St. Patricks Day-2007 Ugandian Style

Erin Go Bragh (Ireland forever)

Uganda’s Beauty---everywhere you look! March 17, 2007

Dear Friends

If I had just waited a day, even ½ a day, I might not have written the blog below. Slightly sarcastic to say the least---yea, I know..

Well, my body is finally feeling better , as if it has accepted that it will be eating a lot less of my favorite foods and eating more local food that taste so different----- Even the poached eggs on toast I had for brunch were good, but different. As I’ve mentioned the local eggs have huge yolks and they are sooo yellow. The bread is from a local bakery and substantial. but Wonder Bread doesn’t need to worry about the competition-ha

So the tummy feels better, I have more energy and I think I’ve lost some weight!
No such thing as a scale around here but the skirts are hanging looser every day.

I had to make an extra trip into Kisoro today to get “on line” as I had so many business things to take care of and personal e-mails to send. It seems even our one computer hooked up to the internet is down, so off I went in a taxi( car for hire-here) all by myself..
The good new is that 2 and ½ hrs later and I managed to get it all done!
Then when I arrived home for my language lesson(which I was not looking forward to) I was told there was a meeting of the Quality Control Group for HIV-AIDS. Well, I ran to be there on time as I feel a drawing to help in this area, especially since it is connected to USAIDS.
Even though we all speak English, I have to listen very hard to them, as they do to me
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Apparently there has been one, of a planned three, conferences held in different hubs of Uganda on this matter
..Seems Bill Gates,Bono and the ex-ark governor Pres, Bill Clinton want some statistics to go with the handing out of funds for AIDS relief., How unreasonable of them-smile.

Well, I had offered my services pulling together this information from our hospital and patients with AIDS, because I admire the two young caring (overworked) Dr’s and the wonderful nurses who have their hands full. Today after the prayer (we always start and end a meeting with a prayer), a formal introduction of each person present ,an extended period going over the previous meetings minutes, a setting of today’s agenda (which all have to agree upon)-----we finally got down to business.

Just to show you how different a meeting might be here in Uganda, I’ll share a story:
While putting together the members for this group, it was decided it would be important to include someone from the Lab .But how to get one person without offending the entire group or worse yet having the other Lab Techs feel they were not to be involved with the HIV-AIDS pts blood draws( they call “bleeding”), was quite a dilemma . I can easily say 45 minutes was put toward this “challenge”..
Not able to keep my American mouth shut one more second (ha) I suggested that the Lab tech’s choose among themselves someone to represent them in the group and that person could brief the others on developments which pertained to them.. Soooo that was the conclusion of that big challenge-
Guess I was so brilliant that they decided to invite me to be one of the three to go to the USAIDS Quality Conference in Mbarara next week.. I am delighted to attend, even though it is primarily about funding, as I think I have something to offer and hopefully, I can use this newly gained knowledge to help people with AIDS here in Mutolere.

And that, Virginia, is what it is all about!

When will I ever learn to stop second guessing the Divine’s Plans for me? Yep, I am supposed to be here, but nope, not necessarily in the capacity I had thought.
Imagine “Nurse Marie” as the negotiator of US dollars to fight AIDS-ha, ha, ha

March 17, 2007 St’. Patricks Day: :My wish for you on this important of holidays is:

May you be in Heaven
One ½ hour
Before
The Devil
Knows you’re dead------- ( Now, that’s a prayer you are
not likely to hear in Uganda)
Miss and love you Dad

Blessings Galore’
Marie Catherine Margaret McGee.


This may not be Ireland, but it could be!.



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