Category Archives: odds and sods
-
absence makes the stomach grow fonder: food variety deprivation, fantasy and phenomena in the humanitarian aid worker life
Posted on October 21, 2012 by nikki in aid work, odds and sods, rituals, unexpected adventures.Food cravings are a motherfucker. After a few weeks of being in the field with the same slop every day, my gastronomic fantasy life takes on a bigger and bigger portion of my conscious and unconscious mind with debilitating consequences. I’ve been through this cycle enough times now to recognize the signs and symptoms, which […]
Continue Reading... Comments Off on absence makes the stomach grow fonder: food variety deprivation, fantasy and phenomena in the humanitarian aid worker life -
what do I have in common with Julia Roberts? how being a dog owner is like being a celebrity
Posted on September 25, 2012 by nikkimeredith in dogs, family, odds and sods, rituals, unexpected adventures.I have never been, nor will I ever be, a celebrity — not even for Andy Warhol’s 15 minutes. But I maintain that having a dog shares some of the features of celebrityhood and if you walk around with two dogs, you’re on your way to being a super celebrity. When our dog Alice was […]
Continue Reading... Comments Off on what do I have in common with Julia Roberts? how being a dog owner is like being a celebrity -
shitty in pink, part two: lots of refugee ladies, no ladies’ rooms
Posted on August 26, 2012 by nikki in aid work, odds and sods.Easy enough for me to tell my latrine sob story, but let me give an even stronger piece of advice: really, really try to avoid being a refugee in a newly created camp that only has trench latrines. As an aid worker I’m supposed to encourage all refugees to use only the designated camp latrines. […]
Continue Reading... Comments Off on shitty in pink, part two: lots of refugee ladies, no ladies’ rooms -
the path not taken: a mother and her aid worker daughter
Posted on August 22, 2012 by nikkimeredith in family, love of a mother, Mother-Daughter Relationships, odds and sods, unexpected adventures.Two roads diverged in a yellow wood, And sorry I could not travel both… Robert Frost “Mom, please tell me….if it’s going to be too hard on you, I won’t go.” Caitlin and I were sitting outside at Emporio Rulli, our neighborhood Italian Bakery drinking tea on a shimmering fall day. She was scheduled to […]
Continue Reading... Comments Off on the path not taken: a mother and her aid worker daughter -
shitty in pink: lady aid worker conquers night time latrine visits
Posted on August 18, 2012 by nikki in aid work, health and beauty, odds and sods, rituals, unexpected adventures.I have one key piece of advice for female aid workers on their way to Africa: once you get there, get a potty. This might even be more important than my earlier advice about underwear. Displaying your undies in full view of your boss only happens once a week – the potty issue comes up […]
Continue Reading... Comments Off on shitty in pink: lady aid worker conquers night time latrine visits