REVELING IN MUSIC IN LA CRUZ

December 17, 2018

The Fitness Center in Bucerias

When Monday came, I had run out of excuses not to go to the gym.  As soon as the net was over, I put on my workout clothes and caught a combi to the Fitness Center in Bucerias.  The gym was very modern, with lots of Life Fitness equipment.  It was air conditioned, but a bit crowded.  There were kettlebells, but not enough space to swing them.  The free weights were a bit disappointing.  The racks were nice, but the weights were of smaller diameter than normal, which would have made them lower if there was any space on the floor to work with them, which there wasn’t.  I did some back squats, but we weren’t allowed to dump weights, which caused me difficulty when I reached the point of failure while doing box (bench, in this case) squats.  I couldn’t get up, so I had to wiggle into a kneeling position with 105 pounds on my back, bend over, and set the bar on a pair of low arms attached to the rack.  Then, I had to worm out from under it.  It was clear that I would not be lifting heavy at that gym.

I was, however, happy to take advantage of the pull-up machine, which allowed me to do assisted dips and pull-ups.  These movements had always defeated me and it was interesting to discover that I could only dip about half my body weight.  There was no way to do a kipping pull-up on the machine, but I needed 55 pounds of assist to do a strict pull-up.  It was clear that I wasn’t going to be able to lose enough weight to solve the problem.  I hoped that working with the machine would gradually make me stronger.

Three friends of mine from the marina showed up shortly after I arrived and it was nice to have company while I rowed and pedaled on the recumbent bike.  I could run for miles, but ten minutes on that bike left me sore, although the back squats might have had something to do with it.

Lobo and Charly Pena with Tatewari

I took the combi back home and spent the rest of the day writing and playing the guitar until the evening when it was time to go to the Octopus’s Garden to see Tatewari.  I had gone alone, but ended up sharing a table with people I knew.  Lobo was a surprise guest and he began the show, with the members of Tatewari joining him one by one.  Lobo told a story about how a three-year-old Esau of Tatewari had come to him while he was playing his guitar and asked, “How do you do that?” Apparently, his interest had never flagged.

Tatewari also had a flautist/saxophonist named Charly Pena joining them for the evening.  He was very good and they played well together, although the addition of the flute gave the music more of a jazz twist, which I, personally, could have done without.  I’d take flamenco over jazz any day.  They played music from their latest CD and, of course, I bought a copy.  Buying CDs in Mexico was always frustrating for me, as I had no way to play them until I got home or at least to a boat with a stereo.  The CD player from our house appeared to have left with some former resident.

Lobo joined the band, again, towards the end of the concert and he kept increasing the tempo of the music until the guitarists’ hands were nothing but blurs and I thought the flautist might explode.  It was quite exhilarating.  I had always loved Tatewari and it was exciting to see how much they had matured in the five years I had been following them.

December 18-19, 2018

I overslept on Tuesday and missed my run.  DHL was supposed to deliver the mattress topper I had ordered and I stayed home all day to wait for them.  I got a lot of writing and practicing done, but DHL never came.  They had been trying to deliver my package for a week and I was getting discouraged. I figured I would have to go somewhere to get it and bring it home in a cab.  Perhaps the worst part was that I really wanted to be able to order other things from Amazon and that was beginning to look impossible.  Tops on my list was the watch battery that I had been unable to find anywhere in Nayarit.

I went back to the gym on Wednesday and spent 25 minutes on the elliptical trainer to make up for my missed run the day before.  My friends were there, again, and it seemed like we all headed over there as soon as the net ended.

Farmers' Market in Bucerias

I walked up the street to the Chedraui after the gym to pick up a few things and stumbled across the farmers' market that had apparently moved from Lazaro Cardenas to the Chedraui parking lot.  I was hungry but resisted all the goodies.  I spent more time than I should have in the store, shopping for long-sleeved shirts.  It had been colder than usual in La Cruz and I needed something to wear when I went out at night.

By the time I got home, DHL had called to say that they would be delivering my box that afternoon.  Cherie had told them she would meet them at the Oxxo and guide them in.  I was extremely grateful for her help because I barely had time, as it was, to shower, dress, and eat before having to rush off to the marina to facilitate the season’s first music circle at the Poolside Deli.

Music Circle at the Poolside Deli

First Amazon Delivery in Mexico

Many cruisers had gone home for the holidays, but I was eventually joined by two gentlemen with guitars.  Neither of them brought any music to share, but we managed to make do with what we knew or I had brought.  We had a good time and played until 15:00.

