season 2, episode 1

today was my first day at my new job.  it is just a temporary post at the moment as the details of contracts and salaries and technicalities are sorted out, but it didn't stop me from being nervous.

in the end, there was no reason to worry and it was difficult to slip back into the system that i left a few years ago.  the workload will be heavy and the obstacles in front of the team, rather substantial.  but if i am up for a challenge, it is there for the taking.

i can tell that the challenges will include: desks not lined up in any logical order in the office (yes, i am serious), a coworker who likes to listen to music at just audible levels, and utter lack of infrastructure in what is colloquially referred to as a 'resource poor' working environment.

in many ways, it is a great opportunity and a position that i can shape into my own and define as i go.  but it will also involve a lot of ambiguity and a certain degree of risk.  a bit like being the underdog and it could go either way, really.

i am happy for the chance to get involved in some potentially interesting project development and the flexibility that comes when you do not have a long term contract, which means i can still take my upcoming birthday trip to ghana, head home for a visit in march, and decide my own working hours.

maybe my independent spirit and no-nonsense manner of thinking about the development game will be pleased with this arrangement.  or maybe my love for organisation, planning, and preparations will be driven mad with the lack of clarity or clearly defined boundaries and roles.

only time will tell in this instance.  like many before and certainly many more to come.

deep breaths

after moaning about not knowing what i should be when i grow up, recently some options have materialized.  my recent flurry of job applications has resulted in 3 job interviews this week.  i've only heard back from 1 of them and i have the option of moving to azerbaijan if that were to tickle my fancy.

and it might.  it is just that i am still not really clear on what my next move should be.  and yet i am also perilously aware that this indecision can turn into paralysis.*  but so many factors need to be weighed.  salary, contract length, career direction, my interest in the roles, levels of responsibility, distance from the people i love.

more than anything, i am wondering if i am ready to relocate after coming to liberia just 2 months ago.  and after another few months in another location, if i will be ready to pick and leave again.  perhaps i could do it for a year or so, but the idea of having a home base once again is rather appealing.

but what is equally appealing is more field-based experience and more travel and adventure (even if adventure means sitting by my pool in tropical heat in december).  and i keep thinking it is a mutually exclusive decision, but maybe i need to think more creatively and explore ways to achieve both a sense of home and stability with the challenge and excitement of 'the new.'

i sense a few pro/con lists in my immediate future.  and more than a few reminders of deep breaths and that this decision, like all that have preceded it, is not the last i will make and that it is just as much ok to say no as it is to say yes.

* paralysis is a rather tricky word to spell without spellcheck.

home sweet home in monrovia

remember that deal i made with kelsey?  well, i am really crapping out on it, aren't it?

and it is not that i have any wonderful excuses as i am not working a regular job, have more free time than i've had in years, and have had literally thousands of thoughts about life in liberia that i have wanted to share.

view from my bedroom window

i arrived about a month ago and was warmly welcomed into my new home that overlooks the atlantic ocean.  it is a furnished house, meaning it comes with the basics and all the necessary furniture, but little else.  not much on the walls or in the cupboards, but after a few shorts weeks, it does feel like home.

and you can't beat opening your balcony doors in your bedroom to hear the sound of the waves crashing.

waves crashing so hard that i actually cannot swim in the ocean near my house, but yoga in my makeshift hot yoga studio (aka my balcony) is wonderful with the background noises of the sea.

we have a housekeeper who is slowly becoming my closest friend in liberia and i know this isn't exactly how this relationship should go, but it is nice to have company during the days and she is happy to answer all my questions about life in monrovia.  for instance: how do i break a $100 dollar bill? (go to the forex and ask for 'pieces'), where do i find towels in the shops? (the big shop in town has them, it's called Abijala), how do i replace our empty cooking gas canister (give $45 to the groundskeeper and 5LD (liberian dollars) for a motorcar and he'll get it for you).

our street

she was also a wealth of information during the violence that broke out during an opposition party protest a few days before the run off election was held, which was peaceful in the end even if boycotted by the opposition that was crying foul (and also knew they would lose).

before i left calgary, i was worried that i would be bored and wouldn't have anything to fill my days.  i seem to have been wrong and manage to have a growing To Do list on the go as well as very few moments where i am not sure what to do with myself.

