A short-term liquidity issue has forced me back to the workstation. (And no, for once that isn't a diarrhea pun, some punk ass bitches took my money and now I'm broke and waiting for payday)

Toothpaste, toothbrushes, and floss I've got. They sell the first two dirt cheap and I get the last for free from the Peace Corps.

A couple of deodorants would not go amiss. Nor would a halfway decent razor.

3/26/2013 10:35:56 AM

oh shit, we need to get on this. no broken promises

3/26/2013 11:11:08 AM

Haha, you're all good for thinking of it, but I will be fairly shocked if anything comes of this given how fast the thread dies.

Mostly I'm glad that I could introduce just one person to the joys of the zangbeto.

3/26/2013 12:54:27 PM

is there a paypal going?

3/26/2013 1:27:01 PM

we can use my paypal acct

syleach1@gmail.com
thats Fhqwhgads paypal.

3/26/2013 1:31:06 PM

alright, I sent it to fuckwads. Good luck grumpyGOP and I've enjoyed the stories. Sorry your kindle broke and your monies were stolen

3/26/2013 1:54:16 PM

Awesome, lets get this thing going


Can somebody make a list of things that grumpy said he would like?

3/26/2013 2:13:37 PM

^sure

1. Penthouse
2. KY Jelly
3. Kleenex
4. Razor
5. Deodorant

3/26/2013 2:15:57 PM

i put it on the last page, sam

Quote :

"OK, Here is a summary, so far, of the things you would enjoy: Items should be sent to: Corps de la Paix 01 BP 971 Cotonou, Benin Afrique de l'Oeste (NOT l'Queste, as many people put and which seems to confuse someone along the way) only use US mail. DHL and others charge $100+ on delivery - (packages routinely take two or three months to make it to the office, letters and large envelopes -- like the kind you could put magazines in) are quicker. Magazines and books coloring books and other little things for kids are great for my friends and neighbors nonperishable snacks Chips Candy is always a win. crystal lite and gatorade powder are welcome. Spices, seasonings, mixes -- these are almost always good news. jump drives with movies or TV shows on them - all of the volunteers benefit from jump drives with movies or TV shows on them. We put 'em on a hard drive at the workstation. People with electricity (like me) bring them back to post, others (especially those here for long periods of time due to illness) watch them here. "

3/26/2013 2:17:24 PM

Grumpy, what tv shows would you want? Movies?

Do you have a CD player? Want any CDs? Like the new Justin Timberlake? lol

3/26/2013 2:19:40 PM

what about movies burned onto dvds? .iso format fine?

3/26/2013 2:20:28 PM

sam, did you say you had already looked into shipping costs?

3/26/2013 3:40:24 PM

Are you eating insects? Do you know which ones won't kill you?

3/26/2013 7:50:04 PM

Y'all....give a man a fish, feed him for a day. Let's get some googlemaps going and figure out where his nearest Walmart is.....

3/26/2013 7:50:41 PM

Quote :

"Grumpy, what tv shows would you want? Movies?"

We get very little comedy central stuff here, which is odd and terrible. I know I'm not the only one who would bust a nut over some new South Park, Tosh.0, and Daily Show/Colbert Report. (Yeah, these last two will be out of date but so is all of our news)

And no CD player, just MP3s.

With movies the main thing is "new stuff," for obvious reasons.

Quote :

"Are you eating insects? Do you know which ones won't kill you?"

I eat a fair number of insects by accident. The key is to avoid blister beetles, which we are told can kill you stone dead.

[Edited on March 27, 2013 at 7:46 AM. Reason : ]

3/27/2013 7:43:22 AM

Have you witnessed any gross exploitation of Africa's natural resources or people yet, as has been the case repeatidely in human history?

3/27/2013 7:50:36 AM

Benin doesn't have much in the way of natural resources, and the Beninese are bound and determined to destroy what little remains by covering it with garbage or burning it inefficiently.

