Monday, May 30, 2011

A Before and After Shot

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The weather continues hot across all of Mexico.  It was a relaxing Sunday after our marathon drive to the border and back. We spent time off and on in the pool cooling off.  The rest of the weekend was like the wild west here in Monterrey if you know what I mean.  Must be the heat.

Today I got up early and went to the gym coming home to my list of activities for the week.  One thing I wanted to do is paint the plastic on the trailer door window and the outside kitchen vent.  It yellowed very badly and looked old and worn out.  

I put up masking tape all around the trim and then covered the area about two feet all the way around the places to be painted.  I didn't want to take any chances with over spray.  It took some time but it was worth it.  Here is a before and after pic.

Before


After


I have seen some rvs with the decals removed leaving the trailer completely white.  The decals are easy to remove but I think I would have to have the trailer professionally cleaned and waxed.  It sat in the sun for a couple of years at a dealer.  I am sure there is a big difference between the gelcoat that is covered by the decals..  Anyway, it is time for a good cleaning and wax job.  I bought some Barkeeper's Friend in Laredo to remove all the stains and streaks but I am still looking for a good wax.  Another project done and another added to the list.

BTW, most of you know that George from Tioga and George will be having surgery tomorrow.  Keep him in mind, I wish him a complete recovery.

Saturday, May 28, 2011

Day Trip To Laredo

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We woke up early this morning around 5:30, coffee was ready and we watched a little news from the U.S.  Local news here doesn't begin until 7 a.m. on weekends.   Showered and hit the road for Laredo, Tx.   Going across town was a quick trip and before we knew it we were on the autopista to Laredo. We had purchased some tacos on the way out of town to eat on the road.  Man were they good.  I had the following; picadillo, nopalitos, papas con chorizo, and salchicha, all on flour tortillas with beans and salsa.  A bit apprehensive at first but we found out that everyone else was going to Laredo too to do a little weekend shopping.

Lots of traffic and the toll booth was without much of a line but the roadside pit stop was full.   Passed an accident between two tractor-trailers, one had clipped the rear end of another and headed off the road and into the median catching on fire.   The fire was out when we got there and the federales were taking the report.  Another trailer had arrived to start moving what material had not been burned in the fire.

At the km 26 we were waved through by the  military and we headed to Laredo through downtown to the original bridge number 1.   We hadn't used that bridge in years and didn't know what to expect.   The downtown area is business as usual, the hustle and bustle of a border crossing town.  Guys on the corners selling newspapers, cleaning windshields looking for a peso or two (it's Saturday and they need the money for their birongas).   Arriving to the bridge we had a wait of about 20 minutes.  Not bad considering it was a Saturday morning.   The walk line was forever long and we needed to turn in an expired permit.  Keeping our fingers crossed we approached the bridge to what appeared to be a very hard-nosed border guard.  He didn't say a word for minutes as he tapped his finger on the computer keyboard waiting for a response on our license plates.   He finally turned and  spoke to us in Spanish until I handed him my American passport.   He looked us over pretty good and I guess realized we were two old bags going shopping.  He asked me to get out and open the trunk and we started a conversation.  He said things were bad on the Texas side but had calmed down on the Mexico side.  I agreed based on what I had heard the week before.

He started to wave us on until I stopped him and asked him about the expired permit.  He said it should have been turned in before the 11th of May but he didn't see a problem.  Juan offered to go into the office and face the consequences and he said not to worry, he would cancel it himself and it was a "no issue".

Off we went.  Walmart, Office Depot, HEB, Eye Mart (contact lenses),  lunch at HEB and we bought a few personal items.  I wanted batteries for the trailer but unbeknownst to me there is no CostCo in Laredo.  We snuck into Sam's Club and by the time you add all the b.s. taxes for batteries it was the same price here at home and we could return them if we have an issue without driving 175 miles.   Oh and the contact lenses, you have to have a prescription and it's "puro chili".  They wanted to charge 109 dollars for an eye exam.  I can order the damn things on line for less than half of what they wanted for the lenses.  I had a free exam at  CostCo in Monterrey plus a free trail pair.  

