Ball season

When most people use the phrase 'ball season' there is another word that precedes it, like 'basket' or 'base' or 'foot'. However, in Dhaka, the phrase 'ball season' stands alone. Between November and February, various organizations hold formal balls to raise money for charitable causes and give the expats a reason to dress up.

Last night we went to the Marine Ball, the first of the season. This event is held each year around the world, anywhere there are US Marines, to celebrate their birthday on November 10th. We heard stirring speeches about patriotic warriors, dined on fine cuisine, and danced the night away. That is, until midnight when the magic faded and we turned back into tired parents. :)

To the field

For those of you who don't know, part of my job is to investigate outbreaks of infectious disease. My team works closely with the government to identify outbreaks, to determine the cause of the disease, and to figure out what put people at risk for the disease. This is a busy week for us. Today we sent three outbreak investigation teams to the field. We're investigating one outbreak (13 cases and 8 deaths) which appears to be some kind of toxic poisoning, one outbreak of encephalitis in children (13 hospitalized and 4 deaths), and one outbreak of pneumonia in children (120 hospitalized and 10 deaths). When we go to the field we make a 'case' definition, based on the presenting symptoms of patients in the outbreak, make a line list of everyone who might be a case, collect information about when they became ill and the symptoms they've experienced, ask questions about exposures which may have led to disease, perform clinical evaluations, and collect biological samples. We also give 'messages' to patient care givers and health care workers about how to prevent further spread of infection. Often these message are very general because we frequently don't know what's causing the illness.

The health advisor (equivalent to the health minister in this care taker government) called our offices today to formally request that we participate in the investigations. Of course, we were already involved with our government colleagues. This kind of interest is sure to bring a spotlight to the work we're doing... it's going to be a busy weekend. Hopefully, I'll have some interesting pictures to share with you this weekend.

No time for food

Lily has started to appreciate some of the solid fare we serve her. Her primary complaint at mealtimes is that eating usually requires that she stop practicing her locomotive skills, which are currently her top developmental priority. The is a picture of one protest this week- 'I do not have time for your silly food!' she cried.

Ingenuity

The longer I know Odin, the more convinced I am that he has inherited his father's engineering brain. He enjoys playing with his toys, but he likes to 'make' other complicated machines out of regular household items even more. This is what he made on Thursday. He connected a makeshift hand mixer (we made this at his insistence - he was devastated when we told him he couldn't use the real one) to a water pitcher to make a 'water pump'.

A night out

Eric and I shared a fine dining experience last night at the Radisson Hotel. The food was expensive, especially for Dhaka, but delicious! It was a lovely evening. My husband was as handsome as ever. But, I did catch him wearing these black athletic socks with his dress shoes. He has admitted that he struggles with sock choice every morning...

Baby swing

Lily loves to swing! This was taken in our backyard.

When doors open and close

The past few weeks the doors in our house have started opening and closing properly. Winter must be right around the corner!

Let me explain. All year long (except the few months of winter) Bangladesh is very hot and very humid. So humid in fact, that the doors in our house that open to the outside become swelled with water and don't open or close without considerable pushing or pulling. I'd forgotten what it was like to close this door without using my shoulder and hip!

No nap + too much Halloween candy =

Trick or Treat

Happy Halloween! Halloween has always been one of my favorite holidays. How can you go wrong with costumes, candy, and parties? Bangladeshis do not celebrate Halloween. However, the American community does what it can to create a Halloween experience for its kids. On the 31st the Embassy will host trick-or-treaters at their offices. Today there was a Halloween party at the American Club and afterwards the kids trick-or-treated through expat neighborhoods in a caravan. We decided that four hours of Halloween fun was too much for us. Instead we waiting for the other kids to come trick or treat at our house and then we joined them for a few houses on their route. Odin was a 'night guard' for Halloween. The Embassy employs security guards to keep watch over our houses at night. Odin thinks very highly of these 'night guards' and since he pretends to be a 'night guard' almost everyday, we thought it would make a good Halloween costume. Lily was a Christmas gift.

Odin, the night guard

Lily, the gift

Talking on the radio with the other guards

Having lunch and waiting for the trick-or-treaters

Odin and Mom

He wasn't so sure about my teeth.....