My box had arrived by the time I got home, eight days after it initially arrived at the local office of DHL and fell off the tracking website.  I considered it a minor miracle.  It remained to be seen if the miracle could be repeated.  While I had managed to get Google to correct our street name on the map, the post office, at least, thought we lived on the street behind us.  Most interestingly, our phone bill was directed to the intersection of two streets that  (according to the map) ran parallel.  It was a miracle we ever received anything.

December 20, 2018

Another Dawn

Nativity Scene in the Plaza in La Cruz

Thursday was another running day.  I got up very early.  The sky was clear, so the sunrise wasn’t particularly interesting, but it was nice to see all the Christmas lights.  I ran home through the town and past the plaza where the town creche was located. In Mexico, the baby Jesus is absent from the nativity scene until Christmas day.

I spent the day practicing and doing things around the house.  Then I went to the marina to see The Zookeeper’s Wife at the free movie night.  There was wonderful music coming from the La Cruz Inn and I was tempted to detour but I really wanted to see the movie.  I would have to come earlier the following week to check out the band.

December 21, 2018

Karen and I were going to an estate sale in Puerto Vallarta on Friday.  We had an appointment for noon, so I skipped the net and went to the gym early so that I could be ready by 10:45.  There was a lot of Christmas traffic and the place we were going was off the beaten track, so we needed to allow plenty of time to find it.

Having located the house on my cellphone GPS, Karen and I left La Cruz at 11:00.  We needed the whole hour to get there.  The house, which had been billed as a $3.5 million estate was actually just a quaint, small house on the side of a steep hill in a funky Mexican neighborhood.  The street was steep and rocky and the house was at the back of a flag lot.  We might never have found it if they had not stationed someone on the road to flag down customers.

"Estate" Sale

No one had died.  The new owners simply didn’t like the furnishings, so were selling everything to make room for new.  All the items for sale were arranged in the pretty patio area.  Most of the items were too large for either of our homes, but we did get some good deals on colorful rugs and items of décor.  I bought a handwoven rug to hang on my bedroom wall.  My bedroom needed color to spruce it up and I had a big, bare wall.

View from the Roof

We toured the house out of curiosity.  It was quite small and only had two bedrooms.  The fabulous part was a covered patio on the roof with a full kitchen for entertaining and a 360 degree view.  If there hadn’t been workmen up there, we would have been inclined to linger.

After loading our treasures into Karen’s truck, we proceeded downtown to visit a store where Karen wanted to buy some beaded necklaces she had seen previously.  The store was actually a clothing boutique called Miss Aly that sold cotton gauze clothes as well as beaded jewelry.  Karen bought several necklaces and I bought a black jacket and one necklace to go with a blue outfit I had that didn’t match any of my blue jewelry.  The weather had been cooler than I had ever experienced in La Cruz and I needed something to cover my arms in the evenings.  We were double parked and had to hurry or I might have done more shopping because her clothes were cute and reasonably priced.

Plaza Caracol

Karen’s errand done, we continued to Plaza Caracol so that I could make one last attempt to find a battery for my watch.  I had been to every possible source in La Cruz, Bucerias, Mezcales, and Nuevo Vallarta without luck.  It was the week before X-mas and the parking lot was a zoo.  Karen dropped me off at the entrance and went to wait for me in the Oxxo parking lot across the street.  I hurried into the mall, looking for the Radio Shack.  I had no idea where it was located in the mall.  The first thing I saw was a watch shop.  I stopped there.  It took them about ten minutes of digging, but they eventually dredged up the correct battery for me.  One hundred pesos later, I was headed back to Karen’s truck.

By the time we got home, I barely had a chance to eat lunch before it was time to walk to the Octopus’ Garden for a gathering of Women Who Sail.  After spending a couple of hours chatting and listening to inspiring talks by female sailors, Cherie and I rushed home because she was cooking dinner for a friend.  We munched on veggies and quinoa and then Simon drove us to Rhythm and Blues in Bucerias so I could perform at their open mic. 

There were only two of us playing that night.  The other guy was playing when we arrived.  When he finished his set, I played for a while and then I sang while he played.  We had some trouble with the sound equipment, but we pressed on although I had to choose between amplifying my guitar and using my remote mic.  Eventually, a couple of other people joined us for the ever popular Wagon Wheel and Will the Circle Be Unbroken.  We were having a good time, but Cherie was cold and tired so I had to go when my ride left.  It had been a long, busy day.

