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http://Sociolingo.stumbleupon.com/review/25467376/

Tue, 16 Sep 2008 08:15:26 -0700

Thanks to http://www.lwwhite.stumbleupon.com for this one.

After a while...

After a while you learn
the subtle difference between
holding a hand and chaining a soul
and you learn that love doesn't mean possession
and company doesn't mean security.
And you begin to learn that kisses aren't contracts
and presents aren't promises
and you begin to accept your defeats
with your head up and your eyes ahead
with the grace of an adult not the grief of a child.
And you learn to build your roads today
because tomorrows ground is too uncertain for plans
and futures have ways of falling down in mid-flight.
After a while you learn that even sunshine burns
if you get too much
so you plant your own garden
and decorate your own soul
instead of waiting for someone to bring you flowers.
And you learn that you really can endure
that you really are strong
and you really do have worth
and you learn
and you learn...... Veronica A. Shoffstall

http://Sociolingo.stumbleupon.com/review/6041938/

Mon, 16 Oct 2006 02:29:43 -0700

Have been in hospital for the last three days with malaria and amoebic dysentry so not posting. Will resume in a few days.

http://Sociolingo.stumbleupon.com/review/5540226/

Sat, 09 Sep 2006 07:21:34 -0700

I've just got back from market. So what you might say. I enjoy going but I find it exhausting. I think it is just the press of people mostly. We went to Medina Coura market right across town. To get there we have to cross the new bridge across the Niger into the city of Bamako. We then fight our way through the intense traffic right to the other side of town and drive down the main market street avoiding donkey carts, pus pus (wheelbarrows) and people. The next question is 'where to park?'. We have to drive a long way down a side street, do a three-point turn and then try and squeeze onto the side of the road. For once there were no 10 or 11 year old boys waiting to 'guard' the car. So we leave it there and hope for the best. The next problem is crossing the road. We weave in and out of stationary and not so stationary cars and motorbikes and arrive on the outskirts of one of the biggest markets in town. Medina Coura market is a bit like an iceberg. The bit you see from the street is just the tip - it goes for what seems like kilometres back from the road with windy passageways between the myriad stores. It is built on the natural rock so walking through is quite hazardous. The stalls we want to go to are right in the middle of the market in the area where little natural light penetrates. A group of women run a cooperative - dying and selling 'bazan' cloth. This is white damask which is dyed often using batik or a lost wax process. I always try and buy my cloth from these ladies. First we get waylaid because I spot a rather nice looking jewellery stall. This is costume jewellery not fine jewellery but it 'looks' like gold and seems to be well made. I want some finery for a celebration party this week when my government department finally moves into their new building. While we were at the jewellery stall a young lad sidled up to us with a large carrier bag. It used to be cardboard boxes but now it's plastic bags. He was offering to carry my goods for me as I bought things in the market. We employed him. I found my ladies and we got some nice material for not bad prices. Then we started the long trek back to the car. On the way I bought a very large brown plasic wash bowl. I have this idea of creating an oasis on my back veranda and I want it to make a fountain with. Perhaps I'll write more on that another time!

Finally in major contrast to the market we went to a large supermarket in town. This one has caused a certain level of culture shock recently. They have just finished renovations and it is now a two floor supermarket with an underground parking lot. WOW! It has also expanded the things you can buy there - at a price.

http://Sociolingo.stumbleupon.com/review/5480956/

Mon, 04 Sep 2006 15:16:33 -0700

Technorati Profile

http://Sociolingo.stumbleupon.com/review/5442201/

Fri, 01 Sep 2006 16:05:17 -0700

Red Cross worker killed in Casamance, Senegal
This is a sad report from southern Senegal, an area I know well and I have been through this village many times. The whole area is now littered with landmines which make it impossible for farmers in this fertile area to maintain their livelihoods. Just recently I heard a report of a whitefly invasion which is rotting mangoes on the trees in the area - one of the only crops that can be grown at the moment. All SO sad in a lovely country.

SENEGAL: ICRC worker killed in Casamance

DAKAR, 1 September (IRIN) - A foreign national working for the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) has been killed in a suspected vehicle explosion in the restive Senegalese province of Casamance.

The incident happened on Friday afternoon in Tandine, a village around 100 km north of the regional capital Ziguinchor, aid workers in Ziguinchor told IRIN. Three other ICRC staff travelling in the car were not injured.

