Still here...surrounded by not much...

At the risk of sounding like a broken (gramophone) record our stuff still isn't here. I am beginning to suspect a few of you are quite enjoying hearing about the non-arrival of our stuff, safe in your own homes surrounded by your own stuff. Stop sniggering, it's not funny. However this afternoon I am sitting in my own home, waiting for the internal phone to ring, for the front gate to announce there's a truck outside with my quilting frame on it.

On Friday I had to take the gate pass to the main offices of the shipping agent (handily the tower block next to Rod's tower block). Rod had already taken the pass in on Wednesday afternoon and been told they didn't need it. So when the shipping agent called Rod and said we'd have to take the gate pass back to the customs freight depot, one and a half hours away, Rod used no uncertain words, rather loudly, to explain what a door to door service was; how much of my time had been taken doing what they had been paid to do; and that he now expected the only thing required of me was open the apartment door and point to the room I wanted the contents of the crates placed in. The girl dealing with our shipment was at least clever enough to realise this might be a good time to pass Rod's call onto her supervisor.

The supervisor was a lot more clued on than the girl who had been dealing with us (guess that's why she's the supervisor). I was asked to take the gate pass in, and had to sign a couple of forms authorising the company to collect my crates and bring them to me. Supervisor lady apologised that she would be unlikely to be able to get my crates to me today as it was now 2pm, because the original documents had to be produced at the freight depot (an hour and a half away) before the goods could be released, loaded on a truck and driven to me (an hour and a half back again) before 6.30, the time the security guards want all workmen out of the complex. I agreed with her. So she promised they would be here today, in the afternoon because the customs inspectors don't turn up to work early. So here I am...

Also on Friday I managed to speak to someone arranging the shipping of our household effects. He said the container is come to Delhi today. "Is come" is one of the Indian English phrases which frustrates me the most. "Has come" is a good thing, because it has happened already, so you can believe it when they say today. "Is coming" is not so reliable, because it hasn't happened yet, so it might not happen today. But which one of these two possibilities is "is come"? Arghhhh!