A Successful Serve Day

LCC had their first annual "Serve Day" today, despite torrential downpours yesterday & a general uncertainty of being able to complete the planned projects - things went swimmingly. Tons of staff, faculty & student leaders participated and the projects accomplished include leveling out a field in front of the gym (through the sweat of many strapping young and not so young lads carrying wheelbarrows full of dirt back and forth across the lawn), picking up trash on the entire campus property (dozens of bags full as the property was used as a dumping ground for the apartment complex across the street when it was being built), weeding the sidewalks, painting over graffiti, replastering cracking walls and some other minor cosmetic touches. The campus looked great after everyone was done!

My job was to feed these hard working people! I was team leader and directed my group in the delicate art of cutting pickles and tomatoes, slicing 200 individually wrapped hamburger buns and making hamburger patties out of 23 kilograms of meat (50 pounds!) - The residence life staff made a huge batch of potato salad and so good ol' North American hamburgers on the bbq had a proper North American side dish and with all my worrying about not having enough food - it was just perfect. Nobody went hungry and everything was a hit. I was a proud team leader indeed. I will hopefully have pictures posted in my photo album when I am informed as to how to get them from the staff member who was responsible for photography.

I am taking pictures at my Mom's suggestion of the advertisments around Klaipeda, because A. they are in Lithuanian and therefore are interesting in that regard and B. often they depict such a different image for promoting a product than North Americans would expect or be used to. Look for those as a new folder in my photo album. To the left is something slightly similar, as one of the main squares in the city has huge paintings on display and this was one of my favorites.

Also, Rasa got off work early and we were able to catch a late supper at a darling little cafe I had never been to and I had delicious creamy vegetable soup. Mm Mm. Oh, and I bought two more pair of summer sale shoes. The shoe stores (only 500 million of them on one street) are moving in a more wintery stock of high leather boots and so I got some adorable China-red kitten heeled shoes and some brown amazingly comfortable heels that Rasa also has. I realize as I sit here writing this that most people don't care what kind of shoes I buy, but I apparently deem it important enough to share...so I guess welcome to my world! :)

Saturday, Saturday

Again a wonderful day in Lithuania! Rasa & Stasys came over and were my second and third official guests...then Regis was a virtual guest via webcam in Amerika. So weird to be here and talking to a Lithuanian there! Then the three of us went to meet Viktoras for coffee and dessert at 12th floor. Chad joined us for dinner at City Pub and then we all (minus Stasys) had tea at my place - and a good time was had by all. Viktoras is a riot - very funny and he asks and answers questions in Lithuanian to me, which pretty much makes me figure out the meaning or else turn to another Lithuanian with a confused look. Stasys and Rasa are of course never boring, and always make me laugh as well. How I love my friends...I've posted new pictures from our outing, located at my photo album via the link on the sidebar on the left.

Really not a lot to report other than I bought new shoes so I didn't have to wear heels everyday to work to 'dress up' - so they're practical black flats that are still cute enough to wear to work and out. I also got my Student Life official t-shirt to identify me as "officially staff" and have been meeting with people regarding volunteer projects to present to students. So far I love my job, and am really truly looking forward to working with students and maybe doing some volunteering myself.

Oh, and I totally won my bet with Stasys. He finally agreed that it was indeed a Polish word in the song and not Lithuanian. He paid for my coffee today to pay back the 10 lita as agreed upon. I did tell him he didn't have to, it was more fun to win than take his money, but he insisted. Aww, what a gentleman - true to his word.

And So It Begins...Almost

So...today I feel that I really started working with direction and approval from my superiors. For those not in the know - my official title is "Volunteer & Service Learning Coordinator" and I am slowly trying to figure out how to develop the volunteer program into a real program with documents/guidelines/direction. Previously it was run by the Career Development Center coordinator, and it was a side job, so I hope to turn it into a streamlined, unique program for LCC. I am making contacts, compiling documents, putting together a database to keep track of student progress and now I'm in charge of the BBQ part of the first annual "Serve Day" next week. Two-hundred hamburgers for hungry volunteers of staff, faculty and student leaders helping to beautify the campus with various projects!