December 22, 2018

Morning Moon

I started the day with a couple of laps around the marina.  It was the day after the winter solstice and the dawn was very late.  I had a chance to enjoy the Christmas lights and the full moon before it got light.

I did a lot of writing and guitar practicing and worked on another musical project for most of the day.  I thoroughly enjoyed sitting on the day bed on the upstairs patio while I worked.  It was peaceful and comfy up there and warmer than downstairs where I got chilled when sitting still. 

Diego Mondragon and Band at the Octopus' Garden

In the evening, Karen and I went to see Diego Mondragon at the Octupus’ Garden.  His show was billed as a night of passion and romance.  Diego played the violin and he had drafted several local musicians to play back-up, including Mimi of Tatewari.  Mimi got just as much applause as Diego Mondragon and Pedro and Enrique from Punta Mita added a lot to the show, too.  The poor singer had a rough evening.  A lot of the material wasn’t really in her range and her microphone kept dropping out.  Their rendition of Besame Mucho ended up being an instrumental until Diego stopped playing and sang the last chorus.  The songs were classic Latin standards and all the musicians were very good, but the many technical difficulties interrupted the flow of the performance and it somehow fell flat.  I would definitely give Diego Mondragon another chance in the future.

There was a full moon bonfire at the beach and I dragged my guitar over there after the show.  The whole town was rocking with very loud posadas and there was no way I could compete with that.  I stayed for a few minutes and chatted with friends before heading home when the party started to break up around 22:30.   The music in town continued until sometime after 3:00 AM, although it wasn’t loud enough at our house to keep me awake.

December 23, 2018

I slept late on Sunday morning.  There had been a lot of late nights and early mornings the previous week and I wanted to catch up on sleep before beginning again.  I did very little all day except play guitar and write.  I skipped the market but did walk to the grocery shop to pick up a few items in the late afternoon.  

Christmas Potluck at the Octopus' Garden

Aruna and Wayland from the Octopus’ Garden were having a Christmas potluck that evening.  I took a bottle of merlot and some cream cheese slathered in mango salsa to go with crackers.  It was a very nice party.  They had decorated the tables with Christmas centerpieces and cooked a real turkey dinner.  We drank wine and chatted while Christmas music played.  After dinner, there was a gift exchange for those who wanted to participate.  I love being in Mexico, but it was nice to have a familiar Christmas gathering for a change.  The Octopus’ Garden was always a magical setting and it lent itself as well to hosting a Christmas party as it did to being a music venue.  The party was a great way to kick off our holiday celebrations.

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BANDERAS BAY BLAST – 2018

December 12, 2018

The sunrise on Wednesday morning was stellar.  I managed to get in an early morning run before reporting to Dragon’s Toy for the first day of the Banderas Bay Blast.

Wednesday was a triangular course beginning and ending in La Cruz.  There was very little wind to start, but it did build over time and we had fun.  We had a little trouble with our spinnaker sock getting twisted, but still managed to get the chute up and down almost like we knew what we were doing.

We had beer and snacks in the cockpit after we returned and then stopped by the Poolside Deli where many sailors were partaking of margaritas before heading over to Ana Banana’s for dinner and general carrying on with the fleet.

December 13, 2018

Thursday, we raced from La Cruz to Punta Mita.  There was so little wind at the start that participants were instructed to start their engines and motor for thirty minutes at no more than six knots.  There was a light breeze by the end of thirty minutes and we all managed to make it to Punta Mita before dark.  Unfortunately, there was some confusion about where the finish line was to be.   We went to the lighthouse, as we had interpreted the directions, but should have gone to the light at the mouth of the panga darsena.  That hurt our time considerably.  We were doing very well up to that point.

Marc and Rosie at El Coral

It took ages to get the water taxi to shore.  No one told us that we needed to get back to the boats before dark, so we barely had time to wolf down our food before we had to leave.  It was a nice party and would have been a lot of fun if we hadn’t arrived on the last water taxi load.  I was pleased to see that my landlubber friends, Marc and Rosie, had managed to score a ride on one of the boats.  The Banderas Bay Blast is a fundraiser for local schools, so the general public could ride along for a small donation.

Richard and Cat - What Are They Up To?

On the night of the dinner in Punta Mita, the El Coral restaurant is transformed into the Punta Mita Yacht and Surf Club.  New members are initiated by climbing onto a table and being paddled by the commodore.  An initiation fee of one dollar buys a lifetime membership.  We barely had time to initiate everyone before we had to run for the water taxi back to the boat.  The surf was a bit high and the pangueros didn’t want to be launching in the dark.

