Sundays are for eating!

Yesterday was Tom's birthday, and it was a Sunday!  For whatever reason we always use Sunday as our do nothing day, which is a shame because there is always something to do and on Sunday, and it is soooo much easier because most people stay home or visit with family.  That makes driving, biking, walking way easier.   That's a different blog post, and it veers from this story!

Yesterday was Tom's birthday, and it was a Sunday!  I made banana pankakes for breakfast. Then we just putzed around.  We, well Tom had been invited out to a hacienda for lunch to celebrate his birthday.  Now don't misunderstand, I was invited as well, but his was being paid for by the group. Whatever,  I was happy to go along.   

So, the group was coming here, here being our house, at 1pm, our reservation was for 2pm.  Then we'd split in to 2 vehicles as none of our vehicles can hold 6 comfortably for more than a short drive. So the guys all went together in one car, and I drove the girls.

Lunch was fabulous, the food was great, and the hcda guys did a great job of accomodating my not eating anything with feet and made me a vegg stuffed poblano, the company was the best.  Uber Fun!  We drank, ate, laughed and chatted the afternoon away.  As we were leaving we were shocked to discover it was 6:30pm...we had  lingered over lunch for 4 1/2 hours!

The drive home went well, no issues - got home just as dusk and a light rain were occuring!   Saw some gorgeous rainbows, another fine present for Tom.

Once home we quickly changed clothes so we could greet and feed the thundering herd.  

Just look at these adorable faces!  So sweet!

Just look at  these innocent faces - 

which one of these monsters caught, killed and nearly completely consumed a rather substantial iguana!

Blech, nothing but about 3 inches of mangled and mauled tail section left when we found it.   

And oddly, everyone dove right in to their dinner bowls!

Nuptials in the night

Living in the tropics is full of adventure. Having come here from the high desert of Colorado it has been and still is an incredible learning and growing experience.

Todays topic is ants, we have here in the tropics an amazing array and quantity of ants.  I can't say I really appreciate them, but I do understand their purpose.  They are cleaners, sort of like the Sweepers on a spy show.  They swoop in and clean up the mess.

This morning, as happens most morning, my first order of business is to take a stroll about the garden.  Our 2 dogs, Tech and Ceniza don't come with me, they prefer to stay in bed with Tom, heck they sometimes even stay in bed after he gets up.  The fosters however, Lili and Rubi, are always more than happy to accompany me.

We had another BIG rain last night.  Thursday night was nearly 2 1/2 inches, last night was nearly 3.

After a rain, a substantial rain, when conditions are hot and humid,  and the wind is minimal, swarms  of winged  ants  will leave their nest and take flight. These ants that depart the nest are sexually active - according to wiki "This mating flights occur simultaneously in all ant nests of the particular species. The female "queen" ants will fly a long distance, during which they will mate with at least one winged male from another nest. He transfers sperm to the seminal receptacle of the queen and then dies. Once mated, the "queen" will attempt to find a suitable area to start a colony ..."

Thursday night we had friends over.  Normally we do our entertaining outside, it is waaaaay cooler outside.   Luckily Thursday night we were 7 total so being inside wasn't too bad.  The rain was relentless.  So as we were sitting around the table the small flying ants would drop around us. They were attracted during the night to the lights shining from inside.  My screens are covered in the ant wings which detach once they land.  I am still cleaning up ant wings from Thursdays swarm.

This morning, Saturday, as I was standing  out on the pergola admiring the jungle that my back garden has once again become, it sounded like rain drops hitting the leaves.  I looked  up, farther up than the tops of the quite tall trees, and there was a monstrous swarm of the large red black ants. It was a seriously huge swarm, and the ants were just dropping, like rain drops.  It's now over an hour since I first saw them and they are still out there, swarming and dropping.

Great, a queen wants to set up housekeeping in my back garden.  Where are the bats, the birds??????  why aren't they there feasting?????

You know you are getting old when...

you tell yourself you need to start keeping track of when you get sick - symptoms, time of year, relatable causal factors,  what treatment you administer, results, etc.

I'm sick - and I have this sense that this happens every spring, but I may be wrong.   Hence me thinking I need to track these things!

