Just a Walk Around the Block

Some not so unusual events of the last two weeks.

I was sitting listening to the Bishop and a 3 1/2 foot long snake came through the window into the office. It went behind a bookshelf, and we spent the next half hour trying to coax it out with a cloth dipped in kersone. Finally we gave up and went back to work.

As I was walking to work the other day I walked by a man ride a motorcycle, which was going slow and evidently having trouble. I figured he might be needing assistance to push it to the service pump nearby, so I looked back to see him stick his nose into the gas tank to see if there was any left. He got back on it, and I saw him continue slowly along the road.

We pumped gas the other day. A full tank in a Beamer that the secretary will have to sell to fund his son's wedding and daughter's coming child. With gas at $1.10 a liter, he paid 7,453 rupees to fill the tank. That is easily a week's work.

I went to a ream of paper for the copy machine. 500 sheets for $5. The owner was not in the book shop at first, but when he saw me inspecting the open door and the shop with the lights off, he came from where he was talking to friends nearby, turned the lights on and welcomed me, in English. When I told him what I wanted, he said alright, one moment, told me the price, left for another shop and came back with the ream.
I tried to pay him with a twenty, which I knew was too much but it was all I had. He asked if I had anything smaller, the cash register was not working recently he said. Having already realized the difficulty, I acknowledged my mistake, "It's early now isn't it. No problem." I went to the service station across the street and got change from one of the pump attendants, came back and completed the purchase.
Ream purchased.
I walked away, and then came back, realizing I had forgotten the receipt and needed it for reimbursement. I asked for the receipt, and made it clear I wasn't in need of anything great. I was pleased to have the written receipt, which was made from the receipt book.