When we first moved to Mexico, the first house was partially furnished, i.e., it had a stove, fridge, and a dining room table and chairs. So no need to bring appliances with us nor any need to immediately shop for appliances. [We did bring our washer and dryer with a propane conversion kit for the dryer which we had installed once we were here.]
When we moved to our second house it was completely unfurnished: no stove, no fridge, no nuthin'. We even had to seal the tile floors before moving in, add cabinets in the kitchen, light fixtures (of course), cabinets under the bathroom basins, custom mirrors to fit the ceramic frames on the walls, et cetera.
So we went cheap, buying appliances from private parties listing on the Civil List (more about that at some point in the future). The fridge was a good purchase - still working and larger than the one in our first house. When we moved to the current house, our range was fine at first, but eventually began to leak propane, so we started turning off the gas supply at the control in the wall. [I frequently forgot this step and Michael's nose would tell him to check the kitchen!]
We recently checked the ole bank balance (on the occasion of an appliance sale at Mega - July is ale month!) and decided it was time for a new stove. We are happy to announce that we now have a Frigidaire estufa! Not only was the sale price reasonable, but the features are great: 1) the stove has a hinged glass top that is very cool*; 2) the entire oven door is of reflective glass that still allows you to peek inside when the 3) oven light is illuminated; 4) the controls include the stove-top burners (6 burners of various sizes to fit your various pots) as well as 5) a built-in timer, 6) the aforementioned oven light control, 7) the electronic ignition switch (not automatic, but better than our hand-held lighter) and 8) a cast iron grill for the stove top. [*We had heard that the hinged glass top was required as a safety issue because it shut off the gas supply when it was lowered into place, but I don't think that was true. But it sure looks cool and keeps the top of the stove a bit cleaner.]
Plus the stove features a broiler!!! Many stoves here in Mexico do not, there's just a cabinet area to raise the stove top to counter height. But we have a real broiler - though the oven control calls it a 'grill'...go figure! And, wonder of wonders, the stove has a contraption that automatically pulls the oven racks forward when the door is opened so it's simpler to check what you're baking! [This seems to be my exclamation point paragraph!]
So we're very happy with the stove and think it looks cool. We gave our old stove to our housekeeper, who said her husband simply tightened up some connections inside the stove and the gas leak disappeared! Glad she'll be able to continue to clean for us and not be found gassed to death in her home.
As for the fridge it's working well; trips to Costco stress the freezer area to hold everything we bring home, but the next size up may not fit in the area of the kitchen it's in - and an automatic ice maker is superfluous as there is no water on that side of the kitchen. Although the main floor guest bathroom is close enough that a line could probably be run from under the bathroom sink through the wall and along inside the base cabinets.... We'll see if we get an extension on our lease next spring before we invest the money on plumbing!
And that brings to mind the need for a whole-house water filtration system. The water in our part of town is rather hard; the sinks and toilets would certainly look better with filtered/softened water to prevent the scale build-up. And Michael could eliminate cleaning the water filter built into the clothes washer from his monthly chores! Without that task, the flow of water into the washer is dramatically slowed and a load of wash takes forever to finish.
Unfortunately we've already told the landlord that we hope to replace the tile counters in the kitchen, so that should be first on our list of projects - right after moving the switches for the backyard lights to the inside of the living/dining rooms. Why go outside and fumble around in the dark for the switches? (We also told them that we would like to replace the fiberglass tub in the master bedroom bath, but it's set in a concrete-and-tile surround, so that may be staying just as it is. Perhaps new coat of fiberglass paint?)
Ah, well; life is good!
Monday, July 21, 2014
Wednesday, July 2, 2014
Permanente vs Temporal
"Emergency" the subject line read. The email, from Michael who had gone into Centro for a Spanish lesson, immediately caught my attention.
