Got back last night from a verrrrry rough time in AA. No internet
connection till this AM.

But first the **Very Good News** : Cleo is almost back to normal.
After going through over a week of angry grief, she lost all spirit and
wouldn't eat. However, that lasted only 1.5- 2 days, and she she turned
around when I gave her the Gerber's chicken babyfood Sue Pyron had sent
for just such an emergency. When we had very little Gerbers left I
tried a blender that I thought had been burned in the 220 current here,
and lo+behold, it worked, and Abrahame and I blended up some chicken
that we'd already ground up for the usual soup.

Cleo ate the resulting puree, but wasn't any where near as happy with
it -- though it was almost as smooth as the Gerber's, the Gerber's
includes cornstarch as well as chicken and water. Then I read, from
Vicki Montgomery, that she sometimes blends in a little FerretVite. I
did it, and BINGO!

Now she is acting normal, except she wants to eat constantly, and has
gotten pudgy -- it happens so FAST, how their weight goes down or up!

And here is the bad stuff -- though only a good sample of it. I made
a contract with a guy named Fasika (the name means Easter) to sell my
car, but the contract, which is required in a particular format by the
government, has a clause that if the contract is not fulfilled, then
the problem person has to pay the government about $600. The next
morning Fasika and I went to the Road Transport Authority (RTA) to
file the agreement.

As a preliminary process, a mistake the RTA had made in 2008 had to be
corrected. *!*I*!* had to pay for the fix of their error. PLUS people
who were supposed to fill out paperwork said they would not do it
without a bribe. Fasika was frantic that I pay it, and I was tired and
stupid enough to not resist and paid $60. The bribe-takers wanted $120,
but got the $60. They said they wont do ANYthing without getting a
bribe -- not only that little process.

This completely unhinges me. Nonetheless, I should just tell them to
go to Hell. Instead I was afraid I wouldn't ever get the car sold and
wd have to pay the $600 penalty. I'll do better next time.

Meanwhile a man, through whom all car-sale paperwork goes, had wanted
to buy the car last week, and had hinted that he could bend things to
go faster and outright stated he could make one of the taxes disappear.
I listened to him for a while, but stopped when he began to call me AT
NIGHT.

So of course he is now making things hard, asking for things that don't
really have to be done, etc. And, God knows what else he will do as the
process continues its slow unwinding. On the other hand, he is still
calling and texting at night, asking to meet and talk. Oh sure. I don't
answer. So next week he'll probably be worse.

And, in addition, this AM someone was banging on my gate when I was
alone here. I didn't answer, other than eventually to ask who was
there. Finally I started yelling to get the banging to stop, and
eventually it did, after the men on the other side made fun of me.

According to Abrahame, the main one of those guys is called Fikadu
(which means something to do with Love), and he says I agreed to sell
HIM the car, and he wants it. I have no idea who he is. Abrahame told
me his history. Assuming I understood A, the guy is now rich and
therefore respected, but in his youth was a murderer and a
couterfeiter. (Which, I suppose is how he got rich.) This is not a
welcome addition to the mix.

And just after that, Fasika (the future actual buyer) called and
demanded to know why I wasn't in Addis pursuing the process. To make
matters worse, he'd taken my car registration (presumably by mistake),
so I am driving without it. I told him I'd be in AA Tues and I wanted
him to give it to me then. He's an excitable guy and began yelling
about why wasn't I there NOW working on the car-sale process, and I
finally started to yell at him..... He threatened to stop the agreement
I said that was ok. And ETC. etc. Finally he hung up. I presume we'll
meet Tues.

I'm at my wits end, and my wits are short and unravelling, as you can
imagine.

Oh yes, after the RTA yesterday, I went to the Ministry of Trade to
fulfill something required for the car sale, and found out that
something ELSE must be fulfilled FIRST. It had taken days to get the
requirements of the initial requirement ready. Now there's some more to
be done. This is part of the mess here -- sometimes deliberately and
sometimes inadvertently people don't tell you everything needed to
accomplish something. That time I had asked if anything else were
needed, so ... their omission could have been either inadvertent or
malicious. Probably the former.

The sewing-equipt sales also fell through. Another is in the works, but
it is small and piecemeal. Still it is something.

I've emailed someone to see if I could hire him to take over all of the
"process" except for me being available to sign things as needed from
Tues-Thurs each week. I hope he agrees. I also asked what would happen
if I just left the country with him in charge.

- -- - -- -

Just after I wrote that, the power cut off. Abrahame came back from
lunch and we talked about Fikadu (ex(?)-murderer and counterfeiter). It
seems he and Fasika are connected in the car purchase. Fasika is the
front man and Fikadu is somewhere in the background. But not far in the
background. I know him from the times Fasika spent assessing the car.
Fasika said that Fikadu was a mechanic testing the car. Abrahame says
he is not a mechanic. He is a cold and small muscular person who never
returns a smile.

I haven't yet heard from Bill as to whether he will take over the
interfacing, but shall phone him now.

Is this dramatic enough for you? I haven't gotten my emotions around
it yet, but I certainly do not like it. How dangerous is it? Should I
worry seriously or get a grip and just deal with it. ETC.

[Posted in FML 7746]