It's like giving your baby to a stranger

Yesterday my husband and I went to the grocery store. As seems to be the norm nowadays, we had yet another deluge. So, my husband, being the gentleman that he is, ran out into the storm to retrieve the car and pick me up. Within those few seconds that he was gone, a gentleman tapped on the shoulder, asked to hold his baby, and without waiting for a response, handed me the little one - I'm guessing a 6-month old - and he promptly ran off into the rain. Befuddled, I just stood there. Thoughts that crossed my mind - gee, I must look like a trustworthy enough person for someone to give me his child without knowing me, and then, oh, goodness, did this man just leave his baby with me??? Well, we got the groceries packed up and were ready to go. No sign of the man. My hubby was a little concerned the baby was getting too comfy, laying his head on my shoulder and snuggling up nice and tight. (What a wonderful warm fuzzy feeling - sorry for the 80s terminology) A few anxious minutes later, the dad showed up, thanked me, and took his baby back.

Just another one of those experiences I never thought I'd have. But, it's nice to know that there is still a place in the world where people still trust other people enough to give their baby to a stranger and feel confident that no harm will be done.

Of course, had the guy run off and left the baby with me, hmmmm... now that would have been a dilemma.

Water Crisis in PTY

Well, it's been 24 days now since we were informed that the water treatment facility was damaged due to unusually high levels of sediment seeping into the filtration machinery. Since then, water production has been at about 10%. Many in the city have been without water completely or have had to deal with water outages for 27 hours at a time. Those of us who live in buildings with reserve tanks have been fortunate enough to not feel the full effects of this crisis, even considering that the water supply to our neighborhood will be cut for 48 hours today and tomorrow. Of course, we have been asked to take voluntary measures to protect the water supply, but we are giving up very little in comparison to some.

However, now, the yellow water is reaching us all. We've been asked to boil water or buy it in order to drink. Yesterday, I stood in line to buy water at one of the few grocery stores that still had water available for purchase. We were limited to 30 20 oz. bottles per family, 24 of which had to be imported French water - yes, liquid gold.

The authorities claim that this is an act of nature, and that they are doing all they can to solve the problem. Unfortunately, the weather hasn't cooperated as they had planned. Apparently, the machinery can't be fixed until water levels decline. Water levels can't decline until "winter" (rainy season) ends. Rainy season usually ends in mid-December, but we continue to have rain almost daily. So, the question remains, will the authorities be able to find a way to solve this problem despite nature's capriciousness?