The heat is on: perfecting popcorn

My apartment is fantastic. Granted, right now, my kitchen ceiling is dripping, but that’s because the apartment above mine has a leak in the dishwasher; it’ll get fixed. But in general, I really love my apartment, and the kitchen is wonderful. It’s got a fridge and a giant freezer. This is because of our frequent power outages, I think, or maybe because stuff isn’t available all year so you’re encouraged to buy a lot when you find whatever it is you want.

Sad cookop results

Friday, I bought a little convection oven-type thing. It’s not a legit high-end appliance, but it will come on with the generator, which is a step above the oven that came with the apartment. Like the air conditioning, that oven isn’t on the generator, so now I can make toast no matter what. The downside to the stove is that the cooktop isn’t especially hot.

I also have a hotplate that works with the generator and while it’s marginally hotter than the cooktop, my early efforts to make popcorn proved unsuccessful. And by that I mean really, really bleak. I cook popcorn on the stovetop, using just a little bit of oil and then adding, post-pop, a lot of spices. Salt, black pepper, cayenne pepper, onion powder, garlic powder, Tony’s or Slap … it’s addicting. And it’s a pretty quick and easy after school snack that’s really not bad for you.

But man, my cooktop. I tend to use a small fist of popcorn kernels, which makes about one overflowing bowl with just a few unpopped kernels, but this cooktop just doesn’t get hot enough. My tea-making has also been less than stellar, but at least tea you can steep. Popcorn, not so much.

My microwave also operates on a generator so I sought out a way to nuke the kernels. Although I had never tried it, I’d heard of it. Unfortunately, my understanding had been that it involved using paper lunch sacks, and not only have no source for those but I also have no interest in contributing to the trash piles here. Recycling is not a thing, though I do my best.

So dadgum easy

An internet search for directions yielded the site “Downshiftology,”which suggested that not only was microwave popcorn doable, it was doable in other ways that didn’t included trashing the environment. One suggested way was to toss kernel into a glass bowl and put a plate on top of it. It was such a simple method it seemed like something I should have thought of on my own, but why would I? I don’t own glass bowls!

Suggestion No. 3, and the Downshifter glossed right over this, was to use a “stasher” bag. Anyone heard of that? Anyone? Anyone? Bueller?

Yeah, me neither, but, after doing an image search, I discovered I had a useable one. It’s just a silicone baggie. I had no idea there was a proper name. I thought “silicone baggie” was the proper name.

Mmm...pop

And ya know what? It works! It’s ridiculously easy to put in a little oil (which is optional but I do it), a small fist full of kernels and hit “add 30 seconds” four times on the microwave. I’ve yet to figure out how to work the microwave any other way, and it works.

The cleanup is easier, too, because, although the silicone baggie gets super, super hot, it doesn’t sizzle when I throw it in the sink. Or when the leaky ceiling drips on it.

Sometimes it’s the little things. Popcorn is a real thing here. Last week we had a Christmas party and I manned the popcorn table. We ran out from time to time, and the line just stacked up and the people waited patiently – no one wanted to miss out on the popcorn.

I will freely acknowledge the goofiness of a popcorn cooking method changing my snacking ways but it’s a great snack. It might not be a game-changer, but I just cannot get over how easy it was.

Leapin’ Lemurs!

It took three months, but I’ve seen lemurs here on the fourth largest island in the world. Well, on an island off the island, to be more specific.

 

Blessed with my very first non-Foreign Service visitor, I went to Mantasoa, which is the closest “road trip” from home. It’s only 60-70 kilometers, but the drive was over two hours. It was definitely almost two, or maybe a solid two, when we turned off the main road, after which the last stretch lasted an hour but only around 15 kilometers. Yes, our roads are awful. We wound up hiring a car and a driver since my car hasn’t arrived and I was very thankful for that. Those roads would have ripped Cassian to shreds, and I don’t think I would have wanted to drive. “Awful” really doesn’t begin to describe how bad the roads are.

 

We stayed at the lodge there, which has a little “barge” that takes passengers on a 20-minute ride to a little island, where ringtail lemurs immediately welcome new arrivals. After a lovely dinner, that’s what we did on Thursday morning.

 

My friend and I were the only visitors at the time so we got a personal tour, a kilometer walk around the island, where we saw four of the five different types of lemurs living there. (We didn’t see the little nocturnal one.) Oh my, they were so very cute. There were lots of babies hitching riding piggyback on moms, and as I was taking pictures, I suddenly felt one jump on my head. It rode, parrot-style, with its little hands on my hat.

 

They’re just so cute. One species gave us a spectacular demonstration of movement – those things are on springs, it seems. Their leaps and bounds cover amazing ground; it was quite incredible to watch. (And even harder to capture on film, I learned.) Their paws are also incredible; there’s a large space between the thumb and the rest of the fingers/toes, so they can really get a grip. I could have watched them for hours.

 

But there was more to see on the little island, including colorful frogs, snakes and Nile crocodiles. It really was incredible.

 

The next day, we stopped at a reptile park, which was on the bottom of a very windy mountain road that pretty much had me queasy upon arrival, but I shook it off to again see lemurs. This time, we saw mostly brown common lemurs, which were super inquisitive and hungry – the guides bring bananas so we were able to feed them. Let’s just say I took lots of pictures.

That park was mostly a reptile park, so they also had frogs, geckos, snakes plus a host of chameleons, which were really amazing. The critters are kept in what could be called greenhouses; they’re super large cages that give lots of roaming room. There are plants and bushes everywhere and guests follow a guide to find them and see the varieties. And oh, my, the camouflage works. They are incredibly hard to spot, and then when you do, it’s a shock to realize how close you got without realizing they were looking at you the whole time. Once, I looked up and realized I’d been about to walk into one.

