tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-78528716631706102622024-03-13T14:38:01.178-07:00Barbara's Peace Corps BlogBarbara Michelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00803322911842204947noreply@blogger.comBlogger73125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7852871663170610262.post-80143937199445237282017-01-27T07:22:00.001-08:002017-01-27T07:22:45.030-08:00Big Time ScienceI think we all thought I was done with this blog, but here I am again. Happy new year, friends.<br /><br />During my Peace Corps service, I was also enrolled as a masters student at Michigan Technological University in Houghton, Michigan. To earn my Peace Corps Masters International degree, I conducted a research project on drinking water treatment in my region (Kolda) during the last 6 months or so of my service.<br /><br />In short:<br /><br />It's estimated that about 5% of people throughout West Africa treat their water before they drink it.<br />Treating drinking water has been shown to lead to decreases in diarrheal disease.<br />
Diarrheal disease is a leading cause of death of children under 5.<br />
Peace Corps and other organizations would like to see an increase in people treating their water and a subsequent decrease in child deaths.<br />
One method of water treatment (liquid bleach) is safe, affordable, readily available, and easy.<br />Many people throughout the Kolda region reported that they already knew how to treat drinking water using this method.<br />
Some people do treat their water with bleach before drinking it.<br />
Yet most people don't.<br />
Why?<br />And does it really work?<br />
And is it really safe?<br /><br />My project involved a total of 96 surveys being given to caregivers throughout the region of Kolda, some of whom treat their water and some who don't. It was looking for motivations and barriers to water treatment.<br /><br />To test the efficacy of water treatment "out in the wild," I also did field testing of drinking water for <i>E. coli</i> and coliforms using 3M Petrifilms.<br /><br />Then, when I returned to Michigan, I did a literature review on similar work done on drinking water treatment in rural developing countries.<br />
<br />I found that bleach definitely kills bacteria (shocker!), but the survey results were a bit murkier.<br /><br />If you'd like to read more, here's 60 pages of goodness. I included gratuitous baby photos, because why not.<br /><br />http://digitalcommons.mtu.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1343&context=etdr<br /><br />Happy reading!<br /><br />Love,<br /><br />Barbara Michel, new Master of Science<br /><br />Barbara Michelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00803322911842204947noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7852871663170610262.post-4908910236689813012016-04-27T23:49:00.000-07:002016-05-17T08:59:57.337-07:00Stage GoodbyeI and two much better writers than me (Eric D. and Melissa M.) were asked to write the stage goodbye article for the PC Senegal volunteer newsletter. We struggled over what to say for a few days, then fate stepped in. Thankfully, Doctor Mbuus said it better than any of us could.<br />
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This is probably going to be my final blog.Thank you so much for taking the time to read about my time in Senegal over the last two years. It means a lot that my family and friends, and even strangers, have shown so much interest in this tiny West African wonderland. I'm humbled by every pageview and tremendously thankful for your support. Although I won't post anything else on the blog, please feel free to email me at any point in the future. I'll be around. <i>Ajaraama. En burini han. </i><br />
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Stage Goodbye, by Eric, Barb, and Melissa.<br />
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On a dark and stormy night at the Diourbel regional house, the three of us were simultaneously awoken by pounding drums. Weird, we all thought. We had assumed we’d learned to sleep through even the loudest and most rambunctious sabaars during our two years in Senegal. As we listened closer, however, we realized these drums were different. They were much more…sinister. We arose from our beds and followed the strange noise to a room we had never seen before. With RADAR on max and mini med kits in hand, we entered the room and discovered the drumming was coming from a single dusty book on the ground, demanding to be discovered. In lieu of a normal stage goodbye article, we’d like to present what we found in that book.<br />
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<span style="font-size: x-large;">Oh! The Places You’ll Go in PC Senegal! </span></div>
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By Dr. Mbuus</div>
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">You’ve made it to Senegal! What a great place to be!</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Take a doxy from Ouissam and start PST.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">You’ll feel super awkward in a dance circle session</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">But stay ‘cause you want to make a good first impression</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Your stagemates are great, friends are easy to meet</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">These funny-ass people are all smart and upbeat</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Patrick will have tight pants and a head full of curls</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">“There goes a dude who’ll get all the girls.”</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Lunch bowls will be full of veggies and meat</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">“This is what everyone in Senegal eats!”</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">The first few days trapped in the center might hurt</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">But soon you’ll discover salvation at Church</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">And Maggie might sleepwalk right into your bed</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">And you’ll get a whole slew of vaccines from med</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">You’ll be in CD transition, but there is no peril</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">because soon you’ll meet the incoming Cheryl</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">You’ll sit through endless educational sessions</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">While you make bracelets, play snake, and kind of listen to questions</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">You’ll study Wolof and Pulaar and cultures unique</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">You’ll think you’ll know it all in only 9 weeks</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Except that you won’t.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Nope, sorry bro, you won't.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">I’m sorry to say so</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">But sadly it’s true</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Because Ben’s Playground</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">might happen to you.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">When training is done the fun really begins</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Get a new <i>complet</i> made, it’s time for swear-in!</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">You’ll bang your dick on the table on the way to the <i>fete</i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">And then eat your weight in catered <i>crevettes</i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Now off to your new site! You'll drive for a spell</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">And you'll greet your new family, work partners as well!</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">But you can’t really greet them, your language is awful</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">And village food sucks and you just want some waffles</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">And you can’t sleep all night because donkeys are braying</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">And you wake in the morning to marabouts praying</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">You’ll damage your liver at the regional house</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">And curse your hut’s dastardly clothes-chewing mouse</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">You’ll drop your Diva Cup right down your <i>duus</i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">And slowly get used to seeing family members’ boobs</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">But you’ll stay, and slowly things start to improve</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">You’ll get a routine down - you’ll hit your groove</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">You’ll go back to Thies for PST2</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">And learn all those technical skills through and through.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Oh, the places you’ll go! There is work to be done! </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">You’ll do such great projects! You’ll help everyone!</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">You’ll have VRFs chock-full of indicators!</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Your Mandinka’s so good you won’t need a translator!</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Except that you won’t.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Nope, sorry bro, you won’t.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">You’ll set up a meeting and no one will come</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">You’ll forget basic greetings and look really dumb</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">You’ll sit with work partners trying not to yawn</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Then everything shuts down for Ramadan</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">But just when you think these are all futile actions</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">People start to believe and your projects get traction</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">You have enough Wolof to tell off a jerk</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Your village will say that you’re finally doing work.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Insulting your neighbors will stop feeling mean;</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Now you’ll laugh as you joke about Diops eating beans</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Meanwhile PC friendships gain more and more power</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Because in regional houses it’s always happy hour</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">You’ll endure two miserable sept-place rides</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">To go to Kedougou 4th of July</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">The mountains will be in rainy season bloom</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">And the party goes all night - BRING BACK THE VOLUME</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">You’ll play serious softball at WAIST in Dakar</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Or maybe you’ll just noos it up at the bar</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Then you’ll spend a late morning hungover on the beach</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">But at least second year you’ll stay off the corniche!</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">You’ll come to love it so much you might try to extend</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">And six girls in your stage will snag a local boyfriend</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">And as you’ll smugly remind all incoming trainees</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Your stage has had only five people ET</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Oh, the places you’ll go! Your projects are going great!</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">And you have such good friends and you love your sitemates.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">You’ve come a long way and now you know so much more!</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">And you have so much time left to be in Peace Corps!</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Except that you don’t.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Nope, sorry bro, you don’t.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Because months fly too quickly; permasummer’s deceiving</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Suddenly it’s COS and you’re barely believing</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">The journey is over, it’s time to go move on</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Where have the last 26 months gone?</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">And as you get ready to step on that jet</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">You’ll muse that you won’t miss perpetual sweat</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Or the waiting for hours for cars to depart</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Or the “are-they-or-aren’t-they” giardia farts</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">But you’ll miss Senegal! You’ve set roots in this dirt</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">And ripping them out now is sure going to hurt</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">And you know it sounds lame, but you always tear up</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">When you think of your family’s kids growing up.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">But leave now you must, and the world will keep spinning</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Because endings are just the new stories’ beginnings.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">So go on! Close this book! It’s your COS day!</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">New adventures are waiting….</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">So get on your way!</span></div>
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By Dr. Mbuus</div>
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We hope we speak for everyone when we say to those of you lucky enough to have a spare couch or a functional kitchen in the next step of your journey, please keep a spot open for a wandering RPCV. And to those of you who might, at some point, need somewhere to sleep or a place to cook your mac and cheese, never be afraid to ask. The bonds we’ve formed won’t end when our service does.<br />
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Teranga, Jamm, and Love, HE/CED 2014-2016.<br />
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<br />Barbara Michelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00803322911842204947noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7852871663170610262.post-90003530800727335982016-04-27T23:24:00.000-07:002016-09-25T18:09:27.070-07:00Peace Corps Senegal life hacksThis is another article I wrote for the SABAAR, the Peace Corps Senegal volunteer newsletter. Enjoy!<br />
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Since I’m COSing and this is my last “C’est Senegal Quoi,” I decided to share two years of accumulated Peace Corps wisdom for the younger stages. I still don’t really know what I’m doing here, but I suppose along the way I figured some stuff out. Here’s a top 10 of my favorite Senegal Village Life Hacks. I hope they are of use to y’all.<br />
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10. Use regional house Senegad, libraries, and hard drives liberally. Don’t be a hoarding dick, but don’t be shy about partaking. They’re there for you! Ourossogui has surprisingly excellent selection. Kedougou is bad for clothes but has great books. Tamba is hit-or- miss. If you’re traveling anywhere, check it out! Worst case scenario you end up with a book you don’t read or a shirt you don’t wear and then you return it to your home house. Shuffle!<br />
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9. Plant moringa all over your back yard. You have the best fence in vil and you’re gonna wanna get that shit established before goats inevitably come and destroy everything. I didn’t do this, but those who did have a goddamn oasis going on. Garden plants die after harvest, but moringa trees will nourish your family for years after you leave. And you’ll leave way too soon. So do it now.<br />
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8. Stand in a beignoir when you shower. Then use the water for your moringa. It doesn’t matter that the water is soapy. It also doesn’t matter how large you might be – you will not break the beignoir. They’re surprisingly resilient. Standing in a bucket instead is an option if you have beautiful delicate Cinderella feet that fit in one.<br />
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7. Best regional house party mixed drink: large plastic Kirene bottle filled 90% with water. Add a 100 CFA drink mix packet. Then add a few shots of the cheapest whiskey you can find and a pinch of salt. YOU DRINK AND HYDRATE AS YOU DEHYDRATE. I have been hangover-free since I started this method.<br />
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6. The most delicious village snack is: a packet of powdered milk (Halib or Sofia, preferably) mixed in a cup of warm water. Add sugar and cinnamon. Pour over Bisko.<br />
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5. Make shelves for your room. All you need is rope and wood (or a piece of zinc roofing, or half of a<br />
groundscored bucket). Tie both ends of a 3-foot long piece of rope to a ceiling beam. Then do it again<br />
with another piece of rope about a foot away from the first piece. Then balance your “shelf” between<br />
the ropes. Then put things on it and marvel at your interior decorating skills.<br />
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4. When Senegal kills your iPod (just a matter of time, son) download podcasts to a 2000 CFA market<br />
USB stick and stick it in a 4000 CFA market radio. Then splurge on toubab batteries because they’re 10 times the price of the local ones but last 20 times as long. Then listen to “emission radio Amérique” anytime you want!<br />
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3. Get a cat. If mice aren’t a constant annoyance for you, you are in a very lucky minority. I personally had a rat so bold it would crawl on my table and stare at me until I threw things at it. Glue traps, snap traps, and poisons didn’t work. But since I got Kitten Mallory almost a year ago, I haven’t seen any mice AT ALL. He’s a 100% effective vermin murderer AND he cuddles with me sometimes. I was a dog person in America, but cats are resilient and independent and better for PCVs.<br />
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2. When someone tries to screw you over at the market or the garage, laugh at the outrageous price as you give the gouging asshole a huge fake smile. Pretend the whole situation is hilarious. This gets you further toward the correct price than indignant anger, and feels better too. It’s exhausting depleting your rage volcano every day.<br />
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1. Get braided. I’ve been using the same shampoo/conditioner combo for the last year because I only wash my hair once every month or two. It’s an amazing thing to completely neglect your hair every day and still be bombarded with compliments about how beautiful it looks. This is a unique situation, ladies,and you should be making the most of it<br />
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There ya have it. Bon chance!<br />
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~BarbBarbara Michelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00803322911842204947noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7852871663170610262.post-36753499128019591312016-04-24T02:51:00.000-07:002016-04-24T10:39:05.296-07:00Packing for homeThis post is a bit delayed; not only have I already packed for home, but I'm one flight into my COS trip already. <br />
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<span style="text-align: start;">The last few days in village flew by like I knew they would. I did follow-up work for projects, then went around the village to say goodbye to everyone and invite them to my big goodbye party. Then I had the big goodbye party.</span></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">I made five pinatas sized and shaped like baobab fruits, then tied them to the baobab tree near my hut. Only one kid ended up crying from the resulting scuffle, so that's a success.</td></tr>
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Then I had a week in Dakar full of medical appointments and heavy beach drinking to say goodbye to my wonderful Peace Corps friends. Now Laura and I are in Athens, on the first leg of our COS trip, and I have no obligations, and I just woke up from a 14-hour nap and am waiting for breakfast, so let's do this!<br />
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My most popular blog
post, by far, is the one I wrote 6 months into service advising future
volunteers on what to pack for their upcoming Peace Corps Senegal service. Six-months-into-service Kadiatou is very
different from two-years-in-and-ready-to-go-home Kadiatou, so I thought it
might be fun to go over what I have decided
to take back with me.<br />
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<b>Various Peace Corps tshirts: </b>I have tshirts from the Tamba marathon, Velingara youth camp 2015 and 2016, Kolda Kalabandits 2016 (that wasn't an event, just my region being exclusive), and 2015 Access English for Success Camp. None of these shirts are particularly flattering or beautiful, but I brought them all back and will wear them prolifically in the hopes that anyone seeing them will strike up a conversation and allow me to talk about Peace Corps without being obnoxious. For the same reason, I have a handcrafted metal bracelet that says "SABALY" as a memento of the last name I've held these last two years.<br />
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<b>Hammock, Camelbak, and Umbrella</b>: I haven't used any of these items much, but they were expensive and useful in America, so they're coming back with me. I didn't have anywhere in my backyard to set up the hammock, and I got too busy to spend leisurely mornings in the woods near the end of my service, so it hasn't been unfolded in months. The cambelbak was only useful for about two weeks out of the year, when it was deep into "cold" season. The rest of the time it was too hot and sweaty to have anything on my back while biking, so i just strapped a water bottle to my bike. The umbrella wasn't useful because when it's raining, everyone just stays inside.<br />
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<b>Cashew apple, guava, papaya, and baobab flavored jellies: </b>I've never tried these (jelly is not a Senegalese food) but the flavors are Senegalese, so I thought it'd be a good, accessible-yet-exotic treat for my American family. I bought them from a <i>Toubab</i> grocery store in Dakar.<br />
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<b>Ninety-five water treatment surveys: </b>I was a PCMI (Peace Corps Masters International) student throughout my service. My thesis project was/will be a doer/non-doer study on water treatment practices. I spent a few hours at a regional house trying to tally up all the results, but then decided I had enough luggage space to just bring the whole kit-n-kaboodle to Amerik and deal with it there. It has the potential to be pretty interesting when it's done. Some people treat their water with bleach at the point-of-use level, and some people don't. The survey was an attempt to shed some light onto why this is.<br />
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<b>Kenkiliba: </b>Keniliba is my favorite breakfast drink. It's a tea that's sugared to oblivion and really good with powdered milk. Usually, kenkiliba is gathered from the woods, but I purchased a sealed labeled plastic bag of it in Dakar so my family wouldn't be freaked out by drinking a potion of my gathered wild woods leaves. Even though it's the same thing.<br />
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<b>Dog leash & collar: </b>My village dog died almost a year ago (RIP) but he left behind a really nice leash and collar, and I'm hoping to get another dog in America, so...<br />
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<b>Microfiber cleansing cloths: </b>My little host sister Djari was chosen by WorldVision to have a "friend" in Canada who occasionally sends her twenty-gallon tupperwares full of presents. This canadian man (his name is Gilbert) clearly has no idea what her life is like, because the presents are always totally useless. The package I looked through contained a gallon of hand sanitizer, a teflon-coated frying pan, a spirograph, and the microfiber cleansing cloths, among other equally perplexing things. I gave my family 500 CFA (~$1) for the cloths and they were very happy with it. The cloths were brand-new from Bed Bath and Beyond and were labeled $18. </div>
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<b>Flip Flops: </b>I love Senegalese flip flops and brought two pair home with me. They are plastic, but have stylish fake zippers and ties and say "fashion" or "original" in cursive across the front. Classy.<br />
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<b>Plastic Gourd Spoons: </b>Most people in my village eat with their hands, but some use spoons, and if the meal is particularly soupy, they use these things that are halfway between spoons and ladles (traditionally made from dried gourds, but now made from plastic instead). I really like them and I hadn't ever seen them before coming here, so I'm bringing back a bunch. I think they might be fun to eat cereal out of. Fewer trips from bowl to face:I'm all about practicality.<br />
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<b>A disposable razor: </b>This is left over from the four-pack I bought at Thies, during training. Kadiatou didn't shave her legs or armpits, but Barbara does, so I plan on busting that out soon. Yay reintegration!<br />
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That's it! Thanks for reading. I don't know if I'll post anything else on the blog - if not, so long, and thank you. If so...I'll say goodbye again next time.<br />
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Love, Barbara/Kadiatou</div>
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Barbara Michelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00803322911842204947noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7852871663170610262.post-40771127351436323252016-04-24T02:35:00.001-07:002016-07-26T10:15:58.819-07:00Twenty-three more Books of Senegal<ul>Now that Peace Corps c'est fini, it's time to wrap up my short reviews of the books I've read while serving as a Peace Corps volunteer. The other 100 on the list can be found <a href="http://barbarapeacecorps.blogspot.gr/2015/10/100-books-of-senegal.html">here</a>. <br /></ul>
<ul>1. Bryson, Bill. In a Sunburned Country <br />
<li>Bill Bryson travels around Australia </li>
<li>I loved it so much that I decided to also take a trip around Australia (particularly the Darwin area, in the north) upon my completion of Peace Corps. </li>
<li>But then my friend Laura invited me on her COS trip instead, so here I am in Athens, which is also cool. </li>
<li>Anyone want to go to Australia with me? </li>
<li>Five stars. </li>
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2. Conrad, Joseph. Heart of Darkness <br />
<li>Very short and very good tale of a scary and suspenseful journey into the Congo </li>
<li>Four stars </li>
<li>Zero percent overlap with my African experience. </li>
<br />3. Donoghue, Emma. Room <br />
<li>A five-year old boy has spent his entire life in a garage-sized room - he and his mother are held captive there by a man who kidnapped the mother. </li>
<li>Does a very good job of telling the story through the eyes of a five-year-old </li>
<li>If you don't like five year olds, the narrator could be really annoying. </li>
<li>I like five year olds. </li>
<li>Five stars. </li>
<br />4. Dugard, Jaycee. A Stolen Life <br />
<li>Reads like it was written by someone with a 5th grade education </li>
<li>Because it was. </li>
<li>Heartbreaking. </li>
<br />5. Egan, Timothy. The Big Burn <br />
<li>About the history of the US forest service and the massive fire that caused colossal damage during its first years. </li>
<li>Deepened my confusing long-standing crush on Theodore Roosevelt </li>
<br />6. Gladwell, Malcolm. Blink <br />
<li>About the decisions that people make without thinking about it </li>
<li>It's fascinating that instant likeability is a skill that can be practiced and perfected </li>
<li>Made me want to be a professional face-reading lie detector. That sounds so badass. </li>
<br />7. Heath, Chip and Dan. Made to Stick <br />
<li>About why some ideas thrive and others don't </li>
<li>Interesting for anyone interested in behavior change or understanding their own behaviors </li>
<li>Behavior change is hard. </li>
<br />8. Jiles, Paulette. Enemy Women <br />
<li>A southern woman flees with a horse after the civil war while battling "consumption" </li>
<li>The woman who recommended I read this loves horses </li>
<li>If you love horses, you'd probably love it too. </li>
<li>Three stars, as I am indifferent to horses. </li>
<br />9. Johnson, Adam. The Orphan Master's Son <br />
<li>A North Korean plays the government to get ahead in life </li>
<li>North Korea is scary </li>
<li>I wish it had more history and facts, but since North Korea is so closed off facts are nearly impossible to come by, so I guess this is as good as it can get. </li>
<li>Four stars. </li>
<br />10. Lamott, Anne. Traveling Mercies <br />
<li>A woman's journey toward discovering her faith </li>
<li>It's OK. </li>
<br />11. Lappe, Frances Moore. Diet for a Small Planet <br />
<li>Vegetarianism is better than carnivory, ecologically speaking </li>
<li>That idea is so elementary now that it's hard to remember it was ever groundbreaking </li>
<li>Very interesting, but very dated </li>
<br />12. Larson, Erik. The Devil in the White City <br />
<li>A serial killer does his thing at the World's Fair in Chicago </li>
<li>The serial killer part was interesting, and the part about the men putting on the Worlds Fair was interesting, but it seemed like two short books randomly smashed into one. </li>
<li>Still very good, just not the most cohesive. </li>
<br />13. Lawry, Lois. The Giver <br />
<li>I think I read this in middle school, but that was a long time ago. </li>
<li>Good, but too short. </li>
<li>The cover had a picture of Taylor Swift on it, so apparently they made a movie of it at some point. </li>
<br />14. Martel, Yann. Self <br />
<li>A man turns to a woman than back to a man </li>
<li>Very strange. </li>
<li>I guess I'd recommend it to a stranger but it's too weird to recommend to friends. </li>
<li>If you're a stranger read it and let me know what you think. </li>
<br />15. Piercy, Marge. Woman on the Edge of Time <br />
<li>A woman in a mental health facility can communicate with the future </li>
<li>The future's full of hippies. </li>
<li>I would be happy living in this hippy future. </li>
<li>Four stars </li>
<br />16. Rand, Ayn. The Fountainhead <br />
<li>Almost the same book as Atlas Shrugged </li>
<li>I liked Atlas Shrugged more </li>
<li>But both are very good </li>
<li>Dominique perplexed me. </li>
<li>I can't unsee unnecessary columns in architecture now. </li>
<br />17. Roach, Mary. Bonk<br />18. Roach, Mary. Spook <br />
<li>Bonk is about sex, Spook is about ghosts/the afterlife </li>
<li>Both are very funny, very well researched, and highly recommended. </li>
<li>Both are full of fun little tidbits you can bust out during lulls in conversation </li>
<li>Professional pig inseminators are trained to stimulate the pigs during the process because if the pigs climax they have higher fertility </li>
<li>I probably wouldn’t bust that one out in conversation unless my goal was to end it. </li>
<br />19. Robbins, Tom. Fierce Invalids Home From Hot Climates <br />
<li>A man named Switters goes on adventures </li>
<li>I loved it. Tom Robbins is a very creative man and I'm gonna read many more of his books when I return to the land of libraries. </li>
<li>Seriously, where does he get his ideas?! </li>
<br />20. Schlessinger, Laura. Ten Stupid Things Women Do To Mess Up Their Lives <br />
<li>All of the ten stupid things have to do with mate choices </li>
<li>"don't marry an elephant and expect it to curl up and purr in your lap" </li>
<li>"don't jump in an empty swimming pool hoping that water will materialize before you hit bottom." </li>
<li>Sound, logical advice. But she also encourages women to take time off work to full-time mother, which I don't agree with. </li>
<br />21. Vonnegut, Kurt. Breakfast of Champions <br />
<li>Short and full of pictures. </li>
<li>Good, but doesn't live up to the hype </li>
<li>Three and a half stars </li>
<br />22. Zafon, Carlos. The Shadow of the Wind <br />
<li>A young man tries to protect his favorite book from a villain set on destroying it </li>
<li>It sounds lame, but it’s actually a really good, suspenseful book. Four and a half stars. </li>
<li>The young man thinks that every woman he comes in contact with is in love with him, which is annoying. </li>
<li>If Mr. Zafron writes from experience, he must be either gorgeous or have a really overinflated ego. </li>
<li>Google images tells me it's the latter. </li>
<br />23. Zelinski, Ernie. The Joy of Not Working
<li>If you’re bored while not working, find hobbies you enjoy. </li>
<li>Done. </li>
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Barbara Michelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00803322911842204947noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7852871663170610262.post-64699699415442739472016-03-07T01:45:00.000-08:002016-04-24T03:06:10.809-07:00School murals<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<span style="text-align: center;">During training two years ago, retiring PCVs encouraged us new volunteers to do murals the first few months while we were learning the language. Now it's almost two years later, and I know the language, but I still love murals. My </span><a href="http://barbarapeacecorps.blogspot.sn/2015/08/drawing-diarrhea.html" style="text-align: center;">health hut mural project</a><span style="text-align: center;"> was one of my favorite things I've done with my service, and in recent weeks I've been doing educational murals at local elementary schools, as well.</span><br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjs5lcUbLhQEt-JqC6hdtbN-L1nwyV6PU_lIc-2Y_jjF5wGo6tlC4KvEdcf320Ra-KkkoFoTaAYoXMH9cBVLnl__QKKEB084wwUi7hhN5l7_ALTaSeEd_1yuDmi8hTaPTEJtOjtiIuAoug1/s1600/P1010235.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="212" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjs5lcUbLhQEt-JqC6hdtbN-L1nwyV6PU_lIc-2Y_jjF5wGo6tlC4KvEdcf320Ra-KkkoFoTaAYoXMH9cBVLnl__QKKEB084wwUi7hhN5l7_ALTaSeEd_1yuDmi8hTaPTEJtOjtiIuAoug1/s320/P1010235.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Counting/vegetables</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhuzHVL_jpwdqgBXselJ8rKbJNdYICgkeEl3gzLIw8U9yBKFwYGIq2ufGBWZ6j0UkHRf2sLFLgfdLAZ4X1Cc6RVbWNXK0zPO6hNdjCSvwiE6XQasQdzjLCE-aL4gs0C6eMy_TvCf6z8GaCT/s1600/P1010236.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="212" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhuzHVL_jpwdqgBXselJ8rKbJNdYICgkeEl3gzLIw8U9yBKFwYGIq2ufGBWZ6j0UkHRf2sLFLgfdLAZ4X1Cc6RVbWNXK0zPO6hNdjCSvwiE6XQasQdzjLCE-aL4gs0C6eMy_TvCf6z8GaCT/s320/P1010236.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">close up</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5uQiSj6OLJMxBow4zZ2g_qBmDZqMmy0VbaE09GCIIcJwTK63zvOAxykSS4_J9U8kqFjXHg8qKZb6ZFTYi9I1ndPSOAhLIbL5qL4vzaMHXJn8sWvz4pACB7lB3HGfRdQ5_CxDULfHijCeD/s1600/afrique.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5uQiSj6OLJMxBow4zZ2g_qBmDZqMmy0VbaE09GCIIcJwTK63zvOAxykSS4_J9U8kqFjXHg8qKZb6ZFTYi9I1ndPSOAhLIbL5qL4vzaMHXJn8sWvz4pACB7lB3HGfRdQ5_CxDULfHijCeD/s320/afrique.jpg" width="212" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A billion people, a million languages, fifty four countries, one amazing continent.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh2bTxpmxBUvpk0EsZxHvIBwF-yvwDdT3vt9xw7oJN8KOn19W_1KUQyLmQeBrBAELre_P1REeNwngMIC6wtzyQWJMHdmZ5ZPgYkLqcfSOSJY686blfBM4YiI-hB9Ta9B2pundMqceDmonnU/s1600/P1030450.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh2bTxpmxBUvpk0EsZxHvIBwF-yvwDdT3vt9xw7oJN8KOn19W_1KUQyLmQeBrBAELre_P1REeNwngMIC6wtzyQWJMHdmZ5ZPgYkLqcfSOSJY686blfBM4YiI-hB9Ta9B2pundMqceDmonnU/s320/P1030450.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">I have been in 12 of the 14 regions.</td></tr>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEizraxjzSGQASJ-DJ6FN4U7EnnnE1HrcL9bxTDM5YxD8DsyiDR8aigBqcAzGbBj55Ja2mJcSLNMIddifOgIsHRmete_zCnl6EyPwi333_2ctBYIc4NH_qyRww_Fq-EFy1lI2q2OqzD0H7ZI/s1600/P1010241.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="212" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEizraxjzSGQASJ-DJ6FN4U7EnnnE1HrcL9bxTDM5YxD8DsyiDR8aigBqcAzGbBj55Ja2mJcSLNMIddifOgIsHRmete_zCnl6EyPwi333_2ctBYIc4NH_qyRww_Fq-EFy1lI2q2OqzD0H7ZI/s320/P1010241.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Alphabet</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi37BsBk2ahU0Ld83viEjoO5gyf5yf57BlkIDenrtEJvmtkIT1pOjRpidLQ53fjNEzVmoz-nWDOJLgILn6khlTkfNRkVGW5dzEnZtxlkEIZlvASXCJls3e9wt91ZC2W0t_sp2YW3N8TnCNn/s1600/P1030389.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi37BsBk2ahU0Ld83viEjoO5gyf5yf57BlkIDenrtEJvmtkIT1pOjRpidLQ53fjNEzVmoz-nWDOJLgILn6khlTkfNRkVGW5dzEnZtxlkEIZlvASXCJls3e9wt91ZC2W0t_sp2YW3N8TnCNn/s320/P1030389.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Domestic Animals</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJLyh0yZd64WKnTYcQem5OZIFz9CRC5PY7U08HmmIcHV1I9domVnZDQR-t7JJlfTDdzx5_kNbhFbk388qKo1bdshYjnkAtjw0SLz6E3e_ATQIRp6m5qgNSPODp6bjjQWrpDyjNfiFiBTxO/s1600/P1030448.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJLyh0yZd64WKnTYcQem5OZIFz9CRC5PY7U08HmmIcHV1I9domVnZDQR-t7JJlfTDdzx5_kNbhFbk388qKo1bdshYjnkAtjw0SLz6E3e_ATQIRp6m5qgNSPODp6bjjQWrpDyjNfiFiBTxO/s320/P1030448.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">My host sister Medo had the day off from school and helped me with the Kolda map<br />
<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjXCgD8vlyKnvBpWmtOIHPdFH76QeYMYbmFBnzS6tBwn-X1xSYzuNh3e1PrE-tlI9uBm-UVFM0i38lv3UEXi6Kz40cvn-fImxSvdnIvzL1x8F4dHQmqKuv7jivFSz-8pe4MCEOufDKoCZQq/s1600/P1030451.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="font-size: medium; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjXCgD8vlyKnvBpWmtOIHPdFH76QeYMYbmFBnzS6tBwn-X1xSYzuNh3e1PrE-tlI9uBm-UVFM0i38lv3UEXi6Kz40cvn-fImxSvdnIvzL1x8F4dHQmqKuv7jivFSz-8pe4MCEOufDKoCZQq/s320/P1030451.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEixCi5kpsBE8-5RW2d_2TkNvKMXI9zfo2jBYuxPdwGsW2dKuQHQFoi2UappUv19o2A1Zzm69QyJtv2mtwKhXSOF4TYqY160jNc880Tl5gsnJ-KFnpbn79BipS7pZSuCLmHcwTv7WlHHBgFP/s1600/P1010238.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEixCi5kpsBE8-5RW2d_2TkNvKMXI9zfo2jBYuxPdwGsW2dKuQHQFoi2UappUv19o2A1Zzm69QyJtv2mtwKhXSOF4TYqY160jNc880Tl5gsnJ-KFnpbn79BipS7pZSuCLmHcwTv7WlHHBgFP/s320/P1010238.JPG" width="212" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Rainbow</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
I have plans to do a human digestive system and life cycle of a frog before I COS. Pictures of those will come up as soon as they're done.Barbara Michelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00803322911842204947noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7852871663170610262.post-19449752182508027022016-03-05T07:22:00.001-08:002016-03-05T07:22:14.480-08:00You're not a PC Senegal volunteer until..<div class="WordSection1">
<div class="MsoNormal">
I wrote this article for Peace Corps Senegal's volunteer-only newsletter. Tally up your points and see how you're doing! I got 141.<br />
<br />
HYGIENE<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<table border="1" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="MsoTableGrid" style="border-collapse: collapse; border: none; margin-left: .5in; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-padding-alt: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; mso-yfti-tbllook: 1184;">
<tbody>
<tr>
<td style="border: solid windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 193.25pt;" valign="top" width="258"><div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpFirst" style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt;">
<b>Ladies
Only:<o:p></o:p></b></div>
</td>
<td style="border-left: none; border: solid windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 23.0pt;" valign="top" width="31"><div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt;">
<br /></div>
</td>
<td style="border-left: none; border: solid windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 188.5pt;" valign="top" width="251"><div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt;">
<b>Gents
Only:<o:p></o:p></b></div>
</td>
<td style="border-left: none; border: solid windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 26.75pt;" valign="top" width="36"><div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt;">
<br /></div>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="border-top: none; border: solid windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 193.25pt;" valign="top" width="258"><div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpFirst" style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt;">
Gotten braided <o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
<td style="border-bottom: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-left: none; border-right: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 23.0pt;" valign="top" width="31"><div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt;">
1<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
<td style="border-bottom: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-left: none; border-right: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 188.5pt;" valign="top" width="251"><div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt;">
Grown the most magnificent beard of
your life<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
<td style="border-bottom: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-left: none; border-right: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 26.75pt;" valign="top" width="36"><div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt;">
1<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="border-top: none; border: solid windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 193.25pt;" valign="top" width="258"><div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpFirst" style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt;">
Grown leg/underarm hair at least an
inch long<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
<td style="border-bottom: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-left: none; border-right: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 23.0pt;" valign="top" width="31"><div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt;">
2<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
<td style="border-bottom: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-left: none; border-right: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 188.5pt;" valign="top" width="251"><div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt;">
Grown hair long enough for a man bun<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
<td style="border-bottom: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-left: none; border-right: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 26.75pt;" valign="top" width="36"><div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt;">
2<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="border-top: none; border: solid windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 193.25pt;" valign="top" width="258"><div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpFirst" style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt;">
Gotten hennaed<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
<td style="border-bottom: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-left: none; border-right: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 23.0pt;" valign="top" width="31"><div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt;">
2<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
<td style="border-bottom: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-left: none; border-right: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 188.5pt;" valign="top" width="251"><div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt;">
Worn jellies <o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
<td style="border-bottom: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-left: none; border-right: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 26.75pt;" valign="top" width="36"><div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt;">
2<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="border-top: none; border: solid windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 193.25pt;" valign="top" width="258"><div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpFirst" style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt;">
Worn locally acquired makeup<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
<td style="border-bottom: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-left: none; border-right: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 23.0pt;" valign="top" width="31"><div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt;">
3<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
<td style="border-bottom: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-left: none; border-right: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 188.5pt;" valign="top" width="251"><div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt;">
Worn traditional headwear (scarf, old
man hat, etc)<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
<td style="border-bottom: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-left: none; border-right: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 26.75pt;" valign="top" width="36"><div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt;">
2<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="border-top: none; border: solid windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 193.25pt;" valign="top" width="258"><div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpFirst" style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt;">
Gotten braided with
fake hair<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
<td style="border-bottom: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-left: none; border-right: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 23.0pt;" valign="top" width="31"><div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt;">
3<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
<td style="border-bottom: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-left: none; border-right: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 188.5pt;" valign="top" width="251"><div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt;">
Shaved with a 25 CFA boutique razor<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
<td style="border-bottom: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-left: none; border-right: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 26.75pt;" valign="top" width="36"><div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt;">
3<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="border-top: none; border: solid windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 193.25pt;" valign="top" width="258"><div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpFirst" style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt;">
SUBTOTAL:<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt;">
<br /></div>
</td>
<td style="border-bottom: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-left: none; border-right: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 23.0pt;" valign="top" width="31"><div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt;">
<br /></div>
</td>
<td style="border-bottom: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-left: none; border-right: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 188.5pt;" valign="top" width="251"><div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt;">
<br /></div>
</td>
<td style="border-bottom: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-left: none; border-right: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 26.75pt;" valign="top" width="36"><div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt;">
<br /></div>
</td>
</tr>
</tbody></table>
</div>
<span style="font-family: "calibri" , sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><br clear="all" style="mso-break-type: section-break; page-break-before: auto;" />
</span>
<br />
<div class="WordSection2">
<div class="MsoNormal">
HYGIENE<o:p></o:p></div>
</div>
<span style="font-family: "calibri" , sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><br clear="all" style="mso-break-type: section-break; page-break-before: auto;" />
</span>
<br />
<table border="1" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="MsoTableGrid" style="border-collapse: collapse; border: none; margin-left: .25in; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-padding-alt: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; mso-yfti-tbllook: 1184;">
<tbody>
<tr>
<td style="border: solid windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 229.25pt;" valign="top" width="306"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
Picked your nose in public<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
<td style="border-left: none; border: solid windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 27.0pt;" valign="top" width="36"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
1<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="border-top: none; border: solid windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 229.25pt;" valign="top" width="306"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
Not showered for two or more days in a row<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
<td style="border-bottom: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-left: none; border-right: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 27.0pt;" valign="top" width="36"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
1<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="border-top: none; border: solid windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 229.25pt;" valign="top" width="306"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
Gone a week or more without washing your hair<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
<td style="border-bottom: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-left: none; border-right: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 27.0pt;" valign="top" width="36"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
1<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="border-top: none; border: solid windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 229.25pt;" valign="top" width="306"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
Had your hair cut by a volunteer<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
<td style="border-bottom: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-left: none; border-right: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 27.0pt;" valign="top" width="36"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
1<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="border-top: none; border: solid windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 229.25pt;" valign="top" width="306"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
Brushed your teeth with a stick<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
<td style="border-bottom: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-left: none; border-right: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 27.0pt;" valign="top" width="36"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
2<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="border-top: none; border: solid windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 229.25pt;" valign="top" width="306"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
Worn clothes that mice have chewed holes in<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
<td style="border-bottom: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-left: none; border-right: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 27.0pt;" valign="top" width="36"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
2<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="border-top: none; border: solid windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 229.25pt;" valign="top" width="306"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
Picked a temporary outfit out of Senegad because your clothes were
dirty and you were too lazy to do laundry, then put it back in the pile
unwashed when you were done with it<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
<td style="border-bottom: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-left: none; border-right: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 27.0pt;" valign="top" width="36"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
2<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="border-top: none; border: solid windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 229.25pt;" valign="top" width="306"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
Had a HCN tease you that your feet were too dirty<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
<td style="border-bottom: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-left: none; border-right: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 27.0pt;" valign="top" width="36"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
2<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="border-top: none; border: solid windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 229.25pt;" valign="top" width="306"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
Gotten so sweaty there were white salt stains on your clothes<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
<td style="border-bottom: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-left: none; border-right: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 27.0pt;" valign="top" width="36"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
3<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="border-top: none; border: solid windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 229.25pt;" valign="top" width="306"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
Worn underwear you found in a Fukijai<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
<td style="border-bottom: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-left: none; border-right: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 27.0pt;" valign="top" width="36"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
3<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="border-top: none; border: solid windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 229.25pt;" valign="top" width="306"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
MacGyvered feminine hygiene products in a moment of desperation<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
<td style="border-bottom: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-left: none; border-right: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 27.0pt;" valign="top" width="36"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
4<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="border-top: none; border: solid windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 229.25pt;" valign="top" width="306"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
SUBTOTAL:<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<br /></div>
</td>
<td style="border-bottom: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-left: none; border-right: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 27.0pt;" valign="top" width="36"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<br /></div>
</td>
</tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
MED ISSUES<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<table border="1" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="MsoTableGrid" style="border-collapse: collapse; border: none; margin-left: .25in; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-padding-alt: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; mso-yfti-tbllook: 1184;">
<tbody>
<tr>
<td style="border: solid windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 229.25pt;" valign="top" width="306"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
Forgotten to take your malaria prophylaxis<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
<td style="border-left: none; border: solid windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 27.0pt;" valign="top" width="36"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
1<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="border-top: none; border: solid windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 229.25pt;" valign="top" width="306"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
Had diarrhea more than 10 times in one day<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
<td style="border-bottom: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-left: none; border-right: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 27.0pt;" valign="top" width="36"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
2<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="border-top: none; border: solid windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 229.25pt;" valign="top" width="306"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
Taken Cipro<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
<td style="border-bottom: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-left: none; border-right: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 27.0pt;" valign="top" width="36"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
2<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="border-top: none; border: solid windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 229.25pt;" valign="top" width="306"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
Gotten a “gold star”<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
<td style="border-bottom: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-left: none; border-right: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 27.0pt;" valign="top" width="36"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
2<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="border-top: none; border: solid windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 229.25pt;" valign="top" width="306"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
Cut yourself while chopping onions with a knife so dull it could
barely cut butter<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
<td style="border-bottom: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-left: none; border-right: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 27.0pt;" valign="top" width="36"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
2<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="border-top: none; border: solid windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 229.25pt;" valign="top" width="306"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
Scratched a mosquito bite which then became infected<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
<td style="border-bottom: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-left: none; border-right: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 27.0pt;" valign="top" width="36"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
2<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="border-top: none; border: solid windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 229.25pt;" valign="top" width="306"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
Gargoyled<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
<td style="border-bottom: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-left: none; border-right: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 27.0pt;" valign="top" width="36"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
3<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="border-top: none; border: solid windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 229.25pt;" valign="top" width="306"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
Gotten schisto <o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
<td style="border-bottom: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-left: none; border-right: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 27.0pt;" valign="top" width="36"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
3<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="border-top: none; border: solid windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 229.25pt;" valign="top" width="306"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
Done a MIF kit<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
<td style="border-bottom: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-left: none; border-right: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 27.0pt;" valign="top" width="36"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
3<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="border-top: none; border: solid windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 229.25pt;" valign="top" width="306"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
Bought medication at a pharmacy without med knowing about it<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
<td style="border-bottom: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-left: none; border-right: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 27.0pt;" valign="top" width="36"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
3<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="border-top: none; border: solid windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 229.25pt;" valign="top" width="306"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
SUBTOTAL:<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<br /></div>
</td>
<td style="border-bottom: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-left: none; border-right: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 27.0pt;" valign="top" width="36"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<br /></div>
</td>
</tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