i do have work that needs to be completed from a contract i still have from home and i have been enjoying jumping back into the world of research with it.  but otherwise i have been reading books, working out, playing far too much angry birds than is healthy, stocking the fridge and cupboards, reading the internet and sending emails, and utilising the incredibly affordable long distance calling to call friends and family in canada (seriously, i have put $70 on my phone and have made at least 5 calls lasting longer than an hour each and still have $50 left in my account - if liberia can figure out affordable long distance overseas, why oh why can't canada?!).

and, as promised, i will be spending more time writing (hopefully in a coherent manner) about my impressions of my newest home to post here.

how i spend some afternoons

slum tourism is not for everyone, in fact, it shouldn't be for anyone

Jina Moore has highlighted an op-ed in the new york times by Kennedy Odede, who grew up in kibera, which is potentially the largest slum in africa located smack in the middle of nairobi, my former home.

i think anyone considered any type of voluntourism should read this piece.  to the point, eloquent, honest, and a great voice on why you take a piece of people's dignity when you travel through their home to 'understand poverty.'

i have been to kibera.  i didn't spend much time there and would never claim to understand the community nor why exactly my work took me there, but i did see foreigners wandering around with their cameras out and i heard on local radio (through my rough understanding of kiswahili and my colleague's helpful translation) that there is a running joke that kibera residents are like zoo animals as the visitors pass by, looking at them from an arm's length and taking photos to bring home.

for anyone interested in life in kibera, Uwem Akpan has an excellent short story about a family in kibera in his book Say You're One of Them.

number crunching

i posted a comment over at flotsam, where on her fifth year blogging anniversary she ran some numbers.  a good idea i thought, so i am posting my comment here with a few more items that i have thought of since.

children conceived: 0
live babies acquired: 0
men married: 0
apartments lived in: 5
books written: 1 (if you count a thesis)
degrees acquired: 1
unfamiliar countries visited: 17
unfamiliar states visited: 0
couches owned: 5
pets felled by disease/neglect: 0
days admitted to hospital: 0
literary rejections received: 0 (but i have received a number of professsional rejections!)
pounds gained: -10
kidney stones passed: 0

and a few of my own:

humanitarian emergencies survived: 1
doctors dated: 3
soldiers dated: 1
teachers dated: 1
statisticians dated: 1
pilots dated: 2

hunters dated: 1
houses purchased: 1
heartbreaks suffered: 1
countries lived in: 4

tropical diseases contracted: 1
blogs maintained: 1

social networking profiles created: 3

social networking profiles maintained: 1
bottles of wine consumed: even if i remembered to count, i wouldn't have had the capacity to at the time

laptops owned: 3

cars named dieter driven: 1

grandparents lost: 2

jobs held: 3, 2 concurrently

tattoos inked: 2

bites of chicken consumed: 3 +/-

itunes songs collected: 4715

languages learned: 1/8

photographs taken: 1000s, maybe even 10,000s

friends met, books read, and tears shed: statistics unavailable until technology improves!

 

i would love to hear what you have to say about your last 5 years!

found out?

i am working from home today and i am giving my laptop a run for her money, but i am happy to report that she is performing splendidly (even though her battery doesn't last nearly as long as it used to).

and in my productivity, i keep having the thought that one day i will be found out that my job isn't supposed to be this good, my supervisors aren't supposed to be this flexible, and the people i work with aren't supposed to be this awesome.

the nice thing about being at home is that i have not only made a dent in my professional to do list, but my personal to do list as well. i have put my name on a waiting list for a photography class, called my dad and left him a message so he does not think i have forgotten him, caught up on a lot of cbc podcasts, made dinner reservations for saturday night, and reorganised my running playlist. and all this while also staying abrest of my work commitments!

i think i should work from home at least once a week!

yay for:

• having a McNally's with mr McNally himself (ok, so i had a grasshopper and he had a McNally's) when i met the founders of the Big Rock Brewery at a function they hosted
• the exchange rate of canadian to american dollars being nearly .90 in preparation for my upcoming trip to san francisco
• the sun has decided to grace us with its presence three days in a row
• a reunion of old friends that i had been actively avoiding since returning to my hometown that ended up being a blast and perhaps the beginning of a friendship regeneration (just in time for the friend edit!)
• more nest shopping (but i had to forego camping to fit more nests in, sadly)
• a new hair cut and colour that make me look sort of like meg ryan (but not really, just the hair bit). now i just need to learn how to do it so it doesn't look like a rat's nest or at least like a tamed rat's nest
• dinner tonight at Farm, a restaurant i have been dying to try

could i give up my shopping habit?

