Although we're still waiting for the visit from the moving company owner to discuss our satisfaction with the move (and compensation for the damage incurred), things are looking up.
Our man-of-all-trades visited today to go over our list of projects and discuss what we feel needs to be done around the house. Pedro has been involved with construction and reconstruction for many years, so he can make my ideas become reality within our Mexican milieu. He'll return on Wednesday to start on our list of about 20 projects.
[We had Pedro's referral from our friends who also live in San Rafael and have found his expertise invaluable. We began using him when we first rented the house and much work was done before we even left California several months later.]
I'm sure there will be more ideas as we go along and ideas continue to percolate to the top of my brain. As Michael says: Not too much; it's a rental house!
But these 20 projects are the most essential. After all, we are living here. I can think of lots of others that probably don't really need to be done.
Yes, some of them are not of the temporary sort. We won't be taking them with us when/if we eventually move. Instead they'll stay behind to enhance the house - unlike the traditional procedure of a renter taking everything they have added to a home with them when they move house.
Would you believe we don't have curtain rods in some of the rooms? In California (yes, I know I'm not in California - nor Kansas - any more) anything attached to the premises becomes part of the property.
I promise to leave behind the 35-foot mottled red wall that stretches along one side of the ground floor from the entry through the dining room. I promise to leave the coffee-with-cream color we painted the entire third floor. But I also promise to leave behind the new exhaust hood for the kitchen stove, the new curtain rods, and the preservative applied to the garage/entry/bedroom terrace doors, too.
I think it'll all even out.
Sunday, August 29, 2010
Wednesday, August 25, 2010
Back at it!
During the break in postings we've visited Santa Fe, New Mexico for catch up with friends and family, a bit of organic gourmet tasting, our first Indian Marketry, and a splash of culture.
The trip began with the drive to Mexico City (DF) aeropuerto. Well, we were driven and made the trip in under the announced four hours. Thank heavens we did not need to drive in DF!
We were wearing our cowboy hats on the trip since we were headed to Santa Fe where we had them made a couple of years ago. Living in Los Angeles, we didn't have a great call to wear them, but going back to their source seemed a good time to pull them out of their boxes.
After we'd been dropped off at the airport and were heading towards the domestic flights area of Terminal 1, we realized that we no longer had hats! After a few fevered calls by cell phone to the provider of the driver service, it was determined that the driver had not left the airport, but was picking up new clients at the arrival gates of Terminal 2. A representative from the service picked up our hats and delivered them to us on the departures side of Terminal 1. Michael had to leave the secure area to retrieve them and go through security again, but we were no longer hatless.
The flight from DF to Tijuana was fairly uneventful. Taxied to the border (our driver reported that the number of tourists was down) and joined the line to pass through US Immigration. My sister found us and drove us back into town to spend the night with them. Pizza from one of our favorite chains sure tasted good. (We had walked past a pizza place in the DF airport and I had been craving it since.)
We're told by others that the pizza in SMA tastes a lot like cardboard. Even the pizza from the local Domino's outlet isn't up to their company standards. Of course, pizza isn't a food group here in Mexico. We were surprised when slices ordered at the pizza stand at the local Mega was served with packets of catsup on the side! (But then, locals had covered their Chicken Bakes from Costco with mayonnaise and catsup!!!)
There must be some decent pizza somewhere in town. The new Chicago-esque restaurant near La Lucienaga mall does a good version of Chicago-style pizza. Our dogs enjoyed the crusts we brought home, but they're not too picky about pizza crusts as long as there is a dab of sauce and some cheese on them!
Next morning it was off to the airport in San Diego for a nonstop flight to Albuquerque and drive to Santa Fe. Naturally, we ran into opera folk going to Santa Fe in the airport lounge.
Got settled in our hotel (which we later discovered actually housed some of the booths for Indian Market) - thanks Hotwire: we were upgraded to a suite - and ran off to partake in a restaurant walk through the a local cooking school.
We'd enjoyed both a restaurant walk and a luncheon in a vineyard in previous years. This tour was on the same par, visiting four restaurants that specialize in using local organic products after beginning with an orientation and starter course (salmon on a black bean and roasted corn salsa) at the school. We later revisited two of the restaurants for a dinner and a luncheon during the weekend, as well as a restaurant from a past tour for a second dinner on Sunday.
Saturday morning was the opening of Indian Market, and although we are not 'into' Indian goods, we had to walk through it. The market is an enormous gathering of artistic goods created by native Americans and covers the town square and 14 blocks, including the ballrooms and meeting rooms of our hotel. Knowing nothing of Indian art, we still enjoyed walking the booths and eventually went home with a few things in our suitcases. Some of the objects offered are high-end (it's not nick-named 'Indian Mark-Up' for nothing), but there were also accessible items.
Visited our hat shop near the cathedral. We don't always buy, but always stop in to visit and try on the latest creations. This year they had added Panama straw hats made in western styles to their line. Scott and everyone seemed to be doing well.
We also found a hatmaker from Colorado at Indian Market who made nice hats, but O'Ferrell's still has our business.
Saturday night was the opera (Benjamin Britten's Albert Herring) which was the ostensible purpose of our visit. Shuttle to the opera, dinner with our friends from Santa Fe, and then the performance. Couldn't find the memorial brick we had sponsored after last year.
Sunday was more Indian Market, a visit to our friends' home - where we talked plans for next year, and dinner at Rio Chalma on one of their patios. A little rainy but we were under cover. Dinner was great as usual.
Then the reverse of our earlier trip: drive back to ABQ for our flight to SAN, stop at the family home for a home-cooked meal of Moroccan short ribs over couscous with Paula, Tim, and Dad, and the short bus ride to TIJ airport for the red-eye flight to DF and another speedy ride to SMA through which we slept most of the way. Can't sleep on a plane to save myself.
Picked up the dogs from the kennel (boy, they're probably sorry to return home) and now it's back to reality and unpacking more of the boxes. Will it never end?
