OmigodithasbeenalongtimesinceIwroteanythingformybelovedfollowers!!!
The Unexpected
Last month Juila Campbell, a fellow Peace Corps volunteer and close friend of mine, was killed by some fuckhead up in the Cordillera mountains of Luzon island. Since her death there has been an outporing of support for her and her family both in the US and here in the Philippines (insert some cliche here about being "family" once you join the Peace Corps). I would like to thank anyone and everyone who has taken the time to send any kind of caring message to myself, other volunteers or Julia's family. In this crazy individualistic world we live in it is nice to feel connected to those around you, even if the circumstances are as drastic as murder.
Again, thank you for your loving support and I am sure anyone affected by this tragedy feels equally grateful.
Work
BioSand filters. Let me tell you about BioSand filters.
As you may know from reading this blog, my primary project for the last 6 months or so of Peace Corps has been dedicating all my time and energy into setting up a BioSand filter production facility. The filter itself is designed using slow-sand filtration techniques that have been around for millenia.
Some facts about a single filter to put things into perspective:
- Makes up to 200 liters of contaminated water clean every day
- Good for 10-15 people by Philippine standards
- Requires no electricity or maintenance beyond keeping the outside clean
- Lasts a lifetime once installed
- Costs $28 including transport and installation
For my project UNICEF and the PhilAm foundation purchased 160 filters to be installed in various places around my province. That is up to 2400 people (or 32000 liters of water per day, depending on how you look at it) provided with safe drinking water for the forseeable future. That is fucking amazing.
The thing that is not so f'ing amazing is the amount of work that requires. Production, coordination and installation of all 160 filters has taken 3 months so far and is not over yet. Every day I go with the workers on a truck to take filters to where they need to go and convince people that I am not selling them black magic.
Fun?
What do I do for fun? I hang out with cool european aid workers and learn about why I should go work for the International Red Cross and move to Darfur. I go to the sites of nearby volunteers to escape election-related violence. I listen to the baby next door cry like he (she?) has every night for the last 6 months. I read a lot. I am actually learning to cook for myself; I can make a mean chicken curry if you ever feel a mite' peckish and want to drop in for a bite.
Random Thoughts?
This is where I come up with some kind of clever anecdote to leave my readers stunned and amazed by the lengths I will go to sacrifice my mental health and personal well being to help the needy of the world. Unfortunately for you readers, it is not that simple. There are a million things that go into making a good story but honestly I can't remember any of them. I heard on the radio once that it was about timing or something....I forget.
I don't know what it is about the culture here (and the nature of cultural differences is such that I probably will never be able to fully understand why people different than me act the way they do, though I can tolerate it without an issue) but names are a bit of a joke. When a politician in Mindanao, the area best known for its fruit and, oh yeah, Islamic extremists, names himself Osama Bin Laden, you know there is something a bit strange taking place. A grown man, not just any man, but a person RUNNING FOR ELECTED OFFICE, named himself after that bearded Saudi we all know and love.
Some other funny names (real names) of people I work with or have met:
- Boy Mayor; running for mayor of Legazpi City
- Flo Canada; a woman in my office
- Cindyrella Donghit; again, in my office
- Purification; just a first name, I can't remember the last, but it doesn't REALLY matter, does it?
- Bossing Boy; running for mayor of the town of St. Domingo near me.
A Story To Send You Off With
To give credit where credit is due, this did not actually happen to me, but to a fellow volunteer named Noah (the only person I have ever known to seriously compete in a rap battle against a Filipino and not do too poorly).
Noah was in the group of 15 volunteers, called a "hub group" that trained down here in Bikol with me. Noah is Jewish.
During training, all volunteers lived with host families and Noah was no exception. He ate, slept and shat in the same house as a lower-middle class Filipino family. These host family stays were designed to slowly integrate us into living in the Philippines and help us become more culturally sensitive. Of course as a host family, you basically had Matt fucking Damon just move into your house (Americans are quite the showpiece here). As a host family, you would be likely to ask all kinds questions to make sure the American felt welcome in your home:
- Where do you live in the US?
- How old are you?
- Do you have a girlfriend?
- Do you eat rice?
- You know already how to speak our dialect?
- WHAT RELIGION ARE YOU?
This final question was posed to Noah
"I am Jewish," he said, Jewishly.
"What does that mean? What do you believe in?" said his host mom.
"Well, as a Christian, you read the new testament and the old testament. We Jews just read the old testament."
"Oh, so you don't finish the book!"
And with that, I bid you good evening (even though it is probably almost breakfast time for most of you).
Monday, May 28, 2007
Wednesday, April 18, 2007
Impermanence
Just start writing.
Put symbols through finger movements and spread an idea out for everyone to see all over the world.
The body of Julia Campbell, a fellow Peace Corps volunteer and close friend, has just been found near the village of Batad in Ifugao province. As the official and unofficial media have reported, she went missing on April 8th while on vacation in the central cordillera mountains of central Luzon island, the Philipines.
