TIA - a week with little electricity !

Friday 25th September
An interesting week, the weekend was spent finishing off bits and pieces on our newly renovated home! Having served out in Swaziland for nearly 3 years I am still a westerner through and through, although hubby would love to experience living in a mud hut with no hot water or electricity, this is not me and I’m sure it never will be me! Fortunately hubby understands how I feel and arranged the big surprise renovation while I was absent for 3 months on my visit to the UK.
Monday brought meetings and first dilemma of the day, a worker was reported by a manager to have been driving a company vehicle without authorisation in my department. The worker denied it and had several witnesses to back him up, also a log book to say he hadn’t taken it without authorisation. The manager was adamant he had seen him or at least the vehicle, we have a meeting – 5 of us and no conclusions are come to. Except people not trusting other people and bad feeling all around. The worker is given a verbal warning by the manager above me and that’s it. So frustrating, I guess that is what being a manager is all about!!
Tuesday is Baylor day, this is where a paediatrician comes up from Mbabane to see the children who are hiv +, some are on medication, some are not yet. We spend the day counting medication to check they are taking it correctly and drawing blood for CD4 (checking the soldiers is what they call it here).We give out new medication refills and after weighing them and an examination by the doctor they are on their way. We have a few new ones, unfortunately again an everyday occurrence in this country. My regular doctor was sick so her husband came up who pointed out he was also a doctor as I kept introducing him to the patients as ‘our regular doctor’s husband!!’ The clinic team, 6 of us with the two Baylor doctors had lunch together at the lodge as it is our senior nurses last week with us. Chicken Bagels, one of the lodge’s best lunches that’s for sure!!
Wednesday, a reasonably quiet day, the electricity was out again who knows why, something to do with the local area electricity board which can affect us as well. We seem to manage okay at the clinic, however, a young lady who is a dental hygienist from the states who has come for two months to Bulembu to serve by removing tartar from the children’s teeth is struggling to see without light and using sharp instruments is a somewhat hazardous situation so we arrange to bring a generator in to help her out. ....... She is doing an amazing job – some of these kids have never been to the dentist before and are indeed of a good tartar clean!! We see lots of sick children today, lots of ‘jova’s’, you can look that up and see what it means in English!

On Thursday night the family plus friends played a game of Settlers of Catan – the IT master mind won of course, all on the throw of the dice!! Haha............
Another week in Bulembu, Off to make my Ice cream now in preparation for the Swazi 500!!