In due course Jan found some time to help me with installing the washing machine, and from then on things looked a lot brighter.
The bathroom floor had still to be done, so once all was installed, joined, and working, I redid it, and it was such a good feeling.
A new problem had now stuck out its head in the form of water syphering through from the road, and down to the bottom part, and the walls first started showing signs of damp. I went up to the munisipality offices to complain, as the little furrow running down passed my house got blocked just before going underneath the road across from my house, and as it on public property, it is the responsibility of the munisipality to keep it open. I have tried before, as they never appeared the previous time I complained, but as a lot of soil gets washed down and pack solidly in front of the hole, I was not very successful.
Oom Vlei, the bloke who was the master of the works came to have a look, and sent down a group of workers to open up the furrow. When the furrow's inlet on the other side of the road is blocked, the water can't get through and run away down to the river, and it accumellates on the side of the road, from where it then drains down to my bottom room, as there is a steep fall down to the river.
It was wonderful to watch the guys work. I don't know if in other countries the same method of working applies, but in South Africa, specially workers from the munisipality have their own special way of doing things. One bloke will work his butt of, while the others stand leaning on their assorted tools, and if no handy leaning-on tool is available, they would either lean against the closest tree, wall, or fence.
What is so strange about this, is like I said, this method of working happens mostly in the munisipality, and what to me is just absolutely amazing, is that it doesn't happen only in one town or area, but all over South Africa.
As there was just too much water coming down, and the furrow running down was too shallow, a lot of water started leaking into my garden, and I went to complain again. Nothing was done, and then Bush told me that the gadget closing off Danny's water was broken, so I went to have a look, and found the pipe and the gadget that was inside the bigger furrow coming down rom the mountain, all broken. I again went to complain, and when after a month nothing was done, I complained again, and then went to see Gary, my neighbor, who had some doings with the water supply.
He phoned Oom Vlei, and some hard words fell, but nothing was done, and when I complained again, I was told that there was no money to buy the gadget, and I wanted to laugh hysterically. So Jan fixed it temporally, and for some time my place was a bit drier, although my almond and lemon trees had died from too much water, as the whole area was now soggy.