Saturday, July 30, 2022

Last night I tried something new, took half a Zopiclona, went to bed at 10pm, and fell asleep quickly. I got up once about 2am and took the other half, returned to bed and fell back asleep quickly. The alarm I set awakened us at 5am and Teresa requested I reset it for 5:30 which I did.

We got up at 5:30, I washed my face, shaved, dressed and we were out of the apt by 6:10. A Didi took us to Nueve eps (four people sitting in the waiting area) and we checked in at the desk where I paid 3,700 pesos (85 cents) for today’s appointment and was sent to the second floor. Two others sitting there. I noticed one doctor come in who I remember spoke English, Clara I think her name is. It was only about a 10-minute wait when we were called into a room with a young male doctor. I checked my weight with his scale and it was about 83 kilos with my shoes on compared to my previous gym weight of under 80 kilos. He took my blood pressure and it was 120/70 which sounds good. He looked at the medications I am taking and talked to Teresa a bit. He wrote an order for me to see an internist (what is he a case agent?) and back at the desk they gave me an appointment with a Dr. Salcedo in the Stadium Nueve eps for Wednesday, September 14^th at noon.

Teresa told me the doctor said I should take my melatonin 4 hours before sleep instead of 1 hour and that he wrote a prescription for another medication to take with my Zopiclona.

We walked to Todo Drogas but at 7:10 it was still closed; they probably open at 8am on Saturdays. In Parque Envigado they were setting up a farmer’s market that Teresa checked out. Across the street we found a new restaurant and went upstairs where we had calentao and coffee for 18,200 pesos.

 I never did catch the name of the restaurant. Even though we were both exhausted, outside we caught a taxi to Badia in Mayorista where I bought 2 (all they had) 25-packs and 1 10-pack of Chamomile tea and another of Chamomile with anise. Teresa picked up a tea for herself and something else for a total of 93,103. We stopped at the El Langostino fish market where Teresa bought 1.79 kg of catfish. Outside we had a 20-minute wait for a taxi to return us to the apt.

We took a 90-minute nap right away.

I called El Pastelito and handed the phone to Teresa and they open at 7am on Sundays so Glenn and I are going to give it a try tomorrow.

Teresa is going to a “concert” with her girlfriends and I’m going to see Elvis (7.8) today at 2:05pm.

After lunch, at 1:35, I took a Didi to the mall where I bought a preferred ticket to Elvis for 14,600 pesos ($3.50). There was a short line at concessions but I easoly ordered a small popcorn and large soda. The saleslady reminded me as a Platinum card holder I can get a small (child size) popcorn for free so I went with that.

I was in my seat in time for the coming attractions. The movie, though 2 hours and 40 minutes long, was very good and of course I enjoyed the music.

I printed some chess notes at Auros before returning to the apt by taxi.

Just saw on US local news that someone won a $1,300,000,000+ Mega Millions lottery drawing with a ticket bought at a Mini Mart in Des Plaines, IL. I hope that was one of my kids or my brother or cousin.

 

Funny pix of the day

Friday, July 29, 2022

Last night I went to bed at 10pm, fell asleep quickly, got up once during the night (raining), but soon Teresa woke me up with her snoring so I moved (no rain) to the guest bedroom and woke/got up at 7:15. Feeling good.

About 9am I took a Didi to the mall and picked up a Gente newspaper in Exito. Surprisingly, the cover and main coverage is about an old man I’ve seen selling flowers in Poblado. I even bought a marigold from him once years ago but it didn’t last long (an annual?). I made an ATM withdrawal then had coffee in Todo Fresa. I returned to the apt about 11:30. I was surprised to see a few copies of Gente on the table in the porteria.

On Youtube I viewed a short MagicJack installation video but it was for attaching to a router and a landline phone. The second video was to attach to a computer but still it attaches to a phone. I believe I can use this approach but then use the MagicJack app to switch to headphones as I did before. I’m going to start from scratch except I am willing to pay to port over my old 312 phone number. We’ll see how that goes.

For grins I just plugged the device into my USB port and the software updated automatically. “Welcome. Enjoy 30 minutes/48 hours (whichever comes first) of talk time before registering”. I called my brother and we chatted a bit. Interestingly, the app shows my old number and it soon came up with my previous contact list so maybe I’m good. I had my brother call me and that worked. I checked my voice mails and that worked. I used the app on my cell to do a test call to SS and that worked. I logged into my account and saw, “my previous number -7936 has been changed to -7560 for this MagicJack Home” and I see my subscription expires 8/7/23 so I’m good for a year. 😊

Dr. Castaños secretary called regarding my sleep clinic and now Teresa is involved. She says Esmeralda’s mother has the same problem and I should first see a psychiatrist to see if I should alter my sleep medications. She says first I need to go to eps to see a doctor who will refer me to a general doctor who will refer me to a psychiatrist. (Typical (but free) bureaucracy.) I asked if I can’t just make an appointment with a psychiatrist and pay out of pocket. Then she tells me the ENT doctor is a snoring specialist and he charges about 700mil for a visit so I guess we’ll go the public route.

