Day 16

"Hey, come on" Jeff said, as I opened the storage box,"let's go to Kitale".  Not falling for that old trick, I said, "I already gave blood at the office"  But his suave manner overcame my hesitation and we headed off for town.  "This time can we take the road?", I pleaded.  "Only if we can find it" he says".  It was raining hard....hard being relative here, if you can still breath, it is only hard.....so finding the road wasn't as easy as you might think.  The rain water needs some place to go and so it takes the easiest route.....unlike Jeff.  He said he was confident that we were on the road....but I had my doubts as two kayakers came by.  There was one advantage to the water; I couldn't see the craters and therefore didn't waste all that energy on bracing myself.

Once in Kitale, we tied up to the nearest dock and let Carla and Snake Charmer out to fend for themselves, while Jeff and I stayed in the truck to see how they faired.  Confident that they weren't mistaken for riffraff and actually got into the shop without hurting anyone, we untied and followed the current back to Boreholers to conficate some more of his tools....which was easier this time since he wasn't there to ride herd on us.  This time we got a cement mixer....now for my Kenyan friends, the mixer was a machine with a motor, so we were not kidnapping anyone.  Now Toyota had enough room for maybe up to ten people, but I don't think that the manufacturer took into account that there might be a cement mixer inside.  Probably just an oversite that they have corrected by now.  So, by the time we got the mixer and some other tools on board, Jeff had figured out how to run Toyota from the outside....which wouldn't normally be so bad, except now the kayakers were making fun of him.  Never-the-less, we made it back to the shop and after some interesting conversation, decided not to put the girls on the rooftop carrier.....who'd a thought it would become such an issue.  Anyway, with the three of them confortably sandwiched into the front seat, I snuggled quietly into the mixer anticipating my rapid demise from contusions.  Since I couldn't see, I have no idea how Jeff managed to navigate...and I do mean navigate home. I emerged with only a slight concussion, happy not to have swam home.
 Today another ministry.....populated with more of those disturbed missionary types came out "play" with the kids.  A few hours, later, those still standing were evacuated back to safety....while their casualty count was high, it was nice to be relieved on the front lines for awhile. 
So, while we grumble and mumble, it does feel like we are exactly where we should be, and that is a good thing.  In America we often are confused by what we think is important and get distacted by all the glitz.  Here things are basic and it is much easier to separate the important from the fluff.
By the way, Marlies came down with malaria today......what a country!!!