3 conversations: Hilarity and Humanity

And two gratuitous unrelated pictures.

Card stock models are currently all the rage in the
Herman Household.

    So.  The first conversation today is best described.  I spent the afternoon in an apartment with a bunch of young people.  One, a young man I've been working with, was describing to me someone gossiping and spreading rumors about him, his wife and their work after they had a bit of a falling out.  This, though lamentable, is common to all mankind and encouraging grace, forgiveness & reconciliation was straightforward.
    Then he recounted how another expat he's known for a long time listened to the rumors and came to 'have a talk with him', without first fact-finding or seeking another side to the story.  This caused a lot of 'koshto' - emotional pain - for him and his wife, since they respected this older & wiser expat.  That brought out a lot of expatriate/national dynamics that have a long history.  I will need to be very careful how I step.  This is a post-colonial culture and it is not ancient history.

The second conversation was with our landlord, exploring whether our security guard (who handles the electric bills, etc) has been cheating us.  This will also be delicate - I need to pursue it, but, likewise, to do so with grace and forgiveness.  If he gets fired, his family won't have the income they need, so again, I need to watch where I step.

The last conversation was more lightedhearted, at least for one of us ;-).   I was crossing the street near the bazar on my way home with some groceries this evening when an older man addressed me in heavily accented English:

"What is your Country?"
"Amar desh America." showing off my Bangla!
"Oho! Mine too!  I'm from San Diego!"
"Tik?  Kintu Apni....but you're here?"  OK. Back to English.
"Yes.  I came back.  America just wasn't for me.  Too many problems."
"Tell me what bothered you."
"Ah.  It's the aliens you know.  Too many of them, especially around Laredo, TX."
"No kidding?????"  I always suspected as much....
"Nope.  They have too much influence.  Of course, you can't talk about them there - because of the American military.  It's forbidden."
"Ummm..."
"It's true!  I read about it on the internet.  You can see youtube videos all about it!  The aliens are in control.  For many many years, now!"
"You might not trust everything you read on the internet."
"No! No! If it was false the government would shut it down, cancel the website!  besides - there've been over 70,000 contacts!  It's undeniable!  You must read about them!"
"Thanks!"

I guess it's the same everywhere.  Especially around Laredo.