2002-12-11 - 10:45 a.m.
Hell is beautiful. That's the thought bandied about my mind last week. My trip to Gulistan for Turkey day went well and the travels went smoothly. Monday, December 2 our first snow came. December 3 the temperature dropped and our second snow came. December 4 I stayed home from school ill, and the temperature dropped, and snow fell and our heat went with it. Parkent district, as well as many other Uz. regions had no gas for water, heat, cooking, etc... last week as winter surprised the folks here. Temperatures reached the negatives as well. I was lucky enough to catch a sinus infection at just the right time. I spent last week wrapped in my sleeping bag and covered with corputchas, huge Uz. blankets. And coughing up all sorts of crazy looking stuff.
Our system for illness is if its worse that the meds I have can handle, call PC doc or my warden (another PCV) in my region who has Antibiotics, etc... Such was my choice on Thursday, when I felt really bad, beyond just cold. But then I discovered that when cold temps come, phones in Xisarak villiage do not dial long distance. Ha! This is about the same time I looked out my window and noticed that the sun reflected beautifully on the barren tree branches covered with snow. The mountains were equally picturesque.
After three more paradoxical days of misery and beauty, and desparate but useless attempts to call, I decided to take the initiative and go to town and call from the call center. I did. It worked. The doc had me come to T'kent and I was fixed up by the next day.
Families in Xisarak take these conditions in stride, although equally annoyed. They cook food on hot plates plugged into wall. They all sleep in the same room, with one space heater (I now have one too), but these are not of a quality Americans might imagine. Amazingly, my host mothers remedies of tea and frozen honey cured me (along with PC Amoxicillan and Nasatab).
Luckily, I feel better and the weather has warmed and all the snow has melted, in two days time. In addition, I feel much better prepared to cope with another illness and my mental health is amazingly strong - I feel really cool for surviving in such crappy conditions.
On a side note, yesterday I returned to work and was reminded that off the mountain top life goes on. I wanted to drop some letters in the mail and run to the bank. The post office would not accept my envelopes, new rule that all envelopes must be Uz., so I need to buy these, and I went to the bank to take out some money. My account is open, I have money, but the bank does not. Hmmmmm? Interesting business plan, a bank that has no money to give, but only takes. That is why my host family invests in goats and cows, those you can sell any day for flow, but money at the bank is the banks money. I like to think of the bank as a parent. Sometimes they give you money, sometimes they don't. Sometimes they have a good exucse (no money to give) and sometimes they don't (they feel as though today you do not need money) Anyway, until I get some flow, Xmas gifts are on hold. Growing pains..., ahhh. Take care.
