Hey people, I’m currently trying to apply to VSO, but the connection here is so bloody slow I thought now might be a good time to catch you all up on what a kick ass time I had while I was in Cascamance. I left with Tim on Saturday afternoon because he wanted to go to his French class in the morning and after a few unfortunate hassles we hit the road and headed down to Zigunchor. I wasn’t actually planning on staying in Zigunchor, but there weren’t any CFAs (Senegalese Francs) available here and the border where you cross directly going to Kafountine is pretty small. We didn’t want to take the chance that we couldn’t get any money changed. So we went to Zigunchor to hit the bank. The thing I love about Senegal is just how pretty it is. Honestly it doesn’t make any sense to me why Gambia can’t be as cool a place. As soon as you cross the border things are just nicer all around. There are more trees, the roads are well kept, and paved, people have better education and somehow more class. I know a lot of it’s the French influence, but it doesn’t make sense to me that the Senegalese people (who for all intents and purposes are the exact same as the Gambian are so better off. They even speak better English on the whole than Gambians. Of course for the Senegalese that’s after they already know French and probably at least two local languages. The trip went well, but we arrived in Zigunchor a little later than expected. We had some unfortunate luck once we got there that Tim’s bank card got eaten by the machine, so it was up to me to foot the bill for the weekend. But that’s ok, it all worked out well in the end.

We decided to stay the night in Zigunchor which was very fun. There’s this awesome little hotel there called ‘Le Perroquet’. Its this very chilled out place on the water with good people and a few tourists. But the tourists in cascamance are quite different than the tourists in Gambia. Here all we get are fat old Brits and Swedes. A lot of them looking for sex tourism. Here you get cool young people. Italians, Spaniards, Swiss. Just cool people out to have a good time, I like tourists like that.

Tim is a pretty big-baller down there so he got us pretty hooked up throughout the trip. Its nice to travel be it for a short or long time with someone who knows what’s going on. Anyhow, that night we heard that this mid level somewhat well known Mbala (that’s Senegalese tribal-jazz music) player was putting on a show, so we hit the bars for a while then went down to check it out. This guy, Omar Penn, was very good. Not Youssou N’Dour quality but still very cool. Besides it was a free show. He played down at the France-Segalese Alliance, which incidentally is much much nicer than the Franco-Gambian one. After the concert though we decided to call it quits for the day. Which is probably a good idea, considering we had travelled for most of the day, and we had to travel again the next. Besides the fact that last time we went down to Zigunchor we got totally destroyed at the nightclub and almost got into like five fights with the locals.

The next day we hopped back in the taxi and travelled the 3 hours or so to the coast and Kafountine. And as soon as we arrived it was like another breath of fresh air. The whole village is so peaceful. Not that its in the middle of the bush or super small or anything. Its just super tranquil; and the people were so friendly. It’s the kind of village you can just wander around and say hi to everyone you meet and people are genuinely pleased to see you. No hassles, no bumsters, these people haven’t been ruined by tourism. W stayed at this great place on the beach called ‘La Nature’ and I truly understand why the Lonely Planet says this town was due to be the next big tourist spot before the war broke out there, because the whole place was just charming. The place is run by this weird old French guy. He’s like sixty and has the craziest dreadlocks I’ve ever seen on a white guy. Rene, seemed a very decent guy though, and he’s is friends with Tim so consequently we got treated rather well. Tim says all the other times he’s been down there there haven’t been any tourists at all, he usually just goes there and camps in fact. But this time we got rooms and met a number of very cool travellers and tourists. ‘La Nature’ is situated right beside the section of beach where all the fishing boats come in, so although wandering through the fishing shacks where women clean the days catch and husk crabs, etc the smell isn’t too pleasant the ambiance makes up for it a lot. I really love looking out at the ocean and seeing a few dozen small fishing boats coming in from a days work as the sun sets. It’s pretty picturesque, and just makes you feel good about yourself.

That evening, Sunday, we went out for a really good meal of Chicken Yassa at a local restaurant called the Barracuda, recommended to us by Tim’s good buddy Malafi. Malafi is a musician; and a damn good one at that. When we returned from dinner the boys at the retreat got together for a jam session. This is the kind of laid back place that musicians hang out at and don’t play “cultural music” for the tourists; they play for the sake of playing. It’s just life, and they’re enjoying it in a totally different way than we do in the western world. But the drumming was amazing, there were like ten guys all with drums just flowing with rhythm. It was pretty awe inspiring to see the skills of these local guys, who’ll never be recorded, never leave Senegal, probably work a little, but are essentially just live off the map from the world most Westerners live in.

Even though we were planning on coming back on Monday that place was so special we decided to stay another night. I think Tim feels like he can just forget everything when he gets away there. For me though it really helped me get my head in order a bit more. Organize myself, recentre, get some air. The next day we had quite a cool adventure too Tim had been out there before but it was a long time ago and he walked the whole way. But there’s a really cool bird island off among the mangrove swaps behind the next village over. The trek from Kafountine to Cassele (the other village) was pretty far and rough going in the blazing heat of midday, so we decided to rent bikes and save time on the 8 km trip. Problem was the road, or more accurately path was all sand and every few hundred meters we had to get off our bikes and push. I didn’t realize how totally out of shape I am. I feel confident in honestly saying that I almost died along the way. Tim fared much better, and I know I’m gonna have to pick up the slack by the time we go to Mali. Anyhow, I finished all the water along the way, cause I’m a wuss, and that forced us to drink well water once we finally reached Cassele. Thankfully I didn’t get sick from it. Although I’m not sure Tim did as well as me… sorry man.

Anyhow, we did make it to Cassele, and then off to the river where after chillin out under the Bantaba we rented a canoe and with a guide went off to the Bird Island. There weren’t too many different species of birds, I think two different kinds of egrets, two hawks or eagles, and some small unidentified green guys. The main thing around the island though was pelicans. And I’m talking PELICANS. These things were absolutely huge. Enormous. Gigantic. Just really really big. They seemed to have overrun this mangrove island. And although it was a kinda small island there were hundreds of them. It was very cool to see. Really it was just great to get out on the water and chill for a while.

When we got back I was kinda beat from all the biking, so we went out for another very nice dinner, this time with Malafi to the Barracuda again. I talked with Malafi about coming up to the YMCA once we get the Digital Studio up and running. I told him I’d help him record a demo tape. Not that I really know anything about that, but hey I can fake it. Besides I think his music might be perfect for my film. If I can ever get it made. So then we went back to ‘La Nature’ and chilled into a very relaxed evening of drinks and fun.

