Blessing the Rains Down in Africa (Senegal, specifically)

Two nights ago it RAINED! For 4 hours. It was actually kind of annoying because before it started there was a gigantic dust storm that lasted for 2 hours. All of this, of course, happened at night so I had to quickly bring my matela and mosquito net inside before I got blasted with sand and dirt. All's well that ends well: I can at least start planting flowers and trees now !

It has been so muggy here the last 48 hrs. that I have been continuously sweaty. I think I may prefer the dry, extreme temperatures...either that of I have picked up the habit of complaining and nothing will suffice except AC in Amerik.

One of my friends recently asked how I am going to plant trees in the dry heat of the desert, but if you could only see the small lakes that formed over night ! It's amazing how quickly grass and weeds have started sprouting and growing in the desert. When it rains, it literally pours up here. I will be planting Eucalyptus, Neem, and Prosopis trees in my village, though. They are all suitable for the dry-Fuuta conditions. Neem trees can actually be used as a mosquito repellent if the leaves are made into a cream or burned like incense. With the rainy season upon us, I have been holding causeries or information sessions about how to make the neem lotion/cream and reminding people that it's cheaper to pay for a mosquito net than to pay for the meds to get rid of malaria. There has recently been a big push to drastically lower the numbers of malaria cases in Senegal, so hopefully I can do my part.

On a different note, I was going on a run the other day and scared a cow, which in turn scared me and about 30 other cows grazing nearby. I got so used to seeing cows standing outside my bedroom door, in the road, walking inches away from me, that I forgot they are really a lot bigger than me and could probably do some serious damage if they get angry enough. I tried to milk a cow a few months ago and it was not at all the romantic, cottage-farm experience. Rather it was slippery, difficult to do successfully, and scary because the woman behind me kept reminding me to move slowly or else the cow would kick me in the face ! However, now, when people ask me if I can milk cows, I can say yes. The people in my village always ask me if there are cows in America. If they only knew I come from the land next to the the land of dairy....