Today I woke up at 3:00 am, got dressed, and headed to the embassy with Leah to watch the election results come in. The embassy staff made me leave my (turned-off) phone and my bag with security, which sucked since I couldn't twiddle with anything or text updates to other PCVs. Oh well. The party was nice--I had some mango and watermelon for breakfast, and then fixated myself on watching the polling results. It was pretty nerve-wracking for a number of hours, but ultimately by 7:30 am being glued to the screen paid off! On top of the AWESOME electoral victories today, I also had the chance to talk with the ambassador. He was very nice and cordial. Some of the staff also recognized me from swearing-in, which was kind of cool.
Once CNN made its prediction, most people cleared out of the embassy to go to work. Steven, one of the roommates here at Leah's house, was a total sweetheart and escorted me to the PC office and then to the Mwenge carvers market downtown. I was super dizzy and weak (partly from no sleep, partly from my general malnourished-sort-of-fatigue) so I didn't want to walk anywhere in Dar alone. I did a little bit of shopping and bartered my butt off. It feels good to get prices down all by myself! It was a fun afternoon, though I spent most of the time hearing only out of the left side of my head. For some reason my ear is still having a lot of problems, but I'm hoping the make-shift medicine they gave me will kick in soon!
I spent the afternoon relaxing at the house. I should find out tomorrow if I'm being medically evacuated or medically separated--it's DC's decision, though I requested to be evacuated before getting the official PC ax. Regardless of what they decide, my flight home will probably be sometime next week.
Tomorrow I should find out what other tests they're going to run while I'm in Dar. I have a feeling I'm in for a lot of paperwork in the future....
Wednesday, November 7, 2012
Tuesday, November 6, 2012
November 6, Five Months in Country
Happy Election Day! I hope you all utilized your voting rights today! Support the democratic process!
I am just hanging out in the PC Volunteer Lounge. I had an appointment here this morning. Apparently I'm approaching things in a very "well-adjusted" manner and handling my probable medically separation pretty well, so that's positive. I know ultimately things will work out for the best, and I'm trying to fight disappointment with optimism about what with transpire in the future. The older I get, the more I understand that life is full of detours. Plans often fall through or change along the way, but that's what makes living interesting. Following a linear road-map is boring, though the theoretical security of knowing that Point A will, in fact, lead to Point B is pretty alluring. I like planning, but if nothing else, I've learned to be more malleable and adaptive here than I have been in the past. I'm much better at going with the flow than I was a couple years ago--and I certainly am enjoying the ride more, even with all the ups and downs I've been facing.
In truth, I have and continue to give PC my all, and if I can stay here I will, but I'm also acceptant that health-wise I may need to change paths. I'm a fighter, and I will push through things as much as I can, but I also know that my health does need to improve for me to be an efficient volunteer, and really, for me to be a TRULY happy person. I recognize that I need to get my body back on track, one way or another. I truly believe that things are going to work out, and once I'm healthy, the world shall be my oyster. A gritty one, perhaps, but just having a healthy body would be my "pearl" at this point! :)
Anyway, I should get more information about my blood-work today. I'm also hoping to go out with the other volunteers who are around the city right now. I've decided not to wander too much alone in the city due to my recent history of fainting spells, but I would like to utilize my time here in Dar for at least a little bit of fun.
Tomorrow at around 4:00 am I'm also going to hit up the Election Party being hosted by the US Embassy. It should be a fun way to find out the election results, and I'm looking forward to the camaraderie!
Update:
So my blood-work was normal, aside from having a low white blood cell count. I'm going in to talk to the doctor tomorrow about what that means for me.
