Faces of the Dental Team

Stupid Mango Sap

Saturday I woke up with huge, swollen lips and my roommate said it looked like I had received botox injections. Throughout Saturday and all day Sunday I started to develop really bad sores and a nasty rash around my mouth and on my lips. I had no CLUE what was going on and I spent a few hours on line last night researching all the possibilities. Well today the mystery was solved.

Come to find out Friday night I ate a mango that I had bought off the street and forgot to wash it before I ate it. Apparently the outside skin and sap of a mango contains a chemical called Urushiol. That same chemical is also found in the sap of poison ivy, sumac, and oak.

Soooo I have poison mango haha on my lips. It is starting to crust up and slowly go away, but it hurt so bad last night that I smeared my lips with topical numbing jelly from the dental clinic to momentarily take away the pain.

I went to the doctor today and he prescribed me cream to help heal my sore funny looking lips.

So for the future..... Wash your mango's.... and don't let the outside skin touch your lips.

I always learn the hard way. :)

Movie Reviews

Today my roommates and I decided to do NOTHING. It was Fantastic. I slept in, cleaned our cabin, did my laundry and watched 4 movies; 2 of which were REALLY good and 2 that were not so good. The two that were good our worthy of the post and I wanted to get the titles out to you so you can rent them. They are so worth your time.


Disclaimer: Movies are listed in the order in which they were watched not in ranking order.

Nafas is a reporter who was born in Afghanistan, but fled with her family to Canada when she was a child. However, her sister wasn't so lucky; she lost her legs to a land mine while young, and when Nafas and her family left the country, her sister was accidentally left behind. Not the best movie in the world. There are a few things that I took away from this film, but I would not recommend it.

A cheesy "Lifetime" movie about 2 bakers who fall in love while baking desserts for the Golden Whisk competition. NOT GOOD 1 star.

In April 1994, after the airplane of the Hutu President of Rwanda is shot down, the Hutu militias slaughter the Tutsi population. In the Ecole Technique Officielle, the Catholic priest Christopher and the idealistic English teacher Joe Connor lodge two thousand and five hundred Rwandans refugees, under the protection of the Belgian UN force and under siege by Hutu militia. When the Tutsi refugees are abandoned by the UN, they are murdered by the extremist militia. Written by Claudio Carvalho. Based on a true story. An exhausted Catholic priest (Hurt) and a young idealistic English teacher (Dancy) finds themselves caught in the 1994 Rwandan genocide. They must now choose whether to stay with the thousands of Tutsis about to be massacred or to flee for safety. EXCELLENT! Must watch. Gave such a good depiction of war torn Africa as I know it. So much of it reminded me of Liberia. Be prepared to not be able to use the excuse of "I just didn't know that is going on"... anymore.

Another good one!!!!!

Admist the apparent growing prosperity of India, there is a dark underbelly of poverty of another side of the nation that is little known. This film is a chronicle of filmmakers Zana Briski and Ross Kauffman's efforts to show that world of Calcutta's red light district. To do that, they inspired a special group of children of the prostitutes of the area to photograph the most reluctant subjects of it. As the kids excel in their new found art, the filmmakers struggle to help them have a chance for a better life away from the miserable poverty that threatens to crush their dreams. Written by Kenneth Chisholm

My favorite line in the entire movie qutoed from a 12 year old.... even if I was poor I would still be happy. One has to accept life as being sad and painful. That is all.

Walking through the Forest.

Yesterday a group of us took a stroll through Niaouli Forest. According to our guide Innocence, this is a forest that is preserved by the government and used by researcher to explore new natural health remedies.

This is what we walked through......

Ants and cows were about the only form of moving creatures we encountered.

The group minus a few.
We found some kids along the way.

Adam and his buddy!

Bananas Anyone?!?

Putting my Running Shoes on!

I was driving home from work Monday and noticed a billboard that was advertising the 2nd semi- Annual Marathon taking place right here in Cotonou. Once I arrived back on board I talked to a few people and we have decided to participate. Now usually one would prepare for this for months before attempting a race of such difficulty. However we don't have months we have 10 days. The race is March 14 and a group of us from the ship will be running the half Marathon. 13 miles. We figured this would make for a good memories as well as a good pictures. Personally I am hoping to get a souvenir t-shirt out of it as well. Carmen and I have a goal of finishing in 2 1/2 hrs, but I was doing a few calculations in my head and I am thinking 3 hrs is more like it. haha

This will be my first half marathon and I will be running it in 90 degree weather with 100% humidity. I can't think of a better way to spend next Saturday than running through the streets of Benin.

This is a picture of my roommate Carmen and I after a hard night of training.!.

My life of Saturdays.......

This is where I spent my Saturday!.!

Who wouldn't want every day to be Saturday if this is where they were to spend it.