Dragonfly in Mexico has more than one name. In Playa Ventura, Guerrero we call them chambuleke, in Puerto Penasco, Sonora we call the libelula. Everardo says when he was a kid, in Micoacan, they called them cabello de diablo (devil's horse...eeewww). Yesterday I was getting my nails done and the woman (ok girl she was 20...with a 4 yr old and a hubby in jail), anyway she said she liked my libelulas. I probly won't go back there because the woman who was in charge told me when I paid...h it's 200 pesos when I asked why she didn't give me enough change. I wanted to give the girl 50 pesos for a tip. She was really nice and did a good job- BUT the day before yesterday I stopped in there and asked how much for acrylics with color. Apparently that's how they call them; french, acrylics, acrylics with color, and you can get them with just the tips being acrylic Way too much info for me! I had stopped in at the place right around the corner from the house and it was 200 pesos. Only 150 for french. So I decided to shop around cause it was 150 in Playa Ventura and 180 in Copala- and I liked the way they did it in Copala so I went there. Actually after doing y nails the first week we were in Playa Ventura, I didn't do them again until almost right before we left- so 3 times total, and about the same for pedicures- when you don't wear shoes, nail polish comes off quick. Yeah it's winter here, but the rainy season is in the summer (where I read it can be 122 degrees...) Anyway I wear shoes here, and socks too. But- winter for just Dec and Jan...think I can handle that ha ha.

Anyway- the day before yesterday they told me 150 for acrylics- and that was after a discussion in Spanish too quick for me to follow but I did hear "french" and "acrylics"....So when she said 200 yesterday, I said no, yesterday you said 150. I pointed to the woman who told me 150mand said she told me. She also speaks English. So the mgr kept saying (in Spanish) sorry for confusion but it's 200.I found her to be full of shit. She shoulda charged me 150 cause then I'd probly still come back, but now, no way. Might as well walk around the corner for the same price.

Did I say I looked at a motorcycle? More like a scooter I think- the ones with the wide area to put your feet?? They're automatic so no need for feet to change gears or even brake...And cheaper than what we will probly pay for a car...only $1200! Probly spend $2000 at least on a car...but we'll see. 
We called on a car yesterday but it was $3000, way too much. We're also looking for an elliptical for me and a gym for Poppi. We may have found both. Went thru looking for used ellipticals and the best deals are in Arizon, both places a four hour drive each way...but at this dept store Coppel there's a cheapy one for about $120, and since it's yet anoher thing we will not take back to the states with us, and I do still hold out a tiny hope that we'll retrieve the one in Playa Ventura....I think I'm gonna go with the Coppel one. of course we will hot the wknd flea markets this wknd for a final look so won;t buy until next week- Oh! So it's my Christmas present! As will be the gym for Everardo. Actually we're gonna look at what this place has in the way of classes and equipment...we drove around and looked at gyms, found all but one that must have closed, and he chose a place called X Sport. They have the weight machines he's looking for but he didn't look too closely at what I might want to use and they probly don't have Zumba, which I really want to take...we found a place I'm going to try for $3 a class or $28 for a month and all classes- they also have yoga, pilates, not sure what else but no equipment. So it's another..we'll see, cause Poppi isn't feeling too good today so he's asleep on the couch right now. He has a cold, which is not a huge surprise since it's so cold in here! It's warmer outside during the day, and I'm sure by the end of Jan we will be happy that it stays cool in here...but it's so cold in here at nite. Maybe we should think about a little space heater....ha ha from sweating all the time to shivering part of the time.....

We took Sam to the beach this morning and then went on the gym hunt. The tide was on it's way out so only a few tide poles were visable. It was cool, not too cold o the beach but I had a sweater on, and of course nobody but Sam in the water ha ha. BUt it's funny- a cold beach that youjust walk on is familar to me...I come from Northern Calif where the beaches are beaitiful but cold, so I don't mind. And I know in a few months they will be warm and swimable, so It's all good.

Last nite we went to a Posada, probly where Poppi finally got so cold he is now sick. It was inside, but a weird inside with a top that the walls did not come all the way up to. It was fun, music and food, kids running all over the place. Pinata and presents for the kids- earlier in the week we had to bring 2 gifts and last nite we saw one of them get opened and the kid's face was priceless- he loved it and that made it worth frezzing our asses off! There was a game of musical chairs that the kids loved out in the center of the room, and they had so much fun it was played over and over. Ha ha when I asked what I should wear, should I get dressed up, Poppi said sure, let everyone see my beautiful wife (ooohhh). So I anxt'ed over a few things, choosing a long dressy black skirt cause I have no nylons ha ha and this long kind of Asian looking cover, orange and a red top...and off we went. Ha ha we got there early and I was sent to blow up balloons and as people came in I noticed that I was the ONLY person NOT wearing levis- man or woman. So after the balloons were all blown up and sped home and changed. It was only 2 blocks from the house so it was easy. I was already cold and the house was nice....Anyway and hour later, much warmer in levis and a warm jacket, I knocked over my coffee and the top of my jeans, my right thigh caught all of it. Everardo jumped up and said let's go and you can change. So we headed out...for me, again, and I asked him why he came and he said he was just SO cold. So I changed and we went back (ha ha outfit 3), but it was jeans again. We lasted about another hour, but it looked like there wasn't going to be any dancing for the adults, or if there was it was at least 2 or 3 hours away...and so we came home...it was after 9...yeah yeah us oldies but we went at 4...anyway I could not shake my chill even after sitting under my nice warm comforter, and finally took a long hot hot hot shower. That helped. We watched a couple of movies and went to bed a little after midnite....