I am just hanging out in the PC Volunteer Lounge. I had an appointment here this morning. Apparently I'm approaching things in a very "well-adjusted" manner and handling my probable medically separation pretty well, so that's positive. I know ultimately things will work out for the best, and I'm trying to fight disappointment with optimism about what with transpire in the future. The older I get, the more I understand that life is full of detours. Plans often fall through or change along the way, but that's what makes living interesting. Following a linear road-map is boring, though the theoretical security of knowing that Point A will, in fact, lead to Point B is pretty alluring. I like planning, but if nothing else, I've learned to be more malleable and adaptive here than I have been in the past. I'm much better at going with the flow than I was a couple years ago--and I certainly am enjoying the ride more, even with all the ups and downs I've been facing.
In truth, I have and continue to give PC my all, and if I can stay here I will, but I'm also acceptant that health-wise I may need to change paths. I'm a fighter, and I will push through things as much as I can, but I also know that my health does need to improve for me to be an efficient volunteer, and really, for me to be a TRULY happy person. I recognize that I need to get my body back on track, one way or another. I truly believe that things are going to work out, and once I'm healthy, the world shall be my oyster. A gritty one, perhaps, but just having a healthy body would be my "pearl" at this point! :)
Anyway, I should get more information about my blood-work today. I'm also hoping to go out with the other volunteers who are around the city right now. I've decided not to wander too much alone in the city due to my recent history of fainting spells, but I would like to utilize my time here in Dar for at least a little bit of fun.
Tomorrow at around 4:00 am I'm also going to hit up the Election Party being hosted by the US Embassy. It should be a fun way to find out the election results, and I'm looking forward to the camaraderie!
Update:
So my blood-work was normal, aside from having a low white blood cell count. I'm going in to talk to the doctor tomorrow about what that means for me.
Monday, November 5, 2012
November 5, Denial & Inventory
Last night I couldn't sleep well, but I did manage to finally crash at 3:00 am and stay in bed until 9:00 this morning. I slept in my fuzzy frog PJs. It was great, and impressive since Dar is by no means a cool place to be. Go electric ceiling fans!
I finished the (revised) body-journal that I've been working on. My original journal got wet and partly ruined. Since I had to re-write things to make my notes legible and coherent, I decided to track the weekly differences I've been experiencing in terms of symptoms, food intake, water intake, etc. It was interesting to see what has gotten "better" and what has gotten "worse". Overall, last week the only positive improvement was that I drank an average of 29 oz of water, which was higher than all of the previous weeks. On the negative side of things, I ate less food on average this week and also had more severe symptoms more often. I think it will be helpful to keep using this sort of thing in the future to see which symptoms are getting better and which are getting worse. Maybe I'll discover some discernible cause-and-effect information! OR, maybe the probiotics will work their magic, and I'll be healthy as a horse in no time. The latter would be nice, but so far how I'm feeling today isn't making that seem overly likely. Frustrating!
Anyway, it rained on my walk over to the PC office. It wasn't bad because it was warm outside and I had an umbrella. Plus, it was good to stretch my legs. Makwabe called me on my way over, so I told him I'd stop into the office. Much to my surprise, they wanted to do more blood work. Apparently the office in Washington D.C. is pretty concerned about things, and it didn't help that last week I got sicker. While I've recovered from the downward spiral, I am still not doing well, which I was upfront about. I've been taking the following approach with my health: not downplaying, not exaggerating, just reporting the facts as I experience them. I'm doing so in the hopes that I'll get the optimal amount of help, while also being able to continue staying here.
In any case, depending on the blood-work results, I may get more information about what happens next. Regardless, Dr. Makwabe said that if I haven't improved by Thursday, that I'll likely be getting medically separated. I'm still a little unclear what the qualifications are for improvement, but I'll find out very shortly--and hopefully be able to argue for medical evacuation before being officially removed from service. I've kind of been in denial about the whole thing since I have a feeling 3 days isn't really enough time to get better, but still am hopeful things will turn-around suddenly. It's too early to know what will happen, but it's hard not to speculate and feel the pressures of realism pushing down on my brain. There are multiple possible outcomes to this week, however, so it is too early to really know what's coming next.
For now, it seems that there is a strong possibility I will be on a plane to South Africa or Maine early next week. Which, I'm not sure, but I have a feeling I'll be flying somewhere.