After that we went back to Office Depot where I had seen a nice Toshiba laptop.  I wanted to think on it for awhile and I did.  Back we went and I got it.  What a deal.  I hope to get it up and running tomorrow.  The one I have now works okay, but it broke into two pieces and you have to prop it up.   Apart from that, it continually changes keyboard setups on its own and no one can figure it out, plus the dam mouse pad is just not right.  You brush across it and you wipe out everything you've written.  Time for a new one.  

Off we headed for the border.  Not a problem on the highway, not a peep out of any one; police, transito, federale, bad guy.  We arrived home safe and sound around 6 p.m.  A great day shopping at the border.

Thursday, May 26, 2011

It's Been A Rough Week

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The heat has been unbelievable.  The temperatures have been hovering between 100F and 104F.  Nights are unbearable without the air conditioner.  I keep an eye on the meter and we have 11 days left on this bill and about 270 kwh left to spend.  That comes out to about 24 kwh per day so we are still ahead of the game.  If I wake up at night I usually turn it off and it stays cool until morning.  The house is much cooler here than in Monterrey.   There it is like an oven although we have come up with a system to shut off most of the house.  Let's face it, block construction is just not insulating.   

At night I open up the house here in the country and by morning, after watering the grass at night, the air is cool and fresh.  That is good until about noon and then I shut things down.  

The air conditioning unit in our house in San Antonio is on the blink and our very patient tentant is doing her best to deal with it.   We kind of got into it via email and then we called a truce.  She's a good egg raising two kids and a sister and works her butt off.  I need to cut her some slack.  We were hoping the people who did the original install of the central unit would be able to find the time to check it out but I guess service calls in a heat wave are off the charts.   I told our tenant to find somebody and get them out there to check it.  

We were going to go there but what can we do?  Not a whole lot and it is a six hour trip.   We decided we may just drive up to Laredo this weekend.  We need to get the batteries for the rv, my contacts are much cheaper there plus some vitamins.   A mini get-away for a day or two and we can go out for a nice dinner and a movie.  

A lot is going on around here and it is a fact that in our town things are calming down quite a bit.  Looks like the bad guys have moved on and are now terrorizing other parts of the metro area.  Also, tons of construction projects are slated for here that will bring some well-needed investment along with people who we hope will want to live here.  

July is around the corner and we are chomping at the bit.  Get those batteries installed, then the shower doors.  I am going to paint the yellowed plastic on the door window and the kitchen vent.  Looks cheap with the yellowed plastic against the white walls.

What else can I tell you about this week.  Read the border land beat blog and you will get the rest of the story.   I did a teacher training today for two hours.  It got me out of the house and into town, although I had just spent the night there.  We watched a bizarre movie that I highly recommend, Pi.  Man, Juan really knows how to pick bizarre movies, I love it.

Monday, May 23, 2011

Generator Oil Change

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I've been putting off an oil change on the Honda 2000 generator.  It had about 100 hours on it and it was due for a change.  We rarely use it and when we did it was to run the window unit air conditioner on the other travel trailer.   I've used it a couple of times here at home when the power has gone out, hooking it up to an extension cord through to the bedroom for cable, tv, fan, and lights.  Works great!

I put it off not because I'm not capable, but there is always that fear of the unknown.  So I went on line to YouTube and watched a couple of DIY videos.  Some good, some wierd but they got the job done.  I used a funnel (imbudo en espaƱol) to drain the oil just like in the video, a piece of cake.   Well, first I cleaned up around the dip stick before doing anything.   There is sand in the bottom of the case, don't know how I'm going to get that out, but that was from all our great adventures along the coast of Tamaulipas.  Oh, those were the days.  I measured the oil I took out so that I wouldn't overfill the reserve and then kept adding from there.  After that, I cleaned the filters and put it all back together.   

