This week Adam's former boss and his wife came to Angola to see if they want to move here. I got to show the wife around town, and it really made me realize just how far I've come in these last 3 months. When I met her at the apartments she was touring, I recognized the fear in her eyes right away - it was just how I felt when we came here in June for our reccie trip. Only a month ago, I would have struggled to be positive when telling her about life here - but somehow I have managed to get to a place of happiness.
The best part of the visit for me was when I realized that the man showing her the apartments was also the man who manages the maintenance for our compound. I asked him if he was going to replace the gas canister for our BBQ anytime soon, since we'd been asking him for 5 days to take care of it. He said, "Madame, we have done it." I told him no, it wasn't done. He answered, "Yes, madame - they came yesterday." Again, I said no - I hadn't seen anyone come to replace it. He stepped away to phone someone to double check, and when he came back, he was clearly annoyed. He said, "Madame, they delivered it to your next door neighbor's house by mistake." I burst out laughing, and immediately turned to the boss's wife and said, "This is exactly what you can expect when you're here! BUT - keep in mind - all of the other companies' employees have to refill the gas tanks themselves, so you really don't have it so bad!"
We made them dinner Thursday and Friday night (using the bbq that eventually got the gas refilled) and I think visiting with us made them see that it really is possible to be happy here. We had tri-tip, salad, and bread pudding the first night. The second night we had grilled mahi-mahi tacos (the fish that we caught a few weeks ago) with home made tortillas and salsa, with pineapple rice and garlic black beans. Not bad for living in a place where food is such a challenge.
I'm sure this period of looking on the bright side will be challenged repeatedly, and I don't doubt that I will have plenty of moments of wishing desperately for home and family and friends. I am, however, so very grateful that I'm able to see the blessings we have, and it really is a relief to not let small things get me riled up as much as they used to.
One more note - thanks for all the good thoughts for Molly. Her bumps seem to be clearing up, and she's back to feeling great. Now that it's done, I can tell you that I was really freaked out. The same day she went to the doctor, she came home from school complaining of a headache and blurry vision in one eye. Being a calm. level-headed mom, I immediately panicked and decided she had malaria or a brain tumor, or both. I'm still not sure what was going on, but after some Tylenol and some rest, she was fine. Maybe I'm not as laid-back as I had hoped!
Sunday, January 22, 2012
Wednesday, January 18, 2012
A day in the life...
This morning I had to skip exercise class to take Molly to the clinic. In the past few days, we thought she'd been bit by a mosquito on her forehead. Then one bump became three, and then she had 6, and they didn't look exactly like mosquito bites. She mentioned that one of her friends at school had bumps all up and down her arms this week, so I decided to take her in, in case it was something contagious. We saw a Dr. that we've never seen before, and neither Molly nor I were very impressed by him. He said they're ant bites. <insert skeptical eyebrow raise> I've never seen a single ant in our house, and I'm quite sure that my highly sensitive child would notice ants CRAWLING ON HER FACE, but ok, we'll wait and see how this plays out.
After dropping Molly at school I went back home to get ready for grocery shopping with JoAnn. I tried to check my email, but since the workers came to 'upgrade' our internet service yesterday, our internet isn't working. Not so much of an upgrade!
JoAnn and I had heard that a new store had opened about half an hour away, so we hopped in my car and headed out. It ended up taking around 40 minutes, but once we got there, we were giddy! First exciting thing - new(ish) shopping carts!!! Hot dog, usually you're lucky to even find a cart, and then it's covered in mystery sticky stuff and steers itself off into random directions. So - a clean, mostly straight-steering cart just made our day! The store was really big, and had WAY more choices than we're used to. Don't get me wrong, it's still an Angolan store - I found scotch tape, a three-pack, for $17 - but it was still mighty thrilling to see something other than the same old junk that's in all the other stores. Among the best items found:
* Chicken Nuggets (haven't seen these since we left the good old USA)
*Tortilla Chips (I've found these ONE other time, and didn't stock up - so now I will!)
*Cheerios (these are sometimes found in one other store, but for a higher price)
We made our way to the checkout stand, and there were NO LINES. Unbelievable! But wait, it gets better! My cashier bagged some of my stuff for me! Usually the checker just tosses your groceries down to the end of the stand and you get to hustle and bag your stuff before someone else grabs it....so this was a big deal! (Related oddity - even in a brand spanking new store like today, the stores all have conveyor belts at the checkout stands that DO NOT WORK. You can load your stuff up on them, but then you have to keep scooting and sliding them along to the cashier.)
And then my good fortune seemed to stall out, because the pencils I had bought for the boys didn't scan. Unlike America, if a price doesn't come up, you're out of luck - you can't buy that item. But today was a golden day, and my checker actually called someone to find out the price!!!!! So I got to buy the pencils, and the miraculous shopping trip will be talked about for weeks. Yes, this is what my life is like, people - a completely average experience at an overpriced, understocked store has become the high point of my week. And I'm absolutely fine with that....mostly because I have these people waiting for me at the end of each day.
After dropping Molly at school I went back home to get ready for grocery shopping with JoAnn. I tried to check my email, but since the workers came to 'upgrade' our internet service yesterday, our internet isn't working. Not so much of an upgrade!
