Progreso/Chelem/Chuburna

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Next House!

It’s getting busy over here as house hunting is becoming a second job. I’m on schedule financially and slacking a bit to give myself time to make trips into town. Unfortunately, I have to use my truck for that (was hoping to use public transportation), which is very expensive, but it is what it is. I’m also having only so-so luck consolidating trips.

For instance, I had to meet someone in Progreso about a cooler she had for sale, but she would not agree to meet me tomorrow on my way to MĂ©rida (where I have three commitments), only at 11:30 today. At least, she did concede to meeting up in the Bodega parking lot, saving me a bit of time. I was mercifully able to finish my pressing work for the day by 11:00 and dash out to meet her. The cooler was smaller than what I’d hoped she had, but good enough for the price so I bought it.

Then, since I was there anyway, I went into Bodega to get some of their “famous” (expats rave about it) fried chicken for lunch and to get a few things household things. One of those was a set of plastic drawers for storing office supplies (especially writing implements), which I haven’t been able to find in a pleasing colour or the right size. So when I saw this, which is exactly what I wanted, on offer for $80 I was quick to snag it:

I also wanted a bucket like the pink one I use as a trash can in the office to store the parts for my stick blender, but Bodega was out of them. So I decided to buy the office a new (purple) trash can and move the bucket to the kitchen!

I also bought myself a two burner hot plate. I cook daily and am having trouble keeping the stove here looking pristine. Mexican stoves, even expensive ones, just can’t seem to handle heavy scrubbing or being used with cast iron without the finish coming off. I always get hives about having to maintain other people’s stoves and three months here was my limit of dealing with that stress. The hot plate will keep the pressure off when I get my house since I won’t be desperate for a stove. I’m using my crockpot, ricer cooker, and the toaster oven here a lot and actually wondering if I need a stove. It’s amazing how one’s worldview changes after a couple of years of living in other people’s kitchens.

It was a super quick trip and I was home by one and absolutely ravenous. My lunch was good, and I’m pretty sure that was my first time ever having fried chicken, but it’s definitely not something I’d be keen to repeat regularly (I’ll stick to the roasted birds). But it was definitely a nice Friday treat!

Now, as for house hunting, I’m starting to feel like I’m on an episode of House Hunters International… 😀

I have an appointment at 2:00 tomorrow to see a house located in the northwesternmost part of MĂ©rida, in the Francisco de Montejo neighbourhood that has been dubbed a city within a city.

This would put me about 3KM walking distance to Chedraui, Costco, and the Galerias (which has Scotiabank, sushi, and a cinema) and according to Google, there’s quite a bit in the heart of the neighbourhood, but it’s hard to gauge what there is on the outskirts, where this house is. It appears to be a quiet residential neighbourhood with a good economic mix.

Part of me still wishes I was looking in Centro, but I have to be sensible — my line of work is not conducive to living downtown!

The location right off the PerifĂ©rico would be very convenient for going back and forth in October. So while I’m not immediately going OOH at the location, I think it has potential.

Now, the house.

The exterior is inoffensive. The neighbouring houses are much prettier, but this isn’t too hard on the eyes. I just don’t know if my truck would fit in the driveway (which would be nice because it would be out of the sun):

The kitchen appears to be one of the better ones with cabinets that I’ve seen:

The house here only has a long counter with stools to eat at and I like it. I wouldn’t have any pressure to get a kitchen and chairs for a bit, just some stools.

The stairs have a handrail!

Both bathrooms appear to have been recently redone and this one (which I think would be the guest suite’s) even has storage:

At least one of the bedrooms has built-in storage:

The master bath has what appears to be a very clean Jacuzzi tub. I have yet to see outside of the super huge compounds a pool that is big enough for doing laps. So a tub like this would equal a pool and be less maintenance:

The red would absolutely have to go. I could learn to live with those floors. They appear to be grey or blue, not black, so they would work well with the pink/purple/green/orange things I’ve accumulated. I really don’t like them, but between them and the beige or white floors that I’m seeing too much of, they are fine.

Another bedroom, but without a closet organiser:

This house has three things that you can’t see in the pictures that make it an extra special candidate:

1) The huge covered upstairs deck that would be a dream backup office for extra hot days;

2) The fact that the house has FOUR bedrooms. FOUR. Two on the ground floor sharing a bath and two on the upper floor sharing a bath. FOUR.

