Cats Never Ending Story

A cat got hit by a car in the neighbourhood, a 10 year old boy informed me. It turned out to be a lovely gentle cat (4 colours: white, orange, brown, black) sitting near a mosque, one eye sticking out several cm. She didn't scream, didn't complain when I picked her up and carried her to my house in order to put her in a transport box. I took a taxi, together with the young lad, to the vet, who luckily declared she can help and as the cat is still young (approx. 1 year) she'll recover and manage to get along with one eye only (my sweet Tareqqa also does perfectly well). Following further examinations the vet discovered that the accident victim had in addition her jaw broken. Poor soul. In spite of all her suffering she remained amazingly calm. As she's going to live with me now for a while I decided she needs a name: Myriam (in view of her beauty). The vet explained that Myriam now has problems to swallow, requires very finely chopped meals with liquid and added vitamins for 10 days, needs to wear a plastic collar to prevent her from scratching her wound. My vet truly loves animals and offered me a rebate as she values my action. The boy explained to her that he knows me as a person who can be addressed whenever a cat needs help and that is why he knocked at my door. Yesterday, the day of her operation Myriam didn't eat or drink, apart from the water with melted tablet that I sprayed into her mouth. Today she managed to eat, thank heaven, sits there quietly, accepting me and her fate. On the way back we saw a woman standing next to a taxi waving; she offered to share the taxi with us as she was travelling the same direction.  She told the driver that I love cats a lot, which is great, and wanted to show me on her mobile phone a picture of a woman feeding cats. I was surprised to learn it was me, looks like more people know me than I do. - Kids also watch me a lot, some expressed they share my appreciation of cats and/or dogs. I am frequently asked the names of cats near my house. Some of them I have actually given a name and they react when I use it. Anyhow, when I informed a 5 year old boy that a certain tomcat is called Jousef, he smiled and said: "Hello, Jousef." Then he advised me that that is also his name. Cats need a dentist (the vet also) from time to time. Yousef couldn't eat without pain. It was easier than I expected to put him in a transport box. It turned out that 2 of his molars were in a real bad state and needed to be extracted. I succeeded to give him his tablet (mixed with soft cheese), but only for 7 instead of 10 days. At least he can eat now without problems. Bijou, one of our co-inhabitants, stopped eating, so it was time for her also to have a check-up. The vet explained a similar problem, unfortunately the water here is very calcareous. It effects the teeth and can lead to stones in the kidneys. Her teeth was in a bad state due to this kind of water. When we got back to the house she went hiding (normal behaviour for animals, when they are wounded or sick they do it for their own safety in order not to become easy prey). Time to feed Myriam, my cats keep me on my toes! Myriam (1 day later) has started to eat, finely chopped meat with gravy and she enjoys her daily massage, thanks me with purring. She is amazing. Her beautiful fur is soft like velvet. I will never understand why some folks don't like cats. Several kids grow up with bad models who throw stones. Kids watch and imitate. On account of bad experience cats here tends to be very careful with children, who may well be their "enemies".  This kind of behaviour I never viewed in any other country (visited quite a few). When I feel depressed on account of this lack of empathy, strange, I often encounter kids/ folks who love animals, thank heaven for that.

