Assembling a care package...

It's become a monumental process... a promised "care package" is being assembled in Toronto. And, contents are being gathered from a Calgary bookshop, Staples in Barrie, Apple (from who knows where), Walmart in Innisfil, Mountain Equipment Coop in Toronto and Future Shop in Markham... and quite possibly the behemoth of Costco outside Barrie.

Necessary supplies are being gathered, hunted down, picked up and sent to the JHR office in Toronto for shipment to Freetown, Sierra Leone. And, I can't tell you how excited I am at the prospect of getting this care package - sometime in mid-August.

I owe a great gaggle of gratitude to my parents, my friends, my colleagues and my son, Isaac, for undertaking this monumental task. I'm a picky guy and have very selective tastes...

"My" pens, for example are only available at Staples (Business Depot). They come in packages of two and sell (last time I was in Toronto) for around $4.98 per package. But I'm hooked on them... and you know writers/journalists... we love, are loyal and are sometimes fanatical about our pens.

I've also asked my dear friend Jennifer to arrange for an Iphone... You may ask "why" when Sierra Leone suffers a dearth of internet and technology. But, I'm trying to keep up to the world... and I'm trying to increase the level of communication I have with the "outside world". I'm thinking an Iphone will help.

In the same package, I've asked for a "Slapper Chopper", as seen on TV. Yes, it's a strange request... but I regularly cook with our local Salone peppers and it's unwise to handle them with bare fingers. Trust me... after one burning experience I've learned. So, the slapper chopper will allow me to dump the peppers from a small bag into the receptacle... and then chop-chop and into the pot. I brought one back here in June 2010 and it was nothing short of miraculous... After hundreds or thousands of "slaps" it finally gave out... and I'm looking forward to a new one.

Of course, I've also asked folks to assemble some decent reading material. I'm in a literary abyss and am desperate for some articulate prose. And, to help with reading at night when there's no power - a new headlamp. These are a necessity here and I've manged to go through about three so far. It may sound strange but these things are a gawdsend here.

JHR is also sending along some SWAG - "stuff we all get" - from the Toronto Star and from head office.

And, possibly the most vitally important addition to this care package is a collection of Starbucks instant coffee. You know the individual sachets? They're delicious - rather better than Nescafe.

Again, I'm indebted to friends and family... and I so, SO appreciate their efforts. Thank you, if you're reading this.

Looking forward to tearing open the package... Cmas in August. Hurray.

Yours, from Freetown,
S/