The trip began with the drive to Mexico City (DF) aeropuerto. Well, we were driven and made the trip in under the announced four hours. Thank heavens we did not need to drive in DF!
We were wearing our cowboy hats on the trip since we were headed to Santa Fe where we had them made a couple of years ago. Living in Los Angeles, we didn't have a great call to wear them, but going back to their source seemed a good time to pull them out of their boxes.
After we'd been dropped off at the airport and were heading towards the domestic flights area of Terminal 1, we realized that we no longer had hats! After a few fevered calls by cell phone to the provider of the driver service, it was determined that the driver had not left the airport, but was picking up new clients at the arrival gates of Terminal 2. A representative from the service picked up our hats and delivered them to us on the departures side of Terminal 1. Michael had to leave the secure area to retrieve them and go through security again, but we were no longer hatless.
The flight from DF to Tijuana was fairly uneventful. Taxied to the border (our driver reported that the number of tourists was down) and joined the line to pass through US Immigration. My sister found us and drove us back into town to spend the night with them. Pizza from one of our favorite chains sure tasted good. (We had walked past a pizza place in the DF airport and I had been craving it since.)
We're told by others that the pizza in SMA tastes a lot like cardboard. Even the pizza from the local Domino's outlet isn't up to their company standards. Of course, pizza isn't a food group here in Mexico. We were surprised when slices ordered at the pizza stand at the local Mega was served with packets of catsup on the side! (But then, locals had covered their Chicken Bakes from Costco with mayonnaise and catsup!!!)
There must be some decent pizza somewhere in town. The new Chicago-esque restaurant near La Lucienaga mall does a good version of Chicago-style pizza. Our dogs enjoyed the crusts we brought home, but they're not too picky about pizza crusts as long as there is a dab of sauce and some cheese on them!
Next morning it was off to the airport in San Diego for a nonstop flight to Albuquerque and drive to Santa Fe. Naturally, we ran into opera folk going to Santa Fe in the airport lounge.
Got settled in our hotel (which we later discovered actually housed some of the booths for Indian Market) - thanks Hotwire: we were upgraded to a suite - and ran off to partake in a restaurant walk through the a local cooking school.
We'd enjoyed both a restaurant walk and a luncheon in a vineyard in previous years. This tour was on the same par, visiting four restaurants that specialize in using local organic products after beginning with an orientation and starter course (salmon on a black bean and roasted corn salsa) at the school. We later revisited two of the restaurants for a dinner and a luncheon during the weekend, as well as a restaurant from a past tour for a second dinner on Sunday.
Saturday morning was the opening of Indian Market, and although we are not 'into' Indian goods, we had to walk through it. The market is an enormous gathering of artistic goods created by native Americans and covers the town square and 14 blocks, including the ballrooms and meeting rooms of our hotel. Knowing nothing of Indian art, we still enjoyed walking the booths and eventually went home with a few things in our suitcases. Some of the objects offered are high-end (it's not nick-named 'Indian Mark-Up' for nothing), but there were also accessible items.
Visited our hat shop near the cathedral. We don't always buy, but always stop in to visit and try on the latest creations. This year they had added Panama straw hats made in western styles to their line. Scott and everyone seemed to be doing well.
We also found a hatmaker from Colorado at Indian Market who made nice hats, but O'Ferrell's still has our business.
Saturday night was the opera (Benjamin Britten's Albert Herring) which was the ostensible purpose of our visit. Shuttle to the opera, dinner with our friends from Santa Fe, and then the performance. Couldn't find the memorial brick we had sponsored after last year.
Sunday was more Indian Market, a visit to our friends' home - where we talked plans for next year, and dinner at Rio Chalma on one of their patios. A little rainy but we were under cover. Dinner was great as usual.
Then the reverse of our earlier trip: drive back to ABQ for our flight to SAN, stop at the family home for a home-cooked meal of Moroccan short ribs over couscous with Paula, Tim, and Dad, and the short bus ride to TIJ airport for the red-eye flight to DF and another speedy ride to SMA through which we slept most of the way. Can't sleep on a plane to save myself.
Picked up the dogs from the kennel (boy, they're probably sorry to return home) and now it's back to reality and unpacking more of the boxes. Will it never end?
Thursday, August 19, 2010
I've found my smalls
Unpacking those 200+ boxes continues. As the number of boxes dwindles, the realization that something may not have been packed increases. (I can't imagine it, but it could happen, you know.)
While packing the suitcase for our trip to Santa Fe I couldn't find my smalls. Now, I did winnow out the ones that seemed like a good idea when purchased but were never worn. But I could only find two pairs beyond the three with which I traveled down to Mexico. Where were the rest of them?
For the last month those have been washed by hand and dried in the San Miguel sun. Like many in SMA, even if you are lucky enough to have an automatic washer, laundry is hung out to dry on your rooftops. Why buy a dryer and pay for the gas and electricity to run it when the sun is free? Thus our house came equipped with clothes lines on the azotea.
So it was with relief that we finally opened one more box to find a supply of my undershirts and smalls. Whew!
Now if we could only find those bags of coffee beans. The jar of Nescafe is about gone.
While packing the suitcase for our trip to Santa Fe I couldn't find my smalls. Now, I did winnow out the ones that seemed like a good idea when purchased but were never worn. But I could only find two pairs beyond the three with which I traveled down to Mexico. Where were the rest of them?
For the last month those have been washed by hand and dried in the San Miguel sun. Like many in SMA, even if you are lucky enough to have an automatic washer, laundry is hung out to dry on your rooftops. Why buy a dryer and pay for the gas and electricity to run it when the sun is free? Thus our house came equipped with clothes lines on the azotea.
So it was with relief that we finally opened one more box to find a supply of my undershirts and smalls. Whew!
Now if we could only find those bags of coffee beans. The jar of Nescafe is about gone.
