I went to the bank today to collect my US dollars so that I have enough to live on when I move to Cambodia on Saturday. I had to laugh because the cashier whispered all the time she was talking to me and kept looking around the bank; presumably she was checking to make sure there were no robbers around. She said I had to sign a waiver to tell the bank that I wouldn't hold them responsible if someone clobbered me on the head outside the bank. I couldn't see the logic in this; even if I draw out only one dollar, if someone robs me outside the bank, the bank would refuse to be held responsible.
It reminded me of my days in the Arctic where we had no bank. When I moved south for the holidays I had to go to the bank. Every year things changed so I always felt a bit dysfunctional. One day I filled in a withdrawal slip and took it to the counter. The lady turned it over so she could write down how many notes she was giving me of various currencies. She shoved the slip over to me and said, "Did you write this?" I thought it was a daft question and I said, "Of course I filled it in." I don't mean that. I mean this", she said stabbing her finger at something on the back of the form. On the back some idiot had written, "This is a stick up!"
"I nearly had a heart attack, you are lucky I didn't press the button", she said. I told her I'd have had a heart attack if she had pressed it. The person who'd written it had slipped it back in the pile of withdrawal slips, knowing that someone would use it for a withdrawal. I wondered if he was standing around having a good laugh?
In the afternoon I visited friends for dinner. I went early so I could have a good chat with them about mine and their lives. Later, the farm family joined us and then I just sat back and let them have a natter. Frank and Jessie have a plot of garden at the farm so it's their annual 'Thank you" meal for letting them use the garden. We always have wild salmon, which is a real treat as a lot of what we get in the stores nowadays is either farm raised or from China.
They are part of what is known as the Friendship Force and it was started by President Clinton. There are groups in various cities around the world and they exchange visits, having home stays and being taken around by the local folk. This year they hosted a group from Brazil and not one of them spoke English. It went well though because they all had a translator app on their mobile devices. It's a great idea but I don't think it's for me because they are generally retired, professional and with a bit of extra money to throw around. Maybe I'm in that category but I prefer going around with a mixture of people.