oooh- hot chocolate sounds nice right now...see it's getting gray outside and it's cold in here. I just started a book that's pretty good and I'm gonna curl up in my comforter...it matches the one Poppi is sleeping under on the other end of the couch. This is a very long couch; the kind that has a piece at one end that actually is not attached, and goes out the other way so it's like an "L" He's sleeping there, and my end has a foot stool made of the same stuff so I can create the same effect. Our laptops are in the middle. But at nite I move the computers so I can snuggle up to his side...Sam is also conked out rght now; he ran up and down the beach and is wiped out- again. he's a happy dog that Sam...

Ok it's Tuesday morning and I don't think I wrote since Friday. It was a pretty quiet weekend, a little strange since our landlord moved to Phoenix ha ha. She was gone Sunday morning a little after 10am. I sure hope she paid the water bill she said she would take care of because it was 2 months in arrears. When Everardo chatted with the guy who lived here before us, the guy said she paid the water....She also left her electricity and cable tv on. She said for the cable, when she doesn't pay they will just turn it off...so I guess we'll see. She also said her cousin was coming over to take the bunk beds from her daughter's room, and put the twin bed from our weird 3rd bedroom (which we intend to use for storage) into her place. That 3rd bedroom has it's own entrance off our patio right out side the kitchen. We can also get there by going to the back end of the dining room thru a door and a hallway. It's just so seperate from the rest of the house I kind of don't consider it really....

So the cousin didn't show or maybe he came while we were at the beach with Sam. I mean we didn't sit home all day waiting for this guy. I sent her an email last nite and let her know he didn't come and maybe she should give him our phone number so we can arrange it but haven't heard back. She did this very helter skelter (no no mass killing ha ha); left so much stuff, including NOT cleaning out that 3rd bedroom like she promised so we have to move all the stuff to this storage room at the other end of the house. (not part of the house). She asked me to show this woman Norma how to use the washing machine on Wednesday when she comes, but didn't mention to me that she has no water hose connected to the machine- Everardo told me she just puts water in there...what? So...at the beginning and then again to rinse? Once or twice? You know that bugs me. This woman NOrma is also going to take the food she left in the fridge, and some clothes I think. Then when (if) anyone rents, she will come back and clean...ok I'm still stuck on this whole washing machine thing! Yes she took $50 off the rent for us to "monitor" the place, but she just left it all so haphazard. Like I said we'll see when the bills come. Of course I really only care about the water bill, if it comes with those months due, we'll just take it out of the rent. But she is so cheap! Our house is badly and I mean BADLY in need of inside paint and other maintenance...and we never signed a contract. That's fine with me I guess...The first one she gave me to sign was a contract between a broker and a landlord which I pointed out. So she was going to get the correct one, then nothing until Saturday morning as she's leaving, and it was in Spanish, so I refused to sign t. I told her I appreciated our good relationship but it would be irresponsible of me- to me- to sign something I couldnt read. It looked sort of dog eared, like she just found it stuffed in some file. Anyway she was fine with that, and says she'll email me an agreement in English which I can sign and fax or email back to her. 

So kind of weird right? Oh well. So Sunday we went down to the beach and walked for almost 3 hours! Sam ran the whole time and was so stiff Sunday nite and limp yesterday. ha ha me too...which started the conversation of my beloved elliptical...but the walk. Puerto Penasco has a very different beach than Playa Ventura. Of course one obvious thing is that Playa Ventura is "open water", it's the open ocean sending waves onto the beach, here the waves are smaller, and it's a gulf, maybe like a big long bay? It is the Pacific ocean but it comes up between mainland Mexico and Baja Calif. It's pretty wide; I mean I can't see the other side or anything.And the boats that are here are very big, and the fish, oh the fish, so many fish. While we were walking a school (a pod- I looked it up), of dolphins came by, at least 10! They were coming up out of the water- and I swear one of the winked at me- just like last time ha ha. The tide pools had little shells and tiny fish, and when Poppi turned over rocks tiny crabs scurried for cover. It was very cool. Sam ran and ran in and out of the water. Everardo kept getting way ahead of me cause I was looking at and for everything! Then these pelicans flew by- they were huge! A different type than in Guerrero; these pelicans were so big, so thick and wide. They really looked like they could have a beak filled with fish- like a big scoop. I took alot of photos with my phone (camera is messed up, shopping for a new one).

