Eid Mubarak!

What does that mean?

(boing boing boing)

It's over, Ramadan is over! Things are open, wheels are turning, forced inactivity and stultifying heat complete! Finished!

A bit on the past few days...if there is anyone out there who can tell me how one acquires an infection in their sphenoid sinuses, just give me a shout. I'm trying to wrap my antibiotics around this one, and I'm floored.

I now have a great x-ray of my skull taped to the corner of my dressing table mirror, and a whole new type of antibiotic that I'm allergic to. But I feel better than I have since I landed.

About 10 days ago I started losing energy- all I knew was it felt really, really good to put the crick of my neck against the hard arm of my neighbor Judith's couch. I'd just lay there and doze during the evenings. I didn't have much of an appetite, and my whole body just hurt like I had the flu. Especially my lower back and legs. It felt too good to be laying down. I would fall asleep randomly on car trips out, and if you know me, that's an indication something is wrong.

The day of my last post, I went to my Assistant Principle and had her take me off all committees for the time being, thinking I was just working too hard and wanting to come back on an even keel. The next morning I woke up and realized I could not go in to work.

The Ministry of Education has a policy, that if you are sick for even one day you must have a signed doctors note. Otherwise, it is Leave and you must apply for it. So I stumbled next door and got directions from my neighbor, typed up some emergency lesson plans and took a taxi to the International Clinic.

It's a very nice clinic, very quiet and not like the whopping Kaisers and Blue Cross that we have in California. I was sent up to a waiting room, tenanted by two oversized African American men (from South Carolina), one woman and her daughter in headscarves, a man from New Guinea with a bladder infection ('TEN cups of water?' 'And don't use the bathroom')an irate Chinese man with a sinus issue, another woman with her daughter (about 12) who was snoring gently in the seat opposite.

About 9:30 doctors started to fly through doorways, on arrival. The mother with the snoring daughter roused her partially and pulled her inside by the arm, following a nurse. Women went to the woman doctor, the irate Chinese man went to a befuddled man doctor in half-glasses.

I sort of went to sleep until I was called. The woman doctor was the picture of grace and manner, sitting behind her desk, fingers spread on the top. "This is your first time in Kuwait? Welcome. What's the trouble?"

I explained, and she had me up on the exam table. She prodded my head (I winced) and then grunted. I was ordered downstairs for Xrays...

Guess what? the good news is that we found your sinus infection! The bad news is that it's in back! In back of your head!

Three hours and one allergic reaction to an antibiotic later, I was back out on the street with a new perspective on the holes in my head. They had skipped the oral, immediately putting me on intravenous meds, with the plan that I'd come back for IV meds for three days. However, the second day I started having chest pains and freaked the nurse out so badly she refused to continue. I knew it wasn't an allergic reaction (who wouldn't feel 8cc's of antibiotics being pumped into you by a nurse?) but they decided to go straight to orals after that. I couldn't say I minded- I mean that's 2KD for a taxi ride there and back, without arguing the taxi driver down in price.

So I'm much better. Ramadan is over, and I'm eating potato wedges in daylight at a cafe. I'm on vacation this week, and well rested. Can't ask for more than that. ;-)