Finally, an escribano

I am taking advantage of this week and getting ahead on things I do for transfer week, and catching up on things I have let go.  Why?  Because I have no baptisms to do. It isn't because we didn't baptize last week in the mission, it is because of conference on Sunday, no one was confirmed in a sacrament meeting.  The Registro de Bautismos (baptism registers) can't be sent in until the person is confirmed.  So next week will be a killer.  It will be two weeks worth of baptisms to do.  I will need to spend most of the week just on entering them into the computer. Ouch!  But then, that's a good thing, isn't it?

On our next transfer week, we have nine missionaries leaving and nine coming.  I need to start now preparing the carpetas (new missionary binders) and the packets for the ones leaving.  I sent Elder Kroff to the libreria to purchase some more paper for our copy machine.  

Today was the day that we were going to leave work early and go to the Capital (downtown Buenos Aires) to find the escribano (notary) to get our paper notarized for our insurance.  Then we were going to find Florida Street where there are shops where tourists go to purchase their Argentine souvenirs.  We had it all planned out, and we were taking the office car.

About 2:00 we received a call from Sister Argyle and she said that she had been in the Capital taking two of her children to the dentist, and when they were through and ready to leave, their car was gone.  It had either been stolen, or towed away.  She was without her cell phone and she had given all her money to the dentist. She knew she had to report the car missing to the Area Office, but she didn't know how to get there on foot. While walking a ways, she found a bank and was able to get some money.  So she waved down a taxi and decided just to go home. Then she made the necessary calls.  It turned out that she had parked in an illegal spot, and the car was towed away. We got a call in the office as to where the car was and the amount of money needed to get it out of the tow yard.  So, the elders had to leave right then to go get it.  And, they needed Elder Kroff to go along because they would need two drivers once they picked up the other car.  

Off they went, and we decided that Rich would take along the things to be notarized and find the escribano himself while he was there.  He couldn't come back and get me and make the trip again.  That wouldn't work.  I wasn't too thrilled to be left behind because I wanted to go shopping, and Rich wasn't too excited to try to find the notary by himself.  But, we had no choice.  

After they got the car, the elders took off, and left Rich on his own in all that hectic traffic.  He put the escribano's address in the GPS and started out to find his way.  He said he was so nervous to be without me as his co-pilot.  It is hard to watch the traffic, lights, one way arrows, and the GPS all at once.  He really missed having me there to help.  But he made it okay and after circling the block a few times, he found some public parking which was right next door to where he was going.  He was glad about that.  So after two months, we finally have what we need notarize in order to send a claim to the insurance company for our loss.  Yeah!!

While manning the office this afternoon, our order of supplies from the Distribution Center came.  I ordered them only five days ago.  Gosh, that was fast.  I didn't expect them for another week or so.  So I started putting things on the shelves.

A couple of pictures, not related to what we did today, show a little bit of "local color" on the streets of Buenos Aires.

Flowers are sold everywhere.  People set up flower stands on street corners all over.  This man told us that there is a large flower warehouse where street vendors go and buy what they want and then set up their own stands for selling.  We wondered if they needed a business license, and it they ever sell all that they display. The flowers are fresh and look beautiful.  It is going into winter and there are still flowers everywhere.  At some corners, people walk between cars parked at stop lights holding bouquets of flowers to be purchased.  

Coming home from the violin concert Sunday night, we snapped a couple pictures of the trash that is set out for collection.  During the night, the garbage truck comes by to pick it up. The streets are less crowded then, of course, making their job much easier.   

If the trash baskets are full, then they hang the bags from nails secured in light poles. . . . . or they leave it piled on the ground below.  Plastic grocery bags are used for trash.  We can take our trash out daily and toss it in the collecting baskets. I like being able to do that because we don't have a disposal.  The collecting baskets are all on stands probably to keep the animals from getting to the garbage.  But, what about those bags that are tossed on the ground??