As to the people...Benin was the major hub of the slave trade in West Africa, so one could argue that by virtue of your being in America its people are still being exploited. Short of that, not really. Exploitation would imply some sort of productive economic activity, and there's none of that to be seen.

3/27/2013 10:24:59 AM

Say Hi to EMCEs cousins.

3/27/2013 9:59:04 PM

do you feel like you're making any kind of difference?

3/27/2013 10:01:20 PM

Man, I'm getting a lot of internet lately.

A difference? Eh...most of my bigger projects are still pending approval. But I'm the first American that most people in my village have ever seen, let alone met, and I think I've made a good impression. I'd like to think that's helped give a good impression of America in general. Certainly people I meet are effusive in their praise of the US (whereas they generally despise the French, and who can blame them...this is often visible in the facial expressions of people who ask if I'm French and start beaming when I say, "Hell no, I'm American!")

When the big projects get started they will at least give people the tools they need to make a difference in their lives.

4/4/2013 10:21:10 AM

Haha, I just got an egg in Africa. That's gotta be a sign.

4/4/2013 10:24:45 AM

OK

LETS GET THE BALL ROLLING ON THIS


WE CAN NOT LET GRUMPY DOWN!

4/5/2013 9:47:43 AM

I actually got a package today from the family of another volunteer. They liked my blog and rewarded me with food, drink mixes, and a hat. Oh, and candy bars. Many, many candy bars.

4/5/2013 7:35:58 PM

Any magazines you would like?

4/9/2013 5:41:44 PM

So how much longer is he going to be over there?

I want to send him some glamour shots of myself and an original short story where he and I do it with Brian Dennehey in a brake pads factory.

4/9/2013 9:35:58 PM

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_R4J6jLEPQE

Probably the best Africa jam out there, but you need a subwoofer or three to properly feel it which you probably don't have in Africa. Cali P come let them know!



[Edited on April 9, 2013 at 9:41 PM. Reason : l]

4/9/2013 9:38:30 PM

I'm up for helping out on this. Fuckwads, the wife and I will get some shit at target this weekend. I'll give them to her and you two can meet up maybe next week sometime?

4/9/2013 9:41:44 PM

Quote :

"sam, did you say you had already looked into shipping costs?"

4/10/2013 10:09:26 AM

Sorry I just remembered this thread. I have looked into shipping costs. Large flat rate boxes are $79.95 to ship. Medium flat rate are $59.95

We can probably fit a lot into the medium boxes. I'm going to buy some crystal lite sticks and Gatorade powder soon

Can anybody put some Comedy Central shows on a jump drive? I have no idea how to do that.

4/17/2013 5:19:37 PM

Here is what I have so far:

Deodorant
Razors
Gum
Hard candy
Rice
One (1) unopened box of Girl Scout Samoas
Tuna pouches

4/17/2013 5:40:00 PM

bttt - thanks sam for organizing this.

hey grumpy, i know you said this earlier but if we send you a box of sorts will that eventually get to you or will it be stolen?

4/22/2013 9:42:48 AM

bttt

4/29/2013 11:36:21 AM

Quote :

"So how much longer is he going to be over there?"

Barring civil war or serious injury, late summer of 2014 is when I will be coming home.

Quote :

"Probably the best Africa jam out there"

The unquestioned kings of music in Benin are "Chop My Money," by P-Squared (a couple of Nigerians who have subsequently been co-opted by Akon, I think) and "Djogo djogo," which means "jailbait" in Fon and describes a man going to prison for fucking an underage girl. The music video includes a used condom.

And Benin is not wanting for speaker equipment. All parties and get togethers, including funerals, must involve stacks and stacks of speakers operated by an inept DJ at a volume designed to go past the ear and destroy actual brain cells.

Quote :

"Can anybody put some Comedy Central shows on a jump drive? I have no idea how to do that."

Skack appears to have taken the lead on this.

Quote :

"i know you said this earlier but if we send you a box of sorts will that eventually get to you or will it be stolen?"

