Mini Update

Sorry for the silence this past week and a half. I guess there is just not too much excitement going on around here to blog about.

My days have been filled with lots of cleaning and organizing of our new apartment. We are getting our first visitors come this week and next. I am trying to keep up with all the dust that flies in. The down side of the beautiful breezes that flow through the house is that they bring in lots and lots of dust. However, I will chose dust over a hot and stuffy house any day especially considering how hot Mombasa is getting now. I take two cold showers a day just to cool down my overheated body and rid my skin of all the sweat.

Kelvin is currently directing a week long youth camp for our church. I opted to stay home for a few days and get some work done. I will head out there on Wednesday morning for the last 3 days of the camp. I am looking forward to connecting with the youth as we have just joined this church and are still making friends.

I had my last ladies meeting for the year on Saturday. We started planning and brainstorming for next year. I want to change the structure of our meetings and try some new things. They also have some ideas that they would like to do next year like volunteer in the community and start a small income generating project so that they can earn a little bit of pocket money. I am really looking forward to spending another year with these lovely ladies.

Well, it's time for me to mop my floors and wash some clothes. See you next week!

The Sweat Moustache is Back

The sweat moustache has returned. The awkward line of tiny sweat beads that adorn the top of your lips is now presenting itself back on my face.

Mombasa is heating up again! And I am spending more time wiping the sweat moustache off my face with my shirt...

I even had a cold shower yesterday. Although it wasn't entirely by choice; power was out in most of Mombasa all day so I couldn't heat water to bathe.

The fan now stays on the medium level all night long and all throughout the day.

Ice Cream shops are becoming more and more tempting by the day.

I take extra trips to the grocery store just to enjoy the air conditioning.

However, I am so so so excited to move next week! The new apartment faces the ocean which is a big deal. Our current apartment does not face the ocean therefore we get no breeze coming through our place. Now, I didn't say that we can view the ocean; we are just facing the direction of the ocean. The new apartment also has lots and lots of big windows that are filled with window panes. There is this new fad in housing in our area. People love these chic sliding windows that are meant for an air conditioned apartment. They look kind of fancy but they are terrible unless, of course, you have an air conditioner (which most people don't). The don't let in any air (as half the window is closed at all times) and they are really tiny. So it makes for a really hot n' stuffy apartment.

That's why I love our new place. Its a bit older but it doesn't have these new fancy schmancy windows that are all the rage. And that means that I get to experience lots of ocean breezes flowing through my house. Ahh sweet breezes...

For now, Kelvin and I will enjoy a nice cold glass of fresh passionfruit juice I made this morning....yum!

Mombasa's Seasons

Mombasa has three seasons, according to me, and this is how I have classified them:

The warm and dryish season. 
The hot and humid season. 
The painfully hot and soaking in sweat season. 

Currently, we are entering the hot and humid season. The warm and dryish season has ended. It usually lasts about 4ish months during our summer months. This hot and humid season will last till about February where we will enter the painfully hot and soaking in sweat season. Thankfully, that lasts about 2 or three months and then we slowly transition through the hot and humid season and then back to the warm and dryish season.

So what does hot and humid really mean? It means that:

• I still need to heat water for a bucket bath. Its just a tad too chilly to bath in cold water. 
• I sweat when I cook but at least drops of sweat don't end up in the food. 
• I can wear clothes twice before they smell too bad. In the painfully hot season, you can't even wear them for half a day before having to change and wash them. 
• Sometimes, I can wear pants at night and feel comfortable. 
• If the power goes out at night, I won't wake up because the fan turned off. 
• The fan stays on low. At times, we even turn it off. 
• If I walk outside for more than 10 mins, I start sweating profusely. 
• My shoulders often get a nice sweaty rub when I get in squishy matatus and the people next to me have sweaty armpits. 
• At about 4am,  I pull a sheet over me. 
• Half my fridge is full of bottles of cold water. 

One things I do love about all the seasons in Mombasa is that the sun is always shining!!!!! We get very few days of clouds, rain, or overcast. It also makes for some pretty incredible sunsets!!

Tumechoka

Tumechoka. We. are. tired. 

Just after taking this photo, Kelvin says to me, 

"Baby, you need to wipe all the sweat off your head. Your face is shiny." 

People, we are tired. Really tired. 

What do I mean by that? We are tired of just life. Kelvin and I both feel exhausted with everything - work, the boys, the ladies, the HEAT, mombasa, our church, the food, finances, and well, everything. 

This morning, Kelvin woke up with a sore throat and a stuffed nose. The fan is giving him so many troubles at night. The tough part is that the fan is so necessary. I woke up the second the power went out last night and immediately started sweating. In the mornings, I find that I wake up more tired and dehydrated than before I went to bed. Yes, the heat has been horrible. I mean horrible. (Canadians, don't even begin to complain about the snow and rain. At least you have the option of a warm house. We don't have cool air. Ever.)