I filled up the gas tank and let 'er rip.  Runs like a charm.   I even hooked it up to the trailer for a bit and tested the roof air.  13.5 air conditioner is just too big.  I know on some it will work but on ours it ran for about five minutes and then went into overload and the air shut down.   Who cares?  I hate roof air conditioners.  They are so noisy, apart from the vibration and droning.  We will be taking it with us and using the window unit in the bedroom.  No changes have to be made as the existing materials I used fit the same window.   I am going to make a new shelf as the other one looks a bit tacky.

Now is when I wish I lived in Canada.  Kevin and John could help me cut out cabinets on the shell of the trailer to install room for two 5000 btu air conditioners, one in the kitchen and one in the bedroom.  Did you ever see the cabinet air conditioners on a Trailmanor?  What a brilliant idea.  


You can see the vent cover on the side of this Trailmanor.  Inside under the kitchen counter was a 12, 000 btu window unit, nicely encased in cabinetry.  It had a drain pan underneath and could easily be removed for cleaning and maintenance.   The best part was you could downgrade or upgrade the size or replace it and it didn't cost you 600 dollars.   For me it was genius, one of the things that sold us on our Trailmanor.  Nowadays all TMs come with roof air.  It was done originally as a solution so that the two shells could close.   They overcame that about eight years ago.  There is a new unit called a Cool Cat (?) that is being used in smaller TTs and Class Bs that is a cabinet air too.

Anyway, if I had any "huevos" I would hire someone to do that for our trailer.  Reduced clearance, much less weight, easily powered by the generator and you could select which area or both you wanted to cool.

Sunday, May 22, 2011

Bedroom Slideout Sconce Lighting Resolved

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If you haven't answered the polling question in the top right hand corner, please do so.  Thanks!



Carol said:

Is it possible that it's a 1142 bulb and not 1156? In our 5th wheel ..our wall lamps have dual contacts and the rest of the unit has single contacts.. I hope it's as simple as this..I read and enjoy your blog regularly.. Good luck..Carol  

And you know what?  She was right.  Boy do I feel stupid.   I took off the light from the wall and took a good look inside the bulb socket and sure enough, two contacts.  Thanks Carol.

Now I need to find a good LED replacement, these things burn hot.   What I think happened was that they put in bulbs at the dealer maybe, just to fill the socket not knowing it needed double contact bulbs.  So when I got it and turned them on, kablooie, it blew a fuse.   And yes, I did go out two weeks ago and pickup a handful of fuses.

So now, one less thing to worry about.  Lessoned learned.  Stop, Look and Listen. 

I was wondering just how much it would have cost me to have Angela shipped here via Fed-X,  hmmmm. 
 

Saturday, May 21, 2011

Working On The RV

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As I mentioned the other day, it is time to get to the mods I want to do for the rv before we leave for our trip in July.  Man, I can't wait.  Any who, one of the problems I mentioned was the fact that the sconce lighting on each side of the bedroom slideout blow a fuse when you turn them on.

John posted a comment saying that I should open them up and take a look at the wiring.   I also received an offer from a Funfinder owner on our Funfinder Owners Forum   who has offered to work with me over Skype to see if  we can find the problem.  I've decided to post a couple of pictures in hopes someone can recommend something.
 .
Here is the problem.  The sconces are part of the slideout.  They hold regular 1156 type bulbs.  I put in a bulb, hit the individual light switch and you can here the fuse blow in the converter center.  This is a 20 amp fuse for the bedroom slideout.   It is indicated on the panel.  

I have removed the wood panel from underneath the bed to gain access to the wiring which runs under the bed.  There are no crimped wires and everything looks normal.  The wiring runs through the walls for the lights. 







Thursday, May 19, 2011

July Couldn't Come Fast Enough

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The heat is back after a few days of rain. It never really rained but it sprinkled and drizzled for three days.  The air was cool and the grass got a good soaking.  It is now nice and green and I will give it a trim tomorrow.

It has been a busy but boring week.  I prepared for a presentation at a local university.  A coworker came from Mexico City and asked me to standby should she need help.  I got there early and waited around on the empty campus.  I left the house ahead of time to pay the cable, my taxes and to get the car washed.  I still waited about an hour.  I talked to one of the guards to pass the time.  He approached me, I didn't go looking for someone to talk to.

