October is always a huge work month, essentially year-end starting, and it’s nonstop until US Thanksgiving, then slow until February. So I was happy to bank money to enjoy some upcoming time off!

The single-most influential person of my life died in October, Dr. Jane Goodall. It hit me harder than I expected.

In late September, working with a sleep specialist, I reset my circadian rhythm to match my energy levels. In October, I caught my first sunrise in a very long time.

October kitty pics:

I’ve been working with a physiotherapist. and he ended a lifetime of knee trouble in about a week, no exaggeration. Of course, I’d done all that work in Pilates to straighten my bad leg, but he’s the one who told me to stop focussing on my weight and work on getting quads of steel. A week after my initial consult with him, I could do this:

I perfected my bread recipe in October.

I made a really good no churn chocolate ice cream that was just like a Fudgsicle:

My summer with the doggos came to an end when their dad returned at the end of October.

Friends kidnapped me and took me to the beach to have delicious Tex-Mex food:

My five-year-old microwave died and the best replacement was the same brand as the electric pressure cooker and airfryer. Hope my initial impressions hold. Do NOT buy this microwave — I’m lucky it lasted five years. A friend got the same one, and it lasted a year!

I finished another Babylon Leather purse kit, which is in a similar style to the “Kelly.” This was by far the easiest of the three and the one I wish I’d started with.

I finally have enough hair that my stylist was able to give me a proper styled cut! This photo does not do justice to this super cute layered look.

I promise the next updates will be more interesting. 😉

Looking through my September photos, it’s clear that I was rediscovering the joy that are baked goods.

Best grilled cheese in years!

I’ll die on the hill that Subway has some of the best commercial cookies on the market:

My bread continued to improve:

I orded bread flour in bulk:

The neighbourhood boys’ centre knows that I am a sure bet for these empanada things with a cream cheese or custard filling.

The Italian Coffeehouse chain of restaurants has terrible coffee, but this ham croissant had no business being as delicious as it was:

The realisation that the only way I could afford to keep up my new saucy bean addiction was by switching to dried beans finally had me add an electric pressure cooker to my kitchen. This one was top rated in LATAM and half the price of the better known brand. It’s excellent quality!

I bought some dried legumes I can’t find locally from G-Spice, making sure to match them with a spice mix. This was the first thing I made with my new gadget, and it was delicious and so quick!

I love the house dresses (batas) ladies wear in my neighbourhood, even if they look like “granny nighties” and usually have awful prints. But they’re super comfortable in this climate, have pockets, and are inexpensive enough to rotate frequently. I was having trouble with restocking my collection this summer and finally put an ad out in the neighbourhood Facebook group asking if anyone had some for sale. A neighbour at the other end of my street messaged to say she had three left and I could have all three for $120, when I’ve bought them for $100 to $150 EACH. This top one had a really sweet pattern. You can see a pretty hideous sunflower motif peeking out underneath, and the third one might haunt your dreams. But they were just what I wanted, and I got a reminder that while I’m not social, the neighbours are aware of me and consider me part of the community.

I went out for tacos one night and decided to instead have a huarache, something I haven’t had since Durango! It’s incredible to me the different textures you can get out of masa. I really enjoyed this meal.

My September no churn ice cream was inspired by my favourite Ben and Jerry’s ice cream, “Cherry Garcia,” only mine was way better (much more creamy, for one). I made it with fresh cherries I’d bought at Costco months before, pitted and froze, and added just a touch of pistachio essence.

Obligatory kitty pics:

This is my least appetising saucy highly seasoned beans, but was incredible, well-seasoned refried beans with salsa verde and cheese with homemade flour tortillas and plenty of Valentina sauce.

I discovered a “you have a package” note in my mailbox one evening, so I headed to the post office the next morning. It’s located right beside the Chuburná market, so of course I had to have salbutes and agua de sandia for breakfast!

Hint as to the content of my package:

Walking to Pilates one night, I was stunned to discover how pretty this house is when lit up at night. I don’t know how many times I’ve passed it and not noticed the stained glass:

The electric pressure cooker was such a hit that I took advantage of another sale a couple weeks later and bought an airfryer by the same brand! Five years ago, I had considered an airfryer, but at the time the recommendation was to just get a double convection countertop oven instead. I did that, but have never been happy with how things like French fries come out of it. Updated research pointed to improvements in the technology and that now a double convection oven isn’t as good at crisping things as is a dedicated airfryer.