Postcript This is Africa

Living in this part of Souse sounds like living next to a football stadium, several kids constantly yelling or talking very loud, (a bit better during school hours, thank heaven for that) and at other times like a market place. Various street vendors sell vegetables, fruit, etc., three men trying to sell fish, some times they more less arrive at the same time. So much fish, who wants to eat this all day long? All this shouting and hooting, difficult for expats to get used  to, yet the folks here think it's normal, if you don't, you are the odd one out. The first sentence toddlers learn is: "It wasn't me", the usual reply one gets if a kid is caught getting up to no good (like throwing stones, hitting cats, etc.). Never leave tools or other items unattended outside, not even for a few minutes, otherwise it will disappear in no time. Still, with a bit of luck children will return it if you offer a reward, it worked twice. - Hairdressers' prices are approx. the same as in Germany. They work differently though, like to pull hair straight (not my taste, my hair has started to get curly here, all by itself, I like it that way) on various occasions wondered do they want to pull out my hair, burn my skull (too hot hair dryer). The first hairdresser I visited in Souse (on recommendation - never rely on that unless you know the person really well) demanded 50 Dinar for dyeing my hair with my on product, complained about a lot of work (I was the only customer)  and high expenditure. She just had her saloon newly decorated, did she mean that or a bit of water and electricity? Not happy to pay a "surcharge for tourists or expats" (all supposed to be rich), I decided never to return. - On the radio: News presented at a high speed, is there someone in the studio with a whip? Most of the talking interrupted by lots of giggling and laughing. Jokes, comedy, performed with a strange, child-like voice mend to be funny. Sounds like kids' program to me. - Alcohol, with the exception of beer and some local vine, is very expensive, brilliant, though this doesn't mean no alcoholics, it reduces the problem and it's the hard drinks that really make aggressive. Nevertheless anti-aggression training would be a good idea for several kids, teens and adults who mainly had bad models and quickly get furious, boil with rage because they lack self-control. In Germany for example anti-aggression training proved to be worth it. Let us all get more relaxed, we only live once. By the way, stroking a pet, e.g. a cat or dog, is relaxing and can reduce too high blood pressure. There is a demonstration in Souse, folks want those in power to do more for the protection of women against sexual harassment, as e.g. quite a few young men show no respect and use bad language, etc and also provide a better protection against theft (I for example feel safer without expensive jewellery or even a handbag, when I go shopping). The demonstration shows that democracy is working here and there is a political awareness in the population - unlike at the time of Ben Ali when the people didn't dare to express their thoughts freely.

This is Africa

Trust in God but fasten your camel well. Saladin, a lovely gentle tomcat had diarrhoea. The vet advised me not to give him any food for 24 hrs. It was so tough, Saladin just loves to eat and he doesn't need to "watch his figure". Anyhow, after nearly 20 hrs he got fed up, why stay in a house where there is nothing to eat and as I wouldn't let him walk out through the front door, he felt forced to climb from the roof, jump onto the awning. A boy discovered him and informed me. With the aid of a ladder I managed to take my little treasure safely down and convince him of my never ending love and that I am happy to provide food for him. Eileen and Allan look like twins, slim little tigers, approx. 6 months old. I found them one day as tiny baby cats lying in a cardboard box in front of my entrance door. I was aware they'll die if I don't offer them "asylum". At the vet's I happened to see a box with baby-milk powder, fairly expensive (75 Dinar including a bottle for feeding). Still, money well spent, I  decided. A lot of work, not just a case of 3 meals a day but every 4 hrs, longer break at night. After a while the little ones started "to fight" who can have the milk bottle first. Whenever Allan and Eileen see me they immediately start purring, always happy to see their "mum". I get a lot of love from my little fur-angels. Those who throw stones at cats, etc. don't know what they are missing!  Now, as autumn started, nights are already getting cold, it is the time of coughing, sneezing, also for cats. One approx. 6 months old cat, living outside, a regular customer at my cats' table, already suffered from a bad cold. One day she looked just awful, from the head down to her front leg covered in blood. I was shocked to see her like that and wondered what happened. Then I discovered that heavy sneezing must have caused this (like we sometimes get a bleeding nose). Thinking if kids/folks view it they may believe she is perhaps dangerous, better kill her; I needed a quick solution, possibly without consulting a vet. We asked a pharmacist whether he got a cough mixture suitable for babies and thus perhaps also for cats. Luckily it did work. When I tried to save an severely injured cat (thought she had been hit by a car, but the x-ray proofed it was the bullet of an air-gun) frightened to death she bit me and I ended up with a large blue spot. The vet advised me to get vaccinated against rabbis, though I felt sure her understandable fear was the sole reason she bit me, I followed the vet's advice and was surprised to find this vaccination (in a small hospital) was free of charge. Thank you Tunisia. Unfortunately it was not possible to save the cat's life. The bullet paralysed her back legs, an operation would be difficult and only pos. in Europe, perhaps, the clinic stated. So sad. - Lady: "Why do you throw your wrapping onto the pavement, don't you love your town?" Boy: "This isn't my town." Lady: "When then are you here?" Would it have made any difference if the question had been, don't you love your country? When I ask children to keep their town/ country clean, they suggest I should call the police and they make rude comments. A lot of education is required, if parents can't do this, then teachers are all the more demanded. Yet I've seen kids leaving  grammar school and dropping their fruit peelings right in front of the entrance door to the school yard. Don't they teach the importance of environment protection? It would be a good idea to make school classes collect rubbish off streets, let's say one day a month. It can raise their awareness of pollution. I've seen a cow's skull lying on the ground at a distance of approx. 12 meters from a rubbish container, I guess the law doesn't explicitly state that's not allowed? Folks here generally seem to believe various laws and regulations are just a non-binding suggestion; like collective taxi (mini buses) drivers wearing seat belts. Well they do, just to keep the police happy, as soon as the police is out of sight, they happily continue without and phoning while driving is very common. When you talk to a driver, he can't reply without looking at you (instead of concentrating on the traffic). During a heated discussion he will in addition start talking with his hands. This is just one of the reasons why I prefer travelling by bus, whenever possible. In addition the buses provide a safer journey,  better drivers. - As the weather is getting quite cold, stormy, unpleasant, in Europe and other parts of the world, we can still enjoy the sunshine at a pleasant temperature and tourists are very welcome to share it with the folks here.