This presentation was a competition between publishers.  There were four different pubishing houses there and we each had 45 minutes to talk about and demonstate our text and its components.

So that took up most of the week preparing.  I spent the night in Monterrey and we rented a movie and split a slice of CostCo pizza with a salad. 

Today I painted two doors, one on the laundry room and one on the room in the corner of the quinta that we use for storage.  I also cleaned the trim on this corner room as the water runs off of the roof and leaves a dark stain.  I used a wire brush and scraped most of it off.

So what is this talk about July?  Well, we have agreed to workcamp at an rv park outside of Guadalajara.  I am hoping it is for more than a month.  If it isn't we will take a month coming back home, or return for a day or two and take off for Texas. 

I have a couple of mods I want to make to the trailer befor we go.  First off, it needs batteries so that may mean a trip to Laredo.  I want to add a PVC holder for the stinky slinky.  We only have one outside compartment and I want to cover it with that black matting that has the circles on it.  Does it have a name?   Also, I am looking for some estimates to add a shower enclosure.  I'm tired of shower curtains in small showers that cling to my butt when I turn on the exhaust fan when showering.  The lights on the sides of the bedroom slideout still blow a fuse when I turn them on and I have taken the bed apart and have found no problems with the wiring being crimped.  Not sure what the problem is.

So tomorrow is yard work and pool cleaning.  Anybody want to trade?

Wednesday, May 18, 2011

Blogger and SiteMeter Issues

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I found the problem with the SiteMeter.  While Blogger was down, the HTML code for sitemeter disappeared from my blog.   It was an easy fix.  I had sent an email to SiteMeter but it took them forever to respond and when they did they claimed I hadn't given them sufficient information.  I cancelled the call letting them know what I had done.

Since then Blogger keeps playing games with my posts.  In the dashboard section, the last two posts reappear in the "draft" version as well.  I have deleted the "draft" versions twice now and they continue to reappear on their own.

I also made some page changes.  While trying to discover the problems I was having, I vieweed the blog a couple of times.  I found the dark background was doing a number on my eyes.  I changed the background as well as the layout.   I think it is working better. 

I have posted a new poll in the upper right hand corner regarding the legalization of drugs.  Please take a moment to answer it.  Thanks.

Monday, May 16, 2011

Times Have Changed

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Today I stopped by the immigration office in Monterrey.  I didn't get there until about 11:30.  Ten years ago there would have been a line a mile long and all the seats filled in the lobby where we waited for quite a long time.  Today, I signed in, went to the information desk and got taken care of in less than 2 minutes.  I also noticed that there were immigration officials walking around helping people, four people seated waiting to be helped and about 6 at various points at the counter.  Monterrey is a big city and we have a lot of people from different countries here working and tons of students, mostly in medicine.

I went for information to renew my FM2 "inmigrado".  My poor little book is ten years old and the cover finally fell off and there is room for one more stamp to exit and enter the country.  We want to make a trip to San Antonio in a couple of weeks but I want to get this done as soon as I return. Now they issue a mica or carnet instead of the booklet.

Amazing!  It used to be three copies of everything, bank statements, passports, FM2, on and on.  I'm not speaking for all transactions but this time around I need just one copy of my passport picture page, same for the FM2, 5 passport photos, the application and the payment.  Two weeks maximum.  It took me six months to change from an FM3 to an FM2 15 years ago.

Very smooth operation.  I'm sure offices vary around the country but I thought it was worth mentioning in times when Mexico is getting a bad rap.

Sunday, May 15, 2011

Thank God Almighty I Can See At Last

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Today is Teacher's Day in Mexico.   We got up early and went to Toks for breakfast.  The place was packed.   Stopped by the hospital to see a friend's mother who has a brain tumor and not doing well.   More on the IMSS hospital another day. 