A google search for info about her disappearance
But those are the facts and facts are, by their nature, devoid of emotion.
Julia was a damn good cook. I would invite myself over for dinner on a regular basis, partially because I am lazy and didn't want to go through the motions of learning to cook, but mostly because she made a mean ginataan (A dish prepared in fresh coconut milk).
Julia and I were sitemates in Legazpi City, Albay (Bikol region) and were very close friends. In the Peace Corps time spent with other volunteers is prized; we all need support and can't find it when we are alone and without any kind of familiarity. The bond formed between volunteers is a very deep one formed in an environment of constant traumatic stress.
The counselor from the Peace Corps head office told us that any volunteer who goes to a therapist and tells his/her story gets the same reaction. All American therapists brand Peace Corps volunteers as "Shell Shocked" (or, for the more politically correct among you, suffering from Post Traumatic Stress Disorder).
She had her stresses and would spout off to me at every chance she got about the trials and tribulations of work and school and her arrangements to go home. She had already been accepted to NYU and to say she was excited about going home understates it drastically. She had been planning a post-Peace Corps trip back through southeast asia. Her Peace Corps service was wrapping up and her mind had already begun to shift gears back to the NYC mindset.
Then she disappeared. Then her body reappeared.
I don't know how I am supposed to write about something like this.
How can I do a human life justice? As my mom once said, if a picture is worth a thousand words, then an experience is worth a million pictures; I would add that to describe the complete truth of any human life is beyond pictures or experience and that only sharing the moment with that other soul can give a glimpse of an understanding.
So far I have stuck with the facts as I understand them, so I guess I will continue:
Nothing is permanent. Sorrow comes from attachment to things assumed to be permanent (people, ideas, etc). There is no why in this instance. Her life was not "good" or "bad," "virtuous" or "evil." She was.
You can rationalize and discuss the hows and whys and shoulds of this situation, but there are countless emotions that will boil to the surface. These emotions cannot and should not be controlled; let them come. As much as attachment hurts when it is taken away, you cannot feel alive as a human being without those harsh, visceral emotions. It is better to have an emotional rollercoaster of a life than one that remains flat and constant. Embrace impermanence in all things including emotions.
About 50 of the volunteers from Peace Corps Philippines were sitting in the same room listening to information regarding the search for her when the news came in that her body had been found in a ravine near a trail. Until that instant, we were all tortured by uncertainty and kept happy only through the hope that this was a kidnapping and that she was still alive. Now we have certainty and, although we are not happy, we can begin the healing process. I wept for her and I will certainly cry again; she had a great deal of close friends, about whom I can say the same.
Rest in Peace, Julia Campbell.
Put symbols through finger movements and spread an idea out for everyone to see all over the world.
The body of Julia Campbell, a fellow Peace Corps volunteer and close friend, has just been found near the village of Batad in Ifugao province. As the official and unofficial media have reported, she went missing on April 8th while on vacation in the central cordillera mountains of central Luzon island, the Philipines.
A google search for info about her disappearance
But those are the facts and facts are, by their nature, devoid of emotion.
Julia was a damn good cook. I would invite myself over for dinner on a regular basis, partially because I am lazy and didn't want to go through the motions of learning to cook, but mostly because she made a mean ginataan (A dish prepared in fresh coconut milk).
Julia and I were sitemates in Legazpi City, Albay (Bikol region) and were very close friends. In the Peace Corps time spent with other volunteers is prized; we all need support and can't find it when we are alone and without any kind of familiarity. The bond formed between volunteers is a very deep one formed in an environment of constant traumatic stress.
The counselor from the Peace Corps head office told us that any volunteer who goes to a therapist and tells his/her story gets the same reaction. All American therapists brand Peace Corps volunteers as "Shell Shocked" (or, for the more politically correct among you, suffering from Post Traumatic Stress Disorder).
She had her stresses and would spout off to me at every chance she got about the trials and tribulations of work and school and her arrangements to go home. She had already been accepted to NYU and to say she was excited about going home understates it drastically. She had been planning a post-Peace Corps trip back through southeast asia. Her Peace Corps service was wrapping up and her mind had already begun to shift gears back to the NYC mindset.
Then she disappeared. Then her body reappeared.
I don't know how I am supposed to write about something like this.
How can I do a human life justice? As my mom once said, if a picture is worth a thousand words, then an experience is worth a million pictures; I would add that to describe the complete truth of any human life is beyond pictures or experience and that only sharing the moment with that other soul can give a glimpse of an understanding.
So far I have stuck with the facts as I understand them, so I guess I will continue:
Nothing is permanent. Sorrow comes from attachment to things assumed to be permanent (people, ideas, etc). There is no why in this instance. Her life was not "good" or "bad," "virtuous" or "evil." She was.
You can rationalize and discuss the hows and whys and shoulds of this situation, but there are countless emotions that will boil to the surface. These emotions cannot and should not be controlled; let them come. As much as attachment hurts when it is taken away, you cannot feel alive as a human being without those harsh, visceral emotions. It is better to have an emotional rollercoaster of a life than one that remains flat and constant. Embrace impermanence in all things including emotions.
