Wednesday, July 21, 2010

Stop, Drop, & Roll


Monday started off like any other Monday--with a groan because I had to get up earlier than I had for the previous 2 days. Heated enough water for a bucket bath; put all my electronics together into a bag so I could carry them the 45 feet to the office; turned on my computer; plugged in my broadband; cursed the SLOW internet; and went through the Hausa greetings with each new person that comes into the office.

Ina kwana? Ka tashi lafiya? Ina kwanan gida? Ina gajiya? Yaya aiki?


But I hadn't had my coffee yet (Nescafe with powdered milk--hello again Nido!). So, as my computer was trying to load some big file, I went back to my room and put water on the stove. (I should clarify that the stove is a gas tank that sits on the floor in the 'kitchen,' which is a small room with a sink--see the picture.) While I was waiting for the water to boil, I thought I'd do some dishes from the night before.

As I was doing the dishes, the room started to feel warmer, which I assumed was just a result of turning the stove on. But then it was getting REALLY warm, so I looked behind me at the stove and saw a flame shooting up at me from the hem of my skirt.

"I'm on fire!"

I ran out of the kitchen...I guess to show my roommate, Barbara, that, indeed, I was on fire. We both started screaming, and I distinctly remember the words "Stop, Drop, & Roll" flashing through my mind, but in the moment, I decided I didn't really want to roll around on top of a flame.

I thought about pulling the skirt off, but we were making a lot of noise--our male colleague in the room across the hall might open the door and see me without pants on. Meanwhile, the flame was getting bigger and making its way up my skirt. I decided the risk of overexposure wouldn't be as bad as getting burned, so I whipped off the skirt, ran into my room, and slammed the door.

Barbara kicked the skirt outside and eventually doused it with water. For some reason, neither of us thought of that while I was actually wearing the skirt.




Sunday, July 18, 2010

Who's a Good Cook?!


I feel wonderfully satiated, and wonderfully gratified. Despite the skeptical glances from my roommate, Barbara--who is a great cook--I have proven that I can successfully cook rice and beans (Niger-style). She may not have liked the burnt onions, but to each his own, right?

Friday, July 16, 2010

One More Thing...


Here's a picture of pate--Mmm!

A Good Food Day


Had some seriously good food in the village this week at a nice Fulani household. Even though my job is to sit in the household from morning til evening in order to observe--in a non-obtrusive way--women's work, hospitality always seems to trump the rules of scientific observation. I.E., some kind of special food is always made or purchased for me.

On Wednesday, I had what's called pate (pa-tay), which is kind of like a porridge mixed with 2 kinds of leaves; to make it really good, my host fried some onions (until they were burnt to a crisp--the tastiest way) in some cow oil. It was amazing.

Then that evening, we had chicken--I can't say one way or the other if I was the reason for chicken or if they would have had chicken anyway, but it was seriously tasty.

Wednesday, July 7, 2010

You know what else I have to say?

I hate the posting and layout constraints of this blog.

Christmas in July?


I have to say, I feel like a kid on Christmas Eve right now--extremely delighted and excited about everything. Why? Because I've just arrived in Abuja (in hopes of a acquiring a visa extension), and I'm staying at a hotel with AC, a king-size bed, a mini-fridge (hello cold water!), flat screen (go Germany!), room service, FAST internet, and a toilet. And even though the toilet does not have a seat, it's still pretty amazing.

Forget the somewhat frightening, 3-dimensional picture on the wall and the holes in the bed's comforter--it's so exciting to know that I won't wake up in the middle of the night because the electricity went out and I'm sweating. Imagine--being woken up by your own sweat.

I'm a little surprised by my level of excitement--I mean, it's not like any of my accommodations are bad (except the boys' quarters in Ikara--I will have nightmares about that bathroom for years). There are just so many little creature comforts in one place!