On unwellness and associated boredom....

One thing I am happy about is that the first case of boredom I can well and truly report is when I was home sick for two days. No phone and no tv connection are all the more noticeable at times like this. Although there is a tv and dvd player, so I wasn’t at a total loss – I watched Shirley Temple movies and anything I could find around the house. My knitting needles mocked me as I had no wool with which to knit! Luckily we are at the beginning of our year so we have not exhausted our book supply yet, and the crossword book I bought is relatively new and unused. Cam tried his best to be nice and keep me somewhat entertained.

The problem with being sick here is that no matter what you have, it’s probably malaria. There are so many health books/sites etc that have great information on illnesses, but malaria seems to be one of those ones that can incorporate any symptom, and seems to be highly personal in what symptoms are displayed. So have I had malaria? Who knows, it’s hard to say. If I did it was only a mild dose. The blood test came back negative, and while I should have probably gone back for more blood tests the nurse thought it sounded quite like “that culprit, malaria” and so told me to take the drugs for it anyway. I’m not complaining either as they seem to be working. Also it is ridiculously easy to get medicine here (if they have it, which is not a problem with malaria treatments), so treatment is not a problem. Self-treatment is the word of the day in PNG, especially for those that live in remote places, or who have to travel to remote places. Should Cam or I have to travel I am extra glad that malaria treatments are easily available over the counter, as the only way you could get those medicines on some islands would be if you brought them yourself.





In other news I’m just as obsessed with the garden as ever. I’ve now got more containers to grow herbs in, and Stan put a border on our veggie-patch-to-be today. Now we just need more soil and we’ll plant the fruit and veggie seeds! Yay! Cam laughs at me with my gardening, but his latest fishing and whittling craze makes me think he would do just fine playing the harmonica on his front porch beside the river down South. Last night he started to whittle a fishing lure – very cute! I’m sure he’ll make me eat my words when he catches something with it.



p.s. Emma - notice how much bigger and better the banana bread looks that was cooked in the silicon bake ware! : )