Yesterday was pretty entertaining. My morning went well. I’ve been waking up before my alarm these past few days which I’m not happy about. I still feel tired when I wake up, but I can’t seem to get back to sleep. Maybe it’s too hot (even though it feels good in the early hours of the morning) or the few motorcycles roaring down the street get to me at that point, I don’t know, I just wish I could be sleeping soundly.
At work I started on a project where the output will be maybe four sentences in the 35 page report I’ve been developing, but I think it’s going to take me almost all of two days to figure it out. As I’ve been saying, I really value the technical skills I’ve been learning, and I think this endeavor will move me from a beginner to an intermediate excel user. (Sorry, I know, not anything cool, but it’s just about all I have to report on at work).
Lunch was a new dish from a new place which is always a mix of some fear and some excitement; Im always delighted with trying new foods, but I never have much faith that my bowels will hold up (spoiler alert, they did). It was some Indian cuisine and was the most expensive meal I have bought here so far coming in at just under $3 USD. It was absolutely delicious, but seeing as I’m on a tight budget I think it’ll only be a special treat for Fridays.
After lunch I took a walk with a coworker. This was something I did a lot in Hawassa (I didn’t often take lunch there and everyone else disappeared for two hours, so I got in the habit of strolling around the markets) and now I’m remembering how much I enjoyed it. My coworker was escaping work and walking home, but I just needed a short break.
After work I really struggled with my energy levels. I debated going for my run, but decided not to. (Recently my heel has been giving me some pain—most likely from all the running—and I had forgotten this until I woke up last night, but when I was younger I remember having a similar problem and needing to put some sort of gel sole in my sports shoes… I’m gonna put my money on Shinyanga not having those specialty orthopedic soles). Instead of running I went walking around (still not great for my heel), plopped down for some dinner, and then kept walking around.
I’m not even sure places sell much other than these french fries, eggs, and mishkaki, but I’m not mad about it at all.
Since my arrival in Africa nearly six months ago, I haven’t had a single sip of alcohol. This is for many reasons, but mainly because I want to have nothing interrupting a sober and untainted experience of this experience. Last night led me to wish I had a weaker will. While eating my dinner I noticed a poster on a wall advertising a single, regular sized beer for 1000 tsh. And I’m not going to make it easy on ya, but I’ll at least tell you that $1 USD is equal to about 2600 tsh.
I was also surprised to see, opposite the wall with the soda and beer posters, not but 10 steps from where I was sitting, a sports gambling establishment. I was really tempted to supplement the urge to indulge in one vice with another, but unfortunately I’m a very lousy gambling and have never been cursed with “the itch”. Anyways, it made me think of a lot of my friends back home (who, like me, are also lousy gamblers, but still decide to partake), I decided it at least deserved some attention on the blog.
After dinner I continued walking about for a bit. When I got home I flopped face down on my bed just to relax for a second before showering and getting ready for bed, but next I knew it was midnight.