No more social worker

Thursday 10.02.11

I was up early again as usual and went and sat by the swimming pool with my book.  The temperature is beautiful and you would never believe it is not heated!  It is warmer than any heated pool I have been in back home, and all because of the sun!  Mel came over and gave us a bit of a debrief on what she has been up to in the last few days.  Unfortunately, it didn’t amount to a great deal of work.  But she did come dressed well and appropriately for work for the first time, so we thought maybe things were looking up.  We decided to see how the day went with her, and reassess the situation at the end of the day.

I had organised mum to put some money into Western Union for us, so we went up to Nyali Nakumatt to pick that up, and I was able to pay Tammi back the money I owed her and also keep some for myself, hopefully enough to last me until the end of my trip.  We also used the internet cafe briefly and then did some supermarket shopping.

Back home again, we noticed Mel had not been doing all that much since we left, and Tammi finally reached a decision.  Mel would be let go tonight.  So after work Mel came in and Tammi spoke to her about how it wasn’t working, and that perhaps it was best to let Mel go.  Surprisingly, Mel then provided the name of another social worker that was apparently interested in the job.  It looks as though Mel was wanting to return home anyway and has been trying to find a replacement.  Mel said she has already run out of money and it’s only been two weeks since being paid, and she has not yet paid rent even.

So after a rough week or so, it seems Tammi and Mel have reached an agreement and Mel will keep her months wage and not pay her rent, and return to Nakuru within a week.  Tammi is feeling so much more relieved to have that over and done with.  Now it is time to start looking for a new social worker, probably part time for a while.  Omosh is aware of a social worker also so Tammi will interview her at some stage also.

Later that night we made dinner, and received a phone call from Morris.  Finally Tammi’s luggage had arrived in and we told him to expect Tammi Monday morning.  Tammi is so relieved that it has arrived, but it’s yet to be seen whether she can collect it or not!  We then watched a DVD and headed off to bed for the night.  Tomorrow we are heading to the NGO (Non Government Organisation) office to apply for NGO status for The Upinde Centre.  I also want to head back to White Sands to the beach for some photos and a walk up the beach.