How I'm on the internet most of the week...

So, as most of y'all know, internet isn't available in my village and it requires me to be in Lome, the national capital, in order to do so. So, no I'm not in the Posh Corps, where I have wireless internet in a walled-in 7 bedroom compound with electricty. Well... actually, I just don't have the internet, the others I have. That being said, I've been in Lome a lot this week. By a lot, I mean, 4 days out of the week alot. I can't believe I'm being this honest over the internet when inevitably, my country director will read my entries. "Hi Country Director, and no I'm not in Lome trying to use government funds to post informative, entertaining but otherwise pointless blogs....I promise." Okay,with that out of the way, the reason why I've been in Lome is because of the following;

1) I went to Lome on Monday because I had to do some research at the Chamber of Commerce regarding the necesssary steps a small business should take to formalize and to start exporting, which by the way, was long and almost completely fruitless. These people try to charge 40,000 F ( which is $80 ) for a book full of tax laws that businesses have to pay to import. So, in essence, you have to pay for you to know how much you have to pay... right. All in all, for 3 hours worth of work to get there, get beauracratically slapped across the face, and have my PCV friend Matt dressed in a black, oversized, swedish tourist shirt with a heart and dagger, bright blue pj pants with green swirly whirlies and shower slippers translate for me to some director ( which was highly embarrasing because, well, who wears shower slippers to speak with a director at the chamber of commerce...which was actually 100% my fault:), I left the place with one photocopied piece of paper, which didn't even tell me what I needed to know. I do, however now know that swedish tourist shirts don't give you the respect you command in a professional setting.

2) I went to Lome on Tuesday, I went to Lome because my mom called me monday night telling me she hasn't been getting some of my student loan forms. Well, hot diggity dog that sucked. SoI took the first taxi down there the next morning to go online to fix some of the issues that were going on with that.

3) I came yesterday, Thursday, because my finger got infected where there were no apparent cuts... and then my right eye became swollen, watery and red, and I proceeded to get a 100 degree fever, which I wasn't even aware of. I love Togo and it's random acts of kindess and gifts... Anyway, I got antibiotics, and it ended up that my cornea was all nice and scratched up. SO, the medical officer told me to stay in Lome, so I can get checked on Friday.

4), Friday, today, I am in Lome writing to you with one eye open and the other eye closed, looking like I'm trying to score a date with the computer, while simultaneously crying out of my corneally scratched right eye because I know that even the computer will reject my advances, and with my left index finger swollen, near bursting on the keyboard. Yum. I'm also trying to see if I can get to village via the Peace Corps land cruiser instead of continuing the trend of spending half my living allowance on fattening the pockets of taxi drivers. Suckling off the U.S. governments teet. How un...republican. Anyway, it's to the point now when drivers see me, they screech to a halt and ask if I'm going to Lome again...and let me tell you about taxis in Togo... well that's an entire entry in and of itself.

So, those are the reasons why I was in Lome so often! Anywho, I don't think that my luxury of using the net almost everyday of the week will continue. That being said, I'll post entries around once between one to two weeks. I miss all of you! God Bless!