Crap Cake - São Paulo

My mother's day present from one of the twins

Today was a really crappy day. Yes, it is only 9:45 am but it's been crappy. Things are adding up from the stress of buying a house in the US, selling one here, moving countries and hemispheres, lots of work, guilt from yelling at my kids...and on and on. I don't think BH and I have slept well for at least a week with worry and with viruses (I have had a month-long bout of sinusitis and he has some other virus), my 14-year old labrador retriever is giving up on life but not one vet here will listen to me and they want him to keep carrying on, and I can't believe I have to fight to let my dog go. And soon I have to go fight with FIFA over a ticket issue, and also save an Argentinian from a screwed-up ticket deal and agh. Are you all still reading? Sheesh, I hope it makes your day look better.

This morning's cherry on the crap cake was reading mum being canceled (I found out after arriving there), the teachers telling me that my kids were not at school the day of the school pictures and will not appear in the yearbook and then as I am walking home I realize that I have forgotten my house keys. 

I immediately call my husband with the 10% battery left on my phone (seriously, when there is crap cake, there is a lot of it) and he is about to go into a meeting. He says he'll call me right back. At this point I am half laughing and half-crying. I am clearly a lunatic and everyone in the street is avoiding me. Seriously, a little terrier stopped full stop and walked all the way around his owner and hid in a bush.

BH calls me back and says he gave the keys to a taxi driver and that he told the driver to stop for a coffee and a chat first to torture me (BH was trying to make me laugh; it worked).  He had also given the taxi driver R$50 to pay the fare, and our address. I had the taxi driver's name (Valter) and his license plate number.  Would I ever do this in the US? Not dang likely. Note that BH got a taxi not from the street but from the established neighborhood taxi stand in front of his building.

After waiting about 10 minutes, up pulled the taxi. A spry older taxi driver jumped out of his seat, gave me the keys, the change and a receipt. And then we chatted for two minutes about nothing. And I resisted giving the cute man a hug as he got back in his car and told me not to spend the change (about US$10) all in one place. 

And that, the whole human interaction that is Brazil at its friendliest and most helpful, is why I love it here. Look up from your phones, as they say. If you are coming for a visit, talk to the people. They are lovely.

Enough crap cake. Let's roll.