 

It was a lot of fun. I’d really waffled over which of three road trips to choose and that one won out because it was the closest. I’d really expected to have my car and figured that’d be an easier first excursion, as I fully expected to drive. It didn’t work out that way and I wondered if, since I hired a car and driver, I should have opted for a further-away place instead, but I’m glad that’s the one we did. It was really a lovely getaway.

 

Now it’s time to dig in. My car should be arriving soon, I guess, but there’s no hurry. The roads pretty much freaked me out and I don’t anticipate a lot of driving, but at least that will be an option. But a lot of the stuff to see – the baobab trees, Nosy Be, Saint Marie island – are all flights away, not road trips. I’m still trying to pace myself.

 

Right now, I’m not thinking beyond next week anyway because I have a DC-based class to do after work. It’s only Monday through Thursday, but it runs to midnight and unfortunately, there’s stuff I have to do in the office each day, so I can’t just work from home. Monday and Tuesday shouldn’t be too bad but ugh for the rest of the week. I thought I’d try to work from home on Friday since it’s a short day, but that’s the day of our office Christmas party, so I can’t skip it. But this time next week I should have recovered and be ready for Christmas. 

She snags seashells from the Seychelles

 Chugging along here in my new home. My apartment is lovely; I adore the fact I have a little yard and a wonderful patio. The landscaping – not my doing – is gorgeous and since it’s warm, there are beautiful flowers. Today I absconded with some lavender. I’ve tried to root some, but that hasn’t worked. Nor have the seeds I planted a but ago, but that doesn’t really surprise me. My thumb is not green, although I love to garden. The weather is changing, though, and the rains are coming so I may try again. I really would like a couple rosemary plants, which are year-round outdoor plants here.

 

My walks home continue. Today I had a gaggle of kids who wanted to walk and talk. I amuse them because my French is so, so bad. I tried to tell them where I lived (“over there”) but they didn’t understand, so who knows what I communicated. I feel bad because they really wanted the attention of the Tall White Redheaded Stranger, but I didn’t really want to slow down so they could chat, especially since I absolutely couldn’t communicate. Our office closes at 4:30, and if I am not on the road by 4:35 (I usually change shirts and shoes), the last leg is in dusk, and that’s a super crowded part where I’d rather be visible to all cars. So I tend to walk at a fast clip, lookiloos be damned.

 

It seems like forever since I’ve walked home, though, because the past couple weeks I’ve been trying to burn some leave. I spent one long weekend in the Seychelles and then most of Thanksgiving week in Tanzania/Zanzibar. Lovely! Of course, beaches usually are.

 

I find that I do very little, if any, vacation planning anymore and as a result, usually wind up in a less populated area with nothing much to do outside reading. And you know what? It’s fantastic! I wound up randomly taking the bus in Seychelles. I asked my AirBnB host for directions and then went to catch one, but I got SQUIRREL! distracted and didn’t remember if she’d told me to cross the street and catch it or get the one on my side of the street. I took a chance and made the wrong choice, but that’s subjective. I didn’t do what I set out to do, but I did plenty! I hit the city – Victoria – and wandered around taking pictures, which is my favorite thing to do. Later, I went to the beach and found some beautiful seashells.

 

Travel to the Seychelles was fairly easy. There’s a nonstop on a plane that continues to Dubai or Abu Dhabi. It’s only about two and a half hours, and the giant flight has very few passengers, like maybe 40-50. Apparently people get on at Seychelles and do that leg, but both directions there was no one sitting near me.

 

Tanzania, or at least Zanzibar, is about the same distance but the travel there is horrid because there’s no direct flight. Instead of another two-and-a-half-hour flight, it’s quadruple that. My flight left at 3:20 a.m. – the hour for fish, not people! – and I arrived in the afternoon to Dar es Salam but not to where I could catch the 2 p.m. ferry to Zanzibar; I had to wait on the 4:30 one. Then, there was a mix-up with my pre-paid driver (refund received) and, once I solidified a driver, a traffic jam. Essentially I got to the lovely lodging around 7-8 p.m. The following day, I was stupid tired. I woke up and went looking for breakfast, groceries and a snorkeling trip but once I went 2-for-3 on that, I essentially went back to my lodging and hung out by the pool. No regrets.

 

Eventually, I did book a snorkeling trip and did the thing where you chase dolphins (I have mixed feelings about this) and the snorkel and swim. I really needed the break, but I am paying for it now because the backs of my legs are peeling and itch.

 

The visa for Tanzania had been pretty challenging and I really didn’t know until I arrived that it went through. It did and it appears it’s good until November 2025. If that really is the case, I would absolutely go again. I just need to forget how brutal the travel was.

 

This is a hard place to get out of. I’m looking now for a trip in January or February, and a couple of places are two flights but still the journey is 20+ hours because of an 11-hour layover here or a 14-hour one there. We’re limited on the nonstops and I’m trying to save those for when I desperately need out.

 

In the meantime, though, I’m still enjoying it.

Settling in for a reunion

It’s my second weekend in my little apartment and I love it. It’s not too big, but plenty big for me – ang bigger than Baghdad, of course. Three bedrooms (one’s an office) and the same weird assortment of half-bathrooms as the big house. It does have one whole bathroom, though – including a bidet, tub and shower. The downsides to the big bathroom are that it’ll be chilly and there’s a step down from the toilet/bidet tub area to the rest of the bathroom. I’ve come close to face planting twice so far and stubbed my toe once. 

The kitchen is perfect for me. It’s got a table for two in it, right near a really big window leading to what could, I guess, be called sort of a balcony. If I was on the second floor or higher, it would be one, but I don’t know if it’s the same thing on the ground floor. There are four of these, all told, and all have those big metal safety shutters that envelope you in complete darkness when they’re closed. They each have screens but the one in the kitchen keeps popping back up. It’s still nice to have the window open, because it’s right across from the sliding glass door on the patio so it gets a good cross-breeze.

