This will be my last post for a bit, my research portion starts now so I'll just be doing a lot of data entry, reading and statistics, nothing anyone wants to hear about. I'll check in on facebook so everyone knows I'm still alive unless something interesting enough to warrant a post comes up.
More things I've learned in the past few days.
1) If a chimpanzee gets out and starts biting your head, a solid punch to the chest will apparently dislodge it and send it running to find someone else.
2) In a fight a chimpanzee will often do one or more of the following
Bite the head and face area
Rip off the face
Stick its finger in the anus of the enemy and pull out intestines
3) If a gorilla gets out, its tendency is largely to wonder around.
4) If a chimpanzee and a gorilla fight, the chimpanzee gets its ass kicked.
5) One apparently has no need of trailer hitches here, just put someone in the trunk and have them hold the trailer
6) There is a lot of fake hair here. It's about 20% if what they sell in the market, and while cleaning the drill enclosure I found two significant pieces of it in there.
7) Chimpanzees learn quickly, two can now press buttons on my watch to make it beep and light up
8) Machetes (ma- chet) here replace about a half dozen items from home including lawn mowers, hedge trimmers, drain snakes and rat traps
9) Baby chimps are stronger than I am
I hope all is well with everyone. I miss things at home but am largely enjoying Limbe. I appreciate everyone who has sent me updates, it's nice to hear from you. I can't always reply because the internet is terrible and I have a limited amount of time, but I am getting them.
Friday, June 29, 2012
Wednesday, June 27, 2012
Limbe
Limbe is a coastal town with a heavy western influence. Its like a traditional African town collided with great force with a western one and all the resulting debris ended up on the ground. Pollution is awful, no vehicle here would pass emission standards at home. There is trash everywhere and the air often smells like miscellaneous burning things. But the ocean views from the restaurants are amazing, and if you catch it right you can see all the flying foxes wake up and fly overhead on their nights search for food.
You'll see people walking down the street in wrapped fabric clothing, and right next to them will be some guy wearing chucks and levis. Most people, me included, get around on motorcycles. To go anywhere starts off with a bargain, but you're not going anywhere for under 100cfa or twenty cents in American dollars. I'm white so all the prices start off higher. I've asked around the staff for how much they pay for things so that I know around where I need to bargain to. The beaches in Batoke are 300cfa and 10km away. Old market is 100cfa.
My walk to work is about 10 minutes, and like everything else here is navigated on landmarks. There are no street names. I turn at the tire pile, pass Chariot shaving and beauty complex, take a left at the Jenny Rose Bowl and stay straight until I hit the red gate with the painted blue stones. It works for me since I am terrible with directions. "Near Down Beach" or "Just past the Mars Bar" works well around here.
Today finishes my two week rotation. I spent the last two days in quarantine cleaning and feeding and playing with baby primates. Sadly the turtle boots lost their battle with Africa, but went to chimpanzee enrichment. Gaa and Yabien had a good time trying to wear them and filling them with water and throwing them around. There are pictures and very blurry video.
After two weeks I've only learned a few dozen names of the animals, and can identify even fewer. They largely have people names, though things like "Titan" and "Madamme" get thrown in every once in a while. There are only a few names of people I know in there. There is a Nicky which made me think of Mammy as it is a female, Johanna, Billy, Julie and Jack. Though none of the personalities fit.
Hope all is well with everyone. See you in 8 weeks.
You'll see people walking down the street in wrapped fabric clothing, and right next to them will be some guy wearing chucks and levis. Most people, me included, get around on motorcycles. To go anywhere starts off with a bargain, but you're not going anywhere for under 100cfa or twenty cents in American dollars. I'm white so all the prices start off higher. I've asked around the staff for how much they pay for things so that I know around where I need to bargain to. The beaches in Batoke are 300cfa and 10km away. Old market is 100cfa.
My walk to work is about 10 minutes, and like everything else here is navigated on landmarks. There are no street names. I turn at the tire pile, pass Chariot shaving and beauty complex, take a left at the Jenny Rose Bowl and stay straight until I hit the red gate with the painted blue stones. It works for me since I am terrible with directions. "Near Down Beach" or "Just past the Mars Bar" works well around here.
Today finishes my two week rotation. I spent the last two days in quarantine cleaning and feeding and playing with baby primates. Sadly the turtle boots lost their battle with Africa, but went to chimpanzee enrichment. Gaa and Yabien had a good time trying to wear them and filling them with water and throwing them around. There are pictures and very blurry video.
After two weeks I've only learned a few dozen names of the animals, and can identify even fewer. They largely have people names, though things like "Titan" and "Madamme" get thrown in every once in a while. There are only a few names of people I know in there. There is a Nicky which made me think of Mammy as it is a female, Johanna, Billy, Julie and Jack. Though none of the personalities fit.