On Tuesday my allergies were going crazy, itchy watery eyes, stuffy nose, .... no big deal right, just allergies
then on Wednesday they were worse, plus I had a sore throat,  understandable, what with all the drainage
then Thursday came and I was feeling bad, bad, bad.  difficulty breathing, stuffy head, itchy watery eyes, zero energy or ambition and then this little cough starts, and that chest rattle that tells you CRAP! CRAP! CRAP!   I was down -  In addition to the above, add headache, ear tickle, complete lack of energy, couldn't process two coherent thoughts... oh,and apparently I was cranky, hmmmmmm.
I may have had a fever, but it would be hard to tell since the temp here was 39.6celcius at the highest point of the day, but only 35.7 here in the house 
So Friday and I'm thinking upper respiratrory infection,  caused by allergies caused by the piss poor air quality, humidity, my asthma, dot, dot, dot!  I started taking stuff to release the flem and mucous,  which then gives you the death toll chest gurgle and deep deep cough, and the sounds,oh the sounds.

It was a good sign last night when I actually took a shower, brushed my teeth,and changed my nightgown which I may well have worn for 48 hours straight.  Of course that took it's toll and I slept for nearly 10 hours.

anyway, today I am a little better...a little, still with all the drainage, and coughing, and unspeakable sounds, but I actually have some energy, so that's a good sign- right???  although I do have serious bedhead since I went to sleep with wet hair, and no styling product!

getting my Yucatan drivers license, part 2 and 3

If you choose you can refresh your memory of 'getting my Yucatan drivers license, part 1' here!

Having pushed my return date to go take my tests for my drivers license off for a few days, there always seems to be something more important going on - I finally managed to get up to Siglo XXI.  I turned in my paperwork; copies and originals of my immigration card, my passport and my comprobante de domicillo, and waited.  When I was finally called, I had to answer a few simple questions, any serious illness, allergies, need glasses, blood type, etc. I took the eye exam, was returned my original documents and then was directed back out to wait some more.  Then I was called in to take my written test
The problem with people always telling you how good your spanish is is that sometimes you believe them.  So when confronted with taking my written test in spanish or english I chose spanish.  I mean many people have said how bad the english translation is.  So I tried my test in spanish, and failed.  I just didn't know what too many of the words were. So completely defeated, deflated, and upset with myself, I tucked tail and left with my slip of paper and instructions to return tomorrow!  I almost decided to not tell you that I failed the first time.  That was yesterday!

anyway, today I returned to Siglo XXI and was able to bypass the lines and go directly to the testing area.  Today, I took it in English!  The translations are bad, but at least even in bad english I could reason out what I thought they were asking.  I passed.  The driving test, a parallel park, was easy.  Then back inside - and wait.  then pay (365pesos), get the foto taken, and in just a very few minutes the card.

I now have my yucatecan drivers license.  whoop, whoop, hands in the air, whoop, whoop!

getting my Yucatan drivers license, part 1

Starting this past Monday I had go get Drivers License on my calendar.  It kept getting moved as other seemingly more important things came up.

Today, after 3 moves, I went!

The ladies at the Information Desk, once they could take a break from their jokes and conversation, and after inquiring if I had my comprabante de domicillo,  my immigration documents, my passport, was I renewing or getting a new license... informed me that the system was down and that I should come back on Tuesday, or the 21st, or maybe the 28th, they were just having a hoot!  Ni Modos!

Since I had already driven 30+ minutes to get there - and since there was a big book fair going on I decided to step in. Today must have been school group day. I enjoyed looking around, I enjoyed all the books and displays.  Sometimes I enjoyed being gawked at by the kids.

I bought a few books - three 7-10 year old level stories that used some verb tenses I'm not so good with, might help, you never know! I bought a small libretto named "Leyendas de Yucatan", again, trying to increase my conjugation level.  And I purchased a book "Testimonios de Mujeres Mexicanas", which is frank and sincere confessions of women, mostly how they tried freeing themselves from bad relationships, lack of schooling, poverty, etc.  I actually was reading some in Volume II, and was understanding it, so decided to buy but then bought Volume I, because it must be good if they made a volume II; and I do tend to be an optimist.

I drove around in some areas of town I am unfamiliar with, drove a good ways on the Periferico, which was great fun, and stopped for lunch.

So anyway, I'll try to get my drivers license next week, and now I have something to read while I wait!

Seven years and counting

February 2, 2006 Tom and I, our two cats and a Toyota pickup stuff to the brim pulled in to Merida, well moved to Merida.

We had old off our stuff in the States, packed what we could in to the pickup and hit the road, we took 5 days to get here.  The cats were not happy. Neither was I.  I had had rotator cuff surgery and was still in cast and sling, unable to help drive, and all around miserable and uncomfortable; add to that the truck was overheating and we couldn't use the a/c so had to  have the windows open the whole way, noisy, windy, hot, uncomfortable; but when I saw the signs as we entered Merida that all melted away.

There's a lot more to say about the transitions, but well today is a busy busy day so it will have to wait!

I still can't believe it's been 7 years!        

August in Mérida - aka La Temporada

August in  Mérida   is hot!  

