my year in numbers

This time last year I had two goodbye parties completed, packed and repacked, all while trying to wrap my head around what the next two years would entail. I landed in this tropical island nation late at night in a haze and have gained more clarity over the past year. I was right in many respects and surprised by others. It’s hard to put together qualitative anecdotes and experiences into a concise statement or measurable data. I’ve shared enough stories, which may be hard to relate to without being in this position, so here’s some hard numbers for ya:

0-Days in the hospital or major illneses contracted

1/2-New language learned. Conversational & some technical skills, but my grammar is horrible.

3/4-Sustainable program developed (CABRAD, still working out some kinks) 

1-Vacation days taken (more to come soon, Seoul & Hong Kong!)

2-Fantastic work counterparts (Mariane and Nestor)

3-Amazing host families (Gapasins, Villars, Fortunatos)

4-Places I’ve lived (Minneapolis, Dumaguete, Lapu-Lapu City, Cebu City)

5-Times I’ve been on antibiotics

6-Times I’ve eaten meat (native chicken, turtle, balut)

7-Provinces visited (Negros Oriental, Negros Occidental, Bohol, Cebu, Cavite, Metro Manila, Zambales)

8-Amazing clustermates (including my trainer Jufer)

9-Months at Euphrasia

10-Pesos (24 cents), cost of an ice cream cone at McDonalds across the street from work. Only 5 pesos more more for chocolate dipped.

12-Books read (sadly not more)

20-Days of overnight work retreats with my co-workers

24-age on my birthday this year

40-Blog entries

99-Days of Peace Corps-related training (PST, IST, PDM, Warden, PSN, Language Camp, HIV/AIDS Workshop)

151-Times I’ve done yoga

166-Documents/presentations/spreadsheets made for my site

190-Dollar equivalent of what I live off of each month

365-Days with an awkward or embarassing moment

367-Days since I’ve seen friends and family stateside, and missing them dearly.

375-Children and families my site serves

450-gigabites of movies and tv shows to keep me entertained

3,552-Pictures taken

3,654-Views of my blog

10,803-text messages sent, a fairly low number among PCVs

Countless:

-Mosquito bites

-Inquiries about my relationship status…at the start of a conversation with someone I don’t know

-Tropical fruits eaten (mangoes, pineapple, bananas, papaya, rambutan, lanzones, mangosteen, coconut)

-Cockroaches killed

-“Am I really in the Peace Corps?” moments. Beautiful beaches, mountains, people, etc.

-Times I’ve been homesick

-Kind gestures

-Support from home

-Life long friends