Tuesday, August 17, 2010
We're Legal!
Not that we weren't before, of course, but our 6-month tourist visa (an FMM - the old FMT) has been successfully converted to an annual visa (the new version of the old FM2). There was also an FM3 which did not result in citizenship or immigrant status, but we're skipping over that and going directly to the old FM2-type visa.
Sorry, it's taking some time to get used to the new names for the visas. FMT/FM3/FM2 are too convenient to use and most people know exactly to what you are referring. It's quicker to say FM2 instead of Immigrante Rentista.
Four renewals will give us five years on FM2/Immigrante Rentista status. If we can limit our time out of the country to 18 months during the next 5 years, we'll qualify for permanent immigrado status and never have to file for a visa again! (Or pay those annual fees.)
This also gets us out of a bind over our vehicle. Since we drove it into Mexico with a temporary import permit, the permit expires when our FMM expires - which is within 180 days or when we leave the country - whichever is sooner.
Since we're flying out the country to see the Santa Fe, NM opera later this week, leaving our car behind, it would become illegal. Upon our return we would need to get a special permission letter which would give us five days to drive the van out of the country and then return, getting a new TIP and FMM.
The nearest border is a 9-hour drive so we'd spend about three days taking care of this. With our Immigrante Rentista visa, the car's permit continues to be good for at least a year and (assuming we renew it) four additional years.
So our car will be legal while we're gone. And we'll be legal while we're gone.
Of course, if we decide to pursue Immigrado status at the end of five years, we'll need to sell our US-plated van (back in the states) and drive a Mexican-plated vehicle instead. Not a bad thing, as the extra ten-year-long tax based on the value of a vehicle will be phased out before it's time for us to go car shopping.
Now, if we could only do something about those god-awful pictures on our visas....
Sorry, it's taking some time to get used to the new names for the visas. FMT/FM3/FM2 are too convenient to use and most people know exactly to what you are referring. It's quicker to say FM2 instead of Immigrante Rentista.
Four renewals will give us five years on FM2/Immigrante Rentista status. If we can limit our time out of the country to 18 months during the next 5 years, we'll qualify for permanent immigrado status and never have to file for a visa again! (Or pay those annual fees.)
This also gets us out of a bind over our vehicle. Since we drove it into Mexico with a temporary import permit, the permit expires when our FMM expires - which is within 180 days or when we leave the country - whichever is sooner.
Since we're flying out the country to see the Santa Fe, NM opera later this week, leaving our car behind, it would become illegal. Upon our return we would need to get a special permission letter which would give us five days to drive the van out of the country and then return, getting a new TIP and FMM.
The nearest border is a 9-hour drive so we'd spend about three days taking care of this. With our Immigrante Rentista visa, the car's permit continues to be good for at least a year and (assuming we renew it) four additional years.
So our car will be legal while we're gone. And we'll be legal while we're gone.
Of course, if we decide to pursue Immigrado status at the end of five years, we'll need to sell our US-plated van (back in the states) and drive a Mexican-plated vehicle instead. Not a bad thing, as the extra ten-year-long tax based on the value of a vehicle will be phased out before it's time for us to go car shopping.
Now, if we could only do something about those god-awful pictures on our visas....
Friday, August 13, 2010
Wait, wait - this could still be a hoax!
So returned home a little before 11 am to receive a phone call: We're in town with your things and will be over in 15 minutes to deliver them.
Why am I so wary of their promises? Why so distrustful? Why so cynical?
And now it's 2 pm and they still have not appeared....hmm.
What's that? The doorbell? Guess they stopped for lunch, eh?
But when they opened the truck, there was all this space. When we left L.A. it was stuffed to the gills. We even had to make some last minute decisions about what to leave in L.A. Not so now. Plenty of room in the back. I will come to know this is a problem.
And, when we inventoried what had been dropped off we were missing 43 boxes and additional 'loose' items - nearly 25% of our things.
Then Saturday they arrived unannounced with a truck load of things that took care of the missing 25% - or nearly. Still missing two loveseats (they delivered the seat cushions, just not the bases), a wheeled base for a dog crate, some floor lamps, and a few other things.
The best knows on Friday was that they managed to get our Bosch washer and dryer up the stairway to the third floor where the laundry is located. A little tight and a few minor scratches on the sides of the appliances, but not to matter. I was ready to list the Bosch pair for sale and go shopping for something even narrower. Glad to save that money!
The muchachos did a yeoman's job lugging all the stuff into the house and distributing it over our three floors. The owner is coming by next week to review things and we have a few breakage items to cover. Those darn crystal wine goblets can be replaced for only $139 per stem plus shipping from the UK. Too bad they dropped the box in the trailer while we were watching, eh?
Why am I so wary of their promises? Why so distrustful? Why so cynical?
And now it's 2 pm and they still have not appeared....hmm.
What's that? The doorbell? Guess they stopped for lunch, eh?
But when they opened the truck, there was all this space. When we left L.A. it was stuffed to the gills. We even had to make some last minute decisions about what to leave in L.A. Not so now. Plenty of room in the back. I will come to know this is a problem.
And, when we inventoried what had been dropped off we were missing 43 boxes and additional 'loose' items - nearly 25% of our things.
Then Saturday they arrived unannounced with a truck load of things that took care of the missing 25% - or nearly. Still missing two loveseats (they delivered the seat cushions, just not the bases), a wheeled base for a dog crate, some floor lamps, and a few other things.
The best knows on Friday was that they managed to get our Bosch washer and dryer up the stairway to the third floor where the laundry is located. A little tight and a few minor scratches on the sides of the appliances, but not to matter. I was ready to list the Bosch pair for sale and go shopping for something even narrower. Glad to save that money!
The muchachos did a yeoman's job lugging all the stuff into the house and distributing it over our three floors. The owner is coming by next week to review things and we have a few breakage items to cover. Those darn crystal wine goblets can be replaced for only $139 per stem plus shipping from the UK. Too bad they dropped the box in the trailer while we were watching, eh?
