i have no idea if this even makes sense it is just my random ranting so that i can actually focus on work today.....
Today on my walk to work I witnessed yet another beating in the street. From a "block" away I heard the voice of a woman and boy screaming in Luganda so I have no idea what it was about. Walking towards the chaos I watched as this older woman was hitting a boy around 10 years of age over the head with a stick and dragging him down the street. I stopped in my normal shop to get water and asked the lady why he was being beaten. She didn't understand the questions so I said What is going on. All she said is I don't know he is hitting her. Let me translate for you the use of he and she are interchangeable here. What she meant was She is hitting him and I do not know why. The lady left and the boy sat in the street with his legs curled under him sobbing. Everyone seemed to be laughing and finding it humorous from the street kids, the coal lady and the chapati guy. I wanted to go over and comfort the boy. To just go rest a hand on top of his head but not knowing what was going on I did not want to put myself in harms way. "Mob Justice" has a way of springing up quickly here. So I walked on feeling inside so much rage towards this woman who was hitting this boy. What could a child possibly have done to warrant such a beating? I cannot think of anything that a child could do to deserve such violent treatment. What angers me even more is having had listened to so many sermons on "biblical" discipline I am sure she would have justified it with the bible spare the rod, spoil the child but in my book there is no reason to hit a child. This incident is only one of many i have witnessed and I feel completly helpless. There are no police to call, no Department of child services and protect welfare, there is nothing that I can do....
Even as I sat here last night finishing up some email I heard a ruckus outside of my office window. There is a school next to my office and all the children were lined up by what appeared to be class or age. One of the teachers was hitting some of the older boys who did not have their shirts tucked into their shorts. At least that is what the head of education told me. So I asked her why? (Still my favorite word) Why would you hit them and not just remind them that they need their shirts tucked in. She said because they would not remember if you didn't hit them and that these boys always leave shirts untucked. Here is where connecting the dots in Africa does not exist. If you beat them and they don't remember is beating working? Why not try a less violent approach.
I have watched the kids at recess here and they play much different than american kids. Sure kids in America and Europe rough each other up a bit but here it is viscous. I can only imagine that they are acting out their frustration out on each other.
I once asked a young man here if he planned on hitting his children. He said yes. I asked him is he was hit and was it bad. He said yes. Then I asked him how it made him feel and he almost started crying. So i asked why would you want to make your own child feel like that? He said he wouldn't want his child to feel like that and that he never had thought about it in that way.....
what is a girl supposed to do?
Wednesday, September 17, 2008
Tuesday, September 16, 2008
Alarm Clocks
I just read my friend Beth's blog and it reminded me that there are funny things that happen here everyday. I have been here to long and have forgot how crazy things can be here. I have tried to keep my travel motto just keep laughing but some days it is easier said than done.
Funny things number one: Impossible to sleep. Here are some of the things that have woken me up when I am trying to sleep.
1. Packs of wild dogs fighting or mating or both.
2. The drunk guy who always comes home and honks at his gate for 15 mintues no matter what time it is. Can't he get a key?
3. Various types of poultry making noises at all hours. I always believed kids books that said the rooster wakes up with the sun. I have learned the roosters dont sleep.
4. The shhsss ssshhhss shhssss sounds of sweeping with local brooms on cement.
5. The rise in temperature when the power goes out and the fan goes out.
6. Torrential rain pouring on your head though the open window above your bed.
7. Staff of the house that I stay in rearranging all the furniture at 7 am on a Saturday for a team that is arriving the following Tuesday.
8. Crying babies that turn out to be wild cats.
9. Cars driving through village streets with loud speakers strapped on top screaming to either repent to Jesus or submit to Allah (its in Luganda so I am really not sure which but I am fairly confident that its evangelism of some sort but I am pretty sure neither of them want to be yelled at)
10. The flapping wings of those hideous "storks" when they fly over my roof.
11. Screeching monkeys, bats and/or birds
Funny things number one: Impossible to sleep. Here are some of the things that have woken me up when I am trying to sleep.
1. Packs of wild dogs fighting or mating or both.
2. The drunk guy who always comes home and honks at his gate for 15 mintues no matter what time it is. Can't he get a key?
3. Various types of poultry making noises at all hours. I always believed kids books that said the rooster wakes up with the sun. I have learned the roosters dont sleep.
