Week 57
The week started off as most of our weeks here, with a trip
to the clinic. Tom came down sick over the weekend and so it was up to see the
Doctor. As Tom had a fever, he had to have a malaria check and of course he
cried. Thank goodness it was negative. As his chest sounded a bit rough, he was
put on antibiotics and I had a check-up whilst there also, and was given my 2nd
lot of antibiotics. It hasn’t taken long since returning, for us to become
regulars at the clinic again. I told them I would see them again with my daughter
later on in the week.
Thus, Tom was off school Monday and Tuesday. By Wednesday he
wanted to go and by the end of the week he was so tired, the poor thing. But he
really wanted to go to school, so I was not going to stop him as he usually
does not want to go.
On Wednesday, I had to go to the hardware store to pay for
the TV subscription. I decided to walk as I had not done a lot since returning
and thought the exercise might be good. As I was still not well, it was not a
good move. Laura by this point was also not feeling well and so I had to piggy
back her part of the way. By the time we got to the school to pick Tom up, I
was struggling to breathe and nearly fainted from lack of oxygen. Thankfully,
Phil had bought an inhaler in Solwezi last weekend and so I went home and took
a puff. My lungs were finally able to get some air.
So on Thursday, it was back to the clinic for Laura and I.
Laura also had to have a malaria check and cried and was put on a course of
antibiotics as her throat was inflamed and she was developing a cough also. The
doctor let me listen to her chest and her right side sounded raspy, the same as
mine. The doctor was very concerned about my chest and gave me my 3rd
round of antibiotics. If this did not work, I was going to have to get an x-ray
to see what was going on and goodness knows what then.
Later on in the day we found out that another of the big
managers was leaving……
It was a very lazy day on Friday, as the kids and I were
still not well. I had absolutely no energy. After picking Tom up from school we
just lazed around the house. We ended up on the trampoline playing I spy. This
was very interesting as Laura does not know what words start with and so guessing
her “I Spies” was quite a task, but very funny. It was actually a lovely moment
with the kids.
Today we found out another of the big bosses was to leave.
That made 3 of the head managers gone in only a couple of months! There will be more people by the end of the month too, as the place is reviewing all roles and positions. I think this is why a lot of the women are unhappy as they don't know what will happen in the following months. The unknown is very hard on everyone. I should know, we just spent the last 2 months going through it!
Saturday was a busy day. I decided I needed to do something
today because if I just sat around again there would be no getting me out of
bed. So I headed to the kitchen to cook up a storm. I started with a loaf of
bread, then moved onto jam drops and ginger biscuits and finished off with
carrot muffins and choc-chip muffins. This ensured we had enough for lunches
and snacks.
It was also Benjamin and William’s 3rd birthday
party. Tom went with Phil, and Laura and I, after going to say hello, came
straight home. Laura still had a nasty cough and was not feeling well, so we
headed home to bed. The poor thing was still having fevers. At about 5pm, we
went back down to pick up the boys. It was an early night for the kids and I.
On Sunday we went for a drive and a picnic to Mutanda Falls.
Laura and I had not been, so we thought it might be nice to do something that
would be quiet, but got us all out of the house. It was not what I expected. I
was thinking it was going to be a high waterfall, but instead in was a lot of
small and wide falls. We were the only ones there and it was quite nice to sit
and relax watching the falls. This time of year is quite spectacular for
butterflies. There must be millions flying around and you often get 20 or more
in one spot trying to get water from a mud patch. They are not the most
attractive, a plain white with spots of black and yellow, but the numbers make
them beautiful.
That afternoon we had Luke and his parents drop in and so
did Brenda and the kids. Luke’s father (English) grew up in Kitwe here in
Zambia. It was lovely to talk to them and we invited them over for dinner
Monday night.
Week 58
I finally felt somewhat normal on Monday. I was still
coughing, but I could at least breathe. So I decided to get some fresh air and
go for a gentle walk. The weather has really changed. You can tell winter is on
its way. The air in the morning and at night is getting cool and the leaves on
some trees have changed colour and will no doubt start to drop soon. The dam
road has been graded since I last walked, which was a good 2 months ago. So the
walk was quite pleasant. Thankfully I had a scarf on as the cars going past
kick up quite a lot of dust and I did not need my lungs filling with that! Everything
really is so dusty, there is not a scrap of moisture here at all and the leaves
are all looking dry and brown. I did not make it to the dam itself, as that
would have been too far but at least it was a start.
That night we had Luke’s parents over for dinner. I made
potato salad, a tomato salad (as the only fresh veg in the shop was garlic,
potato and onion) and I had some tomatoes at home. I also made a chocolate cake
and a ganache to go on top. It must have taken over half an hour for the cream
to go slightly thick. But at least it tasted ok. Phil cooked a braai and we lit
the fire. It was a wonderful evening as it was a delight to talk to someone
new. They are lovely people and I enjoyed myself immensely. The conversation
around site at the moment is really hard going. Most of the women are unhappy and
so it usually consists of everyone complaining about how bad the site is at
the moment for us, how awful the shop is and who is leaving this week. So it
really was a treat to not talk about any of that.
