So last Wednesday I met with my program director, which worked out really well. We talked a lot about plans for different things, most of which I mentioned in my last post, but also about math groups, math competitions, and the possibility of kicking things off at the university. It was fruitful and she put in a plug with my counterpart to have my roof repaired before the rains come. We had lunch too, and I regretted that I knew of no nice restaurants to go to. I only go to rice bars and egg sandwhich places, which are not the steak and fries places that you would like to go to when someone is buying your lunch. She also said that Peace Corps would pay for the cost of putting another window in my house (I have only one small one, so the air doesn’t circulate much unless my door is open). And by window I mean opening in the wall with rebar. Glass is for patrons.

Then Thursday I worked on my etude for a while, but mostly hung out with my family here, reading a semi-farcical independent journal that is put out here and being surprised to find an advertisement for a Peace Corps position in it. Right now one person is the program director for both SED (my program) and agroforestry, so she has a lot on her plate and they are trying to hire someone for the agroforestry program.

And I had hoped to be able to make it through the end of May with out pulling money out of the bank again, but I realized that I might need money through the end of June, since I might not make it down to Kissidougou again until after that. So Friday I went down to Kissidougou with another volunteer and we spent the weekend with a volunteer that lives there. Of course I forgot my bank card, but thankfully all that is required to get access to your number is that you have your ID, so I was still able to get some money.

We stayed up till 04:00 talking about a whole range of topics, mostly on the economy, our hopes for Obama, our excitement over the plans for high-speed rail (in my opinion one of the best ways to reduce our use of foreign energy and address potential climate issues, not to mention the efficiency and productivity increases that rail gives). We talked about plans after Peace Corps, about movies that were great and ones that were about to come out before we left that we had wanted to see. We closed with a story from one volunteer about his struggles with World of Warcraft and the wider social implications of games like that (and a little reminiscing about other video games we played).

Samedi we did some shopping for supplies during the day and ate the best rice and peanut sauce ever. Except for the extreme temperatures , the ramshackle hut, and the flies, I would have thought I was in a high class Thai restaurant. It was delicious. One of us bought a nice phone that can hold two sim cards at once, and can connect to the internet and all that (though there isn’t really service here that allows you to do that). I am probably going to have to follow suit one of these days when I’m in Conakry.

We got back Sunday and had a minor moral victory when we walked out on a taxi driver who was trying to put more people than normal in our taxi, and he caved and left the standard number. For sedans they are supposed to bring six people (that means eight, because they put one in back or on top and then the driver), but often they try to cram more in if the car is wide enough. He wanted to put four in the front seat (across two bucket seats), something that is commonly attempted, but I was in no mood for it this time, so I told him that either he gave all the passengers some money back or he didn’t let the seventh guy on. He was mad but we became friends later when I gave him a bonbon.

Part of why I wasn’t in the mood was because my back was itching terribly, and getting worse. When we made it to Faranah we went to the internet, and while waiting for the other volunteer to finish it was driving crazy. Back at my house we took pictures of what turned out to be a rash covering most of my back and then went back to the internet to email them to the doctor. I washed my back and arms with an antimicrobial and antibiotic cleanser from our med kits, and then put on some hydrocortisone cream, and today it isn’t bothering me as much. Hopefully it was just some combination of heat and the humidity of Kissidougou. Hopefully there are pictures below, and those of us in med school will have a fun time looking at them.

And if you are wondering why I don’t refer to other volunteers by name, its because Peace Corps policy is not to mention other volunteers whereabouts and activities for safety reasons. Its okay to talk about me because then I’m putting my own information out there, but not about others. I may just move to talking about John and Jane or something, because its annoying to write “the other volunteer” each time. About 90% of the time its the volunteer that lives closest to me anyway.

Jake I got your postcard!

Which just goes to show that you can’t believe everything older volunteers say. Case in point, there is a rather annoying rumor floating around about me, but we’ve figured out a grand joke to play off of it. Stay tuned in a few weeks to hear about it.

I am doing well. I really miss the states, particularly food like pizza, shushi, and the easy availability of cold drinks, and of course my people, but life here is good even on days when I have an annoying rash on my back and arms.