More outreach and a lot of pictures

I realize that I have been a little slow on the blog updates, so I will attempt to give a quick picture overview of my last week or so.

More HPV outreach

Most of the outreach groups are aimed at women, but lately I have been going to some outreach programs catered for fathers. The fathers group presentations are always given by Satthya, otherwise known as 'The Man'. He is such an awesome guy and commands a lot of respect in these settings. I think we are looking at a future, local politician. You can see him below.....


Sometimes when we are talking with the mothers and fathers, the kids get a little rowdy. Since I do not speak the language, and am of no use for answering questions, I get 'stuck' with the job of amusing the children. Of course, they really like the camera, but one of these times, it is going to get destroyed in the numerous little hands.




I was setting up the computer and projector for the presentation, when this huge, black, unidentified flying insect flew right onto my mouth. Naturally, it bit/stung the hell out of the corner of lips. Everyone is worried at first, but then they all think it is really funny. H-A-H-A (sarcasm). My lip starts to swell up, like a bee sting, and they insist on taking pictures. It is in the shadows on this picture, but the good pics are on the other camera. Easy to tell that I am enjoying this.



TBA outreach

This project is actually going pretty well so far. I am working on developing a guide for a focus group discussion among 10 traditional birth attendants. It needs to be done very quickly, because the project needs to progress. We realized that we do not know very much about the practices and beliefs of these groups. A detailed questionnaire is going to be developed, but we need to know what kinds of questions to ask.

A picture of the beautiful scenery that is part of the rural region outside of Mysore City.

Seema (middle), Rani (right), and I are interviewing a TBA. This woman was very knowledgeable about current practices, and even handwashing! She said that her brother is a OB/GYN in a nearby city, and he has given her some training.

I like this picture, but I don't really. Thought some people may enjoy it.

There was a pack (4) of monkeys that paid me a visit early one morning. The little guys jumped up on the porch while I was on the phone and scared the hell out of me. Selvi, the driver, told me they were dangerous, so I ran inside like a scared little kid. They then proceeded to jump on my coffee mug, flip the cup over, jump all over Selvi's bike, then run up onto the roof (which is where the picture is taken).

Here is the 30 foot Louis Vuitton purse at the new Bengaluru International Airport. It is a pretty incredible form of advertising.