12th Posting
Autor: Buster Hale | Publicado: 2011-07-03T17:36:00-04:00

It's the little things.  One of the frustrating things living in another culture with another language is not being able to do the little things like getting a cell phone. I have had a pre-paid cell phone in Brazil with a leading provider for several years, but it is very expensive. So I decided to get a post-paid plan with my internet provider which is cheaper. I went to the office next door to the school and did this without any problems, but I did have to get another number. But because I was changing my plan, I would have to redo the automatic draft from my bank account which meant another trip to the bank to stand in line to wait for someone to do this. In addition a data plan came with the cell phone package, but I could not activate it on my phone after many tries. So last Saturday, I decided that the time had come to deal with all of this. I checked the web site of the cell phone company and was able to retrieve and pay my current bill; there was even a link to reestablish the automatic draft which I did. Also I consulted with Dr. Google about the settings on my Android cell phone to activate the data plan; he told me exactly what to do and it works. So I had quite a sense of accomplishment and was very impressed with the "first world" Brazilian banking system.

Cold in Brazil. OK, I know how hot it is in the States, especially in Mississippi. But you don't know hot until you come to Brazil in the summer (110+, 98% humidity and swarms of mosquitoes) and you don't know cold until you experience cold in Brazil. This morning it was 45 degrees in church where there is no heat and the windows in the front of the church are non existent; I had trouble balancing my bible and the book with my hands in my coat pockets. The forecast is 40 degrees in the morning. My apartment has no heat whatsoever and a hot shower does not exist in any temperature. I saw on Brazilian television that in southern Brazil people actually poor alcohol on the floor of the shower and light it to heat the floor enough to take a shower. (In the kitchen I saw a bottle of alcohol that Dely bought to clean the granite table top; I decided I would probably burn myself and the shower stall.) I actually look forward to the heat of Mississippi in a few weeks because I know there is air conditioning!

White legs. Brazilians are always fascinated with my white skin and blue eyes; I always laugh and say that I wanted black hair and black eyes but this is what God gave me. I have used no sun screen since I arrived and have some tan, but not on my legs. Since I teach most days and go to church on Sunday, I wear jeans and rarely wear shorts and not enough to get any tan. When the American team was here, I wore shorts on the one day that I did not teach. My friend Larry Overstreet in Oxford wears shorts only while on mission trips according to wife June. Their daughter-in-law Melissa was kidding Larry and me about looking alike with our white socks and legs. She took this picture at lunch at the church. You be the judge of the whitest legs.


Federal Police. We have had an interesting time with the Federal Police. In Brazil, the Federal Police is equivalent to the FBI and also handles immigration. (I had to register with them upon arrival in Brazil and ask for a national identity card.) Since we are on the border with Bolivia, the Federal Police here are very suspicious of all foreigners, especially Americans. A couple of years ago two different groups of American biologists were caught gathering soil samples in the Pantanal without permission; they were arrested and deported immediately. These arrests were actually a problem for me getting a visa to teach here on the frontier and a Brazilian friend had to personally vouch for me.

After the team left, Roberto got a call from the PF (Polícia Federal) requesting an interview. Roberto was all excited because he thought that the call was to talk about some kind of joint social project that the PF wanted to do. I told him that I did not think so and reminded him that the PF determines our visa status in Brazil. He was questioned extensively about our activities here, particularly with regard to the farm and our use of it. Of course, we have nothing to hide and everything is done according to Brazilian law. But Roberto was a bit shaken up by all the questions; he said the room had no windows in it. The next day after his interview I had to go to the PF to request an extension of my request for an identity card; I have to request an extension every 90 days until the card comes. It was very routine and the agent was very busy and barely looked at me; in fact, no one asked me anything other than had I moved. But I told Roberto that I was questioned about our activities and I blamed everything on him; as our representative in Brazil, it was his job to give us accurate advice. I even told him that I suggested the PF arrest him, not me. He believed me and turned white as a sheet!!!! I still laugh when I remember the look on his face. I know it was mean but the look was worth it after he was originally so eager to talk to them.

More later.