Hecho en Mexico
Enough about the weather. Well, okay, since you asked: it's been on-and-off for the past couple of days. A bit of rain in the afternoon and again in the evening, but not every afternoon nor every evening. Sometimes it pours down. Last night. for instance, there was only a very light sprinkle and then the clouds cleared. Clearly a sign that we were meant to go out to dinner.
So we did and tried a new restaurant for us: Hecho en Mexico. Out on the Ancho on the south side of town very near the Instituto Allende. Great tasting food, good service, wide selection; we'll be back! Ran into a couple that we met at a pizza-tasting party at our friends' house a few weeks ago. Said hello and we chatted quite a while. It's their 'go-to' restaurant for consistently good food.
It's also good to run into people that we sort of know, ya know? They encouraged us to join 'the group' on Wednesday mornings at 11 at Mega for coffee and chat. You'll know some of the folks and meet the rest! And it's half-off day at Mega! We think that probably applies only to produce and eggs, but I guess we'll find out next week - though we won't need to buy much since we're leaving for Santa Fe on Thursday. It'll still be good to see some of the same folks we've already met. Neither of us have been great joiners in our former lives, but there's something to be said for belonging - however loosely - to a social group.
Unlike the family seated near us where dad and chicky-babe wife were telling their 24-year-old son (not sure the wife was much more than that) why he should be straight instead of gay. Said: "I'm here for you, son, if you need a kidney or a PhD. " Implied: 'As long as you follow my wishes, not your natural inclination. Why be true to yourself, when you can fake it? Michael had to shush me a couple of times as my editorial comments grew louder. We were both glad our own parents had never had a talk like that with us. Our lives may not have been perfect, but gosh, they were our lives.
The couple (not the threesome) were amazed that we had walked from Col. San Raphael to Col. San Antonio to try the restaurant, but we needed to stretch our legs after being housebound all day. Why were we housebound, you ask? Why else - movers!
It seems that we have been getting the SOB 'tell them what we think they want to hear' instead of our 'tell us when something will arrive and stick to it - whether we like it or not'. After sitting around the house (on one of the few chairs) all day waiting for a delivery or a call or email, we finally wrung out of the movers that the owner had gone to San Luis Petosi to shepherd the truck back to SMA, claiming that it was overweight and they had to proceed very slowly to save the tires. We drove from SLP to SMA in less than half a day. We actually drove from Zacateros through SLP to SMA in about 6 hours. They'll take longer. So, soon, but not soon enough.
How true this all is, is up for grabs. At least the load hasn't reached San Miguel yet (we'd been told it was here Tuesday) and we're not really sure when it will. At least it's within striking distance. We were both bummed out about this. We've been rescheduling veterinary appointments, bank runs, house cleaning, visits to INM for visas, et cetera every time they've told us the delivery was imminent for the last two weeks. All for nothing. Piffle!!!
So a visit to a new restaurant and Tequila was a necessity last night. And the walk from home was theraputic, too. Not too hilly once we got down off of our hill and it was evening so the temps weren't a problem. I'm going to come out of this cobblestone experience with either stronger ankles or broken ankles - one or the other. After last night, I think stronger ankles are winning. We did opt for a cab for the return trip. Going uphill on bad cobblestones at night isn't the best idea. And blew up the air mattresses again. This time we'll leave them up until the truck pulls up to our door.
So today we're going to go to to INM with our facilitator if the visas are ready, walk downtown to check on the mail, sign-up at the gym whose special ends tomorrow, and anything else that needs to be done. We had even canceled having dinner with friends at a fund-raising dinner last night benefitting Hospice because we thought we needed to be home for a possible delivery in the evening. Wrong. Back to normalcy (if there's such a thing?).
So we did and tried a new restaurant for us: Hecho en Mexico. Out on the Ancho on the south side of town very near the Instituto Allende. Great tasting food, good service, wide selection; we'll be back! Ran into a couple that we met at a pizza-tasting party at our friends' house a few weeks ago. Said hello and we chatted quite a while. It's their 'go-to' restaurant for consistently good food.
It's also good to run into people that we sort of know, ya know? They encouraged us to join 'the group' on Wednesday mornings at 11 at Mega for coffee and chat. You'll know some of the folks and meet the rest! And it's half-off day at Mega! We think that probably applies only to produce and eggs, but I guess we'll find out next week - though we won't need to buy much since we're leaving for Santa Fe on Thursday. It'll still be good to see some of the same folks we've already met. Neither of us have been great joiners in our former lives, but there's something to be said for belonging - however loosely - to a social group.
Unlike the family seated near us where dad and chicky-babe wife were telling their 24-year-old son (not sure the wife was much more than that) why he should be straight instead of gay. Said: "I'm here for you, son, if you need a kidney or a PhD. " Implied: 'As long as you follow my wishes, not your natural inclination. Why be true to yourself, when you can fake it? Michael had to shush me a couple of times as my editorial comments grew louder. We were both glad our own parents had never had a talk like that with us. Our lives may not have been perfect, but gosh, they were our lives.
The couple (not the threesome) were amazed that we had walked from Col. San Raphael to Col. San Antonio to try the restaurant, but we needed to stretch our legs after being housebound all day. Why were we housebound, you ask? Why else - movers!
It seems that we have been getting the SOB 'tell them what we think they want to hear' instead of our 'tell us when something will arrive and stick to it - whether we like it or not'. After sitting around the house (on one of the few chairs) all day waiting for a delivery or a call or email, we finally wrung out of the movers that the owner had gone to San Luis Petosi to shepherd the truck back to SMA, claiming that it was overweight and they had to proceed very slowly to save the tires. We drove from SLP to SMA in less than half a day. We actually drove from Zacateros through SLP to SMA in about 6 hours. They'll take longer. So, soon, but not soon enough.