HOT and HUMID!   

Things slow down, everything and everyone seems to move slower.

For Meridanos, those that can, relocate to the beach for the month, or at least for weekends.  

Others go on their vacations, and some just tough it out. Schools are closed for all or part of the month.  Lots of businesses close up.  Many restaurants and clubs pack up and take temporary space at the beach as well.  Many restaurants and clubs also use this time to update and/or remodel their space.


Many Mérida families have beach homes.  These are quite unlike the Gringo beach homes.  I don't mean beach homes where you live permanently, but where you go for getaways and vacations. 

One of the things about the moves to the beach very interesting is this;
We gringos like to fully furnish them so that we just get ourselves there and everything we need is already there, well except for groceries, and we probably keep a fridge going with a few things there anyway.  Many Mérida families, when it's time to go to the beach for la Temporada, take along everything they need - their fridge, stove, and hammocks or beds.  They probably keep some plastic chairs there! 

So today is 1 Sept.  La Temporada is over, the beach people are coming back; work starts back up, school starts again, restaurants reopen, some all fresh and clean, and life gets back to its regular pace.

Traffic will increase, the noise and pollution will increase, accidents will increase.  In fact yesterday, Jonna and I were out and about and must have passed 5 separate auto accidents.  

Summer is over, Fall is on its way!

all photos lifted from the internet!

Ah late lunch, then a long siesta!

Ah late lunch, then a long siesta!

That's an image most Americans have of life in Mexico, 

although some also envision it as the fat little Mexican eating beans on a tortilla then sitting on the ground under a tree with his knees drawn up and shoulders covered by a serape head tilted down and out of sight covered by a wide brimmed sombrero, but that's not the truth, and that's great fodder for a different story! And SO not the reality  

I understand the logic and good thinking to eating your large meal mid day, having a mid day rest, and then eating lighter in the evening. Here the large mid-day meal is la comida and usually occurs between 2 and 4, and the lighter evening nosh is la cena, and that happens about 9 or 10.

I want to embrace that habit, I just can't seem to do it.  I just can't seem to get my head around planning and assembling a large meal mid day, heck I can barely do it in the evening, but again, that's a different story.

Tom and I have a tendency to have coffee, and maybe split a bagel, then try to eat a little something early afternoon, if there are some leftovers from something, else it could be just a peanut butter sandwich. We then typically have a largish meal around 8pm.  This is so bad, all day we expend our energy and we have no fuel, then we load up and are more sedentary; hanging with friends, chatting, playing cards, listening to music, or watching a movie.

I also can't seem to embrace the siesta, I want to lay down and rest mid day, but there always seems to be something going on, or that needs to be done.  I do computer related work for friends and some charitable organizations and I tend to do these things in the heat of the afternoon because I can sit in front of the fan. Occasionally I'll lay in the pool and might doze off for a short while, but not typically.  

Gatherings with friends tend to start later here, and end later - so when I've been up since 6 or 7, and the clock is hitting midnight, I am yawning, my eyes are drooping...

So here's how I want my day to be  -  wake about 6, because it is so lovely and cool, take my coffee, book, and binoculars to the garden, toss the ball for the dogs, read a bit, watch the birds...  after an hour or two return to the house, check and reply to emails, check the news, read a few blogs...  Do a few things in the house, sweep, dust, wash floors, etc. Maybe read some more.

Mid-afternoon, have a lovely meal, obviously prepared by someone else, who will also do the dishes and tidy up afterwards so that I can go lie in the pool for an hour.  Come back in, shower, take a siesta for an hour, get up, check emails again, maybe read for a while, then get ready to go out - about 8 head out, catch up with some friends go to a show, music, dance, theater, something, then after the show stop for a little cena and some wine, then home and in bed by about 1.

yeah, that's my idea of a good day, totally oblivious to the world at large, no good deeds to do, no stress, no anxiety.

so how do i get there? 

What's worse than raining cats and dogs ? Hailing Taxis!

We got home after our extended travels just in time for Ernesto and Florence, Ernesto should start to be felt Tuesday, he'll be pushing clouds and wind in front of himself.

If he continues along the current projected path we should have a better idea what to expect by Tuesday.  We're in pretty good shape!  A few years ago we were away when a TS/Hurricane was bearing down and we hadn't planned or prepared anything and the friends watching the house were left in a bit of a lurch.

Not anymore!   

We now have easily installed window coverings for the back of the house that doesn't have any glass, and a cover for the ceiling opening inside the house.  The bodega has been recently cleaned and reorganized so there is plenty of room for the garden art and patio furniture.  We've been keeping the trees trimmed so hopefully they won't be pushed over.


