Author: Paul

Categories
Philly

Philly

I got in last night, all 79.9 pounds of checked bags and more carryon weight than I care to disclose.  Security stopped me of course to look at all my solar equipment.  I was flattered.

Had a Cheez-Wiz cheasesteak sandwich for dinner last night, and this morning the official PC training began.  Still more questions than answers, but I met the gang and a lot of us went out to a Thai dinner, where someone at another table sang La Vie En Rose.  Meeting new people always turns me into more of a Type A.  I often wonder if I’d like myself if I was like this all the time.

Tomorrow morning we leave for the airport.  Amsterdam, then Kenya!  I took my first malaria pill today… Mefloquine 250mg.  Supposedly I can expect some pretty crazy dreams from here on out.  Hopefully when things aren’t so hectic (months from now), I’ll get around to posting some pictures.

Categories
Pre-Philly

“Haven’t you left yet?”

A valid question.  My departure date was moved to Oct. 10, so I’ve had an extra week to act like a maniac around my most loved friends and family.  Hopefully they will forgive me later for being so stressed. Currently I’m deciding what pictures and music to bring.  Tomorrow I’ll stow away the rest of my non-Kenya-bound stuff and pack up my bags.  Mostly I need to decide what NOT to bring, because I’m over the weight limit. Solar equipment works great.  I was able (before the weather got nasty) to sit outside and run my laptop completely off of the foldable panel.  Perhaps I will post a later entry on how it works… my search for real examples of similar setups came up empty, but I think people would like to know how to do it.  Beware, it involves soldering… I am also not leaving from DC anymore… it’s Philly now.  And instead of training in Embu, I’ll be training in a small town to the south of Nairobi.  Also, because I’m in the deaf ed group, we’ll be in Mombasa for the first week, which means out group gets to travel more than everyone else… pretty cool but I bet I’ll be tired of packing and unpacking by the time I finally get to my final placement, wherever that may be… Also, I can now sign the ABC’s in American Sign Language.  I learned it over lunch, so hopefully that bodes well for my KSL training.

Categories
Pre-Philly

Solar Power Mania

As a researchaholic, it is difficult to decide what to bring to Kenya.  On one hand, I have no desire to overwhelm myself and my community with amenities that make me stand out.  On the other hand, there is the possibility that I will want to further develop the e-learning software used in the deaf classes, which would require a laptop and possibly a video camera, and I want to make sure that if that opportunity arises, I can take advantage of it even if I’m in an area without reliable power.  (For that matter, I don’t want my interest in that software to inherently mean that I have to work in a urban district.) 

So… I splurged yesterday and bought some items to keep me off the grid:
-a 62w fold-able solar panel (about 3 pounds)
-a charge controller so I can hook it up to a car battery if I get one while I’m there
-a voltage limiter to so can hook it up to laptop/AA chargers, etc.
-various cords and stuff

This was no small investment (I won’t list prices but if you look these things up you’ll see), and I may feel silly if I end up in a place with reliable AC power, or I end up simply not needing my camcorder or laptop, but as a Boy Scout it’s just not an option to go unprepared.  The good news is that this stuff won’t take up much space; however, if I do use the panel, I’ll definitely be the Crazy American with all my gadgets.  I can live with that though.