Dehydrated – again

September 23rd

Conked out today. I sleep terribly, waking up frequently with raging thirst and pounding head. By morning I’ve drunk nearly a litre of water but it doesn’t seem to be doing me any good. I’m supposed to be going up the “Great North Road” and doing two schools, staying at Kiyumba presbytery and then doing two more on Thursday. But at the moment there’s no way I’m going out of doors, let alone an hour and a half on a moto up earth roads. I have to ring Kanyanza and cancel. It’s a shame because the weather’s lovely, too, and ideal for a visit.

I’m concerned about my health because raging thirst and pounding headaches are symptoms of one of variants of malaria we get here, and I know I’m getting bitten by mosquitoes in the evenings and despite Lariam tablets I’m living a sort of charmed life at the moment.

I decide to stay at the flat and catch up on some of the work I need to do here. There are reports to finish, and the analysis of the tronc commun schools for Claude is almost done, while the upper secondary presentation isn’t even started. It’s not as if I haven’t got anything to do; rather a case that I’m in a rut where I think I’m not working unless I’m clattering around the countryside. It ends up a productive day, but not in the way I had planned.

By the evening – and at least three whole litres of water later – I’m feeling back to usual form and cook up a huge vegetable stew which makes at least four days’ meals, boxed and frozen.

Becky rings and wants to talk, so we meet at “Green Garden” and chat for an hour.