“I never knew of a morning in Africa when I woke up that I was not happy.”
At 74° the morning was a bit cooler than lately. The sun comes and goes. The day is still, quiet. Nala is out. Henry is sleeping upstairs on my bed, his favorite napping spot. It is a lazy day all around.
My muse is on vacation. I have started and erased several different openings. None have caught fire. I stalled each time. Ghana is my back-up.
My house, one side of a duplex, was on school grounds, Women’s Training College, in Bolgatanga. It was brand new. It had four inside rooms: the living room, my bedroom, a spare room with my desk and an eating area with a table and a couple of chairs and the fridge. In the courtyard outside was the faucet, a shower, cold water only, a toilet room, the actual kitchen with a stove I never used, and a room for Thomas, who worked for me. I always felt lucky, maybe a little guilty. I had water and electricity.
I had no TV and no radio. I had a cassette player and a few cassettes: Peter, Paul and Mary, Joni Mitchell, CSN&Y and Simon and Garfunkel. I also had a mixed tape my sister made for me.
All my classes were in the morning. I taught the second years. In between classes I’d go home and sit outside and drink a cup of coffee. During my off time I’d sometimes go shopping in town, but mostly I read book after book.
Every night, the watchman made his rounds before he’d fall asleep by the fire. He’d stop at my house for ice water. He didn’t speak any English.
The nights were quiet and dark. I always slept soundly. I was up early as I usually went to bed early.
After I bought my moto, I traveled on the backroads with a can of gas bungeed on the back, just in case. The road weren’t paved. They were dusty in the dry season and tamped down in the rainy season. I loved exploring far afield, and I suspect the sight of a white lady on a motorcycle on a way back road stopped people in their tracks. The ones I saw walking on the road always waved.
I was never bored. Every day was exciting. Every day I woke up in Africa. Every day I was amazed.
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July 22, 2023 at 6:53 pm
Hi Kat,
We had a reprieve from the triple digit temperatures the humidity is low and the high temperatures only reached a pleasant 93°.
Today we picked up my daughter and brought her over to spend the night. My better half and she are going to see the Barbie movie tomorrow morning. Thankfully, I can stay home. 🙂 Later in the week my wife and I can go to see Oppenheimer.
Last night and today, the Rangers played the LA Dodgers at home and lost both games to sellout crowds. There’s a reason that the Dodgers have been in the playoffs for the last ten years. At least we have day baseball in the summer time since the roof is closed at Globe Life Field and the temperature inside is a pleasant air conditioned 74°.
July 22, 2023 at 9:44 pm
Hi Bob,
You probably needed a long sleeve shirt!! The weather reports are ghastly. The heat will last for a while more and is headed this way. Yesterday Boston and the area around Boston got so much rain that water was cascading own the inside steps of Fenway and the concourse was flooded. We didn’t get a drop of it.
Barbie came well after me. My sisters each had a few. I have one, a gift. It is Ghanaian Barbie.
The Sox played yesterday afternoon but it was delayed because of rain. They played the rest of it today and another game tonight, the originally scheduled game. The Sox lost the first but won the second. The bleachers at Fenway have to be miserable in the heat.
July 23, 2023 at 12:05 am
Imagine the heat in the bleachers at the old outdoor ballpark in Arlington if they played a day game when the temperature is 105° or hotter.
In 1974, I had a press pass to the old Arlington Stadium which was an outdoor ballpark. I saw a day game on a weekday in July when the temperature was over the century mark. There were maybe 100 fans in the stands. The field temperature was over 110°. I saw Nolan Ryan pitch a complete game for the Angels and beat the hapless Rangers. I watched from the air conditioned press box. When they announce the official attendance at a major league baseball game, they count all the season ticket holders even if they don’t show up.
July 23, 2023 at 12:34 am
It never gets that hot except maybe once a season. It does get into the 90’s in Boston but not usually down here. The cape has the premier college baseball league in the whole country. Many major leaguers played here. Every game is at night.
Up until last season when the Sox were awful, every seat in the park is sold out. That can not only be attributed to the fan base but also because the park is so small compared to all the other parks.