Not 9-to-5

A few days ago I was inspired to call a good friend of mine - it had been a long time since I had heard how things were going on his side of the world but I also just quadrupled my phone minutes, so there would actually be enough time to chat.

So I looked for a quiet corner in the bus terminal´s restaurant and sat down with my coffee. I dialed the number for his desk phone and, determined not to leave silly messages, I tried the general office number when he didn´t pick up. Hmm, no one there... Okay, so I decided to wait a half hour, finish my coffee, then try again.

I let 20 minutes go by and tried all of the numbers again, even the people who would be in the other offices. No one was there! Had there been an evacuation? Had I considered time-zone changes? Did I try all of the normal numbers? Is he screening all calls?

Then it hit me - Ah-ha! I forgot something important: This is a Saturday afternoon. Of course I can´t talk to my friends in that office so many miles away from here; this is a weekend!

Note to self: Normal work hours exist in other parts of the world; not everybody works like a Peace Corps volunteer.