3) And all this for a mere $6,000 a month. That makes a not particularly aesthetically pretty or interesting house a bit out of the way very attractive. The fourth bedroom could be a den or a craft room or even a second guest bedroom should my Airbnb idea get off the ground.

The house also has a back garden.

I’m really excited to see this house tomorrow as it is presenting quite well in photos (ugly paint job not withstanding).

Now, back to work I go. I was supposed to take the weekend off, but, of course, that’s not going to happen. I’m going to have a very long day Sunday as I’m sure I won’t work a bit tomorrow.

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A Classic Canadian Recipe

The house cleaner normally comes on Wednesdays, but asked to come a day early this week. That worked out super well for me because I had the appointment to see the house in MĂ©rida today, I had to pick up a package at a Walmart (clear across town, though), and I was able to take the day almost completely off (just had to do a little non-transcription work first thing and I’ve also been emailing with clients this afternoon).

I keep on top of the house cleaning between cleaner visits and the house is generally pretty neat, but there are always a few things to tidy up before he shows up and I need to make him a lunch. That took about 30 minutes this morning. He’s technically supposed to be here at nine, but usually shows up at 9:30 or 9:45ish. That doesn’t bother me at all. I just make sure Puppy is tied up from about 9:15 onward so I don’t have to chase him when it’s time to go open the gate. By that point of the day, he’s had breakfast and exercise and is ready for a snooze anyway, so he doesn’t mind being restrained.

Or so I thought…

I no sooner had the gate open this morning so I could take Moya out that Puppy was making a run for it. Get this — he had been chewing his leash around the knot for some time to weaken it and he finally got it to where  it came loose and it was time to escape! Thankfully, I caught him before he got far. I didn’t know whether to scold him or reward him for being such a clever dog. I had such a laugh about it.

Once he was secure, I caught the phone ringing. It was about another house I want to see in the same neighbourhood as the one I was seeing today, but, unfortunately, it would not be possible to see it until next week. The lady will be in touch. I am getting a lot of phone practice!

My cleaner arrived then, so I gave him a few instructions and headed off to the Pensiones neighbourhood of MĂ©rida, which I’d never been to before.

The appointment was at 11:00 and I arrived at about 10:40. I walked around a bit, liking what I was seeing in terms of the mix of houses and businesses nearby. Figuring that the owner wouldn’t show up till well past 11:00, I went to the very nearby Las Americas mall (Scotiabank, Chedraui, Soriana Hiper, Office Depot, Sears, tons of restaurants all just a few blocks from the house!) to wait in AC. So the neighbourhood won me over completely. The only thing that I didn’t check on were bus routes. Everything else was there within a half kilometre radius of the house.

At the mall, I texted the guy to say that I was in the area and he said that he was literally pulling up to the house and where did I want to meet him? Him being exactly on time was not part of my plan for today, LOL. I texted that I’d be right over since I knew where the house was.

The house was definitely not welcoming. It had an imposing façade with a hideous grill and the only outdoor space is what I call a prison yard (cement walls and slab). I do like those boxed in houses because they’re very secure — you can leave your windows and doors open when you go out for the day, but this was a rather ugly take on the concept.

Inside, the house had two bedrooms, one upstairs and down, but there was a bonus room (no closet) on the ground floor that could be an office. That was a deal breaker for me because the office and my bedroom need to be upstairs for more light and better air circulation.

There was a very nice roof area, though, with quite the laundry setup and they would have put in a palapa for shade.

I will say that condition wise, the house was pretty gross, but I know that a scrub and a fresh paint job would have taken care of that. The guys who showed it to me even said that the intention is to rent the house, give it a thorough pressure washing inside and out, then paint with colours chosen by the tenant close to move-in time. So the condition wasn’t a deal breaker. I really loved the brick floors. So many houses have beige or white tile floors. The seating area in the living room that needs cushions was a neat feature.

The stairs did turn out to be terrifying. They come up to a landing with no rail and sheer drop. I could just imagine myself coming out of the bedroom in the middle of the night to use the bathroom, forgetting to turn, and ending up in the living room with two broken legs.

So while the house had a lot of things going for it, I was glad that the layout made it an absolute nope so I can take it off the table. It was totally worth visiting for learning about the Pensiones neighbourhood!

It was then time to head to City Center to pick up my package at Walmart. Thankfully, that was quicker and easier than expected since I could take the perifĂ©rico. I’d had my package sent there since that’s the Walmart closest to home for me, but there was one right in Pensiones, doh!