Florence doesn't look like she'll pose any threat for us as she seems to be on a different path, but we'll be watching her as well.

Both Merida and this house have weathered many a storm, and I daresay we will all weather this one as as well.  We've got water, canned beans and tuna, cereal and milk, all is good!

The crazy things you bring home from trips abroad

We got home last night a little after 11pm. It was SO good to see the dogs, and they were so excited to see us, like springboards, they jumped up and down and did quick turns to jump up and down again. Oh and the Tatie cat seemed pleased to see us as well, in his - I am cat, way!

And of course we were very happy to see our friend, and housesitter Gary as well. Once the ruckus died down we started to unzip and open bags, Tom was anxious to see how a long cookie sheet I bought made it - he was sure it would be bent. Gary gave us an odd look and inquired, can't you buy cookie sheets here? Why, yes, yes you can. The last time I bought one it was 120pesos (about 10dollars) and not nearly as good quality. The one I brought set me back about 3bucks, is good and heavy, and it is coated so maybe it won't rust out in a years time.


Might seem silly to some, but not those of you that live here.

So these are a few of our treasures, The rest of the stuff, that aren't clothes or shoes, are food goods; grits, braggs liquid aminos, kimchi chili, steel cut oats, dried seaweeds, you know, just a few luxury items I can't find here.

I can hear you but I can't understand you! WHY? We're speaking the same language!

Our hot water heater went out a about a month ago!  We thought it was under warranty as it is only 3 years old.  However, this one was a replacement for one that went out about 3 years ago and it WAS under warranty.

Apparently the warranties are for YOU to have a FUNCTIONING water heater, not for the water heater itself.  Our warranty was 4 years, and this one failed outside of that 4 year time frame.  Ni Modos!

Anyway, we've been managing, just barely for me with the water from the cistern.  Our cistern is underground so the water is pretty darn cool.  I rush through a shower, never standing fully under but dashing in and out - and nothing has been shaved in a while - I need me some hot water!

This morning Tom went and bought a new calentador de agua.  Now this is where the point of this story comes in.

We need an installer, a plumber.

Our homeowners insurance apparently will pay the first 500pesos on any household emergency such as the water heater springing an irreparable leak.


So I called the 01-800 number and engaged in a conversation that got me frustrated to the point of wanting to throw the phone.  I do OK with my Spanish, even on the phone I do OK.  I could not understand this woman, and she could not understand me.  I don't know where this call center was but I don't think she was speaking Spanish.

Later I called our regular plumber, just to get a price for installation, for comparison, now he and I understood each other throughout the entire conversation, even to the point of inquiring after life, family, and home.


What the Heck is up with that? We're speaking the same language.  Why can't we understand each other?

you are not my friend and you are not welcome here!

Mosquitos - Yes, we have mosquitos, Lots n Lots of mosquitos. But they are NOT our friends!

We can't figure it out, at least not completely.  I mean I understand them being outside, we have lots of greenspace, that requires watering, and of course mosquitos love to breed in the damp dirt.  But in the house - why do we have so many in the house?  We have no plants inside, we have all the rarely used drains covered, the animals water bowl is changed frequently, we have mosquito screening on every opening to the outside....

So why do we have so many in the house - We had rain about a week and a half ago, and that explains the outside bloom, or boom of mosquitos.  The little eggies have just been lying there in the dirt waiting for some moisture to spring them in to action; did you know some mosquitos go from egg to adult in 5 days, while others can take up to 40?

Tom and I have both had dengue - we DO NOT want it again.  although I suspect we've each had a very mild dengue experience since then but refused to call it that.

We want a mosquito free zone .  We want the little buggers gone!

and oh what we will do, are doing, to try toget rid of them -

we burn coils

we have toxic spays that we spay around and under furniture and in the dark recess where mosquitos like to hide

we have herbal non toxic sprays that we use on ourselves 

we use flyswatters


we smack, and we smack and they still come back

we have plugins with little chem soaked pads that repel the mosquitos




I've planted neem trees, lemongrass, rosemary,  and oregano.  I take extra B vitamin supplements and lace our food with nutritional yeast

we have a bug zappers for outside - which I do not like to use because the geckos get zapped, and they really smell bad when they get electrified.

we have a no-squito that we run every night all night in the bedroom

And then there are Tom's personal favorite - the Mata Mosca!

These little electrified rackets that zap the mosquitos, electrify and frying them.  Tom LOVES the sound of dzit, dzit, dzit, the more repitions and the faster they come togetget the better he likes it.  He has a night time routine now, he has the zapper in one hand, the flashlight in the other - he goes aound all the windows and where the mosquitos are against the screens he jst lets them have it, he goes into the corners, dzit, dzit, dzit.