In any case, I helped the PC office figure out what they're sending back to Brittany, and then worked on my own heap of luggage. They left most of my stuff from site in one of the PC cars until today, so I went through my things to describe what items were in what bag. I took some items out of the bags that I want to take home with me should I be medically separated, such as my hot pots and khangas. I also left instructions of who to give things to should my service come to a premature close. It was emotionally really weird, and I'm still just really in denial about things. It doesn't seem possible that I could be gone this time next week!! I hope I stick it through, but I am trying to accept that going back home has its merits. Good medical care, good family care, and good food/medicine availability. I'm still arguing to PC that I should be medically evacuated, not medically separated. Either way, if I end up on a plane next week, I will be seeing a gastroenterologist when I disembark!
Anyway, keep wishing me luck! (I need it-I broke a mirror today.) If I do end up stateside, I know I won't be hopeless. There are many options and opportunities out there--I just really do love being here, being a volunteer, and teaching. But, I suppose for now I'll focus on my health!
I finished the (revised) body-journal that I've been working on. My original journal got wet and partly ruined. Since I had to re-write things to make my notes legible and coherent, I decided to track the weekly differences I've been experiencing in terms of symptoms, food intake, water intake, etc. It was interesting to see what has gotten "better" and what has gotten "worse". Overall, last week the only positive improvement was that I drank an average of 29 oz of water, which was higher than all of the previous weeks. On the negative side of things, I ate less food on average this week and also had more severe symptoms more often. I think it will be helpful to keep using this sort of thing in the future to see which symptoms are getting better and which are getting worse. Maybe I'll discover some discernible cause-and-effect information! OR, maybe the probiotics will work their magic, and I'll be healthy as a horse in no time. The latter would be nice, but so far how I'm feeling today isn't making that seem overly likely. Frustrating!
Anyway, it rained on my walk over to the PC office. It wasn't bad because it was warm outside and I had an umbrella. Plus, it was good to stretch my legs. Makwabe called me on my way over, so I told him I'd stop into the office. Much to my surprise, they wanted to do more blood work. Apparently the office in Washington D.C. is pretty concerned about things, and it didn't help that last week I got sicker. While I've recovered from the downward spiral, I am still not doing well, which I was upfront about. I've been taking the following approach with my health: not downplaying, not exaggerating, just reporting the facts as I experience them. I'm doing so in the hopes that I'll get the optimal amount of help, while also being able to continue staying here.
In any case, depending on the blood-work results, I may get more information about what happens next. Regardless, Dr. Makwabe said that if I haven't improved by Thursday, that I'll likely be getting medically separated. I'm still a little unclear what the qualifications are for improvement, but I'll find out very shortly--and hopefully be able to argue for medical evacuation before being officially removed from service. I've kind of been in denial about the whole thing since I have a feeling 3 days isn't really enough time to get better, but still am hopeful things will turn-around suddenly. It's too early to know what will happen, but it's hard not to speculate and feel the pressures of realism pushing down on my brain. There are multiple possible outcomes to this week, however, so it is too early to really know what's coming next.
For now, it seems that there is a strong possibility I will be on a plane to South Africa or Maine early next week. Which, I'm not sure, but I have a feeling I'll be flying somewhere.
In any case, I helped the PC office figure out what they're sending back to Brittany, and then worked on my own heap of luggage. They left most of my stuff from site in one of the PC cars until today, so I went through my things to describe what items were in what bag. I took some items out of the bags that I want to take home with me should I be medically separated, such as my hot pots and khangas. I also left instructions of who to give things to should my service come to a premature close. It was emotionally really weird, and I'm still just really in denial about things. It doesn't seem possible that I could be gone this time next week!! I hope I stick it through, but I am trying to accept that going back home has its merits. Good medical care, good family care, and good food/medicine availability. I'm still arguing to PC that I should be medically evacuated, not medically separated. Either way, if I end up on a plane next week, I will be seeing a gastroenterologist when I disembark!
