Aug 30th

I started work today in my classroom. It was quite a task. Basically, everything was thrown into plastic bags and into this random armoire cabinet thingie in my room. So I began cleaning it out. At first the girl helping me was apprehensive and felt that it wasn’t ok to throw crafts away even if the construction paper was faded and there were dirt spots on it. She flat out told me “We never clean out that cabinet, we just put things in it.” I threw 2 trash bags of old stuff in the trash and it was good. Heaven help us if I had to keep it all year! Throughout the course of the morning I found hairy spiders, a beetle, a gecko, and 2 HUGE roaches (like I used to find in my classroom in L.A.) in various spots arounf my room. I’m glad that the lizards that run around outside stayed outside!
Oh and I should mention that there are 2 bunnies that live in the playground area at my school! I wish Fred, my bunny, were here too. So today I brought each bunny a carrot and fed them. I have already set up a container in my kitchen to keep vegetable scraps for them. I will keep you posted on what I name them.

After everyone had left for siesta I continued to work and sort and throw old things away and then hang up boarders for my word walls and organized the tables and chairs. My Belgium friend stopped by and asked if I wanted to go to the library with her. I said yes. We worked a bit more and then I grabbed a quick lunch at the compound and met her. We decided to take a moto. Yes my friends I took my first African motorcycle ride today. After we flagged down 2 motos (which was funny because they are always empty passing you by when you are walking but now that we wanted one there wasn’t an empty moto in sight!) she haggled for the price and then we were off. Now you hang onto the rack that is behind you while seated on the moto and your feet rest on these make-shift peddles, that is when you’re feet aren’t bouncing all over because of the bumps. I think that my moto guy hit almost all the potholes just for fun. I tried not to laugh and smile as I already stuck out being the second white lady on a moto flying through Lome behind my friend on the moto in front of me. I’m sure this was a funny sight!

After the library, which was really a bookstore, we walked to the bank but had to ask directions a few times. Then we had to go to a different bank which required asking more directions. At one such encounter she was talking to this security man about which way and how far (as my French is super horrible and almost non existent) and another security man walks up to her and apparently says “It’s not far don’t worry, but I want to marry her” and he points at me. I smile obliviously. He repeats it and then she translates. I then point to the wedding ring I’m wearing for such occasions. This man is undeterred, so we walk away and laugh about these crazy men thinking we would say yes.

We eventually walked back to the compound and then to the secondary school campus to see if we can get online. No such luck. But we were in the right place at the right time and the principal took our passports to get our work visas. This is good as my visa expires in 3 days.

This evening I did venture to experience a cyber café after dinner. These were computers that are regularly discarded in America, you know the huge monitors that are discolored orange plastic. So I get on and it’s slow…slower than the Wi-Fi we used to get on the roof. Then I realize the letters on the keys are painted with whiteout but they are also all mixed up! Oh for the love of Pete I couldn’t find the period key to save my life. I finally asked and felt like it was my first computer class ever! I struggled with other punctuation and never did find the question mark. The man did come over and help me a few more times but as helpful as this was it attracts the wrong kind of attention so the girl next to me (who was just hanging out) starred quite a bit.
I got an e-mail from one of my kids in L.A. I almost cried for the first time. It made me miss all 7 of my kids there, but it also made me feel loved and remembered and it touched me deep in my heart. I can see that this year will have some very lonely moments and its small things like e-mails that will make me remember good times and that I’m not forgotten.

So I had another fun day in Lome! I hope as you reflect on your day you can see the joy and silliness that life has brought for you to enjoy too.