the jinja ninja and other stories

the barrier between fact and fiction is blurrier here. religion and medicine are more often than not one and the same. myth, legend, and common sense intersect in ways that confuse me regularly...

-i have seen the jinja ninja 3 times : complete black flowing clothing and head wrap with belt and sword. to me he's a novelty, a guy walking around with (what i hope is) a fake sword; a street performer trying to make money. others think he's a magician and fear him because he can make objects disappear and potentially cast spells on people. they cross to the other side of the street if they see him.

-yesterday while making the budget at santa's we were trying to determine what time people should arrive to Joe and Melissa's wedding reception party on saturday. someone suggested 12 because people would come at 6pm. i suggested 3 because people would then show up around 4:30. santa agreed with both suggestions. when i questioned why if people were told 12 they would come at 6, but 3 would result at 4:30, the ladies laughed and told me i ask too many questions.

-sometimes when ugandan babies are sick, their parents will take them to get their teeth pulled because they are told it will make them better. some ugandans believe that whenever someone dies, there is an owl on the roof. they also think that if you dream of feasting on meat you will die unless you and those around you pray to god for your salvation.

-when we ask to split the bill at the restaurant, sometimes the waitress puts the beverages on one bill and the food on the other. sometimes rice and beans cost 800 and sometimes 1500 at the same place. the rolex man who speaks english one day will shake his head and be unresponsive the next.

-preachers will preach that women will go to hell if they don't follow their husbands' advice: including how to dress and how many children to have. strength and virility for ugandan men is connected with how many children they have. it is common for men to produce children with many women. it is also depressingly common for men to leave their women and children because they have too many children and cannot afford to feed and clothe them. it is common for these men to return if they think that the women are recieving assistance from friends or sponsors because the woman is ready to have him back.

sometimes i try to use logic to figure these things out. sometimes i think i have the answers and it makes me feel better. sometimes i realize that i mainly use my logic to make myself feel better and i don't really know that much at all. why ask why?

off to english class and party planning.