Saturday, December 30, 2017

Last night I slept well despite getting up several times during the night.  We got a little rain starting about 2am.

Laura told me she doesn’t think the couple are interested anymore as they were supposed to call her last night.

After breakfast I stopped at the paper store where I printed out the au pair letter.  Then I bought a few things at Exito.  I bought 4 bags of milk at the corner store because it’s closed every Sunday and this Monday because it’s a holiday.

I’ve been trading emails with my brother about his upcoming visit in February.

I understand now that the office in San Andres where Teresa would pick up Laura’s birth certificate is closed until January 15^th.  Teresa will call then and see if they can fax us the birth certificate, if not then she will have to go there.

I downloaded Skype to my laptop and tried calling the couple in Austin, Texas but no answer.

This week the Colombian Peso closed at 2,981 per USD.

After lunch I translated the au pair letter to Spanish and returned to the paper store to print it for Teresa to read.  I stopped at the outdoor bakery where I had a café con leche and a pastry with arequipe inside.

Back at the apt, of course hours after I had changed clothes, Teresa asked me to pick up something at the corner store for the meat rolls she was making.  Grudgingly, I changed from my flip flops to my sandals and went back out.

I finished Michael Connelly’s The Fifth Witness: Mickey Haller #4 on my Nook and downloaded his The Black Box: Harry Bosch #16). 

I called the couple in Texas several times using Skype but got no answer.

I finished the Robert Ludlum paperback The Osterman Weekend.  It wasn’t very good; perhaps because it was one of his early novels?

After my usual pre-bedtime rituals I went to bed at 11:15.

T-shirt of the day: I am the next level.

Friday, December 29, 2017

I slept well despite getting up once during the night and again at 6:15.  I finally woke/got up at 9am.

After breakfast Teresa asked me to pick up some more meat rolls at La Vaquita.  I walked past Bartolos but didn’t see any gringos.  At La Vaquita I picked up her meat rolls and a couple peppers and luckily they had a 10 item or less line so I only had to wait a few minutes.

After lunch I met Doug, the Canadian, at Bartolos.  We met a couple young gringos from New Zealand.  They are visiting Colombia along with a few other South American countries.  One of them said he was a bounty hunter.  Interesting!  The other one had lunch and ate all of the Chichirron (pork rind) but left the healthiest items – the beans and salad.

After awhile a Colombian came by and irritatingly wanted to repeatedly do some Colombian handshake/fist bumps.  After awhile we got a little tired of it and left.  Doug thought he was drunk although I didn’t smell any liquor on him.  We stopped at the outdoor bakery and had another café con leche. 

Among new US movie releases I would like to see All the Money in the World (7.2).

Locally, I would like to see Jumanji (7.2) playing at 2:05pm at Oviedo and Star Wars but it’s still only playing in the evening.

And Teresa wants to see El Paseo de Teresa which is only being shown in Spanish.

I found season 1 episodes 6-8 of Westworld on TV so that kept me busy until 8:15pm.

At 11pm I took my 2 sleeping pills and went to bed.

T-shirt of the day: Good as hell.

Thursday, December 28, 2017

Last night I only took 1 sleeping pill, fell asleep quickly but woke up at 2am.  It was raining lightly but I don’t know if that’s what woke me.  I’m not sure I ever fell back asleep – seems like I didn’t.  I finally got up at 8am, took an Excedrin Migraine and was soon feeling better.

I left the apt at 9am, didn’t wait for a bus and was at the metro station after a 15 minute walk.  Herman was there and I talked briefly with him.  He said he had the flu for a while so maybe that’s why I hadn’t seen him in some time.

I arrived at the chess league just before 10am.  Jose was there and we played a game of chess which he won. 

Then we walked over to El Chapparal.  I talked about how their menu had changed and he showed me where my filet and pepper steak were still on the menu.  I ordered the filet – pink but no blood and he ordered the baby beef.  My filet didn’t look like what I expected but it was tasty – after I removed the bacon and mushrooms.  I think the pepper steak is still my favorite.  Our meal cost us each about 45mil - $15.

After we paid, Jose asked if they would mind if we played chess on a back table.  They agreed and we sat down and we both ordered Cokes.  I won the next game with the Black pieces and he won the rubber match with Black.  He said he could tell that I was rusty.

He told me how he had a heart attack last August 31^st and had a triple bypass.  He says he’s still walking a little slowly but I didn’t notice it much.

We decided we would meet like this every Tuesday to play chess – and hopefully have a nice steak for lunch.  If for some reason we can’t make Tuesday we probably can reschedule for Thursday.

At 3:30 it was feeling a little chilly and I looked on my cellphone and it was only 73 degrees.

I left about 4pm, he took a taxi back to his apt and I took the metro back to Envigado.

I stopped at the bakery but no blueberry muffins today.  I stopped at the other bakery where I had a café con leche.

Back at the apt Teresa and I watched one of the DVDs I bought last Thursday.  It was Stalked by my Neighbor (5.2) and Teresa really liked it.  I only watched the action scenes as it was only in Spanish with no way to change the settings.  The DVD had FULL SPANISH printed on the DVD itself although the packaging stated that the audio and video were available in English and Spanish.

Then we started watching another FULL SPANISH DVD named Mother (6.8).  I was able to set it for English with Spanish subtitles.  I bought this movie mainly because it starred Jennifer Lawrence, Javier Bardem, Ed Harris, and Michelle Pfeiffer.  It turned out to be one of the most ridiculous movies I’ve seen in my life.  We didn’t finish it and after I ejected it from my laptop I was so offended with the movie I broke the DVD into pieces.

