A regular yuppie

So I've become one of those obnoxious yuppies that you can find running around town equipt with fancy tennis shoes, matchy-matchy flattering sports outfits, and timer in hand.  Sometimes in the evening you might even find me working out with elastic bands to pilates/ yoga videos.  I've found that regular exercise helps me keep in check mentally and even helps balance me emotionally, and all the paraphernalia only acts as encouragement. Usually I run from my house to the large Bank of Africa sign three kilometers to and fro pass a hamlet of brickmakers, a Chinese cotton company, stands that sell pickled mangos, and a defunct gas station. It helps to run in the morning if I've had particular difficulty falling asleep because of my anti-malarial pills, a harsh nightmare, or basic anxieties that keep my mind from a peaceful rest.  The sun rises around five a.m. This is the time that you'll see young men start to come out on their ox-pulled wagons and the roosters begin to crow.  You feel the dampness of the ground dissapear as the sun rise dries up the evenings dew.  However my favorite time to run is in the evening especially after a stressful day.  It helps me put things into persepective.  I'm completely in my own "zone", as all the distractions are phased out with nothing in site but miles and miles of red earth and dry grass...not quite conducive to growing food crops.   At the end of my run I usually no longer feel stressed.  Stress never lasts forever but then neither will my time in Madagascar. Words fail to describe this beautiful landscape scenery, but I try to stain mental images that i'll hopefully remember for years and years after my service.