Good News Bad News

Mr. Deep and I have arrived back in Joburg. Things here are dryer than ever. Only this time it's not due to lack of humidity.

Good News: 
The flights were smooth and we were able to fit all of our luggage in the Uber.  The massive amount of luggage was due to a tremendous amount of shopping while in the U.S.A. Also, many friends made generous donations of items for the less fortunate here in Joburg. We received puzzles and books for the library at the Diepsloot Combined School and donations of goods for the Santa Shoe boxes. We were also given lots of kids clothing that I will find good homes for. 

Bad News: 
There was no water at our house when we got here. Meaning when we turned on the taps nothing came out. 

Worse News:
As I write this over 24 hours later we still have no water. 

Not having water when you return from flying half way around the world is right up there with not having any electricity on Christmas. It's poor timing. The only thing you really want to do after such a long trip is take a shower and unfortunately that was not in the cards for us upon arrival. 

Good News: 
We belong to a gym and we were able to shower there.

When you live in South Africa and you don't have water or electricity you assume there is some kind of outage that affects more than just your house. So I checked with our neighbors is to see if they had water. 

Bad News: 
They said they had water. This is obviously good news for them.

Good News:
Our neighbor kindly offered that we could come over and shower. As mentioned we went to the gym but it is still nice to have good neighbors who offer such things.

Bad News: 
Yesterday was Sunday so getting a technician out to examine the situation was unlikely.

Good News: 
Even though it was Sunday Joburg Water said they would send a technician.

Bad News: 
They didn't.

Similar to the Christmas situation Mr. Deep and I wondered if the lack of water had anything to do with an unpaid invoice. We pay the landlord and she pays the utility BUT sometimes the utility forgets to send out invoices and without an invoice people can't pay in a timely fashion. 

Good News: 
The landlord followed up with Joburg water and was told that they did not shut off the water due to lack of payment. 

Bad News: 
If they had shut off the water they could likely quickly and easily turn it back on. Now, we are left to wonder what exactly is wrong? Why is this problem only affecting our house and how long will it take to fix? 

Good News: 
At 1:00 p.m. (about 26 hours after we arrived home) security called and said Joburg Water was at the gate! I quickly buzzed them in and then went outside to wait for them. 

Bad News: 
Ten minutes went by and no one arrived. I thought maybe they were examining some issue in another part of the complex. But then security called again and said one of the guys in the bakkie (truck) did not have ID on him and therefore Joburg Water was not allowed to enter the grounds. 

I would certainly be willing to put my safety (as well as the safety of everyone else who lives in the estate) aside if the man without ID has knowledge in the art and science of how to get water running again.

Bad News:
Security does not see it that way.

Good News: 
We normally have running water. There are many people who don't. I have to be careful about who I complain about this problem to because I don't want to seem insensitive to those who live in shacks and who NEVER have running water and electricity. 

Bad News: 
We still don't have water.