Janet had here blood tested again on Tuesday and got the result on Wednesday that the platelet count is now in the low end of the "normal" range. She feels less joint pain and generally better, so it seems likely she has passed the danger point. Secondary infections are often a problem, so she hopes to avoid getting any!
Jim's flu was bad on Monday, and early Tuesday, but by late Tuesday afternoon he felt close to normal. he has a cough now and then, but is generally OK.
Janet's trip to the hospital on Tuesday was much less pleasant than Sat- Sun. There were MANY more people there waiting to be seen by the doctors and lab people, so the wait was much longer and they seemed disorganized. It was unclear what the system was at times. We think they have one, but it seemed more haphazard that you might not find the right person to deal with quickly.
Her bills for the doctor consultations and lab tests- 3 times at this hospital cost about $75.
Wednesday, July 28, 2010
Sunday, July 25, 2010
Catastrophes Update
Janet's blood platelet level was checked again today and is slightly higher than yesterday, so she does not have to stay in the hospital. She also felt slightly better today, so this is good. They say that the illness weakens people so much that they are very prone to pick up other illnesses, so she should stay away from other people as much as possible for a couple weeks.
Meanwhile, Jim's respiratory illness appears to be flu- hopefully Janet won't get it!
The side affect of all this is that we had planned to be away for a long weekend right now, but had to cancel- undoubtedly incurring some fees. We had planned to take a trip to the south- 2 nights at a national park where we might see a tiger or leopard, but certainly, some elephants and 2 nights in "Ooty". That name is a much shortened one from the India name that is difficult enough to pronounce that even Indians just call it "Ooty".
Meanwhile, Jim's respiratory illness appears to be flu- hopefully Janet won't get it!
The side affect of all this is that we had planned to be away for a long weekend right now, but had to cancel- undoubtedly incurring some fees. We had planned to take a trip to the south- 2 nights at a national park where we might see a tiger or leopard, but certainly, some elephants and 2 nights in "Ooty". That name is a much shortened one from the India name that is difficult enough to pronounce that even Indians just call it "Ooty".
Saturday, July 24, 2010
Catastrophes Great and Small
This evening (it is evening in Bangalore) we learned that Janet has Dengue Fever. We don't know just when she was bitten, but it is transmitted by mosquitoes. Last Sunday night she said she had something, then Monday it got worse so she saw a doctor on Tuesday afternoon. He thought it might be "Chikun Gunya" (look it up) as it has similar symptoms. She submitted samples for test which came back negative on Thursday, so he said it is most likely "Viral Fever"- which also has similar symptoms. (We suspect that viral fever might be a name for something when they don't know what it is.) He thought it would clear up in a few more days. However, Janet felt worse Friday so we went to one of the new private hospitals that she has visited before - for an intestinal bug- and they were quite quick and efficient and she was seen and some blood tests were ordered quickly. They said the results would be back in about 4 hours, so we called to get them. They told us they could be sent by email. This is where the hospital lost a little of its luster. After about 4 calls the test results appeared in email, but were incomplete. Two more calls resulted in the same results being sent again. After two calls to the Doctor the results of the Dengue test were in. Dengue fever can be dangerous, so Janet will have more blood tests Sunday morning to monitor the situation. There is no real treatment which will cure the illness.
Meanwhile Jim has some respiratory infection, but it seems minor so far.
Another minor catastrophe struck at the office on Wednesday. Just as Jim was about to enter the building in the morning, several people were coming out and saying there was a fire, yet the security guards were still letting people enter! Also NO alarms were going off! As it turned out, it was a small fire in an electrical closet and because it was early in the work day few people were in the office yet, so everyone got out safely. There were a couple ambulances around, so some firemen might have inhaled too much smoke. The fire was on the floor where Jim works, which is a low floor of the building. It quickly became clear that no one would be returning to the building soon, so Jim called our driver and went home and worked from there. On Thursday everything was normal- no smell of smoke or sign of the fire. On Friday they were testing the alarms. Hopefully they work when they need to. We suspect that because this was an electrical fire, someone, shut off the main power- it may have been automatic, but the alarms should be part of a backup system too and still have power.