About 50 of the volunteers from Peace Corps Philippines were sitting in the same room listening to information regarding the search for her when the news came in that her body had been found in a ravine near a trail. Until that instant, we were all tortured by uncertainty and kept happy only through the hope that this was a kidnapping and that she was still alive. Now we have certainty and, although we are not happy, we can begin the healing process. I wept for her and I will certainly cry again; she had a great deal of close friends, about whom I can say the same.
Rest in Peace, Julia Campbell.
Tuesday, March 20, 2007
BioSand Filter Training, tapos na!
It feels like all of a sudden, the gears of my Peace Corps service have meshed: the people, both Peace Corps and Filipino, I work with are working side-by-side with me, I have been getting out and getting plenty of exercise, I have two dutch filmmakers staying at my house and my apartment is actually staying clean for more than an hour at a time.
I went on a 60km bike ride last weekend through the rolling hills of Albay. This place is simply beautiful. Once you are out of the city and the endorphin high kicks in, the ride becomes a fantastic adventure.
Up one hill, down the next, dodging crazy bus drivers who take crystal meth and don't sleep so they can drive for longer, flying past rice terraces on long, winding descents, the whip of the wind and the smiles of the children keep my spirits high. I don't rest for too long, the world looks better from the saddle. There is no destination, there is no goal, I am riding for the sake of spinning the wheels and seeing what magic lies around the next bend. I am free to enjoy it and not be judged. I just hope I don't get a flat tire.
The hanging road of northern Albay follows a serpentine path towards and away from the sea. Around each point of land is another small town with mothers doing laundry and fathers tilling the rice. The sea and sky are so still and blue that I am confused which one is reflecting which. The air is hazy, but there are no mosquitoes. Clearing the final hill gives a fantastic view of the mountain chain of Bikol; all the volcanoes have blown themselves to pieces except for Mayon, the upstart little nephew. It is amazing how rugged the shapes of the hills are in such a young landscape.
I like the Peace Corps.
Although this article is a little pre-emptive (using the past tense for the training that is currently underway) I thought it would provide some perspective into my work and allow for comments before I publish it in the Peace Corps newsletter:
Since the beginning of economic class distinction, the concepts of philanthropy and of service to your fellow man have existed, though sometimes in painfully low quantities. Since the beginning of human perceptions, there has been this idea that some things nature throws at us are not entirely supportive of our cause, as humans, to survive and provide for the next generation. Disasters have always been a sort of wild card that keeps humanity from getting too full of itself, although perhaps the people of Albay would not speak of it quite so light-heartedly.
Although the BioSand filter and associated IEC program were not initially designed as a quick, post-disaster solution, A Single Drop for Safe Water, the NGO responsible for the BioSand filter training at the 265 PST-2, in Iloilo, has been working with Page Weil and Mariah Klingsmith in Legazpi City, Albay to shift the paradigm of this filter’s use. BioSand water filters are point-of-use water filters that are best suited for installation in the homes of the rural poor, especially in locations with fecal contamination in the water supply. In February, A Single Drop formed a handshake partnership with ADRN (the Albay Disaster Relief Network; a group of NGOs setup to provide coordination and assistance in disaster aftermath around Albay) to work as counterparts to procure funding from UNICEF, the United Nations Children’s Fund, to fund a large scale BioSand program as quickly as possible.
Fast forward through the meetings, budget negotiations, and proposal drafts and redrafts, UNICEF supplied the necessary funding to A Single Drop to buy 6 BioSand filter molds and manufacture and install 100 filters within 6 weeks. The money spent will not only serve to relieve the effects of the recent disasters, but also to provide a long-term, sustainable solution to the problem of clean water in Albay.
We can now look back on the BioSand filter training at Aquinas University (WATSAN Page Weil’s HCA and a partner of ADRN) and smile, as the results have been nothing but positive. 18 attendees from various NGOs (all partners of ADRN) came to learn the technology and prepare to manufacture BioSand filters on a large scale. The trainers came from A Single Drop, the money came from UNICEF, the inspired people came from ADRN and Aquinas University, and moral support and day-to-day coordination was supplied by Page and Mariah. With very little coaxing, ADRN has taken on the responsibility of developing IEC plans before, during, and after filter installation. The people of Albay seem to be in good hands.
Completion of the technical training has left ADRN with 6 BioSand filter molds, trained staff, and widespread community entry through the placement of the initially manufactured 100 filters. ADRN now has the capacity to pump out 180 filters every month (each filter can supply up to 200 liters of clean water per day) and sell them locally to people who are still picking up the pieces of their lives from the wreckage of last year’s typhoons. Local material, labor, IEC and installation costs put the sustainable price of one filter at 1400 pesos. After initial installation there are no costs associated with the filter.
