October 28, 2012

Woke up feeling hung over even though I only had two sips of champagne all night and even forwent the numerous toasts at my table where wine and vodka flowed freely. There was a crystal clear view of the mountains now that the clouds had drifted away without dropping any rain whatsoever around here.

I had no choice this morning but to return to the Osh Bazaar to exchange the pot I had purchased on Friday since I found it had a puncture hole in the center and could probably leak. I was hoping to be able to conduct this transaction with a minimum of fuss even though I could barely remember the vendor’s face except for the fact that he was very young male and his stall was located on the right hand side of the housewares alleyway.

It took several tries to find it as he no longer had the pots in the same place I remember seeing them, but then I showed him mine and he denied selling it to me. I showed him the sticker, in the same color and ink as the others, as he still tried to deny it. Another vendor, an older woman across the narrow passageway, apparently understood what was going on and talked the young man into accepting it was his pot, but he then told me didn’t have any in that same size. He offered me the next in size and asked for an additional 100 soms. I thought I was still getting a good deal and grabbed on to it.

Once back at the apartment, I started to cook the black beans and did the dishes. I uploaded the photos I’d taken at Zarina’s wedding on Facebook and finished both the PowerPoint and the handouts for the presentation on Monday. Since I still only have use of one burner, I had to wait until the beans were done to attempt to season the new pot with a bit of oil and a low flame, but even at the lowest setting, the oil burned and the apartment stank.

My landlady called to say she wanted to pick up the bills I had accumulated from the apartment sometime during the day on Monday and to please leave them on the door for her retrieval. She promised to pay the cable TV company for the service also tomorrow.

I had the remaining salmon for dinner and watched yet another movie, “Cracks”, which I had never heard of but offered beautiful landscapes, so-so acting and a somewhat predictable ending. After reading a couple more chapters of Bukowiski’s “Post Office”, I went to sleep.