Yesterday, our guide arrived around ninety minutes late, apparently from a misunderstanding, but I have my suspicions thanks to this "river bird" Joseph admitted to catching...
In any case, the villages yesterday were uneventful. Well, they were uneventful to the extent that visiting villages in which many of the residents have never seen an "ahpohtoh" (fair-skinned person) can become uneventful over the course of just a few days.
This morning, the rest of the group (other than Brad and myself) left for Freetown (the capital) and Njala (location of one of the country's universities) until late tomorrow or early afternoon Thursday. It is amazing how quickly time passes now. One man from Harvard (also named Michael) has already finished his stay in Sierra Leone (although he had just finished visiting a few other developing nations for his NGO, MASS), and will be returning to Boston for the January-term course with which he is involved.

The house is definitely much more quiet without the others (Dr. Bart, Abi, Kelly, and Craig), but I am looking forward to their return. Brad and I are now fully caught up with our tests, but we will be rushed to keep that up tomorrow for a reason you will soon learn...

The villages both went well today, although again we started late. Often, after completing a survey of a village, we are presented with gifts of fruit (such as oranges, bananas, or coconuts). Today, however, we were offered an entire (live) "toh-koh" (chicken) and its eggs!
So, tomorrow, Brad and I are planning on making an omlette for breakfast and chicken for lunch and dinner. We'll see how that goes!
Okay, time for some random thoughts. I'm not sure if I already mentioned it, but I shaved with a a straight razor for the first time... a smashing success despite no shaving creme! Another (super cute) dog was picked up yesterday. Now, no more barking at night. Instead, double the adorable wrestling (and sleeping) ... as well as double the probability of catching fleas or worms.
A grade school teacher came by (randomly?) today, and our conversation quickly turned into a much appreciated lesson in Temne, one of several local languages spread across the country. I got my clothes laundered last night and today. I should have thought to include my sheet. Oh well. I'll rotate it tomorrow. The sore in my mouth (possibly caused by bug repellent getting into a cut) is going down. The soreness in my hips and bruises on my legs are going down. Maybe I'm finally getting good at this survey stuff.
The housekeepers have been arguing (and listening to loud music) for the last hour. Let's hope this doesn't keep up. I went to the latrine last night, hoping to go to the bathroom, but saw a massive spider lurking in the candlelight, so I decided I could wait until morning.

This morning, I saw a boy named Laman with a discarded box previously owned by Village Hope. He was so pleased to have it, a simple, colorful box in good condition. We must always remember to thankful for everything we have, no matter our situation.