Confession of a Germ-a-phobe

It feels like every other day here I say to myself, “this is definitely the grossest thing I’ve ever done.”  It’s probably because I have germaphobic tendencies, so I try to counter those thoughts be being thankful I’m not in the movie “Slumdog Millionaire” diving through the bottom of a pit toilet (although I’ve sometimes felt that way when changing diapers).  One of the hardest things was the week I had bad sinus congestion and was constantly sneezing or blowing my nose, but the running water was not going for the majority of a few days.  I felt so gross knowing that I had snot all over my hands and not a real way to wash them before shaking hands or eating or touching the door handle!  It turns out that there are a lot of (at least) mental comforts I take for granted in the States from abundant access to water, anti-bacterial soap, regular trash pick-up, and the assumption that most people I’m in close contact with are practicing good hygiene.   A lot of times it just involves touching, eating, or sharing things that aren’t a huge deal, they are just a little outside of my previous overly sanitized existence of store bought foods, individual personal space, and fresh smelling cleaning solutions.  But it still creeps me out when “friends” with typhoid or phlemy coughs “help us” by taking blankets off the clothes line and then proceed to roll around in them on our couch before we have a chance to fold them…

Our first try at eating at a "mom & pop" restaurant gives a sketchy feeling as well