No electricity here yesterday from about 3 pm until midnight. And there won’t be any power again today. To be honest, we are all a teensy bit sick and tired of it.

Yesterday, as soon as the power shut down, I put the kids in the car and sought distraction. We had to drive even more cautiously than usual, though, as all the traffic lights were off, of course.

We wandered around Orca a bit. It’s a Lebanese owned store that is kind of like a Bed, Bath and Beyond, only 10 times smaller and 10 times more expensive. We bought a few extra candles there, though, as there was a 30% off sale on them.

The fact that something I actually needed was on sale tricked me into thinking it was my lucky day. It wasn’t. I didn’t find any D cell batteries at all in any of the shops we tried.

So, I finally gave up and we headed over to the Rec Center. I figured that the kids could swim while I worked out in the gym. But the power was off there, too. And no WAY do I work out in 105° F heat with no air-con. And I hate swimming. (I am secretly convinced that I died of drowning in a previous life. The fact that I don’t even believe in reincarnation is no obstacle)

We ended up over at the CCF (the French Cultural Center). Now, just because it’s called that, please do not imagine a place full of blindingly white French folks gathered together to sip fine vintage wines and congratulate themselves heartily on all the Great Culture that they have created (the Louvre, Moliére, Monet, Haute Couture, the metric system, big metal towers that attract hoardes of toursts and tiny cups of really strong coffee)

In fact, when we showed up, we were the only expats there. The outer courtyard was full of Burkinabé people enjoying an exhibit of the work of local cartoonists/ caricaturists. When we entered the library, it was full of Burkinabé children quietly reading. This is very typical. The CCF is used much more by locals than by expats, as it is intended as a sort of community outreach center. Yes, the French high school puts on their school musical there, but local dance companies and theatre groups are more often the performers on stage.

We stayed in the air-conditioned library, reading comic books and magazines, then went on over to the Verdoyant to eat a quick dinner of (yes, it’s true) ice cream.

When we got back home, we lit some candles and played board games until about midnight. Then the power came back on!

Today’s Ouaga Rumour Mill bulletin is that the Part we are all waiting for is coming from Germany. Of course, there is no direct Germany to Burkina flight, so it has to pass through Paris, anyway.

The Part did NOT arrive on last night’s plane, so it will come on Sunday night. We hope.