tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-40479386415216982762024-03-12T21:54:28.633-05:00sometimes i leavemichaelahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17628280863753029736noreply@blogger.comBlogger12125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4047938641521698276.post-63630070108210631722010-11-15T21:54:00.000-06:002010-11-15T21:54:08.882-06:00Trains!<!--StartFragment--> <br />
<div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">No security check! (They don’t even pretend to look in your bags. You just walk on! No stress! So easy!)</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">You can bring your own food! Your own drink! Your own bottle of wine!</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Big seats with foot rests!</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">No seat belts!</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Walk freely!</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Cell phones permitted!</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEghr8UG3Orc9hMtguMG9PjGf_0l4qFYsuJiOWFt4xWxcTldLJudd9N6o6azmR-lo6LT1k4EH0uR2yb2Wbyy5BlQJIN3MgchGTXzf1sB6k-ggOXF75XZK6J8d2RI_MLL2AtKbQp2uAsdKCg7/s1600/11112010125.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="204" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEghr8UG3Orc9hMtguMG9PjGf_0l4qFYsuJiOWFt4xWxcTldLJudd9N6o6azmR-lo6LT1k4EH0uR2yb2Wbyy5BlQJIN3MgchGTXzf1sB6k-ggOXF75XZK6J8d2RI_MLL2AtKbQp2uAsdKCg7/s320/11112010125.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Views! Views! Views!*</span></span></td></tr>
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</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: small;">Dining car! Snack car! Beer! Wine! Mixed drinks!</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"></span></span></div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Times; font-size: medium; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Times; font-size: medium; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Faster than a car! 7.5 hours to Chicago!</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Times; font-size: medium; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Times; font-size: medium; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Affordable!</span></span></div></span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhx0XrkVHvIPm3827VDkCC_qro5oy6B23nPlCp9KDj9QF2Mt-IWMxrxVbZQriGU_M3PApptqiPJ9RamV86fn7W0sbJBZ9fU4uKLwcD0opEuqySMv_x9qrFCEOAquQ9qiPOkCgV_ei04lPJ8/s1600/11142010129.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhx0XrkVHvIPm3827VDkCC_qro5oy6B23nPlCp9KDj9QF2Mt-IWMxrxVbZQriGU_M3PApptqiPJ9RamV86fn7W0sbJBZ9fU4uKLwcD0opEuqySMv_x9qrFCEOAquQ9qiPOkCgV_ei04lPJ8/s320/11142010129.jpg" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Lounge car!</span></td></tr>
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</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: small;">Power outlets for every seat!</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Conductors!</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Better for the environment than cars OR planes! By A LOT!</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br />
</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">*I didn't actually see a buffalo hunt** from the train, but I bet someone did once see a buffalo hunt from a train. </span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br />
</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">**I </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: small;">DID see this excellent buffalo hunt diorama at the chicago field museum, which the train made possible.</span></div><!--EndFragment-->michaelahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17628280863753029736noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4047938641521698276.post-823291675345508972010-04-30T16:07:00.000-05:002010-04-30T16:07:48.224-05:00(working on) sometimes leavingmaking lists.<br />
ignoring ists.<br />
loosing lists.<br />
<br />
piling piles for over there.<br />
talking about packing.<br />
<br />
tripping over piles here.<br />
thinking about packing.<br />
<br />
writing instead.<br />
<br />
reading instead.<br />
reading about travel<br />
(not instead).<br />
<br />
leaning way back.<br />
working hard<br />
to keep the momentum<br />
of this thing<br />
from pushing me flat<br />
on my smiling face.michaelahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17628280863753029736noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4047938641521698276.post-57643529156089735882009-11-24T08:47:00.000-06:002009-11-24T08:47:44.561-06:00context<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">i will not watch the twilight zone again.<br />
<br />
the matrix is out too.<br />
<br />
55 plus hours of international travel/ails later, and i’ve had a lifetime worth of alternate realities.<br />
<br />
on a good day international travel can be trying.<br />
<br />
lines to be waited in.<br />
pages to be stamped.<br />
<br />
add a ten-hour initial flight delay.<br />
followed by a missed international connection.<br />