How true this all is, is up for grabs. At least the load hasn't reached San Miguel yet (we'd been told it was here Tuesday) and we're not really sure when it will. At least it's within striking distance. We were both bummed out about this. We've been rescheduling veterinary appointments, bank runs, house cleaning, visits to INM for visas, et cetera every time they've told us the delivery was imminent for the last two weeks. All for nothing. Piffle!!!
So a visit to a new restaurant and Tequila was a necessity last night. And the walk from home was theraputic, too. Not too hilly once we got down off of our hill and it was evening so the temps weren't a problem. I'm going to come out of this cobblestone experience with either stronger ankles or broken ankles - one or the other. After last night, I think stronger ankles are winning. We did opt for a cab for the return trip. Going uphill on bad cobblestones at night isn't the best idea. And blew up the air mattresses again. This time we'll leave them up until the truck pulls up to our door.
So today we're going to go to to INM with our facilitator if the visas are ready, walk downtown to check on the mail, sign-up at the gym whose special ends tomorrow, and anything else that needs to be done. We had even canceled having dinner with friends at a fund-raising dinner last night benefitting Hospice because we thought we needed to be home for a possible delivery in the evening. Wrong. Back to normalcy (if there's such a thing?).
Sunday, August 8, 2010
What Weather?
Okay, okay - enough about the trials and tribulations of moving to Mexico. On to an always popular subject: the weather.
We thought we knew weather. After all, Michael and I both grew up in the mid-West where there's lots of weather. Natural disasters are floods and tornados, not earthquakes. (We let our earthquake insurance lapse about the time we moved SOB. How good it felt to write that letter to the insurance company. Not that Mexico doesn't have earthquakes, but they're centered along the southwestern coast where tectonic plates collide.) And snow - Michael especially. I knew I'd never get Michael out of L.A. unless we headed to someplace equally sunny!
But here we are in the highlands of central Mexico between the Oriental Sierra Madres and the Occidental Sierra Madres at an elevation of about 6500 feet and we have weather. As we listened to the rain falling early this morning, Michael remarked: I'd forgotten what weather was like.
Conversation about L.A. weather was usually how hot it had been, whether the forecast had been reached or exceeded, how hot would tomorrow likely be. Here in SMA it's nearly always pleasant and rains briefly most days. At least it used to do so.
A British friend always got a chuckle when the local L.A. television stations launched their Storm Track segments every time rain was predicted - even if we only received a smattering of moisture.
A friend who has lived in SMA for nearly 10 years recently commented: Is it too much to ask that rainy season structure itself the way it used to be, so that there would be hours of sun each morning and early afternoon before the sudden, fierce thunderstorms, and then it would clear up again? Or why can't all rain fall between midnight and 6 AM? Is that too much to ask, huh, huh? [Read the whole blog & more at her website: FallingInLoveWithSanMiguel.com]
It seems like she's getting her wish granted - almost. Lately there haven't been daily storms, but a few overnighters have made up for it. We're at 33cm of rain for the month of August with 13cm having fallen since Friday. Friday the heavens opened right at 7 PM when a gallery we know was to open a new show. Not sure what they did as a result (we took one look at the sky about the time we needed to leave, decided to skip the opening, and changed our clothes). The gallery was probably more crowded than usual with patrons avoiding the patio.
Okay; for those of you who have been following the trials and tribulations of moving to Mexico, we finally got a response from our mover. Their truck had developed problems near Saltillo in an area with no cell phone coverage. Things should be fixed after the weekend. We now have an expected delivery date of Tuesday or Wednesday - nothing more definite than that.
I had whined about the extra cost we incurred boarding the dogs for several days of supposed deliveries, inconvenience to our housekeeper and man-of-all-trades, and a few other issues in our last email to the mover. I hate to do that, but the mover has offered to cover our extra costs. The problems are all things beyond his control so we'll not accept his offer, but it felt good to get it off my chest. I can only manage so much Mr. Nice Guy without getting what passed for humor in our family.
And in the meantime we'll be able to run those errands that were piling up, like picking up a couple of pierced tin light sconces, some items at the hardware store, some new closet door pulls from the shop on Reloj - oh, and groceries. We're out of practically everything. I think we could manage a cheese omelette with a dusting of minced cilantro, but that's about the extent of our larder this morning.
Well, it continues to rain, so it's time to cover up the computer/modem and it's back to mopping up a bit of rain water.
We thought we knew weather. After all, Michael and I both grew up in the mid-West where there's lots of weather. Natural disasters are floods and tornados, not earthquakes. (We let our earthquake insurance lapse about the time we moved SOB. How good it felt to write that letter to the insurance company. Not that Mexico doesn't have earthquakes, but they're centered along the southwestern coast where tectonic plates collide.) And snow - Michael especially. I knew I'd never get Michael out of L.A. unless we headed to someplace equally sunny!
But here we are in the highlands of central Mexico between the Oriental Sierra Madres and the Occidental Sierra Madres at an elevation of about 6500 feet and we have weather. As we listened to the rain falling early this morning, Michael remarked: I'd forgotten what weather was like.
Conversation about L.A. weather was usually how hot it had been, whether the forecast had been reached or exceeded, how hot would tomorrow likely be. Here in SMA it's nearly always pleasant and rains briefly most days. At least it used to do so.
A British friend always got a chuckle when the local L.A. television stations launched their Storm Track segments every time rain was predicted - even if we only received a smattering of moisture.