just when i thought my life was going to settle down and i was going to stay in one place for awhile, my former boss has asked if i want to be interviewed for a position in my old office (that same one that was mentioned in the book What is the What that i recently read that put thoughts in mind...) in kenya. the job would be better than the one i had when i was based in nairobi previously and one that i would enjoy, but am i ready to give up the luxuries of developed world living?

like having friends you've known for decades a phone call away, having a ladies' night once monthly with these women, eating dinner with my family regularly, having lattes with my sister, making oil and gas money, watching my brother's hockey games, catching matinees with my other brother, breakfasts with visitors from out of town, changing seasons, central heating, bad television at my fingertips, dependable public transit, my little dieter, my running routes free of rabid dogs and speeding trucks, and, i shamelessly admit, shopping?

yet, one of the biggest reasons i came home was a person who shall not be named and now that that is no longer an issue, i am just not sure what to do with myself. i had always planned on a career in international development and my favourite experiences and stories that i have come from the time i spent pursuing that.

the universe will just have to tell me what to do in this case. but until it is clear, i will keep my options open.

darn tooting!

neither palin nor biden are inspiring me at all during their debate. not one bit at all. biden thinks you can intervene in other countries uninvited and palin, well, she just smiles that silly smile all the time. she hasn't said anything disastrous yet, but still.

and what do i think about that other debate? i think that dion rocked it in both french and english. and who knew that duceppe spoke such eloquent english? who knew a separatist had such a command of the language of the oppressor? i do like the cut of his jib.

and global warming be damned, today i liked sitting in the sun and reading a book in october. i even got a few new freckles and a little rosy. in october! this just goes to show that i am totally justified in kicking the next person in the shins who says, 'oh, you are from canada, you must love the cold weather.' i say shut up and come enjoy summer in october at the foot of the rocky mountains to see for yourself.

chicken or the egg

i have been at home for nearly a week and people keep asking me how it feels to be back. for which, really, there is only one right answer if you are talking to people at home...

yes, i am happy i made this decision and yes, i am looking forward to building a new life in my hometown and yes, i think that it is a good personal and professional move. but there is so much to do and i have no freaking idea how to go about this getting settled thing.

or, i should say, i don't know which order to go about this getting settled thing. i know what i have to do, but i can't very well go out and buy a car without having a job and i can't very well go out and find a job without spending a lot of time applying for them. deep breaths and priority lists are keeping me sane.

and i am the most impatient person in the world so as far as i am concerned, it should all work out and work out NOW.

but i have made a dent in the to do list and that will have to be sufficient for my 6 days of home.

a good time to be going home

(september 15, 2008)

sitting at the hannover airport, sipping a warm cappuccino, wrapped in a handwoven scarf from kenya, i am ready for this. ready for the shock of cold weather during a canadian winter and ready for rebuilding and rediscovering. as the day that I Move Home approached, i have been thinking, ‘am i ready for this?’ and really, is there ever an answer to that question? are you ever ready for anything? what the hell does being ready even look like?

all you can ever do is prepare as best you can and gather your hopes together in case you are in need of defence then go for it. readiness is not something that can be measured, collected, and packaged for each event or activity. it is fleeting and misleading and, at its worst, overrated.

i have done what i can, but i realise that most of what will need to be done cannot be done yet. and i will have to be patient with myself and the universe. because sometimes when you give something to the universe, it can’t respond right away. i guess you must just trust that it will.

am i ready to stop being the person who lives in africa, who is a regular at heathrow, who works in development and parties like a rockstar? not entirely. but i am ready to expand who i am to include something more. and maybe that is as ready as i can ever can be.

this and that on a monday morning

him: i remember listening to the bbc worldservice my dad's old radio, although i can't remember if it was on the medium wave or fm by that point.

me: you know, i have never understood how radios work.

him: well, there are radio waves...

me: i'm ok with not understanding. i'm more interested in the story about listening to the bbc worldservice in africa.

* * *

i watched The Kite Runner last night and i am proud to say that i managed not to cry. but i think i got all those tears out when i read the book. the movie is great, the book is fantastic. it was great to have visual images of afghanistan, i especially like the market scenes as the market-lover that i am.

* * *

i am surprised how excited i am to have a table and chairs in my breakfast nook. it is a sunny place to sit and enjoy coffee and omelets on a sunday morning. we got them from a second hand shop and apparently the saleslady was quite annoyed that we only wanted 3 chairs of the matching set. who needs 4 chairs when you are only going to be in a place for a few more weeks? which reminds me, i need to buy a third mug for when our visitor arrives this week!