HABITS THAT PROBABLY WON’T CONTINUE BACK HOME<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<table border="1" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="MsoTableGrid" style="border-collapse: collapse; border: none; margin-left: 17.75pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-padding-alt: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; mso-table-layout-alt: fixed; mso-yfti-tbllook: 1184;">
<tbody>
<tr>
<td style="border: solid windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 229.5pt;" valign="top" width="306"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
Smallboyed a child to the boutique<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
<td style="border-left: none; border: solid windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 49.5pt;" valign="top" width="66"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt 0.25in;">
1<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="border-top: none; border: solid windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 229.5pt;" valign="top" width="306"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
Paid someone to do your laundry<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
<td style="border-bottom: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-left: none; border-right: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 49.5pt;" valign="top" width="66"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt 0.25in;">
1<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="border-top: none; border: solid windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 229.5pt;" valign="top" width="306"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
Requested something unnecessary from med just to see if you could get
it<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
<td style="border-bottom: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-left: none; border-right: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 49.5pt;" valign="top" width="66"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: center;">
1<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="border-top: none; border: solid windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 229.5pt;" valign="top" width="306"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: left;">
Taken an extra piece of Thies Training Center fruit for after-bar<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
<td style="border-bottom: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-left: none; border-right: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 49.5pt;" valign="top" width="66"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: center;">
1<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="border-top: none; border: solid windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 229.5pt;" valign="top" width="306"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
Gotten news via a breakfast sandwich wrapper (ie world
event, celebrity gossip)<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
<td style="border-bottom: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-left: none; border-right: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 49.5pt;" valign="top" width="66"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: center;">
2<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="border-top: none; border: solid windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 229.5pt;" valign="top" width="306"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
Eaten plain dry milk powder<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
<td style="border-bottom: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-left: none; border-right: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 49.5pt;" valign="top" width="66"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt 0.25in;">
2<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="border-top: none; border: solid windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 229.5pt;" valign="top" width="306"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
Eaten a mayonnaise-only breakfast sandwich<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
<td style="border-bottom: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-left: none; border-right: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 49.5pt;" valign="top" width="66"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt 0.25in;">
2<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="border-top: none; border: solid windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 229.5pt;" valign="top" width="306"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
Casually littered in an inappropriate location (for example, while on
vacation in Spain)<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
<td style="border-bottom: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-left: none; border-right: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 49.5pt;" valign="top" width="66"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt 0.25in;">
2<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="border-top: none; border: solid windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 229.5pt;" valign="top" width="306"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
Shared a <i>crème glas</i> with
someone<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
<td style="border-bottom: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-left: none; border-right: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 49.5pt;" valign="top" width="66"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt 0.25in;">
2<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="border-top: none; border: solid windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 229.5pt;" valign="top" width="306"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
Told someone it looks like they’ve gained weight and meant it as a
genuine compliment<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
<td style="border-bottom: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-left: none; border-right: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 49.5pt;" valign="top" width="66"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt 0.25in;">
2<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="border-top: none; border: solid windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 229.5pt;" valign="top" width="306"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
Chose to eat with your hand rather than with a spoon<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
<td style="border-bottom: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-left: none; border-right: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 49.5pt;" valign="top" width="66"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt 0.25in;">
2<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="border-top: none; border: solid windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 229.5pt;" valign="top" width="306"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
Called someone a slave, then laughed about it together<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
<td style="border-bottom: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-left: none; border-right: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 49.5pt;" valign="top" width="66"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt 0.25in;">
3<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="border-top: none; border: solid windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 229.5pt;" valign="top" width="306"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt 0.25in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt 0.25in;">
SUBTOTAL:<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt 0.25in;">
<br /></div>
</td>
<td style="border-bottom: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-left: none; border-right: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 49.5pt;" valign="top" width="66"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt 0.25in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<br /></div>
</td>
</tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
ABILITIES<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<table border="1" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="MsoTableGrid" style="border-collapse: collapse; border: none; margin-left: .25in; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-padding-alt: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; mso-yfti-tbllook: 1184;">
<tbody>
<tr>
<td style="border: solid windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 229.25pt;" valign="top" width="306"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
Picked cotton <o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
<td style="border-left: none; border: solid windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 51.2pt;" valign="top" width="68"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
1<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="border-top: none; border: solid windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 229.25pt;" valign="top" width="306"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
Set all the high scores on Snake to 3000+<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
<td style="border-bottom: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-left: none; border-right: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 51.2pt;" valign="top" width="68"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
1<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="border-top: none; border: solid windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 229.25pt;" valign="top" width="306"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
Carried a bucket of water on your head<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
<td style="border-bottom: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-left: none; border-right: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 51.2pt;" valign="top" width="68"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
1<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="border-top: none; border: solid windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 229.25pt;" valign="top" width="306"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
Can competently make <i>attaya</i><o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
<td style="border-bottom: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-left: none; border-right: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 51.2pt;" valign="top" width="68"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
2<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="border-top: none; border: solid windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 229.25pt;" valign="top" width="306"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
Successfully knocked a baobab fruit off a tree with a thrown stick<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
<td style="border-bottom: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-left: none; border-right: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 51.2pt;" valign="top" width="68"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
2<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="border-top: none; border: solid windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 229.25pt;" valign="top" width="306"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
Held a deep “latrine squat” for longer than 10
minutes<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
<td style="border-bottom: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-left: none; border-right: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 51.2pt;" valign="top" width="68"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
2<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="border-top: none; border: solid windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 229.25pt;" valign="top" width="306"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
Carried firewood on your head<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
<td style="border-bottom: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-left: none; border-right: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 51.2pt;" valign="top" width="68"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
2<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="border-top: none; border: solid windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 229.25pt;" valign="top" width="306"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
Killed a cockroach<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
<td style="border-bottom: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-left: none; border-right: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 51.2pt;" valign="top" width="68"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
2<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="border-top: none; border: solid windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 229.25pt;" valign="top" width="306"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
Milked a cow<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
<td style="border-bottom: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-left: none; border-right: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 51.2pt;" valign="top" width="68"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
2<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="border-top: none; border: solid windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 229.25pt;" valign="top" width="306"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
Danced in front of 100+ people<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
<td style="border-bottom: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-left: none; border-right: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 51.2pt;" valign="top" width="68"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
2<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="border-top: none; border: solid windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 229.25pt;" valign="top" width="306"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
Gave an impromptu speech in front of 50+ people <o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
<td style="border-bottom: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-left: none; border-right: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 51.2pt;" valign="top" width="68"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
2<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="border-top: none; border: solid windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 229.25pt;" valign="top" width="306"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
Can sit comfortably on butt with both legs straight out in front of
you, back straight, no arms out for support<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
<td style="border-bottom: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-left: none; border-right: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 51.2pt;" valign="top" width="68"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
3<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="border-top: none; border: solid windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 229.25pt;" valign="top" width="306"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
Cooked a meal for your host family<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
<td style="border-bottom: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-left: none; border-right: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 51.2pt;" valign="top" width="68"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
3<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="border-top: none; border: solid windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 229.25pt;" valign="top" width="306"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
Can catch a chicken<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
<td style="border-bottom: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-left: none; border-right: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 51.2pt;" valign="top" width="68"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
3<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="border-top: none; border: solid windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 229.25pt;" valign="top" width="306"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
Without a trap (ie, with a shoe or stick) killed a mouse<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
<td style="border-bottom: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-left: none; border-right: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 51.2pt;" valign="top" width="68"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
3<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="border-top: none; border: solid windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 229.25pt;" valign="top" width="306"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
Have slaughtered an animal<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
<td style="border-bottom: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-left: none; border-right: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 51.2pt;" valign="top" width="68"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
4 (men) 5 (women)<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="border-top: none; border: solid windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 229.25pt;" valign="top" width="306"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
Learned how to program your voicemail<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
<td style="border-bottom: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-left: none; border-right: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 51.2pt;" valign="top" width="68"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
5<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="border-top: none; border: solid windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 229.25pt;" valign="top" width="306"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
SUBTOTAL:<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<br /></div>
</td>
<td style="border-bottom: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-left: none; border-right: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 51.2pt;" valign="top" width="68"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<br /></div>
</td>
</tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
TRANSPORTATION<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<table border="1" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="MsoTableGrid" style="border-collapse: collapse; border: none; margin-left: .25in; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-padding-alt: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; mso-yfti-tbllook: 1184;">
<tbody>
<tr>
<td style="border: solid windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 229.25pt;" valign="top" width="306"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
Ridden on a charrette<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
<td style="border-left: none; border: solid windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 51.2pt;" valign="top" width="68"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
1<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="border-top: none; border: solid windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 229.25pt;" valign="top" width="306"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
Asked a HCN to borrow their bike pump<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
<td style="border-bottom: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-left: none; border-right: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 51.2pt;" valign="top" width="68"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
1<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="border-top: none; border: solid windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 229.25pt;" valign="top" width="306"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
Hitchhiked in a private car<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
<td style="border-bottom: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-left: none; border-right: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 51.2pt;" valign="top" width="68"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
1<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="border-top: none; border: solid windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 229.25pt;" valign="top" width="306"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
Biked somewhere with your helmet dangling on your handlebars, just in
case<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
<td style="border-bottom: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-left: none; border-right: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 51.2pt;" valign="top" width="68"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
1<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="border-top: none; border: solid windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 229.25pt;" valign="top" width="306"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
Chewed out a garage employee in local language…<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
<td style="border-bottom: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-left: none; border-right: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 51.2pt;" valign="top" width="68"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
1<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="border-top: none; border: solid windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 229.25pt;" valign="top" width="306"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
…then switched to enraged English because your local language wasn’t
powerful enough to convey the strength of your wrath<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
<td style="border-bottom: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-left: none; border-right: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 51.2pt;" valign="top" width="68"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
1<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="border-top: none; border: solid windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 229.25pt;" valign="top" width="306"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
…then switched to incoherent shouts and grunts because English wasn’t
powerful enough, either<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
<td style="border-bottom: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-left: none; border-right: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 51.2pt;" valign="top" width="68"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
1<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="border-top: none; border: solid windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 229.25pt;" valign="top" width="306"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
Hung off the back of a minicar<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
<td style="border-bottom: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-left: none; border-right: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 51.2pt;" valign="top" width="68"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
1 (men) 2 (women)<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="border-top: none; border: solid windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 229.25pt;" valign="top" width="306"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
Sat on the top of a minicar<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
<td style="border-bottom: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-left: none; border-right: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 51.2pt;" valign="top" width="68"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
2 (men) 3 (women)<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="border-top: none; border: solid windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 229.25pt;" valign="top" width="306"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
Tied something to the back of your bike large enough you needed two
people to secure it<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
<td style="border-bottom: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-left: none; border-right: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 51.2pt;" valign="top" width="68"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
2<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="border-top: none; border: solid windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 229.25pt;" valign="top" width="306"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
Been in a 10+ person 7place<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
<td style="border-bottom: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-left: none; border-right: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 51.2pt;" valign="top" width="68"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
2<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="border-top: none; border: solid windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 229.25pt;" valign="top" width="306"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
Fallen asleep on a stranger<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
<td style="border-bottom: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-left: none; border-right: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 51.2pt;" valign="top" width="68"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
2<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="border-top: none; border: solid windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 229.25pt;" valign="top" width="306"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
Had a stranger fall asleep on you<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
<td style="border-bottom: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-left: none; border-right: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 51.2pt;" valign="top" width="68"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
2<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="border-top: none; border: solid windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 229.25pt;" valign="top" width="306"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
Taken a night bus<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
<td style="border-bottom: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-left: none; border-right: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 51.2pt;" valign="top" width="68"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
2<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="border-top: none; border: solid windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 229.25pt;" valign="top" width="306"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
Spent a night in a garage<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
<td style="border-bottom: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-left: none; border-right: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 51.2pt;" valign="top" width="68"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
2<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="border-top: none; border: solid windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 229.25pt;" valign="top" width="306"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
Taken over 12 hours to reach your destination<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
<td style="border-bottom: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-left: none; border-right: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 51.2pt;" valign="top" width="68"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
2<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="border-top: none; border: solid windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 229.25pt;" valign="top" width="306"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
Biked 50K or more in one day<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
<td style="border-bottom: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-left: none; border-right: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 51.2pt;" valign="top" width="68"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
2<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="border-top: none; border: solid windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 229.25pt;" valign="top" width="306"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
Got hit by a moto<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
<td style="border-bottom: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-left: none; border-right: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 51.2pt;" valign="top" width="68"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
2<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
</tr>
<tr style="height: 3.5pt; mso-yfti-irow: 18;">
<td style="border-top: none; border: solid windowtext 1.0pt; height: 3.5pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 229.25pt;" valign="top" width="306"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
Hitchhiked in a semi truck<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
<td style="border-bottom: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-left: none; border-right: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-top: none; height: 3.5pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 51.2pt;" valign="top" width="68"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
2<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="border-top: none; border: solid windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 229.25pt;" valign="top" width="306"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
Hitchhiked in an NGO car<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
<td style="border-bottom: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-left: none; border-right: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 51.2pt;" valign="top" width="68"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
3<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="border-top: none; border: solid windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 229.25pt;" valign="top" width="306"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
Ferried over the River Gambie<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
<td style="border-bottom: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-left: none; border-right: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 51.2pt;" valign="top" width="68"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
3<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="border-top: none; border: solid windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 229.25pt;" valign="top" width="306"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
SUBTOTAL: <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<br /></div>
</td>
<td style="border-bottom: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-left: none; border-right: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 51.2pt;" valign="top" width="68"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<br /></div>
</td>
</tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
SEEN<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<table border="1" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="MsoTableGrid" style="border-collapse: collapse; border: none; margin-left: .25in; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-padding-alt: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; mso-yfti-tbllook: 1184;">
<tbody>
<tr>
<td style="border: solid windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 243.25pt;" valign="top" width="324"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
The birth of a goat or sheep<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
<td style="border-left: none; border: solid windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 31.0pt;" valign="top" width="41"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
1<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="border-top: none; border: solid windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 243.25pt;" valign="top" width="324"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
The boobs of all the women in your compound <o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
<td style="border-bottom: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-left: none; border-right: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 31.0pt;" valign="top" width="41"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
1<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="border-top: none; border: solid windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 243.25pt;" valign="top" width="324"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
A baboon<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
<td style="border-bottom: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-left: none; border-right: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 31.0pt;" valign="top" width="41"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
1<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="border-top: none; border: solid windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 243.25pt;" valign="top" width="324"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
A monitor lizard<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
<td style="border-bottom: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-left: none; border-right: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 31.0pt;" valign="top" width="41"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
1<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="border-top: none; border: solid windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 243.25pt;" valign="top" width="324"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
A camel<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
<td style="border-bottom: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-left: none; border-right: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 31.0pt;" valign="top" width="41"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
2<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="border-top: none; border: solid windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 243.25pt;" valign="top" width="324"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
A warthog<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
<td style="border-bottom: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-left: none; border-right: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 31.0pt;" valign="top" width="41"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
2<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="border-top: none; border: solid windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 243.25pt;" valign="top" width="324"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
A hedgehog<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
<td style="border-bottom: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-left: none; border-right: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 31.0pt;" valign="top" width="41"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
2<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="border-top: none; border: solid windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 243.25pt;" valign="top" width="324"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
The birth of a cow<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
<td style="border-bottom: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-left: none; border-right: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 31.0pt;" valign="top" width="41"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
2<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="border-top: none; border: solid windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 243.25pt;" valign="top" width="324"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
Baby mice<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
<td style="border-bottom: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-left: none; border-right: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 31.0pt;" valign="top" width="41"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
2<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="border-top: none; border: solid windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 243.25pt;" valign="top" width="324"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
A snake<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
<td style="border-bottom: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-left: none; border-right: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 31.0pt;" valign="top" width="41"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
3<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="border-top: none; border: solid windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 243.25pt;" valign="top" width="324"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
A lion<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
<td style="border-bottom: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-left: none; border-right: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 31.0pt;" valign="top" width="41"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
3<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="border-top: none; border: solid windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 243.25pt;" valign="top" width="324"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
The birth of a human <o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
<td style="border-bottom: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-left: none; border-right: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 31.0pt;" valign="top" width="41"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
3<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="border-top: none; border: solid windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 243.25pt;" valign="top" width="324"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
SUBTOTAL:<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<br /></div>
</td>
<td style="border-bottom: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-left: none; border-right: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 31.0pt;" valign="top" width="41"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<br /></div>
</td>
</tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br />
INTEGRATION EXPERIENCES<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<table border="1" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="MsoTableGrid" style="border-collapse: collapse; border: none; margin-left: .25in; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-padding-alt: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; mso-yfti-tbllook: 1184;">
<tbody>
<tr>
<td style="border: solid windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 243.25pt;" valign="top" width="324"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
Held a baby less than a day old<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
<td style="border-left: none; border: solid windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 31.0pt;" valign="top" width="41"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
1<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="border-top: none; border: solid windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 243.25pt;" valign="top" width="324"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
Gone to a soiree<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
<td style="border-bottom: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-left: none; border-right: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 31.0pt;" valign="top" width="41"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
1<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="border-top: none; border: solid windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 243.25pt;" valign="top" width="324"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
Been given food/drink as a gift<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
<td style="border-bottom: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-left: none; border-right: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 31.0pt;" valign="top" width="41"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
1<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="border-top: none; border: solid windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 243.25pt;" valign="top" width="324"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
Eaten less than 10% of a food item that you’d bought not intending to
share it<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
<td style="border-bottom: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-left: none; border-right: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 31.0pt;" valign="top" width="41"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
1<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="border-top: none; border: solid windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 243.25pt;" valign="top" width="324"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
Spent over 3 hours waiting for a meeting<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
(bonus point in the meeting didn’t happen)<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
<td style="border-bottom: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-left: none; border-right: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 31.0pt;" valign="top" width="41"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
1 <o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="border-top: none; border: solid windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 243.25pt;" valign="top" width="324"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
Threatened to hit a child<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
<td style="border-bottom: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-left: none; border-right: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 31.0pt;" valign="top" width="41"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
1<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="border-top: none; border: solid windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 243.25pt;" valign="top" width="324"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
Actually hit a child<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
<td style="border-bottom: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-left: none; border-right: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 31.0pt;" valign="top" width="41"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
2<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="border-top: none; border: solid windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 243.25pt;" valign="top" width="324"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
Carried a baby on your back<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
<td style="border-bottom: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-left: none; border-right: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 31.0pt;" valign="top" width="41"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
2<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="border-top: none; border: solid windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 243.25pt;" valign="top" width="324"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
Finished a training, then had one of the participants demand that you
do the same training for the same group again<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
<td style="border-bottom: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-left: none; border-right: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 31.0pt;" valign="top" width="41"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
2<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="border-top: none; border: solid windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 243.25pt;" valign="top" width="324"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
Slept in an HCN’s bed with them<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
<td style="border-bottom: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-left: none; border-right: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 31.0pt;" valign="top" width="41"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
2<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="border-top: none; border: solid windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 243.25pt;" valign="top" width="324"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
Fallen asleep on an acquaintance’s mat or seating structure<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
<td style="border-bottom: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-left: none; border-right: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 31.0pt;" valign="top" width="41"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
2<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="border-top: none; border: solid windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 243.25pt;" valign="top" width="324"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
Crashed a wedding or naming ceremony<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
<td style="border-bottom: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-left: none; border-right: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 31.0pt;" valign="top" width="41"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
2<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="border-top: none; border: solid windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 243.25pt;" valign="top" width="324"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
Been given clothing as a gift<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
<td style="border-bottom: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-left: none; border-right: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 31.0pt;" valign="top" width="41"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
2<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="border-top: none; border: solid windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 243.25pt;" valign="top" width="324"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
Been greeted while using your latrine<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
<td style="border-bottom: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-left: none; border-right: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 31.0pt;" valign="top" width="41"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
2<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="border-top: none; border: solid windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 243.25pt;" valign="top" width="324"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
Had a HCN see you naked<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
<td style="border-bottom: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-left: none; border-right: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 31.0pt;" valign="top" width="41"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
2<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="border-top: none; border: solid windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 243.25pt;" valign="top" width="324"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
Been given an animal as a gift<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
<td style="border-bottom: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-left: none; border-right: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 31.0pt;" valign="top" width="41"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
3<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="border-top: none; border: solid windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 243.25pt;" valign="top" width="324"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
Cried in front of a crowd of HCNs<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
<td style="border-bottom: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-left: none; border-right: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 31.0pt;" valign="top" width="41"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
3<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="border-top: none; border: solid windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 243.25pt;" valign="top" width="324"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
Had ears cleaned by HCN <o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
<td style="border-bottom: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-left: none; border-right: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 31.0pt;" valign="top" width="41"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
3<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="border-top: none; border: solid windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 243.25pt;" valign="top" width="324"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
Had a baby named after you<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
<td style="border-bottom: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-left: none; border-right: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 31.0pt;" valign="top" width="41"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
3<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="border-top: none; border: solid windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 243.25pt;" valign="top" width="324"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
Kissed an HCN<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
<td style="border-bottom: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-left: none; border-right: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 31.0pt;" valign="top" width="41"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
4<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="border-top: none; border: solid windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 243.25pt;" valign="top" width="324"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
SUBTOTAL<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<br /></div>
</td>
<td style="border-bottom: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-left: none; border-right: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 31.0pt;" valign="top" width="41"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<br /></div>
</td>
</tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br />
GROSS EXPERIENCES<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<table border="1" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="MsoTableGrid" style="border-collapse: collapse; border: none; margin-left: .25in; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-padding-alt: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; mso-yfti-tbllook: 1184;">
<tbody>
<tr>
<td style="border: solid windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 243.25pt;" valign="top" width="324"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
Been thrown up on by a baby<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
<td style="border-left: none; border: solid windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 31.0pt;" valign="top" width="41"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
1<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="border-top: none; border: solid windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 243.25pt;" valign="top" width="324"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
Seen a child openly defecate<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
<td style="border-bottom: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-left: none; border-right: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 31.0pt;" valign="top" width="41"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
1<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="border-top: none; border: solid windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 243.25pt;" valign="top" width="324"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
Stepped in feces<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
<td style="border-bottom: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-left: none; border-right: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 31.0pt;" valign="top" width="41"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
2<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="border-top: none; border: solid windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 243.25pt;" valign="top" width="324"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
Been peed on by an animal<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
<td style="border-bottom: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-left: none; border-right: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 31.0pt;" valign="top" width="41"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
2<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="border-top: none; border: solid windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 243.25pt;" valign="top" width="324"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
Been peed on by a human<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
<td style="border-bottom: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-left: none; border-right: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 31.0pt;" valign="top" width="41"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
2<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="border-top: none; border: solid windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 243.25pt;" valign="top" width="324"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
Been lactated on<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
<td style="border-bottom: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-left: none; border-right: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 31.0pt;" valign="top" width="41"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
3<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="border-top: none; border: solid windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 243.25pt;" valign="top" width="324"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
Been thrown up on by an adult<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
<td style="border-bottom: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-left: none; border-right: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 31.0pt;" valign="top" width="41"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
3<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="border-top: none; border: solid windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 243.25pt;" valign="top" width="324"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
Openly defecated <o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
<td style="border-bottom: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-left: none; border-right: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 31.0pt;" valign="top" width="41"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
3<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="border-top: none; border: solid windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 243.25pt;" valign="top" width="324"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
SUBTOTAL:<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<br /></div>
</td>
<td style="border-bottom: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-left: none; border-right: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 31.0pt;" valign="top" width="41"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<br /></div>
</td>
</tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
NOOSING<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<table border="1" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="MsoTableGrid" style="border-collapse: collapse; border: none; margin-left: .25in; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-padding-alt: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; mso-yfti-tbllook: 1184;">
<tbody>
<tr>
<td style="border: solid windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 243.25pt;" valign="top" width="324"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
Been in an acquaintance’s wedding photos just because you’re a <i>toubab</i><o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
<td style="border-left: none; border: solid windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 34.4pt;" valign="top" width="46"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
1<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="border-top: none; border: solid windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 243.25pt;" valign="top" width="324"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
Brought out your computer for a village/family movie night<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
<td style="border-bottom: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-left: none; border-right: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 34.4pt;" valign="top" width="46"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
1<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="border-top: none; border: solid windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 243.25pt;" valign="top" width="324"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
Read a 500+ page book <o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
<td style="border-bottom: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-left: none; border-right: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 34.4pt;" valign="top" width="46"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
2<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="border-top: none; border: solid windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 243.25pt;" valign="top" width="324"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
Bought a marketplace knockoff, like an Adlais jump suit or Boy Ban
sunglasses<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
<td style="border-bottom: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-left: none; border-right: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 34.4pt;" valign="top" width="46"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
2<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="border-top: none; border: solid windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 243.25pt;" valign="top" width="324"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
Bought dressy flip flops, with rhinestones or triangles of colorful
plastic<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
<td style="border-bottom: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-left: none; border-right: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 34.4pt;" valign="top" width="46"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
2<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="border-top: none; border: solid windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 243.25pt;" valign="top" width="324"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
Ran out of <i>mandat</i> by the
end of the month<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
<td style="border-bottom: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-left: none; border-right: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 34.4pt;" valign="top" width="46"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
2<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="border-top: none; border: solid windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 243.25pt;" valign="top" width="324"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
Spent 600 CFA or more at a village breakfast lady<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
<td style="border-bottom: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-left: none; border-right: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 34.4pt;" valign="top" width="46"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
2<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="border-top: none; border: solid windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 243.25pt;" valign="top" width="324"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
Spent 8,000 CFA or more on a meal (food & drinks)<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
<td style="border-bottom: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-left: none; border-right: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 34.4pt;" valign="top" width="46"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
3<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="border-top: none; border: solid windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 243.25pt;" valign="top" width="324"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
Traveled eight hours or more, just for a party<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
<td style="border-bottom: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-left: none; border-right: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 34.4pt;" valign="top" width="46"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
3<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="border-top: none; border: solid windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 243.25pt;" valign="top" width="324"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
SUBTOTAL<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<br /></div>
</td>
<td style="border-bottom: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-left: none; border-right: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 34.4pt;" valign="top" width="46"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<br /></div>
</td>
</tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br />
SCORING:<br /><br />0-50: Do you even go here?<br />
51-100: You've been around the block, once.<br />
101-150: Well-seasoned volunteer<br />
151-200: Mandatory COS!</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
Barbara Michelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00803322911842204947noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7852871663170610262.post-52625352303560943392016-02-22T03:59:00.000-08:002016-12-29T08:56:04.789-08:00Eight Kadiatou traits that will probably come home with Barbara<div class="MsoNormal">
Earlier this month, I spent a week in Thies, the
second-largest city in Senegal, for my <i>stage</i>’s
Completion of Service (COS) conference. We
had sessions on job searching, resumes, and the administrative and medical
tasks to complete before we go home. Med
wants three poop samples. My health
program coordinator wants a three-page Description of Service report. The finance department wants the information
of the bank account my readjustment allowance is to be deposited into. The conference was hectic and intense, very
scheduled, very American, and it got me thinking about my return to the USA.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
I still have two months here, and I’m enjoying myself
immensely. Talking to people isn’t hard
anymore and I feel happy and well-adjusted.
