kicking ass

I spend a lot of time writing about Eleanor, and Africa, and Eleanor in Africa. I spend far less time than I should- FAR LESS TIME- writing about my husband, Tim. Do you remember him? In case everyone forgot, Tim is the reason we find ourselves in Tanzania; he is here doing field work/data collection for his dissertation. And right now, he's kicking ass.

"What does it mean to be kicking ass at doing your field work?" It's a fair question, and one that until only recently I wouldn't have been able to answer myself. To start, he's doing his field work in Africa. I know you know this, but think about trying to conduct research under the same conditions I write about just living in. Today, for example, is a prep day for their trip to the field (leaving tomorrow morning). Tim has already left the house (9 am) and his day will go something like this: get a new car battery for our [personal] Suzuki (it died last night) then bring it back home and install it; go grocery shopping- which means planning and purchasing enough food to feed 7 people three meals a day for 4 and a half days (this includes planning for the right amount of fresh vegetables and packaged dried goods as well as planning for the timing of meat that will be consumed, i.e. what needs to be frozen, what needs to be cold, and when are there markets so that fresh meat can be purchased); buying car parts for the Land Cruiser which needs to be serviced today (this will involve at least two, but probably more, stops at different stores); finding an ATM with money so he can pay salaries; picking up his advisor from the airport (who is flying in from Dar es Salaam today); getting Gabriel once he arrives in Arusha so he can take the car to the mechanic to have it serviced, and then waiting while the car is serviced; putting all the food into the store room and making sure that everything is in order there; getting water (this means taking 5 or so huge jerrycans down the street to a woman who mans a hose running out of the ground, where these cans are filled with water used for cooking and cleaning at camp). Then he needs to come home, pack, and have dinner with two colleagues- both of whom dominate discussion so completely that I can guarantee Tim will say little more than a few sentences.Whew. And that's just what he has to do to GET out to camp.

Tim is responsible for 5 employees. He maintains a schedule and involves each of them in the creation of this schedule to make sure that they are comfortable with it. He keeps them fed, paid, and busy while at work. He maintains good rapport and keeps them laughing. He does not waste their time, asks that they do not waste his, and shows respect for their continued and considerable effort to helping to get his work done. These are no small feats; and aspects of field work that previous students have not been able to accomplish. He is exceedingly organized, detailed, and diligent- each and every day.

He has been asked to work on research proposals by two different colleagues, asked to serve as a handling editor for a top journal, and complimented (numerous times) by an advisor on the quality and novelty of his research questions, hypotheses, and the general direction that his research is headed. He successfully brought a UNC undergraduate to Arusha for a month and during that time managed to have some of his most productive trips to the field to date.

In addition to all of these things, he continues to be a fantastic husband and father, making sure that his family (and overly sensitive wife especially) are cared for, safe, healthy, and happy.He remains thoughtful to our (mine and Eleanor's) experiences in Arusha, both while he is here with us and while he is away. Plus, he gave me a gift certificate for an hour-long massage at a salon for Mother's Day. And that counts big.

In short, he is kicking ass. I could not do what he is doing- at least not with the grace and thoughtfulness with which he does it. I am immensely proud of him, and it's about time I shared that with everyone.
-kjd