1 Step at a Time

Hooray!

We now have CFL in the Cairo MCC office!

Have you made the switch yet?

(more Saturday)

Still more about the environment!

I was going to leave for Cairo early this morning but changed my mind and instead I'll go later this afternoon. Not much to say, but a couple of links to keep you thinking.

25 Ways to Help Curb Climate Change (from Parade Magazine, via my boss Linda)

Linda responded positively to my email with suggestions about the environment, and it now seems that I have opened the proverbial "can of worms" on this b/c she is passionate about it as well. Or at least, she has pet peeves about several things. I guess Barrette has some concerns too, so I'll see if we can change some things...

Speaking of Barrette and Sandy, they recently added a "How to do things in Egypt" section to their website. I love these 2! They do cool stuff like this on their website, so I don't have to!

Last (long) post until Saturday

I can't believe I wrote “at the morning” instead of “in the morning”. It's a problem for Egyptians to confuse prepositions and I guess I'm doing it now, too! Time to start proofreading what I write before sending/posting!

...and the sad thing is, I can't blame it on lack of sleep!

Now, anything that I do today I can blame on that! After watching the Germany/Italy match last night with the home team losing, *sigh* I watched a movie at my friend Michael's house. Then after I came home, I couldn't sleep so I was awake until about 7am.

No problem, I'll sleep for a couple of hours, get up for a few hours, then take a short nap before class.

Um...that didn't happen.

At 10.45am, my mobile rang. It was Fady from downstairs, calling to say that the cleaning woman was here and ready to clean the apartment I'm staying in. So...I got things around and went upstairs to hang out with Fady and to have some time on the computer. I'm pretty sure that even a short nap is going to be impossible, so I may need to depend on a jolt of caffeine from Turkish coffee to get me through my classes this afternoon from 4.30 – 8.30.

After my classes, I want to watch the France/Portugal match and it won't finish until about midnight. I think that will be a struggle. I hope it's an exciting match to keep me awake!

Thursday morning, I'm planning to be on a 7.45am train leaving Tanta. If I get a decent amount of sleep tonight and then another hour on the train, I should be alright.

Just one new pic today, but check on Flickr to make sure you've looked at all my newest ones.

Here are some links about Egypt and Israel/Palestine (3 from BBC, #4 from MCC):

1) Egypt street mothers find refuge

2) Egyptians sue new church leader

3) Man-on-the-street Comments from an Israeli man about the kidnapping of the soldier and governmental/military response:

(I link to this not so much for the man's ideas, but for the background of the picture -- I was in this spot in Jerusalem a few weeks ago -- it's very near where I stayed for several nights)

4) Cooking-oil Powered Car goes Coast-to-Coast for free

Egypt in the News!

Did you see this?

Mubarak 'solves girl's exam problem' (from the BBC)

My Own "Bright" Ideas

I recently wrote a message to my boss in Cairo, b/c she brought up the topic of reduce/re-use/recycle. Here is the slightly edited text of what I sent to her:

1) Refrigerators -- There are 2 things I know to do with these to reduce energy use. a) turn the temperature up so that items are kept "cool", not "cold". It's good enough for most people. b) Keep refrigerators full. It's more energy-efficient to cool a solid than it is to cool a gas (which escapes when the door is opened and then warm air must be cooled again). I'm not saying to buy more things, but something as simple as filling empty bottles with water and having them in the fridge will help with this.

2) Turn off all pieces of technology (speakers, monitors, computers) each night. If they are on power strips with small light bulbs (like one I'm using now), switch off the power strip. Also, if using a computer at night, turn off other lights in the room. Do you need more light than the monitor gives?

3) Toilets -- a couple of tips I've heard or seen in use, if you don't have a half-flush/full-flush option: (a) put a brick or something similar in the tank to take up space and reduce the amount of water used in each flush and (b) put a slight bend in the rod leading to the ball inside the tank. If you bend it down, then less water will come into the tank each time.

