What a way to start the day...

What a day! Last Friday started at 3:45 AM, when my alarm so rudely reminded me that I needed to be ready to leave the house at 4 am. Why leave the house at 4 am you ask? Because Alli and I needed to be in Tegucigalpa by 7 am to drop off a father, mother and baby for a CT scan appointment and then meet up with one of our special cases at 8 am for a visa appointment at the US Embassy (for those of you who don't know, visa appts at the US Embassy are a BIG deal)...

Well, as I stumbled around, half asleep, trying to get ready Alli burst in the door saying, "I just woke up, the alarm clock didn't go off, I'll be ready in just a few minutes." I replied, "Don't worry, I just need to throw my clothes on and I'll be ready." Being the prepared person that I am, I had pulled out my clothes the night before so that I didn't have to think about what I was going to wear at 4 in the morning. I had just put my pants on, buttoned and zipped them, when I felt a stinging sensation on my left hip. I thought, "Oh no! I have ants in my pants!" But then the stinging sensation turned into an intense burning sensation and I thought, "Ouch! I have got to get my pants off!" Well, I ripped my pants off and found a huge welt on my left hip. I didn't feel any bugs on my legs so I went running for the Benedryl Anti-Sting Stick (a wonderful investment for anyone living in a tropical climate). I searched and I searched, and as I looked for that stick I could hear Ally open the gate, get in the car, pull the car out of the drive way, close the gate, get in the car... I knew she was waiting for me, I knew it was important to leave on time (one does not take an appointment at the US Embassy lightly... we had to be on time). As I continued to look for the Benedryl Stick, which I had seemingly misplaced, I found myself becoming angrier and angrier that some bug would have the nerve to sting me at 4 in the morning on such an important day! I finally gave up looking for the Benedryl stick and thought, "If I could at least kill whatever stung me, then I think the pain would calm down..." you know, as if taking revenge on the bug would decrease my pain level. Well I returned to my pants and started to shake them out. Nothing fell out. I flipped my pants inside out and shook them some more. Still nothing. Finally, I was so frustrated by the incident that I threw my pants on the floor, and that is when I saw it... a SCORPION was hiding under my left pant pocket! Well I flung that thing off my pants and squished him into itty bitty pieces! Consequently, I do think that killing the scorpion did decrease the burning sensation in my leg! After 10 minutes of searching for the Benedryl Stick, and then the scorpion, I finally threw my pants on and ran out to the car to meet Ally!

Though it was a bad way to start the morning, the rest of the day went very well. Ronny (the boy I mentioned in my newsletter) and his mother were granted medical visas for travel to the US for gastrointestinal surgery! Praise God! And now, thanks to Friday's events, I do not have a fear of the unknown... it isn't THAT bad to be stung by a scorpion... and the US Embassy isn't too bad either. All in all, quite a day!