Do-it-yourself stoves- Guatemala Style!

Or actually, 17 stoves.  Teams of SHE volunteers worked alongside the families of La Reforma to get the first stoves built.  Three Guatemalan contractors will continue working on them until every house in the village has one- 63 in total.  This is no small feat!  Check out how it happened.

First, the materials had to be hauled to the houses.  The men of La Reforma do this the traditional way- by using their heads.  The Americans struggled to keep up, until somebody noticed a shiny wheelbarrow in one of the houses.  Suddenly a whole stream of unused wheelbarrows appeared, letting us work smarter, not harder.  There's more than one way to use your head!

Of course, you still have to march through the jungle to find the house...

When you get there, if there's not enough light, or somebody's butt's too big,
just take off one side of the house.  Problem solved.

Most remaining problems can be solved with the Guatemalan Multi-tool: the machete.
Handy for sizing bricks, stirring mortar, digging dirt, and cutting holes in the tin roof.

First, the cinderblock core is laid and filled with dirt.  Then the bricks are added and topped with a cooking surface.

Hulk skills may be required.

SHE wishes this family health, happiness, and many warm tortillas!

Before there is cake, there must be an oven!

It's my birthday on May 29, and all I want is this stove.  

Actually, you probably know that I already have a very nice, rather underused stove in my comfy kitchen.  I turn it on with a knob and am ready to cook in 2 seconds.  This particular design is well-suited for a family in the high altitude, isolated Polochic Valley in Guatemala.  They are designed to use 70% less wood than traditional fires for heating and cooking.  Kids who don't have to travel long distances to collect wood can spend more time in school, which is every teacher's nefarious desire.  Homes that have vented stoves have significantly fewer respiratory illnesses.  YOU have the power to help me make that happen.  

I am traveling to Guatemala July 27-August 3 with a group called SHe Humanitarian.  In addition to installing 50 stoves, the group intends to provide a medical clinic, and conduct education and small business workshops.  Don't worry, they aren't putting me in charge of anything that requires a scalpel.

The individual cost of the trip is $1750, to cover materials, food, and deluxe sleeping accommodations on a concrete floor.  I will gladly pay for the fun and flights.  Of course, being me, there will be additional adventures and crazy stories! You can follow them on the blog.  

Can you help me get there by a $20, $50, or other donation? $150 would buy a whole stove, and we need 50!  In addition to my supreme gratitude, a donation will get you unique handwritten updates posted from in country.  Seriously, written with a pen.  It's like a birthday card, only in reverse!

Donating through this website is simple, fast,  and secure. CHOICE (the parent NPO) is a 501(c)(3) non-profit, so donations are tax deductible.  Any amount would be a much appreciated birthday gift, and you do not even have to wrap it!

http://choicehumanitarian.org/donate/   

Under comments, please put 2013 Guatemala, Heidi Nebeker.

Many thanks for your support -- and don't forget to forward this to anyone who you think might want to donate too!  Check back here for updates and stories from the trip!

Two big announcements.... (Seriously big. Like a ton a piece.)

The last time I told you about my Blue Baby, she was a crack-up at 7 years old.  Now, at 9 1/2, she's really getting up there.  Like most ladies, she's pretty good at hiding her true age, but the 172,641 miles are starting to show.  It is with much sadness that I announce the retirement of Blue Breeze Prius.  Girl, we have had some good times!

I would like to introduce you to CiCi- the little sister Prius.  Isn't she cute?  Like all younger siblings following in the footsteps of a practically perfect predecessor, she comes in with something to prove.  She demands to be measured by her own merits, which are noticeable and unique. And though they share a heritage and a name, they have different strengths and a completely different view of the world.  Her attractive attributes include phone syncing, HD radio, a moonroof, and (finally!) an audio input.  Plus she is willing to up the ante on her sister's forte, promising 53 mpg city.  I consider that a challenge to be tested in as many cities as possible.

So, CiCi, I hope you are up for adventures!  I'm sure we'll have many happy miles together. ;-)

I'm Clueless- Professor Clueless.

Most people retire from their working lives to have more time for socializing.  I retired from socializing to fit more work into my life!  What could entice me to give up some much-needed gym time?   I'll give you a hint- my new middle name is "Adjunct."

Yes, as in Temporary Adjunct Professor.  I am teaching my first ever college class, Introduction to Speech Language Pathology, at American River Community College.  There are only 2 programs for SLP-As (assistants) in Northern California, and one of them is literally 5 minutes from my house.  Fortunately, that is the one that hired me.

Until my arrival, the whole department consisted of one visionary, overworked, full time professor.  In the grand tradition of great speech pathologists, her name is totally unpronouncible: Zajics, pronounced "Zikes".  This is the first time in my life that my last name was simpler than the alternative!

I was offered the class literally as I was walking out the door for Christmas Break, and didn't get any materials or instructions until one week before the class started.  So it has been an exhausting and harried few weeks of trying to prepare lectures and figure out how campus works and trying to look like I know what I am doing.  So far, we are 0/4 at successfully having the print shop have copies ready for class, and every week has been besieged by technology fails (mostly not my fault).  But there have also been some good discussions and interested learners, and the class is moving in the right direction, so I am pleased.  I enjoy the challenge of teaching and am excited to introduce others to the field I love.  They may have noticed that I am clueless, but I am enthusiastically and amusingly clueless!

Time to Retire!

After 20 years of continually doing something, you realize: it's got to be time to do something else.  So, this year I am coming up on 20 years of unsuccessful dating, and I can't think of anything I'd like to retire from more!

Retirement is a great idea.  It comes with perks: you get to travel, you can wear sweats when you used to dress up, you don't have to continually measure up to someone else's expectations, you do things because you want to and not because you have to, you have more time to sleep, and you have time to pursue your hobbies.  I think kayaking and snowshoeing are great retirement hobbies! Church dances? No thanks, I'm retired.

If you are just unemployed, then people think something is wrong with you.  Or they pity you.  Or they offer you unuseful, unsolicited advice.  But if you are retired, then people say "Good for you! You earned it!  Enjoy!"  I'm telling you, retired is the way to go.

Of course, it is widely known that educators and medical professionals (of which I am both) often follow the same retirement path.  They kick back for a while, then get the right invitation and return to the familiar scene, on their own terms and with increased value.  So far, I am loving retirement.  But I would definitely reconsider for the right offer....

I have super fabulous friends.  In honor of my retirement party, some showered me with gifts.  Others produced these highlight date movies, all based on true stories.  (The names have been changed to protect the clueless, so just assume you have never met these lucky gentlemen.)  Enjoy!  Name your favorite in the comments below!

"Older"

 

"Three Strikes is Only the Beginning"

"An Attractive Offer"