As this project gains visibility ADRN will use their training and local contacts to market the filter to all of the poor and needy within Albay. These inspired altruists will not rest until there is a pot on every fire and a BioSand filter accessibly placed near every contaminated water source; okay, maybe they will take a break for a Meryenda or two…
I went on a 60km bike ride last weekend through the rolling hills of Albay. This place is simply beautiful. Once you are out of the city and the endorphin high kicks in, the ride becomes a fantastic adventure.
Up one hill, down the next, dodging crazy bus drivers who take crystal meth and don't sleep so they can drive for longer, flying past rice terraces on long, winding descents, the whip of the wind and the smiles of the children keep my spirits high. I don't rest for too long, the world looks better from the saddle. There is no destination, there is no goal, I am riding for the sake of spinning the wheels and seeing what magic lies around the next bend. I am free to enjoy it and not be judged. I just hope I don't get a flat tire.
The hanging road of northern Albay follows a serpentine path towards and away from the sea. Around each point of land is another small town with mothers doing laundry and fathers tilling the rice. The sea and sky are so still and blue that I am confused which one is reflecting which. The air is hazy, but there are no mosquitoes. Clearing the final hill gives a fantastic view of the mountain chain of Bikol; all the volcanoes have blown themselves to pieces except for Mayon, the upstart little nephew. It is amazing how rugged the shapes of the hills are in such a young landscape.
I like the Peace Corps.
Although this article is a little pre-emptive (using the past tense for the training that is currently underway) I thought it would provide some perspective into my work and allow for comments before I publish it in the Peace Corps newsletter:
Since the beginning of economic class distinction, the concepts of philanthropy and of service to your fellow man have existed, though sometimes in painfully low quantities. Since the beginning of human perceptions, there has been this idea that some things nature throws at us are not entirely supportive of our cause, as humans, to survive and provide for the next generation. Disasters have always been a sort of wild card that keeps humanity from getting too full of itself, although perhaps the people of Albay would not speak of it quite so light-heartedly.
Although the BioSand filter and associated IEC program were not initially designed as a quick, post-disaster solution, A Single Drop for Safe Water, the NGO responsible for the BioSand filter training at the 265 PST-2, in Iloilo, has been working with Page Weil and Mariah Klingsmith in Legazpi City, Albay to shift the paradigm of this filter’s use. BioSand water filters are point-of-use water filters that are best suited for installation in the homes of the rural poor, especially in locations with fecal contamination in the water supply. In February, A Single Drop formed a handshake partnership with ADRN (the Albay Disaster Relief Network; a group of NGOs setup to provide coordination and assistance in disaster aftermath around Albay) to work as counterparts to procure funding from UNICEF, the United Nations Children’s Fund, to fund a large scale BioSand program as quickly as possible.
Fast forward through the meetings, budget negotiations, and proposal drafts and redrafts, UNICEF supplied the necessary funding to A Single Drop to buy 6 BioSand filter molds and manufacture and install 100 filters within 6 weeks. The money spent will not only serve to relieve the effects of the recent disasters, but also to provide a long-term, sustainable solution to the problem of clean water in Albay.
We can now look back on the BioSand filter training at Aquinas University (WATSAN Page Weil’s HCA and a partner of ADRN) and smile, as the results have been nothing but positive. 18 attendees from various NGOs (all partners of ADRN) came to learn the technology and prepare to manufacture BioSand filters on a large scale. The trainers came from A Single Drop, the money came from UNICEF, the inspired people came from ADRN and Aquinas University, and moral support and day-to-day coordination was supplied by Page and Mariah. With very little coaxing, ADRN has taken on the responsibility of developing IEC plans before, during, and after filter installation. The people of Albay seem to be in good hands.
Completion of the technical training has left ADRN with 6 BioSand filter molds, trained staff, and widespread community entry through the placement of the initially manufactured 100 filters. ADRN now has the capacity to pump out 180 filters every month (each filter can supply up to 200 liters of clean water per day) and sell them locally to people who are still picking up the pieces of their lives from the wreckage of last year’s typhoons. Local material, labor, IEC and installation costs put the sustainable price of one filter at 1400 pesos. After initial installation there are no costs associated with the filter.
As this project gains visibility ADRN will use their training and local contacts to market the filter to all of the poor and needy within Albay. These inspired altruists will not rest until there is a pot on every fire and a BioSand filter accessibly placed near every contaminated water source; okay, maybe they will take a break for a Meryenda or two…
Friday, February 16, 2007
Work?
I don't know who put this crazy organization together, but the idea of actually having stuff to do is a bit foreign to me. Joke lang (in case my boss is reading this)!!!
This week has seen the installation of the first of many BioSand filters along with a poster on my campus. Kids and faculty alike have been coming up to me and asking how it works and where they can get one if it really works as well as I say! Yay for small victories!
On top of building, installing and preparing to give a half-day seminar on BioSand filters, I am also working with the NGO "A Single Drop" to develop a program to bring around 700 filters to the province of Albay within about 6 months. These numbers will change, but for the sake of scale you should know that 700 filters is a CRAPLOAD!
