A life of convenience

Last night was an important milestone in my life here. The supermarche opened downstairs. It is directly downstairs from my house. I can smell that familiar Moroccan hanut smell and Tide laundry detergent wafting up. I saw that is was open yesterday, walked in and when I did, the store owner said, "Jin! Say to me "Bismillah!" So, I said "Bismillah" which means "in the name of God" and we shook hands. It's like I gave him my blessing for his new store. Then, I walked slowly through the store, taking it all in. All the important food items in my life are there: diet coke, popcorn, pistachio yogurt, and the fake cheese. They don't have real cheese yet, and that's the one thing that would make me happier. I asked about it. I am also going to ask them for granola, red beans, and American chocolate. Then, I will never have reason to leave my town. This morning I woke up, walked downstairs in basically my pajamas along with my red Spiderman plastic house slippers and bought yogurt for breakfast. That was cool.

What was totally unexpected and weird was the girl who was working behind the counter asked me (albeit in French) if I worked for the Peace Corps. I was so surprised because nobody in my town understands what the Peace Corps is, not even my boss, so for somebody to ask me about it was really shocking. Apparently, she had worked for Peace Corps a few years ago in Ouarzazate and asked me if I knew a girl named "Stacy." This happens to me all the time. As if I would know all foreigners in this country because I am one myself. She said Stacy left Morocco a few years ago, so no, I don't know her.