Katherine is 10 today. She's TEN! Double digits... One - oh...
Wow.
Sunday, February 5, 2006
Saturday, February 4, 2006
It's been a heck of a couple weeks.
There's a lot going on here. Nothing earth-shattering, which is a relief, but our little family has been through a rough time and next week will be something new for all of us again.
The school: Two weeks ago was the worst week we'd had all school year. This week was considerably better. After a couple meetings and some creative thinking, the French teacher is trying to teach our children useful FSL information. The issues with the music teacher have been resolved. He was fired. Currently there is no music program. There are still other issues to be resolved, but we're not sure where to go with them. Perhaps we should let the rest of the year pass and start fresh in the fall.
Work in the library continues. We've moved the table in the junior room and placed a carpet on the floor with cushions adjacent to the low book shelves. It has become an inviting, slightly more comfortable place that welcomes children. They take off their shoes, curl on a cushion and instinctively stay quiet. New fans have been purchased by the school, so the temperature in the junior room is finally pleasant as well.
I've started volunteering in Rebecca and Nicholas's literacy time each morning. Suddenly I'm not home much anymore.
Health: Last week we had our house and yard sprayed. Sable managed to ingest enough to get poisoned. The vet came by right away and gave her an injection, then returned in the evening to explain her meds. Thankfully she is doing much much better.
I came down with a cold on Monday. By Thursday my voice was entirely gone. I hope to be completely better by this Monday, but I think some medication will play a greater role in how I feel than actual germ eradication. Thankfully Nicholas only had a day of feeling under the weather.
Katherine's neck is all better from her fall on the monkey bars. There is a low set of bars suitable for climbing not swinging, and while Katherine was walking over them her footing slipped and her arms flailed landing her neck directly on a bar. The RMO was in town and checked her over but pronounced her OK. At that same visit, I had a second opinion about a questionable spot on my skin. He concurred that it was something that warranted concern and a medevac has been scheduled.
So...
Next week: I won't be in town. Monday I head to Accra, Ghana to catch a flight to London and see a specialist. A true blessing, my mom will meet me there. Not that London is a big scary place, but we all know that sometimes you really want Mom. My family will be here, Ian will work shortened hours to accommodate the school schedule and I'll be back next Saturday.
Take care all.
The school: Two weeks ago was the worst week we'd had all school year. This week was considerably better. After a couple meetings and some creative thinking, the French teacher is trying to teach our children useful FSL information. The issues with the music teacher have been resolved. He was fired. Currently there is no music program. There are still other issues to be resolved, but we're not sure where to go with them. Perhaps we should let the rest of the year pass and start fresh in the fall.
Work in the library continues. We've moved the table in the junior room and placed a carpet on the floor with cushions adjacent to the low book shelves. It has become an inviting, slightly more comfortable place that welcomes children. They take off their shoes, curl on a cushion and instinctively stay quiet. New fans have been purchased by the school, so the temperature in the junior room is finally pleasant as well.
I've started volunteering in Rebecca and Nicholas's literacy time each morning. Suddenly I'm not home much anymore.
Health: Last week we had our house and yard sprayed. Sable managed to ingest enough to get poisoned. The vet came by right away and gave her an injection, then returned in the evening to explain her meds. Thankfully she is doing much much better.
I came down with a cold on Monday. By Thursday my voice was entirely gone. I hope to be completely better by this Monday, but I think some medication will play a greater role in how I feel than actual germ eradication. Thankfully Nicholas only had a day of feeling under the weather.
Katherine's neck is all better from her fall on the monkey bars. There is a low set of bars suitable for climbing not swinging, and while Katherine was walking over them her footing slipped and her arms flailed landing her neck directly on a bar. The RMO was in town and checked her over but pronounced her OK. At that same visit, I had a second opinion about a questionable spot on my skin. He concurred that it was something that warranted concern and a medevac has been scheduled.
So...
Next week: I won't be in town. Monday I head to Accra, Ghana to catch a flight to London and see a specialist. A true blessing, my mom will meet me there. Not that London is a big scary place, but we all know that sometimes you really want Mom. My family will be here, Ian will work shortened hours to accommodate the school schedule and I'll be back next Saturday.
Take care all.
You know, I don't even have this card...
But this sort of news story bugs the heck out of me anyway. We're not big credit card users in the first place (not anymore I should say), since the debit card came about.
I realize that having a credit card is a risky proposition. There's the chance you'll go crazy with unnecessary spending. There's a chance you'll only pay the minimum and take up 10 years of your life to eliminate the debt. What gets me though are the good credit card users and how much the companies despise them. The Barclaycard in the U.K. has decided that if a member pays his or her entire bill several months in a row, the company will shorten their payment time. The rational? It says it "never guarantees customers a fixed payment date each month" and they "clearly ... are not making as much money out of customers that pay their bill in full as (they) are out of those that borrow."
I didn't realize the credit card companies were hurting so. In fact, every other news story I hear about credit cards involve just how high a debt balance (into the billions of dollars) we all collectively carry.
Their suggestion? "A simple way to avoid the risk of any late payment charge was, Mr Barber said: "to set a direct debit payment up on the account.
"It is universally good advice to set up a direct debit for at least the minimum amount.
"That way you can make sure you are not going to be hit with any late payment charges, and obviously if you want to pay more on top of that direct debit it is very easy to do so." "
No late payment charges, but plenty of interest will grow. Just what the credit card companies want, and good money-minded customers avoid.
I'm thinking it's finally time to call in those 3 card cancellations we've been planning for the past month.
