well, here i am in kenya.

My laptop and camera and USB stick were stolen in early June on the midnight streets of Nairobi. Sigh. Hence the lack of anything, ever, on this or on Books! Yeah!. Pole sana. I’m thinking of getting a new laptop when I go to the States over Christmas, but in the meantime I should be doing a better job of emailing/blogging/communicating-with-people-who-aren’t-sitting-within-a-4-foot-radius-from-me.

So, in a spirit of penitence, here is a short update of what has been going down in Kenya’s capital:

- We are less than 5 months away from the general elections (both Parliament and President), and the major opposition party (or is it a “coalition” – still not clear) has not decided on which of the 10 members who have declared their bid for the Presidency to back. Goodness. And last week the sitting Parliament produced a bill (not yet tabled) to give themselves serious raises and crazy generous severance packages for when they all get kicked out of office. Depressing and ridiculous.

- Do you ever get the feeling that you aren’t “taking advantage” of a place? Lately I feel that way about Nairobi. Like, there must be breakdancing happening somewhere. Why can’t I find it? Is it me? it’s true I don’t have as much Get Up as I would like. Well, that maybe will be an August goal: find the breakdancing.

- Speaking of goals – July goals were met! I wanted to 1. have some very good meals; 2. get in touch with that Career Counselor in Indiana everyone thinks is the cat’s meow; and 3. find the Quakers in Nairobi. And all of those things have happened.

1. good food and good people – especially good food in Ghana (see below);

2. career counselor is sending me packet of tests to take! Here we go career direction;

3. I showed up for a silent meeting of 8 people – half wazungu, half Kenyan – for an hour one Sunday morning. Super welcoming folks, those silent Quaker types.

Conclusion: I like setting achievable goals.

- Oh! I went to Germany (don’t get too excited, now – it was Wiesbaden, the administrative capital of the province of Hesse. I couldn’t find any mohnkuchen (poppyseed cake) the whole time I was there, and they told me that Janosch was out of fashion. Janosch! I tell you.). I was there for the Joint EU/Africa Caribbean Pacific group Parliamentary Assembly. And then went on to Ghana (Accra! go ahead and get excited! it’s a fun place!) for the African Union Summit – which was exciting and hot and humid. Really really humid.

- August goals:

Fill out those career counselor forms

Find some breakdancing!

Get office to have a potluck

# posted by debbyscott @ 5:18 PM