Friday Fragments ... On Sunday

Because life (and illness) took over and I just couldn't get to the computer to update until today.

Let's dive right in and talk about the Silver Bomber. The car. The bane of my existence. It was discharged from the Toyota dealership's ICU on Thursday, though sadly without any scheduled follow-up appointments, fluids, or answers. Seriously, all I was told when my car was delivered was that it works 'fine', and here's your RS 12000 ($250) bill. The itemized bill showed that they 'cleaned' the fuel injectors and muffler, and 'repaired' the nozzle to the fuel pump... they also washed the car and did an oil change. That's it. They ONLY looked at what my driver suggested was wrong, and that's after he went back to the dealership to 'look' at the car with them. Nothing more, and almost certainly, everything less. They didn't look at the fuel hose (which my dad said probably needed to be changed as well), nor did they re-fill any of the fluids. So until I get answers I'm withholding payment, and even better, I'm sending my car back on Monday to be re-checked. I'm still trying to figure out how my car goes from needing $5000 worth of work to being released with just a $250 bill. Why am I so skeptical... what is wrong with this picture?

During the great car catastrophe, I came down with a nasty head cold that just kicked my tush. I made it through Tuesday, and even kept my volunteering commitment on Wednesday to help during the school's Bubble Festival. But Thursday I was down for the count, and sadly, so were the girls. They both had fevers and coughs, my head was congested, and what was left of my voice sounded throaty ... a la Kathleen Turner. The girls quickly rebounded, so Friday I sent them to school, but I ended up housebound and in bed most of the day. And guess who got sick on Saturday? Why does this always happen right before we go out of town?

On Friday afternoon Matt finally got Grady's Indian visa issues resolved. When you are assigned to a country as a diplomat, you're required to have a diplomatic visa. However, due to a number of extenuating circumstances, including the bevy of issues we encountered getting him added to Matt's travel orders, little support we received from both post and headquarters, and lack of guidance from the Indian Consulate in San Francisco, Grady entered India on a 6-month tourist visa. Without going into any of the sordid details or pointing blame, let's just say that Grady is now legally here.

After all this (and a wee bit more) we decided we needed a break, so we're heading out of dodge for a few days. Thanksgiving will be spent soaking up the Thai sun in Bangkok... Four full days of Starbucks (that's at least eight caramel macchiattos), eating at American chain restaurants, malls, zoos, river taxis, Buddhas, palaces, parks, shopping, dinner cruises, and more! If 'one night in Bangkok makes a hard man humble' ... just imagine what three nights can do!