First week...couldn't be happier

Okay okay finally I am going to update, please excuse the bad grammar...We got here Saturday and I hung with BP (Big Paul) and Heather (bad ass nurse from Brooklyn, born and raised). We went to a gas station to hang before picking up Ellen. I met a guy name Sam from Grass Roots United, another group down here doing work. We have gotten to know them even more over the week...everyone else knew them pretty well before, but it seems like the connection is growing and will continue to grow.

List of people at the house for the past week: BP, Ellen, myself, Heather, Lauren/Pig Pen (if you read Bp's Blog you will know who I am talking about), Mike, Chelsea, and Mickey. The other people are some boys from Haiti, a couple that can speak English which is great because without them we would be pretty lost-Junior, Ralph, Ellie, Billy, and Forest. Lauren left this past Friday and Cassidy and Tuwanda came in Saturday. Tuwanda is a family practice doctor from Chicago and Cassidy is an EMT from NYC. Tuwanda will be hanging with us for two weeks (and she is a great merengue dancer! last night we went dancing and it was a whole lot of fun...I danced with the smallest man on the dance floor-he came up to my shoulder. Ellen, Cassidy, Heather, BP, Tuwanda and I went dancing and Cassidy and Heather were cracking up the crowd with their excellent white people dancing!)


First off I felt pretty overwhelmed with just how many people and groups these guys know. It is truly amazing how well everyone collaborates together here in Haiti. I was pretty nervous about how exactly I was going to get all these names and groups down. So far I have met a lot of people and have been doing well remembering names and faces. Soon I will have a Haiti phone which is gold pretty much here when it comes to getting work done. The group does this: whoever is here we work clinics, that other groups are trying to run, or we try to run our own at different locations. The rest of the time we find out what hospitals/groups need medical supply wise and try to get them and distribute them. Soooo a couple groups have HUGE warehouses of supplies that just sit...early on it was easy to walk in and grab what you or whoever else needs. Now people have to have more strict inventories to be able to continue being funded...aka here is what we have, here is who we gave it to and what they are going to do with it (Red Tape, important red tape because if it wasn't there then no one would be able to be funded well-p.s. we need funds!!!!!!! visit mmrc-us.org)

If you are confused then please let me know and I will try to explain better-one of our latest projects-getting 60,000 condoms to distribute and to use for sexual education clinics. We might run some of the clinics ourselves but we also will probably collaborate with other groups to set them up as well.

This week-
Sunday-organized the house, ran through supplies sitting around and set it up in a somewhat orderly fashion. Went to a restaurant Mun Cheese-got some REALLY good pizza and hung out. Then rode home in the back of the truck in the pouring rain and got drenched to my undies.
Monday-Clinic at a church, each patient would come in and you would ask them why they are here, take their blood pressure, temp, pulse, etc. Then as a nurse we would make a decision whether they needed to see the one doctor we had working there, or we would just give them tylenol, or meds for reflux. A LOT of women came in for yeast infections/probable STD infections.
Tuesday-Ellen and I stayed home while Lauren and Heather went to the same clinic because they were a little bit better at making decisions and understanding the history. We organized some more and delivered some supplies
Wednesay-I think that day we went around to a couple orphanages to check them out, give them some food we got, and see what they need. One place had a bunch of kids with the same type of rash and so the next day we got one of them and the adult there to go to the hospital to get checked out. That way we could find a treatment for all of them and teach them about how to clean their area/clothes, etc. The orphanages are my favorite ( I know you aren't surprised)because I get to hang out with these little girls and boys that just smile and run up to you. Sometimes not all of them approach us at first, but then they warm up and we have a great time taking pictures, drawing, and just hanging out.
Thursday-Ellen and I worked in the TB tents with Megan Coffee who is an amazing doctor from Harvard. She has about 50 patients. Ellen and I change wound dressings, draw labs, clean people up, and show them some love! These people are very sick and Megan does an incredible job keeping them healthy. So then Ellen and I get picked up in the truck as usual and we ended up getting drenched again. This time it felt like getting slapped in the face by small pebbles. We were trying to hold down a tarp on some supplies so they wouldn't get drenched. Meanwhile Mike and Heather open the back window and stick their cameras out and take a picture of us, laughing their butts off...so sweet. Then we went to Grass Roots United to say hey, hang out, and network some more. They have a hole in their wall around their place where you can ring a bell and get beer! Yes, incredible I know. I was so dehydrated and hadn't eaten much...drank 3 beers (yes I am sure you are thinking ooooh goodness) and I was pretty tipsy. I was definitely hungover Friday...to the point I drank 2 gatorades and took an anti-nausea med...hahaha typical.
Friday-TB tents again, a little faster this time, and then we went home and relaxed for the afternoon. Mun cheese again for some internet and relaxation.
Saturday-BP came back in town, he left for a couple days to "rest" and get some work done. We organized some IV fluids and went out to eat at a nice restaurant. Went out dancing last night as I mentioned earlier, I was in Heaven.
Sunday-chillen at the hotel/pool and letting you guys know what I have been doing!


Two quick funny stories-sadly I was not there for either one but they are great (and yes I am not the best story teller)

We picked up 25 wheelchairs...Mike and Heather were driving along with another truck. They stop at a stoplight and see a woman with one leg missing, dragging a 40lb bag of rice on her lap. They jump out of the truck, grab a wheelchair and head for the woman. They then proceeded to lift her up (no way of telling her what is about to happen) and put her in the wheelchair. Later that day we drove by, the wheelchair still there but the woman was missing. The wheelchairs are from a group that has an assembly line that turns these things out quick. They are made from nice big bike tires, those plastic chairs you keep outside on your deck, and have a wrench built in for emergencies.

Next story-Heather and Mike again.
So Forest is walking outside around the house getting a Coca Cola or something-some cops stop him and ask him why he has a couple cell phones in his hand (his, Ralph's, and Juniors). He explains whose they are and then the cops ask him how old he is...Forest says 15, and they ask when he was born, he says 1985! Then they took the phones and Forest went home to tell everyone. So then Heather, who you do not want to mess with AT ALL, and Mike walk up to the cops. Heather points to the cop shows some hand signals that basically mean "YOU GIVE ME CELL PHONES NOW!" They do not understand English and eventually the cell phones were returned. These are the stories that keep me going...Heather has an amazing talent for telling great stories. Her Brooklyn accent is one part of it, but the other is the way she can put together a story and add in her own punch lines. I will miss her dearly. She has been an ER nurse in NYC for 10 years or so and I am learning a shit ton from her.

I am truly blessed here with these people. They are fun, caring, intelligent, driven, and welcoming unlike any other. The Lord is always on my mind and with me every day. I ask him for strength and patience (which is truly needed here for it is an island, and the people are on island time). I am so thankful for everyone that supports me and could not do this without you all! I miss you and am sending love your way always. Please send me good vibes!