Tulip's Puppy

There is a small brown hunting dog here at Bina Hill who effectively adopted me when I first arrived. Over time she got more and more comfortable with me. She accompanied me on my walks across the savanna, always greeted me enthusiastically when I returned and would sleep in my hut from time to time.

Well, you know how it is...dogs will be dogs and Goddess of Canine Fertility that she is, she got pregnant for the third time in just over a year. I've been told that she had delivered 16 pups in her two previous pregnancies.

When she was obviously pregnant again, and decided that the space beneath my dresser was a perfect maternity ward, I was expecting a whole bunch of pups. The night of May 3rd, I awakened to her panting and the sounds of muted squeals. By morning, things had quieted down and I checked on her. I could only see one pup, so I went about my day thinking that she would deliver more during the day...but, no...just the one.

Last week, she finally decide that it was time for her little girl to venture outside. It was comical watching her cavorting in the grass. I've tentatively named her "Fatso"...with no other pups to compete for nipples, she is being very well fed...and shows it.

Tulip and her pup

Fatso Outside for the First Time

Think this might be the father????

The Bina Hill Institute Women's Football Team

Recently some of the girls here at Bina Hill Institute decided that they, too, should be represented in the North Rupununi District Football Tournament. All they needed was a coach... “Captain Mike, would you be our coach?” “Oh, sure, why not…nothing ventured, nothing gained.”

So, I became the coach of a team of woman who are excellent athletes, but have very few basic football skills. They do have great enthusiasm, laugh all the time and just love to run around the field kicking the ball.

In truth, I am still adjusting to coaching here. None of the girls has her own football cleats (boots)…they share a plastic bagful of shoes that were donated by someone along the way. If they are too big, the girls just stuff socks into the shoe to fill the voids. If one girl doesn’t have shoes, one of the other girls will happily share one of her pair. At any one time I will have girls practicing barefooted, wearing just one shoe…or in some cases a complete pair of shoes…the shoes may be different colors, but then, nobody really cares.

We practice each evening on the Bina Hill “ground”. The girls are coming along nicely and should be in very good shape by our first game on the 23rd .

The 23rd has come and gone and a new page has been entered in the history of Bina Hill Women’s Football. On the sandy field of Ruputee, the Bina Hill women opened their premier season with a win over Kwatamang. Pauline Johnson’s first half goal would stand up as the defense lead by Captain Debbie Jacobus stymied any offensive threats by Kwatamang.

There were numerous last minute details before our game scheduled for 9am. Ivor, filling in for our regular manager, Bertie Xavier, rode in on his bicycle laden with a box filled with new boots (cleats). Shortly thereafter, Brian, the Bina Hill driver, arrived with another box filled with new uniforms. After hurried, last minute details…hair re-combed, uniforms tried on and discarded, boots fitted, shin guards and socks located, the team was ready to take the field at 9:30am…which in Guyanese time is real good.

Getting our first win made this another great day of football in the North Rupununi.

Last minute preparations

Team members sorting out their new boots

The women's changing room

The 2009 Bina Hill Institute Women’s Soccer Team

The Annai Men's Football Team

Bernie Johnson dropped off a letter to me from John Abraham from Annai Village. John represents the men's football club. His letter announced the beginning of the North Rupununi Football (soccer) Tournament...and went on to ask me to be the coach. Whew!!! What to do. On the hand, I know nothing about the players...no idea of their skill levels, have never seen the play, don't know how the game is played down here, not to mention I've never coached Amerindians, nor for that matter any Guyanese or even South Americans.

What I did know from watching some players, most are athletic. They have great body shapes to be good players...somewhat short, excellent balance, very good feet and they can run for--ever!!! I had also observed that few players have good basic skills. They do not pass the ball well, receive it poorly and have little understanding of team tactics. So, what do I have to lose...let's give it a try.

I met with the them the next day...a group comprised of 14 & 15 year-olds all the way up to the old man, Capitash John at 36. Some of the players have their own "boots", but most do not. Look at the picture closely...you will notice that more than half the players are barefoot...and that's they way the play...barefoot.



Now this makes for an interesting situation when substituting during a game. The rules require that each player must be wearing boots, socks, shin guards and a shirt. When a substitution is made, there is usually a quick undress and dress routine as the player coming off doffs his uniform, socks and boots, gives them to the substitute to don...and on the field goes the new player.

