Laundry

Just when I thought my work was getting back on track I got a call from one of the women working at IRD to go straight home and that IRD was closed. By the time I got the message Mirabelle and I were at AEM, talking to some of the ladies. Today was kind of important because there is a community meal where everyone comes to eat together and it is mildly a right of passage for a new comer to be seen eating with people with HIV. So it was very important for me, but the women understand that my skin makes me an easy target. So I’m on house arrest, but as you can see with internet, which I bought yesterday! I didn’t think it was going to possible because usually you have to sign up for 3 months of internet but I just wanted one, so I thought they would say no, but we talked to about 5 different men and finally paid about 20 bucks and now I have semi bad/good internet. Downtown, some policemen are shooting, so mirabelle’s mom has been locked in her office for the last three hours.

Since I’m stuck at home, in a mildly bad situation since I don’t really have very much food here, and no money (I was going to exchange some today but that obviously didn’t work out) so I decided to try and do my laundry. I have two large buckets here for washing and the water spout outside. Its about 102 degrees right now so I put the buckets on the ground and waited for them fill up. One of them is broken along the edge and when I tried to lift them, I stopped to make sure no one was looking….i couldn’t lift it. Not only as it heavy but it was really wide in the shape and broken. I ended up having to get a smaller bucket and fill the second big bucket with a big of the water to be able to lift them. Then I dumped a ton of powdered soap in and all the clothes and sheets. I spent maybe an hour and a half, scrubbing and rubbing and washing and twisting. In the heat I was sweating like a pig. At one point I also dropped a shirt and it was COVERED in dust so I had to start all over again. Afterward I left like I had just worked out I was so tired. I also desperately needed a shower.