He has had 3.  Two of them are dying, they will no longer hold a charge.  These little babies are rechargeable.

Anyway, so yesterday as I was walking about in Downtown I saw mata mosca rackets. Normally we buy these in the Chinese restaurants, or on street corners.  So in I go - Yang & Yang Importaciones, calle 65 x 54 #466B, Centro, Merida - I got 2 new raquetes de mata mosca, one with the racket part having blue light illumination (blue lights apparently attract mosquitos, much like the phrase 'Blue Light Special' will draw bargain hunters!), and the other with a flashlight in the handle.

Tom is now well armed to defend the castle!

Mosquitos, you are not my friends and you are not welcome here!

tis the season...

...and there have been no shortages on parties, theatrical events, cultural events, and just plain fun with friends events!

We had a christmas party the other night for the girls at a group home, complete with tree, santa, gifts, dance performances, sing alongs, and cake.

Purpura Plastika had an exhibit of art by participants from several workshops -

and of course the wedding of our dear friends daughter - oh, and the reception!

It's been a great few weeks, and looks to be just as good for the upcoming few. Parties here, parties at friends', Friends in from out of town, part-timers back for the winter,

Not to mention the planning for the 2012 Spay n Neuter Campaign,
if you want to volunteer or donate just shoot me an email!

Cablemas

Tom and I have Cablemas for our internet service,  we use them for TV as well. 

We started with Cablemas in 2006 in our rental apartment for the internet service.  They required no contract, and no set up fees.

Apparently that has changed, although my source of this info is somewhat suspect.

Also, I've been pondering getting a landline phone for local calling;  At present we have 2 cell phones. While the fees to call  other cels (oh, cellphones here are cel) and residential phones from the cellphone is reasonable, to call a numero particular (aka a Business line) is really expensive.  The last time I called Cablemas because our TV was pixelating I was on the phone 6 minutes and it was 80 pesos,  80 pesos - that's like 6USD!

I don't want Telmex - nothing against Carlos, I mean I use his Telcel service for my cellphones.  It's just that Telmex charges high installation fees, and their rates are a bit high. Not to mention what I hear about their customer service.

One thing really frustrating for me here is the lack of documention and pricing.  To get the 'Rules' for a service is a pipe dream. Forget it.  Want to know what is included in your plan?  Ask a Service Rep,  ask a different Service Rep and get different stuff. 
Like trying to get info on how much  calls cost on the cel - every kiosk, agent, rep tells me something different.   AARRRGGGGGHHHHH!


A Guide from Cablemas that shows what channels we should be getting at our service level.  Well first off, it is a photocopy of a sheet, a very bad photocopy that is barely legible.  Then they cross off the stuff that is either not in your plan or no longer offered.  And then your channel lineup changes with no notification.  Ah, don't get me started!  Tom is super pissed because AmericanNetwork (AN) just went away.  That was the channel he watched the most.

Pricing, ask one person and they have plan X for Y per month, ask some one else and plan X costs Z.

For instance, the other day on the phone with a sales rep in DF
I could get a Cablemas plan like this:

>40 channels TV, 3mbps internet, telephone with unlimited local calls and either 6mths of calls to USA or CA OR 3mths of free cel calls.  Which tells me the unlimited local calls are only to residential and business lines.  All for just 525pesos per month.
Now by calling DF I could pay the 525 on the 1st, 2nd, 4th month, and half that on the 3rd and 6th month, then 525 thereafter.    The package was the same, however the payment plan was not offered when I went to the local Cablemas office.

Add to that - I bought a second TV, Tom and I frequently have different viewing preferences, AND I like to have the TV when I am in the kitchen,  Now to add the 2nd cable was 120pesos installation from both sources - DF and local Rep.  However, the digital box rental was a completely different story.  With the DF rep 55pesos per month x 4mths, then 30 every month.  With the local office rep 160 per month x 2mths then 60 per month - I mean really, Come On!

could I get anything with the plans and pricing,  No!  Take notes!  heck even on the web page, the packages are listed, but no pricing.

For a Cablemas phone - the offer states unlimited local calls, which means residential lines, and business lines, but apparently not cels, although it isn't stated.  I did find out that local cel calls would cost 1.3 pesos per minute, and National LD would cost 1peso per minute????  They couldn't tell me about the cost for National 1-800 numbers????

OK, guess I'm about done!  Still haven't made a decision though,  get a phone line, don't get a phone line.  Cancel TV service, keep TV service.

ahhhhhhhhh, the tropics

So Sunday, being Sunday found us putzing around the house in our jammies, doing odd projects, reading, watching TV, cruisin the computer up until it was time to meet up with some friends for a lebanese restaurant lunch.  We did clean up and get out of the jammies prior to heading out!  In case you wondered!

