growing tomatoes in Mexico

LIFE IN THE LOW SEASON

Somehow I seem to be just as busy as ever. Just not quite so much going out. I”m still working my way through my list of “100 books to read before you die”. Most are great reads, some not so much leaving me wondering how they ever got put on the list. And I get distracted by other books that are recommended by friends or other articles I read so I’m not only working on the list and am reading whatever I want. Several books I have read have referred to two of the classics “Great Expectations” and Moby Dick. I did read Great Expectations and through enjoyed it once I got into the rhythm of the old English style of Charles Dickens. So my next book will be to tackle Moby Dick I read in the daytime and watch TV only at night. I do enjoy binge watching Netflix series.

I”m in the process of breaking my last tie with my life in Washington state, selling my much loved little car. I’ve had many cars in my life but only two I have loved. My very first car of my own a red 64 VW and my last car an 08 Smart Car that I ordered on line with a $99 deposit a full year before they were imported to the US. In selling this car also comes the reality that I’m pretty much giving up my driving privileges. At my age it becomes very expensive to rent a car for the occasional visit home to visit family, but certainly not worth storing a vehicle for a year or two at a time And of course here in Zihuatanejo I have no desire to drive. Taxi’s and busses do me just fine. I guess the good thing about it is I’m making the decision about ending my driving days, not my family or the police telling I am no longer allowed to drive.

My lovely little smart car taken before I headed to eastern Washington for some kayaking.

I have finally acquired a housekeeper thanks to the recommendation of two friends. What a difference it makes to have someone really deep clean every two weeks. Every crack and crevice has been cleaned and organized. Now it is so much easier to keep it up with minimal effort. I don’t know why I stalled for so long. I guess I was waiting for just the right person to be recommended to me.

My attempts to capture a couple of the local feline community and deliver them to Spaz to have them neutered has turned out disastrously. The first kitten escaped while I was trying to deliver it to Spaz but fortunately it ran right into their compound where he still is but still too feral for them to capture. But at least it’s safe and getting food and water and slowly getting socialized. The second one made his daring escape just as I had left my apartment with him securely (?). Then his weight shifted as I started down the stairs and it bumped the back of the trap and little Houdini came flying out the back door running and howling. 2 days later he is back on my balcony sleeping afternoons in my garden under the shade of plants. Mean time my little black momma cat comes regularly for meals. Wanders through my apartment like it was her own. Has even spent whole days cooling herself under my bed. But she still won’t let me near enough to her to even pet her. I really want to get her spade but it will have to wait until I can tame her a bit. She is too smart to go in the trap, I’ve tried that wit zero success.

My moma cat I call Pearlie Mae enjoying a meal in my apartment

Everyone is complaining about the heat, for some reason I’m not bothered by it. Temperatures are in the 90’s and with the humidity factored in they say it feels like the high 90’s and this has been going on for weeks. I’m managing just fine with my 3 ceiling fans, I have yet to turn on the air conditioner. I also don’t go out from noon till about 4 O’clock unless absolutely have to. I’m not walking any distances as I perspire so heavily that I would be drenched by the time I got to where i was going. Siesta’s really make sense in this weather. Did get an hours worth of rain the other night, or I should say morning as it started about 3 AM. It’s the most rain I’ve seen since arriving here in October. Life goes on as usual during this hot summer, just everything is slower.

Some fun things have been going on such as learning of a fun Pozoleria in the La Noria area. Went there with a lively group and soon our waitress had us up and dancing. House parties with friends to see their new home and even have a July 4th event to attend. Enjoying ladies lunch days at restaurants that have pools. Life is still quite social, just at a much slower pace.

I’m still going to Spanish class 3 mornings a week. After todays lesson I finally feel I have made progress. I’m pretty much of the opinion I will not be having serious conversations with Spanish speakers, but what I want is to have enough skills to be able to ask the question and under stand the answer. To be able to read signs and labels, follow basic instructions.

My garden is thriving all except for the thankless tomato plants that I have so lovingly cared for. I nursed them from seeds to seedling to starter size plants, transplanted the 5 hardiest ones to a large trough type pot. Watered them faithfully watched them blossom and then watched the blossoms fade with out setting fruit except for one tiny tiny tomato. Then they quit blossoming, and wilted in spite of the fertilizer I added and on going watering. They drooped until I couldn’t stand looking and the dying mass so I cut them down and disposed of them. Thankless plants. I don’t know what I did wrong. I need to read up on growing things in Mexico.

