tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-219606682011-11-21T16:26:05.294-05:00Kelseyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03405774088337551649noreply@blogger.comBlogger2801100tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21960668.post-74084134308370499032011-06-27T13:39:00.003-04:002011-06-27T14:05:18.112-04:00

"Careening," I thought putting the New Yorker down on my lap. That is the word for what we are doing right now - in this taxi - through the hills above Nairobi. Careening. Under the heavy grey sky, over these pot-holed roads, between the jungle threatening to come over the garden walls.It struck me as funny - or funny enough to stop reading a magazine - that the word just came to me like that.

Kelseyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03405774088337551649noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21960668.post-22733221540712216852011-04-26T00:26:00.003-04:002011-04-26T00:33:19.148-04:00

It’s a strange thought, isn’t it. I’ve thought about it for the past few mornings when I took the road the opposite direction into town. It’s a flat and dusty road – fairly good by South Sudan standards and, if you take it in the opposite direction, it passes through some oil outposts, dry flat bush occupied by a mud tukul here and there, and the army’s checkpoints. You make a left at one

Kelseyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03405774088337551649noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21960668.post-74848908337721716992011-04-26T00:26:00.000-04:002011-04-26T00:33:12.755-04:00

It’s a strange thought, isn’t it. I’ve thought about it for the past few mornings when I took the road the opposite direction into town. It’s a flat and dusty road – fairly good by South Sudan standards and, if you take it in the opposite direction, it passes through some oil outposts, dry flat bush occupied by a mud tukul here and there, and the army’s checkpoints. You make a left at one

Kelseyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03405774088337551649noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21960668.post-67602621657618786362011-03-14T06:02:00.003-04:002011-03-14T06:17:48.308-04:00

I like to think of myself as a fairly 'tough' person. I'm not afraid of snakes, scorpions, spiders, or other animals in general. I like to think that if you leave nature alone it tends to leave you alone. But then I came to Unity state and am living at the UNMIS team site. Within the chain link and barbed wire fence there is a strange ecosystem of animals and insects that seems to have gone crazy

Kelseyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03405774088337551649noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21960668.post-88209054440415952092011-02-27T09:05:00.001-05:002011-02-27T09:10:16.968-05:00

I think that if I pretend that I haven’t ignored this blog for an exceptionally long time and just start writing again that no one will notice… Today I was struck by several acts of generosity that were conveyed to me for no apparent reason by people who stood nothing to gain by giving them. Let me back up… I am in Bentiu, Unity State – a state that was ravaged by war, dominated by oil, and is,

Kelseyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03405774088337551649noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21960668.post-36669347313527093992010-11-12T01:26:00.002-05:002010-11-12T01:32:01.855-05:00

There’s a fund in Southern Sudan which is something everyone calls a ‘pooled fund’ and that means that instead of donors giving their money to whatever they want they put it into a big fund that is run by the government and the UN. The problem with this particular pooled fund is that it’s been badly managed and manipulated by the powers that be and so has actually delivered practically nothing.

Kelseyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03405774088337551649noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21960668.post-89655224693263158102010-06-12T11:58:00.003-04:002010-06-12T12:14:21.623-04:00

I was reminded this week that I used to be an interesting person, to whom interesting things happened, and I used to write about those things in this very blog. This week, however, when I received an email from a former avid blog reader reminding me that I have an interesting and 'adventurous' life I decided to look back over the past week and figure out why I don't blog as regularly anymore. One

Kelseyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03405774088337551649noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21960668.post-39132030961457379932010-03-26T07:14:00.002-04:002010-03-26T07:30:42.421-04:00

I would like to apologise to all those who might be reading this and are aware of this purely fictional incident and may not find it as amusing as I do. Any resemblance to characters living or dead is coincidental...although all of them lived, for the record.Once upon a time I got a phone call from an NGO who had people involved in a security incident in which there were reports of heavy gunfire.

Kelseyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03405774088337551649noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21960668.post-38656175381202725512010-03-19T02:20:00.002-04:002010-03-19T02:35:42.313-04:00

My brain is too small to chock it full of the miscellany that flies at me everyday. Hence, I would like to make a list of all the things that I refuse to remember:1. When the rainy season begins and ends in Sudan.2. People's names if I've met them only once or twice. Or, anyone who has a contract shorter than six months. Or anyone I find immemorable.3. Anyone's birthday.4. Any phone number.5.

Kelseyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03405774088337551649noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21960668.post-23449923985919641532010-01-26T05:45:00.004-05:002010-01-26T05:56:07.061-05:00

Over the course of my life I have seen any number of looks of terror. The incidences usually begin the same way, as they did this morning. People just standing around some place - including bystanders such as myself - an unmarked vehicle with no license plates pulls up and men jump out. They are usually armed...no, I take that back...they are always armed. Menacing, threatening men. They always

Kelseyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03405774088337551649noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21960668.post-5006513624758087722010-01-25T00:48:00.000-05:002010-01-25T00:49:32.400-05:00

“There’s a truth that’s deeper than experience. It’s beyond what we can see, or even what we feel. It’s an order of truth that separates the profound from the merely clever, and the reality from the perception. We’re helpless, usually, in the fact of it; and the cost of knowing it, like the cost of knowing love, is sometimes greater than any heart would willingly pay. It doesn’t always help us to

Kelseyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03405774088337551649noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21960668.post-55685520271018774962010-01-07T09:19:00.000-05:002010-01-19T09:31:24.823-05:00

