The Fun Of It All

Okay, how long does it take to find baking soda in the supermarket? Answer: About 20 minutes. First you start at the Pharmacy because you have been told that it’s found there - not in the food section. Of course you can’t read anything so you look for something that might be it. (Sounds as thought you could kill yourself this way.) Then it’s off to the baking section in hopes that you misunderstood its whereabouts. Back to the pharmacy to use what you think is the Spanish word for baking soda but to no satisfaction. Maybe just maybe it’s in the toothpaste section. There you find toothpaste with the correct word on it so with toothpaste in hand you head off to the pharmacy once again to use the correct word and find the treasure. One box of baking soda – twenty minute job.

We had afternoon plans but I still had time to ride the bus into town and walk to the language school. All this to see how much time we needed to allow ourselves on our first day of school. The ride was 16 minutes, the walk 8 minutes. With a pocket full of change and some extra time I decided to duck into a local café before paying my 40 cents to ride the bus back. A cup of coffee and two small cookies should do the trick but to my dismay when it was served it took absolutely all my change. I tried to explain that I didn’t want the cookies so I could ride the bus home but there was that language thing again. Needless to say the two mile walk home in the blazing sun taught me a lesson learned the hard way – keep a few pesos tucked away for a rainy day.

Last minute shopping took us to Sears where we finally found a crock-pot. Then the chair caught our attention. We both really fell for it. It would make a perfect addition to our house but could we afford it? An English speaking clerk was called in to confirm that yes it was 103 dollars. A bit out of our range but its wicker style, round shape and additional foot-stool made it worth it. We decided to take the plunge as Diana left to finish up at the Mega store. What was my name? Where did we live? Would this be cash? I handed over the money but to no avail. They wouldn’t take it. The English speaking clerk was called back in. Not 103 dollars but 1300 dollars. I slinked away to purchase our 8 dollar plastic chair from Mega.

If nothing else all this “fun” reminds us that we are aliens and strangers in this world. We just happen to be getting a bigger dose than normal.