Thanksgiving and Mexican Night 07....Huge Success!

This week went by so fast! I’m trying to remember what happened on Monday. Oh, on Monday, (like every Monday) I go to the post office and I got a card from my Mom with Will’s (my little bro) senior picture and soccer picture. All grown up!!! And, she included my graduation picture. I was grinning ear to ear. And, my friend from Auburn who is getting her Ph.D. in molecular biology (or something like that) sent me a book by one of our favorite authors! Our freshman year, Hannah introduced me to this wonderful author, so I was delighted that she mailed me her newest book! I thought I was going to have to wait until 2009 to read it, so imagine my surprise!
On Tuesday, I had a group of people over for dinner. We made stir fry. I thought it was terrific and so did everybody else (or they could have been really hungry) because we didn’t have any leftovers.
PreThanksgiving Day, I cleaned my place and went over to Trinh’s. I helped a little with the pies. We made 10 pies. Next year, we are going to make 12 or so. The apple pies were delicious! I enjoy pumpkin pies, but I really like cool whip (haven’t found it in Mali yet) on it. For dinner, a group of us ordered these gyro sandwiches. They were so scrumptious; I woke up the next day thinking about it. Sikasso Group Shot
On Thanksgiving, I went over to Trinh’s in the afternoon. I played hearts, and unfortunately didn’t win (the guy who won was definitely a beginner because we had to explain the rules to him…beginners luck), but had a lot of fun. People would come up to us and ask, what are y’all playing. All the guys were such smart allecs, they said, cards. Thanksgiving was so much fun! Dinner was ready at 6. We had 6 turkeys, sooo much mashed potatoes, gravy, green beans, stuffing, jay, vegetables, watermelon, pineapples, and pie. I was a little disappointed because after trip 1, I wasn’t full. But, I was able to go back for seconds and stuffed myself silly. While I missed being with my family (and Gramma’s dressing), it was fun being surrounded by other PCVs. When I went home after dinner and hanging out, my power was still out (it when out that morning, but I didn’t think anything of it because it is a weekly occurrence). But, the next morning, my power was still out and the businesses on the first floor had power. They explained that they came yesterday morning to turn it off.
Now let me explain. I pay my upstairs neighbor because the circuits are connected. Instead of paying the bill, the money went elsewhere. And, he went out of town Thursday morning. So, as I am writing this, I still don’t have power at my apartment. I don’t want to pay the bill because what if he doesn’t feel the need to pay me back for HIS portion? While you may think I’m being ridiculous, his portion is much higher because he has a tv and a refrigerator! So, Mexican Night was lit by lanterns. Everybody was giving me a hard time because I didn’t know how to light it. I’m a city girl with power (when my neighbor pays the bill) who has never needed to light my lantern. So, my brand new, never been used lantern was used for Mexican Night. I felt Mexican Night went so smoothly. We ate on the roof because my apartment was so hot. We had tortillas, meat, beans, guacamole dip (which was extremely popular), salsa (both hot and mild), cheese sauce, lettuce, tomatoes, onions, and something similar to sour cream. It was absolutely delicious! And, everybody appeared to be having a good time. 2 annoying things about hosting. Somebody took one of my glasses. And, while I deeply appreciate people cleaning the kitchen, it was so clogged; I had to get a repair guy to come today. I guess people forgot I didn’t have a garbage disposal. He not only pulled out so much food, a spoon made it down the drain too!
Saturday, I went to the English Club meeting. I then cleaned some, and had lunch with Echin and the guy I replaced, Adam, and his girlfriend. Echins’ wife make out of control green beans! They had chicken cooked in it as well! I then went to the Basketball Tournament that Trinh is managing. It was suppose to start at 3. But, it’s Mali, so things got rolling at 4:30. The guys played first, and then the girls. The girls were way more fun to watch because they are so aggressive! I went home and had a wonderful olive oil, tomato sandwich (a little taste of Italy), and read by lantern light. I’ve never had a mosquito problem, but because so many people were in and out of my house, I was thankful to have a mosquito net!
This morning, the repair guy came. (I even programmed him into my cell). He fixed the sink, with I am extremely grateful for. I am at the PC office, and am about to head on to the internet café. I then am going to the Basketball Tournament. Guess what tomorrow is? Monday! Post office day!!!Just a side note: my picture didn’t make it into the calendar. I didn’t make the cut (just kidding! The volunteer putting together the calendar forgot to include my picture). So, if you still want a calendar, just let me know.

Boo (Trinh's Dog) and Me

The computer is way slow today. Hopefully next week will be faster so I can post more pictures!