Hope all is well with everyone. See you in 8 weeks.
Friday, June 22, 2012
small and stubborn
These last two days have been with the chimpanzees, and I have to say that I could stay here forever. They are a crazy combination of this wild thing and human. They play, laugh, form bonds, relax in groups, they have belly buttons and thumbs and like to play chase and be tickled. They also spit, fling poo and can swing by their toes. They don't like to be stared at for too long, especially by big groups. that's when the rocks come out. They pelted a group of students with them today, and I couldn't help but laugh. A good portion of my last two days has been cleaning vasts amounts of feces, lobbing papaya and other assorted plant life over very high fences and being groomed. Chimpanzees are intense scab pickers, and after the elephant grass I have a lot of them. There is no need for a nail brush if there is a chimpanzee around. Julie and Ngombe are my chief groomers.
I've also spent the last week or so observing social interactions between all of the species here. And, as Andreas the keeper put it "It is not good to be small, unless you are stubborn, then you will do ok" By stubborn he means having the ability to stand your ground and be wildly aggressive towards bigger troupe members. I've seen it in the drills (if you haven't googled them, you should) the most but it is very evident in the chimps as well. The small ones will never compete with the big sexy alphas (drills) or the matriarch (chimps) but they will have a place in the group, get enough food to eat and not get the utter shit kicked out of them as happens to smaller submissive members.
There is so much I think to write during the day and I either forget it or don't know where to fit it when I write these. I've been good about keeping a journal, training log and nutrition log thus far. Though my food journal is so repetitive I think I'm going to let it be. My wrist/ thumb are almost better now, but my shoulder still bothers me. I haven't really let it rest yet and there is a lot of picking up and throwing done during the day here. I've moved countless stones around and inside enclosures, done two of the corn deliveries now and if the throwing of food keeps up, I'm going to be nasty at dodge ball next season. And if pushing poorly made uneven and rickety wheelbarrows around rocky and uneven terrain comes up in regionals next year, I am going to dominate.
Hope all is well. I will see everyone soon.
I've also spent the last week or so observing social interactions between all of the species here. And, as Andreas the keeper put it "It is not good to be small, unless you are stubborn, then you will do ok" By stubborn he means having the ability to stand your ground and be wildly aggressive towards bigger troupe members. I've seen it in the drills (if you haven't googled them, you should) the most but it is very evident in the chimps as well. The small ones will never compete with the big sexy alphas (drills) or the matriarch (chimps) but they will have a place in the group, get enough food to eat and not get the utter shit kicked out of them as happens to smaller submissive members.
There is so much I think to write during the day and I either forget it or don't know where to fit it when I write these. I've been good about keeping a journal, training log and nutrition log thus far. Though my food journal is so repetitive I think I'm going to let it be. My wrist/ thumb are almost better now, but my shoulder still bothers me. I haven't really let it rest yet and there is a lot of picking up and throwing done during the day here. I've moved countless stones around and inside enclosures, done two of the corn deliveries now and if the throwing of food keeps up, I'm going to be nasty at dodge ball next season. And if pushing poorly made uneven and rickety wheelbarrows around rocky and uneven terrain comes up in regionals next year, I am going to dominate.
Hope all is well. I will see everyone soon.
Wednesday, June 20, 2012
4 days and 10 species later
I ended up starting my primate rotation on baboons, drills and mandrills rather than the smaller monkeys. I found out that my greatest admirer and most motivated enemy are of the same species. My first day of feeding and one of the baboons, one which I had kind of had a soft spot for because he's a little less than perfect, threw rocks at me and landed a good shot under my right eye. Luna and I are not friends. The next day was no less eventful. It was spent running around the drill enclosure trying to capture a sick baby and later collecting large stones throughout the enclosure. They hate the net we use to catch them, so I kept it with me and carried it like a flag anytime I moved to a different section. It was my first literal safety net.
These last two days I was with the smaller monkeys, mona, guenon and mangeby. Mangeby can be extremely aggressive and they like to grab and pull if you get too close to the edge of their enclosure. Monkey pinches are not pleasant. There is an ancient red-capped mangeby that I can't help but baby. He has arthritis in everything, is missing teeth, drools all the time. I keep making sure he gets the ripest or softest of everything.
I've managed to keep my reputation as a strange American. With a smirk and a crowd I was told to chop down elephant grass with a machete for the animals, smirks stopped when I did it and did it well. I always feel like I'm being tested. The wheelbarrows (which really are the bane of my existence here and I plot their destruction daily) keep getting heavier, jobs longer and more labor intensive. I think they keep waiting for me to fail. I'm an anomaly to them. They only have 6 more days to torture me before I start in the field, so we'll see what challenges lay ahead.
Things I have learned in my first week:
A good J-kick is handy when breaking bamboo.
