For the last year or so we have had problems starting the truck. When we turn the key in the ignition sometimes the engine starts and sometimes it doesn’t. Usually it takes a few goes before it gets started. It was becoming such a routine that the Catholic Gnome would turn the key with a Sardinian prayer. Finally I said to him that it was just getting too ridiculous and we should just get the starter replaced. I said to him,
“What if we get stuck out in the middle of nowhere!”
And he replied,
“Babes, we are in the middle of nowhere!”
Oh…so we are.
Anyway we took a trip to the Big City last week and got the truck fixed up. Everything is now fine; we even saw a freezer on a pick-up. That’s 850 points.
Freezer On A Pick-up.
Remember the rules? Here they are again…
This is a Point Allocations game for the spotting of Goods (and assorted paraphernalia) on a Pickup (with a picture):
Fridge 1000pts.
Washing Machine 900pts.
Freezer 850pts.
Estufa (Spanish for Stove) 800pts.
Boca (Central American Chip Packets) 750pts.
Pig 500pts.
Tractor Wheels 500pts.
Large Ruminant 350pts.
Small Ruminants 250pts each.
When you spot the Fridge on a Pickup, the rule is to jiggle your bottom on the car seat and shout out,
“Fridge On A Pickup!!”
with whistles, loud expressive whooping and hand gesticulating.
Thank-you Ginja Bwai for continuing to play this game with us!!
Here is another Munchkin and Gnome Game which might become famous once we are minor celebrities. So, even although it seems like we are the only ones that find this game humourous, it is our hope that this might catch on at some point…”go viral” so-to-speak. However, I would like to give a Big Thank-you to Ginja Bwai for playing this game with us once.
Last week, we spotted a Fridge On A Pickup at Tommy’s Superstore in Bella Vista.
Gnome:
“Quick, quick, get a picture before you miss it!”
Munchkin:
“Yeah but…how can I miss it? It’s not moving!”
Fridge On A Pickup.
Gnome:
“Sorry Babes, but you do have a habit of missing them!”
Spotting a Fridge On A Pickup means 1000 points!!
And we have had close calls in the past as I fumbled around for the camera as the truck and fridge came whizzing by. Look! It’s speeding away!! There have been a few fast and furious car chases in Belize with Munchkin and Gnome!
White Goods On A Pickup.
Anyway here are the Point Allocations for the spotting of Goods (and assorted paraphernilia) on a Pickup (with a picture):
Fridge 1000pts.
Washing Machine 900pts.
Freezer 850pts.
Estufa (Spanish for Stove) 800pts.
Boca (Central American Chip Packets) 750pts.
Pig 500pts.
Tractor Wheels 500pts.
Large Ruminant 350pts.
Small Ruminants 250pts each.
When you spot the Fridge on a Pickup, the rule is to jiggle your bottom on the car seat and shout out,
“Fridge On A Pickup!!”
with whistles, loud expressive whooping and hand gesticulating.
Add up all your points and come to the sober realisation that none of this means anything and try to have More Fun!!
I am writing this post at 10am today and I have scheduled this to come up later this evening. We are waiting for our car service (that part was done over-night) and now the replacing of an array of ball-joints and universal joints. If you can recall a previous post from two weeks ago, we had complained of all sorts of funny creaking and screeching noises emitting from the rear of the truck. We did come to the conclusion, in our professional opinion, that it was a “God-Knows-Watsit-Joint-Problem.” So here we are, stuck in Belize with really slooow Internet. We also stayed over-night at a hotel in Belize City with virtually no Internet (although they boasted Free WiFi). I now feel better about our really bad Internet access; I always thought it was due to the fact that we lived in the middle of nowhere. No, it actually appears that the problem is across the whole country, regardless of location.
Anyway, I am not that bothered about the Internet being slow. It is not as if my life depends upon it and that I will fade into nothingness without the distractions of a computer screen in front of me. Although, I have seen some people react in such an irrational way…I am not sure what emergency emails they are basing their whole existence upon.
I am hoping that we can get out soon. The waiting is really tedious with bad television (we haven’t watched television for 20 years). The adverts get really ridiculous; seems like everything is marketed to the hilt and sensationalised. Also, the law firm adverts are really scary…makes it sound like you can get sued at any moment. Boy, I am so glad that I live in Belize with no television. It is a simpler life out here.
Let’s hope we can get out of Big City soon so that we can get on with our schedule. So far, no schedule has been fulfilled!!
We did see a fridge on a pick-up yesterday. Didn’t get a picture because it zoomed straight pass us I fumbled about looking for the camera!