We were totally stoked as this was a new place to us, and we had heard was fabulous, AND that it is better than our current favorite lebanese food place where we think the food is awesome.

So off we go, with route mapped out on our fab ipad2 in hand.  Made the incursion into foreign soil with little or no fuss or bother; probably almost as good as having a GPS. The new place is in area where we were a bit unfamiliar, although we've been to  places in the vicinity before. 

Lunch was indeed awesome, and some things were better than at our other place, and some things at our other place are better.  But this place also has bellydancers on Sunday afternoons at 3. Ummmm, definite bonus!

OK, so the new place is Habibis (habibi by the way, means darling, or dearest, or some endearment similar).  Our previous favorite is/was/is the Lebanese Club.  I haven't formed any opinion yet other than they are both fabulous.

Sundays are buffet days at both places, and both have fabulous range of choices and options.  And I did enjoy the belly dancers.

So, after this fabulous lunch we stopped by the super on our way home, picked up a few things we needed and some extra fruit to snack on.  We were planning a quiet evening at home, movie, snacks, maybe even a bit of a/c.

We're putting things away, and I noticed ants in Tatie, the cat's bowl, no big deal.  so I get a bigger bowl, put water in it and set his food down.  Rinse the old food and ants down the drain and decide to take the compost out.  Have my tour around the yard and return to wash up the dishes.  Then I notice ants filing past on the window ledge in front of me.  I start to follow,,,,the line thickens, they are all in and around my shopping bags that hang in the pantry, no big deal, toss the bags onto the patio, decide to wait for the ants to deisperse then shake the bags out.  Then I notice ants moving down the side of a cabinet, then up onto a high shelf where I have teapots displayed, then down behind the refri, then then, then,  So after about 2 hours we have 3 rooms destroyed, every tea pot, basket, and box had a colony, colonies starting in several paintings and pictures, under coat hooks, in a towel bar bracket, in the bag that holds the bags, dog food bucket, cat bowl, books, magazines, lordy lordy lordy,

I pull out the Orange oil stuff, Tom goes for the Home Defense.   We are killing machines!

Right now the place looks as if a bomb has been dropped,  we are in a holding pattern, waiting for movement........are there more?  can we restore order?

Ah the Tropics!  And the Tropics during the rainy season &%#*@%#^&*(#@!

Foreign vehicles in Mexico

Once again, the rumors surounding the importation of Foreign vehicles are swirling.  A new decree, that affects vehicles coming in SINCE June of 2011, NOT before June 2011 is what has caused this recent hoopla!

Friend Steve wrote an excellent post on these new regs which you can read here,  he covers the topic fairly well!

His previous post on the 'old' rules, under which I, and MY car fall is here!

If you choose to read Steve's posts, continue on through the Comments and Answres,  very interesting info and scenarios!

Anyway,  just to be sure: We went with our friend Maggie C. to the customs office at the airport on Tuesday. We asked Maggie to go along so there would not be any misunderstandings, (she is Mexican and has no questions about her comprehension, unlike me, well about my comprehension, not hers!) in regards to the new decree that was passed mid June this year and how it would affect us and our Taurus.

The customs office at the airport doesn't handle vehicle issues and we were directed to the office in Progreso.
(That answered my question as to why people didn't just go to the airport and not all the way to Progreso!)
Anyway, the individual there at the airport customs office gave us the main customs office number in DF so that we could call and speak to them directly about this issue.

Maggie contacted them Wednesday and just reported that anyone that has a foreign plated vehicle legally in the country, brought in prior to mid June this year, will continue on as in the past and as long as the visa documents are in order then the car permit is in order. We do not need to make any notifications.

I'm still not 100% confident - but am willing to go with the flow! 

I sort of feel like I need to submit the letter to Aduana in DF, but they say no on the phone!

Pulpo 101

I LOVE PULPO!        

 Pulpo is what the yucatecos call octopus.  I don't know if that's what they call it in the rest of Mexico, but here in the yucatan it is pulpo.  And it is a BIG business here, well along the coast, not directly here in Merida.  Most of the pulpo caught here is exported, but some of it makes its way to Merida.

We have a fellow from Hunucma, who has family who are pescadores/fishermen around Celestun.  Lucio comes to Merida on the bus, wih a cooler full of seafood 6 days a week.  He stops by our house every so often, or calls.  We frequently buy seafood from him;  Fish fillets, shrimp, lobstertails, jaiba/crab, and just recently octopus.  His stuff is always fresh, caught within the last day or two, and always a good price.