Don't let chimpanzees take your clothes, they will never respect you again.
Don't flinch when the primates run at you or try to attack you.
Don't look them in the eye or raise your eyebrows when you're near them
Baboons have really good aim.
There is no such thing as a set price.
Food will be ready in no less than an hour at any restaurant.
You can fit three passengers on a motorbike.
I will spend the majority of my money on eggs.
Plants are cheap, animal products are not.
When monkeys masturbate(which they do a lot), they eat the resulting fluid.
Big floppy protrusions on female asses that look really unhealthy are apparently very appealing to chimpanzees.
Chimpanzees really do fling poo.
These last two days I was with the smaller monkeys, mona, guenon and mangeby. Mangeby can be extremely aggressive and they like to grab and pull if you get too close to the edge of their enclosure. Monkey pinches are not pleasant. There is an ancient red-capped mangeby that I can't help but baby. He has arthritis in everything, is missing teeth, drools all the time. I keep making sure he gets the ripest or softest of everything.
I've managed to keep my reputation as a strange American. With a smirk and a crowd I was told to chop down elephant grass with a machete for the animals, smirks stopped when I did it and did it well. I always feel like I'm being tested. The wheelbarrows (which really are the bane of my existence here and I plot their destruction daily) keep getting heavier, jobs longer and more labor intensive. I think they keep waiting for me to fail. I'm an anomaly to them. They only have 6 more days to torture me before I start in the field, so we'll see what challenges lay ahead.
Things I have learned in my first week:
A good J-kick is handy when breaking bamboo.
Don't let chimpanzees take your clothes, they will never respect you again.
Don't flinch when the primates run at you or try to attack you.
Don't look them in the eye or raise your eyebrows when you're near them
Baboons have really good aim.
There is no such thing as a set price.
Food will be ready in no less than an hour at any restaurant.
You can fit three passengers on a motorbike.
I will spend the majority of my money on eggs.
Plants are cheap, animal products are not.
When monkeys masturbate(which they do a lot), they eat the resulting fluid.
Big floppy protrusions on female asses that look really unhealthy are apparently very appealing to chimpanzees.
Chimpanzees really do fling poo.
Saturday, June 16, 2012
Gorillas throw rocks.
Big rocks. At your head. Because they can. If you are outside their cage and they want something you have, or just don't want you there, they will lob softball sized rocks at your head. So thats good to know. There are somewhere around 4 monkeys running around free. 1 Mona Monkey and 4 drills, that combined with the stories of other escapes and the two chimps in their maximum security iron bar enclosure makes me think that these guys are only in there because they choose to be. Electric fence or no, the gorillas could knock down the wooden posts and chain link . The smaller monkeys simply fit between the wires and climb out.
I get early release from the banana mountains. With my help the 8 hour day was done in 3 so I got kicked out of the kitchen. Though not before having to unload almost 900lbs of corn on my own (which I counted as my wod for the day since I did it for time). Just over 23 minutes to bag it, weight it, transport it to the feed room, sort into wheelbarrows and run them to the feed dock. The corn delivery guy watched me do the whole thing in amazement and disgust "They make women different in New Hampshire". Poking my arms when I'm liftng things is also a new past time for many of the workers.
There is apparently a group of Navy guys stationed here. My roommates and I ran into them at a restaurant near the center. They have vehicles and were good contacts to make in case anything happens. They drove us home last night to see where we lived so they could get back there. I am officially known as "CrossFit" to them. We made tentative plans to workout together before I leave.
I start Mangabeys and Guenons tomorrow. I won't be able to post pictures but I will be able to take them while I am here, so I'll have something to show you guys when I am back in the states with a proper internet connection.
See you all soon.
I get early release from the banana mountains. With my help the 8 hour day was done in 3 so I got kicked out of the kitchen. Though not before having to unload almost 900lbs of corn on my own (which I counted as my wod for the day since I did it for time). Just over 23 minutes to bag it, weight it, transport it to the feed room, sort into wheelbarrows and run them to the feed dock. The corn delivery guy watched me do the whole thing in amazement and disgust "They make women different in New Hampshire". Poking my arms when I'm liftng things is also a new past time for many of the workers.
There is apparently a group of Navy guys stationed here. My roommates and I ran into them at a restaurant near the center. They have vehicles and were good contacts to make in case anything happens. They drove us home last night to see where we lived so they could get back there. I am officially known as "CrossFit" to them. We made tentative plans to workout together before I leave.
I start Mangabeys and Guenons tomorrow. I won't be able to post pictures but I will be able to take them while I am here, so I'll have something to show you guys when I am back in the states with a proper internet connection.
See you all soon.
