North America

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Hump Day Done Almost Right

My cleaning guy was coming today and I somehow managed to have only an easy job to do that I could mostly complete in the morning and then finish up after returning from a jaunt to MĂ©rida. This way, I could leave him free to clean without me being in the way. What luxury to be able to go have fun while someone else did my deep cleaning! 🙂

I left around 11:00 and headed to the Galerias (formerly referred to as Liverpool, right next to Costco) to catch a 12:15 showing of Wonder Woman. I had my work cut out for me finding an English (Spanish subtitled) showing at a convenient location and good time, but it must have been meant to be because this was absolutely perfect. The film would end around 2:45, with a 40-minute drive waiting for me after, getting me home around 3:40. I had to be home by about 3:30-3:45 to let my cleaner out of the yard (no extra keys to leave him) and to finish my job, so, really, impeccable timing.

So I arrived in town around 11:40 and wanted to have lunch. I wonder how much longer I’ll need to live in Mexico to remember that noonish is a terrible time to be hungry in this country? The only restaurant at the food court that was up and running and could serve me food in time to make my movie was a Carl’s Jr. hamburger stand, so I had a burger again. I have to say that they do a really nice one with real cheese and plenty of veggies. I especially liked their fries, which I got since I didn’t think I had time to wait for onion rings, and they were fresh cut with skin on them. So a pretty good meal even if I would have chosen tacos or Chinese if everything had been open. There is a sushi joint that I need to check out next time, but they only opened at one.

The movie was surprisingly wonderful and left me utterly entranced for its very long run time. I wasn’t particularly impressed by Batman vs. Superman, which I saw in MazatlĂĄn last April, but this one absolutely worked for me. I still can’t get over the fact that a first run matinĂ©e was just $39!

The movie ended at 2:38 and I decided I had time to grab an ice cream. I asked for a single and was given two big scoops! Totally worth my $20!

Little did I know the surprise that awaited me as I headed towards the exit of the mall nearest my truck…

It was raining. And I mean, RAINING. Apocalypse levels of rain. Enough rain that MĂ©ridians were taking videos!

I finished my treat and then decided that the rain wasn’t getting any better so I might as well make a run for my truck. I was still soaked when I got there. I immediately cancelled my plan to pick up a pizza at Costco unless I could get a parking spot right by the door, which I was unable to (not even an “illegal” one by the curb). So that was a bummer as I know my cleaner would have been happy with a slice to take home with him. Maybe next time.

It was very slow going home because of the amount of rain on the roadway making it very easy to start hydroplaning. Strangely enough, it rains more in MĂ©rida than it does in Progreso, so it lightened up a bit the further north I drove. By the time I got to my part of Chelem, it was just drizzling and our sandy roads were almost dry.

My cleaner was just finishing up my suite and hadn’t started on the part of the terrace that isn’t as open to the elements. I figured that he’d thought I’d be super late and so he had taken a long lunch. I went to work and when I was done, I was shocked that it was almost 4:30 and he was still working. So I checked in and it turned out that he’d put on music and was having so much fun he’d lost track of time! Of course, I compensated him for his accidental overtime. I also offered to drive him home and have him come back tomorrow to get his moped, but he declined.

It was then time to put together Puppy’s supper. He gets fed in his Kong now to stretch out his meal times and keep him occupied. He loves it and I’m having fun coming up with meals for him that go beyond just his kibble and wet food. I don’t consider this extra work at all. I mean, it is more work that just pouring out dry food, but he’s so appreciative that it’s totally worth it. I am amused that the first few days, I had trouble finding his Kong at his next meal and now he knows to drop it by the kitchen door when he’s done! Dogs really are clever.

Now, to figure out my dinner since I didn’t come home with pizza. I have some leftover broccoli soup that I’d rather keep for my lunch tomorrow, so maybe some pasta? I think I need a cook… 😀 But, hey, it’s a goal that I could work towards here in Mexico that couldn’t even be a dream in Canada!

It’s been a very good Hump Day here in the YucatĂĄn. Back to the old grind tomorrow, but this is turning out to be a much slower week than was last week, a rather welcome breather.

