WaterStories

On Shower Curtains

// June 25th, 2009 // No Comments » // Travel Planning

It was an offhand line in an otherwise lovely email: “Bring a shawl or a sari as a shower curtain for bathing outdoors.”

I’m sorry, what?

It’s not that bathing outdoors is a problem. It’s not that I’m skittish about that. I’ve bathed outdoors before…well, no, I haven’t, actually. But I’m not AFRAID of THAT. It’s just that if a shower curtain sari is something I need to BRING, it means it wasn’t there in the first place. Which means I could have potentially been splashing around butt-naked in public.

See, these are the moments when The Fear gets in. Those moments when you realize you can’t take ANYTHING for granted.

Here, a bathroom includes a toilet, sink and shower/bath. Anywhere else in the world, this is not necessarily the case. There may not even be a room for bathing whatsoever. It might be BYOSC (Bring Your Own Shower Curtain) to the freaking village pump for all I know!

Preparing for this trip has been an exercise in examining my own assumptions.

Here, I can drink the water that comes out of a tap. Here, it’s entirely appropriate for women to wear tank tops and shorts (and if the teenagers at the mall are any indication, pants of any kind are now optional). Here, I can go out at night. I can go running by myself. The longest line I ever have to stand in is maybe ten minutes. If I want something, I go get it. If a mosquito bites me, it itches but it won’t give me fever, chills and explosive diarrhea.

In about ten minutes, I’m going camping. It’s an intentional little exercise, part to field-test some of my equipment, part to remove the flushable-toilet-coloured-glasses I appear to be wearing.

Indian Visas, Part FOUR

// June 17th, 2009 // No Comments » // Travel Planning

THIS JUST IN FROM CATE:

Just when I thought everything was going smoothly my business visa is denied at the Indian Consulate. I thought I was really on top of things by waiting until Melanie had sent hers in to have it sent back because she needed more info. She sent the second lot in and hey-presto-VISA! Great, I simply toodle off to the Vancouver Indian High Commission, give them my life and it will be that simple only quicker because I can pick mine up the next day! Then I get the expected phone call but only to let me know that I have been….denied! The guy on the other end did not know why, only that it might take months!!!! He suggested I forget about the business visa, and come in and ask for a much cheaper tourist visa. It looks like it just depends on the day, the time of day, and who is looking at things, what they had for breakfast, and whether or not they simply feel like putting the stamp on it that day or not. To be continued….

Originally published at cam-hera.blogspot.com.

Cultural Studies

// June 17th, 2009 // No Comments » // The Project, WaterStories

“You have not talked to me all day,” Evans Chiyenge says to me in his beautiful lilting accent.

It’s true. I hadn’t. This morning when arrived at CAWST, I’d tried to get away with the style of North American coldness that is so commonplace here, it’s no longer rude. The kind where you arrive, nod once as a vague catch-all greeting to everyone in the room, sit down and stare at your pen.

That stuff doesn’t wash with Evans.

“You Westerners are very time-conscious and money-conscious,” he said later in the group discussion. “Where I come from, people value relationships. You must show concern for the people’s family. Ask after their health. You must talk about things totally unrelated to your business, then they will cooperate.”

At lunch, I decided to drop all my afternoon plans and share a meal with my soon-to-be-host in Zambia.

“In Zambia, every conversation begins with family and ends with family,” Tal, CAWST’s technical advisor for Africa, told me later. So, my cheeks hot with the realization that I’d already been terribly rude, I asked about Evans’ family.

I learned he has four biological children and four adopted children, all of them AIDS orphans from cousins or siblings. “Everyone in Zambia is affected by the AIDS. Even if you are not infected, you are affected.”

He tells me with pride about his daughters, all of whom he says are breel-yant. He thanks God for that – he wouldn’t have been able to afford their school fees if they hadn’t been awarded the scholarships that have since allowed them to study medicine, accounting and evironmental engineering in the US.

“We haven’t been as lucky with the boys,” he says, crinkling up his nose.

One is many years behind in his schooling. “Because he is lazy. All he wants to do is watch soccer. I got rid of the TV. If I didn’t, he would be watching soccer right now.”

The eldest son is in jail, serving fifteen years for drug-related charges. Evans’ wife, a lawyer, will try to get him out next year. I was shocked at the length of the jail term, but Evans says it’s been good for him. “He was always so rebellious. When his parents died, he wouldn’t listen to us. ‘You are not my parents,’ he would say. Now he has changed.”