This project will also serve to develop some kind of disaster preparedness plan for the poorer areas of Albay. This region gets hit by 20 typhoons every year with only minimal typhoon preparation or education. It seems obvious to us Americans to say things like "keep extra blankets around," or "make sure you have some clean water saved," but when you can't afford food or simply have no education, your life is lived very fatalistically. "Bahala na" is a phrase commonly used here to describe the attitude of the Philippine poor. Literally translated, it means "it is up to god," or "come what may." But I digress.
We are planning on helping rally the people to help themselves, especially when it comes to the massive amount of annual typhoon damage recieved by Bikol (not that things are regularly as bad as they were this year).
Anyhoo, things are going well here in Bikolandia; too much work to do, crazy hectic city life, fun when I have a free moment, and of course just sitting on my roof watching the stars.
End of ramblings, more serious posts when I have my serious face on.
Ingat kamo!
This week has seen the installation of the first of many BioSand filters along with a poster on my campus. Kids and faculty alike have been coming up to me and asking how it works and where they can get one if it really works as well as I say! Yay for small victories!
On top of building, installing and preparing to give a half-day seminar on BioSand filters, I am also working with the NGO "A Single Drop" to develop a program to bring around 700 filters to the province of Albay within about 6 months. These numbers will change, but for the sake of scale you should know that 700 filters is a CRAPLOAD!
This project will also serve to develop some kind of disaster preparedness plan for the poorer areas of Albay. This region gets hit by 20 typhoons every year with only minimal typhoon preparation or education. It seems obvious to us Americans to say things like "keep extra blankets around," or "make sure you have some clean water saved," but when you can't afford food or simply have no education, your life is lived very fatalistically. "Bahala na" is a phrase commonly used here to describe the attitude of the Philippine poor. Literally translated, it means "it is up to god," or "come what may." But I digress.
We are planning on helping rally the people to help themselves, especially when it comes to the massive amount of annual typhoon damage recieved by Bikol (not that things are regularly as bad as they were this year).
Anyhoo, things are going well here in Bikolandia; too much work to do, crazy hectic city life, fun when I have a free moment, and of course just sitting on my roof watching the stars.
End of ramblings, more serious posts when I have my serious face on.
Ingat kamo!
Thursday, February 01, 2007
News. Weather.
I haven't posted in a while. It happens. Sue me.
New Years in the Philippines sounds more like a war than a celebration (El Salvador memories). We set of fireworks and made merry.
I went to Hawaii in mid-January for 10 days and had an ABSOLUTE BLAST! It was just me and my parents, but we managed not to kill each other for 2 weeks... We all learned to windsurf and went hiking. Hawaii seems like what the Philippines COULD be if there was more money available and they kept everything really clean (oh yeah, and if they served cheese and guacamole on command). Pictures are coming soon, but it was an amazing trip to a beautiful tropical paradise.
I HAVE WORK!!! Finally, after 9 months here in the Philippines, work has begun to pick up. I am currently preparing to train a number of people at my university how to construct BioSand filters to be sold in the surrounding area. The BioSand filter, for those who don't know and are too lazy to read A Single Drop, to develop this project. They want me at the front of this project helping develop trainings to clean the water for the whole freakin' province! When things go well, they really go well here.
I have had a great deal of help in my projects from the people at Hands-On Disaster Relief who have been essential in assisting me make my first few demonstration filters. It is also work checking out their website; they have basically set up shop here in the nearby municipality of St. Domingo and have been working 'round the clock to help this place recover from its disastrous state. They operate in a really organic and wonderful way: They post on volunteer and travel websites about what projects they have and how many volunteers they need, and anyone in the area (aka. South-East Asia) can contact them and stop in for a few weeks work. They provide food and a roof over their heads, all you have to do is get there. Right now they are making tarps for peoples' roofs and building new boats for fisherman through donations from the US.
Anyways, that is the news and the weather. More on BioSand as it takes off, and it is going to REALLY TAKE OFF!
Ciao
New Years in the Philippines sounds more like a war than a celebration (El Salvador memories). We set of fireworks and made merry.
I went to Hawaii in mid-January for 10 days and had an ABSOLUTE BLAST! It was just me and my parents, but we managed not to kill each other for 2 weeks... We all learned to windsurf and went hiking. Hawaii seems like what the Philippines COULD be if there was more money available and they kept everything really clean (oh yeah, and if they served cheese and guacamole on command). Pictures are coming soon, but it was an amazing trip to a beautiful tropical paradise.
I HAVE WORK!!! Finally, after 9 months here in the Philippines, work has begun to pick up. I am currently preparing to train a number of people at my university how to construct BioSand filters to be sold in the surrounding area. The BioSand filter, for those who don't know and are too lazy to read A Single Drop, to develop this project. They want me at the front of this project helping develop trainings to clean the water for the whole freakin' province! When things go well, they really go well here.