Anyway, keep wishing me luck! (I need it-I broke a mirror today.) If I do end up stateside, I know I won't be hopeless. There are many options and opportunities out there--I just really do love being here, being a volunteer, and teaching. But, I suppose for now I'll focus on my health!
Sunday, November 4, 2012
November 4, Pool
Today I had a good morning organizing my stuff. I listened to music, tried on some American clothes I brought here but have never worn (see shorts picture on FB for example), and repacked things a little. I had a mini-mango, which was delicious, and forced one of those mini-packets of fish down for lunch. I started feeling on-par to what I did a couple weeks ago--certainly not well, but much more functional than literally being stuck laying on a couch. I actually got cocky enough to walk twenty minutes to the US Embassy. I met Ezra there with his ex-pat friend, Josh, to hang by the pool. Walking there was a poor decision, though. I realized quickly that I didn't actually feel as great as I told myself I did, nor did the heat help my dehydration levels. As I sat in the pool, and subsequently lazed around in one of those pool-side-lounging chairs, I started feeling progressively sicker. Later on I tried a piece of coconut, and that just totally did me in. What started as a good day health wise seems to be ending on a sour note. Fortunately, I am able to laze around Leah's house and listen to music, so I'm glad I have a chill place to be! I'm hoping tomorrow is going to be a better day. I'm going to try refocusing my diet strictly on vegetables and protein, though it's hard not to try the many delicious fresh fruits they have here. Fruit is my all-time, hands-down, absolute favorite food group, and while I have been limiting my intake of it, I do have a tendency to pick things like bananas and mangoes when I can. I suppose it'd be better for my stomach if I cut down on the sugar and acid, and started pounding more spinach, so I will do better!
Tomorrow is a new day, and I'm going to spend it eating cucumbers, not mangoes! (Even though that teeny, tiny fit-in-your-hand mango was delicious and sent from heaven. Worth it....for today.)
Tomorrow is a new day, and I'm going to spend it eating cucumbers, not mangoes! (Even though that teeny, tiny fit-in-your-hand mango was delicious and sent from heaven. Worth it....for today.)
Saturday, November 3, 2012
November 3, Fleecy, Fuzzy, Fantastically Froggy PJs
I am currently sitting in the nicely, but not overly, air-conditioned living room at Leah's house. I hate strong AC, so the lightly cool air is perfect. I'm listening to Leah's roommate, Steven, play some pretty guitar tunes and vegetating a little bit. I have been amazingly thirsty all day, so I'm sipping at some water and feeling the joys of fast internet. Not a bad way to spend Saturday afternoon, especially after traveling.
The car ride up here was good. I learned a lot about Joel, our AWESOME security guy, while he and the driver had some breakfast in Mombo. We left Lushoto at 7:00 am (amazingly on time), but stopped for chapati and some kind of beef soup once we hit the bottom of the mountain. I had a little fruit and ordered tea, but they had already put 10,000 tablespoons of sugar in the whole thermos, so I didn't end up drinking it.
FYI: Mombo is about 45 minutes to 1 hour away from Lushoto, and is basically a big stopping point for a lot of bus traffic. If you go up the mountain, you will reach Lushoto, but other directions will take you to Moshi, Arusha, Tanga, Dar etc.
We stopped several times along the way so that Joel and the driver could buy produce. It's cheaper to get it road-side a lot of the time, though usually you need to buy such items in bulk. Joel got mangoes, pineapples, tomatoes, carrots, and some other vegetables like onions--all in huge plastic bags. The mangoes and pineapples seemed pretty delicious, but I didnt want to buy 20 of them. We arrived in Dar around 2:00 pm, but with traffic it took us a full hour to get to Leah's house. I took some of my luggage out to keep here at the house. The rest of my stuff will be stored at the PC office until I leave Dar....when that will happen and where I'll be going is still a question!
