Happy Thanksgiving

11/23
Happy Thanksgiving, I am really going to miss the holiday this year as I am not going to participate in the Embassy dinner.  It was really nice last year, but all the travel and having to find housing etc. to go this year just didn't seem practical.  I am still going to celebrate his year, but I am going to go to the local(ish) PC office and do it with my fellow volunteers on Saturday.  That way I can spend a few days relaxing and enjoying with them, plus going to the pool is always a plus.  We are doing a potluck so should be lots of good, if not themed, food to stuff my face with.
I have really not had any work for about two weeks now.  To say I am going stir crazy would be an understatement.  Thankfully there has been power relatively consistently which means I have been wasting my days away watching movies.  But, if there had been no power on top of it I would probably have already lost my mind.  My site mate is trying to start up some clubs, but I am letting him do the footwork this time.  After having to take weeks getting them going last time I had no desire to be the one to initiate them.  If they get up and going I have a few ideas that we may try to get the kids interested. 
Bee keeping season is now in swing.  Sadly, there aren't as many flowers as I would like to see, so I am not expecting a huge honey harvest this year.  I have talked to a few people about how we won't get a lot of honey without trees, they seem to understand but not really care.  It is hard to get across conservation ideas here because there really is no such thing as environmental awareness here.  I am saddened when less than a hundred years ago people came to Ethiopia and described it as a beautiful oasis with wildlife and flora abounding.  Now the only flora you really see is Eucalyptus (a non-native) trees, and the animal life is non-existent excluding cattle.  I worry, that one day, this is what the rest of the world will soon look like if we aren't careful. 
I have been told I am going to help with a dairy processing training soon, but I will hold my breath.  If it even happens, it is likely it won't be for several months, just because that is how scheduling goes here.  I did try to do a training for the livestock office on how to do stool sample testing on the cattle and livestock. They seemed a little interested in the beginning, but quickly were distracted  It could be helpful for them here because there is no sort of regular deworming schedule or anything of that sort. To be able to better diagnose problems would be a huge benefit, but I will be surprised if they implement it at all. 
I have started writing my description of service for when I COS.  It is interesting looking back, I had so many ideas, plans, and things I wanted to do while living here.  It actually makes me a little sad just thinking about what I have actually accomplished and not just dreamed of.  I wonder what I could have done differently that would have helped me have a higher project rate, or a better impact.  I wonder what I am leaving behind in just the few short months I have left.  Did I make a difference?  Did I help someone without even knowing it?  Did one of those students decide to use a condom, or did one of the farmers decide that they should do some techniques a little different and improve their livelihood?  I don't really know, and in all likelihood I never will.  So what do I want to take away from service?  Well I guess I have five months left to figure that out!  Then it is off to India, Dubai, and who knows where else!