Not much to be done without electricity. We’re still in Los Altos, but back home when you read this.
There’s no internet; no internet, no programs; no programs, or movies, what’s a person supposed to do?
We went back to bed.
He went right back to sleep; me? I didn’t have the use of my CPAP, so I didn’t sleep. I snore too much, so, in being afraid of waking the whole house, I got up, and have been playing my word search games which only require online access to record the scores.
I am also able to listen to my audible books as they are all downloaded, and do not require the internet.
Lord knows I should take a walk, but that will have to wait until I’ve shed a few kilos over the next few days/weeks/months. I’ll get there, however, slowly, but surely.
Until that, and until the electricity is restored, stay happy, healthy, and safe. Wash, cover, and protect yourselves.
That’s all there is to that. I can’t continue to carry these extra pounds on me. My back just can’t take it anymore. So,
I am going to try making some low carb soups from about 50 recipes I found in a search yesterday. They look delicious. I can’t wait.
As we are still in Veracruz, I can’t start until we return home. I took a “before” photo last night that was horrible, and no, I’m not dumb enough to post it. Suffice it to say that it’s an exceptionally good starting point.
I will share whatever progress I make as I make it. My inactivity is the root cause, so that will be the next thing that changes.
Until then, stay happy, healthy, and safe. Wash, cover, and protect yourselves.
I’ve watched every season, every episode, at least twice, and have now landed on MasterChef México Junior.
It’s a show with 18 kids, several of them quite small, ages 8-13 years old, competing against each for the title of, wait for it, MasterChef Junior.
They cook amazingly well, better, even than many adults I’ve known. Certainly better than me.
The three judges are so patient, and helpful, not only in their encouragement, but their criticism of the kids end products. They always have something constructive to teach the contestants, something for them to learn.
They also teach them to show pride in their heritage, there state, and their country. There are many foods that contain the colors red, white, and green, the colors of the Mexican flag. Pride. The show is full of it.
It is also full of how proud the judges are of the contestants efforts, and how far each has come since the beginning of the competition. Also, they remind each contestant how proud of themselves they should be, as well.
Many of the kids are little girls that scratch, and spit at each other like angry kittens. She’s copying me; she said I should be sent home. She looked at me. It makes me laugh out loud.
The hardest part is listening to their voices. So high pitched, and whiny. Makes me almost want to watch something else. Not giving up just yet, though.
Side note: Chapo is no longer crying, but is being processed for dinner. Gabi went along with his dad, Jesús, and his Abuelito, Ramón, to a neighbor that slaughters animals for them. He is learning the meat he consumes doesn’t come from a cling film covered piece of styrofoam in the grocery store, but a real, live animal. Good for him. Good for them.
In the meantime, stay happy, healthy, and safe Wash, cover, and protect yourselves.
Post script: Liz is pregnant again. Hoping she’ll have another happy, healthy baby. They need a girl this time as their second baby, that died, was a tiny baby girl. Prayers, if you remember. Thanks.
Post post script: one of the young ladies was given a protein known mostly in the Northern states in Mexico as “el rato del campo”, or, as you can probably guess, the field rat. She made a lovely broth, with celery, carrots, a bit of tomato, salt, and pepper, and her pieces of rat legs. The judge said he wouldn’t have minded if she’d shredded the meat off the bones, putting it that way in the soup, but he was really going to have a hard time eating it the way she served it. Let me know what you think.
My husband bought me a pair two weeks ago in anticipation of the week we have just begun here in Veracruz. I poo pooed him for it but am now so very blessed that he did. It’s down to 37°F at night.
Last night, as I wrote about, I started the night in my trusty flannels. Wrong. We we under the mountain of coverings, (also in the post), and it was unbearable. I actually began hyperventilating a bit. He encouraged me to get out of the flannels, and put on the long underwear he bought me. I did as I was bid.
Imagine, if you will, leaving a very warm bed, about 2:30 am, and digging through the backpack that contains your stuff. Then, as if that’s not enough, stripping out of your overly warm flannels, and changing into your ice cold new long johns. Brrrr!
Trust me when I say it was worth every second it took.
They are from Nautica, and I have to say they are amazing. They are so lightweight, and warm, but, if you happen to sweat, which I didn’t, they wick it away from your skin.
As we didn’t sleep the night before we left, we finally got to sleep about 3 am. Didn’t get up until 1:30 pm this afternoon. In fact, el señor has gone back to sleep, bless him.