The next day we left and came back to Gambia; to the world, to work…. Ok well maybe not so much to work for me but still. I had a really great time down in Kafountine though. I’m glad Tim brought me along with him there. It’s such a chilled out place and the people are just good. I really feel more relaxed now after coming back than I have in I can’t remember how long. Sometimes you really just need to get away for a while.

Hey people, I’ve just returned from Kafountine, and while I had a great time, I don’t really feel like talking about that right now. I wanted to get back again to relationships for a minute. Honestly sometimes I wonder if I’m totally fucked in the head. Why do I make everything so much more complicated than it should be? When I was younger I used to have this theory about relationships, or maybe it was more just about people, anyhow I figured that everyone lived their lives between their heart and their head. Are you the kind of person who lives their life by what’s always logical, or are you reckless and emotional? I think most people live somewhere in between, but when I was just starting to find out about love, I always felt this battle between my heart and my head. I know it had something to do with the girl I was with at the time, and as I got older I for the most part abandoned that line of thought. I know that it really isn’t at all that simple now, you can’t organize emotion like that, it’s far too grey. But even now every now and then I come back to feeling like I’m fighting between my heart and my head. Should I do the logical thing or should I do what I feel. It’s screwed up, but then again so are emotions in general. Maybe you don’t even have a real choice in the matter, other than how you perceive it, But what have I made my reality out of if not personal perception and opinion.

I’ve always thought of myself as a pretty passionate person. I care about people, particularly my friends. I don’t usually get all that jazzed up about work or whatever, unless I’m in the thick of it and can be creative, but understanding people really interests me. Especially when I’m at a time of my life like now that I find fairly introspective. My opinions of people change as I change my perspective. But do I actually have control of who I am? It’s difficult to feel like I have control over myself when I’m arguing all the time between my heart and my head. I’m not sure I actually have all that much power over myself. When I was going out with Cyndi I thought that I could really change myself. I always thought that if I didn’t feel the right way about her or that if I tried hard enough things could always be better. Reading that it sounds kind of bizarre and unrealistic, bordering on the delusional. That can’t be right. How can you change your emotions once they’re decided? I don’t now honestly, especially when your dealing with already complicated feelings like love, passion, desire. I do understand that that’s why Cyndi and I could never have broken up like normal people do. Every time she would come to me with a problem in our relationship I would find some way to convince her to keep trying. Things could change, I could change, things would be better. Am I loyal or just stupid? Probably a little of both. I know that I’m 25, I been in love a few times, I’ve had my heart broken a few times, but I still don’t feel like I understand anything about relationships.

I don’t really know if writing any of this stuff out actually helps me, I still feel pretty emotionally screwed up. I logically know how I should be feeling about Gillian, I know how I should feel about her if I don’t want to get hurt. So why the hell does my heart keep screwing with me. I have no control over the practicalities of the matter. And I don’t want to freak her out, I mean I’m not a nutjob; for the most part…. Ok maybe in this situation I’m actually the head case. Regardless of which I can’t, and wouldn’t do anything about the situation even if I could. I hope I couldn’t bring myself to be that guy. I suppose I can’t promise I wouldn’t be that guy but I don’t want to. And I really really like being her friend. Seeing as the situation is out of my control though my perception of the situation is really all that matters. Shouldn’t I take the course of action that’s happiest for everyone? The one where no one gets hurt, the one where I can go out and get my game on and be content with that. Move onto new real possibilities. Problem is when I’m around her I don’t really want to. And I’m back to the same problem between my heart and my head. Maybe everyone goes through this, and I’ll probably come out of it all knowing more than I did before; but as it stands now its pretty lame to start actually liking someone that’s totally unattainable.

Hey people I thought I should give you all a bit of a rundown on what’s I’ve actually been up to lately, seeing as my last two log entries were far more esoteric than usual. And although I think that’s good and much more in line with how I’d like to be blogging I thought I’d do my part to keep everyone up on the practical stuff too.

Things have been pretty good here actually, I know I might sound like I bitch about life here, but I don’t really mean too. Gambia’s a pretty amazing place and I am honestly glad to be here. It’s just frustrating in a lot of ways. I think I’ve actually got a bit too much free time on my hands these days, and while chillin is good, I might need a bit more structure. I’ve been hanging out with new people these days. Not that Tim’s not great to party with still, but this feels like Gambia Round 2 for me and I don’t want to spend the next 4 months doing the same shit I was before. So I’ve met some new folks. Obviously I’ve told you I’ve been hanging out with Gillian, which has become a whole other thing unto itself. But I’ve also been spending a fair bit of time with these newbies: Lien and Jesper. They’re both really very nice people, even though Jesper is so very very Euro :). He’s a good guy and I know Gambia will do him a lot of good. He’s one of those people that strike me as having not really traveled much and not met too many different kinds of people. Gambia lives at a different pace than the rest of the world. I think its good that Jesper is realizing there’s more to it all than most people see. And no I’m not ragging on him here. Honestly, anyone who can get there act together enough to make it somewhere like Gambia is far more aware of the world and just better off than like 95 % of the world. I think Jesper’s just going through a bit of culture shock. And hey, I wasn’t much better myself when I got here.

With Gillian things have been a bit of a different story. I’ve been hanging out with her a lot. I know its probably not the best idea, but I’m not really sure what else to do. I really enjoy her company, and I think we’re actually becoming pretty good friends. But I’m still far more attracted to her than I should be. I’ve tried to stop hitting on her, and I’ve resolved myself that she is a taken girl its just hard when she’s around a lot. As a friend of mine recently pointed out though, it’s really really a sleazy thing to go after a girl with a BF. And its true, I’m not going after her. Its just difficult to deal with a girl who by her nature is very flirty regardless of the circumstances.

That’s mostly why I need to get away this weekend. I think I need a break from Gillian. I’m really not sure where my emotions lie towards her, but it’s a little troublesome right now. I’m heading off to Kafletine (sp?) with Tim. Its down in Cascamasce (Southern Senegal) on the coast. Actually I’m going to meet Tim and leave in like 30 minutes. Just gotta finish this up first. I’m just going for two nights and I might actually have to spend tonight in Zigunchur, seeing as no one in this country seems to have CFAs (Senegalese Francs) to sell me. I hope I can get5 there tonight though, Tim says the place is great. Its just a really good chill out beach spot, and Tim knows a bunch of the locals there, so I think things’ll work out well.

I’ve also lately been spending time with this Dutch girl I met down at the beach named Bodil. She’s one of those super stylish girls, and very beautiful. I get the feeling she might be one of those women who are always hanging out with and dating beautiful, successful people. But she’s seems pretty down to earth considering that impression. She’s a photographer here doing a thing on tourism for 3 months. Sounds like a good job to me as she seems to spend most of her time down on the beach and exploring the hotels.