A friend who has lived in SMA for nearly 10 years recently commented: Is it too much to ask that rainy season structure itself the way it used to be, so that there would be hours of sun each morning and early afternoon before the sudden, fierce thunderstorms, and then it would clear up again? Or why can't all rain fall between midnight and 6 AM? Is that too much to ask, huh, huh? [Read the whole blog & more at her website: FallingInLoveWithSanMiguel.com]
It seems like she's getting her wish granted - almost. Lately there haven't been daily storms, but a few overnighters have made up for it. We're at 33cm of rain for the month of August with 13cm having fallen since Friday. Friday the heavens opened right at 7 PM when a gallery we know was to open a new show. Not sure what they did as a result (we took one look at the sky about the time we needed to leave, decided to skip the opening, and changed our clothes). The gallery was probably more crowded than usual with patrons avoiding the patio.
Okay; for those of you who have been following the trials and tribulations of moving to Mexico, we finally got a response from our mover. Their truck had developed problems near Saltillo in an area with no cell phone coverage. Things should be fixed after the weekend. We now have an expected delivery date of Tuesday or Wednesday - nothing more definite than that.
I had whined about the extra cost we incurred boarding the dogs for several days of supposed deliveries, inconvenience to our housekeeper and man-of-all-trades, and a few other issues in our last email to the mover. I hate to do that, but the mover has offered to cover our extra costs. The problems are all things beyond his control so we'll not accept his offer, but it felt good to get it off my chest. I can only manage so much Mr. Nice Guy without getting what passed for humor in our family.
And in the meantime we'll be able to run those errands that were piling up, like picking up a couple of pierced tin light sconces, some items at the hardware store, some new closet door pulls from the shop on Reloj - oh, and groceries. We're out of practically everything. I think we could manage a cheese omelette with a dusting of minced cilantro, but that's about the extent of our larder this morning.
Well, it continues to rain, so it's time to cover up the computer/modem and it's back to mopping up a bit of rain water.
Friday, August 6, 2010
This Is Mexico, Right?
So we’re up at 3:30 AM, making sure everything is put away, rooms are cleared for the delivery of 200+ cartons, and we’re excited that today we’re finally getting our ‘stuff:’ furniture, kitchen pots and pans, shampoo and shower gel that we like, and clothes! We know Hurricane Alex delayed everything, but it's still been over a month since our household (and we) left Reseda. We've been living all this time on a suitcase of clothes and whatever we could fit into the van after 4 dogs and all their paraphenalia were loaded in - not much else fit!
Time passes - 6 o’clock, we have breakfast (Coca gobbles down her scrambled egg and drinks a bit of water finally); 7 o’clock; 8 o’clock; 9 o’clock. We decide to re-inflate one of the mattresses and Coca and I take a nap together. Eleven-thirty and both Coca and I are awake. Michael and I decide to have lunch so we’ll be ready when they finally arrive.
Lunch consists of re-heated pollo mole with the last of our side dishes in the fridge: curried cauliflower with golden raisins and pine nuts; pasta salad with fusilli, peppers, and kalamata olives; a bit of tzatziki made with goat yoghurt. I know, sounds weird, but it actually worked. And we have lots of mole sauce left over to go with more chicken, perhaps a roasted chicken this time so we don't need to poach one.
Noon and Michael decides to call Marcos. “We were wondering when we should expect our stuff to arrive today.” ”Oh, I said we’d be there Saturday.” “No, you actually said ‘Friday.’” “But I meant Saturday.” [We had 'Friday' both in an email and telephone conversation.]
At least the goods are on this side of Laredo - somewhere. Now to postpone everyone else (including Margarita who works for us on Saturday), add time to the kennel stay for the dogs, and hope it actually happens tomorrow. This is Mexico we live in, isn’t it?
And we now need to stick around the house until 4 pm when the locksmith will be here to fix our sticky garage lock. It suddenly decided to not work yesterday. We can throw it manually from the inside, but the key no longer fits in the slot on either side (in/out) of the door. If it's not one thing, it's the t'other.
LATER -
We had planned on attending a gallery opening this evening near one of our other favorite rooftop restaurants, La Posadita.
After showering, shaving, et cetera, we dressed for the evening and glanced out the window before leaving. It was obvious that the outskirts of town were getting rained upon, so we cancelled and heated up the oven for some pizza.
Now, at 7pm, the time of the gallery opening, it's pouring down outside. I can hear the rain on the glass roof of the copula over the stairwell in addition to the rain splattering on the bedroom terrace. It's really pouring - thunder and lightning included - and I'm really glad we decided to stay home tonight!
Hope it will be over in time for tomorrow's delivery by the movers!!!
Time passes - 6 o’clock, we have breakfast (Coca gobbles down her scrambled egg and drinks a bit of water finally); 7 o’clock; 8 o’clock; 9 o’clock. We decide to re-inflate one of the mattresses and Coca and I take a nap together. Eleven-thirty and both Coca and I are awake. Michael and I decide to have lunch so we’ll be ready when they finally arrive.
Lunch consists of re-heated pollo mole with the last of our side dishes in the fridge: curried cauliflower with golden raisins and pine nuts; pasta salad with fusilli, peppers, and kalamata olives; a bit of tzatziki made with goat yoghurt. I know, sounds weird, but it actually worked. And we have lots of mole sauce left over to go with more chicken, perhaps a roasted chicken this time so we don't need to poach one.
Noon and Michael decides to call Marcos. “We were wondering when we should expect our stuff to arrive today.” ”Oh, I said we’d be there Saturday.” “No, you actually said ‘Friday.’” “But I meant Saturday.” [We had 'Friday' both in an email and telephone conversation.]
At least the goods are on this side of Laredo - somewhere. Now to postpone everyone else (including Margarita who works for us on Saturday), add time to the kennel stay for the dogs, and hope it actually happens tomorrow. This is Mexico we live in, isn’t it?
And we now need to stick around the house until 4 pm when the locksmith will be here to fix our sticky garage lock. It suddenly decided to not work yesterday. We can throw it manually from the inside, but the key no longer fits in the slot on either side (in/out) of the door. If it's not one thing, it's the t'other.
LATER -
We had planned on attending a gallery opening this evening near one of our other favorite rooftop restaurants, La Posadita.