"Emergency" What could it be? A million possible causes raced through my head. Last year when we applied for our 4th Residente Temporal permit, we started the process before we left, so we had a travel letter from INM which had to be stamped both going and returning to Mexico; we found the various offices and got it done. At that time we had been told that this year - when we would be out of the country when our Temporal expired and we would need to file for our Permanente permit, we could leave the country when it was still valid and return after it expired, then file for the Permanente within 5 days of returning. Easy-peasy.
The 'emergency' is that Michael had talked to the facilitator we used and just learned that we could no longer do that! There was no longer any forgiveness. If you weren't in town to file for your Permanente on the day it expired, you were up a particular creek without a paddle. Leave the country and start over again with a Temporal.
As it turns out, one can file for the Permanente at a Mexican Consulate in another country, do the preliminary paperwork, get the visa, and then return to Mexico and visit INM and carry on with the process. Of course, the ability to skip the financial proofs of stability disappear under that plan. And since we were concerned about whether we'd have enough income to satisfy the requirements, there was a lurch in our tummies.
We will be out of the country on a Caribbean cruise during August (we knew this last year because we plan ahead for these things) when our Temporal expires. INM doesn't allow anyone else to stand in for you on that expiration date if you're gone; can't send a facilitator. You must start over at a Mexican Consulate in your home country or another country where you are legally permitted to visit.
Visas for Mexico (the Residente Temporal and Permanente are not strictly visas, but most people think of them as such) fall into a few different categories: The FMM (Forma Migratoria Múltiple) is used by most tourists when entering Mexico. The form is also used by those holding various other visas to track exits and entrances to the country. Visas have certain time-out-of-country limits.
Our August cruise to the Caribbean is followed by several days in Walt Disney World (how can you go to Florida and not visit WDW?), so we looked up the consulate in Orlando as a possibility. It's not like we've never been to the World before; we could miss a day or two of our stay for a Permanente visa!
As it turns out, Orlando is a very good possibility. After exchanging several emails with their very helpful Visa staff, we learned that the procedures they follow are fairly simple. Although consulates should follow the same rules around the world, not all of them do so. There have been similar situations among INM offices here in Mexico. For one thing, the financials vary in amount. The amount needed for Orlando is more than the amount in our book on immigration (which is calculated based on the minimum daily wage in Mexico City for a particular number of days), however they do reduce the amount for a family-related second person who is applying for the Permanente visa at the same time (again, it's not really a visa, but most people refer to it as if it were). With that reduction - and our marriage license to prove that we are married - we can easily qualify. If we had been in Mexico when our Temporal expired, INM would have skipped the financial requirement.
So with proof of our retirement benefits that we've collected in the past year, our apostiled marriage license, our US passports, a new passport-sized photo for each of us, and the appropriate fees, we'll be in business. We must make sure that the immigration officer at the Mexico City airport when we return marks our FMM for 30 days, not 180, and also marks the 'Canje' (Exchange) box. Then we have 30 days after returning to Mexico to contact INM about exchanging our consulate-issued visa for a 'real' Residente Permanente.
We have friends who have done the process themselves while still in Mexico (there's a store across the street from INM who will take photos and prepare the paperwork for a reasonable fee), but we will most likely use our last facilitator. If Michael hadn't seen him in Starbucks and asked him about our new visas, I wonder when he would have told us? [When we had returned to Mexico and went to see him - too late???] We also were in luck that Orlando has a consulate and they will be able to handle things all in one trip to their offices.
Wish us luck!
[I know, you were expecting the promised post on our new estufa. Soon, soon....]
"Emergency" What could it be? A million possible causes raced through my head. Last year when we applied for our 4th Residente Temporal permit, we started the process before we left, so we had a travel letter from INM which had to be stamped both going and returning to Mexico; we found the various offices and got it done. At that time we had been told that this year - when we would be out of the country when our Temporal expired and we would need to file for our Permanente permit, we could leave the country when it was still valid and return after it expired, then file for the Permanente within 5 days of returning. Easy-peasy.
The 'emergency' is that Michael had talked to the facilitator we used and just learned that we could no longer do that! There was no longer any forgiveness. If you weren't in town to file for your Permanente on the day it expired, you were up a particular creek without a paddle. Leave the country and start over again with a Temporal.
