Mbruk Taeawniya Asalah!

Such an interesting and eventful day yesterday. And here I just thought I was going to go to the Coop and have brief meeting with the mundub to update him on my projects.

See, I sent him a text to see if he’d be in Sefrou on Friday-he keeps his own calendar and I don’t want to go all the way there and have him out of town (as has obviously happened in the past). He calls me and tells me he’s meeting with Souad on Tuesday. OK-she’s in Zaouia, next to REK, so???? He repeats that he’s going to a meeting w/Souad. OK, are you coming to REK? Do I know Souad? Yes, the one in the town next to REK (‘cuz of course I blank on the name Zaouia)? Yes. Are you also coming to Adwal? This is not an unusual telephone conversation in Darija. Me trying to understand what they are saying and them trying to understand what I’m asking. Finally he says he’ll come to Adwal at 10am. OK-I understand that!

So I’m there when he comes by-and says “Yalla, nimsiu l Souad”. Waxa. It’s his agenda, so let’s go. (This is after, of course, I’ve pulled out my little cheat sheet to give him the appropriate, respectful greeting for his new status as “Haj”, or “Allah Yatakabal”). We head out to Zaouia. Greet Souad. She starts calling people. You see, the mundub is there to finalize the paperwork with the new weaving Cooperative members. Souad is their new president.

So I knew there was a new weaving cooperative forming in Zaouia-I think both the mundub and Zahra had told me some time ago, and that the women were going to come to Adwal for training. Just didn’t know that Souad was involved (she’s president of a sheep/wool jameaia or association), nor did I know that was why the mundub was coming out our direction. And that he wants me to work with them as I have been with Adwal. I’m asked at the end of their meeting to introduce myself to the Coop and ask some questions I have from the meeting. It’s a new partnership and a new job (in addition to Adwal) for me. I also really like Souad, so this will be a good new group to work with.

During the course (or should I say multiple courses-chicken, then lamb, then couscous, then fruit) of lunch, I ask some questions about the wool they weave with, ie; do they spin their own sda (yarn), ie; buy it from the association? Yes. And they want to learn how to do natural dye with their wool. The mundub has an idea to build a natural dyeing area behind Adwal’s building. But wait, isn’t Ait Hamza going to build a natural dye facility to supply the region? Yes. I (finally) get corrected that Ait Hamza is in Missour region, not Sefrou. Aha! I finally get it-our region does need a source for natural dyed yarns, and if it can be “manned” adequately, why not Adwal? Another potential project for the list.

A most interesting meeting-oh, and I finally just hand my project list to the mundub. Masi muskil.

Once back in town (meaning REK), for some reason Fatima pulls me into a meeting of the Belladya (like city council). Of course, all in Darija, all slides in Arabic. Find myself vacillating between trying to understand what the presenter is saying and reading the Arabic (where I can decipher the Arabic script but still only know 1/3 of the words meaning). I figure the presenter for a salesman trying to sell some sort of communication system or wi-fi. Turns out it was a training session for the Belladya. OK. Still don’t know why I was dragged in-even Fatima admitted that she doesn’t like having to go to all of them. Oh well.

So carry on to dinner. Made pizza for Pete and I. I’m lazy and instead of making my own pizza dough, I buy the pre-made ones at Marjane and freeze them. Since there are 2 large ones/pkg, don’t want to make it just for myself-told Pete he was my excuse for pizza! Then we watched the pilot for Bones-I have season 1 and he has season 3. We swapped seasons since he’s already watched his series. Hilarious.

Then he tells me that he’s getting his place all set up and just got his internet-and it’s wifi! It just now became available here in REK. Means that if I can get mine switched over, #1 it may be more reliable rizzo (connection) since my hard wired internet goes out every time we have wind or bad weather and #2 I won’t have to pay for the fixed line telephone (which you must pay for-approx 150DH/mo, in order to get the hard wired internet) which I never use. Inshallah I can get this switched out now that I’ve completed one year on my contract.

Turned out to be a rather enlightening day!