Shayne's Crazy Makdo Life

Still Here!

That's right, folks, I'm still alive, but just barely. This new position as TCF has me working night and day, day and night, and everything in between. I'm working pretty hard, and it's been a little difficult to adjust to the 9-5 (more like 8-8) job schedule again. But, in a way, it's really refreshing to be so busy with such scheduled, organized things again. Plus, everyone keeps saying that it'll be like a great practice for when I go back home and have to get a real job and am expected to work these kinds of hours. So, once I get used to it again (dear lord, I hope I do!), I'll be fine.

Training itself seems to be going really well. I love the staff that I work with- they're all fabulous! The newbies are really great and super enthusiastic yet also have very realistic expectations for what's ahead for them. Many of them are also very experienced in their sectors (such as TEFL or CD), and I think that'll be a great help to those of us who are doing their technical job training. Right now they're all in what we like to call the Honeymoon Phase, where everything is fantastic and wonderful and nothing is horrible. I'm guessing that they'll hit their slump around Week 5. Any takers? But, seriously, they're a really great group of people and I'm so happy to be able to train them.

Oh, and don't worry, I've been having my fun as well. Not only have I been able to have a small taste of the nightlife here in Veles, my new home, but this weekend was especially special. During the day on Saturday, there was a Field Day held by the Peace Corps Macedonia Entertainment Committee, which is a group of MAK 9's who are committed to providing fun stuff for all us volunteers to do together in order to bond and meet each other. Let me just say, they did a fantastic job with this weekend's Field Day. There was almost 100% attendance from both the newbies and MAK 9, while MAK 8 had a measley 7 show up. But, in all fairness, everyone is very busy with wrapping up their sites and everything, and if I didn't already live in Veles, I probably wouldn't have gone. BUT, I'm so glad I did because it was such a blast! We played games such as tug-of-war, wheelbarrow race, crab-walk soccer, dodgeball, and other fun stuff. I got to be a team captain, and while our team (The Fighting Ass Kickers) placed 3rd out of 4, we still had a great time. Well done, Entertainment Committee!

Then, Kendra and I had our own fun that night at the Prodigy concert held in Skopje. That's right, the same group that did Firestarter were in Skopje last night. It was SUCH a great concert! I'm not the biggest Prodigy fan in the world, but I do like what I've heard, and seeing as live concerts like that are a little rare in Macedonia, I thought it'd be worth it to check it out. I'm really glad I did- it was an excellent concert, full of lots of sweaty jumping around and dancing. The only problem was that the only way for Kendra and I to get back to Veles that night was by the 3 am train that goes to Thessoliniki every night. So, that was a little tough- after an entire day of Field Day activities PLUS a fantastic concert, we had to roam around Skopje for a few hours and then take the super late train back. Not something I recommend to do on a regular basis, but it definitely worked out fine for us, after a small incident with a conductor who was trying to convince us that we had to pay a 3,000 denar ($60) fine for putting our feet on the seats. We took the "kill with kindness" approach, which proved successful, and we made it home by 5 am. What a night!

Less than a month and a half left, and I can't even believe it. With so much going on with work, it's hard to believe I'm ever leaving here. It's definitely a mix of emotions that range all over the place, that's for sure. But, I still have a month and a half left, and I'm gonna make the best of it!

Here are some pictures from the Field Day:

Here's me playing our nation's favorite playground pasttime...dodgeball. Notice my professional stance. Yeah, we lost that game.

Here is one fierce round of tug-of-war. We won that game, I'm sure due to the intense look on my face.

posted by Shayne @ 8:49 PM