Half a Week Down

it's monday now. i just had my mind blown. i just saw a commercial for 'grandpa headache powder'. if you have a copy of all my radio adverts, i extracted an old ad from the 40s or 50s for grandpa headache powder. 'aaaahhhh... grandpa'

when i'm given time to let my brain stew i come up with "your mamma" lines. here's the gem for the evening: "your momma's so fat she has a mezuzah on the door of her refrigerator."

ok, it's tuesday. i'm watching the cricket world cup. it is such a big deal it has postponed regular programming. i saw a new way of getting out so the game still has some tricks up its sleaves. they just showed how some fans (pakistani team i think) are in the stands just praying and not watching. wow.

the main things i think i'll have to report on while i'm here will be of the following:
1.) the differences between us and s.a. (also the weird similarities)
2.) discoveries and stories related to me
3.) adventures at work and everywhere else
4.) new friends

so let's start with work. it's great and challenging. i've been asked to try to solve many problems along with my other fellow engineers. so far i'm not sure i've offered anything brilliant to solve the problems because they approach the problems so differently here. because of the size of the structures at this office, the simple assumptions i used to make aren't acceptable. i think my suggestions might be received better once the project moves farther along. the coworkers are awesome. many are from all over the world. many are from all over south africa. most everyone keeps the door of their office open and everyone spends a lot of time being social.
tea is served at 10, 1 and 3 and tomorrow there will be cake. oh and i think i've noticed racism at work as usual. a younger black engineer, virgilio, was hired awhile ago and isn't getting a new computer and his own office like i have. but being one of the younger new employees while all the newer employees are black or indian, i'm gravitating towards the younger set... even though in south africa, everyone gets married and has kids very young. traditional customs too. one of my fellow engineers gives money (or cows) to his bride's family. i don't think i'm gonna be able to ever go back to a small quiet office... but maybe just having me in it would make it not very quiet. bcp is almost like the halls of a high school. lots of chat and it clears out within moments of closing time.

but enough about work, what's next..? let's talk about watching television in south africa. i get 4 channels. i think all are government owned. that would explain why i understand just over 50% of the original programming. but it does show gillmore girls, joey and other american programming. but that's only when they're not showing news which is a lot of work because they have to show the news multiple times, each time in a different language (english, afrikaans and zulu or whatever). even the original dramatic programming and even sports will drop in and out of english (sometimes subtitled in the language that is being swapped in and out). this news show i'm watching ("dikgang") has clicking in it. you almost don't hear the click because it's incorporated into the words simultaneusly with the rest of the sounds. it's my understanding that most people that speak afrikaans fluently are much like the mexicans in that they refuse to speak anything else. it's this pride and independance that led to the boer war.

the grocery stores are, simply put, no trader joes except the prices. i would say the standard of living is much reduced at least in hayfields. the grocery store runs the gamut. comfortably wealthy and some pretty run down folks of all colors. so i guess at the supermarket you have a better selection of social classes than soup flavors. but i have found some good cheese. a bleu. crackers are a whole different story. i also bought some more monkeygland sauce. and in a piece of novelty news, i'm collecting weird ethnic foods of england and south africa to mail back soon. you'll all also get a kick out of the weird names of foods here (e.g. "salticrax" crackers).

new friends... no new friends. i'm coming home and working on personal projects that i was always too busy to work on back in s.c. i'm now probably 1/2 way done with the animation part of "bedbugs" and it's coming along nicely.

i miss the old carefree lifestyle of biking to work. maritzburg doesn't have bike lanes but it does have bike clubs but i'd rather bike to work than in circles with a bunch of old people.

i'll wrap up by saying that the one thing i still balk at is driving myself. bcp has offered me the company vehicle for as long as i need it but i'm too scared. i live at the end of a long steep driveway full of cars... need i say more. the company 'bakkie' is a big truck.

hope you're all well,

love,

jonah