Waiting for the Water Taxi

December 14, 2018

The Crew of Dragon's Toy - Argh!

The water taxi delivered us all to shore in time to eat breakfast before the school children came to put on a show for us.  The fundraiser was called Pirates for Pupils and many of the sailors came in pirate attire.    We dressed in our pirate best, doing what we could with temporary tattoos and silly party hats.  El Coral looked like a den of pirates.  

El Coral Was a Den of Pirates

Andy in His Pirate Best

The children arrived about 11:00 to put on a show for us.  They were all quite young.  Some didn’t look old enough to be in school.  They did a couple of folk dances for us and then each student chose a partner from our group and danced with us.  The children were fascinated with the pirate costumes and those of us costumed were the first to be chosen as partners.  I danced with a little boy who barely came up to my waist.  He was adorable.

The Children Waiting to Perform

When the show was over, Andy, from the Vallarta Yacht Club, showered the kids with candy and they scrambled to grab as much as possible.  Each child got a set of markers, too.  I donated a bag of pencils and all the money raised by the event would be used to purchase school supplies to be donated to the school.

Slowly Racing Towards Nuevo Vallarta

The last day of the blast saw us racing from Punta Mita to Nuevo Vallarta.  Once again, there was very little wind.  Even the catamarans had a tough time getting going.  Many boats never bothered to start and others dropped out along the way.  We persevered, which we believe earned us second place, although we missed the results on the net.

Tom and Cary at the Vallarta Yacht Club

The last party was held at the Vallarta Yacht Club where we had a nice Mexican buffet dinner which included a margarita.  There was pumpkin pie (and other things) for dessert.  Having missed decent pumpkin pie at Thanksgiving, I was happy to correct that lack with a small slice of honest pie after dinner.  It was a beautiful evening and I felt very lucky to be there.

December 15, 2018

Bait Seller with His Customers

I woke up quite early on Saturday and sat in the cockpit to watch the dawn.  There was a panga anchored right in the middle of the channel and the driver appeared to be sleeping.  A large sport fisher arrived and seemed to be maneuvering to get around him.  The panguero sat up.  It turned out that he was there to sell bait.  The fishing boats backed up to him one by one to buy the day’s bait.  By the time it was fully light, he hauled up his anchor and went home.

Man Fishing from a Defunct Jet Ski

I also observed a man fishing with a net from a small boat made out of a defunct jet ski.  The motor and seat portions had been removed and the fisherman sat on what had been the nose and paddled with a double ended yard rake.  There was a lot of interesting activity in the early morning although the dawn itself was dull for Banderas Bay.

We were in no rush to leave on Saturday morning.  A slip in the Paradise Village Marina includes the use of the hotel facilities.  We ate oatmeal on the boat and then enjoyed the pool and hot tub.  We picked up a few groceries and strolled through the mall.  It was noon or so when we pulled out of the marina.

It was a lovely day and there was finally some wind, so we decided to go whale watching on the way home.  We sailed out towards the Marietas.  We were just about to give up and go home when we saw a whale spout.  We did see whales, but they were not playful like they had been the day before when we were occupied with racing.  I went below to take a nap, figuring that was the best way to induce whales to appear.  We didn’t see them, but I could hear humpbacks singing through the hull.  It was an eerie sound, but unmistakable.  I had often seen whales but that was the first time I had heard them.

We got back in plenty of time to shower and get ready to go to Octopus’ Garden to hear Media Luna.  Cary and Tom had told me about three young kids they had seen playing amazing guitar in Puerto Vallarta, but they didn’t know their names.  It turned out that they were the three guitarists from Media Luna.  The band features three guitarists, a bass, and drums.  They play modern flamenco fusion music and the energy was astounding.  They were also quite innovative.  One of them broke out a telecaster at times and later played a flamenco guitar with a wah-wah pedal.  The bass player, who played left handed, was missing two fingers on his picking hand but it didn’t slow him down.  He was also a talented vocalist that we would have liked to hear more.  The percussionist was also very talented.  It was a great show.  That night was Media Luna’s first gig in La Cruz and they had only brought five copies of their CD.  I had to run up to the counter to be sure to get one.

December 16, 2018

Sunday morning, I got up early to be sure to get in a run.  I did a couple of laps around the marina while the vendors were setting up for the La Cruz Farmer’s Market.  It was a beautiful sunrise.

My friend, David, from home in California had arrived on a boat and we had agreed to meet so that I could show him the market.  We met at the marina and walked through the whole market.  Then we went to Oso’s for eggs Benedict.