Teresa was listening to Laura talking to someone using her laptop in her bedroom.  She motioned me over but indicated I should stand to the side of the doorway.  I couldn’t hear much but I did hear Laura say a few words in English.  Teresa told me she’s interviewing for a child care job with a Chinese man and an American woman.  It was only later I learned that unbeknowst (now there’s an interesting word – fancy?  rare?) to me she had applied for an au pair job with Au pair World.com and they live in Texas.  Afterwards Laura shared that the couple have a 3 year old son and are expecting twin boys at the end of February.

Laura forwarded me an email that the couple sent her.  They live in Austin, Texas, read hundreds of au pair profiles, reviewed 200 applications and chose Laura.  I understand she won’t need to drive but we may need to work on her English a bit.  She will receive $400 a week in addition to room and board.  She will have weekends off but might want to join the family in their activities.

At this point we still have a lot of questions.  Does the family initiate the visa process or do we?  Does the family pay for the airfare?  We hope this works out for Laura and we’ll nail some of these things down over time.

Teresa will have to go to San Andres to her Laura’s birth certificate and then Laura will need to get a Colombian passport.

To be continued…

I wasn’t taking any chances so I took 2 sleeping pills and went to bed and was soon asleep.

T-shirt of the day: More than just a pretty face.

Wednesday, December 27, 2017

Last night I took only 1 1mg sleeping pill instead of 2.  It took me a little longer to fall asleep – 30 minutes? – but I didn’t wake up until 5am.  I took a vitamin C with a little water and went back to bed.  I finally woke up at 7:45 and got up at 8am.

I watched the first 90 minutes of the Today show.

I walked down to Home Center but didn’t find any meat thermometer.  I did find a sandpaper disk (2,100 pesos) that I will use to buff up the plastic piece that fell off my coffee mug before I try to reglue it.  I stopped at Juan Valdez in Exito for a cup of coffee but there weren’t any tables available.

I walked up to Carbon de Leña where I asked the waiter for a menu.  He asked me what kind of juice I wanted and I said mango.  He said that wasn’t available and brought me another kind instead.  While still waiting for a menu he brought me a bowl of soup.  That’s when I figured out what I did wrong.  Instead of asking for “a menu” I had asked for “the menu” which I’m sure to him meant the “menu of the day”.  I went and got a menu myself and decided I would order either the chicken shish kebab or the Caesar salad.  A few minutes later he brought me a plate with the menu of the day – chicken breast, salad, and baked potato.  I hope he saw the menu and figured out what I had originally asked him.  I ate my lunch and then paid the 13,000 pesos for it. 

I walked over to the bus stop where I found an Envigado bus that left about a minute after I got on.

I got off at Santafe mall and stopped at a Davivienda ATM where I withdrew some cash.  It didn’t tell me what the ATM fee was but I checked XE.com and it gave me a current exchange rate of 2,972.  (When I got back to the apt I found I received 2,962 COP per dollar so I guess the ATM fee was 0.)

I walked up to Cachivaches where I asked a salesgirl for an oven thermometer.  The first one she found was one you put in the oven.  I asked her for one that I would stick into meat and she took me to a box of 4 small steak thermometers for 110,000.  I debated whether to buy it and finally decided to.

I walked back down to Avenida Poblado where I immediately caught a bus back to Envigado.  I stopped at the bakery but they didn’t have a blueberry muffin for me.  I ran into Robert Grimes, the Texan, and we went over to Bartolos for a drink.

He told me he occasionally finds Dr. Pepper available at Jumbo.  I told him I wish I could find root beer.  He agreed that the first few (4?) withdrawals from Bancolombia are without an ATM fee.  We traded jokes for quite a while.  I finally left just before 5pm.

Teresa came back and informed me that the woman that was interested in her finca is no longer interested.  She’s afraid that her grandson would fall down one of the steep hills.

A slight change to my usual presleep procedure – I only took 1 sleeping pill and went to bed at 11:15.

T-shirt of the day: Why so serious?

Tuesday, December 26, 2017

I slept well only getting up once during the night.  I woke up at 8am and got up at 8:30.

I watched the first 90 minutes of the Today show.

Teresa was hesitant to make meat loaf until she talked to her mother and learned it’s easy to make.  I understand she is going to make it on New Years Day.  Now, I just have to find an over thermometer that she can use.

About 3:30 Teresa basically threw me out of the apt.  She said “go to the park” because she thought I was getting bored.  Or else it was just that she needed to have minutes added to her phone and some things from Exito.

I added 50mil to her cell phone, stopped at the bakery (no blueberry muffins this today), stopped at the paper store where I printed English and Spanish copies of the meat loaf recipe, and bought a 2018 desk calendar.  There were no tables available at Bartolos so I went to the other bakery where I had a churro and a cup of coffee.  I picked up a few things from Exito on my way back to the apt.

As an experiment, I did my usual pre-sleep procedures but this time I only took 1 1mg sleeping pill instead of 2.

T-shirt of the day: Blingtastic.  When your clothes are as shiny and fantastic as you.

Monday, December 25, 2017

Merry Christmas everyone!

Again I slept well despite getting up several times during the night.

Well, there aren’t any presents under the Christmas tree – because there aren’t any presents and there isn’t any tree.  If I had more money I might be able to buy a few presents but alas, it is what it is.  But Teresa does a nice job of decorating the apt with the Christmas decorations we do have – and local flowers.

Laura came back at 10:30 and went right to bed.  Teresa said she was out partying and dancing all night.

While preparing lunch Teresa took a Pyrex dish out of the oven and I asked her if she had others.  (Just to explain, the oven doesn’t work because we don’t have gas, she was just trying to keep the potatoes warm.)  She showed me another dish that looked a lot like the one I saw yesterday in Exito.  So, all I need is the oven thermometer and she will have everything she needs to make meatloaf.  Only, even though all the ingreients and directions are in the Betty Crocker cookbook in Spanish, she says she wants my brother to show her how to make it.