Today we planned a day out to a plant nursery in Stann Creek and set out about 9am for our two hour leisurely cruise. Gnome laughed at me when I packed our “food bag” which consisted of a thermos flask of milky tea and some digestive biscuits. I just shrugged and said that there was simply no place to stop for refreshments (except for supermarkets and bars) on the way to Stann Creek. I didn’t want a beer, I wanted a cuppa tea!
Anyway, as we trundled along in our pick-up truck, we couldn’t help but notice that it kept on making a screechy, high pitched noise every-time he went over 100kph. So, Gnome spent the whole drive trying to keep the noise at bay. The sound was aggravating and we spent the entire drive worrying about ball joints and universal joints and God-knows-what-joints! Gnome is not skilled in fixing mechanised vehicles so if the truck happened to break down, we would be stuck in the middle of nowhere!
After an hour’s drive up the Southern Highway, we finally reached the first civilisation stop: “Tommy’s Superstore” in Bella Vista. This Chinese supermarket is the size of a K-mart and looks like a regular supermarket (this is a big deal in Belize because most of them don’t…not that I care).
Tommy’s Superstore, Bella Vista, Toledo.
We stopped at the car-park and I suggested having a cup of tea with a biscuit. If in doubt…bring out the hot beverage to calm the nerves! We romantically sipped our tea in front of the Chinese supermarket laughing and making light of our harrowing journey. We both agreed that it was best to turn back home in case anything happened. Before we left the car-park, a local farmer on a bike laden with pineapples approached us. You should have seen him…he strung the pineapples in lots of three and hung them from the handle-bars of the bike. He must have had at least thirty of them hanging like Christmas bobble decoration. We bought 15 pineapples just because we were so impressed by his superior co-ordination with the bike-load! And, they looked so sweet and tasty. Gnome was thinking about fermentation whilst I was thinking about dessert!
Pineapples on Strings.
On the way back home, we saw a fridge on a pick-up…1000 points!! Here are two views of our auspicious find.
Munchkin: Slam on the breaks Gnome. I think we got us one here!
Fridge on Pick-up Truck. Back View.
Munchkin: Slowly…slowly….
Gnome: Hurry, hurry before you miss it!
Fridge on a Pick-up. Side View.
For anyone out there who has the vaguest interest in this crazy game that we play, we like to spot “white goods” and various paraphernalia on the back of trucks and we award a points system according to the item. This is our idea of fun (I like to write about it in the vain hope that other people would consider playing the game with us…but alas, nobody seems to get the “fun” part). Anyway, a fridge is awarded the highest score hence the reason why I make Gnome sloooowww down to get a drive-by picture for the blog. Very auspicious!
We got home in one piece, thankfully…
Most of the pineapples have been pared, cut into pieces and frozen. Weather permitting, I will try to dehydrate the rest. I made pineapple cobbler today..I am going to pour some of our wonderful elixir (liqueur) onto it before serving!
Fridge on a pick-em up is a game we play when we decide to take the long arduous drive to the Big City (Belize City). Now, both Gnome and I have been very seasoned travelers in the past having travelled the length and breadth of bigger places like Australia, Europe and the UK. But, somehow this meagre 200 mile journey from Toledo to Belize City seems to test our stamina to the limits! It might be due to all the speed bumps on the village roads, some with no advance warning signs (until you actually go flying up in the air and then come crashing down with a loud thud-dunk!).
A while ago, we developed a Pick-em up Game on the road, just to keep things a bit more novel for us. Basically, the majority of vehicles on the Belizean roads are pick-up trucks and as you drive, you can usually spot a whole variety of interesting things on the back of people’s trucks. As a result of this, we developed a points game where the contents of a pick-up truck is equivalent to specific bonus points.
Our highest bonus points allocation (1000 points) goes to the Fridge on a Pick-em up!
This one was actually 2 Fridges on a Pick-em up! Double Bonus Points!
The above sighting of 2 fridges was most auspicious. A bit further up the Highway, we came across another Fridge on a Pick-em up but I couldn’t get a drive-by picture because Gnome was driving too fast.
Other high bonus points include: Estufa (Spanish name for ‘Stove’) on a Pick-em up = 800 Bonus Points, Boca (Central American Chip Packets) on a Pick-em up = 750 Bonus Points and Pig on a Pick-em up = 500 Bonus Points.
Whenever we come across the infamous Fridge, we do a bit of a jiggle on the car seat and shout out ” Fridge on a Pick-em up!”
This game has its value in keeping us amused and also in keeping our eyes on the road!
For the last year or so we have had problems starting the truck. When we turn the key in the ignition sometimes the engine starts and sometimes it doesn’t. Usually it takes a few goes before it gets started. It was becoming such a routine that the Catholic Gnome would turn the key with a Sardinian prayer. Finally I said to him that it was just getting too ridiculous and we should just get the starter replaced. I said to him,