And there were also these very tall herons. Beautiful and graceful. And of course so many seagulls ha ha- having a get together on the beach. It was a nice day. We walked far down the beach, by the condos and then hotels. We had a few people come up trying to sell us stuff; it's pretty slow for that right now. The beach was almost empty, but Everardo says when the tide is out, and early in the morning, even during "the season" when Puerto Penasco is packed, the beach is pretty empty. Let's hope ha ha. While I was walking alone, with Poppi and Sam way ahead of me, I found the serenity I discovered out on my rock in Playa Ventura. I talked out loud to the universe, I saw the beauty in everything around me, and I was happy, content inside. I realize I can find that serentiy wherever I am now that I discovered it. Alone on the beach is the easiest place for me, but I can always find it. Ha ha I guess alone on the beach is good cause I like to talk out loud. It keeps me focused somehow. Cause I can be thinking, praying in my head, and at the same time making a grocery list, I just have trouble keeping that focus when it's only in my head, my pea brain doesn't like to pay attention. I keep saying I'm going to practice mediatation which helps with that, but so far...nothin'

I do have some really good CD's I bought from the place I started practicing meditation n Petaluma before we left. I just need to open the package! Well maybe here I will in this little yard. I have my buddha sitting here, I'm so glad Poppi made room for him! Ah vamos a ver...

Our neighbor across the street has these birds who sing and squawk all day, I think I already wrote about the guys selling parrots...they are kinda on the list, but not right this minute. I can see tons of birds outside on the wire, I think they are fat pigeons ha ha. Everardo is trying to get his Sonora drivers license so we can change the license plates. It turns out that in Mexico you have to get new plates every year in Jan (not sure if it's simply a registration or totally new plates). So everybody does it in Jan, not a year from when you first get the car. But we need Sonora plates, and it's complicated- you need a Sonora driver's lic. To get that you need an address here, but a rental agreement does not satisfy that requirement. (we don't have one anyway), so a utility bill works but we don't have that either for a month. So we went to the bank yesterday to change our address, and the lady is helping us out with a "provisional" document cause it takes a month there too to get your first statement! So she said come back tomorrow (today) at 9am to get the document. And to get the license you have to get a physical. No driving test since he has a license from Guerrero, just a physical, but in Guerrero all we did was pay $250 pesos each and were given licenses! So to take one step forward you have to take about 16 steps sideways ha ha. Oh and in the bank I was pissed cause the young woman helping us was texting while she was working on our account in the computer. Everardo wanted me to let it go cause she was doing us a favor- but I say- yeah and if she screws up our account in some way while she's in there but only paying half ass attention? Don't text while you are also typing in my bank account!!So he's out trying to take care of as much of that as he can so that hopefully we have lic plates by Jan 2.
It always bugs me when people do something for you, but it's not right- so yes, thank you, but it needs to be right. It's like this damn cable box from Sky TV! It still thinks it's in Guerrero so the tv says it's an hour ahead, and so is the programming. Irritates the shit out of me. i know it's a small thing, petty even, but it should be right. Add to that the clock on the tv is military time so at 8pm it says it's 19:00, except that it's an hour ahead...so what the f**k time is it???? Oh, 7pm...I want it fixed. I mean the Sky people tell you to take the box when you move, so they must -ok somebody must- know how to reset the box....poor Everardo, I will bug him about this until it gets fixed- this is one of those things that fluency is needed for- in person I could probly get my point across, but on the phone- no way...so again...vamos a ver
ha ha

I'd like to say that I slept all day yesterday because I had so much fun all nite at the Virgin of Guadalupe celebration. Not. We missed it by 24 hours, exactly. Apparently the midnite mass starts on the morning of the day, not the end of the day. So the huge fiesta we heard going on with the streets blocked off was the party! We went down there about 11pm and there was food and some music, but it was winding down, the mass had been at 10pm. Everardo asked a lady and she told us the big celebration was the nite before. ooops- well ok there's always next year. We see processions every day, and the local parks have lights and Christmas displays, and lots of houses have Christmas trees in their windows.  

All morning this morning I have been trying to get my bedroom organized, namely my personal stuff, make up, jewerly, lotions, etc. I don't even wear makeup but...ya never know. However, the news has been on for the last 3 hours in the next room and I have to say here that my heart is broken for the families of the kids hurt/killed in this Conn school. And for all the kids, who survived but will forever be affected, changed by this horrible tragedy. I can't imagine what all the parents are going thru. My babies who are 19 & 27 will always be my babies. ok an now my anger..WHAT THE FUCK?? An elementary school? The shooter had connections? again...what the fuck? These are children...little children. I cannot, I do not, understand how something like this happens. And i'm not talking about the school or how the guy walked in there, I am talking about him. WTF! And how does nobody know anything's wrong? Ok ok enough from me on this.

