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29 November 2009
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| HOW DID I GET HERE? |
| Keywords:
motorcycle
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photos
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life
,
travel
,
apartment
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Sometime shortly after I moved to Germany for the first time, I took a trip with a colleague out to one of the BMW factories for a meeting. Riding along, chatting away in German, I had my first of many moments where I just have to stop and ask myself "how did I get here?" It's always been a positive question for me... a mixture of awe at what I've accomplished and surprise that I'm the one accomplishing it.
Going through high school, it never crossed my mind that I would go work in Germany, let alone Nepal or Africa. It simply wasn't on my radar, and that makes these moments that much stronger. To be able to call someplace 'home' that is a third of the way around the world from where I grew up is quite cool. But what comes next? How do I 'top' living in Ethiopia? I don't want to give up my "how did I get here?" moments, but I also recognize that my life needs to be somewhat more directed if I am to reach some of the goals that I have for myself and my career. Can you still be joyfully surprised at finding yourself in a situation that you've been doggedly working towards for years? Like with a professorship after years of graduate work? I sure hope so.
LOTS of pictures this time. Enjoy!
Another motorcycle ride outside of Addis
The Apartment
Annie is a friend of mine from my IDEO days. She and Judy were on a project in Kenya, and stopped through Addis for a couple of days on their way back home. Oh, and did I mention that Annie is a swing dancer? :-D
Last year I ran the Great Ethiopian Run, but didn't get many good photos. This year my dad ran/walked it with his camera, so I got to steal his photos. :-)
Work: supply chain in Ziway
Work: testing treadle pumps
Work: field trip to Butajira
Work: digging a hole
Parting shot...
For more updates go here.
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| Comments: |
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30 November 2009
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Thanks for the firenge shot (and of course the others too). The little baby is getting big! Maybe now he's actually big enough to stand up to Wusha's antics :)
You are one of those people who will always be asking yourself "how did I get here?" Just keep doing what you love, be it trans-continental motorcycle trips, international development work, teaching, or even *gasp* graduate school, and you'll be set. |
| - Liz |
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1 December 2009
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Even if you find yourself working at something you planned, by the time you get there it could easily exceed your imagination. You've no idea where that professorship could be or what your final research will be in or how popular your book/application is. I figure that whatever it is I'll be doing at 50 hasn't even been fully developed as a field yet. It's not like you've worked realy hard to do things the same way that they've been done for the past 100 years. If I taught where or how my math teachers taught me, I'd shoot myself. I love what I do because it's new and different. |
| - AB |
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2 December 2009
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I was going to ask you what a blind well was, but I didn't want to interrupt your mission of looking for business cards and finding snail mail instead. Google offered me this: http://www.longbore.co.uk/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=35&Itemid=74
Love your lamb sarnie shots! You know, the chunky lamb piccie wedged between the thin slices of Ethiopian rural life in Butajira?
How did you get here, there & everywhere? *shrug* Don't care. ;-) Just keep doing it. |
| - Kate |
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3 December 2009
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Having lived in a few countries myself, I am often asked which is my favourite. I can never pick one. Each had their share of "How did I get here?" moments with a fair sprinkling of "Why do I even bother being here anymore?" What I'm getting at is don't think of Ethiopia as the acme of your living abroad experiences. There are a lot more places that are special in their own right. You just aren't aware of those right now.
Again, don't think of "How did I get here?" in terms of geography alone. You could be in one place and still feel a sense of movement via your accomplishments at work, new friends or new hobbies.
As for experiencing those "Wow!" moments after being in the same place doing the same thing, I think a lot depends on how you look at life in general. This Billy Joel quote sums it up:
The joy of life is made up of obscure and seemingly mundane victories that gives us our own small satisfactions.
Thank you for the pictures and detailed explanations despite your ever busy life there. |
| - Victoria |
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21 December 2009
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"Can you still be joyfully surprised at finding yourself in a situation that you've been doggedly working towards for years?" made me think of parenting and the many surprises and joys that our parents must have as they see us grow. In one sense, it's fully expected; in another way, it's a marvelous mystery. I wonder how your parents would answer the question you've posed ... |
| - Francis |
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My name is Mark. I was born near Chicago, have lived in the US, Germany and Nepal, and am starting a new job and a new adventure in Ethiopia. This site is a way for me to keep friends and family updated on my progress, share some pictures, and perhaps offer a bit of reflection along the way. Please look around, and enjoy the ride!
Herumwandernder Cavetroll... heisse Mark. Ich habe in den USA, Deutschland und Nepal gewohnt, und jetzt geht es weiter nach Äthiopien. Mit diesem Website halte ich meine Familien- und Freundeskreise informiert über wie es mir in meinen Abenteuern geht. Schau mal 'rum, und viel Spass dabei!
-Mark, September 2008
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