And that’s good because power failures are a frequent occurrence here. We have generators but our ACs and stoves are not on the generators. The cross-breeze is a good workaround for the AC. For the stove, it’s a bit harder, but we have hotplates to substitute the stovetop. No sub for the oven, so I may be looking at getting an air fryer or toaster oven soon.

 The early lesson is to cook when you have power, even if it’s not at all time to cook. The hotplates work fine but they are slow. Last Saturday, we barely had power all day, but Sunday it was on and I started cooking like a mad woman. Most weekday mornings we seem to be on generator and it takes a long time to cook eggs, so I go for pancakes. Yesterday,  though, we had it and I scrambled some up quick.

 It’s a hardship post, so I pretty much expected it. It’s not Peace Corps but I can cope because I did Peace Corps. Others don’t have that … gosh, I’m not sure what it is. I hate the word “resiliency” and I’m not even sure it fits. Low maintenance? One guy was railing about it last week and I just shrugged. He acted like he and his wife were the only ones going through it, but there are probably at least 10 other embassy employees in these apartments. And we have nice apartments with things like distillers. I discovered my neighbor works for another embassy in the neighborhood and she doesn’t have a distiller and has to buy water. I also have a more awesome yard than she does; her apartment is a studio.

 Yes, a yard! My first! It’s so cute; it’s not big at all. It has a little raised garden area and I’ve gone out and bought some seeds, watering bucket and a couple hand tools. It’s a start. However, it’s been super dry of late (and this has effects on the power) and the city has but a water ban in effect, so those seeds are just cooking now, I guess. The rains should start in a couple weeks. It has rained twice in the last three weeks, so it’s coming.

Meanwhile, I’m settling in. My air shipment came, but my boat shipments are still on the way. Inchallah, they will come on Friday. I’m looking forward to reuniting with my stuff, which I haven’t seen since I hurriedly packed out of Minsk what feels like two lifetimes ago. I literally do not remember what I have, although I am hoping for more clothes. I didn’t have as much packed in the air shipment as I thought and have only added two work shirts into my rotation. There must be more.

Although I know I have a bunch of rugs, I don’t have much of a clue what’s coming. Once in a while a random item I own will go through my head and I’ll think, wow, I get to see that again! For example, it crossed my mind that I own a little firepit! I’ve never used it. I bought it on the tail end of my tour in Istanbul, then went to Baghdad and Minsk and then Baghdad again – all apartments, no yard. Now I can use it! I have also remembered my collections of rocks, crosses and magnets and my two bespoke leather jackets. I won’t be wearing those any time soon – we’re southern hemisphere, so summer’s coming – but it’ll be nice to see if they still fit.

My current kitchen has LOTS of storage but I can’t remember what I own, other than some dish towels I got forever ago from Lands’ End. They are quite awesome, IIRC, and are way more than the dustcloth I tried to use in their stead. I had made popcorn and went to use the dishcloth as a trivet and it melted. Oops.

Two puppies and a fist bump

Settling in here in Tana, though I’m not yet in my permanent home. That’ll be next week, or at least that’s the plan. Not much goes according to plan. Right now, I’m got roommates, for example. This never happens, but the residence of one of my colleagues had a sudden need for a fix-it that will take months, so they needed to move here. We’re tight on housing and, as it turned out, the temporary place I am in is set to become her permanent residence, so why wouldn’t I just have them move in now? I mean, the place has six bedrooms.

This has been the second week and everything’s been fine. She and her husband keep thanking me for letting them stay here – the other house is being renovated as we speak – but, seriously, it’s not like it’s a sacrifice. The place is HUGE and there’s not only three of us but we could probably fit in another two or three without blinking, too.

Still, I am excited for my own apartment, if just that it’ll finally be somewhere that I will (or at least should) stay for the next 35 months. Plus, I visited a colleague in the apartment buildings who has the exact same floorplan and I am already mentally trying to figure out which carpet will go where.

It’s been so long since I’ve seen my carpets, though, that I can’t even remember how many I have. Anyway, those are not coming next week, but I think my smaller, from-Tallahassee shipment will. If that happens, at least I will get a change of clothes. While I really like the clothes that I have with me, they are all I’ve had with me since I’ve left Baghdad. When I pulled out the black pants and paisley purple shirt last week, I remember thinking, “I only have to wear this one time after today and then I can give it a rest.” I have so few clothing items that I’ve worn all my work clothes once a week since Baghdad. I am the opposite of fast fashion.

Since my 30 days of free shuttle service are up, I’m trying to walk home as much as possible. It’s a long walk, like five miles, and takes just over an hour. It’s also roughly the same as the shuttle takes just because of all the traffic.

There’s one guy who walks to and from every day, so I asked him to show me the way. There are a couple routes, but it’s basically, “You see that big thing in the distance? You walk in that direction.” The route is peppered with people and some stretch is on a road but for the most part it’s a little path between a canal and some gorgeous rice paddies.

All the people are super nice and will say “bonjour” or get a wave. The little kids seem more enthralled with seeing a white person, even though they see the other guy every single day. The first day, when I was figuring out the route, he said hi to a whole lot of people and many seemed to recognize that it was perfectly normal for him to walk through. A couple 20somethings gave him fist bumps. I later learned he has the reputation of being “the mayor” of the walk.

There are also street dogs everywhere. This is going to make my heart hurt on a daily basis; the dogs are so skinny. They seem friendly and no one throws rocks at them or anything. (Mentally, I compare this walk to my time in Peace Corps, and rock-throwing was common.) I’ve seen two who were pretty maimed, like not able to use all four paws. I want to gather them all up and spay and neuter them, give them vaccines and take care of them, but that’s hard to justify because the dogs are alongside people who are among the poorest in Africa. I don’t know how I’m going to make it out of here without a dog.

I’m already scouting for dogs. The walk home has all kinds of dogs. They all have the same look. They’re about Kocur’s size, but not as sleek. Skinnier, for sure. I’m already mentally naming one, so that’s a sign. And I learned there’s a doggie day care as well as a trainer, plus my new apartment building has a dog park. The zeitgeist wants me to have one, but my rugs might think differently. Well, if rugs could think.

