The floor in the second bath house is perfect; no stairs needed. I guess letting Red talk to Dawda did the trick! This afternoon I told Dawda that bath house #2 made me happy! He said, “I knew it would make you happy.” I jumped in and said, “I hope bath house #3 makes me happy too!” His reply was, “By all means you will be happy!” Good for me! The sheets of plastic did a good job of protecting the fresh plaster during the storm last night. Dawda also added another layer of blocks to bath house #1, the one in which the walls were so short that we could see from one stall into the other. The addition of the block made us the slightest bit happier.
Steve had class this morning at Yendi Hospital for his continuing education. These classes help when he renews his Ghana nursing licenses. When he got back from class he went to the electric company to make a complaint about the electricity at the mission house. There are 3 phases on the pole so the guy that came out changed our line to another phase which took care of the problem for the moment anyway. The voltage has been so low that we have had to run the generator for the past 3 days. Thankfully we have a generator or more of our appliances would have to be repaired. The electrician said that most likely the fault on that line was from our transformer. Perhaps it would be a good idea to put in a work order for the transformer!
After Steve got the electrical problems solved, Zorash and I headed to the grinding mill. Today we ground the soybeans and corn to which we added salt and sugar. We also ground the roasted peanuts with the addition of powdered milk, sugar and salt. Today a boy who appeared to be about 12 or 13 years old was in charge of the grinder that made the peanut butter. Every couple minutes he would sneak a small handful of peanuts; they were particularly good because they had sugar and milk. When he dipped his hand into the dry peanuts that were coming down the hopper into the grinding wheel he made sure to dip down deep where the sugar had settled to the bottom. He knew he was not supposed to be eating peanuts from a customer but he just could not help himself. There was no way that I was going to rat him out and get him in trouble. I am sure that he was hungry! The family of these boys will farm them out to be apprentices for whoever will take them. They are lucky if they get food to eat!
We spent part of the afternoon trying to get the new sewing machine up and running. Steve had to modify the table and now we are trying to make adjustments to the motor so that the belt will fit. After supper we will change the pulley to a smaller one and hopefully get the extra room we need for the belt. If not we will move to “plan B” and search Yendi for a vehicle belt that might work.
Take care and enjoy your day!
In HIS Service,
Steve, Kandie, and Skeeter
The Monkeyshines
The storm was almost over by the time I got released from prison on good behavior because the storm came at suppertime and Dad will not allow me to be in the house while they are eating supper.
I got wet during the storm because I decided not to go into my little house; instead I sat on my perch at the highest point in my cage. Fortunately I was right next to the roof which gave me some protection from the rain. When my fur gets wet I stink! Yes, I stink! I do not just smell a little bit; I smell awful. You know that you stink when you can smell yourself and I could definitely smell myself.
Mom decided that she was going to try again to get me to get in the bath water by myself! She tempted me with all sorts of stuff floating in the water. The water was warm but I did not care. She got a stool and sat in front of the tub of water and played in the water. I would jump from her back to the towel bar and then back again but I was not getting close to that water! She even went so far as to put her feet in the water to show me that she was enjoying her bath! She can’t trick me! Finally she had enough and she caught me and put me in the water. I must say that this was the best bath with the least amount of fighting that I have ever had. I hung onto the side of the tub for dear life but just between us I was happy to get a bath so I did not smell so bad! The best part of the bath is being wrapped up in a towel afterwards!
Still on strike against baths!
Love, Skeeter
