WOmen at work

The sign (though admittedly difficult to see) reads "Men at Work". Yet, if you notice, the women are the active ones.
These women stacking bricks on their heads continue to fascinate me.

High five

This picture is from the stained glass panel of the Life of Christ in the Chartres Cathedral, France.
The Annunciation to the Shepherds.
It makes me smile because it appears that the shepherds are high fivin' the angels.
Awesome.
You bet: the Messiah's arrived? Give me some skin.
Good news indeed.

Hymn for the day

Purple hand towel

An awesome thing happened this morning.
Last Saturday I went shopping for some new towels for the guestroom. I wanted a full set of purple towels--bath towel, hand towel and wash clothe. But the hand towel wasn't available in that color.
I asked if they would have more in stock at a later time.
I was told no.
I asked if they would be ordering any more purple colored hand towels (never accept the first 'no').
Why yes, they would. And if I gave my address, it would be couriered to my house on Tuesday.
Really? Awesome.
And yes! My purple hand towel showed up this morning! What great service!

Chili snow tree

Here's my Christmas tree.
Chili peppers and snowflakes.
Kind of Charlie-Brown-esque, but it works.

Bill paying

My water bill was due Monday. But the bill paying office was closed. What kind of sense does that make? So I got to pay the 13 rupee late fee.
After I found the "office", that is.
It's in an out of the way place off a highway in a walled compound.
I chose the "cash counter" since I didn't have a cheque.

Immigrating

Some friends picked me up in a taxi today to go to lunch. I am reminded how nice it is to ride in a car. No jolting. No wind. No exhaust fumes.

So on my trip out, I passed the Republic of Chicken. Very clever sign on the door.
Conversely, when you leave you are 'emigrating'.
No passport necessary, though.
Not exactly a vegetarian friendly 'country', but amusing nonetheless.

Inventive vocabulary

Here's a new word for you: upgradation. Did you know you could make up words and put them on signs throughout the city?
Happens all the time.
The AnswerTips vocabulary feature on this page (which is awesome--double click on any word and check it out) doesn't recognize the word. It will give you no helpful information. Try the word 'inventive', though--it will even tell you how to pronounce it.
Nothin' for 'upgradation.
But: that doesn't stop the construction folk from digging a hole in the ground and putting up a sign about it so they can go away and leave it there unattended for a week.

Bad math

I was desperate yesterday evening for a clean house.
I went to the lady downstairs and told her I had guests with a small child coming and my floors were not clean.
She said, "Come in and have chai."
I went in and talked with her for a while and had some chai. She told me she'd send her house helper up the next day to see about the floors.
This afternoon a lady turned up at the door. She made a mopping motion and told me to let her in. I said that not only did I need her to clean the floors today, but I needed someone every day.
"What do you want me to do?"
"Clean the floors. Dust. Clean every thing."
"How much will you give me?"
"1300."
She didn't understand the number I said.
So I counted it out for her.
She didn't understand that.
So I wrote it out for her.
She couldn't read.
Finally she said, "I'll do the floors for 500 and the rest for 200."
Being generous, I asked, "800?"
"No. 700."
"You mean for a month or today?"
"For the month."
Sold. She'd just subtracted from my original offer and given me an unheard of deal for a foreigner. I'll take it. And count it as a gift from the God who knows how little is in my wallet.

My small visitor still managed to turn his nose black on the curtains, though.
Guess I need the number for a dry cleaners.

Teeth that see better

My friend chipped her tooth.
She went to the dentist to have it fixed.
The dentist looked at it.
He x-rayed it.
He drilled it.
He sealed it.
And he was done.
No root canal needed. Or Novocaine. (eek.)
It took thirty minutes from the time we walked into the office.
So then she got glasses.

The cement he added all fell off within a couple hours and one bite of pita and humus.
But she can still see perfectly.