He recently came with several kilos of pulpo.  I love pulpo but have never made it myself.  So I decided to buy a 1kilo bag.   We like Lucio very much, we know his family, attended his youngest sons baptismo, and we like to support him.

So, with pulpo in hand my first stop, well after the fridge, was the internet.  Gads, what had I gotten myself into....

first thing was to clean the buggers, blech,  soak, rinse, soak, rinse, separate head from body, peel the skin from the head, rinse, rinse, rinse...remove beak, pull all the goop out of the head without breaking the ink sac, soak, rinse, soak, rinse,

ummm, pretty

I ended up with 3 head sacs, and two bodies.  These bodies were more than a foot long.

Once I/we had  the pulpo all cleaned I made a marinade  and we soaked the pulpo for about 4 hours, then we grilled it.

I don't have any photos of the grilled pulpo, it was quite pretty, and so very difficult to chew. 

We tried several things and finally gave up.   -  I think I will be eating my pulpo out! 

I'm sure there are easy ways to tenderize it - we've heard several - soak in milk, pressure cook for 45 minutes, hold the tentacles and smack the thick part against the counter many times....

It was a grand adventure, but not productive.  I will have to do more research, like maybe talk to someone who does actually prepare pulpo....

but for now,  I will enjoy my pulpo prepared by someone else!

cooking club goes mobile!

Tom and I, and 2 other couples have a Cooking Club.

We rotate monthly through each others homes. The host couple picks the menu; we sometimes decide together the whole menu or a theme is chosen then we each decide, with coordination what we will make. We bring all our ingredients, and any specific cooking utensils we need to the host house and we prepare the meal together.

It's great fun, And the food is also fabulous.

The host couple also typically invites a guest (couple, singles, whatever) whose responsibility it is to bring dessert.

August was Tom's and my turn to host. It also happened to be the first of 3 upcoming Spay n Neuter clinics being coordinated through santuario evolucion, Planned Pethood veterinary clinic, and with assistance from the Municipal Government.

Now Tom and I have worked these clinics in the past and we were going to work this one when the idea came up for our 'Club' to prepare the food for the volunteers.

What a FABULOUS idea, Thank you Mimi!

I posed the question to the 'Club' and everyone immediately agreed.

The dates of the first clinic got switched and the first clinic actually happened the 3rd and 4th of September, not in August, but ni modos (whatever).

We decided what we would each do and Saturday morning about 9:30 we convened in my kitchen and set to work preparing portable food for 30 - 35.

We were cutting, peeling, chopping, boiling, baking, and sweating OMG, with this seasonal humidity we were all puddles, even with every fan we can move directed at us.

We had decide on 3 items, vegetarian of course, it is an ANIMAL clinic after all.

The McQ's made brownies, lots of brownies, The Brancy's made a gorgeous colorful veggie pasta salad, and we (Tom and I) made a white bean veggie casserole a gratin.

And I CAN NOT believe I didn't take a single picture of us during the 3 1/2 - 4 hours we were in the kitchen cooking.

We got a last minute call asking us to pick up plates so off the guys went.

And then Tom made some wooden board trays for us to carry the huge aluminum trays of food on since they were flexible and especially the veggie bean casseroles were heavy and hot.

It was a good time, but then we always have fun with this crowd. We got the food delivered just about 1:15, made sure the vets got their plates first served and then skeedaddeled out of there. Too many people, too much confusion.

Here are 2 of the 4 trays of food

and here are a few of the selfless, tireless, and caring volunteers prepping plates for the vets who grab bites while betwixt and between performing surgeries.

We then treated ourselves to lunch at one of our favorite places - Flipper's (formerly Tommy's).

where in addition to the fabulous food, icey cold beers,

and excellent service, we also were serenaded by live music

AND the always affable don Juan treated us to dessert!

the wheels on the bus....

There is a small, rather rural community between Merida and Progreso.  Closer to the Merida side than the Progreso side.  This community is known for, among other things, its stonemasons and woodcarvers.  The stonemasons excavate and craft the local stone known as macedonia, or at least that's what I think it's called.

There is an annual Fair, or Feria in Dzitya, it's called the Tunich.   We go every year.  And every year it is nearly the same stuff.  And still we go every year.  This year was no exception.

This year when we left the Tunich, instead of heading straight out the way we had come, we took a different road, a road less traveled, at least by us.

This road took us past a storage yard of what appeared to be old parade floats, pieces and parts, that were/are for sale.  Was very cool to see, wish I had thought to take a photo. This road connected us over on the Western ring of the Periferico, which is a highway that by-passes the City.  In the USofA we called it a By-Pass.

