Two Work Projects

Work Projects

This posting I thought that I’d tell you about two projects that I’ve been spending some time on. The first is a compilation of photographs from all members of our Peace Corps group. Our last joint conference is in April; called the Close of Service conference, although most of us will still have another three months before winding up our service here in Romania. It is my plan to have a CD slide presentation complete with music to present the photographs of our two year effort here.

There are two categories and two separate presentations. I asked each volunteer to send me five of their favorite photos of volunteers and then five of their best pictures of Romania. So far I’ve gotten a good response from the group and have assembled the views of Romania into a presentation of over 230 slides. The volunteer portion of 180 photos has to run a little faster to its music for there is only so much viewing of each other that we’ll be able to bear. I’ve entitled this part of the program, “Faces Only a Mother Could Love”. The plan is to have a copy of the CD available for each volunteer to use as a remembrance of our work and of each other.

The second project that I’ve become involved in is a brainstorm of mine. My assignment with the organic farmers association has enlightened me to both the great difficulties and the opportunities that most Romanian farmers face. I’ve come up with an idea to plant Walnut trees (you may call them English Walnuts but they’re really Carpathian Walnuts – check out Wikipedia) on small plots provided by rural landowners.

I’ve been encouraged by other Peace Corps volunteers who see this as an opportunity to assist their communities in generating some income and putting land to use that currently is underutilized. Walnuts grow naturally here and many rural households have an old tree out back that they harvest in the fall, but nowhere do real orchards exists. I’ve had fun working out the idea of it all and bouncing that idea among colleagues, but now, it’s time to turn an idea and an inspiration into actual progress. I’ve always been a pretty good thinker – the doer part has usually been my problem, but this plan appears so solid and useful that it needs to get done.

This posting has been more about my mindset than about observations of my surroundings, but staying busy and accomplishing small steps has helped me gain a sense of accomplishment. I’m excited about the outcome of both the picture gallery and the walnut project. Both pictures accompanying this post are included in the slide presentation but that’s all I’m showing anyone. The rest will remain behind closed computer doors until the premier next month but if you’re interested in more details of the walnut project, let me know.