February 4, 2001
That said, I've seen how the state of plumbing is integral to my state of mind. I had adjusted to having only cold water for showers. (There are separate hot water heaters connected to each shower, but it's a big hassle to turn them on and get the water hot. It's so hot here anyway that the cold water isn't that cold and it feels good.) I had adjusted to having a toilet that didn't flush very well. Then, all of the sudden, the water was out. NO water, running water, that is. And no prediction of when it might be on again. I finally accepted that I needed to shower three times a day, and now I couldn't shower at all!
We had no water for over 24 hours. It came back on in the middle of the night. I happened to get up about 2 a.m., and tried the tap on my sink on the off chance there would be water. And there was! I debated going back to bed, since I was not really in the mood to shower right then. But then I thought about it, and realized that there was a chance the water would be off again in the morning, so I decided to go for it. It did feel great to get myself clean, even though my sleep schedule got totally out of whack.
(Photo: My "private" bathroom. Note the big unused hot water tank.)
On Wednesday, we had the day free. Peter and Jason and I went downtown around midday to procure a voltage regulator. We needed it to safely plug our laptops into the electricity here. We got downtown and we found the store we were looking for. Melcom, a third-world Soviet style department store. It was starting to feel like a wild goose chase a la Jah Rah, and then, I spotted it! Yay! We spent a while trying to figure out how the store worked. But we chose a regulator and we also got some nice desk lamps. We decided to quit while we were ahead, but we all agreed that we should try shopping there again.
Food is still an issue, of course. Rose cooked oatmeal, which I know is good for me, but it's a bit soupy and cold. (Fans of The Matrix will know what I mean.) I've been eating fried egg sandwiches every other day. When Rose first cooked them for me, I was tempted to skip it, since I don't normally eat fried eggs. But then I realized that I better try them, that I might be able to eat them, and that they would be a source of protein I couldn't easily turn down. They were OK, so that made me happy.
(Photo: Jason, Jean-Luc, and Peter at our dining room table. They don't call 'em geeks for nothing! My Powerbook is hooked up too (right)--I'm getting geekier by the day!)
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