i guess i'm just lazy.

I’m a creature of convenience.  I think somehow being raised in America, I got it ingrained in me to be a creature of convenience.  (We are after all the country of 30 minute meals, microwave dinners, fast food, drive thru starbucks, those machines that clean your floors, etc.) Everything that we ne

ed is usually available and if its not, then it won’t be too far away.  But here, things are quite the opposite… most things are not available, and if it is, its far away.

 

Maybe its not so much as convenience as it is me being lazy.  I am the girl that will call my mom from upstairs to tell her I have something important to say only to tell her that I want the remote controller that’s on the other couch and I’m too lazy to stand up myself to get it.  (this is a joke, I’m sure I probably did something to that sort during my years at home, but that is an over exaggeration.  I’m not that lazy… or spoiled, despite what you may think.)

 

Like if I want to wash my clothes, its not as simple as gathering the dirty clothes and putting it in a washing machine and dryer.  Here if I want to wash my clothes, I have to sit a

nd hand wash every piece of clothing… not to mention how hard it is to hand wash towels… I end up sweaty, wet, and soapy by the end of the two hour session.  So while I realize that laundry in America takes a while too… but you can do things in the mean while when the machine is doing your work.  ie, you can watch television, you can eat your lunch, you can go grocery shopping.  It’s just convenient to throw things in and let it be until it beeps.  I realize for those of you that have to use a laundry mat, its not as simple, but I’m sure its still better than having to hand wash all your clothes. 

 

If I want water to drink, bathe, and cook with, its not as convenient as turning on a facet.  More thought has to be put into what you’ll be doing for the week… I sometimes plan my meals around how much water I have left.  If I use too much water to cook/wash dishes with, I won’t have any water to bathe with.  And I guess for some reason, bathing has more clout than preparing my own meals.  (I think this is the first time that food has come second to something in my life!)  So if I do run ou

t of water, I either need to a.) find a lady or small girl to fetch water for me and pay her. Or b.) fetch water myself (which I had to do the other week… not an easy task and not something I want to do again) or c.) wait for the rain.  Either way, I miss running water.  I’m actually almost out, and scrambling now because my water lady has disappeared and it hasn’t rained hard in days… I avoided this situation by staying at a friends house, but now I need to figure it out before I have to bathe with water sachets. /: 

 

The next thing is something I will appreciate more i

n America, but the convenience of having restrooms almost every where you go!  Every time I leave my house I try to make sure I’ve pissed or pooped because I know that if I leave the house, my only other options are trekking back to the house, using the public restrooms (which aren’t bad, but no toilet paper or doors.), or finding a hidden place and pooping in a plastic bag.  

 

Also, the convenience of having every food almost imaginable at your fingertips, or just a short drive away, or made in 5 minutes, or ready for you when you come home.  I’m actually the luckier bunch of volunteers because I live nearby a huge city and can get most things that I wouldn’t be able to get if I had lived somewhere more remote… but its not like I have a food court of everything I could want; korean, pizza, taco bell, subway, hawaiian, sushi, curry!  So if I want food, I have to walk a while and a journey that should’ve took me at top 15 minutes ends up being a 30 minute journey… stopping to greet strangers that want to talk to the foreign person.  At least in America when you get stopped by people, its usually friends and a pleasant interruption on your quest for food.  I also miss the convenience of having microwave pizza, cup a noodle, microwave bacon… or just having your awesome mom or dad preparing a dinner.

 

But like most things in life, its probably a good thing… it’ll make me less lazy and appreciate all the things that came so easily before.  Plus, you adapt, you live, and you learn… and somehow, as much as I might complain, I love it.   

 

Twi Phrase of the Day: enye easy koraa (its not easy at all)

This is a popular phrase here in Ghana… every time I talk to Ghanaians, they are like, here in Ghana things are not easy atalllll!

I was helping a man with his term paper and he was like “its not easyo!” in response to how long he had to stay up and all the work that hes been putting into getting it done.

 

Adinkra Symbol of the Day:

 

DENKYEM

"crocodile"

symbol of adaptability

The crocodile lives in the water, yet breathes the air, demonstrating an ability to adapt to circumstances.