πŸ‘¨β€πŸ³ I Purchased Propane On The Black Market πŸ”₯ It Felt Like a Drug Deal πŸ’Š

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Apparently I know a guy who knows a guy who knows a guy with propane, so after nearly a week without proper hot and fresh meals, we achieved a small victory today.

cool flyer, but never answers and doesn't return calls

The Struggle Is Real (Again)

Β  Β  Β It really feels like a race to the bottom here in Suriname, and Code Purple has already proven to be a beast, causing people to cue shoulder-to-shoulder in long lines, something that would seem quite counterproductive during a pandemic.

Β  Β  Β Suriname is facing some serious shortages in what seems nearly every sector of the economy. If you follow my blog, you'll know I've hit the streets for 5 days back-to-back simply trying to get $200 USD from Western Union, a propane tank exchange, and any fruit or vegetables available.

Β  Β  Β At the moment we only have access to mangos, cucumbers and tofu, as far as fresh-ish things go. There are now only a total of 24 hours each week total we are allowed outside the home to do what we need to do, so we've added panic buying to what was already food shortages due to the record flooding.

The Magic of a Hot & Fresh Meal

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Β  Β  Β It goes without saying those with cars and motorized transport have the advantage in times like these, covering more ground and errands in less time than pedestrians and cyclists. However, I scored some propane today, and it arrived at my house in the trunk of an unmarked car, clearly not a legit business like the other propane delivery businesses that aren't answering their phone.

Β  Β  Β Our choice of reasonably affordable vegetables and fruit has been reduced to mangos and cucumbers, we put them on whatever food we make. I prepared some macaroni with a spicy arrabbiata sauce, something so simple to prepare I wouldn't dare share the recipe with you all, but it's very googleable.

Morale Partially Restored

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Β  Β  Β I have never been so in amazement at having flames available in the blink of an eye. It triggered a sort of caveman-esque fascination, and that led to the ridiculous GIF I created for the thumbnail. We humbly give thanks for what we have at this time, and know there are millions people around the world in much more dire straits than ourselves.

Β  Β  Β There is still a food problem, but I think it's safe to say a portion of my sense of humor has returned, and a goofy Dad makes happy kids. Now all I have to do is attempt a vegetable run on Friday, the most hectic of the non-lockdown days, but it'll be our last chance to get anything other than cucumbers before the full weekend lockdown.

Β  Β  Β Some new and delicious #plantbased Ital recipes are on the horizon, as well as some humorous content too. Stay tuned my fellow Hivers, and thanks for all the positive vibes you sent me on my birthday.

Dad
@JustinParke
Mom
@SreyPov
πŸ™ GIVE THANKS πŸ™
Srey-Yuu
@KidSisters
Monkey B
@KidSisters

CLICK HERE TO JOIN HIVE AND START EARNING CRYPTO LIKE US
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53 comments
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For a moment I thought he was talking about Venezuela, but I see that over there they are also the same, although there is food, the price to buy just for one day exceeds the minimum salary for a month. The harsh and harsh truth we face, the good thing is that hive has been a great help to many people, there is no need to complain but to be thankful, what a good mood it has.

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Some comparisons can certainly be made with Venezuela, and some things not. The biggest difference is we lack an economy of scale, so problems escalate quickly. We are barely over 500,000 people living here, the size of some favelas in many Latin American countries. Hive has been a lifeline for us too, and an even better place to vent our frustrations to the world, among other things. !ENGAGE 35


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Priceless gif lmao!!!

Happy to see you guys sitting on the floor with good food!

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Yes indeed, some normalcy has returned for now. I don't like to flatter myself too much, but I laughed a lot at this GIF too. !ENGAGE 10


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TΓΊ cara de asombro me causa mucha gracia amigo mΓ­o @justinparke de verdad muy feliz que tu Γ‘nimo estΓ© mejor, saludos desde acΓ‘ a la vuelta de la esquina, sigue subiendo contenido de calidad y lleno de humanidad para todos nosotros. Hasta luego

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AdemΓ‘s te adelanto acΓ‘ en Venezuela es igual que en Surinam por ello te entiendo, igual que en tu post pasado, aun no entiendo como sigo cuerda acΓ‘, esta comunidad me esta ayudando mucho gracias infinitas, siempre pongo las etiquetas para que puedas ver mis trabajos saludos @justinparke

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Yes, give thanks sister. Hive is indeed a great place to vent our frustrations, even if we are simply posting recipes. Just the act of distracting myself from the problems around me makes another day disappear and a new day dawn a little faster. Also, give thanks for Hive being the place that we can learn directly from each other without media and nationalistic bias. Positive vibes to Hive's Herbal Tea Queen in Venezuela. !ENGAGE 55


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de verdad que sΓ­, asΓ­ mismo es nosotros escapamos de los problemas acΓ‘ donde es un lugar muy educativo y productivo, saludos hermano @justinparke un enorme abrazo

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I am so glad you finally got some propane! Macaroni with arrabbiata sauce sounds like a good meal! GOOD LUCK finding fruits & vegetables on Friday!

