A mouse ate a hole through my mosquito net and other random tales…

As I’ve previously mentioned, I have been sharing my bed with a mouse (or mice) for the past week or so. I’d hear it scurrying around at night, and at one point I was sure it was trapped in the mattress. While I was gone, it must have chewed its way to freedom because there was a small hole chewed through the bottom of my mosquito net. I repaired it (with duct tape) and hope that is the last evidence I will see of my little friend.

Yesterday, I received a text message saying only, “Ana por fabor comuniquese con Ma Theresa por su cartera.” [Anna, please communicate with Maria Theresa for your wallet.] Well, I don’t know any Maria Theresas, but recently did have my wallet stolen, so of course I was quite perplexed about the message. Turns out, a commercial sex worker who has been involved with one of the AIDS prevention programs I’ve worked with somehow got a hold of my wallet. Inside I had a list of all the phone numbers of my Honduran counterparts in case I ever lost my phone, and the person recognized the organization and turned it in to the police. I went to the police station today, where I was received much more warmly and with more help than before (may have something to do with the fact that there were no soccer games on TV today—less distractions). Anyway, one of the officers showed me a video tape of two men they had caught recently as well as a collection of things they retrieved from the suspects. Unfortunately, I did not recognize either of the guys nor were any of my belongings there. They decided I needed to go to the main police station, so they called someone to come pick me up. Another officer showed up on the police ‘moto’ (a golf cart-looking thing that is used frequently here—some people even have them as taxis in their towns) and drove me to the main station. Once there, I was swarmed by a friendly group of young officers looking to end their boredom hearing tales of the gringa’s robbery. Once I got my wallet, they said I would have to fill out another form and identify one of the robbers they had caught if I wanted to try and get money back. Although I would have loved to pinpoint the little shit that grabbed my wallet, I only saw his back and therefore could not ID anyone. Nonetheless, I got back my wallet, which still contained my credit and debit cards as well as my Honduran resident ID card. Also, the head officer gave me his cell phone number and said if I ever had any problems again, or if my friends and I ever needed a ride late at night, he would help us out. Although this final step was a bit overly friendly, I was relieved at the way they helped me with the situation.

I also had my first visit to the Tela clinic today, although it was for skin rather than stomach problems. Last night, I noticed a few small red, itchy splotches on my face so I took some Benadryl before going to bed. When I awoke this morning, I discovered half my face was swollen to the point that my left eye couldn’t completely open. If any of you have seen the movie ‘Hitch,’ where Will Smith eats shellfish and he develops an allergic reaction, that’s pretty much what I looked like. Anyway, I freaked out and took Benadryl as well as an allergy/sinus medication (I think it is like Alegra) and called the Peace Corps medical officer. She told me to take Benadryl and go to the clinic in Tela…much easier said than done. One thing I’ve noticed about Hondurans is that no one will ever directly say they don’t know where something is—even if they’re only visiting a town and have no idea where anything is. So, as I wandered through town looking for the Hospital y Clinica Cristiana (who’d have thought there would be dozens of Christian Hospitals and clinics in this religious country??!), asking random strangers on the street, security guards, taxi drivers, and other clinics where I could find my particular doctor. The Peace Corps has a deal with this particular doctor, so I couldn’t be seen at just any old clinic. Directions I got from people ranged from, “si, si, la clinica esta alli, no mas” (the clinic is there, no further-while pointing in an ambiguous direction), “esta clinica queda arriba, arriba, bien lejo” (this clinic is up the road, very far…although later I realized I was only one block from where it was), etc. Anyway, as pleasant as it was to walk around in the blistering heat while my symptoms grew from swollen face to red shoulders and itchy back, I finally called the clinic and got better directions (I had been avoiding this because I hate phone Spanish).

Once at the clinic, the nurse took my weight and blood pressure and I got into to see the doctor. Clearly, her medical training was top notch as she immediately was able to diagnose my malady—“Sunburn,” she said simply. I paused a moment, assured her that it was not sunburn and my face does not normally function as though I have Bell’s Palsy. She took a closer look and began leading to another diagnosis.

After inspecting my mouth and teeth, she decided I had a bad tooth. Again, I patiently explained that I don’t think any sort of oral infection could have developed in a 24-hour period that would cause my eye to swell shut, not to mention the rash on my neck, shoulders, and back. I told her I had taken some Benadryl which hadn’t seemed to do much. She then got out her prescription pad, wrote something, and handed me my fate proudly as if she’d found the cure for cancer. “”Benadryl,” she wrote. Amazing! Finally, I asked her to give me something topical and got out of there as soon as I could. As long as my rash isn’t the first signs of hemorrhagic dengue, I think I’ll turn out ok. I’ll keep you posted.

Tomorrow I’m going out with the auxiliary nurse from the Centro de Salud to distribute ARTs (anti-retroviral therapy—medication for treating HIV) in the rural Garifuna village of Miami. This town is about 1.5 hours walking or 40 minute by truck on a sandy road down the coast. As of yesterday, the nurse was still unsure if she would be able to get enough medication for everyone, so we’ll see how the trip goes. I am also anticipating a visit from the head of USAID in my area sometime soon. I’m not exactly sure what this will entail, but USAID basically controls most AIDS education/prevention programs (funding) here, so it should be interesting.

Finally, I’ve been contacted by a RPCV (returned Peace Corps volunteer) who is now working on his PhD in Rural Development and Population who is interested in information on Garifuna populations. As I am one of two volunteers here in Honduras living with the Garifuna, he was given my name as someone who can help. Eventually, he will come down to my site and has asked me to help organize interest groups of Garifuna in my area. I’m really excited about this opportunity because work has been a bit slow going, so this will give me something else to focus my time on that is still pertinent to health in the region.

...I wrote this blog last night. The aforementioned mouse I thought I had gotten rid of bit me last night! Not a pleasant thing to wake up to. Hopefully I don´t get the plague