It took a bit of trial and error, but I finally got the results I wanted. I usually cook from scratch, but if I don’t, I eat like a toddler!

I had to pick up some Marketplace items near Parque Alemán one day, so it was the perfect opportunity to finally try the Colonos restaurant I’ve heard so much about. This is a Mérida institution serving Yucatecan food, essentially the equivalent of an American diner.

I ordered the breakfast “paquete.” They started off by bringing me what they call “pan” but was actually a delicious piece of cake.

Then fresh fruit, yum!

There are several mains to choose from. I went with my favourite, chilaquiles verde. These were mid, but hit the spot:

I judge places by what they bring me when I ask for picante, and if it looks like this, I go back:

*side eyes the places that bring me Tabasco or even commercial salsa like el Yucateco*

But the biggest surprise was that they have really good, strong bottomless American-style coffee!!!! Classic Mexican breakfast with good coffee?! Heaven!

Mexico is getting on the no-alcohol beer bandwagon and starting to offer good options. I prefer to not have alcohol at home and to save it for vacations and social settings. Modelo Negra coming out in a delicious, tastes like the real deal, no alcohol version felt like such a gift!

They also have a great 0% Dorada. I also really like the Tecate Cero. I’ve been stocking all three since September.

The most exciting thing that happened in September was that I bought plane tickets on a total whim. More about that when I get there. 😉

August was one of domestic bliss, with very little to report.

I did a lot of cooking, discovering that “highly seasoned saucy legumes with flat bread” is my current favourite meal.

As is this pantry staple meal of warm udon with a miso and tahini sauce (shrimp optional).

The girls had a wild party one night.

I made every Mexican I know laugh when I shared this on Facebook and said “Someone took ‘ponte trucha’ seriously.”

I started to make my own bread, and this ended up being a nearly weekly event from this point forward. It took a while to get the recipe just right and figure out my oven. The first one was much better than it looked, and I learned that I needed to put the rack one notch lower and tent with foil after 10 minutes!

Dodger did Pilates in my office.

And guarded my office (supervised me?).

Alma was really bad at hide-and-go-seek.

And just made me shake my head

Benedict Cumberbatch FINALLY had a new movie out, The Roses, so of course I had to go see that and have the obligatory giant margarita beforehand:

Loaf two looked better, and the subsequent loaves after that just kept improving until it all clicked.

I’m happy to report that July had an adventure. I had thought to get away in June, but the logistics with the dogs was too complicated.

But first, obligatory cats pic:

I mentioned no churn ice cream in my June post. July is when I discovered this decadent eggless concoction made of whipping cream and sweetened condensed milk. Since the pandemic, I have not had a decent ice cream place other than Dairy Queen near me, so being able to make my own satisfying ice cream with almost no effort and with whatever mix-ins I want has been amazing! This first effort was pistachio with chocolate ganache.

There’s a decent taco place across from Pilates with an incredible salsa de árbol. I pretty much only eat there for that, and not that often either as I usually come out of Pilates too late. Well, I went in July, and the server greeted me with “Hi, long time no see, here is your salsa naranja. Al pastor paquete with everything but no cheese on corn tortillas with jamaica to drink, right?

Then he turned to another server and said, “I told you she existed.”

What am I, the Bigfoot of taquerías? 🤣🤣

In July, I took advantage of a sale and got an ice maker, something I’d been thinking about for a long time. Croft helped me figure out a routine with it. Turns out you have to let them run for a few hours for the machine to get cold before it’ll start producing usable ice cubes. I run it every few days for a morning to fill a bag. My foster son, Roscoe, loves ice, so that’s a nice treat for him.

I wasn’t able to eat beans for years, not realising it was a way of my body trying to regulate my blood sugar. Since the spring, I’ve been rediscovering them, and my favourite way to have them is in a highly seasoned sauce (English curry style) with flat bread. This particular version was different, with a Japanese flavour profile that involved miso and rice wine vinegar. My bread above was meant to be pita but turned out more like naan, a happy event as fresh pita is easy to find here while naan is not and I haven’t had much luck with actual naan recipes.