Also, something I'll always remember from the home of my grandmother's friends when I was a young child: "If it's yellow, let it mellow. If it's brown, flush it down." In short, don't flush unless it's really necessary.

4) Read in the morning, not at night. If you read at the morning, you use natural light...but reading at night requires electricity.

5) If it's an option, change the setting on your water heater so it heats water to a lower temperature.

Do you have ideas to add to this list? Or links to articles with tips?

Happy Independence Day!

I've posted some photos (including my temporary apartment and 1 of my America-loving friend Michael in Tanta)

Plus...some links:

More about light bulbs and CFL

and a related site: Ban the Bulb!

Plus a couple of energy-related articles from the BBC:

Not an energy “crisis” yet...

and

Bright ideas to save energy/resources

A challenge to you!!!

Here's my last long entry for a couple of days. I'll try to write short things the next few days, but probably nothing with much substance.

So...I'll give you some things to keep you busy while you're waiting for me to post more good things! *laugh*

The first thing is a challenge to each of you...and I want to receive responses (and maybe pictures) about this so that I know you did it. It concerns the environment, but it also goes along with the idea of “Independence Day”.

Yesterday, I came across an article which clearly shows the major advantages of switching from traditional light bulbs to high-efficiency ones. (from the BBC)

It's not a difficult thing to do. You go to your local Target, Meijer, Sam's Club, WalMart, or similar place and buy the new bulbs. Then you go home, replace the old bulbs and immediately start getting a return on your initial investment by using electricity. Before long, the new bulbs will have more than paid for themselves.

If you search for "CFL" on the Sam's Club website, you get a list of products. You'll have to do a bit more hunting at the other places and I didn't have the time to look b/c a basic search didn't show me anything.

Now...are you going to do it? And if “no”, why not?

You might be asking yourself “so, what should I do with the old bulbs?” That's a good question and I'll try to find some practical suggestions for you. My first thought is to do something artistic, or give them to an artist friend who can paint a scene of some sort on the outside and make it into a Christmas decoration or something... Other ideas?

Anyway, that's my “Happy Independence Day” message to you. Make the switch and become less dependent on energy. *grin*

The next thing is that I cleaned up the apartment a bit this morning so that I could take some pictures. I don't have my room arranged yet, so there are no pics of that, but I did put up some of the “entry room”, the master bedroom, dining room, and kitchen. Such a beautiful place!

Last night, I didn't feel very well and could feel that I was a bit feverish. Sure enough, I battled for sleep all through the night, but woke up this morning feeling OK. I still have that yucky taste in my mouth that often goes along with me not feeling well (does anyone else get that?), but once I get moving, have a bit of lunch, and head for class I should be alright.

Today is my first meeting with 2 groups. One of these is Level 3 and I haven't taught a level this low in a long time. I'm trying to get myself mentally prepared for the size of the group (between 7 and 9 students) and to change my language so that I don't talk too quickly or with vocabulary that is over their heads. Part of the group came from Level 2 and their teacher uses quite a bit of Arabic when she explains things, so I hope they're ready for me! We even have the books, so we can start right away today with our lessons.

Level 6 has 8 students, which is a good size. At this level, we're still doing grammar (along with reading/writing/listening), but we try to push the speaking. I'll get to have both of these classes in the air conditioning, so that's a good way to start. We won't have the books until Wednesday, so I need to prepare some activities for today's class.

A few pictures

Well, I decided that I should give you a few pictures to look at, since I haven't done that in awhile... The latest ones are from a trip I took about 10 days ago with people from Tanta to a church center near Alexandria.

Wastin' Time

No class today b/c the level that I was supposed to teach doesn't have any students. So, we're going to shift things around in the schedule and move on from there. Monday I should have 2 classes. 1 group is people I taught before and the other group is all new people. It should be interesting...

This afternoon, I came to George's computer company to sit with him and use his Internet connection. I don't have a phone at my temporary apartment, so I'm trying to get lots done today (including several posts here)

I've also managed to waste a fair bit of time looking at videos on Ifilm. I blame David for this...

