July 8 - Mobile Medical and Mice

This morning I woke up bright and early (5:15AM) to do laundry before the bus got here at 6AM to drive us to the village for this week's mobile medical clinic. I could have slept in - our driver was apparently running on Malawi Time and didn't get here til 7:15.

We went to Chibanzi today.  It has a smaller facility than the other villages, but we saw the same number of people (around 300.)  I helped in the pharmacy, filling prescriptions and finding missing medicine bottles, I worked at the registration station, weighing people, and I worked at the lab, recording blood test results on patients' paperwork. I had a great time! I love clinic days!

Jayme and Jenna taking BP, respiration, and pulse.

Annie with some new friends.   :)

On the way back, Mike stopped to buy a stick full of dried mice (a "mouse kebab".) He's been determined to eat one ever since he's been here.  Dried mice are the most repulsive thing I have ever seen.  Mike didn't eat them on the bus, he just held onto them. I think he was trying to psych himself up.

Mike and his mouse kebab. Jayme was handling her new "neighbors" graciously.

Mike contemplates his life choices

Jenna, Jayme, and I went to Crossroads to use the internet and buy some snacks for the trip to Mzuzu tomorrow. We also got ice cream for the walk back. Yum! When we got home, the power was out, so Fred started a small fire outside and heated some water over it so we could have tea while we waited for the power to come back on, and subsequently, dinner.  Mark, Mike, Fred, and I all just sat around the fire for hours, talking about America, family, government, Malawi, flying in jets, space travel, you name it!  When I mentioned I had to fly over the top of the world on my way to Malawi, Fred got a really confused look on his face. He then asked, "Wait, don't we live inside the world? How can you fly over the top?"  Annie, who had just come out to join us, said "Fred, we don't live inside the world, we live on it." I followed her up by saying, "Yeah, Fred, the world is like an egg and we live on the outside of the eggshell." This completely astounded him. He started asking all sorts of questions about flying and how you got into outer space and what it was like in space and what turbulence was - he got so excited about everything! I had a blast telling him everything I knew about the subject, even if it wasn't much. :)

While we were outside, Mike decided it was time to break out the mice.  I had told him earlier that I wanted to try some of a mouse, and I ended up eating a tail and a leg (which Fred broke off and skinned for me. Thanks, Fred!) Mike ate three heads and Annie ate one head.  Fred and Mark each ate a couple of mice.  Jayme even ate a leg, actually! Jenna refused to eat any.  It actually wasn't all that bad - kind of a blend of chicken and unshelled, salted, sunflower seeds. I won't eat it again, but I'm glad I tried something.  The power came back on shortly after that and we had real dinner. :)

Mike and Mark watch in eager anticipation as Fred heats up our furry snack. (picture by Annie)

Fred gets tickled at our various reactions at eating dried  mice. (picture by Annie.)

Chewing mouse tail.  (picture by Annie)

I made homemade cinnamon rolls tonight, again without a recipe or measuring cups/spoons. They are just a tad salty, but good anyway! Fred wants the recipe for banana bread.

PS. (added the following morning) Cinnamon rolls for breakfast are a hit! No leftovers and Fred even took one to work to share with a friend. We'll be making them again! :)