Monday's writing

The best part of my day today was definitely as I rode away from the ferry, north to Fara Fenni, and I up to a group of monkeys hanging out on the side of the road. Is it a herd? A flock? A pod? What is a group of monkeys called? Anyway, it was pretty cool as they hung out without too much fear as I rolled up, got fairly close and a few of them weren’t even provoked to take off when I stopped there. They didn’t stay long, but I think if I did it right, I could get some pictures of them chilling on the side of the road. And then I might be able to get somebody to identify them.

Will one of you people blessed with broadband and a minute of googling please leave a comment with what a group of monkeys is called? Unless one of you just knows, you smart folks. I certainly can’t remember.

I spent the weekend in Pakalinding, hanging out with my good friends Woman and E-lizabeth. She left this morning for the US, via Kombo and Dakar, and will be there a whole month! I am hoping she checks out the blog and leaves snarky comments during that time. What else is she going to be doing? I would certainly be spending some serious time reuniting with my lost limb, google, and all the world out there in cyber-land.

We ate a lot of great food – Woman is an all star, I will leave it there for now – and I got two (2!) calls from home, one from my parents and one from Polly and Kenny. It was great to talk to all of them, but extra special to talk to the McHamptons, as I’ve heard they are now known, because I hadn’t been able to yet. Fun to catch up on things, realize how fast time is passing (although I seem to say that at least ten times a week), and just be in touch. Email is great, letters are fantastic, but the phone rules for an emotional connection. So that was a highlight.

Another sign of how fast the world moves – Friday is mail day again! I am hoping, but trying to be a little bit tempered, for an iPod in this mail, which would be pretty kick ass. Music is always present here, but I would love to have some of my own music in my house.

The internet is being as flaky as ever today, but I am beginning to really appreciate my opportunities to use it, because it’s not a given here by any stretch. And it’s extra sweet that some little tricks of mine have made it easier, and faster, to use.

So, with that, I make promises of photos to come, and many interesting stories as well. If I can just make some up….