On a (somewhat) lighter note...
Apparently, the short rains are over. Which, despite the resulting sunny, clear, warm weather beautifying Addis, is bad news for me. Because not only do I not have running water anymore, the water reservoir on our compound has run dry.Yes, that's right: I can't even take one of those bucket showers I love so much. Nor can laundry be done, dishes washed, or the toilet flushed. It's a good week. (!Warning: this was sarcasm. Maybe I should have a "sarcasm font" to make things easier.)
It's interesting how an obsession with things I used to take for granted can consume my everyday life here (say, the bathrooms.) Everything is harder, relatively speaking. Such as not knowing whether you'll have water, electricity, propane, certain groceries --this past week, for example, there was none of the milk that I buy in three grocery stores in my area, and there is also a sugar shortage. It just requires a lot more energy and time to keep daily life tolerable and a household running, even one as uncomplicated as mine. Thoughtless, effortless tasks like brushing your teeth and washing your hands suddenly require thought and effort.
I have posted on this before, I think, but I can't stress enough how dismal it is that less than thirty percent of Addis Ababa has access to running water in the home. Thirty percent! And that's in the CAPITAL CITY. I don't know how people do it, people who support entire extended families on much, much less, in neighborhoods, regions, or other cities where running water is not even an option.
This simple water problem complicates my daily life, as did the three months during which I had no running water, and the five weeks I was without propane for cooking. It affects my productivity (hell, I'm sitting here at work fuming and posting about it), my energy levels, my ability to work and think on other things, and it affects my overall sense of well-being.
So, if I can feel this small problem so acutely in my extremely privileged daily life, it leads me to think about how the majority of people get by, mentally, emotionally, and physically, in much more demanding circumstances, and with much less to work with...which gets me thinking about cause-and-effects of cyclical, entrenched poverty: The less you have, the harder you have to work to keep it going, and the more energy and resources it will require to maintain and then improve your circumstances.
Small, carpeted steps for the wealthy = barbed-wire concrete embankments for the poor. With rabid dogs waiting on the other side.
posted by Margot @ 5:45 AM
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