Tuesday, May 24, 2016

Waiting for the Repairman

Waiting for a repairman in Philippines is very much like waiting for the Filipino repairman's American counterpart in the U.S.. In both cases, it's not unlike waiting for Godot.

Last Thursday our refrigerator, if I may use a technical term, went on the blink. When I opened the refrigerator that morning and found the light not working, I assumed it was simply a defective light bulb. Later, when I discovered that ice had begun melting in the freezer compartment, I realized that the problem was more than a blown bulb.

Fortunately, the refrigerator is still under warranty. We had business in Dumaguete that morning, so we stopped by the appliance store where we had purchased the unit. Unfortunately, we were told that the repair work could not be done until Monday. Monday came around but the repairman did not.

My wife made a phone call to the appliance store to find out the reason, and around 3:00 PM, I received a phone call from the company that will be doing the repair work. As near as I can determine, there had been a mix up concerning the name of the customer who was to receive the repair. For reasons that I can't really explain, the company had tried to make the appointment with my wife's sister. There was some confusion as to where the repairman was to go.

As I write this, the repairman is scheduled to come to our apartment between 8:30 and 9:00 AM on Tuesday. (It's Monday afternoon as I write this, although I won't actually post this until Tuesday morning).

Note: I am posting this two hours before the repairman is scheduled to arrive. We'll see.

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