Millet growing in my concession
Part of the winnowing process
The millet, stored on its stalks. This is in Narba's concession, with millet from the family's fields.
Other news that isn't related to hospitals! Let's see. Harvest is in full swing. Beans beans beans, everywhere. And millet. Yesterday a woman gave me an entire bucket of green beans which were sooo good and fresh. It's hot again, and we have fewer rains to cool us off, so I spend a lot of time looking for shade.
Malaria season is upon us--started a few weeks ago and will continue for several more. Malaria season sucks, and if I could think of a more powerful word than "sucks" I would use it. Every home I visit has someone down with malaria. Lots of kids have it; in my close family circle, which includes 12 kids under the age of 12, 4 have malaria this week. Two of them got meds from the clinic a couple miles away; the other two haven't gone yet. I realize that all of my messages to you guys for the last month have been semi-bummers. It is a fitting tale...this time of year is tough, and there's no way around it. Sick people, hot weather, mosquitoes.
But we're all hanging in there, treasuring the lighter moments--such as:
Two days ago I walked around (verrrry slowly) with Abarta, an old lady and former women's leader. She's awesome--even-tempered, candid, and logical, a good leveler for my sustained mild sense of panic of the last few weeks. She also doesn't see well, but she knows my voice, and we've become friends. Anyway, we shuffled around Foloa, and she told me why she chews tobacco. She made a convincing argument and I did not counter it. Her gums hurt from where her teeth fell out, and tobacco is the only thing that soothes them. So there.
My net-covered bed
I debated whether or not to send the mosquito-rant that you just read, and decided it has merit because it is true. Additionally, it gives me a platform from which to describe what I am calling my Arsenal of Anti-Mosquito Devices and Tactics. I was able, eventually, to channel my fuming resentment of said insects into what may be the most powerful battlefront I have ever waged. It brings me great pleasure to list the Arsenal:
1. Mosquito Net, of course, is at the foremost and always has been. But--and I implore you not to get too excited here--the net's effectiveness is now 700x what it once was because of:
2. Highly Toxic Insecticide Solution, which comes in little pouches, one of which I discovered in my PC medical kit, and in which I soaked implement #1 for two-plus minutes, as directed. The World Health Organization warns that this poison is "slightly hazardous," which freaked me out, so I tried not to breathe while soaking the net. But then I got light-headed and thought "Is it that I'm not breathing? Or is it the poison?" And then I thought about how this is probably the most toxic thing I've ever knowingly used, which made me feel extremely self-conscious and hypocritical (all my years of eating organically, smeared in irony!). And THEN I thought about how I was going to be sleeping inside of the poison-soaked net for 1 1/2 years, starting that night, approximately 9 hours from the time of soakage. According to the package, the poison "kills mosquitoes upon contact." Wow! So, like, what's it going to do to me? Maybe give me a rash, which had better not itch more than my 70+ mosquito bites. At that point, I had to stop thinking about such things, or my Arsenal would have lost its deadliest component. Continuing on:
3. This is hilarious: I also find in my med kit, an All Natural Plant-Based Mosquito Repellent. I slathered that on too, on faith that in addition to repelling insects, it will also balance out the negative karma accumulated by item #2.
4. Hydro Cortisone Cream, 2 types: there's the petroleum-based one that comes in a tube and does little more than make my skin look shiny, and there's a whiter, chalkier paste that comes in tiny tiny individually sealed packets in portions that are enough to cover 2-4 mosquito bites. But I think that kind works.
5. My neighbor's sage advice: cover flashlight/headlamp with a bandanna while reading/writing at night; the bugs do not see it! This seems to work, and is ingenious. Is it that the bugs have poor eyesight and dim light doesn't register? Or are they thinking something along the lines of "Obviously that girl has superhuman powers to be able to read in such dim light, thus we should not mess with her?" Does anybody know?
So, that's pretty much it for my Arsenal. Well, there is also this other kind of repellent, but you have to apply it like it's a stinky glue-stick all over your body. So, that's kind of weird, and I am not officially listing it in my Arsenal.
07/06/08
SO****I'm actually a bit of a cranky whiner today, although I have no audience at the moment. Except this paper, and, eventually, you. Which do you think is worse: being around a grumpy person, or getting a letter from one? I mean, by the time you get this, my mood will hopefully have improved.
After careful thought and deliberation I have identified the source of my angst, the cause of my pitiful attitude, the root of my raging anger: the mosquito, or some stupid insect that bites/stings is causing me to extract less enjoyment and fulfillment of life than I am accustomed to. I would estimate that this welt-inducing six-legged creature is responsible for deceasing my overall happiness by approximately10-15% today, possibly even more. And the irony? I haven't even seen a mosquito yet, but they are attacking me in my sleep, as I lay unawares, dreaming of lollipops, kittens, high-speed internet, and cheese. Bastards! And seriously: if it is this bad already, imagine how itchy and furious I'm going to be in a month when the little jerks come out in teams. I shudder at the thought. There is something sick and cruel about waking up to an otherwise beautiful morning with big uncomfortable bites to inform you that the protective barrier of your mosquito net failed miserably in the night. OOOO, I AM PISSED! I could go on and on! I will! Do you know how many bites I have on my right arm, shoulder area included? Twenty eight! Two of which are huge! *#@!% I am a disgusting and cranky monster. I am going to stop writing now because my frustration is increasing rapidly!
I take Lariam, my anti-malarial pill ,on Wednesdays; the main side effect seems to be extremely vivid dreams. The dreams aren't necessarily bad, just vivid and realistic. A friend of mine referred to Lariam-night as "Wednesday Night at the Movies," and it's true! So here is what happened in my dream:
There is a huge rat standing upright. He is the size of a human adult, and we can look each other in the eye. He is dressed in a suit! Remember that book by William Steig? Mr. Rat looks a lot like Doctor De Soto, and wh
en I approach him with a bowl in my hands, I say: "Here. Please take this bowl of food and don't come back!" He takes the food, and I wake up.
I haven't actually seen the Giant Rat since. He is still around (those tracks...), but now I wear earplugs at night so that I won't hear him lapping up water when he stops by for a drink.
Millet growing in my concession
Part of the winnowing process
The millet, stored on its stalks. This is in Narba's concession, with millet from the family's fields.
