criplomats

Valentine’s Day was a little different this year as the embassy welcomed visitors from Washington on Monday. The crisis in Ukraine changed the names of the people who came to get briefings from embassy staff and to attend an event sponsored by the government of Liberia. Liberia has planned a lot of celebrations based on the 200th anniversary of the return of freed slaves from American to this land that would be eventually become the country of Liberia. The government keeps referring to it as their “bicentennial” but it’s not the bicentennial of the country – but no one seems to want to parse that difference. My favorite visitor in the three-person delegation was the Secretary of the Smithsonian, Lonnie Bunche. I had a few minutes to chat with his about the ”Sidedoor” Smithsonian podcast (we share a favorite episode about Apollo 13).

Now that COVID rates are going down a bit, I ventured back to the salon this week, treating myself to leaving the office early (!) one afternoon. Last night, we were invited to a small dinner party (!!) at a co-worker’s home. She is Moroccan and made my favorite lemon-olive-chicken dish. It was fun to socialize with the couple and another guest; they also have two cute kids who enjoyed a couple of magic tricks from John. The smaller girl helped John with a magic trick several months ago when we had a talent show. When her mom told her that John was coming to dinner, and that John is mom’s boss, the little girl was amazed that her mother was so lucky to have a magician for a boss (!!!) – she’s quite adorable.

We’ve been watching the wonderful Julia Garner in “Inventing Anna” on Netflix this week – I’m totally hooked on it. I finished reading “Atonement” — so good — and just started a book of essays by A.S. Byatt (not as fun a read for me).

We also wished Pete a happy 86th birthday this week!

For starters, the grocery store had broccoli this week – it’s only about the third time I’ve seen it here. It wasn’t as nice as what you would get at the store at home, but roasted up, it was still pretty tasty! Quite exciting!

The week was filled with more emergencies with American citizens – it’s like a full moon or something. We’re dealing with some very tough cases. Two of us from the consular section went to a small private burial of a U.S. citizen this week where I said some words and read a poem/prayer.

Friday was a local holiday. I worked from home most of the day, just trying to get caught up a bit. We’re heading into the season where we have lots of annual reports due and employee evaluations – busy time.

Last Sunday I had a good video chat with Ann, Pamela, and Jackie, and another with David. Mary and I talked yesterday when she called to tell me a mutual friend Donna had died – very sad. I hadn’t seen her in years, but liked her and her husband very much.

Today would have been Mom’s 97th birthday. Miss you.

This was one of the craziest weeks I’ve had in Monrovia — which is saying something. We were just incredibly busy handling simultaneous emergencies and competing priorities. The days flew by.

The good news is that COVID rates appear to be going down here, so we are easing restrictions a bit. John had a few people over yesterday to play board games – it was fun to have people in the house again. They had a great time with lots of laughter.

John and I finished the first part of the new season of “Ozark” and watched a great Israeli show, “False Flag.” I finished reading “The Bettencourt Affair,” about the family in-fighting over the L’Oreal cosmetic company fortune – it was a good read but the family is so rich that it was hard to comprehend the sums of money involved.

It’s hard to believe we’re already at the end of January 2022. The weeks seem to be going by faster.

I had a good visit with Ann, Pam, and Jackie last Sunday. Last night I spent time with a few co-workers – the first socialization I’ve done in a long time. Since we had a COVID spike in December, we’ve really been keeping to ourselves but now that the number of cases is declining again, it’s nice to see folks a little bit.

I finished reading “Peril,” and enjoyed it. This morning I read Sarah Vowell’s book of essays, “Take the Cannoli” – it’s really good and made me laugh out loud a few times. I had never heard of her before (guess I haven’t listened to “This American Life” in a long time), but I heard an interview she did with Alan Alda on his “Clear and Vivid” podcast (thanks, Ann). She’s very witty and thoughtful.

John and I were on the edge of our seat watching the last of “Tehran,” an Israeli-Iran spy show. We’ve started the new season of “Ozark” and have gotten drawn back into it. We also watched a good, wry documentary about Kenny G, “Listening to Kenny G” that’s worth watching, too.

Why is it that four-day weeks feel so long?! We were off last Monday for MLK Day and it was a crazy four days at work. The officer who normally handles the day-to-day for American citizen services is on a well-deserved leave, so I’ve picked up those duties in his absence and it’s been busy. Despite it being a holiday and getting to stay home, we had an emergency with a U.S. citizen on Monday that kept me on the phone on and off all day.

We said goodbye on Friday to an eligible family member (EFM) who worked in the section for the last couple of months as she and her family prepare to depart post, and we congratulated one of our local staff on his engagement. Another staff member returned from a family funeral. We have a good group of folks in the section and our congratulations, condolences, and well wishes come from the heart. As we begin our final months in Monrovia, I’m feeling better about leaving as I see our new team come together.

During the week, John and I finished “Landscapers” (excellent) and “The Beast Must Die,” which I really enjoyed. We also watched a Swedish crime show, “Honour” that we really liked (girl power!). Last night we started an Israeli spy series that we’re hooked on, “Tehran.” I had a nice chat with David last Monday – looks like it’s getting cold in Hot Springs! I tried to read “Look Homeward, Angel” but had a really hard time getting into it, so I’ve set it aside for now. Instead, I started Bob Woodward’s “Peril.”

Yesterday I spent most of the day decluttering – hard work, but I ended up with sacks and sacks of clothes and books to give away – it feels great! During a break in my flurry of activities, I read a fun book by Margareta Magnusson (who is “between the age of eighty and one hundred”) called “The Gentle Art of Swedish Death Cleaning.” I thoroughly enjoyed it — and it was great motivation! Pack-out preparation has begun!