To my knowledge I've received every box that I've been sent as well as all of the contents, but I've gotten the impression that someone has looked through several of my packages. That's why I recommend against items that are or would appear obviously valuable. My kindle was destroyed in a motorcycle accident (in which I didn't get a scratch), and my family naturally wanted to ship another one. As much as I desperately, desperately want a replacement I told them no way. Every Beninese person who sees a kindle thinks it is an ipad and they know there's money in ipads.

But the sort of stuff we're talking about for this package? I would expect it to get to me unmolested, at least by humans. Rats get at them sometimes but so far haven't done a whole lot of damage.

Quote :

"Any magazines you would like?"

News is good, even if it is outdated. Humor is good (MAD Magazine is not, repeat not, funny). General information is good (I love Mental_Floss, though normally my parents send me that one). Video game review magazines I actually really enjoy, even if it is like self-torture. I'm not a big fan of celebrity/pop culture stuff.

4/29/2013 11:46:33 AM

I envy you. I wish I could be someplace remote and cut off from damned near everything for a while.

4/29/2013 11:51:36 AM

Then you're envying the wrong guy. Benin is pretty overpopulated, and my village of 16,000 people is far from remote. Cut-off is nice, until your neighbor gives you a confused report about how someone dropped an atom bomb on Texas and you have no way of figuring out what the fuck really went down.

4/29/2013 11:54:04 AM

Okay, you're right. I'm thinking Tom Hanks in Castaway kinda disconnected.

4/29/2013 2:56:23 PM

^^your first thought was damn, I bet the tww action news truck is on the scene.

4/29/2013 3:27:54 PM

^no...his first thought was...Thanks, Obama!

4/29/2013 4:50:34 PM

A storm came through town last week that was a doozy even by African standards. Trees down (and my village doesn't have a lot of trees), buildings damaged, many roofs ripped off the building. Since most roofs are sheet metal that's dangerous, and in fact several schoolchildren were hurt.

Also, lightning struck my house, which also flooded. All of my electronics were destroyed. Then I got hit by a truck. (Well, OK, I got tapped by the truck, but "tapped" sounds undignified. But it launched me off my bike and banged me up a bit)

In short, it has not been the best couple of weeks.

5/16/2013 8:27:47 AM

update on the movies:

my network HD failed, I'm working on downloading movies starting fresh but its slow going. if anyone already has movies downloaded, maybe you you can help out getting a thumb drive together, its taking me a long time.

5/16/2013 8:36:09 AM

It sucks about the electronics. But getting hit by a truck is kind of cool and sexy. So you've got that going for you.

5/16/2013 8:59:19 AM

"Did I ever tell you about the time I got hit by a truck in Africa?"

5/16/2013 9:08:12 AM

It's done approximately dick-all for me here. Only I could wind up in a situation where American women outnumber American men 2 to 1 and still manage to be involuntarily celibate.

5/16/2013 11:33:05 AM

Maybe instead of movies and magazines, we should send hookers and blow.

5/16/2013 11:54:49 AM

There's no shortage of hookers here. By our definition it would probably include every woman in the village. But that comes with drama and the word is they're terrible at sex. I had never heard the word "starfishing" until I came to Benin, but now I hear it from a lot of male volunteers.

And since I'm always on the verge of blowing up anyway, cocaine is the last thing I need.

5/16/2013 11:56:55 AM

They would be quality hookers and then you could be their pimp. I just solved your money issues.

5/16/2013 12:09:00 PM

So I see the address for care packages. Can I just put Mr. GOP on mine, and it'll get to you?

I'm really bored, and I feel like putting together the most frivolous care package of all time.

5/16/2013 12:22:38 PM

you go ahead and put Mr GOP on it if you want his ass to get poisoned by his peacecorp buddies.

5/16/2013 12:25:16 PM

AHA, that's kind of what I was wondering about. Maybe I shouldn't be sending care packages to people whose names I don't actually know.

5/16/2013 12:30:25 PM

If you want to just give me whatever you want to incluce in the package, I can add it to my box

Shipping is bt $60-$80

5/16/2013 1:16:21 PM