May 23, 2012

Spent another fitful night trying to sleep without turning in bed and making my blisters itch even more. Woke up at 12:30am and read for a while before falling asleep again. I had agreed to go to the medical clinic with Zoir at 10:00am and hardly had energy to make breakfast before he said he couldn’t make it until 12:00pm. I told him I had to get to the embassy before the cashier closed at the same time and would meet with him after my class at Caritas.

The driver of the mini-van I took to get to the embassy dropped me off right in front of the building which is out of his way, but I really appreciated it. Vali was on vacation, again, and the other young woman cashed my check. I went downstairs to drop my expense report at the mail office, but the door was locked. I slipped it under the door and hope there won’t be a problem with that. I then remembered that Ruth mentioned the fact that there was a health unit near the mail office with a scale I could use to find out what my weight was now. I hadn’t weight myself since I left the States. A Tajik woman wearing a lab coat was sitting at a desk and I asked about using the scale. She introduced herself as the doctor in service and showed that my weight was the same, 148 pounds, as before leaving home.

She asked me if I needed anything else and mentioned the itchy blisters I was dealing with and dropped my pants for her to inspect them. She had the same look of horror on her face as Ryan’s and immediately offered to give me Bacitracin ointment to avoid an infection on those that had broken open. She could see me sniffling due to my ongoing battle with the allergies brought on by the abundant pollen in the air and gave me ten Claritin tablets to carry me for a few days. She indicated that TDI personnel such as the ELFs were entitled to use the services of the medical clinic, and I informed her we had never been told such services could be accessed.

When I got off the mini-van, I ran into James whom I had met last Sunday while at Hillary’s birthday brunch. He was also looking for a place to have a quick lunch and we went together to a place Nigina had recommended, a small canteen adjacent to a government building. Although it was only 12:30pm, the picking were slim and I settled for just a bowl of soup and bread. A TV was blaring from one of the wall while the shaded courtyard, where tables and chairs would have made for a perfect al fresco dining area, remained completely empty. James and I traded opinions about the general incompetence of local administrator and how they saw every situation as a zero-sum game whereby anybody succeeding at something constituted a loss for somebody else.

On to Caritas where we discussed idioms, animal habits and other questions. We are still planning on having a picnic sometime next week in Varzob to cap our classes since I will not be able to continue during the month of June.

I called Zoir and met him in front of the clinic where we found the doctor and nurse watching TV in a small room. We were told to have a seat I guess until the program was over. The doctor was the same guy who had extended the medical certificate to me last November and he came out a few minutes later and escorted Zoir into his office. I wanted to know how much the exam and probable blood work would cost, but the doctor shooed me out of the office without answering any questions. I had sat in the hallway for less than 15 minutes when Zoir came out with a note in his hand and motioned for me to follow him outside. In his usual parsimonious manner, he related the doctor had found nothing wrong with him and referred him to the hospital for further testing. I was able to get out of him that the doctor did question him about his eating habits and had told him he needed to eat properly.

Zoir indicated he was not able to eat three meals a day and hardly ever had any breakfast at all and that had been his habit since he started high school. I lectured him on the importance of eating a nutritious breakfast and not eating huge portions at irregular intervals even though I knew that I was wasting my breath. I gave him the keys to return to the dean and told him to come and see me before I moved out of my apartment.

I made one last stop at Ruth’s house to drop a package the embassy had received for her. I went home to take another soaking bath and cover my blisters with the Bacitracin after which I dealt with more paperwork and email.