After showering, shaving, et cetera, we dressed for the evening and glanced out the window before leaving. It was obvious that the outskirts of town were getting rained upon, so we cancelled and heated up the oven for some pizza.
Now, at 7pm, the time of the gallery opening, it's pouring down outside. I can hear the rain on the glass roof of the copula over the stairwell in addition to the rain splattering on the bedroom terrace. It's really pouring - thunder and lightning included - and I'm really glad we decided to stay home tonight!
Hope it will be over in time for tomorrow's delivery by the movers!!!
Bits and Pieces
It’s catch up time today for the days I haven‘t posted. Today, the fourth-week anniversary of leaving Los Angeles, we were to finally be delivered of our household goods. The effects of Hurricane Alex were finally banished, the moving van’s place in line advanced, a customs broker obtained to certify the load, border crossed and goods delivered to us this last Tuesday. Or Wednesday. Make that Thursday.
Then this morning - after making arrangements to board the dogs and bring our man-of-all-trades in on Friday - we’re told it will be Friday morning, not today. Quickly extend the boarding to two days and reschedule Pedro.
Good part: the dogs (well, three of them) will have a chance to try out the boarding kennel for a couple of days to see if it’s simpatico. We hope so because we will need a place for all four of them later this month and then for four weeks beginning in mid-September, plus a week in December, et cetera. We’ll fetch them from the kennel (which is closer to town than we thought) on Saturday morning. This will give us a chance to size up each other. Hope it’s a good fit.
Wendy’s Boarding is named after the owner’s first dog (the owner is Maria, not Wendy). Got a very good feeling from our chat before sending the dogs off on their adventure. There’s 24/7 care, lots of room to romp, and tall walls to deter Fiyero’s penchant for climbing chain link fences, And there’s a reduction in fees for longer term boarding. All sounds good.
The house is really quiet without the dogs around. Coca stayed home because she had a date with the vet this morning. We pick her up late afternoon. Vet found a tumor during her surgery, so she’ll have less left of her than planned! But it’s good to take care of it all at one time. Miyake’s surgery went well last week so we expect things to be okay with Coca, too. And they’ll be getting a ceramic, Mexican-inspired water dish at the same time. Saw it in the window at the vet’s and just have to have it. No complaints about the un-Mexican-ness of the house will be tolerated!
Speaking of Mexican-ness, this is the big bicentennial year for Mexico. The bicentennial of the Mexican Revolution (1810) and the centennial of the Mexican Revolution (910) are being combined into one long celebration. It includes a Sound-and-Light style presentation projected from four towers onto the face and sides of the façade of La Parroquia on the Jardin. We have yet to see it.
We did see a snippet of a rehearsal one weekday night. Then we tried to see it the following weekend but Friday night was occupied by a live presentation of song and music dedicated to San Miguel (some better than others). San Miguel was one of the hotbeds of revolutionary fervor back in the day. Ignacio Allende (a favorite son of a San Miguel family) was in at the beginning (later captured in battle and beheaded - yech!). In fact, San Miguel was later renamed San Miguel de Allende in his honor.
And Saturday night we waited around for an hour-and-a-half only to discover that there was a problem with one of the projectors and the performance was cancelled. Many (not all) who have seen it rave about it.
We did see another snippet during a rehearsal after dinner at La Azotea Wednesday night, but some of the projectors still had not been repaired. What we did see was terrific. With music this time. Remembering Son et Lumiere performances seen in Athens, I was concerned that because the façade of La Parroquia is so deeply textured it would be difficult to project pictures on the building, but it works brilliantly. We’re looking forward to our first full presentation. It’s being presented on weekends through 2012, we hear.
The news is good for my sister Paula’s surgery in San Diego this recent Tuesday. Out-patient for shoulder troubles. What can’t they do by remote control, eh? A bit of good news amid all our so-so news.
Things have got to start looking up, right? SMA remains a great place to be. We took our second real estate tour yesterday. People still think we were really brave moving here with so little in-person knowledge of the town. It just seemed right to us and it's proving to be so.
Further good news: the rock band that lives next to us didn’t have a rehearsal this afternoon. With the absence of the dogs, that made for a really quiet time. School begins next week and we’re hoping the band members are all enrolled. That way rehearsals will at least be later in the day.
Later - Coca is now home with a giant incision up her abdomen. She’s really drowsy. Last week Miyake actually walked from the office to the car - well, stumbling a bit. Coca was carried to the car today and into the house and up to the second floor bedroom where she’s resting comfortably (we think; at least not
whining) on the down throw. When she feels up to it there’s water (in the new ceramic dish to brighten her day) and her crate is next to her with a fluffy towel lining it. The surgery turned into something a bit more involved, but she’s fixed and the nasty tumor is gone, she’s had a bath, and her nails have been trimmed. She’ll be all set to go once she’s up and about. Probably a good thing that the other dogs are out for the night. Hope the movers tomorrow don’t disturb her too much.
Someone is working on their house: you can hear them pounding on the cement so things aren’t quite as quiet as they were. We did stop at the store earlier today and replaced our queen-sized inflatable mattress with two twin-sized ones. The larger mattress has developed a leak and we spent several days (and nights) trying different patches - all to no avail (and not much sleep, either). I can report, after today’s naps on the new ones, that it’s a great improvement. Guess we should have sprung for the new mattresses earlier instead of trying to save money. New king-sized bed should be here tomorrow!
That’s probably all the news that’s fit to print. Doubt if we’ll be able to post tomorrow after the delivery of the furniture. There will be a lot of unpacking and assembling. Brought a lot of Ikea things with us. There were 200+ boxes plus loose items like rugs, the washer/dryer, patio umbrellas and their bases. First item on the agenda: see if the washer and dryer will fit up the staircase to the third floor. Otherwise we’ll be shopping for a new set at Liverpool on Saturday. I hear there’s a sale at Penney’s!!!
