today's lesson: what happens to white girls in the heat.
today, while teaching my friday morning sex ed class, i totally passed out from heat stroke. having never ACTUALLY fainted before in my life, this was a bit of an adventure for me. not to mention for the classroom of 9-12 year olds who were just starting to get used to having an oyibo talk to them about puberty and sex.
fortunately, now that i'm feeling better (combination of water, fans, air conditioning, and sleep), the whole thing is kind of amusing.
"Now, kids, who can tell me what 'sexual intercourse' means?" ... BOOM.
the experience of fainting was odd, too. you totally don't feel it coming. over the course of that one sentence, i went from completely fine to nauseated, then dizzy, then my vision blurred, and my hearing went tinny, and then everything went black. i woke up in the headmistresses office, with some very concerned looking 12 year olds keeping an eye on me, then handing me a bottle of water. mostly i feel bad for alice, who had to finish today's lesson on her own, even though she's tired and not feeling well also. the heat is getting to everyone, and the power company has started teasing us -- the bring power long enough for us to get up off the couch, turn off the generator and turn on the air conditioner, then settle back down. i think we've had power for maybe ten minutes a couple of times this week. and with no hope for improvement before the election, even my host family is talking about buying a bigger generator that can power the ac. i just want it to rain.
but now, before i climb into bed for the night, a meme. 'cause apparently my sister doesn't think the face that i'm in AFRICA excuses me from such things.
1. One book that changed your life.
honestly, as nerdy as it makes me sound, Foucault's History of Sexuality. go social construction!
2. One book you have read more than once.
i reread several books every year, but tops ont he list are John Irving's The World According to Garp, Vonnegut's God Bless You, Mr. Rosewater, and James Baldwin's Another Country.
3. One book you would want on a desert island.
i can't really narrow it down to one. i think the three above would be a good start. but knowing me, i'd want a complete works of either baldwin or vonnegut.
4. One book that made you laugh.
Edward Gorey's The Gashlycrumb Tinies. or really, anything Gorey.
5. One book that made you cry.
Waris Dirie's Desert Flower. I dare you to read a true story about FGM and not cry.
6. One book you wish had been written.
the thing is, i'm sure that most of the books i want to read have probably been written, i just haven't found them yet.
7. One book you wish had never been written.
it's gonna get me in trouble, but most religious texts. anything claiming to be the exclusive word of god usually leads to trouble.
8. One book you are currently reading.
The Cruelest Journey, by Kira Salak. it's about a woman's kayak trip down the niger river. when in rome...
9. One book you have been meaning to read.
i am cynically amused by the unwitting similarity between my sister and myself. i've been working my way through Ulysses for about 2 years now, and i think i'm all of 100 pages in. needless to say, i didn't bring it to africa with me.
10. Tag five people for this meme. like anyone responds to me anyway (ahem all my friends who should have commented on the cry for affection in my last post). but still: bekah, gautam, nomi, tim, and mac.
fortunately, now that i'm feeling better (combination of water, fans, air conditioning, and sleep), the whole thing is kind of amusing.
"Now, kids, who can tell me what 'sexual intercourse' means?" ... BOOM.
the experience of fainting was odd, too. you totally don't feel it coming. over the course of that one sentence, i went from completely fine to nauseated, then dizzy, then my vision blurred, and my hearing went tinny, and then everything went black. i woke up in the headmistresses office, with some very concerned looking 12 year olds keeping an eye on me, then handing me a bottle of water. mostly i feel bad for alice, who had to finish today's lesson on her own, even though she's tired and not feeling well also. the heat is getting to everyone, and the power company has started teasing us -- the bring power long enough for us to get up off the couch, turn off the generator and turn on the air conditioner, then settle back down. i think we've had power for maybe ten minutes a couple of times this week. and with no hope for improvement before the election, even my host family is talking about buying a bigger generator that can power the ac. i just want it to rain.
but now, before i climb into bed for the night, a meme. 'cause apparently my sister doesn't think the face that i'm in AFRICA excuses me from such things.
1. One book that changed your life.
honestly, as nerdy as it makes me sound, Foucault's History of Sexuality. go social construction!
2. One book you have read more than once.
i reread several books every year, but tops ont he list are John Irving's The World According to Garp, Vonnegut's God Bless You, Mr. Rosewater, and James Baldwin's Another Country.
3. One book you would want on a desert island.
i can't really narrow it down to one. i think the three above would be a good start. but knowing me, i'd want a complete works of either baldwin or vonnegut.
4. One book that made you laugh.
Edward Gorey's The Gashlycrumb Tinies. or really, anything Gorey.
5. One book that made you cry.
Waris Dirie's Desert Flower. I dare you to read a true story about FGM and not cry.
6. One book you wish had been written.
the thing is, i'm sure that most of the books i want to read have probably been written, i just haven't found them yet.
7. One book you wish had never been written.
it's gonna get me in trouble, but most religious texts. anything claiming to be the exclusive word of god usually leads to trouble.
8. One book you are currently reading.
The Cruelest Journey, by Kira Salak. it's about a woman's kayak trip down the niger river. when in rome...
9. One book you have been meaning to read.
i am cynically amused by the unwitting similarity between my sister and myself. i've been working my way through Ulysses for about 2 years now, and i think i'm all of 100 pages in. needless to say, i didn't bring it to africa with me.
10. Tag five people for this meme. like anyone responds to me anyway (ahem all my friends who should have commented on the cry for affection in my last post). but still: bekah, gautam, nomi, tim, and mac.