A Pretty Good Day...

With all the hubbub happening around here, I thought I'd report that today was actually a decent day.  The term hubbub was posted in the entrance to a gondola ride up the mountain to visit one of the temples on one of my China trips.   The sign said "Absolutely NO hubbubbing."  Bet you didn't know that was a verb did you?  Well, I could use that sign here.    

Still dealing with the fall out of last week and didn't go into the office much but still accomplished things.  Had a very interesting meeting with a young Ugandan doctor who trained in the US.  Actually spent some time at Baylor Medical!  I'm tellin' ya - the world is getting smaller and smaller.  He started a non-profit for children who have been orphaned either buy the war or HIV/AIDS.  There are an awful lot of things here that result in children being orphaned.  His program selects worthy students from the Gulu area, sponsors them in a private boarding school, provides food, clothing, pays school fees, etc.  Ugandans will be the first to tell you that the public system is woefully inadequate and behind, so this is a godsend.  His program is: The Child Is Innocent.  As we talked some more, he began talking about a new program he wants to find funding for that will help parents of these children when the parents have HIV/Aids - and that's about 45%!  The ratio of girls to boys in his program is 60% girls - impressive. There is a lot of initiative here to balance the gender issue - and it is a huge issue with deep cultural roots.

Also had a chance to sort through three boxes of Books for Africa for our early childhood reading program/story hour I'm trying to get started via LABE, mentioned in a December blog.  I tagged about 120 books suitable for really young readers - story hour!  In some ways it was a walk down memory land as I came across titles I'd read to the kids:  Blueberries for Sal, Strega Nona, Spot, Curious George...  Couldn't part with the Blueberries for Sal just yet - it's sitting on the top shelf of my bookcase and I get a little nostalgic every time I pass it.  (And George! Should I save Curious George for you?  I know you're curious.)  And there's another entire box of young-adult books that will go to another PCV's site - a vocational school where students are asking for books to read to improve their English.  It was a good haul and they arrived here via a very circuitous route having been relayed through many hands to find their way to my front door!

Even my landlady came by to discuss things she's going to fix!  And shortly after she left, she returned with guys to do it.  This is record timing anywhere, but unheard of in Uganda.  They promise to be here tomorrow afternoon to do the work - so there's the real test.

And - for dessert - I got rain and a front porch light that works - AND power?  It is there...