Cool Videos of Egypt (from another Jason)

My buddy Jason made some cool videos and posted them on his website. Apparently he was also interviewed by MSNBC b/c of this! Jason was at the party yesterday and told me the story about this... You can also read his version of the story. (scroll down to the bottom)

Crazy last couple of days!

Well, I've moved! Please congratulate me via email. (that gives you a reason to write to me) *grin* I had a fun Saturday morning with my students at a retreat center just outside Tanta. We made it a short day b/c of the extreme heat, but that was probably good b/c it left me time/energy to pack and move things. I worked on that little project from about 1-6pm, then took a break to watch the Germany/Argentina soccer match.

What a match! I wouldn't say it was great b/c things got a bit sloppy for awhile there, but it was good to watch. Nice to see that the home team continues to win!

After that, I returned to packing and kept at it until 10.30 when my friend Fady came to help me carry things. We took 2 car-loads to my temporary apartment (which Fady's family owns). Now you're probably asking yourself “how did Jason accumulate that much stuff while in Egypt and how is he going to get it home?”

Now that's a fair question.

The answer is that most of what we took in the car is not mine and will not be going to the U.S. I'm talking about towels, plants, office supplies, etc. There were things that I need to have with me for the next few weeks but I won't take back in December. At the moment, most of what I want to take back fits in my suitcase and big backpack. I say “most” b/c Fady has volunteered to carry some items back this summer when he goes to the States and leave them with a friend in Chicago for me to retrieve later. I figure I can fill ½ of a suitcase and give him a carry-on without feeling like I'm asking too much.

Of course...I continue to get more stuff that I want to take back. (keep reading for details)

It was 2am by the time we finished everything, so I slept in and then hurried around to make it to Cairo for the Independence Day Party. First, I met with some friends at their apartment near the party location and then we all walked over together. This was all in Maadi, the really American suburb of Cairo. Lots of U.S. govt employees live there, highly-paid oil company people, etc.

Fun party! Tons of free food, including cans of Coke, Sprite, Fanta Orange and Fanta Apple from the Coca-Cola Corporation and slices of pizza from Pizza Hut. Sadly, the ice cream ran out early. So I can't say good things about the company who provided it. In fact, I won't even tell you the name. But I will say that it's a company that advertises having more than 30 but less than 32 flavors. *smirk* They also had burgers and hot dogs (even some with pork!).

Face-painting for kids, slides, games, etc and Bingo, Bingo, and more Bingo for everyone to play. They gave small prizes for the Bingo winners (but I didn't get anything) and bigger stuff in a free raffle. Prizes ranged from T-shirts to round-trip tickets to the U.S. from KLM. Can you guess what I won?

(I'll give you a hint, it's size Medium and says Hard Rock Cafe on it)

In addition to that, I got a free T-shirt from a travel company and a Coke water bottle for shaking my hips. There was a Hawaiian theme to the party (insert obligatory joke here) and that included a short dance lesson for those who were willing. It gave me the opportunity to put on a grass skirt (comfortable) and a clam-shell bra (too restrictive), so I was all for it!

The weather was hot, so they had big fans with mist machines to cool down the crowd. The whole party was outside under a huge tent and then smaller tents were outside of that with tables for the sponsors and additional misting areas to walk through.

I'm really glad I went. Fun to see my friends and also to see tons of Americans in 1 place. Yes, there was lots of security around! There was 1 fully veiled woman pushing a stroller around and that was definitely the exception to how people looked. Lots of people in shorts and baseball hats (including me). I kinda wish I had gone in previous years, but at least I got to attend once in my time here.

Got back to Tanta around midnight, then went out with Fady to a cafe for lemonade. Nice to help me cool down. Got cleaned up, now emailing before bed (though I won't post until later)

Missed the Brazil/France match b/c I was on my way back to Tanta. I arrived at a cafe' just as the match ended! *sigh*

More soon about where I'm staying – it's a beautiful place!!