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First Anniversary of Living in the 21st Century

It was a year ago today that I got internet access in Bulgaria and discovered that it is possible to stream a movie while downloading something in the background. I finally had 21st-century quality internet.

So today is my first anniversary of living in the 21st century at last. It’s been a full year of paying a reasonable amount for internet access, not worrying about bandwidth usage, dealing with ISPs who understand that internet is vital and needs to be fixed NOW, being in locations where free unlimited WiFi is ubiquitous, and getting a taste of that Star Trek-like future where the internet is just there.

Oh, it hasn’t been perfect by far. But when I look at my first 20 years of internet access in Canada and compare it to the last year spent mostly in Europe and Mexico, it’s like I jumped ahead a full century, as evidenced by how difficult it was to be offline that week I was home.

I can now take any job a client sends me, even if it’s a huge video, and because I can reliably download tons of audio in a day I’ve been able to grow my business and take on more clients.

Netflix is actually part of my routine now and I can download reliably from the iTunes store. So I’ve considerably cut down on torrenting (the only download method that works on slow and flaky internet).

All my device updates are done as they come out and the ever increasing security breaches with Macs aren’t as nervewracking since I can get the security update right away.

I can now sync my calendar, notes, and to-dos between my devices and have considerably cut down on how much paper I use and am less scattered.

In the next year, I want to learn what podcasts are all about and start backing up remotely (on top of the local backup).

But first, the challenge of getting myself hard wired to internet at my first home in Mexico. I’ve been promised that that will not go smoothly, but with 20 years of dealing with stupid Canadian ISPs under my belt, I can take anything TelMex or whomever I end up with throws at me! 😀

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Today Amused Me Greatly

I’ve been trying to get to MĂ©rida for a week now. I meant to take it easy this past week, but that didn’t happen. I have a one-off contract that’s ending shortly and after that, I should have much fewer opportunities to spend endless days just typing and typing and typing…

But I somehow found myself able to take this afternoon off if I was willing to get up super early and also to work overtime tomorrow on a very easy job. I needed to get out. I was losing focus on work, starting to get grumpy, and I was beginning to sleep poorly, all signs that I really needed a change of routine. It’s starting to be a bit frustrating being out here in the middle of nowhere and needing an hour just to drive to Progreso and back for things because I can’t just “dash out” for a long lunch the way I did in Maz.

Anyway, there was nothing really pressing for me to do in MĂ©rida, but I did need to do a massive shopping spree for Puppy and decided to fit in errands of my own in between.

I got all dolled up and tried to leave around 11:30. This is when I discovered that life in the tropics during the rainy season is just like winter in the snowier and colder parts of Canada — you can find your desire to run out to run errands impeded by a vehicle stuck in something, there snow and ice, here sand. My passenger rear tire spun out into a deep crater before I even knew what was happening and my truck wasn’t going anywhere. *sigh*

Never mind that I was wearing one of my best dresses, I went back to the house to get a spade and some tiles to use as traction. I dug around the tire, arranged the tiles, and then tried to get out of the hole. SUCCESS! This reminded me of the time I changed a tire while wearing high heels and a suit because I was on my way to a day of training with the RCMP. You haven’t lived until you’ve jumped up and down on a tire iron in high heeled shoes to loosen a bolt to get a flat tire off your car. But I digress.

Thankfully, the rest of my drive to MĂ©rida was uneventful.

The pet store where I wanted to try to buy a Kong chewing toy for Puppy is in a part of MĂ©rida I have not been to yet, so I got to take the periferico to the eastern side of town. Traffic was horrible and when I got to my exit, I knew there was no way that I was going to be able to merge into the right lane to make my turn. Driving here is nothing like driving in other parts of Mexico — people actually drive civilly/less defensively and and if you try to muscle your way to where you want to go, you are very likely to get an accident.

Thankfully, though, my turn was at a roundabout. So I just stayed in my lane, entered the roundabout and drove it all the way around. When I got back to my turn, I had priority since I was in the roundabout and was able to go my merry way. Yay for roundabouts! 🙂

Of course, the pet store was closed even though they’d told me they are open all day Saturdays. I asked my GPS to take me to the nearest Walmart since there are a few things I’ve been needing, haven’t found, and suspected I would find at a Walmart, even if I’m not a fan of the Mexican version.