Ok I'm back. The house is sooo close to being done. Pictures up on the shelves hubby made for me. Not all on the walls yet, though. And 2 wall candidates have broken glass that I want to get repaired as soon as possible; I know how it goes, they get put aside and....well. One is my painting of the 3 girls on bicycles- I probly already said this, but I bought it at a consignment store for $5 when Drewy was 1. It went center stage in our tiny living room in the apartment she and I had when we first left the sperm bank (my pet name for the jackass I was married to; probly enough said) It has been with me for 26 years, I always think of myself as the one in the middle- the 2 on the outsides have dark hair, but she is a blonde like me. She looks happy and carefree, ready to take on the world. I needed that back then, and need to be reminded of it now and again. The other is one of those frames where I put a bunch of family pictures in a frame; it;s rectangular, and I've had it hanging in my bedroom for about 6 years, and I want it too. Well maybe this wknd since the clutter is starting to disapate...but I must say this place feel like home.

In a way, more than the Playa Ventura house. I had all my stuff up, and it did feel like home. But never,...well I think "cozy" is the word. I guess because it's always hot, so you never really "curl up", except of course in the hammock...but no snuggling in bed or on the couch- it's too hot to be too close. I'm sure given time I would have assimilated to the heat, maybe. But I never really liked my bedroom. We were planning on moving out a wall, even three feet would have worked. Cause our bed was only an inch from the wall on three sides, so you had to crawl in and out at the end of the bed. Now we both have room on our own side of the bed, for putting on shoes, ease of getting up at 4am to pee, even making the bed- which I detested every single morning. So if we moved out the wall if would have been perfect; we were thinking of making it a big picture window cause that wall faced the sea. It would have been relatively inexpensive and looked great. That's one thing about that area, maybe all of Mexico I don't know, but Guerrero construction is really cheap. So it would have been a good idea. I'm just glad we didn't jump into it; we looked at a few things, like changing the window frames to wood, changing the doors, but luckily we decided to wait for everything until we lived there thru all the seasons...ha! Good decision since we were bleeding money down there on things we HAD to do vs "good ideas".

Have to say, I love putting on socks! I love putting on lotion! I haven't taken the Autan out of the plastic bag I put it in! Yipee. I like pajamas, and blankets. So this morning early, before I started the bedroom task, while I was having coffee, I googled the temperatures here. December is the coldest month of the year, and it's in the 60's. Not bad I say. And although it rained last nite, there is zero rain in the forecast until next summer! You know, 60's is cold, but totally bearable with levis, socks, and sweatshirt or jacket. Ha ha last nite I was wearing my sweatshirt that says "Do it sober" and we went to a Spanish meeting and I noticed nobody said anything about my cool sweatshirt...hmmmm did I say Spanish meeting? Big DUH! for me...these guys speak zero English so I'm sure they don't read it ha ha. AA is for anonymous, bt about others, I can "out" myself, and I don't care who knows I'm an alcoholic,, AA saved my life and helped me to be a much better person. I love being present for all the things that happen in my life..ha ha I'm sure my kids appreciate it! But I digress (as usual). So anyway the website I found for the temps showed 60's for Dec, then low 70's for Jan, mid/high 70's for Feb, then 80's in March. I didn't look any farther but I am happy. I realized living in Guerrero that saying hot all the time was good- was a mistake- for me. I like it to be cold sometimes, you know, the whole socks thing? And 60's is definitely cold enough for me. Then I read that the rainy season is July August and the average rainfall is 2 inches...(I think I need to re-check that one). I did see though, that it said not commonly, but can happen is 122 degrees in the summer!! 122 degrees???? Ok that might call for a small vacation ha ha.

Well Everardo finally hit a wall and after breakfast, and a little work outside, he came in and turned on his computer, and then said to me, why do I feel like sleeping? I said baby you have been in high gear for 2 weeks getting us settled, helping our neighbor/landlord, finding old friends, unpacking all the boxes you just packed up and drove for 3 days 12+ hours a day....you do get to take a break! So he has been snoring on the couch for about 3 hours. I'm glad. he works hard. He takes care of us. This place does make me feel less isolated and I'm not afraid to drive or go take care of business, but he still takes on alot. So sleep baby- all day if you want...I love you!

Ok time to take Sam for a walk. It's too cold for the hammock yet, but next month.....yeah we gotta a place for it...

I'm so happy...I have internet! I am not sitting next to the open door trying to connect to my neighbors internet- I am actually sitting on the couch and the door is closed. Well the neighbor who is also our landlord...and our real estate person ha ha, told us today she is going to try to leave (move) for Phoneix this weekend! She sold her car and so she's ready to go. She wasn't able to rent her little place out so her plan is to offer it for wknds or longer vacation. She asked us to help out by monitoring the people, and keeping the property nice- which we would have done anyway since this is our home. So we said yes and she lowered our rent. Yipee. So this is going to be all ours. We are both so happy. The yard is all ours! I empited more boxes today- having the extra shelves really helps, altho basically I empited boxes onto shelves and it still has to be arranged. The big thing is that the clothes are done! In drawers or hung up; and a few things are in bins, sweats and stuff.

