2009-03-23~2009-04-06
Well, one of the reasons I haven’t posted so far is because the charger for my laptop, along with a bunch of other electronics was left in the taxi I took back to my site. Supposedly it got dropped off at the provincial house; however I haven’t been able to get to Chipata since then. Hopefully I will be able to go sometime this week. Another reason I need to head there is because I am trying to build an irrigation system for my demo plot before the dry season starts in earnest. I got a 200L barrel and about 16-17m of house however I still need to either get a lot more hose and try to design a pump, or get about 300m of strong rope and a bunch of pails. If I had more time, I would try to apply for a PC grant; however by the time one would be approved, my vegetables would have dried up and blown away.
Yesterday… THE CHISWE’s INVADED! I was walking behind my hut when I saw, as I have seen several times before, a line of ants moving in a narrow steam. In passing I hoped that they didn’t come into my hut but it wasn’t until I was surrounded by them that I realized that there hundreds of thousands or maybe millions of them. And that they were red ants. And that they were angry. I quickly made my escape, but not before they had begun occupying my entire body. After having taken off my cloths, picked the little buggers off me, and given my cloths a hardy shaking, I headed back out to face my foes. In the short time I had been in my hut they had almost entirely encircled the house and were demolishing virtually everything living. A villager had some meali-meal she was spreading out in a line to try to prevent their advancement but I realized more drastic measures were required so I was glad I had bought some ant spray, at the time to try to prevent termites (to little success). This eventually did the trick. Realizing that they were facing a mighty adversary, they eventually retreated. Just as fast as the countless tiny fiends had come, so they vanished, leaving not a living one in site. I wish I had a picture of the reddish black ground to show of the hero pyrethrum isotopes really are.