Gele Ayiti Bezwen on Mugabe Tou

Skype Convo with a friend in the states on Sept 9th

I went to cash a check, this guy who owns a bunch of businesses in Jacmel also cashes checks at his gas station. The director cashes her checks there & sent me there to cash min as well. When I get there, they're like "Oh well since we've never cashed a check for you before, we won't be able to do it", Im like "Of course you've never cashed a check for me, this is my first time here".  When they asked how I heard of them, I told them Hagar  (the director) & the Haitian guy that I was speaking to went to ask the white guy (owner) and he comes back & says "There isn't any money". I was gonna take out $100 so then I said ok, then can I take out $50? He's like "No, I can't because we've never cashed a check for you". I call Hagar & she's like "Oh well it's because they would lose out if the check doesn't clear so I'll just go with you later". I'm thinking 1. If you really thought that, why would you send me there knowing that they wouldn't cash it? 2. Why do I need her to vouch for me? 3. If i were white would they have cashed it with out all of the back & forth nonsense?

Kite Mimi Anrepo

9/14/11

So there is a cat that I really wanted to get.  He belongs to the director *Hagar's boyfriend.  He is the smaller of the two.  I named them **Mimi and Minou, because they didn't have any names.  I was supposed to be getting Mimi to come live with me at the other house.  We had to ease him into it, because otherwise he would run away.  Well Ms. B (one of the volunteers)  comes in and announces that she wants one of the cats, and she wants to give him another name.  Um wtf, I just told you what I call him!  Then today (9/15/11) she announces that she has named him Kyle, um I’m sorry I am not going to call him Kyle, especially not when I’ve been calling him Mimi for the past month and not when you've come in and laid claim to him as if he were rightfully yours.  I don’t really care for her.  She seems to have this weird helpless thing going on, and looks like she doesn't really wanna do much.  She even had the nerve to ask to borrow my shoes.  I felt like I couldn't say no, but I do not wear things with people.  I don’t like it, and there is nothing of yours that I want .  

*not her real name

**mimi is Kreyol for cat

M Rive Ayiti

8/22/11

10:02pm I am settled into the organization and laying in bed as I write this.  Whenever I come to Haiti, it is never a dull experience.  Baggage claim was so chaotic and it seemed as if I would never get my bags.  When I got outside and found the driver from the organization, I felt relief all at once, because that was a concern for me.  However that relief was short lived.  We got into a minor fender bender that escalated into a huge argument, because the other driver was extremely upset and cursing the organization’s driver.  When the organization’s driver tried to reason with him, it was met with more cursing and the most profanity laced creole that I have ever heard.  The other driver also stood in front of the truck to prevent us from leaving.  This went on for at least 20-25mins in the blazing mid day sun in the very busy airport parking lot.

I never really have expectations of the unknown.  The house is sparsely furnished and very clean.  I will be bunking with another woman, but our room is right off of a patio/balcony so that’s pleasant.  The first order of business in the morning, is to purchase a cell phone.  I’m very glad I left my chocolate at home; it would have melted even before leaving the airport.

We did English lessons today very short, and impromptu.  The girls were all giggling except for one who took it seriously and practiced along with the track.  I want to get some sort of schedule figured out but I don’t want to overdo it and be militant about starting a new way of doing things.