So today is the Day of Virgin of Guadalupe and I think we're going to a mass at midnite, then there are other things, like singing to her? It has a name but I forget what it was. I really like hearing all the church bells. I missed that in Playa Ventura, the church had only a traveling priest and I only heard the church bells for a funeral. Here I think I will hear them on Sundays like in Sam Miguel Allende where it seems like I heard them all day. I know I heard some this past Sunday but I wasn't paying attention- they were ringing and I had it in the back of my mind.

I did not get out the Christmas decorations yet. But it feels close. I saw on Facebook a picture of my daughter's house, really just the stairs with Christmas lights winding around the banister, and at the first landing was a little table with a Santa Claus painted onto a gourd. I reconized it and started to get that Christmasy feeling...so yeah, maybe tomorrow.

Oh and we just finished eating these huge shrimps, I swear they taste like lobster. We went down to the boats and bought them off a guy so they were soooooo fresh. A purely simple meal; shrimp sauteed in garlic and onions and butter. ha ha and we ate Ritz cracker with them. It may have been the best meal I ever had.....ok well at least rivals the lobster we ate in Playa Ventura that was caught while Everardo was with the guys fishing. I took photos right before we ate, and after writing this post I'll put the pics on my Facebook.

It's cold in here. It's cold in the house when it's warm outside and so as nite approaches, it gets really cold in here. But yesterday we bought really soft snuggly comforters, one for each of us. Light brown on one side and they look like sheepskin on the other. Really soft and purrrrfect for being cozy on the couch, for internet, a good book, or just plain old watchin' tv. I think when the weather starts to change and be hot, I will love the coolness of this house. I find I'm comfy in sweat pants and tshirt, or pajama pants & a sweat shirt. Yeah, brings me back to my thoughts about redefining paradise ha ha. I think paradise is where I feel good at any given moment. Kinda like home is where the heart is. I do know that I won't ever say again I want to live somewhere that's never cold...ha ha cause it was always always hot hot hot. Sweaty push you down into the ground hot. I went to sleep and woke up sweaty, sometimes putting on anything I had to pull over my head or had elastic (or my bra) was such a drag, I sweat even more. And forget long pants or socks. you know what? I like socks, my feet like socks and shoes. Unfortunately for me a get that plantar fascitis so I need to wear shoes with arch support. All my tennis shoes have an insert, and I also wear Dansko's that are already made that way. But in Playa Ventura I only wore flipflops, and finally, after a few months I started to get it again. It can take a YEAR to get rid of it. But I started wearing the brace I bought to stretch the muscle and tennis shoes when I could. But it's just so hot, I mostly wore slip flops.

I also LOVE shoes, so now i have them all lined up in my closet ha ha after 6 months of sitting in a suitcase. But I also loved Playa Ventura. I loved the beach, my house sitting on the beach. Laying in the hammock and reading my book. Walking down to chat with my amiga. Walking to the store on the corner and getting an ice cream. The sound of the ocean. I could watch the ocean for literally hours on end. The pelicans, other birds, the iguanas sunning themselves on the rocks near me. The sun. The wonderful sun.....

Oh I saw a guy selling little parrots on the side of the road today. Then I saw his partner on the other side of the street. I'd love to have a little parrot. The people across the street have 2 birds who sign and make noise all day- I like it very much. We had talked about before we came to Mexico but it was never the right time. It's not the right time now, but, when we went back out together we saw them again so Everardo pulled over to talk about the price. We want to get one, but maybe in a few weeks, we need to be a little more settled. And we want to build a big cage, a really big cage, like a chicken coop for it. Ha ha and teach it to say "Sam- get the cat, get the cat!" That will drive Sam nuts ha ha. I heard or read once if you get one bird you can get very personal with it, but if you get more than one, they will only have interest in each other, I'll try to google it....

Well Poppi is napping on the couch and I should too cause going out at midnite it late for me--very late!  Yeah that's another thing- it's safe to go out at nite here! Last nite we went to the Spanish meeting which starts at 8pm and we drove across town and I said- wow there's life at nite! Stores and resturants were open and people had Christmas decorations lit up in their yards. Not too say there wasn't activity in the neighboring towns at nite in Guerrero; it just wasn't always safe to drive to them after dark, and we didn't know which were the safe nites, so after a while we just didn't go anywhere after dark unless it was in walking distance ha ha. People keep being surprised that we lived in Guerrero, close to Acapulco, and I'm talking about Mexicans. I keep saying we were fine, we were safe, but a guy the other day said, no- maybe you were fine, but you were not safe. You look very normal and family like, so you would have probly always been fine, but you were not safe. hmmmm, well we talked about it and Everardo agreed with the guy, I mean after all like I just wrote above, we didn't go anywhere at nite. And right before we left someone got kidnapped. Not in Playa Ventura, but close by. We drove up to Acapulco alot for things and were usually just in shopping areas; but we went much more than anybody else who lived around us. Well anyway we were fine. We never saw anything bad or scary or illegal.One time only we saw the federales with their ski masks on going into a building but we looked away like everybody else....So maybe this is better- like I said we can go out at nite ha ha!! Ok nap time...

