Junie's Online Thoughts
Friday, April 16, 2004
Just when I thought I couldnt get any grumpier, I went home to find that ants had invaded the INSIDE of our frig. There's nothing sadder than seeing hundreds of ants crawling off the door of your refrigerator, getting all up in your chocolate bars and butter. Well, seeing all the water pooled on the floor from the ice that has melted from your freezer, which hasnt worked in over days...I guess thats pretty sad too. And the streams of ants in every other room in the house, thats pretty bad too. Ok, so there's a lot of sad situations going on. Thusly, crabby appleton mode in full swing, I made supper and tried not to scream at the world.
We left the house before six to Busy, hoping to see whatever movie was playing. The Medallion with Jackie Chan. Total piece of crap. But I tell you, the Ghanaians LOVED it. Laughed like it was the bomb. Talked to the screen. Repeated lines. No wonder why all the street hawkers sell so many over-the-top action movies here. There's a total market for it. We couldnt muster the energy to stay for the next movie, some Angelina Jolie piece of junk. Instead we're emailing.
Im hoping with all my might that when we get home, we will have electricity. That I wont have to throw away more than a minimal amount of stuff in our frig. That the water will be perky and frollicking through our pipes. Everyone cross their fingers and toes for me.
In the meantime, here's a fun word problem for you. The winner just might get something cool. Email me your answers.
Each pure water bag contains two cups (16 oz). Each giant bag contains 30 individual pure water bags. It takes four bags to fill the small green bucket. It takes three green buckets to fill the toilet, one to do a load of dishes, two for Julie to shower, three for Jeremy to shower and six to wash a load of underwear. If Julie and Jeremy each take two showers a day, flush the toilet three times each day, wash three loads of dishes each day, drink five pure water bags each per day, wash only one load of underwear and throw one additional green pail on the flowerpots, how many giant bags of pure water bags will they need to make it through Friday, Saturday and Sunday? How many total gallons will they use for those three days?
Have fun, y'all.
So yesterday morning we went to the pool. When we came back, the power was off. Apparently it had stopped again at about 11 am, and we never got it back on again. We were going to sit up on the roof where there's a breeze, but instead chatted with a Dutch guy in our complex about The Passion, and a batch of new kittens from the mama cat that lives in the big house, and about water. The landlords paid for another truck refill, but in order for the pumps to work to distribute the water throughout the buildings, the power needed to be on. So we technically HAVE water, we just cant get to it. Its a cruel joke.
Last night we went out to eat with Ross, then drove to trivia. The guys running it were total knobs, and their categories sucked. Sports. James Bond. Battles and Wars. They only had four fun ones---world flags, soundtrack music and literature---and my favorite---Art. It was funny---I spent how many tens of thousands of dollars on college, and what do I have to show for it despite my piece-of-paper-degree? I can name fifteen artists and their works, and earn our team two free pitchers of beer! Thanks University of River Falls! (I should write them a letter for their alumni newsletter. Julie Dorn, B.A. in Art, 1997, used her degree in a local trivia game and won alcohol. She hasnt used her Art Major in anything financially rewarding since she left the University, but at least she can still drink. She is so proud!) So yes, with Jeremy's help on a few, we got something like 25 out of 30 (They were: Starry Night by Van Gogh, The Scream by Edward Munch, Son of Man by Magritte, Nighthawks by Hopper, a Pollock that we didnt know the title of, Christina's World by Andrew Wyeth-although we forgot the title to that one; The Birth of Venus by Botticelli, The Persistence of Memory by Salvador Dali, The Luncheon of the Boating Party by Renoir--I could only remember The Boating Party; Sunday at La Gran Jatte by Seurat--although I totally forgot the title to that one; Guernica by Picasso, one of Michelangelo's from the Sistine Chapel, American Gothic by Grant Wood--Jeremy got the artist on that one; The Death of this philospher guy--Jeremy rememberd his name--its the one where the guy is in the bathtub and his arm is dangling out and holding a note in his hand; and I cant remember the last one.) We already were drinking the free mini-keg from two weeks prior, and then got more beer. None of us were really in the getting-drunk mode, so when the final scores revealed that we'd sneaked away with third place (two more pitchers of beer), we took the gift certificate and fled. (More free beer for next week! I love drinking all night and not having to pay a cent.)
