Friday !!!

This is the truck in front of me on the way to school .. I've talked about people hitching rides all the time And packing in the backs of pickups.. This Totally wouldn't fly back home . This is on the main drag of highway where people go about 80mph. The guys look like they are going on a joy ride .  Friday brings no fish fry or the promise of Brian huseman's world famous Mac n cheese.... So I'll have to settle for games and a movie with the kids . Michelle is on call tonight so she may be very busy this evening . March is around the corner which means we are inching closer to our departure date . My feelings about leaving are a roller coaster . Very eager to get back to great friends , family and a job I love and my home . But will miss the people here and the simplicity of each day .  Life is good when you have this dilemma . Happy Friday folks.. Don Henley's "boys of summer " playing on radio today . Nothing catapults me to 1984 more than that song ... Brookwood swim club . 

Still having connectivity issues..

Saw last night that some of the images I tried to upload did not show up.. Things are very sporadic here right now, and I'm not sure why..  Will continue to try to update throughout the week.
A cold day for Malawian standards, but as the afternoon approaches the sun starts to shine.. Due to power problems at the school the kids are unable to swim in the pool. The pumps have not been running, so the water is not fit for swimming.

I am helping with a project here for children with Hearing problems. They were given cameras and asked to take photos of their daily lives.. Some highlighted things they 'd like to hear, some took family portraits.. Some took photos of their friends.. Regardless, the photos are fantastic and a wonderful glimpse into daily life here..  A few are below.

Not much else to say. I'm going to stop here as I worry the power will shut out again and I won' be able to save this.. Hope all is well back home.

Notes for Wednesday

I usually post during my break at school. Unfortunately we ve had no power at school for 3 days ... Therefore no internet . I have a video to post for our friends at st Thomas but it takes way too long to upload , so you'll have to wait . I'm writing this on my phone. Did I tell you Michelle and I bought old iPhones ?? No longer using cellphones from 1990.  We are now connected and I'm using airtime and the blogger app to do this . Our lives have changed here for the better . I have typing on the phone  so I'll keep it short . All is well here as we hit humpday. Yesterday Cam our gardener accidentally locked our puppy in the shed , so around 6 pm I had to head out to get the key from him. At first I was a little upset about having to go out to meet him as opposed to settling in for the evening . As always , any trip out in this part of the world is an adventure and afforded me an opportunity to take in yet another beautful sky at sunset .. It's an amazing sunset and I kept wondering if the Malawians walking home from work felt the same way I did .. Do they think it's beautful? Or is it something they are used to seeing every evening on their commute home . I'd like to think we are feeling the same .. The sky here is so pretty it makes you never want to leave .. I find myself pulling over just to get a minute or two of quiet .  Then I find myself being stared at , laughed at by those heading home .. You stick out here . This place is absolutely insane , but if you can take in a sunset here and there , it's ok . Listening to Bruce Springsteens album " the wild, the innocent and the e steer shuffle " this morning in a very dark classroom .. Thanks bob . Missing a little bit of America and for some reason , old Bruce Springsteen makes me feel like riding a Ferris wheel. Happy Wednesday . Below are some photos from yesterday . Included are Jude and frances yucking it up on our bed before school. Also included is Jude acting as security guard with Cosmas . So much for keeping it short . 

Sky outside of school 

Evening commute home 

#lizardpoop

A fairly normal "american" feeling weekend here in Lilongwe... We had a swim meet on Friday afternoon (ABC was destroyed by 1000 points), and Maura had a sleepover.. On Saturday, Kate had a basketball tournament and they pulled out a victory to win the trophy.. In classic African form, the game was scheduled for 11am , but did not start until 12:45.  It was played outside in the burning sun. I think Kate developed 3rd degree burns.. Below is a photo of the girls after their victory, you can tell the paler skin girls look as if they need aloe immediately.

Saturday afternoon we went to a pig roast for an American we have never met , but were invited to the party by some good friends of ours.. It was at a place called "the Shack" which has a volleyball league on Wednesday evenings. I was talked into joining a team. We'll see how that goes.

On Sunday we went to the pool and basically relaxed most of the day. It was a good weekend.

