Power to the people

I don't know why it took me so long to notice these.  Once I did, I saw them everywhere.  Truck chassis, welded together into power poles.  Of course.  Why not?  I understand power costs $20/mo. for a household, however much you use (and however much you get!) Someone said that there is a lot of disrepair and inefficiency in the power delivery because the people working on the lines don't live where they would get power themselves.  But if $60 is a good wage for a night guard, I doubt he would be paying that bill anyway.  Twice in one week I saw a notes on the desks of someone I visited (once at a colleague's house, once in a university office) that were written in bold, red ink, "to be cut off in 24 hrs!!"  I wonder how often they get those notices.

The house not seen ...

This picture is of a house supposedly available that a colleague took for me, but we tried to see it on three consecutive days, and couldn't.  He was supposedly there every afternoon.  But not those three ...

Fun with wires

This is the fuse "box" for our "best case" house.  I'm told the hole is there because there was an electrician in the attic recently, hooking things up.  We'll need to figure out how good city power is to this place, and how we can/should coordinate it with solar panels -- which will need to be wired in here, as well.

plumbing, anyone?

This is a shot of the kitchen in our "best case" house.  Notice the visible gap between the sink and the drain. this is supposed to be redone (with the cabinetry completely replaced), but what will it look like afterward?
No offense meant, whatsoever, to those plumbers (nor their wives!) who did actually offer to come over and help us set up house, had we been here in their timeline...

Wanna buy a house?

In my house hunting trip last week, I found many houses unfinished, but "ready" to rent, that is, to take a down payment (of rent) large enough to give the landlord enough to finish the house.  One house needed $11,000.  I understand that some of us with justice issues might balk at giving someone an interest (and collateral) free loan so that he could have a house that you could then pay him to live in. But there doesn't seem to be any other way into the rental market here.

So I asked about the market to buy, which is basically people who have given up hope on finishing their house, and are willing (or need) to sell it.  This house was going for $37k.  Yes that is grass growing inside.  Yes there is no roof.  Yes the forms are still on the cement pillars. And local advice is that it would take another $20k to finish it.  And how much time?  Back to the rental market...

acclimation

We had a little trouble with Joel exhibiting irrational fears a couple weeks ago, on our arrival in Kenya. A neighbor's little rat dog and ants (seen or otherwise) made him unable to leave his bed without shoes or socks, and the house without adult supervision. But this week we went to an elephant orphanage, and I saw this sight, which makes it look like he's getting along just fine. This is Joel, watching elephants, and holding the hand of a perfect stranger.

Catering in Kenya

To all of you I have ever heard complaining about your long and/or irregular hours, hard work, and annoying and demanding bosses and clients in the catering business, be glad you don't work for this guy.