Oh, this state of mind is a little bit disturbing. I really need to get out of this station. Thankfully, the quarter is almost over. I am losing it. Maybe I spend too much time on my computer, but I don't feel like the lab is much better for my sanity. I think I am beginning to understand why people here become a little unstable after a while.
Jack arrives in five days. Then the real end begins. With Cat's help, Rebecca resurrected our project. Data are flowing. Things are going well.
Adam was bitten by a sand fly. No big deal, except this particular sand fly was carrying a flesh eating parasitic protozoan that causes the necrotic disease known as Leshmaniasis. Infection involves the interminable expansion of an otherwise normal-looking sore, somewhere on the body. Scabs form but don't heal, finally erupting as the disease spreads out from the edges of the sore. This happens over and over again. Without treatment, it is an absolute nightmare. "The Lesh" can cause magnificently disfiguring scarring and considerable pain. The highly effective treatment available in Costa Rica involves sixty, count'em sixty shots of antimony (a toxic heavy metal) into the wound over a period of fifteen days. Works every time, the only side effects being similar to those of chemotherapy. Nausea. Fatigue. Incoherence. Confusion. Oh, I am not jealous of this one.
Jack was visibly shaken on the videoconference earlier today, when he informed us of this unpleasant development in plot of our intercontinental soap opera class. Adam is homeward bound, headed back to Missouri to seek attention from top of the line docs. Even the Centers for Disease Control have taken an interest in him. It is a shame we won't be able to see him again before the end of the quarter, but at least he will be safe. From what I understand, the treatment in the USA is less invansive and has lighter side effects than antimony shots.
Still working on whittling down those beach photos into something presentable. Stay tuned also for an inside peek at the Ministry of Culture building in San Jose. It used to be a prison citadel. Now, after a massive renovation, a bunch of museums live there instead. The children's museum was celebrating its Nth anniversary when I visited. Prison to museum is a popular conversion tactic here. I love this country. ¡Pura vida!
Jack arrives in five days. Then the real end begins. With Cat's help, Rebecca resurrected our project. Data are flowing. Things are going well.
Adam was bitten by a sand fly. No big deal, except this particular sand fly was carrying a flesh eating parasitic protozoan that causes the necrotic disease known as Leshmaniasis. Infection involves the interminable expansion of an otherwise normal-looking sore, somewhere on the body. Scabs form but don't heal, finally erupting as the disease spreads out from the edges of the sore. This happens over and over again. Without treatment, it is an absolute nightmare. "The Lesh" can cause magnificently disfiguring scarring and considerable pain. The highly effective treatment available in Costa Rica involves sixty, count'em sixty shots of antimony (a toxic heavy metal) into the wound over a period of fifteen days. Works every time, the only side effects being similar to those of chemotherapy. Nausea. Fatigue. Incoherence. Confusion. Oh, I am not jealous of this one.
Jack was visibly shaken on the videoconference earlier today, when he informed us of this unpleasant development in plot of our intercontinental soap opera class. Adam is homeward bound, headed back to Missouri to seek attention from top of the line docs. Even the Centers for Disease Control have taken an interest in him. It is a shame we won't be able to see him again before the end of the quarter, but at least he will be safe. From what I understand, the treatment in the USA is less invansive and has lighter side effects than antimony shots.
Still working on whittling down those beach photos into something presentable. Stay tuned also for an inside peek at the Ministry of Culture building in San Jose. It used to be a prison citadel. Now, after a massive renovation, a bunch of museums live there instead. The children's museum was celebrating its Nth anniversary when I visited. Prison to museum is a popular conversion tactic here. I love this country. ¡Pura vida!
posted by cody @ 11:17 PM
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