I got to the Walmart more than ready for lunch. I really wanted a hamburger and there happened to be a Burger King across the street. I had my first Burger King burger in England this spring and was pleasantly surprised. My second was today and, really, it’s not nearly as “fast foody” of a burger as I expected and it was loaded with vegetables. I’d still rather support a local business, but needs must sometimes! I do like that Burger King has onion rings!

I went back to Walmart and was pleasantly surprised to get everything on my list and things I hadn’t expected to get there, like Earl Grey tea (two boxes for $99 on offer when I paid $65 for one box at Superama!) and some food and treat for the dogs that were the brands I was looking for. No Kong, though.

From Walmart, it was time to head to Costco and on home. But I was hoping to buy a Moleskine notebook and had a lead on a supplier in MĂ©rida. This is where I have to sidebar for a second and recount my tale of woe about my first Amazon.mx order…

Middle of June, I put in an order on Amazon for some office supplies I couldn’t get locally. I was happy with the prices, selection, and estimated arrival time. The package took a while to ship, but then made it to MĂ©rida on a Friday. On the following Tuesday (this past week) I called FedEx and they asked for better directions to my house. I suggested that the driver meet me at a nearby hotel, but they insisted on coming to my door. I sent them in writing very detailed instructions.

Wednesday, my package was finally out for delivery… then delivery failed because the driver could not find my house. I contacted Amazon to cancel my order. At first, they were very unAmazon-ish and gave me the runaround on canceling and getting a refund. Then, they saw what I had sent Fedex and they were pissed. So many people in Mexico don’t have a proper easy to find address and delivery people have to be flexible and use directions and landmarks. The Amazon manager who ultimately dealt with my case even sent me a Google Map with an X marking where he expected my house to be and he was right. Amazon is reviewing its relationship with Fedex in Mexico… At any rate, I got a refund immediately (!) and also a $200 gift card to put towards a future order (I may try again when I live in MĂ©rida…).

So back to today, I lost leave of my senses and asked my GPS to take me to the store that might have Moleskine notebooks. With the odd numbering system and some construction detours, it wasn’t until we passed the zoo that I realised that I was WAY out of my way and the GPS had no idea where I wanted to go! But hey, I was in a part of town that I actually knew from having lived there for ten days, so not all was lost. 🙂

I headed north to Costco and missed where I had to stay in the left lane to continue on the main road that goes by Costco and leads to Progreso. This left me caught in the Bermuda Triangle-like area around the Grand Plaza where once caught in the maze, escape is difficult. I finally worked my way around and… passed the art supply store I’d meant to go to! Talk about serendipity!

It was only as I parked in front that I realised just how unflustered I was so far about driving today. Driving in MĂ©rida isn’t the nightmare I was told it would be. I guess I have MazatlĂĄn to thank for that. 🙂

I went in and they said that they only carry blank Moleskine notebooks, but they could order what I want. However, there is a bookstore in the Galerias that has a better selection. I was advised to try there and if they didn’t have what I want, I could send them an order via Facebook. I’ll be back to this store when I’m ready to start oil painting again since they have all manner of supplies!

A quick check of Google revealed that “Galerias” is what I call Liverpool… right by the Costco! So I decided to drop the truck at Costco and walk to Galerias. Little did I know the discovery I was about to make…

Here’s a map of my day to hold you in suspense for a bit:

Little did I know that today I would win the prize (if there was such a thing) for most amazing thing ever found at a Costco. Behold… my first cenote!

I can’t believe it’s right there by the Costco without any signage or anything!

I ogled for a bit and then crossed the road to get to Galerias. There, I discovered that Scotiabank has an ATM again (YES) and I was able to make a much needed withdrawal. I then started to look for the bookstore when I passed… a pet store. That had Kongs. I think I was meant to come home with one!

