Celebrating Lincoln's Birthday with an Engagement Anniversary

A few weeks ago on a Sunday evening I was really busy at home with some schoolwork and other work. I was trying to write up my first piece for PolicyMic about Valentine’s Day, and I knew I had to get it submitted that night so that it could go up on Monday, the day before the holiday. I also had a thesis deliverable due that coming Tuesday. Suffice it to say, I was a little stressed and having a hard time focusing. In the early evening Matt made a deal with me: “If you work really hard for the next 2 hours, I will have a surprise for you,” he said.

I love surprises and am not easily surprised (I have a little bit of Miss Marple in me), so it was a pretty good motivator. After a while, I got to a good stopping point in my work and said, “OK, I’m ready for my surprise!”

He told me it actually might take a couple of hours and that it would be cold so I should put on something warm. He also told me that there might be pictures taken so I might want to put on something nicer… which led to a reproach that sounded something like, “What? I don’t look good enough in my pajamas? What’s wrong with black sweatpants? I look hot!” I sheepishly changed into something more presentable anyway.

He led me to the car and we headed south on Wisconsin towards Washington. Up until this point I really had no idea where we were going or what we were doing, and I was so proud that he had finally caught me in a surprise! But then, my scheming mind put it all together a couple of seconds later. Hmmm… somewhere in the district… probably the Mall… wants to take pictures… probably the monuments… oh wait, it’s February 12th. We got engaged on this day last year. Washington D.C. The Mall. Einstein Memorial. That’s where we’re going.

We had a great time. It was frEEZing, but totally worth it. We drove to the memorial, sat on Einstein’s lap, and took a video of the both of us talking about everything that had happened in the last year and how much we loved each other. Perhaps it was a little cheesy, but we had resolved earlier to start taking more videos of our life.

After commemorating the anniversary, we decided to go across the street to the Lincoln Memorial, only to find out that February 12th is actually Lincoln’s birthday. There were wreaths on display and a ranger giving talks about the memorial. We took more pictures and pretended that we went there on his birthday on purpose.

That next Tuesday (Feb. 14th, Valentine’s Day) was a very long day. The success of my article was giving me a high (5,000 views in only three days!), but I was also stressed out about completing my thesis work. I was finally able to make it home around 8pm and I found the apartment totally clean, with Matt putting away the vacuum cleaner. It was such a nice sight to come home to. Matt kept saying, “I’m sorry I didn’t get you flowers and chocolate!” At which I just laughed, considering my article about labor abuses in the chocolate and flower industry was roaming the internet at the time. But then finally after he repeated it for the third time, I noticed the beautiful tulips on our dining table. I think I semi-squealed with delight and gave him a kiss, whereupon he repeated, “sorry I didn’t get you flowers and chocolate” while pulling out a plate of freshly made chocolate-covered strawberries. What a guy.

He then proceeded to make me a late dinner which we enjoyed by candlelight. Best Valentine’s Day ever.

Aung San Suu Kyi – This woman is one of my heroes. Her life has been dedicated to the establishment and consolidation of democracy in her country (Myanmar). She has endured the fight for freedom amid numerous struggles: her father dying when she was very young, her husband dying prematurely from cancer, and then being under house arrest for 14 of the past 20 years as a result of leading her democratically elected party in 1990. Two more reasons to love her: she’s beautiful – especially for a 64 year-old woman! – and we share the same birthday.

And in the most recent news regarding Mrs. Aung San Suu Kyi: A couple of days ago her party decided to boycott the upcoming elections – the first elections to be held in Myanmar in almost 20 years - because she believes that fake elections are worse than no elections at all. The military junta in Myanmar is not making a good move by holding poor elections. Many will be boycotting the booths and instead heading to the streets to protest: research has shown that illegitimate elections produce more rebel activity than no elections at all (Journal of Peace Research).

Today I got into a car accident on my lunch break. My hamburger spilled all over the floor before I had even taken a bite... the french fries on the floor mat were unworthy of the 10 second rule.

A couple of hours later I got accepted to Georgetown, so it's all good.

My take on development... sort of.

