Some Progress
on Lynn Sellwood (The Gambia), 16/Apr/2010 08:42, 34 days ago
Progress being made in lots of respects. I am being sponsored (money to VSO) to lose 20lbs by August 1st. See Just Giving link if you are moved to help me...http://www.justgiving.com/Lynn-SellwoodAfter a couple of weeks of very slow progress of a pound a week I have lost 2lbs this week so that makes 4lbs altogether! I have been to the gym twice and completed an 8 mile walk with the Ramblers on Tuesday. It was fantastic to go stepping out and seeing cowslips and lambs. It does great things for your motivation. On the walk I met a lady who had gone to The Gambia over 30 years ago as a medical researcher and still talked fondly of her time there and that made me feel even more positive.Progress on the technical front too. A good colleague, Ian, is helping me select the right laptop, charger, email account, Skype etc, etc so that I have the equipment and can use it, too. I am busy practising my new skills and I have to say that my confidence with these new communications has really improved. I am using this blog to try things out before I go so any comments you have will be very gratefully received.Progress on the election campaign. Matt and the two other Green candidates in Stoke Newington are doing well and they have a good number of volunteers to deliver leaflets during the next few weeks. I am hearing a number of people saying that they may vote Green because they want to shake up the prevailing two party system. And they feel that the Greens have something to say. I am particularly impressed by the community aspect of their policy, quite unlike the ridiculous approach of Cameron, who seem not to understand the concept at all. The thought of local people running their own school fills me with horror after my experiences with the "School Gate Mafia". Surely community politics is to embrace all and democratically ensure people's voices are heard within a professional umbrella, whether that be Policing, Education or Health?Progress on innoculations, had the Yellow Fever, Hepatitis and first Rabies jab with more to come next week. I am going to try an anti malarial next week in the hope that the side effects aren't too awful. At least I can have bad dreams and psychosis in the comfort of my own home!The funniest thing is doing my housework and becoming in touch with my domestic side. I have to admit to quite liking it but feeling guilty about it. It now appears as a regular job in my diary and I can feel myself being pulled into my mother's (and grandmother's) routine of beds on Thursday, downstairs on Friday and the like. What is happening to me? I even baked cakes and flapjacks this week.The only progress not happening is renting the house. I am strangely reluctant to get to it and can't work out why.....it'll come.