and you are time-traveling. on mars.<br />
there are three of you. the sky is green.<br />
<b><br />
i. it all begins innocently enough. </b>(it always does).<br />
you arrive.<br />
pass through security.<br />
stand in your first line.<br />
(doesn’t look so bad).<br />
note the people standing around you in line.<br />
<b><br />
ii. then reality begins to shift.</b><br />
you notice an eerie minor chord playing over the intercom.<br />
the line is disbanded.<br />
rumors fly.<br />
flight delayed?<br />
cancelled??<br />
<b><br />
iii. an excruciatingly long series of events then follow.</b><br />
lines. wait.<br />
more lines. wait.<br />
take a number.<br />
wait. wait. wait.<br />
<br />
these events all feel random at first.<br />
you feel this is all happening just to you.<br />
but you slowly start to notice the same cast of characters reappearing in each new terrible reality.<br />
you begin to suspect the conspiracy may be much bigger than you initially guessed.<br />
that’s the same guy i was standing next to nairobi.<br />
what is he doing eating dinner at the same place as me in amsterdam?<br />
<br />
right.<br />
<br />
<b>iv. repeat.</b><br />
repeat<br />
repeat<br />
<b><br />
v. contextualize.</b><br />
you are returning from a country where people deal with injustices<br />
ten-times<br />
no - one-hundred times<br />
no - one-thousand times the magnitude of your inconvenience<br />
each and every day.<br />
<br />
where each day is simply one long series of injustices.<br />
and each week is just a series of these days.<br />
each month a series of these weeks.<br />
<br />
the electricity is out. again.<br />
the water is filthy. always.<br />
your mother has died.<br />
<br />
so.<br />
you admit.<br />
this international flying business of yours is a drop in the bucket.<br />
and maybe even a good drop in the bucket.<br />
<br />
a personal reminder:<br />
of your lack of control.<br />
that things almost always go your way.<br />
of how damned lucky you are.<br />
<br />
<b>vi. you land.</b><br />
call your mother.<br />
return to your house.<br />
where the water is clean.<br />
where the electricity runs.<br />
<br />
breathe a sigh of relief.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><br />
<br />
<br />
</span>michaelahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17628280863753029736noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4047938641521698276.post-75640034294049367872009-11-14T01:39:00.000-06:002009-11-14T01:44:47.558-06:00coming and going<span style="font-family:arial;">european nascar fanatics. </span><span style="font-family:arial;"><br /><br />exist. </span><span style="font-family:arial;"><br /><br />i know.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">i sat in front of at least 10 of them on my flight from houston to amsterdam.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">drinking as many miller lites as the flight attendants would give them</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">wearing leather cow boy hats</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">and t-shirts with girls on harleys</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">and ball caps with flames</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">and oakleys</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">talking too loudly in german(?)</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">reliving every lap </span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">every beer </span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">every girl</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">trying to hold onto the last bits of their real-live gas-drenched american experience.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">willing the plane to just turn around and take them back to texas. </span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">willing the plane to do anything but drop them back in western europe. the land of organic everything. and tiny cars. </span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">but land we must. and land we did. </span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">i got a yogurt and espresso. </span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">watched the rain fall on amsterdam. </span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">waited for my connecting flight. </span>michaelahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17628280863753029736noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4047938641521698276.post-78954701548285197632008-11-03T01:49:00.000-06:002008-11-03T08:51:48.467-06:00Maasai Mara Park, Kenya - home of the lion, elephant, zebra, giraffe, mongoose, antelope, hippo...............