Anyhow this motley crew and I have been going out a fair bit lately. Actually it’s a bit too much on the whole. Financially speaking things aren’t as rosy as they could be. But I’m going to calm things down starting next week. I did do a commercial for a window and door company here and got a few thousand dalasis. That was good. And I’ve put the word out that I’m looking to do any small contract work I can to save up for my film. But so far I’m not doing that great financially. I’m sure it’ll come together though. Things have a way of working out. Ah, look at the time, I’ve got to wrap this up now, I’m supposed to be meeting Tim in like 10 minutes. I’ll be back on Monday night kids, wish me a fun time in Cascamasce, and stay safe people. Peace.

Today was a bit of a weird one for me, nothing too exciting happened but I just got in a really reflective mood. Thinking about relationships again. Not that there’s really all that much else to think about here. But I just got kind of depressed earlier trying to figure out what’s actually up in my head. Honestly, its pretty confusing, and I don’t think my relationship issues are just because I can’t figure out the answers to my questions; I feel like I might not actually know the right questions…

Some people here have what Gillian calls ‘fuck Africa’ days where you just get totally pissed off with the life here, all the hassles (which admittedly are far worse for women) and need to take a time out from it all. I don’t think I really get those days though; I get days where I just get down on myself, my life. I know things aren’t that bad overall, it’s just difficult being responsible and trying to figure what you really want and maybe more importantly what’s good for you. Why am I so obsessed with relationships? Maybe its because they’re pretty confusing and I do feel pretty lost here sometimes, but I really think mostly its just that its hard to not be lonely here. I love having friends around but is that enough? I don’t want to be a person that needs a relationship to feel whole. I don’t want to rely on something as potentially fleeting as a relationship; it sucks to be so dependant on something. But it concerns me that maybe I actually am like that. I mean I’ve had 3 long term (like 1 year plus) relationships in my life, and any flings I’ve had with women seem to occur at times that I’m just not thinking about my life much. Do I need someone around me to make me happy? I hope not. But still, where am I actually going? What do I really want?

Here’s a question for everyone out there: What drives you? What makes you want to live? I don’t want to be a person that wastes my life away in a crap job I hate, watching television and having life pass on by. I was trying to figure out what actually makes me go, but its kind of a tougher question than it seems. I have goals and ambitions. I know I’d like to see some of the world, not all of it, and honestly I probably won’t see everywhere I want to even. I’d also like to make at least one big Hollywood (money-wise at least) film in my life. I do think I’ve got something to say although its not too defined yet. These things are not impossible, in fact I think I’m doing a good job so far towards them. But those aren’t any kind of driving force for me. Really, I don’t know why I live my life like I do. First think of what you really want; for me it’s to be happy, meet someone cool, and have fun along the way, Problem is, in lots of ways I don’t know what makes me happy, I have issues with relationships because I think my taste in women is fundamentally flawed, and while I do have fun, go out party, spend good time with friends I still feel totally alone in some ways.

So what’s the solution to this stuff… I don’t really know. How do you actually figure out what you’re supposed to do with your life. How do you assign more or less value to some aspects of yourself or personality than others. I know this ramble has been a little disjointed, and some of it doesn’t seem to make sense or fit, but that kind of feels right too. Life is a pretty complicated place, and it’s easy to get lost every now and then. I’m doing ok really, things are just a bit befuddling at times. More on this stuff later. And I’ll actually explain what I’ve been up to lately, because that’s been pretty ‘interesting’ too. Later all.

Hey everyone, I know its been a little while since I last wrote but things have been pretty busy lately. Last week we got both of our new volunteers here at the Y. I seem to have had their dates wrong because I thought they weren’t getting here until next month but then again I don’t really pay that much attention. On Wednesday Jesper from Sweden arrived. He’s a really nice guy but a little bit of a contradiction. He’s really Euro in a way, I mean on one hand he’s the kind of guy who wears tight sleeveless shirts and tight jeans, listens to electronic music and goes clubbing. Very Euro. Then other the other hand though Jesper is this big computer nerd who (at least in my limited estimation) falls into the kinda geeky sideline. Anyhow, he is very nice, and I don’t want to sound rude at all. Even if the guy was a little geeky back in the world it’s a whole different story here anyhow. The other volunteer is a girl from Boston/New York named Lien (pronounced leen). She’s a Belgian who moved to the States when she was 7. I really like Lien, although she too seems a bit of a mystery girl. She’s one of those people that laughs like all the time, and its can be pretty infectious. The only thing that’s weird though is she comes off as this sweet innocent girl, but every now and then she’ll say something that really seems out of character for someone like that. And she listens to thrash metal music, when she looks like a Nora Jones type of girl. Just odd, still, she really is super nice and I’m glad that both Lien and Jesper are here.

Honestly I was starting to feel kind of guilty for not really working so much these days, but now that these new guys are here I can concentrate on more important things. And NO I don’t mean slacking off at the beach. (Although the beach may very well be involved). I’m talking about getting my film stuff together so that once the equipment comes in I can start shooting quickly. Also I’ll obviously need to get the Y’s digital studio up and running as soon as I can. But none of that can really take place until the building’s done in two weeks and the equipment comes in.

I met this girl last week. This Canadian girl from Nova Scotia named Gillian. Since then things have been pretty weird. Good, but weird. Anyhow, she’s a very cool girl, actually she’s definitely the kind of girl I’d really like to hang around with normally back home. Not that the other people I hang out with here aren’t cool and all; but honestly, would I hang out with them all back home? Maybe not. Even someone like Tim, who for sure is my best friend here. I’d really like to hang out with him back home, but in reality I almost definitely would never have met him. I mean he’s a psychologist, I work in film. Sure we both go out and all, but I just doubt we’d travel in exactly the same circles. This girl Gillian though is maybe the first person that I’ve met here that I would’ve been friends with back home just because. Incidentally, she also happens to be pretty damn good looking too. But that’s beside the point…. ok, so maybe that actually is the point….

Thing is Gillian has this boyfriend back home. Now hold on people, don’t jump to any conclusions yet. She’s just doing her thing here, not leading me on particularly, she is, and seems determined to be a good girlfriend… It’s just kind of annoying. Honestly I also feel pretty damn guilty for wanting this girl. I mean she’s great and all, but making a play for a girl with a boyfriend seems really more than a little hypocritical for me considering the whole situation I went through with Cyndi and all. Also Gillians really probably not the right kind of woman for me anyhow. If there’s one thing I really learned from my relationship with Cyndi, and how it ended, it’s that I really have unhealthy taste in women. All I seem to go after are these women who in one way or another screw with my head. Ok, ok I know its not just them, but I always want the attractive, opinionated, reasonably intelligent girl, who’s maybe got just an edge of bitchiness to her. Problem is all my relationships seem to end up with me being an insensitive jerk, and my partner being a hurtful bitch. What I think I really want, and I know this sounds totally messed up, is a girl who could probably kick my ass, but one that doesn’t want to… Screwed up, right? Gillian’s a very cool chick but I have no idea if she’s different than the other girls I’ve dated. Actually strike that, she is totally different, she’s more intimidating, maybe a little edgier, and definitely sexier than those other girls I’ve gone for. I’ve got to say I’m pretty disappointed that this girl who I actually really like is unavailable, but I guess its for the best in a way (at least that’s what I’m telling myself). I would feel like crap if anything was screwed up what she’s got back home… as I said, its just really frustrating.