When we got home and found out that there was no electricity, I wanted to cry. My stomach was already screwed up from all the acidic beer, and Jeremy was also feeling yucky. For years now, when my acid reflux/possible ulcer kicks in, I usually carry on like a drama queen. Tossing, turning, moaning, making faces, curling into the fetal position, agonizing and crying. Im not faking by any means. It all hurts like a bitch, but I realized last weekend at Big Milly's and again last night, its really not necessary. All that moving around and gnashing of teeth doesnt make me feel any better. It doesnt make the burning fist in my chest, or the exploding hammers in my gut go away. If anything, it just exhausts me so I can finally fall asleep. But its not fair to Jeremy to have to listen to me freak out, as well as feeling me flopsing about the bed so he doesnt get any sleep either. So he got the bed and I moved to the sofa where I could be propped up. Finally, at past 2 am, I took a Tagament and fell asleep a half an hour later. It was just so hard to get comfortable without a fan---our house is so damn hot.
This morning I woke up cursing the power grid--still no electricity. Our frig is smelling funky, our taps still dont work, and we couldnt listen to the news on the radio.
We're at Connect now (which again has power when we dont even though its only six or seven blocks away), then going to KLM to change our tickets home. Right now we're in Amsterdam from June 25th to July 29th, but we're bumping it up so we can leave around the 2nd or 3rd of July. (We're not going to England right now---saving that for next year when we can be more on task and well-funded.) Im pretty pumped. Especially with this water and electricity bullcrap, Im ready to get out of here. Every day I consider our belongings and mentally pack our suitcases. Ive made dashing and throwing away piles for when we leave. Ive moved our bottles of lotion and sunscreen and insect repellant to the front so we can use them up. I have my last shopping list before we head to the airport. Im ready. The tough part is remembering that technically we have 69 days left, so I cant be TOO ready or Im going to be miserable. I dont hate it here. I can easily continue my routine for two and half more months. But I am mentally and physically ready for our American home, a permanent address, our family and friends, my car, my cat, my mail, and all the lovely perks of living in a First World country.
Jeremy's planning on going to Takoradi on Monday. I'd consider going if we didnt have water, but there's nothing to do in Takoradi. So I think Im going to stick around here and try to start running again. We'll see. For now, thats it. More soon.
Thursday, April 15, 2004
Last night was a lesson in gratitude. After emailing, we went to Duncans for a few beers. Some of our friends were there, so we chatted and hung out until almost 11 pm. We walked home, and to our dismay, found that the lights were still out. Pity. We stripped and laid sweating in bed, too hot to touch each other, too hot to move. Back last year, someone had dashed us this little battery operated hand held fan (the size of the fan on a beanie hat.) Usually, when we unhook it from the doorway and hold it to our faces, we can barely feel the air moving. Last night, it felt like someone was blowing on our skin. We took turns holding it and shifting it around each other's backs and faces. Then, when my arm was getting tired, the electricity came back on. I tell you, that blessed fan was one of the most delicious feelings Ive felt in a long time. Heaven.
Hooray! By then, the fan was enough to nearly bring me to tears and sing its praises until I fell asleep.
Today it's back to normal, with less gratitude and more grump. We ate breakfast and went next door. Since no one lives there, they were the last remaining water supply in the complex. I used their toilet and Jeremy tried to shower--only to discover they were out of water too. By then we were starting to grow surly and spiteful toward each other. We threw our crap in the car and drove to the Shangri-la. Swam, got a little sun, drank water. Then took a lovely powerful shower in their bathroom. I felt nearly normal and washed my hair for the first time in three days.