It's getting kinda Christmasy around here. People are putting up decorations and at nite their houses are all lit up. Not all the houses by any means, but here and there. It's nice. I have unpacked so much stuff, and Everardo built a couple of shelves today, and then we bought a brand new dresser on the side of the road for the equivalent of about $46 USD, that I might, just might, put up some decorations here in the house.

Yeah him making those shelves helps alot! I can't keep unpacking with no place toput stuff and I have alot of knicky knacks. Actually one bookshelf he built this morning was supposed to be for my clothes, and I bought a couple of plasic boxes for the top shelf for underwear and socks, but then we spotted the dresser on the way home from Chinese food, after dark. But we got home and it actually goes with the room. So the chinese food sucked- big time. The red stuff they give you with the appetizer, kinda sweet, on the won tons, or whatever crispy thing they give you, or eggrolls. Anyway it was red...ha ha it was ketchup. I'm guessing there's a better Chinese food place here in Pto Penasco, but we'll have to look for it. We were driving home for the store after getting more hangers for clothes, a couple of comforters for watching tv and the middle of the nite when it is really cold, the aforementioned plastic boxes, some super glue fot a couple of items that had a bumpy ride up here from Playa Ventura, and some candy for a pinanta for a posada tomorrow nite, ....and we drove a couple of new roads just for grins and to have a  look, when we spotted a Chines food place. So we said what the hell, lets give it a try, laughing because after o on the way home from there- and HEY! I just realized we didn't get fortune cookies!- anyway we saw some furniture on the sidewalk, so we slowed down.

Now furniture on the sidewalk is not a novel site. This town is king of the garage sales & flea markets. People just hang clothes on their gates & fences, put stuff in their driveways and the sidewalks every day, all the time. And you can literally find anything. Not sure if I already said this, but a guy offered Everardo a house for sale at a flea market! $40K I think it was...We bought a fridge the other day from the sidewalk, but actually ended up geting it from a woman who wanted the sidewalk guy to buy it, a couch from a second hand store along with a toaster, and now a dresser. The thing is, wood os more expensive up here than down in Guerrero, and it's much drier, not as good. He spit a couple of pices today that made them unusable. So we spent less on the dresser than we did on the wood, and I wanted more shelves built. He did build a tall one and a shorter long one with the wood he had, so both of those will hold knick knacks and photos...It's nice to have a truck, we just pulled up, had a conversation with the guy, and threw the dresser in the back. Poof done.

So yesterday was my birthday. We ate the octopus for lunch, Poppi made a kind of cerviche at first, then changed it up to a soup. I was not nuts about it. Too rubbery. I think maybe cut in strips and dipped in egg and cracker crumbs and fried? Not sure, gotta google it for next time. Later we went out to get me a birthday cake and ice cream- ooh the ice cream I fogot, gotta get a bowl right now. Ok back, so we went out and decided to try the sushi place. Ha ha sounds wonderful? And oh yeah the Sky tv guy came and yipee we have tv...ha ha of course small issue. The cable box thinks we are still in Guerrero so the time is an hour ahead. That would be fine- so what right? But the shows are also on an hour early, kinda weird. We called this morning, and wow- yes wow- 2 guys actually showed up at our house!! But they were stymied- they had no idea why it was doing that...same as both people on the phone we talked to. But they decided it was because the box hadn't been "actualized", and said they initiate that process as soon as they got back to the office. ha ha ha ha so in 3 or 4 days when it isn't fixed we'll call again. Maybe they'll just switch out the box, or maybe someone who works there will actually know what to do cause it's not new- when you change locations you take the box with you...

Ok so we sent to sushi...it was horrible terrible ok laughable. It came out on these huge hamburger patty size blobs of rice, with the thinnest piece of salmon you ever saw. And somehow the server said, si, si, si,si, si,.....but only the first and last si were actual acknowledged. Cause I ordered 2 orders of about 5 things, and then a roll.  We got 2 pieces of sushi, salmon and maybe halibut, and the roll. As it turns out, that was fine since the huge rice patties would have stacked up and we would have gone home hungry. We went home hungry but not broke...We stopped at a place called Candy Cake and looked for a birthday cake, but the truth is Everardo doesn't really like cake and if we bought a regular cake, I would eat the whole thing in a couple of days....so I got a tiny oreo cookie cake, and some chocolate and vanilla ice cream.  I love to have any flavor, and vanilla on the bottom so that;s what I finish with. I got tons of birthday wishes on facebook and talked with both my daughters. My brother and sister both wrote nice emails that I haven't replied to yet, so it was a nice day all around.

