The hunt for dry november

Day ten has brought closure, or at least some serious progress, to my quest for dry cleaning. The last week and a half saw simple everyday tasks (like going to the store or eating) trigger a serious adrenaline rush in my brain upon their completion. The only feeling I can compare to purchasing a pillow cover or public transit card here is when the Eagles beat the Falcons for the NFC title a few years ago. Pure joy.
And one of these simple tasks I've charged myself with is finding a dry cleaner. Our fellow expat American neighbors on the 28th floor, Laura and Liz, have been claiming that dry cleaning exists in our complex. Others have said it does not. I started believing it was a myth, this dry cleaner. So, I asked my Chinese friend here, Sally, to write in Chinese characters - "Where is the dry cleaner?" - and also how to pronounce it. This piece of paper now likens itself to the map to the holy grail.
I began showing it to the security officers, our chinese neighbors, the housekeeping staff, anyone who would respond to my opening line - "Qing wen" (excuse me). They all nodded approvingly at the piece of paper, Sally must have good penmanship I'm thinking, and began to rattle off chinese -- and point. Most of them pointed in the direction of builiding 27, the building next to ours (22). And today, I hit the jackpot.
After showing a security guard the piece of paper, he nodded approvingly at the penmanship, but did not point. Instead, he walked me into building 27, down some shady stairs, and into the basement. I was half-expecting to see Robert DeNiro and Christopher Walken on the other side of the door (those who have not seen the Deer Hunter, please ignore this). But, instead, I was greeted by the dry cleaners. More chinese exchanges take place between the woman behind the counter and I. However, anything that is not a number that can be written on paper is out of my league and I reply with "wo bu dong" (I don't understand). But she was very pleasant and seemed trustworthy. And she better be because she has my striped canali shirt and navy blue pants. I believe I have to go back in three days to pick it up with my pink slip and 20 kuai (about $3). Wish me luck.