I tried a bunch of melons in July. This one was so delicious despite its hideous name of toad skin!

My next ice cream was my favourite flavour of cookies and cream. That one disappeared so fast I decided I need to take a brief break from making ice cream.

Here’s a shot of the jicama fridge pickles I referenced in a previous post (the flecks are Tajín seasoning because I’m a genius):

The new fridge is just so amazing, tons and tons and tons of room to put meal prepped items. I’m definitely due, after a few months of living with it, to empty it out and reorganize it, but even in its current state it is so much more functional than was the side-by-side with its cavernous cubicles.

By the end of July, I was a bit on edge, just needing a break. Coming out of Pilates on a Saturday morning, I suddenly remembered that I have a local driver’s license and can rent a car. I headed down to Fiesta Americana to see if anyone had a car available for a few days. I ended up with this modern Batmobile looking thing from Kia.

Sunday morning, I decided to do the circuit I’d promised I’d do whenever I got access to more fuel-efficient vehicle than Moya had been, and ideally with air conditioning!

I head north towards Progreso and finally turned right to follow the coast all the way to Dzilam de Bravo.

I tried to get a ride on a lancha to go to a nearby cenote, but despite seeing many boats go out, there was never a seat left over for me.

I had lunch at Los pericos, where service was great and the food delicious!

They started me off with a tray of complimentary botanas that included beets!

My main was succulent camarones a la diabla, by far the best shrimp I’ve had on this side of Mexico.

Since I was driving, I had a couple of limonadas minerales rather than a beer. They also offered me a free dessert of meringue, which I was so sad to have to decline.

I went back to the car after to get a hat, discovered damage to the car (missing side view mirror!), and decided to stroll through town then head home. I messaged the rental company to let them know about the incident. I’d gotten nearly full coverage, so I wasn’t too worried about being charged for the damage, but I’d read the contract fine print and knew I had to report the damage before returning the car.

The town had some pretty spots.

This was a great day and reminded me of how much bigger my world will be when I can head out on excursions like this on a whim.

Monday, I only enjoyed the car in the evening, to go to Pilates and then Walmart. Being able to drive to Pilates and the gym would be the single biggest improvement to my current situation that I can think of, turning 50-minute roundtrip into a 20-minute one. Near daily swims before work would suddenly be possible. And while I prefer not to drive after dark, doing so in my area is not a problem.

Tuesday, the car had to be back by about 2:00. I had a dentist appointment at 10:00, so I went for a swim first. The appointment took a bit longer than expected as the dentist decided to clean my teeth. I was then officially released from orthodontic treatment and regular visits at very long last!

After that, I drove a few blocks to Amato for brunch. The carnitas chilquiles were incredible (and so pretty!).

I then drove to Parque Oriente, quite a distance from my house, that I’d last been to with Bonita in 2019! The memories were bittersweet.

I dropped the car off around 1:00 as I had some work to do. As expected, I had no extra charge for the damage, but there was some paperwork, including writing a little report.

I took an Uber home and the driver did the most Mexican thing imaginable: he stopped at a roadside stand for fruit.

Speaking of which, here’s another melon I tried. This one wasn’t nearly as good.

I’ve been catching a lot of amazing sunsets:

My favourite cocina economica started sending me fresh whole habanero peppers with my lunches.

I still can’t get through a whole one, but am making good progress. I prefer the red ones as they are much sweeter (think green versus red pepper).

I’ve been eating regularly from this cocina for nearly eight years now. I can’t believe I’ve been here the better part of a decade!

July’s car rental made me realise I’m way overdue to get a car. Driving here when I know the city, have air conditioning, am in a small vehicle that’s easy to park, and especially have reliable navigation with Waze is a far cry from when I was driving here pre-pandemic with my truck. The thing is that it’s complicated to buy a car in Yucatán, the financing options aren’t great (very high interest rates), and prices have risen enough that it’d take too long to save up to pay cash. So I’m working at reorganising a few things to make a partial loan work, hopefully in the start of the new year. I already know what I want. 🙂

June had some really major personal milestones: I got a clean bill of health, in that my thyroid was well managed and I’d managed to reverse my insulin resistance in 18 months with small diet and exercise changes. I also had my first “significant” Pilates injury that required taking a class off and an examination by a physical therapist. I’d somehow strained my rhomboid muscle in my left shoulder as well as all my neck muscles, a result of that area really opening up and getting more movement. The physiotherapist said it was a shame that I didn’t get physio after my breast reduction in ’07 as it would have been easier to reverse my lordosis at at 28 than at 46, but he felt confident I could still accomplish it and gave me some exercises to do daily.