Another small catastrophe may be that we will get some new noisy neighbors in the building. Our friend Linn left about 3 weeks ago, and another neighbor left about a month before that. In addition, another neighbor moved out in early June while someone else moved in about a month ago. For a building with only 7 apartments, that is a lot of action- especially when you consider that 2 apartments are empty and have never been occupied! The owner of our Apt. live on the ground floor and they own the three apartments directly above as well. The other side of the building has 3 apartments, but the owners of the ground and top floors have not lived there yet. In fact, both are renovating their brand new apartments before they have ever been completed. The 3rd apartment was rented for about 6 months, but the noise of the renovations above and below, drove them to leave, so that is why ne people moved in about a month ago. Of course, we are supposed to leave as well, in about 3 months. However, we hear voices and noises in the apartments - like people looking or moving in. We how they are good.
Meanwhile Jim has some respiratory infection, but it seems minor so far.
Another minor catastrophe struck at the office on Wednesday. Just as Jim was about to enter the building in the morning, several people were coming out and saying there was a fire, yet the security guards were still letting people enter! Also NO alarms were going off! As it turned out, it was a small fire in an electrical closet and because it was early in the work day few people were in the office yet, so everyone got out safely. There were a couple ambulances around, so some firemen might have inhaled too much smoke. The fire was on the floor where Jim works, which is a low floor of the building. It quickly became clear that no one would be returning to the building soon, so Jim called our driver and went home and worked from there. On Thursday everything was normal- no smell of smoke or sign of the fire. On Friday they were testing the alarms. Hopefully they work when they need to. We suspect that because this was an electrical fire, someone, shut off the main power- it may have been automatic, but the alarms should be part of a backup system too and still have power.
Another small catastrophe may be that we will get some new noisy neighbors in the building. Our friend Linn left about 3 weeks ago, and another neighbor left about a month before that. In addition, another neighbor moved out in early June while someone else moved in about a month ago. For a building with only 7 apartments, that is a lot of action- especially when you consider that 2 apartments are empty and have never been occupied! The owner of our Apt. live on the ground floor and they own the three apartments directly above as well. The other side of the building has 3 apartments, but the owners of the ground and top floors have not lived there yet. In fact, both are renovating their brand new apartments before they have ever been completed. The 3rd apartment was rented for about 6 months, but the noise of the renovations above and below, drove them to leave, so that is why ne people moved in about a month ago. Of course, we are supposed to leave as well, in about 3 months. However, we hear voices and noises in the apartments - like people looking or moving in. We how they are good.
Wednesday, July 14, 2010
5 minutes to thaw a piece of bread
Jim stayed home from work on Tuesday due another intestinal bug. Fortunately, those normally are not too serious and he feels better the next day. This one was similar. He did feel better today and went to the office, though he felt very tired all day.
While home yesterday he went to thaw a small loaf of bread in the microwave oven by setting it on defrost for about 90 seconds. It took about 5 minutes to actually complete because the electricity kept going off and on, off and on, off and on for that long. This is, unfortunately, not a rare occurrence in Bangalore. The power goes of almost every day for periods of a few seconds to a several hours. The newer buildings and almost all offices and stores have backup generators to keep lights and essential things running. Our apartment has a diesel generator which comes on about 30 seconds after the power goes off, so its pretty handy. Of course, the landlord is not happy because he pays for the diesel fuel. The problem is that any electronics- like our modem and wireless router and VOIP phone take awhile to come back up again each time the power glitches. So, we bought two UPS' to keep those running when the power glitches come- they have been very valuable in keeping us "on-line". With those extras- backup generators and UPS' it seems almost like home most of the time.