<iframe allowfullscreen='allowfullscreen' webkitallowfullscreen='webkitallowfullscreen' mozallowfullscreen='mozallowfullscreen' width='320' height='266' src='https://www.blogger.com/video.g?token=AD6v5dz4EL2BrBIRsa6OIDPxi7qm54Mkmgaba4hwoun5KvKvn7je7O1g3a_TXP10NxxN_JmO3WVbSQFlyGhqwcTa3A' class='b-hbp-video b-uploaded' frameborder='0'></iframe>michaelahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17628280863753029736noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4047938641521698276.post-86347029357629165402008-11-02T21:35:00.001-06:002008-11-02T21:35:09.930-06:00<p class="mobile-photo"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZB7xApEl5BGOFD91BlBAL0JczGXQHIbw2MAZKED2aV9XfAuiHQ-DPOe0DbY7HjCukeFo-Xq1REh0ejv5ZTautWQwCA8X0nchcMby7FXRpdqmbjXlq2DOqZUsW66FAzC0GbU0R57hFL70z/s1600-h/IMG_0201-709933.jpg"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZB7xApEl5BGOFD91BlBAL0JczGXQHIbw2MAZKED2aV9XfAuiHQ-DPOe0DbY7HjCukeFo-Xq1REh0ejv5ZTautWQwCA8X0nchcMby7FXRpdqmbjXlq2DOqZUsW66FAzC0GbU0R57hFL70z/s320/IMG_0201-709933.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5264269733831278754" /></a></p>michaelahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17628280863753029736noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4047938641521698276.post-85280489690989764722008-11-02T21:29:00.001-06:002008-11-02T21:29:47.430-06:00<p class="mobile-photo"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgDPT1cty2HjZ7VLaDJx-iEH6s3GU9BPJpeXIIWLHzcM6iJrfbuP7xgjKVAGFxMljbQNTgU8gbzCug3PHEjijCkizZSyVQ0zzqNh91AXF9sUywxc7CvhB7mmsBUNLko9c4A7saBBbK4InbQ/s1600-h/IMG_0082-787432.jpg"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgDPT1cty2HjZ7VLaDJx-iEH6s3GU9BPJpeXIIWLHzcM6iJrfbuP7xgjKVAGFxMljbQNTgU8gbzCug3PHEjijCkizZSyVQ0zzqNh91AXF9sUywxc7CvhB7mmsBUNLko9c4A7saBBbK4InbQ/s320/IMG_0082-787432.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5264268347964230226" /></a></p>michaelahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17628280863753029736noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4047938641521698276.post-67744407826775872042008-11-02T21:19:00.001-06:002008-11-02T21:19:29.318-06:00<p class="mobile-photo"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5hyphenhyphen8z2bTtOCXxUwsloajZdLOE7BFHjNhr375lNr0qMZ-t94j7bFwCShdBdNxtZOwZ6tHQS_fPHKdbgf-3tGGN5-3-GFtlg0Tj8YFOfl0mVIsMgsmDhia_IVT6zmKSubeQVNTSMT9ANKi9/s1600-h/IMG_0204-769320.jpg"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5hyphenhyphen8z2bTtOCXxUwsloajZdLOE7BFHjNhr375lNr0qMZ-t94j7bFwCShdBdNxtZOwZ6tHQS_fPHKdbgf-3tGGN5-3-GFtlg0Tj8YFOfl0mVIsMgsmDhia_IVT6zmKSubeQVNTSMT9ANKi9/s320/IMG_0204-769320.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5264265693290206322" /></a></p>michaelahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17628280863753029736noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4047938641521698276.post-1760966727688309982008-11-02T12:30:00.001-06:002008-11-02T12:30:21.258-06:00<p class="mobile-photo"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDr9z6zK_A__CqH7-i3RLkYrF94NodSHty-ewHgn3fwKsWLQqP4gYzFGypslj3ZQuqLql454v6g3i9SESqFxSFsi6lZAKLadK4A2l7pW_9kqQZ8a75Ng74L5plA7l4VX5OewV6C6joDRJC/s1600-h/IMG_0109-721261.jpg"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDr9z6zK_A__CqH7-i3RLkYrF94NodSHty-ewHgn3fwKsWLQqP4gYzFGypslj3ZQuqLql454v6g3i9SESqFxSFsi6lZAKLadK4A2l7pW_9kqQZ8a75Ng74L5plA7l4VX5OewV6C6joDRJC/s320/IMG_0109-721261.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5264129339259531058" /></a></p>michaelahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17628280863753029736noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4047938641521698276.post-89981941404769216732008-10-25T03:37:00.000-05:002008-10-25T05:13:52.850-05:00merchant of ghana<span style="font-family: arial;">best thing being hawked in the road yesterday:</span><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span><ul><li><span style="font-family: arial;">brand new shiny copies of both the Oxford English Dictionary and the Complete Works of Shakespeare</span><span style="font-family: arial;"></span></li></ul><span style="font-family: arial;">i'm guessing they must be required books for highschoolers here. </span><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /><br />but the scenario i'd much rather imagine is a taxi driver saying to himself as he is stuck in grinding hot traffic in his unairconditioned car breathing diesel fumes - you know what i just haven't read enough of lately? macbeth. well, macbeth and hamlet - oh, and the merchant of venice - i can never get enough of that merchant of venice. always takes the edge right off a long day stuck in traffic...</span><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /><br />what everyone less literary was selling:</span><br /><ul><li><span style="font-family: arial;">bananas</span><span style="font-family: arial;"></span></li><li><span style="font-family: arial;">chocolate bars</span><span style="font-family: arial;"></span></li><li><span style="font-family: arial;">neck ties</span></li><li><span style="font-family: arial;"></span><span style="font-family: arial;">toilet paper</span><span style="font-family: arial;"></span></li><li><span style="font-family: arial;">flags of the world</span><span style="font-family: arial;"></span></li><li><span style="font-family: arial;">cell phone minutes</span><span style="font-family: arial;"></span></li><li><span style="font-family: arial;">fried dough balls</span><span style="font-family: arial;"></span></li><li><span style="font-family: arial;">combs</span></li></ul>michaelahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17628280863753029736noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4047938641521698276.post-90296877562239440002008-10-16T14:23:00.000-05:002008-10-16T15:14:59.754-05:00buttah buttah<span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="font-family:arial;">if you have ever wondered where on earth </span><a style="font-family: arial;" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shea_butter">shea butter</a><span style="font-family:arial;"> comes from*...