And I'm Out...

Things I'll Miss

1. The weather!
2. Being in Africa
3. The many friends I have made here, especially Kyura and Mr. Embassy-Man
4. Being able to (but not having to) walk anywhere I need to go
5. Not buying gas
6. No bills
7. Yam on Sundays
8. Getting my hair braided for super cheap
9. The time zone difference that made it so my friends back home were always awake when I wanted to talk to them (they were sleeping when I was at work)
10. Being able to hang the laundry outside
11. Plantain chips and drinkable yogurt
12. Random chickens on the side of the road
13. Mr. Trizzle being nice because he's forgotten how annoying I am when I'm actually around ;)
14. Work, most of it, at least sometimes
15. Being able to be there for my friends when they need to talk in the middle of the night (cuz it's my day time!)
16. The 9-4, doesn't matter if you're late, workday (even though I was usually there around 8 and stayed 'til nearly 5; it was nice to know I didn't have to be there)
17. Kim the tailor and his amazing work
18. Yummy ice cream that comes in a plastic bag and tastes like cake batter
19. Palm trees
20. Never having to wear or carry a jacket
21. The smell of fresh flowers along the roadside and the gentle scent of burnt grass in the air
22. Moin moin, Milo, roasted maize on the roadside, purple Ibo fruits, and other foods I can't get at home

Things I Won't Miss

1. Random people I don't know coming up to me and telling me they want to be my friend or that they love me
2. The tribalism
3. The driving
4. The bathrooms at work
5. The constant condescension
6. Only having one pair of shoes and enough outfits to get through one week
7. Power surges and outages (that destroy my computer)
8. Having to haggle or bargain before buying anything or going anywhere
9. Having walls and gates and guards around every building
10. Having to buy an expensive and only so-so meal in order to get an internet connection good enough to download a pdf file
11. Smashing cockroaches at work and shaking off ants at home
12. Those creepy lizards that seem to be everywhere
13. The hypocrisy
14. Unfitted sheets
15. Having to iron everything
16. Having to count in hundreds and thousands
17. West-African men
18. Watching people eat goo with their hands
19. Having a maid (I like her, as a person; I just don't like having a maid as a concept)
20. Being called "whitey" or "white" as if that's my name
21. People hissing like snakes

The Move

We spent most of Saturday packing up the house, washing and ironing curtains, and maneuvering around stacks of boxes.  The movers left around 4, while Auntie was out.  She was not pleased when she returned home and found they had left without finishing.  Then the guys removing the air conditioners asked for some money or something.  Auntie, who always sounds like she's yelling whenever she talks, and Dr. Y, who has a short fuse, gave the air conditioning guys a piece of their mind.

I packed up most of my room, tried to help keep the girls out of the movers way and helped the maid iron the curtains.  Luckily, the door to the study (where the wireless router is kept) is blocked by a big pile of boxes.  That gives me a chance to schedule-post some pictures of our move!

outdoor parts of air conditioners gathered together

 

the back porch

 

front hall

Maid ironing curtains

  

the girl's bedroom

 

kitchen

 

living room

 

pantry

upstairs sitting room

 

study (see the internet in the upper right-hand corner?)

'Tis the Season to be Jolly

I saw my first Christmas lights of the season this past week at work.  There are several banks located inside the Federal Secretariat, and one of them had hung garland and lights outside its door and window.  It nearly made me cry.  It really is Christmas time!  Another bank had put a Christmas tree in front of its door, complete with ornaments and lights.  It was very pretty.

I really do love Christmas time, even though Christmas is only my fifth favorite holiday.  There are so many Christmas things to do at home that I can hardly wait to get there.  I have to attempt to hide the sandwich cookies that Mommy better make, so that no one else can eat them.  I said attempt, because it will not work.  Mommy will catch me and make me put them back.  But, I have to try, all the same.

Katrina and I are already conspiring about where to hide the plastic Abominable Snowman, and Wendy's already trying to guess where it'll be so she can get it and put it back where it belongs.  (Where does it belong?)

The plastic canvas snowman and snowlady have to take the plastic canvas choo choo from their plastic canvas gingerbread house to the stable to see baby Jesus.

A few various Santa Clauses, elves, and little musicians need to form a train behind the three wise-men, on their way to visit baby Jesus.

We have to turn on all of Mommy's sound and motion activated fiber optic toys, dancing reindeer and singing what-nots at the same time and then wait for Daddy to enter the room.

I'll hang my pretty silver ballerina ornament on the tree by a blue light.  (Or move it, if Mommy already has the tree decorated before I get home.)

Katrina and I must whine about how the Christmas tree is fake and it's no fun that the tree doesn't rain.  Hopefully Mommy will have that Christmas-tree scented room spray again, so it'll at least smell like Christmas.

Wendy, Katrina and Nathan and I have to build a snowman, if there's snow.  It won't have to look like Wendy this year, because she'll be home!  We also need to go to the Museum and see the Streets of Old Milwaukee and the European Village all decorated for Christmas.  I love the upside-down Christmas tree in the Polish house!

I have to drink off-white egg nog and eat red cake.  And make my Christmas dress!  (Unless I decide to wear my new natives; they're green.)

We have to spend the whole day, every day, listening to wonderful Christmas music!  "And a beer... in a tree."  Mommy has to watch White Christmas with us.

Daddy Bunny will help me open my presents on Christmas morning.

But most important of all, we get to spend time together, the whole family.  The big, big group on Christmas Eve, and the little group on Christmas Day (and the surrounding weekends).  I love Christmas; I love spending time with my family.

It's a Miracle, I Can See!

My screen worked all day Friday.  Wow!  I was so excited, I immediately started working on a post for my ip blog - finally, the ability to do research!

I had configured my computer fairly well for working without a screen.  I got so used to it, I forgot I could actually see.  Several times I would think to myself, "Oh, I need to find..., but it'll be difficult because I can't see.  Oh, wait, it's in the bathroom, or it's in my suitcase, not on my computer; I'll be able to see it."  Oops.

Friday was also my last day of work.  Hooray!  All done with my internship.  All done with my paper.  And NO finals.  Yippie skippy dum dippy doo!  Can you tell I'm excited?

Auntie says we're moving Sunday morning.  I'll believe it when we're there.  That's how I handle things in Africa.  Once we move, well, once the internet's packed, I don't know when I'll have internet access again.  This is just a heads up to everyone in case I disappear from the blogosphere for a week. ;)

Every Time a Bell Rings, One of My Shoes Gets Its Wings

Well, it finally happened; my favorite pair of walking shoes broke-broke.  (More than just the insole coming off.)

I noticed it just before leaving for work Tuesday, but wore them anyway.  I didn't really have any other options, and they still stayed on, just had two little straps flapping in the breeze.  I took cabs to and from work, instead of walking.

I managed to fix them that night.  This shoe repair adventure went much better than my last attempt at playing cobbler in Africa.  This time, the only stitches went in the shoe, not in me.  And, the shoe's fixed.  Not the greatest job, but I did what I could with a regular little (and cheap) sewing kit.  It should hold at least 'til I get back.

Whew! Disaster avoided.  I don't think I could spend two weeks in flat shoes!

The pair of them.