Toughest jobs you'll ever love...

So, I have been thinking about the Peace Corps saying, toughest job you'll ever love...well when one thinks about a job they usually think about one skill set that they need to complete a series of related tasks in a specific industry. Well, Peace Corps isn't really just a job, it is a series of many many jobs, often very difficult, that you have to learn completely on the fly (hence the tough part) in order to survive and suceed. However, the end outcome of going through these daily challenges is a very impressive life skill set that makes one feel like they can accomplish just about anything - so I've got that going for me, which is nice (Caddyshack). Let me just give you a few examples as to what I'm talking about...now all of this has happened just in the last few weeks...

1. Learning to butcher a chicken for the meal - Yesterday I was suddenly swung into the role of cook and butcher here at the hotel. Originally we had a group of only 12, so one cook is sufficient for a lunch meal for this. I like to help, so I was in the kitchen too cutting veggies and doing some prep work. Then Sara our cook told me, oh we have to kill the chicken for the meal. Ok, so I learn how to do that - Sara captures it (note...stop reading here if you are squeemish) and I grab the legs and wings and Sara goes on to break it's neck. Then we have to get the feathers off so we dunk the bird in boiling water to loosen the feathers and pluck the chicken fast so that it doesn't cool too much and the feathers get stuck again. Then Sara gets out the giant cleaver and I learn how to butcher a chicken. I had never seen/participated in the whole practice start to finish before, but I must say that it was very educational and I think as a meat eater it is important to know where your food comes from and what is involved - so a very good learning experience for me.

Anyway, so we are cooking and make chow mein for lunch (actually very traditional Guatemalan food due to the large population of Chinese immigrants here). After we served the lunch, we went on to make chuchitos. We were told there would be only 30 or so people - but there ended up to be double that amount and they told us at the LAST minute. Oh there is nothing worse for a cook than to have numbers increased at the last minute - especially with dishes that involve some time and work. Sooooo... we go ahead and kill another chicken. Chuchitos are these wonderful little snacks here, made of the corn dough that you use to make tortillas (masa), which are flattened then a little piece of chicken is put in the middle, and a bit of sauce (kind of like a mole - made with tomatoes, peppers, chile, pumpkin, and seasame seeds all ground up) and then wrapped in a leaf and steamed. Well, due to this dramatic increase in the numbers we had to start using parts of the chicken in these chuchitos that I had never tasted before - we cut up the feet, the comb, the head, the neck, the spine, EVERYTHING. When it came time to eat, I was really really hoping to get lucky and get a wing piece or something - but surprise - I got the chicken foot - maybe it's good luck. I tried it, but I guess it is an acquired taste - I'm not a big fan of steamed chicken foot. I wonder who got the comb.

Anyway so yesterday ended up being a ton of work - but fun and I learned a lot of stuff as well. We worked from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. cooking all day and man was I exhausted but at least I have my good friend from the community to cook with and we had some great music from the local radio station to listen to.

Ok - on to more life skills learned and practiced recently...

2. Meat smoker - yes I learned how to cure and smoke meat over an open fire for another traditional Guatemalan dish I learned how to make - Chaojin (turned out excellent)

3. Artisinal oven - This oven I made out of tin foil and wire is sure coming in handy. I got together with the Recinos women and we made a rum cake (pastel borracho) last weekend. After the cake is baked you poke holes in it with a fork, then pour in a liquid made with rum, anise, cinnimon, and sugar. Oh sooooo good!

4. Translator - both verbal and written - working on translating a huge tourism document into English for the big tourism project we have going here on the coast.

5. Teacher - teaching English in the schools here in the community - but teaching english in spanish - a little confusing at times - but we're making progress.

6. Coordinator - Trying to put the finishing touches on these grants - I just have to get 2 more things in and then it goes in front of the committee tommorrow - oh trying to round this stuff up has been a process but it will be worth it in the long run. The women in the community are super excited for their new stoves.

7. Tourism expert - This is my favorite part of my job - working with the tourism places in and around Reu trying to get out some good marketing and move forward with the promotion of the area. We're attending a tourism fair next week, sponsored by one of the big clothing designers in Guatemala - complete with a fashion show and a farmer's market - should be fun!

That is about all I can think of as far as most recently, however, other skills learned here include...
*Trail building and maintenence
*Grant writing
*Presentations (planned and unplanned)
*Ambassador (unofficial)
*Guide
*Painter
*Mason
*Interior Decorator
*Motivational Speaker
*Sign builder
*Frame maker
*Photographer

So, that is the haps here in Guatemala. I am getting excited for next week as it is the big 50th Anniversary celebration and then on to Mid Service the next week (already had my mid service medical exams and dental check - all is well(knock on wood)). Then my sister will be down after that - so I've got some fun stuff to look forward to, which always helps pass the time.

Happy St. Patty's Day! Have a green beer for me!
Cheers,
Tara