{"id":703,"date":"2013-01-07T16:14:16","date_gmt":"2013-01-07T13:14:16","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.dknolte.com\/?p=703"},"modified":"2013-01-07T16:14:16","modified_gmt":"2013-01-07T13:14:16","slug":"a-couple-of-thoughts","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.dknolte.com\/?p=703","title":{"rendered":"A Couple of Thoughts"},"content":{"rendered":"

W<\/strong>e had a low key New Year celebration.\u00a0 We went up to the pizza place on the hill for dinner, where Hyw\u00e4t works, then drove to the Embassy and spent New Year\u2019s Eve with the Marines at their house.\u00a0 After a subdued midnight “yippee” and a small glass of champagne, we headed home.<\/p>\n

Every time we go to the hill and eat with Hyw\u00e4t, the first thing she does is greet Terese.\u00a0 The two of them do the hug, hug, kiss, kiss routine, and inquire how things are.\u00a0 I once asked Hyw\u00e4t, how come you never ask me how I’m doing?\u00a0 She laughed and said, “If she is okay, then you are okay.”<\/p>\n

Humph!<\/p>\n

Once while we were eating, she came by and asked Terese if her food was okay.\u00a0 “Yes, it is very good.”\u00a0 I waited \u2026 and waited \u2026 then stated, You didn’t ask me!\u00a0 She looked over at me and again laughed and said, “You always order same thing!”<\/p>\n

Humph!\u00a0\u00a0 – even if she is right.<\/p>\n

The other night I went there alone to get some pizzas to bring home and Hyw\u00e4t was not there, but another young girl served me.\u00a0 She asked me, \u201cWhere is my husband?\u201d\u00a0 I looked at her and said, Excuse me?\u00a0 \u201cWhere is my husband? Where is she?\u201d\u00a0 I realized she was asking where Terese was, but used the wrong word and wrong possessive pronoun.\u00a0 I explained to her that Terese was not feeling well and stayed home.\u00a0 Then explained that I am the husband and Terese is the wife.\u00a0 I think it may have embarrassed her, so I then asked her the correct pronunciation for the Amharic phrase, Thank you<\/i>.\u00a0 It\u2019s about a paragraph long and I always have trouble saying it. \u00a0Perhaps me asking her, made her understand I have trouble with languages too.\u00a0 But I was surprised how well she said what she said, because I detected no accent.\u00a0 That is what threw me when she asked where her husband was.\u00a0 My first thought was, Well, first of all what does the ol\u2019 boy look like?<\/p>\n

Well, this is Christmas in Ethiopia and there is no snow for thousands of miles, except perhaps on the top of Mount Kilimanjaro in Tanzania. It was interesting watching people as Christmas got closer.\u00a0 Yesterday I saw a boy carrying a goat on his back.\u00a0 No doubt the animal is sitting on a table being devoured as I write this.\u00a0 The other day we saw an old woman carrying a live chicken under her arm.\u00a0 That\u2019s something you don\u2019t see every day in the States.\u00a0 Not even in West Virginia.\u00a0 I imagine the bird is also history now.<\/p>\n

The Christmas celebration began very early yesterday morning.\u00a0 I woke to what I thought was the dreaded call to prayer which is normally between 5am and 5:30, right before my alarm usually goes off.\u00a0 I got up to pee and get a drink when I noticed it was 3am, so it was a nearby church starting up.\u00a0 Couldn\u2019t go back to sleep, with the constant wailing and chanting going on.\u00a0 You would think it would be a comforting sound, but it\u2019s not, as the sounds are distorted.\u00a0 All the churches and mosques have outside sound systems, and recently, the mosque across the river evidently installed a new system.\u00a0 About twice as loud but still distorted.<\/p>\n

So as the first Mass took off, several others started within the hour, then at the usual time, the call to prayer went out.\u00a0 Could not go back to sleep.\u00a0 The wailing and chanting continued all through yesterday and into the night.\u00a0 But lo and behold, there was silence when I woke early this morning \u2026 until the call to prayer raised its voice.<\/p>\n

If I remember right, the Ethiopians start their Christmas morning with a 7am butchering of the animal they will be eating.\u00a0 (refer to the above comments on the goat and chicken)\u00a0 I believe they eat a portion of it then, and finish the critter off later in the day.\u00a0 But the real celebration will be on the Ethiopian Epiphany which is a greater celebration than Christmas.\u00a0 I was not in country last year, but Terese commented on the beautiful chanting and singing that took place in the streets.\u00a0 Notice there was no distortion because it was from the populace themselves instead of multiple horns mounted on buildings.\u00a0 Also there will be ceremonial fires throughout the city.\u00a0 I should be here this year and will get to enjoy it with her.<\/p>\n

In a week or so, I will be in Djibouti City, but at this time of the year, the temps will be in the upper 80\u2019s.\u00a0 A few months ago, it was consistently in the mid 100s to the lower 110s.\u00a0 So it will be a good time to go there.\u00a0 Afterwards, it\u2019s back to Juba, South Sudan where the temps should be near 100 if not above.\u00a0 The hottest place I have ever been is Kandahar, Afghanistan, where the first Summer I was there the direct-sunlight temp topped out in the 150s.\u00a0 Unbelievably hot.\u00a0 That is when the crews worked from 3am to 3pm.\u00a0 Luckily for me, I secured an inside job as a Construction Coordinator by then.\u00a0 Yeah, I know, I\u2019m a wuss, but I will never forget the stifling heat during the late afternoon.\u00a0 The AC units in the tents ran continuously but could only keep them in the 90\u2019s.\u00a0 By morning the tent would be in the 70\u2019s.<\/p>\n

We found out our next posting is Ankara, Turkey and we are excited.\u00a0 I worked there for about 3 weeks a few years back and realized how much I wanted Terese to see it.\u00a0 Now, she will be able to experience it.\u00a0 For the first year, my boss will be a character I very much enjoyed working with in Moscow, although he is half a bubble off plumb.\u00a0 I have great respect for the gentleman and look forward to working with him again.<\/p>\n

As I work on this document, I am sitting out on one of our balconies watching the birds in the trees and yard.\u00a0 If the damn cat was not asleep on one of my jackets upstairs, she would be itching to go play with them.\u00a0 There are so many birds that come and go in the yard, I decided to set up a posting with pictures of them.\u00a0 It will be boring for you youngsters, but old people like me and Mom will appreciate them.\u00a0 I\u2019ll let you know when it\u2019s online.<\/p>\n

I\u2019ve been hearing thunder in the distance and it seems to be getting closer.\u00a0 We have not had rain for quite some time and I hope it comes this way.\u00a0 Besides, my rain gauge is getting lonesome.<\/p>\n

More later.\u00a0 Kick butt and don\u2019t stop.\u00a0\u00a0 D.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

We had a low key New Year celebration.\u00a0 We went up to the pizza place on the hill for dinner, …<\/p>\n

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