I know that was a long and involved ramble about my relationship issues and you probably didn’t really need to hear it. I think it’s just that I get a little lost here sometimes, and its hard not to be self-involved when you have so much free time. Besides the fact that its pretty lonely here sometimes. The circle of people I spend any significant amount of time with is really really small. And its not that I really want so many more friends, its just that I need contact with associates, with strangers, random acquaintances, people on the street, people I like and sometimes ones I don’t. I feel like I just need more. Maybe its cause I miss the city. This country is just too small sometimes. I’m going to hang out with Gillian when I can here. I’ve been spending a fair bit of time with her this past week. She did throw a pretty wicked Halloween party too. And even if I can’t or shouldn’t be with this girl, its still good to have another friend here…. Is that really compensation? No of course not, but what the hell else can I do? I’m out now. Later.

Hi everyone, I’ve been back in Gambia for almost a week now and things here are starting to settle in again. My last few days in the States were very nice and for the most part relaxed. I got to spend some time with both Ysaaca and Owen, two cousins of mine. But more than that I got to just hang out and chill. My parents were very very nice and got me a laptop to take back with me. Honestly its such a nice thing to be able to do a little writing, like this, in my room as opposed to the computer centre or a cyber café. Also, the laptop can play DVDs so I’ve brought a bunch back here with me.

Anyways, I got back here last Wednesday evening… but I’m not too sure of everything I’ve been doing since then. One of the strangest things about coming back here was going in to work and realizing that , ‘wait a second! I really don’t DO anything…’ I mean sure I teach sometimes, although they filled my teaching spot obviously. But I don’t really have a task at hand for the moment. It seemed before that either I did have projects on the go, or at least I was ok with not really working. Now I feel like its time for Round 2 and I don’t even know where to begin. I’m not saying I’m discouraged, I just need to find something. So yes, I am going to start teaching again, just the part time adults on a small basis. Something to at the least structure being here for. Also I should be working on my film… part of the problem you see, is that the YMCA Digital Studio is running behind schedule. Maybe I should’ve expected it, but I did have hopes that things would be a little further along than they are. As far as I can tell the earliest I could expect to start getting the equipment in is a month and a half. So what the hack am I supposed to do in the meantime?! I came back to Gambia for two reasons. One: to make this film. And two to go on this trip with Tim in December to Mali. Both are going to happen, but the timing is just really slow.

In terms of my film I can rework the script, something I had planned on doing while back at home, but never did. Also I can start getting things together, locations, actors, props, whatever…. I’d like to get things to the point that once the equipment does come in I can shoot this thing without much delay. I should also work on funding, or at the least managing the funds I have. In terms of the Mali trip it looks good. A few things still need to be planned but Tim is taking care of all that stuff. I trust that he’ll do a good job of it considering that it’s a pretty obsessive hobby of his to plan trips like this out (even if he never ends up going). Also we’ve got two more people coming along, I’m not sure I mentioned her before but another Peace Corps, EJ is going with us, I honestly only know her a little but I like her she’s very… interesting…(don’t ask), anyhow the other person hitting the road with us is Joe Brody, who is a super nice guy that I went up to St Louis with. It should be a lot of fun. And as it stands now we’re leaving around the 20th of December and returning around the 15th of January. My goal in terms of timing with the film is that at all costs to shoot before the trip. I think I’m really only looking at a two week production schedule, so as long as the equipment is in country by the first week of December I’ll be ok. Until then I have stuff to do, but a lot of it feels like busy work.

Ahh well, things could be worse, The Gambia is a pretty nice place overall, even though it's really hot here now. Also the power and water situation have been really awful. There hasn’t been a single day here yet that I’ve had water all day, and (although I wouldn’t really expect it) power all evening. But its been good to see people again. It feels a little bit like the day after Christmas for me. In Canada, on Boxing Day (its basically a huge shopping day where people return all their crappy X-Mas gifts, cash in gift certificates, and the stores mark down all their X-Mas overstock) I always really enjoyed meeting my friends downtown and wandering around seeing everything. Boxing Day was the first time you also got to show off any cool new clothes or things. Its pretty much expected, and everyone looks flashy and generally speaking has a very good day out and about. So that’s kinda how I feel here, with all the clothes I brought back, and these pretty serious sideburns I’ve let grow out. I guess It’s nice to just feel clean… I’m sure that’ll wear off really soon though. Nothing can stay like that here. Oh well, I guess that’s just life in The Gambia. I’ll see all you kids next time. For now though I’m out.

Well folks, it feels like it’s been a really really long time since my last update. And in a way it really has. I’ve been travelling around the States and Canada on a whirlwind tour. Although I thought I’d get a chance to update earlier I suppose it doesn’t really matter too much. I’ve been having a lot of fun these past few weeks and I think its given me some real perspective on things. I suppose I’ll just have to start from the beginning though.

I came home on the 15th of September on a very long and annoying flight. Honestly over these last few weeks the flying has been the one thing that’s really gotten tiresome. So anyhow, after like 30 hours of flying time I get back to San Fransisco. What were my impressions of the western world again? Well not as bad as I heard some people say, but then again I wasn’t exactly living in a hut in the middle of nowhere. The culture shock wasn’t so big for me. A few things were a little bit weird and some of the fine details seemed quite amusing to me. For one thing everyone’s sooo clean here. I hadn’t realized that everyone is really really dirty pretty much all the time in Gambia. Also everyone has nice clothes… ok maybe not everyone, but most people. When I got into DC, (I passed through Dullas coming in) I thought it was the weirdest thing that even though they made an announcement on the plane before we got off that using cell phones in any government or publicly run building (like the airport) is strictly prohibited and they’ll confiscate your phone if they catch you. Anyhow, I thought it was odd that even though they said that everyone, and I mean like EVERYONE was using a cell phone there. I suppose I also got a bit of a shock walking through the international terminal into the domestic one in DC there when I saw a Starbucks next to a McDonalds, next to a Dunkin Doughnuts, next to a Burger King. That was a little overboard in my opinion. Other than a few small things like that though I haven’t been too freaked out by anything. Also, I really had forgotten about a few smaller nice things like having temperature control in my shower (probably what I’ve enjoyed most), and having a kitchen.

