Lockpickers on Tricycle

April 6, 2022

Have you ever really moved abroad if you don’t lock yourself out of your residence once or twice? Given my proclivity for absentmindedness and running out the door forgetting (insert vital item here), I suppose it was only a matter of time. After my first “Monday” in the office, I raced home to take Sable on a long walk. She got a bit spoiled during the last two years of my working from home, and I’ve been feeling guilty about her being cooped up indoors all day.

We went on a lovely stroll through the neighborhood, which is surprisingly lush with lots of succulent greenery and fragrant flowers. I was considering what I might make for dinner when we approached the villa and I realized my keys were nowhere to be found. Sigh.

I shudder to think how much water is spent keeping these plants so green

I WhatsApped my social sponsor, asking [not] hypothetically how one might get back into their villa should they have misplaced their keys, and she immediately pinged back with the contact info for our facilities management folks. I rang the number and not ten minutes later did a kindly gentleman on a tricycle ride up to my place! He broke the lock within about 10 minutes (should I be concerned??) and a few minutes later another gent showed up to replace the lock. Sable and I rehydrated, and my plans for making dinner went out the window. Thanks to Deliveroo, a chicken shawarma wrap and fries magically appeared at my door within 30 minutes and for under $10.

Maintenance man to my (and Sable’s!) rescue on another 90+ degree day in the UAE

I’m quickly learning that any problem you might have in Abu Dhabi, there’s an app for that. Until I get them all downloaded, I’ll enjoy the flowers!

xoxo

Aims