Life in the Third World

The main reason why I chose to live in the shoebox despite its too-small living space, traffic noise, the masses of people lining up outside for a game show, proximity to a cult, etc.- is that it is very close to the TV station where I work. Because gas prices zoomed up while I was away, I didn't want to have to shell out a lot of money just to gas up to go to work (I don't mind it as much if I have to pay for gas for out-of-town trips). Because I live so close by, I just walk to the office and hardly need to use my car (which I call Zak).

However, this morning I discovered YET another reason to be stressed about my living arrangements. When I was about to leave my building for work, the guard approached me and tried to tell me something in a very soft voice. "Blah blah blah blah blah blah", is pretty much what registered, since he was speaking in unusually hushed tones. I asked him to speak up, since I was already late for a meeting. He spoke a bit louder, and he said "Ma'am, nawala po ang sideview mirrors niyo." (Ma'am, your sideview mirrors have been stolen.) No wonder he was speaking so softly! It was his job to guard the (very small) parking lot in front of our building!

I rushed to Zak, and saw for myself that yet another car of mine was stripped of its sideview mirrors. This is the third time this has happened to me. My two previous cars had been victimized in the same manner. As in the past two incidents, I just felt helpless and frustrated. There was no way I was going to get those mirrors back. I just have to suck it up, go to Banawe to buy cheap and probably stolen replacements. As the joke goes, I might just be buying my own mirrors back.

These are the moments when I really hate living in Manila. When your car is violated right outside your home, and when you realize there's pretty much NOTHING you can do about it.