I got to Walmart and was accosted by some guys offering vehicle cleaning services. I negotiated for a basic wash and buffing of my lenses and was impressed that they had paperwork for me to fill out. It was probably pricey at $200, but Moya was disgusting and I was spared having to do the job myself or hunting down someone.

Getting my package was fun. “Punto com” (dot com) and Walmart stores are not affiliated. The gal who takes care of orders was off for her two-hour lunch and not available to find the package for me despite there being a sign that packages could be picked up between nine and eight. A manager took over and found a clerk familiar with the loading dock to go hunting. He came back after quite some time with my box. I then had to tell him he needed to look for a pink binder with a form that would have the order details and that we would both have to sign and he’d need to write down the number of my ID. Good thing one of us knew what to do! A different manager had helped me with this order and had another item with my box that I might be interested in, which I was. So since I had to go wait at a till, I figured I should pick up more dog food. Pit bulls eat a lot!

My truck was ready by the time I came out and I was very pleased with the service I got. I then decided to get an ice cream in lieu of lunch, but was lured into a La parilla (The Grill) restaurant by the wonderful smell of grilled meat. There, I ordered their special “Hawaiian” tacos with pork, bacon, cheese, and pineapple. The meat mixture and toppings (one spicy red sauce, raw onions and cilantro, sautĂ©d onions and chile, guacamole, lime) were all en pointe, but I was disappointed that I’d been brought wheat tortillas. I complained and was told that they’re the default for those tacos since they’re based on “a classic Canadian recipe” (ie. ham and pineapple pizza). I laughed almost as hard at that as at the dog’s escape this morning. Lunch was very good and I’d definitely go back to La parilla.

I was done in after that (really need to rethink my stance on not getting the truck AC fixed) and headed home.

The cleaner was still working on my suite, so I did some outdoor chores that have been lingering on my to-do list. There is a lot to do here and I’m on top of all the stuff that matters (like watering the garden and adding chemicals to the pool), but have gotten behind in the last few weeks with the weeding and vacuuming the pool. I got the weeding under control yesterday and vacuumed the pool today. That’s a bit of a vicious cycle — sand gets in the pool when I add water from the well, but then vacuuming takes out water and I have to add more. Since I know it’s just well sand and not real dirt, I don’t worry about the pool bottom looking absolutely pristine every day, but I do keep on top of skimming and emptying the filter. I’m surprised by how easy the pool has been to maintain!

The list of chores here has been really good for me because it’s been a good practice for when I have a full size home again. I don’t find it burdensome at all and I have such a wonderful home to enjoy! Yes, I’m eager to get back into my own space and to live walking distance to everything, but there’s so much to savour here and I’m loving how my summer is turning out. I can’t believe it’s already August!

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In Which I Get a Saturday Off

I worked an extra long today yesterday to complete the work I had scheduled today so I could have a full day off, something I haven’t had in a long time. I would have loved to spend the day at home cooking and hanging out with the dog, but living out where I do and with the schedule I have, I always have errands to do.

Things open late here, so I had a lie-in and a slow morning and then headed to town around 10:30. I stopped first at the Scotiabank at the GalerĂ­as and then went into Liverpool to price an immersion/stick blender.

This is something I’ve wanted for ages, mostly to purĂ©e frozen fruit, but have done without. My food processor serves the purpose, but it is so much work to clean that I often don’t bother. After The Soup Incident the other day and The Spaghetti Sauce Shambles a couple of weeks ago, I knew it was time to gain the ability to blend soups and sauces directly in the cooking pot.

Liverpool had a few stick blenders, but they were super pricy, just south of $2,000. I know that that’s what a good one is worth, but I don’t want to pay that much without knowing if this is a tool I’ll actually use. So I decided to wait.

I didn’t have anything else to do at GalerĂ­as, but I did a quick scan of what other stores there are and I stopped at a fancy (and very expensive — almost Western European-priced!!!) gelato place. There, I tried their amaretto and it was so good I got a scoop of it. I stopped counting the whole almonds in it at 14, which rather explains the $54 price tag for a cone!

Next stop was the Chedraui supermarket quite nearby. Expats here love it and I expected another Mega-type store with tons of imported products and inflated prices on most other foodstuffs. *rereads that* Wow. That could interpreted negatively, but that wasn’t a judgment! I’ve been itching to go to Chedraui, but just haven’t made it there for some reason. Now that I live here permanently, I’m buying a lot more imported products than I did in MazatlĂĄn and whenever someone on the Food Hunt Facebook page asks where to find something, the first answer is usually Chedraui. It sounded like Alibaba’s cave!

