Observation Deck I:llness

So turns out that the vomiting yesterday was not a one time thing.  I was hanging out in my room when the girls asked if I was sick too.  I insisted that I wasn't, because I so desperately wanted not to be.  I wanted to be able to go out on the projects with them and help teach the first day of sewing, so I was determined not to be sick.  But only a few minutes later, I had to rush to the bathroom to throw up again.  I emerged sullenly to declare: "I take it back.  I am sick."  So Courtney and I stayed home for the day to just rest.  I vomited three or four more times that morning and my attempts to stay hydrated seemed fruitless since everything I ingested came right back up.  Courtney had some Gatorade powder that she shared with me to try and help us better stay hydrated, even in our sickened state.  She also moved an extra fan into our room and set it up right between our beds to try and help keep us cool.  As best I can figure, my illness stemmed mainly from overheating.  The drastic change from the 65 degree and rainy weather at home compared to the sun blaring 115 I arrived to took its toll on me.

I am adding a disclaimer at this point of the story.  I believe that some of you may find this next part ridiculous, impossible, or at least a little hard to believe.  I hope that you will be open minded and that this will shine a new light on healing and self-control of your own body.  What I mainly hope you get from this story is that I owe my health care to my father.  Even when he is not physically present to work his magical RN skills on me, other skills he has taught me continue to bless my life from hundreds of miles away.

Around noon, I was so hot and miserable that I knew I had to do something.  I didn't have any nausea medicine, I didn't even have any ginger.  I tried googling remedy after remedy and couldn't come up with anything.  My resources are considerably limited here.  I was lying on my mattress trying to sleep when I remembered a story my dad once told me.  My wonderful father is a certified hypnotherapist and once told me about a man who cured himself of cancer through self-hypnosis by willing his body to heal.  My dad had taught me some simple self-hypnosis to help me stay calm before and during auditions, I'd also used it on planes, in fact, on the way over here I used those techniques to keep me from getting sick during take-off and landing.  So I closed my eyes and began to breathe deeply.  In through the nose, out through the mouth.  Three deep breaths, and then I began to picture the island my dad often takes me to when we do hypnotherapy sessions.  I imagined myself on top of a big hill on an island.  The island is the same every time I picture it, and I tell myself that it is a special island all my own where I can feel calm and clean.  I proceed to direct myself through the relaxation process just as my dad does, walking slowly down the hill through a cool jungle.  I imagine the birds calling and the way the leaves brush against my skin.  I even told myself that the air from the fan was a breeze off the ocean.  I took myself down onto the white-sand beach where I walked in the wet sand over to a grassy out-cropping.  I laid down in the grass and let my feet dangle in the water.  At this point, a puffy white cloud appears and slowly moves over the top of me. This is the exact process my dad uses every time we do hypnosis, and I tried my best to replicate his slow, soothing tone as I instructed my mind on what it needed to do.  Here is what happens next: The cloud is white and puffy, but as it slowly moves over my body it pulls out all the bad, all the toxins, and all the stress.  As these harmful things are pulled from my body, they rise into the cloud slowly turning it dark and black.  As the cloud moved over my feet and legs, I focused mainly on removing the stress and fear of being in a new place.  When the cloud reached my stomach and focused on removing the feelings of sickness; I old my stomach that as these feelings vanished it would become clean and strong and anxious for food and drink.  As the cloud reached the throat it willed it to remove the burning feelings from vomiting, and the bitter taste in my mouth.  When it reached my head I banished the headaches.  Once the cloud was black and heavy, it floated away taking all of my problems with it.  I then told my body that when I came out of hypnosis, I would feel clean and strong.  I told myself that I when I got up, I would drink some Gatorade and my stomach would accept it.  Then I said I was going to chew a stick of spearmint gum and that it would remind me that my body is fresh and well.  Then I counted backwards from 10 and got up.  I drank some Gatorade, grabbed a stick of gum and ventured out of my room.  After that, I did not vomit again.  I didn't feel dizzy.  I was able to eat some dry cornflakes without feeling sick.  And later that evening, I even went out!

So we went to go see the Tangu movie last night.  Mostly we like to go to the movies because the theaters are air conditioned.  First of all, movies here are SO cheap! I paid 125 rupees, which is like 2 American dollars.  And popcorn was only 60 rupees, which is less than a dollar! 100% awesome.  When we arrived at the theater we told the ticket man that we wanted to go see "He's On His Way" at 7:15.  He gave us a really weird look, so we tried to point to the advert, thinking he didn't know which movie we were talking about.  He shook his head and said "We only have Mad Max tonight." We were confused and told him we saw online that "He's On His Way" was playing at 7;15.  The man told us that Mad Max was the only English film playing.  We said no, we wanted to see the Tangu film.  He told us that we wouldn't understand it, and we laughed we didn't care, we wanted to see the Indian movie.  So finally he sold us our tickets and we headed up to the movie.  We definitely didn't understand anything that was going on.  We're still trying to piece it together.  From what we can gather there was a school in financial trouble, there was a guy trying to pursue a girl who wasn't interested, and there was some sort of Indian mafia con going on.  Some of the statues from a temple were discovered to be fakes, so then the cops were trying to find out who stole them.  Well it turns out that the guy perusing the girl was mixed up in the heist and after she finally decides she like him, she finds out and calls the cops on him.  But then she is like held hostage...? That part confused us a lot.  Then there was lots of fighting and a fake wedding and in the end, the guy used the money from selling the statues to save the school.  THE END!  Haha.  We're probably totally wrong.  But it was hilarious! The acting was so over the top and the sound effects were ridiculous! There were even a couple of musical numbers! Yeeeah! And some of the dance moves were just so priceless that we have been doing them ever since.

Here is the trailer, see if you think you can figure it out:

https://youtu.be/4EhSJJn6v7A


On the way out of the movie an Indian man who used to live in Florida said to us "Did you understand it?" and we laughed and told him not at all.  Then we discussed with him how over priced movies are in the states.  When we reached the street we hailed and auto and the six of us, yes that's right - SIX - piled into the back.  Everyone was sitting on top of each other and I had to hold onto Sarah so she wouldn't fall out the side.  It was great.  I wish you could have seen it.  This is what the autos look like, so just imagine:

                         

Once we got home we celebrated Megan's birthday, which was the other day.  We sang to her and had cookies and ice cream.  It was wonderful!

In other news, the AC in the apartment is finally working, which is a HUGE relief and now we all hang out in the living room all the time.  In fact, six of the nine girls dragged their mattresses out and slept in the living room.  I was NOT one of those girls, but believe me - I will be tonight!

Our power goes out periodically throughout the day.  It probably goes out at least 4 or 5 times a day, sometimes for only a few minutes and sometimes an hour or so.  I don't know why, but I guess that's just India! Haha.

Courtney said she saw a GIANT cockroach in the bathroom the other night, which grossed us all out, but thankfully we haven't seen it since.  (Or maybe not thankfully? Who knows what mischief it could be up to.)

Today we are planning to go shopping so that Courtney and I can get some Indian clothing to wear.  I have one tunic that I bought of Sarah because she was going return it.  Later in the evening we are going to go see a temple that lights up and has a laser show! What?! Imagine if the temples back home did that!

Now that I am better and can be going out and about, I promise to get lots of fun pictures!  Until then - !