I’m busier than I’ve ever been, and I know the rest of my time here will
fly by quickly. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
However, inevitably, when April 21 comes and I go home, my
alter ego Kadiatou Sabaly will cease to exist, and Barbara will come back
changed. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
The changes won’t be sweeping and dramatic. In the grand scheme of things, two years is a
very short time. I have lived in Senegal
for 26 months, or 7.5% of my life. I
haven’t forgotten who I am or where I come from. I’m still 92.5% Barbara. Re-submersion into American culture will obliterate some aspects of Kadiatou, such as excessive greeting, afternoon tea, and
permasweat. But others may persist.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
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So who is this returned Barbara going to be? Which Kadiatou traits have metastasized? What’s this new mosaic going
to look like? I don't know yet. But here are some likely possibilities:</div>
<br />
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<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: "symbol"; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;">·<span style="font-family: "times new roman"; font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal;">
</span></span><!--[endif]--><b>I’ll be
more loyal.</b> I am glad I did Peace
Corps and I definitely fell in love with Senegal over the last two years. Unfortunately, like any love, it drives me
crazy. Sometimes my rage volcano
explodes and I hate everyone and want to incinerate my whole village with
infuriated Pulaar. If Senegal were a boyfriend I’d have dumped it long ago. But
I made the commitment to stay here, and I did, and the pros have greatly
outweighed the cons. No matter how mad I’ve
gotten at my host family, the next day I’ve woken up and they were still my
family. We’ve been through a lot
together, and the resulting bond is valuable. The new Barbara will be quicker
to forgive and less apt to throw away old or inconvenient friends. <o:p></o:p></div>
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<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: "symbol"; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;">·<span style="font-family: "times new roman"; font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal;">
</span></span><!--[endif]--><b>I’ll be pretty
uncivilized. </b>I was already the gross
one in the group before I left, and now it’s probably even worse. When life is outside, farts don’t matter, so I’ve
had two years to just let ‘em fly.
Everyone picks their nose here.
When food is dropped on the ground, everyone just brushes it off and
eats it anyway. Most of my clothes are dust-stained and mouse-chewed. Since all water needs to be hand-pulled from a deep well, I've gotten used to sometimes not washing my hands when I should. Re-submersion will
probably help clean me up a little, but at first, it’s not gonna be pretty.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: "symbol"; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;">·<span style="font-family: "times new roman"; font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal;">
</span></span><!--[endif]--><b>I’ll be
more conscious of my word choice and how I am perceived. </b>My baby Pulaar is at an “advanced high”
level, according to Peace Corps, but I am not effortlessly fluent. Faced with two years of communicating with
this handicap, I’ve gotten a lot of practice at taking abstract concepts and
explaining them using simple concrete language.
This has made me a more effective communicator. The other day, a neighbor asked if I was
happy to be going home. I lacked the Pulaar
vocabulary to describe my apprehension and uncertainty, so I said, “I am a
tree. Peace Corps transplanted me two
years ago. I am here a long time. My roots are deep now. In two months Peace Corps will transplant me. I must cut my roots with a machete. That will hurt.” This skill, saying a lot while saying a little,
is useful and I hope it stays with me.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: "symbol"; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;">·<span style="font-family: "times new roman"; font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal;">
</span></span><!--[endif]--><b>I’ll tell
extremely inappropriate jokes. </b>Pulaars
love joking, and so do I, but the jokes are very different. Over time, I’ve slowly adapted Pulaar jokes
as my own, which potentially horrifying results. Nothing’s funnier than telling someone they’re
a slave, or that they’re too ugly to be even a 5<sup>th</sup> wife, or that
their head has no water, or that they’re a bandit who steals goats in the
night. Since I got such an
overwhelmingly positive response when I tentatively started to tell these
jokes, I slowly did it more and more until now I don’t blink an eye while
spewing horrible insults at my friends.
I’m sure this will not persist too long in the politically correct
America I’m returning to, but I might make a few awkward mistakes at first.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: "symbol"; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;">·<span style="font-family: "times new roman"; font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal;">
</span></span><!--[endif]--><b>I'll be anonymous. </b>Some returned volunteers report that they struggle with
not being the center of attention everywhere they go anymore. As the village <i>toubaco</i>, I always have a spotlight on me, whether I want it or
not. Usually I hate this, but it does
have some perks. My skin color makes it
easier for me to hitchhike. It gives me
an invitation to every wedding or naming ceremony in the <i>arrondissement</i>. Usually when
I meet a stranger and they see I speak Pulaar, I am thanked exuberantly just
for existing. I do not anticipate this happening
in America, and maybe it will be difficult to not be a special white snowflake
in the desert anymore. Maybe I’ll get
frustrated or lonely being only a small part of a swirling homogenous drift.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: "symbol"; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;">·<span style="font-family: "times new roman"; font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal;">
</span></span><!--[endif]--><b>I'll be less able to tell when I’m not wanted.
</b>My <i>toubaco </i>status means I’m
always a guest of honor at any event. Also, <i>Teranga
</i>(hospitality) is a tenet of Senegalese culture, and they take it very
seriously. Anyone can enter anyone’s
house, anytime, and be offered a meal, some water, and a place to rest. Two years of this as the cultural standard
has probably made me a better host, but a worse guest. I take it for granted that I will be
enthusiastically welcomed at any occasion.
The new Barbara will likely sit in your living room for hours,
obliviously overstaying her welcome, until you bluntly ask her to leave.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: "symbol"; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;">·<span style="font-family: "times new roman"; font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal;">
</span></span><!--[endif]--><b>I’ll be
more confident. </b>Two years ago, I wasn’t sure whether I was qualified for Peace
Corps and didn’t know whether I’d be able to do it. I am not the perfect volunteer…<a href="http://barbarapeacecorps.blogspot.sn/2015/11/being-perfect-volunteer.html">no one is</a>…but
I think I did a damn good job. We all
did. All Peace Corps volunteers have to figure
stuff out as they go along with little guidance. Our service is what we make of it, in the
connections we forge and the work we choose to take on.
It’s a difficult task, but we do it, and we grow more confident in our
own abilities as a result. <o:p></o:p></div>
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<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: "symbol"; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;">·<span style="font-family: "times new roman"; font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal;">
</span></span><!--[endif]--><b>I’ll be
more grateful. </b>I don’t know any
volunteer who hasn’t dreamed of a well-stocked American supermarket during
their time here. All those
vegetables! All that meat! Now I know how good I’ve always had it and am
far more appreciative instead of taking it for granted. Also, although I knew before Peace Corps I
wanted children, I used to feel overwhelmed and unsure of my ability
to raise them. Now, bring it on. I won’t be the best parent, but my American kids
are pretty much guaranteed to get an education and to enjoy wonderful medical
care. No more worries. <o:p></o:p></div>
<br />
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So, there you have it. Peace Corps is almost over, but it's not the end. I did lots of cool stuff before coming to Senegal, and I’ll
continue to do lots of cool stuff after I come home. <o:p></o:p></div>
Barbara Michelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00803322911842204947noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7852871663170610262.post-80533867225066483332016-01-30T14:11:00.000-08:002016-01-30T14:16:36.991-08:00Day in the LifeI was invited to enter a "blogging challenge" a while ago. The challenge involved being emailed a prompt twice a week, then answering it and using the #bloggingabroad hashtag to keep everything nicely compiled <a href="http://www.bloggingabroad.org/">on the blogging abroad website</a>.<br />
<br />
Since entering, I have submitted exactly zero blogs. I <u>meant</u> to, really, but...it didn't happen. I can't say that I've been busy, but I can say I've been distracted by other things. I'm tempted to use "no electricity" as an excuse, but people have written with no electricity for literally thousands of years. <br />
<br />
The third bloggingabroad prompt, neglected and abandoned in my gmail like an orphaned bunny, asked me to describe a typical day here in my Senegalese village. <a href="http://barbarapeacecorps.blogspot.sn/2014/05/a-day-in-life.html"> I already did this</a>, but a lot's changed since then. Now that I'm actually doing "work" there are more variations within each day, but still, it's all the same. Every day, I do nothing. Every day, I am busy.<br />
<br />
Here's one random day last week. I've made no attempts at brevity and included lots of little stories, so it's a long one. Sorry or You're Welcome, depending on what a long post means to you.<br />
<br />
7:15: Woke up confused and full of adrenaline from a particularly intense mefloquine dream. I'd thought I'd get up around 6:30 and I'd wanted to leave by seven, because I had a long way to bike and it's easier to do that before the sun gets hot. However, there are no real time obligations here, and it's still cold season so it wasn't all that hot anyway. I changed into some jeans that I'd brought with me to Senegal. Last year at this time, they fell off unless I had a rope tied through the belt loops. This year, I can't even zip them up. I decided to wear a forgiving muumuu and leggings instead.<br />
<br />
7:45: Biked out of my family's compound heading for Kounkane, 15 km away. I'd had the mechanic pump up my tires yesterday, so I didn't expect any problems. My bike has some issues, but I love it anyway, like the faithful jalopy in the Grapes of Wrath. There are no brakes, but who needs them when Chaco soles are so thick? There are no gears, but who needs them when the terrain is so flat? The back tire only stays inflated for about 2 weeks at a time due to a slowly leaking valve, but I always have time to take it to a mechanic. My bike is a cobbled Frankenstein of junkyard parts like most bikes here, and the valve and rim are not a match. When the tube is fully inflated the valve retreats into the rim. The first time I brought my bike with its flat tire in, the mechanic started inflating the tube and watched the valve disappear into the rim, dislodging his pump. Confused, he let all the air out again. The valve came back out. He inflated it again, and again it disappeared. Eventually, he had a friend hold the valve in place with a needle-nose pliers as he pumped. I went home impressed with his ingenuity. Two weeks later, I returned with another flat tire, and he proceeded to do the whole process all over again. The third time I brought the bike in, I helpfully suggested he use the pliers to hold the valve out, but he ignored me until he made the discovery on his own. Women don't know mechanics. Every time thereafter I just brought a book to occupy me as I waited it out. It still always takes about a half-hour for him to finally give up on normal pumping and get a friend to hold the valve with the pliers.<br />
<br />
8:00 - Stopped for a minute on my ride to Kounkane to watch beautiful thick flocks of tiny redbeaked birds, undulating in gorgeous ebbs and flows like an aerial school of fish all around me. I intensely loved Senegal for a minute. My bird book later told me the birds were Red-billed quelea, which is the most populous bird in the world after the domestic chicken and wrecks havoc on grain fields throughout Africa. Whateva, they're pretty.<br />
<br />
8:30: Wheeled my bike into Corin's host family's compound and hung out for a few minutes before walking to the breakfast stand together. Like an 80-year-old Minnesotan farmer, my mornings usually start with carbs and gossip. My breakfast sandwich wrapper informed me that they made a movie about Amy Winehouse last year. You know you've been in Peace Corps too long when the old British newspapers that sandwiches come wrapped in are a legitimate source of information. The Evening Standard also informed me about the birth of Princess Charlotte and the death of Mickey Rooney.<br />
<br />
9:00: Called Demba, my counterpart for <a href="http://barbarapeacecorps.blogspot.sn/2015/06/lets-talk-toilets.html">the big latrine project I decided to do</a>, to let him know that I'd be checking out the latrine recipients in Saare Nianthio and Saare Keita today. I'm utilizing a voucher system for this latrine project - recipients cannot receive their cement and rebar until they A) dig the hole B) pay 2,500 CFA C) construct a tippy-tap next to their latrine site D) attend a handwashing training in their village led by their village sanitation committee (who I trained on disease prevention and latrine maintenance last week) and E) have a cover for their latrine hole ready. Demba had told me that everyone had already done all the tasks on their vouchers, but I wanted to check it with my own eyes. Demba said bismillah and invited me to lunch after I finished. <br />
<br />
11:45: Finished checking out latrine sites. All of the sites really <b>did </b>have all of the items on the checklist checked off, which was incredible. Concerningly, no one had any money to give me; they said they'd given it directly to Demba. Since I was only about 3k from Demba's village and the sun was pretty hot, I decided to take him up on his lunch offer.<br />
<br />
12:15: Demba said he didn't have the latrine money, either; he gave it to the guy at the hardware store in Kounkane. This was actually a really good sign. If any extra money is laying around here, it's immediately spent or lent out to friends. Everyone is expected to share what they have, so no one has anything. Windfalls, when they arrive, are immediately sequestered into livestock or building materials. You can split an extra 50,000 CFA between needy neighbors, but you can't split a goat. Keeping money at the hardware store is better than keeping it at home, but I don't trust the hardware shop guy, either: he's got friends and family, too, and every mouth needs feeding. I hope the money will still be there when we need it to buy materials.<br />
<br />
12:45: Lunch was corn and baobab leaf sauce. Demba insisted that everyone wash their hands before eating, and I could taste that he chemically treats his drinking water. This guy is one in a million. After lunch, there was tea, but I ducked out after the first two rounds because I wanted to get back to Kounkane. During lulls in the conversation, I read Devil in the White City, a fascinating true story about a serial killer at the World's Fair expedition in Chicago. It gets five stars for this line alone: "Minneapolis at the time was small, somnolent, and full of Swedish and Norwegian farmers as charming as cornstalks." Still true, friend. Still true.<br />
<br />
3:30: Drank another glass of tea at Corin's house and talked a lot. Corin gave me some fabric a returned volunteer mailed her to give to his host family on the way back to my own site, since I'd be biking past his old village. I fully intended to leave with enough sunlight to do this, but then it didn't happen.<br />
<br />
6:00: Finally left Corin's house, racing against the sun the whole way, a strong wind in my face trying to blow me back to Kounkane. <br />
<br />
7:15: Slowly biked into my family's compound, exhausted, as the kids shouted "<i>Kadiatou Sabaly jaaaaay!</i>" My host brother Tidiane walked up and shook my sweaty hand, then said, "<i>Mbo tampi buy hannde</i>." I knew all the words, and knew that he was trying to say something was very tired today, but "mbo" can mean he, she, or it, so I wasn't sure what he was talking about. He motioned at my bike and repeated it. I looked at my back tire: a tennis-ball sized bubble of tube was sticking out through the broken treads. The road between Kounkane and Teyel is so bad I hadn't felt anything amiss. I solemnly responded that Allah loves me, so he made sure that I arrived in peace. I said if I would have known my tire was like that, I would have been scared, so Allah did not inform me. Tidiane agreed, equally solemnly. My wonderful host nephew <a href="http://barbarapeacecorps.blogspot.sn/2016/01/alpha-sabaly.html">Alpha</a> told me that it was windy enough to fly the kite today, and I was sorry I'd missed it - the last time I'd gone out kite flying with them they'd screamed the words to "Let it Go" from Frozen, a Sabaly family movie night classic. <br />
<br />
7:30: I wheeled my bike inside my hut, grabbed a bucket, and pulled some water from the well for a bucket bath, then read more Devil in the White City by my cell phone's flashlight until dinner. As I was reading, I heard loud speaker music from across town - there was a <i>soiree </i>that night. On <i>soiree </i>nights, they play music for a half-hour or so just after dark, then take a break until around 10:30. I never go to <i>soirees</i>, but the music is loud enough that I can "enjoy" it from the comforts of my own hut. This <i>soiree </i>music sounded better than most: more Rihanna, fewer whistles.<br />
<br />
8:00: I was not hungry at all, but then dinner was<i> lecciri jammbo</i>, or millet couscous with peanut-and-leaf sauce, and somehow my bowl was empty before I knew it. Maybe this is why last year's pants don't fit anymore.<br />
<br />
8:30: Finished the movie we started yesterday, "<i>Film Kevin e Banditji</i>," Kevin and the Bandits, Home Alone. Just like the Michels, the Sabalys like the second one more than the first.<br />
<br />
9:15: Read more.<br />
<br />
10??? - Fell asleep at some point.<br />
<br />
So...was this a busy day? Or a day where I did nothing? What's the difference? All I know is I'm going to miss it.<br />
<br />
81 days left.Barbara Michelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00803322911842204947noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7852871663170610262.post-85576674548594653952016-01-24T02:51:00.000-08:002016-04-25T22:49:05.340-07:00Benegal - part one.As I mentioned previously, my grad school bud Ben Downer was visiting Senegal for the entire month of December. I asked Ben to write a blog post about his month. Here's what I got, Ben's thoughts about travel in Senegal. Enjoy!<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgWHTh-Y-1m4Hfc33TeyUHa8uhqLq1g2W3CjHNx6bMy8ozn0ZlGOX0ZExzmhS9pAhhzXq1ynqQSavsGwojpw7f8NpAQVCkHjWdc4Bet7N9Bve6k8zvGF8Jc0UM7Pv3hiSi4VOWcgxrSODux/s1600/DSC03059.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgWHTh-Y-1m4Hfc33TeyUHa8uhqLq1g2W3CjHNx6bMy8ozn0ZlGOX0ZExzmhS9pAhhzXq1ynqQSavsGwojpw7f8NpAQVCkHjWdc4Bet7N9Bve6k8zvGF8Jc0UM7Pv3hiSi4VOWcgxrSODux/s320/DSC03059.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The way travel makes people feel.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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Following two days of flights and layovers just to get to Senegal, Barb informed me about the "joys" of travel throughout the country. There are a few main types of transportation, but the two I had the pleasure of experiencing were the mini-car and sept-places. A mini car is basically a large sprinter van, with the interior a combination of plywood and rust, with bus seats allowing 20 to 25 people to cram inside. This does not account for people hanging off the back or extra passengers acting as cargo and sitting on the roof rack. Think clown car in bus form. The sept-place is more a station wagon with two rear rows of seats allowing seven passengers to sardine into the vehicle along with baggage. On some occasions, the sept-place transforms into a neuf-place. However, no additional seating or room is added. Instead, nine people squeeze into seats where seven fit. The main focus of any form of travel is that you will have your space bubble shrink within your body until it is occupied by someone's elbow, rupturing your spleen. </div>
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Garages are the main transportation hub of any major area in Senegal. They function in a similar capacity to bus terminals without all of the frills associated with such a place. My introduction to the garage was in Dakar. Barb waded fearlessly into the proverbial tide of noise, filth, and frustration the garage manages to encircle and compress into a maze of cars and concrete. Everywhere I turned, someone was trying to sell me knock-off Gucci sunglasses, flashlights, cocoa butter, in addition to anything else you could pull out of a claw game at Chuck E Cheeze. I was overwhelmed. Barb, however, sliced through the din and I walked briskly behind in the open wake of people before it congealed back together. You have to walk through such places with purpose and an unwavering eye. Barb certainly had the eye of the tiger, in addition to shooting lasers out of her eyes at anyone who was trying to swindle us.</div>
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<br /></div>
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Finding your car is only step one. Everything is bartered for. Ticket price and baggage, nothing has a standard. If you don't know what the fare typically costs, good luck getting a fair price. Things were made more difficult for Barb's negotiation practices as she had a tall, white Toubab (wikipedia has an excellent explanation for this) with her to go along with her perceived Toubab-ness. I stood by staring blankly as Pulaar began to fly and insults came shortly after. It is culturally appropriate, depending on someone's last name, to say they are your slave, or they eat so many beans an ocean full is not enough, or someone is fat or ugly. The joking last name phenomenon was a strange concept to me, but in haggling with garage drivers it is an essential concept to grasp. Being able to give, and receive, the appropriate amount of shit is imperative. Barb has a firm grasp on the appropriate amount of shit to give.</div>
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<br /></div>
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Congratulations, you now paid for the ticket and only lost your arm on the price of baggage. The privilege of riding with seven other humans in a sept-place for the next few hours is your reward. Your body will start in a semi-comfortable state. Then, with every bump and twist of the road, minute adjustment of body position, or breath, you will slowly be wedged into increasingly uncomfortable positions until you are stuck, contorted like a pretzel around other bodies and luggage undergoing the same phenomenon. I never knew I could be so uncomfortable and have it happen in a way that would seem preventable; a slow motion seepage of unease and muscle cramping. </div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgDScpACdmF33qfPt8M8u9wSO72DoiFhT5RrHIcOCl1XSi9ZU5OstF6OYkDnQjzUM7SU6qP-56ANkRyAKCGlGP3QQKnprwVmQEekLFvy79UtVp5k2PdbDT2lo9oRoZltD7kjVrBJc2Yzacs/s1600/DSC03060.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgDScpACdmF33qfPt8M8u9wSO72DoiFhT5RrHIcOCl1XSi9ZU5OstF6OYkDnQjzUM7SU6qP-56ANkRyAKCGlGP3QQKnprwVmQEekLFvy79UtVp5k2PdbDT2lo9oRoZltD7kjVrBJc2Yzacs/s320/DSC03060.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Another picture Barb took of me unawares</td></tr>
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Bumps in the road is being generous. Road infrastructure in Senegal doesn't exist. In some instances, more driving gets done off the road than on it as the condition has deteriorated so severely. Potholes a foot deep, far less than comfortable space for semis and cars to coexist, people traversing whichever way they please, and motos sneaking through every gap. One hilarious side note about potholes. It is common, as I witnessed, for people to stand next to potholes with a shovel, pretending to work when a car drives by , expecting money to be thrown out the window in thanks. As soon as the watchers pass, the person stops working and waits until the next set of eyes can witness the effort.</div>
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I make travel sound like a horrendous undertaking, and in many ways it is. A few examples:</div>
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1) Wedging myself into a back seat, where the only option for my long torso fitting required my head to be at a sharp 90 degree angle for the duration of the ride. I didn't know my body could do such origami. </div>
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2) Traveling from the town of Pout, every mile or so a smashed car or truck shell was littered along the roadside. An elephant graveyard for drivers who didn't make it back into their lane following a daring pass. I believe passing is a sport in Senegal, with points being tallied for length and boldness of pass.</div>
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3) Spotting an open seat at the mini-car's rear, I plopped myself down. A few insisted that goat pee would leak through the roof onto the seat. Upon closer inspection, I couldn't find any holes and waved off the advice. Obviously, I ended up with a wet shirt and pants. The pee found a way to leak from a far off hole, down a roof strut, funneled directly above my seat, and poured as through a straw. Fortunately, the goat was well hydrated so I didn't smell of goat urine for the rest of the day while wearing my clothing.</div>
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4) Many roads in Senegal turn abruptly from paved to dirt or sand with no warning. The skillful driver either didn't notice this impending change or decided to ignore the upcoming turbulence. We left pavement and careened into a sand pothole at high speed, throwing sand over the windshield and making visibility zero. A lesser driver, or one with more common sense, would have hit the breaks, perhaps slowed down, or driven more appropriately for road conditions. Not this deity of the road. There was no lifting of his foot off the accelerator. We simply plowed ahead, the car jostling and bouncing our heads off the ceiling as we propelled forward. Finally, after much passenger yelling, the speed slowed and visibility slightly improved. All passengers were happy when pavement returned.</div>
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I could continue, but bright spots did emerge:</div>
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1) My first mini-car experience was not inside of one, rather outside of it. Catching the car as it left the garage, they forced Barb to go inside. Not me. Foot on the back bumper, arm locked onto the ladder, what a way to travel! Not in the stuffy tin can but outside with a cool breeze. The two who collected money and hauled bags had a strange ritual of clamoring over the back of the car and smacking each other on the butt repeatedly. I found this funny which only goaded them on. I have never seen so much spanking between two men. </div>
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2) Fellow passengers can be a delight. One memorable man, who most certainly paid our bribe to the cops for "suspicious baggage," had Barb laughing a good chunk of the ride. This is an accomplishment as, to quote the woman herself, "The two things I hate most in Senegal are men and travel." His little baby was adorable, though it did vomit when Barb gave the lil tyke some fruit. Not it's favorite unfortunately. </div>
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3) Picking up THE BEST RIDE EVER! waiting on the side of the road. An airconditioned truck, who drove approximately 110 km/h (which is the speed of light in Senegal travel), and blasted Lionel Richies's greatest hits. He even dropped us directly off at our desired location. I cannot overstate how much all the previous perks to the ride were enjoyed. </div>
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Barb and I also relied on human power to get from point A to B. Borrowing Tidiane's bike and making the 15 km trek to a nearby village for Christmas was one of my personal favorite travel days. The road was mostly through a gentle forest, opening onto a farming plain where cotton was stacked in fluffy blocks 8 feet high.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhsdEJ3u0zGdR26k0T_8qTyjNGpX9002GaFtc4leCCshyphenhyphen4737NYkKAbEYbMBfp6NVVwHIsL2l6YaS60YRH4PqS7Lto-7pwHcfnVrDI2KssJgV-gdPpYBNrLpA8JUDnHUUoBZyHyfz3KnC4K/s1600/DSC02940.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="font-size: 12.8px; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="360" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhsdEJ3u0zGdR26k0T_8qTyjNGpX9002GaFtc4leCCshyphenhyphen4737NYkKAbEYbMBfp6NVVwHIsL2l6YaS60YRH4PqS7Lto-7pwHcfnVrDI2KssJgV-gdPpYBNrLpA8JUDnHUUoBZyHyfz3KnC4K/s640/DSC02940.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Note the men in the middle standing next to the piles.</td></tr>
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<span style="font-size: 12.8px;">It appeared that clouds had descended from the sky to take a siesta. Though littered with potholes and motos that had a personal vendetta against bikers, the trip was a calm travel day as it was on our schedule. No waiting for a car that might not show up then gouge you for money. </span></div>
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Not to be left out, travel by foot was abundant. Attending a dennibo in a nearby village, trekking through woods with Alpha and Meadow (awesome village kids) in tow, or to health huts to paint murals, the feet were active. When traveling by foot however, a 30% time increase for greeting must be factored in.I actually enjoyed the idea of saying hello to everyone and stopping by their compound, but getting anywhere on time is impossible. This friendliness did have benefits when meeting Barb at villages a few km away. Situation one had me walking awkwardly into compounds attempting to find the village health hut. You could equate this action to walking into a stranger's backyard and proceeding to say hello, then gesture incoherently. One man showed me his field, another walked me in the complete opposite direction to his compound, but all attempted to patiently help me. Barb only found me by following my Chaco sandal prints. So, there's that plug for Chacos. The second instance I was walking to a soap informational session. I arrived early and proceeded to awkwardly share their family space for two hours. They did set up a nice shaded location for me to nap. After arriving back in Tayel from the soap session, a few in Barb's compound were relieved to see me back. It seems that my ability to jam-tan (agree) and greet had reached it's limit. People had been asking me if I was going into the woods, and with my baby Pulaar, I jam tan'ed them thinking it was a greeting. When I didn't return, a few kids had been sent to look for me. A clear sign that I don't have any idea what people say to me. Also, people placed far too much confidence in my ability to learn Pulaar <span class="aBn" data-term="goog_564684309" style="border-bottom-color: rgb(204, 204, 204); border-bottom-style: dashed; border-bottom-width: 1px; position: relative; top: -2px; z-index: 0;" tabindex="0"><span class="aQJ" style="position: relative; top: 2px; z-index: -1;">in three weeks</span></span>. </div>
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Obviously, my Pulaar would not have allowed me to endure the uncomfortable, infuriating, expensive, and often terrible experience of traveling around Senegal. If you can brave the discomfort however, an incredible and diverse country opens up to you. Thank you so much to Barb for being my travel guide and putting up with a traveling man. </div>
Barbara Michelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00803322911842204947noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7852871663170610262.post-12261841195430777522016-01-12T13:12:00.000-08:002016-01-30T13:33:41.694-08:00Alpha Sabaly<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">My grad school bro, Mr.
