May 1, 2009

The election finally ended. The thousands of posters disappeared overnight, people stopped shouting propaganda from bullhorns, and the money magically appeared to pay the government employee's long overdue salaries, plus a little extra for the hardship of going 2 months without pay. I even managed to get someone to finally fix the internet connection at the library. After 2 months of begging the Municipio to send someone, they finally complied. And the problem? One wire was in the wrong place. It took all of 2 minutes to fix. GRRRR!!!!

I finally met my counterpart. He seems like a nice enough guy. I'd like to give him the benefit of the doubt and convinced myself that he didn't know about the meeting his boss set up with me. I figure nagging him about being stood up would be fruitless. I am in Ecuador, after all, and not showing up is a normal occurrence. So this week I have been introducing him to many INFA families around my site. I think he will do a pretty good job.

I am not sure why, but INFA has not yet given the families the scholarships that allow their children to go to school. Since school opened back up in April, the families have had to purchase the books, uniforms, shoes, pencils, etc. with money that they do not have. They badly need to be reimbursed, but have to wait till the end of May. Why INFA would inflict such hardship on their families is beyond me. Some of the stories I've heard are truly heartbreaking. Seriously, what difference can I truly make in the face of such extreme poverty?