We had a nice lunch of turkey breast, potatoes with cheese, salad and fresh juice.

I watched some NFL football on Direct TV and basically snacked on cookies most of the day.

At 10pm Teresa found a movie she wanted to see – Parker (6.2) starring Jason Statham and Jennifer Lopez.  It was scheduled to end at 11:30 so I took my melatonin at 10:30.  Teresa was watching it in Spanish without English subtitles so during the talking scenes I tried to look away as much as possible.  When the movie hadn’t ended by 11:45 we gave up, I took my sleeping pills and went to bed.  Luckily, something worked and I fell asleep quickly.

T-shirt of the day: I miss you … when I’m bored.

Sunday, December 24, 2017

I woke/got up at 8am.

We left the apt at 11am as Teresa had a few things she needed to buy at Exito.  I just needed to return by 1pm so I could watch my football game.

We stopped at Exito Viajes Express and Teresa talked with a lady working there.  She showed her a flight for January 22^nd – 26^th for a little over 400,000 pesos.  I’m not sure if that included a suitcase or not but I understood she could wait until January 10^th or so to book it.  I picked up a brochure where I saw a bus trip to Eje Cafetero (the coffee region) for 739,200 per person – that included transportation, room, breakfast and dinner, taxes and emergency medical assistance.

In Exito, while she shopped for Christmas dinner items I went to the kitchen area but I didn’t see any oven thermometers.  I did find a Pyrex loaf pan for 25,400 COP but it looked small to me.  I was looking for an 8”x4” or 9”x5” pan but it was listed in centimeters.  I had to find a measuring tape to do the conversion - I was too lazy to multiple by 2.54 - and it appears that it was of the correct size.  I’ll check out Home Center next – another day.

Just to have something different I suggested we buy what looked like a fruit cake.  Teresa declined.  Then I showed her a long box – a Classic Cookie Collection a yard long European assortment.  She agreed as it was only 24,300 pesos.

While Teresa waited in line with the groceries I went and sat down on a bench on the other side of the cashier.  At one point everything seemed to stop for 5-10 minutes; the cashier and bagger just standing there.  Price check?  I had no idea.

Finally things got rolling again and I got up and paid for our purchases.  We waited 10 minutes for a taxi back to the apt.  When we got back we found we had a few extra items in our bags – a Levi’s XL t-shirt, a Levi’s S t-shirt, a “blouse”, and a bag of candy all totalling about 200,000 pesos.  We’re going to wash the XL t-shirt and hopefully it will shrink a little so it will fit me better.

I watched the Chicago Bears (5-10) beat the (0-15) Cleveland Browns 20-3.  (Now the hapless Browns are guaranteed the first pick in next year’s draft - again.)  I got a clear broadcast with no buffering.

The yard long box of cookies actually contains 4 separate packages of the same 7 cookies.  We tried the first package and it seemed a little stale to me.  It’s a product of Germany with a “satisfaction guaranteed” sticker on it. 

I understand Laura has to work until the 31st of December although she will be off tomorrow.

The Colombian Peso closed at 2,956 to the US Dollar.

About 6:30 Teresa reminded me that I bought a small carton of Haagen Dazs Macadamia Nut Brittle ice cream.  I couldn’t find it in the freezer and then Teresa then realized she never removed it from the plastic bag.  I quickly put it in the freezer for a few hours.

It was still soft when I took it out a few hours later and Teresa thought it was too sweet.

Laura left about 9pm to spend Christmas Eve with her girlfriend in Caldas.

T-shirt of the day: Anti-social social club.

Saturday, December 23, 2017

Since I didn’t go to the gym yesterday and it’s going to be closed all next week, I went to the gym today.  I did most of my exercises in an hour and 15 minutes.

Walking through the park on my way back to the apartment I ran into Doug, the Canadian.  We chatted a bit and he asked why I didn’t answer his email.  I gave him one of my business cards and then he realized he sent it to Anderson instead of Andresen. 

Later in the afternoon I made a trip to La Vaquita for a few items that Teresa needed.  While waiting in their express line I turned around and saw a whole pig (head and all) in a shopping cart and people were posing for pictures.  I was a little late getting my cell phone out for a photo.

My brother emailed me with a reminder that I might be able to get the loaf pan and thermometer at Home Center.

Wow, I checked online and the cedula I think I paid 138,000 pesos for cost me $61.70 which is 2237 COP/USD when the current exchange rate is more like 2937 COP/USD.  If I’m right, boy did I get taken.  (On 2^nd thought it must have been 183,000 not 138,000 pesos!  That works out to 2,966 COP/USD.)

Walking out the door of the apt I found a brand new 20,000 peso note on the floor.  Lucky me!

We left the apt at 7pm and caught a taxi to Gloria’s house - Teresa’s friend from the gym when it was in Confama.

It is in a gated community across the street from the restaurant Chicago’s.

We sat on their back patio with her husband Sergio and their poodle Luna.  Her husband was a pilot for Avianca and some other airline that sounded like LAN so he spoke English.  He said I was the first person he’s spoken English with in the past 10 years but he did very well.

I learned from him that an ocean pipe broke yesterday and the beaches on San Andres island are fouled by black water.  He also informed me that Necocli is on the Atlantic side not the Pacific – no wonder I couldn’t find it on my Colombia Tourism map.  He said Viva Colombia is a low cost airline and you need to pay extra for everything so he recommended Teresa use Avianca for her trip to San Andres and that I pay for it by putting money into Laura’s Bancolombia account.

At 10:15 they invited me inside to pray.  He turned on the radio and we participated with the broadcast.  They repeated some prayers and gave everyone a tambourine and we said “ven ven” (come come) many times in a prayer/song/chant.

