Happy Proud To Be A Lutheran Day!!!

Aka- Reformation Day.

Go nail 95 Thesis on the church door!
I know a Diet of Worms fits in there somewhere (although it thankfully has nothing to do with eating bugs but instead a big meeting).

Life

So if this blog is really about life in East Africa, I have to tell you about the ups and the downs, right? Well this week probably wouldn't qualify as an "up".

This has been the Week Of Food Born Illness!!! That's right! I got food poisoning! Fun days! or not so much. Unfortunately, you can't find Vernor's here. Not really sure where I got it- I'm pretty sure I got it from a restaurant that I eat at sometimes- its not sketchy but who knows. Since different food born illnesses take different amounts of time to incubate so you can't really pin it down. In all honesty, it can be something as small as a contaminated cooking utensil, so I guess the source will just have to remain a mystery!

I'm on the mend and heading back to work tomorrow. Its all part of life over-seas (and back in the States too- you can get food poisoning anywhere!)

Just After The Rain Today...

Now that the rains are here, the power rationing has been lifted (we've had a FULL WEEK of power (well short outages, but nothing like before!)

Leaky Faucets

Grrrrrr. We have a leaky faucet. Its been getting worse for the past few days, but in a place where water has been SO scarce (as in people and animals dying because they didn't have water, no crops, 3 day a week power rationing up until just last week) it is horrible to waste it!

My roommate and I have kept a bucket in the sink trying to catch and use the water- it goes in the water filter to drink, in the electric kettle for tea, in the sink to wash dishes, in the wash buckets for laundry. But its getting ridiculous.

We've had our super call a plumber. I waited all morning for him (he said he would be here by 9- I figured 10:30) but he didn't show. I left to teach a literacy class at 12:00 and the super said he would come when I got home. Still no plumber.

Maybe tomorrow.

Anyone have any quick fixes for leaky faucets- at least until the plumber shows up?

Best Quote This Week (so far....)

I was chatting with the guards at my gate when I came home from work today. Everyone here lives in gated, guarded compounds (like with razor wire, broken glass and electric fences over the 10 ft walls). Everyone. Its just the way it works- especially in Town. So you get to know your guards really well! I have had great friends in the guards I've had at all my places (and work places). These guys are great.

So I was chatting with the day guards today and they were teasing me about something but then they said "Kila siku- hakuna matata lakhini ikiwa nyesha- hakuna matatus!" Roughly, that's "All of the time- no worries but if there is rain- no matatus! (public transport).

HAHAHAHHA tooo funny! It looses something in the translation but trust me- its hilarious!

Happy Kenyatta Day!

Yesterday was Kenyatta Day! Some friends and I had planned to have a picnic in the N'Gong Hills but with El Nino and the Short Rains here we figured we would either get rained on or the mud that's already there would make it miserable. So instead we had a meal and Game Day at a friend's house. Thanks for the fun Jan!

Update

The rains held back for youth group. It was muddy and chilly but we could still meet outside.

Its pouring now :o)

My Books Have A Home!

I finally bought a bookshelf today! They are ridiculously expensive here so I had been putting it off- my books were fine stacked under my bed and in my closet. But some friends of mine are moving and they sold me one CHEAP! Awsome! My books finally have a home!


Don't worry. I know I'm a dork and WAY too excited about this. But it made my day!

On a different note, El Nino is here. The past few days have been RAINY!!! WooHoo!!! The only problem is we don't have a lot of options for youth group tomorrow. We meet under a tree- not a great plan in torrential rains. So pray for a break in the rains while we have youth group. God's big. He can do that!

Also, yesterday I had some students from my alma mater stay with me as they were passing through my city. So fun! I got to catch up on all the school news- and its great fun to meet up with other people who get where I'm coming from. We know the same people, have done the same things.

So that's it for now.

Quote of the Week:

"Africa has a superhero and his name is Nan'ga-lito!"

Nan'ga was a contestant in Tusker Project Fame (kinda like East Africa's version of American Idol). The story is WAY too long to explain but trust me, this was the best quote of the week.

PS- My favorite, Alpha, won the competition. Woohoo! Go Alpha!

Youth Group Arm Wrestling Matches

I can hold my own pretty well. (even if this was taken just before I lost...)

It's Here!

It's here! El Nino! Rain!! We'll take it! We've been expecting massive rains (from El Nino and from the usual Short Rains) and it just might be here! Unfortunately, we are also anticipating massive flooding from El Nino. But right now the rain is POURING! Awesome. We'll deal with the other as it comes I guess. We definitely don't do things half-way here!

Youth Group Games

Anyone have any good youth group games? Favorite youth group games? Games that could be modified into something resembling a youth group game? Let me know! I'm putting together a collection of games that I can use with my teens (and for our retreat in a few months).

Mzuri Monday Madness!

Mzuri Monday Madness is possibly one of the best things in the world. The local movie theater has a deal- every monday you get your ticket, popcorn, a soda and a choice of either a candy bar or a hotdog all for less then the price of a regular ticket during the rest of the week. I know! Madness!!

So Monday also happens to be my day off (my Saturday if you will). I work every Saturday, so my teammates and I (who also work every Saturday) take Monday as our free day. But for the past 3 months, Monday is one of our 3 No Power days. Which would make for a really stinky way to spend your day off- sitting in a dark, quiet house (no music, no watching dvds, etc) or friends to hang out with because they are all at work.

But today, I discovered that I may take advantage of the Mzuri Monday Madness deal a bit too often. I was in line to get my tickets and food and the guy asked me if I wanted the candy bar or the hotdog and before I could answer, the guy at the next register leaned over and said "She wants the chocolate and a cold coke". Apparently I'm well known at our local cinema- that could be because I've gone to see movies there and been the ONLY on in the theater a few times- even with the Madness of Mzuri Monday Madness, apparently not that many people take advantage of it!

Oh well! Its cheep! Free food! (seriously who needs lunch when you have a huge thing of popcorn, a candy bar and a soda?) Entertainment! and there's electricity there on a Monday! Can't beat that! Plus its like Cheers "where everybody knows your name!"

Sunset From My Balcony

From up here, you'd never guess we are in the middle of a massive drought. The orange-ish building is another apartment building. Check out the Jackaranda tree in the background -the big purple tree. That's the closest we get to fall- Jackaranda blooming!