Dad with the kids

Candy!

Odin posing with another 'night guard'

Welcome Annabelle!

My niece, Annabelle Kay, was born on Wednesday, October 24th weighing 5 pounds, 11 ounces. Welcome to the world Annabelle! It's a better place because you're in it.

Occupied

I've gotten behind on blogging. For the past few days my brain has been occupied by data analysis from our meningo-encephalitis surveillance study. I enjoy being completely and totally intellectually engaged. It's a great grey matter workout. However, I haven't had much creative juice left in the evening for the blog. My apologies.

Some highlights from our week include: Lily cut her two first teeth! I got my overdue typhoid vaccine booster and a shorter than usual haircut. Odin has spent time everyday 'being bunny' and doing things that bunnies do, like hopping and 'pooping in the garden'. Still trying to decide what Lily will be for Halloween.

Here's a quote by Abraham Lincoln that caught my attention this week:

How many legs does a dog have if you call the tail is a
leg? Four. Calling a tail a leg, doesn't make it a leg.

How true. And with that, I'll leave you with a promise to blog with a picture tomorrow.

Durga Puja

Durga Puja is the biggest religious festival for Hindus in Bengal (East Bengal is Bangladesh and West Bengal is in India). Bangladesh is known as a Muslim country but about 10% of it's citizens are Hindu. Multiply that by the 140 or so million people who live here and you have about 14 million Hindus in Bangladesh! Certainly a sizable minority.

Today is the last day of the Durga Puja festival. Durga is the goddess for whom the celebration is made. Puja means festival in Bangla. Clay statues of the goddess Durga are fashioned (similar to the one above, courtesy of Wikipedia) and painted and sunk in rivers and lakes. I apologize that my knowledge of the Durga isn't as good as it should be. Basically, she is the female goddess created by higher male deities from a collective female energy to fight demons. She's blessed with 10 hands to hold her various weapons. Durga Puja is a celebration of her victory over evil.

Here's an excerpt from Wikipedia, which does a much better job describing her than I do:

The Great Goddess is said to be exquisitely beautiful. Her form is blindingly bright, with three lotus-like eyes, ten powerful hands, lush hair with beautiful curls, a red-golden glow from her skin and a quarter moon on her forehead. She wears a shiny oceanic blue attire emitting fierce rays. Her ornaments were carved beautifully of gold, with ocean pearls and precious stones embedded in it. Her face was sculpted by Shiva, torso by Indra, breasts by Chandra (the moon), teeth by Brahma, bottom by the Earth, thighs and knees by Varuna (water), and her three eyes by Agni (fire). Each god also gave her their own most powerful weapons, Rudra's trident, Vishnu's discus, Indra's thunderbolt, Brahma's kamandal, Kuber's gada, etc. Himalayas gifted her a fierce whitish golden lion.

A hose and a bucket

Few things will entertain Odin for as long as a bucket, a hose, and some running water will.

Strictly prohibited

Eric and I had dinner at a local Vietnamese restaurant called Le Saigon last night. Excellent food and interesting decor.

We took notice of this sign posted on the wall. Consumption of alcohol by Bangladeshi nationals is prohibited by law. Unless, of course, you can afford to become a member of a private club where alcohol is permitted. Like many places in the world, if you're rich enough, you can do most anything you want.

Alcohol consumption by foreigners is perfectly legal, however. We buy alcohol from the US commissary here. Local restaurants are happy to let expats BYOB. Last night, we enjoyed a couple of micro brewed beers with our Vietnamese cuisine.

Got mail?

We receive mail through the US diplomatic pouch a couple of times a week. It's truly one of the greatest advantages to being and 'official' American here. Items purchased on the internet and packages sent by friends and family can be sent to our US address with ease. Then, the government ships them to us in Dhaka. It usually takes 2 weeks for mail to reach us.

Mail days are exciting, especially if we get something 'good', i.e. not bills or junk mail. Frequently, the mail delivery includes packages and packages usually contain something for Odin and Lily. Every night when Eric returns from work Odin asks with genuine interest, 'Mail? Got mail, Dada?'

Here's the aftermath from this week's package delivery...