</span> <span style="font-family:arial;"><br /><br />wonder no more!</span> <span style="font-family:arial;"><br /><br />at least some of the shea butter, for some of the people in the world comes from these women living in the small town of Kpatinga in northern Ghana.</span> <span style="font-family:arial;"><br /><br />the women pick the shea nuts growing wild nearby their town.<br /><br /></span> </span><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEifRTbSw6HAzuexhYi6lAmTpEYSCvk0oT4KqR2fDuLnrcaiqOVC22UGkxkcgj8AF01ZuBFjp3QhYTOmJF-QlAigQaguhQE5Oijn_dp5kvsSzXiy0GFuGAJllBWhpVacherwx1SQ3oCz_XY1/s1600-h/New+Energy+Oct+14027.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEifRTbSw6HAzuexhYi6lAmTpEYSCvk0oT4KqR2fDuLnrcaiqOVC22UGkxkcgj8AF01ZuBFjp3QhYTOmJF-QlAigQaguhQE5Oijn_dp5kvsSzXiy0GFuGAJllBWhpVacherwx1SQ3oCz_XY1/s320/New+Energy+Oct+14027.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5257840599697098354" border="0" /></a><br /><span style="font-size:100%;"> <span style="font-family:arial;">then they dry the nuts in their patio in the hot sun.<br /><br /></span></span><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhILBrvmn3zkpyQ0Q1Ehjgfr51RJPXB1H8NAo4RRpWbj8XrFB3X1DHJyTHDZhyd2VmkoUzEEmHWBIB_PiS22cmdRt_flXEoA0kXwVx2fiCSdOvdoZjz28FhQ6gxMGPDq_xgaCYFueuVXNWw/s1600-h/New+Energy+Oct+14028.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhILBrvmn3zkpyQ0Q1Ehjgfr51RJPXB1H8NAo4RRpWbj8XrFB3X1DHJyTHDZhyd2VmkoUzEEmHWBIB_PiS22cmdRt_flXEoA0kXwVx2fiCSdOvdoZjz28FhQ6gxMGPDq_xgaCYFueuVXNWw/s320/New+Energy+Oct+14028.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5257842878164648466" border="0" /></a><span style="font-size:100%;"><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">roast the nuts.</span> <span style="font-family:arial;"><br /><br /></span></span><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6bLOKORrn5DPOIs8TG1yR-CPqXZnlaavD0Kj1dQLxNYlulntI_K1g4Oi7foSFIYPOpojizeLt3sFGwrwwoTp-1PTL0ybyVaxpBovzFnkfRdbdtptsb00ytjqkNzdDp9ku8KqjW9OL2zR7/s1600-h/New+Energy+Oct+14026.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6bLOKORrn5DPOIs8TG1yR-CPqXZnlaavD0Kj1dQLxNYlulntI_K1g4Oi7foSFIYPOpojizeLt3sFGwrwwoTp-1PTL0ybyVaxpBovzFnkfRdbdtptsb00ytjqkNzdDp9ku8KqjW9OL2zR7/s320/New+Energy+Oct+14026.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5257845079838417746" border="0" /></a><br /><span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="font-family:arial;">and finally crush them to extract the butter (my camera failed for the picture of the butter – but picture a gigantic bowl of vanilla icing swarming with flies…mmmm?) </span> <span style="font-family:arial;"><br /><br />and then finally hope someone will pay them for the fruits (or in this case butter) of their labor. </span> <span style="font-family:arial;"><br /><br />these women are hoping to someday form a women’s group to get a loan to get mechanized processing equipment so they don’t have to do this entire process by hand. </span> <span style="font-family:arial;">but until that day comes, they will keep picking, drying, roasting, and crushing these nuts by hand.</span> <span style="font-family:arial;"><br /><br />*i know you have probably never <span style="font-style: italic;">actually</span> wondered where shea butter comes from – i’m mostly counting on your general curiosity about the world here…I knew the word sounded familiar but beyond that I had no clue what it was for - according to the all knowing wikipedia “Shea butter is widely used in cosmetics as a moisturizer and an emollient.” Exactly…</span> </span>michaelahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17628280863753029736noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4047938641521698276.post-74435024385548939252008-10-14T16:07:00.000-05:002008-10-14T16:16:19.468-05:00trying it out<span style="font-family:arial;">so i've decided to give this travel blog thing a try...<br /><br />it might be a total failure. a testament to great intentions and less than stellar follow through. we'll just to have to wait and see. </span><span style="font-family:arial;"><br /><br />but given that i have started traveling more and more and more. and given that sometimes there is just enough time to write one update. a blog seems like it could be the right thing.</span><span style="font-family:arial;"><br /><br />so hold your breath.<br />or maybe i'll just hold mine. </span><span style="font-family:arial;"><br /><br />here goes something.</span>michaelahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17628280863753029736noreply@blogger.com2