We left at 10:45 and were back at the apt by 11:15.  I didn’t want to take my melatonin and wait an hour before going to bed so I just took my sleeping pills and was in bed before midnight.  It maybe took me 20 minutes or so to fall asleep but I didn’t awaken until 5:30. 

T-shirt of the day: Rabbit cuteness.

Friday, December 22, 2017

Teresa informed me that we had a little rain last night.  I thought I remembered hearing something unusual outside but I was too lazy to get up and check.

We left the apt just before 10am, caught a taxi after a 5 minute wait and were at Immigration before 10:30.  I said to myself “un-oh” when I saw a small group standing outside.  Teresa talked to the immigration woman standing outside the door (next to a guard) and I understood from their conversation you had to have an appointment to enter.  There was also a sign posted that said something about appointments for December 22^nd and 29^th.  Teresa then told me I had to have a photocopy of my visa page and she showed me the page before it (last year’s visa).  She wanted to go to get the copy first but I led her down to where I saw an Inter-Col sign.  Unfortunately it was just a sign, not an office.  When we walked back to the Immigration office I wanted to show Teresa that I already had one copy and when I took it out of the envelope the immigration woman saw the cover page and they opened the door for me and invited me to enter.  I understood Teresa had to wait outside.

Inside I sat down near a woman and soon saw that she had an American passport.  I asked where she was from and was told “Cincinnati, Ohio”.  We talked for a few minutes and I learned she arrived at 9am and now it was 10:30.  Yikes!

A few minutes later she was called and at 11:40 it was my turn.  I paid 138,000 pesos for my new Cedula and was out by noon.  I found Teresa across the street working on her kniting or whatever it’s called.

We quickly caught a taxi back to the apt.

Among new US movie releases I would like to see Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle (7.0), Downsizing (6.2), Hostiles (7.2), and The Post (6.9).

Locally, I would like to see Star Wars playing at Oviedo at 3:45 and Vizcaya at 2:45.  Probably next week since the gym will be closed.

I watched a new episode of El Socio where Marcus Lemonis (sp?) was in Cuba.  Interesting.

I left the apt about 4:30 and stopped at Exito where I picked up a Gente newspaper and I bought a Q’Hubo newspaper with the Condorito inside at a street stand.  I walked past Bartolos but they didn’t have a table available.  I stopped at Banco Caja Social ATM next to the park and made a 300,000 peso withdrawal after a 10 minute wait.

I stopped at the bakery where I bought their last blueberry muffin.

Back at Bartolos there still wasn’t a table available.  I stopped at the paper store and with a little help from the owner I printed out my brother’s travel itinerary for next February.

Back at Bartolos there still wasn’t a table available so I walked across the street to the small bakery.  I found one small table available where I ate half my muffin with a small café con leche.  I asked for another and shortly after it arrived I accidentally kicked the table leg and splashed it over the newspapers, the table, on the ground and a little on my leg.  Quickly the 2 waitressed arrived and they cleaned up the table for me.

I stayed about 45 minutes, paid for my coffees and headed back to the apt.

According to my calculation I received 2,966 pesos for each dollar for my ATM withdrawal and according to XE.com the current exchange rate is 2,956 pesos per dollar so it looks like there is no ATM fee.  But I still need to try to find an ATM that will allow me to withdraw more than 300,000 pesos per transaction.

Later, back at the apt Teresa gave me a taste of her rollo de carne – meat roll.  I got out the Betty Crocker English/Spanish cookbook and asked her if she could make the meat loaf recipe.  She had a problem understanding about the loaf pan and meat thermometer so I’ll check Cachivaches in Santafe mall to see if they have those items.

T-shirt of the day: Hyper busy.

Thursday, December 21, 2017

I woke/got up at 7:30.  This melatonin procedure has been working great.  I fall asleep quickly even when I get up several times during the night.  In time I’ll experiment with reducing the amount of melatonin and/or sleeping pills.

I made a quick trip to Exito for eggs and SPF 50 cream for my bicycle ride later.

I watched the first 20 minutes of the Today show and then left for my bike ride and to pick up my passport with its new visa.

After waiting on the corner for 10 minutes for a bus I gave up and walked down to the metro station.  Again Herman wasn’t working his orange juice stand.  Maybe next time I should ask whoever is working there if he’s okay.

I took the metro to San Antonio and transferred to the Stadium Station.  They didn’t have any bikes available so I walked over to San Juan where I found one.  I rode over to the airport and on my way back I stopped at the bike station at Carrera 65 & Calle 33.  From there I walked west to Carrera 66B, turned left, and walked 2 blocks to Calle 32C to Inter-Col’s new office at Calle 32C #66C-8.

I picked up my passport with the new visa which expires on November 29, 2018.  I understand next year I will be able to get a resident visa that is good for 5 years.  I asked how much it would cost if I had Inter-Col help me get a resident visa today and was told 1,900,000 COP (about $630).  By this time next year it will probably be closer to 2,000,000 COP (about $670).  I intend to set aside $50 every month to save up for it.

Back at Carrera 65 & Calle 33 I checked out another bike and rode it back to San Juan (Calle 44).  I was looking forward to having lunch again at El Chaparral.  Last (my first) time I had their delicious pepper steak and today I wanted to try their filet.  The waiter handed me the menu and it was all different.  Instead of the previous items I mentioned it listed more Colombian meats like Churrasco and Solomito.  They didn’t even have limonada de coco like last time.  I had the Churrasco and a couple Cokes.  The meat was slightly chewy, pretty tasty and it came with a slice of avocado, salad, and baked potato.

The total bill came to 39mil ($13) including tax and tip.

I took the metro and bus back to Envigado.

I stopped at Bartolos where I had a limonada de coco for 6mil.

Surprisingly I couldn’t find Thursday Night Football on Direct TV.  Maybe it was bumped because of a basketball game I found.

T-shirt of the day: Thing 87.

