CHALK --- READDRESSED

I was asked by a reader whether it would be cheaper to send money rather than send chalk.

I did some research on buying chalk here in Sunyani. Mother Doris and I figured that the Canadian Dollar will go further here to purchase chalk than in Canada. A box of 100 pieces of chalk cost here 2.5 cedes (2.7 Ghana cedes = $1.00 Canadian). For one academic year $150.00 Canadian would keep the whole school supplied with chalk.  So any one who would want to contribute to the support St. Anselm's Primary School chalk supply, let me know and I will give you my Canadian Address to send the money and Tanya will transfer it to my Barclay's acc't here in Sunyani. no matter how small it all adds up.

Retirement Party

Mother Margaret, wife of the Precentor, is retiring from the the Ghana Education Ministry after 30 years. she was lauded with many tributes and gifts of appreciation.  Fun time had by all. It was held in the cathedral after church service today.

with family and dignitaries

with Mother Doris and I in my new outfit

Mother Margaret surrounded with support in dancing

Mother dropped in to say Hello
very pretty dress

CHALK ...... NOT ENOUGH

Mother Doris, head mistress of St. Anselms Primary School (located on the cathedral grounds) has been sharing with me the fact that the school receives very limited resources from the government to manage the school. Chalk .. needed every day in the six class rooms is on short supply as there is never enough.  SO 

I wondered how many plastic totes (great to ship goods as can be used for another purpose when empty so,  how many totes would it take to ship 300 boxes of chalk. The result would be that there would be chalk available for the whole school year.  If you would like to be part of gathering chalk in plastic totes, I would make sure it was shipped to Ghana, let me know

MORE.......

CHOCOLATE, a gift of Ghana Chocolate bars,   it will be berry berry tasty

SKILL CENTRE GOODS

I am packing more articles to bring back to Canada 

Computer bags on left with an inside pocket
on right tablet bags
all have sturdy straps, each with unique design

Reusable shopping bags

on the left a small purse with two pockets and a neck cord, (fits a passport )
on right a small makeup or coin change bag

mmmmmmm Ghana chocolate

by the spoonful,  sold as a spread but the spoonful tastes like heaven 

DKG VISITS SCHOOL IN BEREKUM

music for Sunday school

DKG has generously allocated funds to assist with the building of the School in Berekum for three years.

Beverly,Townsend, President of the DKG Quebec, Fr. Michael (from Kenya, working in the Diocese of Sunyani) Driver Mr. Adom and Moi set out for Berekum.    Fr.Josiah showed us the school site, church  and were served lunch at the home of Mother Ben Smith (whom you heard me refer to previously), great to get to know Beverly who seems like a mover and a shaker in the Quebec DKG

Fr. Josiah talking about the school

new Sunday School Room at church

signing the church guest book

Good Monday morning!

Fan working, water coming out of the tap, WOW what more can I want,

Tomorrow I am meeting a member Bev Townsand, of the Teacher organization, Delta Kappa  Gamma Society International, that has designated funds for the last three years to building of the school in Berekum, She happens to be in Kumasi and is adventuring out to see the progress of the school. She will pick me up on the way,, looking forward to meeting her.

water has returned

tbtg and life continues on... once it is back I forget that it was off  crazy eh!!!!

still no h2o

what can I say... other than off to church

got hydro

electricity of a few hours and now gone again, still no water

no water, no electricty

ugh

ok ..... visitors help

Baby Patricia entertains by just being herself, her brothers look on

Boredom on Friday afternoon

I have things to do but am doing not much except taking a pic of my cast on top of walker,

 sad eh!

guess what??????

ladder used, clean fans. Afia came to finish cleaning and laundry today, now sorta up to date so she will come 1x week

shoes, shoes, shoes

yesterday sorted the equivalent of 3 hockey bags of shoes that were gathered together last summer, NOW mens, womens and kids shoes each in their own bag, as a treat each were permitted to take one pair of shoes for themselves and it was interesting to watch Moms try on fancy shoes for them self but select a pair of shoes for their child, parenting is universally making the first choice for the child

                         

went to skill centre

mobility, never take it for granted, such work using a walker, I guess after a while it gets easier but I have not got there yet,
sorted school supplies and packed school bags today , had enough money for 185 bags to be made supplies for each bag has 2 notebooks, 2 pencils, a ruler, eraser and a pencil sharpener for the older ones and crayons instead of pencil stuff for the younger ones,Sr. Mavis should be back from travelling soon and she will distribute them.

GOOD FOR EVERYONE WHO MADE THIS HAPPEN!!!

muscle building

Daniel thought it was time to show off my muscles working the walker, swinging my leg 

mobility is a challenge

walked to church, sweating ++++++ by the time I got there, today was Bishop Appreciation Day, so folks showed their appreciation for the Bishop with donations, Josiah from Nigeria was the preacher (70 Minutes) and the former dean of the Cathedral in Kumasi celebrated, the Chancellor attended from Accra, service over 5 hours, and at the end Bishop invited everyone to sign my plaster, the kids were most excited along with the Chancellor, not been a tradition here but everyone is eager to  join in the fun, in the middle of the sermon got a drive home to visit the loo and then back again,  got a ride home at the end as walking that far just wears me out, there were little snacks after, spring roll and small cupcake,,,very++++ tasty and I have enough to not cook for supper  (YES) along with the drink I call Sorrel ( from Trinidad and Tobago) and here they call  ....       I will have to look it up
ok looked it up ...tsoborodo is one name, any name you call it...it still is very nice.