To my surprise Chedraui appeared to be the best of all worlds — reasonable prices on Mexican goods and an incredible assortment of imported products. I think I just may have found a rare gem of a store where I could do 90% of my shopping! I could certainly understand why expats are so crazy about it.

One of the first things I did was check out the small appliances section and I was pleased to find a selection of super cheap and mid-range hand blenders all on sale for 25% off. My first choice, Hamilton Beach, was of course sold out. After much pondering, I decided to take a chance on an Oster (which is the same as Sunbeam, really not great quality) kit that had a bunch of different attachments. At $500 (sale price) and okay reviews, I knew that it would be a good experimental model for me.

I then began to make an inventory of what was in the store. It had one of the better frozen food sections that I’ve seen so I put two medium-sized styrofoam coolers (only about $35 each) into my cart and added bags of frozen veggies and… sweet potato fries! Sweet potatoes (camote) are harder to find here than they were in Maz so these will be a nice treat. BTW, full-size coolers are super pricy and I’m still kicking myself for not using the one back in Miranda as a packing box. 🙁

There’s a yoghurt-based curry marinade for chicken that I’ve been wanting to try, but I haven’t had much luck finding a really tasty non-fat no sugar Greek yoghurt here, other than buying massive amounts at Costco. I thought I could find some at Chedraui, but it was proving elusive. I moved to the non-food items on my list, added a very inexpensive and lovely cushion for my computer chair to my cart, and then went to find someone to ask about the location of popsicle moulds when… a lady at a demonstration booth asked me if I wanted to try some non-fat no sugar Greek yoghurt! It was really nice, the kind of plain yoghurt I could eat as-is, so I asked her for a tub of it. She then asked me if I wanted the free popsicle moulds that come with it. I guess some things are meant to be! I had quite a laugh about that.

Unfortunately, I then had a bit of an accident. I’m not sure how I did this, but the little toe on my right foot hit the back of the cart. It really hurt, but I tried to shake it off… until a helpful store employee informed me that I was leaving a trail of blood behind me and that I’d left my toe nail back near the mayonnaise. OMG. The guy was super sweet, telling me not to worry about the mess and handing me wet paper towels and a bandaid, but I was of course mortified. My mind was obviously not on shopping after this and I headed to the checkout.

There, I was able to sign up for the frequent shoppers’ club. I’ll have to see what that entails. There are so many such clubs for major stores and services in Mexico. I need to get one for the cinema next time I go.

A cart guy helped me bring my shopping to my truck, unwrapped my coolers, and began to pack them with things that had to stay cold. With the back of the truck being an oven, I wasn’t sure the coolers would be enough, but there wasn’t much monetary value in them to make me nervous about the experiment.

Off I went to Costco, where I started with a lunch of pizza. I actually didn’t buy much today (although you’d never guess it by the size of the bill!), but I did pick up a box of acrylic tumblers I’ve been looking at since the first time I went and which finally dropped in price. Glassware just doesn’t make sense in Mexican kitchens (too much tile) and I haven’t been happy with the cheap glasses I’ve picked up. The owners of the house have similar tumblers in different shapes that I really like so I know my 16 tumblers in two sizes and eight colours will serve me well.

The only folly I made was picking up a very small brick of Tilamook extra old cheddar for something like $270. The Kirkland brand cheddar I picked up last time was rather disappointing and so I’ve had good cheddar on the brain. I won’t get in the habit of doing this because I wouldn’t pay that much for Tilamook in Canada! But, of course, with Mexican cheese being so inexpensive, even today’s folly still makes the average price of cheese down here affordable.

Like at Chedraui, the cart guy helped me pack my cold things into the coolers. I had just barely enough room and so I was glad I had two. But his help was most appreciated in loading up the heavy pallets of water and almond milk. I haven’t had any luck with any of the providers of 5 gallon jugs of water in Chelem (in the sense that my digestion has been suffering when I drink it, although it’s fine for cooking with and making coffee)) so I’ve been buying the 1.5L bottles of it at Costco. That’s going to stop when I move into the city, but right now, it’s the best option.

I thought I was done, but then I remembered that the cleaner had asked me to pick up a few things things for him that I would have picked up at Chedraui had I had them on my list. So since I had to sort of go in that direction anyway before I could turn around to go north, I headed to Mega, but I didn’t dawdle there at all. I had way too much food in the truck and I was completed tuckered out. It’s a given that it’s hot here and I try to ignore it, but the truck not having AC really does me in.