Evans has a serious face that turns boyish when he smiles. He is over 50 but looks barely a day over 30 – too young for his ‘last-born’ son to be seventeen years old. He lives in Lusaka, but says he’ll make sure to be in Ndola when we are there. This is no small feat for Evans – he’s traveled nine out of the past twelve months getting the new Manzi (Water) Centre up and running, and training people in six other African countries. He is tired, but proud of what they’d already accomplished.

I stand to leave as the afternoon’s group shuffles in and sits down. I offer Evans my hand, thanking him for speaking with me. He lets go of my hand, reaches around me and pulls me into a hug.

Like A (Field) Virgin

// June 16th, 2009 // No Comments » // The Project, Travel Planning

Getting information about life in the field has been harder than I thought.

I’ve chatted with people from CAWST who work in the areas where we’re going. I’ve talked to the people who LIVE in the areas where we’re going. And every time I ask a question, they stop just short of rolling their eyes.

I ask things like, “So, where are we staying?” And they look at me like I’ve said the single most pointless thing in the world.

Up until today, I thought it was an engineer thing. Engineers frequently look at me like I’m an air-head…until win them over with my charm. That’s when the real INFORMATION EXCHANGE starts happening.

But today, after being on the business end of my four hundredth blank stare, I decided it was me. I’m not asking the right questions. I’m asking ‘Where are we staying?’ when what I really mean is ‘Is there a shower?’ or ‘Will I end up with amoebic dysentery?’

Yesterday, I tried a new approach. I cornered the most sympathetic-looking CAWST employee I could find. “I’ve never been in the field before,” I said with an edge of panic in my voice.

“You haven’t?” she said. And miraculously, the blank stare turned into a look of surprise.

Nope.

“Well, it can be overwhelming. But you know, humanity is humanity. No matter where you are.”

Yes, thank you, but CAN I DRINK THE WATER?

“Oh! No. I take a ceramic filter and chlorine tabs when I go.”

Oh.

“Yeah, filter it into a Nalgene bottle. And listen to everything you read about salad vegetables.”

She walked away. Salad vegetables? In India? Despite the relative success of my new method, I felt shaken. What else do I need to know? What other critical information has fallen through the cracks between What You Assume I Know and What I Assume You’d Tell Me?

The way I see it, this information means the difference between me puking and pooping for two months straight or actually getting some work done. This goes so far beyond what I’m freaking WEARING, I can’t even tell you.

Wine For Water Event Report

// June 15th, 2009 // No Comments » // Wine For Water

I spent the day at CAWST taking part in their annual Learning Exchange – a gathering of engineers, project managers and volunteers from CAWST’s network all over the world. HIV/AIDS dominated the day’s sessions, but Wine for Water was the talk of the breaks.

Everyone’s eyes went wide when they learned how much we generated in one evening. “You want a job?” someone said. (I don’t think they were kidding.)

Wine for Water, in its original conception, was a little rent-raiser for Melanie The Volunteer. As I’ve said before, your mortgage payments don’t just stop because you’re off saving the world. But I never expected more than 20 people and maybe fifteen hundred bucks.

My expectations were spectacularly off the mark.

We generated over $7,000 – more than FOUR TIMES what I’d anticipated. At the final tally, we had 48 guests, including CAWST CEO Camille Dow-Baker and some of Calgary’s most affluent and generous citizens. We had more than thirty auction items donated, one item selling for a whopping $1,650 at the live auction. Our event sponsors were floored – they had no idea it was going to be that well-attended or that successful.

To be honest, none of us did.

Generating $7,000 was beyond my imagination and it’s now left me with a bit of a conundrum. As I said, it was intended as a wee little rent-raiser to help me cover my costs, and so when I say “This is bigger than me,” I mean it. What we created is way larger in scope than any of us intended and I no longer feel comfortable using the funds for myself.

So, now I’m in the process of figuring out what to do with this amazing, powerful chunk of change. (I use the word ‘change’ intentionally.)

One of the ideas is to put it towards supporting the as-yet-unfunded Nepal portion of the project. I spoke with the Nepalese contact today and he’d be thrilled to have us come and tell his country’s part of the story.