Mostly, I’m wondering when puppy season is. My second day walking home, I was by myself. On the way, I saw two puppies, of which probably looked a lot like Kocur did as a puppy.  The other one was a skinny spotted one who was, of course, adorable. They were maybe 4-5 months old. But I passed, mostly because I still haven’t moved in my apartment yet but also because, well, I wasn’t sure if the puppies belonged to anyone. Getting nailed for dog theft on your second day walking home isn’t the best look when you plan to do it daily for three years.

I made it home puppyless, but missed one turn and made the journey a lot longer than it should have been (like a mile, but when you’re walking and the final stretch is uphill, that’s a long time!) but I got cheered when a guy gave me a fist-bump of my own during the journey! 

Now I have Paris

Disney in Paris!

Finally, my years-long journey getting to Madagascar is complete! The last leg, a 12-hour flight from Paris, went just fine and as the plane landed, I was thinking, “Holy crap, now it starts – what have I done?” I’m just so happy to get this chapter started. 

But let’s not forget I spent about a week in Paris before arriving! I’d been to the City of Lights before, but this time I spent more time than the previous other visits combined. I decided to go all Disney and do bother parks. What can I say, I grew up on Disney. I had a ball, even if I was by myself.

The Studio Park, which has Toy Story Land, had two roller coasters and each had a single riders line. In Florida, these lines move pretty quickly but holy cow, they were 50 minutes each, and it was a solid 50 minutes. I couldn’t believe it, but it was what it was. And Crush’s Coaster was totally worth it. I did it twice. At that park, I saw more shows than I’d ever done, watching 3 or 4 of them in between rides.

Tour Eiffel, from the second platform

The complex there is set with both parks side by side – no monorail or anything between them. Just off that area is their equivalent of Downtown Disney, and it’s possible to head out there and grab lunch, which I did for a break and to sit down for a stretch. I did the same thing the second Disney day, which started out super rainy so there were no lines. I took advantage of that and did the Indiana Jones roller coaster and Pirates twice in the time I spent in the singles line at Crush’s Coaster two days before. The lines were fairly short that day overall, with 35 minutes being the longest. The downside was because the crowd was thin, there was no single rider line. As a result, I only did Star Wars Space Mountain once. But by the late afternoon, I was done – no fireworks for me.

In between, I went to the Palace of Versailles and oh, man, it was phenomenal. There is so much history to absorb in Paris. I spent 3-4 hours in the Louvre, but was too exhausted to also hit the Museum D’Orsay. I didn’t get tickets for the catacombs or Invalides in time, so those will have to happen at a later time, if at all.

I totally did the tourist thing and went up the Eiffel Tower. I hadn’t planned on it, but I wandered over there and somehow found myself in a long and slow-moving line. I’d made the mental decision to go all the way to the top – even putting the cash in my pocket for a quick transaction – but about five minutes before I made it to the window, they shut down tickets all the way up. In the end, I went to the second-level platform and was totally OK with it. As NOT a heights person, as soon as the elevator started, I was like, what was I thinking? But it turned out just fine and happened to be the one gorgeous day I had in Paris.

I learned there's a Little Liberty
in Paris. It faces NY.

I also got to attend a judo event at the Paralympics, which was utterly amazing. The athletes were blind or had low vision and we – I attended with some colleagues who worked there – stayed probably 3-4 hours, although we left when it was still going on. I’d never seen judo before and had a hard time figuring out the scoring, but it was really amazing to see Olympic-level athletes compete – and compete with certain challenges. Christella Garcia won bronze! My friends had a flag, so we were all on the scoreboard (and TV) cheering her on. In front of us, we had a row of Brazilians and holy cow, they excel in judo. I don’t think there was a division that didn’t have at least one Brazilian competing.

Although I didn’t do anything else touristy the day I went to the event (other than a nice lunch), I am really glad I was able to attend. Paris will always be there later, but it’s not likely that I’ll ever be able to witness the Paralympics again. I was really thankful – and awed – by that opportunity.

Napolean in Versailles

Now, though, I am looking at staying in place for a bit, mostly because getting out of Tana is really, really complicated. Plus, I’m ready to just hang out for a bit and get to know my job and my home for the next three years. Early impressions are pretty fantastic. The people are nice and the weather’s been great.

At the moment, I’m in a huge house – six bedrooms – but I’ll move to an apartment in a month or so. It was actually crazy getting in because, first of all, the flight comes in late. Then my bags were among the last tranche off, so I and the embassy employee helping me waited well over an hour to get them. Next was a long ride to the house, followed by an extraordinarily hard time working the keys. Seriously, it took about 20 minutes of two people trying. Finally, I got in, and by that time I was absolutely stupid tired and just wanted to go to bed. The door opens in a little hallway with three exits – a kitchen to one side, a living room to another and a staircase. Coming from an apartment life, I assumed the bedroom was upstairs and climbed them. I found a giant balcony-type space with a couple doors off to the sides. I opened them. One was a bedroom with no furniture and the other was a bathroom. Strike.

There's much more in the Louvre,
but here's the obligatory photo.

I went back down the stairs, again, just stumbling at this point because I was so tired. (I can’t sleep on planes.) I found another hallway with more doors. Like four doors. Empty bedroom, empty bedroom, empty bedroom, bathroom, some weird closet-type room. Strike 2. 

I was pretty much at a loss until I discovered yet another door, which led to four more doors. And yes, although doors No. 1 through 3 were each partial bathrooms, the next one was a bedroom – with a bed! Bases hit - paydirt!

After a couple of days of rest, I looked a little closer and discovered I’d missed a room on the top floor – another empty bedroom. All told, this place has six of them. I’m not counting the bathrooms because I don’t know how – one has a shower, tub and sink and another just has a toilet. Another has a shower and a toilet, no sink. It’s kind of weird. The closet-type room is the weirdest, because it’s more of a mop closet – it’s not like there’s a clothes bar in it. 

