Jordan here: So where did we leave off? Oh yeah, we were just about to head back to our site with another giant load of stuff to lug around. Well we made it again over the horrid roads in one piece and were dumped in Bugubelle. We called our friends in Tarsor and found that no one was there that could come pick us up and bring our stuff. They would be back in a couple hours. So we could either pay way too much for a ride from Bug, or just sit and wait. Peace Corps Ghana has preached to us about the importance of just sitting. Many people here spend lots of time sitting and socializing…or even not socializing…just sitting. It is a time for people to just be together and to find out about all the gossip and drink tea, and of course greet constantly. So while we sat at a small store we started practicing some language. Sarah had a great idea to teach the little kids that were sitting around how to play a simple game of tic-tac-toe. It was a hit once we played a few rounds and everyone understood the rules. The young kids were playing each other, the old were playing the young, Ghanaian against American, all kinds of matchups and it was a great cultural exchange. We finally were picked up and brought back to our place. It was late so we just made food but Sarah went off to school the next morning and I went to work on the house. There was painting, cleaning, repairing, and all sorts of other things to work on. I think we did a pretty good job with the time lapse photos as the process progressed or making our place comfortable. We have been hitting up every market day in nearby towns to buy things we keep finding that we need. Nails, flour sifter, tape, food we can’t get here, and an exhaustive list that went on and on. Much of it was food. Sarah and I equal each other out quite well between super bland and moderately nutritious but save a bunch money (Jordan) and super tasty with a lot of variety and highly nutritious but have little or no money left (Sarah). Sarah has been excited to try making several meals from the cookbook that Peace Corps provided. So far we’ve had a version of French bread style pizza, from scratch (relatively) alfredo pasta, guinea fowl egg sandwiches, oats with jam and fruit mixed in, and other tasty treats. We usually end up cooking in the dark in the evening since its dark by about 6pm.
On our last trip to the Tumu market, we splurged about bought a new mattress. My counterpart provided one, but it was getting uncomfortable to sleep on since the foam was losing its strength and our bodies would soon be leaving permanent irreversible imprints. Imagine trying to roll UP a hill on your side. So we went from the least expensive mattress to the most expensive. After sleeping on it for one one, we’ve decided, it was quite worth it. We now have spent nearly the entirety of 2 move in allowances (which is a decent chunk of change) but when we consider there was a room with a sleeping pad 3 weeks ago, we’ve made a lot of progress.
I have now, just today, planted the first of the garden. It’s a hot sweaty process to till the grounds, and eventually get seeds covered, but in about 2-3 months when we’re eating our own produce, it’ll pay off. The walls are all pretty white on the inside, we have the “carpet” down (and can finally walk in our own house barefoot and dare to put something on the floor), the screen porch is 95% complete with the help of the local JHS and local carpenter, and we’re sleeping much better. We recently took advantage of a cell phone deal to talk a lot to family and friends, and that was wonderful. I’m sad to hear my sports teams are all going down the drain, but hearing about everything was great.
Sarah just finished her first lesson plan for tomorrow about numerals. She hasn’t actually taught a class yet even though school technically started last Monday. A lot of prep and rearranging of schedules between teachers to make it all work was needed. She is excited and nervous. We all know, though, that she’ll be a fantastic teacher and a wonderful mentor to some kids that could really use one. I will hopefully start sitting in on the womens’ group meetings this week. We have made it a point to go out each day and greet people in the community to get ourselves known. Its our favorite part of the day. Especially since the hour before sunset is the most beautiful of all and the temp is just perfect. We also are amazed at the quality of stargazing from our village as well.
Thanks for all the birthday wishes, they really brightened my day. We continue to hope all is well back in the States. And although we are having a blast and are looking forward to our time here, we continue to dream of the days of old friends, family reunions, microbrews, lots of chocolate  Finally, after making our Ghanaian style pizza, we realized a couple wonderful things to add to the “I want to send Jordan and Sarah a care package but don’t know what they want” list: pepperoni slices that don’t need refrigeration and parmesean cheese that also does not require refrigeration. All the best.