I spent the afternoon lounging and practicing the guitar and then headed out to meet my friend, Karen, who was picking me up at the highway to take me to see the local chamber orchestra.  The concert was held at the Colegio Americano or American School in Puerto Vallarta.  The orchestra was a volunteer organization and had some very young members.  Unfortunately, they had a tough time with the pieces in that night’s program.  The first half of the program was classical pieces and the horn section struggled.  Apparently, some of the regulars were absent.  The final number was a flute concerto and the flautists, at least, were excellent. 

The second set was Christmas music and we hoped it would be better.  It wasn’t.  The horns were better, but everyone else failed to stay together.  The American School provided a choir which was cute, if not particularly tuneful.  Two older girls sang a duet and they were very good. 

After the concert, we went down to the Malecon to attend a musical performance at the amphitheater by the three arches.  We walked quite a way down the Malecon to get there, enjoying the Christmas lights along the way.  There were very few tourists about but the street was filled with dancing horses and fans of the soccer team America were celebrating a major win with parades of honking cars.

When we got to the arches, we found clowns instead of music.  We stayed for half an hour or so, hoping they were just the opening act, but then gave up and headed back to La Cruz to get dinner.

My friend, David, had asked me where he could get tacos al pastor.  I asked around and was told that Tacos Junior was the only place in town.  Tacos Junior was also one of the few places in town that was still open at 23:00.  Karen and I stopped there and got plates of five tacos al pastor for 70 pesos.  They were perfect.

HUMANS VS. RATS – SETTLING INTO LA CRUZ

December 3, 2018

La Cruz Sunrise

I got up very early on Monday morning to run.  It was quite dark when I left the house and I had trouble placing my feet on the uneven, dirt roads.  I ran down to the marina and twice around the marina before returning home.  The sunrise did not disappoint me.

My mission for the day was to report to the Instituto Nacional de Migracion (INM) to perform the next step in the process of obtaining Mexican residency.  Before leaving, I had visited the Mexican consulate in Sacramento to obtain the special visa that began the process.  This temporary resident visa wasn’t good for any longer than the usual tourist visa but proved to INM that the consulate had verified my income and found me acceptable.  Because I was too young to receive Social Security and didn’t retire from a company that provided me with a pension, I was unable to prove that I was retired.  I met their income requirement, but they wouldn’t give me permanent residency.  I would have to remain a temporary resident for two years before they would grant me permanent residency.

Boats in the Paradise Village Marina

I had thirty days from the time I first entered Mexico to report to Immigration to continue the process.  I needed to do that in my home state of Nayarit.  Having spent most of the thirty days in Baja, I was now in a hurry to get things done.  I took a combi to the Sam’s Club in Nuevo Vallarta and then transferred to one headed for the coast.  I could never remember which one went which direction and got on the wrong one.  I got off as soon as I could and walked across Nuevo Vallarta back to the San Javier Hospital, which is located in the same building as INM.  I should have just stayed on the bus.  It would have gotten there eventually. Still, I had a nice walk and got to see some of the private houses located in Nuevo Vallarta as I walked.

Immigration was busy.  I took a number and waited.  It looked like the DMV in there.  The place was crowded with Americans and Canadians, all applying for residency.  After waiting for an hour or so, I was finally helped by a nice young woman who told me I would need to go downstairs to the bank, pay 3961 pesos, have two photos taken, and make copies of my passport and visa. I went downstairs to the bank which was even busier than Immigration.  I waited another hour there to pay for my visa.

Vilma's Yacht Agents

Vilma’s Yacht Agents is located across the hall from Immigration and they take pictures and make copies.  Unfortunately, they were at lunch when I arrived.  I decided to get lunch myself.  I walked over to the Paradise Village Mall and had lunch in a Subway.  Paradise Village is hardly part of Mexico.  It is very Americanized.

When I returned to Vilma’s, they were open.  However, by the time I made my copies and had my picture taken, it was 13:05 and Immigration closed at 13:00.  I was too late.

I took a combi to the Walmart and bought a few things for the house.  I got sticky traps for the rats and a few linen and kitchen items.  I failed to find either a watch battery or a bathroom scale, the two items I was really seeking.  I took another combi back to La Cruz and spent the rest of the afternoon helping Cherie clean.  We took everything out of the cabinets and put it into plastic bins so that we wouldn’t have to keep washing everything.  I cooked dinner and went to bed early.  I was tired.  

Soon, we heard a racket and a rat was stuck in the sticky trap I had placed in a cabinet.  Cherie’s friend, Simon, suffocated it.  Two rats had run out of the stove when the landlord took it outside and we had killed one.  One point for the humans.

