Universal Remote

On a long walk through some remote villages, we happened upon a boutique in the very small village of Loudia Diolla. The small store had a few necessities, and an important money making electrical outlet. The shopkeeper was making money by charging cell phones and batteries. We also noticed a satellite dish proudly mounted in front of the shop, and a television playing in the corner. In the midst of earthen buildings with thatch roofs, this place was a technological marvel.

We greeted the shopkeep and he invited us to sit. We spent a few moments talking about the weather and other customary friendlies when a serious topic arose. His universal remote did not work! It had been reset somehow and he did not have the television code. Consequently he was limited to 1 channel of local programing. A real geek shame considering 30+ are available.

I must report I tried and tried and tried to get that thing working. I wracked my brain for all the universal remote knowledge I could muster. I applied that vast experience and knowledge base to the task at hand and worked and worked. Actually I gave up after about 5 minutes. No luck.

We stayed for a little while longer talking about the french word for humid, and then it was time to go. What are the chances of that?