Welcome to my blog! My name’s Benjamin and I’m a soon-to-be college-grad sitting at the bottom of a debt blackhole as deep as Mount Kilimanjaro is tall (get it? cause I am going to Africa . . ha ha). Anyway, I’ll be graduating magna cum laude with B.S. degrees in Finance and Accounting and a B.A. degree in French Language and Literature. Now, my original intention was to sell out to a big investment bank, work 16 hour days, 80 hour weeks, and make enough to pay down my school loans faster than you can say “Mergers & Acquisitions”. But, unfortunately for the loan agencies and (hopefully) fortunately for my soul, I have decided to join the Peace Corps instead. In other words, I am taking my skills to the streets, instead of to the Street.
I will be a Community Business Advisor Volunteer and will be working with small communities and individuals to develop their economies and general financial stability. I hope to work specifically with micro-lending operations and improving individuals’ financial literacy. My home for 27 months will be Benin, a French-speaking West African country. I am extremely excited because this is a rare opportunity to help others while capitalizing on all areas of my education.
Other than what I have mentioned above, I am a returned Rotary exchange student (Cahors, France, 2009-2010), a travel addict, and a bit of a workaholic.
The purpose of this blog is to share my experiences and thoughts before, during, and who knows, maybe after my Peace Corps term. As the tagline suggest, I will discuss everything from miscellaneous mishaps to socio-cultural commentary on borrowers behaviors. I might even try my hand at some French poetry about African economics, no guarantees but consider yourself duly warned.
So, I would like to thank you for checking out my blog and I hope you enjoy it! Please feel free to leave me comments or questions (I love questions especially ones that I don’t know the answers to).Otherwise, enjoy!
Also, please enjoy the lovely disclaimer below:
“The content of this website is mine alone and does not necessarily reflect the views of the U.S. Government, the Peace Corps, or the [insert host country name] Government.”
Disclaimer: This is not a scholarly blog. I am not citing any sources, rather any information has come from my personal studies and any graphs or data used or referenced is easily accessible via Google Search.
Ben in Benin 