Being in the paper

I got a lovely letter from my aunt yesterday and in it had an article from the local newspaper from Dorset. The article was about me! was so strange to read it, It is a nice article and my lovely friend Andrea got it done for me, thanks very much.
it talks about the work that I am doing out here and the project but it makes it sound like I am saving Africa single handedly! I find it very strange to read myself and even quotes me, when i have never spoken to a journalist! I think they got the quote from my blog, random! Then they have said if you want any more information about what i do to check out my blog. This scared me as i normal blog about the random things in my life not really my working life. I want to say if you are checking out the blog because of the article, thanks but this is more about me than the project, if you want to know about the project then leave your email on the comment sections and i will send you my newsletter.

So update on whats going on here, I am now by myself in the compound as my neighbours have left, so its very quiet. It is also meant to be the dry/hot season at the mo which when it is dry it is very hot indeed but we keep on getting random bursts of rain when we are meant to be getting no rain at all. The season are so messed up! Global warming is to blame I say!

Dogs have gone

We took our dogs to their new home today where they are becoming monks!
Brother Gin and Brother Tonic!!
They are living at a monastery where the hospital is, where Katarina used to work. It was quite a traumatic ride in the car for them, i was meant to be in the back comforting them but as you may know I am not a big fan of dogs and they kept freaking out and drooling on me so I got to drive Katarinas lush car and she managed the dogs.
I have no control over them and had to go to work afterwards, not good to turn up smelling of dogs!!

So from monday it will just be me in the compound, will be very quiet!

Am going away this weekend to sipi falls with my lovely friend Flora from Kampala to catch up and chill out which will be great.

Going to work on my CV this week as am going to start applying for jobs now. Scary!!!

I can stay!

horray!! I can stay in my house, it got confirmed yesterday which is great, so no manic moving needs to happen this week.

I am so pleased as I love my little house and feel very settled here so I am well pleased that I can stay.

Hitting the ground running!!!

OK, so I am back in Uganda after having a lovely Christmas and new year with the family.
the journey back to Mbale was quite eventful as the main road to Mbale has been washed away in the rain so was not passable, so the we have a slight detour on the bus. a journey that should have taken 3 and half hours took 6 and half hours, needless to say when i go back i was shattered, 30 hours of traveling in total!! So i was very pleased to get home to a shower and a bed, so my first weekend back was just spent sleeping, the journey and all the festive activities had caught up with me!!

So on my first day back to work we opened the project again with 40 new girls turning up, so last week was pretty busy and seems like its not slowing down.
I am now constantly being asked about me leaving, why do i have to go? what am i going to do next? when will i come back here next? all questions i have no answer for, feels like my time is ticking by here very quickly, am meant to start wrapping up my work in the next month or so. I only have 14 weeks left, crazy!!

Things are all changing here again friends wise, seems to be a constant theme here, one of my neighbours, Jonathan left on Saturday for good and my other one Katarina goes in two weeks, it is still uncertain what will happen to me, whether i can stay in my house, i should find out in the next week or so. I really hope i can stay as i really can be bothered to pack up all my stuff and move this late in the day.

I normally don't make new year resolutions but it seems this year i have, when i was back i was looking at some photos of myself and it made me realise how much weight i have put on since i have been here, mad really that you move to an African country and put weight on! well the main problem is the main content of the diet is carbs and everything is fried. So I am now on a serious diet, I take my salad with me for lunch, (lettuce that i have grown in my garden!) and am not eating anything Ugandan, doing my new yogalates DVD and cycling the longer, uphill route to work, so I await the results, a skinny Jess hopefully!!!

Also i think i have a Bermuda triangle following me as, i have lost my radio, there are not my hiding places in my small house. I have my suspicions that one of the night guards at the house may have taken it as i leave in my kitchen which is separate to the main house and i often leave it unlocked when i am in the main house and yesterday i have lost my bible in church, was in my bag and now its not! spooky!

in england!

I came back on christmas eve as a surprise for the family which was great, the looks on their faces when I got out the car were priceless!!
I am having a lovely time, very cold though and everytime I seem to go out for a walk the rain
and wind does its bussiness! We nearly got blown off the cliff yesterday!
I am loving the countryside and the costal walks and just hanging out and doing some normal things. But I am looking forward to getting back and getting stuck into work again, only 4 months left and then who knows!!
I hope everyone has had a great chirstmas and a quality new year