WEDNESDAY, THE FINAL DAY OF WORK... Wednesday, February 22, 2012

Again, we were up and at it at an early hour and today, it really was earlier, since we had messed up the day before by not showing up for work on time, as far as the local crew was concerned. We were up at 5:30 with breakfast at 6:00 and departing either on foot or in the "TING" so we would arrive to begin working no later than 7:30. Again, this was to help avoid working at the hottest time of day, when the sun was brightest. Temperatures each day climbed well into the 80s and it was very easy to over exert and to suffer from heat exhaustion or from us poisoning, so e had to avoid that at all costs. Once more, there were definite teams which had emerged and although there was no announced competition, there was an underlying tension which those on our team felt. The one team was much larger with Dream Team members far outnumbering any of the locals. This team had its act together and began passing basins of masala almost immediately. The tough part, however, was the fact that the local ladies, who were part of the labor force, did not show up as we had planned, to begin working at 7:30. Perhaps this was a it of payback? And you know what they say about payback! Much to the delight of our smaller in number team, several of the local ladies came over and began to carry the basins of masala that Tim Mulcrone began filling. Marcia sat down on the edge of the pit and was the catcher and the passer of the full basins, first taking a full basin from one of the local ladies and the passing it on to Randy, who was already standing on the floor of the pit. He, in turn, would toss it on to the next team member, who tossed to another and so on until  reached its destination and then was dumped. The empty basin was then passed back through to Marie Unger who then tossed it up to me, where I was standing on the edge of the pit. Catching the empty basin in my left hand, I then passed it to one of the ladies waiting to return to Tim for a refill. Our group was pacing itself well, and we seemed to be making great progress, steady progress, without getting totally exhausted in the process. We took frequent mini breaks, stopping for one or two minutes only to pass water bottles, or bottles of electrolytes, for all of us to drink. One or two of the Rotarians from the Rotary Club of Delhi-Megapolis had driven out from Delhi to join us in the line. N.P. Singh and two others were part of our team. After working for about two hours, and facing the very hot sun, I determined it would be a good move if Randy and I could trade places and change r respective exposures to the sun. We switched places but did not refrain from a very active and sometimes pointed repartee between us. Tips also helped the hours pass more quickly. Even Marsha (this time I spelled it correctly) added a few barbs and this made it even more fun to be on our team.  11:30 rolled around and we all began to climb out from the pit and to move over to where Kelly was holding down the fort and watching over our backpacks, etc. Dinesh looked over and pleaded with me to have the team work just one more half-hour, until noon before calling it quits. We all agreed, or at least most of us, and we made the final push for another thirty minutes.  Again, we gathered over to where Kelly was located, in the shade, and with Dinesh to help us, we were able to distribute some of our old work clothes, some shoes, work boots, hats and who knows what. In a very orderly manner, each member of the local labor force received one item, with care be given to making as sure as possible that a lady would receive something appropriate, rather than a pair of men's work boots.  Once this task was completed, we then headed back for lunch.  Our trips back and forth in the "TING" followed a very differ route from the one used by the walkers.  Was great fun, because we chugged down country roads, passing an occasional house where mothers and children were bathing on the front patio area, or an older gent was sitting off to one side, puffing on his hookah.  Then we would look out into the fields of wheat or mustard and there, standing in the middle, was a scarecrow! This was not your average, everyday scarecrow, but rather one which came complete with turban!  A short distance further, we maneuvered our way through a small enclave of homes, where a half-dozen men sat on a cot and shared their morning hookah and where the local women squatted in front of a small fire, preparing breakfast for the family. One morning, a young woman walked holding a newborn kid goat, still wet and with its umbilicus, and the nanny goat braying to have her kid returned so she could nurse it. Talk about sensory overload!!! Just around the corner, where several women and children gathered each day to wave us through the turn, were two pens of water buffalo, totaling about fifty head. There might be a crow perched on the back of one of the water buffalo while a woman might be milking another. What we witnessed each day was the simple life at its best! When we returned to the tent village, a group of locals was kind of hanging out near the gate. You see, the "TING" attracted a great deal of attention as it hurtled across the desert terrain each day, due to the fact to our driver plugged in his mobile phone into a speaker and we had musical (very loud musical) accompaniment each day. By the time we reached the gate, some of the women were dancing. One older woman, in particular, was really into the scene and twirled around and had all of the hand gestures of a true Rajasthani dancer.  We paused to watch this display, and even some of our own women joined in the dancing. Again, we we handed wet washcloths and were able to wipe away the sweat and grime of the morning. Beer (now Foster's from Down Under, which the Aussies did not fancy) and wine and soft drinks were again offered. Linda Bertuzzi shamed Gene Hernandez and Randy Pote into venturing to the kitchen tent and returning with two small plates with sliced cucumbers for our eyes.  Another great lunch and then a siesta until about 2:30. Several team members chose to return for a last session at the dam site. Others chose to rest in their tents, while the rest of us traveled to Teench Wala, the site of our first dam project back in 2012. I was eager to see the progress since we had left the construction of the dam, and to see if it had sustained, even after many months since the monsoon.