However, those periods like yesterday when the power was going off and on multiple times in an hour or so period can be very annoying. One has to think that the appliances do not last as long when they are subjected to such frequent power glitches. It seems like most of the appliances have mechanical timers rather than electronic so that they can still function with frequent power cuts.
The bread Jim thawed is from one of a few bakeries on the city. This one specializes in European and American breads and desserts and is quite good. However, breads tend to get moldy quickly here- no more than 2 days or 3 from the date of purchase, so we have to eat fast or freeze it. Since we have backup power, the refrigerator - freezer here works pretty well. (Except for the times when the circuit breaker for the kitchen goes off when the generator comes on!) So, we have pretty good bread available. there are also a few places that make very good pastries and other dessert items. Like many other places, Indians also like sweet desserts, so there is a good market here.
While home yesterday he went to thaw a small loaf of bread in the microwave oven by setting it on defrost for about 90 seconds. It took about 5 minutes to actually complete because the electricity kept going off and on, off and on, off and on for that long. This is, unfortunately, not a rare occurrence in Bangalore. The power goes of almost every day for periods of a few seconds to a several hours. The newer buildings and almost all offices and stores have backup generators to keep lights and essential things running. Our apartment has a diesel generator which comes on about 30 seconds after the power goes off, so its pretty handy. Of course, the landlord is not happy because he pays for the diesel fuel. The problem is that any electronics- like our modem and wireless router and VOIP phone take awhile to come back up again each time the power glitches. So, we bought two UPS' to keep those running when the power glitches come- they have been very valuable in keeping us "on-line". With those extras- backup generators and UPS' it seems almost like home most of the time.
However, those periods like yesterday when the power was going off and on multiple times in an hour or so period can be very annoying. One has to think that the appliances do not last as long when they are subjected to such frequent power glitches. It seems like most of the appliances have mechanical timers rather than electronic so that they can still function with frequent power cuts.
The bread Jim thawed is from one of a few bakeries on the city. This one specializes in European and American breads and desserts and is quite good. However, breads tend to get moldy quickly here- no more than 2 days or 3 from the date of purchase, so we have to eat fast or freeze it. Since we have backup power, the refrigerator - freezer here works pretty well. (Except for the times when the circuit breaker for the kitchen goes off when the generator comes on!) So, we have pretty good bread available. there are also a few places that make very good pastries and other dessert items. Like many other places, Indians also like sweet desserts, so there is a good market here.
Sunday, July 11, 2010
Brezel
Janet went to a photography class in the morning with a friend and Jim walked to a street that has some used book shops while Janet was in class.
After the class we went to a very good cafe run by a couple of Frenchmen. Janet, Jim, Janet's friend and the husband of the friend joined up to go to the lunch. Janet ordered duck l'orange with "brezel" and mashed potatoes. Actually, she asked for rice instead of potatoes, but as often happens, the substitution was just too complicated for the waiter and staff to handle. Jim ordered a chicken burger but asked for cheese on top, and the cheese was also too much for them to deal with, but it was good anyway.
After Janet's food came we wondered what "brezel" is. As she was eating the eggplant we realized that it is "eggplant" or "aubergine" or "brindel" - the last being the way we often see it named here- they are usually smaller than eggplant but similar in color and taste and texture. We finally realized that the French owners and the Indian staff had a difficult time communicating and it ended up being written as "brezel". A little adventure in French and Indian English!
Our friends noted a couple other oddities on the menu, which was good entertainment. Finally, they mentioned to the owner that the special soup was not not really described. It had a French name, but no translation- except that it came with almond slices. Our friends are from France and Belgium, so they knew what it was. The owner simply said that they left it that way because they assumed people would ask if interested. We thought people were more likely just to not bother. They probably could not think of the English name. (It was a pumpkin or squash soup.)
The weather was very nice lately- high temps about 80F with some breezes. There have been showers or heavy rain for short periods almost every day, but the rains tend to be fairly localized- heavy in some areas and nothing elsewhere- or light.