I’m out of Badia chamomile tea. Teresa called for delivery but something about only Mon-Wed so I’m going to go there tomorrow morning.

I had an hour nap after lunch and when I woke up Teresa informed me I have a 6:20am appointment tomorrow in Nueve eps. Yikes! People actually work at that hour?

I finally got Teresa to look at the photos for the resort in Punta Cana – Bahia Principe Luxury Bouganville – an Adults only resort. She liked it but asked if everything is included. I tried to explain that you have to pay for some extras, I’m thinking golf, spa procedures, massages, etc. Now she wants to know what isn’t included. Sigh! I just read, “masks are required at the property”. That could be a deal breaker.

For supper I ordered chicken wings from Rocket Wings.

 

Funny pix of the day

Thursday, July 28, 2022

Last night I went to bed at 10pm, fell asleep quickly, got up twice during the night (raining both times), and woke/got up at 7am. Feeling good.

Today is the 1^st anniversary of my 1^st surgery, my prostatectomy.

I texted Carlos to give him a heads up that I’ll be needing an airport pickup on August 18^th and 28^th.

At 10am I met Marcos at Maca for coffee. He handed over the MagicJack Home he bought for me for $49.99 (+8.6% sales tax) at his local Best Buy. (Installing that should keep me busy for a while.) I had given him 250mil and he returned 30mil. He told me Phoenix had a high of 120 degrees each day he was there. I don’t know how people can live like that, especially now with threats of running out of water.

He left and I had another latte inside while playing some speed chess. Teresa called to ask me if I was okay with having a 5pm appointment with Dr. Castaño. I said, “yes”.

I stopped at Mercado Madrid on my way back to the apt and bought milk, hamburger buns, Fab laundry detergent and Axion dish soap.

I checked Cine Colombia in VE (Viva Envigado) and Elvis (7.8) is now playing at 2:05pm. Also playing in English are Impending Disaster (Blast; 5.1) at 6:40pm and Pact with the Devil (The Reckoning; 4.7) at 6:35pm.

At 3:45 I was ready to order a car when Teresa “reminded me” of my 5:30 appointment. Even though I was told earlier it was for 5pm I left and arrived at El Tesoro by 4:30. I waited in a long line to have some chess notes printed then went up to Dr. Castano’s office in Torre Medica 1. It was about a 45-minute wait for my turn.

I gave the doctor my latest PSA results (<0.01) and asked him to add cholesterol (total, HDL, and LDL) and triglycerides to my next blood test order. I brought him up to date on my experience with leaking and peeing. He did an ultrasound exam, said my case was mild and to continue my Kegel exercises and I should be better by our next 3-month appointment. I explained my sleep problem and he thought there was a clinic in Conquistadores neighborhood of Medellin and he would have the secretary give me the information.

His secretary charged me 260mil and gave me my next appointment for November 1^st at 2:30. She said she would get an appointment with an ENT and call Teresa with the information.

As I walked into the taxi waiting area it was crowded but a young lady gave me her ticket for number 100 and they were calling number 95. Soon I was in a taxi back to the apt for 15,500 pesos.

I watched a Youtube video about installing MagicJack but I’d better see it again on my laptop.

About 8:30 it started raining.

 

Funny pix of the day

Wednesday, July 27, 2022

Last night I went to bed at 10pm, fell asleep quickly, got up once at 4:30, went back to bed and woke/got up at 7:15.

Teresa left at 7am for a gym class.

I left the apt at 8:45 and found Teresa having a latte in Los Porteños. She ordered a ham sandwich on whole wheat croissant and a te aromatica and I ordered a classic croissant and scrambled eggs. Glenn soon arrived and took the table next to ours. He finally finished watching The Sopranos for the second time and we discussed the meaning of the last episode. He’s looking to find a different location for breakfast next Sunday. I suggested El Pastelito but later I found they don’t open until 5pm on Sunday. Teresa left, then Glenn and I hung around a little longer to play speed chess. The total check for Teresa and I was 55,100 pesos ($13).

We left the apt at 3pm and took a Didi to Pricesmart for 8,500 pesos. We picked up a large number of items but checking out it seemed like the total got high very quickly so I’m going to have to check that receipt. The total was 680,474 pesos ($170).

We returned to the apt at 6:15 by taxi for 17,500 pesos.

I checked the Pricesmart receipt and it is correct. ☹

It was about 8pm when I noticed it was raining.