I then asked a very nice security guard if he knew where the bookstore was and he sent me in the right direction. The store did have Moleskines, but not what I wanted and the prices were way too high. I decided to give up for now and bought something else that will tide me over until I can try Amazon again.

I then did something I haven’t done in far, far too long and asked a sales clerk for help in picking out a book! I told him that I can read at the level of Harry Potter and I like epic stories with lots of characters. He and another clerked hemmed and hawed and then settled on a few titles. The first one did nothing for me, but I got shivers reading the description of the second one and knew it was it. It was also only $90! At the till, I was asked if I have a membership card for the bookstore and decided to get one even thought it was $70. I have to look over the terms, but I think I’ll get my money’s worth out of it because the store has all manner of stationary supplies.

I then went back to Costco where I did a decent sized shop for myself. I’ve been comparing prices of some things in supermarkets and Costco has them beat. The best supermarket price I’ve found for almond milk, for example, is still about 30% more than what I pay buying it in bulk at Costco. I also bought two ginormous (read heavy) bags of dog food and two bags of rawhide bones. I lamented to the guy that loaded my truck that I had no help at home to unload. He told me to look on the bright side — I’ll have arms like Schwarzenegger after that. Thanks. I think.

It was past five by  this point and Puppy gets his supper no later than 5:30, so it was time to head home! I got there, tied puppy out of the way, then backed the truck into the yard to make it easier to unload. That still took a good 30 minutes since most of my purchases were super heavy and bulky. Puppy got his supper, then a bit of peanut butter in his Kong for dessert. He’ll be getting most of his breakfast in the Kong from now on.

I was so overheated by this point that all I wanted was the pool. I had a quick swim then went in to make an easy supper of croissants (I blame the Costco sample woman) with salami and mini sweet bell peppers.

Looking back on my day, driving around so much in a super hot car in terrible traffic and making so many unnecessary detours, one would think that I’d be exhausted and frustrated and maybe even peeved, but no. I’m in one of my happy moods where I find humour in everything. My outing did me a world of good even if I’ll pay for it tomorrow!

Now, to get myself lost in El atlas esmeralda (The Emerald Atlas), which I’ve just learned is the first of a trilogy!

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150th Anniversary of Canadian Confederation

Today is the 150th anniversary of Canadian Confederation. I will confess to having few maudlin or particularly patriotic feelings for the country I left behind. I went as far as I could there and I know my future is brighter outside of its borders.

But I am infinitely grateful to have visited ten provinces; two territories; eleven capital cities; and hundreds of cities, towns, villages, and hamlets from Charlottetown to Tofino, Chatham to Tuktoyaktuk.

I feel blessed to have experienced so many of its climates, from scorching summers in Dawson City to frigid winters on the border of Quebec and Labrador, although perhaps not the unrelenting gloom of the Wet Coast, but most certainly the glorious Prairie summers.

I have seen tall peaks; flat plains; rolling hills; desert; expanses of granite; great black pine forests; and more ocean coastline than one can imagine as I have swam or waded in the Arctic, Atlantic, and Pacific Oceans.

I’ve called four provinces and one territory home, consider myself a quĂ©bĂ©coise in happy exile, love and miss my piece of Saskatchewan more than anyone can imagine, still have the Klondike in my bones, and I remember every sunset I saw driving up the 105 from the junction of the 366 in La PĂȘche on my evening commute.

I hope I can be away long enough this time to forget the infuriating things that made me leave and be left with only memories of landscapes that made me weep with awe.

Like the Saskatchewan badlands.

View of the Big Muddy Badlands from the top of Castle Butte

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Setting Up My Command Centre

Today was the day to go pick up my new-to-me desk! The day went off without a hitch. The cleaning guy arrived on time and got to work on my suite so that it would be ready when the furniture arrived. My promised help told me they’d be there “around ten” and it was just shy of that when they pulled up. Off we went to La Ceiba. By the time we got through the very long queue to get through the entrance of the gated community, it was eleven.