Yesterday, I had a rough morning before heading to church (I believe it was the devil scheming). I was in tears as I was sweating, trying to muster up any energy, battling a heat headache, not able to find the right clothes to wear, struggling with my bra (yes, my bra), and general weariness. I am so glad I pushed through and went to church. Church was SO refreshing for both Kelvin and I. We really needed it. On the way home though, I was drained. I was so hot, still had my headache, tired, emotional, and tired. I got home and passed out on the couch. We didn't eat lunch till 4. 

We love our work, but we are a little tired of it. We love our house, but we are tired. Mombasa is great, but I am tired of it. I remember other missionaries telling me that after every 3 months, they start to get weary and tired and must get a away even if it is only for a couple days. That is where we are at. 

Every morning, as we are eating breakfast, we do a lent devotional which is preparing our hearts for Easter. As we are walking along with Jesus, as he walks in his final hours, we are amazed at His strength. Particularly, his weakest moment in Gethsemane has really struck us. The moment where He feels He can go on no longer and asks for this cup to be removed from Him. At that moment, He must have mustered up some supernatural strength from His Father above to say, "Yet not my will be done, but yours." He knows what is going to happen. He knows the cup won't be taken away from Him. But He draws strength from The Father to do what He is suppose to. 

Kelvin and I are tired. But in our weak moments, we have decided to draw our strength from God trusting that He will indeed grant us the rest we need and renew our energy. 

Power Outage Ranting

Power outages are the norm here. I don't understand why they are so frequent and unexpected but they are. Sometimes they go out for brief periods and sometimes they go out all day. If the power was to go out for a whole day at home, you bet that we would have plenty of notice to arrange and prepare ourselves. At times Kenya Power publishes it in the newspaper that they will have power rationing or outages in certain areas on certain days but I find even those reports to be unreliable. They will tell you that 'Bamburi' will be out of power on this day at this time. Bamburi is a big place and it is not all on one power line so its unlikely that ALL of Bamburi will have a power outage. In our old apartments, sometimes your power would be out but the people above you would have power. It's frustrating.

I have become used to it but today, I am really struggling with it.

It went out at 9 this morning and I had a bad feeling that it was going to be out all day. Sure enough, 3 and a half LONG hours later and it is still out. Meanwhile my fridge is melting and everything in my freezer is de-thawing. I have used the little bit of battery I have left on my computer to charge my kindle and write this blog. But can I tell you the worst part of it!? It's ridiculously hot...


It's uncomfortably hot. I was laying on the couch sweating profusely. Don't think about having a shower or wetting your hair, it only makes you hotter in this humidity. Now I am craving some cold water but my fridge is only giving me warm water. I have a headache from the heat. I don't feel like moving or doing anything. I am bored. I don't even want to snuggle with my cat since i know she will just heat me up with her fur.

So I am getting out. I am heading down to the nearest cafe that is air conditioned and has a generator (just in case their power goes out) to sit, have a cool drink, and read. I am actually wearing shorts and a tank top too.

Thanks Kenya Power and Mombasa heat.

Insights into my everyday life

Some Canadian friends of mine, who live here in Mombasa, recently posted this list on their blog of how their lives have changed since they have moved here. I couldn't help but giggle through this list as so much of it rings true in my life. I think I have been here so long that I have forgotten that many of these things are not normal for Canadians. Now, they are my norm.  


