saints of darkness

I’m not naïve, I read all who come to this country will become ill and my moment came and may it be the last time.  I understand the phrase ‘shit storm’ most literally now, if you are squatting you gotta go low otherwise, it’s too graphic to consider anymore here.

And after a 31 hour fasting I eat toast with jam.  My stomach still hurts, I feel the need to remain close to the commode and imagine, I managed to teach three classes today, all sitting down. 

I feared for a second I could have malaria, last night’s mosquito follies and itching would be easy to trace but experiences with the awful chills, ya know the kind where one hair on your leg moves and your body wildly convulses for 30 seconds isn’t evident.  Thank god.

Tomorrow I have one TOEFL class and then we will have a three day respite from teaching, not the heat unfortunately.  I have tests to write up for the afternoon intermediates and continued prepping of the big toefl, what else am I going to do to stay busy, oh mother theresa bring forth the darkness of your saintly nature and use me for good.

The tiny mosquitoes enter through the swamp cooler, but I don’t think they breed in it, water is added every day, usually by Rezek.  I’ve taken a liking to this man who doesn’t say much but is completely dedicated to this job and duties.  He is also very kind and went to the shop earlier this evening for a loaf of bread and a half dozen bananas.  I should eat one of these yellow fruits now but my stomach is doing flip flops. 

8.18.15

The city power went off at one this morning and since then electricity has been solar.  Decisions are being made as to how long the solar is to be kept on, I am thankful it remained on during the night, nine hours of sleep was crucial.  And it remains on as I type this, 7:52am.  I made toast, thanks to solar, and used the electric kettle, thanks to solar, and ate a banana.  Nine out of ten times I cannot make toast in the morning because there is neither solar or city power, or….or, someone decides not to use the solar.  I don’t know, but I am thankful this morning for having it.

The reading section “Make Inferences from Stated Facts”  must have been put together by un-supervised twenty year olds.  Some of the questions are absolutely absurd.  And I have to explain to intelligent students why their decisions are such when I’d say, this is rubbish!  Granted, inferencing is such a given in a native speaking country, why is it so difficult to learn in a second language context?  It is made even more difficult by the ambiguity of lame ass questions. 

7:20pm

I went to the call of lunch thinking, hoping I’d be alright.  Bread and a dish of lentils known here as well as ‘dal’ and the murky yogurt drink that is so good for you.  Everything tasted fine but within minutes of finishing I was squatting as low as you can go.  And for the rest of the day I laid down, my stomach hurting.  I have bananas left.

Hanukkah is the elder man among these parts and outside this evening he is wrestling with three kids.  He came into Saffiq’s room, while I was drinking a chai and picking at this round loaf of bread after I had just finished my toast and banana and a half mug of coffee, with a shirt full of cucumbers.  He is also responsible for all the pumpkins and watermelons that fill the courtyard.  And he sports a primitive tattoo on the inside of his arm, I take those to be teenage gang marks or tribal ID’s, certainly not something men receive today, as far as I know.  When I first arrived I sometimes wore shorts around so they know I got ‘em.

I don’t wear shorts anymore.  Even if it’s hot.  I am covered up in blue.

I think it might be time though to take a dip in the ceramic blue tiled fish bank. 

And I think I might be able to use music in class.  I haven’t had a chance to do that in five years.  Ok boys, let me introduce you to Jimmy Page.