Sunday, January 24, 2021

Sweet life with little DRAMA!


 The changing of the guard in Washington has led many to admit they can sleep soundly now without worrying if someone might accidentally push the nuclear button, went to war with North Korea or Iran or whoever, and had not fired Fauci!

Of all the emotions that went through me this past week, relief was the number one emotion.  

Today I realized that this time last week we didn't know if the inauguration would go off without a hitch or a bomb or an assassination or who knows what.  

Thankfully none of those things happened on the sunny, snowy day other then the beautiful rituals that we have enjoyed for as long as we have been alive.

My first inauguration that I watched was Eisenhower!  We were living with my grandparents in Chicago while our new house was being built.  ALL of us, my grandfather, grandmother and I watched it in their little library/TV room.  Since I remembered that my grandfather was there I wonder if he was off work from RCA Victor because of the inauguration.  Usually he left home before I even got up in the morning and came home late.  Anyway, it is a memory of togetherness and pride in our country.

It felt good to watch and have a general idea of what was going to come in the rituals.  

Nothing prepared me for the Poet Laureate, Amanda Gorman.  She was like golden sunshine in her yellow coat and red Prada headband.  Then when her mouth opened and the most exquisite poem was told to us by her in her eloquent voice, I literally had tears in my eyes!  Wow, the gift of the day! Truly.

I have since seen an interview with Anderson Cooper and Amanda.  Her eloquence and her incredible intellect came though leaving Anderson almost speechless.  She is a Harvard graduate.  Not only was her poem beautiful but the lasting image of her self assured behavior was refreshing.

What a lovely day and evening.  One that will hopefully erase the horrible and shocking images of January 6th eventually.

It is also refreshing to see that actions are being taken to bring the covid crisis into the forefront with an attempt to get more equipment and vaccines.  Let's hope that happens quickly although it seems that it will take time.  If we have some sense of normalcy by next Fall, to me that will be success.  Sooner would be better but realistically it doesn't seem possible. I SO hope I am wrong.

On to other subjects!  The weather here has been extremely mild this winter.  Skies blue, temperatures usually in mid 40's at night with highs in the mid 70's to low 80's.  Ojala!  In another four weeks it is doubtful we will still have 40's at night as our spring begins usually by the end of February.

One of the milestones of this time of year is Candelaria.  Hundreds of plant vendors come from all over Mexico with every plant imaginable.  Gorgeous orchids, bromeliads, tulips, hyacinths, bourganvillas. The market is set up in a park setting and is usually here for two weeks.  Sadly NOT this year!  Oh my what a disappointment.  I understand because no events have happened since last March which would cause groups of people to congregate.  Sad but true.  

We are still in the "red" zone which means there are still many closures and people are not supposed to leave home except for essential activities.  Oy vey. Most are complying as we hear of friends and family members of friends dying.  It is very sobering.  In San Miguel we now have had 118 deaths with two more in the last day.  Shocking.

Turning inward to continue reading, talking on the phone to friends and family, gardening and cooking along with watching TV is the daily regime.  Oh and sitting in the garden in the beautiful sunny, warm weather.

Hopefully you are finding ways to move forward daily!  Sometimes it does feel like a slog.......

If I could be somewhere else, this is where I would like to be.  On this little bay in the tiny village of La Manzanilla on the Pacific Ocean.  Maybe next year!



 


 





13 comments:

crynoutloud said...

Hey Babs,
Chicago was a big electronics manufacturing city back in the day. RCA, Motorola and I worked for Zenith when I was a kid. At this time last year I was in La Manz eating Pedro's fish tacos and playing with his rambunctious little girl. We were staying up the mountain from Palapa Joe's In the artists Mazinkas's stunning home. It was open living under a huge Palapa. When she had guests she stayed up a bit from the main house in a round adobe with palapa roof and outdoor kitchen. I bought 2 mosaic art pieces from her. Experiencing the Chicago winter again with 8 inches of snow on the way!
Stay safe.
R.

Babs said...

Hi "R" - Great to hear from you! I have been thinking, since I posted, I wonder how my grandfather got to work. Bus? Train? They lived on Giddings St. and never had a car. He actually loved RCA Victor but I can't even tell you what he did for them! Now that my sister passed on last year no one is left to tell me those things.....my sister, who was 11 years older then I was the Matriarch of the clan after my grandmother died eons ago.

Not last year, but the year before I was in LaManz as well! Always from January 1 through mid February in some place on the coast. One favorite place to eat beside the little palapa restaurants was a place that I drove to on the beach and I can't remember the name of it. It is a little boutique hotel as well.

Gosh, just to hear the sound of the surf would be such a gift! However, our weather this winter has been exceptional. Now the temps are in the high 70's, low 80's with the eternal blue skies and glorious sunshine.

I absolutely could not live with snow every again.
My daughter and her family moved to Colorado. My son and
grandchildren are leaving here after ten years and going to
Colorado. They want me to come up there. NO WAY Jose!
Too cold nine months of the year............and no beaches!

