The end of the rainy season

The rainy season is nearly here in Cape Verde. The crops on the hills are glowing green and the sky is a perfect complimentary blue.

I spent a few days working on the quarterly report to the American organization financing the water reservoir project I am here to assist with. By working on the report, I mean listening to Phil Collins with my association’s accountant in a tiny one room office without a bathroom and watching him painstakingly type in Portuguese (I forget what it’s called when people only use one or two fingers to type…that is how nearly everyone in Cape Verde types. They are amazed when they watch me type). Every day or so the power goes out and we stop working. I go back to my house, read a book, watch a movie, chat with my neighbors outside. Time passes. I am not sure if it is a good thing or not, but I have become completely fine with the slow pace of life in Cape Verde. Anytime I am suppose to meet someone in the morning, I can generally assume that will be between 8 and 10 A.M. and it doesn’t matter when they show up because that’s all that I should be doing in that moment. There is always someone else around to talk with about the weather or corn.

I used to have a feeling of apprehension walking through the main part of my town knowing I had to exchange greetings with every single person in my town. Now I somewhat like the fact that everyone wants to say “Hello” to me. It’s all about convincing myself to enjoy being watched. It’s the same when I go for a run, getting high fives and blessings from old women while running usually is so amusing I forget to be self-conscious.

I have also decided to stop trying to find a new house. Where I live, in a room of someone else’s house, is not what expected or wanted. Either is Cape Verde. I could spend another year attempting to move but there’s no point. The woman I live with is such a sweet lady and she knows how to make a mean plate of rice and beans. My issue had always been that I have no privacy in their house. What I’ve realized is I don’t need privacy…

I also feel reconnected with my counterpart, Maria. Her and I were in Praia the other day for a meeting and had lunch together in the market place. She invited me to her daughter’s christening. I had felt detached from her because I was in a hateful phase here but it’s passed, for now. It all comes and goes but I’ve decided to stop giving a fuck about what I am supposed to be doing and enjoying doing what I am doing…