OK, once again, about Yeshiwerk. I don't actually like her father, but
I do rather like her. We'll see how it goes. She is doing a good and
responsible job, and we might include her in the free training that the
gv't offers employees of biz's that devolve from forieign investment in
high-priority areas such as fabric/garment.

We found about this training throgh a friend of Dr Dawit's who is in
the textile/garment industry here. His name is Mesfin, and he appears
to be another fine fellow like Dr Dawit. He's going to give us a hand
developing our business, and he's told us about some more ways the gv't
will support us, including the free training and loans in wh the gv't
wd match 70% to our 30%. It sure sounds as though I wont be getting a
biz loan back in calif -- though I'll be asking a bank w whom I've done
biz for many years and where I had my tech-writing biz account. {Coast
Commercial, Kris!}. Since there's no 30% to be had now, that'll have to
be in the future.

Monday Mesfin is taking us to see little factories to which he conracts
a lot of his sewing (he does mostly T-shirts for the African market)
that he thinks we can use. Also, he needs a shipment of fabric from the
US, and he says he will split the profits of its use with us if I'll
oversee the quality and the loading of it when I'm in the US this fall.

Jonas and Rico just came down the shute and Rico is dancing!

Tsigey just brought me a cup of hot lemon water and honey!

Life is good.

Woah -- Jonas wants to investigate Tsahai's nursing box. I went over
there, and she had covered up the kittens with her body. I distracted
Jonas with crumpled paper bals, which he loves, and he just ran up the
chute with one.

Ooops he is back. Time to send this message and attend to him.

My current return-to-US date is now 09/25.

- - -

P.S., I forgot a couple of things --

I was talking about Yeshiwerk and medical things, all braided together,
right? I had been driving at including the fact that I went w Yeshiwerk
to the clinic down the street where we'd taken her father, Ashenafe,
who turned out to have tuberculosis. We wanted to be sure she hadn't
contracted TB too, especially before she began to work for us. She's
fine.

Also (!!!) we've been including KIM's PINGFORD's PORRIDGE in Tsahai's
food since she gave birth -- actually we are giving her the same food
as the ferret's stew, though not the Evo kibble.

Those kittens are growing so fast! They were big to begin with, and
they seem to grow by the hour. Everyone here delights in the fact that
they are half Habasha (a usually affectionate slangy term for
Ethiopian) and half ferenji (an often affectionate slangy term for
Euro/US foreigner). And of course they are bigger and healthier than
most local kittens even though Tsahai is little (and only 11 months
old) because she's been well fed and gotten good vet care (THANK YOU
ALICE AND DAWIT!).

There are five, and clearly they have been fathered by Hima's and
Raoul's roof enemies. None looks like Tsahai or her mother or brothers.
Some are the type I consider classic Ethiopian cats. Now there are many
types of cats in Addis, but back in the HSI (Emperor Haile Sellassie
I) days, when I was first here, almost all cats in Addis were white
with darker patches, and those patches were fully tabby striped.
Occasionally you'd see an "Abyssinian" type cat. I had a wonderful one
called Robert.

Hey, ANYONE BACK THERE IN THE US WANT A KITTEN?????? We have 10 cats
now, including these 5 PRETTY KITTENS......... How about you, Dawit?

Does this situation remind you of the days of 9 cats in Redwood
Estates, Phil?

OK, guys -- perhaps the next time you hear from me I will be back in
the USSSSA (Beach boys ref, right?).

[Posted in FML 6100]