The expected view of the new year morning outside my verandah where the new decade will dawn for me.
Ten years ago when the historic 2000 dawned, I was with friends at a Hotel in Las Vegas. Little did I realize that ten years hence I am expecting to herald the next decade asleep in a bed made from tree branches, at an open veranda in a place with no electricity in Hingurakgoda. This last act was necessitated by the sudden departure of the person who had been in charge at this location, and so I have had to be there to protect my interests and find a stop gap person to cover the needful. This is an involuntary act on my part as I have been invited to various New Years Eve celebrations in Colombo and Kandy, all of which I have had to decline.
The above situation, points both to the good and the bad experience of living in Sri Lanka. Firstly there are people one can theoretically employ as they are staff who are paid to do the needful. However the reliability and commitment is what I have found wanting, and this is what causes an emergency situation like this to erupt.
This unpredicted set of events has forced me to take stock of the future, where I cannot be in four places at the same time, and I do not have the luxury of an army of retainers or reliable man Fridays to cover for me. I will first have to obtain the services of a driver and hopefully a competent one who I can rely on for my deliveries and not have to do the very tiring and back breaking delivery job I am engaged in every Monday going from house to house selling my produce.
The Tata cab lights burnt and I was told I have to replace the whole switch behind the steering. I spent Sunday going by bus in search of the replacement. Then on Sunday evening in the rain, while carrying some vegetable crates from the shop to the cab I slipped on the stairs and fell right down, hurting my back, and fortunately did not hit my head. I was lying concussed for a while, but was able on Monday to take care of my home delivery schedule in agonizing pain. I did not have the luxury to take the day off to recover as I could not delegate. I realize I was a hairline away from being hospitalized with a serious injury. I had to earn the money to pay for the light repair today, and had to finish the deliveries yesterday before it got dark. I was not able to use the vehicle after dusk without lights.
I should get insurance in the New Year to cover for unforeseen personal accidents, and also work more at an office job, and spend more time with the dogs, www.sinhabahuridgeback.blogspot.com as my body is not in a state to handle more of the heavy duty farm labor I have engaged in these past 5 years. The income from this job will have to pay for the labor, I will have to hire to delegate the work I have hitherto done myself. I guess this is just being a realist and answers the most recent query from a reader on what my plan is for the next five years.
