It is amazing the things people carry on their heads, motor bikes, bikes etc. around here. Coffins, motor bikes on motor bikes, beds, everything. Their backs and necks must be so strong. It is getting hotter here. Too hot to sleep sometimes. I went rafting on the Nile again last week, so much fun. I bought some paint for the clinic. Slowly but surely it is looking better day by day. They had voting at our clinic last week so we were forced to go into the inpatient room. I had to guys who came in the the diagnosis of "soft tissue injury due to assault" and I wondered if they had fought each other... seems to be a lot of that around here. One of my favorite nurses got transferred to another clinic last week. They can be transferred anytime to any place apparently. That would suck. Lots of babies born last week. I am pretty sick of being dirty and sweaty all of the time. I never knew you could accumulate that much dirt in your ears/nose. The power has been off quite a bit lately. I would say is it on about 30% of the day if that. At least we have running water!! My mom and sister came to visit and we had a wonderful time. We went on an amazing safari and saw tons of animals. What an experience! It was a joy to have them here. Hope all is well. Sorry for the horrible grammar etc. Thanks for reading.
Sunday, March 13, 2011
Friday, February 11, 2011
Hello again
Hello all!
Work was pretty good this week. I almost passed out yesterday for the first time in my nursing career. Really gross finger, I won't go into the details for those of you whole don't have medical stomachs. It was a close one though, sat down just in time. Yuck! It was a day of gross wounds but that was the only one I almost tossed my cookies from.
It has been very hot here this week, not unbearable though. It cools down nicely at night so that is good.
People carry the craziest stuff on the backs of the motorbikes (Boda Boda's). I saw a man, women and a baby in between and strapped to the back was a sack of something, a suitcase, two pineapples and a dead chicken.
I had a few questions from the Bolt family that I would like to answer:
What is the biggest bug you have seen - any 10" centipeeds?
--Biggest bug is a couple 0f cockroaches that I saw in my bedroom and Lara's bedroom. You all know how much I LOVE cockroaches. Only saw those two so don't worry mom and Sara...
Describe your bed - is is comfortable? does it have netting over it? what are the pillows like?
--My bed is pretty comfortable because I have two foam mattresses on it but Lara's is terrible. There are just little thing 2x2 boards on the frame. I have a mosquito net over the bed. My pillow is pretty hard but it is ok.
How are managing your fear/ uncomfortableness with strange bathrooms?
--I am doing pretty good. Getting better. Squat toilets are interesting but not too bad.
Does it feel freeing to not have anyone expect you to have makeup/ good hair? Are you wearing makeup?
--Feels pretty good. I still wear a bit of mascara...Lara thinks I have an addiction which is very possible. I am pretty sweaty and dirty most of the time but so is everyone else.
I got horrible sunburn on my thighs while I was rafting, my left thigh just started to blister today, so gross. I put sunscreen on a million times but it just wasn't enough for the Nile and the equator I guess.
Hope all is well! Kampala and the beach this weekend!
Thanks for reading!
Work was pretty good this week. I almost passed out yesterday for the first time in my nursing career. Really gross finger, I won't go into the details for those of you whole don't have medical stomachs. It was a close one though, sat down just in time. Yuck! It was a day of gross wounds but that was the only one I almost tossed my cookies from.
It has been very hot here this week, not unbearable though. It cools down nicely at night so that is good.
People carry the craziest stuff on the backs of the motorbikes (Boda Boda's). I saw a man, women and a baby in between and strapped to the back was a sack of something, a suitcase, two pineapples and a dead chicken.
I had a few questions from the Bolt family that I would like to answer:
What is the biggest bug you have seen - any 10" centipeeds?
--Biggest bug is a couple 0f cockroaches that I saw in my bedroom and Lara's bedroom. You all know how much I LOVE cockroaches. Only saw those two so don't worry mom and Sara...
Describe your bed - is is comfortable? does it have netting over it? what are the pillows like?
--My bed is pretty comfortable because I have two foam mattresses on it but Lara's is terrible. There are just little thing 2x2 boards on the frame. I have a mosquito net over the bed. My pillow is pretty hard but it is ok.
How are managing your fear/ uncomfortableness with strange bathrooms?
--I am doing pretty good. Getting better. Squat toilets are interesting but not too bad.
Does it feel freeing to not have anyone expect you to have makeup/ good hair? Are you wearing makeup?
--Feels pretty good. I still wear a bit of mascara...Lara thinks I have an addiction which is very possible. I am pretty sweaty and dirty most of the time but so is everyone else.
I got horrible sunburn on my thighs while I was rafting, my left thigh just started to blister today, so gross. I put sunscreen on a million times but it just wasn't enough for the Nile and the equator I guess.
Hope all is well! Kampala and the beach this weekend!
Thanks for reading!
Monday, February 7, 2011
Insanity
Lara and I went rafting on the Nile on Saturday. It was insane but so much fun. Most of the rapids were a category 5. Lara almost had a very scary experience at the end when she got caught in a huge surf...the guide didn't really know what to do either. I had been thrown off but the left side of the boat didn't. The got caught in the rapids and all they could see was a wall of water around them. When I was looking at them I thought no one was in the boat because I could see inside. They were stuck for 2-3 minutes I think. Just when they thought they were going to have to bail the wave calmed and they popped out. I could see Lara right away and I freaked out but then here little head popped out from the raft. I think even the guide was a little freaked. I can't wait to show you the pictures. We went over a waterfall too. The people on our raft were awesome! One was a soap star on the Young and the Restless for 12 years!!! Hope to post pics soon!
