Ghana - Player's Ball

It's time to update the cast of player's in this romantic comedy so you guys have at least some clue what is going on when I commence those adventurously prolific accounts of hauteur as promised some weeks ago. Here's your cheat sheet.

Mac is gone to South Africa, will return in about two weeks.

Kendra is gone home to California. She forwarded me a few pictures which I should in return forward to you all shortly.

Mary is a volunteer out of Minnesota who is located in Aka-tsi in the Volta Region, and would have been my homestay sister had I not stayed in Accra (to be explained in an email shortly). I met her when she came to visit Accra with Kendra some weeks ago and will probably end up traveling with her sometime in April.

Amanda and Kate were two new volunteers who arrived this week, 25 from Minnesota and 19 from DC respectively. Amanda stayed in Accra and is my new housemate and Kate left for Volta Region soon after arriving. Word on the street is that she's not liking her new place as much, and may come back.

Eddy is my new boss at the West Africa Aids Foundation (WAAF; www.waafweb.org). He's a jovial guy who lived in California for twenty years, speaks with a British twinge, and has a penchant for working himself into a tizzy. I like him.

Emily, Joanne, Janet, and Jennifer are four co-volunteers I like to term the "lifers". They all have some connection to Ghana beyond a mild interest and are each here for a minimum of 6 months, making my stay here a blip on their radars. Despite what amounts to patient amusement with regard to my efforts, they all sincerely committed to what they do and I have nothing but the greatest respect for their work. These are the kind souls the world needs more of. Minus Jennifer, they are all Canadians. Go figure.

Lee the Australian is my true partner in crime. She's also doing a two month stint here on the same time line as me. She's somehow managed to be a uni grad at 21 (I think Australia has a 3-year system), and came to Ghana to put her marketing education to good use in HIV/AIDS public awareness campaigns. Like Kevin, with high hopes and great enthusiasm, but not the least idea for what "Ghana time" really means. To make a long story short (you'll get the long later) we have a lot of free time together and spend that time either brainstorming adventures or carrying them out. She is remarkable if simply because we've spent X number of days together in crammed quarters and have yet to try to kill each other.

Fifi, Emmanuel, Joyce, Belinda, Frank, Kakra and Precious are all Ghanaians with some connection or other to WAAF, but whether or not they're actually gainfully employed there is up to debate.

That should cover just about everyone for the next few emails, in addition to those members of Big Mama's family from the first email set. Get ready for, in particular, Best and Worst Days Ever and It's a Rosta's World some time in the near future.