So lastly I'll tell about the huge Christmas thing going on down the street at the big church. Lots of fireworks and music, the street is blocked off and I suspect there's lots of food and I know there's dancing. The big celebration is tomorrow, the 12th, for the Virgin of Guadalupe so we'll probly go down there. I'm happy to say that Sam was not freaking out from the fireworks booming and that's a good thing, he must be finally getting used to it and understand it won't hurt him. In Playa Ventura he really got scared, poor baby. But he and I went for a small walk tonite and they were going off really loudly and he was fine. Our road is a nice wide road, and not busy at all; I'm starting to explore a little, and am actually recognizing routes. Ha ha yippee cause in a couple of months when this town starts filling up I'll be able to use all the side streets.....

Ok now I am current! Today was nice. Went to a meeting at 9am and it was a guy's 13 year sobriety birthday so there was cake....mmmm chocolate cake with whip cream and a cup of coffee. I was in my own fantasy and missed much of what was said ha ha. On the way home stopped for a taco breakfast at one of the many many stands. Some are only open at nite from like 6-8pm, some only in the morning like this one. He said see these people, they're regulars, and when I said well we could become regulars, I like this place...he said we have lots of places to check out and see which ones we want for our "regular" places...anyway I really like this place- the tacos were so good, and he had some kind of thing in a bowl with tortillas on the side- I kinda thought it tasted the same as mine...

Then in the afternoon, after some unpacking, it's getting down there, but until Everardo is able to make the 3 bookcases, our clothes are kinda stuffed everywhere. I want 2 bookcases for our bedroom and we'll put our clothes on the shevles, and I'll use small plastic boxes on the top shelf for socks and underwear. It's crazy to but dressers when we won't take them back to the states in a couple of years or whenever we decide to go. And here it's ok that they sit in the air, not like Playa Ventura ha ha where literally everything has to be covered up all the time or it will be rusty or rotted or just grimy from the salt. The bookcases he built in Playa Ventura were great; I used them for books, but I had one in the bedroom for all the bathroom stuff...Anyway he's very good at building things but I do NOT want him being the project guy again, except on stuff he chooses to do. So he's going to try to get wood tomorrow, but we also have to wait for the Sky tv guy and hopefully get to Telmex for internet, so vamos a ver.

Yeah we waited all day Friday and all day Saturday for the Sky tv guy, and after saying on Sat he'd be herein the morning, then 1pm then 4pm, we left a liitke after 5pm cause we had this dinner thing, and the guy called at 6:30...and wanted to meet us...and it was already dark..Poppi said no way so we begin again tomorrow..and we don't want to go to Telmex and miss him, so we have to do one thing at a time. We're still using the neighbor's internet with her permission but we need to get our own this week.

So the dinner...well not sure what I was thinking, but it was a disappointment to say the least. ha ha yeah what WAS I thinking. We get there and it says something like weekend ministries. These people are renovating this old abandoned hotel, and I thought it was for housing for the poor... well it's for people to come down from the states- mostly Arizona I think and do community service for a weekend. It costs like $39 to stay all weekend including food. You have church-y stuff, then out to do your service. And this is where- for me- I had a problem with it. Their "service" was building churches! HA! Churches? I don't think Mexico, and Pto Penasco in particular need anymore churches. There are people who need shelter, need food, need fresh water. So I was kind of uncomfortable. I mean I guess the weekenders had/have good intentions, but to me, misguided. I did hear about the kids getting involved in learning craft making and there are these craft fairs for tourists every couple of weeks and they can make some pretty good money. But, the kids were learning this stiff while their parents were...building churches..and maybe there's pieces I don't see or understand, altho' I totally understand somebody is making some serious money and it's not poor Mexican....get my drift? But like I said maybe I'm missing something. We went as guests of this couple I really like and I like their enthusiasm and commitment to the community. The guy, Richard was telling us about bringing water out to this area that is nicknamed "the invasion" or something like that. (in fact hearing about this, bringing fresh water out to this place is why I was interested i the first place but apprently that's either not connected to this or- well I'm just not sure). So this area (invasion) is a place that is inhabited by all these workers from other states like Chiappas, Michocan, Durango, etc, who came up for all the jobs building hotel, condos, etc. There was tons of work. Then the US economy tanked, and so did Puerto Penasco's. These people were suddenly out of work, and nothing to go home to, so they simply stayed. I'm hearing this area has no water and no electricity (and I had the arrogance to complain I have to wait a few days for internet and tv- just a little humbling eh?), anyway Richard was hauling fresh water out there and then something about giving kids a ride to school- THIS is what I was interested in, but I remain unclear of who he was involved with during this and I plan to ask him. I'd like to contribute my time/help in my community and I think here there is a lot of need and a lot of opportunity....so we'll see.

So.....after we ate, we left, we did not stay for the Christian music program or anything else. BUt it was an experience, and although I am not interested in joining anything with that group, I did hear a few things that I am interested in so again, vamos a ver...

