Life Lately

I have thought about a dozen blog posts throughout the week and now my mind is drawing a blank. I thought I would update you on what has been going on lately. This week was pretty busy and hectic as we had just returned from Spring Break. While Spring Break was lots of fun, it was not particularly restful since we were traveling a large portion of the break.

Tuesday I officially sent my graduate school paper off to the University of Bath, so now I wait to hear my final grade. It is nice not  to have that hanging over me. I have decided to stay in the same apartment next year. One of my roommates will be going back to America, but the other one has decided to stay on campus with me. This was a tough decision as we had the opportunity to move off campus to a very nice place, but in the end, staying on campus was the best decision for me. On Wednesday I went to order a summer jellaba, a traditional Moroccan outfit. I will pick it up in one week; I'll be sure to show you the finished product.

At school this week I have had several lunch meetings about prom. One of my responsibilities as a junior class sponsor is to help with the prom. For those of you who want to know, our colors are blue and silver and our theme is Venice at Night. They do prom a little differently here, so it's been a learning experience as I suggest what I think is normal for a prom and they look at me a little funny. Prom is only two weeks away, so there is a lot to be done in a short amount of time. That is often very frustrating for me, how things are put off until the last moments. The good news is they are usually very successful in pulling it all together in a very nice way quickly. One thing I love about my students is how there is always someone who knows a guy who can help get whatever job we need done. Need a caterer? Meryem knows someone. Need a boat made for the photo area? Mohamed knows someone. Need a sash made for the prom queen? Zakia can do that.  

Saturday I had a very Moroccan day. We went to the hammam with a friend who had not been before. This hammam was much more traditionally Moroccan, with a sauna area, and many more local ladies; but it was still a fun and relaxing experience. That afternoon we went to the grocery store. It still amazes me sometimes how stressful just going to the grocery store can be. I think of the ease of running into Wal-mart when I'm in Bedford, and I just shake my head thinking of how different it is here. There is the crazy traffic getting to the store, parking, and then carts that do not actually push. Inside there is the language barrier and what some times feels like a game of hide and seek as we look for products we know they had last time. And sometimes there is that occasional treat; we were super happy to find canned diced tomatoes. Yes, we get excited over such things. By the time we headed home I was hardly phased by the goat running across six lanes of traffic to join his goat buddies on the other side of the road, happily eating an hibiscus plant.