New 'Friends'

Here in the Sandbox I've managed to make a few new friends...if you want to call them that. First, there's the lizard that lives in my room. At first I didn't really like him all that much...it kind of freaks me out when I wake up and he's right there on the wall by my face, but I rationalized that lizards eat bugs and so it might be best to keep him around. This line of thought worked for about a week before I realized that this particular lizard is one of the noisy kinds AND that the cricket in the kitchen that has been there since the day we moved in is still there...therefore the lizard isn't doing his job and in my mind he has to go. I've tried to scare him out of my room and into the living room, but he always comes back. My roommates have even helped me try to catch him on the wall with a plastic cup but he's just too quick. I'm sure that the construction guys across the street who watch us through our windows got a good laugh that day.

Then there's the dogs. In third world countries, no one really has pets, there's just ratty, malnourished animals all over the streets. We are lucky enough to have several of these dogs that live just outside of our apartment. They sleep all day...inside our building on the stairs so that we have to step over them to leave...but then they're awake all night long just barking up a storm. Hey! Hey! Hey! Hey! (for all my Brian Regan friends) Needless to say, we're pretty tempted to go down to the 'security guard' down the street and offer him $20 for each dog that he gets with his rifle...(actually, I would like to just borrow the guys rifle to see if it's loaded or if he just carries it around to intimidate people, but that's a whole different subject)

Lastly, there's the donkey. Every night he is 'parked' on the corner but not tied up...I'm amazed that he doesn't run away. But yup, he's on the corner making noise all night. (what is the noise that donkeys make called? breaying?) Anyways, believe it or not, I can sleep through the dogs barking all night, the cricket in the kitchen, I can even get over the lizard sitting on the ceiling above my face, but this stupid donkey on the corner keeps me awake.

We've tried to come up with some creative solutions that will help us sleep through all of these things, but so far none of them have worked. So if any of you have some suggestions we'd be glad to hear them!