Tuesday, January 14th, 2014

Last night I watched the 2006 movie Unknown (IMDB 6.5) – a Netflix recommendation.  IMDB’s summary: "Five men wake up in a locked-down warehouse with no memory of who they are. They are forced to figure out who is good and who is bad to stay alive."  It was very interesting but I vaguely remembered seeing it before.  One of the reviews recommended a similar movie named Memento (IMDB 8.6) so I added to my list.

I went to bed at 11:30, woke up at 6:15 and finally woke/got up at 7:40.  

I had to hustle a little because the Olga, the cleaning lady, is coming today at 9am.  I washed, rinsed, and hung up to dry some underwear.  (I just don’t feel right about her having to wash my underwear.)  I left the apartment at 8:20 and stopped at Likkes and ordered 2 lunches.  I had my usual breakfast at Panaderia Los Mejores but, as expected, didn’t see Damaris.  I was back at the apartment by 8:55 and Olga showed up a few minutes after 9am.  

I called my old barber, Peter Messina, just before 10am here and chatted with him a little before he opened his shop at 9am Chicago time. Unfortunately, he didn’t receive the postcard I sent 6 months earlier - and cost me $1 to mail.  He did give me his email address so I’m going to send him my blog address – maybe he’ll have time to read some of my postings.

One problem I’ve had with checking movie times here is that once the movie start time has passed it’s no longer listed online.  Finally, this morning I was able to check the start times, and...

The Secret Life of Walter Mitty (7.5) is playing at:

·       Oviedo at 11:55, 3:50, 6:45pm.

·       Vizcaya at 11:50, 3:50, 6:30pm.

·       El Tesoro at 11:40, 2:20, 4:50pm.

I just noticed that Kon-Tiki (7.3) is playing at Viscaya at 4:00, 6:40pm.  (I watched the trailer and it appears it will be in English and not in Norwegian.  Whew!)

So, if Damaris wants to join me to see a movie the most convenient location is Oviedo but if we want a choice of an action movie or a comedy then Vizcaya is the best option.  In any case we’re talking about a 3:50 or 4pm start time so if she gets off work at 1:30 there’s plenty of time to have lunch and then take a bus and walk to the movie.

At 10:15 someone rang my doorbell.  Two ladies said something to me in Spanish and I gave my usual reply.  I told them to wait and then showed them my copy of Jehovah’s Witness’ Watchtower and they recognized it so I guess that’s why they were here.

When I tried going into Rosetta Stone today I got a Fatal Appliction Error: #1141. 0000”.  I guess I’ll have to wait and try later.

Olga left at 1:30 and promised to return in 2 weeks on Tuesday, January 28^th.

I posted an article from this month’s eMagazine Medellin Living:

Expat Advice: 3 Ways to Make Your Life in the City More Enjoyable

As I was leaving the apartment I saw the bills on the stairs so I grabbed mine and slid it under my door.

About 4pm I had a cup of coffee and pan integral (whole wheat bread) at Fresco Pan for 1,500 pesos but I didn’t really care much for it.  Church let out at 4:30 and many people were coming to the bakery so I walked down to the end of the block and had a slab of pineapple for 1mil.  Then I went inside Viva mall and read my Nook book until about 5:15.  I headed back to Fresco Pan and had another cup of coffee and a cookied for 1,300 pesos.  I left about 6:15 and observed the goings on in the church for a little while.  They took collection while the priest was blessing the bread and wine for communion.  At communion it appeared they gave everyone a wafer but no wine that I could see unless that came later as I left at that point.

My utility bill this month is 102,781 ($54.10) and my communications bill is 105,631.92 ($55.60).

I’m in negotiations with Margarita to move upstairs to the 2 bedroom apartment.  Things are looking good so far.