Response Requested

Updates! It's been awhile since I've posted, but here's what's going on in my neck of the woods:

Motorcycle training has been temporarily postponed, although it's set to resume as soon as Gillian and I get proper helmets and extra training. My boss can't understand why we keep insisting on such things, but given that his idea of training consists of doing a few laps around the soccer pitch, Gil and I are sticking to our guns. We also have yet to figure out the personal injury insurance situation. When we explained to our boss our fears about not being covered in the event of an accident, he reassured us that should such an unfortunate event happen, we could rest easy in the knowledge that the bike is covered and we'd get a new one pronto. Good to know, but I have a feeling that should such an event occur, when I'm getting my new bike will be somewhere near the bottom of my list of concerns (unlike, say, paying for hospital bills, relearning to walk, etc.)

Teaching is going along swimmingly. Our school is currently undergoing a bit of construction/renovation, resulting in new concrete floors and painted walls. It almost feels like a real school now, and looks loads nicer than when I arrived 6 months ago (amazing it's been that long, right?) We had a grounds clearing/school beautification day a few weeks ago, where we told the students to bring some farm implements with them in order to put the gardens in order/keep the encroaching bush at bay. Sounds good in theory, but when 200 students chose to bring machetes, my blood ran cold (me to the 5 other teachers in change of the 400+ students: "anyone else thinking cultural revolution here?") Despite the aforementioned improvements, we haven't exactly gone posh; chickens still wander into my classroom on a daily basis, and my eraser of choice is a discarded shoulder pad. So it goes. The word on the street is that construction on the computer lab will start next month; it's almost too much to hope for, but I'll keep you posted should it actually happen.

Life with Gillian continues to be wonderful; she's the Mary Poppins figure I've always wanted in my home, and when we aren't taking spoonfuls of sugar, she's putting my life in immaculate order. Gone are my bachelor days when only one light bulb worked and the kitchen stores consisted of half a kilo of rice and two tablespoons of oil. No, we have a beautiful new refridgerator now, enough tupperware to rival the most suburban of households, and not one, not two, but FOUR different types of household cleaning agents. Such accoutrements of middle-class America rankle a bit (I mean, if I wanted such things, I'd just move home right?) but I can't deny that the place now has a pleasant, homey quality, and you can just tell that visitors feel more comfortable staying somewhere that actually looks lived in. Gillian's similarly great for professional advice; she has loads of experience both as a teacher and administrator, and has proved to be a goldmine of useful information. She also lends me her backbone for confrontations with the boss/VSO, (a good thing as I tend to avoid necessary confrontations too much here) resulting overall in a more confident and assured Katie Mulloy.

The first package arrived! Given how none of the others sent have shown up, I'd given up hope that any would get through, but on Tuesday morning I received the magic gold mail slip, and by Tuesday afternoon was holding a large rectangular box from a most unexpected source- the illustrious Ian Smith (do you remember Ian mom? He was the first person you met at Earlham- we were waiting in line to open a bank account when he charmed you with his devestating smile and rapier wit.) Packages are the true test of self-control over here; his contained a variety of temptations- books, chocolate, cd's, and a long, pithy letter. With such prizes, you try to hold out for as long as you can to prolong the pleasure of having something to look forward to, before the strain finally gets to you and you devour the contents in a single gluttonous rush. I'm still holding out on the books (a minor miracle given how hard they are to come by) but I only lasted an hour or two with the letter, and by the end of the day had made a serious dent in the 3 pound bag of gummy bears. So it goes.

My time here's almost out, (am in Dar savoring a weekend of good food and no responsibilities before intermediate language training starts on Monday) but will type up more soon!
hugs,
kt

P.S. Katie from Zanzibar and I had a conversation last night (after several beers it must be admitted) about the relative merits of various different varieties of tomatoes, and I think it only right to let you in on the debate: Which is better- cherry tomatoes or vine tomatoes? You can either email me or post your vote in the "comment" section. Also, while you're turning that over, put in an additional vote over which Steppenwolf song is better- "Born to be Wild" or "Magic Carpet Ride." Dad and I have been arguing about that for years, and given all of the informed and intelligent readers of this blog, I think it possible to settle the debate once and for all. Results will be compiled and posted promptly; mockery of the losing side should be expected.