Monday, April 18, 2011

Back off 'Skeeters!

check out our mighty collection of super mosquito spray
Back where I grew up, in the amazing state of Mississippi, we called those pesky little blood suckers "Skeeters", aka Mosquitos.  

They were a nuisance growing up, their mere presence commanded vast amounts of "Off" which combined with the abundant Aqua Net hairspray of the 80's, led to a sticky, hot mess.  

Fast forward a few years and the West Nile virus spread by those icky pests upped the ante.  Fortunately, I now reside in an area that is blissfully sparse when it comes to 'Skeeters. Unfortunately, the 'Skeeters pose some nasty health risks to foreigners in Africa.  Thankfully, the locals have built up immunities to most of these diseases but for those of us visiting Uganda this summer we must take precautions.  In the form of shots.shots.7 shots. For those unlucky few who have witnessed my getting shots or having my blood drawn you know I am a big old turkey.  Heck, I'll go ahead and say it, when it comes to any sort of physical pain I am a turkey.  For all three of my childbirths I made sure to show up at the slightest sign of discomfort, back arched forward, ready for the supposedly pain-saving epidural.   

So you can imagine my delight when I found out we needed 7 shots for our Uganda trip.  And it costs upwards of $800 to get these shots and oh my goodness, needles the size of  tire irons.  Oh.My.  But alas, all is well.  God is good.  Thank you Lord for these vaccines, please heal those suffering from the diseases they prevent and please forgive me for my whining.  

And thank you Lord.  Thank You for the swift nurse and comic relief of my travel cohorts...

7 shots, not so bad after all.  So bring it on you nasty skeeters, you too Polio, Menactra, Yellow Fever, Typhoid, Pertussis, Hepatitis A/B, Tetanus.  
Bring it on, we are ready. 

4 comments:

  1. I am so excited for you Polly! This trip is going to be an amazing experience for you. I am proud of you too for listening to Gods calling. You go Polly! BTW I grew up in Memphis and because my dad is from Mississippi we spent the summers in Beulah on the lake. The skeetets were atrocious and mist time we cousins had skeeter bite on to of skeeter bite. Good times!

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  2. awesome photos polly :) i'm very excited about your trip... your heart is beautiful.

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  3. God is great, God is good, let us thank him for our friends, by their hearts he has led them to witness in another land....XOXOXO, love you friend ~ what's a big ole' skeeter when you are following God's plan for your life and doing amazing work in his name

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  4. kate is so funny-never saw this side of her!!
    and, um

    ouch!

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Your kind words are such an encouragement, thanks for stopping by