Friday, November 13, 2009

A busy, productive Friday


Friday was a very hot, busy day.  I didn’t get everything done I had hoped to, but a lot was accomplished.

First the good news:  Lomngeletjane is coming along.  The plumber ran into an issue of mounting the geyser (hot water heater) but between he and John they think they worked out what needed to be done.  Of course it meant another trip to the hardware store to buy more items.  John has the Septic tank finished and the French drain is almost finished.  He has started patching the plaster in spots where the plumber had to knock some out or the small spots that he missed when he did the plastering.





















The greatest news was that some of the parents, mainly mothers and gogos, where there to put up the fencing the government gave them for a school garden.  They gave Lomngeletjane enough for a garden 70m by 100m.  John decided to use the existing perimeter fence on two sides and then use the new fence for the other two sides, Thus allowing the fencing to go far enough to surround not only the school garden, but the orchard they are planting.  I am very excited and encouraged by John’s thinking and that so many people came out to help put up the fence.





















The bad news is that sometime last week during a power outage due to one of the many storms we have been having, someone stole the electrical wires from the pole to the church and ripped out the wire that goes into the meter box.  The church/school has to replace the wires to the meter box and then the electric company will come out and replace the main electrical wires that were stolen.  I just can’t believe that mentality, but it happens all the time.  The thugs take it to recycling places and sell it for the copper.  I told John he needs to tell the police that they need to go hang out at the recycling places and arrest everyone that doesn’t have some sort of a license to have this stuff.  The lack of electricity means we can’t pump water which means we can’t test the plumbing and it is harder to get water to mix the cement, though this part is doable. 

I ended my day by going by the hospital to visit with Nomile.  Thini was walking in directly ahead of her.  Nomile cried at Thini at first, but when I came closer she put her arms out for me to hold her.  Of course after a while she started kind of grunting/whining, so Thini took her and she settle in just fine.  Then she started it again so I I took her back and she actually fell asleep while I was rocking her.  I kept rocking her for a while, but then decided we should leave so I could get home before dark.  Of course she woke up crying when we put her in bed.  One of the nurses came in while we were there and wondered who Thini was.  She thought she was the gogo.  (If I was the gogo I wouldn’t be brave enough to show my face around that place.)  I explained who she was.  She explained to the nurse that was with her that I am the baby’s mother who brought her in.  The nurse told me that she cries whenever I leave.  I’m not sure if she was trying to tell me not to leave, to stop coming or just making a statement.  At any rate, I won’t stop coming, I can’t stay there and really don’t want to sleep on the floor knowing there are huge cockroaches and probably mice running around.  So, hopefully Nomile will at least learn that I will be back..at least until Dec 3rd when I leave to go to the States. 




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