Life's been a bit of a struggle for the last couple of weeks. I've had some sort of virus which has given me a sore throat and a feeling of listlessness. Then last weekend a stomach bug on top of it, which left me immobile for twenty-four hours. I know it's been bad, because I didn't feel like running for days on end (except for the occasional sprint to the toilet that is). I finally staggered round the local running track yesterday morning and began to get the feeling of slowly starting to come through something.
While this has been going on I've continued to take my English classes, on the basis that it's marginally easier to carry on than to cancel them. Mostly they've been fine, although I'm coming to understand why thirteen is regarded as such a difficult age - for sick teachers to cope with at any rate.
Sue has had the same bug whilst working twice as hard as me. Because of our schedules we hardly seem to see each other during the week. In fact, it's reached the point where twice recently we have bumped into each other going for lunch at a local cafe quite by accident.
Saratok too is not at its best right now. The weather is in an even hotter phase and there has been very little rainfall, leaving many local communities in serious danger of running out of water. Because everything is dry it's also "slash and burn" season, so that often the Sun flares out through a hazy pall and the air smells of burnt vegetation. The Malays and the Chinese blame the Iban and the Iban blame the Indonesians across the border in Kalimantan. Food also seems in short supply, there is less and less produce in our local market and the shelves of the supermarket are eerily empty of European staples such as UHT milk and yoghurt.
For the first time since I got here I'm feeling a bit homesick and culture-shocked. I'm writing this as I listen to Tom Waits sing "Baby, I'm so far away from home …"
You're not wrong Tom.
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