Marco Jiminez, ICRC spokesperson in Geneva, said the identity or mission of the staff concerned was unknown.

"There has been an accident but the information at the moment is confusing. We do know something happened with a car around Ziguinchor. We presume it hit a mine but are not sure."

Years of fighting between two rebel factions, and with the armies of Senegal and Guinea-Bissau, have left the region littered with mines, and heavy rains could have displaced explosive devices.

But United Nations staff contacted in Ziguinchor said Tandine was not previously known as being mined.

Although a peace accord was signed between the Senegalese government and Casamance rebels last year, a hardline faction has continued to fight

http://Sociolingo.stumbleupon.com/review/5438106/

Fri, 01 Sep 2006 09:12:03 -0700

I've now put all African posts into a separate blog at WordPress. Click here to get the RSS feed http://sociolingo.wordpress.com/feed/#

http://Sociolingo.stumbleupon.com/review/5400042/

Tue, 29 Aug 2006 11:37:25 -0700

This one is unattributed and is going the rounds on emails:

Here are the top ten winners in the International Pun Contest:

1. A vulture boards an airplane, carrying two dead raccoons. The stewardess looks at him and says, "I'm sorry, sir, only one carrion allowed per passenger."

2. Two fish swim into a concrete wall. The one turns to the other and says "Dam!"

3. Two Eskimos sitting in a kayak were chilly, so they lit a fire in the
craft. Unsurprisingly it sank, proving once again that you can't have your kayak and heat it too.

4. Two hydrogen atoms meet. One says "I've lost my electron." The other says "Are you sure?" The first replies "Yes, I'm positive."

5. Did you hear about the Buddhist who refused Novocain during a root canal? His goal: transcend dental medication.

6. A group of chess enthusiasts checked into a hotel and were standing in the lobby discussing their recent tournament victories. After about an hour, the manager came out of the office and asked them to disperse. "But why?", they asked, as they moved off. "Because," he said," I can't stand chess-nuts boasting in an open foyer."

7. A woman has twins and gives them up for adoption. One of them goes to a family in Egypt and is named "Ahmal." The other goes to a family in Spain; they name him "Juan. " Years later, Juan sends a picture of himself to his birth mother. Upon receiving the picture, she tells her husband that she wishes she also had a picture of Ahmal. Her husband responds, "They're twins! If you've seen Juan, you've seen Ahmal."

8. A group of friars were behind on their belfry payments, so they opened up a small florist shop to raise funds. Since everyone liked to buy flowers from the men of God, a rival florist across town thought the competition was unfair. He asked the good fathers to close down, but they would not. He went back and begged the friars to close. They ignored him. So, the rival florist hired Hugh Mac Taggart, the roughest and most vicious thug in town to "persuade" them to close. Hugh beat up the friars and trashed their store, saying he'd be back if they didn't close up shop. Terrified, they did so, thereby proving that only Hugh can prevent florist friars.

9. Mahatma Gandhi, as you know, walked barefoot most of the time, which
produced an impressive set of calluses on his feet. He also ate very
little, which made him rather frail and, with his odd diet, he suffered from bad breath. This made him (Oh, man, this is so bad, it's good) a super calloused fragile mystic hexed by halitosis.

10. And finally, there was the person who sent ten different puns to
friends, with the hope that at least one of the puns would make them laugh. No pun in ten did

http://Sociolingo.stumbleupon.com/review/5247596/

Thu, 17 Aug 2006 08:37:05 -0700

Isn't the world a great place! I just received a packet from someone on ebay and they put an extra wrist support in to my order - gratis. Sort of revives ones hope in humanity really.

http://Sociolingo.stumbleupon.com/review/5245364/

Thu, 17 Aug 2006 04:31:57 -0700

Doing some re-cycling and re-ordering/tagging of sites as I had a number of items filed under similar tags.

Today's topic is: International Development.

http://Sociolingo.stumbleupon.com/review/5237522/

Wed, 16 Aug 2006 13:22:03 -0700

***You Are An Apple Tree***

You are quiet and shy at times, but you have lots of charm and appeal.
You are quite attractive: your pleasant attitude, flirtatious smile, and adventurous spirit draw people in.
Sensitive and loyal in love, you want to love and be loved.
You are a faithful and tender partner - who is generous in sharing your many talents.
You love children, and you need an affectionate partner.

What's Your Celtic Horoscope?
http://www.blogthings.com/whatsyourceltichoroscopequiz/