Cleaning, Travels, and Volcanoes

Well!  I'm halfway through week 7.  Goodness!  It's all downhill from here, I suppose.  It's been difficult being finished with data collection because now I feel really really useless and unproductive again.  I'm waiting for my translator to finish translating our last 45 interviews so that I can start coding and analyzing...Here's what I've been up to these last couple of days...

Thursday
Did a lot of cleaning and celebrating the completion of my data collection in the morning (celebrating, meaning, not writing).  But I had to get my bottom back to work after the morning because I had a number of assignments due.  Went with Pastor to visit his extended family (they live about 2 hours away in the province of Batangas) in the afternoon.  I did quite a bit of writing on the road.  Got home around 11pm.

Friday
Again, a day devoted to writing.  Wrote an informal interim report for Dr. Mask (translation: a really really long e-mail), edited a whole bunch of interview transcripts, completed my weekly log, and finally finished my expanded fieldnotes :D!  I'm actually tempted not to write any more fieldnotes because Dr. Mask said he accepts interview transcripts as fieldnotes... whoohoo!!  But I feel kind of guilty not writing anymore fieldnotes.  I'm not sure if it's false guilt though.  Help? 

Saturday
Went to the home of the two sisters and their family again.  Painted the gate with the boys.  Got sunburned for the first time in my life.  Ouch.  I am now able to empathize with others in the pain of burning skin.  Washed a lot of dishes (I don't know why this chore I previous despised brings me so much comfort now) and did a lot of baby holding (oh so much joy!).  I learned that I also really like jack-fruit!  It's fun to eat!  oh and masarap! (very delicious!)  But it has a super strong smell.  Oh well!  Small price to pay.  Walked home and spent some time just lounging around and reading in the one a/c room in the house.  Played the keyboard.  Got frustrated.  Went back to reading. 

Sunday
Church :)!  It's great worshiping with Christians across the ocean and it's been a huge blessing to be able to worship in a language I understand.  I had not really thought about it before, but it really is comforting to sing songs I know (especially the first couple of weeks here).  Though, I get really excited on the weeks when we sing Tagalog songs!  Those are the real jewels, in my opinion.  But it's a blessing to sing in English nonetheless.  The rest of the service is in Tagalog though, so I can only guess what's being said.  The sermon is the most difficult part.  I try really hard to put puzzle pieces together based on the bits of English I hear mixed with the minimal Tagalog I've picked up and the Bible passage I have in front of me.  But what I get is really basic.  Same goes for Sunday school.  Although it's good to be reminded of the basics week to week, I realized that I've been missing my regular feedings!  So for the past three weeks I've been downloading sermons from New City Fellowship to listen to on my own, which have brought me lots and lots of joy!!  Thank you internet!  And thank you people who faithfully record and upload sermons!

After morning service and Sunday school (guys, I totally memorized the wrong verses for homework...ahh!!  so I crammed the correct memory verses into my head 5 minutes before Sunday school in fear that I would be required to stand in the back of the classroom for the following hour.  I was beating myself over the head about my carelessness, but I managed to memorize it so...now I have double the verses memorized!  yay!) I went with four other youth to one of the church members' home for lunch.  We ate and sat around watching TV (Filipinos REALLY like to sing.  Like...really.  Even their TV shows capture people singing!  We watched 2 hours of singing.  How?  Haha) until it was time for us to go back to church for the afternoon service...about 3:30pm.  Rehearsed music for the afternoon service, attended the afternoon service, went to the market with Pastor to buy fruit (yay!  But it's not a good idea to walk around the market in heels...Note to self:  carry flip-flops in your bag because you never know what's coming next), went home, showered, watched a movie on the life of Dietrich Bonhoeffer, ate dinner, went to bed. 

Monday
Cleaned and read.  Home alone most of the day.  I watched an episode of Glee on TV and a game from the world cup!  Finally!  Korea and Uruguay.  The TV was fuzzy and it's not as fun to watch football alone, but I was very content.  Then in the afternoon I read the newspaper.  One article on the world cup...was informed that the game I watched that morning was a replay and that the US was already out of the running.  Lots of articles concerning the swearing in of the new president "Noynoy" Aquino.   

Tuesday
Went with Pastor and Jairus and Hapi to pick up Ate Malu from the Manila airport.  An event that began at 2pm and ended at 2am.  Crazy Manila traffic.  Went to Starbucks!  [Starbucks looks the same across the ocean]  Ordered a non-fat, no-whip, caramel macchiato...yum.  The familiarity of the sights, sounds, and smells reminded me of being back in the US...aroma of coffee-yes, but the smell of cigarettes-not so much.  Visited the National Book Store--largest bookstore chain in the Philippines.  Oh I really like books.  I had to keep reminding myself that I cannot/should not buy books--too heavy for my luggage.  P.s.  It's great to have my supervisor back! 

Wednesday
Holiday!  (Because the president was sworn in).  So we, as a family, went to Tagaytay!  To see the smallest active volcano in the world!  We couldn't go to close though because it's currently really really active.  Took lots of pictures!  My eyes hurt because I was so tired from the day before so...pictures of me--not so great.  I kept praying that my energy levels would stay up so that I could enjoy my first touristy type thing, but it was quite a struggle since I couldn't keep my eyes open (they stung).  I really wanted to rip my contacts out, but I don't think that would've helped.  I need to buy sunglasses.  We were all pretty exhausted.  It was very beautiful though.  There were fresh fruits and flowers everywhere!  Slept the whole way home (2 hours) and slept when I got home (another 2 hours), went to the prayer  meeting, had dinner, and could not fall asleep even though I was exhausted! 

Thursday (Today!)
Still tired, but couldn't sleep in if I tried.  Got up, ate breakfast, and cleaned in the morning (wow, apparently I really like to clean).  I was able to catch up on returning some e-mails, blogged...  Going to meet one of my new friends at a coffee shop for a study date in an hour!  Going to walk there!  45-minute walk here I come!  Friends, coffee, studying, date, walking...such good good things.

Oh wow.  The week is almost over.  I'm working on posting pictures, but facebook is making me frustrated.  But I promise, by the end of this week. 

Other Noteable Notes
-We've had vegetables at my last 6 meals!  I. Am. So. Happy!!  But now when my host parents say, "You finish this."  I feel that I must finish it for their sake.  I am much more content finishing a whole papaya or vegetable dish than another chicken leg though :)
-It's rained everyday for the past four days.  Cool air - such a blessing.
-Exchanged money by myself for the second time (first time was in the airport).  Pastor came with me and walked up to the window and then turned around and told me he would wait for me in the car.  I nodded and walked up to the counter:  "Okay, you're just exchanging money.  You watched Ate Malu do this.  You can do it by yourself.  And if you get confused, just start speaking in English and they'll get the idea that you only know English."  Exchanged my money.  Went to the car.  Pastor said, "The lady in front of you in line was one of my college classmates, that's why I left."  Hahahahaha.

Grace and Peace!