I forgot to say that we also slept with a short stocking cap on our head, my CPCP straps under the cap. That was the first night of the 10 years I’ve used the mask, that I didn’t lose sleep messing with the straps that hold it against my face. Score!!!
Wait just a minute. I swear I can hear a baby goat crying. Not sure why. Gonna check it out.
There is a baby goat, crying downstairs, in the room off the kitchen. I knew I heard it.
He’s crying because tomorrow he’s going to be dinner for the whole family, on New Year’s Eve. Sorry buddy. Everyone, thank Chapo. I named him that, for the sacrifice he’s going to make.
Can you see him?
I looked all over for him; on the floor, under the table, to the far left, behind some supports, but couldn’t find him anywhere. I asked Sarai, Jesús’ S-I-L, to show me where he was.
Hahaha. Never expected to see him there. At least he’s no longer crying. Good bye Chapo. Thanks again.
Speaking of, we wish all of you a Happy New Year, and a healthy one. Stay happy, healthy, and safe. Wash, cover, and protect yourselves.
Here are the photos I promised of the bacalao we made for NYE.
The final product. It tastes so much better than it looks.
You can see almost all of the ingredients we used; the small potatoes, red bell peppers, capers, parsley, chiles güeros, and the cod. As the cod has been shredded, it is the clumpy stuff you see. It smells like a Mediterranean kitchen here. Can’t wait to dig in.
This is how much 2 k of cod made for us. One 6 qt. pressure cooker full, plus 3 large plastic containers full. The containers are resting in the freezer, and the pressure cooker is in the fridge here. It was Ivan’s bright idea to put it in the pressure cooker so it wouldn’t open, and spill in transit. He’s so smart.
When we get to eating it, I will let you know how that went.
Until then, stay happy, healthy, and safe. Wash, cover, and protect yourselves.
She is Jesús’s mom, who just got home from visiting her oldest son, Ramón, who lives in Cuernavaca, with his family, about an hour and, a half south of Mexico City.
She is the matriarch, not to mention the heart of this family. Everyone is happy to have her here, safe, and sound. Now the end-of-year holiday can really begin.
I’ll keep you posted of the going’s on. Until then, stay happy, healthy, and safe. Wash, cover, and protect yourselves.
A quick follow up: it’s 1:51am, and there’s no sign that anyone is going to bed anytime soon. We, however have been in our room for about 30 minutes, after visiting Liz’ parents, her brother , and his significant other, just after midnight.
We have hugged, and kissed, everyone, (on their cheek, of course), and wished all a prosperous new year.
The music is still playing at a huge decibel number, so, instead of getting upset, as I used to do, we have another drink, and let the night pass as it will.
It will.
Eventually.
At the moment, several very relaxed family members are singing, at the top of their lungs, in the street, in front of the house. Too funny.
We have decided there is absolutely nopoint in trying to sleep so we’re both on our computers, watching whatever comes our way. I am using my iPhone to update this post. 🥳🎉🎊🥂🪅🍾
Happiness, health, and security to all.
Second follow up: it’s now 2:30am without any change. Am looking forward to the end of the night. Hopefully we will be able to get some sleep in a bit. I’m going to bed at 3am. 🥱🥱🥱🥱🥱🛏️🛏️🛏️
Need I say more?Ok. To bed at 3:30am. ???????😱😱😱😱4:00am, and that’s it!!!!Aldo and Angel watching one of our favorites.
The music is back. 🥱🥱😩😂😩😂🥱😩😂🥱
Is there an end to this? We’re older, and can’t stay awake much longer. Even the babies want it quiet. Two are crying as I type this.
5:00am, and I’m putting my deaf ear up, towards the ceiling. Hoping for the best. 😩😩
I’m going to make everyone of them eat Bacalao tomorrow 😡😡😡🤬🤬 Actually, later. 😡
I have to tell you that I have no problem sleeping in a very cold bed, room, or house.
I draw the line, however, at having to sit on an ice cold, 40ºF toilet seat.
It’ll wake you up faster than a swift kick in the rear. Trust me.
We are luxuriating in Veracruz, in our forever home, where the temperature is about 37ºF tonight. Have I mentioned that there is no central heat, electric blankets, etc.?
Well, there isn’t. We are actually wearing a stocking cap on our heads; there’s a first time for everything. He has on wool long johns, flannel pj’s for me. We will be under a flannel top sheet, a wool blanket, and a down-alternative, winter weight comforter inside a heavy flannel duvet.
