One week in...

So, one week of ISP work, and what do I have to show for it?

Well, I've conducted two real interviews, one somewhat interview, had two meetings with my advisor, written nothing, transcribed nothing, analyzed nothing and I seem to gradually be slipping behind schedule. I wanted to have something written by Friday. I have an interview Friday morning, I have a potentially cool event on Central American integration and the role of the EU tomorrow evening, I have one interview pretty much good for Tuesday, another I'm doing my best with, one that has yet to get back to me, one that's going to be set up by someone else, and I finally made the reservations for my Mom and Ms. Clark to stay in a nearby hotel.

So, general state of mind: I think I'm losing it. Not in a terrible way because everything seems to be going my way. Very much my way. I'm happy again, not just okay but actually very much happy. I just have to find a way to do the work I need to do. I think once I get to transcribe these interviews (much more difficult, I've found, when one is not all too familiar with the tongue in which they are conducted) or get someone else to do it for me (if I were so lucky) I'll feel like I'm getting the ball moving. Or rolling. Or whatever it is that balls tend to do.

I'm getting good with Managua, but still dislike taking the bus. I'll pay the extra 20-30 cords to take a cab. The potential loss on the bus is still greater, for if I lost my tape recorder or any of the tapes to it, I'd be so very screwed.

My interviews thus far have had the opposite power relations we were trained in. By and large, people do projects on women's cooperatives and NGOs and grassroots stuff. I'm doing something elitist and theoretical. I've interviewed an ex-Minister of the Presidency and a member of a leading Human Rights organization in the country and they both had more control over the interview than I did. Which seems to be something I'm going to have to deal with. On Friday I interview a legislator in the Central American Parliament. Tuesday, I may interview a leading personality in the reconciliation movement. I'm attempting to schedule interviews with legislators, diplomats, and ex-militants. These people have practice with interviews. They tend to deal with my questions and then move into what they consider more important. Which is cool, but I still want to focus on my question. We'll see how this turns out.

Anyway, back to work.