My 4th of July

Today was America's Independence Day. Since I live & work with mostly Americans, we decided to have a BBQ (called a "braai" here in Southern Africa) to celebrate. It was kinda a crazy day:

7am: get up & start making brownies for tonight
7:30am: get ready for the day
8am: breakfast (juice, toast, & left-over brownie batter)
8:15am: work on emails, etc. at home instead of going to real work
9am: head out on some errands with 2 flatmates. we are pretty much skipping work today.
9:30am: stop by Zambian Airways office to buy tickets to Dar es Salaam. the credit card machine is down.
10am: head to Tanzania embassy with 2 flatmates to get visas for an upcoming trip
10:15am: realized i don't have 2 passport photos to give the embassy. leave passport (+ $50 for the visa) for later pick-up
10:40am: pick up some charcoal on the side of the road for our braai. cost: $5 for a HUGE bag
11am: actually go to work. work on a powerpoint for admin department. very boring
11:45am: try to buy ticket to Dar es Salaam online. credit card payment page won't load.
noon: go to local bakery to by buns for the braai. notice the fresh-ish donuts in the case. leave with 30 buns & 2 donuts
12:30pm: eat apple & head out on more errands

1pm: get passport photos taken & eat ice cream while they are being printed. i'm having a very healthy lunch today. buy some flip-flops for 70 cents.
2pm: back to the Tanzanian embassy. successfully get passport with visa. walk up to American embassy to get extra pages for my passport only to remember it is the 4th & everything American is closed
2:30pm: walk past a man sleeping in a field next to the embassies
3:00pm: back to the Zambian Airways office. find out the online payment page is down. then why did the man this morning tell us to buy them online? finally talk to a decently competent man who says we can pay with credit cards. man disappears for a bit, returns, & tells us they don't have the credit card payment pages. wow, i'm shocked.
3:15pm: argue with taxi drivers about gas prices for a while
3:30pm: police shoot a robber on the street as we drive by in the taxi. taxi driver says it happens all the time - no trials for people with guns apparently
4pm: get back to work
5:30pm: go home & make another batch of brownies
6pm: shower
6:15pm: prepare food for braai
7:15pm: remember i'm supposed to be talking to my family online. sign on. they aren't on. text them. get text back "oh, um, just a second. we'll be on soon...". now i don't feel bad that i forgot
7:30pm: technology drama with the video chat. then, successful conversation with Mom, Dad, & Little Sister
8pm: go out to the braai (in my side yard), which is in full force. eat a lot of food (hamburgers, grilled peppers, baked beans, watermelon, guacamole, potato salad, brownies)
9pm: discuss meat with some friends. mention tri-tip, which they think i've made up till i find it on wikipedia for them
10pm: play a crazy game of catch-phrase with braai people
11pm: pack for trip to the Copperbelt tomorrow
11:30pm: clean & put away food from the braai
12am: blow-dry & straighten hair so won't have to do it while on vacation
12:30am: finish up online stuff, including writing this blog
1am: going to bed

..... 5am: get up to catch bus to the Copperbelt.