December 4, 2018

When we arose in the morning, there was rat fur all over the remaining sticky trap, but no rats.  One point for the rats.

I got an earlier start on my trip to Immigration on Tuesday.  I didn’t want to have to return a third time.  I hopped on the first combi that came by, not noticing that it was headed for Valle.  When we turned left at Mezcales, I realized my error and got off.  This turned out to be fortunate because, after I crossed the street and got on a combi for Nuevo Vallarta, I was on the right combi to get to Immigration.

Once again, there was a big crowd at Immigration.  I wasn’t the only person who had needed to return.  I recognized a few other people.  The office was papered with signs informing applicants that they should avoid corruption by visiting the INM website and only paying the fees listed there.  Every one of the signs was in Spanish.  Many of the applicants clearly didn’t speak Spanish.  Maybe they thought people who didn’t read Spanish deserved to get ripped off.  I was glad that I did speak Spanish because the clerk who finally helped me did not speak English.  He was, however, quite helpful.  We finally finished that step of the process.  He gave me a form with my case number on it and told me that I would soon receive an email with a password that would allow me to follow the status of my case online.  Apparently, barring complications, I should receive my resident card in a couple of weeks.

I took a combi back to Mezcales and got off at the Bosque Agriquimica store to buy rat poison.  I bought some poison cubes that were rumored to cause the rats to dry up and not smell when they died, which we judged to be a good thing.  The man behind the counter knew just what I was asking for and I was quickly out of there and headed towards Bucerias.

The New Comer Store in Bucerias

 I got off at La Comer, a new store that had opened the previous year.  I had never bothered to go there because it was fancy and looked expensive.  La Comer is located across a side street from the Mega.  Formerly, Mega was owned by Comercial Mexicana, the company that runs La Comer.  I was quite confused when they built another store across the street.  Now, Mega is part of the Soriana chain.  This makes more sense, since there was no Soriana closer than Puerto Vallarta.

La Comer was a nice store that seemed like an unlikely cross between Target and Whole Foods.  They sold just about everything except watch batteries.  I did manage to get a very nice bathroom scale for a reasonable price.  They didn’t have memory foam mattress toppers, either.  Still, I bought a few non-perishable food items, knowing I was still going to make a stop at Mega to look for the watch battery.

I checked out the new gym at the Mega and ate another Subway sandwich for lunch.  Once again, I failed to find a watch battery.  I bought a few groceries and headed home.  There was more cleaning to do.

We Always Put Our Garbage Under the No Littering Signs

While we were working, a man came to the gate, collecting for the garbage men’s Christmas fund.  This was rich, since they had never collected garbage on our block.  Everyone in the neighborhood lugged their garbage to the corner under the sign telling us not to put garbage there.  I asked him if they would pick up our garbage and he said, “Yes.” I gave him 100 pesos and they actually picked up our trash later that week.  Sometimes bribery works.

Tuesday night was music at the Britania.  Everyone was there.  It was early in the season, so there weren’t a lot of strangers.  It seemed more like a private party.  Tom and Cary were there, sitting at a table with other friends, so we joined them.  I met our neighbor, Shari and she and I later walked home together.  I put rat poison in all the cabinets and went to bed.

December 5, 2018

Sailboat Racing Humor

I woke up with quite a sore throat on Wednesday and didn’t feel up to running.  Tom had had a cold when we left La Paz and I had apparently contracted it.  The rats had been busy in the cabinets.  They had carried the poison cubes into the drawers and nibbled them there, leaving piles of crumbs.  We decided not to bother to clean until the rats were vanquished.

I didn’t have the energy to do much on Wednesday, but I didn’t want to miss out if there was a music circle happening.  I wandered over to the marina at 1:00, but nothing was happening.  I bought a mineral water and rested there until it was time to head over to PV Sailing for the season opening meet and greet event.  Our friend Victor’s band was playing and I met my housemate, Cherie, there.  It was a nice afternoon and there were lots of people to greet after a seven months' absence.  I stayed for a couple of hours and then ran out of steam and headed home.

Cherie brought a friend home, later, and we spent the evening talking.  I put out more rat poison and went to bed.  We hadn’t seen any holes, so didn’t know if the rats were still living in the stove or getting in somehow.

