Elizabeth

My brother and his wife arrived on Monday this week to settle here in Aus as well. They are staying with us for a couple of days until their apartment is ready for them to move into. I left home yesterday just after 3am to be onsite for a demo, so things have been busy - hence my tardiness in blogging.

I am starting to recognise streets and some things are even beginning to look vaguely familiar. On Saturday we went to the RTA (Road Traffic Authority) to transfer registration of Carmen's car into her name. You take a number from an electronic dispenser, take a seat and wait in the que until you are called. Elizabeth (not her real name) (well that is what her nametag said , but since she was Chinese, I seriously doubt it) helped us. When we got to the counter, Carmen and I exchanged glances - this appeared to be another Margaret - albeit the Asian derivative. Whilst she typed away busily on her Apple - yes certain government departments have Apples it appears!!! Anyway, as she typed, I asked her where to get the etag that fits on your windscreen and that automatically pays your toll fees. Silence. Type, type, type, Enter. Type, type, type.

She stapled the necessary, handed it over, her face still an impassive blank. I repeated my question.
'Forms at the flont.' she gestured vaguely in the direction of the entrance, her expression deadpan... I momentarily wondered whether she had ever tried her hand at poker and briefly thought of asking her, but thought better of it..
'And then where do we go?' I ventured.
'Then you take number.'
And rejoin the que she forgot to add, i thought to myself - if we end up back at her counter, I swear...
And of course we did.
Type type type, Enter. and then.... the unthinkable happened. She smiled and said 'thank you!' Is smile an exaggeration? I want to say she was almost cheerful - am I going too far, did I imagine it? It was almost as though in that instant she had remembered about some or other motivational customer care course she attended a few years ago in a hotel with red carpets and slightly faded curtains and a loud speaker in a louder tie. Whatever it was, at the end of the day, Margaret retained her title safely.