JoAnn and I had heard that a new store had opened about half an hour away, so we hopped in my car and headed out. It ended up taking around 40 minutes, but once we got there, we were giddy! First exciting thing - new(ish) shopping carts!!! Hot dog, usually you're lucky to even find a cart, and then it's covered in mystery sticky stuff and steers itself off into random directions. So - a clean, mostly straight-steering cart just made our day! The store was really big, and had WAY more choices than we're used to. Don't get me wrong, it's still an Angolan store - I found scotch tape, a three-pack, for $17 - but it was still mighty thrilling to see something other than the same old junk that's in all the other stores. Among the best items found:
* Chicken Nuggets (haven't seen these since we left the good old USA)
*Tortilla Chips (I've found these ONE other time, and didn't stock up - so now I will!)
*Cheerios (these are sometimes found in one other store, but for a higher price)
We made our way to the checkout stand, and there were NO LINES. Unbelievable! But wait, it gets better! My cashier bagged some of my stuff for me! Usually the checker just tosses your groceries down to the end of the stand and you get to hustle and bag your stuff before someone else grabs it....so this was a big deal! (Related oddity - even in a brand spanking new store like today, the stores all have conveyor belts at the checkout stands that DO NOT WORK. You can load your stuff up on them, but then you have to keep scooting and sliding them along to the cashier.)
And then my good fortune seemed to stall out, because the pencils I had bought for the boys didn't scan. Unlike America, if a price doesn't come up, you're out of luck - you can't buy that item. But today was a golden day, and my checker actually called someone to find out the price!!!!! So I got to buy the pencils, and the miraculous shopping trip will be talked about for weeks. Yes, this is what my life is like, people - a completely average experience at an overpriced, understocked store has become the high point of my week. And I'm absolutely fine with that....mostly because I have these people waiting for me at the end of each day.
Friday, January 13, 2012
You know you're not in America anymore.....
* When your child comes home from school and tells you he has a 'plaster' on his toe. After investigating a bit, I realized a plaster is a band-aid.
* When you loan a neighbor a needle and thread, and she exclaims, "Well, bless your cotton socks!" What is the proper response to this? "Hallelujah to your Nike shoes?" Not sure, but it does make for entertaining conversations!
*When you go to a little market to buy fresh vegetables, and once you have your purchases ready you realize you don't speak the same language as the cashier.....and he's shaking his head at you....and yelling to a co-worker, who's gesturing at you....and your driver steps in and tries to translate, but he doesn't speak the same language as the store workers....and finally, somehow, you are told that you can't shop at this store, because you're not the right ethnicity. And though you're more than a little baffled and uncomfortable at the entire experience, you're not really shocked or offended by it....because it's just another day in a strange place, far from home.
* When you loan a neighbor a needle and thread, and she exclaims, "Well, bless your cotton socks!" What is the proper response to this? "Hallelujah to your Nike shoes?" Not sure, but it does make for entertaining conversations!
*When you go to a little market to buy fresh vegetables, and once you have your purchases ready you realize you don't speak the same language as the cashier.....and he's shaking his head at you....and yelling to a co-worker, who's gesturing at you....and your driver steps in and tries to translate, but he doesn't speak the same language as the store workers....and finally, somehow, you are told that you can't shop at this store, because you're not the right ethnicity. And though you're more than a little baffled and uncomfortable at the entire experience, you're not really shocked or offended by it....because it's just another day in a strange place, far from home.
Saturday, January 7, 2012
Green Eggs and Ham
This is a philosophical post, so feel free to skip it! Sometimes I sit here and look out the window at this strange place, and wonder how on earth I got here. I certainly never planned to visit Africa, much less live here - and if you asked me a few years ago, I didn't even foresee ever moving out of California! I've had a little time to ponder how drastically our lives have shifted, and it seems to me that there's one overwhelming theme that has led us to where we are now.
I know, it's rather simplistic....but Adam and I have both learned to approach our lives with an attitude that is open to trying new things. Waaaaay back when we were just kids, newly engaged, we went to a fancy corporate holiday party. A partner in the big firm where Adam was hired was at the party, and offered us sushi. We hadn't ever had sushi, and the idea of raw fish wasn't exactly appetizing....but we tried it. And just like in the story, we liked it! We'd never considered moving to Alaska....but we figured it was worth a try. Once we were there, we really jumped into trying new things....fishing, skiing, snowboarding, picking wild berries....and the more new experiences we had, the more we found out about ourselves.
Now Angola makes Alaska look like child's play, in terms of trying something new. Almost every day here I find myself pushed past what I thought my limits were, and I am once again learning that I'm more than I thought I was. More brave, more strong, more resourceful....more tolerant. I hope that our children will absorb this outlook on life, and use it to discover where their lives can take them. Before you say, "I can't," or "I would never," or even "I don't like," something....consider what you have to lose by simply trying.
I know, it's rather simplistic....but Adam and I have both learned to approach our lives with an attitude that is open to trying new things. Waaaaay back when we were just kids, newly engaged, we went to a fancy corporate holiday party. A partner in the big firm where Adam was hired was at the party, and offered us sushi. We hadn't ever had sushi, and the idea of raw fish wasn't exactly appetizing....but we tried it. And just like in the story, we liked it! We'd never considered moving to Alaska....but we figured it was worth a try. Once we were there, we really jumped into trying new things....fishing, skiing, snowboarding, picking wild berries....and the more new experiences we had, the more we found out about ourselves.
Now Angola makes Alaska look like child's play, in terms of trying something new. Almost every day here I find myself pushed past what I thought my limits were, and I am once again learning that I'm more than I thought I was. More brave, more strong, more resourceful....more tolerant. I hope that our children will absorb this outlook on life, and use it to discover where their lives can take them. Before you say, "I can't," or "I would never," or even "I don't like," something....consider what you have to lose by simply trying.
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