Take care. Didn't mean to write so much
Babs

crynoutloud said...

Surprised to hear your son and grandchildren are going back to the States but they are going to the right place. Colorado is beautiful. Hopefully you will be there in the summer visiting when it is warm and they will give you a tour of the gorgeous mountains. But be careful of the elevation it could make you sick if you go up the the peaks. Plan for that. Colorado Springs, Garden of the Gods and Rocky mountain National Park are sights not to miss.

alcuban said...

I join you in your relief that we have a decent, kind and honest man in the White House, though I expect the right-wing loonies to crank up the noise shortly. We're at the beach, which this year seems deserted--and blissfully quiet.

Babs said...

Thanks for the info. My daughter and her husband and family live
in Colorado Springs. John previously lived in Fort Collins and had
a business there. He has just left Christie's here. Has had no sales
since March! Has to go somewhere where ha can make a living........

I can't go over 7000 ft elevation. Very susceptible to Altitude
syndrome. Oh, the story I could tell you.....

Anyway thanks for writing. Stay warm.

Babs said...

Al, I am so so envious! Are you at the place you usually go? I like deserted beaches....as long as someone can feed me and give me a pina colada once in a while.
The only time I ever have a drink is at the beach!

Enjoy!

Rick said...

The inauguration was a beautiful event and does restore confidence and we can once again be proud of our country.
That amazing little poet sets an example for so many to follow.
Hopefully we can all be on the beach again soon.

BTW you do wonderful blog posts!

Babs said...

Rick,The poet laureate lifted my spirits and heart in so many ways!

And yes, hopefully we can all be on the beach again soon........

THANKS for the compliment about the blog. I think I'm getting my
"groove" back!

Thankfully!

Retired Teacher said...

It is such a relief to have a rational, competent, and decent human being in charge after four years of lunacy.
Here in Ohio, my age group is supposed to be eligible for the first vaccine shot the week of February 8th. Even if the schedule is a bit delayed, I am hoping that I can get my shots out of the way by March, and that I will be able to return to Mexico in April. It has been nearly a year since I have been down there.

Babs said...

Hi Bill! Yes, the ability to look at the news now without overwhelming dread is wonderful. On PBS Frontline last night they had a synopsis of the last four years. It is amazing we all survived - well not all of us! Covid had taken over 400,000 along with so many others because of no compassion policies. I was shocked speechless when Fauci said that if there had been a clear plan and masks, the numbers might have been as high as 85,000 but no where near what they are now. Disgusting!

In the last couple of days it has become apparent that the vaccine that Mexico is intending to use for my phase is the Sputnik vaccine. I am not willing to take that. It has not been approved by the FDA nor by the medical directorate in Mexico. In that case I will head to the USA the end of March, to Austin and get the vaccine there.

All hell is breaking lose in CDMX. The LATIMES did an article yesterday on the conditions. With AMLO and The Cardinal and the richest man in the world, Carlos Slim, all with Covid, the city is shaken.

Hopefully by April things will be better. We all never expected this to be this long. I'm kinda used to staying home now......sorta.

Take care!

Scott said...

Hi Babs,

Glad you are holding up well during this protracted pandemic. I haven't kept up with the blog but read your son and grands are returning to the USA. I know you will miss them greatly.

As you have probably heard, up here in Fort Worth (Tarrant County) the numbers are skyrocketing. One source quotes TX DOH as of today at 187,038 confirmed cases and 2,123 deaths. At the end of 2020 the numbers were 125,947 / 1,221. Shocking increase, isn't it? Yet some people as you can imagine are still whining about the loss of their "freedoms" and being "controlled". So sadly, this is going to keep going on for much longer than any of us sane people want it to.

As for getting the vaccine in Austin, please be aware of the broken (read as mostly non-existent) distribution system inherited by the new administration. If you aren't already on a list, get on it. I'm on a "1B" list here and should get my first appointment within about three weeks. What I don't know is how far out that appointment might be and then about how far out getting the second shot might be.

Take care.

Babs said...

Hi Scott - It HAS been a while since I have heard from you!

I keep up with the "mess" in the USA! The numbers are staggering and that people still don't believe it is covid is incredibly unbelievable. Sadly, I don't think we will be on the "good side of this" until the end of this year, if then.

I would be on the 1B list, if I were on a list. The problem is I can't really go out where there would be the potential of being near someone with covid as I have damaged lungs from whooping cough so I have been staying home. In the USA, one must go and be in a line! (a) I couldn't stand in a line due to the cane and the weakness of my legs now and (b) being exposed to covid! So, I don't know what the answer is......IF I come to the States, it would be the middle to end of March and I don't know how far out one must go to schedule an appointment. It's a mess!

I have a niece who is a doctor up in your neck of the woods and I think I will ask her advice. I know I will need to plan to stay up there 4 or 5 weeks! Wherever there might be! Yikes.......

Again, thanks for taking time to write. And, yes, I AM going to miss my son and grands......I'm going to write about the "Gypsy Kids' again this coming week!

Take care I so hope you get your vaccine soon.

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