Okay, it is rather annoying when you truly want to be cranky and two men in your life simply refuse to allow you to be. I started off the day very cranky and happy to be so. You see, it is very rare that I am actually truly cranky. On those rare occasions, I really like to savour the moments. Unfortunately, it was really hard to maintain a good crankiness today thanks to Buche and Lawrence.

Of course on the way to work, Buche just wouldn’t let me sit beside him without laughing. I tried not to but his sense of humor matches mine so well it was impossible not to laugh several times. Once at work, Lawrence who has never seen me truly cranky before could not stand it either. So while we were working on something that should have made me even crankier…it did…but he, of course, made me laugh too. His antics today included promising to equip me with an electronic sensor to censor me (see my earlier post today) and then this afternoon, getting lost on the campus of UB (University of Botswana, which a lovely but huge campus).

In fact, if I had my way, poor Lawrence would still be wandering around the campus lost. I had wanted to patiently wait in the car and savour my crankiness while Lawrence sought out the office of BONASO’s Vice Chair, who is a lecturer on campus. Instead, Lawrence insisted that I accompany him in what turned out to be a very long search for Block 321. The campus, of course is like the rest of Gaborone and not laid out in any logical manner making finding a specific building incredibly difficult. Having finally found the correct building, poor Lawrence never would have found his way back to the car if I wasn’t with him to show him the way. Fortunately I am blessed with the skill of having been somewhere once then able to find my way back. A very helpful skill to have here in Botswana. And one, that poor Lawrence is definitely not blessed with. In fact, at one point if I could have made a run for it, I would have left him wandering around 🙂 Perhaps if he had of worn his new safari hat it would have assisted him.

Then this afternoon, Buche was not to be out done. As Lawrence and I had many errands to run after working straight through lunch, he decided to take me for lunch in his brand new (second-hand) car once I found it again for him on the UB campus. Now this is a lovely silver Mercedes and I have been teasing Buche about it since Lawrence got it last week. I have to admit that I have very expensive taste in cars. In fact, I love the really expensive sports cars and am always pointing them out on my drive with Buche telling him we need to get one. His Toyota Corolla has seen better days but still a good car. As we both like to drive a little faster than most, an upgrade would be nice. 

Given that our errand running was taking so long late this afternoon, I knew that I would not make it back to the office in time to meet Buche for 5 pm pick up. So Lawrence graciously offered to drive me home in the silver bullet as I call it. Of course I needed to text Buche to tell him not to pick me up. Well by the time our conversation was done I was laughing so hard that it was impossible to be cranky. It seems that I bring out a whole other side of the calm, quiet, religious Buche. Not even Lawrence could believe the messages that I was getting from the Saint.

Here is our conversation so you can laugh too:

Cheryl: Lawrence is taking me home in his nice car. Might refuse to ride in yours in the morning.

Buche: You ll walk

Cheryl: I’ll demand a refund

Buche: I’ll come & u refuse. No refund

Cheryl: Ha! Cheeky aren’t you. You would miss me.

Buche: If I want to see u i’ll come to your house or office

Cheryl: I will lock you out!

Buche: Which means u won’t miss me

Cheryl: Driving in his car now, much better than yours

Cheryl: ok, I will miss you [I just had to have the last word!]

Just what I need, a driver with attitude. And this was the calmest, quietest, Saintly man I had ever met when I first sat in his front seat five and 1/2 months ago. Where did that man, the Saint, go? Obviously, the Cheryl effect is having an impact. Poor man! I believe my friend Andrew said that Africa would never be the same…it certainly applies to Buche.

I am afraid of what tomorrow morning will bring so wish me luck. I have no idea what payback will come from the Saint:)

As you can see, it is rather hard to be cranky with two men who are so darn amusing and intent on making me laugh. I am still smiling and this morning I never would have thought that would be possible. Not even a power outage all evening and sweating in the dark could diminish my smile thanks to the antics of these two wonderful men! How does a girl get so lucky?