These hand made faces from Tzinzunzan make me smile each day as I walk past them in the garden.
I have had each and every one of those expressions on my face in the last eighty days including horror, sadness and disbelief. I have not reached resignation, yet.
Although I haven't been anywhere, there has been lots going on here on the homefront. None of it at
my instigation, but by the person that I rent my first floor house from here in SMA.
Since the upstairs tenant returned to Minneapolis after twenty-four years here in Mexico, the owner decided this was the time not only to paint and fix things, but to remodel the kitchen and bath! In
Mexico, remodel is synonymous with the sound "chip, chip, chip". As they chip plaster, tile and heaven only knows what else, my ideal quiet abode has been accosted by workers, people in and out, and the noise of construction.
I did not handle it well the first couple of days. Waking to loud noise is something I haven't experienced since I moved two years ago. No kid noise, no traffic noise, no loud radio noise
and no kids practicing their bugle playing noise. I miss the kid noise. Not the other, at all.
For those of you who have read the blog for quite a while, prior to my moving two years ago, there was construction about ten feet from the wall of my house for two years as they decimated the hill side to create a park and structure for who knows what. So I had continual bulldozer, dumptruck and every other kind of noise. No, the park was never finished nor was the two story structure that was for "who knows what". The beautiful natural hillside where nature abounded looks like a dump now.
But I digress.
The work upstairs is almost finished and is very quiet. They even brought in a new cistern and installed it at ground level where a beautiful stand of bamboo lived with a flock of small yellow birds living inside. Once they got the gigantic cistern in, they discovered they needed a concrete wall around it (thank goodness), and that has been built and painted. Finally finished that part on Friday!
Left to do is to plant something in front of the wall to hide all the white.
I offered three very large, ten year old oleanders to soften the sight and they were gladly accepted by the owner. I had moved them here from the house on the hill.
It's amazing that here I am, at home, and still, all kinds of things have been going on within the walls.....and outside the walls. Repairs to the cobblestoned roads at the end of my street are going on as well. Hopefully they will be finished before the rainy season starts in about ten days.
Today is the designated day for many business establishments to reopen that have been closed since around the first of April. Restaurants are one of the types of businesses to open. Each establishment must apply for a certification proving that safety issues have been addressed and partitions, etc are in place.
The Mayor has been very emphatic that what is opening is only for the "locals" and that hotels and rentals for tourists will not open until August! There are checkpoints now set up at the entry points into SMA for officials to check temperatures and paperwork to prove that someone entering either lives here or has essential business in town.
To say that I have been impressed with the attention to the needs of the community and the steps to take for reopening would be an understatement. We have had, at this point, 23 cases and 0 deaths.
There is a website www.covid19SMA.com which was set up by a group of health professionals. It is amazing how thorough the articles are on a daily basis. Also questions are answered in a timely and precise manner. I check the site each morning as part of my routine.
It is truly hard to believe that 80 days have gone by. I seem to stay busy enough with reading, writing, cooking, watching TV some, and whatever pops up that is unplanned.
The ability to have meals, groceries, medications and even my favorite Chiapas coffee delivered to the house has made me realize that STAYING HOME is not all that bad.
I hope you have found your life to be adapting as well. Stay Safe! Stay Home!
6 comments:
I think of you and the house on the hill often. I have new neighbors across the street. Well, they have been there for about two years now. Each morning about nine, the young woman of the house cranks up her stereo to distortion levels. The music is loud enough that she and her three children have to scream at one another to be heard, and she has to make telephone calls in the street in front of my house talking so loudly that I can hear every personal detail. The music will continue until about 1 in the afternoon.
Your voice popped into my head the first time it happened: "Just ask her to turn it down." Unfortunately, it is a house where requests are not respected. In fact, my other neighbors have warned me not to talk with the woman and her children -- especially, her now-missing husband. So, I just live with the music.
When I asked Omar if it bothered him, he said he thought it was cool -- and normal. I received the same answer from his girlfriend and his friends. They all seemed a bit surprised that I would even notice it.
We do live in two differnt parts of Mexico.
I'm SO sorry you have to endure that, but, I would speak with her anyway! In fact, yesterday one of the young painters here (thankfully they finished yesterday) had his portable radio BLASTING right outside my bedroom window. I politely asked him to turn it down and he turned it off.........
People can't read your mind Steve. Say something. In fact, why not buy some ice cream or a cake and take it with you when you go to talk to them. Sweets always win, ha.
Life is too short!
Hola Babs,
I think the hell with it attitude is in the air here NOB.People can't take the quarantine any more now that the weather is warm and sunny. It's about time, really, because this is a very mild flu for 90% of infected. I believe I recently had it and it lasted for 7 days, about 5 days with mild symptoms of feeling crappy and a few aches and pains. But I have been taking preventive measures for a couple of months, vitamins and some good supplements that seem to have worked. My son, daughter in law and 8 month old grandson came to town to visit for 4 days. They couldn't stay away any longer and they are covid deniers. Then the neighbors came busting through the door, no mask, hugging and handshaking to see the baby. So along with the uprising all hell is broke loose here but as they say we live in interesting times.
R.
Good grief R! I don't even know what to say to your post. I don't think I'm even going to try. All I can do is hope that IF you did have COVID it wasn't when your son, daughter-in-law and grandson were there or that you were no longer contagious.
Thankfully, I haven't had those experiences as I would freak out. Early on one night I felt my face and thought I had a high fever but had no thermometer. I totally freaked. My son brought a thermometer for me to check and it was normal.....so I must have just had a "power surge", for a minute or two, ha.
I'm shocked at the uprising and hoping that all hell that is breaking loose will come to a quiet end soon.
If you're out of the country, in a peaceful place and watching it, it is beyond shocking. Hang in there and stay safe.
We plan and God laughs. You know how people are. The shutdown is ending and a vaccine is probably a year away, a long time to stay isolated. If there is a second wave I highly doubt people closing up shop again. They can't take it. Unemployment is 30% right now. Some good immune system boosters are NAC, Vitamin C, VitamineD/Calcium. Baby aspirin. It helps to feel you are doing a preventive thing sometimes. This stuff is safe. You can just take a half. The NAC is the best. I have given it to sick Mexican friends when they got the Gripa and it cures them.Super antioxidant.
R, What is NAC? I get lots of Vitamin C and D plus calcium but I have never heard of NAC! Thanks for the info.
You are right about planning. I'm down to taking it "one day at a time"! It is easier that way........
Heaven only knows what the future will bring!
Take care
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