Wednesday, December 20, 2017

I got up at 7am, showered, dressed, ate a bowl of cereal and Teresa and I left at 8am and we walked to La Vaquita where we bought groceries.

While I was buying a café con leche the server asked where I was from.  I told her Chicago and she shared with me that she spent 3 years in Boston but still doesn’t know a word of English.  I guess I’m not so bad even though I’m still struggling after 5 years here.

We were back at the apt just after 9:30.

I watched the first 90 minutes of the Today show then left for the gym.  I did most of my exercises in an hour and 10 minutes.  According to a sign I saw in the gym, it will be closed the week from Christmas thru New Years Day.

I left the apt at 2:30 and quickly caught a bus downtown.  A gringo couple got on at the border of Medellin and Envigado.  I asked them where they were from and they said New Mexico.  They are spending 6 months exploring Colombia.  The woman asked me about how to get some medicine (has to stay refrigerated) from the US delivered here.  I told her I’m heading to Envios Market now and I would be happy to take them there.  Nobraska gave me my Chess Life for December, my annual benefits letter from Social Security, and my prostate vitamins from GNC.  (SS gave me a 2% cost of living increase for next year.  Yay!)  I only had to pay an extra 9,000 pesos for my package.  I also paid January’s rental of 36,000 pesos.  I wished the couple luck and caught a bus back to Envigado.  I stopped at Bartolos where I had a limonada de coco for 6,000 pesos.

In the past few weeks I’ve watched a few pairs of The Walking Dead episodes and I’m happy to report they are now showing them in order.

Esmeralda stopped by for a visit at 7:15 but she only stayed for about 15 minutes.

T-shirt of the day: The End.

Tuesday, December 19, 2017

I watched the first 90 minutes of the Today show.

Teresa informed me that her friend Anna was coming over (about 4pm) for a visit.  I went out and bought a tiramisu cake for 18,000 pesos ($6) and a bottle of Coke.  I then left for the park.  I stopped first at the bookstore where I offered to trade 3 books of mine for one of theirs.  The salesman spoke a little English and told me I could trade 2 of my books for 2 of their books but I would have to pay a little cash – like 2,000 pesos, which I did.  At the park I read some of my Nook while I nursed a limonada de coco.  I stopped at Banco Caja Social to check their ATM fees.  I could only withdraw 300mil and it said the amount of the ATM fee was unavailable.  (Back at the apt it looked like I got a good currency exchange rate so maybe it was zero.)  I stopped at Cotrafa where there was a short line to pay my Une bill.

Back at the apt I hooked up the HDMI cable and showed Teresa and Anna the wedding photos I took last Saturday.

I finished Michael Connelly’s The Reversal: Mickey Haller #3 on my Nook and downloaded his The Fifth Witness: Mickey Haller #4). 

T-shirt of the day: So what?

Monday, December 18, 2017

The weather here has turned warm again – haven’t had any rain in a number of days.  My cellphone weather prediction doesn’t show any rain in the coming week with highs in the mid 80s.

I felt discomfort in my right hip as I walked to the gym so I decided to skip the treadmill today.  It wasn’t easy returning after my cold as I felt like I had water on my lungs or something.  I couldn’t really get a full breathe.  I completed most of my exercises at the gym in an hour and 40 minutes.

The work on the MultiPlus bus line has now moved to the center of the street.  Of course that doesn’t mean that they won’t dig up either side again as they have already done several times.

After lunch I caught a taxi to Vizcaya so I could return my suit and Teresa’s dress.  That was easy!  Then I hung around in their food court for a few minutes having a café con leche.  I walked down to Envios Market (they finally have a sign up) where I picked up my document.  It turned out to be an annual “earnings statement” for one of my pensions.  I quickly caught a Sabaneta bus and even got a seat.

I ordered Christmas presents to be sent to my son and daughter.  Teresa was watching some program so I didn’t get to see much of Monday Night Football.

T-shirt of the day: Messy hair.  Don’t care.

Sunday, December 17, 2017

Teresa left about 10am to show the finca to a prospective buyer.

My Chicago Bears lost to the Detroit Lions 20-10.  (They’d better not lose next week against the 0-14 Cleveland Browns.)

The Colombian Peso closed for the week at 2,994 to the US Dollar.

I googled Plano, Texas and found it on a list of best small towns to live in in the US.  Also on the list were Naperville, Illinois – just outside Chicago and Weston, Florida – where I have my mail sent before it is forwarded on to Medellin.

When Teresa returned she told me the woman and her mother were very interested in the finca.  I understand they have a 4 bedroom, 2 bathroom 5^th floor apartment near the Envigado stadium and we might be able to do a trade.  Next we have to schedule a time when we can get together to see it.  If we go ahead with the trade we could rent it and use the money so Laura can return to her university studies.

T-shirt of the day: Take it or leave it.

Saturday, December 16, 2017

Teresa left early in the morning to get a manicure and pedicure.  The plan was to be back by 10am and at 10:15 we would leave for the wedding.

Since I didn’t know when I would be eating next I decided to have something more substantial than just cereal.  At Carbon de Leña I took my time having calentado with café con leche.  While there a couple gringos sat down at a nearby table.  They were from Norway and have been here for the past few months in a student foreign exchange program.  They were about to leave to visit Cartagena.  (They had a large suitcase with them.)  I left at 9:30 and stopped at the paper store and bought a wedding card.

As soon as I returned to the apartment (9:55) - with plenty of time to change clothes - I remembered that Teresa had asked me to buy a 2^nd card for her mother.  So I hurried out and bought another and when I returned at 10:05 Teresa was already back.  After that it was “hurry and get dressed”.  I had problems fastening my cuff links but I got no help from her.  We left the apt 10:20, got a taxi after a 5-minute wait and were on our way.  I managed to get my cuff links on on the way.  I knew we were close to our destination when I saw tents set up in the distance on the top of a hill. 

