Getting Gas

There are some things that I will likely never understand about this country.

This weekend we ran out of cooking gas for our stove. I mean the gas cylinder was empty. (Think fancy gas grill for what the cylinder looks like.) It was my turn to get one. I hoisted the empty one out to my car which is heavy enough in my weakened, sick state. I drove to the very nearby Caltex station because it was a Caltex cylinder. I vaguely remembered that there was some issue last time because the connection had changed, but we managed one more old type.

There I stood with the guy trying to work out what I needed. Once the full cylinder was loaded and he was off to get me a (hand-written) receipt I noticed that the cars pulling in for petrol were driving off again. I finally listened as the petrol station attendant told the driver, “Hakuna, leo.” There is not, today. While this station had cooking gas it had no petrol for car fuel.

When the man returned with my receipt I asked about the petrol situation. He informed me they had been out for two days. “But it will come tomorrow.” Gotta love that African optimism. I actually had no reason to believe it wouldn’t be there tomorrow. But thankfully I didn’t need any that day.

Within a mile of my house I bit there are 5-7 petrol stations! I wonder if all the stations were out.

Pulling out of a Tummy Bug

You know how you tend to get sick after a big push at work, a major volunteer project or some other large event? Well, after the trip to UAE and then having Todd here from the Daystar US office, I lasted exactly one more day and then a nasty stomach bug hit me. It hit so hard I was only out of bed for very short snatches on Thursday.

This morning after consulting Dr. Bruce by text message, I hoisted myself out of bed and went out for the minimum amount of errands. I still hadn’t paid my rent and it’s nearly the middle of the month.

After dashing to two shopping malls – one to get a check made out to my landlord and the other to go to his bank to deposit it, I stopped by a convenient dispensing chemist, where I told them what antibiotic my doctor told me to get, paid and was on my way. There are some perks to living here; prescription drugs without a prescription is one of them.

I really wish I had been in a jolly, Christmas shopping kind of mode because the second mall had a little choir singing Christmas carols that wafted down to where I was queuing at the bank. (It made the long wait on my feet worth it.)

Also there was a Kenyan man dressed up like Santa Claus sitting smack in the middle of the common area. I just caught a glimpse of his dark face peering out from that gleaming white beard and I had to chuckle to myself even though I kept pace to the bank.

Some days you just wish you had a camera.

When I arrived back at my home a little over two hours later, I laid down for a rest. That was the most I had done for over 24 hours. When I got up I had so much energy (mind you, I had only taken one dose of my ten tablets) I decided to start on my Christmas baking. In a few hours time I got one batch of two different kinds done! I’m on my way.

Not Exactly What I Expected

This was my first time to really be in a non-western developed country (if I can say it like that). All signs are in both Arabic and English. Most people can speak English. And there are more expatriates than Emiratis in the UAE. A few things I was able to picture ahead of time. But some things were quite surprising.

I was served Tex-Mex food on both of the Air Arabia flights I took.
There are no potholes in the UAE.
Men like to wear cologne.
Arabs really dress like they are depicted in the movies. (I couldn’t shake the feeling I was always at a costume party.)
The malls look just like they do in America.
Sports cars are a popular choice for young men.
It’s less dusty than I thought. There are more trees than I imagined.
There is almost nothing from home that you can’t find. (That includes Diet Pepsi and Tostidos!)

I did expect this:

There are highways through the desert with virtually nothing between towns and fast, fancy SUVs whizzing by.

My Gracious Hosts!

These dear folks have been graciously hosting me for the last week. This is Mike, Mary, Nadia and David. It's been a place a peace. And they are so upbeat all the time. It's great! It's hard to believe it's almost over.

A Little Touring

My gracious hosts took me to the Oasis - a tourist area that they hadn't been to in a while. When we appoached the first words we read on the sign were "NO ENTRY" but then we read the fine print.

Giving Thanks for Dear Friends

Although Pauline 'threatened' to take photos of the food, we all forgot about cameras until we had finished eating and were in our turkey stupors. I realized this morning again how much I love Thanksgiving because of it's non-commercial aspect. A special thanks to my Brother Dan and sister-in-law, Marcy for making my last Thanksgiving in the States such a memorable one!

Here's the whole crew that was at my house. Left to right:

Kate, Wamuyu (Pauline's cousin), Diane S, Lindsey, Justin B, Marta B, Deborah M, Danny M, David M. Down in front (L to R) is little Zadi S, Imani B, and housemate Pauline. (Matching last initials are families.)

We enjoyed good food and fellowship. Some of the friends around the table are folks I've known for 15 or 17 years!

Preparing for Thanksgiving

While the rest of my world here in Nairobi carries on with life, end of term at Daystar and nearing the end of the month, so fewer cars on the roads (til payday when folks can afford to put petrol back in the tanks) etc, etc. I have been thinking about Thanksgiving.

At first I had no plans for this day which is obviously not celebrated by the Kenyan population. But I warmed to the idea of making a turkey for some American friends and a few non-American ones. A week and a half ago I ordered a turkey from a butcher that a friend told me about. I told the woman at the counter I needed a 7 or 8 kilo turkey. (That's like 16-18 lbs of turkey.) The butcher assured me it would be there on Tuesday or Wednesday this week.

Of course, I misplaced her number so I just went over to get it this morning. The smallest one she had was 12 kilos! I didn't think it would fit in my smallish fridge or my tiny oven. Not to mention I didn't even have enough money with me to get that much turkey.

I called a friend to get the number of another butcher, sure enough that butcher had an 8.25 kilo turkey on hand. I ran straight over to get it.

This afternoon I bid goodbye to my coworker and she asked, "Won't I see you tomorrow?" I reminded her I was cooking a turkey and no she wouldn't see me. (We had a long conversation about turkeys in the morning.)

I walked outside and caught the smell of someone barbecuing meat. I though immediately of my dad roasting a turkey on the grill a few times for a few Thanksgivings. Doubtless I will think of my family members all day tomorrow as I peal potatoes and role out pie crusts.

Last Thanksgiving was the last time all my siblings were together. And the last time that will ever happen as my sister, Lee passed away in May this year. This is definitely that holiday that begs for family in me.

I'll try to post a picture of the gang I have this year at my house.