The Trouble With Water

Much is said about water: can't live without it; water, water everywhere but not a drop to drink; water, the universal solvent. In spite of all that water chatter, water is hard to get a handle on.

We have been in the rainy season since I returned in May. I love this season-cooler mornings, sunny mid-days, and dark clouds bring afternoon rain. The wet and cool weather wash Kakamega clean and leave it dust-free. I looked forward to the afternoon's performance each day.

But in July we have had only a handful of wet days, so the tank that collects the rainwater ran dry. That might not sound like a Big Deal, but that is the source of our drinking water. We take tubs to the tank to collect the rainwater and bring it back to boil. We then fill an assortment of plastic bottles for a stash of about 34 liters (a liter is about a quart). We do not boil the water that comes into the house from the borehole or the well on the property, as per the warning of the locals.

We've been in a pickle. We have not been giving out water to guests....have a banana! We cannot drink our favorite Crystal Light in the quantity we usually do. We are hoarding. We bought a 5 liter bottle of water in desperation and had to carry it home on a boda boda...water is heavy!

Then came Sunday. With all the pent-up energy of a big storm, thunder and lightening filled the dark sky and it started to pour. We ran around, putting our tubs under downspouts. The water was dirty from the dusty roof and gutters. But we were happy. We jettisoned the dirty water once the deluge let up and we were sure there was water in the tank. We went to the tank and turned the spigot, getting 2 tubs of water. Alas our larder is full.

Speaking of water and trouble, I am on my fourth day of bucket bathing. Shanon had masterfully removed the calcium from our shower head in May. But it was silting up again so she tried to replicate the magic. Not so lucky, as the washer in the shower head would not hold. We had water but it just gushed rather than sprinkled. We were OK with that until the heating element in the shower head pooped out....the light goes on, but no heat. So now we have gotten out the tubs again, boil some tap water, and jump into the bucket.

As I said, water can be troublesome.....