As it turns out, one can file for the Permanente at a Mexican Consulate in another country, do the preliminary paperwork, get the visa, and then return to Mexico and visit INM and carry on with the process. Of course, the ability to skip the financial proofs of stability disappear under that plan. And since we were concerned about whether we'd have enough income to satisfy the requirements, there was a lurch in our tummies.
We will be out of the country on a Caribbean cruise during August (we knew this last year because we plan ahead for these things) when our Temporal expires. INM doesn't allow anyone else to stand in for you on that expiration date if you're gone; can't send a facilitator. You must start over at a Mexican Consulate in your home country or another country where you are legally permitted to visit.
Visas for Mexico (the Residente Temporal and Permanente are not strictly visas, but most people think of them as such) fall into a few different categories: The FMM (Forma Migratoria Múltiple) is used by most tourists when entering Mexico. The form is also used by those holding various other visas to track exits and entrances to the country. Visas have certain time-out-of-country limits.
- The FMM, when endorsed by an immigration officer, grants stays of up to either 30 days or 180 days. When it expires, one must leave the country and re-enter on a new FMM. There are people living in SMA who have never gone beyond this point. They simply return to the states and obtain a new FMM every six months. The process allows them an opportunity to do some shopping at their favorite stores!
- The Residente Temporal is a one-year visa that can be renewed for up to a total of four years. The initial Temporal is issued for one year; after that you can continue one year at a time or go for up to three more years in one fell swoop. Then you need to leave the country and re-apply for a Temporal at a consulate before returning unless you opt for the Permanente, which requires that you apply immediately upon the expiration of your Temporal or leave the country and go through a consulate.
- After four years on a Temporal you may apply for the Residente Permanente visa which doesn't require annual renewals and thus no annual fees. It costs more but there aren't those pesky annual renewal fees. The amount of time you are permitted to be out of the country is also longer. If you or someone in your family has a health issue, for instance, that requires long, involved treatment, you want to have the Permanente visa.
Our August cruise to the Caribbean is followed by several days in Walt Disney World (how can you go to Florida and not visit WDW?), so we looked up the consulate in Orlando as a possibility. It's not like we've never been to the World before; we could miss a day or two of our stay for a Permanente visa!
As it turns out, Orlando is a very good possibility. After exchanging several emails with their very helpful Visa staff, we learned that the procedures they follow are fairly simple. Although consulates should follow the same rules around the world, not all of them do so. There have been similar situations among INM offices here in Mexico. For one thing, the financials vary in amount. The amount needed for Orlando is more than the amount in our book on immigration (which is calculated based on the minimum daily wage in Mexico City for a particular number of days), however they do reduce the amount for a family-related second person who is applying for the Permanente visa at the same time (again, it's not really a visa, but most people refer to it as if it were). With that reduction - and our marriage license to prove that we are married - we can easily qualify. If we had been in Mexico when our Temporal expired, INM would have skipped the financial requirement.
So with proof of our retirement benefits that we've collected in the past year, our apostiled marriage license, our US passports, a new passport-sized photo for each of us, and the appropriate fees, we'll be in business. We must make sure that the immigration officer at the Mexico City airport when we return marks our FMM for 30 days, not 180, and also marks the 'Canje' (Exchange) box. Then we have 30 days after returning to Mexico to contact INM about exchanging our consulate-issued visa for a 'real' Residente Permanente.
We have friends who have done the process themselves while still in Mexico (there's a store across the street from INM who will take photos and prepare the paperwork for a reasonable fee), but we will most likely use our last facilitator. If Michael hadn't seen him in Starbucks and asked him about our new visas, I wonder when he would have told us? [When we had returned to Mexico and went to see him - too late???] We also were in luck that Orlando has a consulate and they will be able to handle things all in one trip to their offices.
Wish us luck!
[I know, you were expecting the promised post on our new estufa. Soon, soon....]
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