This and that

A very brief post with some things that have made me smile/think/wonder in the past few days and weeks, in no particular order:

- Store signs. Amazing. "Cutting Remarks" hair salon. "We sell all types of batteries" (apparently someone impugned their honesty at claiming all types. "Cold aircon, cold drinks, hot dancers" (in Subic, home to a former US Naval Base here, which is now an odd cross of port, beach resort, and brothel). Some good typos too. I'll have to continue to keep my eyes open. None quite as egregious as the "humburger with chesses" in Ethiopia--cheeseburger, obviously--but enough to make me grin a bit.

- There was a "Mango Festival" going on in the province we visited today, which we sadly missed, but I did bring home my souvenir: I bought 10 mangoes for $2.50. My colleagues were in shock when I told them that $2.50 would buy one or two large mangoes in the US, on a good day.

- I continue to be impressed with the way that Philippines deals with varying expressions of gender and sexuality. I have met many "out" gay men and lesbians here, which is simply taken as a matter of fact, and I've also met a number of people with non-binary gender expressions. For instance, about half of the clinic staff addressed one of my coworkers today as "Sir," and the other half as "Ma'am," and this person seemed to be equally comfortable with either (though I suppose even better would have been to ask what (s)he preferred). Likewise, one of the waiters at my hotel presents as male, but wears bright pink lipstick and dark eyeliner to work. Which I honestly just love--what a gift to be able to be yourself in that way. I've been continuously amazed, in a country as conservative and Catholic (there is a strong lobby here right now against a proposed Reproductive Health bill, for instance), that gender and sexuality are so fluid and so openly discussed. Kudos, Philippines. We could learn something from you in the US.

- Saw a three-year old child this week with crazy chicken pox. I had never seen chicken pox before, amazingly. With the advent of the varicella vaccine in the US, and with my age (I obviously saw kids with chicken pox when I myself was a kid, but I don't remember it...), it's become a thing of the past. This kiddo was suffering. Swollen little ankles, blistering skin, scratching at himself and being swatted by grandma... he was just miserable. I'm going to use him as an example to the families back in Idaho who don't want to immunize against varicella because it's such a "mild" disease and because "natural" illness is preferable. They certainly don't want their kids as sick as this little guy was. He did still manage to pull at the strap to my camera after I put it back in my pocket, wanting to see--again--the picture of himself with his granny, so perhaps he's on the mend.

- I continue to be amazed by the difficulty facing some of the health workers in this country, and impressed with how they're doing despite all the challenges. (And, to be fair, at the same time, I've honestly been appalled at some egregious errors in vaccine management). Immunization is at a critical juncture in this country, and the Philippines is going to be very lucky if the tide turns for the better and they can avoid a major outbreak. There is a lot of work to be done here. To be honest, I think that I felt a bit like I was going to a "cushy," "easy" country for my STOP assignment (which, in many ways, I am...don't get me wrong...this is no Afghanistan or Democratic Republic of the Congo). But I have realized that there is still a long way to come here, and that there is lots of meaningful work to be done. I still struggle with my role as a foreigner and a short-term consultant (we called short-timers "helicopter practitioners" derisively in grad school) in helping with the task, but I'm simultaneously grateful to be here, and hope that my work is contributing... somehow.

- Turnip pie. Suprisingly good.