Signing off KO

Spanish Class, Growing Tomatoes and Other Unrelated Stuff

I signed up to take some Spanish classes at the English Plus school here in Zihuatanejo . I’ve been very impressed with how they teach Spanish. Of all the Spanish classes I have taken this is the best. We are learning how to use the language correctly but with out a lot of drills in conjugation of verbs and learning of rules. Lots of conversation and frankly being put on the spot. I know I’m progressing, but certainly not a star student. I do much better with the written word than the spoken one. I have a lot of trouble hearing what a native speaker says. I will continue with the classes during our entire stay as any progress is good.

Last year the Senor grew a couple of tomato plants and they were full of yummy tomatoes before we left in March. It was helpful that our balcony had full sun all day. This year he brought a few seeds from home in our luggage and planted them about mid November. They took forever to germination so he bought more

seeds at the Bodega and planted them in a different container, I think we have one plant growing from the roll out mat of seeds from home and the packet of seeds we bought here are thriving. He is still worried that they may not produce as our balcony this year is shaded.

I woke up Wednesday with a bite on the calf of my leg. Hurts doesn’t itch. Over the years I have had this kinds of reaction several times from bug bites .I have always been a

veritable smorgas-bord for mosquitoes, they are attracted to me and completely ignore the Senor. At first this looked like any old bite, but the area around the bite is becoming more inflamed at bit swollen and warm to the touch. Thinking I may need to go to the doctor, after all Sharkfest is tomorrow.

The vacant lot next door is no longer vacant, but a hub of construction. Rumor is it is going to be restaurant. One day we watched a huge dump truck maneuver its way down our alley, jockeying back and forth between the gates to the lot and the

Holes being filled with rock all placed by hand

driveway on the opposite side of the alley so he could dump a full load of BIG rocks into the first deep hole that had been dug previously. Then by hand the workmen broke the big rocks into smaller rocks and again by hand moved them into the rest of the holes. Then using what appears to be a jack hammer they added dirt and tamped them all down. Sounded like a helicopter getting ready to take off.

Yesterday they created vertical towers of re bar and are all wired in place. I swear I never saw a single level being used, just eyeballed into proper position. They work so hard, with so few of the tools that we would expect to see on a construction site. This is real manual labor. It will be interesting to watch the progress.

As I write this it is 4:30 in the morning, my balcony door is open, I see the restaurant across the street is still open, with only one or two patrons left. They will be closing soon. From down the street I hear singing, no music. just one voice reverberating up and down the narrow Pazole Alley. Some day I will get dressed and check it out. My guess is he is just returning from one of the many all night bars and enjoys the sound of his own voice. I hear no others, no laughter, no talking, just one melancholy voice. Signing off KO

Changing Sounds and Growing Tomatos

OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERA — Sunrise from our roof top

I am an early riser, frequently up long before the sun. I used to say the roosters would wake the dogs and the dogs would wake the people and that is how Zihuatanejo comes to life each morning. But I’m not hearing roosters this year, and I miss that, but I still hear the dogs. Another sound I miss is the musical sound of the gas man as his horn tooted the “charge call ” followed by him calling out GAAAAAAZ. Some mornings we hear revelry from the Navy base, that’s familiar music to the Seniors ears.

Frequently I wake up to the scritch scritch of the street sweepers as they clean our street, shortly followed by the bakery man singing out “bollios” as he winds his way through the streets. He will be followed by the coconut man calling “coco, coco”.We have a neighbor with a parrot which adds a whole cacophony of interesting sounds. Next the sound of metal garage style doors being rolled up as one by one shops and restaurants begin to open. I still hear the tin whistle sound of the knife sharpener and the clown bell sound of the ice cream vendors. But I haven’t heard the steam whistle sound of the sweet potato man yet this year. All these sounds make up the rich fabric that makes Zihuatanejo so special.

The Senior’s tomato farm is flourishing, the Senior noticed his first tomato today. Granted it is the size of a pea, but the photo shows not only one

tomato, but two. Retirement is such fun, you get excited over the simplest of things. Signing off KO

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