Now that I have passed the year mark, everyone seems to love to ask what I will be doing once I finish my service. A few of us have started thinking about it, but the idea of entering the “real world” gives most of us anxiety. Chelsea and I were recently talking about how we will have to update our resumes before we apply to grad school or for jobs. We were joking around about what we would actually put for our Peace Corps description – “Ate a lot of waffles, pooped in my hand, and oh yeah, I started a library or something.” Even though we were joking, it got me thinking about the qualities of a Peace Corps Volunteer that make us unique and desirable prospective employees or grad students:
Innovative:
- Out of toilet paper? No problem. PCVs are all too familiar with this dilemma and we have developed some alternatives:
1. Newspaper
2. Paper (some love using the cover page of students’ exams)
3. Socks
4. $30 Dermalogica face wipes (I’ll let you all take a guess as to who this was.)
- Dental hygiene products have multiple uses! Dental floss can be used as a clothesline and toothpaste can be used to hang up pictures.
- Kiddie pools make great bathtubs
Trilingual:
We have learned our local language, but that’s not all! PCVs in Uganda have truly mastered “Uganglish.” We use phrases like “eh, soddy!” and “thank you for your work.” Our phrases are accompanied by a weird accent that we believe helps Ugandans understand us better. You might be thinking this is like speaking English with a Spanish accent when you go to Mexico. Unfortunately, you’re probably right. Nevertheless, we still do it because Ugandans really do understand us better.
Good Communication Skills:
- PCVs can really talk about poop and we don’t spare any of the dirty details.
- PCVs can spend the whole day talking about food and we usually do.
- We gossip, a lot. Peace Corps is like high school all over again. In the bush, with not much to do, there is nothing we love more than to discuss hot hook ups and break ups.
- In large groups, we are very good at utilizing the f bomb.
Punctual:
We arrive to meetings forty-five minutes late and we are still early.
Easy Going:
It’s raining? Don’t worry; we will have no problem not showing up to work today. We have a date with our couch and some episodes of Friends. And you know what? We probably won’t show up for work tomorrow either.
Economical:
PCVs won’t let anything go to waste. The other night I made fried rice for dinner and I knocked my plate off of the table. Rice spilled everywhere – the floor, the walls, and all over me. Did I still eat it? Yes! My friend, Lauren, asked me if I at least recooked it a little. Nope! That would have wasted my precious propane (and my time!). I just scooped it up with my hands, threw it on my plate, and enjoyed. I only found one hair, which I think is pretty good. I’m sure there was some dirt, ants, and lizard poop mixed in – but I’m a fan of the adage “what doesn’t kill you only makes you stronger.”
First-Aid Experience:
- Experts in jigger and mango fly removal.
- Diagnosticians: PCVs love to call each other and rattle off symptoms in order to get a diagnosis. Sometimes, we prefer this to calling our medical staff because we fancy ourselves as doctors.
- We know the antibiotics you should take for the following ailments: bacterial infections, malaria, amoebic dysentery, and schistosomiasis.
Committed:
PCVs are not afraid of a challenge – we will give more than 100%:
- Recently, two girls in my group had a contest to see who could go the longest without bathing. After 18 days, they called a truce. I am pretty sure Ryan wishes that he had been a contestant because a bath every 18 days is “clean” for him.
- A PC training group before mine had a rolex-eating contest. (A rolex is two eggs rolled up in a chapatti. A chapatti is like a tortilla, but it’s made from oil and flour). The contest was to see who could eat the most in 24 hours. I believe the winner ate 21. I might have this wrong because it’s word of mouth, but I do know someone definitely ate 18. So that’s 18 chapattis and 36 eggs in 24 hours…
- Ryan, Caroline and I had a contest one month to see who could save the most money. In an effort to win, Ryan rode his bike to and from Mbale (30km each way) to save 4,000 shillings. That’s less than $3. I wish I could say he won, but Caroline blew us both out of the water.
Work Well with Others:
Rats, spiders, bats, cockroaches? There is no problem – we can live and work in harmony with these creatures.
As you can see, I don’t think that I will have a hard time finding a job when I get home. Who wouldn’t want to hire a returned PCV?
In other news, Chelsea wrote another blog post: "Text from Uganda part deux." Here is a little preview:
- “It is not a good sign when my younger brother, upon hearing how much money I make, says sheesh you broke as a joke”
- “The kids were being brats and throwing trash under my door. So I said no coloring today. One said, “no, just beat me.” Haha
- “lmao! Who is afraid of butterflies? you are fantastic.”
- “My house has been infested by giant moths. this is unreasonable.”
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