Funny or frustrating ... we all get to choose.

Today I wanted to get a price for a project I'm working on so I took my measurements and found that I needed about 30 meters (100 feet) of screen. I went to the ferretería (hardware store) and asked "How much for 30 meters of screen?" The answer I received was 150 pesos per kilo.....? "Kilo?" I asked. "Si señor". 

My next natural question was "How many meters are in a kilo?" He said " Oh, I don't know. Maybe 3 1/2 or 4."      So.......taking the cautious approach I calculated 30 meters at 3 1/2 meters per kilo and said "I would like to buy 8 1/2 kilos of screen please." Right? Wrong! 

I need have them cut the 30 meters of screen, then they weigh it and then, and only then, do you know what the price is. Funny or frustrating .... we all get to choose.

Right now I'm reading Mark Twain's book Following The Equator which is the story of his trip around the world. Before this I read another of his books Roughing It, mostly about the California gold rush days. In both books he makes reference to the fact that whether traveling by stage coach or train there was a weight limit for luggage. With the stage coach you left behind what was over weight. On the train you paid for anything over the limit. Sound familiar? Yep, the more things change.... the more they stay the same. I share Mark Twain's frustrations in many of the examples he wrote about 150 years ago.