We were in our seats – on the bride’s side – before 11am.  They had 2 tents set up for the ceremony. Unfortunately I was on the end of an aisle and thus sitting in the sun.  The event turned out to be very classy.  I saw a young lady walking around that I assumed was the event organizer.  They had a violinist playing during the ceremony.  A priest performed the wedding ceremony which I found out usually doesn’t happen outside of a church but Juan knew somebody.

Afterward, they had an hour of cocktails outside their new home.  We were fortunate in that we found a patch of shade but I felt sorry for those that had to sit or stand in the sun.  A man was playing jazz on a saxophone while waiters walked around serving mojitos and later came around with pitchers to refill everyone’s drinks.  In the last few minutes everyone was given a glass of champagne for a wedding toast.

We were let inside where we found our table #6 kiddy korner from the head table.  My seat was unusual in that I was sitting in semi shade and I kept inching around the table to stay in the small patch of shade.  After about an hour the sun clouded over making it much more comfortable for me.

The menu consisted of a fancy appetizer, a nicely done filet (my choice), a slice of carrot cake for dessert, followed by a slice of wedding cake.  Everything was delicious.

There was a wooden box with a slit in it for the wedding envelopes.  I was disappointed to see Teresa put the original invitation envelope in the slot.  (Later back at the apt I saw both the envelopes I had purchased earlier.)

At one point I received a phone call from Jose Cruz, my Cuban chess playing friend from Miami.  He and his wife left their house with a realtor and arrived back in Medellin last week.  I’m sure I’ll be getting together with him soon.

In the brief time I had to talk to Juan (the groom) I learned they leave tomorrow morning at 10am for a 7-day honeymoon in Punta Cana, Dominican Republic.

We finally left about 7pm and spent some time in a car waiting for the driver.  After about 30 minutes we were driven about 100 yards down the road to a gated community.  The guard with a large dog let us and a couple other cars in.  We drove a short distance and stopped at what I assume was a finca.  We were greated by 2 large German shepherds but, intimidating as they looked, they were very friendly.

Inside most people were sitting around a small table filled with snacks.  The hostess got us seats and filled small plates with food for us.  I ate everything except the “blood sausage” they brought out later.

I had Albero (Laura’s father) sitting on one side and he shared with me that 5 days after Juan and Laura return from their honeymoon they leave for Plano, Texas.  Juan has a 1-year work visa for a special project with Johnson Controls.

They played some games and also read some bible verses that were followed by “chants” – or do you call them refrains.

We finally left a couple hours later and were back at the apt by 10pm.

To speed things up (my postings) I think I’ll post separately the wedding pictures I took with my cell phone.

T-shirt of the day: I am not perfect but I’m limited edition.

Friday, December 15, 2017

Teresa got up at 6am and left about 7am for a haircut appointment – and whatever else women have done.  Tomorrow is Juan and Laura’s (Vicky’s daughter) wedding at 11am.  That should be interesting.

Later today I have to pick up my suit and Teresa has to pick up her dress.  But first she has to get her nails done.

According to an article I read on the internet there is an 80% chance that La Niña will continue into early 2018.

I received an email from Envios Market that I have a document waiting for pickup.  If it isn’t one of my Chess Life magazines I’d better call them and make sure they have my correct address.

I returned to the gym for the first time since November 27^th.  I did my usual exercises in an hour and 40 minutes.

Walking back to the apt it appears that a new beauty salon is being built on our block.

I returned to the apt by noon and found the Une (internet) bill waiting for me in the lobby.

 Teresa came back at 12:30.  I understood the beauty salon was very busy.

I was unable to get an internet connection even after unplugging and plugging in the router.  It finally came back about half an hour later.

Among new US movie releases I would like to see Star Wars: The Last Jedi (8.1).

Locally, Star Wars is playing at Oviedo at 3pm.

Teresa left at 2:45.  She warned me there could be quite a wait and she might not return until 4:30 or 5pm.

Teresa came back at 5:15 and we left right away for Vizcaya mall where we picked up my suit and her dress.  I told her Mu just opened so we walked to the back side of Parque Lleras but without having the exact address I guess I just missed it.

Instead we had dinner at Triada – the restaurant Laura worked at for a short time.  Teresa had the Peruvian rice and juice and I had ribs and coconut lemonade.

We waited outside for about 5 minutes for a taxi that took us back to the apt and we got back just in time for her 8pm show.

T-shirt of the day: I’m Southern born and Southern bred.  Give me some ribs and cornbread.

Thursday, December 14, 2017

Teresa left again for the finca about 9:30.  I understood she was waiting for a friend to go with her.

It looks like Star Wars: The Last Jedi (8.3) opens here today – but so far, they are all late showing and dubbed in Spanish.

At 1:30 I walked over to Carbon de Leña where I had their chicken breast and a mango juice.  It also came with soup, salad and a small baked potato for 24,500 ($8.25).  I was surprised I was able to eat it all so I guess I’ve got my appetite back.

I stopped at the bakery but I didn’t see any muffins.  I did stop at Bartolos for a café con leche.

Continuing my ATM investigation I stopped at Banco de Occidente and asked a guard inside if they have an ATM machine.  He pointed outside to a couple other banks and told me it’s the same.  He showed me a sticker on the window that said Grupo Aval and I understood they are different banks that are part of the same group.  I took out my list and went back inside and asked him which banks are part of the group and he said Banco de Occidente, Banco de Bogota (ATH), Banco Popular and he added one more that I didn’t have on my list - Av Villas.

I stopped at Bancolombia and only withdrew 400mil but I was still charged an ATM fee of 12,000 pesos.  Something must have changed.  Now I have to rethink which ATM machine I want to use in order avoid higher ATM fees.