I finally opened up the packages my mom sent me. I was super excited by a couple early birthday gifts from my grandmother: fleece pj pants, two nice quick-dry towels, and food! I got some bouillon cubes and canned chicken, so I might try making some chicken soup this week. I was also really happy to see the nice tins my mom sent me. (Angel tin from my childhood and the frog pjs pretty much made my day.)
I may or may not see Ezra later on today. He was out touristing, and Leah is out at the beach. I'm curious to see how the week goes! But feeling generally pretty happy and positive today. Life is going to work out for the best--one way or another! Or, I sure hope so anyway!
The car ride up here was good. I learned a lot about Joel, our AWESOME security guy, while he and the driver had some breakfast in Mombo. We left Lushoto at 7:00 am (amazingly on time), but stopped for chapati and some kind of beef soup once we hit the bottom of the mountain. I had a little fruit and ordered tea, but they had already put 10,000 tablespoons of sugar in the whole thermos, so I didn't end up drinking it.
FYI: Mombo is about 45 minutes to 1 hour away from Lushoto, and is basically a big stopping point for a lot of bus traffic. If you go up the mountain, you will reach Lushoto, but other directions will take you to Moshi, Arusha, Tanga, Dar etc.
We stopped several times along the way so that Joel and the driver could buy produce. It's cheaper to get it road-side a lot of the time, though usually you need to buy such items in bulk. Joel got mangoes, pineapples, tomatoes, carrots, and some other vegetables like onions--all in huge plastic bags. The mangoes and pineapples seemed pretty delicious, but I didnt want to buy 20 of them. We arrived in Dar around 2:00 pm, but with traffic it took us a full hour to get to Leah's house. I took some of my luggage out to keep here at the house. The rest of my stuff will be stored at the PC office until I leave Dar....when that will happen and where I'll be going is still a question!
I finally opened up the packages my mom sent me. I was super excited by a couple early birthday gifts from my grandmother: fleece pj pants, two nice quick-dry towels, and food! I got some bouillon cubes and canned chicken, so I might try making some chicken soup this week. I was also really happy to see the nice tins my mom sent me. (Angel tin from my childhood and the frog pjs pretty much made my day.)
I may or may not see Ezra later on today. He was out touristing, and Leah is out at the beach. I'm curious to see how the week goes! But feeling generally pretty happy and positive today. Life is going to work out for the best--one way or another! Or, I sure hope so anyway!
Friday, November 2, 2012
November 2, Moved from Site
So, today Joel came in a PC car to pick Hannah, Glenn, and me up. I stopped and got two packages from the post-office in Lushoto, and then we headed to Mlola. It started down-pouring on our way, which made the road quite muddy. Fortunately it didn't rain very hard in Mlola, so putting my stuff in the car went well. More importantly, we were able to get in and out without any car issues or breakdowns. Success!
Glenn packed up Brittany's house (which is on the way to mine) and Hannah helped me pack up mine. It only took me 40 minutes to get everything together with her help, so that was really good! I didn't have a chance to say goodbye to my students and no teachers were around, but I did say goodbye to Anjelina. She gave me 10,000 kisses and a khanga, which was sweet. We told them I was going to the "hospital" since PC has a policy against saying it's a "security issue" when leaving a site. The real reason I'm not going back is because of what happened to my mkuu--but I guess that's on a need-to-know basis.
I managed to take most of my things with me in the car. I gave my charcoal jiko and charcoal to a teacher at the primary school next-door. I also offered up my 200,000 shilling mattress and bed frame to my mkuu or Anjelina, or whoever wants it. Same goes for that coffee table I had made, and the big water tubs I have outside of my house. Kind of a shame, but I suppose it's all just stuff! It was a little weird emotionally to leave my site forever. It went better than I thought though, so I'm thankful for that. And Hannah really did make things easier for me, so I'm happy that they had her come with me!