4. The shhsss ssshhhss shhssss sounds of sweeping with local brooms on cement.
5. The rise in temperature when the power goes out and the fan goes out.
6. Torrential rain pouring on your head though the open window above your bed.
7. Staff of the house that I stay in rearranging all the furniture at 7 am on a Saturday for a team that is arriving the following Tuesday.
8. Crying babies that turn out to be wild cats.
9. Cars driving through village streets with loud speakers strapped on top screaming to either repent to Jesus or submit to Allah (its in Luganda so I am really not sure which but I am fairly confident that its evangelism of some sort but I am pretty sure neither of them want to be yelled at)
10. The flapping wings of those hideous "storks" when they fly over my roof.
11. Screeching monkeys, bats and/or birds
Friday, September 12, 2008
Aerobics in Uganda
A couple of friends and I have decided to start taking an aerobics class. It is always entertaining. The class is mixed with Ugandans and westerners. The music is always funny mixes and the instructor speeds them up so they all sound like Mickey Mouse. It is a mixer of Ugandan local and international dance music. Unfortunately most of the experiences fall under "you had to be there" but here are some things that we as a collective have experienced or seen.
1. An instructor with a huge belly coming into the workout room, dropping his pants turning around to give a full Monty view before changing into his sweat pants. I am not sure if this is to inspire us to run... mostly out of the class room.
2. Ugandan men flailing their arms around trying to keep up with the instructor with zero rhythm and doing their own unique steps. Thus destroying the myth that all Africans have rhythm.
3. The instructor flirting so much with the Ugandan girl who contorts her body in strange directions with every move she makes. I don’t know how she twists and turns like that without breaking her back. But I want to tell them to go in the back an just do whatever it is they need to do so we can focus on class.
4. The mother daughter duo who always lay down about fifteen minutes into class.
5. The ancient Ugandan man who has a phobia of using the step during step class. He prefers to run in place and kick at random intervals. Always moving in the opposite direction as the rest of us. Often almost kicking me as he seems to always take up residence beside me.
6. The instructor (the pants dropper) who insisted on using our "steps" at the same time that we were using them. When this happened to both Christine and I we stopped but he encouraged us to continue. But really neither of us wanted him to fling sweat onto us. This also falls under the category of please give me my personal space. (We have never been back on a Sunday)
7. During every class there are very large men who come by and watch the class donned in blue sheets nice and wet from the steam room leaving little to the imagination.
8. Our instructor doesn’t know how to count often he calls out 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 2, reverse. Of course it took us a month to figure out what he was saying. Or one more five more. Doesn’t he know if it is only one more he can’t ask us to do five more and then make us do three? But he always thanks us for our excellent work and for trying.
9. Flailing arm man wears very interesting work out outfit last week he had on a bright red t-shirt tucked into blue swim trunks while wearing trainers and black dress socks.
10. The instructor will randomly stop class and give us a break for 2 minute break so he can go and change out of his pants and into shorts because he has sweat so much. During this time my motivation disappears with my heart rate.
11. More often than not the entire class gets lost as the instructor switches to advanced mode adding twists and turns.
12. Mosquitoes manage to stay away during "cardio" section of class but swarm by your legs and head when you are trying to do crunches. You know you will be eaten alive if you notice them swarming when you are jumping around with your arms flailing.
All in all in we have a great time and everyone tries really hard and we are always enthusiastic it is just sometimes difficult not burst out laughing in class although sometimes that laughter is what keeps us going! We are aggressively attempting to get some video of this so you can experience it first hand.
--Renee and Beth
1. An instructor with a huge belly coming into the workout room, dropping his pants turning around to give a full Monty view before changing into his sweat pants. I am not sure if this is to inspire us to run... mostly out of the class room.
2. Ugandan men flailing their arms around trying to keep up with the instructor with zero rhythm and doing their own unique steps. Thus destroying the myth that all Africans have rhythm.
3. The instructor flirting so much with the Ugandan girl who contorts her body in strange directions with every move she makes. I don’t know how she twists and turns like that without breaking her back. But I want to tell them to go in the back an just do whatever it is they need to do so we can focus on class.
4. The mother daughter duo who always lay down about fifteen minutes into class.
5. The ancient Ugandan man who has a phobia of using the step during step class. He prefers to run in place and kick at random intervals. Always moving in the opposite direction as the rest of us. Often almost kicking me as he seems to always take up residence beside me.