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It's a never-ending up and down rollercoaster ride, but we persevere, and a little humor never hurts. !ENGAGE 15


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Oh mate! I feel for you. Can totally relate to the lockdown situation since we are facing the same here. Hope this all gets back to normal soon.

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Yes, things seem really bad in India. Supposedly some of the more aggressive strains of COVID-19 are now here in Suriname. The worst lockdown and infection rate so far here in Suriname. Stay strong over there. !ENGAGE 15


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I see and laugh more than I have a wonder, why you can do like that? I think I can’t do it like you πŸ˜ŠπŸ˜πŸ˜‚

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How do you get the hive based income out? The whole process... it would be interesting to know.

Why western union? I am sure there are no other choice that's why,,,, just wondering.

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So far that would be a long and inefficient process, so I haven't turned any HIVE into fiat yet. Up until recently I taught private Khmer language classes online, and I received payments via PayPal. This income was enough to keep us above water while we drained our life savings little by little from month to month.

The situation here is tricky because the ATMS only dispense Suriname dollars, fine if you have a local account and Suriname dollars are what you deposited. There are even some ATMs that dispense US Dollars, but only for those who hold accounts locally with said bank. I tried to open an account here, but apparently my income wasn't official enough to please banking officials.

This situation leaves me with two choices - either with Suriname dollars from an ATM at hyperinflated exchange rates, or get US Dollars from Western Union and exchange it on the street for a more realistic rate. At times though even the ATMS have been dry of Suriname dollars, and nowadays Western Union has no more EUROS or USD, a sign the country has run out of them or come close to it.

Western Union is ultimately the most efficient way to get my money to me here. I offered a SWIFT bank-to-bank exchange with my landlord, but he refuse because he can only withdrawal $100 USD per week due to the banking rules amid this financial crisis.

The closest crypto to HIVE connection I know here is supposedly there is a guy here who buys crypto for Suriname Dollars, but I've never been able to access him, and I heard his rates are similar to Western Union. It's just a good ole' hot mess here. !ENGAGE 20


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That flyer looks so retro, as if it's from the 60s. Nice to read Dutch though. "Smartboy Gasbom delivery" hahaha!

Happy for you all. The girls look so satisfied with their warm meal :<)

I actually need propane for hot water here and my bottle has been empty for over a week. It's not necessarily difficult to get one here, although it is without a car ( and I don't own one nor do I have a license ), it just hasn't been a priority for me and I forget about it all the time, as cold water is okay with the current weather.

I cook and butane though and every now and then, I run out but I never am without for more than a couple of days nor do I have such food shortage. I can only imagine how that must be with a family. Today I briefly visited my twin sister and I asked for some veggies ( as the little shop, that I went to before didn't have much more than canned peas and cucumbers and some fruit ). My sister walked to her vegetable beds and handed me two leeks, a small beet root, a lettuce and a decent sized courgette. I will give her some crypto in return. Such a blessing to be able to trade like this with my own family.

Enjoy the improved food. I really hope you can find some more ingredients soon.

Big hug!

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A hot shower is always the first thing I arrange when I visit the USA, somehow I've never had hot water in all my years abroad, except for a brief stay in an apartment in Albania. The power of a hot shower can't be overlooked. Crypto sister vegetables must be a delight, you're creating a modern village life there by doing things like this. Better days are coming soon... !ENGAGE 100


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somehow I've never had hot water in all my years abroad,

Wow. That is pretty incredible. Warm showers are indeed a blessing but we tend to over do it in the west with a warm shower daily. I don't believe that is necessary at all, in fact, it isn't even healthy for your skin.

but yeah, warm showers can be pretty powerful, especially on cold days.

Crypto sister vegetables must be a delight, you're creating a modern village life there by doing things like this.