December 6, 2018

Rat Entrance

The rats had once again chowed down on poison cubes, leaving behind piles of crumbs.  The poison didn’t seem to be affecting them and we wondered how they were getting in.  Then it dawned on Cherie that they were coming through the hole in the window screen that someone had cut to poke electrical cords through.  Cherie and I had closed the window whenever we left, but our house sitter had left it open and the rats had found their way in.  I cut a piece of cardboard and taped it across the bottom of the window screen, hoping we had solved the problem.

After three weeks of sailing and cleaning, my nails were in sad shape.  They were almost too long to play the guitar.  I went to the Oasis Spa in La Cruz to have them done.  The spa was a lovely, tranquil environment and the woman who did my nails was sweet, but they didn’t have the proper equipment to do acrylic nails and only had nine nail colors.  I chose the least offensive one and she did her best to fix my nails with nothing but a file, but it was a disappointing experience.  They started to peel off immediately.

December 7, 2018

The Rats Were Persistent

Being frustrated by my having plugged up their hole, the rats had chewed a new hole in the screen during the night.  It was annoying that they still hadn’t died, but at least we knew where they were coming from.

Industrial Strength Rat Trap

I was slow getting started, but eventually headed off to Bucerias to do errands.  I was still looking for a watch battery, since I could never tell what time it was.  My query on Facebook had yielded the intelligence that Art in Amber replaced watch batteries.   I found the store at 2:45, but the shop was closed until 4:00.  I walked over to Rhythm and Blues to verify that they were still doing open mics on Friday nights and then walked all the way across Bucerias to check out the new gym and go to the music store to buy a guitar stand.  The guitar shop was also closed, so I turned around and walked back to Ferre de Todo, my favorite hardware store, only to find they had moved several blocks across the highway into a residential neighborhood.  I eventually found the store and they didn’t disappoint me.  I managed to purchase three industrial strength, plastic snap traps.  I was giving the rats no quarter. 

Next, I headed back to Art in Amber.  It was 4:15 when arrived and they were still closed.  I turned the corner to head back to the highway and stumbled across the new location of Art in Amber.  The sign there said they were closed until 4:30.  I waited until 4:35 but then had to leave because I needed to get to the Poolside Deli by 5:00 for my weekly domino game.

The Cross of Huanacaxtle Wood After Which La Cruz in Named

Dominoes were fun, as usual.  The deli had finally been convinced to stop making margaritas with blue curacao and reverted to their usual, tasty recipe.  I had two, which was the most alcohol I had consumed since leaving La Cruz the previous season.  I was a little looped.

From the deli, I strolled over to Ana Banana’s to meet Cherie and Simon for our friend Randy’s birthday party.  We sipped mineral water and ate chicken fajitas for dinner.  The band was good and we danced but we didn’t stay late.  I had to come home and set the new rat traps.  Shortly after I did so, I heard a snap.  I had caught one on the back patio.  The poor thing’s skull was crushed.  He never even got to taste the peanut butter.  Chalk up another one for the humans.

December 8, 2018

Dawn From the Malecon

I got up early to exercise on Saturday.  There was no new evidence of rat activity and I began to hope for victory.  I still didn’t feel quite myself, but I walked one and a half times around the marina and then ran the last 1.25 miles home.

Marina Cats

The marina had a population of friendly, resident cats that people fed.  The local spay and neuter clinic volunteers had caught and sterilized most of them.  Several came out to greet me and beg for food.  While most everyone agreed that it was good to have cats around the marina to keep down the rats, there was a faction that thought they would do a better job if no one fed them. 

Daisy with Her Party Shirt on

I spent a good portion of the day practicing the guitar and then made some nachos to take to the pot luck fundraiser for the spay and neuter clinic that was being held at the Poolside Deli.  Our friend, Victor, and some other musicians played music and the rest of us chatted and ate.  After a couple of hours in the sun, I was ready to head home.

December 9, 2018

I got up Sunday morning, hoping to declare victory over the rats, only to find that one had nibbled some of the poison.  I had put the rat traps in the cupboard, but our rodent friend had avoided them.  I rearranged things so that a rat would have to pass a trap to get to the tasty poison and hoped for the best.  It seemed like the poison should have taken effect by then.

The Bucerias Market

After a leisurely morning, I took a combi into Bucerias to go to the market where I had heard I might be able to find a watch battery.  Unfortunately, I did not see anyone selling watch batteries or anything else that I needed.  I walked all the way up the arroyo until the market petered out and then backtracked to check out the section of the market that extended up a street.  When I came to the end of that section, I continued through a residential section of Bucerias until I came to a street that led back to the lateral.  It was interesting to walk through a part of Bucerias I had never before explored. 

Drowned Sandwiches, Yum!