Thursday, June 14, 2012
I arrived safely after 30 hours door to door (gate). I passed (literally) through customs, which made me regret not bringing some of the things I thought would get taken. A driver was there to pick me up, which really was my biggest worry. After all the taxi stories I heard, I didn't want to have to find one on my own.
I have a room to myself, a short walk to the bathroom and a cold shower in the main house. Getting to the market requires getting on the back of a motorbike and praying we don't crash. I won't be able to eat as well as I had hoped but I will make due.
There are 4 outher volunteers here, one from the US who will be here the entire time I am, so I have someone to talk to. Everyone is nice so far. Today consisted of sorting through piles of bananas taller than I am and cutting up papaya. There is a three day quarantine period where I cannot interact with animals, only get my potentially diseased hands all over their food.
The project seems more uncertain, but I have not had a chance to speak with the director much since I arrived. Its been a bit of a blur of names I won't remember and feeding schedules I have to write down. I keep getting distracted when I walk by the enclosures. I seem to have caught the attention of an olive babboon that leaves near the kitchen. When I pass by or sit he comes and indicates to me that he fancies me. Its a bit awkward as the staff have noticed, but I'm used to being added to animal harems against my will (Gilly and Boo among them).
The goal for Saturday, which will be my day off is to get a phone and get to the beach before the rains come. I'll check back when I can. Hope everyone is well.
I have a room to myself, a short walk to the bathroom and a cold shower in the main house. Getting to the market requires getting on the back of a motorbike and praying we don't crash. I won't be able to eat as well as I had hoped but I will make due.
There are 4 outher volunteers here, one from the US who will be here the entire time I am, so I have someone to talk to. Everyone is nice so far. Today consisted of sorting through piles of bananas taller than I am and cutting up papaya. There is a three day quarantine period where I cannot interact with animals, only get my potentially diseased hands all over their food.
The project seems more uncertain, but I have not had a chance to speak with the director much since I arrived. Its been a bit of a blur of names I won't remember and feeding schedules I have to write down. I keep getting distracted when I walk by the enclosures. I seem to have caught the attention of an olive babboon that leaves near the kitchen. When I pass by or sit he comes and indicates to me that he fancies me. Its a bit awkward as the staff have noticed, but I'm used to being added to animal harems against my will (Gilly and Boo among them).
The goal for Saturday, which will be my day off is to get a phone and get to the beach before the rains come. I'll check back when I can. Hope everyone is well.
Saturday, June 9, 2012
I said I would start one, so here it is.
In an effort to keep everyone in the loop I will endeavor to keep a blog for the duration of my time away. I've avoided such things in the past, as I have never felt I had anything to say worthy of the time it would take to read it. But this has a specific purpose, and it's OK if my mother is the only one who reads it.
It is unlikely that there will be many pictures, and I can't promise I will write anything interesting, but I will do my best. There will probably be a fair bit about trudging in the rain forest, shoveling feces and being quite wet and malodorous. For those of you who know me well, most of the above mentioned will be nothing new but at least you'll know I'm safe and enjoying myself.
I leave on Tuesday, have a series of flights that will test my mental stability and land in Cameroon on Wednesday. I have two days to kill and start at Limbe Wildlife Centre on the 15th. I will come back to the states late August, likely being partially feral and needing some adjustment time for the reverse culture shock.
Not surprisingly I am taking small pieces of CrossFit with me. CFNH will have a temporary branch in Limbe, Cameroon. Jamie Morse was gracious enough to let me borrow her rings so I can keep my muscle-ups and torture myself with ring rows and other various ring related activities. I was fortunate to have a couple semesters worth of austere training in Keene so I have some data points for making up workouts with whatever happens to be around. As Trevor said this morning, now even my workouts will be Paleo.
I hope everyone has a great summer, there are many people I will miss, but I will see you again in the Fall.
It is unlikely that there will be many pictures, and I can't promise I will write anything interesting, but I will do my best. There will probably be a fair bit about trudging in the rain forest, shoveling feces and being quite wet and malodorous. For those of you who know me well, most of the above mentioned will be nothing new but at least you'll know I'm safe and enjoying myself.
I leave on Tuesday, have a series of flights that will test my mental stability and land in Cameroon on Wednesday. I have two days to kill and start at Limbe Wildlife Centre on the 15th. I will come back to the states late August, likely being partially feral and needing some adjustment time for the reverse culture shock.
Not surprisingly I am taking small pieces of CrossFit with me. CFNH will have a temporary branch in Limbe, Cameroon. Jamie Morse was gracious enough to let me borrow her rings so I can keep my muscle-ups and torture myself with ring rows and other various ring related activities. I was fortunate to have a couple semesters worth of austere training in Keene so I have some data points for making up workouts with whatever happens to be around. As Trevor said this morning, now even my workouts will be Paleo.
I hope everyone has a great summer, there are many people I will miss, but I will see you again in the Fall.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)