Teresa came back at 6:30.  We left the apt at 7:15 and stopped at Gold’s Barber Shop so I could get a haircut.  I had to wait sometime for a young man and child who were ahead of me.  I was sitting in the line of a fan that was blowing cold air on me so I hope it don’t get my cold back.

Besides nicking my nose with his trimmer attachment, I had some fun kidding with the young barber.  (At one point he laid the barber chair back and I asked him if this was for surgery.  Lol)  I understand he’s going to be working for a month in Queens, New York.

Well, in the end my haircut itself isn’t too bad but I don’t care at all for my beard and moustache – way too short.

He also trimmed Teresa’s eyebrows and the total came to 17,000 pesos (a little less than $6).

T-shirt of the day: Believe in the power of love.

Wednesday, December 13, 2017

I watched the first 90 minutes of the Today show.

Teresa and I left the apt at 1:15 and quickly caught a taxi to Torre Medica in Ciudad del Rio.  We arrived about 20 minutes early but the doctor took me right away.  After an examination he told me I have Lichen – Google says occurs when the immune system mistakenly attacks cells of the skin or mucous membranes.  He said it isn’t contagious.  He gave me a prescription for a steroid that I will take over the next couple of weeks.

I guess with Teresa’s insistence I was only charged 90mil for this visit.

Walking down the street we came to a Dollar City store.  We walked around and Teresa picked up a few things for the finca – mainly paper plates, paper cups, and plastic silverware.  I told her I just saw a Dollar City store when I was in Mayorca last weekend.  Each of the things we picked up were either 4mil or 10mil – more than the equivalent of a dollar (3,000 pesos).

We walked the remainder of the 2 blocks to Mercado del Rio.  At Sinko Market I had a Caesar salad and limonada de coco and Teresa had salmon with mandarin juice for 85,222 ($28).  We went downstairs to a little café called La Alma (The Soul) where we shared a slice of carrot cake and I had a café con leche.  We were in no hurry.  I was reading my Nook and Teresa was looking through a variety of magazines they had.  At one point she showed me the cover of a magazine called Soho and I translated the Spanish to something like “photos of the first lady”.  A few pages in Teresa showed me full frontal nude photos of Melania Trump – the first lady.  OMG, does she (or did she) have a nice figure.  I couldn’t believe it. 

We left and after a couple minutes waiting we caught a taxi.  At Calle 10 the driver turned right onto a traffic circle and I understood he was going to take side streets because of some traffic problem ahead on Avenida Las Vegas.  The only thing is his engine died.  He soon got it started again but it lasted only a few more blocks and it died again.  I finally gave him 5mil (minimum fare) and we got out.  We walked a block to a bridge exit where soon a couple policemen on motorcycles stopped next to us.  Teresa explained that we were trying to catch a taxi and one of them hailed a taxi for us.  It turned out to be the same one we had just gotten out of.  He took us a couple blocks away where it died again.  We got out and had to wait 5-10 minutes to catch another taxi.  He ended up taking us all the way back to the apt for 10,500 pesos.

I gave Teresa my keys and then walked to the pharmacy where I picked up my prescription for 56,000 ($19).

T-shirt of the day: Contents may be offensive.

Tuesday, December 12, 2017

Teresa went for an exercise class while I stayed and watched the first 90 minutes of the Today show.

I finished Michael Connelly’s The Drop: Harry Bosch #15 on my Nook and downloaded his The Reversal: Mickey Haller #3).  I’m nearing the end of the books he’s written; soon I’ll have to find a new author while I wait for the new book that he publishes annually.

Teresa wants to go to the Makro store on San Juan to buy a turkey.  I googled it and found one closer by the Poblado station.  I asked her where she’s going to cook it since our oven doesn’t work and she said at her mother’s apartment.  A little later she said we’d better wait until she learns how to cook one.  Good idea!

It was pouring rain when I left the apt at 7:30.  At Bancolombia the ATMs were being refilled with 2 guards standing by.  I usually withdraw 400,000 pesos but today I withdrew 600,000 and I was charged 12,000 pesos ($4).  Hmmm!  Is this something new?  Maybe if I keep my withdrawals to 400mil there isn’t any charge.  I stopped in Exito and bought some much needed eggs and coffee.  Luckily I took my large umbrella so I was only wet from my ankles on down.

After reading a chapter in my paperback I turned the light off on my Nook and read a chapter in it – only 10 minutes.  I continued with my paperback and when I went to bed I still fell asleep quickly.

T-shirt of the day: Ok, but first coffee.

Monday, December 11, 2017

Teresa called my Urologist at 9am and learned he’s in surgery today so maybe we can get an appointment tomorrow.

I used my new Phillips shaver for the first time this morning and was that ever nice.

I have an idea.  Since, for melatonin purposes, I’m not supposed to look at any lighted screens in the hour before going to bed, if I turn off the light on my Nook, I should still be able to read it.  I’ll have to give that a try.

I left the apt at 12:35 for lunch and hopefully to see Wonder (8.1) playing at Vizcaya at 1:40.  I had lunch of soup, chicken breast, baked potato and mango juice at Carbon de Leña.  There was so much food I only finished half the chicken.  At 1:15 I caught a bus downtown and was at Parque Poblado by 1:40.  After a 5 minute wait I caught another bus which took me up the hill to the mall.  I bought a ticket for 5,000 pesos.  The cashier had her computer screen turned partially towards me and I saw it had some type of computer error so she wrote me a handmade paper ticket for the show.

I bought a small popcorn and medium soda and entered the theater during a ballet short.  (Glad I missed it!)

The movie was good and it was nice to see Manny Patinkin with a small part but the biggest surprise was seeing chewbacca.

After the show I walked down the hill to Parque Poblado where I caught a bus back to Envigado.  I was happy I got on the bus early so I had a seat as by the time we got to the other side of the Gold Mile it was standing room only.

