Desert Gills

Being limited to only 20 lab tests certainly constrains the internist in me. But it's nice to be stocked with so many more meds and tests than I have had to work with in some other developing world clinics. Our pharmacy does a wonderful job to keep us well-stocked in such a difficult logistical climate. Of course, there are also the cases where you don't need a better lab, you really need a bigger brain. Dermatology cases are often like that... we see so many odd rashes and I often leave thinking I'll try steroid cream, than fungal cream, but "What is it?" I often miss having twenty consultants available at the dial of a phone.

Ir tends to be very attentive, but not always super coordinated. She's actually the most attentive at bedtime, when she reinterprets E's babble to let us know "E wants some water!" or "E wants the nightlight on!" It can make for a long bed time. In this picture, time at the playground has turned into a spell of sitting under the shade drinking water.

Here's the gang hanging out on our front porch. Note E's boots... they loved to rampage through the puddles this past Sunday, with our heaviest rain yet.

Recently two houses on the compound which had been condemned for poor foundations were torn down. One had stood since soon after the hospital's founding in 1950. It made for interesting explorations for the kids and me... contractors bid for the right to bring in a sledgehammer-armed team. It was a competitive bid because all sorts of things from the stones in the walls to the (pictured) plumbing could be carted off and sold at a profit. The Hausa mostly live in mud-based houses, so there are a lot of desirable things in the compound's more western-style houses. Nevertheless, it's backbreaking work.

One of the ironies of our life right now is that although this year we have done a great deal of travelling and are kind of on an exotic trip, our day to day life is quite geographically confined. If you were to see a satellite map of my life the previous 30 days, you would see that my whole time has been spent within a 500 meter circle. I have not gone outside of the compound or the hospital for a whole month. Usually, my week is punctuated by the one mile walk to church, but the last four Sundays I had been on call or had to work. So this morning was my first 'outing' in some time. Although I would say this month has been exceptional in just how confined it's been, my travels since January add up to much less than an American's average daily commute. Outside of regular trips to church, the farthest I have gone from home was on a picnic outing to a scenic overlook a couple miles east of town. But so far, I have felt pretty content: travel in this country...

Thankfully, the pack-n-play was occupied only by toys when this fellow jumped in. But it did make him easier to transport outside!

Ir and E planted our first round of sweet corn this week. We look forward to eating it, hopefully, in three months. Vegetables from our garden have also included: beans, swiss chard, spinach, lettuce, other dark green leafies, fennel, basil, tomatoes, onions, okra, eggplant, cucumbers, and a couple small peppers. The garden is not our primary source of vegetables since the yield has not been very high, but it has been a helpful supplement. We are still trying to figure out the growing seasons, which are quite different from N America. Hopefully, our next round of planting will be more successful.