land of mangoes and flying ants

oh my.

i think i've been experiencing internet withdrawal symptoms these past few days:

heavy breathing, jittery fingers, and constant anxiety for the next fix.

haha, jk, except for the anxiety :p

the transformer on the missions ground broke last week = no electricity, no running water, no refrigerator, no refrigerable food items, limited internet access, etc. apparently, fixing or replacing the transformer is too expensive, so after a week of experiencing all of the above, our house finally got hooked up to a generator! still no running water, but...

i can see in the dark!! i can read at night!!

:D

And i can charge my computer and phone! which means, i now have access to internet again!

hah. it feels good to be connected with the rest of the world again :)

but enough talk about this electric outage mumbo jumbo.

it's been so long since i've last updated, i feel i can't catch up on any point that's occurred/i've experienced these past few weeks.

but i'll try.

people:

1. carlos = rubatano project coordinator/hands at work service center coordinator. aka my "boss." he's probably one of the most eccentric people i've ever met and probably one of the most sincere, caring people, too. he and his family have been so welcoming.

2. maforga missions family = the people with whom i'm staying. they've also been extremely welcoming. there are so many people here with incredible testimonies.

3. home-based care volunteers = local volunteers who visit homes of the sick and orphaned in the communities. amazing. that is all.

4. dara and laura = fellow footprinters/nurses. they've been so helpful since my arrival in maforga. i think i've actually grown too dependent on them and their "big sister"-type figures -- i don't know how i'll fare with their absence. they're leaving... tomorrow morning!

notable experiences:

1. christmas eve dinner at church. the photo on my christmas entry makes the dinner look extremely peaceful. that night was quite chaotic, actually :P

2. christmas day. a group of us visited a local prison on christmas day, and i don't know what it was -- this visit completely changed my perpective about christmas.. or what the rest of the world made it to be.

3. home-based care in maforga/nhembia and gondola. we need to pray.

4. volunteer day. i love the volunteers here :')

general lifestyle:

1. getting Darker. taking doxycycline doesn't help.

2. getting Heavier. i've been eating a lot of MANGOES! :D they're everywhere! under trees fallen and left uneaten, in tubs on the side of the road sold for a couple of cents per bucket, in the kitchen of every house we visit. whole mango, mango fruit salad, mango juice, slices of dried mango, mango mango mango. mmmm.

3. getting Sick. one bad spell of food poisoning. i suddenly woke up one night and started throwing up/having the big D for the rest of the night. that day, we celebrated a special occasion by going out to eat pizza -- my favorite food -- and i ate a Lot. it's actually funny when i think about it now -- cause of sickness: food poisoning or food gorging? i haven't experienced anything too drastic, though: no malaria (yet), no car accident, etc. so i'm still relatively healthy :)

and people have been asking:

4. getting more Tolerant? of bugs?

(^ flying ants flying during christmas eve dinner presentation)

Never.