Monthly Archives: January 2023

Jan29

A Different Post

Posted on by
Standard
A Different Post

This isn’t the post I had intended to write today. However I feel the need…..no actually I want to write about this today. So please bear with me.

Life is complicated. Families are complicated. As a mother there is always that need to protect your kids, even when they’re adults and have kids of their own. And it makes it even harder when you live thousands of miles away in a different country.

Something happened last week and my kids were caught in the middle. And I am so incredibly proud of them that they did the right thing. Maybe I did do something right when they were growing up. At least I’d like to think that was the case.

It’s difficult enough attending an event like they did in the first place. The extenuating circumstances made things awkward and uncomfortable for them. But they did it.

My close friends back in Winnipeg will know the details. They understand the situation and also admire my kids for doing what they did. There is no need to go into more detail than that.

I had a video call with my kids yesterday. It was the best way possible to wrap my arms around them and hug them. Somehow the miles disappeared for that short time. Technology enables us to send love wherever in the world we are.

Okay. That’s my post for today.

Have a great Sunday!

Jan25

Coming Up

Posted on by
Standard
Coming Up

I looked at the date on the calendar last night and wondered how come I have only two months left until I head back up north. The time is flying by way too fast. And the older I get the faster it goes.

I fly out of Guadalajara and will be back in East Wenatchee two months from today. Other than my trip to Culiacan, I haven’t done any other traveling this winter. I hope to go to Puerto Vallarta next month but that’s about it. I’ve focused on writing this winter and I’ve taken some courses online. So travel has pretty much been on the backburner this winter.

Tonight I’m doing a library program online from Washington. It’s about Mount St Helens 40 years after the blast. It should be interesting. And I’ll be participating in a Women’s study with Church of the Rock in Winnipeg for the next six weeks. Whatever did we do before we had Zoom?

I’m also going to be taking another psychology course but I haven’t registered for that one yet. I’m still trying to decide. There are so many available and they all appeal.

Duolingo……. I haven’t forgotten you either. I’ve actually come out of retirement and have referred you to a new student who is anxious to learn English. Such a fun place to learn a language!

But I do find time for friends too. I’m meeting a friend from Portland for lunch today. We haven’t seen each other since King’s Day and that was earlier in the month before I went to Culiacan.

Happy Humpday!

Jan22

Happy Sunday

Posted on by
Standard
Happy Sunday

It’s been a good week. No crazy emails from Canadians abroad. The trip back from Culiacan was uneventful. Even the internet connection has been behaving itself.

One of my friends went back to Toronto this week so we had one last lunch together. She’s thinking of heading off to Europe. Meanwhile she sent me a photo of a Chinese New Years celebration. That brought back some memories. I haven’t seen that anywhere I’ve lived in Mexico.

I’ve been terrible about phone calls this year. I do have a long distance plan but somehow have been doing a lot more texting this year. But I did call a friend in Leavenworth and a friend in East Wenatchee this week. And it was great to hear their voices and catch up on the news although unfortunately it wasn’t all good.

Yesterday I got together with another friend from Calgary. We hadn’t seen each other in quite a while so we had a lot to catch up on. We were in the Jardin De San Marcos and somehow three hours flew by.

I’ve still been spending a lot of time writing. And at crazy hours and times. The other night at 3:30 am I found myself eating a salad and drinking coffee. I just lose track of time. Good thing I put alarms in my phone to remind me to eat!

The only routine thing I do is online church on Sundays. I haven’t decided which college course to take yet this month but I’m going to look for one with some flexible times. Thankfully Duolingo is around 24/7.

Have a great Sunday!

Jan18

Whirlwind Weekend

Posted on by
Standard
Whirlwind Weekend

I just returned from a fabulous weekend in Culiacan with my family. And I’ll add that it’s the highlight of my winter in Mexico this year.

Culiacan. This is the city where my Mexican adventure began back in 2010. When I first arrived, my Spanish vocabulary was extremely very limited to Cerveza fria por favor. Juan wanted to improve his English and I desperately needed to learn some Spanish. We both taught at Senda and would meet in the library where Juan patiently helped me read children’s books.

At the time he and his wife Lucila had one child. Juan Carlos had just turned one. The family has grown and they now have four boys. And I have four nietos.

On Saturday night my granddaughter Madeline called me from Kelowna. This was a really special video call because she got to meet my Mexican family. She was a tad overwhelmed as the boys were eager to talk in English to her and one even showed her a picture he had colored. Madeline commented that it was a little crowded with everyone in the room. She is an only child so it is very different.

The boys were all excited to see her and commented on her blond hair. I have always talked about Madeline to them and it was nice that they all had a chance to meet. We’ll have to do it again the next time I go to Culiacan.

One of our favorite pastimes is playing board games. This weekend we played Uno and Scrabble. We play in Spanish and English.

The boys are learning English at school. Juan Carlos received a certificate from Cambridge recently. I helped Jose Agustin with his homework over the weekend, another of my favorite things to do when I visit.

Although I’m not Catholic, I always go to mass with my family. Sunday evening we were at La Lomita. My ten year old grandson was sitting beside me with his arm around me and his head resting on my shoulder. He looked up at me and said “Grandma I love you” and gave me a kiss on the cheek. Life just doesn’t get any better than that.

Jan15

My Life Story

Posted on by
Standard
My Life Story

How is this for a word prompt? Write your life story using one word per event. No numbers. Abbreviations if places or events have more than one word. Use commas to separate words. Here goes!


