home stretch?

Well, looks like I might be getting my wish of losing weight here, despite the bad start these first few weeks…. Think I had some bad Italian last night, and I’m hurting today! The food was excellent, but maybe I should pay more heed to the advice of not having too much salad or raw fish in Africa, since those kinds of foods might not always be the freshest…although I figured I was probably safe eating at one of the Sheraton restaurants. Oh well, there went my Sunday plans to get out of the city and take in some of the natural sights around here! At least Wednesday is a national holiday, so hopefully I’ll be feeling better then and can explore a little more!



It’s also been raining a lot the past two days, so probably couldn’t have done too much outdoors anyways. Started hailing like crazy yesterday afternoon and the storm cut off electricity a few times here…luckily the hotel has back-up generators on hand to make sure guests aren’t too uncomfortable… Plus staying inside just gives me more time to get work done in my hotel room/office, I guess…

Figure I must be doing something right since I’ve now had an offer from one of IRI’s partner organizations to stay in Ethiopia through the May 15 elections…. I’d be involved in long-term observation out in the boonies, probably in the southern regions, talking and interviewing local officials and residents, finding out what the conditions are like in advance of elections. Not sure I’m cut out for roughing it like that though….and for another two months! Part of me is definitely ready to go home, this whole working-all-the-time thing is starting to wear thin…but another part of me would love to stay on and at least see the outcome of the elections, see if all of this activity actually results in anything. And life in Addis can actually be pretty fun with all the expats around, and I’d look forward to getting to know the country better too. Then again, I didn’t come prepared to stay more than a month, and I’d need to file my taxes while I’m out here, among other things!! Perhaps the U.S. Embassy could come in handy here…

So once again, time to make a serious decision, something I really hate doing these days, especially when it concerns what I want to do with my life! In the grand scheme of things two months isn’t so much, but I really wonder if I have it in me, somewhat cut off from civilization as I know it. It’s strange because I never had these concerns when I spent those months in Kenya and Sudan, but I think it’s because I cared a lot more back then…. It’s somewhat harsh and perhaps a bit melodramatic, but I definitely feel much more disillusioned and jaded about development work now, which makes it difficult to sustain any sort of enthusiasm or excitement about what I’m doing.

Okay okay, enough introspective reflections!! I’ll let you all know whether I’m going back to the U.S. or sticking it out for another few months….ahhh!!