Clef

Today started out like any other Friday. I woke up, had a marvelous homemade breakfast (today it was cornbread with apple butter and tea), and got ready for class. I cursed the same lock that always sticks when I try to undo it in the morning and waited for Anne. I locked the door behind us with my key, and we climbed into the elevator. I hastily shoved my key in its designated pocket, reaching behind my head to do so. Then I made the 2.5 mile walk to school with Anne.

On Fridays I only have Arabic. I put my iPod away in the key pocket for class, and during break I grabbed my coin purse out to buy a date breakfast bar. After class, I talked a bit to some of my classmates, and four of us made the walk home. We stopped at Label Vie for snacks, but as I had already taken my coinpurse out of my bag at school, I never took the bag off my back. We bought snacks and walked back towards homebase. The only real excitement were the dates we were eating and when we saw a man on a small motorcycle get hit by a car. Don't worry, he was mostly fine, probably just had a broken leg...

I'm sure by now, most of you can see where this is leading. When I got back up to the apartment, I reached into the key pocket, but couldn't feel the key. No problem I thought. Maybe I just put it into the wrong pocket...I was reaching behind my head when I shoved the key in my bag. So I rang the bell for Aisha to let me in. However, when I searched my bag, the key was nowhere to be found.

I texted Anne and anxiously waited to see if she could find my key in our classroom. No. So I took matters into my own hands. I walked to the taxi stand, and took a Grand Taxi to school. The whole way I was scanning the sidewalks. I went to my Arabic classroom, interrupted the class that was taking place (don't worry too much, it was an ISA class), and asked if anyone had found a key. Nope. Then I went to the front gate and asked the gaurd if anyone had turned in a key. Nope. Of course it is important to remember that the majority of these conversations took place in French with wild hand gestures, so it was not so easy, but I did get my point across, and I was not able to find my key.

I walked home, retracing my steps, crossing the streets at the same places along the way. Nothing. When I got to our building, I sat on the steps outside and waited for our doorman. I asked if he had found my key, nope. By this point, I had already resigned myself to the fact that I would not find my key. In fact, I had been practicing my speech in French for Majda. Planning out all the words I would need to tell my story and explain that I would pay for everything. I'm much better at talking to myself in French than I am talking to others-the nerves get to me!

"Ca va?" Majda asked as I walked in the door. "Non," I replied. When she asked why, I launched into a much choppier version of the story I had rehearsed on my walk home. "S'arrive," she assured me--roughly translated, "stuff happens." She was convinced, after hearing my story that it had fallen in the elevator, and the night guard had found it. She doesn't trust the night guard. Therefore, it was necessary that we change the lock, toute de suite. We finished our tea, and took the day doorman ("very good" in the words of Majda) with us to search for a lock.

Shop after shop shook their heads as we walked in. No locks like the one we needed. Finally we hit the jackpot. For about $17, I was able to replace the old lock with a shiny new one. I still felt guilty for all the trouble I had put Majda through, so I ran down to the bakery before making my way upstairs. I purchased a variety of cakes, and dodged all the "How are you? Fine?" comments as I wove my way back to the apartment. Majda was confused at me having bought dessert, and I didn't know how to say that it was because I felt bad, so I just shook my head as she assured me in French that it wasn't necessary.

Even now I can't help but to think that now I'll never have to deal with that sticky lock again in the morning. Twenty dollars isn't too bad of a price to pay for that!