The rains: what I won't miss

I thought maybe if I made a list now of the things I don't like about the rainy season, then when the harmattan comes and I'm desolate, I can look back and think about these things and be thankful! So here is a list of the things I won't miss about the rainy season:

• mud...enough said;
• not being able to wear slippers (flip-flops) because they kick mud up the back of my legs;
• carrying Timothy and the diaper bag and an umbrella;
• Timothy's dropping his pacifier or Jack-the-dog in the mud;
• flying termites;
• not being able to hear the music playing above the drumbeat of driving rain on the roof;
• mold...also enough said;
• slipping on the moss on our front steps;
• having to keep the living room windows shut most of the time so the rain doesn't blow in;
• wearing three different sets of clothes in one day as the temperature changes;
• smelling the fragrant chickens at Chickenville even more vividly after the rain;
• unplugging the computer (to keep it safe from lightning strikes) and forgetting to plug it back in;
• wet socks;
• stink ants;
• getting wet in unexpected storms;
• leaky roofs (though, we thank God, not our own);
• mildewed clothes when the dryer can't run because the power is out;
• David's allergies;
• mud...oh wait, did I mention that already? UGH.

Well, to be honest, the things I will miss hugely outweigh the things I won't. But life goes on, and at least now I'll have some things to be thankful for when dust covers every surface of the house and is in our hair and mouths and eyes and noses... *sigh*

A few answers

Okay, lots of people have asked me what my new job actually is, so I guess I'd better sum up.

I'll be working at Hillcrest School, my alma mater, but I won't be teaching--which is actually a real blessing, since I've discovered that although teaching can be fun, I don't have the talent it takes!

My position is Recruitment and Development Director, which is a huge title but is much simpler than it sounds! I'll have three main tasks, as I understand it:

1. To recruit--teachers from outside Nigeria and students from inside (mostly, anyway);
2. To develop a network of financial support; and
3. To keep up with alumni and encourage good relations between the school and her graduates.

It sounds difficult but also exciting. I worked all my years at Wheaton College in the Development Office, so I'm hoping I picked up a few important lessons, whether or not I realise it now. The job is only part-time, and we're hoping it will work to have Timothy come with me, but everything is fluid right now, since this is a new position. There's a lot of room for error and growth. I'm sure I have a lot to learn!

Another new job

Does it say something about my personality that the longest I've been in a job since graduating four years ago is 18 months?

Yep, I'm starting a new job next month. I'm both excited and anxious about it for lots of different reasons. It will be a welcome change of pace from writing, editing, and--above all--formatting Word and Publisher documents. (I didn't get a $100,000 education so I could create text boxes!) And it will definitely be stretching in some pretty important ways. But obviously that'll be hard, too. I'll have my very own office--for the first time ever. (I had a cubicle at my first job in Oak Brook, IL, but it's not the same.) And it's a brand-new job, so there'll be a lot of learning for both me and my supervisors. It's really a breath of fresh air. I know my work has really benefited Joint Project for Sunday School Materials, and I 100% agree with the work and its significance. But I'd fallen into a rut there that I don't think I could have gotten out of without quitting. And after coming back from the States, everything in my life has just seemed so colourless. Maybe this job will add a bit of spice and anticipation.

Anyway, I'm sure I'll write more about it once the work starts. It'll certainly be a new experience. So far I haven't found a nanny for Timothy, so I'll take him to the office with me and see how that goes. If I get desperate, Mom can watch him for small spells. I'm not worried.

Pray for me!!

No Internet

I don't realise how much I use the Internet until it's not available as much. What was the score for the quarterfinals match for the Olympics men's football between Nigeria and Cote d'Ivoire? When is the next match? Where does the phrase "book it" (as in to hurry) come from? I need a clipart image of a hand for the lesson I'm working on. Et cetera.

And I'm adjusting. But I miss having the Net at my fingertips. So much to blog about and never enough time online to do it!! But I'll be back when our connection returns (It's already been a week)--I promise.

A PLEA - Dust off your VCR!

