The Italian arrives

Up until now we've been managing with our small Chinese-made generator, altho it only runs 1 A/C and a frig. We realized that we needed a much larger one that would do several A/C's at a time. Rated at 25 amps, we learned that it was so ineffective because in truth, it could produce only 10 to 12 amps. After lots of discussion with our leadership and a day of shopping with 2 diesel experts, we concluded that we could best afford a $5,500 Italian Lombardini rated at 13 KVA which translates to about 50 amps. Even with this, the seller recommended running only 3 A/C units on it for maximum life. It will be tight, but this will be enough when we are holding language or theological classes in our Training Center and when students or visitors are sleeping upstairs in our Guest House.
Affectionately named "The Italian", the photo shows its arrival in front of our house at rush hour yesterday. Our team of Kurdish language students were meeting in our front yard with 5 prospective language teachers. Confusion was rampant as the driver of the "winch" did not hesitate to block traffic on our busy street while off-loading the Italian.
We launched into an immediate disagreement as the company changed all the agreements we had made before the sell. They said they would pay for the pickup carrying the Italian but I had to pay for the winch. Then they said I would have
to pay for set-up. At the show room I was told that the purchase price included "set-up." The man now said he never promised that. I asked if his word counted only if he added, "I cross my heart and hope to die?" There is a definite problem of language since I did the transaction in Arabic with a Kurdish man who spoke Arabic.
But that gave him lots of wiggle-room to claim a misunderstanding. Finally he said he would come the next day and hook it up. But today he arrived with an Electrician who he said I would have to pay 75,000 dinars plus parts. Through a Kurdish friend I told him that before I purchased the machine he treated me like a son but once the money changed hands, he treated me like an orphan.
To be ready for the electrician to do the hook-up, I had to fill the tank with diesel fuel. I contemplated several trips to the gas station filling my two 5-gallon plastic jugs with diesel fuel. But then I had a great idea. I would ask my neighbors to send the man who fills the tank of diesel fuel for their generator.
I should have perceived something was up when they kept asking, "How many liters do you want?" My response was, "I don't know. I want the tank filled."
So a man shows up in an oil-covered pickup truck with 5 barrels in the back and 2 very dirty boys in the cab. He offered to drop off a barrel with 120 liters of diesel fuel in it. Of course my response was, "How would I ever get it into my tank?" Well, it turns out that the guy has a pump with NO meter on it. So to make a long story short, he filled my 20 liter jugs with his huge hose and then poured them one at a time into the generator's tank. Thus he knew how many liters he gave me. Now don't think this was a neat operation. After a jug was filled, he would jerk the hose up into the air above the level of the barrel on his truck to shut off the flow. He spoke neither Arabic nor English so a friend told me how much I owed him. I told my friend to tell him that there were still a few spots on my driveway that he had not spilled diesel fuel on if he wanted to complete soaking everything.
I paid him, gave toys to his 2 boys and he was on his way.
So now I was ready when the electrician returned with his supplies and I thought we would have back-up electricity by sundown. But today is the first day of Ramadan, the month of fasting from dusk to dawn and although many here do not fast, this man did. So at about 3 in the afternoon in 110 degree heat,the poor guy says he's just too tired to finish the job today. Could he come back tomorrow? What could I say? He did not even pick up his tools, but left them scattered all over the place.
So the story of the Italian should end tomorrow. But if it does I will be the one who is most surprised, since nothing here goes as you plan or hope.