another good day!

The other day after leaving the cyber, Angelina and I went to visit the orphanage and take the dog for a walk (I am babysitting my old puppy…and going to the market later today to get a new puppy because I miss having a dog around and I was just too stressed out before, and now that I am settled I can handle having another being around the house.)

At first I left Dique***dEEk*** (that’s the dog’s new given name) tied up to some tree just outside the orphanage. The kids playing outside that I could bring him right in, but I wanted to ask the maman first because I was sure that the kids would be terrified of him. Kids and people in general here have this enormous fear of dogs. Even if they are little puppies. It’s actually kinda funny to see grown-ups act all scared of these little mutts.

Back to the orphanage…so I asked the maman if Dique could come inside and she said yes. Then all the kids came up to us and saluted us in a little sing-song kinda way. Then they ran off and stood around in a circle and started playing games and singing…I thought it looked a little staged. And I am sure that they do this little activity with all who visit. But it was cute. And then the kids called us over to partake in their games. And that was the real fun part. We played a bunch of games…most of them I had no idea what we were doing, but there were a couple that were in French and were very similar to games played in the states, such as the “hokey pokey”…instead they sing the “boogie boogie boogie…” hahaha, it was great. And then another game where the person who is it goes off and doesn’t look, while the rest of the group chooses someone to be the leader and the rest of the group has to copy their moves while the person who is it has to look around the group and figure out who the leader is. Then around 6:15ish the bugs started eating up my legs, so I decided it was probably time to leave. And although I think that they probably they do their cutesy little games with everyone, I really had a good time. And I feel like it was a very authentic “Peace Corps Moment.”

And yesterday I spent the day doing housework. I did a little laundry, organized a lot of my papers…oh how I hate loose papers! I bought some folders in which to organize and file them. and now I feel much better that they are in their proper place. A swept the floor a couple of times to try and get rid of all the dust. But every time I sweep the floor, it’s like the previous sweeping had never occurred! I also hung up the cloth painting thing I bought in Dakar, on the bare wall in my room. And then I put up the Christmas decorations that mom sent me. And it actually looks a little festive inside my house. Oh, and all the while I listened to christams music off my computer (cause the ipod died) and speakers. Christmas decorations and music are the only hints around here that tell me that Christmas is right around the corner.

Alright, I am signing off for today because I gotta get down to the market to buy a kilo of rice, maybe some fruit, and a puppy. :)