Tying Loose Ends

It's hard to believe that it's already mid-October. This week was my last week of classes (not officially) and I helped my students prepare for their group presentations this upcoming week. The last week of October is a "tying loose ends" sort of week, with students working on their digital projects and their final research paper.

After driving through the Northern Cape, Botswana, and Namibia, my windshield was speckled with small chips from rocks. As the weather has warmed and I've gone over bumps, the chips have started to crack. Unlike in the US, the insurance will not cover for filling in cracks (preventative) or replacing the windshield. You may recall that I replaced my windshield in March, when a huge rock cracked my window on my way to Gaborone. In any event, I had to replace the windshield before selling my car - it's not aesthetically pleasing and well, the car would not pass the "roadworthy test" when the future buyer tries to register the car. I found a company in March that I was able to negotiate with and called them again. No problem, they would be to my office by 12:00 on Tuesday. 12:30 rolled around and I received a call from the secretary who said that they were running late (no kidding!) - the job they were at was taking longer than expected. They told me that they would be there between 2:30 - 3:00. Fine, I had the afternoon free. Not fine, I receive another call at 3:05, they are stuck in traffic, but would be there by 3:30…African time kicked in and they arrived at 5:00 to replace my windshield (only 5 hours late!).

I've started to advertise selling my car, as I don’t anticipate having it for more than a month more (of course, because I'm leaving). In any event, I've put up advertisements on South Africa's version of Craig's List and signs on my car. One of the lecturers at Wits put me in contact with a family friend (an American) who was interested in my car. We organized a viewing…which to her surprise, she saw that my car is a two door. I guess sending pictures and information about the car didn't clarify that (ironic). The selling continues! It's just a anxious process because I still need my car for a month and I have an odd schedule with traveling around before leaving… plus, who wants to buy a car and have to wait a month to get it?

One of the Fulbrighter's posted this video on Facebook and I found it to be very powerful. Just for some background, it's common for people who are trying to be "clever" to post something on a social media site and then write #firstworldproblems. For example, "I hate when I have 500 television channels, but nothing good is on to watch #firstworldproblems." The point being that the person realizes what they're saying is ridiculous, however, it's typically said in a sarcastic tone (not always the best intentioned). Anyway, a non-profit organization took this idea and applied it to their attempt to bring fresh water to Haiti: Video