CAN, mechanic mishap, graduation, keys (finale)

CG brought the above pagne (except with light orange rings) to the tailor. A bride had chosen it for the wedding uniform (all attendees who can will wear it). She thinks it’s more suited for death. I think it’s more suited in Mordor.

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The courthouse

I promised the Lieutenant who wrote the police report that I would call him after our appointment at the courthouse. The following day he called me when I forgot.
“Tu est passé par le tribunal?”
“Oh, oui, pardon, j’ai complet — comp— completa—“
“Tu as oublié.”

Yeah, I oublié. I oublié because after spending two hours waiting at the courthouse, I moved straight into another line at the university to enroll in mandatory universal healthcare.

Losing Things in Taxis, Orphanage Visit

I’m a big fan of the Disturbed version of The Sound of Silence and it occasionally gets stuck in my head. The other week I was walking to the market humming it quietly, and I passed a kiosk playing a radio playing the S&G version. What are the odds.

Since the security grills were installed, my screen doors don’t…. quite… fit. The top falls open and hits the AC. I leave it there in hopes of keeping at least SOME of the mosquitoes out. The birds who nest behind the AC have decided they like to sit on the bars (I needed to lay down foil to catch their poop). It’s nice to watch them up close.

That tear is recent… I think one of the screech owls hit it.

Well, it finally happened. The inevitable. I lost my keyring in a taxi.
It resulted in a visit to one of the orphanages.

Just a day.

First, some fun things that really didn’t belong in previous posts:
– The young boy wearing a “Jingle bells my sister smells” T shirt on Palm Sunday
– The owls that now live in our roof and sound like squeaking screen doors
– There is a poor chicken who has some skin disease and no feathers, but runs around like he/she owns the place.
– “Facekoop,” the barbershop with the blue-and-white sign (a pun on ‘coup’)
– Maquis Restaurant Facebook, complete with the thumbs-up symbol on the sign
– The very visible homemade signs along the route from Abidjan to Bassam advertising male enhancement brews via painted images of impossibly optimistic results

Here was my day yesterday, because it’s a great example of why doing anything takes a huge amount of energy. Not every day is like this. I’ve simply put off doing all this messy stuff until classes were over, but now must pay up.

Re-reading this, it seems like far more detail than could ever be interesting, but I will leave it to give you a picture of life here in Bassam.

Break-in

A while ago now (well over a month), someone causally broke into my apartment.

I say ‘casually’ because it turns out not to be that difficult, all they took was a little money, and this turns out to be quite common. Many other foreigners have had things stolen from their apartments, especially during the night. Three other apartments in our building were also robbed (I have no idea if it was at the same time– my housekeeper learned this from the wife of our ‘guardian’ who actually is no longer our guardian). CG has had a gas tank stolen. Twice.

Water Sampling: part 2

Guys, it is REALLY HOT. I’m not usually one to complain about heat, but this is miserable. If you have AC, fine, no problem, but there have been a lot of power outages. Plus you’re well aware of the huge numbers of people without AC and those working in the sun all day.

Today’s post: water sampling part II.

Water sampling: Bassam

It has been a very eventful couple (several?) weeks, but finals are next week and several deadlines are past so expect a few catchup posts over the next couple weeks. This week: Water sampling in Bassam.

KFC comes to Bassam…

The guard’s idea of using the electrical box shelter as a chicken coop was never a good idea imo, but last night the chickens took it to a new level:

In other news, not only the 4th floor light but also the 3rd floor lights are now blinking erratically. My apartment building is like a haunted house.

Small stories of chaos

When it rains, it pours

Below: failure of communication in the university, a new way of being taken advantage of, and other small stories of chaos.

Not my adventure this time

I had hoped to have some food things to show you today. I had bought some smoked fish head, a new type (Mademoiselle) at the market. But sadly, when I pulled it out of the fridge after a week (who has time?) it was so moldy as to be unrecognizable as anything. So.

Anyway, here’s a few things:

African walnut. Really quite good, like an almond.

Gnangnan. Used in stews. Mildly bitter flavor.

A day’s visit to the market.

The only multivitamins available in the pharmacy. You cannot tell me they do not look like M&Ms.

This label was not “the loan.”

Meanwhile, life’s been full of little misadventures.

Below:
Samo and transportation
Colleague’s trip to Yamassoukro