There are so many building here that are unfinished, in all stages; some almost done, some barley started. Tons of places for rent and/or sale, both commercial and residential. And I hear different things about whether it's starting to recover, to pick up, so it will be interesting going forward. I guess I'm happy we got here while it's quiet, well relatively quiet ha ha, lots of Christmasy stuff going on, streets blocked every day with one march or parade or another. There's a big church down the road that has been very busy and in a couple of day (Dec 12 ) is the day of the Virgin of Guadalupe, which apparently is a huge festival, so we may wander down that way for that one.

Ok we finished off today taking Sam to the beach to run around. It was low tide again and so you can walk on these rocks, or maybe it's coral, and there's tide pools all around, pretty cool, and the water is shallow way out. There were thousands of birds all diving down in this one spot so there must of been a huge school of fish, and there weren't any waves, It's not open ocean so the water sort of laps in...You could see the birds grabbing fish! Then some boats came thru, a fishing boat and the a sail boat just as the sun was setting. I am very happy to report that there are very beautiful sunsets here just like in Playa Ventura where the sunsets would take my breath away...every single day! So Poppi bought some octopus from an old man on the beach and we brought them home live...gonna have a feast. We posted pics of them on facebook; I need to figure out how to add pictures to this blog! Now the evening is cool, we'll sleep with a blanket (very nice after 6 months of sweating all nite and tossing and turning). It's nice to roll over and snuggle with Poppin in my sleep or barely awake, I miised that when it was so hot all nite every nite. I am sleeping so much better just in the last week.

I loved Playa Ventura, but again, it should have stayed a vacation spot. It's like if you love chocolate cake with chocolate frosting...if you eat the whole cake, it's just not that great!! I feel like I have found myself again, I know it's lots of things...being in a bigger place, hearing English at least a little bit, not sweating ALL the time, getting to go to AA, ha ha not being afraid to drive here...not feeling isolated...
So time will tell. I really like this house even though it is falling apart ha ha, but not our job to fix it since we are only renters...I like the layout, I like the kitchen in the house, not across the patio when I want a snack in my pjs ha ha. Oh and I like that we can go out at nite! In Playa Ventura once the sun goes down you need to be home' well you can go to your neighbors, but not to the store which is in the next town, or to a meeting. Here it's safe. I heard there's some guy (low profile cartel type) who has laid down the law, leave tourists, visitors and the general public alone or deal with him. hmmm sounds good to me...Of course in Guerrero all the killings and stuff was happening between the bad guys, and if police got killed it was usually (maybe always?) because they were in bed with the bad guys. Unfortunately there are alot of corrupt police, both federales and state police. But I do know there were also some kidnappings...and also some vigilantes who chopped off the heads of some kidnappers right near where we lived, so the bottom line was we were careful and stayed home at nite. And I not sure if up here it's safe to travel at nite between cities, out on the highways, but Pto Penasco is big enough that whatever we need should be right here...like ice cream...I am craving ice cream...

Ok now for the last day, day 3 and then I will be back in the present. Day 3 we left Sinaloa and hit Sonora within an hour. When we first left the hotel it was so foggy Everardo couldn't even see anything. We tried to follow a car in front of us and then decided to pull over at the gas station we knew was coming up and wait it out......and then it lifted!! Then it was a smooth ride, But man it took all day! We came into Puerto Penasco after dark.

In Sonara the checkpoints started. Funny I thought it would have been Sinaloa, but no- it's Sonora. We were waved thru 6 and then I had to show my green card once and Everardo didn't have to show anything. Then we started hitting the military checkpoints, and we had to drive the truck thru an xray machine. I sat outside with Sam and watched. Another family drove up and had to exit their car and it was searched and the occupants had to walk thru an xray like at the airport. Funny, they forgot about me, and I was holding my purse and a bag....and I just walked up to the truck after and we drove away. All the soldiers were looking at Sam who was only interested in what Poppi was doing ha ha. The reason we had to drive thru the xray was because of the trailer. It was piled high with a tarp wrapped around it. Thank goodness we didn't have to unpack it! It's fine with us if they search; we have nothing to hide and it seems like if you are polite and cheerful with these guys, who are only doing their jobs, they are nice right back at ya.

Sonara is one huge desert. No veges growing, but they have grapes! Miles and miles and miles of grapes! We also saw olives, oranges, and asparagus growing. But it was a pretty uneventful day with the exception of the checkpoint. Like I said we just kept getting waved thru, except for a couple of the military stops. It was a really long day, I was getting anxious, excited and nervous about what I'd think of Puerto Penasco. Ha ha as it turned out I didn't think anything cause we came after dark, about 7:30 I think, so it was almost 12 hours. We had stopped to eat and let Sam get a little exercise cause he was such a good boy for 3 days, but he was getting stiff and a little limpy so we took it a little easier.

We went into the first motel we saw, and they again were fine with Sam sleeping in the room; they just didn't want hom to sleep on the bed. Ha ha he's as big as a person so we didn't want him on the bed either. Anyway we brought his bed in from the truck and he was fine. So this is a short post, but now I think I've gone full cycle cause I know I started posting with "first day in Puerto Penasco"...

Ok so tomorrow I'll tell about the shindig we're going to tonite....