Oh and I forgot, we got another dog for the property. We had been urged to do so for the sake of security, so I thought we'd go ahead and get one. I'm not sure who runs the LSPCA, but it is totally up to date and well run. The animals seems well tended to, and for about 70$ you can adopt a puppy, they will update its shots, perform neutering, etc for you.. And they put a chip in the animal so if they are lost, they can scan them.. just like home.. The only difference is, the vet was telling me this, then said.. "i'm not really sure why we out a chip in them, because no one in this country has a scanner."
After much deliberation, the kids have named him Indy (think Indiana Jones).  He has a cough, and they were leaning towards Wheezy, which I loved because I was a huge fan of the Jeffersons growing up.

This morning as we were scrambling to get ready for school, Kate and I were brushing our teeth and Kate said, "the other day I was brushing my teeth and dropped my toothbrush fell into lizard poop."
I told her I've never heard that before in my life. Our home is pretty well contained and we feel pretty safe from most rodents, but the lizards can creep through anywhere and will leave droppings on the wall.. that eventually, thanks to gravity, find their way onto things such as your bathroom counter. . Just yesterday one of them died mid stride in our pantry.. It was on the wall, must have died, layer there stuck to the wall for about 5 hours, then eventually flopped over onto our peanut butter container.. It's kind of gross.. But still not as bad as the ants which invade every area of your house.
tomorrow I will post a video regarding the homes we are building. Just need 15 more hours of downloading time to You tube.

pre-game at Civo Stadium.. Yes it was outdoors

Maura and Kate with a few friends

Champs!

Kate on the Block

Our new dog.. Indy

no idea

Joseph came into work last night about 5.. Most of the time when he arrives, he is sporting a big smile and a big hello.. .. But I could tell something was bothering him... He usually tries to have a conversation with me,, but his English is pretty broken and we usually leave wondering whether the other person fully understood the other.. I wish I knew Chichewa.

About 30 minutes after he arrived, he came to me and said he had a "small problem for his family".. Basically, his family had no food. Waiting until the end of the month to be paid was tough and he asked for an advance... of 5$.  This would help buy sugar and maize to hold them over until the end of the month.

I gave him the advance, then gave him the photographs I printed for him and his extended family..  I framed an 8"x 10" of his family and gave it to him.. He broke down crying.. I didn't really expect it.. I know that Joseph is a bit of a softy(like me) but it was pretty moving to see him break down over a family portrait. Granted, i take pretty damn good pictures, just have never seen someone  moved to tears over seeing their family portrait. It made me realize what I already know... that we are lucky, that we are fortunate, and the things we take as normal , everyday happenings (taking photographs) are major things here..  But then again, maybe are so fortunate that things like family portraits don't mean as much as they could/ should.. Joseph reached out his hand , wiped away some tears and said "thank you so much. I don't know what I'm saying , but i can only say thank you so much. this is so expensive and we don't have any photos... ". I told him it wasn't a problem, and I was glad he like the photos..  I like Joseph.. He's a good dude.

Big swim meet today here at the school. It's 9 am right now and it's sunny with no clouds in the sky. Maura has a sleepover, and we are supposed to get a new dog today..

Yesterday , the LSPCA came to inspect our property to make sure it was dog worthy.. I was at school when they came to the property, so they called me 3 times.. I missed all the calls. I called them back and in a very serious tone, Eric from the LSPCA says.. " I have reviewed your property, we need you to come to the office to answer a few questions.. " I told him I was on my way.. Thinking this was going to be some serious questioning about our intent for a puppy (after I told them we were leaving in June) I was prepared for some serious discussion.. When I arrived, Eric greeted me and said."ok, I have two questions... Do you have blankets for the dog?" and " i noticed you have a bowl for your current dog, are you able to supply another bowl for the new dog?" When I answered "yes" to both questions, we were approved.. it's important to have face to face meetings for such pressing issues..

Ok, have class coming in, gotta go. have a nice weekend back home.. I'll check back in on Sunday. Below is me with Joseph, Maria(wife), his sister and his mother-in-law.

"our driver is too slow!!"

without a doubt one of the best lines I've heard from a student in all of my years of teaching... I was in the office getting a key for my classroom, and the receptionist asked a group of students why they were late today.. Their response ... "our driver is too slow!" ...

Believe it or not, lots and lots of people have drivers for their children here.. It's pretty common and not necessarily a social status thing.  Can you imagine having a driver pick up your kids from soccer practice, swimming, basketball???  It would free up so much Facebook time... Having a driver is just so foreign to our way of living in the US, you would think only the elite have drivers for these sort of things.. The other things I've noticed around town is that when people are grocery shopping, they'll bring their nanny along with them to hold the baby/ children while they shop.

