These Modern Times

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Sandy wants to call home from Mexico next month, so I dialed 611 for Global Verizon. A nice young man named Fagan helped me out. It was simple, and for $35 Sandy can call Marshfield for 1,000 minutes during the month we are on Isla and Tulum. At the end of the transaction I asked where he was. I thought he had a southern accent. He replied, “Columbia South Carolina.”

I said, “Wow, over Christmas my neighbors’ family was here from Columbia, and I buy my concrete supplies from there, and have for over twenty years.” Small world.

My second order of business today was adjusting our car rental agreement for Mexico, that I handled poorly on the computer yesterday.

We have previously had great luck with Enterprise, so I tried to contact them again on the computer. Next thing I knew I was with CarTrawler, which was offering cars from Thrifty only. DO YOU KNOW THAT YOU HAVE TO BE 25 TO RENT FROM THRIFTY IN MEXICO? Most people know that, I think. But did you know that YOU CAN’T BE OVER 70? I didn't. So when you are over seventy, you better have younger traveling friends, as we do.

I thought that I would call Thrifty in the U.S. to straighten out my work from yesterday. So I went to Google and got their telephone number. Verizon charges a couple of bucks now for each number you ask for. I reached a law office. Tried again and reached Thrifty. Pressed 37 numbers before I reached Raul in Global  -- somewhere, and I assumed Mexico, maybe even Cancun. He needed my file number. I told him it was on the turned-off computer one floor up. He checked Thrifty's reservations but could not find mine. I hung up. I went upstairs turned the computer on, got the number. Went back downstairs and called, and pressed 37 buttons and finally reached Escolito. Neither Raul nor Escolito could help me. It was a little hard to understand them, with their Mexican accents. Or maybe Nicaraguan?

Escolito finally patched me through to CarTrawler. A young woman whom I could understand very well straightened and amended the whole reservation out. At the end, I thanked her and asked for her name. She replied, “Jola (pronounced Yell-ah).”

I asked, “Where are you working from?”

I nearly fell off the chair when she said POLAND. 

I replied, “Yaak sha -mush.”

She said, “Dubb-zah , dubb-zah.”

(sic) but it means, How are you? / I am good, I am good.

I think this double answering started when a Polish wife asked the husband if he wanted to have sex. He was so shocked he answered twice. I think that is how it started.

I asked if her family practiced the Polish tradition at Christmas of Wigilia. She said, "Of course." I told her that my wife was Polish American and so was I. And that both our grandmothers came from the old country to America by themselves and in their teens aboard steamships. Both came through Ellis Island in NYC. She was impressed. I told her the pierogi making story from Adams and she said she was making them at the same time. Wow!

I asked if she had been to the Unites States and she said, “Not yet.” I told her we wanted to visit Poland. She seemed surprised.

I gin-koo-yah’ed (thanked) her a couple of times and finally said goodbye.

Really really small world.

I simply thought you should know.        

gin-koo yah        

Bobby Lemanski