el plomero does his thing

I knew about the missing parts for the new sink in the kitchen. What I didn't know about was the defective faucets I bought. Just as I was leaving this morning to go to Tecoman to get the collar and baskets for the sink the plumber came bustling down the street to tell me that he was unable to keep the faucet from leaking because the hot water handle was defective. He had taken it apart and found that something was roto, broken. The unit had been cemented into place so he had to chisel away the cement anchor, unhook the whole apparatus, clean off the goma, glue, dry out the nozzle and make it look new again. Which he did. Off I went with now two problems to solve.

It was far easier than I thought it would be. The woman who helped me could not have been nicer and more patient. She was not surprised that there were missing parts. I guess this is a way of business; don't take the product with the missing parts off the shelf. Just take what you need out of the next box and let the buyer of that product come back for a missing replacement. I got the missing collar and canasta, no problem. As for the leaky faucet, that took a bit more explanation. I couldn't remember the word for "leak" (agujero) so I just said agua sale (water goes out) and she got the message. I told her the plumber had taken the hot water handle apart and found a broken part. No problem. She sent someone back into the stacks and he came back with a new unit. Oh yes, here's another shopping anomaly. There are no aisles for you to stroll up and down in a hardware store. You go to the counter and ask for what you want and the person you speak to sends another worker into the back to find it. Sometimes it is actually what you want. Sometimes you have to start over with more words, gestures, nimble linguistics until you get a smile of comprehension on their faces. It's always a challenge but one of the most delightful chores one has to do. I realize that I know more words about construction than I do about anything else.

By five o'clock this evening, the new sink was up and running, the faucets were just fine, and the two new toilet seats I found had been installed and ready for use. All of the above, plus a successful tiagues (good selection of avocados, beautiful berries, nice Italian parsley and cilantro for chimi churri, recipe to follow) made this a very good day.