We are spoiled rotten here as it is with Cam, Rabina, Cosmas and Joseph around.. The kids play soccer with Cosmas and Joseph just about every day.. A few days ago Cam (we do not own a lawnmower) was cutting grass with scissors...

Not much going on here for Thursday.. the routine continues of basketball practice, swim practice and  beautiful weather (sorry folks).  Big swim meet tomorrow here at school, Kate has a basketball tournament on Saturday and nothing else.

A few photos... My students wanting to come into my classroom.. I had 4 minutes left of lunch.. They weren't happy...

Remember the days of taking your bottles back to the grocery store to have reused?? That still happens here and I really like it.. Finish a crate of beer/ cokes and take it back to the shop.. They give you a refund that  you can use for the next crate.. I predict this will be a trendy thing to happen again back in the U.S..

I can't escape UK even here in Malawi... The gentleman I buy my bananas from was sporting this t-shirt yesterday..  Thinking about giving him my Louisville tshirt .. He usually stands on the side of the road holding bunches of bananas waiting for someone to pull over.. I  buy about 3 a week from him. You could say I'm a regular.. We don't even negotiate prices.. I just give him 1000 kwacha, he hands me about 15 bananas..

Below is a short video from our stay at Senga Bay.. I have a few other I'll share when my computer can actually upload something.. This is just at dusk and we were sitting on the deck watching the storm takes shape over lake malawi.. The video is an awful representation of the event, but it'll have to do

Hump day and a new dog..

Kids and I jammed to a little Rush on the way into school and we were met with some very strange looks as we drove through town.. Haven't they ever heard Rush around here??

It's Wednesday and it is a bit chilly for Malawi.. no sun in sight. Michelle has come down with an illness and spent most of the night in the bathroom. With people from Cincy Children's here, she is able to take the morning off and try to get better.

During our weekend trip we met a few guys from Scotland and Wales.. They were snorkeling as well off of Lizard island and we got to talking ... They were traveling via motorcycle around south eastern Africa and were telling us about where they had been. It was cool to hear they have seen many of the countries that we have been to and echoed the same sentiments that you hear from most people that embark on journeys through this part of the world.... That is, that all of the things you hear about this place back home, are totally untrue and distorted. That , in reality , this place is a wonderful place to visit and that the people here are the kindest , most genuine people you will ever meet.
They had traveled through Lesotho, Swaziland, Botswana and South Africa.. on their way through Malawi and then Mozambique....  We have been to all of those place, except Mozambique

I constantly see how genuine people are here, from the students I teach here to the people you encounter every day.. Michelle and i went out to eat last night and were taken aback by the kindness of everyone.  If you have a problem, they will do what they can to help..

 We are getting a new dog on Friday... A young pup about 4 months old named Sandy.. We were advised to buy a new dog to keep the other dog happy and to build "security" for the house.. Cosmas, Joseph and Cam will train it (not sure what this entails), but the kids are very excited... They want to call it "Mzungu" which translates "crazy white person".... Mzungu is a word you hear shouted over and over when you drive through the villages...  Where else can people shout at you "CRAZY WHITE PERSON, CRAZY WHITE PERSON!!!" and get away with it??  All the while we (the crazy white people ) smile, laugh and wave with agreement..   Pictures of new crazy white person puppy dog will come in a few days..  After hearing the news about the new puppy, Cosmas in classic African form said.. "we will welcome the new dog".   I would never sound that cool saying this to a friend at home.

Not much else to say.. Michelle is vomiting, I am healthy and the kids are great.. I'm sure that with as many people that are in our small home, you will be hearing  more of this illness.

All for today... Here's a few photos.. With the mention of Lesotho, I thought I'd pull up a couple of old photos.. Probably one of my favorite places I've ever been.. Malealea, Lesotho..

Trying to load videos , but internet is taking way too long... Will have to try again tomorrow... Hope all is well back home..

Jude (2008)

Kate horse riding in Lesotho

Our truck in the mountains of Lesotho

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nice weekend away.

Boat out to Lizard Island

Took the two hour drive towards the coast on Friday afternoon.. We decided to stay a few nights at Safari Beach Lodge, right on the edge of Lake Malawi.. The place was a bit rustic and a haven for baboons… They were all over the place, swinging from the trees, stealing people’s food, drinking out of the pool, and sleeping on our deck.  Kate swears she was attacked by one, but the baboon kind of just lunged at her as she crossed paths with it.. I know, I  saw it. 