He put me at such ease that I felt comfortable talking about my knees and how I felt that I’d reached a point where I was in better shape than what my knees could handle. Rather than the usual “Just lose weight,” non-help I would have gotten in Canada, he said “Focus on your quads,” and gave me simple exercises to do. I followed his regimen and within a couple of weeks, I had real improvement and could squat and kneel better and for longer periods of time. My Pilates instructors were in awe! As was I the first time I squatted at the grocery store to examine items on the bottom shelf for a minute, then simply got up and continued my shopping as if I hadn’t spent all my life struggling with getting up from a squat..

The changes have been so slow and incremental that I was in shocked when I came out of an Adidas store after buying this outfit in their size large, realising that belly notwithstanding, the real me was about to burst forth, the me that has always been active and fit despite not meeting societal aesthetic standards of fitness. I’ve had such a mindset shift the longer I’ve been treated in Mexico and that my worth hasn’t been determined by a meaningless number on a scale or the BMI algorithm that is literally killing people.

Notice the HAIR!!!!

I’ve put in a lot of work on myself these past few years, and this was a summer of being strong. I not only started doing knee push-ups but almost immediately excelled at them, able to easily knock out 100, before finally completing the first full body push-up of my life. Pull-ups are next!

A clean bill of health meant I could return to eating “normally,” whatever that means in this new reality of intuitive eating, having discovered that my body was giving me clues for years that it was about to crash. I’d just spent 18 months free from diet culture, was down two clothing sizes, and knew that I had the tools to keep trending in the right direction. And best of all, I finally had a kitchen I was happy to cook in!

I got a baking set specially designed for large countertop ovens and baptised it with delicious banana bread:

I’d promised myself a tray of Costco croissants as soon as I could eat starch with abandon again, and they did not disappoint! I froze most of these and enjoyed them over several months.

I had my first burrata, amazing!

Last summer, my mother showed me how to make fridge pickles. After reconfirming the “recipe,” I got to work. I find it weird how Mexicans haven’t figured out sweet pickles yet. These have been life-changing. I also like them with jicama!

On that same Costco trip, I bought a huge amount of cherries, so huge I ended up buying a cherry pitter.

I froze a large portion of them. Months later, I made them into cherry no churn ice cream.

I think the most significant decision I made in June was that it was time to get a second fridge to use as a pantry. As it turned out my dream fridge dropped like 60% at Liverpool on a flash sale (with nine equal no-interest payments to boot), so my old side-by-side went into the dining room to be used as a pantry. I can’t tell you how much I overthought this purchase, but it really was the missing piece to the kitchen I expected it to be.

The top part is like a standard French door fridge, but instead of having a freezer drawer, you have two compartments with pull-out bins, with one of the bins having the option to be a fridge or freezer. I have a ton of freezer space, so I only took one compartment as the kitchen freezer. The other compartment is kept at a warmer temperature than the top part and holds spices and onions. I love this fridge, and having it paired with the side-by-side and a deep freeze is a dream. My food stores are properly organised and accessible now, just like going grocery shopping.

My favourite detail is this “snack” bin in which my favourite yogurts fit perfectly. It’s the little things. 😉

This photo of Alma isn’t the best, but it’s so funny. She loves playing with my chanclas!

Dodge doesn’t cuddle with me much, but when she does, I’m not allowed to go anywhere!

Bonus Dodger pic. I used to have the modem on this shelf by my desk. It took weeks of not understanding where Dodger was hiding to get locked in the room overnight to finally find her! In my defense, she would usually sleep with her black rump towards me and be invisible!

Sunset by Pilates one night in June:

I rewatched a favourite movie on a night when I needed a laugh. “Junior” will never not be funny!