Today has had a really productive start ... This morning we took the truck in to have it serviced (oil change, slight leak in oil, filter change, etc)... I dropped it off, they told me it will be ready this afternoon AND they take Visa!!. Now, will it really be ready this afternoon is the question...
Then when I got back home, there was a man here servicing some electric issues we've had with our secutity lights and he fixed a problem we had with the water heater ... it's been unbelievable..
one thing I noticed is that any time workers come into the house, they always take off their shoes.. it doesn't matter the situation.. Kam, Joseph and Cosmas do not like to come into the house and disrupt what is going on.. They usually stand at the side door and say.. "Hello" if they need something.
Prior to Cosmas leaving this morning, I asked him if there was anything he'd like for Christmas. I told him it was a tradition to get friends gifts during the holiday season... He told me that he would like rice and cooking oil.....
Michelle was telling a story yesterday about a nurse at work who she had asked to help her draw blood from patients for her research project.. the person Michelle has hired to help draw blood was having a difficult time, so she pulled the nurse aside, offered her about 2$ to lend a hand.. The nurse refused the money, but helped anyway.. The next day, Michelle gave her the money, insisted she take it since it was extra work for her... she accepted the payment and said thank you. She then proceeded to tell Michelle how grateful she was for the money .. she said she had absolutely no money, was at her wits end, because she was a widow tending to many children who rely on her for everything.. She had nothing.. Funny thing is she refused payment for her services initially. I asked Michelle if the other nurses were beating down the door for an opportunity to help out , and surprisingly she said no..
My attitude towards giving money to people here that seem in need has changed. In the beginning I refused to give out cash, but if someone seems to be in serious need and I have something that will help them get food, I usually try to help out.. the need is great here. There is limited work here and if you are handicapped, there is no chance of finding a job.. I try to imagine living here and not having the opportunity to move forward in any profession.. Those people who are doing odd jobs around town or jobs that most of us at home would associate with high school / college students.... they aren't people looking to make an extra dollar or save up to buy a car or kill some time until the real job they want opens up.. ... they are people who totally and completely rely on that job to survive.. If they lose that job, they will struggle.
Presently, Maura is sitting on the couch making things for an advent calendar.. Tonight we decorate our majestic Christmas tree that is straight off the boat from China and we will try to stream Rudolph ... We haven't been able to stream Netflix or Pandora or Amazon videos because these services aren't available outside the US.. So now I pay 6$ a month for a service that allows me to connect to various places in the US, thus tricking the service into thinking you are actually in the US.. It's a nice service for streaming Audio, but video is tough.. I tried to watch James Garner and the Rockford Files the other night, but i may have made it through about 2 minutes of the show..
Hope all is well at home.. Photos below are of "America Cookies".. saw these at the store.. they look horrible... The other photo is of students walking home from school.. around 4 in the afternoon the streets are flooded with children walking home.. the ages vary from as young as 5 to these high school aged young adults.. Many stand on the side of the road and try and flag down rides to the villages.. Can you imagine the uproar at home if kids were walking miles a day back and forth to school ... and hitching rides with strangers??