I finished reading John Grisham’s Skipping Christmas on my Nook. It wasn’t very long, more like a short story. When I started it and found out the family’s name is Krank I checked IMDB and confirmed it was the basis for the movie Christmas With the Kranks starring Tim Allen and Jamie Lee Curtis.

 

Funny pix of the day

Tuesday, July 26, 2022

Last night I went to bed at 10pm, took at least an hour to fall asleep, got up once at 4:30, couldn’t fall back asleep so I got up at 5:30 and updated my blog notes, and went back to bed at 6am and woke/got up at 8:15.

I feel like my cold is back so I’m starting to take my cold medicine again.

Teresa left at 9am for gym classes.

I left the apt at 10:30, bought 6 sesame seed bagels for 16,200 pesos ($4) in Eduardo Madrid bakery and had a latte there for 7,200.

I left at 12:30 and bought a bag of sugar and container of dishwashing paste at Tienda D1 before returning to the apt.

Teresa returned a few minutes later.

I had a nap before and after lunch.

At 4:30 Teresa left for her massage. Ten minutes later it started drizzling.

Teresa called me at 5:30 and I met her at the massage place 10 minutes later.  There were at most a few drops on the way. I bought another package of 4 medical massages for 352mil. I did the math and it comes out to exactly $20 per massage. Not too bad. I wonder if they price it that way on purpose using the current exchange rate.

Teresa wanted a snack and it’s too cold for yogurt ice cream so I suggested Ganso y Castor. We each had a latte and shared a cheese pastry. While there it started pouring. When it settled down I paid the check and we walked back to the apt with only a few raindrops. Teresa informed me she didn’t like Ganso y Castor because it was “solo arina” with no fresh fruit.

 

Funny pix of the day

Monday, July 25, 2022

Last night I went to bed at 10pm, fell asleep quickly, got up twice (raining both times), fell back asleep quickly, finally waking at 6:30 and getting up at 7am. Feeling pretty good.

It appears to be an unusually cool morning so far.

I’m really looking forward to a nice warm shower.

What? I forgot to post Friday’s activity? Got to fix that!

Teresa reminded me she has a 3:30 doctor’s appointment in El Tesoro.

At 10:30 it’s still only 70 degrees and feels like rain.

I’m looking at All-Inclusive resorts in Punta Cana, Dominican Republic for us to celebrate our birthdays in October. At the moment I’m liking Bahia Principe Luxury Bouganville – Adults Only.

We left at 2:45 for Teresa’s appointment. The Didi car there cost 10mil. Everything came out good from her appointment. We were walking through the newest wing of the mall when we came across this new café named Valentina. They had this pastry of the month I had to try. I’ll describe it as two stacked yeast donuts with something green inside (not avocado) with arequipe and nuts on the outside. I had one with a latte and Teresa had a slice of what looked like pound cake with a latte. She only had a couple bites of her cake and got the rest to go.

Teresa did some shopping. At one point she was in this purse store, Bimbo y Lola or something like that, and she was interested in this large compartmentalized purse. Believe me she has enough purses.

This store looks like it's right out of the 1960's

I found this interesting "market" in one of the mall's atriums:

Teresa spent a bit of time in another store and finally waved me in. She showed me a small purse she apparently wanted for 800mil. I said, “I’m not spending $200 on a purse” and I walked out. She soon joined me on the sofa outside and explained that this purse was pure leather and was less expensive than what I would pay in the US. I told her that purse better be made of gold and it doesn’t matter if it costs $1000 in the States. I explained Laura has the benefit of buying whatever she wants using her husband’s credit card. Teresa reminded me that Laura works and I reminded her she doesn’t make enough money babysitting to pay for her own apartment.

About 6:30 we walked to the taxi stand and discovered it was raining. I picked up number 154 and I think I heard them call out 129. We went upstairs where she bought a few makeup items at this Asian store with a funny name. Back downstairs at the taxi stand and it was pouring. I gave my number to someone who had just entered the area.

To kill time we had supper in J&C Delicious. Asian chicken for her and Penne Carmela for me. My strawberry juice with milk turned out to be all foam. First time that’s happened so I didn’t complain to the wait staff.

Back at the taxi stand and there was now a downpour and the line was even longer. We went down by the Carulla grocery store where I used inDriver to order a ride for 22mil. The car arrived 5 minutes later and we were back at the apt withing 30 minutes. Without inDriver we would have still been waiting for a taxi.