It's quite a blessing indeed.

Sending you big hug and a lot of positive energy, my friend

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(Edited)

You made a funny post out of sad situation. I am just glad you guys are okay now and you can finally cook again. I cannot imagine to be in a situation like this. Maybe you can build a charcoal BBQ outside, as a back up. Or you already have one, don't you?

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I try to be a goofball, it seems the best way to pass the time and maintain family morale. We're gonna prepare a three-rock stove and save some dry wood for potential future problems like this. At the moment all the wood is wet from weeks of rain, but it's possible to make a super smoky wet wood fire if we have no other options. !ENGAGE 25


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I know what you mean and you make me laugh too. But you really shouldn't have to have these problems in 2021!!! Well, no one should! But do your best to sustain. Sending blessings πŸ’šπŸ™πŸ’š

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Hey man good to see the propane noones family should go hungry and get unhot food y'all keep grinding man

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Yes, another day, another meal, and some humor makes everything move a little faster. Give thanks. !ENGAGE 10


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WOW, things are getting pretty tough over there with this pandemic, I would be going crazy living there in them conditions glad you have the patience for it but I suppose you don't have much choice. Hope it all gets better otherwise you will be cooking on log fire 🀣

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You hit the nail on the head, when the Embassy evacuated the Americans over a year ago and left us here, that's when we know we had to prepare for a long ride. We're already building some kindling reserves for any future situations like this. I hate to say I think these problems will get worse before getting better. !ENGAGE 25


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Well I am glad you are thinking ahead and I agree it will be awhile before things get back to normal and if they do is the big question. All I can say be prepared and be on guard. Take care your lovely family as you are buddy πŸ‘

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OMG.... now I feel really bad complaining that we don't find everything we want here in Cambodia! I am happy to see you found propane. I hope you get to find some other fresh and affordable ingredients soon. Big hug to you and the family!

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Well, I see you using all the exotic imports in Cambodia in your recipes there. The crisis has gotten so bad that even things grown locally are unaffordable. It's a "hot mess" as we say in the USA, and I am most bummed about the years of our lives lost in this stagnation that we can't get back. Oh well, we have two Asian daughters, I guess that is fairly solid retirement plan.

We miss Cambodia, but the amount of bribes I'd have to pay to get the recommendation letter ($1,300) plus the plane tickets, COVID-19 deposit, five-star hotel quarantine, then straight into rent, security deposits, work permits, work visas, business license, etc. Oh my, we'd be in $15,000 just come back to Cambodia and be broke, and we only have $10,000 left anyways. !ENGAGE 25


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The whole 2-week mandatory quarantine hotel stay thing might be over soon. October they say... but then it is Cambodia so you never know! Isn't it possible to go back to Ecuador or any Khmer-friendly country close by?

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Ecuador is easy the first 90 days, and Panama the first 180 days, but basically all Latin-American countries have complicated and expensive immigration systems that require lawyers and stamps for every single thing. It easily costs thousands and thousands of dollars, lesson learned.

As bad as the situation has become here in Suriname, we have managed to file all of our own paperwork and arrange every document we needed in person without ever paying a fixer or translator. Our whole immigration process here hasn't cost more than $300 USD.

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Really? Ecuador seems fairly easy. We are looking into it now as Peru has become a NoNo tax wise. As EU citizens that want to buy land in the country... would Ecuador be difficult to move too? Or was it just for srey pov and the kids?

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The pandemic has hit us hard and some more than the others. In May last year we were running out of fresh veggies here and my garden produce came in handy though there was limited variety. Your description of the situation reminded me of that, but that was nothing close to this. We had enough and more to feed our neighbors with two little kids as well.

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A garden must be a blessing in times like these. Our landlord has a lot of land, but they are very difficult people to do with already, so I wouldn't try to grow anything here other than herbs, which we maintain a mini garden of. I think better days are surely ahead. Bless up! !ENGAGE 35


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It is indeed. Hmm do I know anything about difficult landlords? I saved and saved until I bought my own small space and grow what I wanted. Hope you can do that too. Sending you and your sweet family good thoughts and prayers.

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If it weren't so sad, it would be funny. It is funny! But, sad that we have come to this place.

Bless you and your family. Looking for better times for all of us. Love the GIF!

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Humor is the only way through these times, give thanks for the support my friend, glad you enjoyed the GIF, I'm quite proud of it. !ENGAGE 15


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It is my pleasure. Thank you for the tokens!

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