Kiva Karats

Samba Meows Back

suearthur — Mon, 06 Jul 2009 23:12:47 +0000

My San Francisco Calico, Ms. Samba, is happy to learn that her guardian celebrated Independence Day with a group of Yankee surfers sipping Flor de Caña rum and watching moonbeams bounce along the rolling surf of Nicaragua’s Pacific.

Samba Celebrates the 4th of July in San Francisco

Ms. Samba sends her saludos to Ms. Casilda.

Meow from Managua

suearthur — Fri, 03 Jul 2009 17:52:03 +0000

Casilda wishes all you Yankees a Happy 4th!

Know that Nicaragua will celebrate the 30th anniversary of its revolution on July 19th. I’ll give Daniel Ortega your regards.

Be safe.

Ice Cream, Mangoes, Ants, Fear

suearthur — Mon, 29 Jun 2009 22:43:00 +0000

I’m thrilled to have had success posting videos to my Kiva Fellows Blog/”As the Microfinance Mundo Turns” Kiva Novela.

See a testimonial about Doña Cony’s divine ice cream! Also, I went to my first surfers getaway for the day and came home to find that there was a “golpe del estado” next door in Honduras.

I’m now at work very near the Hotel Crowne Plaza in Managua where all of the Latin American presidents, including Mr. Zelaya, are meeting to discuss the situation in Honduras. I wish I could get a testimonial from Presidente Hugo Chavez about Doña Cony’s Ice Cream, but it’s probably not a good idea. To reach him I would have to cross the political march and protest that the Sandinistas are organizing in defense of Presidente Zelaya.

The mangos keep falling on my roof. I live in a house in Managua that has a mango tree growing through it. All night long the mangos fall with a loud, thud on the metal roof. Now I can sleep through the night without being bothered. It’s rainy season. Blinding lightening bolts and roaring thunder are nightly occurences. It’s impossible to talk on the phone, listen to music or TV because of the rain falling against the metal roof. I spend my nights reading or just go to bed if the electricity goes out which happens quite frequently.

See page 161 of Yann Martel’s “Life of Pi” for the best description of fear ever. See page 231 for a definition of a “navel mother” from Barbara Kingsolver’s “Animal Dreams.”

I’ve found a yoga class near my house and enjoy watching the army of ants carrying leaves as they march parrellel to my mat. In deep relaxation I find them crawling on my inner arms. It’s quite a test to relax deeply when you have ants on the march.

Okay. I will not give up. I am bound and determined to create a new YouTube account so I can post my personal videos. Somehow Google, Gmail and YouTube have hijacked my original YouTube account preventing me from posting video. It has nothing to do with slow Internet connections.

Stay tuned.

What am I doing in Nicaragua?

suearthur — Tue, 23 Jun 2009 19:17:18 +0000

So many of you have been asking what is it that I’m doing as a Kiva Fellow with Nicaragua microfinance partner CEPRODEL. Well, you can get a better understanding thanks to a Causemopolitan blog post by Sloane, another Kiva Fellow in the Philippines, in which she desribes her work plan. Although mine is a bit different much of it is similar. So, take a look.

Now, back to work, posting journals before I lose my internet connection.

“As the Microfinance Mundo Turns”

suearthur — Sat, 20 Jun 2009 22:51:43 +0000

Visit the Kiva Fellows blog for my first post announcing Kiva’s novela: “As the Microfinance Mundo Turns.” starring Doña Cony.

Also, see earlier post below for video of Casilda, the cat, and Chula, the tortuga.

Uploading video takes a loooong time here in Managua. Keep your fingers (& Internet connections) crossed! Also, Youtube can’t recognize my account. Oh vey!

Casilda & Chula

suearthur — Mon, 15 Jun 2009 23:10:01 +0000

Meet my new friends and housemates: Casilda, the kitty cat, and Chula, the tortuga.

We all reside at the wonderful Doña Cony’s house in Managua’s Batahola neighborhood which is across the street from a fabulous Cultural Center supported by the Friends of Batahola Cultural Center.

Doña Cony rescued Casilda, many years ago when the calico kitty dragged herself to Cony’s doorstep suffering from severe burns to her haunches. Cony nutured her back to health over four months and now this kitty is not afraid of people. Amazing! The power of love and healing.

I plan to debut a telenovela about microfinance starring Doña Cony on the Kiva Fellows Blog. Stay tuned!