Ben Downer, visited Senegal for the entire month of December.
Ben plans to write a blog post about his Senevacation, so I won't get
into too much detail here; suffice it to say, it was a blast. Here are
pictures! Because Ben had a camera!</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">My favorite day of the
month was Ben's naming ceremony. A
naming ceremony is called a <i>Dennabo</i>, so we called this party his <i>Bennabo</i>. Puns are fun in any language.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">Babies here are typically given a name when they're a week old. At 26, Ben was probably too old to have a naming ceremony, but I love parties, and my village loves free food, so we did it anyway. To have a naming ceremony, it is necessary for the new baby to have a name, which means it is necessary to obtain a namesake. Traditionally, the elders of the village choose what the new baby's name will be, but I insisted on choosing Ben's. I said I was the only one who understood his personality and the personalities of my family here in Teyel. Ben's <i>tokara </i>was a no-brainer: it had to be my nephew Alpha. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><br />When Ben asked why Alpha was his namesake, why this kid was so great, I struggled to find the words to sum him up. I instead told Ben a few stories about Alpha. Here the stories are. Enjoy.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><b>Les dauphins</b><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><a href="http://barbarapeacecorps.blogspot.sn/2015/03/pulaar-movie-nights.html"><span style="color: blue;">Pulaar Movie Nights</span></a> are still going strong
in village. If my computer battery is charged, we'll usually watch
something for at least a half-hour. My village is full of movie talkers who constantly narrate the onscreen events, which I love - through movies,
I learned my more obscure Pulaar vocabulary, like <i>enyenji </i>(cannibals)
and <i>wurtude </i>(to come back to life after dying.) <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">On Pulaar Movie Nights,
I always sit next to Alpha. When I attempt to explain the movie, he listens patiently and if necessary relays my explanations back to the family,
translating my heavily accented baby Pulaar into something understandable to
everyone. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">During <i>Pirates
of the Caribbean</i>, there were a few seconds of footage of dolphins frolicking
in front of the Black Pearl. Malli, a old toothless neighbor man, stated,
"They are fish."<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">Alpha dissented.
"No. They are dolphins." He said the English word
in a French accent, just as I'd unintentionally taught him while watching
another movie a few weeks before. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">Malli persisted.
"They are in the water. They are fish." <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">"They are not
fish," insisted Alpha. "Dolphins give birth and breastfeed.
Fish lay eggs. Fish have no breasts." <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">Everyone was quiet.
After a few seconds, Alpha added, confidently: "Also, a bat is not a bird. It
gives birth and breastfeeds, too." </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">Alpha doesn't go to
school, but it's not because he's not smart enough: it’s just that he doesn't
want to. Imagine you were in his place, an inquisitive curious preteen with
endless free time to wander through the forest, in an area where the sun is
always shining and winter never comes. You probably wouldn't want to deal
with shoddy supplies and frequently unmotivated teachers, either.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><br />
Instead of school, Alpha runs his own program. He frequently walks to the
woods and comes back with pockets full of wild bush fruit. He'll offer no explanation of where he's been the
last six hours, and is rarely asked. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 13.5pt;">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">The more we talk, the more I love this kid.
He could carry on a conversation with a rock. A "would you
rather" conundrum gives us fodder for up to twenty minutes of thoughtful
discussion. For the record, Alpha would rather face a crocodile than a
python, would never ever want to go to Jurassic Park for any amount of money,
and would rather fall in his latrine hole once than do the family's cooking for a
month. You can imagine how language barriers prevented me from fully appreciating
his beautifully creative brain until now.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 13.5pt;">
<b><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">Kitty Birth Control<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 13.5pt; text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">Despite all odds and expectations, my garbage
kitten Mallory is thriving in village...perhaps a little too well. Recently, my host brother Tidiane
sat me down to tell me some solemn news. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 13.5pt;">
</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">"Mallory had a </span><i style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">kiirjo</i><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"> last night," he said.
He was quiet for a time, recognizing that “looking up, pursed
lips” means “I will get this, give me a second,” whereas “blank stare, gaping
fish mouth” means “Please try again with different words, I am hopelessly lost.” I puzzled out the word. H’s are pronounced like K’s sometimes, and </span><i style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">–jo
</i><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">at the end of the word means a person – so </span><i style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">kiirjo
</i><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">would be a person performing the verb </span><i style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">hiirde,
</i><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">to visit someone at night. A night
visitor! Mallory had a night
visitor! I looked back at Tidiane,
bewildered. “WHAT?!”</span></div>
<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"></span><br />
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><br /></span></div>
<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">
<div style="text-align: left;">
“It’s true. I heard them. Mallory will get pregnant soon. You will have baby cats.” </div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
Later in the day, I discussed the problem with Alpha as Mallory dozed on the
mat between us. We agreed that <i>grossesse precoce</i>, early marriage, was a
big problem for all girls, human and feline.
Alpha suggested we make Mallory ugly so boys wouldn’t like her. I agreed, since I’d used a similar pregnancy
prevention strategy for most of my life and could vouch for its efficacy. </div>
<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 13.5pt; text-align: left;">
<span style="line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">Alpha went into his dad’s hut and came back with a small razor
blade. He shaved off a half-inch-long
swath of hair at the top of her head, leaving bare pink cat skin, then smiled and solemnly nodded. Job done.</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 13.5pt; text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">_________________________________________________________________________________</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 13.5pt;">
<span style="line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">
I’m not sure whether Alpha’s hilarious or completely humorless. He thinks everything through before he speaks
and chooses his words carefully. He
stresses important words to make sure he’s understood, even when what he’s
saying is bizarre. He rarely laughs,
even while I’m cracking up. Is he the perfect comedic straight man? Does he just know how to run with an
idea? Might he be a little bit crazy? I have no idea. All I know is that he’s one of my favorite
people in Senegal, possibly one of my favorite people in the world, and in
three short months I’m going to have to move away and will probably never see him again. </span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 13.5pt;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 13.5pt;">Good old Anne Shirley put it perfectly:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"><i>"I've put out a lot
of little roots these two years," Anne told the moon, "and when I'm
pulled up they're going to hurt a great deal. But it's best to go, I think,
and, as Marilla says, there's no good reason why I shouldn't. I must get out
all my ambitions and dust them." </i></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><i></i></span><span style="font-size: 13.5pt;">~Lucy Maud Montgomery, Anne of Avonlea<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: 13.5pt;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: 13.5pt;">I was transplanted here two years ago lush and green, a sapling. Since then, the soil's been good to me. I've grown and matured. I have new branches filled with new leaves. I miss my old soil and I really want to go back, but taking a machete to these village roots sounds painful and terrifying. I will miss Alpha like I'll miss dozens of other people in Senegal, but if I stay, I'll continue to miss the family and friends I left behind in America. It's a problem with no solution.<br /><br />100 days left in Senegal.</span></span></div>
</div>
Barbara Michelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00803322911842204947noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7852871663170610262.post-38420545253973021892015-12-01T06:19:00.000-08:002015-12-01T06:19:05.696-08:00Snappy Answers to Senegal Questions<span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 14.85px; line-height: 20.79px;">I submitted a couple articles to the volunteer-only newsletter here at Peace Corps Senegal. Now the newsletter has been published, so I'm going to share them here as well. Enjoy.<br /></span><br />
<div class="WordSection1">
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-size: 18.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Snappy
answers to Senegal Questions<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-size: 18.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
The first time a stranger begged you to take her baby, you
were probably rendered speechless. Soon,
however, you perfected your stock answer, fine-tuning it to elicit the most laughs,
tears, or nods of understanding (depending on the kind of volunteer you
are.) I asked a selection of Senegal
PCVs for their go-to responses to the questions we all get asked. Perhaps as you read you will A) get inspired
to inject some variety into your repertoire or B) merely be amused. Either way, I could either write this article
or continue to daydream about ice cream cake while eating 4-day old Tabaski
meat, so hopefully you get something out of it.
Cheers!<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;">“You will marry me and take me to America.”<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><br /></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
</div>
<ul>
<li>Steph:
“Sure! Then you’ll cook for me, clean
for me, pound my corn…”</li>
<li>Morgan:
“Why would I do that?”</li>
<li>Tim: “For some
reason, guys normally ask me that, so I say ‘I am also a man’ and they get
embarrassed.”</li>
<li>Taylor: “I say I
already have a husband, then when they ask where he is, I say I lost him in
Dakar when I got here, and he only speaks Wolof and I speak Pulaar, so I’m not
sure when we’ll find each other again.”</li>
<li>Alicia:
“No, I want a man who’s woken up and you have not woken up yet.”</li>
<li>Barb: “YES! I am very happy! I prayed to Allah for a husband and now he
has given me you! I am very happy! We will have the wedding tomorrow! I am very
happy!”</li>
<li>Jim:
“No, you’re so beautiful, I’m ugly as shit, it’s not possible.”</li>
<li>Liz
S: “If you give me 100 cows, I agree.”</li>
<li>Madelyn: “’OK,
but you have to fit in my sack. I will
cut off your arms and legs so you fit, then you can buy new arms and legs in
America, they are cheap there.’ Then I
say ‘prosthetic’ in a French accent, sometimes they seem to know what I’m
talking about.”</li>
</ul>
<o:p></o:p><br />
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<o:p></o:p></div>
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<o:p></o:p></div>
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<o:p></o:p></div>
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<o:p></o:p></div>
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<b><span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;">“Will you take my baby to America?”<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: .5in;">
</div>
<ul>
<li>Eric: “I don’t interact with babies
or with people with babies. I actively avoid those people.”</li>
<li>Patrick: “I hold up a black plastic market bag and say ‘Yep, put it in here.’”</li>
<li>Madelyn: “I just say ‘yes.’ Then I pick up the kid and start to walk away
while the kid kicks and cries. If the
kid’s not right next to me, I ask the mother to toss it to me.”</li>
<li><span style="text-indent: 0.5in;">Tom: “Yes.</span><span style="text-indent: 0.5in;"> </span><span style="text-indent: 0.5in;">But Peace Corps will have to pay for the
pass, so you’ll have to ask them first.”</span></li>
<li>Ben: “Your baby is too ugly for
America.”</li>
<li>Morgan: “I don’t have a house, money, or job in the USA, and you’re a better
mother than I would be.”</li>
<li><span style="text-indent: 0.5in;">Tim:</span><span style="text-indent: 0.5in;"> </span><span style="text-indent: 0.5in;">“I’m going to raise it as a Christian, is
that OK with you?”</span></li>
<li>Barb: “’I’m not going home for a
long time, your baby will be too big by then, I can’t carry it, my bag is too
small. Make me a new, smaller baby, I
will take the new baby with me.’”</li>
<li>Liz H: “I already have many
tokaras! The implication is that I have
obligations with a lot of babies already.”</li>
</ul>
<o:p></o:p><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: .5in;">
<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: .5in;">
<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: .5in;">
<o:p></o:p></div>
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<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Why aren’t you married?<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
</div>
<ul>
<li><span style="text-indent: 0.5in;">Laura: “Because in America, girls
don’t get married at 15.</span><span style="text-indent: 0.5in;"> </span><span style="text-indent: 0.5in;">They go to
school and have jobs.”</span></li>
<li>Tom: “’I have not found a wife yet.’ Which always leads to ‘but there are plenty
of women!’ and I have to remind them that I want someone who has gone to
university and is smart.”</li>
<li><span style="text-indent: 0.5in;">Liz: “I’m not ready yet, I haven’t
found a man with a good ‘ticket’ yet.”</span></li>
<li><span style="text-indent: 0.5in;">Patrick: “Because women are crazy.”</span></li>
<li><span style="text-indent: 0.5in;">Madelyn: “I’m scared of having a
child – does it hurt?”</span></li>
<li><span style="text-indent: 0.5in;">Alex N: “I just say I don’t have
any business with a wife.”</span></li>
<li>Jim: “Because I’m still a child, I
don’t want to sit in one place yet, I want to travel the world and be a <i>kalibante.</i>”</li>
<li><span style="text-indent: 0.5in;">Melissa: “Because I am a
child.</span><span style="text-indent: 0.5in;"> </span><span style="text-indent: 0.5in;">I am only two years old.</span><span style="text-indent: 0.5in;"> </span><span style="text-indent: 0.5in;">I am just very tall.”</span></li>
<li><span style="text-indent: 0.5in;">Kathleen: “I don’t want or need a
husband, I like my money, I like my house.”</span></li>
</ul>
<o:p></o:p><br />
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<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<o:p></o:p></div>
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<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;">TOUBAB</span>!</b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: .5in;">
</div>
<ul>
<li>Jess C: “If I’m in Kolda, I ignore
it, but in village I go into a feisty Mandinka lecture. ‘I don’t call you black
person’!”</li>
<li>Patrick: “’CHILD!’ If it’s an adult, I still yell ‘child’, then
explain that only children say ‘toubab’, they must be a child.”</li>
<li><span style="text-indent: 0.5in;">Tom: “Usually if I see them staring
I’ll greet them before they yell at me.”</span></li>
<li><span style="text-indent: 0.5in;">Liz S: “I yell TOUBAB back at them,
or tell them ‘that’s not pretty’.”</span></li>
<li>Barb: “If it’s a kid, I say nothing
and just seethe internally. If it’s an
adult, I’ll say ‘my name is Kadiatou.’”</li>
<li>Eric: “If it’s a kid under eight, I
smile and wave. If it’s an adult, I
ignore them. If it’s a kid in the
impressionable age in between, I will confront them. I’m big enough that they’re pretty scared of
me.”</li>
<li><span style="text-indent: 0.5in;">Taylor: “I don’t say anything, I
just chase them on my bike.”</span></li>
<li><span style="text-indent: 0.5in;">Tim: “’Black Ears’ – then I’ll ask an adult why
the kid does that.”</span></li>
</ul>
<o:p></o:p><br />
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<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<o:p></o:p></div>
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<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Will you help me get a toubab wife?<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><br /></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
</div>
<ul>
<li><span style="text-indent: 0.5in;">Tim: “American girls will only break your heart.”</span></li>
<li><span style="text-indent: 0.5in;">Kadi: “If no one wants to marry you
here a toubab definitely won’t want you.”</span></li>
<li><span style="text-indent: 0.5in;">Taylor: “I can’t give you a wife –
in America, you choose who you’ll marry.”</span></li>
<li>Jim: “Senegalese women are so beautiful, why don’t
you want one? Are you racist?”</li>
<li>Alicia: “No, that’s too much
work. She won’t want to marry you if
she’s never seen you, and I don’t have the time.”</li>
<li>Laurie: “I tell them to go to
America, there are a lot of toubabs there.
Then they’re like, that’s why I want a toubab, idiot.”</li>
<li><span style="text-indent: 0.5in;">Steph: “You won’t find one who
likes you, and she won’t agree to have a co-wife.”</span></li>
<li>Brian: “Sure, my sister’s not
married. If you go to America and give
my dad a bunch of cola nuts I’m sure he’ll accept.”</li>
<li><span style="text-indent: 0.5in;">Kathleen: “’Bon chance!’ Then I laugh at them. I mostly laugh at people.”</span></li>
</ul>
<o:p></o:p><br />
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<o:p></o:p></div>
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<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Do you want a black husband/wife?</span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
</div>
<ul>
<li>Barb: “I don’t care if he’s black,
white, blue, red, or yellow, but I want someone whose English is very clean and
who respects my culture.”</li>
<li><span style="text-indent: 0.5in;">Liz S. “I like all people, skin
doesn’t matter.”</span></li>
<li><span style="text-indent: 0.5in;">Kadi: “A man is a man, if he has a
penis and he functions.”</span></li>
<li><span style="text-indent: 0.5in;">Steph: “No, my mom said I can’t.”</span></li>
<li>Tim: “I used to say, ‘Yes, bring me
one’ but then once they actually did, so now I say I’m waiting until I get to
the USA.”</li>
<li>Taylor: “If I’m with younger women,
I say ‘yes, I hear a black man never tires.’
If I don’t have that audience, I say, ‘only if he can cook a really good
<i>maafe haako</i>.’”</li>
<li>Eric: “I’ve got no go-to for this
one, it’s always awkward.”</li>
</ul>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: .5in;">
<o:p></o:p></div>
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<o:p></o:p></div>
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<o:p></o:p></div>
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<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Your last name is not good.<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><br /></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: .5in;">
</div>
<ul>
<li>Jess C: “We don’t really do the
joking cousins thing here, but if they really know Mandinka, I’ll say that Mane
and Sane are very good, they’re the ruling class.”</li>
<li><span style="text-indent: 0.5in;">Tom: “What’s your last name? Oh,
I’m sorry to hear that.”</span></li>
<li>Eric: “I need to hear their last
name to see where they’re coming from.
But if I don’t know, I just tell them the Diops are the best and they’re
jealous. If I find out I’m talking to an
Ndieye, I will attack them verbally.”</li>
<li>Morgan: “Well what’s your last
name? Are you a Kande? You must leave, you will steal all my
things. Where is ______? You stole it!”</li>
<li><span style="text-indent: 0.5in;">Kadi: “It’s not even my real last
name!”</span></li>
<li><span style="text-indent: 0.5in;">Ben: “Slowly slowly we are trying
to make it good. Where can I get all the
rice?”</span></li>
<li><span style="text-indent: 0.5in;">Jim: “Fuck you, Baldes are the
kings of the Fuladu, that’s the truth.”</span></li>
<li>Melissa: “’You eat beans. Your name is not good. I can’t talk to you.’ Then I theatrically walk away.”</li>
<li><span style="text-indent: 0.5in;">Liz S: “Barrys are slaves to no one
but Allah.”</span></li>
</ul>
<o:p></o:p><br />
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<o:p></o:p></div>
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<o:p></o:p></div>
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<o:p></o:p></div>
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<b><span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Give me ___________!:<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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</div>
<ul>
<li><span style="text-indent: 0.5in;">Alicia: “Is that how you greet?”</span></li>
<li>Patrick: “If it’s a kid, I’ll say
‘offer me your parents’ or ‘where’s your money,’ then when they say they don’t
have money the despair in their eyes makes me chuckle.”</li>
<li>Jim: “’You didn’t greet me and now
you’re asking me for stuff? Were you born in the forest?’ Or, if they did greet me first, I say, ‘I’ll
give it to you when the donkey grows horns.’”</li>
<li>Madelyn: “’Yes, let’s trade, I’ll
give you my bike if you give me your horse.’
Once a man said he wanted my shirt and I pretended to start taking it
off, he got real uncomfortable and told me to wait til I do laundry.”</li>
<li><span style="text-indent: 0.5in;">Eric: “Let me buy you one that’s
better, a new one, and I’ll give it to you later.”</span></li>
<li>Kadi: “Give me money, you don’t
give out your stuff without money.
Things don’t come free in this life.”</li>
<li><span style="text-indent: 0.5in;">Melissa: “It’s not mine! I’m a
toubab! I don’t live here, I borrowed it, I don’t have a house.”</span></li>
<li><span style="text-indent: 0.5in;">Ben: “’I will sell it to you.’ Then I make up an exorbitant price.”</span></li>
</ul>
<o:p></o:p><br />
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<o:p></o:p></div>
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<o:p></o:p></div>
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<o:p></o:p></div>
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<o:p></o:p></div>
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<o:p></o:p></div>
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<o:p></o:p></div>
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<br />
<span style="font-size: 16.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Thanks to the contributors:</span><o:p></o:p></div>
</div>
<span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br clear="all" style="mso-break-type: section-break; page-break-before: auto;" />
</span>
<br />
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<span style="font-size: 10.0pt;">Steph, AgFo 2013 – Kolda,
Pulaar<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 10.0pt;">Morgan, Health 2014 – Kolda,
Pulaar<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 10.0pt;">Tim, CED 2013 – Thies, Wolof<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 10.0pt;">Taylor, U-Ag 2014 – Ourossogui,
Pulaar<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 10.0pt;">Alicia, CED 2014 – Kolda, Pulaar<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: 10.0pt;">Jim, U-Ag 2013 – Kolda,
Pulaar<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 10.0pt;">Eric, CED 2014 – Dakar, Wolof<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: 10.0pt;">Patrick, CED 2014 – Fatick,
Wolof<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: 10.0pt;">Madelyn, CED 2014 – Louga, Wolof<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: 10.0pt;">Tom, AgFo 2013 – Kolda, Pulaar<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: 10.0pt;">Ben, U-Ag 2014 – Dakar, Wolof<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: 10.0pt;">Liz H, Health 2014, Matam, Pulaar<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: 10.0pt;">Laura, Health 2014 – Tamba,
Mandinka<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: 10.0pt;">Jessica, Health 2014 – Kolda,
Mandinka<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 10.0pt;">Kadidiatou, Health 2014 –
Kedougou, Jaxanke<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: 10.0pt;">Liz S, CED 2014 – Kolda, Pulaar<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 10.0pt;">Alex, CED 2014 – Ourossogui, Pulaar</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: 10.0pt;">Laurie, Health 2014, Kedougou,
Pulaar<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 10.0pt;">Brian, SusAg 2015, Tamba,
Jaxonke</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: 10pt;">Kathleen, Susag 2014, Tamba, Wolof</span></div>
Barbara Michelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00803322911842204947noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7852871663170610262.post-14758555030387418922015-12-01T06:10:00.000-08:002015-12-05T20:45:11.751-08:00Math Time with Liz and BarbI submitted a couple articles to the volunteer-only newsletter here at Peace Corps Senegal. Now the newsletter has been published, so I'm going to share them here as well. Enjoy.<br />
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<!--[if !supportLineBreakNewLine]--><span style="font-size: x-large;">Math Time with Liz and Barb</span>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhzP2M3omq6ZkALANgzkwYmkNBDXwh_IKfL6FEG57LMMVoQwjkmwencj5hlvt0e-tk_6KxbqNmOBpsw3f_3NyspWPiudT0sXJ8smKWmyI4EK4zqlQ73NjOuc4h9IIKdypFRsFi6mk8WczAb/s1600/trashkitten.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhzP2M3omq6ZkALANgzkwYmkNBDXwh_IKfL6FEG57LMMVoQwjkmwencj5hlvt0e-tk_6KxbqNmOBpsw3f_3NyspWPiudT0sXJ8smKWmyI4EK4zqlQ73NjOuc4h9IIKdypFRsFi6mk8WczAb/s200/trashkitten.jpg" width="150" /></a></div>
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We know what you’re thinking. “I need to study for an
intimidating standardized test, but how can I be motivated when nothing in that
realm relates to my life as a Peace Corps Senegal volunteer?” Never fear!
We’re here to combine real-life Senegal with GRE style math. Our logo is a trash kitten (see above)
because when life gives you trash kittens the best course of action is complete
repression of that via copious math. Grab
a pencil, ignore those braying donkeys, and enjoy! <o:p></o:p></div>
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**answers on the bottom of the page****<br />
<br />
1. Mara has one more than half as many staph
infections as Kendra, and Mara has 1/3 as many staph infections as
Steve. If Kendra has four
infections, how much staph do they have all together?<br />
<br />
<br />
2. Your local sandwich lady
offers café touba and kenkiliba, tapalapa and machine bread, beans, peas,
and onion sauce. Each sandwich can
come with mayonnaise if desired.
How many different sandwich and drink combos are there?<br />
<br />
<br />
3. There are enough cold
gazelles in the Ourossogui cooler for each of the 12 PCVs at the regional
house to have two, but two PCVs are busy writing grants and two are really
into Game of Thrones and don’t want to be distracted. How many gazelles can each of the
remaining volunteers drink?<br />
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4. An alhum charged you 350
CFA to get to your regional capital and it should have been 300. The apranti on your 7place charged 600
for baggage and it should have been 500.
The tailor charged 2400 for a shirt and it should have been
2000. Whose “toubab tax” is the
most reasonable?<br />
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5. Your host family spends
half your 20mil diponse on new tabaski complets for the kids, then
one-fourth the remaining amount on cola nuts and attaya, then half of
what’s let on a new chicken. How
much money is left over for food?<br />
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6. A new volunteer read <u>Outliers</u>
and decided to “Malcolm Gladwell” her sex life. Since the arts of seduction and conquest
are not VRF reportable, she devotes only three hours a day to this
activity. At this rate, how many
Peace Corps services will it take her to accumulate the 10,000 hours
needed to be an expert lovemaker?
Assume each service is 27 months long and she has 24 months left in
her first service.<br />
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7. If your work partner helps
you build a tippy tap, it takes an hour and a half. If you build one by yourself, it takes
two hours. Assuming both of you
work at a constant rate, what percent of the job does your work partner
do?<br />
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8. You’re COSing and looking
back on travel times from your service.
From your road town, it took 45 minutes to get to the closest town
with internet, which you did once a week.
It took 2 hours to reach your regional capital, which you did three
times every two months. Four times
a year, you went to Dakar, which took 12 hours. You went to Kedougou twice, which took
16 hours each time. <u>It took the
same amount of time on the road to return to site after your trips.</u>
How many days were spent on Senegal’s roads during your 24 months as a
sworn-in volunteer? Assume the
listed travel is the only time you were out of site.<br />
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ANSWERS: <o:p></o:p><br />
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1. <b>Sixteen</b>. Kendra has 4, Mara
has 3, Steve has 9. Steve must be in
Kedougou.<o:p></o:p><br />
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2. <b>24</b> <b>combinations</b>. <o:p></o:p><br />
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3.
Each of the eight remaining volunteers can have <b>three gazelles</b>. Or they
could not be dicks and save the drinks for their friends.<o:p></o:p><br />
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4.
The added price on the <b>alhum</b>
is the lowest, at 17%.<o:p></o:p><br />
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5.
<b>3750 CFA</b>. (20,000/2 = 10,000; 10,000 – 2500 = 7500;
7500 – 3750 = 3750).<o:p></o:p><br />
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6. She will need to <b>complete</b> <b>4 Peace Corps
services, plus a little extra</b>. Taking
365 days a year divided by 12 months, you get an average of 30.416 days per
month. 30.416 days x 3 hours every day
equals 91.25 hours a month. 10,000 hours
divided by 91.25 hours a month = 109.6 months.
Subtract the 24 months in her first service, and 85.6 months remain. Divide that by 27 and get 3.16. After her
initial service she will need 3.16 more.
But since our intrepid wannabe Casanova is not a quitter, maybe she’ll
finish that 5<sup>th</sup> service as well.
Godspeed.<o:p></o:p><br />
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7. <b>25%</b>. If you can build a
complete tippy tap by yourself in two hours, you must be able to build ½ a
tippy tap in half that time (one hour), which means that in an hour and a half
you could finish ¾ of a tippy tap. Your
work partner must have done the remaining ¼ of the work if you finished the
whole thing in an hour and a half.<o:p></o:p><br />
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8.
You spent <b>23.16 days, or 23 days
and four hours</b>, on the road.
Daaaaaaaaaaamn! For the nearest
internet town, 45 minutes is ¾ of an hour, times 104 weeks for 2 years of
service x 2 for the return trip = 156 hours.
