Fireflies

I have been sick for the past week and had to take 4-days off work. Here it is more involved than at home- it involves making a trip to the doctor at the Embassy soon after getting a fever and then having blood taken and instantly tested for indications of dengue fever and malaria. My fever didn’t go away so I went back a couple of days later so I was tested for signs of dengue again and my blood sample was sent to Bangkok so I could be tested for other nasties. Luckily it was all ok. So I haven’t done anything that exciting over the week. I have watched a lot the American version of ‘The Office’ though- they manage to make up some good boxed sets here.

Last week, I noticed one or two fireflies in our yards. A couple of nights ago, there were a hundred or more fireflies flickering in our yard. It was beautiful and will be one of the best experiences of living in Laos. Next door there is an empty block of land. The vegetation is thicker there so there are many fireflies there too. Upon looking at them closer with my entomologist housemate, I have been made aware that they are actually beetles.

I noticed a squiggle under my bed and I thought it was a parasitic worm. I picked it up with my pencil and discovered that it was a baby snake!

The internet wasn’t working in my office. When the internet guy came he discovered that it was cut off because we didn’t pay the bill. This because we never received the bill because the bill printing machine was broken at the internet company.

My memory stick and computer has a virus so I wasn’t able to upload the photos I wanted to during the weekend. It has made my computer screen go blue.