lost key

I went to the market last week…took a big loop..carrying a basket heavy with produce (and 3 chitenji). When I got back to the cottage I went to open the door and my key was not there. I’ve had it on my carabineer for a year and a half but that day the string broke. Oh no. so I put my basket between the screen door and regular and then to retrace my steps…back along the loop with a stop at ute’s house as she has a key…of course I didn’t find it on the ground…I was sure if I dropped it it would have been picked up immediately and I wouldn’t find it…and sure enough I walked the loop and didn’t find it. however when I returned home the gardener from downstairs came to me and asked if I’d lost my key…yes…and he had found it just at the gate of the house! Yeah! returned it to me and retied it onto my carabineer for future use! So excited to have it back and not have it wandering Nkhoma…

power

two weeks ago the generator at the hospital broke…that is what keeps things going when the power is cut or is too unstable to run the hospital equipment. This is not good. It would be out for 5 days to be fixed. And the medical director and deputy medical director were in Kenya for a conference…not that they necessarily have more pull with escom (power company) but maybe have more clout in calling in. but Natasha (dr from south Africa) was here and called escom to tell them the problem…people die when we don’t have any way of having power…it runs the oxygen machines and other essentials. The man on the phone said that she would have to write a letter (on letterhead) scan it and email it and he would get it to the person and see what would happen. I’d have to say that I wasn’t too optimistic but it worked (along with a meeting with the head guy by Mr. Veitch) and we had constant and good power for 10 days!! We didn’t want to tell them that the generator was back…(I don’t know what actually happened) but then on Saturday we had a normal 2 hour cut at dinner time…of course ute and I had planned on an oven-grilled fish dinner but we are easily changed…(as we didn’t have any choice).

board meeting

Last week we had a board meeting with the teachers…just a coffee/tea and cake get together. During Term One we had lunch with the board…getting to know you—see the school, see what the teachers are doing, becoming more approachable on both sides. It went so well we decided to repeat (on a smaller scale as lunch was big). So we came together with cake and coffee. It started with Willeke taking us outside for an icebreaker…line up, shoulder-to-shoulder and repeat what the first person does. We went on a bear hunt. Where is the bear? There is the bear. First pointing with the left arm, then the right and then bent down…then she wanted to push us over but we weren’t actually shoulder-to-shoulder so we didn’t all fall but we did laugh a lot.
Back inside for refreshments and discussion. The question was memories from primary school—specifics or overall feelings. It sounded like everyone had memories of very strict/mean teachers but they see the feeling behind the strictness…wanting something better for the child…but the punishments were harsh…but then these are all people who have since succeeded and see the importance of education and many of them work in education still. Punishments from sweeping around, kneeling and being pulled by the ears, digging latrine pits (in primary school!)…but still an overall positive feeling…
They were then asked what makes a good teacher—honesty (kids take what their teachers say as true even over parents), caring, openness with kids and parents. And whether they think that they can come to the teachers with concerns and if their kids can come to them with concerns even about their teachers. Different from when they were growing up as parents sided with teachers almost across the board…it was a good meeting.

You're rate!

As you may have noticed I haven’t had quite as many stories about the police blocks…don’t worry they haven’t disappeared but they aren’t as entertaining…when they stop you they check your insurance sticker on the car and your license but other than that it isn’t too interesting. And there even seem to be more of them…there have also been more road signs—new ones. Leaving Lilongwe we now have a sign as to where the road leads—dedza, Blantyre, nkhoma…and at the turnoff to nkhoma there is a sign that mentions the hospital with an arrow even. But along with the new destination signs came new speed limit signs…and they are slow—50km…in some ways it makes sense but it is really slow. And they have been quite around for speed traps. So when I was driving to the lake I was pretty careful (hard for me with my inherited lead foot).
I got stopped multiple times on the way but at one the officer came to the window and started the conversation with “You’re rate!”…what? “You’re rate?” (oh I’m late) but I don’t know what for…late? Am i? well it is because the speed limit is too low… (and I thought because all of your colleagues keep stopping me)…he just laughed and let me go. So far so good. No trouble…though yesterday I did go into town and had forgotten my license…didn’t get stopped though…don’t plan on doing that again anyway.

technology

So I found out last night that someone from the first world was trying to call me but my number didn’t exist…but she was able to text me and I received that…but try as she might all evening for calls I didn’t exist…reminded me of trying to call my sister for her birthday this year…I called and got an automated response (first in Chichewa and then English) telling me that the number I had was not valid. I thought about texting her but she blocks them as her carrier charges her for incoming texts…so instead I texted my brother to pass on birthday greetings as I wasn’t sure I’d be able to get online…turns out she had changed her number…but I guess since I’m in Africa I wasn’t expected to need it so I wasn’t informed.
Also can’t remember if I put this in…I have heard that sometimes people here can skype…and I have it installed on my computer so sometimes I can chat with people…but it doesn’t ever say that the connection is good enough to talk or video chat…and others can (sometimes). So I searched some online to see if there is a fix…it suggested that I uninstall and reinstall the skype…so I tried…got it uninstalled and then couldn’t get it to reinstall…finally succeeded in reinstalling but had the same problem…it says my computer is running too slowly and I should close everything else…but nothing else was open. Asked for other suggestions and I was told to add RAM (but I should have enough) and the other suggestion was to try internet in an non-third world country…

new house

Once again I have moved houses…I was back in “my” place for a week and then Dr. Barbara’s mother passed away and she and Happy went back for two weeks. She asked before they left if I would stay there so the house would not be empty. Of course. The sellers of mats and ropes and things are getting quite confused that every time they knock on a different door it is still the same person who answers…and funnily enough I still don’t want or need a mat, rope or whatever else…
Barbara’s house is the house that I lived in when I first arrived…so I know the staff and can (usually) find what I’m looking for…and I now have access to a big computer (still very slow as it is quite old) that plays movies…so I’ve watched films before going to bed…a nice wind down to the evenings.

dreams

The anti-malaria pills that I’m taking (larium or meflaquin) is not given any longer at the public health places in the US because of the many side effects that it can cause. I have taken this one for all of the trips I’ve taken and took it my first year here…(they would only give me 6 months worth the first time though I was coming for a year) and this time they wouldn’t give it at all…said if I went to a private practice I could get it…but I came and found it here from people who had too much and then I could get from the clinics here.
The side effect that I get is very vivid dreams. I sometimes remember them, sometimes I just wake up knowing that I’ve had a strange dream…I have been taking the medication in the morning with breakfast and have had less of the dreams…but occasionally I will forget at breakfast and take it with dinner…that week is sometimes lots of fun.
another: I was going through an airport—don’t know where to…but I had left my shoes at some place behind me…and when I wanted to go back to get them the officials wouldn’t let me go back. And they wouldn’t let me go back and finally they said I could go back if my husband went with me…*problem! I’m not married…but luckily for me there was a guy that I knew in the crowd who offered to go back with me…we just didn’t tell the officials that we weren’t married. I woke up before we found my shoes but I think that if I’d stayed asleep we would have found them.
the latest was chasing goats with james...