Feeling the Heat

We walked into the convent after work yesterday to find a chicken in our living quarters. It wasn't a very pretty chicken, and it wasn't a very smart chicken. Mud and dirt covered its disheveled white feathers, and when we tried to chase it out of the house it tried to hide itself behind the bookcase, but only its head would fit so it stood there stubbornly, seeming to say "if I can't see you, you can't see me!".
We finally got the frantic bird out of our residence, and a couple of hours later we sat down at our dinner table. In the middle of the table was our chicken, fried and ready to eat. Jessica, the lady cooking for us confirmed that yes, this was the same chicken that I captured with my camera in the house. It was also delicious.



I feel like I've been writing a lot about food, but a month of matooke (mashed bananas) and pasha (mashed grains) makes my palate crave for a variety of cooking. Lauren Gloria and I visited the Kevina Bakery at Providence Home a few days ago. Here the sisters of Mother Kevin's Convent work with other employees to make loaves, buns, doughnuts and other baked treats. They let us help with making balls of dough that the oven will transform into buns, which are incredible when they're warm.



There's good news for the solar cookers! I've used the tin foil we picked up in Kampala to make a sort of box cooker. Although it only has two panels right now, it's managing well. To better insulate the water I'm trying to boil I covered it with a black plastic bag. The reflectors worked well enough that hot steam from the water meleted the plastic bag yesterday. Hopefully a metal covering and two more reflectors will make this model feasible for wide-spread use.
Furthermore, Lauren helped me to develop a much improved holding mechanism for the parabolic cooker. Previously there was trouble because the focal point ('hot spot') of the reflectors moved, but the pot was stationary. This new holder lets the user move the pot up and down, and east and west, allowing the pot to easily follow the focal point throughout the day.



I've noticed that most of the great sunsets I've seen in the states turn the clouds pink or orange or red. Here there's been a couple of very red sunsets or sunrises, but most of them turn the clouds more yellow or purple (not the blood-red spectacle that I've seen other places). I suppose this could have to do with the clean air. The red may be missing, but the contrast of colors on the clouds is still a beautiful backdrop to the end (or beginning) of the day.