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I was out to dinner with my family tonight when I got a call from a number that not only did I not recognize, but wasn't even a real number. 000-012-3456. I figured it was either a glitch, or someone using a caller ID spoofing device. Not wanting to risk the latter, I let it go to voicemail; if it was important, they'd leave a message.
Rather to my surprise, it turned out to be The Greatest Customer of All Time, calling from Brazil. Turns out he's coming back from there but needs to go back right away to deliver some items to a client, and for various reasons that I don't want to get into, he needed someone to come with him, and his fiancée can't do it, so I was his next choice. He must have been serious about it because when I got home I had an email from him with a travel itinerary, including flight times and such. The trip would have been all expenses paid by his client down there.
Now, I'd love to go. I mean shit, who wouldn't like an all-expense paid weekend overseas? But I can't do it, for several reasons.
First and foremost, I don't have a passport, and there's no possible way I could get one in time, even with the more expensive expedited processing (current estimate is 2-3 weeks, and this trip would be in 10 days).
Second, even if I did have a passport, I've already passed the cutoff time for requesting time off from work, so to get the time off would mean a special favor from Captain Jellico. Need I say more about that?
Third, even if I had a passport, and could get the time off, I'm not totally comfortable with this. I'm not going to say what the purpose of the trip is, but it's ethically and legally questionable (no, it's not drugs). Even though I think the legal burden would fall on his client and not him or me, I'm still not comfortable with the idea.
Of course, it's a moot point, since I don't have a passport, but still.....
And I feel kind of bad that I can't help him, because he's done SO much for me; I have more or less free access to my DREAM CAR - for only the cost of gas - thanks to him.
Rather to my surprise, it turned out to be The Greatest Customer of All Time, calling from Brazil. Turns out he's coming back from there but needs to go back right away to deliver some items to a client, and for various reasons that I don't want to get into, he needed someone to come with him, and his fiancée can't do it, so I was his next choice. He must have been serious about it because when I got home I had an email from him with a travel itinerary, including flight times and such. The trip would have been all expenses paid by his client down there.
Now, I'd love to go. I mean shit, who wouldn't like an all-expense paid weekend overseas? But I can't do it, for several reasons.
First and foremost, I don't have a passport, and there's no possible way I could get one in time, even with the more expensive expedited processing (current estimate is 2-3 weeks, and this trip would be in 10 days).
Second, even if I did have a passport, I've already passed the cutoff time for requesting time off from work, so to get the time off would mean a special favor from Captain Jellico. Need I say more about that?
Third, even if I had a passport, and could get the time off, I'm not totally comfortable with this. I'm not going to say what the purpose of the trip is, but it's ethically and legally questionable (no, it's not drugs). Even though I think the legal burden would fall on his client and not him or me, I'm still not comfortable with the idea.
Of course, it's a moot point, since I don't have a passport, but still.....
And I feel kind of bad that I can't help him, because he's done SO much for me; I have more or less free access to my DREAM CAR - for only the cost of gas - thanks to him.
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