January 18, 2011

I can't believe how hard it is to get anything done here. The last few days I've been running errands for Ruth and the Linfield Health Promotion Team. One assignment was to get mosquito nets. Together, the Friends of WEH and the Linfield Team purchased 500. They were ordered last week and we had to wait for them to be impregnated with insecticide. Last week one of the drivers took me there to put down our first payment. Then we discovered we had been told the wrong figure and had to go all the way home again (20 min in congested city traffic) to get the right amount. Yesterday we went to pick up the nets as instructed, by noon, and were told they wouldn't be ready until 2. We couldn't wait that long, so today we set out again. When we got there we found our four humongous sacks full of nets, but a man was in hot debate about them. He wanted to buy two from our lot, even though there were others available on the shelf. But ours were prepared for three years safety; those for only 6 months.  Well, we finally got that worked out, but then had to laboriously count all 500 to be sure of an honest count. Whew! It was all quite an adventure, but we got them, and can begin delivering them to WEH's assigned children tomorrow.  No matter where you look, things are being done lo-tech and slowly. In a construction project near Ruth's house, they are hoisting  mixed cement up three stories on a manual pully with a bucket on the end of a rope. Even in the city, low tech is everywhere -- but it is employing lots of people that way -- but of course at very low wages.  Getting used to how work is accomplished is confusing. I asked Ruth if it was that confusing when she came to the U.S. in 1965. She said it was more so. A small town African 20-year old dealing with the Western world then.

Sam is going to be preaching this Sunday in Ruth's church, with Raphael translating. He is really looking forward to it.

I'll try to get back to the Internet cafe soon.