* * *

since the army doesn't seem to be letting up in our last battle, even though i gave it everything i have i am apparently no match for the military with my pouting, scowling, and shaking of my fist, i am pretty sure i will head back to canada earlier (by a few weeks) than i anticipated. after considering all the options, i am totally ok with that.

weather karma

i was having a thought on my run today. i was running on the road because i get these shin splint-type pains if i run on hard surfaces like sidewalks and i was noticing how wide the roads are here, but how drivers are still noticeably nervous when i am running on their turf.

this brought me around to some other thoughts i have been having lately - that our culture is so afraid of so many things happening. or, possibly, that companies, corporations, or any type of authority does not want to be held responsible for anything and then push safety and security down our throats. thank you, litigation.

so we wear helmets, reflective running jackets, and now we can't eat tomatoes. it just seems a bit obsessive. perhaps i feel this way because i have been living in a place where the options are a) go for a run on the road and risk getting hit by one of the cars that regularly speed by you on narrow roads, potentially rabid dog bites, or twisting an ankle on uneven surfaces or b) stay at home. staying at home gets old after a few weeks.

not that i do not think that any of these precautions are bad ideas. bike helmets keep your skull intact, reflective jackets allow you to have a less worrisome run, and salmonella is no fun (although the chances of dying from salmonella are low and it seems a bit alarmist to pull my favourite vegetable off the shelves after a sort of warning that they might be responsible for a salmonella 'outbreak').

in a way, this is linked to the craze about 'going green' and again, i believe some of the principles behind it, but i struggle with the idea that eating organic is 'going green.' actually, i downright disagree. growing things organically is not better for our environment, but i will save that for another post.

during these running thoughts when i was thinking, 'calgary, what a city of wimps!' it began to pour rain and i was thinking, 'i love running in the rain.' and then it hailed on me. and hail hurts! like lots of tiny bee stings all over your exposed skin, including the sensitive skin of the neck, ouch! i think that is what you call weather karma.

and i hope that weather karma does not rear its ugly head on me next time i try to be healthy, active, and non-wimpy.

update, schmupdate

i have been home nearly 2 weeks and have been relaxing and dealing with allergies. i haven't felt compelled to update so i will give you a recap that will probably not be very exciting to read, but will make me feel less guilty when i check my blogomatic and bore myself with my own lack of news.

i am sad that the hockey night in canada theme song is going to go to tsn/ctv now. it goes hand-in-hand with the cbc and cherry's antics for me. but what was cbc thinking? i am pretty sure they can afford the $500 per play.

that wasn't much of an update. i will try again.

the soldier and i have a flat to move into in germany, which is rather exciting and makes things feel more 'real' even though i keep getting ahead of myself by thinking about the autumn and future jobs, houses, and life back in calgary.

but yay for a new nest! i wonder how you say 'nest' in german?

back to those allergies - they are kicking me in the ass. i am not sure if it is allergies or a cold, but i am sleeping way too much, i wake up with headaches, and my eyes are itchy far too often. blech.

i have eaten more red meat in the past few days than in the past 6 months, but i have come to expect (and anticipate) that. i loves me some alberta beef. i also love red wine and my mom's red wine dispenser (otherwise known as a box of wine conveniently placed so you simply place your glass under the spout and voila!).

it seems when you leave your job, people seem to think you are rather valuable, but i guess that happens anywhere in any field. or so i am told. but no bother, i like the compliments and the requests for my cv.

speaking of my cv, i met with a recruiter and i am feeling positive (for once!) about my career. nothing concrete, just a good meeting full of good ideas.

ordering at starbucks is STRESSFUL. here is what i want - a latte, the medium size, with skim milk, and maybe, just maybe, a fancy flavour shot or a fancy drink like a caramel macchiato (but not very sweet and none of the no-sugar syrup). but you need to be able to say that in the fancy coffee shop lingo in a matter of seconds. who can do that?! well, probably you. but i am used to putting in my order at nairobi java house and just crossing my fingers that they get it right and enjoying whatever shows up on the counter. often, to get the drink how you want it, it takes a short diatribe and a few baseball hand signals, but i am little out of the loop.

the mass consumption and marketing in this place is also stressful. not to mention the serious leaps in technology that make me feel like an 80 year old (maybe even 90 year old) who has lived in a home for entire technology revolution. in saskatchewan (ok, maybe a stereotype, but i would imagine that if you lived in a home in saskatchewan, it might be even less technologically current).

