Thursday
Well, the sun did rise today, although I think Ghana was sad about Canada losing, because I got caught in a massive storm. On the 20 metre dash from the tro-tro to the shelter of the kiosk near our house I got soaked. I then had to huddle under a tin roof for half an hour for the worst to pass.
Today I mostly just wallowed in grief. I went to the office for a bit to meet with Maxwell and discuss some stuff about the clinics. In town, I noticed a shop called “My Wife Loves All Ent.” I’m not sure I’d want to be shouting that from the rooftops. Also, I don’t think I’ve ever been in a society that is as schizophrenic as Ghana. People are simultaneously so happy and so pissed off. There are shouting matches all the time, although sometimes it’s just people talking, not arguing. There are people singing and dancing all the time. It’s almost always quite funny. I love when two drivers get into an argument in a traffic jam about who has right of way. This seems to happen almost every day and because the traffic is so bad, people get a good chunk of time to yell at their targets. Sometimes it’s less funny, like last night after the game when I was walking to get a tro just before 10 and an argument broke out about something and one guy was chasing another with a wooden stool. I got the hell away from that as fast as I could.
On my way into town, I was in the front seat of a tro and we passed a few schoolboys who shouted at me “you should buy a car!” I laughed, but after I thought about it, I found it sadly telling. Because I’m white, I should be driving in a private car. Last night I was talking with Dave, the Canadian I met earlier this week. He is teaching here and he told me how a lot of his students feel that they are simply not as smart as the whites, something that I have heard some of the Peace Corps teachers say. I am not sure what the cause of this is. I think that it is partly due to the dependency syndrome that has grown up due to foreign aid, while it is probably also a legacy of the colonial era. But again, people here are so happy and friendly.
One last note about the Olympics. While the hockey was a terrible disappointment (and I’m still depressed about it), it shouldn’t overshadow the accomplishments of our other athletes. Not just the medallists, although they have been great. Especially Cindy Klassen—wow. I’m also proud of our skiers for 3 fourth place finishes, all from young skiers. Let’s hope for a great last weekend. And let’s hope that Russia doesn’t win hockey gold. Go Finland.
Today I mostly just wallowed in grief. I went to the office for a bit to meet with Maxwell and discuss some stuff about the clinics. In town, I noticed a shop called “My Wife Loves All Ent.” I’m not sure I’d want to be shouting that from the rooftops. Also, I don’t think I’ve ever been in a society that is as schizophrenic as Ghana. People are simultaneously so happy and so pissed off. There are shouting matches all the time, although sometimes it’s just people talking, not arguing. There are people singing and dancing all the time. It’s almost always quite funny. I love when two drivers get into an argument in a traffic jam about who has right of way. This seems to happen almost every day and because the traffic is so bad, people get a good chunk of time to yell at their targets. Sometimes it’s less funny, like last night after the game when I was walking to get a tro just before 10 and an argument broke out about something and one guy was chasing another with a wooden stool. I got the hell away from that as fast as I could.
On my way into town, I was in the front seat of a tro and we passed a few schoolboys who shouted at me “you should buy a car!” I laughed, but after I thought about it, I found it sadly telling. Because I’m white, I should be driving in a private car. Last night I was talking with Dave, the Canadian I met earlier this week. He is teaching here and he told me how a lot of his students feel that they are simply not as smart as the whites, something that I have heard some of the Peace Corps teachers say. I am not sure what the cause of this is. I think that it is partly due to the dependency syndrome that has grown up due to foreign aid, while it is probably also a legacy of the colonial era. But again, people here are so happy and friendly.
One last note about the Olympics. While the hockey was a terrible disappointment (and I’m still depressed about it), it shouldn’t overshadow the accomplishments of our other athletes. Not just the medallists, although they have been great. Especially Cindy Klassen—wow. I’m also proud of our skiers for 3 fourth place finishes, all from young skiers. Let’s hope for a great last weekend. And let’s hope that Russia doesn’t win hockey gold. Go Finland.
posted by Tony at 5:50 p.m.
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