For the regional capital, 4 hours round trip x 1.5 trips per month x 24
months = 144 hours. For Dakar, 12 hours
x 8 trips in 2 years x 2 for the return trip =192 hours. For Kedougou, 16 x 2 x 2 for the return trip
= 64 hours, for a total of 556 hours. Divide
that by 24 hours to get 23.16 days.<o:p></o:p></div>
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Barbara Michelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00803322911842204947noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7852871663170610262.post-47327284318759982732015-11-20T09:27:00.001-08:002016-09-20T19:52:06.021-07:00Being a perfect volunteer<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"></span><br /></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">As a rule, I do everything to the best of my ability.</span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="font-family: inherit;">It’s always been that way.</span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="font-family: inherit;">Test coming up in school?</span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="font-family: inherit;">I study.</span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span><span style="font-family: inherit;">Running a race?</span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="font-family: inherit;">I train.</span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="font-family: inherit;">Joining the Peace Corps?</span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="font-family: inherit;">All over it.</span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span><span style="font-family: inherit;">Bring it on. A+.</span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;"></span><br />
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Unfortunately, there is no playbook for being a PCV.</span><span style="font-family: inherit;"> </span><span style="font-family: inherit;">Everyone has to figure out their service on
their own, depending on the unique conditions at their site.</span><span style="font-family: inherit;"> </span><span style="font-family: inherit;">It’s taken me the better half of the past two
years to figure out what my job here in Teyel really is – that is, what administration
wants me to do, what my village wants me to do, and what other volunteers want
me to do.</span><span style="font-family: inherit;"> </span><span style="font-family: inherit;">Here it is: </span></div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">ADMIN wants me to have a Volunteer Reporting Form full of indicators and
objectives, clearly sorted on standardized forms.</span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="font-family: inherit;">They want volunteers to hold formal trainings
regularly and to fastidiously take attendance.</span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
They want every</span><span style="font-family: inherit;"> interaction the volunteer has with their community to be spent
educating and facilitating behavior change – and of course, all of it must be
recorded, saved, compiled, organized, and submitted in a timely matter.</span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="font-family: inherit;">I love doing this kind of work – it makes me
feel valuable and important.</span></div>
</span>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">VILLAGE literally wants me to sit, drink tea, and speak Pulaar with them all
day. This is not to build relationships with which to do further work: this </span><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">is </i><span style="font-family: inherit;">the work.</span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="font-family: inherit;">I am supposed to learn deep Pulaar
vocabulary and proverbs until I can listen and speak fluently.</span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="font-family: inherit;">When I return home to America, I’m supposed
to teach all of my family and friends Pulaar, too.</span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="font-family: inherit;">Then we will all come to Senegal, sit, drink
tea, and speak Pulaar all day.</span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="font-family: inherit;">I love
doing this kind of work – it makes me feel appreciated, integrated, at home, and welcome.</span></div>
</span>
<br /><div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">VOLUNTEERS want other volunteers to never miss a party, trip, or informal
get-together.</span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="font-family: inherit;">They should always be
available to meet up for breakfast or lunch if work brings them near each
other. They should visit other volunteers frequently and be visited at their
own sites as well.</span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="font-family: inherit;">They should always answer
the phone for each other to talk through
whatever crises might be happening.</span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span><span style="font-family: inherit;">These volunteer:volunteer connections are valuable and should not be trivialized.</span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="font-family: inherit;">I love my host sisters, but they’re not going
to be bridesmaids at my wedding.</span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="font-family: inherit;">I love
my host dad, but an illiterate Pulaar millet farmer doesn’t make the best job
reference once I return to the 'real world'.</span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="font-family: inherit;">My favorite boutique owner
can’t meet up with me at a Minneapolis bar 10 years from now and reminisce over
the good times in Peace Corps.</span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="font-family: inherit;">Like moringa trees in Sehel soil, PCV friendships need to be
fertilized and nurtured or they won’t survive.</span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span><span style="font-family: inherit;">I love doing this kind of work – it makes me feel happy (lame vocabulary word, but true.)</span></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">
Here’s a handy visual of those three different opinions of what Kadiatou
Sabaly’s job is:</span></span><br />
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</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri";"></span><span style="font-family: inherit;"> </span><span style="font-family: "calibri";"><br /><span style="font-family: inherit;">
</span></span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh2DJHxit7XFujUGplEYEzDm2NbuAtLQzuTkktS6eDyyb-iPXFlmbcitZ9nGXLlazP7Dn-yiQJASRiN1PjA5UU-Jo3Rc1WnVakjQy3DjExReVjtyoJI3ASTeXmA3sSVhV_xYHbgy3KvF1cJ/s1600/triangle.bmp" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><img border="0" height="244" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh2DJHxit7XFujUGplEYEzDm2NbuAtLQzuTkktS6eDyyb-iPXFlmbcitZ9nGXLlazP7Dn-yiQJASRiN1PjA5UU-Jo3Rc1WnVakjQy3DjExReVjtyoJI3ASTeXmA3sSVhV_xYHbgy3KvF1cJ/s320/triangle.bmp" width="320" /></span></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">For a long time, I struggled to find the perfect position in
this triangle, to be the perfect volunteer.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>My worker-bee brain <u>knew</u> that if I just kept trying, I would
eventually find the place where everyone w</span>ould be pleased with me.<br /> <br /> Then I learned.<br /><br /> Eventually, we all learn.<br /><span style="font-size: large;"><br /> We can’t win.</span><br /><br /> No matter how much we throw ourselves, heart and soul, into one vertex of the triangle, how perfectly we do one of our jobs, the other 2/3 of the triangle is dissatisfied.<br /><br /> If we try to keep a neutral position in the middle, everyone’s dissatisfied.<br /><br /> Soon after we realize this, something interesting happens.<br /> <br /><b> We stop giving a shit.</b><br /> <br /><span style="font-size: large;"> This is freeing.</span><br /> <br /> This is where I'm at right now. So, here's what Kadiatou Sabaly has been up to for the past month or so, and whether it satisfies her "job requirements" or not.</div>
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</v:shape><![endif]--><!--[if !vml]--><!--[endif]--><span style="font-family: "calibri";"><span style="font-family: inherit;">CHEMOPREVENTION:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I went to a bunch of surrounding villages
with my community health worker or the health worker from the next village over, depending on who I felt like spending the day with.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We gave every kid from 3 months - 10 years old a
small yellow pill that a) made them projectile vomit and b) cleared
all the malaria parasites out of their blood.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>My role was either to help fill out paperwork or to pretend not to
understand when parents used me as a motivator to get their terrified children
to swallow their pills (The <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">toubaco </i>will
kidnap you if you don’t swallow!)</span><span style="font-family: inherit; mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span><br />
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</v:oval><![endif]--><!--[if !vml]--><span style="font-family: "calibri";"><span style="font-family: inherit;">HEALTH HUT
MURALS:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I only have one mural left in my
</span><a href="http://barbarapeacecorps.blogspot.sn/2015/08/drawing-diarrhea.html"><span style="font-family: inherit;">health hut mural project</span></a><span style="font-family: inherit;"> (the road to the final health hut was underwater for a while,
then my partner-in-crime and I had trouble coordinating schedules).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Since we had planned to finish the project by
late September and it's now November 20, we’re doing just fine on Senegal time.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The five completed murals took a lot of time
to finish.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They had to be discussed,
sketched, and painted, then the community health workers at the health huts had
to lead a causerie for 25 people explaining the mural (with food partially
subsidized by Peace Corps).</span><span style="font-family: inherit; mso-spacerun: yes;"> I don't have any pictures of the completed murals, since my camera's dead, but take my word for it that they're lovely. </span></span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br /></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 8pt;">
<span style="font-family: inherit; height: 27px; margin: 53px auto auto 90px; position: absolute; width: 28px; z-index: 251666432;"><img height="27" src="file:///C:/Users/BARBMI~1/AppData/Local/Temp/msohtmlclip1/01/clip_image009.png" v:shapes="Oval_x0020_7" width="28" /></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-family: "calibri";"><span style="font-family: inherit;">LATRINEAPALOOZA:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Fellow PCV LK and I decided to go ahead with
Demba’s ambitious latrine project that </span><a href="http://barbarapeacecorps.blogspot.sn/2015/06/lets-talk-toilets.html"><span style="font-family: inherit;">five months ago I wasn’t sure whether I should do or not</span></a><span style="font-family: inherit;">.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> LK and I</span> spent 4 days biking
to each of the proposed 82 latrine sites in 11 different villages and asking
the <em>jomma galles</em> awkward, intrusive questions about their
toilets.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Some already had latrines, some
didn’t – some were polite and friendly, some weren’t – and some villages were so
far enough away that LK and I said “screw it” and ate yogurt in the woods instead.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We narrowed the recipients list down to 30 households, in six villages, and the grant to pay for both the latrines and for a
series of sanitation trainings in the communities has been approved.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhgjd3-7XGc-q3yCPmWAcJ6Pwq_GcoO4QhO_z2rwh2zmVbS1diyU9sT1bsPWDZ5XBl321sm3VHfFwY7yJYdXDw1egwKoZwmCjj6UQj4Hs-7lKaSPkPMCuqSny5zel52O5zKWy4pF29-XWu7/s1600/triangle+latrine.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="152" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhgjd3-7XGc-q3yCPmWAcJ6Pwq_GcoO4QhO_z2rwh2zmVbS1diyU9sT1bsPWDZ5XBl321sm3VHfFwY7yJYdXDw1egwKoZwmCjj6UQj4Hs-7lKaSPkPMCuqSny5zel52O5zKWy4pF29-XWu7/s200/triangle+latrine.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: "calibri";"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"><br /></span></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 8pt;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri";"><br /><span style="font-family: inherit;">
SITE VISITS:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I hosted three
overnight guests in the past month.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
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<table border="1" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="MsoTableGrid" style="border-collapse: collapse; border: currentColor; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-padding-alt: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; mso-table-layout-alt: fixed; mso-yfti-tbllook: 1184; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr style="mso-yfti-firstrow: yes; mso-yfti-irow: 0;"><td style="background-color: transparent; border: 1pt solid windowtext; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 76.25pt;" valign="top" width="102"><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: xx-small;">Name:</span></div>
</td><td style="background-color: transparent; border-color: windowtext windowtext windowtext rgb(0, 0, 0); border-style: solid solid solid none; border-width: 1pt 1pt 1pt 0px; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 193.5pt;" valign="top" width="258"><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: xx-small;">Tim</span></div>
</div>
</td><td style="background-color: transparent; border-color: windowtext windowtext windowtext rgb(0, 0, 0); border-style: solid solid solid none; border-width: 1pt 1pt 1pt 0px; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 94.5pt;" valign="top" width="126"><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: xx-small;">Alice</span></div>
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</td><td style="background-color: transparent; border-color: windowtext windowtext windowtext rgb(0, 0, 0); border-style: solid solid solid none; border-width: 1pt 1pt 1pt 0px; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 103.25pt;" valign="top" width="138"><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: xx-small;">Alicia</span></div>
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</td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: xx-small;">What’s their deal:</span></div>
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<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: xx-small;">University student from Michigan spending a semester in Dakar. His program sent him and all the other American
students to rural visits for four days so they can understand this diverse
country better.</span></div>
</div>
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<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: xx-small;">PCV doing an ambitious photo project (</span><a href="http://theseneweverydays.blogspot.sn/"><span style="color: #0563c1; font-family: inherit; font-size: xx-small;">http://theseneweverydays.blogspot.sn/</span></a><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: xx-small;">)</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: xx-small;">PCV just passing through to see if my village is as great as I say it
is.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>(It is.)</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: xx-small;">What’d we do:</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "calibri";"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">The best day, we followed my two favorite 12-year-old boys around.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></span></span></div>
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<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpFirst" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 0pt 18.35pt; mso-add-space: auto; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -9pt;">
<div style="text-align: left;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "symbol"; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font: 7pt/normal "Times New Roman";">
</span></span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-family: "calibri";">Looked for baboons</span></span></span></div>
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<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 0pt 18.35pt; mso-add-space: auto; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -9pt;">
<div style="text-align: left;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "symbol"; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font: 7pt/normal "Times New Roman";">
</span></span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-family: "calibri";">Tried to catch minnows bare-handed</span></span></span></div>
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<div style="text-align: left;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "symbol"; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font: 7pt/normal "Times New Roman";">
</span></span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-family: "calibri";">Went to the herd to milk cows. Drank the milk
so we didn’t have to share.</span></span></span></div>
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<div style="text-align: left;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "symbol"; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font: 7pt/normal "Times New Roman";">
</span></span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-family: "calibri";">Grilled corn at their secret hang-out place in
the woods</span></span></span></div>
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<div style="text-align: left;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "symbol"; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font: 7pt/normal "Times New Roman";">
</span></span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-family: "calibri";">Played soccer</span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: xx-small;">She took literally hundreds of photos and I tried to not look gross.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Look at her website when the photos are
posted to see if my endeavors were successful.</span></div>
</div>
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<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri";"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;">Hung out and talked.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Did a pen
pal project at my middle school.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Watched the first half of Thor with my family.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Dazzled everyone with her incredible Pulaar
and general congeniality</span>.</span> </span></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjlHC01fqCYBfcPqvzHS4UwAnbgLKFJnmLzzV-nxDHKpZFkGBANRJKltMfuNrqfx_Gp6rlgIfjXr8OQ6iuExs7YaXcfapOcAG4JDV4LhdeqH5hu2UtIrMkJ6qhbwIjJXEkyXmOWtT5pNoxS/s1600/trianglevisit.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="152" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjlHC01fqCYBfcPqvzHS4UwAnbgLKFJnmLzzV-nxDHKpZFkGBANRJKltMfuNrqfx_Gp6rlgIfjXr8OQ6iuExs7YaXcfapOcAG4JDV4LhdeqH5hu2UtIrMkJ6qhbwIjJXEkyXmOWtT5pNoxS/s200/trianglevisit.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /><br />FOT/HALLOWEEN:<br />
We had a party to welcome the new volunteers into Kolda, then another party to
send the old volunteers away, then another party because it was
Halloween and why not.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhR9WvfIWnnJXHKXzQ40rZO6NXD6JKvmhtNhmngTLlpKgEPC6NNrtQJTa0hoYwIpx-N8m455mhgtwe8iIyDJnrh7uBmYDtdAI95a5L4oj1v_uIW3TOprOL3DyzJD0k8l90tHqMiWNSlwBXE/s1600/trianglevisit.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="152" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhR9WvfIWnnJXHKXzQ40rZO6NXD6JKvmhtNhmngTLlpKgEPC6NNrtQJTa0hoYwIpx-N8m455mhgtwe8iIyDJnrh7uBmYDtdAI95a5L4oj1v_uIW3TOprOL3DyzJD0k8l90tHqMiWNSlwBXE/s200/trianglevisit.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>
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<div style="text-align: justify;">
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<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">SO, what does all of this add up to? A happy Kadiatou Sabaly, being the best Kadiatou she can be, making the most of this strange job she's in...and also, apparently, talking about herself in the 3rd person.<br /><br />I only worry that because I've been focusing so hard on being Kadiatou, I've forgotten how to be Barbara, and when I return home in only five months (!), no longer able to hide inside the skin of my alter ego, I'm going to struggle to reclaim Barbara's place in the world. Please be patient with me if this proves to be the case.<br /><br />Until next time!</span></div>
Barbara Michelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00803322911842204947noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7852871663170610262.post-57914538024312667212015-11-12T15:58:00.001-08:002015-11-15T22:21:33.136-08:00Le correspondanceAt 9:55 am Monday morning, I was starting to get antsy that Mr. B was not going to be on time for our 10:00 meeting. I had been waiting at the school since 9:30; this was a precaution, in case he got done teaching early and wanted to go home instead of waiting for me. Alicia, a fellow PCV who was visiting my site, asked me if I was sure he had come to school at all that day. "Of course he did," I started to answer before I remembered where I was.<br />
<div>
"Hey Cherif!" I yelled at a passing neighbor boy. "<i>Ho Mr. B arno ekkol hannde?</i>" </div>
<div>
"<i>Aa'aa, mbo araani.</i>" Cherif answered chirpily. He hadn't come. I cursed and got out my phone. Called Mr. B. twice. No answer.<br />
<br />
Two days before, I'd gone to Mr. B's house to remind him -- again --that I was interested in doing a pen pal project with his 5eme students, and that I wanted to start it immediately. This was the most recent of a half dozen meetings. Though Mr. B had exulted the program as "good" and "important", he had dissuaded me from starting the previous week, as some students still hadn't returned to school from rainy season vacation. Now that enough students had returned, we had a new hurdle to jump:<br />
"The students will need at least two weeks to write their letters."<br />
Mr. B explained why, shaking his head solemnly. "They are very lazy here. In the village, students refuse to do their lessons. This is not Dakar." </div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
Frustrated, I'd tried to explain that I couldn't wait two more weeks. The American cohort had written their letters over a month previously, and since they were only studying French first semester, the opportunity for Senegalese kids to respond before Thanksgiving and winter break was closing rapidly. I asked whether he wanted me to cancel the program, and he said no. The program was good, it was important, he wanted to do it, but starting in December would be better. <br />
<br />
I kept wheedling him down. Finally, Mr. B. conceded that if I chose only the top 30 students to participate in the project, and I made it very clear that the project was important, and I went to the school every morning to nag the students to write, I might -- might! -- be able to get some letters written by the time I went to Tamba on Thursday (though he personally doubted it.)<br />
<br />
Back at the school on Monday, Alicia and I took turns calling Mr. B, trying to determine whether he was dodging all calls or just mine. At that moment, the principal of the school walked by. <br />
<br />
"Kadiatou! You woke up! Evil did not wake up!" the principal said. (Believe it or not, this is the normal Pulaar morning greeting.) "Peace only," I answered. The principal was a decent guy. I decided to see if he could help me out. "I came here today to meet with Mr. B. We were going to do a project with 5eme students. But he did not come."<br />
<br />
"Oh! That is bad. I will gather the 5eme. Just go in that room. Sit. Wait." The principal turned and strutted across the school grounds, yelling at the teens that were milling around. <br />
<br />
Ten minutes later, Alicia and I found ourselves at the front of a classroom staring back into the confused eyes of 75 Pulaar teenagers. True to his word, the principal had gathered the students, but then he'd retreated back to his office. No doubt there were documents there that needed to be stamped. It was clear that Alicia and I were on our own from this point out. <br />
<br />
I started out in baby Pulaar.<br />
<br />
"Hello. I am Kadiatou Sabaly. I am a Peace Corps volunteer. I live here in Teyel. I came today because people in America wrote letters. I brought the letters. You will read the letters. Then you will write. You have time now?"<br />
<br />
A few students nodded. My host sister Medo whispered something to her neighbor.<br />
<br />
Alicia jumped in. In effortlessly fluent French, she asked the students if they were done with class for the day or whether it was just a break. When no one responded, she switched to equally effortless fluent Pulaar. A few jaws dropped as kids looked from her to me. <i>Why isn't </i><b style="font-style: italic;">this </b><i>our volunteer? </i>A tall kid named Amadou told her that they had a break from 10 to noon, and most days they used this time to go home and eat breakfast. <br />
<br />
Alicia explained the <i>correspondance</i> program, then asked the million dollar question: "We have 30 letters. Who wants to do the program?" </div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
I hoped we'd be able to get thirty students to agree. I knew if I was in their shoes I'd be more concerned with breakfast than with some silly project.<br />
<br />
Every hand went up.<br />
<br />
Alicia and I made eye contact. "They're probably just curious what the letters say," she reasoned. "Right. They're just curious," I agreed as we started to hand the letters out. "They'll leave as soon as they finish reading."<br />
<br />
Two or three students gathered around every letter. They held the cheap inkjet printer sheets as though they were relics written on ancient parchment. They read patiently and calmly, brows furrowed in concentration. Eventually, the kids finished reading and looked up at us. No one left.<br />
<br />
"So, did you understand?" I asked in Pulaar.<br />
"Yes." The students chanted in unison.<br />
"Everything?"<br />
"Yes." <br />
<br />
My Pulaar depleted, I turned to Alicia, who thankfully saved the day again. "Oh really?" she teased. She approached Musa, an outspoken 11 year old with a toothy smile, and grabbed his letter. "<i>Ma maman travaille dans une salle de sport</i>. What's a '<i>salle de sport'?</i>"<br />
<br />
"A <i>salle de sport</i>," he answered confidently. Everyone laughed. Alicia continued reading. <br />
<br />
"<i>C'est maintenent l'hiver ici. </i>What's <i>l'hiver?</i>" No one spoke for several long seconds.<br />
<br />
Finally, the silence broke. "<i>Une saison," </i>said a quiet girl's voice from the back. "Yeah, it's a season!" Alicia said encouragingly. "You, here, in Senegal, you have <i>ceceele</i>, <i>ceedu</i>, <i>ndundu</i>, and <i>jownde</i>. In France and in America, they have <i>printemps,</i><i> été, automne, </i>and<i> hiver</i>."<br />
<br />
Trusting Alicia's lingual authority now, more hands tentatively rose.<br />
<br />
"<i>Musseed...</i>What is 'Marina and the Diamonds'?"<br />
<div>
"<i>Musseed...</i>Are all these letters from Kadiatou's children in America?"<br />
<i>"Musseed...</i>What is synchronized swimming?"<br />
<br />
Alicia and I did our best to explain everything, even resorting to slow motion parallel ballet dances in an attempt to pantomime "synchronized swimming." <br />
<div>
<br />
I looked at my phone's clock. We had already been at the school for over an hour, and I wanted to get the students started drafting their response letters as soon as possible. I still doubted anyone would actually finish, but I wanted them to do as much as possible at school before they returned to the distractions of home. <br />
<br />
"Who has time, right now, to sit and write until their letter is done?" I asked in Pulaar. "We have 30 letters, so we need 30 responses. If you do not have time, you can go home. This is not <i>forcé</i>."<br />
<br />
No one got up.<br />
<br />
Instead, they carefully tore paper out of their notebooks and got down to business. Pages slowly filled up around me. I walked around and read over kids' shoulders. <br />
<br />
"<i>Ma mama vends le pain. Je manges le pain. J'aime le pain.</i>" My mother sells the bread. I eat the bread. I like the bread.<br />
"<i>Mon père est mécanicien vélo" </i>My father is a bicycle mechanic.<br />
<i>"</i><span style="background-color: white;"><i style="color: #212121; font-family: inherit; font-size: 16px; line-height: 24px; white-space: pre-wrap;">J'aime AKON. J'aime la musique de AKON. AKON est africain</i><span style="color: #212121; font-family: inherit;"><span style="line-height: 24px; white-space: pre-wrap;">." I like Akon. I like the music of Akon. Akon is African.</span></span> </span></div>
<div>
<span style="background-color: white;"><span style="color: #212121; font-family: inherit;"><span style="line-height: 24px; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></span></span></div>
<div>
<span style="background-color: white;">
<span style="color: #212121; font-family: inherit;"><span style="line-height: 24px; white-space: pre-wrap;">Many of the letters included bold lies, seemingly just because the student couldn't think of anything else to write.</span></span> </span></div>
<div>
<span style="background-color: white;"><span style="color: #212121; font-family: inherit;"><span style="line-height: 24px; white-space: pre-wrap;">"It is also very cold and snowy here."</span></span> </span></div>
<div>
<span style="background-color: white;"><span style="color: #212121; font-family: inherit;"><span style="line-height: 24px; white-space: pre-wrap;">"I also like to play lacrosse."</span></span> </span></div>
<div>
<span style="background-color: white;"><span style="color: #212121; font-family: inherit;"><span style="line-height: 24px; white-space: pre-wrap;">"I also live in Minnesota. I like to watch netflix too."</span></span> </span></div>
<div>
<span style="background-color: white;"><br /></span></div>
<div>
<span style="background-color: white;">
<span style="color: #212121; font-family: inherit;"><span style="line-height: 24px; white-space: pre-wrap;">When Alicia or I called them on these lies, they would laugh and admit they were lying, but refuse to change it. It was baffling. </span></span> </span></div>
<div>
<span style="background-color: white;"><br /></span><span style="color: #212121;"><span style="line-height: 24px; white-space: pre-wrap;">One student took his </span></span><span style="color: #212121;"><span style="line-height: 24px; white-space: pre-wrap;">perceived</span></span><span style="color: #212121;"><span style="line-height: 24px; white-space: pre-wrap;"> deep connection with Madeline* a little too seriously, though I didn't know it until I was proofreading them later:</span></span><span style="background-color: white;"> </span><br />
<span style="color: #212121;"><span style="line-height: 24px; white-space: pre-wrap;">"My number is 77xxxxxxx. I want you to be my woman for going out. I will come to Forest Lake for my 2016 vacation. I like you like fish likes water. I play football well." </span></span></div>
<div>
<span style="background-color: white;"><br /></span></div>
<div>
<span style="background-color: white;">As students finished their letters (and over half <b>did </b>actually finish them), they dropped them off and went outside. Everyone said thank you - a rarity in this culture. </span><span style="background-color: white; color: #212121; line-height: 24px; white-space: pre-wrap;">I left the school at 12:15, my envelope bursting with letters. I was thinking about how easy the whole thing had been. Just outside the school, I passed Mr. B. </span></div>
<div>
<span style="background-color: white;"><span style="color: #212121;"><span style="line-height: 24px; white-space: pre-wrap;">"Forgive me, Kadiatou," he said in Pulaar after I greeted him. "I saw you called. I was not at school today. You will come next week." </span></span> </span></div>
<div>
<span style="background-color: white;"><span style="color: #212121;"><span style="line-height: 24px; white-space: pre-wrap;">"No, it isn't nothing," I said. Double negatives are correct grammatically in Pulaar but I always feel vaguely naughty when I use them, like a lady Huckleberry Finn. </span></span></span><span style="color: #212121;"><span style="line-height: 24px; white-space: pre-wrap;">"I have the letters. Thanks for all your help." </span></span><span style="background-color: white;"> </span></div>
<div>
<span style="background-color: white;"><span style="color: #212121;"><span style="line-height: 24px; white-space: pre-wrap;">"You have the letters?" he asked incredulously. I pulled one out for him to look at. He read it slowly.</span></span></span></div>
<div>
<span style="background-color: white;"><span style="color: #212121;"><span style="line-height: 24px; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="line-height: 24px; white-space: pre-wrap;">"I have the letters," I repeated. "The students wrote very well. They really studied today. They have good brains. Do you want to read them?"
"No, </span><i style="line-height: 24px; white-space: pre-wrap;">c'est bon.</i><span style="line-height: 24px; white-space: pre-wrap;"> I have to go teach now. Have a good afternoon."
I did have a good afternoon. I grilled corn, drank tea, and read a chapter in a Tom Robbins book. Only time will tell whether my perseverance in getting these letters has a happy ending or not. Maybe Mr. B was trying to stop something bad from happening; maybe he was simply sort of lazy; maybe he thought it was clear he didn't want to do the program but I was just too dense to get it. C'est Senegal quoi.</span>
<span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="line-height: 24px; white-space: pre-wrap;">*name changed because I've seen too many SVU episodes.</span></span></span></span></span></div>
</div>
</div>
Barbara Michelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00803322911842204947noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7852871663170610262.post-34525418443096089432015-10-31T02:38:00.000-07:002016-02-21T07:27:27.421-08:00100 Books of SenegalMy good friend Liz has a recurring <a href="https://hamatlarge.wordpress.com/2015/10/14/books-61-90/"><u><span style="color: blue;">books of Senegal</span></u></a> post on her blog. As I recently finished my 100th book in this country, I figured this was a good time to shamelessly copy her idea. Enjoy!<br />
<br />
1. Aaron, Chester. Garlic is Life<br />
a. Read if you want to hear a garlic snob wax poetic about subtle bouquets of delicate flavors in different varieties of garlic<br />
b. The 25 CFA boutique garlic is fine by me<br />
c. Is there anyone named Chester who is not pretentious?<br />
<br />
<br />
2. Adiga, Aravind. The White Tiger<br />
a. An indian man goes crazy, kills his employer, and becomes an entrepreneur<br />
b. The story is told through letters said crazy man writes to a stranger (the President, if I remember right.)<br />
c. Not terrible, but not worth your time to read. There are many better books.<br />
<br />
<br />
3. Albom, Mitch. The Five People You Meet in Heaven<br />
a. My college roommate Sam read this and said it was good. I've had it on my mental "to-read" list for the last six years.<br />
b. It was good.<br />
c. If there is a heaven, I hope to meet thousands of people there, not just five.<br />
<br />
4. Alford, Henry. How to Live.<br />
a. Alford asked old people for their accumulated life wisdom and advice, sorted it, and put it in a book that is entertaining and wise without being preachy or fatalistic.<br />
b. I think I’m doing OK at life.<br />
c. Grandma Michel is the best old person and if I end up half as amazing as her I’ll be delighted.<br />
<br />
5. Ambrose, Stephen E. Undaunted Courage<br />
a. Lewis and Clark travel across America <br />
b. Indians save their asses many, many times<br />
c. Sacagawea’s a badass bitch<br />
<br />
6. Atwood, Margaret. The Blind Assassin.<br />
a. Beautiful story beautifully told.<br />
b. Probably my favorite Atwood book.<br />
c. "Farewells can be shattering, but returns are surely worse. Solid flesh can never live up to the bright shadow cast by its absence. Time and distance blur the edges; then suddenly the beloved has arrived, and it's noon with its merciless light, and every spot and pore and wrinkle and bristle stands clear."<br />
d. That quote perfectly sums up why it’s scary to return home after Peace Corps.<br />
e. Five stars.<br />
<br />
7. Austen, Jane. Pride and Prejudice<br />
a. I wish the main characters would just talk about their feelings like grown-ups<br />
b. Cute, but I’m still not a card-carrying Austen fan.<br />
<br />
8. Ba, Mariama. Scarlet Song<br />
a. A cautionary tale of a failed forbidden romance between two Dakar university students, one French and one Senegalese<br />
b. Made me aware of even more reasons I’m absolutely not interested in Senegalese men<br />
c. Fast-paced and interesting, with very accurate descriptions of people and customs here. <br />
