An older Russian Pastor once told me that there was a time, in Moscow, where you had to schedule your visit to the market to purchase our supplies.
You went to the government office with your list and arranged for a convenient time. If you missed it, you had to wait until next month. If they were out of items (normal) you would have to wait until next month.
That reminded me of a Soviet joke Reagan told, something along the lines of:
A man saves his money for years to buy a new car. Once he had saved enough he went to the car dealership to buy one and the salesman told him it would be 10 years before delivery.
“10 years!”, yes, he was told that was the wait time. “Morning or afternoon?” he asked.
What difference does it make if it’s in the morning or afternoon in 10 years the salesman asked.
“Because the plumber is coming in the morning”.....