"Things you own end up
owning you."
Tyler Durdin, Fight Club
Word of the Day
el chuche- thing, thingy, thingamagig, etc. (Nicaragua)
A giant whiteboard. SO. MANY. BOOKS. Teaching books, grammar books,
children's story books in Spanish, the Bible, War and Peace. Newspaper.
Notebooks galore. Binders. Weird spices. Weirder medicines. Plastic jugs.
Cardboard scraps. Styrofoam. Tea. Plastic bags. Markers. Crayons. Solentiname
wood carvings. Baby shower/wedding favors. Umbrella fabric.
Despite having the preconception that I would be living so free from
materialism and stuff during Peace Corps, I own a ridiculous amount of crap.
That's the catch about living somewhere for 2 years: you need things. A lot of
things if you're a teacher. According what you might expect from stereotypes
about Peace Corps volunteers, a lot of my stuff is weird recycled junk that I
have saved thinking that it will be useful for crafts or teaching materials.
Additionally, there's all the stuff I've inherited from other volunteers as
they have left, some of which is very useful and some of which I should use,
but don't, like exercise bands for stretching.
I am very frequently stressed out by my inability to keep all my stuff
organized. I've bought 3 shelves and 2 boxes since moving in, yet all my crap
still embarrassingly finds its way all over the floor as if it were water that
couldn't be contained.
And so, while I am stressed about
having to leave soonish, I'll be overjoyed when I get rid of everything.
Especially my hole-riddled, baggy, heinous clothing and English teaching
materials. I literally fantasize about lying in my bed and having my
surroundings be an Ikea catalogue level of spare. Course, when that day comes,
I'll probably be sad because it will mean leaving and I'm not really
emotionally squared up with that yet.
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