What’s that on your shirt?
Once upon a time I was spending the night at the Niamey hostel accompanied by a meddlesome group of friends. It was raining that night and was windy enough to blow things across our yard. As a preventative measure, I put my bug hut (like a tent for one, but made with mesh walls) in the hall between the bedrooms where everyone keeps their belongings (normally it would be on the roof where we sleep because it gets unbearably hot inside). Before heading to bed I decided to take a shower to wash off all the dust and sweat that had accumulated over the 115 degree day. After a refreshing rinse, I returned to my room to get my toothbrush and leave my towel. On the way there I discovered an armchair perfectly centered inside my bug hut, as if it were escaping a swarm of mosquitoes. The pranksters insisted that I at least humor them and sit in the chair for a picture, so I decided to play along (I strongly believe in encouraging pranks). I grabbed my toothbrush and toothpaste and brushed my teeth as I relaxed in the bug-free armchair, I mean, why not double-task? What I didn’t see coming was someone with a padlock to lock the two zippers together. Even though I attempted to dive over the side of the chair and pull the zippers apart, it was useless. My cat-like reflexes had failed me and I found myself trapped inside the glorified mosquito net with nothing but a chair, a toothbrush, and a mouth full of bubbles. I struggled to hold back my laughter and toothpaste, and after almost choking or projecting Crest all over, the pranksters freed me so that I could spit in the sink. I (and of course, they) had a good laugh, and the bonus was that even the inside of my nose was minty fresh.
