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Sunday, October 14, 2012

That Didn't Take Long

Traffic today was the worst I've seen. I was heading over to the 11:30 a.m. Mass, which is about 2.5 kilometers from my house. After sitting in traffic for 45 minutes, I decided to turn around as Fr. Al was saying the Mass. (He did not arrive until noon.) The return trip home took 50 minutes and I thought for sure that I would get clipped by someone because of their freelance style of driving. I planned all week to go to the Mecca Mall after Mass to collect an alarm clock radio, a thermometer, and a few other odds and ends. I gave up my plans because of the harrowing traffic experience.

I was very pleased I could walk to the evening Mass so I wouldn't have to face the traffic again. On my walk, I stood at a crosswalk in between two parked cars - maybe six inches out into the road. People here walk non-chalantly and never seem to fear the drivers. Well, this woman was probably traveling 45 mph in what would be a 25 mph zone, and she popped me one. I'm amazed that her car did not hit the other two cars because she was so close to them. Her mirror slammed into my arm - between the elbow and wrist. Since the mirror had give, I hardly felt a thing, but I think her mirror slammed against her window and broke it. She was going so fast and thank God I recoiled. She slowed down considerably afterwards and she seemed fine.

As I was walking home after Mass, what seemed to be a huge fire was sending flames about 8 feet high. It was in a vacant lot where there were downed pine trees and trash. I imagine a throw-away cigarette butt ignited the flame. Two men from their nearby houses came out with buckets of water to douse the flames. The fire was relatively close to one man's house. Smoke was everywhere. Everyone else who saw the fire didn't seemed bothered by it. They went on with their conversations.

At the Masses this weekend, I coaxed the choirs to face the people. Though some resisted, the sounds coming from the choir were acoustically much better. The choirs received a lot of praise for their efforts. It was a phenomenal event and the congregations were pleased. The ministry of song helps inspire the worship so much.

At the close of day, I decided to have something culturally familiar - club soda. When I pulled the  tab on the can's lid, I was surprised to see the flip top much like we had for soda in the 1970's. My initial memories was getting cut by those things. It made me laugh because I had forgotten those tabs existed.

Oh, yes. I made some pancakes this morning. They came out quite well, but all the maple syrup is in Vermont. It would have gone well on those pancakes.

10 comments:

  1. Oh John, what a day! AMDG!

    Salaam to you.

    (and yes, I have been to Mecca Mall, quite something!)

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    1. I entered some malls today at Jebel al Hussein. Quite interesting.

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  2. Hmmmm . . . I was pondering the opposite extreme today; my increasingly failing attempt to adjust to rural life.

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  3. I was going to suggest that maybe you could walk the mile and a half faster than you could drive it. Sorry to learn that walking brings its own hazards.

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    1. I found out today that the government re-routed traffic to put in a sewer main, but the big complaint is that no one is ever told that it is planned. Yes, walking has its disadvantages.

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  4. Wow John, That was a close call with the car.I'm relieved to hear that you were unharmed. The 2.5km distance in 50 mins is horrendous.Would a taxi be feasible -perhaps the drivers can take side streets.?? It's great to read about the food you are cooking !
    Blessings

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    1. We were frustrated with the traffic delays. Even the taxis on that day had no idea why they were being rerouted. All should be back to normal now, but the question remains: What is normal?

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  5. Lemon something on the pancakes? Glad that the car's mirror folded, not you.

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    1. That would work. Actually, limes are in season at the moment so we are getting more lime-ade and other lime products. I like limes moreso than lemons, but for the pancakes, I had strawberry jam and apricot jam.

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