We ate lunch at this new Little India Sunshine Salad bar--a little pricey by Ghanaian lunch standards, but very tasty and stylish. But again I was reminded of our lack of water when I flushed their toilet. I remember when we could flush our own toilet. Sigh. I know I feel spoiled and like an obnoxious rich American when i whine about the water, but it really really sucks. Physical discomfort makes me crabby faster than almost anything, and not being able to shower/use the toilet/wash dishes/wash hands/brush teeth without having to use the pure water bags makes me sad. And especially when people three blocks away from us have running water and we dont, and there's no apparent reason for the lack of water in our complex, and no apparent end in sight, its enough to make me throw a tantrum.
Tonight is trivia. We'll probably watch a movie. Otherwise, just hanging out under the fan, dreaming of H2O.
Wednesday, April 14, 2004
We are officially out of water. No more tank, not even a drop. It made me grumpy, but today I kept reminding myself that it could be worse. We're in the city, and even if the neighborhood has been without water for four weeks now, at least we have electricity. The village has neither running water, nor electricity. I should be thankful for our radios and fans and laptop. Then after supper, as I was using pure water bags to wash the dishes, the power went off. I had to laugh. Now we're officially in the village too.
We have no idea when either will come back on...and nobody seems to know who to complain to. Ghana water works? The city? God?
Our house was too dark and too hot to sit there, so Jeremy and I went walking. (We also needed to buy candles.) So suck.
Im not even gonna talk about our toilet, and how long its been since we could flush it. we have one full tank, and one full pail, so we're trying to wait as long as possible before we flush it down the drain. Its foul and rank in there...good times.
I'm going to the pool tomorrow, where I can shower and poop without any worries. God bless the Shangri-la.
Tuesday, April 13, 2004
Weekend was nice. Left Thursday morning to beat the rush, but it turns out that it wasnt that crazy at Big Milly's after all. We and Jon found rooms right away, then met some Peace Corps folks stationed in NIger. It was very interesting and entertaining to hear stories from their village, and about Niger, the poorest country in the world. I didnt like that dried feces continually blow everywhere, that huge amounts of people die from basic diseases, that the Peace Corps kid's development work meets dead ends on a continual basis, that they eat millet for each and every meal, and other shocking tales too long to write here, but it was refreshing to hear them add at the end of every complaint, "But the people are SO nice. I love Niger!"
On Saturday, I got hit with a fierce and debilitating session of stomach problems/acid reflux and was up half the night moaning and cramping and wearing my anguish face. God bless Jeremy. He has the patience of Job. He tried to distract me with stories, or fetch me water, or urge me to see a doctor. Then he went next door at 1:30 am, searching for some medicine, and came back with some German version of strong aspirin. I took one, tried to sit still so Jeremy could finally fall asleep, and fell asleep myself around 3:30. Woke up at 4, took more medicine, slept until 6, woke up, slept until 9. I felt better, but knew I again had to watch what I ate and could only eat the blandest of foods.
We left that same day, and had blissfully little traffic. In the paper, they had advertised an Easter showing of The Passion (Mel Gibson's controversial movie). Turns out that the Conference Center has been converted into a weekend movie theatre, with popcorn and tables and previews and the works. Prices are a bit steep for normal Ghanaians, (50,000 cedis each....or about $5.50) but it was still fun to see an almost real movie theatre in our neighborhood. The movie....uh, well, huh. If you enjoy seeing Jesus being tortured and reduced to the equivalent of hamburger, you may like the movie. As for me, I was a bit traumatized by the sheer enormity of graphic violence and gore in the few days before the crucifixtion of Jesus. I would have LOVED to hear what the Ghanaians thought about it. And I would have loved to do a comparative reading with the King James Bible to see how much artisitic license was used in the movie.
Today we were burning a cd when the power went out. Jeremy's feeling sick, but he HAS to finish his taxes. Otherwise running errands, killing ants, conserving our water, the usual.
