Monday, June 11, 2012

No Luz, No Agua, NO MAS!

Tomorrow we leave the Dominican Republic. Anyone who has ever moved (presumably most of you) knows that means today is very important. Since our ride to the airport will be picking us up at 5:00 a.m. tomorrow, we have to make sure we wrap everything up today. While this statement may not sound particularly exciting to my North American audience, I need to point out that it's easier said than done.

Three days ago the power went out. We didn't notice right away because of the back up batteries, but we noticed when the batteries died! Electricity is a convenience in many ways, but here there are some practical almost-necessities attached to electricity. It was a bummer to realize we wouldn't have internet or warm water, but it was INTOLERABLE to think the ceiling fans wouldn't work. We've re-entered the hot season in the DR, and even with the ceiling fan whirring away at top speed it can be hard to sleep.

Fortunately the power company actually responded to our request for repair. I suspect someone else on our block was bugging them non-stop to make sure it got fixed right away. We spent Saturday away from home with Alberto and his family, so we didn't have to sit around the house and sweat it out.


True to form Kisha and I woke up around 6 or 6:30 this morning. The big goal was to do the last load of laundry, clean the house (which means soap, water, and buckets), and empty and clean out the fridge. The only problem is that there's no water this morning. Methinks the guy who waters the garden left the hose on last night, and he emptied both the cistern and the tank above the house. Probably the public water system isn't working today, as well.

I say NO MAS! It's not supposed to be like this. Some stuff is just supposed to work, and when it doesn't work there should be an easy way to fix it. And if those first two things don't go as planned there should be someone I can call who can fix it the first time. I would be messed up about this, but I'm getting on a plane tomorrow, so I hardly see how it matters. I will miss the people (because our friends are AWESOME), but I won't miss the amenities!

2 comments:

  1. We woke up bright and early and said, "Hooray, Johnston's come home tomorrow!" Can't wait to hug your face!

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