A few random things:

1) I hate dogs. I've never really felt like that before, but it's undeniable now. I specifically hate their barking. If you could breed a new species of mute puppy, I'd be ok with that. But the dozen or so neighborhood dogs who now routinely wake me up between 4:30 and 5 am with 45 minutes of non-stop yapping have got to go. In my half-asleep daze of confusion and irritation, I sometimes have extended fantasies about how I would kill these dogs. It's usually a baseball bat, though assault rifles sometimes make an appearance.

2) I am bored. I was just chatting with Kyle (fellow IT volunteer on Sal, just north of here), asking what he does with his days. He is in the same boat as me. He teaches some classes, though his are quite small owing to lack of computers, but during the day, there is not always stuff to do. For instance, today I want to come up with a way to revitalize my sagging English class, as well as come up with a schedule for my technician training courses. The problem is that for the former, I need to speak with my counterpart who is on her daily coffee break, and the latter is just not that urgent, plus it involves coordinating with several other people to avoid stepping on toes and interfering with other classes. According to a very useful sheet of paper that PC gave us during training, "feelings of uselessness" are normal during this time of service. But it's not that I feel useless. Ok, maybe it is that I feel useless. It will pass, I guess. At least I now have a plan for 3 more courses to teach, and I feel like my service is going in a positive direction.

3) I love windsurfing. Yeah, I know, I talk about it a lot. But it's my little lifesaver here. On Monday, I finished typing up several course proposals in the morning, looked over the whole package I had assembled, and decided it looked pretty good. So, I took a longer than normal lunch break and went windsurfing (hey, I'm here until 9 pm most nights. I deserve it). And ohhhh man, it was a breakthrough day. I'm using a smaller, lighter board now, as well as a larger sail, and I finally achieved planing. That is when you plant your feet towards the back of the board, throw all your weight backwards, and lean your sail right into the strength of the wind. The result is the tip of your board angling way up out of the water while you skip across the waves, not unlike a speedboat. And it is a phenomenal feeling. Johann and Tony (guys who work at François' place) tell me that I am ready for the harness next time, to provide a little more stability at high speeds.

4) I am ready for vacation. I will be in Mindelo in 10 days. It couldn't come soon enough. I haven't left my 15 mile diameter island in over 4 months. That is the longest I have ever stayed in one place, at least in recent memory.

5) I need a martini.

6) I have so many books to read, and it no way is that bad. I am still working my way through "Freedom at Midnight," and I think I'll tackle "Freakonomics" next.

7) I am increasingly stressed out by news reports from the Middle East. I know I am not alone in this concern, but it really, really bothers me these days. I may have to start learning Arabic. You know where I'm going with that.