It's like Arabic but not..

So, tomorrow is off to host families with for CBT. I'm staying in Rosso in a little neighborhood not too far a walk from here. I'll be studying Hassaniya which is sortof a dialect of Arabic mixed with berber dialects and some of the southern languages. I tested high enough on my French to not study it any more (suprised?) and I'll just kindof pick it up as I go along... which should make anyone who knows Parisian French give me really weird looks. Anyway, been really busy and I'm sorry I can't e-mail so much. There are cyber-cafe's in Rosso though so I'll probably stop into one every week or so. We're gonna be back at the center for tech training in a few weeks too. Alright friends and family, be good and be safe now out there. It's a dangerous world after all ;)

P.S. Mom, the bomb? Maybe if you didn't give my car nasty nicknames it would be nicer to you :P. Ready to be a grandma?

P.P.S. Tracy, how's it feel to have an ankle-biter on the way? Has it sunk in yet?

P.P.P.S. Dad, you're gonna be a grandpa! I know you're playing it cool but really, you must be freaking out.

I'm a ho, it's my job

Practice your Soninke greetings at home!
1. Salaamu alaykum?
2. Malaykum asalaam.
3. amaho?
4. Majam.


Get it?
We went through all four sets of greetings for all four languages and once they all become a giant cluster in your head you'd be amazed what kinds of sounds-like phrases help you keep them straight.
Flew in yesterday morning, of course, arrived in Rosso late afternoon, and then a long long day since both Friday and Saturday ran into one another and became the longest summer solstice ever imagined. Slept outside on a mat in my amazingly brilliant free-standing mosquito net and I swear I have never slept so well in my life, particularly in Africa.
Other news: My sister is pregnant! Sorry, Tracy, for failing to really react when you told me thursday, I'm pretty sure I didn't even realize what you said until Friday afternoon. On a more serious note, I feel the child should be named after me. I'm thinking "John the lesser" for a boy and "Johnina" for a girl (shortened to Jo, naturally)
Alright friends and family, sit tight, and I'll be on again at least once between now and Friday. We've got wireless (!!!) in the compound here.

I fly tomorrow

And tonight was crazy. Karaoke, a dozen "last drink(s) before Mauritania!", a lot of new people (I'm getting a lot of names right on the third or fourth try), a lot of intimidating speeches about how tough Mauritania is as compared to other countries and how we'll be tried and tested etc., and lastly a lot of new friends. Goodbyes are behind me, now it's time for goals and work and gregariousness. Mostly work. Lots of work.
Goodbye America! Be back soon!

Last Minute Packing

Yes, I did leave a million things to the absolute last minute. Yes one of those things is packing... but packing has always taken me a week before and I end up with way more stuff than I need or use so this time I'm going for the last-minute-freak-out-strategy. Along with saying goodbye to everyone else, and forgetting to say goodbye to a lot of people who are important to me. It's a lot bigger this time.. but I remember being nervous about Morocco, about Ghana, about Uganda, hell even about UI. Life works out. We're an adaptable species when we want to be. Realizing that everything will probably be fine, however, is not the same thing as feeling it. It's like my whole body is clenching up, my lungs are getting tired of it.
I will miss my family. I miss them already. It's a lot easier to focus on the excitement later, on the plane... today all I feel is the losses without being able to acknowledge the gains.