The helpers are Mexicans I’ll refer to as M and R in this post. They work for the expat, D, who did the solar system on the house I’m minding and do all manner of labour. They’re really great and I’m happy they were available to help. D provided the truck and M and R the muscle today so that there were two trucks and four able bodied people to load, with the fourth being A, the husband of the maid at the house where I was getting the furniture, since D can’t do any heavy lifting.

M and R got to work dismantling the desk while I brought the bookshelves to the truck with A. I hadn’t actually seen the bookshelves in person and I gasped when I did since they are absolutely wonderful, deep enough for my biggest books and with heaps of adjustable shelves, as well as aesthetically pleasing.

We managed to get two bookshelves in Moya as well as the shelves themselves and some bits of the desk. M and R Tetrised the desk and the remaining bookcase into D’s truck. D had tie down straps, so he helped M and R get everything secure and off we went. It felt like we’d been there for ages, but we were out of there in 36 minutes!

I raced home ahead of them to get the dog out tied up and the gate open. The cleaner was just finishing up my suite, so that was perfect timing!

D took it slow because he didn’t want anything to fly out of the truck, which meant that he got caught in a big storm and all my things got wet. So first order of business was to unload his truck and dry off everything. The bookcases are solid wood, so it didn’t really matter, but the desk is particle board, so it couldn’t get soaked. That’s really not a great material for this climate and the desk isn’t aging well, but it’ll still serve me for a bit.

D took off once his truck was unloaded and then I backed my truck in to unload it. It was then time to figure out how to fit everything into my suite. The bookcases were a no brainer, but the desk was tricky. We tried a few configurations, keeping in mind that four months is a long time to be tripping over stuff. Finally, we came up with this:

I agree with M that it’s nice to have that “wall” separating the office from the bedroom. I don’t need the tables that were front of the couch and there’s plenty of room to walk between the desk and the end of the chaise longue. Once we agreed that this is where the desk was going to go, they reassembled it for me.

I asked if they’ll be able to dismantle, move, and reassemble it for me in the fall and they said of course, as many times as I want… but they agree with my assessment that the next move needs to be the last. Anyway, it looks pretty good, feels great, and fits in the room!

There is tons of space between the bed and the desk. We could have moved the bed closer to the bookcases and the sofa down as well, but I’m trying to keep the furniture rearranging to a minimum. This works absolutely fine for me.

Unpacking my books was like finding old friends I hadn’t seen in a long time.

The desk setup isn’t perfect yet, but I’m waiting to see where I’m moving before I start buying any bins or baskets. I am really pleased that the file cabinet drawer was able to hold all my files with room to spare!

Speaking of moving, I spoke to the maid about that and she gave me some invaluable house hunting advice. She says that a standard layout in MĂ©rida is a house with two beds and a bath upstairs and a “cuarto de servicio” (service quarter — room with bathroom) on the ground floor for a maid… and that this is not advertised as a three-bed, two-bath! So she told me to widen my search criteria because I could be very pleasantly surprised by what a house with two bedrooms actually has. I did a quick listings search after I set up my office and was shocked to find a bunch of two-bedroom houses that do have the cuarto de servicio on the ground floor! What I found were much smaller houses than I’ve been looking for (ie. more manageable for one person) and, of course, the price is lower so that opens up my search radius!

I had to do a job this afternoon and by the time that was done, I was completely exhausted, having worked really late last night so I could be off this morning and then not having had enough sleep. I was also ravenous since I’d had breakfast at seven, skipped lunch because the cleaner was in the kitchen, and had only two small peanut butter wraps mid-afternoon. I really, really, really wanted to order a pizza, but I would have had to go pick it up.

So instead, I got some pork thawing while I put my room back to rights. By the time that was done, the pork was ready to cook and I was able to throw together a really yummy stir fry with udon noodles, the pork, and tons of veggies, plus Blue Dragon sweet chilli sauce. So instead of eating a carb heavy meal that wouldn’t have done me any favours, I had a healthy dinner (with leftovers!) that truly left me nourished. It’s important to be good and kind to yourself, even if it takes work to do so.

I’m sure I had more to say, but my brain is fried and I have to go do some prep work for a job I’m doing tomorrow. I rather can’t wait to get back to work in my new office. It’s so great to have room to spread out!