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Tuesday, January 13, 2009

Tickets? Update - Novedades

One of my favorite bloggers in Argentina has asked me, pretty please with cherries on top, to print the letter that I left on the windshield of the idiot that parked in front of my garage.

Yep, that is the only thing that I did. I wrote a letter in Spanish. I was in the middle of an interview when she came out to her car so I could only see from a distance that she actually read it.

I could not confront her. I don´t feel too bad about that though since I will have other opportunities, and so I should have plenty of practice in the art of confronting some of these people. In fact, I could make it a project and try different approaches.

Anyway, this is from memory and translated, but it is very close to what the actual letter stated:

Dear Medical Professional,

I see from the sign in your car that you are a doctor or at the very least, have some medical training. From that I gather that you managed to receive a privileged education. In spite of this superior education you managed to park your car in front of a driveway with a "no parking" sign in clear view. Your car obstructed the entrance to my factory for the whole day. Clearly, from your education it can not be ignorance at play. Is this that famed "I could care less of others" attitude that is attributed to Argentines? Seeing your vast history of traffic violations, I can only guess that it is. In that case, congratulations! You now know who to point the finger at when people wonder what is wrong with this country. You are one of those that just does not care.

If you would like to start making your own country a nicer place to live please start caring a bit more about those around you. Change starts with one´s self.

Your inconvenienced neighbor,
Frank E. Almeida
Guatemala 5415

So it wasn´t as gratifying as stuffing her tailpipe with bananas, but I felt okay about it. That day we just worked around her car. Of course I told all the delivery people that the car did not belong to us...

*****Castellano*****

Una autora de uno de mis blogs favoritos me pidió que escriba la carta que dejé en el parabrisas del auto que estacionó enfrente de mi portón.

Ahora lo escribo de memoria pero es bastante cerca de lo que escribí:

Estimado profesional medico,

Veo por el cartel que tiene en su parabrisas que es un medico. Por esa razón, asumo que usted tuve una educación privilegiada. A pesar de esta educación, usted dejó su auto en frente del portón de nuestra fabrica impidiendo el acceso a la misma. Es claro que esto no puede ser por ignorancia, ya que nuestro portón tiene señalización prohibiendo el estacionamiento. Sera esto muestra de la fama que tienen los Argentinos por el despreció a sus vecinos y su propia ciudad? Mirando la cantidad de infracciones aplicado a su auto temo que es así.

En ese caso lo felicitó porque ya identificó con certeza, por lo menos, a uno de los culpables de cuando la gente pregunta "Que es lo que tiene mal este país?". Usted es uno de esos que no les importa al otro.

Si quisiera ayudar a mejorar su país, el cambio empieza por uno mismo.

9 comments:

Juan said...

very well said :P

Unknown said...

Juan,

Thanks!

Diva said...

wow, I´m really impressed. You are a smooth guy, you probably made her feel like the most rude person on earth (which is totally fine, she deserves it) but now she probably wants to date you! That was a good letter.
Thank you so much for posting it.

Unknown said...

Now I am truly impressed (with myself). I managed to impress Diva!

She actually left me an apology and once I get back I will put it up.

It was nice and all, but I still wonder how on earth she managed to rack up all those violations.

I just hope she thinks about her fellow citizens a little more from now on. Is it too much to hope?

Paddy in BA (Quickroute) said...

you are such a gentleman - I would find it hard to be so polite in the heat of the moment - but you show a bit of class!

Unknown said...

Hi Quickroute,

Actually this is only after I have gone around swearing and getting all pissy. I then look at myself and feel ashamed that someone like that could make me change my mood so easily; After that, I take the reigns back.

Thank you for the compliment!

Anonymous said...

Excellent work, Frank. Well done, and very tactful and diplomatic. I hope the day never comes in which you've become too accustomed or too cynical to stop doing this kind of this. It would be a sign of defeat, a sign that you've succumbed to the local disease of complacency. Your letter to this woman, and effort to find out more about her and her history, is inspiring. You should get some kind of good citizen award.
Taos

Anonymous said...

What else is there left to say apart from: you are so cool! :)

Unknown said...

Hi Taos and Coogie,

You two are too kind. I hope never to gain those calluses as well. I will be busy though since this tends to happen at my home as well.