On the way home I suggested we stop by Costco.   As we walked in we passed the optometry department.  I had mentioned before that one of my brothers had contacts for reading and I had really wanted to see how much they were.  Well guess what?  

They gave me a couple of tests and gave me a free pair of disposible contacts that last for a month and I don't have to take them out at night.  The only thing I can't do is swim under water without goggles.   I can't believe how well I can see.  I keep wanting to put on my glasses but I don't  have to.  This is the first time in years I can use my laptop without seeking out my glasses.  I have to go back next Saturday so they can take them out and relubricate them and they are good again.  After that I make my decision.   Free, can you imagine that.

BTW, any bloggers out there having problems with SiteMeter?  My hasn't registered anything for two days now.  I know that blogger was down but something is not quite right. 

Friday, May 13, 2011

I'm Starting To Understand Hatred

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It's an ugly word but one that has been around since the beginning of time.  I used to wonder why or how someone would hate another person.  It becomes clearer the longer this war continues.  Imagine, here I am, stuck right in the middle of it.  Who would have ever thought.  But here I am.  I don't think I hate the people, I think I hate their attitude, their lack of responsibility, and most of all their thoughtlessness for other human beings.  You think I'm talking about the criminals don't you?  I'm not.  I'm thinking about all the selfish bastards who use drugs.  Those are the ones that the anger, bitterness and hatred is geared toward.  They actually laugh in the face of all of this.  

In a recent thread on the Rv.Net regarding Hemp Week, (yes, I know that marijuana and hemp are two different plants but alot of dumb asses don't) people began posting about their youth or the fact that they still imbibe from time to time.  I guess they thought it was cute.  Maybe forty years ago it was cute and it wasn't as harmful as it is today.

On our last trip to San Antonio a friend made reference to wanting to smoke some dope.  I know he does it a lot and probably all day.  I let him know how I felt and it was as if I had stepped on his rights.  He went on to assure me that his pot was local so it wouldn't do anyone any harm.  Some people always look for a way to justify their actions.  Sweet isn't it?

I have a family member who is a meth addict.  Has been for over 20 years and has spent most of those years trying to get clean.  Several rehabs but most of it involves lies and deceit.  My own sister just left a rehab for alcohol and I don't know if there was anything else going on.  She quit, or should I say they quit her.  She wasn't even there a week.  Her son may be part of this never ending story also.  So that it sounds better, there are ten siblings in my family.   I guess that makes it not so bad, if you know what I mean.  1 out of 10.  Right.   The interesting part of drug use today is that people love to talk about their rehab experience.  In fact, they love to brag about how many times they have been through a program. They even produce "funny" shows about it.  It appears everyone is in on it these days to the point where it is fashionable.  Need I remind you of the numerous Hollywood stars who have been through the revolving door of rehab.  They practically laugh in the face of death.

So this takes me to another stage in the hatred game, people's rights.  Everytime a discussion comes up about Mexico and the U.S., Americans start talking about their ever so holy constitution.  Big deal.  It was written in a matter of days over a lengthy and drawn out period of time, thrown together by a group of very wealthy people who were slave owners and as it turns out some of them weren't the christians they were purported to be instead believing in UFOs.  Afterall, we live in a global society.  Don't you think it would make sense to make some changes that would bring a country's constitution up-to-date?  It's funny how a person's right to bear arms has now become a big business of gun trade and export being permitted by the government allowing 6500 gun shops to open along the U.S. border knowing that the majority of the gun sales are being shipped illegally to Mexico.  Thanks for helping us but I think we are better off working alone.  Remember what Obama said, "I think it is time that the U.S. curtail it's illegal drug use".  Man, that's a statement that should go down in history.  My oh my, how committal!