d. Five stars. <br />
<br />
9. Bishop, Holley. Robbing the Bees<br />
a. A history of beekeeping and honey production <br />
b. Not as good as I would expect, because usually well-researched science journalism is my jam. <br />
c. Three stars.<br />
<br />
10. Brown, Dan. The Da Vinci Code<br />
a. I can sort of see what all the hype was about a few years ago when all the copies of this were flying off the supermarket shelves.<br />
b. I don’t necessarily think we should blame the Catholic Church for keeping women down.<br />
c. But hey, let’s let bygones be bygones and make women equal in all ways already. #leanin<br />
<br />
11. Brown-Waite, Eve. First Comes Love, Then Comes Malaria<br />
a. A woman starts dating her Peace Corps recruiter, ET’s, then marries him and moves to Africa to be a housewife when he gets a job with a non-profit.<br />
b. I thought it was cute, but the friends I recommended it to hated her.<br />
c. I concede that perhaps there are stronger female role models out there.<br />
<br />
12. Bryson, Bill. A Walk in the Woods<br />
a. Bill Bryson decides to walk the entire Appalachian trail.<br />
b. Spoiler alert <span style="font-family: "tahoma";">–</span> he didn’t finish. <br />
c. Still funny and well-written. I would love to have dinner with the Brysons, they seem delightful.<br />
<br />
13. Bryson, Bill. I’m a Stranger Here Myself.<br />
a. Essays on returning to America after 20 years away.<br />
b. Some were good, some were OK.<br />
c. America’s pretty great.<br />
d. Okay, but not the best Bryson book you could read.<br />
e. The best Bryson book you could read is A Short History of Nearly Everything.<br />
<br />
14. Bunch, Roland. Two Ears of Corn<br />
a. A guide to sustainable agriculture development work<br />
b. Very, very relevant to my time here<br />
c. A must-read for PCVs.<br />
<br />
15. Cadbury, Deborah. The Dinosaur Hunters<br />
a. Started promisingly, about early eccentric fossil hunters, but then became a boring law story about who owns what where when.<br />
<br />
16. Chabon, Michael. The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier and Clay<br />
a. Comic book writers in New York in the 1950s<br />
b. Cute and well-done.<br />
c. Only one female character, and the only interesting thing she did was get pregnant.<br />
<br />
17. Colbert, Stephen. I am America and So Can You.<br />
a. Silly fun.<br />
b. Lots of pictures.<br />
c. I don’t know if it qualifies as a book.<br />
d. I need it to get to 100, it’s a book.<br />
<br />
18. Coyne, John. Living on the Edge<br />
a. A short story collection of Peace Corps writers.<br />
b. I favored the stories from Africa, but could relate to all.<br />
c. We Peace Corps writers are a fun bunch. I should probably write more about my crazy life here.<br />
<br />
19. Desowitz, Robert. The Malaria Capers<br />
a. This is oddly named. I would not call it "caper." It is mostly hard science about malaria.<br />
b. Did you know that human malaria transmission was figured out by studying sparrow malaria?<br />
c. Many species have a malaria specific to them.<br />
d. Fascinating.<br />
e. I read this whole damn thing while stuck at the Gambia river crossing for 12 hours when the ferry was broken.<br />
<br />
20. Ebershoff, David. The 19th Wife<br />
a. Morman polygamists.<br />
b. Weird blend of vaguely accurate history, completely fabricated history, and completely fabricated present-day events.<br />
c. Followed the lives of about ten characters and I only liked one of them. Jordan, ICYWW<br />
<br />
21. Eggers, Dave. A Heartbreaking Work Of Staggering Genius<br />
a. A boring work of overinflated drivel. Two stars.<br />
b. Man’s parents die so he raises his brother. They eat pizza and verbally spar together like a bad movie.<br />
<br />
22. Erdman, Sarah. Nine Hills to Nambonkana<br />
a. A Peace Corps memoir.<br />
b. Bitch helped with a village birth before going back to IST<br />
c. Bitch spoke fluent French, and so did all her coworkers, so there were no language barriers<br />
d. Bitch had effortlessly successful projects and integrated seamlessly with her host family<br />
e. This bitch is jealous of that bitch.<br />
<br />
23. Fadiman, Anne. The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down<br />
a. A Hmong family and their American doctors disagree about the best course of treatment for a little girl with epilepsy.<br />
b. Very well written, one of my favorite books ever. Handled with great cultural sensitivity. <br />
c. Made me wonder what traditional Pulaar medicinal beliefs are and how I’m stomping all over them by promoting western beliefs instead.<br />
d. Highly recommended for anyone working with a foreign culture.<br />
e. Five stars.<br />
<br />
24. Fiffer, Steve. Tyrannosaurus Sue<br />
a. Mostly about legal battles over who owns Sue, the famous T Rex discovered in South Dakota.<br />
b. The only legal battles I love are the dramatic 5 minute courtroom blowouts at the end of SVU episodes.<br />
c. I do not recommend this book.<br />
<br />
25. Flynn, Gillian. Gone Girl<br />
a. Made me literally shout "holy shit!" at the twist in the middle.<br />
b. Five stars.<br />
<br />
26. Folett, Ken. Fall of Giants<br />
a. Beware : it is a series, so nothing gets resolved at the end of the hefty 1000 pages.<br />
b. Folett is very good at introducing then killing off or sending away characters, so there’s always a lot of action. <br />
c. I don’t think I actually learned about World War One, which is why I decided to read this.<br />
<br />
27. French, Tana. In the Woods<br />
a. A detective duo solves the case of a murdered girl.<br />
b. Loved the story, ambivalent towards the ending. I would read the rest of the series if I were to find them at regional houses but I would not seek them out.<br />
c. Psychopaths are terrifying. <br />
d. I think I once dated a psychopath.<br />
<br />
28. Friedman, Thomas. Hot, Flat, and Crowded<br />
a. Western lifestyles are killing everything.<br />
b. The Pulaar village lifestyle, growing food and then eating it, is certainly more sustainable<br />
c. But I wouldn’t want to be here forever.<br />
<br />
29. Gately, Iain. Tobacco<br />
a. Made me want to start smoking. Tobacco has such a rich, fascinating history. <br />
b. Don’t worry, I won’t actually start smoking.<br />
<br />
30. Gilbert, Elizabeth. Eat, Pray, Love<br />
a. I was on board with "Eat", then "Pray" was bad, and by the time I got to "Love" it was hard to keep reading because I couldn’t stop rolling my eyes<br />
b. "Soft, buttery kisses that taste like soft, buttery potatoes."<br />
c. Gag me with a spoon.<br />
d. It is an unlikeable trait to prattle on about how much everyone that meets you likes you.<br />
e. She bought a $40,000 house for a woman she’d only known three months.<br />
f. That’s not kindness, that’s madness. I hope there are no development workers in Bali dealing with the gimme-gimme aftereffects of that.<br />
g. She said she was at peace being single and that men only complicated her existence, then slept with one the next night. Way to take a stand, Liz!<br />
h. Totally overhyped. A hate-read.<br />
<br />
31. Gladwell, Malcolm. Outliers<br />
a. The only thing that matters for success is that 1) you practice something enough to get real, real good at it, and then 2) a market demand arises for people that are real, real good at that thing.<br />
b. If you practice something for two solid hours, every single day, no exceptions, it would take you about fifteen years to be an expert.<br />
c. I don’t think I’ve put 10,000 hours into anything exceptional.<br />
d. Maybe that’s why I don’t have many marketable skills.<br />
<br />
32. Goldberg, Myla. Bee Season.<br />
a. I liked the beginning a lot, when it was just about spelling, but shit got weird with Hare Krishnas and kleptomania. Still a good read, but I’d like it more if it were cuter and lighter. <br />
b. A must read if you like Hare Krishnas and kleptomania<br />
<br />
33. Green, John. The Fault In Our Stars<br />
a. Quick read; I got through it in one village day<br />
b. Did tend to use big words seemingly just for the pretentious sake of doing so.<br />
c. Very cute story that lent itself perfectly to a very cute movie.<br />
<br />
34. Green, Toby. Meeting the Invisible Man: Secrets and Magic in West Africa<br />
a. A guy spends tons of money on gris-gris (traditional charms used to ward off evil), then claims that they actually work somewhat well.<br />
b. Eye-roll inducing.<br />
c. I don’t believe in magic in any country.<br />
d. Killing a cat to use its hair in gris-gris is cruel.<br />
e. Several months ago a Senegalese person offered to pay my red-haired friend exorbitant sums of money for strands of her pubic hair to use in gris-gris.<br />
f. I’m OK with ginger PCVs using their genetic recessiveness as a salary supplement.<br />
<br />
35. Heath, Chip and Dan. Switch<br />
a. Behavior change is hard.<br />
b. I wonder if people would wash their hands in village if they all had western-style porcelain bathroom setups.<br />
<br />
37. Hochschild, Adam. King Leopold's Ghost.<br />
a. The true story of belgians fucking up the Congo<br />
b. Good/bad story to read in Africa. A downer, but a very important downer. Made me feel more globally aware.<br />
c. Five stars. <br />
<br />
38. Holmes, Hannah. The Secret Life of Dust<br />
a. Do you know what dust is made out of?<br />
b. I don’t remember. But the book explains it, and it’s interesting!<br />
c. Five stars.<br />
<br />
39. Huchu, Tendai. The Hairdresser of Harare<br />
a. A swaggy rich man becomes the new hairdresser at a salon in Harare, Zimbabwe, and strikes up a weird "are we friends or more than that" relationship with another hairdresser.<br />
b. Spoiler: They’re just friends. Because he’s gay.<br />
c. He’s a hairdresser.<br />
d. Of course he’s gay.<br />
e. This is for some reason a huge bombshell.<br />
<br />
40. Kaysen, Susanna. Girl, Interrupted.<br />
a. Made me want to watch the movie<br />
b. Made me want to spend some time in an institution, just because it sounds fascinating.<br />
c. How do you know if you’re crazy?<br />
<br />
41. Kingsolver, Barbara. Animal Dreams.<br />
a. A woman returns to her hometown to work as a teacher and figure her life out.<br />
b. Loyd Peregrina is my biggest literary crush since Marco from Animorphs.<br />
c. Five stars.<br />
<br />
42. Kingsolver, Barbara. Flight Behavior<br />
a. Monarchs are nesting in Appalachia instead of in Mexico. <br />
b. I loved every character. Kingsolver is real good at creating people that you feel like you’re hanging out with.<br />
c. Five stars. <br />
<br />
43. Kingsolver, Barbara. Pigs in Heaven<br />
a. A sequel to "The Bean Trees"<br />
b. I like the first book better after reading this one. It straightens out legal difficulties Taylor’s clandestine adoption doubtless would have brought on.<br />
c. I was satisfied by how neatly and cleanly everything got tied up at the end.<br />
<br />
44. Kingsolver, Barbara. Prodigal Summer.<br />
a. Three interweaving stories of love and family, set in Appalachia. <br />
b. Deanna reminded me of me.<br />
c. I was narcissistic enough to enjoy this immensely.<br />
d. I wish I would have written this. Five Stars.<br />
e. This book told me that when exposed to enough natural moonlight, women will start to cycle with the moon, so they’re ovulating during the full moon.<br />
f. An informal survey of female PCVs showed that most of us do not.<br />
g. I do.<br />
<br />
45. Kingsolver, Barbara. The Bean Tree<br />
a. White girl unintentionally kidnaps Indian child, names her Turtle, keeps her, loves her.<br />
b. I wish I could do that with 85% of the kids in my village.<br />
<br />
46. Kingsolver, Barbara. The Poisonwood Bible<br />
a. A very good book.<br />
b. A missionary family with four kids moves to the Congo. Each chapter is told from the point of view of a different character. Each character is believably, fallibly human, with flawed, authentic personalities.<br />
c. Inspired me to text a friend only in anagrams for awhile.<br />
d. We have a lot of free time here.<br />
<br />
47. Kirino, Natsuo. Out<br />
a. Japanese woman commits Murder Most Foul, asks coworkers at the box lunch factory to help her cover it up<br />
b. I liked two of the women, hated one, and revered one as a personal hero. Read it and try to choose which is which.<br />
c. Four stars.<br />
<br />
48. Klosterman, Chuck. Killing Yourself to Live.<br />
a. Chuck Klosterman has a high opinion of himself.<br />
b. It was good but not as good as Chuck Klosterman probably thinks it is.<br />
<br />
49. Kolata, Gina. Rethinking Thin<br />
a. A claim that diets don’t work.<br />
b. I claim that healthy lifestyles do work (ie, lead to permanent weight loss).<br />
c. If you want to lose weight start walking/kayaking/biking/skiing/rock climbing/playing outside. <br />
d. #workedforme<br />
<br />
50. Kurlansky, Mark. Cod: A Biography of the Fish that Changed the World<br />
a. Five stars.<br />
b. Cod are fucking fascinating.<br />
<br />
51. Lamb, Wally. I Know This Much is True<br />
a. A man tries to come to terms with his twin brother’s schizophrenia.<br />
b. Five stars. <br />
<br />
52. Lamb, Wally. She's Come Undone<br />
a. Girl deals with a troubled past by stress-eating, lying, acting out, and being a terrible person. Gets mental help. Loses weight. Continues being a terrible person until she figures some stuff out. <br />
b. Very good, but also my least favorite Wally Lamb book.<br />
<br />
53. Lamb, Wally. We Are Water<br />
a. One of those books you stay up reading until 4am just to see what happens<br />
b. Wonderfully developed characters.<br />
c. Full of rape, incest, traumatic experiences, and pain...will make you feel some feelings.<br />
d. Five stars.<br />
<br />
54. Lee, Chang-rae. Aloft.<br />
a. A middle-aged man struggles to figure his life out. He has kids and they’re also figuring their lives out. One of those stories where the plot itself is sorta mundane but told so well that you love it anyway.<br />
<br />
55. Lee, Chang-rae. Native Speaker<br />
a. Gave me a qualifier I now use to describe myself, "B+ student of life. "<br />
b. I wanted to hug all of the emotionally fragile men in this story.<br />
c. Beautifully written.<br />
<br />
56. Levi, Primo. The Periodic Table<br />
a. This book was a gift from Mark M when I was home for vacation.<br />
b. Short stories written by a chemist, each inspired or involving a different element.<br />
c. My favorite element is carbon. <br />
d. This is not related to the book, just a fun fact.<br />
<br />
57. Maguire, Gregory. Wicked<br />
a. You’ve probably seen the play. I haven’t, so I thought the story was interesting, original, and engrossing.<br />
b. I wanna hug ephelba. <br />
<br />
58. Margulis, Lynn. Symbiotic Planet<br />
a. Did you know she was married to Carl Sagan for awhile?<br />
b. Why did she tell me about him and other lovers in what I thought was a science book?<br />
c. Oddly, bafflingly personal. Two stars.<br />
<br />
59. Martel, Yann. Life of Pi<br />
a. Boy travels in boat with tiger.<br />
b. Detailed descriptions of what it’s like to poo after months of dehydration and starvation.<br />
c. Somehow beautiful story anyway. Five stars.<br />
d. I thought the ending was invocative and original. I have heard hateful reviews of the ending. Read it and tell me what you think.<br />
<br />
60. Martin, George R.R. Storm of Swords<br />
61. Martin, George RR. A Dance with Dragons.<br />
62. Martin, George RR. Feast for Crows<br />
63. Martin, George RR. Game of Thrones<br />
a. Lives up to the hype. <br />
b. Well-rounded and developed characters that are believable and demand respect, even if they’re unlikeable. <br />
c. I think most of the changes the show made were for the better. <br />
d. I haven't read A Clash of Kings because I haven't been able to find it at any regional houses.<br />
e. My friends say it's the worst book anyway, too Stannis-heavy.<br />
<br />
64. Max, Tucker. Assholes Finish First.<br />
a. Skeevy man tells skeevy stories about doing skeevy things with his skeevy friends<br />
b. It certainly seems like Mr. Max is enjoying his life, I’ll give him that<br />
<br />
65. Meyer, Kathleen. How to Shit in the Woods.<br />
a. BURY it, for pete’s sakes. <br />
b. This book taught me that traditional female vs. male garb was probably traditionally chosen based on ease of urination in different garments. <br />
c. I confirm: it’s easier to pee in a skirt than pants.<br />
<br />
66. Miller, Alan. Gaia Connections<br />
a. This book was published in the 1960s and hard to get through. Very hippy-ish.<br />
<br />
67. Moalem, Sharon. Survival of the Sickest<br />
a. Being heterozygous for many genetic traits is good, but homozygous can kill you.<br />
b. Two copies of sickle cell = sickle cell disease = likely death. One copy = your blood cells are completely functional, but also you can’t get malaria = likely survival = gene stays in the population.<br />
c. Several other examples of this.<br />
d. Fascinating.<br />
e. Five stars.<br />
<br />
68. Montgomery, David. King of Fish: The Thousand-Year Run of Salmon.<br />
a. Man finds resource. Man overexploits resource. Resource runs out. Man is indignant.<br />
b. Interesting read. I wish the planet had fewer humans to muck stuff up.<br />
<br />
69. Munro, Alice. The View from Castle Rock.<br />
a. Fabricated stories loosely based on truth.<br />
b. Not good enough to be worth your time as fiction <span style="font-family: "tahoma";">–</span> not true enough to be valuable as non-fiction.<br />
c. Two stars.<br />
<br />
70. Murray, John. A Few Short Notes on Tropical Butterflies<br />
a. A short story collection. I usually don’t like short stories, but every one of these was gorgeously written, in the type of way that you just sigh, relax, and mentally swim through the pages. Beautiful. Five stars.<br />
b. I don’t recall there actually being anything about butterflies in the book.<br />
<br />
71. Niffenegger, Audrey. The Time Traveler's Wife<br />
a. A man sometimes travels through time. He can’t control where or when he ends up, and he can’t control when he takes his trips. A lot of times he visits his future wife throughout her girlhood (before they "meet"). It is a silly concept, but not a silly book. <br />
b. Hauntingly beautiful. The kind of book you think about for weeks after finishing it. <br />
c. Five stars.<br />
d. I did not care for the movie. I don't think this book could ever make a good movie.<br />
<br />
72. Palahniuk, Chuck. Choke<br />
a. I don’t care for Palahniuk.<br />
b. I suppose if you like him this is pretty standard writing by him.<br />
<br />
73. Pollan, Michael. Second Nature: A Gardener's Education<br />
a. I don’t remember reading this. Take that for what it’s worth.<br />
<br />
74. Priven, Joshua. The Worst-Case Scenario Survival Handbook<br />
a. I have forgotten everything in here since reading it. <br />
b. But I’ve been surviving pretty well anyway<br />
c. #crushinit<br />
<br />
75. Rachman, Tom. The Imperfectionists<br />
a. A bunch of overlapping stories of people that work together in a Rome newspaper.<br />
b. I remember I liked it, but I honestly don’t remember any other details. <br />
c. So, clearly, it was enjoyable but forgettable.<br />
<br />
76. Rand, Ayn. Atlas Shrugged<br />
a. I’m slightly ashamed to admit how much I loved this. I wish it were just a story, not a political allegory.<br />
b. But I skipped the 40 page John Galt rant. Jesus Christ, Rand, hold it in a bit.<br />
<br />
77. Rivoli, Pietra. The Travels of a T-Shirt in the Global Economy<br />
a. An economics professor traces the life of a Florida souvenir t-shirt she got at a big box store.<br />
b. Lots of technical talk about economics, subsidies, global trade, written easily enough that a novice like me could understand it.<br />
c. Interesting.<br />
d. Maybe without subsidies my Senegalese host family could sell their cotton for more money<br />
e. Maybe without subsidies cotton clothing would be crazy expensive.<br />
f. IDK.<br />
<br />
78. Roach, Mary. Packing for Mars<br />
a. A true story about past and potential future space travel.<br />
b. Lots of poop jokes.<br />
c. Silly, well-researched, scientifically accurate fun.<br />
d. Five stars.<br />
<br />
79. Robbins, Tom. Jitterbug Perfume<br />
a. Every sentence was poetry.<br />
b. Weird and wonderful.<br />
c. I want to read everything else he’s written but so far the regional house library gods have not answered that prayer.<br />
<br />
80. Rowling, JK. The Casual Vacancy<br />
a. It’s weird that Rowling wrote a book with so much profanity<br />
b. I cried at the end.<br />
c. Five stars.<br />
d. Apparently they made a BBC miniseries about it, it's on my to-watch list when I return to America unemployed with ample free time and abundant internet.<br />
<br />
81. Sandberg, Sheryl. Lean In<br />
a. Did you know that men apply for jobs if they have 60% of the qualifications, but women tend not to apply unless they have 100%?<br />
b. Change the world! Men as partners! Reach for the stars! Lean in! Get it, girls!<br />
c. Just after finishing the book, I heard Ms. Sandberg’s wonderfully supportive husband died recently in a freak treadmill accident. I almost cried. <br />
<br />
82. Sedaris, David. Dress your Family in Corduroy and Denim<br />
83. Sedaris, David. When You Are Engulfed in Flames<br />
84. Sedaris, David. Naked<br />
a. David Sedaris is delightful.<br />
b. He somehow makes common things sound fascinating and exciting.<br />
c. I would like David Sedaris to narrate my life.<br />
<br />
85. Shaffer, Mary Ann. The Guernsey Literary and Sweet Potato Pie Society<br />
a. Adorable. The fluffy white baby bunny of novels. I recommend this to anyone, no reservations. It’s an overload of cute.<br />
b. Neighbors bond together over a book club. The novel is written entirely in the form of letters they send to each other.<br />
<br />
86. Shah, Sonia. The Fever<br />
a. A history of malaria and discussion of why it’s so hard to stop worldwide<br />
b. Occasional segments were grossly untrue to my experience here<br />
c. Overall very informative. Read it, then call me so we can talk about it more.<br />
<br />
87. Shteyngart, Gary. Super Sad True Love Story<br />
a. A weird futuristic older man/young Korean girl relationship is the love story in question<br />
b. It was sad, but not super sad, and definitely not true.<br />
c. False advertising.<br />
<br />
88. Stein, Garth. The Art of Racing in the Rain<br />
a. A dog/human companionship story told from the point of view of the dog.<br />
b. Did you know when dogs shit all over the rug they’re doing so purposefully and vindictively, because you or your girlfriend has wronged them? <br />
c. I want a dog despite this.<br />
<br />
89. Stephenson, Neal. Anathem<br />
a. This story is only about 80% English, the rest is made-up vocabulary and concepts.<br />
b. Made me feel like I’m not even fluent in English, there’s no hope for my Pulaar.<br />
<br />
90. Stephenson, Neal. Cryptonomicon<br />
a. About codebreakers, both human and machine.<br />
b. Every character in this book is smarter than me.<br />
c. Except the one token woman, who is of normal intelligence.<br />
d. I disliked this.<br />
<br />
91. Stephenson, Neal. Snow Crash<br />
a. Hackers and computers and futuristic skateboard girls<br />
b. Skateboarding tethered to the back of semi-trucks sounds fun.<br />
<br />
92. Stevens, Stuart. Malaria Dreams<br />
a. Delightful story of trying to drive a car from the Congo to Egypt.<br />
b. I’m thankful I don’t have a car here.<br />
c. Mechanical skills would be far more valuable in a PCV than any attribute I bring to the table.<br />
<br />
93. Stokes, Penelope. Circle of Grace<br />
a. A supermarket ‘mom book,’ mindless but cute.<br />
b. Minimal character development<br />
<br />
94. Styron, William. Sophie's Choice<br />
a. Two stars. <br />
b. I think the movie was probably better because it was edited.<br />
c. I wish the book would have been edited.<br />
<br />
95. Taylor, Justin. The Apocalypse Reader<br />
a. The worst thing I have read in this country.<br />
b. I read it early on, when I was trying to not quit any books.<br />c. Since reading this I have quit roughly ten books that were all better than this one.<br />d. One star.<br />
<br />
96-98. Tolstoy, Leo. War and Peace.<br />
a. Tolstoy said War and Peace was three books, so I do too.<br />
b. I don’t care if this is cheating.<br />
c. It’s motherfucking War and Peace<br />
d. It was a bitch to get through, I earned it.<br />
<br />
99. Truss, Lynne. Eats, Shoots & Leaves.<br />
a. The title of this one is hard to write as it's intended because I love the oxford comma.<br />
b. I tend to overuse commas in general.<br />
c. Ms. Truss says this is not incorrect, merely annoying.<br />
d. I’ll probably keep doing it.<br />
<br />
100. Walls, Jeannette. The Glass Castle<br />
a. A memoir of growing up with vagabond parents. <br />
b. Made me feel some feelings. <br />
c. Amazing story. A must-read. Five stars.<br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: "calibri"; font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "calibri"; font-size: small;"><span lang=""></span></span></span><br />Barbara Michelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00803322911842204947noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7852871663170610262.post-44433901131377233932015-09-27T15:27:00.000-07:002015-10-11T09:59:48.119-07:00A picture's worth 1,000 words......but unfortunately the Senegalese electronics assassin team of Heat, Humidity, Power Surges, and Sandy Dust killed my camera and my smartphone in the last month, so words are the only tools I have left at my disposal. <br />
<br />
Oh well.<br />
<br />
This quote is beautiful and relevant: <br />
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For none of us can ever express the exact measure of his needs or his thoughts or his sorrows, and human speech is like a cracked kettle on which we tap crude rhythms for bears to dance to, while we long to make music that will melt the stars. ~Gustave Flaubert</div>
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I'm not aiming to melt any stars, I'm just trying to describe things here accurately...hopefully, this will do. If I still had a camera, these are the ten pictures I would have taken to sum up Teyel Tabaski 2015:</div>
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1) The severed heads of two rams, one black and one brown, eyes dark and unseeing, mouths slightly agape. Proud curved horns curl around the heads; on the right ram, the black one, they nearly touch the ground, indicating that he was probably the primary sacrifice this morning. The left ram, the brown one with shorter horns, is tilted to one side, balancing on a horn, a soft string of spongy pink brain stem protruding from the nape of his neck. There's a ruddy smear of blood on his floppy brown ear. The black ram's head, in contrast, is clean and sitting straight-up, as though he's merely resting, dignified, the rest of his body hiding under the sand. A skinny rooster is eying the heads cautiously, weighing his options, trying to figure out whether they're edible.<br />
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2) My beautiful host sisters Fatou and Medo laughing at something the baby did. They've got three and four packets of fake weave hair in, respectively, and each is wearing it in a high ponytail held in place with a thick black cable normally used to tie luggage down on a bike rack, a feat of engineering necessary because the bulk of the hair broke 3 of my ponytail holders as I was attempting to restrain it. They're wearing matching light brown <em>complets</em>, in the style popular with teenagers here, fitted on top with a huge peplum just above their hips, and its shocking how mature they look. Last Tabaski, at 12, they were girls, and somehow this year at 13 they suddenly look like women.<br />
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3) A troop of young girls (toddler - 8ish), led by a confident, muscular, immaculately braided troublemaker who's toddling on white jeweled high heels. The leader's pitching to the side because the heels are ludicrously impractical here and keep getting caught in the sand. All the girls are wearing matching skirt and shirt outfits, walking from compound to compound to demand <em>salibo. Salibo</em> is like Senegalese trick or treating; most families set aside a small stash of coins or candy for visiting neighbor kids, who then return home from their afternoon of scavenging with full pockets and sugar headaches. In Teyel, <em>salibo </em>is the day after Tabaski, and the girls know that perfectly well, but if they ask enough people who are in happy food comas after the feast, maybe they'll get something.<br />
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4) Baby Mariama, formaly braided with fake hair for the first time. The job is sloppy and obviously rushed, testament to the fact that Mariama vehemently disagreed to the braiding process and had required two girls to hold her in place while another plaited her as quickly as she could. At almost two, Mariama is barely recognizable as the infant she was last Tabaski.<br />
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5) An enthusiastic selfie with my 16ish year old host sister, Hawa. I would most likely look insane in the picture, she bewildered and amused, but unshakably calm. Hawa lives in Kounkane, a town about 15k away, doing housework for a relative, but she came home for Tabaski. Hawa is sweet, sassy, and funny, far cooler than me, and I adore her, though I very rarely get to see her. Unfortunately, since she has zero years of formal education, her current "cook, sweep, and wash for the men" routine will probably be continued for the rest of her life.<br />
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6) My gorgeous baby tokara, 16 months old now, face scrunched up in tears. She's reached the unfortunate age babies pass through where they realize I don't look like a normal human, but they don't yet realize I'm OK. Hopefully she'll pass through it soon; it's a blow to the self-esteem to have a baby bust out crying when she looks at your face, particularly one who I have visited several times a week for a year and a half. Even crying, baby Kadiatou is beautiful, all chubby cheeks and tiny rosebud lips. She has a fancy pink scrunchie precariously balanced around a tuft of poofy hair too short to properly hold it.<br />
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7) A circle of neighbor kids dancing the hokey-pokey. I translated the lyrics to Pulaar on a whim one day and it really took off. If I make no other difference in this village, at least I taught Teyelans a fun new game that will confuse the hell out of future anthropological researchers. A few of the girls have torn strips of black plastic bags tied around their fingers; they're waiting for their henna to set.</div>
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<span style="font-size: 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Wad junngo ñaamo to ndeer<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Wad junngo ñaamo to yaas<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Wad junngo ñaamo to ndeer<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Dimmbu dimmbu dum comme ça<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">A waadat hokey pokey<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">A werloto hoore ma<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">A amat haa abadan<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Put your ‘eating hand’ inside<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Put your ‘eating hand’ out<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Put your ‘eating hand’ inside<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Shake it shake it “like this” (<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">comme ça</i> is French but most people get
it).<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">You will do the hokey pokey<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">You will turn yourself<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">You will dance forever.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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8) My host sister and namesake, Kadiatou, closing her eyes and smiling while working through a chewy piece of ram intestine. Every part of the sacrificed Tabaski ram is eaten - liver, intestines, windpipe, even the testicles. Though I deeply respect the lack of waste, my taste buds are not so rational and very little of the meat here is delicious to me. I suppose my host family would probably be equally unimpressed with sauerkraut or lutefisk. <br />
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9) My crazy little trash kitten, Mallory, when I gave her a ram knee to gnaw on. She was trying to eat it as quickly as possible while also spinning around in a lookout to make sure no bullying chickens were coming to wrestle it away from her, and making a primitive purr-yelp-moan that I'm pretty sure meant "this is the best day of my life."<br />
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10) I would also take (but probably not share) a picture of myself as I looked when I formally stepped out to greet the village. My vil loves it when I wear makeup (probably because I do it so infrequently), and they love it even more when I forgo the subtle enhancements I find pretty and instead paint my face with the brightest, most garish colors I can find. I therefore had enough eye shadow to shame Mimi from the Drew Carey show, my lips were clown red, and I had an unnatural pink shade of blush in a thick stripe down each cheek. According to the ladies of Teyel, it was ravishing. If you could divert your attention from my mess of a face, you'd have noticed that my hair was equally ridiculous, braided thick with fake hair in a bold blend of browns, reds, and purples. It was a running joke with my Peace Corps friends that I should dress up formal-Senegal style for my sister's wedding in April, but I think if I'd have actually done so, she would have strangled me.<br />
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So, there you have it. Seeing a picture is not the same as being here; reading words is not the same as seeing a picture. Still, it's the best I could do right now. Happy Tabaski!</div>
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Barbara Michelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00803322911842204947noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7852871663170610262.post-5716327882765118922015-08-22T13:17:00.000-07:002015-08-22T13:17:41.983-07:00English Camp in ThiesI'm writing this while sipping iced <em>café au lait</em> on a shaded restaurant patio in sunny beautiful Thies. I left site and came up here to help with a weeklong English camp at <em>Lycee Malick Sy</em>, a local high school. The camp ended yesterday, so my plan was to wake up early, pack up my stuff, corral my new garbage kitten Mallory, say goodbye to my dear friend Liz, and be to the garage early enough for Mallory and I to get the just-after-sunrise car to Tamba.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmrHBkNWck5DncaZdRjELU3VMxrhLVgAYpZx3nAOanSZdklByPL2rBqv2oc9faUpk9fdklu7PP-un2x8chbGJbfrTMZGZOU9YgqetUZJBgkNqYMzPzCJziC68pZgEB4MaPFrEscMdR4c9d/s1600/trashkitten.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmrHBkNWck5DncaZdRjELU3VMxrhLVgAYpZx3nAOanSZdklByPL2rBqv2oc9faUpk9fdklu7PP-un2x8chbGJbfrTMZGZOU9YgqetUZJBgkNqYMzPzCJziC68pZgEB4MaPFrEscMdR4c9d/s320/trashkitten.jpg" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Mallory the garbage kitten is very studious and very adorable.<br /> She's my hail Mary to take down my hut rat.<br />I have no idea how she was a street cat; she's the friendliest kitten ever.</td></tr>
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That plan did not happen.<br /><br />There are absolutely no consequences for that plan not happening.<br />
<br />
Peace Corps work is notoriously nebulous and hard to define. I do not have a formal work supervisor in village, and the counterparts I do work with often only agree to help me because I dog them so aggressively. The "work" I had to get back to village for was self-assigned and will still be there upon my return tomorrow. To assuage my lingering guilt, however, I decided to write a blog about my week. You are now reading that blog. Thanks.<br />
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So, how did camp go? Well, I don't know. I think the kids had fun, but I don't know how much English they learned. When I get blank stares in response to things I say in village, I usually assume my baby Pulaar is to blame. This week, however, I got a similar number of blank stares while speaking my native tongue, as slowly and simply as I was able to. Kids were largely unable to follow simple commands like "make a circle" or "stand in line," but they correctly spelled "decision" and "mythical" during the spelling bee, and knew "octopus" and "antelope" when confronted with badly drawn pictures of them. It was baffling.<br /><br />So the campers and I didn't really speak the same language, and we also didn't really have the same definition of what the camp should be. Since it was only a half-day, from 9-1, with a half-hour break in the middle, Liz and I were trying to get the most out of every short minute. I've happily embraced "Africa time" in village, but this was not village - this was a formally scheduled city camp, with students chosen for their academic potential, with set start and end times. It was frustrating trying to compromise between a slow, viscous Senegalese culture and a tight, rigid American one. Even though the campers did, miraculously, all arrive at 9, when the camp was scheduled to start, it took at least 15 minutes to get the first activity underway, and all subsequent activities also required several long minutes for the campers to slowly transition, as though all their movements were done in a vat of honey. <br /><br />Our Senegalese co-facilitators were wonderfully encouraging, perhaps to a fault. A typical interaction went like this:<br />