i am learning a lot about wedding dresses and weddings. i am glad i get to be a spectator at this one (well, an active chief bridesmaid spectator) so i can learn the ropes.

other than that, adjusting is and will be tough, i miss parts of life in africa, but i am excited for a lot of upcoming things and nothing beats that.

stuff you notice

• canadians really are friendly, including the customs guys who i thought were going to take away my harrods duty free or charge me tax on the items i had shipped, but no, they were very friendly - tattoos, scary black gloves and all. the passport office staff earn an honourable mention for their friendliness and for bending the rules for my 'unique situation.'
• the driving skills around these parts are sub par compared to those of nairobi. sure, people here know the road rules and tend to obey them, but they follow too closely and need really big lanes because they insist on meandering between lanes, across lanes, and where ever they please. i guess you can forgive them considering they aren't used to roads filled with hazards such as potholes that will swallow you, potential carjackers, and laneless roads. sounds chaotic, but drivers are much better at manouvering their vehicles around deathtraps and/or traffic in kenya. (following road rules is another thing completely and canada wins that one)
• mobile phone companies in canada are stupid and i wish they would get with the european and african times with sim cards and innovation
• all the choice is overwhelming
• a rainy day in calgary is better than a rainy day in nairobi
• so much tv to watch, so few hours in a day
• calgary has a distinct smell and you notice it when you land in the airport, it is nice. clean. dry.
• i keep forgetting that cold water runs out of the tap and man, is it cold. but the hot water is delicious, simply delicious.
• blueberries are still my favourite berry
• we keep leaving our front door open when we go out. i guess the stereotype is true. and it is so nice that we can do that (not that we do all the time, but having options is nice)
• hockey and snow in june? oh yeah.

adjusting back to north american life is going to have its challenges and this visit home has been the first time that i have been worried about them, but i suppose since it is on the horizon, worry is warranted.

i'm on my way

today is my last day in nairobi and my last day at work and i am remembering that i really do hate good-byes. and not for the reasons that most people do. i just hate that they are so drawn out and people insist that they 'have to see you' before you go (and you have been here for nearly 2 years, for the love of god!) and everyone says 'but, why?' in this most annoying voice. yes, i live in kenya, but i am not from kenya. i do have a home, people!

but i have scheduled pick up at 7:30pm, have checked in online (hello window seat and sweet dreams all the way to london!), and have managed to get my runny nose under control so i do not infect all those around me with a nasty aeroplane bug. ew.

and hello, also, to heathrow terminal 3 and its delights. terminal 3 is my favourite of the terminals and perhaps i will replace my tried and tested birkenstocks (i am such a hippy who is in drastic need of a fashion overhaul, but hello also to europe this summer!) with something more fashionable.

i love travelling. i hate saying good bye. and i am more than a little excited to go home and see my fam (and my one-eyed dog) (oh, and my fluffy cat) (and all other north american novelties, which i could least at length but will save that for later).

yay.

3 things

i am not ready to leave. and that is all i have to say about that.

also not thrilled with the preliminary results of the kenyan presidential election. and that is all i will say about that.

i am disgusted with the assassination of Benazir Bhutto and i am afraid for pakistan.

happy birthday jesus!

at this time last year, i was sitting on a beach in mombasa, enjoying the sun and the company, but feeling rather lonely as christmas just doesn't match with the indian ocean, spf 15, or margaritas for me.

in the last few weeks, i have been exceptionally busy and today i have no plans. (apart from that red cup date i just made, which is less like plans and more like a calm visit) between trips to kananaskis, fernie, the saddledome, dinner parties, heritage park, the mall, the other mall, the other big box store, and seasonal parties, i am pooped. showing someone around your home is so much fun but exhasuting. and having a sinus cold is not really helping my stamina or ability to go through any one event without consuming something that makes me a bit loopy and/or drowsy and stopping the fun to constantly blow my nose and sneeze.

but i am ready for christmas simply because i don't want to have to do anything for an entire day except eat, play games, open gifts, eat some more, and relax (and it helps that i have been done my shopping for a few days). but i would still rather be here, pooped and sneezing, than in a tropical destination. and for that, i am happy.

merry christmas!

conscious stream

i have been sneezing pretty much constantly since i arrived in yyc. not sure if it is allergies or a cold, but either way it is gross.

i have watched some hockey, i have eaten some beef, and i have christmas shopped in the past week. the usual. it has been packed and busy, but great. my sleeping schedule is still a bit whacky and i cannot seem to stay up past 10 or sleep past 9, but i suppose there is really nothing wrong with that as i am on vacation.