The drive to Senga Bay was totally different from the one we took a month and a half ago.. In 6 weeks, Malawi has turned into a plush, great landscape of rolling hills and 5 foot high maize.. It was incredible to see the transformation and made for a beautiful drive.. 

On saturday we took the kids snorkeling for a few hours.. Needless to say, the kids loved it and spent the whole morning swimming in a little cove gazing at various types of cichlids .. We were able to arrange a boat ride out to Lizard Island.. I’ve learned that when you arrange a boat ride here, you shouldn’t expect much.. This was a good running boat, full of splintered wood, some dead fish and a smell that could make you vomit. But the two gentleman got us to our destination unscathed and sat on the shore for 2+ hours while we swam around the island. One on them took Michelle and Maura on a hike to the top of the island where there was a fish eagle perched on top of a tree..  There was also a Catholic priest camped out on the island taking 3 days to pray.. He had a fire going when we arrived. 

When we returned from the snorkeling trip, we went down the road to the Sunbird Hotel.. They had a better beach, better pool and better food. We lounged all afternoon, let the African sun burn our pale skin and enjoyed the day with the kids.. It was a needed trip out of Lilongwe, which makes going back to work this morning very difficult.  

We did survive an amazing rainstorm on Saturday evening that made you feel like our hut was going to fall off the side of the cliff.. Our hut was perched on the edge of a cliff overlooking the lake.. It was a beautiful setting and tucked away from everything...

When you holiday here in Malawi(or Africa for that matter) you have to be prepared for nothing going the way you planned.. But the credit card machine, the weather and the roads (not being flooded) all worked out.. The only problems that arose were baboons on our porch, no tonic water (for a malawian gin and tonic), no samosas and no meat pies… the coffee was good though. 

As we drove home, we traveled through various villages and people walking on the highway.. Picture driving a two lane version of 1-75 with loads and loads of people walking on the side of the road.. Many of them are children younger than 6, many elderly women carrying buckets of water on their heads and many people riding bikes as cars whiz by them at speeds of 85mph.. But no one seems scared, except for the goats that meander through the streets as well. It makes for interesting driving.  Add a rainstorm and it can be intense. I did notice many women bashing their wet laundry on the concrete on the edge of the road… which Ive never seen before.. 

The week ahead brings nothing except for a swim meet on Friday.. It is at ABC, which means no traveling.. We do have Nationals coming up in a few weeks and the plan is to have the kids participate.. If they do well enough in the National swim meet, they could secure themselves a spot on the National team... Then head to the All Africa swim meet which takes place in Angola ...Not sure that a trip to Angola for a swim meet is in the budget.. I'm hoping the kids compete with other swimmers from Malawi, but maybe not well enough to warrant a trip to Angola. 

Stay warm back home.. saw that snow is in the forecast today. 

Gidion and his right hand man

View from our chalet 

Maura on the beach

Kate snorkeling... Maura and Michelle at the top of the island

Weekend at the lake..

I'll check back in on Monday.. Heading out to Senga Bay and Lake Malawi for a few days.. Looking forward to a few days with the family.

I went out to Mkanda village yesterday and saw that the home funded by St. Thomas is finished. They were just waiting for the cement flooring to dry , then Felista will be able to move in..
I really enjoy visiting the villages.. It's a complete and totally different world.. And it seems very peaceful, quiet and as Blessings told me on our drive there, it is carefree... You don't worry about next week or next month.. you just enjoy the moment.

The home was bricked in and they will fill a few holes left to help air out the home and allow the cement to dry properly. There is no plumbing, no electric, no nothing inside these homes.. Just 2 very small bedrooms, one is about 3.5 ' X 6' and the other is about 6' x 8'.. then there is a small living room, meeting space.. Cooking is done outside over wood or charcoal, Laundry is done outside and hung to dry. Water is fetched from a local well (pictured below).

We are going to start another home for a homeless elderly gentleman name Fred (yes that's his african given name) on Monday..

That's all for today..  Have a great weekend everyone.. We'll be back on sunday afternoon.. Fingers crossed for good weather.

