Monday, January 9, 2017

Dangling In Our Own Waters


We were trying to avoid dangling in our own waters.

Son of S.A.M. and I, both of average height, stood tippy-toed at a urinal in Amman.  Staring forward at broken tile on the wall. My laconic son remarked. “If you were an alien, and you dropped into Amman to use the restroom before heading out into public, you'd think all Jordanians are 7 feet tall.”

I giggled.  Then I got a Charlie horse in my right calf, so I shifted. Then I got one in my left calf. I shifted. From behind I'm sure we looked like a pair of leaking metronomes.

Jordanian men aren't extraordinarily tall. Maybe shorter than average, he was right. Urinal placement is typically inordinately high. I was wondering why my calves were looking so good. I'm not sure why it is.  

Like many places we've been the building codes lack any sort of codifying. Even before a cataloging, there was the builder's code “Measure twice, cut once”.  Here, I don't even think it's “measure once, cut once,. More like “throw it up on the wall and see if it sticks, maybe it'll settle”

And until they settle, calves of steel, baby, calves of steel.