i am off to a cabin where i intend on visiting, drinking wine, hot springing, dining, lake skating, and observing ice fishing in action. i am looking forward to it all.

on the other hand, i am also a little bit worried that time is passing so quickly and that soon i will have to get back on a plane. i wish this visit could be stretched out this time. i feel at home and that this is where i need to be at the moment.

seems to be one of the few things i am sure of lately.

suspension of judgement

(december 12, 2007)

if i can say one thing about minneapolis is that people are friendly. like the kind of friendly that makes a solo traveller feel at ease. well, apart from the immigration police officer who started raising his voice for all in the hall to hear as he told a woman, ‘this is my house and here we do things my way, maybe you do things different in your house but you are in the us now’ and ‘i am not afraid to put you under arrest.’ and all this fuss because she was ill and didn’t want to wait for the medic to arrive after he had called her. i try to suspend judgement, but a situation like that how can you not roll your eyes and feel embarrassed for americans. and if you know me, you know that i defend americans from the bad rap that they get so often and that too often people make the most negative stereotypes about them. but then after that episode, how i can i blame them?

other lovely things about today:

• i have been travelling for nearly 2 days and am dirtay (ok that one is not so lovely)
• i did not freeze my buns off although it is snowy and cold in Minneapolis
• i went to the Mall of America and there is no way that it is bigger than West Edmonton Mall, nicer though
• i treated myself to a solo lunch (i love going out for meals alone, especially when in foreign places) of canadian salmon and a glass of red wine – delicious!
• water fountains! i had forgotten about those. i love drinkable tap water
• telling people what i do generally impresses people. the customs guy (not the ass i mentioned above) told me it sounded interesting, the starbucks guy was fascinated, my server at the restaurant said i was on the ‘good guys’ side,’ and the t shirt lady gave me a discount as i chatted with her about where i am from, where i live, and whether or not i am married (a strange stranger question, but not at all offensive because she was just so friendly)
• i did a lot of shopping. but i got a lot of gifts, which is a good thing as i was beginning to worry about being able to get it all done. i would say which gifts i am most happy about but i must keep it a secret
• the most enormous ukranian lady sat beside from amsterdam to minneapolis and it made eating difficult as she really took up my space. i have never known what i think about making obese people buy two seats, but i think i paid for more space that i actually got today
• who knew there were so many asian people in minneapolis?
• i stood in line for one of my flights in from of two professional bmx riders and i am sure they were much smarter than they sounded. geez. i have tried to work the word ‘like’ out of excessive use and i would suggest they do too if they ever decide to be grow ups (not that being a professional bmx rider is not grown up, but talking like a teenager is not grown up and kind of obnoxious in a line up when i cannot get away from it)
• i stood behind this most miserable mother and her three children in the same line up and was convinced the entire time that with her louis handbag, designer jeans, botoxed lips, and nasal accent that she was merican, but was mildly disappointed when i realised that she was canadian. and i bet they were headed back to calgary... (so much for suspending judgement)
• i had my first egg nog latte in a red cup of the season! (and my tongue is still burnt as a reminder)
• mass consumerism – wow
• christmas tunes everywhere, i love it
• things that work! like bathrooms (with hot water AND soap, what luxury) and public transport that won’t unnecessarily risk your life
• an observation – while waiting for my flight in amsterdam, there were many empty seats in a section of the gate and the only people sitting there were a muslim woman entirely covered and african men and women and everyone else was all crammed into the other sections. strangely (or not?), i immediately went to sit near them as i felt less threatened and more comfortable
• i will be home in 5 hours!
• i bought a shirt today that says ‘i only date republicans’ – oh, the irony.
• i have been sneezing up a storm (also not so lovely) and am afraid that i have contracted plane germs
• the american woman behind me and the enormous ukranian woman (who was very sweet and ordered everything that i did because she did not speak much english, i hope she likes tomato juice!) seemed to be calling her most very best girlfriends in the whole world (and she was about 45) to tell them about her upcoming wedding to a knight in england and how she has been divorced since she last saw these most very best girlfriends but they are such most important special people to her that she wanted them to come to her most fantastic and beautiful wedding. i wanted to tell her to shut up and take her phone calls of such a personal nature off the plane, besides she kept apologising for waking every one of them up as if she didn’t know. flake. (ok, so much for suspending judgement, but travelling for so long in one stretch gives you lots of people watching and listening time)
• did i mention christmas tunes?! and home in 5 hours?!
• yay