LG's Excellent PC Adventure

Much of PC philosophy is embodied in the requirement for all volunteers to become fully integrated into their host communities. That's also the primary reason for the emphasis on having us learn the language. We are required to be at our sites during all working days and are encouraged to remain at site on most weekends. We're seen to be more effective, and safer, if we truly become part of the local community and that doesn't happen if we blow town at every earliest opportunity. These are well thought out policies that contribute enormously to our success as volunteers. Another policy deals with holidays. We are not given time off for our American holidays, but we do get to observe the local Bulgarian holidays. Again, this just helps us become less 'foreign' and more like our local friends. It makes good sense.

Unfortunately, Thanksgiving isn't actually a Bulgarian holiday. Who knew!? Therefore, on Thursday when you are all sitting down to your turkey and football games, I will be at my desk working to achieve World Peace. Before you all begin drafting letters of protest to the US Ambassador on my behalf,let me hasten to add that I too will celebrate Thanksgiving. What we do here is pick a weekend around Thanksgiving and gather together in some likely spot and eat turkey and watch soccer on TV. My apartment, it turns out, is a likely spot and my friends are gathering here this weekend. Locating a turkey turned out to be a challenge. It seems that turkeys don't become readily available in Bulgaria until Christmas but a colleague of mine at work called around and found one that I bought sight unseen over the phone. It would be delivered to me at the office the following day and I had a real fear that it would be led in on a leash! Fortunately, it was delivered frozen solid and wrapped in plastic like any good turkey should be. It is a Brazilian turkey that was exported by a French company to Germany and then sold to a store here in Bulgaria. It's about the size and shape of a duck, so it may very well have been walked here from Stuttgart. No matter, we've got a turkey. The gang will include Brian & Kate, Sara, Lindsay, Maria, Matt and the other Brian. Hopefully we'll all wear birkenstock sandals, play records and sing old folk songs. Does anyone remember all the words to "Kum Bye Yah"?

Everyone will begin arriving tonight so naturally this morning the last remaining elevator gave up the ghost. The elevator that 'works' stopped working on Monday and we were reduced to using the elevator that 'sometimes works'. Then, during the night the elevator that 'sometimes works', didn't. I live on the eighth floor which is really nine floors up because you don't start numbering floors until you've gone up to the second floor which you then call the First. So, now I get to walk up and down nine floors to go in and out. As Rumiana said when I complained, "In Bulgaria we call this exercise." In America we'd call a lawyer and sue somebody! I sure hope my friends have packed lightly.

Work continues to be a bit of a mystery. We've spent the better part of this week looking over the bid sheet for the project to coordinate the work on an archeaological site in Kardjali. It's being funded by the European Union and many of the requirements don't seem to make any sense at all. For example, seven or eight experts are identified that would have to be hired, A Team Leader, an Architect, a Historian, etc. In each case, one of the requirements is that they be fluent in spoken and written English. In the case of the Team Leader, we have a man who is letterperfect for the job but is fluent in Bulgarian and French. The sponsoring organization says, "No, find someone who is fluent in English, even if he doesn't have this man's work and experience credentials". It makes more sense to us to hire the most highly qualified individual and supply a translator (if needed), but we've been told to go with a less qualified person as long as he/she meets all the requirements. We're so disgusted that, as of today, we're still undecided as to whether we'll submit our bid. This is a large project and bids were by invitation only so we can't be too cavalier about dropping out.

I've started to put together a short film to add to my website. I hoped to have it up and running by the end of the month but I may not make it. In order for it to work, I need to keep it under 5 minutes in length. Unless you have a really highspeed broadband connection, anything longer than 5 minutes becomes painful to download and open. The problem I'm having is that the rough cut I'm working with is already 27 minutes long. I keep trying to edit it down and it just keeps growing like some alien fungus. Every time I go into it to chop out a bit, I find something new to add. Apparently, it's decided to appear in theaters near you very soon. Or, I may decide to chop it up and post it as sequels, "Bulgaria, The Early Days", "Bulgaria, The Days That Came Right After Those Days", "Bulgaria, Another Couple Of Days", etc. Anyway I promise the wait will be worthwhile because you'll see such sights as turkeys, real Bulgarians, pseudo-Bulgarians, goats, and assorted buildings all accompanied by highly inspirational music.

I've got to go down to the train station now to pick up the first arrival, so think of me lying on my couch on Saturday (Thanksgiving Day in Stara Zagora) stuffed with Brazilian turkey, and hoping that the Stara Zagora Beroas finally manage to beat the Lovech Liteks. Beroas!! Beroas!!