dancing military women!

Yeah, clearly the coolest intro.

Close up!

Next, lets show the judges what you've been up to this year! (This is where I got shout out #2!) 

Not pictured: large screen with power points on it. Oh yeah, the woman on the right has a picture of a healthy lung stuck to her middle. They were doing a bit about smoking.

Next, have one person from each team answer a complicated (?) medical question. (A lot of them were about med dosages). If you're wondering why three of them look so happy, its because we were like the only team to get their question right.

Next, each team needs to answer a joint question! (They sounded like case studies to me...) 

Next, have each team come up and make sure they have their nursing supplies in their pockets, such as a watch, a pen,  hair in a bun, a towel and soap. This was the only part that I went, "uhhhh what." 

Finally, end with a upbeat song from your aimag.

Awards!!

Because they're amazing, my nurses got 1st place.... for the second year in a row!!

Congrats! Now they're all in UB competing in the national competition (last year they came in 5th). Go go Sukhbaatar go!!

Happy Nurse's Week, everyone!

Beach Corps

Here I am, last full day on the island. And I'm on the internet blogging and checking March Madness stats (SUCKS TO SUCK MICHIGAN ahahahahaha). I'm waiting for my family to wake up so I can make breakfast and go snorkeling one last time. We're on St. John, and we've pretty much not had to go anywhere else... full of freaking amazing beaches and even more amazing food and people. I adore it here, but my skin doesn't- I still think I'm slightly allergic to the sun, because I get those awful rashes if I'm out too long:

Ignore my haggardness of appearance and my pouty face- I've just woken up. Also, the rash doesn't look as bad in the camera. 

That's another reason I'm not in the Beach Corps (the oh-so-affectionate name for Peace Corps volunteers who live on islands/near water), or anywhere really hot. I talked with one of my old sitemates just before I left, and he said that Beach Corps volunteers complain incessantly about their situation. Which they shouldn't, we both agreed. I guess bugs wouldn't be fun, but we have those too. Grass is always greener though, right?

Anyway, apparently the temp doesn't get too high here in the summer, and year-round it's something like 70-90 because of the sea regulation. Crazy. It also hasn't rained at all since we've been here, despite a 50% chance of rain everyday (watch... downpour = tonight).

In honor of St. Patrick's Day (which we will be celebrating today at all the bars by the beach), here is some Caribbean fun:

That is truly the question, isn't it?

Rum rum rum... yum!

(Real pics to follow when I get back to the land of the blue sky...)

Leap Frog / Leap Year

Really, I just thought it would be fun to post on February 29th. Happy leap year!

So because I'm distracted (and I shouldn't be- I have a ton to do), here's a picture of where I'm going next week:

St. John, US Virgin Islands

No worries, I'm sure I'll get better pictures when I'm there. POW!

(Now back to your regularly scheduled programming...)

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.

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.