I realize that having a credit card is a risky proposition. There's the chance you'll go crazy with unnecessary spending. There's a chance you'll only pay the minimum and take up 10 years of your life to eliminate the debt. What gets me though are the good credit card users and how much the companies despise them. The Barclaycard in the U.K. has decided that if a member pays his or her entire bill several months in a row, the company will shorten their payment time. The rational? It says it "never guarantees customers a fixed payment date each month" and they "clearly ... are not making as much money out of customers that pay their bill in full as (they) are out of those that borrow."
I didn't realize the credit card companies were hurting so. In fact, every other news story I hear about credit cards involve just how high a debt balance (into the billions of dollars) we all collectively carry.
Their suggestion? "A simple way to avoid the risk of any late payment charge was, Mr Barber said: "to set a direct debit payment up on the account.
"It is universally good advice to set up a direct debit for at least the minimum amount.
"That way you can make sure you are not going to be hit with any late payment charges, and obviously if you want to pay more on top of that direct debit it is very easy to do so." "
No late payment charges, but plenty of interest will grow. Just what the credit card companies want, and good money-minded customers avoid.
I'm thinking it's finally time to call in those 3 card cancellations we've been planning for the past month.
Thursday, January 26, 2006
So, you've been told you stink on American Idol?
Why not try out Ethiopian Idol?
And have you heard the news about Teflon? Seems there's a chemical in it that (surprise, surprise) casues cancer. Will you be tossing out your pots and pans?
And have you heard the news about Teflon? Seems there's a chemical in it that (surprise, surprise) casues cancer. Will you be tossing out your pots and pans?
Wednesday, January 25, 2006
Mystery Solved
Remember months ago the troubles with our consumables shipment?
It was sent to Chennai, India, to the consul general there named David T. Hopper. The State Department sent a replacement shipment tous by air, which arrived here soon thereafter.
But the question remained, what happened to all those foods and supplies that landed in India? An answer came a couple weeks ago when Lisa F. e-mailed me after seeing a post I’d written on a message board for Foreign Service types (on the board, folks typically sign with the list of countries they’ve served in), and asked if I knew a David Hopper in Togo.
In fact, I do.
Lisa is currently in Chennai and wanted us to know our consumables were sold (at great prices apparently) to the American community there. Some food was also donated. And a dessert was named for Ian. Lisa had a larger than expected number of guests for Christmas dinner, but not enough dessert, so a big bowl of vanilla pudding and bowls of toppings (we had marshmallows, chocolate chips, etc in our boxes) were put out for all.
We're just glad it all found happy homes.
It was sent to Chennai, India, to the consul general there named David T. Hopper. The State Department sent a replacement shipment tous by air, which arrived here soon thereafter.
But the question remained, what happened to all those foods and supplies that landed in India? An answer came a couple weeks ago when Lisa F. e-mailed me after seeing a post I’d written on a message board for Foreign Service types (on the board, folks typically sign with the list of countries they’ve served in), and asked if I knew a David Hopper in Togo.
In fact, I do.
Lisa is currently in Chennai and wanted us to know our consumables were sold (at great prices apparently) to the American community there. Some food was also donated. And a dessert was named for Ian. Lisa had a larger than expected number of guests for Christmas dinner, but not enough dessert, so a big bowl of vanilla pudding and bowls of toppings (we had marshmallows, chocolate chips, etc in our boxes) were put out for all.
We're just glad it all found happy homes.
Saturday, January 21, 2006
Transformational Diplomacy
On the 18th, Secretary Rice announced her plan for the future of the State Department, which involves shifting hundreds of Foreign Service officers from positions in Europe and Washington to more critical areas in the Middle East, Asia and other zones.
The full fact sheet can be found at the State Department site.
The Washington Post reported as well.
A mandatory Iraq tour for all Foreign Service personnel is also being considered, but would not come into play until 2008. Officers volunteering for the positions have dropped dramatically over the past year.
The full fact sheet can be found at the State Department site.
The Washington Post reported as well.
A mandatory Iraq tour for all Foreign Service personnel is also being considered, but would not come into play until 2008. Officers volunteering for the positions have dropped dramatically over the past year.
More Malaria fighting news
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/health/4627938.stm
There's a drug, Artemisinin, with a 95% malaria cure rate, but it must be combined with other drugs to entirely wipe out the disease. Unfortunately, because Artemisinin is such a rapid and nearly thorough cure, it's not being prescribed properly to avoid malaria adapting and becoming resistant.
There is hope, of course. While new drugs are years off, an inventor in South Africa has developed an anti-malaria wristwatch. Although the impetus behind the wristwatch development is a little frustrating ("Lubbe was approached by a major mining company to develop the device after it found high levels of malaria among workers in Africa was hurting productivity") the idea is amazing:
...by monitoring the blood of those who wear it and sounding an alarm when the parasite is detected...It picks up the parasite and destroys it so early that the possibility of dying is absolutely zero and you don't even feel the early cold symptoms...
Now that's an invention.
There's a drug, Artemisinin, with a 95% malaria cure rate, but it must be combined with other drugs to entirely wipe out the disease. Unfortunately, because Artemisinin is such a rapid and nearly thorough cure, it's not being prescribed properly to avoid malaria adapting and becoming resistant.
There is hope, of course. While new drugs are years off, an inventor in South Africa has developed an anti-malaria wristwatch. Although the impetus behind the wristwatch development is a little frustrating ("Lubbe was approached by a major mining company to develop the device after it found high levels of malaria among workers in Africa was hurting productivity") the idea is amazing:
...by monitoring the blood of those who wear it and sounding an alarm when the parasite is detected...It picks up the parasite and destroys it so early that the possibility of dying is absolutely zero and you don't even feel the early cold symptoms...
Now that's an invention.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)