Cipro and GI Challenges

I am sooooo sick today, in my own house, in my own bathroom. I am always so worried when I am in Ecuador. We are given bottled water at the hotels and on the boat and are told only to drink and to brush our teeth with bottled water and I always forget to, and end up at least brushing with tap water. I expect to become ill and so far, it has not happened in Ecuador. I am not sure what that means. Does it mean that the water is safer than I am told? That after five visits to Ecuador my body has adjusted to the foreign antigens? Anyway, somehow I was spared any gastrointestinal challenges there, but am sick as a dog back in Baltimore.

Eric hands me a Cipro, his solution for all GI suffering in any city. I handed out the Cipro to all the travelers who were ill on the trip, and there were several. It is not worth spending any extra time in the toilet, not on vacation and not at home. When leading groups of students or the alumni, I play the role of physician, not that I know much, being a psychiatrist, but I did go to medical school many years ago and was a general practitioner for a few years. In truth, I am not that knowledgeable about general medicine, but with Cipro, I can at least treat most garden-variety gastrointestinal illnesses anywhere.

I am not sure when and where I was poisoned. I ate with Tara yesterday; she had forgotten her passport in Baltimore ( she called in a panic three times at 3AM Saturday morning looking for her passport and we found it at home) and needed it for her trip to Canada which left at 8 AM this Sunday morning from New York. She was obliged to take the Chinatown bus from New York to Baltimore, and I picked her up at 2:30 and swept her away to her favourite diner in Baltimore. We decided to share a special 'German Apple Pancake' which took over 30 minutes to bake. We were the last customers in the diner, waiting for our special pancake. It was gargantuan, big enough for far more than two people. While waiting we snacked on fried green tomatoes and sweet potato fries, so the huge pancake was even more challenging to eat. We brought home more than half. Anyway, Tara caught the 5:45 bus back to New York and is not ill, so I presume it was not our massive Ms. Shirley's pancake that caused this illness.

I worked on cleaning out closets last night and found lots of evidence of mouse infestation in the house, all horrible and disgusting and worrisome; how much does mouse residue impact us? I remember when I had myself allergy tested, when needles impregnated with all sorts of allergens are pressed into the skin all up and down the arms and I discovered that I am allergic to dust and cats and dogs and cockroaches and mice. Another excuse for me not to clean out the dark and deep nether regions of the house. In truth, Eric has been doing most of the cleaning. I was so ambivalent about selling the house initially, and did not want to move it forward enough to make it a reality. Now that I am more comfortable with selling or renting, I want to get on with it and make it happen!

Friends came over for brunch today. I made quiche lorraine and salad and coffee cake, and everyone ate large quantites and no one is ill but me. I sent Eric off with Maya to her violin lesson. I was going to tell Maya's violin teacher today about our move to Ecuador. I have been afraid to disappoint her; she has so many hopes and expectations for Maya; to study at Manahattan School of Music next year and move on to precollege at Julliard. I have thus far been unable to find a good teacher for Maya in Quito, as well as an orchestra that will work for her. I am sure that when we get there we will be more successful, we need to learn more about the possibilities. Perhaps the best thing anyway is to ask Ms Elizabeth if she knows anyone there. Moving to Quito a month earlier is a good idea, it will give me time to explore possibilities for Maya. I met a clarinetist from Texas on the elevator at the Hotel Hilton Colon, and he told us that he was helping the Quito Philharmonic improve. He suggested that we contact the concertmaster, who was from Switzerland but spent alot of time in Quito and may be able to instruct Maya. I fully expect all sorts of opportunities to present themselves when we settle ourselves into our new home.