Glenn made small-talk fun while he was in the car, and we had some good laughs, which lightened the mood of the day. Plus, I had a fun evening watching Nat-Geo with Glenn, Hannah, Riah, and Bill. AND we walked into town to get things like water and money, which was good for my legs, albeit not for my tiredness.
I am headed to Dar tomorrow at 7:00 (so...probably 8:00 in TZ time) in the morning. I'm currently listening to the new Mumford album--so good! I'm happy to be going back to Dar. I think it will be nice to be at Leah's house and to see how that crew has been doing, and I also get to chill with Ezra tomorrow!
I'm hoping this week I will show some signs of progress health-wise! (Please, body, please!) It's hard to stay peppy when my body isn't cooperating with me, but I am working hard to keep my optimism up. I'm being realistic about the seriousness of things, but also staying hopeful, and I think that's a good balance. Or...I hope so anyway. I was told my probiotics might take a little bit to kick in... I sincerely hope they start helping me out soon!
Glenn packed up Brittany's house (which is on the way to mine) and Hannah helped me pack up mine. It only took me 40 minutes to get everything together with her help, so that was really good! I didn't have a chance to say goodbye to my students and no teachers were around, but I did say goodbye to Anjelina. She gave me 10,000 kisses and a khanga, which was sweet. We told them I was going to the "hospital" since PC has a policy against saying it's a "security issue" when leaving a site. The real reason I'm not going back is because of what happened to my mkuu--but I guess that's on a need-to-know basis.
I managed to take most of my things with me in the car. I gave my charcoal jiko and charcoal to a teacher at the primary school next-door. I also offered up my 200,000 shilling mattress and bed frame to my mkuu or Anjelina, or whoever wants it. Same goes for that coffee table I had made, and the big water tubs I have outside of my house. Kind of a shame, but I suppose it's all just stuff! It was a little weird emotionally to leave my site forever. It went better than I thought though, so I'm thankful for that. And Hannah really did make things easier for me, so I'm happy that they had her come with me!
Glenn made small-talk fun while he was in the car, and we had some good laughs, which lightened the mood of the day. Plus, I had a fun evening watching Nat-Geo with Glenn, Hannah, Riah, and Bill. AND we walked into town to get things like water and money, which was good for my legs, albeit not for my tiredness.
I am headed to Dar tomorrow at 7:00 (so...probably 8:00 in TZ time) in the morning. I'm currently listening to the new Mumford album--so good! I'm happy to be going back to Dar. I think it will be nice to be at Leah's house and to see how that crew has been doing, and I also get to chill with Ezra tomorrow!
I'm hoping this week I will show some signs of progress health-wise! (Please, body, please!) It's hard to stay peppy when my body isn't cooperating with me, but I am working hard to keep my optimism up. I'm being realistic about the seriousness of things, but also staying hopeful, and I think that's a good balance. Or...I hope so anyway. I was told my probiotics might take a little bit to kick in... I sincerely hope they start helping me out soon!
Thursday, November 1, 2012
November 1, Avocados
One of my favorite things to eat here are avocados. They're big, delicious, and cheap compared to anything I'd ever find in New England. I can often get a big avocado for 100 or 200 shillings--that's dirt cheap for such a nutrition-packed food. They're sold everywhere, but are pretty much always already ripe, so you can't buy too many at a time. I don't eat an over-abundance of them, but fairly often I'll eat 1/2 an avocado to try to get some fatty nutrition into my body.
Nonetheless, my love affair with the little green wonders may very well be finished. Over the past several months, I've been noticing that my lips, throat, and tongue itch when I eat things like avocados. It hasn't been the case every time I've had them, however, so I've tried to just limit my intake to a couple per week in the hopes the symptoms were just coincidental or relatively benign. I'm starting to think the danger of being allergic to them is real, however. Today I decided to eat half of a small avocado for lunch. Not only did I get an itchy mouth, throat, and ears, but my throat also tightened up. I had a hard time breathing for about an hour after eating it, which to me is not something I want to mess around with. So, I'm going to add avocados to my long, long, long list of foods to avoid, at least for now. Perhaps once my body is doing better avocados and I will be friends again, but for now we must part ways. I can't have tortilla chips anyway, and really guacamole is my favorite avocado product, so I'll just wait until I can eat the two together again. And have access to an EpiPen.
