myTunes

Here are some songs I recently discovered, not sure if they're exactly "new" songs in JA but they are ones I'm lovin!

Dreamin of you, Beannie Man (this video is so cute!)



Bonafide Girl, Shaggy (video not so cute, so i'm just gonna post the song)



You're the Only One, Serani (no video just the song)



Dry Cry, Sizzla (just the song)


Hope you enjoyed myTunes! let me know if you'd like to hear some more and i'll email you a big list of good ones.

Big Update

So for those of you who remember me talking about some engineering consulting I did for the farmer's group a few months ago, I have a big update for you! Along with the information and calculations I provided them, they applied for a grant last month and just a few days ago we found out that they won the funding! They were given $40,000 US by the United Nations to purchase a solar pump for the irrigation system, construct an open channel from one drainage pond to the other, fund classes and education for the farmers group and other various needs. I have to give all the credit for the grant proposal to Johnny and Alicia, they put in a lot of hard work to see the grant process through. As one PCV said last week during our Early Service Conference, "you need the whole team to achieve the dream" or something like that... lol! i think when he said it it was much more elegant and inspirational but you get the idea.

Green Thumb

Yesterday I spent the day on Mt. Rosser helping the Ewarton Watershed and Farmers Cooperative Society launch their first Tree Planting and Reforstation Project. It is a two year project with the goal of reforesting 100+ acres on the Ewarton hillsides with fruit trees. This will provide an economic benefit to the recipients of the trees and enhance the water quality of the watershed by lessening soil erosion.

I spent most of the day moving trees from one area to another and clearing bush off of the site. It was such a work out!! I felt really out of shape amoungst all the farms who weren't even breaking a sweat. Well, they were sweating but nothing seemed as hard for them as it was for me.

Sadly my camera was out of juice for the day but there were others taking pictures so I'm gonna steal some and post them on here. Pics of me pretending to have a green thumb. LoL! I gotta run and iron my pants for work... sorry I've been slow on the updates, I'm gonna try to be better I promise. Miss you all!

Rain, Rain, Go Away

I think it has been raining here for well over a week straight. Ugh. Laundry is never ever going to dry. The one good thing about this weather, it's not sweltering hot! :D

Love Bama

According to RJR Radio, 96% of Jamaicans chose Obama over McCain. All over the island people have painted signs and even graphiti to show their respects for Obabma. There is even a song about him by Coco Tea called "Barak Obama":

On my way to work on Friday I saw that a fisherman had painted on the side of his shack: "Love Bama." So far that's been my favorite, wish I had snapped a picture of it. But tomorrow is the big day and I am one of the few lucky PCVs with a tv and quasi-cable, so there about five of us who are getting together to watch the polls at my house. We have all submitted our absentee ballots weeks ago and our fingers are definitely crossed!!! GO VOTE TOMORROW!!

Floured!

Yesterday a bunch of us pcvs got together to celebrate Benjee's birthday at his house. I am so proud of Benjee because he has already integratd so well into his community. Everyone in town seems to know him and like him, and he can speak patios so well!

So we got together with him and friends from his town to jerk chicken, roast/fry bread fruit, drink rum punch and celebrate. I must say the chicken was probably the best I've had since I've been in Jamaica. Oh and one of the girls made carrot cake from scratch!! It was fabulous!

The evening wasn't complete until Benjee got floured. In Jamaica it is a tradition that on your birthday your friends and family pour flour all over you when you least expect it. And if your friends are really cool they will dump red stripe or some other beverage all over you first so its nice and messy! Benjee obviously has really cool friends, hehe! Love you Benjee!

Porti

Here are a few pictures from my trip to Port Antonio a few weeks ago. One of my pc friends and I walked out from the coast to a little island where you can go cliff jumping into crystal clear water. We did a little snorkling too and my friend tried a hand at some spear fishing. We didn't catch anything the experience was awseome and I couldn't have asked for a nicer day. There was even a rainbow that arched over the sky at one point during the afternoon. Gorgeous!

This picture is looking from the island back to the coast. We met the two pikni (kids) in the picture while we were there and they let us use their spear gun to try and catch fish.

The cliff we jumped off of... it looked scarier from the top of the cliff I promise!