Chicken Karma

The neighborhood that Mus's parents live in has recently begun a chicken exchange program of sorts.

About a month ago, two of their roosters disappeared and haven't been seen or heard of since. Then this week two strange roosters that are approximately the same size as the MIA cocks have moved into their yard and show no intention of leaving. I think it's chicken karma- that the universe took two roosters from whoever ended up with our roosters and sent them to our yard to balance the scale.

By this thinking, the roosters are rightfully ours and we should eat them. Yum.

And speaking of chickens... The other day when Mus's parent came to Obo, the dogs were left to their own devices. The dogs actually belong to the landlady, but she ignores them completely, so Mus's family ends up feeding them and bathing them and providing them with medical care.

So it's safe to assume that the landlady didn't feed them for the four days that Mus's family was gone, and when faced with this situation, Cal decided to take matters into his own paws. Now Cal is trained enough to know that the chicken inhabitants of the compound are strictly off limits. Sure, he may give them a little halfhearted chase occasionally, but he would never munch on one; understands that they have a high status that rivals his own. But when a strange chicken wanders in the gate...

Well, what's a pup to do?

After two weeks we discovered the smelly carcass hidden behind the building.

And for another fun food tidbit- Akans have an interesting mentality about food. For example, if your mother asks you, "Did you eat breakfast this morning?" and you reply "I drank a cup of hot chocolate," your mother is satisfied. In her eyes, a cup of hot chocolate is a perfectly acceptable breakfast.

But if it's the end of the day, and she asks what you had for dinner, and you say, "I had rice and stew," then many Akan women will protest that rice in stew is not, in fact, food. For you r dinner, whether midday or evening, many Akans believe that nothing but carbohydrates will suffice- be it kenkey, banku, or fufu. In short, one must eat a big ball of heavy, doughy starch at least one meal a day.



Oh yeah, and here's another album for your perusal.