The other day I was talking to a friend… he had been on this “save the world” high after watching a few international development movies (Turtles can Fly, The Killing Fields). Anyway, he said to me, “I am in this mood to get out and help the world be better. I want to go to poor places and help them out.” His sentiments are commonly felt by people in the United States.

The desire to do good in the world is commendable, but what many people fail to realize is that the simple presence of a Westerner in a "suffering" country does not automatically do anyone any good and may even leave the country more helpless than it was to begin with. People often assume that their elevated status in a rich country has provided them enough training to help fix problems in the developing world. It simply is not so. Volunteer programs that people get involved in (myself included) provide time, a negligible amount of money, and a desire to make a change. That sounds like enough, right? Unfortunately, the lack of accountability of these organizations to those they are actually helping may lead to the wrong change, or only a temporary change.

My friend went on to say “I guess if you help one you have done something.” Yes. If you can make a difference in one person’s life, it is a good deed. How good though? I’m not sure. What if you’ve helped one, but hurt a hundred? Anyway, these thoughts are not an attack on the individual, as they are comments made by many people who have good intentions and have yet to study the facets of international development. I certainly don’t claim to be an expert, but I have learned a little from those who spend their lives studying it.

William Easterly from NYU gave a great speech at BYU a few months ago on this very subject. One of the points he made was that, because of the lack of accountability of NGOs, these volunteer organizations tend to be very inefficient. They do not have to conform to free market forces and so often prescribe the wrong solutions to dire situations.

A problem that underdeveloped countries face (especially those in Africa) is that they are consistently pegged as “poor” and are stuck without any hope of foreign direct investment. So by consistently helping poor countries we perpetuate their reputation as being helpless. Commercials with naked babies covered in flies (that sometimes exaggerate the poverty within the country) may prompt the rich Western to donate money, but it turns away those companies wishing to expand their business and bring more wealth to a promising country with cheap labor.

My friend, Wills, also published a great article in the Political Review a few months ago that I really enjoyed. He talked about the tendency for development to be self-absorbed: “Who wouldn’t want to travel to Colombia, enjoy gorgeous mountain vistas and experience another culture while fighting poverty in the region, not to mention taking pictures of natives performing traditional dances?”

“Action without the active agency of those it intends to help does not qualify as development.” Volunteering is vulnerable to the temptations of condescension. I think of the American teachers in the Dominican Republic last summer taking over the classroom, believing that Western teaching practices should replace, not improve, those in Central America.

Solution? Like Wills says, those people that have an itch to “help around the world” need a little more humility about the power they have to change people’s lives. I include myself in that group in need of humility. Development economists also advocate microfinance as an efficient solution (sometimes), although those ventures are often not profitable for those providing the financial services. Aside from that, the success of individual programs needs to be quantified better by independent parties (the accountability and quantification of the DREAM Project's success last year consisted of a few visits by USAID employees, who did little more than watch us run the camp for a day or two). If no considerable success, shut down the NGO and give the money to a better cause. Unfortunately, people will not always understand this process. NGOs are interested in self-preservation… not just in a selfish way (keeping their job); they will always believe that they are doing SOMETHING good for the world and as long as they are doing something, they deserve to exist. Non-profit workers and volunteers may be outraged at the insensitive and unconnected donors in the US because their saving-the-world money has been taken away, only to be given to an organization that is doing more than just "something".

Wow, I sound like a total cynic! That was a little harsher than I really feel. Volunteering is good!

vacas y palomas

Leaving for Cuzco tomorrow morning! I even have a travel companion... definitely an improvement to the trip.

Last night I was treated to a meal of cow heart (anticuchos). I highly recommend it. I do wish that I could have eaten it without knowing what it was. It just kind of grosses me out to eat heart. The heart in my stomach did weird things to my dreams, too. Coincidence? I dunno. In any case, I woke up this morning to find a pigeon in my kitchen. I freaked out, so he freaked out. He banged himself into the window about five times before calming down. I then opened the window and he just stared at me. I had to shove my water bottle in his face a few times before he got the idea and flew away. Poor guy.

how to cook a pie in a deep dish cake pan

The Señor of this house has become my pseudo grandpa. He’s about 70 years old and every time I see him he lights up and says “mi vida! Mijita!” and then proceeds to hug and kiss me. I can’t get through a conversation with him without getting at least five kisses on the cheek, and it is inevitable that my clothes smell like his cologne for the rest of the day. So much love in this house! I love it.

