Lost in Translation

There are footsteps in the basement, approaching me from between the stacks. Aliana emerges with a file and a frown.
“I don’t understand.” She says in defeat.
There are only two plug sockets in the basement, so Aliana and I have our computers at opposite ends of the room, every now and then, she ambles over to stand silently in front of the portable heater with her jacket pulled tight around her, or to conduct frenetic sounding conversations to her boyfriend using the office telephone and brake-neck Spanish. More rarely, she approaches to ask a query about how a particular document should be filed – I am not, of course, an authority in the subject, in fact Aliana has been working down here considerably longer than I have and with the thick mascara outlining her wide, slightly startled eyes, the hours confined to the basement seem to be lending her a slightly lima-like appearance.
“I don’t know where I should put this.” She says. Aliana is from Buenos Aires and her English is excellent – bland English syllables delivered with Argentinean vowels. She waves the file at me with disappointed frustration, as though everything had been going so well until this thing came along and ruined her day.
The files are to be identified with headers and sub-headers, a printed list has been provided to us but for the most part, we seem expected to file almost everything under one of the same two sub-headings, one of which is simply entitled “General” which I might have assumed should have covered everything but apparently does not.
“What sub-heading,” she asks, “Should I file bat shit under?”
As I mentioned, I am not really an authority, and manage only to blink stupidly in response.
“Bat shit?” I ask.
“Yes.” Aliana nods, “I was thinking maybe general, but then maybe it should be under finance, what do you think?”
“Finance?” I say, “Bat shit?”
Although the basement seems to be stuffed to the fills with the most unusual things, the idea that Aliana might have found a folder full of flying rodent faeces is still rather surprising. That, however, she should be so specific about its origin and its potential monetary value leaves me speechless until she presses the folder into my hands.
I scan the folder’s title and then hand it back to her.
“Finance.” I say, “’Budget’ definitely goes under finance.”