Not long ago I was driving our truck on a trail that was pretty rough. I had forgotten to tie down the cooler and toolbox and other miscellaneous stuff in the cargo area of the truck after eating lunch, and low and behold when we got back on the trail it flew all over the place. Thankfully only one thing broke; my air compressor. It is, because Murphy works internationally, imported from the states and is a vital part of the tool kit for the truck so I had to get it repaired. Having parts sent from the states wasn’t practical or affordable, so I decided to go to a machine shop and have one fabricated for around $7.
Much of my Tagalog practice has revolved around shops, and mechanics because often their English is quite poor. So far I haven’t had any surprises, like asking for an oil change and getting a glitter paint job. I was a bit concerned about this one cause it was a pretty foreign piece of machinery to them, but they got right to work doing what I had asked. As they carved out a new part on the lathe I sat and waited. While I waited I was entertained and amazed by their delivery guy who rode a bicycle. A machine shop delivery guy, not a pizza delivery guy, on a bicycle.
I was amazed when I first saw the rider show up with a couple of lower control arms off of what looked like a Toyota Corolla. Then, the next trip he brought a couple of front brake disc rotors from a full-sized truck that looked like they weighed over 100 pounds each. Keep in mind that he looked like he may have tipped the scales in triple digits after a good hard rain.
Then the most fascinating delivery of all was a drive shaft off of a box van. I was amazed at his ingenuity and boldness of riding his bike in Manila traffic with a driveshaft tied to the bike and resting between his legs. I don’t think I’d ever need an adrenaline rush again in my life if I had to ride that contraption through the insane maze of traffic that is Manila.