It was coming around four when I got in. Puppy was on his best behaviour to let me back the truck into the yard and then unload. My frozen stuff was still frozen!

Puppy and I played a bit, I jumped in the pool (not refreshing in the least!), and then I chilled with a beer.

So it was not a particularly relaxing day off, but it was good to get some groceries in. The cleaner is coming on Tuesday and I’ll have a package to pick up at Walmart by then so I’m going to try to get that day off too! I’ll have to see what’s playing at the cinema…

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First Dibs

Another large contract has ended, so I’m going to have a lot less to juggle in the next few weeks. The clients I have right now appear capable of filling any gaps in my schedule, so I’m happy to slack off a bit as I enter into August (August already!) and not look for anything else.

But yesterday was a pretty full day and I was looking at working late into the early evening when I got a message from a lady on the local garage sale group I belong to. She is an ex-ex-ex-expat in that she’s a Mexican who moved to Canada then back to Mexico and is finally returning to Canada for good. She’s doing some major downsizing ahead of return north and is pricing things to sell quickly.

Some weeks ago, she was selling a bunch of Pyrex dishes for very little and I unfortunately was too far down the line to score any of it, which was on my wanted list for ages. My kitchen has been very well equipped in Miranda, but one can never have enough mixing bowls that can go in the oven and the microwave and Pyrex is the best. It’s also super expensive and savvy thrift shops price it accordingly.  She was practically giving it away, but was vetting her buyers to make sure she got some that would appreciate and use the Pyrex rather than turn around and resell it for a profit.

Yesterday’s message to me was that she had three more pieces that she’d decided to part with since they don’t fit in her luggage and I could have first dibs on them! I couldn’t believe it because they were three of the exact pieces I wanted — a large bowl with handles and two medium-sized bowls! The colours, blue and orange, were a bonus!

Even though I really didn’t have time to go out yesterday, she was in Progreso and I needed some groceries. So it made sense to take an hour and a half or so to go pick up the loot. Well, not only did I drive into a major storm, but there was a huge accident right around Bodega AurrerĂĄ, so traffic was veeeeeeeery slow and there were no detour signs, resulting in a lot of confused people. I finally made it through the mess and across town to the seller’s home, which I found with no trouble using a combination of Google Maps and my GPS.

When I showed up, she asked if I’d be interested in a fourth bowl for a token sum, and it was another piece on my wish list, a small bowl I could use to heat up a bowl of soup or serve salsa in, and in a cute yellow! Yes, of course! Here’s my haul (which nests perfectly), for just $320 (about 24CAD or 18USD):

I only have one more type of Pyrex dish on my wish list now. I’m inordinately pleased with my treasures. 🙂

I then made my way to Bodega as best I could considering the one way roads and closures. I really needed to get home, so I got through my shopping list quickly. Just as I was heading for the till, I remembered that they sell roasted chickens, which would make a super quick dinner when I got home. I went to the chicken counter and there was just one left, but there was a time stamp on it that showed that it hadn’t been sitting long (only about 20 minutes) so I was pleased. However, there was also a man waiting for service… An attendant finally came out to serve us and started with me so I said that the man was ahead of me. He said, “Oh, I just want that chicken, but you can serve this lady first.”

Eep.

I said that I wanted the chicken, but, obviously, the man had first dibs on it. The attendant said she’d have more in about 15 minutes. I thanked her but said I couldn’t wait so I’d pass. The man told me not worry, his wife always takes forever to do her shopping and he could wait for a fresh one so, please, really, have the chicken that’s there.

I could have kissed him. 😀

Then came a very long wait at the till to pay. Bodega is affiliated with Walmart and has the same problem of not enough cashiers for the volume so I’m used waiting. It’s a good time to read trashy magazines. 🙂

To get home, I had to detour literally halfway to MĂ©rida, so I didn’t get in till well past seven. I bolted down some dinner, gave Puppy some love and attention, and went back to work. The job wound up being shockingly difficult and I didn’t finish till 11:30 (I thought I’d be done by 10:00!). I really hope that’s my last time having a job that finishes that late; it just messes up my sleep schedule too much!

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The Game Is On!

The last two and a half months of ludicrous work hours have paid off. By the time all the July and straggler June receivables come in in the next week or so, I’ll be in a position to start house hunting!