I have had a great deal of help in my projects from the people at Hands-On Disaster Relief who have been essential in assisting me make my first few demonstration filters. It is also work checking out their website; they have basically set up shop here in the nearby municipality of St. Domingo and have been working 'round the clock to help this place recover from its disastrous state. They operate in a really organic and wonderful way: They post on volunteer and travel websites about what projects they have and how many volunteers they need, and anyone in the area (aka. South-East Asia) can contact them and stop in for a few weeks work. They provide food and a roof over their heads, all you have to do is get there. Right now they are making tarps for peoples' roofs and building new boats for fisherman through donations from the US.
Anyways, that is the news and the weather. More on BioSand as it takes off, and it is going to REALLY TAKE OFF!
Ciao
Tuesday, December 12, 2006
New Typhoon Pictures
New Typhoon pictures have been posted, by popular demand:
CNN article written by a fellow volunteer about a landslide zone near my office.
My Webshots Account
New album of Typhoon pictures
Other articles and pictures pending publishing.
New notes:
As the relief operations in Albay get organized and efficient, I have begun implementing the BioSand water filter project that I have talked about with some of you loyal friends/family/readers. I have recieved word from a number of people who feel morally obligated, or at least excited, to help financially in some way. The BioSand water filter project needs funding as well as some subsidies so that some of the poorer folks here can buy one. In essence, it is a filter that costs about $24 to buy and will provide up to 220 liters of clean drinking water per day for longer than you will live. It is a great project in need of funding. If you feel like you want to help with this, then I encourage you to contact me. Please don't feel obligated to give, but understand that if you do, this money will go to a good project and not to line the pockets of a local opportunist.
Side note: Although some of you may be encouraged to give goods instead of money, understand that the shipping costs and time will make it much more worth it to merely wire money this direction. Before you even think about sending anything, talk to me; I will provide any transparency in project execution that you might require so that you know I am not a lying sack of monkey poo.
CNN article written by a fellow volunteer about a landslide zone near my office.
My Webshots Account
New album of Typhoon pictures
Other articles and pictures pending publishing.
New notes:
As the relief operations in Albay get organized and efficient, I have begun implementing the BioSand water filter project that I have talked about with some of you loyal friends/family/readers. I have recieved word from a number of people who feel morally obligated, or at least excited, to help financially in some way. The BioSand water filter project needs funding as well as some subsidies so that some of the poorer folks here can buy one. In essence, it is a filter that costs about $24 to buy and will provide up to 220 liters of clean drinking water per day for longer than you will live. It is a great project in need of funding. If you feel like you want to help with this, then I encourage you to contact me. Please don't feel obligated to give, but understand that if you do, this money will go to a good project and not to line the pockets of a local opportunist.
Side note: Although some of you may be encouraged to give goods instead of money, understand that the shipping costs and time will make it much more worth it to merely wire money this direction. Before you even think about sending anything, talk to me; I will provide any transparency in project execution that you might require so that you know I am not a lying sack of monkey poo.
Saturday, December 09, 2006
Ouch!
Long blog, cliff notes:
-Typhoon happens to city.
-Typhoon happens to Page.
-Page is scared.
-Page is okay.
-All other volunteers are just as okay as Page.
-PICTURES ARE HERE
-.....
-Profit
As many of you now know, through my Mom's emails and the large international news coverage, Legazpi City was just hit by the biggest typhoon in more than 30 years.
http://en.wikinews.org/wiki/Philippine_typhoon_toll_may_hit_1,000
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2006_Pacific_typhoon_season
Wiki's stories cover what anyone who is not a Bikolano saw, I am here to provide the front-line details about this massive disaster.
November 29th:
Went about my daily life; left work a little early after the school shut down the power, knowing that the typhoon was on its way. I didn't think much of this round of bad weather since the last typhoon, Milenyo, was reported to be the worst in 20 years. I figured, stupidly, that there really wasn't that much cause for alarm. Legazpi City had a signal 3 (out of a possible 5) and I was content to go to bed and not to work in the morning. The farthest extremities of the typhoon had begun to reach town and rain intermittently. I went to Julia's (another volunteer who lives in town) to camp out the storm with a friendly face. We cooked dinner and bought a coupla beers to pass the evening away.
November 30th:
7 AM: The last storm warning text message I would recieve arrived and said that this one was gonna be a doozy, specifically a signal 4. In the Philippines, typhoon strength is categorized by area, not by storm. It is said that a storm is of a certain signal in your area depending on the wave height and wind speed where you are specifically. Personally I think this system is decieving, people assume that the storm is going to stay one signal in their area and not get any worse, when that is the opposite of what is likely to happen. Typhoon Durian (appropriately named after the smelly fruit) was a signal 4 which, for a Filipino typhoon, translates to winds between 131 and 155 mph and 13 to 18 foot waves.
But enough science, all that is available on Wiki. Wiki does not go into what happens when you are poor, have a poorly constructed house, and then things are leveled by a giant tropical pain-machine.
8 AM: Still lying in bed. I like bed. Bed is warm. Bed doesn't have rain in it...yet.
9 AM: See 8 AM.
10 AM: The wind is beginning to pick up, but I am still not worried. Again, see 8 AM.
11 AM: It is hard to lay in bed comfortably when loose pieces of metal sheeting are being slapped against the roof by the wind. I get up. There is no more cell signal.
