Warning: impending international incident

THURSDAY MORNING UPDATE: A few seconds after starting the car, a yellow light on the dash started flashing. No idea what the light meant -- the icon is best described as a squiggle. So I punted. Put the car back in the spot and called a cab, saving the international incident for another day. Stay tuned.

Original post from Wednesday:

We got the company car to work finally (this involved hiring a mechanic, then hiring another one after the first one stopped answering his phone, then waiting three days for the new guy to figure out directions to our building, then persuading the building not to tow the car as the mechanic was "on his way," then hearing from the mechanic that the battery needed to be charged overnight, then reinstalling the battery only to have it die completely, then -- this afternoon -- putting in a new battery, which worked).

Now it's time to drive the car home, which is why I'm killing time in an Internet cafe. Driving here poses several problems: (1) they drive on the wrong side of the road; (2) Nairobi drivers are, incredibly, worse than Boston drivers (the preferred term is "Massholes"); (3) it's madness to drive here in rush hour, which runs roughly from noon until midnight; and (4) I've only driven stick twice. So there's a very real chance I will stall hopelessly in one of the many roundabouts in downtown and be beaten senseless by an angry mob.

I'm debating going across the street to get a drink. It could actually improve my skills, or at least move my blood alcohol level closer to that of the average taxi driver.