<br />"Should we do the vocabulary game or the fill the bottle race next?"<br />"Yes!"<br />"Which one?"<br />"Whatever you want!"<br />"OK, how about vocabulary?"<br />"Yes! That's OK!"<br />"Is inside or outside better?"<br />"Yes! Whatever you want!"<br />"Outside there is more room."<br />"Yes! Outside!"<br />"But it looks like it might rain."<br />"Yes! Whatever you want! It is OK!"<br /><br />Eventually we just started leading the sessions on our own, which was fine, but not ideal because we didn't really know what we were doing or what the students' English abilities were, so we didn't know how hard the activities should be.<br />
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By the end of the week, we had it mostly figured out. In case future English Camp teachers happen to be reading this, here are the week's most and least successful components. Read and learn, because by camp time next year this girl's gonna be sippin' sangrias stateside and won't be around to help, suckas.<br />
<br />
MOST SUCCESSFUL:<br />
<ol>
<li>Fixed teams. We split the kids into four teams first thing, and had them design a flag and a cheer. They kept these same teams all week, and we could see cohesion strengthening as the week went on. At the end of each camp day, we formally tallied the day's points and updated the special scorekeeping chalkboard. We also impulsively added or subtracted points for behavior, which helped with management and (bonus!) made me feel like Professor Snape.</li>
<li>Themed races. We did a three-legged race, fill-the-bottle race, egg spoon race, and dizzy race. Everyone participated, everyone laughed, nobody spoke any English. Meh.</li>
<li>Running captions. I drew several crazy pictures (an elephant on a skateboard with a chicken in a spacesuit drifting overhead, a shark in a party hat eating a birthday cake, etc.) Each team sent one person to look at the picture, then that person had to go back to their team and describe it. The team had to submit a paragraph describing the picture, then we gave the team a score of 1-5, completely arbitrarily because we were flying by the seat of our pants and hadn't fixed any sort of scoring rubric.</li>
<li> Spelling bee. Oddly, the entire group was so transfixed you could hear a pin drop. When I said "That is correct" they all erupted in cheers; when I said "That is incorrect" there were audible gasps. It was suspenseful. The winning word was pineapple.</li>
<li>Scattergories. We did this as an impromptu last-day activity because we had an unexpected hour to kill, and everyone loved it so much we wished we would have done it earlier and on purpose.</li>
<li>Hokey Pokey. I think they mostly just liked this because they liked watching a <em>Toubab</em> dancing badly.</li>
<li>Vocabulary Chain - We formed a circle and said a category, like "animals" or "vegetables" or "countries." As we went around, if a student repeated an answer or couldn't think of one, they were out. It was fun.</li>
</ol>
LEAST SUCCESSFUL:<br />
<ol>
<li>Charades. The kids refused to act anything out, they just repeatedly mouthed the word while standing still. The words weren't hard - dance, glasses, soccer, camera - so they were probably just embarrassed. When Liz or I acted out a word, they happily guessed, but refused do it on their own. Frustrating.</li>
<li>Question Box. The idea was to let the students write down a question for Liz or I on a small piece of paper, then for us to draw a paper at random from the "question box" and answer it. The Senegalese teachers recommended this because they thought the kids would be too shy to ask questions in front of their peers. Instead, we got questions like these: <table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDhZJbWoscUXi1Oro7TbwAZr2VJZEfm_UyA41ySLREywYlOsi24mL3beYjg-Z45un5GSp53A6eHCcaNCdb5WrGCS4G7xapqEphr4aMS0dLJ6t6mOcWX8kCbXeU2ELYHu1iB-n7J5i3mHeN/s1600/questionbox.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDhZJbWoscUXi1Oro7TbwAZr2VJZEfm_UyA41ySLREywYlOsi24mL3beYjg-Z45un5GSp53A6eHCcaNCdb5WrGCS4G7xapqEphr4aMS0dLJ6t6mOcWX8kCbXeU2ELYHu1iB-n7J5i3mHeN/s640/questionbox.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Bottom left - no. All others....man, IDK. Does anyone K?</td></tr>
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</li>
<li>Sketch prep. The first two days, we gave the students 20ish minutes to work on sketches for the last day's group presentations. Instead of working, the students either put their heads down and napped or flirted with and grabbed at each other. The final group presentations were random improvised hard-to-follow theater sketches, and I don't think that all the practice time in the world would have changed that.</li>
<li>This is a half con. The kids had to choose an English name the first day, but they had a tough time thinking of anything original, so there were two Beyonces, three Chris Browns, a Justin Bieber, and two Rihannas. This was confusing (con) but adorable (pro.) There was also a Barbara who chose to be named after me. <table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjXpjS4Dq_snBrTQZ7JVr2RdJDne_ThixLlD6kdZdZCeAjukbp5c2KtKpEkSt0rV0goQMg21QcLDOfgJPSvdJfg99UFFeQauPp4yytl-U9MN_UkmFOCDXX3NzWkwbse3K8i45TsEIc_rwTb/s1600/SAM_2960+%25282%2529.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjXpjS4Dq_snBrTQZ7JVr2RdJDne_ThixLlD6kdZdZCeAjukbp5c2KtKpEkSt0rV0goQMg21QcLDOfgJPSvdJfg99UFFeQauPp4yytl-U9MN_UkmFOCDXX3NzWkwbse3K8i45TsEIc_rwTb/s320/SAM_2960+%25282%2529.JPG" width="213" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Barbara and Barbara.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjc7UYr5O9bnV87Iu6zkiTQTRMJUUSHSuH43Pc-rJhCu5G2GA_EwWSubgB0ekqQPeuoe6EkmuOrAlfmS8ZK1-4OtsejFzznWUgrA1Kb1OGUnyeLrIDRrwipFg1V8ZM6UVEcf2eFOJWEDVT_/s1600/SAM_2960.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"></a> </div>
</li>
</ol>
So, seven pros and three and a half cons! Overall, it was a really good week, and I definitely recommend it to any other PCV. Here are obligatory cute pictures.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEijnMa82VuF76yxaHY-2A0qNrNhreVtXoRU-xYVnEneFggri25LDYC6PNReJMHVh0jf15oLy7mvQ3kv6mQR2gdAkeM02Y7c5GKo04JwmZUnLMcztWG9TOa_Em7xfz5dr-OoB1XjvyXxf6uk/s1600/SAM_2957.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="372" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEijnMa82VuF76yxaHY-2A0qNrNhreVtXoRU-xYVnEneFggri25LDYC6PNReJMHVh0jf15oLy7mvQ3kv6mQR2gdAkeM02Y7c5GKo04JwmZUnLMcztWG9TOa_Em7xfz5dr-OoB1XjvyXxf6uk/s640/SAM_2957.JPG" width="640" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjh81BsG6I8j21WpPlHBwc01uWRze6VBKpF4WpfwIVHwLfh-8B_8Knp_7DNwaQAGMRVKn2Bu4ru-N11es6NhcvHv-gjR5Wg-5VmRIsCxcgk2RxxK_VqYHtJPPaNJe6KBz1iDNCpcuPlpGvf/s1600/SAM_2964.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjh81BsG6I8j21WpPlHBwc01uWRze6VBKpF4WpfwIVHwLfh-8B_8Knp_7DNwaQAGMRVKn2Bu4ru-N11es6NhcvHv-gjR5Wg-5VmRIsCxcgk2RxxK_VqYHtJPPaNJe6KBz1iDNCpcuPlpGvf/s320/SAM_2964.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjuexKkbq_fRUGoWMNM-DNC866i8_SqA5BJt_h2QvIEBInEOx7COzfBjVDuJmL4pltZqIFf3-rdEhxF5zcA0Xn6NQDxyamN2ybfenIsM9T2PBp_WEfDxpnWw89NqqsTe3EL8hz7inK_Vqog/s1600/SAM_2958.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="228" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjuexKkbq_fRUGoWMNM-DNC866i8_SqA5BJt_h2QvIEBInEOx7COzfBjVDuJmL4pltZqIFf3-rdEhxF5zcA0Xn6NQDxyamN2ybfenIsM9T2PBp_WEfDxpnWw89NqqsTe3EL8hz7inK_Vqog/s320/SAM_2958.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
<br /><br />Barbara Michelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00803322911842204947noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7852871663170610262.post-48670739201875937842015-08-13T13:04:00.000-07:002016-04-24T03:06:50.258-07:00Drawing Diarrhea!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;">A month or so ago, I went to a meeting of the ASCs (</span><span style="color: #1020d0;"><span style="color: black;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><em>Agents de santé communautaire</em> - local health workers, in English) and told them I was interested in doing murals at their sites. I chose this project because my sitemate Lauren's a wonderful artist and I was looking for more opportunities to exploit her, and also because some of the health stuff we teach (the danger signs of diarrhea or severe malaria, how to care for mosquito nets) can be hard to explain to someone not used to a foreign accent. I thought that a mural would be a useful visual aid that the villagers could look back on for at least a few years, until Senegal's heat, wind, and rain wear the paint away. Six ASCs said they were interested, so I went to their villages and had long tea-fueled discussions about what they believed the greatest health threats in their village were. <br /><br />Three said diarrhea. Two said malaria. One said improper pesticide use.<br /><br />Then I developed murals based on each answer. By that I mean that I commissioned Lauren to draw them.<br /><br />In exchange for receiving a mural, each ASC agreed to lead a causerie of 20-25 community members on their mural. <br /><br />So far, Lauren and I have only done one mural - diarrhea danger signs, in Saare Sukande. I am hopeful the others will be done by the end of September.</span></span></span></div>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjk_TyAPzbqZ3jHuROYE3lyv5JyHletNkPzb3Eop0gYyTf97Wnwz9oKipA_ggXJFe_A-GZyLL1fpkIo5DxxSyfjjQ6GqVX0zJFapHooPjTqb7UCLFDFzNte-2h17XazwXe562tZNbRUpzbr/s1600/SAM_2908.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjk_TyAPzbqZ3jHuROYE3lyv5JyHletNkPzb3Eop0gYyTf97Wnwz9oKipA_ggXJFe_A-GZyLL1fpkIo5DxxSyfjjQ6GqVX0zJFapHooPjTqb7UCLFDFzNte-2h17XazwXe562tZNbRUpzbr/s320/SAM_2908.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Lauren is very busy with texting.<br />
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<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3TlEfMp0EEPECUxyq9h3U9anJtVhAaXyAGXB28Vr87z1PT7NDDPMccEO39zLNbwIfTjwOHKk4qobVZ8KuZC-u5RYrao_MHoP0Y2jmIytwZA6UbuhykB3Fw5MPk1oN2VOmsgpR8KTBs8PK/s1600/SAM_2909.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3TlEfMp0EEPECUxyq9h3U9anJtVhAaXyAGXB28Vr87z1PT7NDDPMccEO39zLNbwIfTjwOHKk4qobVZ8KuZC-u5RYrao_MHoP0Y2jmIytwZA6UbuhykB3Fw5MPk1oN2VOmsgpR8KTBs8PK/s320/SAM_2909.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Beautiful.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="color: #1020d0; font-family: "segoe ui semibold";"><span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;"></span></span><br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzwn1K2RZ6-Ai39In1wgIVkwXsSbDnemu-hnuIRhJV97cKh7rho8aQwzyMYCbp_CYOTV4RrBOw05pm51L_Umf6d_GovDjIm63_DRI3DTHy-uSjvvcoXNUE1VH8bYJSNNGBbnAzifbL-mtT/s1600/SAM_2910.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzwn1K2RZ6-Ai39In1wgIVkwXsSbDnemu-hnuIRhJV97cKh7rho8aQwzyMYCbp_CYOTV4RrBOw05pm51L_Umf6d_GovDjIm63_DRI3DTHy-uSjvvcoXNUE1VH8bYJSNNGBbnAzifbL-mtT/s320/SAM_2910.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Saare Sukande's ASC, Demba Balde, with his half-finished mural. I don't have any pictures of the painting in-progress because filling in the lines was the one part of the mural that required no real skill, therefore the only part I could help with.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjekDxyylM0Q4OShIPDqH2lCoHB1VBoJp7sf6DU6KvLPWOgSyDsxogPas7y_h6IOEM_YPkOsJ_6ufWg1E7J7-hCStReYLPhGfydgQ4eU_edfV5Q5l9UQ2fjF_aibCV4YPTaY-fg-nMKF0Yk/s1600/SAM_2915.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjekDxyylM0Q4OShIPDqH2lCoHB1VBoJp7sf6DU6KvLPWOgSyDsxogPas7y_h6IOEM_YPkOsJ_6ufWg1E7J7-hCStReYLPhGfydgQ4eU_edfV5Q5l9UQ2fjF_aibCV4YPTaY-fg-nMKF0Yk/s320/SAM_2915.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Me and Lauren and Demba, with the final product!</td></tr>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEis11V88Ogijsxu170XYlPtzTi449Tt9LspBIQlLnGvGWF9Uob26WpjluvDzKWKkNHXPkCNDuJ_WhDs9NBV-vu47tdoH8xM-r3HXVZdRiV_pMyTMAIalUrZ1RBT7TD9yagJjQ-q6rZ2gKqP/s1600/SAM_2917.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEis11V88Ogijsxu170XYlPtzTi449Tt9LspBIQlLnGvGWF9Uob26WpjluvDzKWKkNHXPkCNDuJ_WhDs9NBV-vu47tdoH8xM-r3HXVZdRiV_pMyTMAIalUrZ1RBT7TD9yagJjQ-q6rZ2gKqP/s640/SAM_2917.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Danger signs from bottom left - blood in the stools, fever, when pinched the skin does not rebound quickly [which is a sign of dehydration], lethargy, refusal to eat or drink, vomiting. Who but Lauren can make bloody diarrhea look this pretty?</td></tr>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDZau7ZeFcMa8bqDtudRGrtaV37tWADTIUWuWCUys3q-jtHUgb8rJFZuWnaKQA5an9V8hwEFE0et0muTpQwY4yqjuqZdaEcz_L9PzLAmyq-jTNqcbQ0cH11wI2GcRSEs53Y1__VN9Vu3Ik/s1600/SAM_2918.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDZau7ZeFcMa8bqDtudRGrtaV37tWADTIUWuWCUys3q-jtHUgb8rJFZuWnaKQA5an9V8hwEFE0et0muTpQwY4yqjuqZdaEcz_L9PzLAmyq-jTNqcbQ0cH11wI2GcRSEs53Y1__VN9Vu3Ik/s320/SAM_2918.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Leading his causerie.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<span style="font-family: "segoe ui semibold";">Update March 2016: </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "segoe ui semibold";">I have a new camera! Here are the rest of the murals:</span><br />
<div>
<span style="font-family: "segoe ui semibold";"><br /></span>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-Jur6l-9RORKkl-R2aBZ3OAfTPSZ79osyGvQa50IKIDspWIxLDfP3PQiXJdfzZLHWSJtPQ38CXPCLmYl48MvTdjpA-VeDLjZ8f7dbN1igLjoQKB0sIPvKbNyJ7F8rziX8Y8cZpccx4oIJ/s1600/P1020378.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-Jur6l-9RORKkl-R2aBZ3OAfTPSZ79osyGvQa50IKIDspWIxLDfP3PQiXJdfzZLHWSJtPQ38CXPCLmYl48MvTdjpA-VeDLjZ8f7dbN1igLjoQKB0sIPvKbNyJ7F8rziX8Y8cZpccx4oIJ/s320/P1020378.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Kountanto - danger signs of severe malaria</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhVlK7zdtk0ppr9fPRWPj2SlTnPeWf7p-MLwKzSSu6NidY_0jqj-QFikgQlSGdeFV5zgsO0VqNywpefRaEFO6hOpmT7ts9_4yf0GN8apGtfU240upEtMaxOdoNZuyolzbUahBnYqD_noOKR/s1600/P1020379.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhVlK7zdtk0ppr9fPRWPj2SlTnPeWf7p-MLwKzSSu6NidY_0jqj-QFikgQlSGdeFV5zgsO0VqNywpefRaEFO6hOpmT7ts9_4yf0GN8apGtfU240upEtMaxOdoNZuyolzbUahBnYqD_noOKR/s320/P1020379.JPG" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Kansatan - causes of diarrhea (five F's - food flies fingers fluid feces)</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhpqnvTUxF79kZ_qI7rCgP01WRLjb0MvwYFddPsl-vfudAlD0cpGQlyYfv-0LLqVqDWF9GIRLi2ZK1oVtEV1FILDUKQBouIFjA6wzZMrCmgMYnrnZAwCXNCEljWAuHAtkWtfiCxw-nXlgXs/s1600/P9140013.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhpqnvTUxF79kZ_qI7rCgP01WRLjb0MvwYFddPsl-vfudAlD0cpGQlyYfv-0LLqVqDWF9GIRLi2ZK1oVtEV1FILDUKQBouIFjA6wzZMrCmgMYnrnZAwCXNCEljWAuHAtkWtfiCxw-nXlgXs/s320/P9140013.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Complet model of nutrition</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiVONkHWF69YPZGPPAk08mbhJgc_p8aabskMsaojPuYZhyphenhyphenNxwxfVWOiOtrKdCs6VM7aDxtN5T-ni0e4HRrJ1Fn2FS70O8z8A-pWX3ExzsJQNXur7GYpc8LTLuFEiumNnz4H5GHv9aRDRMnl/s1600/P1030453.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiVONkHWF69YPZGPPAk08mbhJgc_p8aabskMsaojPuYZhyphenhyphenNxwxfVWOiOtrKdCs6VM7aDxtN5T-ni0e4HRrJ1Fn2FS70O8z8A-pWX3ExzsJQNXur7GYpc8LTLuFEiumNnz4H5GHv9aRDRMnl/s320/P1030453.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 12.8px;">Danger Signs of Malaria, at the Saare Meta Health Hut<br />
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<span style="color: #1020d0; font-family: "segoe ui semibold";"><span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></span></div>
Barbara Michelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00803322911842204947noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7852871663170610262.post-55494135881384609512015-07-26T05:16:00.000-07:002015-07-26T05:16:21.230-07:00Ode to my Cell Phone<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">If you’re an American reading this, you probably have a
smartphone.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Smartphones are perfectly
suited to the American way of life.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>You
can look up the closest Thai restaurant that offers a student discount, read
reviews to choose what to order, place an order, and have your phone analyze
satellite traffic to provide the most efficient route before giving you GPS
voice guidance to drive there, all within 2 minutes.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In America, cell phones make life easier.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 8pt;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"></span> </div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 8pt;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">My cell phone makes my life easier in Senegal, too.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Though it could not be called “smart,” it is
perfectly suited for my environment. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 8pt;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">My phone is tough.</b><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>There are no carpeted floors here in my
Pulaar village.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If you’re lucky, your
hut floor is poured concrete – if not, it’s packed laterite.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Dropping an iPhone here could be fatal to it,
but not to my brick!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>There’s no
touchscreen to crack, no sensitive camera lens to dirty.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I’ve dropped it dozens of times.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Babies have played with it like a
hammer.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I’ve tossed it across the
compound to my <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">tokara</i> when she’s
asked to use it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Though primitive, it’s
been a tireless champ, the Nile crocodile of cell phones.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 8pt;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">The battery lasts
forever</b>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>My brick never leaves my
side.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I’m a texting fiend, and I talk on
the phone far more than the typical villager.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Even so, I only have to charge it every few days.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Most people in my village get by with
charging their phones once a week or so.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>When the battery does need to be charged, it’s easy to do so.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Find someone with a solar panel, drop it off,
and pay 100 CFA (about 20 cents) when you pick it up later. </span><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEic3hCvBgUB8EKrOGBUmpcOTrDVk6m1rjWzbXjsPYmnuPlNJndxecGnwNEdXlQF64V9HYSt3tUCkdmbBTnFD7cAub2-TJLryxfY6TDY27ZkwcI1bmggN7QGYWzi92IHgPQPrHBNnP04rbIv/s1600/chargingphones.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEic3hCvBgUB8EKrOGBUmpcOTrDVk6m1rjWzbXjsPYmnuPlNJndxecGnwNEdXlQF64V9HYSt3tUCkdmbBTnFD7cAub2-TJLryxfY6TDY27ZkwcI1bmggN7QGYWzi92IHgPQPrHBNnP04rbIv/s320/chargingphones.jpg" width="320" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">My host brother Oussaman got a solar panel a couple months ago and he's been rolling in business.</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 8pt;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">It has a built-in
flashlight</b>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Those of you that don’t
understand how useful this is have probably never lived without electricity.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It’s really goddamn useful.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 8pt;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><strong>It has a built-in radio. </strong>This is less useful than the flashlight, but still nice. I can't get any channels on it in my village, but it would probably work in a larger city. I've seen people with wire attached to their phones (like antennae) and headphone jacks in their ears, so presumably that works too.</span></div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 8pt;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">The games are on
point</b>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It came equipped with Snake,
Rapid Roll, Cricket Cup, Sudoku, and Forbidden Treasures.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I still have no idea how to play Forbidden
Treasures (ironic...) but the other games are great.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I favor Snake, but play the other games
regularly too.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"></span>I probably never would have learned to play cricket if it wasn’t for my phone and my ample free time.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Hidden Peace Corps perk!</span></span></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh7lHLwOhIAOM54Wb_YnJNmhH5fWW50ISo3BMmue9_h2yCVaI6J63Gj3nIUJ8NF3MP-heHwLYPmXjPglrVWLc9yaFWkduStGLCDNpMIVU3Hfy0dGBbSL8gvgckcAxl5qOH8NPFpB-DsD6aU/s1600/snake.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh7lHLwOhIAOM54Wb_YnJNmhH5fWW50ISo3BMmue9_h2yCVaI6J63Gj3nIUJ8NF3MP-heHwLYPmXjPglrVWLc9yaFWkduStGLCDNpMIVU3Hfy0dGBbSL8gvgckcAxl5qOH8NPFpB-DsD6aU/s320/snake.jpg" width="147" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">Looks like nostalgia...</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 8pt;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"></span> </div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 8pt;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><strong>It's well adapted for a chronically broke person to use. </strong>Cell phones here are recharged with purchased cards, each worth 1000 CFA ($2, but a</span><a href="http://barbarapeacecorps.blogspot.com/2014/08/money-in-village.html"><span style="font-family: inherit;"> lot of money in village</span></a><span style="font-family: inherit;">). The cards can be purchased from any boutique. You scratch off the foil, type the numbers into the phone, and - voila! - you have about 30 minutes talk time. </span><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEic3hCvBgUB8EKrOGBUmpcOTrDVk6m1rjWzbXjsPYmnuPlNJndxecGnwNEdXlQF64V9HYSt3tUCkdmbBTnFD7cAub2-TJLryxfY6TDY27ZkwcI1bmggN7QGYWzi92IHgPQPrHBNnP04rbIv/s1600/chargingphones.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"></a> </div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;"> </span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjGSCLntnSaR8MLyfi8NeJn8BUKPj7Gm-3xGn1caMU5Rl683s0TJWIT_bgFWk1MIOM4OUaoYlls9q8X323rMURQWD1fj30U7HwQC3lrTHadW5qrJYZajlyo6MvKAZrGOqt24Z4CM6P1xRCE/s1600/phonecard.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjGSCLntnSaR8MLyfi8NeJn8BUKPj7Gm-3xGn1caMU5Rl683s0TJWIT_bgFWk1MIOM4OUaoYlls9q8X323rMURQWD1fj30U7HwQC3lrTHadW5qrJYZajlyo6MvKAZrGOqt24Z4CM6P1xRCE/s320/phonecard.jpg" width="320" /></span></a></div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;"> </span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh7lHLwOhIAOM54Wb_YnJNmhH5fWW50ISo3BMmue9_h2yCVaI6J63Gj3nIUJ8NF3MP-heHwLYPmXjPglrVWLc9yaFWkduStGLCDNpMIVU3Hfy0dGBbSL8gvgckcAxl5qOH8NPFpB-DsD6aU/s1600/snake.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"></span></a> </div>
<br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;">If you're broke, no worries - there are no monthly fees, no contracts, no mandatory scheduled payments. If you can't afford credit and need to talk to someone, you can send them a text that says "Merci de me rappeler" (please call me) for free. The text recipient will see the message and call if they have credit. If your phone does have a fatal accident, it's easy to get by while waiting for money for a new one. The SIM cards are removable and transferrable to any other phone. One of my neighbors hasn't had a working phone for months, but she puts her SIM card in mine sometimes to greet her family in Mauritania.</span><br />
<strong><span style="font-family: inherit;"></span></strong><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 8pt;">
<o:p><span style="font-family: inherit;"><strong>It keeps me updated with other volunteers and admin. </strong>Text message alerts, called CPAs, come in frequently. These messages are great for keeping all volunteers in the loop about grant deadlines, safety and security issues, or administrative updates. They were especially useful during last year's Ebola epidemic. It was good to know that if something happened involving Peace Corps' position in Senegal, we would all be notified at the same time instead of relying on diluted gossip through the rumor mill. Volunteers also get free volunteer-volunteer calling, which is the best thing admin could have done for our mental health, in my opinion. Not a day goes by that I don't talk to someone in my Peace Corps family.</span></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 8pt;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><strong>You can send money with it. </strong>I haven't utilized this feature, but it's been a lifesaver for my host family. A Western Union style system called Wari is really popular here. If you send someone a Wari, they just have to take their phone (with confirmation text) to a Wari station (they're everywhere, there's one 4k away from me), show the person working your ID, and collect your money. It's so easy.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 8pt;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"></span> </div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 8pt;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">The computer, iPod, and tablet I brought to Senegal from the states have all fallen prey to the harsh environment here. This is where electronics go to die. I have a friend who's gone through two kindles, a camera, an mp3 player, and two laptops. However, the brick cell phone is still as functional as the day I got it, and I'm thankful.</span></div>
</div>
Barbara Michelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00803322911842204947noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7852871663170610262.post-88950834838490726092015-07-20T05:57:00.000-07:002016-07-26T10:59:58.927-07:00Rat Trap Blues<span style="font-family: "calibri";">I woke up to fat, slow raindrops dripping through my shade
structure and on to my face.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I scowled,
half asleep, and groped for my cell phone (which, due to its built-in
flashlight, is never more than an arm’s length away after dark).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>12:42, it said.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I pondered whether I should move inside to
sleep or whether the drizzle would stop soon.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>In response, a thunderclap sounded and it started raining buckets.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Blah.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "calibri";"><o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "calibri";">I stumbled inside, half-asleep, carrying my partially sodden
foam mattress, my path dimly lit by my cell phone’s flashlight.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Something was wrong.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Several books were strewn across the floor,
not on my table where I'd left them.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>My
shampoo bottle was laying on the ground, too, a small puddle of liquid pooled
around its nozzle.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And – what <u>was</u>
that? – oh yeah, the glue rat trap I’d bought in Thies was upside down on the
floor, too.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>As I looked, the trap
suddenly clicked and scuttled towards me.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "calibri";"><br />
I shrieked and jumped.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“Oh god oh god oh
god oh god oh god!”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>After three kinds of
rat poison hadn’t done the trick, I’d bought the trap hoping to <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">catch </b>the rat, but this possibility had
honestly never occurred to me.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I thought
if the trap did work, the rat would die instantly and peacefully, allowing me
to sanctimoniously drop it in my latrine hole with a shrug and a silent apology
(“Well, I’m sorry, but you did it to yourself, you know.”)<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Unfortunately, the rat didn’t agree to that
plan, and he wasn’t going down without a fight.<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 8pt;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri";">My heart was racing.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>I cowered in my rain-drenched sleep shorts as I considered my options.</span></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpFirst" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt 0.5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";">1.</span><span style="font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font: 7pt/normal "Times New Roman";">
</span></span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-family: "calibri";">Ignore it until morning and make my host brother
deal with it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Although this was the most
attractive option, it was not possible.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>It was raining too hard for me to go back outside, and I doubted the rat
would sit still until daylight.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I wouldn’t
be able to sleep with it running all over.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt 0.5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";">2.</span><span style="font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font: 7pt/normal "Times New Roman";">
</span></span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-family: "calibri";">Toss the whole mess outside, rat, trap, and
all.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>That would mean <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">touching </b>it, which there was no way I
was going to do.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Rat scratch fever,
Hantavirus, the plague…no.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="margin: 0in 0in 8pt 0.5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";">3.</span><span style="font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font: 7pt/normal "Times New Roman";">
</span></span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-family: "calibri";">Kill the rat.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>I didn’t <u>want</u> to do this, but I couldn’t think of any other
possibility.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 8pt;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri";">I reluctantly strapped a chaco sandal on my right foot and
breathed deeply, trying to get up the nerve to stomp the trap.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I wished I’d brought a nice thick baseball
bat to Senegal for this occasion.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The
trap was still now, which I interpreted as the rat silently and serenely
accepting his fate.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I muttered
encouragements to myself. “Come on, Barb.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>You’ve got this.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Just do it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>You can do it.”</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 8pt;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri";"><br />
Five minutes passed, silent except for the wind and rain and my racing thoughts, completely dark
except for my flashlight beam.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span><span style="font-family: "calibri";">I realized there was no way I’d survive a zombie apocalypse.</span><span style="font-family: "calibri";"> </span><span style="font-family: "calibri";">I knew I
was being a baby, but I still couldn’t move.</span><span style="font-family: "calibri";">
</span><span style="font-family: "calibri";">It was just a rat! </span><span style="font-family: "calibri";">I reconsidered option 1, leaving the trap
until morning.</span><span style="font-family: "calibri";"> </span><span style="font-family: "calibri";">As if it were reading my
thoughts, the trap moved, scraping noisily against my concrete floor.</span><span style="font-family: "calibri";"> </span><span style="font-family: "calibri";">“Oh god oh god oh god oh god!”</span><span style="font-family: "calibri";"> </span><span style="font-family: "calibri";">I shuddered, closed my eyes, and stomped the
chaco as hard as I could in the center of the trap.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 8pt;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri";"><br />
But the rat was not in the center of the trap.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>It was far off to one side of it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>The trap was also not very well made – its surface was slick, wet, and
barely sticky at all, the masking tape of glues.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>My stomp only served to slide the gluey
cardboard off the rat’s back and onto his hairless tail.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He yelped, scared and angry, then limped away
from the trap unencumbered, his fur shiny with wet glue.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I knew I should chase him.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I knew I wasn’t going to chase him.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I watched as he walked, fearlessly and
purposefully, out my open back door into the rain.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Lightning flashed and – I swear – he looked
back at me over his shoulder before disappearing into the tall grass, where (I
imagined) he’d clean himself off, gather his friends, and prepare a
counter-attack. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 8pt;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri";"><br />
I tucked my mosquito net in very carefully, telling myself the thin gauzy
fabric was ample defense against a revengeful rodent.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I eventually fell into a fitful sleep, had a
mefloquine nightmare about Zombeavers, and woke up in a puddle of my own
sweat.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><br />
<br />
Africa: 1, Kadiatou: 0.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
Barbara Michelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00803322911842204947noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7852871663170610262.post-32536508620243261692015-07-11T03:58:00.000-07:002015-07-11T04:19:03.990-07:00Family Bonding."Konk Konk," said my favorite host sister, Meadow, from my open hut door. I looked up from <u>The Poisonwood Bible,</u> smiled, and welcomed her inside. We went through the normal round of greetings, ending when I asked what was new and she sighed and said nothing. The visit wasn't unusual - it's Ramadan, and afternoons are boring. There's no lunch preparation or afternoon tea to break up the day, and most people spend the afternoon napping. The village is a total dead zone from around 2pm until break fast around 7:30. I'm not fasting this year, so many kids (who also don't fast) use "visit Kadiatou" as an afternoon activity. I have some picture books brought back from America that kids are welcome to read as long as they don't remove them from my hut. Meadow picked up a book she'd already "read" many times and started turning the pages. Ten minutes elapsed - I forgot she was there. <u>The Poisonwood Bible</u> is a very good book. Finally, she spoke.<br />
<br />
"Tomorrow, I might go to a <em>dennabo </em>(naming ceremony)," she said. <br />
"Yes, me too!" I replied happily. Several people had told me about the <em>dennabo</em> already. It was supposed to be a huge affair, with speakers and cold <em>boissons</em> biked in from Velingara in coolers. Usually, parties don't happen during Ramadan, but they made an exception for this one. It was going to start right at break fast and continue well into the night. I was really looking forward to it.<br />
<br />
Five more minutes elapsed in silence. <u>The Poisonwood Bible</u> is a very good book.<br />
<br />
"Aliou's washing tonight," she said nonchalantly.<br />
I was fairly certain I'd heard correctly but had no idea who Aliou was or why she was telling me this. "Oh yeah? What we will he wash? Clothes?" <br />
"No, I said Aliou," she slowly clarified. "Aliou Balde."<br />
"<em>Awa</em>," I said with a shrug. OK.<br />
<br />
Meadow didn't give up. "Aliou Balde," she said again. She pantomimed washing her hair. I remembered that was the name of the man in town that washes womens' hair. They just go to his compound and pay 200 CFA (roughly 40 cents) and he lathers them up.<br />
<br />
"<em>Awa</em>," I said again. The town hair washer, who washes hair every night, was washing hair that night. That was a weird thing to tell me. Must have been a slow news day in Teyel.<br />
<br />
More time elapsed. <u>The Poisonwood Bible</u> is a very good book. Finally, I felt Meadow's stare piercing me through the pages. I looked up and recognized the pleading look in her eyes. Realization hit me like a beam of lightning.<br />
