How do you carry YOUR chicken??

I was walking between wards around the hospital last week, touching base with students when I ran across this gentleman under a tree. He was tying up his chicken so he could transport it home on the back of his bike. I asked if I could take a photo... and he proudly posed for me!:)

Watching him reminded me of the many chickens Luis, Meredith and I received, as welcoming gifts, while traveling through villages in Eastern Sierra Leone doing our grad school field research, back in 2007.

I was also reminded of a poster I saw at Chikankata hospital that talked about how if one did not have cash to pay hospitals bills, one could pay with in kind equivalents in the form of bags of maize, chicken or goats.

There is a country wide shortage of petrol and diesel fuel right now. This makes traveling a challenge. Our driver graciously waited for over 30min at 5am today to be able to purchase fuel for our trip to the hospital today. I think the last time I saw long lines at a fuel pump was on 9/11!! When do you last see lines at a fuel pump??