Let's not forget before someone else reminds us that those darn Mexicans keep coming across the border illegally.  Well, they used to.  Now they pretty much have realized that the money isn't there anymore.   We sure hate them destroying the good ole U.S. of A but we sure as heck don't mind them building cheaper houses, food, clothing, mowing our lawns and cleaning our houses, now do we, not to mention going out for cheap Mexican food on the other side of town.  If I were living to the north I would be a bit worried now about who is crossing the border.  They aren't the guys who are going to cut the grass or clean the house.  I should write this stuff down.  I said over a year ago that all this was going to happen and it did.  Or maybe I am a simpleton and everyone already knew it was going to happen and they just turned the other way.   Needless to say, it is growing stronger everyday and I pray that the U.S. can get it under control.

I'm starting to feel my rights are being trampled on too.  I didn't create this mess and I along with many other people are paying a hefty price.  I was planning on an early retirement of which now I am contemplating returning to work in the fall.  It is a hard decision.  Today I was invited to spend a romantic weekend at a spa on the northside of Monterrey on the way to Saltillo.  Dinner, thermal springs, star-gazing with professional astronomer, fancy room with a jacuzzi and an hour and a half massage Saturday morning.  I blew it in more ways than one.  I said we shouldn't be spending 500 dollars for an overnighter right now.   I feel like a heel. You see Sunday is Teacher's Day.  Here in Mexico it is a big thing and we are both teachers.   But, I am concerned about what the future will bring.  We can't sell the house or any other property, and that was part of our retirement package.  I feel like we should squirrel away some more cash.   I'm not saying we should sit at home and sulk all day but what should we do?   Funny, up until a year ago friends thought it was so cool that I lived in Mexico and always supported me.  Now it's "you should have never moved there, what a mistake, we never understood why you did that".  Great, thanks for the support.

When talking about what a wonderful life I had here in Mexico, I would joke around by saying  that someday it would bite me in the ass and I would have to go back to the states and become a Walmart greeter.  It is looking like more of a reality as time goes on.  

I can now understand why some people hate those who throw their rights around in other people's faces.  Especially when their rights come at such a cost to others around the world.  So much for a global society.  People aren't going to get away with laughing in the face of death.  And that my friends is what it has brought to Mexico.

Wednesday, May 11, 2011

Did You Know This?

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I guess I have been so wrapped up in what is going on here at home I didn't realize things were  so bad in the U.S.  I watched several videos yesterday and read some articles saying that Phoenix is the kidnap capitol of the U.S.  That really took me by surprise.  I knew things were spreading north but not like this. They say in Phoenix there is an average of one a day.  That's scary.  

America's Kidnap Capitol

Monday, May 9, 2011

What I Discovered In a Flight Magazine Yesterday

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Yesterday morning (I wrote this on Sunday morning) I flew to Chihuahua to teach a three hour course.  Funny, we finished at 3 p.m., went for lunch at the mall, and I was back home by 9 p.m.  A long day no doubt and I could have spent the night on either side of Saturday but I wanted to be at home.  Sunday is when I read my Rv.Travel newsletter.  It comes on Saturday now but I save it for my Sunday morning.

On the flight yesterday, I went out on VivaAerobus which offers discount flights.  The only gripe I have is if you don't get there on time or what they consider 2 hours before the flight, they shake their finger at you and tell you that you can't board the flight.  I got there an hour early and they didn't say anything.  The airline flies 737-300s and although it is a discount airline, their planes are roomy and super clean.  They offer a menu with breakfast, lunch, snacks, good coffee for 10 pesos with a free refill, beer for 35 and cocktails for 40 pesos.  Cheaper than a U.S. airline and you don't go hungry like on Southwest.

Once I am awake I don't go back to sleep.  Being an early  morning flight everyone was sacked out and I was wide awake.   I did some work and then started reading their in-flight rag.  Turns out, it was a very interesting find and here are some things I found:

For all of their destination cities they have a guide that includes activities, food, night life and things not to miss.  I know most of it is advertising for those establishments but I found that in Culiacan that the tacos sold on the street are supposedly a real treat, namely vampiros y pellizcadas.  I've had many tacos in my life and some in Culiacan but I don't think I have tried these.  So it has sparked my interest.