<br />
"OH! I UNDERSTAND!" I exclaimed. I was proud of myself for figuring it out but embarrassed that it took so long. Meadow looked relieved. I stood up and got a 200 CFA coin from my wallet to pay for Meadow to get her hair washed for the party. <br />
<br />
Then I decided to mess with her a little bit. Like all big sisters, I'm kind of a bully.<br />
<br />
"You will wash the hair until you're clean?" I asked. I accidentally used <em>lootde</em>, to wash, instead of <em>looteede</em>, to get washed. Reflexive endings are hard and I forget a lot. Meadow didn't correct me like most 13 year olds would ("no, I'll <strong>get</strong> washed, dummy!"). She just politely said yes. <br />
<br />
"You have a friend there?" I enquired. She just smiled shyly. I kept digging. "A boy friend?" I prodded. Just like in English, "boy" and "friend," innocent when separated by a space, combine into a far more loaded word. <em>Sahel gorko</em> could be nothing, a friend who's a boy, or a real boyfriend. I said the words close together, in a way that was teasing yet kind (I hoped.)<br />
<br />
Meadow put her head in her hands and laughed, embarrassed. If her skin were paler, her face would be blushing beet red. <br />
<br />
"Now I understand!", I squealed, throwing my pillow at her. "What's his name?"<br />
<br />
We both laughed. I waited for inspiring Full House theme music to bubble up, incited by this lovely heartwarming family moment. Instead I heard only roosters and goats.<br />
<br />
"Meadow," I said slowly. "You will go to school next year."<br />
She solemnly nodded.<br />
"And the year after next, and three years from now." (This is easier to say in Pulaar - <em>e ñatigaro, e</em> <em>ñatagaro</em>)<br />
I tried to make meaningful eye contact, but Meadow was looking at the door. She had gotten her money and I was acting a little too much the nosy big sister. She glanced back and recognized the pleading look in my eyes. <br />
"Oh! Yes! School! I <strong>will</strong> go to school," she assured me.<br />
I kept looking at her.<br />
"I will have girl friends <strong>only</strong>."<br />
<br />
We laughed and said "let us spend the afternoon in peace" - a mouthful in English, but three simple syllables in Pulaar, <em>ñallen jam. </em><br />
<em></em><br />Barbara Michelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00803322911842204947noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7852871663170610262.post-62753626655131651532015-06-29T16:28:00.000-07:002015-06-30T16:00:58.243-07:00Minen? Doo? Ndeer Fuladu?Behavior change is hard, guys. I knew from the start that I'd be "not from around here" in my village, but I was hoping I'd be a respected foreign consultant whose accent adorably gets in the way sometimes (like a sexy doctor on ER.) Instead, I'm finding that I'm Fez from That 70s Show: nice, but weird. Really weird. You'd never take advice from him.<br />
<br />
Pulaar is nothing like English. It's full of symbolic language, idioms, and double meanings, and the words are in a shuffled order. When my brain thinks in English, the Pulaar sentences come out twisted, like a crumpled banner, and it's my listener's hard work to straighten my crooked words to understand the message. Of course, everything that I hear is also twisted, so I need to straighten the Pulaar words I hear into something that makes sense to my English brain before I can understand.<br />
<br />
I don't want to sound negative - I'm not. I'm having a lot of fun with this! It's the ultimate brain teaser. If I have a patient listener, I can have whatever conversations I please, and thankfully this is a small enough town that a lot of people have nothing better to do than to talk to me. I know it will get even easier my second year here, and that's exciting and inspiring.<br />
<br />
However entertaining Pulaar Puzzling may be, it does stand in the way of my behavior change goals. After all, I did come here to work. Unfortunately, I'm not yet too convincing when I try to have complex conversations analyzing the pros and cons of new vs. traditional practices. Usually, my friends in village just shake their heads at my weird, foreign ways and say "<em>Minen, doo, ndeer Fuladu..</em>." (we, here, in the <em>Fuladu</em> [Pulaar-speaking region]), then explain what they do, slowly and clearly, as though they were talking to a child. After all, in their eyes, they're the normal ones. I'm the odd duck.<br />
<br />
I started keeping a list in my notebook of all the times I've heard, "Minen, doo, ndeer Fuladu...." used to explain a completely perplexing behavior. Each time, my language was sufficient to mutually understand each other, but we both left shaking our heads in bewilderment.<br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;"> We, here, in the Fuladu...</span><br />
<br />
<strong>We think that morning coffee purges witches.</strong><br />
<strong><br /></strong>"Kadiatou, buy me coffee."<br />
"Haha, my uncle! I am without 5 CFA this morning. I am not drinking coffee today."<br />
"You will drink coffee at home?" <span style="font-size: x-small;">(think - a "yes" means that this random dude might invite himself over, and I don't want to deal with that. A "no" means a possible lecture. Decide to go with my old standby, the noncommittal shrug.)</span><br />
"In the night, vampires and witches can come. They enter your body. In the night, it is cold. You must drink hot in the morning."<br />
"Ah, because witches aren't used to hot? They can't hot?" <span style="font-size: x-small;">(<em>woowde</em> and <em>waawde</em>, "to be used to" and "to be able to", sound similar and people sometimes can't hear the difference through my accent, so I decided to say both just to cover my bases.)</span><br />
"Voila."<br />
"In the old place,<span style="font-size: x-small;"> (said to refer to wherever us Toubacos are from, because no one can remember if we're from France or America or Italy or Spain, and it's all the same anyway)</span>, we drink coffee because we like coffee."<br />
"Well, we here know that coffee is important. We, here, in the Fuladu, we think coffee is medicine."<br />
<br />
<strong>We think honey cures diabetes.</strong><br />
<br />
"Kadiatou, you will drink?"<br />
"What is?" <span style="font-size: x-small;">(In Pulaar, you just say <em>hoko woni, "</em>what is," instead of "what is that." I don't know why we say the "that" in English. It's an unnecessary syllable. If it's not obvious what "this" or "that" is through context, the word "this" or "that" doesn't provide any clues as to what you might mean.)</span><br />
"Honey. Woods honey."<br />
"Oh! I will drink a little."<br />
"Drink it all!" <span style="font-size: x-small;">(she in no way expected me to drink the entire liter cup, that's just the polite thing to say.)</span><br />
"If I drink it all, I will have gotten diabetes." <span style="font-size: x-small;">(I was trying to use the subjunctive, which is hard grammatically. I wanted to say "if I were to drink all of that, I would get diabetes" but I spoke weird nonsense instead. She looked confused for a second, then lit up, thinking she understood.)</span><br />
"Yes! If you have diabetes, this cures you." <br />
"...no."<br />
"Yes! This is medicine for diabetes. If diabetes catches you <span style="font-size: x-small;">(In the Fuladu, diseases catch YOU instead of the other way around),</span> this is medicine."<br />
"...No. When diabetes catches you, your body can't sugar. Honey is sugar. Drinking sugar when your body can't sugar is bad."<br />
"This is not sugar. This is medicine."<br />
"Honey has vitamins a little, but it is not medicine for nothing. <span style="font-size: x-small;">(double negatives are grammatically correct here)</span>. It is not good for diabetes. It is sugar really really."<br />
"Well, we? Here? In the Fuladu? We think this is medicine for diabetes."<br />
<br />
<strong>We think powdered milk is medicine.</strong><br />
<strong></strong><br />
"Adama! I heard you are sick."<br />
"I'm a little better." <span style="font-size: x-small;">(Even if you're on death's door, you <u>always</u> insist that you're a little better.) </span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;">"What got you?"<br />"A cold."<br />"You got hospital medicine?"<span style="font-size: x-small;"> (there are other ways to ask questions, but the easiest is just to pronounce a statement like it's a question, so that's what I always do.)</span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;">"No, I drank Vitalait."<br />"Vitalait? The powdered milk from the boutique?"<br />"Yes. It is medicine."<br />"Vitalait is not medicine. Amadou Dem <span style="font-size: x-small;">(the boutique owner)</span> is not a doctor."<br />"It has vitamins. It is medicine. We here in the Fuladu think it is medicine."</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><strong>We plant hot peppers in the rainy season.</strong></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><strong></strong></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;">"Lumbi, you are going to the field?"<br />"My garden, there." <span style="font-size: x-small;">(She said a short, clipped "to" instead of a longer "tooooon," meaning the garden was not far away.)</span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;">"Ah. You are planting?"<br />"Yes."<br />"What you are planting."<br />"Hot peppers."<br />"Remember last year you planted hot peppers?"<br />"Yes, last year I planted hot peppers."<br />"Remember when you sold your harvest, you got money very small. Because everyone, all the people, sold peppers at the same time."<br />"Yes! I didn't get money."<br />"This year, you can grow tomatoes or eggplant."<br />"I grow hot peppers in the rainy season."<br />"But everyone grows hot peppers. No one grows tomatoes. If I woman grows tomatoes, she can get money. Because everyone grows hot peppers."<br />"Yes. We, here in the Fuladu, we grow hot peppers in rainy season. Hot. Peppers." <span style="font-size: x-small;">(Similarly, everyone sells mangoes during hot season, and peanuts during dry season. Everything is bought and sold at the same time as all the neighbors are buying and selling the same thing. Sellers are constantly complaining about the low prices their wares are getting. Buyers are complaining about the high prices they have to pay.)</span><br /><br /><strong>We don't eat our chicken's eggs.</strong></span><br />
<br />
"Tidiane, do you eat eggs?"<br />
"Ha! I'm not a <em>patron</em>, I don't have money for eggs!"<br />
"You have money. And you have chickens."<br />
"Yes! Lots of chickens!" *low whistle*<br />
"If a chicken does an egg, <span style="font-size: x-small;">(who knows the verb for "to lay"?),</span> you take the egg, you eat it?"<br />
"No. If you sell one egg, it is 100 CFA, but if you sell a chicken, you get 2000 CFA"<br />
"But it helps your body to eat eggs, and Pulaars say 'Health is the Largest Treasure.'"<span style="font-size: x-small;"> (memorizing a bunch of proverbs is one of the most worthwhile things I've done here.)</span><br />
"You can Pulaar! But we don't have money." <br />
"Chickens here are many, but their food is not many. It is not possible, all eggs are chickens. Many die."<br />
"Yes, many die."<br />
"If you have 10 eggs, you can eat nine eggs. One egg will be chicken. Food is enough for one only."<br />
"We, here, in the Fuladu, we don't eat our eggs. We sell our chickens."<br />
<br />
<strong>We think that mirrors attract lightning.</strong><br />
Whenever dark clouds roll in, someone yells at me to remember to put a sheet over my water filter before the storms come or my hut will get struck by lightning and burn down.<br />
<br />
<strong>We think that cat fur causes tuberculosis.</strong> <br />
If a cat hair gets caught in your throat, you will cough and cough until you die. This is the leading hypothesis for what killed my dog while I was on vacation. A close runner-up is that he ate a magpie. <br />
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<!--[endif]--></span></span>Barbara Michelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00803322911842204947noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7852871663170610262.post-55731673121568632932015-06-17T02:46:00.000-07:002015-06-17T02:49:26.666-07:00Let's Talk Toilets!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
Late last November, I did a latrine project with Steph, one of my sitemates...read her blog about it <a href="https://stephaniemcalexander.wordpress.com/2014/12/13/sira-hoto-njahaa-ni/">here</a>, if ya wish. Steph and I, along with our Senegalese counterpart, Demba Balde, wrote a grant and purchased materials to construct 15 latrines in the villages of Goundaga and Lengewal, then conducted a latrine care/handwashing training. The project went very smoothly, so when Demba approached me about doing a similar latrine project, building 12 simple pit latrines at 12 different residences in a nearby village called Saare Kutayel, I accepted (Steph was busy with other work and couldn't help out with this one).</div>
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This was probably the easiest thing I've done in Peace Corps. Demba handled all of it promptly and efficiently. My job was to write the grant, deliver the money, collect the receipts (all clearly written for exactly the amount I'd budgeted) and conduct a handwashing/sanitation training. Demba took care of finding the mason, delivering the supplies, keeping everyone to the schedule, informing the heads of households about the trainings, and helping me Pulaar during the whole process. It was a breeze.</div>
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The grant funds covered cement and steel rebar to put inside the cement to strengthen it. The grant recipients dug their own holes using only rudimentary hand tools without remuneration, no easy task in an area where the lifeless sun-baked goat-trodden ground hasn't seen rain in over six months. <br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhRnL5nf-0z-0JycubbV9h6J7JQ1XHSVeknh3Qe9vR06dCnInxrhYtSoVb6zpoug_8FGFrUnEBE-DIbUmMLT5LUWSnyt5RoKHeRPYP1oSQBsXSyWFSKC4_BjS3hlDIko4GRRXNhg8PHfWx5/s1600/dughole.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhRnL5nf-0z-0JycubbV9h6J7JQ1XHSVeknh3Qe9vR06dCnInxrhYtSoVb6zpoug_8FGFrUnEBE-DIbUmMLT5LUWSnyt5RoKHeRPYP1oSQBsXSyWFSKC4_BjS3hlDIko4GRRXNhg8PHfWx5/s320/dughole.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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The mason Demba hired was lovely. He was polite, hardworking, and prompt, and honest throughout the entire process. Here he is helping one of the latrine recipients set the cement for the cover to their latrine.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhRlAklcF83NPjpdtM-A15500B3cWcR7EDmYuDFXGCc9FsmnmeeUtV_r4WOCGlTc28FmBeSZLXmjnU__lN0pV1tzsD8XdwTDExE2F92j9Nid9BGIHhYb44K3gsirXpMxJVqlEtdOZpeZiCi/s1600/making.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhRlAklcF83NPjpdtM-A15500B3cWcR7EDmYuDFXGCc9FsmnmeeUtV_r4WOCGlTc28FmBeSZLXmjnU__lN0pV1tzsD8XdwTDExE2F92j9Nid9BGIHhYb44K3gsirXpMxJVqlEtdOZpeZiCi/s320/making.jpg" width="240" /></a></div>
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When the cement slab was dry, it was simply moved over the hole. Done! New latrine.</div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCA46boyKyWj9KjNGAb5U_B-Nk8euDAhqIve_9iBBkKtCrlp1xfjW4W7-dXIbtW9rxFQZdcNGL0c07Mh3HnH12TmQlq_nuljcYKhuvqirf1P3xTeGXYn6zAhhXXW5Zb93uRX1sHAKefTY9/s1600/slabs.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCA46boyKyWj9KjNGAb5U_B-Nk8euDAhqIve_9iBBkKtCrlp1xfjW4W7-dXIbtW9rxFQZdcNGL0c07Mh3HnH12TmQlq_nuljcYKhuvqirf1P3xTeGXYn6zAhhXXW5Zb93uRX1sHAKefTY9/s320/slabs.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Demba insisted on taking this picture...awkward.</td></tr>
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A week after the latrines were finished, I conducted a latrine care/handwashing training under a mango tree in the village. All latrine recipients were required to attend, and I strong-armed a couple PCVs (Corin and LK) into attending as well.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiEM9W8gXcx1AbMqjrqeIe9jdVh3C0KZlxoyjGC9T9lpo9RLp3OxcZzIGjQwfGWTJoUkj3tfWsMXbYGP8_46mTe-jjysD6Ng5LAVu8GNQ9672LTwy_hjGWX7rmBwf17qz9LRxIPErZU5HF9/s1600/SAM_2697.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiEM9W8gXcx1AbMqjrqeIe9jdVh3C0KZlxoyjGC9T9lpo9RLp3OxcZzIGjQwfGWTJoUkj3tfWsMXbYGP8_46mTe-jjysD6Ng5LAVu8GNQ9672LTwy_hjGWX7rmBwf17qz9LRxIPErZU5HF9/s320/SAM_2697.jpg" width="320" /></a> <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjx9N2u6z8rruQEjjBhsN1ncZQTbsbU2eDlmvOQrk3tHV9Tyvojk5KSxwK12ydLPglPUbkh54XGDLsCuvYFfaeSHWI0FDCJwT75E2_perDAkOXKqExG2w70hwAfyj1T8NvROS5ZLfJ5wxvI/s1600/flipformation.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjx9N2u6z8rruQEjjBhsN1ncZQTbsbU2eDlmvOQrk3tHV9Tyvojk5KSxwK12ydLPglPUbkh54XGDLsCuvYFfaeSHWI0FDCJwT75E2_perDAkOXKqExG2w70hwAfyj1T8NvROS5ZLfJ5wxvI/s320/flipformation.jpg" width="239" /></a></div>
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I'm having a serious love affair with flip charts lately, so I utilized one during this training. I drew a picture of a latrine, then had several other cut-outs that I taped on the latrine picture to talk about what does and does not belong in a latrine. </div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjgEYRiChilxo1eWgDVFlQ06bm3edDxcqPPTtuoRC5CdvupFrKTAwPZX1e83G_I6wBNqtwigLJPkvQjjvFsEaIhau4BmLHxcrNYlnmqMe2Ofeg2lVkMtSVpdpI1aHf4KhucG_wFN9lh7-CA/s1600/flip.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjgEYRiChilxo1eWgDVFlQ06bm3edDxcqPPTtuoRC5CdvupFrKTAwPZX1e83G_I6wBNqtwigLJPkvQjjvFsEaIhau4BmLHxcrNYlnmqMe2Ofeg2lVkMtSVpdpI1aHf4KhucG_wFN9lh7-CA/s640/flip.jpg" width="480" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Review: Poop, both child and adult, goes in the latrine. Garbage, sticks, and rainwater do not. Flies also should not go in the latrine, so keep the hole covered.</td></tr>
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Then we moved over to the chief's house for the handwashing component of the training. I had gone to the site early to help make a tippy-tap (or <em>yapsoodo</em>, the Pulaar name that Demba gave it.) Everyone practiced using the device to wash their hands, then we discussed why it was more sanitary to use a device like that rather than washing one-hand-at-a-time with a plastic kettle. (If you wash one hand at a time, germs go from the dirty hand to the kettle handle to the "clean" hand, so after washing you're still not clean.)</div>
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That's it! Everyone sat around and drank tea while waiting for lunch, I gave them soap and rope to make their own handwashing stations, then we all went home. I'll be going back to the village in a couple weeks to see if anyone actually constructed a handwashing station and to ask questions about the latrines. </div>
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So...<strong>was this a successful project?</strong> I keep going back and forth about whether I'm proud of it or not.<br />
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Demba, my counterpart, has ambitious plans for me to do a latrine-a-palooza in the next dry season (October-November or so.) He has a list of 82 more households he wants to build latrines for. <br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">Should I do it?</span></div>
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<o:p><span style="font-family: Calibri;"> 1) It would be easy. Demba did 95% of the work for this project. The large-scale latrine project he's proposing would probably be my best opportunity to do a big project in Senegal. After all, I only have 10 months left.</span></o:p></div>
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<o:p><span style="font-family: Calibri;">1) I feel exploited. Demba has a long history of using Peace Corps volunteers to fund his projects - there was another latrine project done in Goundaga in 2011, and probably even more before that. Sites are supposed to be closed after three generations of volunteers, and Demba has already had four, not counting me or Steph. He should technically be cut off.</span></o:p></div>
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<o:p><span style="font-family: Calibri;"> 2) This is a chance to increase health and sanitation for 82 households. It fits clearly into my project framework, the Peace Corps document that tells me what I'm supposed to be doing here.</span></o:p></div>
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<o:p><span style="font-family: Calibri;"> 2) None of those 82 households are in my village, which might lead to resentment. I haven't pursued latrines in my village because no one has approached me asking for them (so I didn't see a perceived need), but at the same time, if people in my village see others getting a latrine, they might demand to get one, too. Jealousy hurts.</span></o:p></div>
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<o:p><span style="font-family: Calibri;"> 3) It wouldn't be a problem to fund it. I posted the original latrine project grant (~$500) right before I went on vacation, hoping that if friends or family wanted to donate to my work they could just donate to the grant. Instead, it was fully funded by strangers within two days of posting. </span></o:p></div>
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<o:p><span style="font-family: Calibri;"> 3) I'm not sure it's a great use of money. After all, literally thousands of years ago, the romans had aquaducts to supply their toilets with running water. Why, in 2015, do people here still need someone to pay for a hole to poop in? If it were perceived as a real need, I think they might have found a way to pay for it themselves by now.</span></o:p></div>
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<o:p><span style="font-family: Calibri;"> 4) The community members who would be receiving the latrines are willing to pay a fairly large contribution (2000 CFA) and to attend a series of water, sanitation, and hygiene trainings, in addition to doing all the unskilled labor (digging the holes, transporting the materials with a donkey cart).</span></o:p></div>
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<o:p><span style="font-family: Calibri;"> 4) Same as above. I am probably the 500th person to try to teach water and sanitation practices here. I don't think lack of knowledge is the problem, and I'm not sure if trainings would help.</span></o:p></div>
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<o:p><span style="font-family: Calibri;"> 5) I have the time. I do much more work here than I used to, but less than I did in the states. It'd be nice to feel busy again.</span></o:p></div>
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<o:p><span style="font-family: Calibri;"> 5) If I'm busy with a large-scale latrine project I might not have time to do other work in my village.</span></o:p></div>
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<o:p><span style="font-family: Calibri;"> 6) The proposed sites for the latrine-a-palooza are in the "red zone," where volunteers currently cannot serve due to safety and security concerns. That means that no Peace Corps volunteer will be posted there in the foreseeable future, so if I don't do this project, I don't know who will.</span></o:p></div>
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<o:p><span style="font-family: Calibri;">6) USAID, Unicef, WorldVision, Adamas, Water Charity...if I don't build these latrines, someone else probably will. And if a new organization keeps swooping in and building latrines every couple years, there's no reason for cmmunity members to take initiative to build their own latrines. Why buy something if you know you can get it for free if you just wait awhile longer?</span></o:p></div>
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<br />
So...what do you think? I've been thinking about this for over a week and I'm still not anywhere close to making a decision. I'd love some inputs. Barbara Michelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00803322911842204947noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7852871663170610262.post-81516854056201785002015-06-16T16:29:00.000-07:002015-07-28T11:27:26.333-07:00Michelle Sylvester Scholarship 2015-2016<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">It's that time of year again! </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Some of you might remember that one of my first projects last year was the </span><a href="http://barbarapeacecorps.blogspot.com/2014/06/michelle-sylvester-scholarship.html" target="_blank"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Michelle Sylvester Scholarship,</span></a><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> a Peace Corps program to pay the school fees for nine smart, motivated girls at my local middle school. I am pleased to announce that I, along with my lovely sitemate Alice, will be doing the program again this year. <br /><br />If you choose to make a donation (instructions are at the bottom of this post), here are the girls at the middle school in Teyel that you'll be supporting. They're really excellent kids - I wish you all had the chance to get to know them.</span></div>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: x-large;">6eme – (equivalent of 6th grade)</span></span></h2>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhxzXOzz9Gheh9DSkZ3DmmRkETZfQae2AGDbHVbVMe-pl1nbquNw8xBPD1vlNTz6jKdZD4L_5fKP18o5bWnZ8Jtr1hjs9p-SM3ilKbQcuBn8naIv9qpB9BM9SRn_CaY_mg9PzSGrS_oPjyU/s1600/Dado+Diao.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhxzXOzz9Gheh9DSkZ3DmmRkETZfQae2AGDbHVbVMe-pl1nbquNw8xBPD1vlNTz6jKdZD4L_5fKP18o5bWnZ8Jtr1hjs9p-SM3ilKbQcuBn8naIv9qpB9BM9SRn_CaY_mg9PzSGrS_oPjyU/s320/Dado+Diao.jpg" width="320" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">Dado Diao is from a village called Saare Konkong, but she lives in Teyel during the school year with her grandparents. Since she's a young woman, she's expected to help her grandmother and her aunts with all the housework. Of the 15 children in her family, only five currently attend school - most of the rest dropped out at the elementary level. She likes French and wants to be a middle school French teacher when she's older. Ami Sabaly, one of last year's MSS girls, is her best friend in Teyel and they frequently study together.</span> </span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhGGhJJjq6YbZyQqAvUwBGop4gsmSdSXShCUNiNwIKPVilo23dojBSZ7RGiNuMK87AaoDu7ZtlmtojGdkkzHsXe_qhqajOgddCYeYVbMxQxs8Epef2-v43Y82TxIbpwDYKmiI7rrHyeAta_/s1600/Mariatou+Sabaly.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhGGhJJjq6YbZyQqAvUwBGop4gsmSdSXShCUNiNwIKPVilo23dojBSZ7RGiNuMK87AaoDu7ZtlmtojGdkkzHsXe_qhqajOgddCYeYVbMxQxs8Epef2-v43Y82TxIbpwDYKmiI7rrHyeAta_/s320/Mariatou+Sabaly.jpg" width="320" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">Mariatou Sabaly has ambitions of becoming a midwife to help women give birth. There are eleven children in her family, eight of whom go to school. She said her parents are proud of her for getting a scholarship, and they are happy they do not have to struggle to find money for her fees this year. Mariatou's older brother studied through 4eme before he dropped out, and he helps her with her lessons in the evenings.</span> </span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgLlM9hU5I2nDy_NNnwiMx21hnXx3L8pIdovcyE286LQMbFKA_x8X6462WKQJI6HxRfhxjG8TzRbTJXLVBxBFpRZmS5J2ikgXFiTh7WRHotdgrtDhfgVJe4j-g3xI2z3Ax4kQZ4iHoZLbKn/s1600/Malado+Kamara.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgLlM9hU5I2nDy_NNnwiMx21hnXx3L8pIdovcyE286LQMbFKA_x8X6462WKQJI6HxRfhxjG8TzRbTJXLVBxBFpRZmS5J2ikgXFiTh7WRHotdgrtDhfgVJe4j-g3xI2z3Ax4kQZ4iHoZLbKn/s320/Malado+Kamara.jpg" width="320" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">Malado Kamara is the only girl who mentioned how important her religion is to her. She prays five times a day, like most practicing Muslims, and three of her brothers left home to be Koranic students (<em>talibe</em>). There are currently 12 children in her family, but one of her brothers died of a "stomachache." Perhaps because of this, Malado wants to work in medicine. Malado has a strong female role model at home - her mother, Fatoumata, sells beauty supplies at a weekly market nearby, and paid for her daughter's inscription fees last year out of her earnings. In this unabashedly patriarchal culture, it was nice to hear of a strong woman prioritizing her daughter's education.</span> </span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgqs8IxTTnowr_OasX96apEFxGs3P6nchR02cxF8mRXDJh_HgQHTcyVBqs51v6d6B_m5W-Y12RejPyrw-QRZRR851nEtzYBXvhzaN3_GsctbMjZLPkf6Z0pgVe6aSBWyBdAMqWeCbY3no3s/s1600/Sido+Boiro.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgqs8IxTTnowr_OasX96apEFxGs3P6nchR02cxF8mRXDJh_HgQHTcyVBqs51v6d6B_m5W-Y12RejPyrw-QRZRR851nEtzYBXvhzaN3_GsctbMjZLPkf6Z0pgVe6aSBWyBdAMqWeCbY3no3s/s320/Sido+Boiro.jpg" width="320" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;">Sido Boiro is only twelve years old, and she got the highest grades of any girl in CEM this year - 16.9. (Note: A Wikipedia article about academic grading in France and French schools can be found </span><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Academic_grading_in_France" target="_blank"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;">here</span></a><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;">.) When Alice and I met with her at her house, we were amazed at how much work this amazing young girl does. Turns out that her father (Mahamadou) was an only child, so when he and his two wives moved to a fishing town near Dakar called Joal, no one was left at home to help Mohamadou's mother with all the cooking, cleaning, and childcare that defines a woman's life here. Mohamadou sent his daughter Sido, along with her three younger brothers, to help her grandmother out at home. Since Sido is the only young woman at home now, she is responsible for washing clothes, doing dishes, pulling water, pounding grain, preparing meals, and taking care of her brothers. I asked her, flabbergasted, how she had any time to study. "I don't," she replied flatly. "I can't study. Other kids play at school because they know they can review their lessons later. I can't do that. Whatever my teacher says, I must listen so I remember."</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: x-large;">5eme (equivalent of 7th grade)</span></h2>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhrrsnQVNbyGoAh18gi2h1gPBDwqv0UEfsNzEnwf8_v_GnZ8uGl4QSNDH4YKVHr0YryXfUnWICnFbgwxSZyACoePen8OrW8_zjANNnlgKaPhjxRC_BfUWe_RwrujvHQ5EE-jsldld1rzV9M/s1600/Adama+Tely+Balde.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-size: small;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhrrsnQVNbyGoAh18gi2h1gPBDwqv0UEfsNzEnwf8_v_GnZ8uGl4QSNDH4YKVHr0YryXfUnWICnFbgwxSZyACoePen8OrW8_zjANNnlgKaPhjxRC_BfUWe_RwrujvHQ5EE-jsldld1rzV9M/s320/Adama+Tely+Balde.jpg" width="320" /></span></a></div>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman;"><span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;">Adama Tely Balde is the only 5eme MSS scholar who did not receive the scholarship last year. She also </span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-US;"><span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;">has
the biggest family of any of our girls this year - between her father's three
wives, there are 22 children total. Not surprisingly, she says that she
can only study inside her hut, since when she's outside the kids bother
her. When she's inside, however, there's not enough light to see well,
and the family has trouble finding money for flashlight batteries. Every
rainy season, Adama Tely goes to her sister Hadia's house in Velingara (a city
15k away) to clean, cook, and take care of her nieces and
nephews. She says Hadia regrets leaving school, and Hadia
frequently tells her little sister Adama Tely to avoid men until she's completed her
education.</span> </span></span></span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiWTS-JsNiu2AFutcQHLyQgmj6n120Z8Efy4tHEEt9sk0I1K1qChjiZoSs6YNKjGHsNDgCaiW8Cyfx-9dcriS0agrZD1gnx09F8Y9ZrVdwVZutIaKWOnQl1kBhsIIXby1ts7SR6te-WQmdi/s1600/Adama+Balde.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiWTS-JsNiu2AFutcQHLyQgmj6n120Z8Efy4tHEEt9sk0I1K1qChjiZoSs6YNKjGHsNDgCaiW8Cyfx-9dcriS0agrZD1gnx09F8Y9ZrVdwVZutIaKWOnQl1kBhsIIXby1ts7SR6te-WQmdi/s320/Adama+Balde.JPG" width="320" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;">Last year, Adama Balde said she wanted to be a doctor, but now she says she wants to be a French professor. She prioritizes studying - she said if she has to cook dinner (which she does every other night) she will get up early the next day to review her lessons before school. Her father grows corn, millet, and peanuts, but does not sell any of his crops, so there's little money to pay for school fees or supplies.</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYPEO54Yh7AfqB1XGwQxaES9MVOZUQKrcO0TY-n4qLOMvk2zAqaEAaEI7fdulWp945Cn81uBT24LDw7GslnjywSVKBterD1JKle-TsSu9Hwtzbi9GCh8yQsT21-Q4Io-_Rs6jhhVUxtqtJ/s1600/Housseye+Mballo.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYPEO54Yh7AfqB1XGwQxaES9MVOZUQKrcO0TY-n4qLOMvk2zAqaEAaEI7fdulWp945Cn81uBT24LDw7GslnjywSVKBterD1JKle-TsSu9Hwtzbi9GCh8yQsT21-Q4Io-_Rs6jhhVUxtqtJ/s320/Housseye+Mballo.jpg" width="320" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">Housseye Mballo says if she wouldn't have gotten the scholarship, she couldn't have gone to school this year - usually, her tokara (namesake) pays her inscription fees and school supplies, but this year her tokara, like many people in our area, was broke due to a bad harvest. Last year, Housseye said she wanted to be a professor, but now she says she wants to teach English at a middle or high school. Her older brother works as a bike mechanic, and she says when he left school, her parents yelled at him, and she knows if she tried to leave, they would yell at her, too.</span> </span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5frKxTNHxV8PpiNdDJ_5AUWmsCa7rbDXdJ8XfeQRlJf1b4Uta2pmYkpkcT9-awsbMaBFYNDJZPS6aIysBpvcrFJUrlGj3mV6JqFVCxzCGnxviNPKq6Kc_P8lknAitx1cT-1EME3SoQ7x4/s1600/Mariama+Sabaly.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5frKxTNHxV8PpiNdDJ_5AUWmsCa7rbDXdJ8XfeQRlJf1b4Uta2pmYkpkcT9-awsbMaBFYNDJZPS6aIysBpvcrFJUrlGj3mV6JqFVCxzCGnxviNPKq6Kc_P8lknAitx1cT-1EME3SoQ7x4/s320/Mariama+Sabaly.jpg" width="320" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;">Mariama Sabaly is now 16 years old and will be a 4eme student next year. She says French is her favorite subject. Her father, a farmer, has twelve kids, eight of whom currently attend school and two who dropped out. I asked Mariama how her father was able to pay school fees for so many students at the same time, and she told me they grow a lot of cotton in her family, and her father doesn't mind paying the fees, since he sees education as a good investment for the future. She's interested in being a doctor, nurse, or midwife, but hasn't decided which yet.</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">4eme (equivalent of 8th grade)</span></span></h2>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEglcgjHhYTCqKbHWHhjD_YqUa7EeyA64yY1nah9oQrEzXOjuaniBdz8t9FwU72t7dTx1JyS6egwPUe3Wrr3F54whT0Bv7nm8iyuXwmazGSjynizI1TUgOlrnNhdjvYJmAUoE3YwOGeU1TgU/s1600/Djenabou+Balde.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEglcgjHhYTCqKbHWHhjD_YqUa7EeyA64yY1nah9oQrEzXOjuaniBdz8t9FwU72t7dTx1JyS6egwPUe3Wrr3F54whT0Bv7nm8iyuXwmazGSjynizI1TUgOlrnNhdjvYJmAUoE3YwOGeU1TgU/s320/Djenabou+Balde.jpg" width="320" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;">Djenabou Balde is another repeat MSS scholar. She's 15 years old now, and still walks the five kilometers from her village to the school, an hour each way, in the blazing Sahel sun. Her favorite subject is math, because she says it comes easily to her - she understands it without having to think about it too much. She wants to get a job at the hospital in Velingara (15k away) when she finishes her studies, since she is familiar with the area and will be able to see her family regularly if she's close. She studies from 9-11 most nights, before getting up before the sun to walk to school in time for her 8 AM class.</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: x-large;">TO DONATE:</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">1) Please follow this link: <span style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%;"><a href="https://beta.peacecorps.gov/donate/fund/senegal-country-fund/" target="_blank"><b><span style="background: yellow; font-family: "Tahoma","sans-serif";"><span style="color: #1155cc;">https://beta.peacecorps.gov/<wbr></wbr></span>donate/fund/senegal-country-<wbr></wbr>fund/</span></b></a> and choose your donation amount. Any amount helps, no matter how small!</span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">2) Enter your personal information<u></u><u></u></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">3) Under "Please use this box if you want to send a message of encouragement to this project's volunteer" please enter "PC Senegal MSS Fund"<u></u><u></u></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><br /><span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Please note the donation process is different this year than last year. This year, donations are <i>not</i> made towards a specific volunteer's site. Rather, the 2015-16 school year will be funded through the Global Fund and any excess funds will be put towards next year's MSS program.<u></u><u></u></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: x-large;">Thanks for reading, and thanks for your donations!</span></div>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"></span>Barbara Michelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00803322911842204947noreply@blogger.com2