Or Friend Linn left India in the middle of the week and should be back in the US after a few stops about now. We will miss her and so will Ziggy and Zoe as she kept them company sometimes when we were away.
Ziggy and Zoe seem generally healthy and happy. They really like watching the birds outside!
After the class we went to a very good cafe run by a couple of Frenchmen. Janet, Jim, Janet's friend and the husband of the friend joined up to go to the lunch. Janet ordered duck l'orange with "brezel" and mashed potatoes. Actually, she asked for rice instead of potatoes, but as often happens, the substitution was just too complicated for the waiter and staff to handle. Jim ordered a chicken burger but asked for cheese on top, and the cheese was also too much for them to deal with, but it was good anyway.
After Janet's food came we wondered what "brezel" is. As she was eating the eggplant we realized that it is "eggplant" or "aubergine" or "brindel" - the last being the way we often see it named here- they are usually smaller than eggplant but similar in color and taste and texture. We finally realized that the French owners and the Indian staff had a difficult time communicating and it ended up being written as "brezel". A little adventure in French and Indian English!
Our friends noted a couple other oddities on the menu, which was good entertainment. Finally, they mentioned to the owner that the special soup was not not really described. It had a French name, but no translation- except that it came with almond slices. Our friends are from France and Belgium, so they knew what it was. The owner simply said that they left it that way because they assumed people would ask if interested. We thought people were more likely just to not bother. They probably could not think of the English name. (It was a pumpkin or squash soup.)
The weather was very nice lately- high temps about 80F with some breezes. There have been showers or heavy rain for short periods almost every day, but the rains tend to be fairly localized- heavy in some areas and nothing elsewhere- or light.
Or Friend Linn left India in the middle of the week and should be back in the US after a few stops about now. We will miss her and so will Ziggy and Zoe as she kept them company sometimes when we were away.
Ziggy and Zoe seem generally healthy and happy. They really like watching the birds outside!
Tuesday, July 6, 2010
Well, a "bandh" is...
a) a lot of gangs of people roaming the streets causing lots of property damage and injuries?
b) a quiet day at home because everyone assumed it would be "a)"?
Seems that in Bangalore the answer is b).
Apparently these things often have some of a), so in order to be safe most people stay home. Of course, one has to wonder whether it is really a case of nerves or just that everyone wanted a longer weekend. Jim's company decided that only essential people should be at the offices and they made provisions for people to come the night before and stay overnight.
We got up on Monday morning wondering what we would hear and it turned out to be pretty much nothing! It was wonderful! We have NEVER heard it so quiet here in the 20 months we have been here now. No, noisy auto rickshaws, no horns blaring away, no construction noise- just general quiet! In addition, it was a nice day with high temps of about 79F and a little breeze- just great!
Jim worked, but it was a quiet day since it was a holiday in the US, not much had accumulated over the weekend and during the day.
In the evening, our friend Linn stopped by with her car and driver (the bandh ended at 6PM) and took us to a bookstore where we picked up a few things and then returned home. We got some pizza at a nearby hotel for dinner.
So, it seems that a bandh can be a very pleasant experience...
However, we read that there was some violence in some other parts of the country. It seems to have occurred in areas dominated by the ruling political party. Bangalore and the state of Karnataka are run by the major opposition party and it seems there was little or no violence here. The bandh was organized by this major opposition party. We suspect that the local people were under orders to be orderly in any protests so the party would not look bad, but it may be that in other areas people just felt more strongly about the whole thing.
b) a quiet day at home because everyone assumed it would be "a)"?
Seems that in Bangalore the answer is b).
Apparently these things often have some of a), so in order to be safe most people stay home. Of course, one has to wonder whether it is really a case of nerves or just that everyone wanted a longer weekend. Jim's company decided that only essential people should be at the offices and they made provisions for people to come the night before and stay overnight.
We got up on Monday morning wondering what we would hear and it turned out to be pretty much nothing! It was wonderful! We have NEVER heard it so quiet here in the 20 months we have been here now. No, noisy auto rickshaws, no horns blaring away, no construction noise- just general quiet! In addition, it was a nice day with high temps of about 79F and a little breeze- just great!