Anyhow, it was very good to get back here and I was happy to see my parents even though it was only for two days. Because after that I hopped on another plane and flew up to Vancouver. I stayed with Catherine (that’s my sister). I really do love Vancouver when its nice. Thankfully it didn’t rain at all the whole time I was there. Very cool. I got to hang out with Catherine, which was very nice cause we don’t get to see each other enough. I also got to meet her boyfriend Ishi. Ishi is a hippy love child from interior BC. Which I guess makes sense for Catherine. I was honestly a little weirded out by him; not that he doesn’t seem like a really nice guy or anything, in fact I think we got along really well; I think I was just especially initially a little weirded out by the fact that he’s so different than Cameron. Its strange to think but I guess understandable. I've really only ever seen my sister go out with one guy and so I came to associate that kind of guy with her personality. Ishi is nothing at all like Cameron. He seems less responsible, which I think is good on the whole. Maybe more carefree… I think it was also a little weird for me to meet him because he like me also works in the film industry (he’s a camera guy), but maybe moreover he is only a few days older than me. Ok I know what your thinking that’s no big deal… well it isn’t you’re right. I just thought it was weird, whatever. I pretty much got over being uncomfortable with him quickly, he seems to be good for Cat.

Catherine has a very cool job working at a really good children’s bookstore in Kitsalano, called Kidsbooks. If your in Vancouver I’d definitely recommend it. Then again I’m a sucker for good quality kids books. I stayed with her the week that I was there but got to see a lot of other people too. Even though I had to run around during the days getting a whole bunch of things done like picking up a new passport and Drivers liscence I did get to see five or so people I really wanted to catch up with. My oldest childhood friend Rainbo is getting married!!! Its pretty crazy, but great. He’s been with his girlfriend Sarah for over 5 years now and I think thyis is a really great move. They really seem great for each other and Sarah is just about the sweetest girl you could ever meet. Not to mention that she’s amazingly beautiful; then again I couldn’t imagine Rainbo with anyone else. Its very cool and I plan on coming back to van next year for the wedding. I am a little concerned that all of a sudden everyone I know will get married. Hey! Its not soooo unbelivable. Everyone is always saying that as soon as one friend gets married everyone else seems to within the next year or two. I guess that’s not really a bad thing or anything, I guess it’s just a little intimidating getting older.

I got to see my other really good high school friend Bernard too. He’s living in Vancouver now. Its actually kinda annoying that all these people seem to have moved to Vancouver right after I left… does that say something about me??? Anyhow, Bernard was good, he is working for an MP out in Richmond. I think he needs to go to law school, but he has some sort of excuse for not going at the moment. He’s also got an American girlfriend, that he’s been going with for a while now. Unfortunately, I didn’t get a chance to meet. It’s pretty impressive for a guy who doesn’t have long term relationships though.

Who else did I see? Well one of my good friends back in Gambia, Gail was there. She is doing very well working at a pub downtown called the fountain head. I also got to meet some of her friends who were super nice people. It it wrong to say that gay people are generally speaking really cool. I don’t want to get into racial profiling, but from my experience its just a much more caring and helpful community than the rest of the world at large. Gail’s friends Nanda and Adam were so super nice to me, they let me actually have like 8 people over to their apartment the night after I met them! Now that’s really cool. Finally I also got to hang at least for a few hours with Steve a friend from film school and Lyndsay another film friend. That was good, I wish I could’ve spent some more time with both of them, but ahh… life must go on.

I did get to see some very cool films over the time I was in Vancouver and whatnot. I can’t even remember them all now but I tried to make a point of seeing most of the stuff I missed. One other thing I have to note about Vancouver besides the fact that its totally an amazing city and if not for the rain would be maybe the best town on earth is the women. Everyone there is really beautiful, ok maybe not everyone, but for the most part people are really healthy, have some sense of style, be it my taste or not, and they make a point of looking nice. I really like that. Is that shallow??? After my experiences in LA I’d probably say not; not at all by comparison…

After a week in Vancouver I headed down to LA to actually try and get away for a bit. LA seemed like a good idea for a vacation and honestly Vancouver was a little too filled with running around and trying to get stuff done during the days while planning on seeing everyone I could at nights. I needed a break. I have one friend in LA, Julia. I worked with her on Dark Angel, Santa Clause2, and X-Men 2 before I left last year. She is one of the coolest chicks I know and I was glad to get a chance to get away from it all and just hang out. Julia moved down to LA almost a year ago and has been doing very well (in my opinion) since she got down there. She’s a visual FX coordinator at one of the FX houses there. Sounds like a pretty cool job. Anyhow, LA… well I pretty much had three reasons for going down to LA: first I was hoping Julia could help me out with some contacts in Ireland.. which it looks like she probably can’t. But she did say if I was in LA she might be able to help me find a job. Jeez! I’m honesty really that scared of my life that I don’t trust in myself to be able to find work myself… ok sorry enough neurosis for now. Anyhow, my second reason for going there was to see if I think I could actually handle living in LA. This was the one that I actually feel like I can answer positively now. Yes. I definitely think I would like it there. The screwed up thing is that everyone’s so cool and beautiful in such a shallow plastic sort of way. Maybe I am too??? I’m trying not to doubt myself here, but my reasons for feeling comfortable in LA are kind of based on trivialities and ego. I think I’d actually fit in there, although it does disturb me a little to say that. Anyhow, I’m officially putting LA on my list of places that I think I should go live for a while. Maybe in a few years. The final reason I went to LA was to see Julia, which was for the most part a really good time. I actually got pretty reflective on my life overall though. Julia’s doing great; she’s maybe a little more real than I remember her but still a barrel of fun and pretty similar to me in lots of ways. She just got me thinking about myself in a pretty different way. Basically ever since I’ve known her I’ve had this huge crush on her, (I mean she really is an incredibly cool girl) but I was always with Cyndi. The thing is, since I’ve been planning on going to LA, I haven’t been able to stop thinking about her if you follow my meaning. Anyways, I think I had made her into something in my head that might not have been totally accurate. Regardless of which, for a few pretty odd/interesting yet valid reasons things didn’t work out this time. I’m not going to go into detail, seeing as obviously this is sort of personal info and Julia has some say in it too, but suffice it to say I figured out how screwed up I really am still. Maybe it was always this way, I don’t really know. I just hadn’t realized that I was kind of a basket case. Gambia is so totally different than the real world. I feel like I’ve been in the Twilight Zone or something, I mean being a big baller in Gambia is simple. Living large is easy there, its way different here. And no this isn’t just about ego, I feel like I’ve been out of touch with reality. Well my reality at least for a very long time. Julia really helped me wake up to the world. Am I being naive? I mean in a way I have my life together pretty well, but there’s still so much I feel like I’ve lost touch with. Maybe I never had a real clue to begin with… I’m not upset mind you, I actually feel pretty good about everything these days. I just don’t know where my life is actually going yet and I feel like maybe I should actually try to work that out. I think to be honest that I’m just scared. That I won’t make it. That I’ll never decide what to do. That’s I’ll never live up to anything I could do, or be. I guess everyone probably goes through that (at least I hope its not just me). Anyway, I feel like now at least I’m a bit more aware of things, and that’s got to be good.