However, I had another idea over the weekend, which basically consisted of a series of insights going in this direction: Why is it only these countries? Why is it only two artists working in two media (words and photos)? What about a network of artists documenting this story in different forms all over the world?

Suffice it to say this falls into the Big Ideas That Need Time To Brew category.

Regardless, I wanted to share all that in the name of transparency. And I’ll continue to do so as my thoughts and ideas clarify, but I have to say, NOT making rent has never felt so good!

Wine for Water WHOOOO!

// June 14th, 2009 // No Comments » // Uncategorized

Still adding up the numbers from Friday night, but it looks like we took in over $7,000!

I’m reeling!

Sounds like everyone had a fabulous time. But, come on, you know it’s a good party when your mom gets into a bidding war with a rock star.

Photos are coming in the next day or two…stay tuned!

Wine For Water Updates

// June 11th, 2009 // No Comments » // Wine For Water

The event is really coming together now! I’m neck-deep in auction items, signage and Sharpie pens. Gilles is finalizing the world’s sexiest world-music playlist and Drea is ‘this close’ to figuring out how to project images of water all over my body.

I’m super-excited – even though we’re now in the phase where our guest list is SHRINKING as the fence-sitters send the ‘Gee, sorry, can’t make it’ emails. The way this event has come together is the closest thing to MAGIC I’ve ever seen, so I have the faith the right 50 people will be there.

(Psst. If YOU are the right people, be sure to RSVP to waterloggd at melaniejones dot ca…or even better…buy your ticket now!)

And in the FUN NEWS category:

• I’m being interviewed on local radio tomorrow (Friday) morning at 7:45 am MST. I’ll be talking about the event and the whole WaterStories Project. Tune in to Lite96 (CHFM 95.9) or listen here.
• An INCREDIBLE $14,000 worth of auction items have been donated! I’m over the moon. The items are currently spread all over my house in a glorious carpet of chaos!
• A little birdie told me that Chef Dominique is pulling out all the stops for the food. Prepare to wowed and wooed, friends. We may need smelling salts for people passing out in hysteria and bliss.

There are still tickets available and I’d suggest snapping them up to make sure you’re not disappointed tomorrow. Looking forward to seeing you all there!

Indian Visa, Part 3

// June 9th, 2009 // No Comments » // Travel Planning

Visa just arrived in the mail.

India, baby! We’re goin’ to INDIAAAAAAAA!

This Is Really Happening

// June 5th, 2009 // No Comments » // The Project, Travel Planning

I picked Cate up downtown this morning – seeing the woman I’ll be spending my entire summer with for the very first time. We got to CAWST and she, Alison and I did a squealing, shrieking Happy Dance in the middle of the lobby.

This is really happening.

The past couple of months have been surreal for me. Every morning, I wake up and pad bleary-eyed to my computer, half-expecting a HA-HA-JUST-KIDDING email from Alison, Cate…or God. A message saying, ‘No, actually, you DID make this whole thing up and it WAS all a dream. Sorry.’

Turns out, the other girls have had the same kind of experience. Only theirs has been a longer journey than mine. They’ve been living this dream for two and a half years.

Two and a half years of excitement and inspiration, disappointment and frustration, losing hope and keeping the faith, applying for six thousand grants and dealing with 5,999 rejections.

And today, it all got real.

The three of us in that lobby, squealing and jumping up and down. Hearing about how Cate hasn’t heard a THING from our in-country partners about, oh I dunno, WHERE WE WILL SLEEP AT NIGHT. Discussing clothing options (I’m not the only one with Packing Panic).

Sitting down with The Calgary Herald and getting interviewed for the first time. Having our photos taken by the insanely jealous staff photog. Saying hi to the Editor of the ENTIRE FREAKING NEWSPAPER and hearing how thrilled he is we’re blogging on their site. Accidentally-on-purpose eating tripe at dum sum after the meeting.

All that happened. For real.

What The Bleep Am I Doing?

// June 4th, 2009 // 3 Comments » // Travel Planning

We’re at T-minus five-weeks-and-one-day until we leave and I have no idea what I’m supposed to be doing right now. Seriously. How does one prepare for a two-month, two-country, two-season virgin voyage to the Third World?

The only thing anyone seems to be able to offer me is: ‘DIDJA GETCHER SHOTS?’ And while that is 100% valid and yes-I’m-on-it, vaccination won’t really help me in a day-to-day I’m-in-the-middle-of-Africa sense. (more…)