But it’s absolutely fine for now. I hit the grocery stores this morning and am settling in as best as I can knowing it’s temporary. I’ve been to two events so far: a meet-and-greet with newbies and some guests and a party for former Peace Corps volunteers, of which there seem to be a bunch.

I'm ready!

D.C. is done

Finally, language is over and I’m almost out the door to post. It’s been so long since I’ve been useful that I hope I can remember how.

Lincoln and WWII memorials

Still, though, time in D.C. – and elsewhere – hasn’t been wasted. Today, my last full day, I took a chance on day-of tickets to the top of Washington Monument. Being overcast and kind of gloomy, it wouldn’t have normally been the best day to do it, but because it was literally the last day possible, I went down to the place where they give out the day-of tickets and got in line. Nothing I’d read indicated how many tickets they have, but getting them online proved impossible so I took a chance. Fortunately, there were enough to go around, and I went right up. It’s 555 feet tall and the observation deck is on the 500-foot level; there’s an exhibit at 490 feet.

The visibility was crap but it was a really cool experience. I could see some stuff through the condensation, like the WWII memorial and the Lincoln Memorial. Other stuff kind of faded in the gray but it was still absolutely worth it.

The elevator on the way down slowed a bit to let us get a glimpse of the plaques that are built into the wall. There’s a staircase and the plaques are kind of put in, mosaic-like, all the way down, but the staircase isn’t open to the public, so I was glad the elevator slowed up a bit.

Best photo I could get from a moving elevator

With that, I’m totally good leaving D.C. tomorrow. I had wanted to go to LL Bean one last time but the metro stopped indefinitely and by that time I was hungry and just wanted to get on with my day. My other big errand was sending myself two packages in Tana, which proved to be far more difficult than it should have. In the end, it took three people, three browsers and four devices to get it done but there are now two packages safely in the mail so I don’t have to lug them around tomorrow.

As is, I have two, maybe three, giant bags. I’m trying to get the carry-on crammed inside the checked bags, but we’ll see.

Anyway, life’s been fine since French ended. I had a couple more classes – the last of which was yesterday – and took some annual leave, something I’ll do next week too.

I so wanted to take one of these home.

My packout, which was in Florida, went fine. My packers didn’t seem to care, so that made it easy. I had some stuff I wasn’t sure was allowed but they gave not one whit and loaded everything up. Now I just have to hope it arrives.

I did have a wrinkle in a virtual class I was supposed to take – had trouble with the access – so I was able to take Zippy to watch pickleball and visit Wendy one last time, so that wasn’t all bad.

Last weekend, though, was the FSU game in Dublin. Even though we lost, it was a fun experience. Laurie went – her first trip to Dublin – and we knocked out her wish list. The highlight for her was a Game of Thrones Studio tour and I gotta say, even not having seen a single episode, it was enthralling. To me, it was very much art museum-y and I thoroughly enjoyed it.

Winter is coming in late August

Our hotel was in the heart of the Temple Bar area, and from the looks of it, so was the hotel of every other Seminole fan. It was absolutely incredible walking around and seeing people in FSU gear everywhere. There were a few Georgia Tech fans, but the Noles completely outnumbered them. (Too bad the team didn’t outscore them.) There were official pep rallies (or something) in different bars so I’m sure the Tech fans were all over theirs, but there is no way wherever they were could have been more happenin’ than the place FSU fans went – the Storehouse, I think it was. It was wall-to-wall Garnet and Gold – so much fun. We didn’t stay long but I talked to a couple fans and just took it in. It was absolutely incredible, as was doing other sightseeing stuff (Book of Kells, whiskey tour, Leprechaun Museum) and being in a roomful of Florida State fans. We were everywhere.

Random FSU fans at Trinity College

I hadn’t bought a ticket to the game in advance and hooked up with a couple from Dallas – they’d met while attending FSU – and scored a great seat at a cut-rate price. It was even under an overhang, which was fortunate because it rained a little at the start.

Our flights went fine, although we had a tight connection at Heathrow on the way back. Laurie had it worse than me because her bag got stopped and there was no rhyme or reason as to when they’d clear your bag. She wound up sprinting to the gate, but there was still enough time to get a Coke Zero and pee.

Flying back, though, all I could think of was the fact that four days later, I’d be making my third trip across the same ocean. I’m so ready to get going, but travel is just not fun.

French is over. Celebrated by spending the day in bed with Val Kilmer

 After a six-month haul, French is finally over, at least somewhat successfully. The box now has a checkmark, anyway. The test was rough and long, but it didn’t seem as long as it really was. Unfortunately for me, I came down with some kind of death virus about a day before and I felt absolutely miserable. I went in masked but I sounded so horrible during the first part that the testers insisted I finish the test remotely, which I completely understood.

Comprehension has always been my biggest problem and adjusting to new people’s speech patters can take awhile. Meaning, a lot longer than the test itself. I absolutely could not understand what the person was saying. There’s a portion in the test where you ask questions and then report the answers and I literally couldn’t not make out anything for one of the responses. Had I felt better, I could have asked and re-asked for clarification, etc., but I just wasn’t up to it.

In the end, I got the score I needed to proceed without additional paperwork. I feel like some of the grade was a courtesy, but I don’t care. I’m glad it’s over but honestly, I’m still too sick to muster up any emotion about it, including relief.

Since I haven’t bothered testing for Covid and today’s Covid resembles a cold, I could have Covid. Apparently it’s going around the group of new hires and I did go to their “flag day” celebration. (And at the time, I did not know Covid was going around their class…) But no regrets – I met a bunch of new colleagues who are just excited to be heading out to their posts as I am to mine.

But five or six days later,  I feel absolutely miserable. It’s legitimately acting like my colds usually do, so I’m going with that, although I am masking up just in case. Masking up when I go out, that is. Which hasn’t been since the test.