Here is the list * my additions are in italics


I am tanned. In the weirdest of places. Permanent sandal tan...
My hands always smell like bleach. Bleach is one of my best friends here. I use it for almost everything.
I buy my produce from a person. 
I buy my meat at joint I would have never stepped into back home. 
Sweat... I could write an entire essay on sweating in Mombasa. It's nasty. 
My kids pretend to speak Swahili when they role play. I don't have kids but I am sure they will actually speak in swahili. 
The call to prayer is my clock. and my reminder to pray and study my bible
If I want hot water I have to boil it. Love my kettle. Best appliance I have ever purchased.
I can feel cold when it is 27 degrees. Weird, I know! Oh how I long for that temperature right now!
I home school my kids. Not sure if I will do this or not.
Explaining how one schools one's children at home is a daily event. I can only imagine the perplexed looks she gets over this one.
I am an employer. Currently  I don't employ anyone but, at one point, I was employing 5 people at my house.
Most my clothes have been made for me. Most thrift stores wouldn't accept my ratty clothes.
I clench my teeth often when I'm out. Processing about my surroundings. Yes.....all the time
Eat mango and pineapple everyday. Lets not forget the watermelon, bananas, oranges and passionfruits. 
Half of the things I cook are a flop...I used to know how to cook. If I cooked canadian food, they would flop too. I have learned to cook Kenyan food. It's easier and less flopable.  
Nairobi is my Regina. Nairobi is my Vancouver or Kelowna.
I haven't baked cookies in 7 months. I actually bake alot. Today I am making a big banana cake. 
Swallow a malaria pill once a week, and trick my 2 year into it too. I don't take malaria pills but sleeping under a net is a must and we constantly have a can of DOOM handy in the house. 
Haven't been in a Walmart for a long time. I'm good with that. I miss Walmart. A lot. 
I bath instead of shower. If I want hot water, I bath in a bucket. Otherwise, it's a cold shower. 
Water is used with thought. Water is precious. You don't realize it until you don't have clean, unlimited water that flows from your tap. 
The wind is a gift from God. Truly.
I live with ants. Although it has gotten better in the last while. Still I'm always thinking, "Will the ants come if I leave this here?"Amazing how tolerable I have become with bugs. Thumb-sized cockroaches don't freak me like they used to.
Our family can eat out for 8-10 dollars. Nice. I like that one. Kelvin and I eat out at about $2 in Kongowea. Although, I am becoming more cheap. I can make a big meal at home for about 70cents. 
Years of being told to drink my water...and I do now...without making myself. I think I drink too much water for my own good, if that is even possible. 
I haven't driven in 7 months or more. I really miss driving and having that freedom. 
I rarely wear makeup(hard to apply on top of sweat) and my hair is always frizzy. My hair goes bonkers here. I do wear make up but it melts away after an hour or so. 
Can't throw food away like I used to. Not when you have friends who are not even eating...
Often don't know what anyone is saying. Smile and nod. Yes, this is how I get through my days.
Sleeping under a heavy blanket has become my idea of a luxury. Oh to be cold! 
My feet are NEVER cold. When they are (in Nairobi), it's heaven. Lately my feet have been burning hot. Actually, I run them under cold water several times a day especially before I sleep. If I wake up in the middle of the night to use the toilet, I must wet my feet.
I live in a city. Of around 800,000 people. Castlegar can't even compare.
I live in an apartment. I love the security but hate the lack of space and privacy and having my own yard. 
I know some Swahili. Some being, a little. I know quite a bit but still not enough.
My kids drink soda...often. I drink a bottle or two of soda a day. Worse, I call it soda instead of pop. 
Driving on the left side of the road is normal now. Yes, I forget that other people do it differently.
Jon and I are falling asleep every night at 9:00pm or earlier. I am zonked by 9:30 with Kelvin.
I don't have a landline. i.e. I have a cell phone...of my own...that I know how to use. We have 4 cell phones for the different lines and service providers.
I have a gas stove.  I light it with a match.
No drier for the laundry. Which I don't mind. The sun is fine. Just gotta make sure you turn your clothes inside out or the sun will discolour them.
We do have a washing machine but most of the time our clothes are washed by hand. Washing machine=glorious. Although I still have to wash a few things by hand too.
My bath tube is in a different room from the toilet. Handy. Not my case. In my old house, the shower head was directly over the toilet. Not so handy. Right now, my shower has no curtain so gets everything wet. Annoying.
I sleep under a net. And feel like a princess...a princess who won't get malaria. 
I never wear pants. Too hot to.
Monkeys come visit us about once a week. No squirrels. We don't have so may animals around us except the odd herd of goats.
Most of my friends don't have an oven...nor would they want one. They would rather have a large sound system. Weird, I know. 
I carry my two year old on my back with a piece of fabric knotted around my shoulders. Definitely, when I have babies. 


Hope that gives you a glimpse of my lovely Kenyan life.

Uncomfortable Heat and Peeing the Bed

Mombasa has hit the uncomfortable zone. We are in the peak of the hot season. Right now, just the thought of putting on long pants makes me squirm. I prefer to stay in my house as much as I can so that I can lay around in my short shorts and a tank top. You can't step outside without acquiring the dreaded sweat moustache. 

The fan is constantly on high in my house. It's pretty much unbearable without it. The problem comes in when the power goes out. Which is what happened last night. 

The second the power went out and the fan turned off, I woke up noticing an instant increase in the temperature. I tried to fall back asleep but I was just too hot. I thought about opening the door to my deck and risk letting all the mosquitos in just so that I could catch a breeze, but I wasn't willing to suffer through malaria in this heat. I got up and went to get a small towel. I soaked the small towel in water and came back to bed. I spread the wet towel out over my legs hoping to drop my body temperature. It worked for a while. Then I got up again to wet it again. I must have gotten up 9 times just to keep myself cool. I barely got any sleep. 

As Kelvin and I were having breakfast this morning, I asked him if he slept alright. He told me he slept just fine. I began to explain to him that I barely slept cause it was so hot. He then budded in, "yah I know. I heard you every time you got up. You even susued (peed) the bed." 

"What!? I did not susu. I haven't peed the bed since I was a tiny girl." 

"Well, I reached over and saw that your side of the bed was all wet. Are you sure you didn't susu?"  

"Yes I am sure!! It was just the wet towel that must have gotten the bed a bit wet. Besides, if I had susued the bed, why didn't you do anything about it? you are just ok sleeping in a bed that has been susued in?" 

"Yah, its ok with me. Its just you. I don't mind. Plus susu at night doesn't smell." 

"What!? Where did you get that information from? It smells the same as in the day." 

"No it doesn't. That's just a fact."

I giggled at my husband. He comes up with some crazy things sometimes. But that's why I love him. If he had peed the bed, I would wake him up, pull off the sheets, put the in the washing machine right away, take the mattress and put it outside to air out, put down our guest mattress and sleep the rest of the night on it. I couldn't sleep on a bed that was full of fresh pee. 

Now you have a small glimpse of my daily life. Fascinating?