12 PM: The storm has been raging for a while and Julia and I point out the growing stream in the road outside her apartment. We laugh about how lucky we are that it is so small and that we are elevated above the road.
12:30 PM: Things really start to suck.
12:31 PM: The roof is getting louder and louder. The rain is now seeping in through the cracks in the roof and is raining in the dining room. We move all important stuff to the bedroom and hide it in Julia's dresser. The rain is now flying in through every gap or crack in the house. Some buckets are put down to catch the water as it falls.
12:33 PM: The first bucket fills.
12:34-1:34 PM: This hour was scary. Looking out into the street, the floodwaters rise from nothing to 4 feet in the road. 4 feet of water outside translates to 3 feet inside. We are standing on stools inside the apartment and watch as they, and then our feet on top of them, are submerged. A casual glance at the bathroom reveals that the floodwaters have overtopped the toilet. We are now standing in a mix of floodwater and raw sewage. Ew.
We look out the window at the front of Julia's place and see a jeep go floating by and decide that things are maybe a little TOO hectic to stick around here much longer. I contact the neighbors, who live in a 2 story concrete house and happen to be Julia's landlady's cousins, by climbing up to their balcony above the raging torrent that was once a street. In order to get Julia's 80-year-old landlady to that house, we have to wade through waist-deep water. The landlady is old, and waist-deep for me means neck-deep for her. If we had a camera out, this would have made the headlines of some major newspaper; the big, white american carrying the small, frail, old woman to safety over raging floodwaters. Oh well.
1:35 PM: I see that bucket go floating by, rendered useless by floodwaters
Afternoon/Evening: Once the floodwaters had risen to waist deep, adrenaline took over my brain and made the rest of the day a blur. We escaped from the storm to a large concrete house and were lucky enough to be fed and given a bed by the landlady's cousins. I pass out and have dreams about things besides large tropical weather patterns.
December 1st: In the morning, we look at Julia's place and try to do some basic cleanup. Basic turned into shoveling and scrubbing all of the mud from her floor. I return to my house to find broken glass and wet books, but nothing too intense. There is no power, no information, no cell signal and no running water. Julia and I clean all day long, sunup to sundown.
December 2nd: More of the same, but with an exciting twist. Around noon, when I am carrying buckets of water from the pump to the house for laundry, a man darts by me on his bike, almost running me over. At home, I would have just screamed at him, but this was unusual for the Philippines; people are generally courteous here. I look where he came from and see groups of other people running up the hills and, in general, going places in a hurry. When someone finally stopped to answer my inquiries, all he said was "TSUNAMI!!!!!!" and kept running. I looked down the road where everyone was running from and I felt what can only be described as pure terror. My mind froze and my body panicked. I told Julia and, within 30 seconds, we had both grabbed the 2 or 3 items we deemed essential and were on our bikes ready to ride. At that moment, the barangay captain came out and said it was just a hoax.
I found out later that 24 people were hospitalized and 3 killed due to the panic caused by this scare. I was more scared for my life in those 30 seconds than at any point during the previous day's typhoon.
Since then: I have been helping with any relief effort I can find. According to local authorities, 7-10 students at Aquinas University were killed when the floodwaters entered their boarding house. My university looks like it got hit by a giant mud-bomb. The morgues are filled with bodies. Barangay Padang (CNN web story pending) was completely wiped out by a volcanic landslide. Luckily for Peace Corps, myself and all the other volunteers (we are all safe and healthy) have been brought together for our language learning camp. We have been working half days and assisting any local relief efforts available the rest of the time. We play with the kids, we carry sacks of rice, we do whatever we can. This will probably continue for me once the other volunteers leave for their respective sites.
If you finished reading all this, I thank you for caring. If you skipped to this part from the beginning, then you are a bad, bad person.
-Typhoon happens to city.
-Typhoon happens to Page.
-Page is scared.
-Page is okay.
-All other volunteers are just as okay as Page.
-PICTURES ARE HERE
-.....
-Profit
As many of you now know, through my Mom's emails and the large international news coverage, Legazpi City was just hit by the biggest typhoon in more than 30 years.
http://en.wikinews.org/wiki/Philippine_typhoon_toll_may_hit_1,000
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2006_Pacific_typhoon_season
Wiki's stories cover what anyone who is not a Bikolano saw, I am here to provide the front-line details about this massive disaster.
November 29th:
Went about my daily life; left work a little early after the school shut down the power, knowing that the typhoon was on its way. I didn't think much of this round of bad weather since the last typhoon, Milenyo, was reported to be the worst in 20 years. I figured, stupidly, that there really wasn't that much cause for alarm. Legazpi City had a signal 3 (out of a possible 5) and I was content to go to bed and not to work in the morning. The farthest extremities of the typhoon had begun to reach town and rain intermittently. I went to Julia's (another volunteer who lives in town) to camp out the storm with a friendly face. We cooked dinner and bought a coupla beers to pass the evening away.
