Last week, I was doing a bit if rushing around various places, buying 'boatie bits'. This involved about four and a half/five hours walking, including the walk to and from the house. Why? Simple, after the recent taxi fare increases, I reckon having done 'the round' before, that I saved F$35-40 by walking. To put that into perspective, it's enough to get a taxi from the house to an Indian cafe I recently stumbled across, have a blow out curry (in all senses of the word), then get a taxi to the yacht club, drink sufficient beer to make seeing straight difficult let alone walking straight problematical, then get a taxi back up to the house to digest/sleep it all off AND have enough small change left over to be generous to the 'poor and deserving', i.e. those who sit around with their hands out, which neatly brings me back to the point. Last week, about half way through the expedition it started to rain, not a passing shower but a monsoon-like torrent. I was fairly fed up as well as dripping wet, when I passed a woman squatting outside a shop, with her hand out. Normally I either ignore or give small change according to mood (things are tight, but the odd 30p is neither here nor there) but when I dripped past and she gave me a baleful look, I said to her 'if I had any money do you think I'd be walking in this bloody rain?' and squelched off, muttering to myself.
Today, there was merely the occasional shower, and passing the same shop the same woman was there. I walked past, but somehow, our eyes met.
"eh, walking man, how are you?"
"I still have no money."
"OK, here." she offered me a 10c coin (about 4p).
The bitch probably knew what was going to happen and you've probably worked it out as well.
I gave her a one dollar coin and walked on. Muttering.
