Rattled Nerves- 7 de julio

**I worked on a long entry last night and when I went to publish it, it went away. I don't know what happened. So tonight I am trying to recreate it. I was very discouraged and frustrated as I got ready for bed.**

While walking to work today we received a call from the elders and they were at the post office up at the capital waiting in line to pick up the packages that went through customs. We have to go at least twice a month to claim them. The drive takes about a half hour. It was important to go sometime this week as zone conferences have started and this is the time for the missionaries to receive mail and packages from home. This duty is the least favorite of anything we do because of the long lines. We have to be line an hour before the post office opens or it could take all day to get through. Well, they came home empty handed!!

In Argentina, there are few rules. Everyone interprets or understands things differently, and it depends on who is waiting on you and what mood they are in if you are to accomplish what you set out to do. The person waiting on the elders today said they needed a stamp on the back of the claim tickets they presented to pick up the packages. The correo that delivered the claim tickets would have to stamp the back of them for some reason. They argued that they never had to get one before, but he would not budge. Grrrrr! So that killed a half a day for them. And now some missionaries will have to wait another 6 weeks before they get those packages.

After Rich and I had a sandwich for lunch, he decided he needed to go to the banco. Did I want to come? No, I had too much to do. Bad decision! He took the office car and while coming back to the office a couple of blocks away, he proceeded to enter the intersection to turn left and a car came out of nowhere zooming past him and clipped the front bumper of the car. The car tried to miss him and swerved up on the curb, but kept going. Rich completed the turn and followed him a little ways, but the car didn't stop. He said he did not see him coming at all. There is a scrape on the bumper with missing paint. If he would have been any farther into the intersection, he would have been smashed. These drivers are unbelievable. They just barrel down these streets, and if walking, one has to stop at each corner and look both ways before crossing. They do not stop for pedestrians. Rich was pretty shaken up all afternoon and couldn't accomplish much. Poor thing, I felt sorry for him. I should have gone to be the second set of eyes.

I spent most of the day packing boxes with mail and supplies that the missionaries in the South ordered. These are the ones down in Rio Gallegos and Tierra del Fuego. We get them all ready and then a carrier service (like UPS) comes to get them. We had 10 boxes. That is the most I have filled, but it is because the new member kits are now available and they take up a lot of room. The elders down there ordered a nice supply of them. I broke my neck trying to get them all ready because I wanted them to go out Wednesday or Thursday. When we called for a pick up date, they said it would be next Monday. Awwwww! I had Elder Nelson call them back and see if it could be sooner, but they said there was no room on the truck. They will have a week to get there, so I hope they make it before those zone conferences start.

This week is the start of my new assignment to be over the medical issues of the missionaries. I have my own brand new cell phone on which I will receive the calls from sick elders and sisters. Elder Valente calls me Doctora Kroff. The missionaries are being instructed in each zone conference about the change from Sister Argyle to me, and are being told they can only call between the hours of 9 to 11 in the morning (during their study and planning time), and 9 to 10 in the evenings (when they are supposed to be back in their apartments). I had one call in the evening from an elder who has had a headache for 5 days. The doctor said it was a muscle tension headache. Sounds reasonable because this elder is a trainer to a new arrival. It is probably stressing him out.

Rich went to get our laundry and thought some things this trip were worthy of a photo shoot. The lavadero is across the street and up a couple doors. It is very close and convenient for us.

I think he likes patronizing this place because the young lady who owns it quite likes him and always greets him with a hug. However, he hasn't seen her for a few weeks because she has hired a helper. The helper isn't as friendly. Lavaderos also take in dry cleaning items, but they send them out to be done. We like the place near the mission home that we found, so we choose to take things there. We can see what the place is like and know it is done right there. It is not sent out to places unknown to us.

The lavadero is really small. They only have a couple of washers and dryers and a folding table. There are shelves also on which to put the bundles of laundry. This is the hired help.

This was a nostalgic scene for Rich. It reminded him of his father working on washers at Ekonomy Cleaners (the family owned laundromat) many years ago. This gentleman had heard about laundromats that had rows and rows of washers and dryers. They don't exist here in Argentina. Because of lack of space, most people take clothes to the laundry services. They are on every corner of the block. They do sell washers and some people have dryers, but they are dinky little machines, not like the ones we buy in the U.S.