Jim worked, but it was a quiet day since it was a holiday in the US, not much had accumulated over the weekend and during the day.
In the evening, our friend Linn stopped by with her car and driver (the bandh ended at 6PM) and took us to a bookstore where we picked up a few things and then returned home. We got some pizza at a nearby hotel for dinner.
So, it seems that a bandh can be a very pleasant experience...
However, we read that there was some violence in some other parts of the country. It seems to have occurred in areas dominated by the ruling political party. Bangalore and the state of Karnataka are run by the major opposition party and it seems there was little or no violence here. The bandh was organized by this major opposition party. We suspect that the local people were under orders to be orderly in any protests so the party would not look bad, but it may be that in other areas people just felt more strongly about the whole thing.
Sunday, July 4, 2010
What's a "bandh"?
Starting Friday we were hearing that word form time to time and numerous times saw it in the newspapers without much idea what it meant. Since it was associated with the major political party in this area we thought it might be a rally of some sort. We learned that it is supposed to occur Monday, July 5. We also read that there is a rally today, so it is not that. It started to sound like a strike of some sort - in protest over rising fuel prices - or rising prices in general. Today we had a very nice lunch at a very nice restaurant with our friend Linn, who is returning to the US in a few more days. After we left the restaurant we walked to a very modern shopping complex where about 20 workmen were in the process of hanging enormous nets from the top of the building. We thought they might be for protection of passersby from falling debris from repair work. However, Linn said that they are to protect the buildings from stones hurled by crowds of people who might walk by during the bandh smashing whatever is in the area. So, while it sounds like the intent is for it to be a protest strike, it might be more like a riot. We shall see.
Thursday, July 1, 2010
Modified demolition derby
If you are not familiar with demolition derbys the concept is fairly simple. A bunch of drivers get in big old cars and drive around in a large arena ramming into the other cars. The object of this sport is to be the last car moving in the arena- that is the winner. Normally, the driver move in reverse gear because collisions to the front of the car damage the engine and cooling system and the car is disabled quickly. The drivers going in reverse try to hit the front of the other cars mostly.
We have concluded that the demolition derby is a close analogy to driving in Bangalore- and also many other places in India. There are two major differences in the rules. 1) Always drive forward! 2) try to JUST MISS hitting the other vehicles ... or people or cows or camels or horses or donkeys.
This is actually not a bad analogy. People routinely squeeze their vehicles into the tightest of spaces and while they try NOT to hit any thing else, they often fail in that attempt. Our car has numerous dents and scratches from being hit or scraped by numerous motorbikes, auto rickshaws and cars. Of course, our own driver is quite an expert at Bangalore Demolition Derby
Drivers ALWAYS move forward even when it seems obvious they should not because the road is already jammed, but they proceed anyway and hope that somehow it all gets sorted out in the end, which it does, but who know how much later? and he has managed a few scrapes and scratches too- usually he has scraped some posts or gates while turning a bit too fast.
We have concluded that the demolition derby is a close analogy to driving in Bangalore- and also many other places in India. There are two major differences in the rules. 1) Always drive forward! 2) try to JUST MISS hitting the other vehicles ... or people or cows or camels or horses or donkeys.
This is actually not a bad analogy. People routinely squeeze their vehicles into the tightest of spaces and while they try NOT to hit any thing else, they often fail in that attempt. Our car has numerous dents and scratches from being hit or scraped by numerous motorbikes, auto rickshaws and cars. Of course, our own driver is quite an expert at Bangalore Demolition Derby
Drivers ALWAYS move forward even when it seems obvious they should not because the road is already jammed, but they proceed anyway and hope that somehow it all gets sorted out in the end, which it does, but who know how much later? and he has managed a few scrapes and scratches too- usually he has scraped some posts or gates while turning a bit too fast.
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