We went out on the town a few times in LA which was very very cool. Julia took me to the Viper Room on Sunset where I saw a tragically amusing 80s metal cover band. And we went bar hopping the night before. I was pretty blown away by the scene at the Viper room actually. Most of the people there were wearing clothes that looked like they were out of a thrift store, which makes sense for that particular crowd. But the scary thing is that once I got up close to them I realized that they were actually all wearing designer clothing made to look like it came from a thrift store!?! Can you believe that? Am I just some country bumpkin? Am I totally out of the style and fashion loop? Or is everyone crazy there?! I kind of hated it and loved it all at the same time. I wanted to just sit back and criticize everyone around me, but in a sick way I also wanted to be one of them… It’s the terrible power of Los Angeles at work. Pretty frightening stuff.

I actually did a lot of really cool stuff in LA, I think it was really the highlight of the trip… so far. I got to go shopping. Bought me some new jeans, from French Connection to the disappointment of my parents. They just can’t understand the reason I needed expensive designer jeans when the local Target has Wranglers on sale… if you don’t get that I don’t think I even know where to begin. Just trust me, it’s a generational thing… or perhaps a money thing. Anywho I also got two really and I mean really nice shirts from Armani Exchange. This is all part of my plan to make myself look better. Why would I want to be a slob the rest of my life? Honestly. That doesn’t look good. I think especially once I get to Ireland I’m going to have to step up my game a few notches. And the clothes really do make the man in many ways. Lets see, what else did I do… Well, I watched some very cool and disturbing movies, Adaptation, Punch Drunk Love, and Donnie Darko. Which incidentally I loved Donnie Darko. If you haven’t yet, see it! Finally I managed to burn like 80 CDs off Julia. I wish I had more time I could’ve gotten a lot more. Really that girl has just tons of music! But before I knew it my time there was up and I hopped on a plane and headed off to San Fran again. This time for a whole two days.

This last week I’ve been out to Iowa. Yup that’s right, Iowa! My aunt and Uncle live out there, although my Uncle Marty travels all the time so I only got to see him for an hours or two. But I went with my parents out to Muscatine, Iowa and spent an actually very enjoyable 4 days there hanging out with my Aunt Ruth and my little cousin Linnea. The coolest part of the trip was going to see a football game. I know, football, totally not my style right? I mean I think I’ve been to one pro football game in ,my life, well actually can you really count CFL? Probably not. And while this wasn’t pro it was just college ball, I was still really stoked to go to the game. The game saw the Michigan Wolverine’s meet the Iowa Hawkeyes, and it was very cool. The stadium was packed (70 000 people) and everyone was pretty jazzed up to be there. We tailgated some food and beers before the game and watched a really close match. Iowa squeezed out a victory in the end and I was really impressed with the entire production. Even the halftime show was good. The next day I went to see Linnea ride at a horse show, she’s really good (I think) I don’t know much about horse stuff, but she did win two blue ribbons. And I thought she looked great out there. The rest of the time in Iowa was spent relaxing and burning music/DVDs for me to take back with me.

Oh wait, there was the actual point to going to Iowa… Me and my mom (and dad and Aunt Ruth) all went out to this eye doctor specialist Doctor Stone. If for some reason whoever you are reading this you don’t know I have a hereditary eye disease called Bests disease. Dr Stone is the leading researcher of this and a host of other stuff in the world. He’s also a very personable and nice man. Like 13 years ago I went with my mom down to see him and he ran some tests and stuff, this time we went to his lab though. It was amazing. He has really grown in the field and I was very impressed with his set up. He works and teaches out of the University of Iowa, which is apparently one of the best state med schools in the country. He has this amazing lab though which was very great to see. We got a tour because my aunt is a pretty important person in those parts, and her family donates money to the school. I was really stoked, even though in a technical way it did drag on a bit, we actually got to tour around and see exactly how a genetics lab operates. I was amazed at the work they were doing there, literally breaking down DNA and analyzing the genetic coding! They’ve found the gene that causes Bests disease so now it should only be a few years before they get working on realistic solutions, but the whole thing was very fascinating to see first hand. The future really is now.

We flew back to San Mateo on Tuesday and I’ve got another five days here until I fly back to Gambia on the 15th. Its been a very good trip for me. I really feel like I’ve gotten a recharge of my batteries here. Especially the prospect of the next few days just chillin’ sounds great to me. My dad got this great laptop with a DVD burner on it so I’m copying a bunch of stuff to bring back with me and basically just planning on taking it easy for the next few days here. If I’m really lucky I’ll get to go back with a laptop. It’d be nice to get the chance to read or write in my room sometimes in Gambia Anyhow, I know there more stuff I haven’t told you all, but that’s the majority and I’ve had enough of writing this log for now. Basically I’m really enjoying myself here, and although I’m not overly excited to go back to Gambia, I know it’ll be a good move. Thanks for reading this extensively long update, I’ll hit the site back up once I’m back in The Gambia. Stay cool everyone. So long.

Hey people I figured I’d better give you all a log update now seeing as I’m heading off this evening on a whirlwind tour back to see the home people. I feel like there should be more to talk about but there really isn’t. Not too much has been going on lately here. Cyndi moved off to Bangladesh, and seems to be doing pretty well there. I’m very jealous of her in a way. Dacca sounds like it might actually be better than I’ve heard. Anyhow, I was left feeling more than a little conflicted about the whole Cyndi thing. But I think it’s good now. I just needed some time to get me head round the whole situation. Incidentally, it’s her birthday today, so Happy B-Day Cyn.

As to me though, what have I been doing with myself… well, not too much really. I finished making this hotel video I mentioned in my last log update. It was a short vid on some land development project for a group of American hotel investors. Anyhow, it was pretty boring… Other than that I put together a short video on the YMCA summer camp. And I made a new commercial for the YMCA. Actually I had already made a general purpose Computer centre commercial but Poncelet said he didn’t like it. And asked me to make one with just graphics and narration. Very boring. But I did it. So now they’ll have something to put on the air before classes start up at the end of the month. What else is happening… well, other than that I haven’t done really any work at all. It so totally weird here. I mean I feel like that movie office space. No one really does anything here. If I were to go to work and put in 4 hours of actual work time, I’d feel like I’d done my part for the day no problem. Honestly I’d be beat. This place is just so ridiculous sometimes.