Not having found anything useful at the market, I walked the rest of the way across Bucerias to the Chedraui and bought some pruners, a door mat, and some pencils to donate to Pirates for Pupils the following weekend.  Then I walked across the street to my favorite torta ahogada store and bought a sandwich to take home for lunch.  A torta ahogada is a specialty of Guadalajara.  It consists of roast pork on a hard roll smothered in a tomato broth.  They come with cabbage, limes, and (of course) salsa.  I can usually make two meals out of one. 

I really tried to eat only half the sandwich for lunch but ate the second half by 2:30. I wasn’t hungry at dinnertime, so made up for my gluttony by eating only a few chicken drumettes for dinner.

My nails were in a bad way, so I desperately texted my former manicurist and begged for an appointment.  She was glad to hear from me and kindly made an appointment for the following morning.

December 10, 2018

Another Gorgeous Dawn

Cute Feral Kitten

I woke up early on Monday and went for a long walk around the marina as the sun rose.  I found a new colony of feral cats that obviously hadn’t all been fixed, since there were adorable kittens hopping about on the riprap breakwater.  I contemplated snagging one to keep down the rats, but they were too wary to catch.  We had had no evidence of rats, that morning, and hoped that the poison had finally done the trick.  I walked back through the center of town, passing a neighbor’s dog that constantly sat in a resin chair.  He didn’t really fit but was not discouraged.

The Neighbor's Dog

I was expecting a package to be delivered the next day and knew that it was difficult to find our house.  Cherie had put up a street sign the year before, but it had faded and been obscured by a tree that had grown in front of it.  I took it down and trimmed the tree back.  Then I took the sign home and repainted it before reinstalling it on the tree at the beginning of our block.  Google Maps had printed the wrong name on our street, so I hoped this would serve to clarify things.

My next project was to hang a mosquito net over the daybed on the upstairs patio.  I looked forward to reading and napping up there.

Cheko Ruiz’ new band was playing at the Octopus’ Garden on Monday evening.  I went by myself because no one else was particularly interested.  I went early and had a nice dinner.  I was joined by a nice couple from Chico who had a boat in charter in Nuevo Vallarta.  Apparently, Club Nautique had just opened a location in Nuevo Vallarta.  I chatted with them until it was time for the show to begin.

Cheko Ruiz' New Band

I had long been a fan of Cheko’s, but it seemed to me that he had never really found his groove after Luna Rumba broke up.  It was a pleasure to see him working with a new band that seemed to have really jelled.  Each of the members was exceptional.  The bassist played a six-string bass and made the most of it, even playing lead at times.  The lead guitarist was new to me but played a mean flamenco guitar.  The percussionist really seemed to be enjoying himself and drove the music home, but the trumpeter stole the show.  The music was mostly new and exhibited an almost Cuban flair with the drums and the trumpet.  Cheko seemed to be having a good time for a change.  They had the crowd eating out of their hands.  I hadn’t felt that much magic since Luna Rumba.  It was a great evening.

Cheko was playing a guitar that was a twin to mine.  Of course, mine never sounded that good.  Still, it was encouraging to know that it could.

December 11, 2018

Tuesday was the day that our cleaning lady was scheduled to come and I had promised to be home most of the day to communicate with her, as she spoke little English.  She arrived by 8:30. No rats had invaded the previous night and we had declared victory.  We had Mari clean the cabinets one last time and were finally able to put our food and kitchen implements back in the cupboards.  After a week of living with everything in boxes and bins on the floors and counters, it was a real relief.

Mari cleaned the house from top to bottom and even mopped the outside patios.  I didn’t get much done while she was there but did manage to clean the front patio and pull the weeds out of the driveway.  Our place was finally coming together.

Cary at the Helm

I left at 2:00 to join Dragon’s Toy for a practice sail before the Banderas Bay Blast.  They hadn’t put up their spinnaker in several years, so we wanted to be sure all was in order.  There wasn’t much wind at first and it was coming from an odd direction.  We kept heading out to sea and finally found an onshore breeze.  We turned downwind and put up the asymmetrical chute.  The launch was successful and we flew it for half an hour or so before getting up the courage to gybe it.  It wasn’t the world’s fastest gybe, but we got it around without mishap and didn’t disgrace ourselves.  We flew it back towards the marina until we ran out of wind and Cary got hungry.  We doused it without dropping it in the water and declared the outing a success.

Sunset in the Marina

Back at the dock, we enjoyed the sunset with beer and snacks.  I didn’t return home until it was completely dark.