Yesterday, I spend a blissful day in bed with Val Kilmer. I’d gone to the library last weekend – it’s a block away! – and snagged “I’m Your Huckleberry,” which is one of Wendy’s favorite quotes from Wyatt Earp. I know “Huckleberry” more from a Toby Keith/Scotty Emerick tune, but as an Iceman fan, I checked it out.

And it was lovely read. Never knew Kilmer had a poet’s soul. I spent the entire day moving from the bed, the sofa and the comfy chair curled up with the book.

Today, I’m feeling marginally better but as the remains of Debby Downer are hitting us, I’m planning on laying low for a bit.

Originally, I’d hoped to travel out of town this weekend but right now I am really glad to have not sprung for a ticket. It’s nice to be home. And it’s really nice to not be studying French anymore. 

In a New York Minute

Last weekend I took a bite out of the Big Apple. I didn’t really do a whole lot but had a great time.

The highlight, easily, was cheap tickets to see “Suffs,” which gave me a surprise new anthem: "A Great American Bitch". Dear God, I loved the play, from start (“Let Mother Vote”) to finish (“Keep Marching”). But “A Great American Bitch” was by far the best and most memorable number of the play.  I’d buy the soundtrack just for that song. 

"Isn't 'bitch' an insult?" 

"That's what they want you to think!"

Obligatory Statue of Liberty photo

I’d bought the ticket that afternoon at the cheap booth in Times Square. Kudos for that, but holy smokes, it was hot. I was in line well over an hour in direct sunlight. All the people were super nice and it make me realize how many people deeply love going to the theater. The lady right in front of me had flown in from Hawaii the night before (Friday) and was leaving on Tuesday. All she was doing was going to the theater.

And after seeing my first show on Broadway, I get it. I’ve seen plays before in different venues, from Tallahassee’s Young Actor’s Theater to a university production of “Shrek” in Minot to off-Broadway shows in Sydney and Guangzhou, but this was my first on-Broadway show, and it was utterly amazing. I understand now why people will see the same play over and over. Heck, had I gone to the matinee show instead of the evening, I might have turned around and seen it again. As it was, I came close to seeing another on Sunday afternoon, but I didn’t get back from my morning excursion in time.

Choosing it was random, too. The cheap place doesn’t have all the shows, but there were lots of options. In my hour and a half in line, I listened to others around me discuss what they were seeing and what they’d seen and narrowed it to “Suffs” and “Six” (the Henry VIII wives one) by the time I got to the window and basically let the ticket guy decide. He made a great choice.

The only other thing I did, really, was do the Big Bus tour for two days. I got off and wandered but mostly it was low-key. It was my first visit since just prior to Peace Corps, so a lot had changed, like the new 9/11 memorial. That was serene, though one of the two reflecting pools (which are in the footprints of the old twin towers) was drained for cleaning.

I did the ferry to see the Statue of Liberty, of course, but other than wandering around Hudson Yards and the Harry Potter store, I really didn’t do much. In a search for air conditioning, I hit up the old Macy’s and happened upon a shoe sale. There, I splurged on shoes that were marked down from $80 to $22 and crammed them into my backpack for the trip home.

I went alone, hoping someone would join me but not having any luck. In the end, that was probably fine because the hotel room was the size of a postage stamp. It was right at Times Square – if I left my windows open, the marquee for “Hamilton” would have kept me awake so the location was amazing for what I wanted to do but the space was almost enough for one person and definitely not two.

But if someone wanted to go next weekend, I’d happily join again. I’d taken the bus up there because I really didn’t care when I arrived, but going back I opted for the train since it was an hour shorter. Both were super easy.

Now that I am back, I’ve realized that I’m basically out of touristy things on my list. I didn’t plan anything touristy for this weekend at all, though I do have plans to meet some people for lunch tomorrow. I feel like I should do another road trip from here, but I haven’t looked at the options.

Though there’s no tourist stuff this weekend, I have had a busy Saturday. Last week, I caved and bought a car, which I picked up today. It’s nothing a special, a 2016 Nissan Rogue. Madagascar doesn’t have import restrictions so I didn’t have to have a newer one. This one – named Cassian, after the character in “Rogue One” --  probably won’t arrive for a solid six months, so I’m hoping to start it on its journey ASAP. I think I submitted all the paperwork today and picked out an aspirational date to send it off. I don’t intend to drive it here and am not even registering it in Florida since it won’t get there until 2027, if then. There’s also an auto shop nearby and I dropped it off for a tune-up. I’m hoping I get no bad news; I bought it as-is.

Other than that, it’s life as usual, although a bit hotter than normal. Climate change is real and, walking to and from work every day, it stinks. More often than not, I arrive home in a puddle of my own sweat. It’s not near as humid as Florida, but 97 degrees is toasty no matter what. There’s a little splash pad and a public park on my way home. It’s about three blocks from my house, so on the return, I’m a bit warm by then. I wear sandals because it’s so hot and when it’s really bad, I weave around the little kids through the shallow river created by the splash pad. The kids probably think I am nuts because my pants tend to get soaked from the ankles down, but it’s relief.

Want culture? Be my guest.

 In my effort to glean as much culture as I can while I am in D.C., I made a point to find some cultural stuff to experience, in addition to the amazing lot of historical and/or touristy stuff.

“Little Shop of Horrors” was my excuse to visit Ford’s Theater and I also went to a Mark Twain play in Alexandria. With the number of venues here, I couldn’t see something at every one, but I absolutely wanted to get to the Kennedy Center.

Since I couldn’t afford “Bye Bye Birdie” – those tickets are close to $200 – I scrolled forever on their site to find something and finally landed on it: Disney in Concert.

“The Sound Of Magic is a one-of-a-kind musical and visual celebration of the beautiful stories told by the music in Walt Disney Animation Studios and Disney Theme Park's iconic settings.” That’s the blurb from the Kennedy Center website and the totality of what I knew I was getting for. I really had no idea.

