Jen (#891) 12-06-15

I had an early breakfast with a cousin, Joel, in downtown Asheville, NC. He said that he wished he could watch me approach strangers, but he was plagued by the curse of the middle class: work. When we exited the eatery, Jen and CJ (and Jen's hat) were at an outdoor table. Joel had a few more minutes, so I ran uphill to the car (gasp!) and fetched the camera. I walked back while modulating my breath and immediately approached Jen. She seemed both amused and befuddled. She said OK, but not convincingly.

Both were living in California, but Jen was born in Oregon. They were in Asheville for a wedding; so they were travelers, just like me. Jen has a farm which is energy efficient. I guessed that she grew only organically, with no GMOs. Yep, I was right – she just had the Green look. She and CJ met in Western Africa while in the Peace Corps, starting farms, of course. How many friends have you made in Western Africa?

I told her about a relative who served in the peace Corps in Malawi, about 20 years ago. She made many good friends, but they have all died of AIDS. Jen said that Malawi is in Eastern Africa, Western Africa is less affected by AIDS.

She was quite shy and laughed through most of the photographing. I assured CJ that he had 'photography eyes', so he relented too.

Bob