That all seems copacetic, however, we sleep with a fan blowing on us, at medium speed, mostly for the white noise it provides, pas we both have ears that scream when it is quiet. Ivan’s is from injuries received while in the service; both of his eardrums are scarred terribly,while my right ear is mostly deaf, except for the screaming. Needless to say, we need the noise to negate said screaming.
For us, though, to be here, in our future home, with our wonderful, loving, beautiful family, complete with the Bacalao Navideño that we made, (that very few will probably even taste), is all we really care about. It has been 6 long months since we were here last, and then, it was just me, without him. Bittersweet.
It’s late, 2:45 am, so I will schedule this to post soon. I must tell you, however, the cold temperature makes snuggling really quite enjoyable. Usually my heat, (I’m too fat), next to his heat, minimal, makes me want to implode. Not so here. Yay. Another plus.
Stay happy, healthy, and safe. Wash, cover, and protect yourselves. Drive carefully, always, but especially in inclement weather.
Post script: a very happy birthday to our B-I-L Larry. Felicidades.
Everything is cooked, and ready for assembling a large pot of bacalao to take with us to Los Altos for the New Year.
We leave in four days so I will defrost those items in the freezer starting tomorrow morning, I think.
I have cooked down 2 kg of tomatoes, blended them, put them through a sieve, but have decided not to remove all of the seeds, and skin, as it will make the sauce like a thin tomato sauce. It needs to be more substantial than that. The potatoes are cooked, and in the fridge, along with a jar of roasted, and peeled red peppers that I have roughly chopped. The three large batches of parsley have been stemmed, minced, and are also in the fridge. Yuck. We are not parsley fans.
Here are a few photos of the items going into the stew.
The bag at the top is the 2 kg of salted cod, shredded. The container just below it but in the same bin, is the parsley. The next two containers are 4 onions, diced. 2 kg of papa’s chambray, or baby potatoes, cooked, and ready to go. On the second shelf are the chiles güeros in vinagre. On the bottom shelf, in the container on the left are the red peppers. Next to that are the tree containers of the processed tomatoes. Two jars of capers, and a large container of chopped stuffed green olives. The bag of leafy green, bottom shelf is for another dish, when we return, called Romeritos en mole con camarones.
Hopefully, it will taste better each time it’s reheated, as it has in the past. We usually eat it with a bolillo, sandwich roll, to sop up the juices. The chiles güeros are similar in flavor to a pepperoncini, except just a bit more zing.
Wishing you all the joy, and happiness of the season. Stay happy, healthy, and safe. And warm. Wash, cover, and protect yourselves.
If this rain, today, Christmas Day, was snow, we’d be in a blizzard.
It has been raining, quite heavily, for about 20 minutes at a stretch, almost the entire day. It started as a drizzle last night; this morning, however, it has been raining in earnest. It stops for about 30 minutes, just to start up again.
Not a lot of thunder, unfortunately for me, but one can’t have everything, can one?! Funny that. I have been thinking these past few days how much I have missed the rain, wishing it would rain a bit.
Voilà. It’s raining. I got my favorite present on this Christmas Day.
Stay happy, healthy, and safe. Wash, cover, and protect yourselves.
I know this has been a hard year for some, not for all. For us, here in dream land, it has been wonderful. Thank God.
The politics of the US has been right up there with the CoVid19 pandemic, in terms of the worse things happening in the US this year past. May both get better in the coming year. It could happen.
I have had news, recently, about a few of the folks I used to work with, staff, surgeons, anesthesiologists, that have all had terrible health issues. I am keeping all of you folks in my prayers; families too.
As I said, this year, for us, is the year of famine, as far as “things” go. We only bought one gift for Gabi, and nothing for anyone else. I am going to give my pashmina scarves, 5 of them, to the Garcia women, one for Liz, and Liz’s mom, Alicia, and one for Abelina, Jesús’ aunt, who did a special favor for us. It will be a joy to see their faces when they open them. They are, each, more beautiful than the last one.
We will be here for Christmas, but in Veracruz for the New Year. I’ll post photos as I can, but know that we will be enjoying the heck out of each second we’re there. Can’t wait to move.
Stay happy, healthy, and safe. Wash, cover, and protect yourselves.
Those of you that are working today, thank you so much for what you do, no matter what your job is.
