Welcome to 2013 and the Future

In Memoriam:  

I cannot think about the St. Joseph Mercy Hospital community without affectionately remembering Dr. Danny Daniel.  He died suddenly at the end of November.   Doc was a leader at the hospital and in his church ministry.   He will be missed by many in Guyana.  For me, Doc was always a welcoming face.  Every year I returned he would greet me as if I was a long lost friend.   I will miss him.

 

 

I have committed myself to return to Mercy for another three months in September.  Planning for something 200 plus days away is human hubris, as not even “later in the day” is guaranteed.   In spite of what the future will hold with health, finances, motivation…  I will live “as if” I’ll get there again.  I hope that you will travel with me.

 

 

 

This last year, I have enjoyed the living closer to our family though I didn’t like moving and downsizing at all.   I am amazed how quickly I have forgotten the hassles of the move and life in Ayr has taken on a comfortable routine.     

 

Today, I have an itch to “do” something.    And the something calling me seems to be: Guyana and teaching.     I had looked around at do some other volunteer work, but nothing really interested me… and it seems that I am “involved” with Guyana the whole year:

 

Anne and I are off to see Sister Sheila [my first St. Joseph Mercy Hospital CEO. Photo below.] in Buffalo.   She has received new textbooks from Trocaire College   http://www.trocaire.edu/ .  So on our way to retrieve our vacationing daughter, Christine, from the Buffalo Airport: we will pick up the texts; have a meal with Sister Sheila and stay overnight at the convent.   And then sometime later arrange to get the texts to Toronto for shipping by Guyana Christian Charities.   [Maybe I should check for a convent in To?  

 

 

I have some special tasks that need to be done before September.

 First,   I may be testing the theory that the faculty doesn’t need to be a content expert for the course to be successful.  While I have been reading Neurology for Dummies; I am struggling with page 3.   As I have bemoaned before, Tony Carr is not returning in 2013 but he is going to help me revise and improve each of the problems.    This will take a long time as there are at least 36 pages with 4 sections each.   It is a good thing Tony agrees with me on everything.

Second, I need to get our pages printed ahead of time rather than doing them before each class on our flat’s printer.   Why you may ask?   Well, I just don’t share Tony’s commitment and pleasure in “fixing” the printer every day and refilling the ink cartridges, tricking the printer into thinking the old cartridges are new.   And I doubt I will be making as many “last minute” improvements.     I guess that I am just lazier.    I will have to be really organized; maybe learning neurology will be easier.

Third, I would welcome a partner – or several part-time partners [one month].    So if you like high heat and humidity, dieting on chicken and rice, paying your own travel and insurances…  Have I got a deal for you!  If you are tempted at all, get in touch with me and I’ll tell you even more benefits.   One of the credit card commercials has the punch line: ”Priceless” - and itis true: the gratitude of the students offsets any inconvenience.

Also, with a partner, we might be tempted to teach some ethics to the second year students whom I missed as First Year students in 2012. 

Fourth, I have been begging for companies to consider donating netbooks or at least give me a big discount…  So far the responses have been in the deafening silence category.    I am open to any suggestions.   [I am even open to being an adopted by a rich, not too healthy couple who want to spoil their “kid”.]  

Fifth, speaking of begging, the netbooks we purchased from China were okay, but they started to have problems with the heat/humidity and a somewhat inferior construction.    I want to improve the units this year, so they will last for all the students' years at nursing school.   I will write a separate blog of why these machines are the best choice, but it means that I will need some donations to buy them. 

 

Sixth, there are many practical, co-ordination issues including securing scheduling, arranging a flat to stay in, recruiting some of the local faculty with whom to collaborate, buying a printer, finding out what I need to buy to make sure there is wifi in the classrooms, doing what needs to be done in Ayr before I leave...

So the 2013 Adventure has begun…