Observations | SLT returns, Egypt, Kenya (for real)

MY APARTMENT – I just woke up from a two-and-a-half-hour 20 minute nap.

After experiencing the most regrettable combination of “The Green Mile” and “The Longest Yard,” I came back to the dorm to finish working my weekend on. I was a little tired, yes, and my booty hurt quite a bit from the downward hike. I was a little cranky, but really, nothing too bad.

However, I didn’t really know how cranky I was. The grumpiness, now added to hefty doses of tiredness and sore-butt syndrome, increased, and my patience wore very thin. I felt like yelling at students whenever they asked me anything. I didn’t, mind you, but still, I wanted to.

I came back to the dorm after work and decided to lay down, if only for a few minutes. Two hours later, I woke up, shook off the grog, and felt like a new man.

Elvin’s theory is that I suffered from mild dehydration yesterday, and my “sickness” I felt was in fact a lack of fluid in me. I can definitely buy that – on the 10km hike, I only drank a 500ml Nalgene bottle’s worth of water. The sun and heat alone made me sweat about 724ml, plus the whole walking up and down Satan’s hill.

The moral of the story: DRINK WATER. A camelback is currently en route to me, so that’ll help on the next hikes…

(…by the way, now scheduled for the next 2 Sundays. *Sigh*)

Three more observations:

1. Do not taunt SLT. The Social-Life Terminator hasn’t been in the news lately, causing many to wonder if he’s in repair, in refurbishing, or out of commission. Well, wonder no more, readers – SLT is still on the strike.

Latest adventure: A (grumpy) SLT was scolded by his flagball team captain, Luca*, for not wanting to partake in a post-killer-hike flagball all-star game. SLT refused because a) he did not feel up to it, b) he is done caring about flagball, c) he felt it would just be another opportunity for his subjects to critique him on his usage of such horrible vulgarities like “darn” and “gosh”, and d) because it would be all (5) staff vs. students.

SLT did not like the odds. SLT was called a pansy by Luca*. SLT does not like being called a pansy. SLT was taunted.

SLT Rule #1: Do not taunt SLT.

The next day, Three students – Luca* among them – was heard running down the halls, yelling at the top of his lungs. Although SLT was informed by him later that it was excusable (because he was on his way to class), SLT decided to take action. He raised the typical punishment for this crime from pushups and a warning to 3 days dorm-bound.

Do not challenge SLT.

2. I’m going to Egypt… ok, I can’t now… now I can… now I’m… ok I am after all… Through patience and prayer, I might have swerved a possible major setback in my goal of going to Egypt this Christmas. This week, my traveling partner, Lauran, and his wife Arlene announced they were pregnant with their second child. Awesome because their first is the precise copy of an angel, but bad because he knew he needed to stay with her now.

Lauran came to me and told me he thought he’d leave Egypt to come back home to Kenya on the 25^th, not the 30^th. Granted, I understand – who wouldn’t want to spend Christmas with their family, especially when they’re expecting another member. But that would definitely throw off my plan, already cut down from 14 days to 11 or 12 (because of traveling and Sabbaths).

On Sunday, then, I spent a lot of time thinking, wondering what I’d do in this case. Would my parents allow me to stay an extra couple of days alone? Would I have to come back with Lauran? Would this throw off my plans for my trip? I gave it to God and prayed he’d take care of it.

However, before I’d even had the chance to talk to my family, I got the best bad-news ever: Lauran checked on our airlines and found there were no open return flights from the 24^th to the 28^th! Saved!

Again, we’ve still got a ways to go. We need to somehow get accommodations in Egypt so we can have a request sent by them to the Filipino embassy. From there, we’ll have to wait on Lauran’s visa to buy our airline tickets, held until the 6^th of December. And I still am trying to plan out exactly how to get around and what we’ll do. But one miracle down yet!

3. SLT cannot avoid the coup d’etat. In all seriousness, though, it could get a little dangerous here in Kenya. On November 21^st, the country will be having a nation-wide referendum for updates on the constitution. It’s expected to be a big enough deal for the country that demonstrations going on in Nairobi could flare up and turn into riots.

The U.S. government is telling its citizens to register with the embassy so they’ll be informed about what to do if this seemingly mild vote goes wild, as it very well could. Maxwell Academy is far enough outside central Nairobi that if riots were to happen, we probably wouldn’t be touched. Nonetheless, we’re exercising great care and concern here, and all of us are keeping watchful eyes on the vote.

I have no doubt either nothing will happen, or if it does, it won’t come close to where I am. However, I still ask you keep me, my kids, and our school in your prayers for the next few weeks. It could become a troubled time soon, and we need all the help we can get. Thanks.

Ok, I think I’m going to get some rest. All that napping this afternoon wore me out.

-cw

*Names have been changed to protect the innocent... or presumed innocent.