The Winners and the Donors

suearthur — Wed, 10 Jun 2009 21:43:59 +0000

Below is a list of the fabulous San Francisco raffle donors and lucky winners from my May 22nd Kiva Fellow FUNdraiser. Please support these people, businesses and restaurants who so generously donated to help me cover my travel and living expenses as a Kiva Fellow volunteer in Nicaragua this summer.

Also, save the as-yet-to-be-determined date and place in September for my Welcome Back from Nicaragua party!

DONORS/WINNERS:

Weekend getaway with my twin sister in Chicago: The Alleluias

Stay at Ocean Park Motel: Jocelyn & Baby Tristan

Stay at West Point Inn on Mount Tam: Lynn Ferrin

Signed copy of Laura del Rosso’s book “Great Escapes: Northern California:” Janice

Tarot reading by Erin Reese: Karla Ayala

Astrology Reading by Ian Waisler: Anne Walzer

LiveFit Gym Membership: Jim Kelly

Anne Walzer’s Black & White Sierra Photograph donation: Beverly Ashworth

Help with Tax Problem by tax expert Grant Schletter: Lynn D.

Gift Certificate at The Corner Restaurant: Laura Del Rosso

Gift Certificate at Velvet Cantina: Peter McKenna

Gift Certificate at Serrano’s Pizza: Jim Kelly

Gift Certificate at Scarlet Sage Herb Co.: Jim Kelly

Obama Bag of Inauguration Schwag: Bruce Koon

Obama Bag of Inauguration Schwag: Stephanie Dohar

Brett Archer’s gorgeous Yosemite Photograph? Come to my welcome back party for your chance to win. Date and details to come.

Again, thank you for all of your support.

Thank you from Managua

suearthur — Wed, 10 Jun 2009 15:33:30 +0000

Dear friends and family.

Saludos desde Managua! Thank you so much for supporting me as a Kiva Fellow in Nicaragua. Kiva connects people through on-line lending for the sake of alleviating poverty through microfinance.

Microfinance mama with Momotombo and Mombotombito in Managua

Your kind words, good thoughts, generous donations, big hugs and juicy kisses fill my heart with joy and happiness. Because of you I have raised $1,415. Donations have ranged from $10 to $500 with the average amount being $20 (from raffle ticket sales at my May 22 FUNdraiser.)

The fellowship is not paid, and I am responsible for raising funds to cover my airfare and living expenses. For those who could not attend yet asked how else to contribute here are some options:

• Mail a check payable to me to 3288 21st Street #48, SF CA 94110 and a friend will deposit it for me, or send payment to my Paypal account (use my email address).
• Make a loan (for as little as $25) to a Kiva borrower from CEPRODEL, the Kiva field partner that I’m working with, and join my Fans of CEPRODEL Lending Team to loan to a CEPRODEL entrepreneur. Loans get funded quickly so act now. If you don’t find any please check back later.

• Give a Kiva gift certificate to your friends and family who are graduating from high school or college, or to couples getting married. I only request that you encourage them to choose an entrepreneur from CEPRODEL and join the Lending Team as described above.

• Follow my blog postings every 2 weeks on the Kiva Fellows blog.

• Attend my Welcome Back Party (date, place details to come). For reasons too complicated to explain, Yosemite resident and friend Brett Archer’s fabulous photograph did not make it to my Bon Voyage party so I’ve decided to host a Welcome Back/Report from Nicaragua party where I’ll talk about my trip, answer your questions and arrange a giveaway of Brett’s framed photograph.

Thanks again from the bottom of my heart.

The Mail Carrier Delivers Good News

suearthur — Fri, 12 Dec 2008 19:20:35 +0000

Victor Ibarra, owner of The Mail Carrier, which provides mail box rentals and package delivery services to residents and businesses in San Francisco’s Mission District, now sells food and beverage products imported from Peru.

Victor Ibarra, a Kiva borrower

A native of Peru, Victor used his Kiva loan to purchase ingredients cherished by Peruvian immigrants for preparing their favorite dishes and delicacies. His product line includes a range of beans and corn harvested in the Andes to cans and jars of soups and sauces including huancaina, panca peppers, black mint, and ocopa. In addition, the store sells Inca Kola, a favorite Peruvian soda pop.

Because of the great response, Victor has hired a third employee and many of his regular mailbox rental customers are discovering the delicious tastes of Peruvian food. Victor and his staff suggest recipes and customers report back how they liked the dish. He plans to expand inventory to include frozen food products imported from Peru.

California's flag features the grizzly bear which is now extinct in California