Inside the new home

Village soccer ball

Finished home with metal roofing

Village well

girls watching a video of them singing(check last week's blog post for some beautiful singing)

Morning Fog

Woke up to an unfamiliar sight here in Malawi.. Fog had spread throughout the city.. It was quite nice and reminded me of home. Michelle and I sat and had coffee while the kids beat the hell out of each other getting ready for school.. Our yard is incredible and is home to so many different birds.. Within a minute I saw 4 different birds outside our window that I haven't seen since we've been here. I'm sure if I took the time to really look at our surroundings I'd see many more. Each morning the home is filled with different calls.. But the one that gets me the most is the one outside our bedroom at about 430 am.. It has the ability to increase its volume while calling.. I've never heard anything like it before. It's like it is toying with you .. I think I've spoken about this before, but here is some audio for you.. He is pretty consistent.. around 430, he sits next to our window and plays with my head while Michelle rests peacefully through the whole thing.   I sent the audio file to my brother who has a Phd in ornithology, and he didn't know what the bird was.. sorry I couldn't put the video on sound cloud for some reason so i had to make a movie.. the bird can be heard while perusing random photos of our yard and our kids in the yard..

On another note, we have been advised to get another dog for the house.. I didn't necessarily want to, but it seems like a good thing for the property.. As Cosmas told me this morning, " I will train it and it will add security for the property"..  So we will head out to the LSPCA (yes, there's actually an LSPCA here) and find one.. Or, if we are lucky, we will buy one from the vendors on the side of the road who stand on the highway all day long holding out the cutest puppies to sell.. Whichever one comes first.

I am heading out to Mkanda village today to see the finalization of the home for Felista Jolofani. We were supposed to go out yesterday, but the rain kept us away.. We have been told by the chief of the village that the home is complete. We will start on the second home "straight away" as they like to say here..

Tomorrow will bring a weekend off of work for Michelle.. We will take off for the lake "straight away" after school and get up to the shore before dark.  Hopefully we'll have enough time to settle into our room before they cut off the power. We hope to snorkel on Saturday and enjoy some time with the kids..  Keeping our fingers crossed for some nice weather.

I just finished teaching my kindergarten class, and one of the students complimented the the other by saying " you've got mad skills"..

ride to work

family in Gisepo

U.S. goes down...

Believe it or not, I'm in a billiard league here in Lilongwe.. I think there are 4 teams in the league and I am on TEAM USA..  We played another team from South Africa and got our butts handed to us..  I think in 14 matches, we won 2... I have played twice in the league and am currently 1-5 .. I'm awful.

the South Africans probably think we are totally incompetent... But they are a great group of guys to hang out with.. They enjoy a cold beer, talking sports and remind me of home.. It's fun... think St. Thomas Summer Festival or a fish fry..  except you're at the US Marine house in Lilongwe, Malawi , and there's no fish or a big six wheel..

And they came with great stories... One of them that stood out was about an employee of one of the guys was bitten by a black mamba.. They killed the snake, drove his employee around to all of the local hospitals to try and find some anti venom, but no luck.. Then, as a last resort, he called the U.S. Embassy.. Turns out, the US embassy is only one of two places that stocks snake bite anti- venom.. the other is the British Embassy.. They administered the drugs to his employer and he turned out to be ok.. Does it seems strange/ sad/ typical  that we are the only place in the country that has anti venom?? Another man told a story about how they have found all kinds of deadly snakes around his lake house.. Mambas(green and black), puff adders and spitting cobras... He doesn't know how to get rid of them.... this stuff is here and its real...  I'm just glad we haven't encountered any of it.. (but we are headed to the lake this weekend.. at least I'll know who to call)

The Marine house was a palatial estate occupied by 6 young soldiers... When they weren't playing pool, they sat on the couches playing MADDEN Football on the Playstation... oh yeah, and they had a 80" curved television which was the envy of all the SA pool players..  You couldn't take your eyes off of the thing... It was huge.

I wanted to get a few photos of the place, but was afraid that I couldn't take photos of a Marine compound...  I did take a quick one of the bar (which is fully stocked) and had really great old Marine posters pinned up on the wall.

Today is a big day at school.... The kids don't share Valentines, but as a fund raiser for the senior class, students can buy a rose for the equivalent of 50 cents and give it to someone special.. Jude has decided to buy one for his teacher( He's a bit of a schmoozer).. should be some roses floating around campus in the next few days... Ok, gotta go.. Nursery school kids banging on my door.. in a few minutes half of them will be asking to go take a "wee"... fun times..
Hope all is well at home... Photos below are a window in the village of Gisepo, the marine bar, and Foxy with a treat... apparently the guards give Foxy a few small sardine like fish and wrap it in paper to play with... African version of a dog treat..

