WAIST+IST = sleepy

Ok, so it's a little unusual that I should be so sleepy right now (it's only 9pm on a lazy Sunday!), but the last two weeks have been exhausting. The All-Volunteer conference in Dakar was very interesting and, more importantly, WAIST (West African Invitational Softball Tournament, read: drunken softball party) was an absolute riot. I'll post some pictures from that part of the week to Picasa.

We've been back in Thies for almost a week now and our training sessions have been going fairly well. Some have been less successful/informative/worthwhile than others. [Note to self: don't try to teach about the importance of intimacy in an adult classroom while you yourself are wearing dark sunglasses and ignoring questions.] A session we had on food security and the process for certifying artisanal food products was fascinating. We learned that only 30% of market transactions here are in the formal sector, so any effort to formalize more of it could be kinda cool. I'm just grateful to finally get some relevant training to take back to my community; hopefully I CAN do something productive in the next 21 months.

And...I'm starting to lose focus (a bed and an episode of How I Met Your Mother are calling me). Anyway, we are staying in the center this weekend instead of our homestays. This morning a whole bunch of us took advantage of the day off to go to a nearby monastery known for its goat cheese. We sat through an exceptionally long Lenten mass and were rewarded with delicious, delicious goat cheese. We all ate too much and were happy happy happy (I swear I'm not just speaking for myself here).

Ok. That's all I can do. Goodnight!