2 posts tagged “gym”

i managed to go out today. rule of thumb: if your security officer places you under house-arrest then pisses off back to jerusalem you can generally do what you had already planned on doing.

we went to three schools in the middle areas (deir al balah and bureij) is was good to go back out in the field. to meet with people, to chat. so much gets done over a cup of coffee, its one of my favourite things about here. it can be frustrating at first, but its just a different way of operating, you just have to adjust and then its amazing. you sit and have coffee with someone and they appreciate it so much, then you are friends, then you can speak frankly, then you don't have to keep up these facades of 'everything is okay' cause everything is not okay.

its a sad, sad day when one of the standard questions on a school evaluation form is: 'how many days/hours have been lost to military activity in the area?' even worse is when you can't find a single installation that hasn't been affected.

i also got to visit a health centre, that was very interesting since i have never really toured one before, and the doctor at the facility that we visited was fantastic! and he was so happy about the follow up from a previous visit and that things had actually been done. but its horrible to sit there listening to this man who is so educated who received his medical degree in the states, who has worked all over america and saudi arabia and is now trapped in gaza. this man who has spent far more years in higher education than myself, someone who has helped so many more people. and he is asking us if he can have a budget, just a small one of USD 1000 or so, so that he can buy things like a cordless phone so that he doesn't have to run back to his office everytime the phone rings - because it is the only phone in the entire health facility that serves 65,000 refugees. this amazing man who is asking if he can have a petty cash allowance so that he can get a map of the health centres operational area framed so that all staff know what areas are and are not covered.

it is absolutely humbling.

it is also the best incentive that i have ever had to do something and to make even more of an effort to make a difference.

i also took care of some administrative stuff today. the world revolves around admin, it really is the sad sad truth. and they gym, thank god for a gym! its the only exercise that i get and the only thing that separates me from a blob. it is also one of the few things that keeps me from going stark raving mad!

and abu hani surprised us with fresh falafel and fresh bread. it was sooo yummy! that is one of the few things about the region that i will never tire of: falafel, hummous, and khobz (pita bread) - it is so divinely delicious, and they really know how to make it here. i have been spoiled, i will never be able to eat any other hummous ever again.

and i took some pictures. just a few. its difficult to not feel like you are intruding as you try to get that perfect shot. i think its a skill far greater than the technicalities of the camera, its a skill to be unobtrusive and encouraging of trust so that people continue to do whatever you're trying to get a picture of.

i'll try to post them - at least one - once i figure out all of the cords that connect between the camera and the computer  - there is a particularly great one of a dirty little boy with the biggest grin on his face.

and now i am off to scrounge up dinner - i managed to go through tonnes of tomatoes yesterday - not really, but it felt like it! i made a creamy tomato soup, which was an adventure since i sort of took three different recipes, took the bits and pieces that i liked and combined them. it turned out well, i'm still walking and talking! and i made some red pasta sauce, which might be interesting cause i tipped in a bit more red wine than intended, but it tastes okay, we'll just have to see what the after affects are!

there's something lovely about remembering how to use your legs. i hate that i have to sit in an office every day. but we have a kick-ass gym, and it really is a nice way to end the day. plug in some good music and take a long run on the treadmill, sure running on the beach would be better, but a minor compromise like that won't kill me.

i had a good day...no, it was a great day. things are really coming together. i have some of my own projects, which is really nice. it makes you feel established, and like you belong. and i found out i get to go on this cool security course. its the same one that they send all un staffer's on before they get sent to iraq. lots of fun stuff to learn. and i had a really good day with my boss. i am learning to read his moods, and i think we're beginning to work well together as a team. even if he did make fun of me for having to take a driving test tomorrow (so that i can drive the un cars when not in gaza).

overall it was just nice. i feel like i am sort of coming into my own. i am so not the biggest social person, but i feel like simply because of my position here i am really having to utilise my social skills, and expand them. and finally i've found a position where it pays to remember everyones face and name, and useless tid-bits. thank god for my exemplary skills at retaining useless bits of information!!!

its also nice to be appreciated, and to feel like part of a team. i think everyones just finding out how young i am and that this is my first job. its kind of funny, because all these people here are amazing. they have done amazing things, and have so much knowledge and experience, and over the last few days so many of them have said such lovely things to me, and paid me such wonderful compliments. its hard to rectify that i can belong in a system like this. its an amazing confidence booster, thats for sure!!

and the crazy story for the day! there's actually a few. i'm getting really good at answering phones in arabic, and conducting basic telephone conversations, which is quite the accomplishment, since i have trouble understanding people who speak english on the phone. anyway, several times today i answered the phone in arabic to get a bit of a flustered, 'ummm....can i speak to someone in english???' the great part was when i switched to english, you could literally hear the wheels turning in their brains!! it was kind of fun. does that make me a mean person?

the other odd thing: all the small arms fire after dark doesn't worry me so much....now thats not a good thing. it should worry, it should worry anyone with sense. but i suppose you have to adapt to some things to retain at least a bit of sanity. the funny moment for the day was when S and i decided that we should maybe practice putting on our flak jackets - it was like 2000hrs at this stage, we'd been at work for 13 hours, and we weren't going home anytime soon. it took the two of us five minutes to get the damn thing out of the bag - for anyone who has not been lucky enough to have a flak jacket to play with, they are heavy! i mean i know thats good, but they're really heavy!! then it took two of us to strap me in. and then we were having fits of giggles, when another colleague walked into S's office, took one look at us and turned around and walked out. that did not help with the giggles.

on the note of flak jackets, i know how to say it in arabic now!! see what this posting is doing for my language skills?? i am learning all the important words :)

oh, and the weird/scary/omg moment of the day? the former minster of health came to visit. hes relatively high ranking hamas. he brought his body guards. they were scary. like, really scary. like i was really glad that one of our cps took them out of the office and made them sit in the entry area. we had one cp at the front door, one in the entry area with these two hamas guys, and one sitting by my bosses door, which is just next to my desk. it was a bit comforting, but still, it was one of the few times i felt a bit worried.

although, thats one for the story books. how many people can say they've been in that situation?

i really do love my life. i suppose thats really all that matters. that and living by the med. i am not sure how i can leave and not wake up to the sea every morning.