Back at the park I printed out some ATM information I want to do further research on.  I stayed at Bartolos for about 30 minutes having a café con leche.

I watched a little Monday Night Football.

T-shirt of the day: Don’t want feelings.  Want clothes.

Sunday, December 10, 2017

I received a voice mail from my brother informing me that my 94 ½ year old Uncle Charlie passed away yesterday.  He was doing pretty well until he broke his hip a few weeks ago.  It’s always the hip that ends up getting us.

I watched my Chicago Bears beat the Cincinnati Bengals 33-7.  That was fun.  And I only had a couple instances of buffering to interrupt things.

The Colombian Peso closed at 3,009 to the US Dollar.

I watched NFL football all afternoon and then some of 60 Minutes.

T-shirt of the day: Holy cow.

Saturday, December 9, 2017

Since I’ve been doing my melatonin procedure every night I’ve been sleeping much better.  For example, last night I went to bed at 11pm, fell asleep quickly and only got up once about 5:30.  I took a vitamin C with half a glass of water and went back to bed.  I finally woke/got up at 9am.

I left the apt at 1:40, waited 5 minutes for a bus and got off at Mayorca.  Upstairs I was 3^rd in line at the ticket booth but the woman ahead of me waved me ahead (I think she was waiting for someone) and a man also waved me ahead (I think he was still trying to decide which movie to see).

I bought my ticket for 7,500 pesos from a girl who understood a little English.  I had 15 minutes to kill so I went inside Home Sentry and a girl took me to their shaver display.  I remember in Fedco they were selling for a little over 300,000 pesos because I remembered thinking in dollars it would be a little more than $100.  Here the same Phillips shaver was on sale, 100mil off, for 169,950 or $56.  I thanked her and said I would return after my movie.  I bought a medium popcorn and large soda for 15,800 ($5.50). 

The movie Mark Felt: The Man who Brought Down the White House (6.3), starring Liam Neeson, was good – a reminder (Donald Trump!) that the FBI is autonomous from other branches of government.

Afterwards I bought my shaver and went downstairs where I caught a taxi back to Envigado.  (It’s interesting how it costs 6,000 pesos before we can even get headed in the right direction – north.)

At Parque Envigado (8,000 pesos total) I saw that the paper store was closed so I couldn’t print the page I wanted from my memory stick.  I stopped in Exito where I picked up a couple bags of microwave popcorn and a 600ml bottle of Coke for about 10mil.

After I went to bed I had extreme itching in an area I don’t want to discuss so I guess I’ll be seeing a doctor soon to see if I have an allergic reaction to my medicine or some other allergy.

T-shirt of the day: Selfie queen.

Friday, December 8, 2017

Teresa left early – about 9am – for another trip to the finca.

I watched the first 90 minutes of the Today show and then headed to the pharmacy where I bought my medicine for the month for 169,200.

I stopped at the paper store to print out a page but it was closed.  I stopped at a bakery and had a café con leche.

I invited Laura to go to Deli Hoy for lunch but she informed me that today is a holiday – you know, December 8^th.

Checking my iPad today is Dia de Las Velitas – day of the candles.  I guess that’s why I’ve seen boxes of colored candles for sale in the stores.

Among new US movie releases I might want to see The Shape of Water (7.8).

Locally, I would like to see Mark Felt: The Man who Brought Down the White House (6.3) playing at 1pm at Oviedo at 2:15 at Mayorca and Wonder (8.1) playing at 3:40 at Vizcaya.

At 1:30 Laura called Frisby and placed an order for food to be delivered.

Teresa returned about 5:30.

About 10pm it started raining.  So much for the end of the rainy season here.

T-shirt of the day: I love Fry days.

Thursday, December 7, 2017

I was awakened about 3:30 in the morning by the sound of running water.  It was coming from the sink.  Apparently Teresa hadn’t turned the faucet off completely.

About 9am we lost our water again.

I finished Michael Palmer’s paperback The Patient.

I left the apt at 10:30, walked down the hill where I added some minutes to Teresa’s phone.  There was a young lady working Herman’s juice stand so I didn’t stop.  I got off the metro at Industriales station, walked over to Metro Plus where I caught a bus to the Fatima station.  From there it was a short straight run for minimum fare to Unicentro.

I went inside the mall and was 3^rd in line to use the Bancolombia ATM.  When the first customer finished he didn’t have any cash in his hands and he had a disgusted look on his face.  I didn’t take a chance – I headed upstairs where I knew there was a small bank of ATMs.  I took the first one and was able to withdraw 400mil.  Then the machine got weird on me.  It seemed I had to press really hard to get it to register my pin number.  It was rejected and I got real nervous that my ATM card was going to be locked and I’d just made another unnecessary trip to Unicentro.  I went downstairs where I found an ATH ATM where I received an “unsuccessful transaction” message.  I walked around until I found a Servibanca ATM and this time I got lucky (though it cost me a $4 fee) and was able to withdraw some cash.

At Inter-Col I made my 2^nd and last payment of 634,000 pesos for my Pensionado Visa and gave Estefania my passport.  She gave me a flyer with their new address of Calle 32C #66C-8 and told me they will be in there next Tuesday.  I thinks its about 2-4 blocks from their current location.

I caught a taxi to Santafe mall where I looked in Fedco for a new electric shaver but after all the times I saw them here, now they don’t have them.  I checked out the movies but nothing interesting in English.  I had lunch at Sarku – chicken teriyaki and I managed to eat most of it.  I walked across the street to Oviedo but their theater didn’t have anything good until 4pm.

I caught a bus back to the apt.

We went to bed and from then until about 2-3 in the morning I heard the same song played over and over again amid fireworks.

T-shirt of the day: Flawles.