I found what I thought could be The House on a real estate website and contacted them some weeks ago. They happened to get back to me tonight. Funny timing!

They actually caught me while I was out for dinner. Monday has normally been curry night, but the curry place is taking a break. 🙁 (They did make that a bit easier on me by sharing their recipe for The Best Peas I Have Ever Had.) I decided to take a chance on La Barca de Chelem, the hotel/bar/restaurant a couple of blocks away that I’ve been purposely avoiding all this time (they are way too convenient). But I was in a celebratory mood and had already budgeted the money to eat out.

I showed up just past five, too late for lunch, way too early for dinner, but they said their restaurant is open all day. The menu had a pretty good variety of things with prices being so-so (YucatĂĄn has generally been slightly more expensive than Sinaloa). I was a little annoyed at myself for settling on a burger, but there were onion rings on the menu and the pairing would be nice and I also wanted to know if there’s been a decent burger within walking distance all the time that I’ve been here…

With my order, I requested a beer. Their selection was dismal, so I settled on a Tecate and then went out to the pool area to wait for my food.

My onion rings came out first. I was surprised/pleased that the server made sure I knew this was ranch dressing rather than mayonnaise since I’d declined the latter on my burger. I found the rings a bit doughier than I’d like (I like my onion rings really crispy), but the veggie within was perfectly cooked. This could have been dinner on its own and totally worth the $40.

The phone rang just as I finished up with them and I caught just enough to understand it was a guy from the property management company. I replied, “I understand, but, please, my Spanish is so-so. I’ll need you to speak slowly.” He agreed and then informed me that the house I was interested in isn’t available. However, his tone about that changed when I told him I’m looking for October and would be open to a two-year lease…

But he pushed on and asked me what parts of the city I’m interested in, how many bedrooms I want, what amenities I’m looking for, do I want furnished or not (fridge and stove would be nice), and my budget. This last one was where I knew the guy wasn’t leading me on and would be willing to work with me. This is because I had no idea what the hell a presupuesto is and he took a second to figure out how best to reformulate that with “What price per month do you want to pay?”

We chatted for close to 10 minutes and then he said he’d have a look and send me info on what what he found that could be suitable for me. Sweet! Now, you might be surprised that I’m willing to go with an agent, but I think I prefer going this route. Yes, I will likely pay a bit more than if I was renting directly from an owner, but things will be done by the book. Plus, an agent can do all the leg work for and I can just show up and see what he’s found. There is so much available on the market right now that it’s a bit overwhelming. Once an agent has a clear idea of what I want, the selection pool will get much smaller and I’ll save a lot of time. I thought I’d be able to take public transportation into MĂ©rida ($), but the buses are always full so I have to drive ($$$).

My burger came out just as the conversation ended. The server had brought me my mustard in little packets that he had actually cut open for me. I was very dismayed that the burger was amazing — great bun, real beef with spices (and so juicy!), and real cheese that was brown and crispy on the edges, plus lettuce, tomato, and onion. The fries that came with it weren’t worth touching, though, and I was glad I’d had the onion rings. Thankfully, this burger was $80 so while it would be cheaper than curry ($150), it’s still too expensive to be a regular lunch the way Patti’s incredible $40 burger and fries were on Isla!

Happy and sated, I headed home to do some chores, play with my dog, and begin to dream of the Home that I have finally begun searching for. It’ll be hard to be renter again after so many years of being a homeowner, but it’ll be way better than being a house sitter. Living in other people’s spaces is fun for a while and a great way to travel on the cheap, but you’re never really home and it gets wearing after a time. At least here, I have some of my own furniture and, of course, most of my own personal belongings (including kitchen equipment), so that makes things much easier (there are no words for how much I love my desk!).

I can’t believe we’re a week to August and I only have two full months left here!!! Of course, I’ll be here most of October, but I should have keys by then and soon as internet is set up, I’ll likely work there a few days a week so I can start receiving furniture deliveries and do other tasks to make sure the house is all ready for me by the end of the month.

July was a bit of a rough month and I know I need to get out and start living a bit beyond the walls of this compound. August should be an interesting. The way things are going, I will have to make a real effort to slack a bit because nearly all my clients wish they could keep me busy full-time! It’s really great to be in that sort of position and to be choosing how much money I make in a month (to a point) rather than sitting around waiting and hoping for work to come in. I’ve worked so hard to get to this point and I’m incredible proud of myself.

Well, it’s time to jump in the pool. How spoiled am I? 🙂