No love in Peruvian bureaucracy, however. I keep getting rejected by every place I go. Archives, political party headquarters, the Palacio de Gobierno (Peru’s version of the White House), the national library… they either don’t care about what their presidents say (and thus don’t have what I need) or they don’t want me to study it (without getting a little monetary compensation themselves). Oooh well.

When I was at the Palacio de Gobierno I saw Peru’s president, Alan García, giving a speech on his patio. When I noticed it was García I was simultaneously excited and perplexed: The president was speaking out in public and, aside from reporters and photographers, there were about 20 people (not an exaggeration) watching from outside the palace. I was talking to a few people out there and instead of calling him “Presidente García”, or even “García”, they just say “Alan”, like he’s their next door neighbor. And no one likes him. He’s corrupt. Haha, oh sad. No love for the president, either. They do love Fujimori though… he was the president in the 90s that ordered a bunch of people dead and is now in prison for 25 years for human rights violations. They rave about him.

Some pictures, finally:


At the Plaza Mayor. You can see the remodeling, haha. I think it's kind of tacky how they didn't even try to make it blend in with the old stuff, but the plaza is beautiful anyway.


The changing of the guards (every day at noon). They do a little dance (seriously) when they get to the cathedral.


The beach in Miraflores, about 10 minutes away from my house. Kinda gloomy... like SF - which is why I love it. Dad's still mad I didn't go in the water.


Making apple pie (nice pie dish, eh?) with the JAS. It's hilarious to cook with them... They don't believe in measuring ingredients, but it still turned out delicious!


Marco came late but we saved him a piece.

i got sneakers on my telephone lines

I have sweet negotiating skills.

People here consistently have problems with me taking pictures of their books. Of course there are copyright laws to consider (even though these are just speeches published by the government), but that is never their concern here. They just want money. At the Instituto Riva-Aguero they were going to charge me almost $2 per page to take pictures. Copyright laws only extend 70 years and these books were from the 1920s (I had four 200 page volumes... not gonna work). I was about to leave, but then with my womanly wiles I convinced this particular librarian to let me take the pictures for free. I asked him if the library was in a process of digitalizing and preserving these old, damaged books. He said "oh no... that is way too costly", and I said "well... I'll do it for you for free". HAHA! He took me outside and told me I would need to come back with a formal letter from my institution requesting permission to take pictures. I whipped out my already-prepared letter (with a fancy BYU letterhead and two signatures from my professors) and handed it to him. He said, "oh... you're from BYU?" He said he knew about BYU from his infancy. So he took that letter to his jefas and then we waited as they deliberated. As we were waiting he asked if I wanted to have lunch with him, so we went to a little cafe for some good eating. On the way there he told me that his whole family was Mormon (not him) and he has a brother living in Orem (the city right next to BYU campus). We talked more about my project and he offered to introduce me to another librarian who could help me out. Anyway, the end of the story is that I now have my speeches.

The other day my friend Marco blew off work so that we could do some touristy things downtown (I did not advocate that he play hooky... after we had lunch he told me he was late for work and if he's late they don't let him work the shift). We went to the catacombs in the Convento de San Francisco and looked at a bunch of femur bones, skulls, and pits where they used to drop the anonymous dead before the Catholics established cemeteries. After our tour we sat on the church steps, populated with hundreds of pigeons, and talked for a while. Something that I have been curious about, and something that we discussed at length on those steps, is how different the concept of "family" is here. Maybe I've just been living in Utah for too long, but it seems that people here don't have as much of an affinity for getting married, or even dreaming about being with only one person for the rest of their lives, as people do in the United States. Granted, there is a lot of divorce in the US, but I think most people at least hope that they will be with that one person the rest of their lives on the day of their wedding. Most people here just live together for a while and then move on. Interesting difference. Anyway, it was a good day.

Oh. Something that I've learned about Lima (some people say it's an urban legend but it's been proven true wherever I go): the more shoes hanging over the telephone lines of your neighborhood, the more dangerous your neighborhood. Don't worry... there are no sneakers on my telephone lines.