Hard to comprehend

Hands down our favorite restaurant in Lilongwe is Noble China.. It's about a stones throw away from our house..  I think it is run by the Chinese mafia.. I will miss it when we leave..  I picked up Michelle from work yesterday, we stopped by the restaurant, ordered a few drinks and some "take away" and sat and talked.. Probably one of the best memories of this place... Anyway , Tawonamo is the waiter who takes care of us every time we go.. He's a sweet guy and hopes to get married within a year.. He doesn't have a girlfriend yet. When we tip him for his service, it feels like an illegal operation.. We have to look around and make sure the coast is clear before I slip him the money... What a strange and sad thing.. He says the owners take their tips.

While we were sitting Michelle told me one of her many stories from the hospital... A young child passed away yesterday because someone had unplugged the oxygen machine they were one , in order to charge their phone.. it seemed horrific . But as Michelle described it, it wasn't surprising due to the disarray of the place.  It also shed light on the complexities of this place..
First of all, the child who was on oxygen support was sharing a bed with 4 other children.. So, the fact that the child was no longer being supported by oxygen was difficult to see.. Secondly, many of the people here do not know how to plug things in and not sure what runs of electricity , etc.. How could they possibly know that the machine supporting this child relied on electricity ? They don't use electricity in the villages. Third, is the lack of help within the hospital. They just aren't enough people to make sure all patients are being taken care of.  This is the atmosphere that Michelle is working in on a day to day basis.. Very, very different from home. The people here deserve better...  If you want to hear sad, depressing stories about loss of life, illness,etc.. send Michelle a note... she's has plenty of them... Be thankful for good healthcare.

The weekend brings work for Michelle.. She is on call tomorrow, therefore will probably be busy all day. Jude has birthday parties out the wazoo and I have nothing.. I am going to a St. Patrick's day party set up by the Irish High Commission (or something formal like that).. This happens Saturday evening..  The weather is perfect, my classroom door is wide open and there are lizards at my doorstep. Much to be thankful for..  The kids and I jammed to Boston on the way into school and ended with "Thunder Road" by the Boss...  I told Kate it might be the perfect rock and roll song..  discuss amongst yourselves.

Happy Friday folks.

Photos for today include a Malawian police officer.... You're not allowed to take photos of police/ military here, so I snuck one.. Little girls walking with a little one on their back.. This was taken right after taking the photo of the policeman.. This is very common.. Mind you, the road is the main highway through the country.. These little ones are basically walking on the equivalent of I-75... by themselves, with no parental guidance.. Sounds so different from home.. I'm not sure if I would let my kids walk on the highway with my 11/2 year old strapped to my back.. The other photo is eggs at the shop.. You can get eggs just about anywhere and they are usually packaged like this.. They are delicious and they stink.. Eggs are never refrigerated here... Lastly, a photo of Kate's basketball game.. Streetball here in Malawi.. Kate's team lost by two.. but I don't think anyone was really keeping score..

COPS

Kate's basketball game.. they lost by 2

eggs at the grocery store.. they are delicious and still smell close to the source