Tag Archives: airplanes

Mar18

Destress

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Destress

In the course I’m taking, we have now gone from recognizing habits to stress management. And that is a topic that I’m sure everyone needs help with in their lives right now. But first I’ll digress to the habit that I decided to deal with in this course.

Months ago I decided that I was spending too much time on social media. I stopped scrolling. Next I started unfollowing friends. When I go on Facebook I check out the expat and travel groups I belong to. I check out the writers groups. I tell friends that they need to DM me if they post anything important as I don’t scroll. And I’m now at a point where I follow only a handful of the six hundred friends I have on Facebook. I also dissed Instagram and Twitter long ago.

But the habit I’m focusing on now is cutting back and watching the news online. Talk about stress! Is there anything going on in this world right now that comes close to resembling positivity? Between the wars going on, the politics, the food recalls and the crazy weather………that’s a real cocktail for stress. But the big one for me right now is Boeing.

Door plugs, blown out tires, planes freezing in midair, cracked windshields, missing panels………I can hardly wait to board that flight back home in two weeks! I’ve almost forgotten the days when I used to enjoy flying. Now it’s just the most efficient way to get from point A to point B and it is far from enjoyable.

This is my new strategy. I check my newsfeeds in my email every morning. And when I’m online, as tempting as it is to click on that little news button, I’m limiting that as well. And I’m only reading the headlines. If it’s another article about a plane with a malfunction or an emergency landing for sure I’m going to ignore it. I’m determined to keep my cortisol levels down.

Of course watching the movies on Lifetime may help my Spanish but probably increases that cortisol level. The movies are primarily labelled as thrillers and my Spanish vocabulary now includes words such as stalking, harassing, kidnapping, hostages, nightmares, killers and sexual assault that tend to show up in daily newscasts around the globe but that I hope will never be a part of my own daily life.

Time to meditate. Peaceful. Tranquil. Calming. Think I’ll envision an ocean and billowy clouds today.

Mar9

I’ll Try Anything Once

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I’ll Try Anything Once

Please remind me never to travel during spring break again. I thought I’d never get out of Tucson last Friday. Full flights, full trains and full buses. I wound up getting a shuttle to Phoenix. It kind of reminded me of the collectivos in San Luis Potosi. The driver was Mexican, passengers were all Mexican except for one other gringo who didn’t speak any Spanish. I actually loved that shuttle. I was back in my element again, immersed in Spanish. None of the Mexicans spoke English.

In Phoenix it was the same as Tucson. Full flights and full trains. I managed to get the last seat on a Greyhound bus to Los Angeles. We wound up leaving 3 hours late. The bus had blown a tire on its way from El Paso.

I had a great seatmate on that bus, a woman from Santa Barbara who currently lives in Vegas. We also struck up a conversation with a recovered alcoholic and a recovered drug addict who had both become Evangelists.

I got to LA and surprise, surprise. Couldn’t get on Amtrak. And I didn’t feel like starting up with LAX during spring break. Reluctantly I decided to take my chances with Greyhound again. The agent and I played around with all kinds of combinations of buses but I figured going to Santa Barbara or any other beach town during spring break without a hotel reservation would just be an exercise in futility. So I opted for getting one of the last available seats on a bus to Seattle.

I have to give Greyhound a little credit. Excellent high speed WiFi and great charging stations in the station. Not so excellent Wi-Fi on the bus.

Will I ever travel by bus again? Yes in Mexico on intercity buses. I miss ETN with the single seat and the computer terminal at my seat. But NO to Greyhound in the USA.

I heard horror stories from other passengers about missed connections and ridiculous reroutings. I was one of the more fortunate ones. I actually got to where I was going in a more or less timely fashion.

I Ubered it to my hotel from the bus station in Seattle just after midnight. I love you Crowne Plaza Downtown. A hot shower, a Keurig in my room, and a comfy king bed all to myself. Who could ask for anything more?

And I was able to get on the Amtrak to Leavenworth later that day.

Sep20

Nomad On The Move Again

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Nomad On The Move Again

I’ve enjoyed my time in Aguascalientes. But 6 months became 11. I’m not used to staying in one place for such a long period of time without traveling. But now that travel health insurance has become available again and covers COVID-19 it’s time to move on.

My destination is Leavenworth and I leave tomorrow. I’ve missed my friends and my church family. I can’t wait to see the trees and the mountains again. Autumn is my favorite time of the year.

My major regret is that I haven’t been in Culiacán with my family since December and won’t see my grandsons before heading up north. I’ve never gone so long without seeing them in the last ten years since I’ve been coming to Mexico. And I always squeeze in one last visit before I head north. Leaving feels really strange this year.

The worst part of leaving is always saying goodbye to people. It’s especially hard this year because I don’t know when I’ll be coming back. My familiar pattern of six months here and six months up north has been disrupted by the virus.

In the meantime, let’s take care of each other. Wear your masks, use lots of soap and antibacterial gel and practice physical distancing whenever possible. Above all, avoid crowds.

Stay safe!

Mar15

I’m Staying

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I’m Staying

I have decided to stay here in Aguascalientes rather than return to Canada.

Because of my age and health issues I am in the high risk category.

If I didn’t get sick from COVID-19 from crowded airports and stuffy airplanes, I’d probably get pneumonia from arriving in Winnipeg in shorts and sandals. I haven’t experienced a Winnipeg winter in over ten years.

I opted to do on-line church only today as my city has banned public gatherings.

There is lots of toilet paper here.

I also have the blessing of being able to go outside to the park everyday.

Stay safe everyone and practice whatever preventative measures you are able to.