Tee

The Misunderstanding, a Short Story

6

Always try to get the full story to avoid misunderstandings. Somewhere in Africa a man visited a police station during a break. Seeing the staff there drinking coffee he assumed this what they do all day. So he complained to his president that the police don't work. The president whose mind was occupied with bigger problems, misunderstood that the police force hasn't got enough work. He promised to deal with this and soon found a "solution". He worked out that if he would release 4 or 5 hundred criminals who are likely to continue stealing, this would supply the police with plenty of work. And so ordered the release of several hundred prisoners. The citizens who heard what happened were not happy as they felt there are already enough thieves out on the street and so they complained to the president. The president whose mind was occupied with bigger problems, misunderstood that the good citizens demanded he should release more prisoners. He promised to deal with this; it seemed to be a good way to save money on food, water, prison cells, prison guards, etc. And so he ordered the release of even more prisoners. When the citizens heard what happened, they decided to raise the walls of their houses and not complain again to the president. As the president didn't receive any more complaints he concluded that the good citizens of his country are all happy.

Postcript Health care System

More than 70% of medicines consumed in Africa are imported, only Algeria, Morocco, Egypt and South Africa are able to produce enough drugs and medicines for the local market. Ethiopia is a model country for local investments and developed manufacturing capacity, offering increased access to quality assured medication. Generics are produced at very low costs, for many years mainly supplied by India and China. They are supposed to be as good as the original, sold a lot in Europe too, yet some patients are not as happy with these as with the original (in a few cases less effective and/or more side-effects, yet the concerned health insurances as a rule don't want to meet the extra costs). Generics represent a chance to make more necessary medication available to folks with little or no income. Manufacturing in Tunisia and local knowledge further reduces the costs.- The pharmacy industry justifies their high prices (in particular in Germany) with survey and development costs and tends to forget to mention their huge profits and money spent on advertising and lobbying works. Well they take what they can get. If you have the misfortune to suffer a rare illness, you may well discover that there is no suitable medicament on the market. This is not because it can't be developed, but rather that the pharmacy industry doesn't expect large profits in this case and therefore just isn't interested. On the other hand, whenever a representative of the pharmacy industry has a chance to discover, through natives, new healing herbs or plants, they tend "to forget" to offer even a minor share to the concerned natives. ( In some cases NGOs managed to explain the natives' rights.) - From time to time, in particular concerning more expensive imports, your dispensing chemists may not be able to sell the medication you require and suggest a different one, as his supplier didn't deliver what he ordered. With a bit of luck you can perhaps thus discover a new good product. Supply and demand don't always match, more expert planning could be helpful,  not just here. But to be fair, large improvements have been made since the revolution and this is likely to continue now that the number of tourists returning is rising.