I went to 'The Spit' via ferry today with two lovely faculty members, and it was a fun outing. We got to the beach just as the clouds overhead were beginning to let loose what will probably be a storm tonight...and lightning flashes began as we were heading back to Klaipeda on the ferry. We had dinner at the Bat Cave - I picked my meal off of a Lithuanian language menu even! I decided to sign up for the language class being offered to the expatriates just to supplement my vocabulary, as I don't know the grammar structure of the language very well. I really want to try to learn as much as I can, so I can get around independently and use it with friends. I think it's a beautiful language and even if I can never use it in California - I can use it now!

Students start school in less than two weeks...the countdown is on! I anxiously await my friends' returns and summer stories over coffee, the start of my real job responsibilities and what the semester will bring...

A Wonderful One Day Weekend

So...pretty much my 'one day weekend' was not as bad as I was thinking it would be. We had a holiday weekend last week that included two days off from work, and so the official make up day was Saturday and so I went into work yesterday. Apparently, according to Lithuanian labor laws, on Fridays the work day ends an hour early so I got to go home a little early and get my pizza topping for the pizza making party at a faculty member's house. The get together was fun, and lots of staff/faculty showed up, so I met new people and got to chat further with some that I had previously been introduced to. Then I got a random text message (Lithuanians call them 'SMS' - which stands for 'Short Message System') from Giedre, asking if she could spend the night at my house. She was visiting a friend in Palanga and couldn't go home that night on the train/bus and so needed a place to sleep for the night. So, I met her and we had coffee and watched Pirates of the Caribbean and drooled over Johnny Depp. The next morning, we had more coffee and went to 'brunch' and poked around shops looking at shoes and trinkets while waiting for Rasa & Stasys to join us at a pub in Old Town. I then proceded to order, receive and partake of the best milkshake I've ever had in Klaipeda. Usually milkshakes are pretty much like frothy flavored milk and not so much ice-creamy, but this one was the more like a milkshake as I'm used to, so it was a delicious surprise. It was so fun to just enjoy the beautiful day with friends and not worry about papers being due or a project to finish (though that's something I keep forgetting I won't really have to worry about...potentially ever again...academically at least). So the day was spent walking around sunny Klaipeda and going to cafes and drinking coffee and milkshakes and 'greipfrutu sultys' (grapefruit juice) - a favorite of mine because almost all restaurants have it for cheap and I can never find it in the States.

Sitting around the table with some of the Lithuanian friends I hung out with most last semester and on my visit this spring, I felt so at ease and never an awkward pause or out of place - really as if I never was gone. It's funny how you can be away from people for an extended period of time and then see them again and pick up the friendship, conversations and daily interaction as if no time had passed from the last meeting. I experienced that when JoAnn was gone for two semesters straight and then saw her again after we had both been through so much, but our friendship picked right up from the last time we saw each other - pretty much how I feel with the Lithies so far :)

So, I have a 10 lita bet going with Stasys about a Madonna song and whether or not she says something in Lithuanian. The song is 'Sorry' and includes Madonna saying 'sorry' or 'forgive me' in different languages, and so she says it in Japanese, Spanish, Hindi, etc - and the 'Lithuanian' in question is listed as a Polish word in all the literature I can find online. I agree that it sounds like the Lithuanian phrase for 'go away, please' but it doesn't make sense to have her saying go away, when she's saying sorry in all the other languages. The battle has waged online in various forums whether or not it's Lithuanian, and it seems like the excuse that the Polish word is mispronounced is widely accepted because she uses an incorrect Dutch phrase in the song as well. I already won the war on this issue with Regis, so I predict my wallet will grow 10 lita richer one of these days...

3 Cheers for Chombos!

I finally went grocery shopping! And I got a free, yes free, bag upon checking out! (Usually you have to purchase your bags in which to carry said groceries home, and so apparently I had purchased enough to qualify for the 'free bag giveaway') I bought delicious grapefruit juice, milk not in a bag, blueberry jam and little frozen dumplings filled with sweet cheese, among other essentials. And, my favorite breakfast cereal that we don't have in the States: chombos. They're basically Coco Puffs, but with an elephant mascot instead of Coco the...what is he? A chocolate bird of some sort...Anyway, they're good.

Also, I went to bed ridiculously early last week, and so was awake right before sunrise and able to snap a picture of the sun as it rose on the horizon from my balcony. It was absolutely beautiful, I must say...See said sunrise to your left.

