this and that...

here are some small joys and observations from Kolakta. it may seem a bit disjointed, but i'm afraid that if i don't post these now then i'll forget them. i think sometimes it the little things...that give you joy...that frustrate you. and if i can share some of the sweet little tidbits of life, well, it will help you understand life here a little bit better...(and maybe make you smile)

on Monday there was an all-India strike. all stores, businesses, schools and transportation shut down. i live on a busy street, but on Monday i saw 2 pick up soccer games in the street. the rules seemed to be "play off anything." it was fun to watch them play off the cars parked on the side of the road. i also saw a man riding a bicycle using an umbrella for shade. and 3 adult men on a motorcycle together (i see this a lot...but i think its funny every time).

the other day Sheila and i were riding on a commuter train (when we went out to the prevention unit). it was raining on our way home (and the train wasn't very crowded). we closed the windows, but rain was still coming in through the door (and it hurt) - suddenly all the ladies put up their umbrellas. it was awesome..

often you see people walking around with umbrellas for shade. the other day i was walking and it was really sunny. i saw people with their umbrellas out, was carrying mine in case it rained - so i decided to give it a try - i mean, it couldn't be hotter than walking in the bright sun. i don't know that i'll make a habit of it, but was fun to try.

when you get tea on the street they give it to you in a little clay cup, and disposable plates are made out of dried leaves that are pressed and sewn together...the earth friendly version of disposable.

the other night i overheard two bengalis talking - about cold water. one said to the other, "oh, i am very afraid of drinking cold water." "yes," replied the other, "it is very dangerous, you will break your throat" - that's how they say get a sore throat, and its a very commonly held belief that if you drink cold water you will get sick. it was just funny to hear a grown man say he was afraid of cold water...

at Sari Bari the ladies have little needle threaders (to help thread the needles - pretty important when your job is to sew). they call it "the machine" (actually saying machine in english). i'll hear them say, "machine dao" (give me the machine) or "machine kothay" (where is the machine). at first i couldn't figure out what they were talking about, but then i figured it out...and i love it, and it makes me smile.

i've mentioned the nap over the lunch hour at sari bari...recently i noticed that lots of ladies use bricks as pillows during nap time. there are pillows available, but they don't want them. i'm not quite ready to try the brick-pillow option.

the other day one of my indian friends came over for dinner. we were hanging out and i had her try on my sunglasses. then she went and showed the others in the house. it was hilarious. that night i walked with her home, and we walked hand in hand...and we got just a bit lost/ended up taking the long way home - but it was nice. walking with a friend...nice

i've mentioned our downstairs neighbors before. our water pump is downstairs, and water only runs at certain times of the day. we (and by we i mean people who have lived in this flat over hte past few years) used to have to walk downstairs to pump our water at the right times, and it wasn't convenient. sometimes water would run out cause no one was home to pump the water when the water was running. somehow over the years a mutually beneficial agreement has been reached...they pump our water for us (which means we don't run out) and we charge their cell phones for us. everybody wins. i love the economy where water pumping and cell phone charging are an equal exchange.

in critter news - our rat/mouse did die...but contrary to what the package said our mouse died inside. the "death smell" coming out of the storage room was our first clue...now we just need to get rid of it...

also, as "fair warning" i leave for the states today, and will be in Omaha until July 22 at the WMF staff gathering (YEAH!)...probably won't be blogging much the next few weeks...