The Health Care System

 Not surprising, rich people live on average 10 years longer than the poor, this is due to life style, healthier food (not so much junk/fast food), usually better education and being in a position to afford first class medication and specialists. Generally speaking the health system isn't bad here, the best in Africa actually. Yet most private hospitals and medical facilities are located in major cities.Thus in rural areas universal access to basic health care is limited. You may have to travel quite a distance to the next clinic/ medical facility and in case of an emergency loose precious time. The poor can obtain a paper that entitles them to free health care in government funded clinics, but they may have to wait for 3-4 months for an appointment or without an appointment spent several hours in the waiting room. I visited a clinic once only to discover approx. 500 patients had already arrived, so I left to see a private expert instead. Those who can afford this are lucky, yet you can always find many patients in the waiting rooms of the various medical practitioners and specialists. Quite a few studied in Europe, often France or Germany. The usual consulting fee is 50 Dinar in Souse, appears to be less in some other towns, e.g. in Kairouan, (a good, dedicated general practitioner in modest facility charged only 30 Dinar) extra pay for injections etc. Blood tests and x-rays are carried out in other specialist practises, unless you are in a hospital or clinic. Smaller medical facilities for out-patients, opening hours rather limited, and maybe only 1 or 2 employed practitioners, perhaps less qualified, charge less. Hospitals are said to be better equipped, the standard is generally much higher and this included the doctors' qualification and therefore you are required to pay more for consultations. Most expatriates and foreign visitors use private clinics. Many Tunisians buy into insurance schemes which partially refund costs of treatment. If you are forced to continue paying health insurance contributions of and to an European country (not at all a small amount), according to an agreement between the Tunisian government and the concerned country, the "CNAM" (Tunisian national health insurance) receives a minor amount of your contributions and this can entitle you to get a little  bit refunded if you go to the state funded clinic for treatment, or are chronically ill and get your prescriptions from there. My personal experience with CNAM: bad service, unfriendly staff - though I never ever even received a milliem (smallest coin here, rarely ever used) from them. Quite a few expats are unhappy with that system, but they are often unaware how small the amount of money is that European countries/ health insurances actually pay. Most opticians, dentists (73 %), pharmacists (80%) and doctors (50 %) work in the private sector, some part-time in hospitals or clinics as well. In the clinics' dispensaries the poor can obtain their medication for free - but it is not always available due to faults in the public procurement system, perhaps even false prescriptions, wrong distribution (corruption, the government tries to solve this). So they may be forced to buy their medication at the pharmacist' who is expected to provide cheap medicine. Though the price is certainly much lower there than e.g. in Germany, the price is also influenced by the country of origin. Imports from Italy, France, Swiss or Germany (supposed to be of higher quality) are quite a bit more expensive than local productions, (still an attractive price for European tourists) and this reduces the demands and supply. Thus you can't always get what you want, even if you can afford a higher price. Some pharmacists are in addition doctors and can therefore provide professional advice to customers who want to save time and money for consulting a surgeon, and one can get an injection there for 1 instead of 10 Dinar. This method may not always be advisable and I would think that those who should receive a thorough medical examination will be advised accordingly. - Many illnesses are caused by constant stress, this could be reduced by noise-restricting laws, not just for companies but for private households and individuals as well. I am under the impression that folks here love creating quite unnecessary noise with which they "pollute" the air, just like children, and not surprisingly everybody (including me meanwhile) seems to be very nervous and it leads to high blood pressure or even worse illnesses. (I need noise-proof walls). Scientists say sugar is the number one killer. For unknown reasons in Arabic countries and in Turkey folks use extreme amounts of sugar, this is the sugar one can see in tea, coffee and on cakes, and and then there is in addition the less obvious sugar in soft drinks and in various ready-made foods on sale. In soft drinks it is very high, mend to give flavour and make you addicted (very sweet, your flavour). Junk food is very popular among children and teens, as I can see by the wrappings on my pavement, every day, they learnt quickly that in spite of the new law/ regulation (to achieve a beautifully clean Tunisia) they can continue their old bad habit to dump their rubbish anywhere, no one there to impose a fine! Hope this will change one day. For a healthier population we need more education work, less fast food and instead slow-food restaurants as well as information for parents concerning the importance of healthy home-cooking.

