Rain and new digs

There really hasn't been too much to write about as we are in the rainy season and all activities seem to die off. The amounts have been fairly spectacular at times, just last week we received 354 mm in about 3 hrs. During that week we had some pretty heavy rains where we were averaging about 200 - 250 mm a day.

Like most rainfall here in the tropics, it fell in the afternoon for the most part.....on the way to and from lunch and on the way home. My scooter still hasn't recovered from doubling as a sea-doo and I have absolutely no electrical functions operating. No lights what so ever. I'm down to using arm signals for turning and stopping and the occasional finger gesture for those who aren't paying close enough attention. No Dum Fuk(or is that a Vietnamese name?) that doesn't mean you are numbuh 1!!

We're looking at staying another year as we've both been offered jobs at the same school. While we aren't making anywhere near the wages we were when we were first here, they are still comfortable and there are really no major reasons for us to go back to Canada. So, now we are looking for a newer place to live, closer to work. We are considering two places, one on the 12th and the other on the 23rd floor. One actually has a western stove with a full sized oven and 4 burner range, the first we've ever seen here outside of a store or restaurant.

We are renting a house right now, but it is too big and therefore too hard to keep clean. It's an older place and as a result things are starting to fall apart...the water tanks are always failing to fill, the wiring is iffy at best. I like hearing snap, crackle and pop in my cereal bowl, not coming out of outlets.

We also want to live in a place that is waterfall free. But I guess that is what happens, when you put in a single drain that is no larger than the average ant urethra.... I kid you not. This is the size of the pipe that drains an area 12' x 20' on the fourth floor patio and 12' x 15' patio off our bedroom on the second floor. It never dawned on the people building these places, that they should drill drain pipes into the base of the walls so the water could flow into gutters and directly into the storm sewers. But then grounding wires hasn't occurred either.