Still later - Have returned from La Azotea (just off the Jardin). Their margaritas and mojitos are terrific, as is their food - noshes mostly. There was a public concert tonight in the Plaza Principal (in front of the Parroquia) that was within earshot of the restaurant/bar. Well played; songs popular with the audience; lots of percussion instruments (never heard a gong used quite so often); et cetera. We applauded from our rooftop perch - though we were the only ones applauding from the restaurant, Philistines! - but enjoyed the musical background.
Then this morning - after making arrangements to board the dogs and bring our man-of-all-trades in on Friday - we’re told it will be Friday morning, not today. Quickly extend the boarding to two days and reschedule Pedro.
Good part: the dogs (well, three of them) will have a chance to try out the boarding kennel for a couple of days to see if it’s simpatico. We hope so because we will need a place for all four of them later this month and then for four weeks beginning in mid-September, plus a week in December, et cetera. We’ll fetch them from the kennel (which is closer to town than we thought) on Saturday morning. This will give us a chance to size up each other. Hope it’s a good fit.
Wendy’s Boarding is named after the owner’s first dog (the owner is Maria, not Wendy). Got a very good feeling from our chat before sending the dogs off on their adventure. There’s 24/7 care, lots of room to romp, and tall walls to deter Fiyero’s penchant for climbing chain link fences, And there’s a reduction in fees for longer term boarding. All sounds good.
The house is really quiet without the dogs around. Coca stayed home because she had a date with the vet this morning. We pick her up late afternoon. Vet found a tumor during her surgery, so she’ll have less left of her than planned! But it’s good to take care of it all at one time. Miyake’s surgery went well last week so we expect things to be okay with Coca, too. And they’ll be getting a ceramic, Mexican-inspired water dish at the same time. Saw it in the window at the vet’s and just have to have it. No complaints about the un-Mexican-ness of the house will be tolerated!
Speaking of Mexican-ness, this is the big bicentennial year for Mexico. The bicentennial of the Mexican Revolution (1810) and the centennial of the Mexican Revolution (910) are being combined into one long celebration. It includes a Sound-and-Light style presentation projected from four towers onto the face and sides of the façade of La Parroquia on the Jardin. We have yet to see it.
We did see a snippet of a rehearsal one weekday night. Then we tried to see it the following weekend but Friday night was occupied by a live presentation of song and music dedicated to San Miguel (some better than others). San Miguel was one of the hotbeds of revolutionary fervor back in the day. Ignacio Allende (a favorite son of a San Miguel family) was in at the beginning (later captured in battle and beheaded - yech!). In fact, San Miguel was later renamed San Miguel de Allende in his honor.
And Saturday night we waited around for an hour-and-a-half only to discover that there was a problem with one of the projectors and the performance was cancelled. Many (not all) who have seen it rave about it.
We did see another snippet during a rehearsal after dinner at La Azotea Wednesday night, but some of the projectors still had not been repaired. What we did see was terrific. With music this time. Remembering Son et Lumiere performances seen in Athens, I was concerned that because the façade of La Parroquia is so deeply textured it would be difficult to project pictures on the building, but it works brilliantly. We’re looking forward to our first full presentation. It’s being presented on weekends through 2012, we hear.
The news is good for my sister Paula’s surgery in San Diego this recent Tuesday. Out-patient for shoulder troubles. What can’t they do by remote control, eh? A bit of good news amid all our so-so news.
Things have got to start looking up, right? SMA remains a great place to be. We took our second real estate tour yesterday. People still think we were really brave moving here with so little in-person knowledge of the town. It just seemed right to us and it's proving to be so.
Further good news: the rock band that lives next to us didn’t have a rehearsal this afternoon. With the absence of the dogs, that made for a really quiet time. School begins next week and we’re hoping the band members are all enrolled. That way rehearsals will at least be later in the day.
Later - Coca is now home with a giant incision up her abdomen. She’s really drowsy. Last week Miyake actually walked from the office to the car - well, stumbling a bit. Coca was carried to the car today and into the house and up to the second floor bedroom where she’s resting comfortably (we think; at least not
whining) on the down throw. When she feels up to it there’s water (in the new ceramic dish to brighten her day) and her crate is next to her with a fluffy towel lining it. The surgery turned into something a bit more involved, but she’s fixed and the nasty tumor is gone, she’s had a bath, and her nails have been trimmed. She’ll be all set to go once she’s up and about. Probably a good thing that the other dogs are out for the night. Hope the movers tomorrow don’t disturb her too much.
Someone is working on their house: you can hear them pounding on the cement so things aren’t quite as quiet as they were. We did stop at the store earlier today and replaced our queen-sized inflatable mattress with two twin-sized ones. The larger mattress has developed a leak and we spent several days (and nights) trying different patches - all to no avail (and not much sleep, either). I can report, after today’s naps on the new ones, that it’s a great improvement. Guess we should have sprung for the new mattresses earlier instead of trying to save money. New king-sized bed should be here tomorrow!
That’s probably all the news that’s fit to print. Doubt if we’ll be able to post tomorrow after the delivery of the furniture. There will be a lot of unpacking and assembling. Brought a lot of Ikea things with us. There were 200+ boxes plus loose items like rugs, the washer/dryer, patio umbrellas and their bases. First item on the agenda: see if the washer and dryer will fit up the staircase to the third floor. Otherwise we’ll be shopping for a new set at Liverpool on Saturday. I hear there’s a sale at Penney’s!!!
Still later - Have returned from La Azotea (just off the Jardin). Their margaritas and mojitos are terrific, as is their food - noshes mostly. There was a public concert tonight in the Plaza Principal (in front of the Parroquia) that was within earshot of the restaurant/bar. Well played; songs popular with the audience; lots of percussion instruments (never heard a gong used quite so often); et cetera. We applauded from our rooftop perch - though we were the only ones applauding from the restaurant, Philistines! - but enjoyed the musical background.
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