The Good, the Bad & those In-Between

 Father:"My son, if you ever manage to be the only one in the the class who can answer one of your teacher's question, I'll buy you a new football." A couple of days later: "Daddy, the teacher asked, why the light isn't working and I knew the answer." Father: " Good, this concerns physics, what did you say?" Son: "I smashed the light bulb." - The other day folks (mainly elderly) met and prayed for rain, badly needed for the crops and water supply. It did actually rain that day, but very very little in Souse, in Kairouan more, but in addition there was hail and storm. The extreme weather everywhere this year one can see as an answer to people who believe, like Trump, that money is more valuable than nature and scientific knowledge reference the effects on the climate can be ignored. There is so much pollution in the air, soil and water that should and could be reduced, but we have too many short-sighted young and not so young folks who just don't care (live fast, die young). Anyhow, surprise, surprise, it rained again the next and the following day. Seems like if good citizens pray for rain, they'll get rewarded! - The effects of negligence on children can be studied in this part of Souse. The kids don't know how to play (apart from football according to their own, local rules, or sometimes game at marble), their games are full of aggression, hitting, kicking, throwing stones, running and yelling, boys and girls alike, a nightmare when they gang together, no respect for anyone. As one man from the neighbourhood put it: "Good parents have good children. Then there are those with bad parents who don't care, don't educate their kids, these children can not be blamed for the way they are."  Several persons stressed they won't allow their children to mix with those who roam the streets. I can understand if one sometimes feels tempted to beat the little and not so little hooligans (though violence can never be the solution, it only makes more aggressive), if this happens suddenly the father/mother or both appear, furious, may be even ready to start a fight because of their for ever innocent angels. A sample of a good mother, Gloria, my gorgeous "street cat", when an orphan kitten asked her for milk, she laid down and allowed the little one to drink. She is so lovely, gentle, respects and trusts me. Lately some big expensive cars passed my house, driving slowly, the men, women and children apparently enjoyed watching these beautiful peaceful cats in front of my house. One man told me: "Now that you feed the cats here, they have changed, they are contend and relaxed." The only problem remaining are these neglected kids that still try to get rid of their frustrations by throwing stones at cats (even those hiding beneath cars), my house, me. I guess what their parents teach them is, if you feel envy, there is a simple solution, you have the power to ensure that certain persons can't enjoy whatever they possess. Do I need to stress, I never show off, don't wear expensive jewellery, usually no handbag, no mobile phone when I go out on the street (in case of an emergency immediate help is highly unlikely, unless by decent people who happen to notice this)? How can kids who grew up without love, were never taught basic values (unless at school, before it's too late?) become good wives/husbands/ parents? Some call them "the lost generation".  When I say, with their life style they won't get old, I often hear: Just as well. What a horrible thought.  Information from the radio, parents complained their poor kids have nowhere to sit at school during their break, when they leave the building. Are they that old and fragile that they most urgently need to sit down again? Perhaps there should be some settees in the school yard , so these poor students can relax and maybe sleep a bit? When I attended school there were also no benches etc., supposed to be better for the body and brain not to constantly sit down. Maybe this is too much for those kids who travel to school by taxi. When I was young I walked 5 km to grammar school because I wanted to save the bus fare for paperbacks. I just loved literature (still do!) and discovered at a very young age writers like James Baldwin, Ernest Hemingway, Arthur Miller, etc.  - Mainly elderly folks, educated, good manners, several religious (not fanatics) give me hope, they represent the good Tunisia, its beauty. One thing one can learn here, the importance of education. Unfortunately it is impossible to force parents to love their offspring, but perhaps one can make them understand what they are doing to their kids. Let us educate the ignorant, Tunisia is beautiful, don't allow them to spoil this. We have laws/regulations to achieve clean streets  etc., the fines for offenders are  high - catch a few and the word will spread. Maybe no more chewing gum, cigarette packets and other wrappings on my pavement in future and a  clean area along school buildings, etc. I look forward to that. The ladies living in houses overlooking places with rubbish containers (several cleaning up daily, a bit like fighting windmills) will also very much appreciate this.