Just for fun..

You know you're in (West) Africa when...

1. You turn at least 5 shades lighter while taking a shower. (If you're white)

2. You feel the need to shower... 30 seconds after you stepped out of the shower.

3. 80 degrees is cool. 

4. Cold water is a luxury.

5. Dust/dirt appears out of thin air. I mean really... How'd all this dirt get under my mats?

6. Bug spray/sunscreen become a habit - and start to smell good. 

7. When you feel like anasara (Zarma for white person) is your name. 

8. When you feel like cado (Zarma for gift) is your name. 

9. When people look confused when you tell them you aren't married/have no kids - and they proceed to offer to find you a husband/wife. 

10. When every meal comes with rice. 

11. When every dish seems to have an onion, tomato paste and Maggi (chicken bouillon) in it. 

12. When you've seriously considered super gluing a fan to your face. 

13. When your batteries are squishy and only last 24 hours... And leak. 

14. When you have to turn over (while in bed) every 15 mins or so because the side you were laying on is covered in sweat. 

15. When you wake up in the morning your sheets are damp and you're in a pool of sweat.

16. When a turtle wakes you up at 6 am by running into your mosquito net tent. (The pet turtle named Mary... Who is bigger than the cat.)

17. When the call to prayer (Islam) wakes you up at 4:30 am.

(Which, btw, the people here pray in Arabic and have no clue what they're saying... And some of them will say what we're telling them (the Gospel) is true, but they have counted the cost - and do not wish to pay it.)

18. When you have the random urge to sing any and all lion king songs at random moments during the day. 

19. When your excited that you get to wear shorts!!! (Yep. One of the hottest places on Earth, and the culture doesn't approve of shorts - especially for women.) Yay for days in American compounds.

20. When you get excited about a dust storm - because everything cools down after wind and rain.

21. When you feel guilty about leaving any food uneaten. - because there are starving kids in Africa - that are right outside your walls. (And you can't give them your food.)

22. When you can't remember your own name - let alone how to spell it. (The chief's wife renamed us.)

23. When someone actually speaks English, you have no idea what to do.

24. When deodorant does nothing.   

25. When you drink gallons of water a day and never have to use the bathroom.

26. The quality of life improves when everyone your living with has showered. 

27. You think washing machines are from heaven. 

28. Peanut butter is a gift of God - not just because its amazing, but because it doesn't take 30 minutes + to fix. 

29. Your sheets are disgusting after 1 use. 

30. You have no clue what carpet flooring feels like anymore. 

31. You cry when you have to shut the windows because it's raining. 

32. Rainy season means it rains once a week. 

33. Thunder doesn't always mean rain. 

34. Electric fans are a gift from God. 

35. You have no idea what grass is anymore.

36. You don't want to sleep outside because.. A) It might rain or B) your too lazy to take your mat outside. 

37. You've seriously considered shaving off all your hair because it *might* be cooler. (And then one of your team mates comes back with his head shaved). 

38. When you iPhone starts complaining that it hasn't been backed up in weeks. 

39. When everything is funny because it's too stinkin hot. 

40. When things that are supposed to be solid are liquid. Like Neosporin. 

41. When new deodorant breaks in half when you're trying to use it. 

42. When your excuse for everything becomes, "Well, we ARE in Africa".

New as of August 4th**

43. When your friend had surgery to get sand out of her stomach.

44. When you believe flip flop marks are permanently burnt into your feet. 

45. When you think you have a stubborn piece of rice stuck between your toes - and it winds up being skin peeling off from flip flop blisters. 

46. When you don't notice you have a thorn in your heel until you take a shower. (Only applies after a few weeks of being here. In the beginning I had a thorn in my foot every day and noticed it right away.)

47. When walking to school barefoot in the snow uphill both ways - really doesn't seem that bad. 

48. When you think about people wasting peanut butter and get angry. (Because there are IMB interns in Africa who ran out of peanut butter...)

To be added to as I think of things. :)