Oh my, it was utterly fabulous. I had assumed it was some kind of touring show, but it was a performance by the National Symphony Orchestra. How would I have known that? I didn’t know there was a National Symphony Orchestra. But there is, and the conductor, Christopher Dragon, let us through two hours and 100 years of music.

Here’s what the NSO page says about the show:

“Your favorite characters and soundtracks from the Walt Disney Animation Studios and Disney Parks come to life on the Concert Hall stage and big screen in a live-to-film concert like never before. Performed live by the National Symphony Orchestra, this new concert takes you on a magic carpet ride through the most memorable song, score, and movie moments of the first 100 years of The Walt Disney Company, including Peter Pan, Moana, Aladdin, The Jungle Book, Frozen, The Lion King, Fantasia, Encanto, Disney Parks classics, and more.”

My seats were high up on the second level, so I had a great view but I couldn’t for the life of me figure out the string section. It seemed the majority of the orchestra was strings, which included an electric guitar. The brass section had three trumpets, four trombones, a tuba and four French horns – unless I missed something. The percussion section had cymbals, bells, the whole nine yards.

And behind them, there was a giant screen. Essentially, it was like watching a fabulous mélange of Disney clips – not just from the movies, but also from sketches and narrations from Walt himself – with the orchestra performing the music live.

I cannot imagine the effort put into it, but it was absolutely worth it. I tried to imagine synching even a tape player up with a TV set. That’s hard enough, but this was live. Every crash on the screen – whether from Ariel’s transformation, Simba getting caught up in a stampede or Moana setting sail – was met with some kind of musical punch, and every one was spot on.

Of course the opening included “When You Wish Upon A Star,” and after the introduction, the orchestra swung into “Be Our Guest.” But other than those two slam-dunk inclusions, I have no idea how they whittled down a century’s worth of music to a two-hour event. The selection was interesting, because there were some songs I hadn’t heard of and some blockbusters weren’t included, like “Into the Jungle.” (Not that I wasn’t OK with that decision – last thing I needed was to have that song going through my head the rest of the day.)

The video clips really did go back 100 years, with Snow White just one of the older ones featured. Heck, they even had clips of Todd from The Fox and the Hound, a favorite of mine.

So many films figured in, in some way or another. And while I knew most of the songs, there were some that I never heard of, like “God Help the Outcasts.” I never saw The Hunchback of Notre Dame. There were also a couple of recent ones – I could tell from the animation – that I had absolutely no idea what were. But even those were wholly enjoyable.

Not Disney-related, but someone hid this
little guy on campus and I thought it was cute.

Of course there were a bunch of kids there, and that was especially obvious when “Let it Go” started. There had been happy murmuring at Moana, but when Elsa appeared, the kids went nuts. It really was hard to hold back. I mean, come on. It may not even be legal to just sit there and listen to “The Bare Necessities.” You have to at least tap your toes, if not burst out into song. I had trouble holding back during “I’m Almost There,” so I could totally relate to the kids.

Not that anyone audibly sang along, really, although, when there was a mashup of what really amounted to pretty scary and/or sad scenes from 100 years’ worth of movies, a couple of kids started crying. No, Bambi’s mother was not featured, but it’s always sad when Beast almost dies.

In true Disney fashion, the whole scary/sad medley was followed by the uplifting set, because, of course, Beast didn’t die, Tiana opened her restaurant and Simba became king. The energetic ending came way too soon; the show lasted two hours but I could have listened to four.

Still playing tourist. It's more fun than learning French.

Harper's Ferry - John Brown Fort

As I plug along and struggle with French, I’m making a point to play tourist every weekend. At about the halfway point, my French stinks but I’m checking off the tourist boxes big time. I’ve checked off many of the Smithsonians, seen a play at Ford’s Theater and, last week, went to a podcast taping of “Stuff You Should Know” (my favorite podcast) at the 100-year-old Warner Theater downtown. I’ve got tickets to upcoming performances at the Kennedy Center and the National Theater, plus a road trip to NY planned.

Last weekend I took a road trip with a friend to Harper’s Ferry. I thought I knew the place, but then I realized the reason it sounded familiar is because that’s the road I turn on to get to Zippy’s house. I’m pretty sure I’ve seen Gettysburg, but I’d never been to Harper’s Ferry.

Smithsonian Postal Museum

As that’s practically the first thing I’ve done with someone else, I had a blast. We walked a ton, up and down the hill and in and out of shops. Honestly, if I didn’t like my job so much I would aim for working at the National Parks Service. They have so many cool sites to explore! I’d gone to one on Saturday in DC – the old post office, which is now restored and a Waldorf Astoria hotel – and Harper’s Ferry had a few. The docents – or whatever they are – know their stuff. We happened into one cute little storefront and randomly arrived three minutes before a presentation. The presenter knew his stuff – he discussed the battle for an hour! And today, I went to the Capitol and gleaned knowledge from the guide there. (That may not have been NPS, but you get the idea.)

I still have three months to go but my “must do” list is dwindling. There is plenty to do here, though; that initial list is mostly the main touristy stuff. Although I’ve done a few off-the-beaten-path-type things, there is just so much more here. Washington.org is a fantastic site and I need to remember to check it before Thursday to plan the weekend.

Museum of African Art
(made with old gas cans)

Work-wise, French is awful for me but I’m plugging along. I’m well behind the curve but my hope is that one day it will all fall into place. The language is so lyrical and I just can’t tell when one word end and another begins. Essentially, I have to visualize the words and the read them and I’ll hear something like “con-gee” and think it’s the one word for “time off” but in reality, it’s two words meaning “when I.” I just cannot tell because it flows together, almost musically. (I mean, not when I speak, but basically anyone else.)

