Welcome to My World

Introducing...my cell phone! I cannot not tell you about this important device. Part of my fundraising costs went towards "communication." This was in reference to an in-country cell phone for me. Within days of arriving in Haiti, Ruth sent one of the staff out to purchase a phone for me. She told them to get a fairly cheap phone, seeing as how I was only going to be using it for 7 months. Well, the next day she handed me this electronic device <---- , with my number written on a sticky note attached to the back.

I wasn't sure what to expect so I gratefully accepted this communication tool. I was happy cause it was small. After playing around with it for a little while I decided that it would do. A couple of days later I attempted to send a text message to someone. That failed the first, second, and third time I tried...and the next week when I tried again, and the week after that. Then I went to Jacmel for my home-stay and the teenagers that lived there asked for my number. I gave them my number, then suddenly became aware of the fact that they could probably help me with my phone issue. With my Creole dictionary at hand I poorly explained to them that I couldn't text. After about the fourth explanation they finally caught on to what I was saying; 2 minutes later the texting was working!

I used my phone for a month or so. One day I tried to make a call...quite unexpectedly, it would not go through. I was very puzzled. Come to find out, I was out of minutes. My service provider is Digicel. They don't have a monthly plan- you pay as you go, like a tracfone. Ruth bought me a card with some gouds on it, added the minutes to my phone, and showed me how to check the balance so that I wouldn't run out next time. Pretty sure I forgot to keep track of my balance the next month. And the month after that. I was so not used to having to keep track of my minutes. Eventually, Ruth and I figured out how to buy minutes online for our phones. The minutes are immediately added to your phone when you purchase them- a much better system (however, this still requires you keep track of your balance). I usually remember to check my balance now. Nevertheless, I was going crazy the other night because I couldn't send a text. Yup, outta minutes!

Once I started to get out and about I soon noticed most Haitian's own a higher quality phone than I. Originally I thought that my phone cost a mere 5 U.S. dollars. I was informed by a Haitian that this particular model cost less than that! Less than $5....what?! Makes sense seeing as how it doesn't even have a color screen and all it can do is keep time, make calls, and send texts. Oh yeah, can't forget about the alarm clock, calculator, and torchlight. That's basically all! No matter, I have taken a liking to my phone. Although, my friends joke about it and some Haitians laugh at it. One friend informed me that my screen was "like the size of a quarter." Correction- my screen is actually smaller than a quarter! :)