Really, it just sucks because now there's just another common TZ food I can't eat. I'm going to be considered the weirdest person ever when I go to my new site. Frustrating.
In other news, the power is out at Glenn's house again....and we're extremely low on water--though I did have a nice bucket bath today. (Thank goodness!) There's been kind of a draught here, so hopefully the rainy season will bless this region with some water-from-the-skies soon. Tony said he's never seen Lushoto so dry in the 17 years he's been here. The creek in Kongei (Glenn's village) is all dried up, and the plants around here are looking very thirsty. It is looking like it might rain this afternoon, though, so maybe Lushoto will be in luck!
I'm going to get stuff at my site tomorrow. I'm a bit nervous about going there since it seems like it might be a stressful thing to pack and say "goodbye" to people pretty much forever. But, at least I'll have my things. I think Hannah or Glenn should be coming to help me out. We will see how things go...
---
UPDATE: It's raining! Hooray! Also, the power came back, but then went away because it's SERIOUSLY down-pouring. Glenn's floor is actually being flooded as well speak, so he has to keep raking the water out. But this is very good news for the villagers around here!
It's been kind of a hard day emotionally (terrible nightmares/inability to stay asleep have led me to be tired and a bit blue) but things are bound to get better I suppose. I am really enjoying listening to the sound of the rain. It smells great, too. Kind of like being immersed in a greenhouse. Mmm.
Nonetheless, my love affair with the little green wonders may very well be finished. Over the past several months, I've been noticing that my lips, throat, and tongue itch when I eat things like avocados. It hasn't been the case every time I've had them, however, so I've tried to just limit my intake to a couple per week in the hopes the symptoms were just coincidental or relatively benign. I'm starting to think the danger of being allergic to them is real, however. Today I decided to eat half of a small avocado for lunch. Not only did I get an itchy mouth, throat, and ears, but my throat also tightened up. I had a hard time breathing for about an hour after eating it, which to me is not something I want to mess around with. So, I'm going to add avocados to my long, long, long list of foods to avoid, at least for now. Perhaps once my body is doing better avocados and I will be friends again, but for now we must part ways. I can't have tortilla chips anyway, and really guacamole is my favorite avocado product, so I'll just wait until I can eat the two together again. And have access to an EpiPen.
Really, it just sucks because now there's just another common TZ food I can't eat. I'm going to be considered the weirdest person ever when I go to my new site. Frustrating.
In other news, the power is out at Glenn's house again....and we're extremely low on water--though I did have a nice bucket bath today. (Thank goodness!) There's been kind of a draught here, so hopefully the rainy season will bless this region with some water-from-the-skies soon. Tony said he's never seen Lushoto so dry in the 17 years he's been here. The creek in Kongei (Glenn's village) is all dried up, and the plants around here are looking very thirsty. It is looking like it might rain this afternoon, though, so maybe Lushoto will be in luck!
I'm going to get stuff at my site tomorrow. I'm a bit nervous about going there since it seems like it might be a stressful thing to pack and say "goodbye" to people pretty much forever. But, at least I'll have my things. I think Hannah or Glenn should be coming to help me out. We will see how things go...
---
UPDATE: It's raining! Hooray! Also, the power came back, but then went away because it's SERIOUSLY down-pouring. Glenn's floor is actually being flooded as well speak, so he has to keep raking the water out. But this is very good news for the villagers around here!
It's been kind of a hard day emotionally (terrible nightmares/inability to stay asleep have led me to be tired and a bit blue) but things are bound to get better I suppose. I am really enjoying listening to the sound of the rain. It smells great, too. Kind of like being immersed in a greenhouse. Mmm.
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