Ups and downs, strikes and gutters

Progress is a funny thing when living in a foreign country and trying to research in the field. I am often not sure what is going on around me or what I should be doing next as this whole 'research' thing is pretty much self-directed. The last few days around here have been complicated. I stopped by the university to check on the status of my paperwork that I had been assured the week before had been submitted (I am applying to be a Visiting Research Fellow there) only to find that it was still sitting on someone's desk and had only been submitted that morning. So instead of getting a letter that will help me get a visa and a work permit, I ended up in the archive there going through old colonial education reports (yea, I know how to live the high life).
Tuesday rolled around and I stayed in Maseru (the university is in a town called Roma about 40km by road from Maseru) doing some errands and working on some old research notes I had. I got a call around 5 PM from one of the secretaries who said that the paperwork had (finally) gone through and I should come the next day to take care of details and get the letters I need. Great! She also says I might get an office (an office?).
So Wednesday dawns and after my usual morning run I head out the door to catch the taxis that will take me to Roma. I roll in to find that the secretaries are too busy dealing with something else to help me today. "Thanks for your understanding." Well, I ask, when should I come back? "Maybe Friday." Never a good sign when a maybe precedes the answer around here, but hey, what else can I do? So I headed back to the archive there to bury my frustration in more colonial education reports (again, aren't I the high roller?).
So, we will see. Hopefully I will not have to develop superpowers to get these letters and my visa and work permit. I will keep you posted and will (hopefully) have some good news to report by this weekend or early next week. Until then, well, there are more colonial education reports waiting for me!