Rainy Season

Now that June is almost upon us, the rainy season seems to be kicking into high gear, bringing with it cooler temperatures and more overcast days (in addition to actual rain). Cooler is, of course, a relative term. It still gets up into the low- to mid-80s, and down into the low 70s at night. Perfect weather for obrunis, though it leaves something to be desired for most Ghanaians. I have even seen babies and children bundled in sweatshirts and jackets.

A storm came through first thing Monday morning, and the cloud cover stayed all day. The temperature never got above 28 (82ish) on our Celsius-reading thermometer. Mary, who does our cleaning, was surprised I was still running the ceiling fans in the house that day. Wasn't I chilled, she asked me? I assured her I was not.

Out to eat at one of our favorite restaurants, Abusua ... in the rain. (We're under a tent.)

Elliot enjoying the puddles on the porch after a recent storm.

Water, water from the tap, oh when will you be coming back?

After spending three long nights with no running water last week, we finally decided it was time to invest in a serious back-up water supply. We had a small barrel in our kitchen, but it was only enough to get us through a day, and we knew there was strong potential for having to go longer than that. Plus, water from the tap is a lot more convenient than water from a bucket. So we went to the Polytank store and came home with this guy. It's the Rambo 070 model, which means it holds 700 liters (about 185 gallons) of water. Now when we turn on the tap and nothing comes out, instead of a sense of dread, we're filled with a little excitement. Kind of sick, I know.

Our water has only gone out for about an hour since we had it installed, so we haven't been able to give it a good test yet, but I'm ok with that. Like carting around an umbrella and not having it rain, it was worth the investment even if it's just an insurance policy. We feel fortunate to have running water in a country where less than 60 percent of residents have access to potable water at all. Even here in Kumasi, some areas have been experiencing serious shortages and many homes' taps have been dry for weeks. So I guess in the grand scheme of things, a day here and there is not much.

Over the weekend, we went back to the zoo so Elliot could show Dusty the baboons. Here are some more photos from our excursion:

The now-famous baboons were looking for handouts. Yes, despite numerous warning signs threatening fines and other punishments, the animals get plenty of treats from passers-by.

Elliot enjoyed watching the camel eat.

Almost as much fun as watching the baboons was repeatedly crossing this rickety bridge until one of us big people (a.k.a. "kill-joys") decided we needed to move on.

The Kumasi Zoo

Elliot and I paid a visit to the Kumasi Zoo this week. For the low, low price of one Ghana cedi (about a dollar), we were able to spend the better part of the morning exploring the zoo, checking out the animals... and getting checked out by the other visitors. All in a day's work for a little obruni ba (white boy) and his mom. The boys in the picture below followed us through the entire zoo.

Elliot is still talking about all the "aminals" he saw, especially the "badoons" and turtles. Even though I found the place rather depressing, I think we'll be going back. There are only so many (somewhat) park-like areas here where one can go and walk around away from traffic. Plus it's within walking distance of the house, which is a big bonus for days when Dusty goes to his field site and we need to get out of the house.

Elliot in front of the chimps' cage.

My monkey checks out the monkey exhibit.

Chair. Bug. Daddy. Gone.

Last week, Elliot had his first encounter with a cockroach, and it left quite an impression. Unfortunately, this is not to say that last week was the first time we had run across cockroaches in the house, just the first time Elliot had noticed one. It was under one of the chairs in the living room, and it started to scurry away as he approached. Fortunately, Dusty was there to kill it and dispose of the body. Now, whenever Elliot looks at the chair, the following exchange occurs.

Elliot, excitedly: Chair, chair, chair!

Mom or Dad: Yes, there was a bug under the chair.

Elliot, solemnly: Bug.

Elliot again, brightly: Daddy!

Mom or Dad: Yes, Daddy got rid of the bug.

Elliot, matter-of-factly: Gone.

Mom or Dad: Now the bug is gone.

(Repeat as necessary or until some suitable distraction comes along)

A quiet house... again

I think we are all in a bit of a funk here, dealing with the post-company letdown, though it's also nice getting back into our regular groove of things. And it's a lot easier to get around when there aren't six of us crammed into our little car. Slowly, though, life is returning to normal at our little home away from home.

Dusty is back to work on his research. He went to the community yesterday and walked some more of the farms. Today he is home writing up his notes and getting some emails off to his advisors at MSU. Then it's back to the farms tomorrow. He also is hoping to visit the regional forestry office and meet with the forester in charge of the reserve where his community is located. Now that he is back in research mode, his head is positively swimming with questions, ideas, follow-up questions, theories, hypotheses, variables, controls... everything but the kitchen sink. Now if only I could get him to focus on the kitchen sink - or more specifically, the pile of dishes therein - once in awhile, we'd be in business. Just kidding, honey.

Elliot seems to have bounced back the best. I guess when you're only 21 months old, the world is constantly throwing curveballs at you anyway, so maybe you just come to expect change. Plus, he's VERY busy learning new words and finding new ways to push our buttons. Less than three months from his second birthday, he's already preparing us for that rite of passage that is the "teriffic" (or is it terrible, or tiring, or totally out of control?) twos. Whatever it is, hold onto your hats because it's going to be a wild ride.

Home again

We are back in Kumasi after almost a week on the coast. Our company has departed us, and we are returning to our normal (albeit quiet) routine here, as well as recovering from our travels. Elliot took a record 3-hour nap this afternoon, and I'm pretty sure Dusty slipped in there to join him for awhile. I have been wrestling with everyone's photos, getting them organized and ready to put up online as well as wrestling with our Internet to actually get them online. It's been pretty cooperative, though, so I won't complain. :)

I will be posting some albums on Shutterfly with pictures from our time with everyone here, since it's easier to put up bunches of photos there. The first one is up, and you can visit it at ladukemyers.shutterfly.com. The password is elliot (case-sensitive, I think). I should have the second one up in the next day or so.

It was great having everyone here. Elliot is still talking about how Grandma and his uncles went on the ai-pane. Looking at the calendar, it won't be long until we're on the ai-pane heading home too (though it still feels like it's a long ways off at times!)