I am going shopping tomorrow afternoon with the new male RD of the Karklu dorm, Chad, and my Student Life Assistant buddy Arunas, for the Student Life Staff Retreat on Wednesday. We have to pick up the side dishes for Šašlykas, Lithuanian shish kebabs, that we will be enjoying. Then I have plans to eat lunch with Rasa at Viktoras' place of employment, Navalis, a fancy shmancy hotel restaurant. He might even give us free water!

I've taken some pictures of my apartment and gotten them posted in my brand new photo folder, located here! You can take a tour of my new living quarters at your leisure.

Hooray for Balticum Internet Guy!

At last! I have a great internet connection at my house! I also picked up various soap products, so I am currently doing laundry and my dishes are clean! And it's a four day weekend for work! It's a wonderful day all around!

So...having the internet will keep me from going to bed at 9ish like a lameo, and I also now have cable televsion...I had to purchase a TV package so I could get the cable internet, but it has some English channels, so I don't mind too much. I have no definite plans for the weekend...I may go to Nida with some girls from work and then maybe hang out with Rina and see a movie, but we'll see what the free time brings. I have been able to see some friends of mine who had stayed in Klaipeda over the summer - we had dinner a few nights ago, with one special spotlight item: snails! Viktoras ordered them because he had already had the other exotic food item on the menu (frog legs) and decided it was time to try another different dish. Rasa and I tried one each, and they were surprisingly okay tasting - rather like a mushroom with butter. I had expected a rubber band or other weeeeird texture, but I can safely recommend the snails at Miesto Smukle!

I promise to post pictures of the apt when I finally get around to taking some...but I'm afraid there's nothing else exciting going on!

Exciting Times at Bokstu Gatve...

So...I've arrived. After waiting the dreadful 6 hours in the Copenhagen airport, landing in the Palanga airport was a relief. I was met by the LCC driver and Rina, my new "helper buddy," who then drove me immediately to meet my landlord and see my apartment. It's darling...hardwood floors, new additions in furniture & appliances, a balcony and just the right amount of space so I can't go stir crazy. I will post pictures as soon as I am able.

Now, drawbacks of said apartment I have discovered upon closer inspection:

• the blinds are those bamboo type ones, which don't close out "see-through-ness" entirely and let in light in the morning when you want to sleep a little longer.
• I do not have an oven - I have a range top, but no oven! Those cookie mixes Mom sent me will apparently have to be baked at the dorm...
• No internet...Rina is working with me on this, as I might have a phone line to possibly hook up with, and if that is not available, I may have a cable line to work with...We plan on looking at options tomorrow, so hopefully I will have more news of that soon. (I am currently at LCC using their computers)
• And lastly, my favorite, I have a lovely view from my living room window of a man in his underwear as he walks around his porch in the morning

All in all though, it's cute and just fine. I have just finished my first day of work, and learned a lot and realized I have tons more to learn. I am excited for the challenge, but it will be a challenge indeed. I will be overseeing 80 students or so and helping them find on and off campus opportunities to fulfill their required hours of volunteering. Also, I will be holding weekly meetings with a Student Leader Volunteer team to assist them in any way I can. I have seen some friendly faces, Natalija in the hall this morning and Rasa in the dorm lounge the other day. Rasa had no idea I was coming, as she didn't check her email (I had sent out an announcement of my coming) - and so was very surprised indeed. I have plans to have dinner with her one of these days, and another friend in town as well. I have more to learn and meetings to attend tomorrow, but I hope all will work out with my internet and I won't have to rely on LCC's computer lab...

Last Night in the States

I'm getting ready to sleep in my bedroom for the last time for a very long time and it's a weird feeling. I guess the move hasn't quite hit me just yet, but I'm sure that when I land in Lithuania and step into my apartment for the first time, the impact will hit. Thankfully, I'm almost all packed up, and my mom and I will be going over last minute additions to the luggage tomorrow morning. I have a huge 6 hour layover in Copenhagen, so I'm collecting things to hopefully make the time go by less boringly.

I've successfully gotten rid of multiple bags of trash, recycling and clothing from my adventures playing "what's in this box?" - I am such a packrat and finally decided that I don't need my Old Testament midterms or receipts from 1997. I can't believe how much stuff I had laying around, so it was refreshing to fill the recycle bin with old papers and donate clothing I didn't wear anymore.

So pretty much this is goodbye until I get to Lith and see if my apt has the internet...but I've been assured that if it does not have it, the landlord can get it installed. What would I do without instant messengers, email and Yahoo news?!