Wednesday, February 2, 2011
Tuesday, February 1, 2011
I am trying to upload pictures in the Internet cafe and it is not going so well. So sorry.
Lara and I went to Kampala on Saturday. It was very hot and very busy. I saw a mother with a huge bag of something on her head, a baby on her back and holding the hand of a little one that was walking as well. Craziness.
We went to Entebbe on Sunday. It was very very quiet. We visited the zoo there (all rescued animals). There were monkeys all over the place. We then ate pizza on the shore of Lake Victoria, it was just lovely.
I think we will be going to Jinja this weekend, maybe some white water rafting!
Work is pretty good. We are really starting to run out of medication which is so tough.
The birthing process is very different here. No drugs etc. A mother was having a difficult time giving birth so they "pumped" the baby out by pushing on the top of her belly, didn't learn that in nursing school...that is for sure.
I was getting really really dusty here because it hadn't rained in two weeks. It finally rained last night. Our host family received a rooster as a gift yesterday so that is my new alarm.
I got a thank you note from a very sweet boy the other day too. He gave me his picture, a magnet and a sucker. All I did was give him a shot in the butt for 5 days in a row--must have not hurt that bad...
Hope all is well. The weather finally cooled after the rain. Thanks for reading!
Lara and I went to Kampala on Saturday. It was very hot and very busy. I saw a mother with a huge bag of something on her head, a baby on her back and holding the hand of a little one that was walking as well. Craziness.
We went to Entebbe on Sunday. It was very very quiet. We visited the zoo there (all rescued animals). There were monkeys all over the place. We then ate pizza on the shore of Lake Victoria, it was just lovely.
I think we will be going to Jinja this weekend, maybe some white water rafting!
Work is pretty good. We are really starting to run out of medication which is so tough.
The birthing process is very different here. No drugs etc. A mother was having a difficult time giving birth so they "pumped" the baby out by pushing on the top of her belly, didn't learn that in nursing school...that is for sure.
I was getting really really dusty here because it hadn't rained in two weeks. It finally rained last night. Our host family received a rooster as a gift yesterday so that is my new alarm.
I got a thank you note from a very sweet boy the other day too. He gave me his picture, a magnet and a sucker. All I did was give him a shot in the butt for 5 days in a row--must have not hurt that bad...
Hope all is well. The weather finally cooled after the rain. Thanks for reading!
Saturday, January 22, 2011
Life
I think I am getting used to the Ugandan way of life. Everything is pretty slow here. Work is very busy up until about 2pm. I am pretty sure I diagnosed a baby with Meningitis the other day.
I have a hard time understanding their English. The other day I was with Charles -who is equivalent to a PA I think, would say "jenta usa". I looked at him with a blank face like usual. He finally shouted it very slowly..."genital ulcer". I am sure the other nurses had quite the laugh. I actually make them laugh quite a lot (unintentionally).
It is very very dusty here when it doesn't rain. I blew my nose and cleaned my ears and they were very orange. No wonder there is so much "otitis media" at the clinic.
The other volunteer that is here is great. We laugh a lot. Today she was doing her wash outside while I was reading and she kicked a huge pile of dog poop. We laughed until we cried.
We get called "mazungu" a lot by the little kids. It means "white person." You have to say "bye" to them otherwise they won't stop. Most little kids at the clinic are scared of me because I am white.
We went to Kampala today which is the big city about 20-30 minutes away. We shopped a bit and then had a cheese burger for lunch. It was awesome.
We eat a lot of starchy foods here. The fruit is to die for.
I had a patient the other day named Beverly Hills, no joke.
Sorry for the poor grammar, spelling and random thoughts. The power goes out often so I have to type fast.
Hope all is well! Thanks for reading!!!!
I have a hard time understanding their English. The other day I was with Charles -who is equivalent to a PA I think, would say "jenta usa". I looked at him with a blank face like usual. He finally shouted it very slowly..."genital ulcer". I am sure the other nurses had quite the laugh. I actually make them laugh quite a lot (unintentionally).
It is very very dusty here when it doesn't rain. I blew my nose and cleaned my ears and they were very orange. No wonder there is so much "otitis media" at the clinic.
The other volunteer that is here is great. We laugh a lot. Today she was doing her wash outside while I was reading and she kicked a huge pile of dog poop. We laughed until we cried.
We get called "mazungu" a lot by the little kids. It means "white person." You have to say "bye" to them otherwise they won't stop. Most little kids at the clinic are scared of me because I am white.
We went to Kampala today which is the big city about 20-30 minutes away. We shopped a bit and then had a cheese burger for lunch. It was awesome.
We eat a lot of starchy foods here. The fruit is to die for.
I had a patient the other day named Beverly Hills, no joke.
Sorry for the poor grammar, spelling and random thoughts. The power goes out often so I have to type fast.
Hope all is well! Thanks for reading!!!!
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