6. The instructor (the pants dropper) who insisted on using our "steps" at the same time that we were using them. When this happened to both Christine and I we stopped but he encouraged us to continue. But really neither of us wanted him to fling sweat onto us. This also falls under the category of please give me my personal space. (We have never been back on a Sunday)
7. During every class there are very large men who come by and watch the class donned in blue sheets nice and wet from the steam room leaving little to the imagination.
8. Our instructor doesn’t know how to count often he calls out 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 2, reverse. Of course it took us a month to figure out what he was saying. Or one more five more. Doesn’t he know if it is only one more he can’t ask us to do five more and then make us do three? But he always thanks us for our excellent work and for trying.
9. Flailing arm man wears very interesting work out outfit last week he had on a bright red t-shirt tucked into blue swim trunks while wearing trainers and black dress socks.
10. The instructor will randomly stop class and give us a break for 2 minute break so he can go and change out of his pants and into shorts because he has sweat so much. During this time my motivation disappears with my heart rate.
11. More often than not the entire class gets lost as the instructor switches to advanced mode adding twists and turns.
12. Mosquitoes manage to stay away during "cardio" section of class but swarm by your legs and head when you are trying to do crunches. You know you will be eaten alive if you notice them swarming when you are jumping around with your arms flailing.
All in all in we have a great time and everyone tries really hard and we are always enthusiastic it is just sometimes difficult not burst out laughing in class although sometimes that laughter is what keeps us going! We are aggressively attempting to get some video of this so you can experience it first hand.
--Renee and Beth
Tuesday, September 2, 2008
The Wonders of Red Bull
I am a caffeine addict. I completly admit it and no I do not want help curing this affliction nor do I want to hear a diatribe on the evils of caffeine. I hardly slept at all last night. The power was out that means no fan. Its been really muggy and the air in my room felt like it was going to suffocate me. Going outside to sit on my balconloy did nothing to relieve this.
In a groggy state I walked to the petrol station near my work today in search of a Diet Pepsi known for its ability to improve my personality. It takes about twenty mintues to get there but I figured the walk might wake me up a bit even if soda couldn't.
Since sugar has the tendency to trigger migraines I drink soda sans sugar and the nearest shop to carry it is the Egen Petrol Station. When I arrived to the small store I opened the door to a blast of heat. This shop is always an oven even though you think it "looks" like a 7-11 with its white tile, bad lighting and junk food filled shelves. I get fooled every time I open the door thinking that it will be cold with an AC perpetually running on high.
I was saddened to see that the spot where my caffeine high should be sitting was filled with grapetizers from South Africa. I asked the owner where all the diet Pepsi was. When I bought the last coke light on Sunday afternoon he promised me he would restock on Monday... I was even further disappointed to hear that his normal supplier was out. I have official drank the entire supply of diet soda in Uganda. With desperation I opted for a Red Bull knowing that it would wake me up. I am now overly energized and bursting with the possibilities of clearing multiple projects off of my desk only I have just realized it is 4:44 pm and they are going to turn off the generator at five.
What in the world will I do with myself now that I am functioning like an american workaholic?
Maybe I should start everyday with a redbull.
In a groggy state I walked to the petrol station near my work today in search of a Diet Pepsi known for its ability to improve my personality. It takes about twenty mintues to get there but I figured the walk might wake me up a bit even if soda couldn't.
Since sugar has the tendency to trigger migraines I drink soda sans sugar and the nearest shop to carry it is the Egen Petrol Station. When I arrived to the small store I opened the door to a blast of heat. This shop is always an oven even though you think it "looks" like a 7-11 with its white tile, bad lighting and junk food filled shelves. I get fooled every time I open the door thinking that it will be cold with an AC perpetually running on high.
I was saddened to see that the spot where my caffeine high should be sitting was filled with grapetizers from South Africa. I asked the owner where all the diet Pepsi was. When I bought the last coke light on Sunday afternoon he promised me he would restock on Monday... I was even further disappointed to hear that his normal supplier was out. I have official drank the entire supply of diet soda in Uganda. With desperation I opted for a Red Bull knowing that it would wake me up. I am now overly energized and bursting with the possibilities of clearing multiple projects off of my desk only I have just realized it is 4:44 pm and they are going to turn off the generator at five.
What in the world will I do with myself now that I am functioning like an american workaholic?
Maybe I should start everyday with a redbull.
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