Ever Ag Project Needs Alittle...

Ok first thing that comes to mind is luv, but we all need alittle luv'in (sorry, brain fart). But what I was thinking of is:

1. A Monitoring and Evaluation person (M&E)
2. A Lawyer

Of course there are other things, the obvious like administrator, agronomist (duh), veterinarian (assuming the project has a livestock component which most of mine do), and a few others I that I am sure I am forgetting but the two afore mentioned positions are things that seem to be missing all to often from projects, and even when they are available they are misused.

Lawyers are needed because to be able to navigate the laws (or catch the caveats) of developing countries is truly a mind boggling task and is almost impossible for non-lawyer nationals but they are really quite essential. Even if the laws are not enforced you will be safer complying with them than ignoring them (international organizations are seen as limitless bags of money ripe for extortion etc so if you aren't following the rules then you become an even-easier target for corrupt officials or well connected individuals).

M&E people are important because you have to show the donor results, and it is of course lots of numbers and stats etc (and we all know about statistics) but if you have an obviously defunct (or worse, non-existent) monitoring plan in place and no data coming into the project you will have nothing to show the donor (or nothing to back up your claims). Not only that but for a non-math-minded type like myself creating a M&E plan is a bear and keeping up with it, crunching the numbers, and trying to take into account external factors is more than my wee brain can do (maybe if that was my only job but it would be a miserable job for me and at this stage of my professional life [such as it is] I am usually in positions where i have to follow many things and can't devote significant time to M&E).

My previous project didn't have a budget line for a lawyer and I tried to get my staff to contract one on a per job basis but it was towards the end of the project, they were lazy, and I was getting really tired of the project but I can think of a few instances where a lawyer would/should have  caught errors in contracts, could have helped us in intervening in some areas (irrigation and government roles), etc. My previous project did kind of have a M&E person but they ended up just being computer guys that could input data and graph out what i needed but were worthless for analysis or following the project in anyway.

Oh well, my two cents for the day.

Dried Mulberries?

I have been thinking about the mulberry tree in my front yard and dreading the time when it starts producing fruit. I have found mulberries to be kinda a sweet but tasteless fruit, that isn't great by itself but is wonderful as a base (like frozen for fruit smoothies). Problem is i won't be able to eat them all and am really not looking forward the two months of sticky shoes and tip toeing through the mulberry mush (there is one directly in front of my gate and another in front of my front door). Since this is a rental house chopping them down isn't really an option, actually don't see an option but it did get me thinking about mulberries...

I've seen lots of dried fruits, especially at the western health food stores but they have always been a moist super sweet type thing. I remember in Afghanistan they would dry mulberries out (not hard there, the driest places I have ever lived) to the point they were crunchy and i gotta admit, they were pretty good. In retrospect i think i remember something like "apple chips" or something but that is about the only dried/crispy fruit product i can recall having seen/tried in the US. I am just surprised that more dried/crunchy berries aren't sold in the US (low weight, high storability, palatable, no-so-exotic-and-idea-as-to-repel-potential-customers)

Not all doners are created equal

I had to close my organization's satellite office in the capital of Azerbaijan (Baku) due to pressure from the donor organization and some from out regional office (where my immediate superiors reside) so I am now left without a office/bed when I have to go to Baku (the office also has a bedroom). So I have had to find somewhere else to stay (or more accurately had to have my staff find). Now my knee jerk choice would just be to stay in a hotel but in Baku there is no such thing as a budget hotel, they (it, only one) are either mediocre or insanely expensive (considering the monthly salary of middle class Azerbaijani is around 500eur/mo) and there is the politics of keeping staff’s feelings in mind. I have not entertained the idea of paying a large amount for hotels so they have the option of staying at the mediocre hotel or staying with family so other than playing the “because I’m the boss” card I can’t really justify my spending minimum of $120/night at a middle-of-the-road hotel (for the record, I found that when I gave staff money for hotel they would just keep it and stay at their relatives houses).

So, ANYWAY, the point is I have found a guesthouse run by ADRA that is a very respectable 30eur/night and is quite acceptable (shared bathroom etc but hey). This place is located in another part of town so I find myself having to relearn my way around, different shops, etc, including the donar shops.

Donars are a Turkish food (Azerbaijan is ethnically very similar to Turkey as are customs foods etc) that normally consists of a mixed meat with a few vegetables in a tortilla wrap, kinda. It is a very popular fast food here and while not health food I would wager it is no worse (probably better) than Mickey Ds plus they are dirt cheap compared to other food in Baku (about 1.20eur) so considering they are usually quite tasty and my being cheap I treat myself to donars when I am in Baku. There was a string of shops near my old office and two of the three had pretty good doners but the doner situation near the guest house where I am staying is a bit different.  I went to one and the tomatoes were grainy and they put cold greasy French fries in it, the second shop had some herb I hate premixed in with the cucumbers so the only vegetables they had to put in were tomatoes and pickles. Two shops down, one to go… change can be difficult.

Store-bought Meats Dosed to Look Red - Consumerist

Yeah, i can't remember where i heard about this technique. That i am aware of (and i could totally be wrong) the process itself isn't that bad but the stores' tendency to keep the meat longer and deceive customers is unforgivable. I might point out that i seem to remember that there is a connection between CO keeping the meat looking red and how it kills you (like if you locked yourself in the garage with the car on), i think its something about binds the iron to the red blood cells and doesn't allow it to take on oxygen? anywho, interesting.

Boxed, Bread Flavored, Tree Juice?

Boxed, Bread Flavored, Tree Juice?
Originally uploaded by gaikokujinkyofusho.

Earlier I posted my “Boxed Tree Juice” photo with the intention of posting my “Boxed, Bread Flavored, Tree Juice” photo later (later being now). Before I had found what amounted to a boxed birch tea drink in an Eastern European supermarket but recently I found a variation on that which to me is quintessentially Russian (I mean really, it doesn't get much more Russian than this) while I have observed many different cultures that are reliant on bread I have noticed that Russians are especially proud of their bread (one quote I remember from TV was someone asking a Russian man about Russian break and he said [translation] It is the best in the world… if only we could make our cars the same way); while it being the “best in the world” is debatable they are no doubt quite proud of it and eat it quite a bit (though in truth I have noticed in Azerbaijan and Afghanistan people are much more “bread dependent”, that is a meal without bread isn't a meal). Really, seeing bread flavored drink sounds funny but then I consider all the Kvas stands in eastern Europe that I see (and like) the idea of a bread flavored tree tea becomes less strange…

Strings Attached Aid at some of its worst

Being in Development sector I tend to see aid projects with strings attached, some times its not so bad but there are times when it seems really wrong, this would be one of those times. Christian organizations trying to convert people at a time of crisis, while they are vulnerable, is like trying to pick up chicks at abortion clinics because you know they promiscuous. Trying to push religion just seems wrong, Christianity and Islam seem particularly notorious for this, pushy that is; and seem to have little regard for the culture they are destroying in the process.

To all those out there trying to exchange aid for Jesus, please think about what you are doing; it gives "blind faith" a whole new meaning.