I decided to go for a walk again Tuesday morning and then it
was off to playgroup. Laura I think enjoyed herself. It is hard for her as the
kids are so much younger than her, she tends to play alone, but today she did
interact a little bit which was good to see. It was also nice to meet some new
Mum’s and good to see the old ones that I had not seen in a while. Janelle came
over after Kindy and the two girls had a ball playing together. We were outside
under the larpa when a squirrel came to visit, so we got some nuts out and fed
him. The girls then decided they were going to be squirrels and eat the nuts
too. I had to roast more after that as I think the girls ate more than the
squirrel!
Wednesday was a public holiday here, Labour Day. We had a
phone call from Brenda inviting us out for lunch, so we headed up to the Indian
restaurant in Manyama. It was a lovely afternoon, even if we did have to wait
more than an hour for food and we were the only ones in the restaurant. The food was delicious and it was great to taste
some delicious flavours. The kids enjoyed spring rolls, vegetable bhaji and butter chicken. I had a lovely lamb korma.
It was quite expensive which is a shame, because if it was cheaper we would go
more often, but $80 for a lunch in Manyama is a bit much for 2 adults and 2 kids!
On our way out we passed a new shop which had a sign saying they were selling “Bedshit’s”,
Phil and I found this quite amusing. I will try and take a photo when I go
through next.
When we got home it was about 4pm and I went and borrowed
Yolandi’s bike trailer which converts to a pusher. Phil and I then took the
kids and did a walk down the dam road. It was a lovely time of day and very
peaceful. Even the kids were quite, for most of it.
On Thursday, Brenda and I went into Solwezi. I am very wary
about driving on the roads now, after Donnya had her accident and the young
girl was killed in Solwezi. We left the kids home and I went in for some
shopping, whilst Brenda picked up her sons passport and her driving licence.
Unfortunately her licence was still not there, but at least she had Henry’s
passport. It was very busy as it was the beginning of the month and there were
people everywhere. I had not been to Solwezi in about 5 months for shopping so
it took a few minutes to get the feel of it again and my confidence up. You
really have to be on the ball driving as people walk out in front of you all
the time and the markets are so close to the side of the road. I have taken a
video and will see if I can try and post it on the net. When you go to Solwezi,
it always takes about 2 hours longer than you think, as you never know how long
the queues are going to be and how bad the traffic will be, so poor Carol was
running late for her next job, but at least we all understand how it is.
I had a really good day on Friday and a busy one at that. I
went for a quick walk and then rushed home for music group. Kennis is holding
it at her house. She bought a CD when she was in New Zealand last and borrows
the school's musical instruments (her husband is a teacher) for the session.
There were only 4 mums and 5 kids, but we had fun. Laura really enjoyed herself
and so we will keep going as it is something different for her to do. We then
had a lovely morning tea before heading off. I met a new lady who arrived here after
we had left for our holiday home and she is lovely. She is from Lusaka, Zambian
born and has 2 young children. Unfortunately, too young for Tom and Laura, but I
am sure we will still see her around.
That afternoon was drinks at Colleen’s house. I decided to
brave it for the kid’s sake, I have been keeping a very low profile after all the issues of last year. Tom is really keeping to himself as far as the
other boys go. He just does not want to join in group play with them. So he
headed off with all the girls to play and had a ball. Unfortunately, I burnt his
pizza again this week. I am not having much luck with his pizza lately. Ours
was delicious though. Lol.
Saturday was a really quiet day. The kids played together
all day and had no fights! It was amazing. It was actually really nice to have
them play together so that we could do our own thing. Phil relaxed in front of
the TV and I was able to read, do the washing and cook bread in peace. We did
try to fly Tom’s kite again, but the wind here is not constant. The wind
flares up and then drops off very quickly and so if you do not get the kite up
high enough before the winds drop off again, you can’t get it into the air at
all. Very disappointing, but we will keep trying. Phil cooked a braai for
dinner and we lit the fire. It was really lovely. After the kids went to bed, I
headed back out to the fire with my book and enjoyed listening to the church
music, whilst reading and watching the fire. I love these moments here. I only wish there were more.
Today was another nice and relaxing day. Brenda’s husband
Pete was playing soccer so we headed over to watch the game. Brenda was at home
waiting for the snake man. They found a Puff Adder under their carport by some
wood. A good thing they found it before young Henry did as they are very
poisonous. Sonia came back here to play while Pete finished up and then they
all came over here for drinks. One of Brenda’s friends from Kitwe is here and
she is so lovely. She is a reporter for the Zambian Government and we all had a
wonderful chat. Bwalya is here for the week, so I look forward to talking to
her again. It is wonderful having someone new to talk to and different things to talk about.
Tom’s birthday is in 10 days and thankfully his present
turned up on Saturday. I was getting worried that it might not be here on time.
I cannot believe he is going to be five! He is now the tallest in his class and
is a real string bean. We are having a party for him after school on the Friday
and so I had better get myself organised and make the cake etc.
Have a good time until I talk to you again.
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