I did get the chance to see a bunch of movies lately, but I’m honestly just too lazy to write reviews for them all. I got to see Catch me if you Can, Phone Booth, The Ring, Bruce Almighty, Ghost Ship (awful), and The Pianist… yup, its been pretty hectic as I mentioned. I am very very jealous of a friend of mine though. She’s going to all these amazing new films at the Toronto Film Fest now, and I am near insane with envy… Very sad I know. But that’s ok, because I’m gonna be home soon enough.

I did go to a pretty cool party on Friday night. I was the Peace Corps swearing in party. These are the newer volunteers who came 3 months ago. They’ve just finished their language and cultural, etc training and are finally starting their 2 year commitment. I think that’s a bit crazy as it is, but then again I probably couldn’t even handle it for a week out in the village. It was a good party. I met a lot of the new volunteers and people got to go a little crazy. Fun.

The really big news obviously is that I’m going home (well to the states this afternoon. Hooray!!! I ‘m actually going to be in the western world. I am very excited to get the hell out of this place for abit. Really, its not that I hate it or anything, although it is more than a little TwilightZone-ish here, its just that I need a recharge. I need to spend one day at least where no one hassles me for money, one day where people don’t feel the need to shout Toubab (white person, boss man, slave driver) at me, one day that I can confidently say, yes I will have not just running water, but actually temperature controlled water, and the electricity will not go off… I need a break. So I fly outta this berg tonight, I’m off to Brussels first where I pick up an e-ticket then onto DC, where I’m pretty sure I’ll have to go through customs, and finally out to San Fran. And even though I’ve got like 20 hours of travelling to do I’m still very stoked. I’m going up to Van for a week, and I’m really happy because there seem to be a whole bunch of people there that want to see me. And then its off to LA for a few days to hang with my friend Julia and relax a bit. After that I go off to Iowa (I know Iowa…:() to get my eyes checked out, and then finally back to San Fran for a final few days of chillin. Should be a very good trip. I’m excited to see my friends, I kinda like living large here, you know its like I’m big baller exotic international guy now. Its not just ‘Geoff’, its more like ‘hey its Geoff who lives in Africa…’ right? Anyways I’m rambling. I’m gonna head out now. Gotta get some beach time in before the flight. Wish me a safe flight people, there’s a bit of a history of airline troubles in this country. If I’m heading your way, I look forward to seeing you and raising a glass together. So long from Gambia. Peace out.

Well kids, I know it’s been quite some time since my last log update, that’s just how things work here. I figured now was a good time though. I really ought get it out there before I start to forget too much of my life. And before you ask, yes, things have been going on here. No I haven’t just been sitting around doing nothing. Ok, well, maybe a little. Anyhow, if I don’t really feel like writing these log updates so much these days I figure that’s my prerogative. But now that I’ve started… well, let’s see where was I at the end of my last update… join me as I travel in the way-back machine. Ah yes it was the beginning of another hot August in the city… I’d been working overtime on some pretty big deals when who should walk into my office but a dame with a head full of steam and a body to die for, wait a second. That’s not my life. The way-back machine must be on the fritz again. Ah… here it is, August in The Gambia, life is peaceful, tranquil, one might say languid, but I wouldn’t. Nope folks, I’ve been keeping myself pretty busy. With what, pray tell? Is it work? Is Geoff up to another one of his crazy get-rich-quick schemes you ask? Or has he been busy lounging at the beach drinking mai-tais in a hammock? Well, to tell the truth, it’s been a little of all of that, but oh so very much more.

I finished my fun filled work up in JanJang Burreh, which I’m happy to say went well, event though, the boredom factor rode pretty high near the end. Rich went with me for all of the final three sessions, which was nice considering I would’ve been alone if he wasn’t there. But then Rich decided to leave our little corner of the world. In a flurry of emotion he picked up and left for Spain, passing on his planned travels to Nigeria and chasing some long lost love. A very romantic sentiment, although perhaps a little impulsive. Then again who the hell am I to say. My relationship record is far from pretty and any shot we get at happiness if even for a short time is probably worth it. Besides Rich wasn’t just chasing down a girl, he also found a dream job in Bonn, no word yet as to whether that worked out though.

I actually spent a few fun filled weeks recently spending time with a lovely girl named Jill. She’s a Peace Corps girl who unfortunately has gone on her way now. Her two-year commitment finished up, she left Gambia on the 15th of this month. But I think that was good for me. I’ve really needed to spend some time out having fun. Even though I know I probably won't really get myself back on track until Cyndi's out of my life for good, this was really good for me. Anyhow, Jill’s gone travelling with her resettlement money given to her by Peace Corps ($6000 American if you can believe it!!!). I know I didn’t mention her before, but hey I was occupied. Anyhow, She's a really sweet Midwestern Goth girl from Hartland, Wisconsin; and I had a great time with her while she was around. I really wish her all the best.

Obviously as I mentioned Cynthia was gone back to the States for a few weeks which was a very nice break for me. I feel bad, that I’m such a jerk to her sometimes. I really don’t try to be. It’s just really difficult with the way things are. I think, well, at least I hope Cyndi understands I never meant her any malice. It’s just easier for me to be myself, whatever that really is, when she’s not around. However, given, my fairly annoying emotional attachment to her, it’s difficult to not be around her, and/or if I do, have completely conflicting or ambiguous emotions towards her. Does any of that make sense??? Ah well, I suppose it doesn’t have to. Things do have a way of working out in the end. I think my point of this paragraph was, although it may not look like it, to tell everyone that she came back and brought me some magazines which was very nice, and she brought the new Harry Potter book, which she in a very gracious act allowed me to read before her. If you’re interested check out my review for the book HERE.

The summer program started here, around the time Cyndi returned, the beginning of the month. It’s a kids camp program, although I’m not sure what use a six year old has for spreadsheets. That’s ok, because I don’t have to teach it. HOORAY! Honestly people, I really am not cut out for teaching. It’s just boring, and I hate making lessons. Even creating exercises is a challenge. Although I am very proud of the 20 or so exercises I did make during my time here, I got fairly creative with them. Cyndi is teaching which she seems to hate as well. But, she’d better get used to it as she’ll be doing a lot of it once she gets to Baccra (sp?). Maybe it’s just dealing with the little little kids. I’m not sure how comfortable Cyndi is dealing with them. Frankly, I’m not sure how comfortable I would be either.