It’s like the song “Blinded by the Light.” No, the lyrics are not “wrapped up like a douche, another rumor in the night,” but that’s what I hear because I can’t pick out the words. It’s only once I get the lyrics – err, the transcription – that I’m like, OOOH! It’s “Revved up like a deuce, another rumor in the night.” NOW I hear it. But no matter how many times I hear it (and trust me, I replay these things 5-10 times) I cannot pick out the words until I see them in print.

In no way do I hate it, but it is sucking away at any bit of self-confidence I had. This is, quite literally, my job right now and I am pretty awful at it. It’s hard to accept being awful at your job. It’s not a feeling I like, for sure.

View of Capitol from old post office

It’s a slog, for sure, but time is marching on and I’m just hoping everything comes together in the last two months. I am so ready to get to post, mostly because I want to be good at what I do again.

Meanwhile, I am also ticking off the boxes of logistical stuff I have to do before I leave. New passport, check; visa application, check; vaccines, check. The next big hurdle is buying a car. I was hoping to buy Zippy’s but that doesn’t look like it’s going to work out so I’m looking in the DC area. Luckly, cars are cheaper here (guess it’s the inventory) but holy cow, prices are incredible. I thought I found a hybrid that would work but then I read that shipping hybrids – especially used ones, which is what I am looking at – is touch-and-go so that’s not going to happen. I don’t plan on making a move for another month or so, but I did learn yesterday that one of the dealers with some possibilities is only a mile away, so that’s walkable. I may stroll over there in the next week or two just to lay eyes on the stuff I’ve been looking at on Autotrader.com.

Art, History, Bricks and Brotherly Love

Beyond learning French, my goal while here is to play tourist as much as I can. Every weekend, I hope to go to a museum, see a site or something. Last weekend, I went to the Smithsonian Museum of Natural History. I’d swung by before, but it was swamped and I kind of sped through one floor.

This time, I arrived shortly after it opened and headed to the top floor, assuming I’d work my way down. Well, it’s just not possible to see it all in a couple hours, which is my threshold for crowds. I made it mostly comfortably until noon and, shortly thereafter, hit that “get outta Dodge right now” moment and quickly exited. At that point, I had almost – like 95 percent – finished the top floor. There is just so, so much to see.

Honestly, the Smithsonians are amazing places, and when you read about their research, outposts, etc., it becomes more and more amazing. Everyone should come to D.C. and see as many as possible. I would love to do a tour of one of their storage units, or whatever they call them, where the bulk of the stuff not on display at this museum or that museum is stored. It’s staggering.

My guess is the Natural History Museum is the kids’ favorite because of the giant elephant right inside the foyer and all of the skeletons. There were just so many school buses and kids, though not until about noon or so. I’ll head out there again to do another floor, but it will be at 10 a.m. sharp and I’ll maybe last until 1 p.m.

I had no idea the Hope Diamond was in the Smithsonian. How cool is that?

There are so many museums and cool things here that I hope I can make a dent in the list, but there are also things a short drive – or bus ride – away. Like Philadelphia, which is where I went last weekend. It’s under four hours by bus, and cost less than $45. The train is slightly more expensive, but the bus had more time options, so I went with that.

It was fantastic! I’ve been to Philly once before, but it was probably under the age of 15 and the only memories I have of visiting are two photos I (or maybe someone else) took. One’s Independence Hall and one is of the Liberty Bell. That was, I’m sure, in the days where you had a camera with a 24-exposure roll. This time around, I probably took 24 photos of the Liberty Bell itself.

I had short list of stuff to visit and hit all but one of those, but had no regrets. I did not eat a cheesesteak, but that was a result of caving on a milkshake around noon, which followed an amazing breakfast at some random place I walked past on the way to the Rocky statue. I just couldn’t eat anything else and did not want to stuff myself before getting on a bus – not a good idea. Instead, I bought some TastyCakes, which are also a taste of Philly.

Outside of “eat a cheesesteak,” my entire list was Rocky statue, Independence Hall, Liberty Bell and an art show. I also visited the Betsy Ross House, Elfreth Alley (oldest residential alley), the Reading Street market (where I got the milkshake) and the cemetery where Ben Franklin was buried. My hotel was right downtown and completely overrun with people at an educational convention. I mean, it was packed with people. I was a bit bummed that the lounge was closed on weekends because I’d counted on the free snacks but ah well.

All the liberty stuff was super cool, but oh man, The Art of the Brick at the Franklin Institute. Phenomenal. I’d searched a couple weeks ago what was going on in the city for the weekend and that’s what I came up with – an art exhibit comprised entirely of pieces made from Lego bricks.

Here’s the description, from https://theartofthebrickexpo.com/en/.

“The Art of the Brick immerses the visitor in the world of Nathan Sawaya: a cheerful and colorful world. The artist used more than a million bricks for this exhibition, creating over 70 works of art that can make adults and children smile and reflect. The collection includes a great variety of sculptures alongside re-imagined versions of some of the world’s most famous art masterpieces, such as Michelangelo’s David, Van Gogh’s Starry Night and Da Vinci’s Mona Lisa.”

Since I couldn’t get there before 5 p.m., I didn’t go to the museum itself and only did the exhibit, which had evening hours as well. Honestly, it was the best $20 I’ve spent in some time. I cannot imagine how much time and Lego bricks were involved, but the Easter Island sculpture itself was made from over 75k pieces.

The vision Sawaya (a former attorney) had with Lego bricks is incredible. His exhibit encompassed several themed rooms, opening with replicas of famous works of art such as American Gothic and Starry Starry Night. Next, there were scaled-down versions of sculptures that included David, Venus de Milo, the Easter Island thing and a lot of other ones that looked vaguely familiar from humanities class. Another room featured animals, some of them very close to life size (tiger and cheetah), but others scaled down but still gigantic (whales and polar bears). There’s also a room with one installation: a 20-foot-long dinosaur skeleton that has over 80k pieces.

Each room wowed and I literally took pictures of every single work of art, sometimes more than one. I love American history, but that exhibit was the absolute highlight of the trip.