I like to think that there is a special state of mind into which frequent travelers often descend. You will know these people by their irksome calm when they, in the same awful travel predicament as you, watch calmly as you lose your temper. Their bags might be missing, their flight delayed, or cancelled, the airline clerk being a heinous twat and yet they stand next to you with that placid look

Kelseyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03405774088337551649noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21960668.post-81604098921754123712009-12-04T03:31:00.003-05:002009-12-04T03:41:54.481-05:00

I now have a 'commute' in order to get from my house to the office each morning. It has become more complicated recently so I thought I would detail it in case you are ever trying to find my house:1) Let the guard open the gate.2) Wait for guard to remove puppy from beneath tires and keep him from running out open gate. (dumb dog)3) Proceed with caution to avoid hitting other vehicles and/or

Kelseyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03405774088337551649noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21960668.post-14197368674301114622009-11-26T03:43:00.002-05:002009-11-26T03:54:28.227-05:00

blatantly pilfered from John Ashworth...Why Sudan Matters Jon TeminSudan team leader,U.S. Institute of PeacePosted: November 24, 2009 06:04 PMForeign policy realists sometimes ask how much seemingly marginal states such as Sudan really matter. The answer is that Sudan matters for many reasons, none more important than the millions dead and displaced due to decades of unnecessary internal violence

Kelseyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03405774088337551649noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21960668.post-17351422770093598582009-11-23T03:18:00.001-05:002009-11-23T03:18:59.182-05:00

http://www.sudantribune.com/spip.php?article33220Let's play 'track the delays', shall we?

Kelseyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03405774088337551649noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21960668.post-54624504544005719372009-11-20T05:20:00.003-05:002009-11-20T05:22:04.626-05:00

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/entertainment/8369689.stmSure...they say they 'don't know the reason why' but I'm sure she's not wanting to draw attention away from the full implementation of the CPA through the January 2011 referendum. Bless you, Oprah, bless you.

Kelseyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03405774088337551649noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21960668.post-684727418316812472009-11-18T10:40:00.002-05:002009-11-18T10:41:19.155-05:00

Kelseyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03405774088337551649noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21960668.post-30043878495407725962009-11-18T10:40:00.001-05:002009-11-18T10:40:53.813-05:00

Kelseyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03405774088337551649noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21960668.post-69718325381984629512009-10-29T10:30:00.032-04:002009-10-29T13:11:22.136-04:00

Azerbaijan - not a ‘stan’ but could be if it wanted to…I have never set out to produce the definitive guide of anything. It’s an impossible task if you were visiting holiday paradises like Kazakhstan or Turkmenistan. But, I was not. I was visiting Azerbaijan and I had it on good authority that you could see everything that is to be seen in a week and, upon flying in over the Absheron peninsula,

Kelseyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03405774088337551649noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21960668.post-10299196220494205062009-10-12T09:43:00.002-04:002009-10-12T09:49:50.101-04:00

It was one thing when UN IT blocked YouTube. I could understand that. Then, they cranked it up a notch and killed Facebook. That stung a little bit. Then, they blocked my sister's blog which, I'll give you could be perceived as undermining the UN at times. But now they've gone too far. They've banned my blog. Yes, like I say anything that could be taken as vaguely critical of the UN! It's

Kelseyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03405774088337551649noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21960668.post-90725540316099706852009-10-09T02:14:00.004-04:002009-10-09T02:22:22.166-04:00

Let me describe the scene to you... It's 11.30. I've just gotten home from one dinner and then a second dinner. I'm slightly tired and would like to go to bed. Our house has no electricity so it's pitch black. The phone rings...Other person: We understand that the President is dead.Me: That is an unfounded rumour. The President is not dead. I sent an email earlier to that effect. Other person:

Kelseyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03405774088337551649noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21960668.post-36705598857972569922009-09-24T11:02:00.002-04:002009-09-24T11:05:01.515-04:00

A big gold star to whomever comes closest in detailing what the following stands for: BSF OC @ MoFEP re:2. P.S. No ODIs can play.

Kelseyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03405774088337551649noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21960668.post-85677458411812098132009-09-20T08:50:00.002-04:002009-09-20T08:54:23.129-04:00

Two things have happened this week that I thought would never happen. The first is the UN is out to ruin my life by BLOCKING FACEBOOK! Yes, the only way that I can survive being on this compound and attending all the meetings is by being allowed to make sarcastic and snide up-to-the-moment update comments about them. No more. Then, just when I can no longer access facebook the LAST PEOPLE ON

Kelseyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03405774088337551649noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21960668.post-42269106263424715542009-08-28T04:12:00.001-04:002009-08-28T04:13:26.435-04:00

Gradually it was disclosed to me that the line separating good and evil passes not through states, nor between classes, nor between political parties either—but right through every human heart—and through all human hearts. This line shifts. Inside us, it oscillates with the years. And even within hearts overwhelmed by evil, one small bridgehead of good is retained. And even in the best of hearts,

Kelseyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03405774088337551649noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21960668.post-89354111216623493292009-08-25T07:45:00.001-04:002009-08-25T07:49:04.196-04:00

I had a long argument with myself on the drive home today about humanitarian aid, and the international community, and a place called Ezo. Ezo is out on the border of Western Sudan, Congo and Central African Republic. It has the misfortune of being where the Lord’s Resistance Army, of Uganda civil war fame, have chosen to move in and wreak havoc. The long argument I was having was about the

Kelseyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03405774088337551649noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21960668.post-30359637800688532872009-08-14T07:14:00.003-04:002009-08-14T07:43:46.191-04:00

A lot of things can happen to you in Southern Sudan which you can avoid in most other places of the world. You could pick up any number of diseases - including ones that should be eradicated. You could get bit by a snake, scorpion or spider. You can get dropped off in some remote site and not get picked up for six months. But now, apparently, there's a new one to add to the list. A security

Kelseyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03405774088337551649noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21960668.post-77020078863757111892009-08-03T07:24:00.002-04:002009-08-03T07:34:48.351-04:00

I seem to be on a run of receiving amusing emails. Or, I'm losing it due to the sheer volume of emails I'm receiving. Either way, I just received an email which stated: ----------------------------------------------------------------------------From: ngoforumSC2009 On Behalf Of [someone who shall remain nameless]Sent: 03 August 2009 14:16To: [other nameless individuals]Subject: [SC NGO Forum] RE:

Kelseyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03405774088337551649noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21960668.post-20641604003450953162009-08-01T04:04:00.002-04:002009-08-01T04:06:39.929-04:00

To quote from an email I just received: Dear All,Kindly refer to the attached detail budget breakdown Micro plan as per each State. However, EPI,MoH/GoSS has completed transfer of July, 20,2009, for routine EPI acceleration - GAVI funding. is for you to implement July acceleration.NB; three whom we did not transfer it's fund are those whom we did not received their liqudation reports e.g E.EQ,

Kelseyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03405774088337551649noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21960668.post-24985217944215017502009-07-30T07:28:00.003-04:002009-07-30T08:14:50.081-04:00

10. Economists actually believe that the world is a rational place and human beings are rational as well. 9. No matter what one economists says there will be a hundred others to tell you how wrong and stupid you are for believing the first economist.8. Economics isn't a science but economists pretend it is. "Economics isn't like physics or chemistry, where you're measuring fairly well-defined,

Kelseyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03405774088337551649noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21960668.post-85957054343288658482009-06-24T02:18:00.000-04:002009-06-24T02:19:33.558-04:00

http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2009/jun/21/sudan-humanitarian-disaster

Kelseyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03405774088337551649noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21960668.post-24441312076159295112009-06-20T09:00:00.002-04:002009-06-20T09:03:58.527-04:00

Haven't laughed this hard in a long time. Recent warden message from the 'ole USG: "The Department of State continues to warn against all travel to Sudan, particularly in the Darfur area, where violence between government forces, rebel factions, and various armed militias continues."You don't say! Seriously? Someone should do something about that..."American citizens who choose to travel to Sudan

Kelseyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03405774088337551649noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21960668.post-64814506877946405372009-06-20T08:44:00.005-04:002009-06-20T08:54:11.100-04:00

errrr...mostly...

Kelseyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03405774088337551649noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21960668.post-76677862435247451192009-06-19T08:02:00.002-04:002009-06-19T08:19:27.463-04:00

I don't know how many of you have had the opportunity to go to court in Sudan so for those of you who haven't I'm going to paint you a little picture so that you know what you are getting yourself into the next time a Sudanese court date or Sudanese jury duty appears on your calendar.Oh, whoops, except there's no jury. The court is about a stone's throw from my office, as it turns out and

Kelseyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03405774088337551649noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21960668.post-85919652622946987212009-05-23T10:55:00.003-04:002009-05-23T11:32:45.331-04:00

If this blog has taught us nothing else I believe it is that relief and development is an amusing way to fill one's day, problematic to its crunchy-hard-currency-filled core, and so chock full of contradictions that describing it is like trying to nail jello. And aid workers, as a group, get painted with the 'saint' brush a little more often than necessary when most of us are paid quite well and

Kelseyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03405774088337551649noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21960668.post-1579616157179118782009-05-02T03:17:00.002-04:002009-05-02T03:24:06.159-04:00

I don't like to think of humanitarian aid workers as a bunch of soft, spoiled, whinging whiners but, more often than not, I think that just might be what we are. Yesterday was a public holiday and therefore, in accordance with - oh THE LAW - we gave all our national staff the day off. Including the cooks. This doesn't seem to me to be all that big of a deal. We're a bunch of grown ups. Surely we

Kelseyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03405774088337551649noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21960668.post-36219122937479911532009-04-13T15:53:00.006-04:002009-04-13T16:01:03.917-04:00

These are the many poses of the puppy sleeping. He has been named: Jasper...pronounced by all the Brits as: Jaspa. And, these are the last of the photos. I swear I'm not becoming one of 'those' people.

Kelseyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03405774088337551649noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21960668.post-3968074054140142692009-04-04T08:29:00.003-04:002009-04-04T08:37:21.781-04:00

Kelseyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03405774088337551649noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21960668.post-78960540885807613272009-03-30T09:29:00.000-04:002009-03-30T09:35:23.508-04:00

To feel the sand between ones teeth..Our near weekly dust storms here in the field are something of a curse and a blessing. A blessing because they blot out the sun for a precious day of not dripping in sweat. A curse because you literally feel the gritty, salty taste of dirt between your teeth the whole day through. Must everything be a double-edged sword?

Kelseyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03405774088337551649noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21960668.post-21117967990812389602009-03-26T06:50:00.001-04:002009-03-26T06:51:43.502-04:00

After sitting in my little tukul almost all day on Saturday I had enough. I needed to get out and so I went for a walk. And once I started walking I was overcome by the strangest urge to just keep on walking. I mean, just keep going. Now, I’m the person who coined the phrase, ‘if God had intended us to walk he wouldn’t have given us cars’ so I’m not normally a fan of ‘footing’, as they call it

Kelseyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03405774088337551649noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21960668.post-8394527486382462252009-03-19T04:47:00.005-04:002009-03-19T09:08:28.080-04:00

For those of you who have read this blog for quite some time you will know both about my love of epic battles and about the presence of some rather agressive monkeys (which I maintain are not figures of my imagination) on our Juba compound. This morning our new HR staff comes in. Mind you, she's been in Juba for one day, having flown in from New Zealand yesterday and says: "Well, I have to say

Kelseyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03405774088337551649noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21960668.post-88632233778469302462009-03-17T05:58:00.000-04:002009-03-17T06:32:30.102-04:00

You know your week (series of weeks?) is not going well when the highlight of your day becomes flavoured water. That has been the highlight of my day for the past two weeks. It’s getting hot in Sudan now. Really hot. Up in the 110-20’s hot. And so by about 1.30 you can hardly stand to be outside, much less string together a cohesive sentence or finish an email. Mostly, you feel like putting your

Kelseyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03405774088337551649noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21960668.post-18845652931251986452009-03-11T10:02:00.003-04:002009-03-11T10:10:43.061-04:00

Sometimes the only thing that can make one of your favourite watering holes better is a fountain in the form of a gorilla that spits water surrounded by a dog (or is that a goat?), and alligator. Makes me happy every time I see it.

Kelseyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03405774088337551649noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21960668.post-28679822038082562772009-03-11T10:02:00.001-04:002009-03-11T10:08:33.215-04:00

Sometimes the only thing that can make one of your favourite watering holes better is a fountain in the form of a gorilla that spits water surrounded by a dog (or is that a goat?), and alligator. Makes me happy every time I see it.

Kelseyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03405774088337551649noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21960668.post-24524273206110663332009-03-02T05:11:00.005-05:002009-03-02T05:20:41.827-05:00

Kittens...not just delicious...also giant pains in the ass...You see, it all started about two weeks ago...“Do you think I should take this bucket?” I shouted to Sarah who happened to be in the toilet at the time.“Why?” she shouted back.“Cause we have to put the kittens in something,” I carried on the conversation from the other side of the bathroom door.“Get a box,” she sagely advised.We were

Kelseyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03405774088337551649noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21960668.post-62184140434771330922009-03-02T02:51:00.005-05:002009-03-02T05:06:35.199-05:00

In the past week I have gotten a short course on food security for a number of reasons and I found it so interesting I thought I would share.First of all, what is food security? Well, it’s basically having enough food in order to live a productive life. Most of the developed world is what we would call ‘food secure’ however, there are pockets in every society that are still ‘food insecure’

Kelseyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03405774088337551649noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21960668.post-80108647902236207502009-02-21T08:21:00.003-05:002009-02-21T08:40:52.766-05:00

I know that you probably feel that I am fascinated by either 1) food or 2) latrines. And you would be right. I spend a vast quantity of any given day on one of these two issues and not just personally – but also professionally. When half of your job is finding out why people are starving or ill these two things are bound to come up. So, it should come as no surprise today as I was headed off to

Kelseyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03405774088337551649noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21960668.post-23354445095284311102009-02-21T08:16:00.003-05:002009-02-21T08:21:03.154-05:00

<!--[if gte mso 9]> Normal 0 false false false MicrosoftInternetExplorer4 <![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 9]> <![endif]--><!--[if !mso]> st1\:*{behavior:url(#ieooui) } <![endif]--> <!-- /* Style Definitions */ p.MsoNormal, li.MsoNormal, div.MsoNormal {mso-style-parent:""; margin:0in; margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-pagination:widow-orphan;

Kelseyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03405774088337551649noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21960668.post-31433989457686741112009-02-07T03:51:00.004-05:002009-02-07T05:38:34.987-05:00

Apologies for the long absence. I was on a whirlwind trip around the United States. It wasn't until I was sitting back in a hut in the middle of Sudan that I stopped and realised that I was - exactly 5 weeks later - back in the same hut I had been 5 weeks earlier. But the previous week I had been in DC, and the week before that Missouri, and the week before that San Diego, and before that Boston

Kelseyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03405774088337551649noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21960668.post-35454596760556564292008-12-16T14:30:00.003-05:002008-12-16T14:46:21.344-05:00

I have just touched down in Boston after 48 hours of travel. I look and smell hideous. The drug dogs stopped me - probably because I smell like goat. The customs guy let me in despite bright red marks put on my papers at passport control - probably mostly out of pity.And all I can think of are the words on the Statue of Liberty which take on new meaning when you actually are the wretched refuse

Kelseyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03405774088337551649noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21960668.post-36996793007349121082008-12-12T01:34:00.002-05:002008-12-12T01:40:48.765-05:00

The Bare Naked Ladies song, 'If I had a million dollars' has been going through my head now for almost 24 hours. Sing it with me if you know the tune..."If I had a 1,000,000 (If I had a 1,000,000) i'd but you a green dress ( but not a real green dress that's cruel) If I had a 1,000,000 (If I had a 1,000,000) I'd but you some art ( A Picasso or a Garfunkel) If I had a 1,000,000 (If I had a

Kelseyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03405774088337551649noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21960668.post-85419098854815274132008-12-11T04:26:00.003-05:002008-12-11T04:41:47.434-05:00

Sometimes I think that my life can't get more bizarre...and then it does. Like this morning when the staff were all singing Christmas carols in the other room a very ugly monkey - standing about 3 foot high - strolls in through the door and takes a seat on the door right out side my office and begins watching me. I find this unacceptable so stand up and pick up a stapler to throw at it. The

Kelseyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03405774088337551649noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21960668.post-31541544719748763602008-12-09T11:23:00.000-05:002008-12-09T11:24:40.816-05:00

Motot is quiet at night. Dead quiet – with the exception of the drums that some drummer out there seems to enjoy playing all night, and the occasional dog barking, or herd of cattle moving around. It is beautiful in it’s complete and utter silence. You can hear people talking across the village. The moon has been full and bright throughout my entire visit so that the night never gets fully dark

Kelseyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03405774088337551649noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21960668.post-53369372655680233642008-12-09T11:19:00.001-05:002008-12-09T11:22:40.998-05:00

There is a Romanian photographer who has published a book called: In the Most Beautiful life and as the plane bumped down in the field site today just like it had hundreds of times before; as the children from the village run up to see who might be disembarking; as staff stood on the airstrip waving as if their lives depended on how effusively they wave; I find myself thinking of the title of

Kelseyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03405774088337551649noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21960668.post-87306037928544619762008-11-28T05:35:00.002-05:002008-11-28T05:46:32.657-05:00

"Mmm...I haven't had goat for seven hours now. Wonder what's for dinner?""How many frogs in the shower is actually too many frogs to shower with?""Is there an actual conspiracy by staff to prevent me from getting any work done by coming into my office every 2.5 minutes?""If the plane doesn't come to get me tomorrow will I burst into tears on the runway?""Would it be considered bad practice to pay

Kelseyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03405774088337551649noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21960668.post-30867853550700261222008-11-25T02:40:00.001-05:002008-11-25T02:57:46.929-05:00

I was glad to receive an e-mail yesterday from our head office saying that anti-venom is on it's way out to the field on our charter this coming Friday. Phew! That's a relief! So if I had been bitten I would only have been dead for six days before the anti-venom arrived. :)

Kelseyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03405774088337551649noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21960668.post-27459814136437598032008-11-24T02:38:00.003-05:002008-11-24T02:57:10.867-05:00

Should you ever find yourself in the unfortunate position of needing to use the latrine in South Sudan at about 9.30 on a pitch-black evening and, upon crossing the compound, you shine your head torch to the right and find – approximately 12 inches from your bare, flip-flopped foot – the highly poisonous Black Mamba I will now give instructions on what to do.1. Freeze and stare2. Back away as

Kelseyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03405774088337551649noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21960668.post-39551754496486644992008-11-20T08:10:00.002-05:002008-11-20T08:16:04.914-05:00

Some days you get to the end of and think...how, exactly, did everything go so wrong? It started out just like every other one. Got up. Checked the floor for cobras. Flicked a dead insect or two off the mossy net. Made some coffee. Read a psalm. Had some bread. Came to the office and then...POW! Everything goes wrong.By four o'clock I had officially declared it: "Storm out of the office day".

Kelseyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03405774088337551649noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21960668.post-35932139026188377222008-11-16T10:32:00.003-05:002008-11-16T10:49:25.777-05:00

I followed my own good advice last night...something I rarely do and it paid off. Let me paint you a picture:It's about 9:30 and I've been reading in my tukul for awhile. I think about getting up to use the latrine but have a debate in my head about whether to wait until morning (there's not much to do here in the field so I find I talk to myself a lot more than normal). I finally decide to just

Kelseyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03405774088337551649noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21960668.post-44563821118232725042008-11-12T09:26:00.003-05:002008-11-12T09:29:48.536-05:00

I sometimes feel like I’m living one of those fourth grade math word problems. You know the kind: if a train leaves Detroit going 40mph and another train leaves New York going 60mph which will get to Paris first? Except my math problems go something like this: If two health staff take two weeks off, and one nutrition nurse takes three weeks off, and you have to keep four people in the main

Kelseyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03405774088337551649noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21960668.post-18378002214436166702008-11-12T09:12:00.000-05:002008-11-12T09:13:24.018-05:00

My watch stopped at 11.12. Standing in the airport our watsan advisor asked me why I was wearing a stopped watch. “I like it,” I said. I didn’t mention that I thought it was appropo of going out to the middle of nowhere the day of the U.S. Election. No electricity, no televisions, no phones, no contact with the rest of the world for a week. It would be like time was standing still. No McCain,

Kelseyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03405774088337551649noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21960668.post-43129402131312387502008-10-28T08:19:00.002-04:002008-10-28T08:22:31.329-04:00

between facilitating Middle East Peace and killing rats you might immediately think: 'killing rats' cause 'hey! it's easier!'I'm here to tell you that you might want to re-think that decision. Think very, very carefully.

Kelseyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03405774088337551649noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21960668.post-9745636170814228222008-10-17T08:45:00.002-04:002008-10-17T09:32:05.634-04:00

As was tactfully pointed out by a dear friend from Chicago I haven’t posted for a month. This is not, you’ll be glad (?) to know, because I have nothing to say but rather because I have too much to say and not enough time to put pen to paper – or fingers to keyboard – to say it.As I write this I am sitting in Loki – one of our support sites in Kenya – where I have just been in a technical

Kelseyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03405774088337551649noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21960668.post-41795316993336841762008-09-11T11:42:00.011-04:002008-09-15T14:05:00.677-04:00

I'm not going to name any names in this blog. Protect the innocent and all that. Just let it be known that I'm even more indebted than usual to my wise teachers...10. If you must drive an SUV for safety and security purposes do make sure it has enough cupholders.9. While your hosts might talk a good game they are actually never going to take you for a picnic by the side of the highway.8. If you

Kelseyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03405774088337551649noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21960668.post-1385261666386943592008-09-04T11:27:00.005-04:002008-09-05T07:20:54.865-04:00

Mark it on your calendars now. Start the countdown. How can you not get on board with something that has such an adorable logo?

Kelseyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03405774088337551649noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21960668.post-58032841022666070002008-08-28T12:14:00.002-04:002008-08-28T12:16:47.509-04:00

Livingstone to be Chavez advisorDespite Boris' completely nerdy appearance at the Olympics closing ceremony it appears that I'll now be leaving Ken for good.

Kelseyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03405774088337551649noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21960668.post-17190864285089714602008-08-28T06:28:00.001-04:002008-08-28T06:39:38.188-04:00

BBC reporting on our Tieraliet site here.

Kelseyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03405774088337551649noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21960668.post-46968031192952130282008-08-25T11:01:00.003-04:002008-08-25T11:09:07.720-04:00

Well today was a momentous day. I got my 'New Sudan' driver's license which means that after 2 1/2 months here I am legally allowed to hit the road. What I found rather amusing is that it enables me to drive motorcycles, motor cars, medium good vehicles, heavy tractors, heavy goods vehicles, and light omnibuses that do not exceed 20 passengers.So, when I tire of this humanitarian gig you might

Kelseyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03405774088337551649noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21960668.post-65011962617260483362008-08-22T14:22:00.002-04:002008-08-22T14:44:02.357-04:00

I am listening to a song right now by Cobalt Season that's called, 'Careful not to draw your maps in pen and ink'. The lyrics go:You are gonna change your mind somedaySo just let go of all your thoughts on tomorrowYou may find your bearings in disarrayThough you may lead and trip and fall and followAnd all that you thought black will be proved redFull of life and complication and sorrowAnd all

Kelseyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03405774088337551649noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21960668.post-72001082318484044882008-08-16T04:03:00.003-04:002008-08-16T05:01:24.056-04:00

Apparently, I have a stomach bug. This is not surprising. My stomach and intestinal track have played host to countless number of little bugs, worms and parasites over the past ten years or so. I like to think that we have a cozy sort of arrangement. They're welcome to pass through as long as they don't stick around, or cause me any major discomfort for over - say, a two day period. I mean, it's

Kelseyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03405774088337551649noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21960668.post-71684752778837021252008-08-07T10:48:00.002-04:002008-08-07T10:57:50.234-04:00

Today I was at the U.S. Embassy in Nairobi for the 10 year anniversary of the bombing in which 46 staff were killed. The event started with the marines playing Taps which got me thinking about how music so easily strikes an emotion. I mean, is Taps an inherently sad song or have I just seen and heard it at enough sad events that it's inextricably linked to sadness. Same with Amazing Grace played

Kelseyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03405774088337551649noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21960668.post-10319011901888745692008-08-03T23:48:00.002-04:002008-08-03T23:59:30.020-04:00

It is a sad day. If you have not yet read the Gulag Archipelago or A Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovitch you should stop what you are doing right now and go buy them."For a country to have a great writer is like having a second government. That is why no regime has ever loved great writers, only minor ones."One obituary is here.

Kelseyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03405774088337551649noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21960668.post-11438613676936825302008-07-30T02:02:00.003-04:002008-07-30T02:15:06.384-04:00

When I finally got around to eating last night I found several of my colleagues sitting - plates in lap - watching the food channel. Correction: torturing themselves with the food channel. Nigella was on with her lilting accent making some sort of salad which involved blueberries. It was almost physically painful to watch. But what amazed me was that - even as I sat picking at my cold, fried fish

Kelseyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03405774088337551649noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21960668.post-50619546322247395622008-07-26T04:31:00.003-04:002008-07-26T04:35:25.961-04:00

Seriously. Good stuff: He ventured forth to bring light to the world.

Kelseyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03405774088337551649noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21960668.post-83917703458987341022008-07-21T11:14:00.002-04:002008-07-21T12:29:36.012-04:00

There is lizard poo all over my bed. For you long time readers you'll note a trend. A wildcat pooed on my bed in Indonesia. A hedgehog in Darfur. And now, I seem to have a lizard pooing on my bed here. Or several lizards because it's impossible that one benign, reptile can be creating the amount of poo there is on the bed. In fact, I suspect that an entire lizard clan is up there aiming their

Kelseyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03405774088337551649noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21960668.post-63415422015981633152008-07-19T04:46:00.006-04:002008-07-19T05:37:30.055-04:00

It’s also a river in Sudan. While the source of ‘de nile’ is still up for debate what is clear is that it flows out of Uganda and into South Sudan where it spreads its fingers out in thousands of tributaries and inlets that make much of the surrounding area a vast, lazy swamp. Somehow, it manages to pull its act together again somewhere prior to hitting Khartoum where it meets the Blue Nile and

Kelseyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03405774088337551649noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21960668.post-56137272203179625902008-07-18T05:38:00.000-04:002008-07-19T05:45:52.163-04:00

While I was in Shilluk three disconcerting things happened. The first was the attack on the peacekeepers in Darfur which has led to the subsequent pull-out of all non-essential staff (why ‘essential’ staff stay to get shot at is something that has never made much sense to me). Everyone is denying that they had anything to do with it.The second is that Sudan conducted a census in order to figure

Kelseyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03405774088337551649noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21960668.post-66357010871116914662008-07-12T05:47:00.000-04:002008-07-20T04:14:24.466-04:00

I managed to escape Juba where birthday tradition dictates that you get doused with water at some unsuspecting point during your day and thought I would keep things mum in Kodok to avoid any other unusual birthday traditions. This plan went well until I spoke to my boss by sat phone in the morning.‘Happy Birthday!’ she announced. ‘How’s it going?’‘Great!’ I replied. ‘Got a couple of e-mails and

Kelseyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03405774088337551649noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21960668.post-5291740435140860082008-07-04T07:50:00.004-04:002008-07-04T12:25:01.937-04:00

The land rover is about to pull out of the compound with our health team in the back, lined up on seats like school children on a bus headed for school. They are going to our health clinic in Panthau. “Please tell Agam that we said hello,” I told Dr. James, a cheerful man and brilliant doctor from Uganda. “I will,” he promised. “I will send her consolidarity.” Agam came to our clinic

Kelseyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03405774088337551649noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21960668.post-40078179567382843192008-07-04T07:10:00.001-04:002008-07-04T07:48:29.635-04:00

5:30am: The sun is not yet up and it is already hot. The generator is not on so the still air inside my tukel has grown even hotter. I hear the scuff, scuff of the water man dragging his feet pushing his heavy wheelbarrow outside my wire mesh window. He unloads four or five 25 gallon plastic jugs of water, dropping them on the ground with a thump. I open my eyes and ensure that my mosquito net is

Kelseyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03405774088337551649noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21960668.post-79438428858379734792008-07-03T02:22:00.003-04:002008-07-03T02:27:55.377-04:00

Have you ever wondered how difficult it would be to simply disappear? Not very, let me tell you. Ok, so maybe in the states or Europe it wouldn’t be incredibly easy but if you are willing to live in Sudan you can be gone….easily…poof…just like that. I have this thought because I am in Rumbek which you have probably never heard of and neither had I until WFP unceremoniously dumped me, and the six

Kelseyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03405774088337551649noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21960668.post-25048942325774065172008-07-03T02:16:00.001-04:002008-07-03T02:20:54.801-04:00

We left Lokichoggio before dawn. Or, Loki as it is called. This outpost Kenyan town that looks like most outpost African towns with men idling in front of dilapidated shops and children running barefoot rolling tires. The only difference being that I am here. And thousands others like me. Flying in and out of this border post as we make our way into Sudan. Today, we were flying a MAF charter

Kelseyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03405774088337551649noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21960668.post-68274483341368474132008-06-15T17:11:00.003-04:002008-06-15T17:54:38.648-04:00

Steri Pen. Handheld UV light water purified. Will someone please buy this for me and the other 1.7 billion people without access to clean drinking water?Seriously. We've got a cholera outbreak in Juba and a Hep E outbreak in Kitgum. I could do some wicked good with about 1000 of these and a team of trainers.

Kelseyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03405774088337551649noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21960668.post-24550936972992975902008-06-15T12:21:00.004-04:002008-06-15T12:28:13.813-04:00

Well, of course there are more than that. But stick with me on this one... There are the type that like round-trip tickets and the type that prefer one-way tickets.I like to think of myself in the former category. You're still going somewhere but you always have the safety of coming back, getting out, an end of the road, so to speak. I never saw the charm in the one-way, open ended sort of

Kelseyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03405774088337551649noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21960668.post-77121005081546875562008-06-12T14:50:00.002-04:002008-06-12T15:34:25.613-04:00

I was in a briefing today with the head of logistics. An energetic and talkative British man who, at the time, was describing to me the various varmits (rats, spiders, scorpions) that one would need to kill at any given time in South Sudan. The talk turned to snakes and he clasps his hands together earnestly and says, "There are snakes, you know. Huge snakes. Pythons.""Really?" I say. "Like how

Kelseyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03405774088337551649noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21960668.post-27583429189198413522008-06-10T16:17:00.001-04:002008-06-10T16:19:58.445-04:00

Hello there, to all of you who have inquired, I am in London and not in Khartoum so don't worry. :)

Kelseyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03405774088337551649noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21960668.post-6660312699561861672008-06-09T04:49:00.001-04:002008-06-09T04:51:00.315-04:00

Ah, the eternal dilemma. I didn't sleep on the plane coming over and don't have meetings until this afternoon. Do I take a snooze for a few hours this morning and risk not being able to sleep tonight or do I plow through in a haze?

Kelseyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03405774088337551649noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21960668.post-6181670483961921302008-05-21T22:32:00.002-04:002008-05-21T22:34:48.292-04:00

Posting of October 20th, last year / this article: Is Sudan collapsing into war at Abeyei? Well, you get the idea.

Kelseyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03405774088337551649noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21960668.post-28287742389150548152008-05-18T12:39:00.003-04:002008-05-18T12:40:30.039-04:00

Well, it looks like I will be going to South Sudan for the next several months. Will be based in Juba...so this is Juba's heads-up to break out the welcome wagon! (And by welcome wagon I do not mean the 'armed robbery' kind. Let's try to avoid that for the time being, shall we?)

Kelseyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03405774088337551649noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21960668.post-83967586480498388452008-05-12T18:47:00.001-04:002008-05-12T18:48:53.589-04:00

From the new Rough Guide travel guide for England:"The writers confess to bafflement over the quirky English, concluding that of the 200 countries the guide reviews there is none 'so fascinating, beautiful and culturally diverse yet as insular, self-important and irritating as England'."

Kelseyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03405774088337551649noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21960668.post-73476623448308860732008-05-07T00:06:00.002-04:002008-05-07T00:14:18.024-04:00

I was reminded of Antjie Krog's excellent book, Country of My Skull: Guilt, Sorrow, and the Limits of Forgiveness in the New South Africa, this evening and so reread some. Here's a great part:“And I wonder: God. Does he hear us? Does he know what our hearts are yearning for? That we all just want to be human beings ... some with more colour, some with less, but all with air and sun. And I wade

Kelseyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03405774088337551649noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21960668.post-4841756834458989272008-05-03T10:56:00.002-04:002008-05-03T10:59:52.812-04:00

Poor Ken! I tried to tell him this would happen if Bus#1 continued to run late. But did he listen? And now this...Johnson signs on for mayor's job

Kelseyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03405774088337551649noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21960668.post-15873076374155168912008-04-22T23:47:00.003-04:002008-04-22T23:59:30.835-04:00

Go here where you can see this and another video. A shout-out of thanks to Mike who knows very cool people and tends to share!Coming of AgeThe days are gone for the walkin’ awayThe sun sets fast at the end of the dayEveryone I know is still runnin’ aroundTry to outrun the runnin’ ‘fore it takes ‘em down They all came from some place that I never knewA house with a window and a room with a viewBut

Kelseyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03405774088337551649noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21960668.post-76900380696803151632008-04-22T23:02:00.002-04:002008-04-22T23:36:56.407-04:00

After having been out of the States for awhile, I have returned to be taken aback by our new obsession with round-the-clock news that has been mixed with a reality-TV-voyeurism and a Facebook narcissism that results in what can only be described as journarcivoyerism [pronounced: jour-nar-si-voy-yer-ism].And by that I mean this....the news is no longer something we watch to become informed. We

Kelseyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03405774088337551649noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21960668.post-9588897898512824342008-04-12T23:51:00.001-04:002008-04-12T23:52:55.255-04:00

For those of you following the mouse saga: I haven't seen, nor heard, him today. Dare I hope?

Kelseyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03405774088337551649noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21960668.post-36804865830862231232008-04-10T00:08:00.003-04:002008-04-10T00:11:54.639-04:00

Incidentally. One day later I am watching him climb in and out, in and out of the box of poison having a little munch here and there. Actually, it has been more like brunch, a mid-morning snack, 11-sies, afternoon tea, a small appetizer, an after-dinner nibble, and a midnight snack. Remind me never to buy stock in rat poison companies.

Kelseyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03405774088337551649noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21960668.post-2372612533888849692008-04-08T23:49:00.002-04:002008-04-09T00:10:12.986-04:00

I am typing this very, very slowly and quietly. Mostly because I am watching a mouse die. It doesn't know it's dying yet. It's been running around on the kitchen countertop and stove for the past half an hour with flagrant disregard for the deal that was struck in time immemorial between humans and 'pests'. That is, they walk all over our plates, cutlery, and food at night and don't leave

Kelseyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03405774088337551649noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21960668.post-74023135628701690362008-03-29T20:57:00.004-04:002008-03-31T13:32:36.831-04:00

I hadn't intended to have anything with the opening of Terminal 5 but I have always had a secret dream (you're going to be deeply disappointed by my mundane dream life). The dream goes a little something like this: I am the sort of person that possesses skills that are so inherently valuable, marketable and desirable that NGOs call me up and say, 'Get on the next plane to [insert foreign

Kelseyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03405774088337551649noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21960668.post-83132895052565540162008-03-17T21:29:00.012-04:002008-03-18T03:22:30.429-04:00

Well, tomorrow we're going to call it a rap on the past six months in Indonesia. Headed for London and then the States wherein I will - most likely - sink into the blogging doldrums. When I have a new job somewhere I'll be back. Here's some random pics from the last months (if you look at one a week you might not notice that I've stopped blogging):Meulaboh Grand Mosque:Playing Frisbee: Closedown

Kelseyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03405774088337551649noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21960668.post-9876648975024628552008-03-12T22:03:00.001-04:002008-03-12T22:05:39.954-04:00

Rumours of the demise of gingas has been greatly exagerrated...http://science.howstuffworks.com/redhead-extinction.htmThis means you can stop forwarding the articles to me. Thank you.

Kelseyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03405774088337551649noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21960668.post-85586391402991347532008-03-05T09:46:00.002-05:002008-03-05T11:22:09.661-05:00

So I was walking along today and out of the corner of my eye thought I saw a snake. 'Hmmm...' I thought, 'this is a good life lesson. If you see something that looks like a snake it probably is.'I'm making this life lesson number #1. For posterity, I will now record other life lessons learned in the field - in no particular order:#2: Do not stand on well covers.#3: Everything is better with bacon

Kelseyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03405774088337551649noreply@blogger.com0