Speaking of the field, the Annai "ground" is one of the best fields in the league. We have a great maintenance crew. They work round the clock preparing the field...and they are very efficient. Never wasting a motion, the cut the grass with one end as they fertilize it with the other. The fertilizer mixture is roughly 30-30-30-10...horse, cow, donkey and other. As you can see in the pictures, the don't do a real good job of broadcasting the fertilizer, rather, they tend to leave it in steaming piles that get flattened during practice and games.

I am looking forward to a great season. John comes for me on his motorcycle at 5:30am. We practice from 6:00am to 7:30am, then I walk the 3 miles from Annai to Bina Hill, take a great shower, have breakfast and begin my day.

Kofi's Pick Truck "Rupununi Way"

There are very few resources here in the Rupununi, so, if you want or need something, you better be prepared to grow, catch, build, fix or repair it yourself...we call it doing things the "Rupununi Way." And that is the beginning of the story about Kofi's pick-up truck, Rupununi Way.

First, a bit about Kofi. Like many Guyanese, he has very little formal education, but is incredibly intelligent. Somewhere along the line someone decided that Kofi, Bina Hill Institute...somebody needed a truck. Kofi started the project without aid of service manuals, a few tools and a whole lot of just plain smarts. It was amazing to watch him as he put the puzzle pieces in place. Now, down here in the interior, there are only two trucks...Bedfords that do the heavy hauling and 1/2-ton toyotas, generally crew-cab, solid axles and leaf springs...these are the toughest little trucks on the planet. Oh, there are pretenders...Land Rovers, fancy Hi-Luxes with chrome winches and independent suspensions...Hell, there are even a few GMCs and Fords...but when the going gets tough, the tough get going...here come the Bedfords and the 1/2-ton Toyotas. The big problem is buying a new one...they are prohibitively expensive. So, when you need a truck, what do you do? You buld one.

Yep, you build one. Starting with only a frame and a bunch of parts, Kofi proceeded to build a truck. First, the frame was finished, axles and wheels attached...then the motor was mounted, drive train installed, all the parts started coming together to build a truck.

Parts were pirated from the several relics scattered about the institution grounds. Along the way, Gilbert (Kofi's right-hand man) helped the project by rolling an almost identical truck over off a bridge into a stream...the steering arm let go allowing the front tires to go anywhere they wanted to go. Much to Gilbert's dismay they chose to go into the stream. Instead of grief, there was joy...MORE PARTS!!!

On Kofi toiled, little by little bringing the project closer to completion. A welder was brought in from Lethem to do some major re-fabrication on the frame and motor mounts. But...a problem arose. The welder's generator would not produce enough amperage to operate the welding equipment, sooooo, in fine Rupununi fashion, the truck was rolled...pushed by some students nearly half a mile to the Annai Secondary School where theschool's generator WOULD produce enough amperage to run the welder. Mission accomplished. Kofi's truck was returned to the garage...oh, did I mention that in order to get the truck out of the garage, the front wall had to be knocked down??? Not a problem. A sledge hammer, then minutes of pounding and Kofi's truck is out the door.

The first item to be attached to the frame was the cargo body pirated from one of the derelicts who so generously gave of themselves through the "body-parts donor" program. The body was in relatively good condition, needing only some minor sledge-hammer detail adjustments.



Next on the list was the passenger cab. Now, Kofi had one that had been in a rollover (not Gilbert's), but it needed some minor body work. Again, in the finest Rupununi Way, jacks, blocking, hammers, etc. were employed to reshape the crumpled cab into something that closely resembled its previous condition. However, there were some minor problems...you know, half to three-quarters of and inch misalignment...not to worry. Hugh, another welder, was brought in from Lethem to do some acetylene body work. It was determined that the best course would be to cut the top off Gilbert's rollover. That done, Kofi's Truck was taking shape.

Then, one afternoon, with a roar and a cloud of diesel smoke, Kofi's truck fired to life for the fist time. All was not perfect. Several more days of tinkering would be required before Kofi's Truck' Rupununi Way would roll down the road to Lethem. On Monday, may 4th, 2009, Rupununi Way, with Kofi behind the wheel headed for Lethem. The word is...he made it.