It was quite interesting, I think it's been probably 3 years since we've been out there??  I told Tom, we should, on a clear day, and soon, drive the Periferico completely just to see what's going on out there.

So much has changed and happened in and around Merida since we go here in January 2006.  We have and had to learn so much.  And now we've become a bit insulated.  We know where to go when we need, this, that, or the other thing;  And that is pretty much where we always now go for the this, that, or the other thing.  There maybe a better place for the that, but we sort of stick with what we know.  We've stopped going to some of the 'things' that were so vital to our understanding of things here, the Merida Men's Club for Tom, the International Women's Club of Merida for me  -  heck we've even stopped going to the monthly gringo cocktail gatherings since they've switched up the location..  We stopped  going to each for a variety of reasons, and for different reasons.  These also happen to be where we met met many of our friends.  It's probably where allot of  the 'new' people are also going to make acquaintances, learn how to, where to, when to, etc.;  Just as we did!

We have our friends, some that we see regularly, some not so regularly.  There are LOTS of new people here.  We used to know everyone that was mentioned in conversations, now I'm hearing more and more new names, seeing more and more unrecognized faces.  It's overwhelming, knowing so many people, trying to keep up with the acquaintances, but how do you not meet people.  Especially when so many fun and interesting people come in to your circle of life.  Some of my friends have incredible memories, and can remember how they met a person, and when...I am constantly apologizing to people I've only seen a few times, for not remembering their name.

When we were working stiffs we had a small circle that we saw all the time.  Now,  ouf, just to plan a meal, we usually invite 6, making it a total of 8.  And even then it's hard to keep up.

Coming through Dzitya today, I asked Tom if he would enjoy living in a rural area.  His response was quite similar to my thoughts; Yes, I could enjoy living in a rural area - But I can't, it's already too difficult keeping up with the social life, How in the world could we do it from that distance.

Gosh, just where the heck am I going with this anyway,  just random concentric thoughts without a conclusion.  How do you handle retirement, are you active, always on the go, moving about, looking for more? - or are you content where and with what you have?

The wheels on the bus go round and round,

round and round,
round and round.
The wheels on the bus go round and round,
all through the town.

The wipers on the bus go Swish, swish, swish;
Swish, swish, swish;
Swish, swish, swish.
The wipers on the bus go Swish, swish, swish,
all through the town.

The horn on the bus goes Beep, beep, beep;
Beep, beep, beep;
Beep, beep, beep.
The horn on the bus goes Beep, beep, beep,
all through the town..

The money on the bus goes, Clink, clink, clink;
Clink, clink, clink;
Clink, clink, clink.
The money on the bus goes, Clink, clink, clink,
all through the town.

The Driver on the bus says "Move on back,
move on back, move on back;"
The Driver on the bus says "Move on back",
all through the town.

The baby on the bus says "Wah, wah, wah;
Wah, wah, wah;
Wah, wah, wah".
The baby on the bus says "Wah, wah, wah",
all through the town.

Hello - My Name is Debi, I'm a Hoarder

Illustration by Matt Muhurin

I don't know exactly why, but I've always been a hoarder - I mean you never know when you're going to need 378 twisty ties, or 73 rubber bands, or all the little scraps of fabric from a sewing project, 4 1/2 inches of elastic, plastic yogurt containers, pieces of old hose, extra screws from a project...

One of the odd aberrations I adopted early on is to hoard things I really like, and never use them. I mean I can remember as a kid having a favorite dress, or watch, or jeans, and never wanting to wear them in case something special came up and I would need them. I still do that????

So this morning, as I was cleaning out the fridge, I realized things are out of control. I make sauces, I buy sauces, all types of sauces, I never make just enough for what I'm doing, there's always extra. Condiments, we have loads of condiments. We have jars with teriyaki, chimchurri, pesto, salsa de chili arbol, guajillo chili paste, yogurt dill sauce, several mustards, jalapeno jelly, spicy conserva, a jar with bacon grease for cooking with, there's fish sauce, rice wine vinegar, sesame seeds, miso, balsamic vinegar, cider vinegar, tarragon vinegar, olive oil, avacado oil, canola oil, sesame oil, molasses, maple syrup, the list goes on and on. I mean I will go look in the fridge and declare to Tom "There's nothing to eat", we'll peer into a nearly full fridge but can't find anything to grab and eat.

So this morning I managed to get rid of about 6, maybe 7 containers of stuff, but look at this, this is what's left.   I mean I kept one container with about 2 tablespoons of teriyaki sauce, it's good sauce, I might need it.

Hello, my name is Debi, I'm a hoarder!