CAST IS GETTING COVERED WITH NAMES

utilities ....

are back

NO.....

electricity or water   ugh

busy day

like Grand Central Station, anyone who comes is to visit can expect to be asked do small jobs, like move the floor fan, move dirty dishes to the bathroom, wash dirty dishes, move things from here to there, help themselves to drinks in the fridge, it has become a do it your self visiting place, all the while I sit like Little Miss Muffit, sitting on her tuffet, on one level it is very helpful, on another I would really like to be doing it myself  BUT not so, leg and ankle feel much better in the cast,(cast is getting loose so the swelling must be going down) so I guess it was the right course of action even though it complicates life. I am getting quite adept with the walker, I guess I can put it on my resume for when  I get disabled and need to use it all the time, I think I would get one with a seat as that way you would be able to move things like dishes or parcels on the seat, I have a bag fastened to the front bar to carry stuff around at the moment.

Had a meeting in Bishop's office so he sent the driver with the car to drive me there and back, I will admit I probably, actually I know, I would never have made it with the walker, now one trip to the bathroom and back puts me into a 20 minute rest and it is only about 15 feet. Well goodness knows what tomorrow will bring....

new creation from the Skill Centre

they are starting a line of computer and tablet bags, I think they are brilliant !!!!! they have the inner pocket and the top closing with zippers   each one is made with original hand decorated fabric.

never thought I would say.....

I have a great walker, can not I believe that I think this is so perfect

the adventure continues

Mother Felicia wanted me to get my foot checked at the Orthopedic Clinic at St. John's Hospital in Nkwanta (about 40 minutes from Sunyani) so off we went, OPD Clinics seem to be quite universal in method, everybody comes and then is seen first come first serve, so there were more than 200 folks in the waiting room in differing stages of the process, Mother registered me, wait, get vital signs checked, wait, see Doc, he looks at my xrays from last week and determines that there is a second fracture, outer ankle which was detected last week and he sees that the bottom of the fibula (the inner bone of the lower leg) is fractured as well (this accounts for the extensive bruising in the area of the inner ankle and the unaccountable pain) so I guess I was not imagining it, he refers me to an orthopedic specialist in this same clinic, I do not wait but see him, Rx below the knee cast for 6 weeks, not weight bearing for 3 weeks and return in 6 weeks, .... crap...  a cast, the first one I have ever had, one that I really don't want BUT off to fracture clinic to get cast, Mother Felicia does the running around to pay for the cast, wait, outside plaster room there are several babies with leg casts (this is a clinic for clubbed feet and these very little ones are getting this condition fixed so their feet will be normal) Get the plaster on, they are very professional and capable, get a shoe to use when I can weight bear and back to original doc, get name of pain meds to take, off to get meds at pharmacy and back home, 

What can I say, need a walker for three weeks to get around, and here....   I continue to sit ....

     Mother Superior Felicia and I on the way to the car

started decorating the cast:

 it is not practice here to decorate or sign the cast 

so am starting a new tradition

another day

I hope this stationary life ends soon,  the bruising make my foot be the one in technicolour, this too will pass

boot arrived

Tanya sent a air boot cast that I had used previously  which arrive by UPS today. I am hoping that it will settle the situation down and I can take it off when in bed. It looks clumsy but works.

and it continues

being laid up is not particularly fun, Mother Margaret cleaned my place today and I saw the clothes hamper go out the door so I think my laundry is being done as well, everyone's willingness and generosity is quite overwhelming, because if you know me at all, I strive to be independent (I know what an understatement eh!) I am struggling to learn a new way of being

crutch walking

it is exhausting

another day of rest

many are consoling me about my ankle, everyone offers assistance, very generous, got a pair of socks today to put over the foot of the back slab so I can wash the sock as a pretend shoe, I will still use the crutches

a day of confinement

sitting on the sofa, leg on a pillow, what can I say, pills for pain when needed, an adventure I did not sign up for but that is life, seeing places and people, not on one's bucket list

I tried out the hospital system today

 I was leaving the ATM, looking to where the taxi had moved to and fell into an uncovered sewer opening, actually there are many of them with no cover, (remember I drove into one a while back)

so I fell into the hole, one leg down and the other hit the concrete lip, Pain .... went to hospital where Mother Felicia works as a nurse anesthetist, the short version is that after xray, broke a bone in my ankle.

Because the Municipal Hospital does not treat orthopedics, usually the patient is sent to another hospital for treatment, but it so happened there was a doc visiting from Kumasi who could put on a back slab and wrap with flannel bandage as the foot is very swollen and bruised, It meant someone needed to go out and buy the supplies needed for the back slab,   because I have used a plastic cast boot years ago, same foot by the way, Tanya has sent it to me and it should be here by the 10th which means by the time the back slab comes off I can go directly to the boot instead of a plaster cast to my knee, WOW what a way to spend the day, it aches now like a tooth ache but not bad actually, using crutches is a challenge so I hope I don't fall if I lose my balance as they are tricky to me.

Daniel, fabric designer at the Skill Centre is getting married in April

so I thought I would get a fancy outfit, found some great fabric - blue lace with gold and silver patterning and Gifty will do her magic  and turn the fabric in a 2 piece outfit, round neck, 3/4  sleeves and a little flair at the bottom of a long skirt,
I think 'spiffy' will not cover the end result    .....    here is the fabric

I was so happy...

last night I forgot to blog, I had a bath at Gifty's place, what a treat!!!! squeaky clean for the moment,
and today working on projects, at this moment the to do list is shorter

just read a suspense series

TOUGH JUSTICE   ABOUT AN FBI Agent Lara Grant
it is divided into a series of 8 books, each about 85 pages, fast read but very suspense filled
There are more that one author in the eight books, try and get the one book that has all eight stories as it saves looking for the rest, otherwise you need to look for each one, my ocd made me read the ones that I could find, in order as they are numbered.