Visit with Joseph

Mother and Mother-in-law

Yesterday late afternoon I was able to go with Joseph to meet with his family in Gisepo.. This is a large village outside of town, about 10 minutes drive. He had me formally meet his mother in law, sister, grandmother, etc. When I walked into his home, the elderly women were sitting on the floor.. I sat with them , said hello and he explained in Chichewa my reason for being there.. They stated they wanted photos taken of the elderly women so they had something to remember them by..  I've always felt that this could be something I could do in my spare time... I did it a while in Botswana, but as stated before, it feels different here, and I don't feel very comfortable asking people to take photos of them for no reason. People want ways to remember their family members.. 

People love having their photo taken here and it is something that is considered very important... documentation, proof.. 

The strange thing is... no one smiles.. There's a sense of complete and total seriousness when it comes to taking photos, and I've even notice that alot of elders will not even look at the camera. I had to do a song and dance to get them to give me a little bit of a smile.  

The homes were simple and create a mini courtyard where everyone congregates.. the families live in different homes, but everyone is related.. Think of living within 10 steps of all of your relatives... I guess it's sort of like Northern Kentucky.... HA!

But it was a great visit and Joseph kept trying to tell me how much he appreciated me taking photos .. He told me they don't have any photographs because it is too expensive.. I told him it was no problem and that I was happy to do it anytime.

When I was leaving, I received a telephone call from a gentleman name Bright.. He is a wicker furniture maker from Salima (2 hours away) and I had ordered some new furniture from him for our outside area... For two couches , 2 chairs (handmade ) and delivery , it cost me about 100$... which compared to wicker furniture at home is unbelievable.. 

What I didn't realize is that Bright charges for delivery, but he doesn't have a delivery method.. He just makes a plan to catch a ride with someone who is willing to transport him and his furniture.. they drop him off at a bus stop, drop off the furniture as well, and he calls to have me pick up the furniture from there.. So I had to transport all of the furniture on the top of my truck through town, while Bright took a 2 hour bus ride back home. .. See photo below.. as you can imagine.. everyone stares.. 

This coming week brings the same routine.. except Michelle has the weekend off and we plan to leave early on Friday and take a trip to the lake.. It's much needed as Michelle has been working nonstop. It'll be good to have some relaxing family time. Let's hope for good weather.  

Hope all is well back home.. 

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Joseph with family  

                    

Joseph with his wife Maria on their wedding day.. 2007

hand made wicker furniture

Rats, lost keys, Keeneland, grateful dead

Went out with friends last night for dinner to a local Korean restaurant... The place is great but is a bit strange in terms of its decor, etc...In the back of the restaurant,, they have a room with couches, big screen tv and a karaoke machine.. We asked about karaoke, and they asked if we wanted to sing .. We said no, just wanted to ask.. apparently you can reserved the place, bring your own drinks and stay as long as you want and have a karaoke party.. Plans are in the works..

After dinner we hit Champions bar for a after party for an all day concert that was in support of flood victims.. Only thing was, there wasn't really a party.. So we decided we'd play some pool at one of the 3 tables they had.. We went to the bar to find out about playing pool, but they said they can't find the keys to open up any of the tables.. So foosball was played ... poorly.

Michelle and I were heading home and we decided to stop by what is becoming one of our favorite places (Harry's bar) for a drink before heading home.. Well, when we arrived there were a group of guys on couches with a guitar singing classic rock and roll songs.. Sweet Home Alabama was going when we arrived. We headed out to the patio, which is this surreal, quiet, dark place that is a great place to take in a beverage.. There was a group of Malawians slow dancing and telling great stories that we couldn't understand..

After they left we decided maybe it was time to pack it it.... Then a giant rat scurried across the bar, as the bartender chased after it.

We were about to head home when I heard a Malawian man talking about how wonderful The Grateful Dead were and how he saw them in concert in Maryland one summer.. He loved them! I couldn't believe it, but what a great story.. HE mentioned how weird everyone looked, but were so kind, etc..   Then Harry asked where we were from and we told hime Kentucky... He busted out with... "Lexington! Rupp Arena! Go Catssss!!!!"   Apparently he'd been there for 6 months or so working at Keeneland.. So strange and such a small world..

Not much else to say.. I think the photo of Maura sums up our weekend.. below is a photo I was able to capture while visiting Mkanda village..  The children and grandmother on the right have no idea what an iPhone can do... I just mentioned to the two college aged men that their phone had SIRI capability...

Ok, not much else.. We are serving up pizza night here at the house, and the weather here is spectacular.. Hope all is well back home

Ode to Navin R. Johnson (The Jerk).  "I'm Somebody!"