Pickpockets and Closed Offices

This week I started to worry that I hadn't blogged recently, and I didn't really have any material I felt like writing about. But, I told myself not to be too concerned, because new things always pop up here. I was sure something would come along soon, and I was right. Be careful what you wish for...

I have a history of losing my wallet. It happens a couple times a year, and disaster usually ensues. Banks, insurance companies, Visa, the Massachusetts RMV, they must know my name by now from all the cards I've replaced. So it was only reasonable to expect that my wallet would go missing in China, and I was prepared for it. Kind of.

I was on my way to the gym to meet a friend, but I got there early. Lazy creature that I am, I thought I'd wander through some street shops rather than start my workout early. While I was wandering, I bumped into a man walking in the other direction. This happens all the time in China. I looked at him over my shoulder, and he was looking back at me. This happens all the time in China, too, since I kind of stand out. So I didn't think anything of the encounter until I realized that my wallet was... missing.

So my wallet had been pick-pocketed. I felt the first signs of panic rumbling somewhere behind my stomach. My hands tingled and my palms started sweating. A string of inappropriate curses raced through my mind. Credit card, ATM card, driver's license, insurance cards, gym card, bike parking passes... the list was long. But the first thing I had to do was immediately replace the swipe-card I use to enter my apartment building so I could access my apartment. I speed-dialed my real estate agent, who probably dreads seeing my number show up on his phone by now, and explained I needed a new card.







"Xiao Di, a thief stole my wallet today. I need to get a new building entry card."
"Oh, that's kind of inconvenient."
"What do you mean?"
"It will take a month. The office is closed. You can't order a new card until December."
"A month? That's totally unacceptable. How do I get into my apartment?"
"It will take a month. The office is closed."
"Again, how do I get into my apartment?"
"Well, see, it's not very convenient. It will take a month. The office is closed."

Now, there are worse things in this world than losing a building entry card. It's important to handle this type of thing with the poise and maturity befitting a responsible adult. So I calmly went to work on searching for another solution.

HAHAHA you didn't really believe me, did you?

I threw a complete and total fit. Xiao Di is not my favorite person to begin with, and this totally put me over the edge. Like a 6-year old throwing a tantrum, I screamed my little head off at Xiao Di, eventually losing the ability to speak Chinese, and threw a slew of English at him through the phone receiver. I (almost) felt bad for him. Then I cried, and then I raged, and then I realized there was absolutely nothing I could do about it. I reminded myself I am 8,000 miles from home, and if the offices are closed, well, gosh darnit, the offices are closed. There's not a thing to be done.

Solution: I will be bothering the security guards constantly, every day, over the next month to let me into my building. Maybe they'll get so sick of me that they'll complain to the office about taking so long to replace building entry cards. And the moral of the story: if you get to the gym early, don't procrastinate by going shopping.

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