Daily life for Cubans grows more dire as oil embargo continues

As the U.S. and Cuba hold conversations to decide the island’s fate, food and medicine there are scarce or unaffordable, and simple tasks like cooking are burdensome.

HAVANA — Whenever they get power in their house — even if it’s 2 a.m. — Erisander Sánchez and his wife scramble to cook, do laundry and charge their cellphones.

These periods of electricity last anywhere from two to five hours, so sometimes the rice ends up half cooked and the beans still hard.

“Beyond the physical exhaustion, it’s the psychological exhaustion that weighs down on us,” Sánchez, 33, said. “It’s the uncertainty of not knowing when we will have power ... you can’t plan anything.”

They can’t keep food in the refrigerator because it goes bad. And it’s not easy to find food he can afford.

Sánchez works in construction and doesn’t have a steady job. He can’t afford to buy milk for his kids, 5 and 10 years old, so he buys yogurt from someone who makes it at home. He often buys food in mini-markets that people set up at home.