cubbish

today i cooked the first meal since i left home at the end of july.

ive never appreciated chopping cabbage (cubbish) so much.

got me thinking about other strange things that i miss.

1. driving by myself in a car. i found myself staring longingly into private cars on the tro tro ride home from accra today...

2. flying under the radar. one of my least favourite things is when im walking and somebody grabs my arm.

3. eavesdropping. i hate not knowing what people are saying. my liberian english isn't quite at that level yet. my twi is pathetic. maybe my new ghanaian neighbours can help me out there..

that being said... those are just things to look forward to. i certainly wouldnt trade the swarms of kids and insane amounts of rice and peppers for any of the above just yet.

week one of fish, rice and beans is about to come to an end. the kids that come to visit aren't quite as gassy as i thought they'd be after this week, and most seem pretty pleased with the upgrade. most are just peeved that im not giving more. i dont think our pots could possibly hold more rice though.. and even if they could, i cant figure out how our two cooks, comofort and philomena, would manage to stir it.

we have to make a few tweaks to the program so that it runs smoothly for the next term but basically from here on in, the kids will get the rice/beans/fish trifecta on monday, wednesday and friday.. and then oranges on tuesday and thursday.

attendance is notably higher on monday, wednesday and friday.

teachers, as a result, have a love/hate relationship with the new program. they get fed under it but, they have to work a bit harder to control a bigger class with a bit more energy.

ive got the same love/hate relationship... im thrilled to be able to up the anti a bit in camp. i think its way more worth my while to fundraise so that kids can get this, rather than just bread. its closer to their ideal diet, its more filling and its certainly more nutritious. it does mean though that the price of feeding for one week will be up between 250-275, and ill have to raise an extra 1000 each term (have to assess this week to know for sure). i think though that with an website actually coming, and charitable status registration underway, this might be something we can pull off.

maybe what i'll do as an incentive for you guys to donate is bring home obama paraphanalia for people who donate more... maybe an american flag with obama's face on the stripes? those litter the tro tros here.. for the really high donors, i'd consider bringing home a pair of obama boxers...