balcony in Zihuatanejo

SETTLED IN AND FEELING LIKE HOME

Thursday evening I went to Puerta Del Sol to her Solo Tres play. From the street as I got out of the cab I could already hear their magical harmonies. One never tires of such beautiful music.

Upon my return home I noticed something on my balcony, in the dark I wasn’t sure if it was vegetable or mammal but it had to be dead as it wasn’t moving. So I got my trusty boom and swept it off the balcony only to discover it was a fresh cat turd. Now I spent all last year finding ways to keep the little night marauders from using my fern planter as their personal cat box. And finally succeed by topping it off with a thick layer of “Brillo Pads”. Worked like a charm. My plant had flourished over the summer and is truly lush and lovely this year. Please do understand I love cats and several of my own. I have no desire to hurt them, just discourage them. I need to teach them my balcony, my territory!

I brought from home two 6×18 inch plastic prickle anti cat pads designed to keep cats from digging where they are unwanted. I brought them just in case the “Brillo Pads” had failed to work long term. I have now taped one to my balcony railing where they jump up from a lower ledge. Well this morning it was still there and didn’t look like it had been disturbed. Time will tell, but I’m determined to detour them.

Last evening I took a walk on the newly redone malecon and it is a lovely wide strolling path along the beach front. All the beachfront restaurants are now in the sand and plenty of room for large families and skateboarders and stroller pushers to all enjoy the path simultaneously. The artist park is lovely, I’m anxious to see it in the day time with artist in it. Stopped at Casa Arcadia for my first Mango Margarita of the season while enjoying a face time call from my Canadian friend, just a little bit of heaven. Signing off KO

Back in Sunny Zihuatanejo

And it feels like home, almost. We arrived to a few quirks at our apartment. Yesterday the air conditioner burnt out literally. This is the second time we have had an air conditioner go out in a shower of sparks in Mexico. Took all day but it was fixed good as new. We’ve eaten out the last couple of nights so we weren’t aware until this morning we the Senor went to cook breakfast that our stove doesn’t work. No problema we have a microwave. But lo and behold the microwave has been inhabited by goblins or spirits of some sort. He plugged it in set it for 3 minutes and the time came up 22 minutes. So we shut it off and a couple of minutes later it started it’s own. You have to stand there and watch it and open the door when you want it to stop. Then unplug it. Not the easiest way to cook eggs, but possible.

Our first day here we went to the commercial, the Mexican equivalent of a super market. Like Walmart it carries everything, but varies from time to time what is available. But they do have fresh Christmas trees and cheaper than we see at home which is amazing considering they may have been shipped from home. Less than $14 for 5-6 ft trees. It is also one of the very few stores that have cash register. All the shops just use little calculators.

Today we went to the Mercado for fruits and vegies, my favorite shopping place, it is definatly a sensory over load. There are baskets of spices that I have no idea what they are, yellow chickens complete with heads and feet, strips of beef hanging, flies flying and ladies waving fans over baked good to keep them away. Every thing from food to hardware under one roof.

Back at our “casa” Aurturo, the owner came and got both the stove and the micro wave up and running. I got busy on skype and called dish, Centurylink and Verizon discoverer ou tv problems here are because our internet at home still hasn’t been repaired. I think that will happen tomorrow. If Trish got my message and can hang around the house in the am. Problems all solved, feeling good. Signing off

GETTING SETTLED IN

I’m an early riser. I think sunrise is one of my favorite moments in the day. It always reminds me of a line from an old song by Melodyen”watch a baby day be born.” Each day holds such new promise. We enjoyed a leisurely breakfast on the balcony where we were entertained by a roof cat. I swear they go miles with out ever touching the ground.

Today is a busy day, well not really busy as I’m on Mexican time but I did get our phones restarted. This is so the Senor and I can stay in contact with each other. The Senor is very content to just relax at the apt,me I need to be doing something so I run most of the errands do the majority of the shopping and now he can track me down. After the phones on to try to find a microwave turntable plate. No luck, but after going to the local internet message board I have several suggestions to follow through on. One of which was have one of your friends from north of the border bring one down to you. I think this is a great idea, any volunteers?? Of course enroute I stopped by the local fabric stores. They are fantastic places with huge varieties of fabric and very reasonable. Last year I made a pants and tunic set I wear when I perform wedding ceremonies which cost about $23 american.

I returned in time for lunch and siesta. We eat our breakfast and dinners on the balcony, but lunch is inside and with the air conditioner going.

Thats the Senor watching from our balcony

We cooked in tonight and as we were finishing our dinner 5 young Mexican youths were setting up their band instruments on the pedestrian street directly below our balcony. As they tuned up we kinda wondered what we were in for, but 3 guitars, a drummer an a gal on keyboards began pumping out CCR and other vintage rock and roll and were really quite good. And very respectfully quit promptly at 10 pm.

I get restless in the evening and want to get out and see what is happening. When you have alzheimer’s they call it “sundowning”. Maybe I have an early symptom,but the evenings are so lovely here i just can’t bear to be inside and love to walk about as do so much of the Mexican population.

I had hoped to see Jimmi Mamou play at Don Memo’s, but he wasn’t there so I headed to the Barracruda where the “Steve Allen” Show was in progress. They are both local boys, Kitsap and North Mason counties. It’s now 11 PM and from my balcony I can still hear them play music from the Barracruda as it is only a 1/2 block away. While there I ran into friends Charlie and Christine. While visiting with them I learned that other friends, Will and Sylvia from Canada won’t be coming this year. It’s disappointing that folks we had hoped to see this year just aren’t coming for one reason or another. We have plans to meet with Charlie and Christine at Juan’s place on Ixtapa Island tomorrow. I’m anxious to get in the water, it’s been a week since I’ve been swimming and Saturday is my big ocean swim event. Well I guess it’s time to call it a day, signing off. KO

From My Balcony

It’s Sunday morning and from my balcony I can hear the singing in the church which is only a block away, come Monday morning from my same location I’ll hear the Mexican Navy doing there calisthenics from their base 2 blocks away. On any Friday or Saturday night ( and sometimes well into the morning) I can hear the music and singing from several of the bars and cantinas.

I can observe the fishing boat lights in the early morning as they come in and also the occasional cruise ship. I can view the street life as each day begins. I recognize the sound of the knife sharpener’s whistle, the bicycle horn toot of the ice cream vendors, the call of “coco” from the men selling coconuts and other calls as women carrying a variety of items in baskets on their heads whined their way through the streets.

I see a variety of mexican street dogs, mostly the medium-sized, yellow tail turned up variety, that some people refer to as “everywhere dogs”. Most of the dogs are skinny, flea-bitten, scared and a bit mangy looking, but sweet-tempered.

Hummingbird at next door neighbor's feeder

I watch small herds of hummingbirds as the feed on my balcony neighbors feeder and the one hung on the balcony across the street. I wave good morning to my neighbors on their balconies across the street and enjoy a cup of coffee with our friends and neighbors on their balcony next door. I watch pigeons feeding their family under an old air conditioner on the movie down the street. I watch with anticipation as they change the movie markee to see if there is a new movies I want to see.

I watch folks hanging their wash on the roof top clothes lines. I watch as a grey cat trots along the terracotta roof tiles. and if I lived here I would grow plants and garden on my balcony.

I bring my net book to the balcony and I read my kindle on my balcony. I eat breakfast and dinner here on my balcony, but not lunch as it is too hot at that time.

From my 3rd floor perch I watch sunrises and sunsets, I start every day here and end every day here. It’s been a wonderful place to observe mexican life and learn about there culture. I will miss this very much.

Sunrise from my balcony

Signing off KO