Here's a review of my book:

"I read through this one very quickly-- I couldn't put it down! Ms. Kaschmitter's time spent in Micronesia was fascinating to read about in an "I'm glad it wasn't me" sort of a way. Train wreck after train wreck, and yet she still kept her sense of humor and her sanity (mostly) throughout. While it definitely did not make me want to ever volunteer in Micronesia, I would love to visit it someday. Her descriptions of the beauty and the culture of the island do make it alluring."

Many thanks to Jen O'Rourke!!!!!

Many thanks!!

Thanks to all of you who have purchased a copy of my memoir, I Was a Peace Corps Volunteer!  It is great to know that my story is out there, and I am excited to hear what you think--let me know.

I Was a Peace Corps Volunteer: Lost and Found in Micronesia PUBLISHED

Available now on Amazon.com!

I have an ISBN!!!!!

Yes, you read that right--I have an ISBN!  Keep your eyes peeled on Amazon for "I Was a Peace Corps Volunteer" by yours truly.  The number?  978-1477572290.

For the most part, my Peace Corps memoir is done and I'm working on polishing up little bits.  The last part, "Reno", is going to take some time--I've already done some considerable writing.  I need to finish that up, kind of gather my thoughts, polish it, and get ready for what I've never done before--publish a whole book!

I've received a handful of rejection letters for my memoir by now, some nicer than others.  I will most likely self-publish, and am interested in any advice y'all may have to give!  I'm seriously considering Amazon's Create Space. 

The surreal environment of Reno, NV is the setting for my reunion with my host mother after 8 years.  There is so much to hear from her--so many marriages, deaths, successes, and secrets.  I can't wait to learn more, get the distance to write, and add it all into the ending of my memoir.  Keep your eyes peeled for the announcement!

Spokane Public Radio

Hello, all!

I am now blogging about my experiences as a marketing/P.R./production intern at Spokane Public Radio at http://kpbxmakingnoise.blogspot.com/2012_04_01_archive.html.  Please check it out, and support the station during their upcoming pledge drive!

Doggy Bag

One of the first stories we heard when we arrived in China was about a rich foreign couple who went out to eat in China, poodle in tow.  As their food was being prepared, they asked the wait staff if there were some scraps or other things Poodles could much on while she waited for her humans to finish dinner.  Much gesturing followed, with words flying in English and Chinese.  Finally, the maitre d’ seemed to understand.  “You want dog food?”  “Yes!”  the couple exclaimed in relief.  The wait staff happily took Poodles to the kitchen, and 30 minutes later, presented the couple with a platter of steaming meat.  “Has our dog eaten?”  the owners asked.  The wait staff exchanged glances as the couple dug in.  “You eat,” they said.  “Did you give our dog food?”  “Yes, this your dog—dog is food for you!” 

Check me out, I'm famous!

Please click on the link below.  It takes you to an incredible website of Peace Corps writers and bloggers--and I am now among them!  Check out my piece on sakau (kava), the customary narcotic beverage of the Micronesian:

http://peacecorpsworldwide.org/pc-writers/

What the beach REALLY smells like

Here's something else I started today:

First, you’ve got the broken-down coral.  It’s not really sand.  It’s been finely grained, rubbed and broken and rubbed some more—over other coral, over rocks, rolled and rolled like laundry on the surface of land.  This is the strong stuff.  Ground into a powder, it’s pwet—white—otherwise known as lime.  You sprinkle it onto a beetelnut before you chew.  That’s the stuff that cuts into your mouth.  No matter how far you ground it down, it’s still sharp.  Sharp to the smell, to the taste, and it allows the drug of the beetelnut to find immediate access to your bloodstream.

It's been too long since I've blogged--9 months now.

I'm hoping to publish some of my writing, maybe even a book about my Peace Corps adventures.  Any advice would be much appreciated.

Here's an excerpt from something I've been working on about sakau (this passage is about the singing on one particular night):

Imagine a black Baptist choir doing a rousing rendition of “Go Tell It on the Mountain” on a beautiful Sunday morning.  Then change it.  Remove all of the congregation, all of the women, and most of the choir.  Make all of the men over 40, shirtless, and only partially employed.  Imagine they’d imbibed a bottle of whiskey and were in that mellow, quiet, bluesy stage of drunkenness.  Make it dark outside, with starlight, moonlight, and a single fluorescent bulb the only illuminations.  The men are sitting at a table under a guava tree.  The linoleum-covered wooden table has been chewed by termites and mold.  It is crawling with tiny sugar ants.  The men’s 88-cent flip-flops are all that’s between the dirt and their gnarled toes.  One of the men is strumming a guitar with long dirty fingernails.  A couple are chewing beetelnut; one is smoking a cigarette.  All have plastic cups of sakau in front of them.  The beauty of the notes, the soulfulness of a Baptist choir is still there… but quieter, subdued.