Ukraine is full of lines and waits. It doesn't really matter what you're trying to do (get a residency permit, buy stamps, or get on a bus), you're going to be in a line and you're going to wait. It's just the way it is. The lines almost never make sense- structurally- to a foreigner, and said foreigner might spend 45 minutes in one line only to find out she needed to be in another line the whole time. On top of that, you're going to have to fight to keep your spot; people like to cut in line or crowd you out, so you have to figure out a way to maintain your space. That's not really my forte, seeing as how I hate confrontation in any format, but I'm pretty good at it now (in fact, I can be a little aggressive when standing in lines at stores in the U.S.; I think I subconsciously feel the need to protect my spot in line. It's embarrassing to my family...).
Anyway, it took me a while to adjust to how long everything takes in Ukraine. I'd make a list of 12 things I needed to get done on any given day and might accomplish one. That was SO frustrating (I would say "frustrating at first," but if I'm being honest, I never really got un-frustrated with that one). It's just a LOT less convenient to do things in Ukraine. Transportation (being at the mercy of a "system") is a pain, lack of space to carry things as you're on public transport or on foot is a pain, language barrier is a pain, lack of automated/automatic things is a pain, having to go to the grocery store daily is a pain, not having a dryer or dishwasher is a pain (I got over that one quickly, but it's still less convenient), converting currency or the metric system is a pain...you get it (if you don't, leave me a comment, and I'll elaborate). It's not convenient. You hand wash things and air dry things and sweep things when you can't vaccuum and you go without water in the pipes or electricity. You wait for things only to find out that you're in the wrong line or that they've run out...
Then, you return to America. The land of Instant Gratification. And of Plenty. And of Customer Service. Things are FABULOUS! People are helpful and tell you which line you should be in. Washing machines, dryers, and dishwashers can all be found under the same roof. You can drive yourself in your own vehicle (given you can afford the ever-increasing cost of gasoline), and you can take that vehicle to the grocery store and fill it up with groceries for a whole week! Toilets, sinks, and paper towel dispensers in bathrooms will do all (well, almost all...) of the work for you. It's awesome. Totally awesome.
Until...
I start forgetting how awesome it is and rather become annoyed that the Normal cycle on my dishwasher takes an hour. Or that my clothes have to go through the dryer twice. Or that I have to find a parking place for my car AND fill it up regularly. Or that buggies full of groceries are just so cumbersome to push allll the way to my car and then allll the way to a buggy return. Or that I have to stand behind FOUR PEOPLE in a check-out line (I mean really- I should just always use self-checkout so I can completely avoid all lines, right??).
When I realize these things, I want to kick myself for allowing Instant Gratification to become my very best friend. She's not a great friend to have; she turns you into a demanding and impatient shell of your former self that learned to do things the hard way if the easy way wasn't working for you. She also threatens to take away my attitude of gratefulness for the abundant blessings that fill my life and make it so full...even when I don't deserve it.
If you get a chance, pat your dryer on the head today and let her (or him) know you're thankful for her/him. You can also lift up a quick prayer on behalf of all of our expats and missionaries around the world who are going without. They might need those prayers when sliding into ridiculously hard and stiff clothing after it's been on the line for a couple of days...
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