Rain

It has been very dry. From the second week of January to the second week of March we have probably had no more than five afternoon storms. I cannot remember any period of prolonged rain.

The locals tell us that the big rainy season is from late March to early May, or there abouts. Most of the year's rain will fall in this time. There will also be the small rains in November.

It is now mid March. Fields have already been ploughed in preparation for the sowing of maize after the rains come. I have been enthralled watching our neighbour plough his fields with oxen pulling a wood and metal plough. He whistles commands in different pitches and the oxen deviate one way or another. An assistant directs the plough through the dry ground. What looks like a very difficult process is done efficiently and quickly by these skilful farmers. Many crops are grown in the region but maize is the staple grain. It is removed from the cob, dried in the sun and stored for up to a year. Many small mills can be found that grind the maize into cornmeal - the major ingredient of ugali.

On Tuesday this week it rained for about thirty minutes in the afternoon. Yesterday (Wednesday) there were even longer periods of rain and the power outage began at 6pm. Today, it has been cloudy with short but significant falls. The power has not come back on.
It is now 7:30pm. It is raining very heavily, accompanied by frequent flashes of lightning. We still have no power.

So here we are, March 13, and perhaps the rainy season has started.

Unfortunately, it seems as though every time it rains we have power failures. Without power we have no pump. This means that we get no water through our taps. So no power means no running water. For the farmers' sake we are hoping for a good rainy season but for our sanity we hope the rain doesn't go on for too long.

Nature is helping us understand the Kenyan way of life - no electricity and no running water. The only bright spot at the moment is that we have to eat all of the ice cream in the refrigerator, otherwise it will be mush tomorrow.

STOP PRESS: it is now Friday and the rain has increased in intensity each day - yes, the rainy season has started (and still no power).

Enjoy your utilities.