Back to the basics

Here I am at 12 AM writing this post. If it were up to me, i would be turning in early because it seems that I get more sleep deprived when i'm not in school than when I am there. Unfortunately the Christmas feast and my typhoid pills dictate otherwise. I suppose i could appease what few readers I have by finishing this post as I wait for my two hours of post-bingeing to run dry before I take my pill.

I have so much to share, but I'll portion my thoughts in hiccups.

So I didn't talk much about Ghana in my last post; I just whined a lot about logistics. I'm shooting for "Informative" on this one.

When I went home for Thanksgiving, I was approached by many people with seriously concerned looks on their faces as they gently placed a hand on my shoulder and asked "Why are you going to Africa??" Which eventually unraveled and translated into, "No one goes to Africa! We know nothing about it! China would be so much more practical! Where IS Ghana? Is it safe? Are you going to die from a mysterious disease? I don't understand!"

Well now, lemme tell you...

Africa makes some sense in the perspective of public health, which is what I'm studying. Public health is the science of disease/injury prevention and health promotion in communities/populations, for those of you who don't know (I didn't even really know what it was until last year). Originally (prospects have changed a bit), I was considering the pursuit of some form of global health education after school, so you can imagine why I chose Africa. Get a feel of what I was getting myself into, you know? Test the waters. Granted, I'm not going to some extremely underdeveloped area where medical accessibility is rare and people are dropping dead, left and right. In fact, the University of Ghana, where I will be staying, is surrounded by medical facilities. But it's Africa, and there is a need.

Another reason why I chose Ghana is because of my wish to escape the American bubble. (yes...i've talked about the Berean Christian High School bubble...now the bubble has expanded over all of America. ha.) The idea of venturing into a place that is so foreign to me is chilling. In a good way to be sure! I want to be rid of the convenient luxuries at home. If I wanted comfortability, I could always take a vacation. Easily.

I spent a semester studying economic and political development in third world countries. It was an eye-opening course and changed my perspective of the world entirely. It's one thing to read, listen, and talk about how the rest of the world is functioning, but to actually immerse myself into the culture of a developing nation? Now that's an entirely separate matter. To live like the majority of the population in this world without the many luxuries I take for granted in America; to wash my laundry by hand; to have inconsistent electricity and water access in the dorms; to live without wireless at a pocket's reach away; to understand patience and gratitude; to be severely humbled by the joys of simplicity...these are the main factors that have impacted my decision and I cannot wait to be surprised!


Ok. so i hear pictures are a plus on blogs.

Soooo...here is a picture of Ghana in relation to Africa. It is bordered by Cote D'ivoire to the west, Togo to the east, and Burkina Faso to the north (I've been workin' on my African geography via Sporcle. Done my roommates proud! Melissa in particular. I hear ya girl!).


















I will be staying in Legon which is about 7.5 miles north-east of Accra, Ghana's capital. The red square is Accra and the purple circle is Legon (compliments of Word drawing). It's super close to the equator, aka HOT! Woohoo! I had beautiful Cali Fall, got a taste of the brutal cold and am gonna skip on ahead to summer weather in Africa, and when I get back...it's gonna be summer again! MUAHAHA.



Alright. Time to take my typhoid pill. Third out of four.

This pathetic looking thing cost me twelve-fifty! $50 for four of em!

Merry Christmas and goodnight!

Ps: Color schemes will be changed soon enough. Too tired tonight.

OMGAWWWWWWW...

Attrace's last words to me were "Joc! Update your blog!"

SORRY SORRY SORRY SORRY. I've been insanely busy this last month. I SWEAR y'all will get a 100-plus-worded blog within the next day or so...and maybe even with pictures! Also, prep your eyes for a revised color scheme. I guess yellow against red is a difficult read. Keep a look out for several posts before my departure. I have lots to share.

In the mean time, I have an urgent prayer request. My body is still breaking. Please pray for healing in my knees and hip, and wisdom in my doctor as she figures out how to fix me in such a short amount of time. Especially my hip because it's a very new injury, as in a few days old. (yeah...hate to break it to you, Mom and Dad, via blogger, that yet another injury ails me.) I'll elaborate more on prayer requests and injuries later. Heck, I'll probably dedicate an entire post titled "Why Joy will end up in a wheelchair by the time she's 30." Anyway. You shouldn't underestimate the power of prayer. Thank you!

T minus 15 days!

Feast your minds on this...

It's official: I'm goin to GHANA, baby!

Yeah, I'm pretty surprised myself. To think, my procrastination hasn't caught up with me and bitten me in the butt. Amazing! I had several close calls though. First of all, by my original plans, I am supposed to be IN Ghana, body and soul, at this very moment. But in my stupidity, I decided to open the Fall 2009 application five days before it was due, during the holidays when all the advising offices were closed. So Spring 2010, here I come. Along with my serious procrastination illness, I also have a bit of a problem when it comes to organizational skills. Those of you who have seen my room, both at home and in Berkeley, can vouch for that. Actually, some of you who have seen my room in Berkeley may beg to differ. But i have a confession to make. Unless you make a spontaneous visit to my apartment, I will enter into an intense cleaning frenzy-mode and sweep up all my crap before you arrive, and voila! What an illusion. Alex, my roommate, is not too fond of this trick because in my magic-making, I don't touch any of her things (we feed off each other's messiness, you see), so I end up leaving her looking like a horrible slob when you visit. In reality, the moment you leave, my side of the room somehow manages to vomit my hidden possessions back onto the floor, desk, bed, and chair.

That is besides the point. It is needless to say that simply completing the forms for my application as an Education Abroad Program (EAP) candidate was a remarkable feat in it of itself. And yet, i DID, and was accepted into the program during the summer. You'd think the madness is behind me, but my disorganization nearly cost me my second shot at Ghana. I found a mysteriously hidden Ghana check list of very important forms and documents that had to be filled out and sent to the EAP office by certain dates after acceptance. I found it two weeks before the first batch of documents were due. That check list had links to other check lists, appointments, emails, phone numbers, due dates, and my God what a recipe for disaster. Let's just say procrastination is extremely costly. It calls for priority and first class mail, immediate passport photo shots and prints, same-day official transcript pick ups, etc etc etc. But if I've learned anything at all, it is to be so extremely grateful for, what I have dubbed, Procrastinator Services.

In the midst of my whirlwind efforts to obtain transcripts, passport photos, advisory signatures, physical therapy recommendations, health clearances, travel clinic consults, while forever wondering if there is something I've missed, the reality of my trip finally hit me. And it is in these crazy moments that I think to myself, I am stressing ulcers into my stomach...this MUST be real!

If it puts your mind at ease in the slightest bit, or at least elevates your perception of my reliability in any way, I turned in all my forms on time. I sent in my last batch of health forms yesterday! But don't get me started on my bad luck with United States Postal Services! So cross your fingers.

I thought I might start up a blog so my friends can keep up with my journey in Ghana. The prep time alone has been quite a journey, so I figured...why not bring you along the pre-Ghana adventures as well. I haven't exposed my blog to anyone yet. Consider what a disappointment it would be if I had eagerly sent my blog link to my entire facebook friend's list only to discover that i failed to turn in some form, or that I didn't clear the health clearance portion of my application, or there was yet another hidden check list I failed to find...What a tease! So for the time being, my thoughts are still my own. I like writing to a nonexistent audience anyway.

Sorry for this miserable excuse of a first entry.
I promise more insightful, informative, and interesting posts. (But that is a dangerously relative promise.)

Welcome to the start of my Ghana adventures!