Born, Winnipeg, girl, May, Aberdeen, Brock, house, Herzlia, WO, RH, GP, RMH, UWC, UM, MEC, Sarina, apartment, HSC, Skin, PBC, Charlesdale, apartment, Savoy, house, dog, boy, girl, Dunbar, house, Misericordia, Surgery, Grace, Surgery, RRCC, OB, Parkside, house, KTC, HC, CCH, Dash, UM, Freedom, Crestview, house, Culiacan, Senda, Winnipeg, Irapuato, CA, Tlaquepaque, Culturlingua, Winnipeg, Concordia, Knee, Tlaquepaque, GLC, IC, Winnipeg, Concordia, Knee, Tlaquepaque, IC, AFDW, Mazatlan, AS, ES, Leavenworth, Mazatlan, GDL, Eyes,, Leavenworth, SC, SLP, AGS, Leavenworth, AGS, Peshastin, Dryden, AGS, Wenatchee, Leavenworth, East Wenatchee, AGS

So how well do you think you know me?

Jan11

Ho Hum Humpday

Posted on by
Standard

I hope this actually gets posted today. The internet has been extremely unreliable here this week. I think it’s been down more than it’s been up. Very frustrating. It just comes and goes but mostly goes.

But then I got to thinking. Whatever did I do before I had WiFi? I couldn’t ask Alexa for the weather forecast or to tell me one of her corny jokes.

Synonym and antonym checker. Definitions. An actual dictionary in the form of a book.

Calendars. Paper ones that hang on a wall or sit on a desk.

Emails. Nope, snail mail that involved a letter and a stamp and finding a mailbox.

News. 11 o’clock on TV. Not available 24/7 by merely tapping a key.

Taking a course or going to church. In the comfort of my own home. No need to go out in nasty weather. Don’t even have to get dressed.

I could go on but I won’t. But I will say that I’ve become extremely reliant on my dear friend the internet teetering on the edge of addiction.

What about you?

Well, it appears that I’ll have to post this using the data on my phone plan. Wi-Fi is down yet again in the house. But it is working on my phone. Unfortunately I don’t have Alexa on my phone. I wonder if she misses me.

Jan8

An Interesting Week

Posted on by
Standard
An Interesting Week

Coffee revives me in the morning when I get up. It prepares me for the day that lies ahead, whatever that may happen to be. I don’t have regular structured activities when I’m in Mexico. My life is very different from when I’m back in East Wenatchee. There are lots of white spaces on my calendar that hangs on the wall. And that leaves me more time for writing.

Then Thursday morning happened. I admit I don’t always check the newscasts first thing in the morning. So it wasn’t until later on that I found out about the violence in Culiacan. My initial reaction was an emotional one. My Mexican family live there. Culiacan is a pretty wild city at the best of times and I must admit that I’m always concerned about their safety. But on Thursday the concern became fear as I saw the video footage of the the city under siege.

Shelter in place. I lived in Culiacan the first year I came to Mexico so that phrase is familiar. But when I heard that the entire state of Sinaloa was shutting down, that really bothered me. Highways and airports were closed. The military were firing at the cartel from the air. I had lived in Mazatlan for four years and had never experienced anything like this. Hurricanes suddenly don’t seem like such a threat anymore. I can only imagine the terror tourists felt trapped in their hotel rooms.

Thankfully I was able to reach Juan by phone and found out that my family was safe at home. The entire city was shut down. The only ones roaming the streets were Cartel members seeking revenge because one of their leaders had been captured. Culiacan was littered with burning vehicles and the sound of gunfire echoed throughout the city. An Aeromexico jet sitting on the tarmac was riddled with bullet holes. A cloud of black smoke filled the air.

I was supposed to go to Culiacan on Friday. My family had invited me to come celebrate King’s Day with them. I’m not sure just why, but I had decided to postpone my trip and come the following week. I believe someone up there was looking out for me and it wasn’t just a go with your gut feeling.

The airport is back open, public transit is moving, kids are going back to school tomorrow……………………typical normal daily life in Culiacan. I have my tickets and I do plan to go to Culiacan this Friday. Unless something astronomically crazy happens again.

Jan4

Bienvenido 2023

Posted on by
Standard
Bienvenido 2023

Happy New Year! I hope you had an enjoyable holiday and are now embracing the new year with open arms. I know I am and can’t wait to see what’s in store for me in 2023.

Have you thought about new year’s resolutions? I have and am sure not going to make any. I’ve talked to friends who are eagerly writing some down. The way I see it, no matter how realistic they look on paper, they never seem to pan out the way they were planned.

The only resolution that makes any sense to me is to be a better person than I was last year. And that is something I need to keep in my heart rather than write down on a piece of paper.

I keep seeing on Facebook pics of all the snow in Washington state. The mountain passes seem to be closed more often than they’re open. Keep safe up there people!

I’m headed for the bus station later today to buy tickets. I’m planning on going to Culiacan to visit my family later this month. I can’t wait to hug my grandkids! I saw them last February before I headed back to the USA. I’m sure that two of my four grandsons are now taller than me.

Friday is King’s Day. My Mexican friend Angie told me the story behind it. There’s a lot more to this day than looking for the baby Jesus hidden in the bread. Catholics believe that the Three Wise Men were looking for the baby Jesus to protect him. Pilate was afraid that Jesus would take over his kingdom so he ordered that all children under the age of two were to be killed.

That’s it for week one in January.

Have a great Wednesday!