Well, the 2008 Olympics have begun in Beijing, and we're going to miss almost all of it. Is there anyone out there who'd be willing to tape us some gymnastics, diving, etc., and send them along so we can see the events after the fact? We'd be much obliged!

Misanthropy

It's weeks like this past one that make me wonder if I'm a misanthrope...or just going through a depressed period? Most of my blogging friends will go weeks or months without blogging when they're depressed. Not me! What is a blog for except to express emotions and ideas? Why would I only show my happy-go-lucky side and not my painful struggles? Strap on your seatbelts 'cause here we go!

Last year I attended two Bible studies for ladies--one for foreign women married to Nigerians, and one for missionary women. But at the end of the year I decided I'd probably drop out of both. Sure, I guess you could say I need the "socialization," but to me, two hours a week (or a month) does nothing for my social life. If anything, it makes me realise more than ever what I don't have: friends.

Okay, yeah, so I have people come to me and say, "hi, how are you?" But no one really wants to know anything more than "fine, thanks." Feels pretty lousy. Even my friends from college who I hoped would stay connected have slowly drifted away. I mean, it makes sense. Our lives are so totally different now. We've gone down very separate paths. How can I expect people to really care and keep in touch when we're just so...different now?

And have I been very good at reaching out to try to make friends? Do I extend love as much as I want it extended to me?

Of course not! I'm human. Duh. At the same time, I have made efforts that seem wasted. I have invited people over (and been stood up). I have written notes and emails. I have even sent texts. (You will never get me to make phone calls.) So am I just trying to connect with the wrong people? or what?

In any case, the coming days will probably see me sitting at home more than ever, staring off into space or trying to find abundant joy in my little boy. I don't think I'm a misanthrope, but in my loneliness I may become a recluse. Is that the same thing?

I miss my sister.

*cough* Yet another exciting day at work

I was working merrily away yesterday--okay, so not quite merrily because, honestly, who works merrily at his day job?--in my board room-slash-office when Adena came bursting in. I'd had the door shut because I didn't want Timothy finding out the hard way that we were in an upstairs office, and Adena whipped it open and shut again.

"I'm going to keep this door shut very tightly, Saralynn," she told me. "There are noxious smells in the hallway." And she bustled out again, pulling the door shut tightly behind her.

"Oh," I said to the closed door. "Okay." And then I smelled a little bit of something yucky. I couldn't identify the smell, but I agreed with Adena that it just smelled "noxious." But I shrugged it off, opened the windows, and went back to work.

Less than five minutes later, Pastor Nore came in, closing the door carefully behind him, and announced that all the staff were going home because the place smelled so bad. I laughed and teased him that he was trying to get out of work. I thought he was just joking. I could hardly smell anything in my office at the end of the hall, with the door shut and the windows open. Pastor Nore said that they'd called Jonathan (our Big Boss) and that Jonathan was on his way. This puzzled me, but oh well. So Pastor Nore left the room and shut the door behind him, and I picked up Timothy, who was fussing.

I'd just put my work aside to watch a music video on the computer to calm my fussy baby when I heard Adena calling my name from outside and downstairs.

"Saralynn! Put a hankie over Timothy's nose and come down right now! Can you hear me?"

"Yes! We're coming!" I yelled back, alarmed. Then Jonathan was at the door, taking Timothy from my arms. I peered out into the hallway, which was filled with billowing blue smoke. The nasty smell was almost overpowering as I followed Jonathan down the steep stairway and outside into the sunshine and fresh air.

Timothy and I didn't go back in. Even after Jonathan OKed our re-entry after a half hour (just to gather our things so we could go home), my baby and I were told to wait downstairs. ("It could get in your milk, Saralynn," Adena told me. Who am I to argue?)

As it turns out, the workers in the adjoining factory--which is actually still under construction--had been using an old forklift to do some work. And it was this forklift that was putting out such terrible exhaust, which came through the open window adjoining our buildings and caused us to evacuate. Jonathan promised us they wouldn't use that forklift anymore, and he apologized profusely that we'd had to flee.

What can I say? Life here is never boring.