Feeling Overwhelmed

It’s been a while since the thought of baking something yummy just didn’t do the trick. I am overwhelmed! It is amazing to look back at the changes in who I am over the last few years of living in Africa. I can take lots of things that would have crushed me before. But this morning for some reason, I might have a few ideas, I just need to sit on the couch and “blog it out”.

It probably started when I woke up. Not the 5am wake up where I told myself I must go back to sleep but it was the shock when I looked at the clock and it was 9am! Isaac said, “The plumber is coming this morning!” We have been living with bad plumbing for two months now and with the lack of water in the pipes it is all exasperated. The plumber has arrived and Isaac is working with him and our landlord, via phone, to sort out the situation. It looks like it could take more than a few days to fix!

Isaac quickly walked up the hill and bought some milk for our tea (yes I’ve turned into a milk tea drinker, blame it on my husband’s British Uganda upbringing). I think that this is where things just went bad! On our walk yesterday we saw someone with local milk in a plastic bag. We thought we’d try it out. Mind you we have gotten local milk from the main town near our house multiple times from different locations and enjoy it. Isaac brought in the bag, it was a half-liter. He said that we should see if we like it before we buy a whole liter at once. I, as usual, cut the bag and poured it into the pot to boil. An ant! There was an ant left behind in the bag once the milk was in the pot. I can do an ant…the milk will boil and there won’t be a problem. Well… I watched as the milk boiled, you have to watch milk boil or it will overflow the pan like none other. As the milk boiled different small insects began coming to the surface. I can deal with small bugs, I told myself. Then it was there…a huge house fly! I quickly grabbed my spoon again, the one I’d used to remove all the other pieces and hairs that had been finding along the way. But there was another one, another house fly. Isaac quickly stepped in. He took the tea strainer, we have a large one, and he strained all the milk. I didn’t look at the amount of items. The milk was put back on the stove and boiled again. Tea will be served soon.

Meanwhile, a man from the village has volunteered to bring us water! Yeah! But he is very shady. It is only 9:30am and he is already drunk! No not a hangover…he is drunk. He happily goes off with the two jerry cans for his first load. I prepare the buckets for him to unload. Once he is back it is a race for me as he empties the jerry cans into buckets I quickly empty the buckets into the toilet tanks, shower basin, dish washing basins, and my mixing bowls here and there trying my best to keep his staring and smell to a limited time. He and I am happy to have him go for the third trip down the hill away from the house to the spring.

Of course while this hustle and bustle is going on a man from the village is here requesting payment for a job he did 3 days ago. Isaac is being pulled in three directions now.

My normal course of action during such times is to bake something tasty. I got out the recipe book and turned to one of my favorite coffee cake recipes. I looked around for a mixing bowl…right they are filled with water, useful water that can’t be placed somewhere else. I just gave up, left the kitchen and went to the couch. Perhaps a nap would be good…