November 30th:
7 AM: The last storm warning text message I would recieve arrived and said that this one was gonna be a doozy, specifically a signal 4. In the Philippines, typhoon strength is categorized by area, not by storm. It is said that a storm is of a certain signal in your area depending on the wave height and wind speed where you are specifically. Personally I think this system is decieving, people assume that the storm is going to stay one signal in their area and not get any worse, when that is the opposite of what is likely to happen. Typhoon Durian (appropriately named after the smelly fruit) was a signal 4 which, for a Filipino typhoon, translates to winds between 131 and 155 mph and 13 to 18 foot waves.
But enough science, all that is available on Wiki. Wiki does not go into what happens when you are poor, have a poorly constructed house, and then things are leveled by a giant tropical pain-machine.
8 AM: Still lying in bed. I like bed. Bed is warm. Bed doesn't have rain in it...yet.
9 AM: See 8 AM.
10 AM: The wind is beginning to pick up, but I am still not worried. Again, see 8 AM.
11 AM: It is hard to lay in bed comfortably when loose pieces of metal sheeting are being slapped against the roof by the wind. I get up. There is no more cell signal.
12 PM: The storm has been raging for a while and Julia and I point out the growing stream in the road outside her apartment. We laugh about how lucky we are that it is so small and that we are elevated above the road.
12:30 PM: Things really start to suck.
12:31 PM: The roof is getting louder and louder. The rain is now seeping in through the cracks in the roof and is raining in the dining room. We move all important stuff to the bedroom and hide it in Julia's dresser. The rain is now flying in through every gap or crack in the house. Some buckets are put down to catch the water as it falls.
12:33 PM: The first bucket fills.
12:34-1:34 PM: This hour was scary. Looking out into the street, the floodwaters rise from nothing to 4 feet in the road. 4 feet of water outside translates to 3 feet inside. We are standing on stools inside the apartment and watch as they, and then our feet on top of them, are submerged. A casual glance at the bathroom reveals that the floodwaters have overtopped the toilet. We are now standing in a mix of floodwater and raw sewage. Ew.
We look out the window at the front of Julia's place and see a jeep go floating by and decide that things are maybe a little TOO hectic to stick around here much longer. I contact the neighbors, who live in a 2 story concrete house and happen to be Julia's landlady's cousins, by climbing up to their balcony above the raging torrent that was once a street. In order to get Julia's 80-year-old landlady to that house, we have to wade through waist-deep water. The landlady is old, and waist-deep for me means neck-deep for her. If we had a camera out, this would have made the headlines of some major newspaper; the big, white american carrying the small, frail, old woman to safety over raging floodwaters. Oh well.
1:35 PM: I see that bucket go floating by, rendered useless by floodwaters
Afternoon/Evening: Once the floodwaters had risen to waist deep, adrenaline took over my brain and made the rest of the day a blur. We escaped from the storm to a large concrete house and were lucky enough to be fed and given a bed by the landlady's cousins. I pass out and have dreams about things besides large tropical weather patterns.
December 1st: In the morning, we look at Julia's place and try to do some basic cleanup. Basic turned into shoveling and scrubbing all of the mud from her floor. I return to my house to find broken glass and wet books, but nothing too intense. There is no power, no information, no cell signal and no running water. Julia and I clean all day long, sunup to sundown.
December 2nd: More of the same, but with an exciting twist. Around noon, when I am carrying buckets of water from the pump to the house for laundry, a man darts by me on his bike, almost running me over. At home, I would have just screamed at him, but this was unusual for the Philippines; people are generally courteous here. I look where he came from and see groups of other people running up the hills and, in general, going places in a hurry. When someone finally stopped to answer my inquiries, all he said was "TSUNAMI!!!!!!" and kept running. I looked down the road where everyone was running from and I felt what can only be described as pure terror. My mind froze and my body panicked. I told Julia and, within 30 seconds, we had both grabbed the 2 or 3 items we deemed essential and were on our bikes ready to ride. At that moment, the barangay captain came out and said it was just a hoax.
I found out later that 24 people were hospitalized and 3 killed due to the panic caused by this scare. I was more scared for my life in those 30 seconds than at any point during the previous day's typhoon.
Since then: I have been helping with any relief effort I can find. According to local authorities, 7-10 students at Aquinas University were killed when the floodwaters entered their boarding house. My university looks like it got hit by a giant mud-bomb. The morgues are filled with bodies. Barangay Padang (CNN web story pending) was completely wiped out by a volcanic landslide. Luckily for Peace Corps, myself and all the other volunteers (we are all safe and healthy) have been brought together for our language learning camp. We have been working half days and assisting any local relief efforts available the rest of the time. We play with the kids, we carry sacks of rice, we do whatever we can. This will probably continue for me once the other volunteers leave for their respective sites.
If you finished reading all this, I thank you for caring. If you skipped to this part from the beginning, then you are a bad, bad person.
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