Let’s see what else, well I’ve done a huge amount of procrastination on a number of projects. I did finish another YMCA commercial and I decided to scrap the commercial for the summer camp. It’s planned for next year’s program, but seeing as there are a million changes they want to make before next year and no one actually knows what they are, I can’t very well go making something that isn’t true a year from now. So I’ll shoot some footage of the kiddies and what not and leave it to the future YMCA workers.

Speaking of which, I’ve made a couple of plans for my future, well, sort of plans. I’m going to be staying at the YMCA now until the end of January, although the final moth will be taken up primarily by a trip with Tim and possibly a few others to Mali. I know, I know, I said I wasn’t going to stay here that long, and in many ways I really don’t want to. But Christmas hiking in Dogon country, New Year’s in Timbuktu, a 4-day camel trek through the Sahara!!! That’s really just too good to pass up. So, I’ve decided, upon the advice of my parents (mostly for convenience sake) to travel home for a few weeks vacation at the end of September. It’ll be 4 weeks in San Fran, Vancouver, and hopefully LA to visit a friend. I’m also going to see Dr. Stone, who is the pre-eminent doctor regarding my particular form of Macular Degeneration (my eye problem).

It’ll be very nice to get home for a few weeks. My concern though is that I won’t be able to achieve my goal when I get back. You see what I really want to do if possible is go home in September, then come back to Gambia until January, but instead of travelling back to San Fran and working to save up and go off to Ireland, I’d much rather just go from here straight to there. Problem at the moment is money. Even though going straight there seems to make the most sense. I mean if I do go back to the States for a few months and save up; most of the money is going to be headed towards the plane ticket there. I figure I’ll need something around $1500 (US) to get started in Ireland. Find a job what not. But that kind of money might not really be there at the moment. I think I can definitely do it if I have a job right away once I get there. So if anyone out in cyberspace knows someone who works in the film industry in Ireland (or even in a related field) I would be VERY grateful if they could let me know. If you have any thoughts or advice mail me by clicking HERE.

What else is going on in your fun filled life Geoff? Well, I spent last weekend down in Casamance checking out the town of Zigunchur. That’s sort of the capitol down there. For those of you that don’t know, and/or remember Casamance is the region of Senegal down south of Gambia, it’s very different than the Northern part. Mostly I think this has to do with it being different tribesmen there, and the national government taking some liberties with the industry there. Anyhow, I don’t nor do I pretend to understand the reason for the tensions down there, but they’ve been going on for something like 30 years, at times not making really any difference, but at other times erupting into sporadic guerrilla warfare. The region has been under a cease fire now since 1996 and the tourists are coming back now, which is a good thing in my opinion because it is amazingly beautiful down there, and hardly like the parts of Northern Senegal I’ve seen. I didn’t see anything that I would consider particularly scary; even though there were a few tanks on the roads and a military presence throughout the city. Americans don’t seem to go there although I believe they’re allowed to I think it’s discouraged still. While I was there I did meet a number of Spaniards though, and of course, this being Senegal there were French tourists and ex-pats. I definitely came to realize this time travelling in Senegal how really awful my French skills are. Honestly, I can understand enough, but my speaking level is very embarrassing. Zigunchur is a nice town, although I didn’t get to see all that much. I went out drinking on Friday night and wasn’t good for very much on Saturday. Still, it was nice to get away for a bit.

What else is up? Well, I’ve gotten my hands on a few new movies on VCD. There’s a guy that sells them here for 150 Dalasis a pop, good deal really. Anyhow, my friend Sheriff bought like 15 of them, so I’ve gotten to see some very cool new films like Terminator 3, X-Men 2, and The Recruit. I’m very happy when I get movies. Especially X-Men 2, not only is it a cool comic book movie that I would’ve been excited about anyways, but I worked on it before I left Vancouver. I really wanted to see how it turned out. Next week I should be able to get my hands on Catch me if you Can, Phone Booth, and a few other good ones. Maybe if I’m lucky I can find Daredevil or The Hulk. Anyhow, I suppose it doesn’t matter too much now, I am going to be back in the States in a few weeks (September 14th), and I’m going to make a serious point of catching up on pop culture. I really need it in my life. Maybe that’s bad; I don’t know, but it’s a part of who I am. I want western media in my life. Movies, music, television, books, comics, video games, and any other current pop entertainment or cultural idiom are important parts to my enjoyment of life. It’s not that I love it all; it’s much more like a religious relationship. I may disagree with it, or turn my back on parts of it, but its mine. And reading a few books that I can’t even pick out for myself here, just doesn’t cut it.

Alright, after that rather disturbing although pretty accurate diatribe, I’m coming to the end of my ramblings for this instalment of my Log. I will mention that I lost my mobile phone last week and had to buy a new one today. It is really ridiculous how much the Dalasi has fallen since I’ve been here. When I arrived Cyndi and I bought a phone for 2100 D, in March, I bought my own phone for 2800 D (although I think the second one was 1 model up (both were Nokias), now though I buy a new phone, and yes it is a Nokia and maybe 2 models better than the last one I had, but the price was 5000 D!!! That’s crazy!!! I mean, that’s like what almost $200 (US)! Wait no…, ok, well, my conversion in my head is most likely wrong, but still it’s a hell of a lot of cash! I also managed to break my watch in some sort of inebriated accident in Zigunchur… I’ll wait until I get home to buy a new one of those though.

I should mention a few more things quickly. Cyndi is leaving for good at the end of next week, Friday I believe she said. And I suppose well probably all go out for a nice dinner sometime this week, should be nice. We’re going to start getting the applications from Go Global (that’s the program that sent me here) this coming week. So we’ll definitely get a new volunteer from them. We’re also almost definitely getting a new volunteer from the Swedish YMCA, which will be nice. Especially considering once they arrive I don’t want to do any more teaching. There’s a new group of Health and Education Peace Corps here who arrive a while ago and are just about to finish their 10 weeks of up country training (language, etc). Anyhow, there’s one guy in that group named John who knows a lot of stuff about video production and graphic design. He seems really cool, and he’s going to be working with us at the Digital Studio. Speaking of which, the roof is on now, and they’re just plastering and doing the wiring then painting, and furniture can happen. We’re going to be getting the equipment in late October which is nice seeing as I’ll actually be here to help get things up and running. And I think that about covers it. I’ve been slacking at work a fair bit lately, but I know that I’ve got to pick up the pace soon. I’d like to shoot my horror film in November, and so as long as I can finish all the commitment I have to the YMCA (finish their commercials and stuff) by the time I go home in September I think I’m doing good. Anyhow, I’ve rambled a long time here so I’ll stop now. Stay friendly everyone, and I hope to hear from you all sometime. Later people.