Another tidbit of interest is the constant advertising in not only in the VivaAerobus magazine but also Aeromexico is for the Chepe, the train which runs through Chihuahua.  They now show a picture of the train along with the new cable car that takes you down into the canyon.  I think that if you check Les' blog, MexicoKid, you will find a write he did when he passed through the Copper Canyon last month on his return to Canada.  One company is offering packaged tours from under 6800 pesos including the train, hotel, food and transfers.

Surprisingly enough, there is advertising for my town of Santiago, once or still is a pueblo magico promoting geo-tourism, climbing, camping and backpacking, and cabin rentals.  I am guessing there is a big push to promote the area and bring back tourists.  I had the opportunity to speak with a couple of local business owners at the gym last week after returning from vacation.  The burning question on my mind was if Semana Santa had drawn tourists as in previous years.  The answer was yes.  They all agreed that it is one year on and one year off and this happened to be the on year and by the way some of the younger kids with university studies are actually tracking it as part of their family business plan.  I thought that was interesting.

Another thing I would like to try is cooking classes in Oaxaca.  Again, you learn something new everyday.  Most classes are just one day and it includes all your materials starting at 50 dollars.  The best part is you get to eat what you prepare.   I always wanted to know how to make a mole from scratch.  

Normally I read my book but I was so tired I just kind of thumbed through the magazine.  Good thing I did.  I know I still have a lot to see and do in Mexico but adding it to the list is another thing. 

Monday, May 2, 2011

They Say Things Are Heating Up

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Coming back from the store today I was listening to the afternoon news cast that is broadcast on the radio simultaneously.  Supposedly while we were basking in the sun in Southern Baja a group threw malotov cocktails into three different conveniece stores just minutes from where we live.  One store suffered major damage.  I am assuming it is because the store chain refuses to pay the extortion fee that the bad guys are requesting.

Also, nearby Allende where we had purchased land and had hopes one day of building our new home, is now considered a hotbed of nightly activity and violence.  

Now that they have killed Osama, maybe they can concentrate on things closer to home.   It is just a matter of time and the whole story will be revealed.  All that is happening here has already begun  across the border and the bad guys have moved into Chicago, Miami, New York, Phoenix, Los Angeles, and over 250 U.S. cities.  Safe houses with kidnapped hostages have already been found, murder rates are up and even armed groups in SUVs.  Maybe someone will help us.

Today I posted the comment below on rv.net .  I was not very happy when I wrote it:

I agree about passing through Tamaulipas. Sad, it used to be our favorite boondocking spot up until a year ago. Really hacks me off. We parked freely on beaches, in mountain areas, parks like El Cielo, Tamuin just across the border in SLP, La Pesca, El Soto, Barra del Tordo, and we were welcomed with open arms by locals, Mennonites in Gonzalez, etc. The list goes on.

But it seems the message still isn't sinking in. The cartels exist for a reason and I can't for the life of me understand why Mexico doesn't stand up to their neighbor to the north. The policia federal confiscated 100,000 weapons in the last year, 58,000 the AK and AR type and that doesn't include all the weapons confiscated by police and military. 36,000 people have been killed in the last four years of which 98 percent are cartel members and their thugs.

Even if local police weren't corrupt, they would still be out done by the massive weaponry which enters Mexico and is purchased from U.S. gun stores, mostly from those 6,500 that have opened in the last five years along the U.S. border, how they got the permits to open those stores is beyond me.

How long are people on this forum and the countries of Canada and the U.S. going to beat this horse to death before they accept their reality and the fact that all the above exists because of insatiable appetites for drugs to the tune of 40 billion dollars a year. These drugs aren't entering the U.S. in the behinds of mules or people. It is coming across in cargo containers, aircraft, jumbo jets, and even submarines. Very strange for countries that have high technology, advanced weaponry, and military discipline.

We here in Mexico, myself included, are paying a heavy price for the freedom of a group of individuals who believe it is their right to use drugs.

Now, common folk like myself can't even leave our homes at night much less take a vacation in our rv. It's truly shameful, sinful and unforgiveable.

¡Ya basta! 
 Memories of Barra del Tordo, Tamaulipas