I’m sorry to say, dear readers, that week nine will be a bit of a letdown. One of the downsides of working so much is that by the time I get around to blogging, I’ve already forgotten everything I did the previous week. Most of my waking hours last week were spent at work, and most of the things I did there are wildly exciting to only a select few people. I supervised the creation of a middle school book club. Made a publication timeline for the student literary journal. Read more books to tiny children. Created a fabulous dinosaur-themed corner in the library, complete with illustrations of various species and a memorable pun.¹

On Saturday I wandered through sunlit streets to a little shop with art supplies and bought a set of drawing pencils and some acrylic paints. Picked up a fresh baguette and vegetables on my way home, then made a delicious pasta sauce for lunch.² In the evening I headed downtown for Tanjazz, Tangier’s annual jazz festival. The featured musician, Fouad Hani, played about five different instruments, which were lined up in front of him and switched after each song. The crowd was full of young people, who were jumping, riding each other’s shoulders, throwing hats and scarves into the air. Near me, a mother and daughter danced together. The musician, who had a big gray beard and jaunty yellow cap, pranced about the stage as he sang. He stomped, kicked, grinned into the flashing lights. The drum pulsed through the crowd like a false heartbeat.³

I explored the city docks on Sunday, frightening a flock of seagulls and, later, a school of fish. Met a cat with the kind of eyes that cats only have in Halloween storybooks. Befriended two travelers from Bristol, England and showed them my favorite spots, then enjoyed a late-night tagine. Fell into bed just in time to catch my breath before the coming workweek.

1. It’s all arranged on an unused door, so there are big letters that say “DINO DOOR”. The girls keep asking for books about princesses, so I think I’ll make a princess corner next, featuring reigning women throughout history who defied gender roles to make a difference in the world. [↩]
2. Green peppers, two perfect tomatoes, onions, garlic. Fresh baguette. [↩]
3. Later that night, Loki caught, killed, and devoured an enormous cockroach in my apartment, reaffirming that adopting a kitten has been one of my smartest choices since moving here. [↩]