My brother sent me this video of my cousin David’s country band, Whiskey Romance – Country Thunder. He looks to be the bearded one in the light hat.

https://nam12.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fyoutu.be%2FtYOwXS4N-mc&amp;data=05%7C01%7C%7Cb7f4accd5cda4473795c08da6d96f349%7C84df9e7fe9f640afb435aaaaaaaaaaaa%7C1%7C0%7C637942792343370925%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJWIjoiMC4wLjAwMDAiLCJQIjoiV2luMzIiLCJBTiI6Ik1haWwiLCJXVCI6Mn0%3D%7C3000%7C%7C%7C&amp;sdata=3n4rJTcX4dxLw%2F%2FkvELc7%2BkuWyKG8Q6ahTRhIk3aMDU%3D&amp;reserved=0

 

Funny pix of the day

Sunday, July 24, 2022

Last night I went to bed at 10pm, fell asleep quickly, woke up at 2:45, couldn’t fall back asleep, got up at 3:30 and viewed a couple chess videos, returned to bed at 4:30, woke up at 7am, and got up at 7:30. Our tower water is supposed to come on at 8am so a couple minutes after I’ll make my last trip to the restroom. I basically just washed my face in a bucket of water in the shower.

Teresa is up and bored so she may go with me for breakfast.

We took a Didi to Sere where we were informed there was no water and no bathrooms available. We sat down and I ordered a latte and Teresa an aromatica. I checked my messages and Glenn had already been there and left for Hija Mia Nomada. I had their French toast and a couple lattes and Teresa had fresh fruit with avocados and bread. I think she forgot to ask for it toasted. We were back at the apt by 10am.

Teresa wanted to go to the new mall in Bello (CC Parque Fabricato).  I ordered a Didi to first pick us up then MT then go to the other (north) side of the valley. We left at 1pm. This is the current state of construction of the new Idea store, taken from our car.

At one point traffic ahead on the expressway looked deadlock so I turned on Waze on my cellphone and the driver followed it to keep us moving even though we may have only saved a few minutes. The trip cost 34mil and took 45 minutes to an hour.

The mall was basically the same as all other malls.

 I saw this restaurant named Pigasus. I remember a smaller verson near Los Molinos mall. I believe the serve mainly burgers and ribs. Their theme is something about "the place where pigs can fly".

 We had lunch in Crepes & Waffles for 93,450 pesos. They had no water problem; I think it is confined to southern Medellin. We returned by another Didi in 45 minutes for 30mil and were back by 6pm.

I realized we had running water again when I heard Teresa doing dishes at 8pm. Nice!

I finished reading Emily St. John Mandel’s Sea of Tranquility on my Nook.

 

Funny pix of the day

Saturday, July 23, 2022

Last night I went to bed at 10pm, fell asleep quickly, woke up at 3:45, Teresa started snoring, not loud but still disruptive enough for me. I moved to the guest bedroom, finally fell asleep and got up at 8am. And to top it all off I had a brief calf cramp. It’s been 4 months since my last cramp so I consider that an improvement. The shoulder soreness from my vaccination is gone so I can now lie on my left side again.

The street is wet so we must have had a little rain overnight.

This weekend should be interesting with our water challenges.

Teresa has to take her mother to El Tesoro for a 11:30 doctor’s appointment so I’ll be on my own for lunch. I ordered a Didi for her and she left at 10:45. I downloaded Didi to her own cellphone, now she needs to learn how to use it.

We still have water at 11am.

I took a nap from noon to 1:15. When I got up we had no running water.

It was only 74 degrees when I left at 1:30.

Here’s the latest look at the new paving outside Antonio’s Gelato.

I had another Calzone in Na Pizza. I ordered a strawberry juice but they didn’t have water so I had to switch to a Coke. At one point I saw Nigel come in but he didn’t seem to notice/recognize me. Third time I’ve seen him in the past two weeks. About 2:30 it started raining. Thankfully Parva is next door so I didn’t get wet making the move. I had a café con leche and played some speed chess on Chess.com. I’ve gotten my Rapid rating over 1300 for the first time in a while. I left just before 6pm in order to be back at the apt before dark.

Teresa returned at 6:30.

I bought a new chess video for $20.

 

Funny pix of the day

Friday, July 22, 2022

Last night I went to bed at 11:30pm, fell asleep quickly, slept through the night, woke up at 6:30, tried falling back asleep, finally got up at 7:30. Feel pretty good.

Teresa left at 8am for the gym.

Yesterday in Home Center I came across some “cooling pillowcases” which reminded me my daughter gave me one last year. I started to use it then realized I was using a cooling pillowcase in “cold” weather. I removed it and now have no idea where we put it. To be continued.

I left at 9:30 and walked to the little strip mall by Marcos’ apartment. They have a Celebrity Barber Shop where Santiago gave me a haircut similar to the one I used to get in Viva Envigado but 10mil less expensive. At the end he styled it in a way I’m not used to including the front pushed up like a flattop. Anyway, I think Teresa will like the shortness of it.

I went across the street where I had a latte in Maca. A block further in Mercado Madrid I bought 3 bags of milk and a bottle of decaf coffee before returning to the apt.

Teresa called me at 12:30 to inform me she’s getting her hair and eyebrows done so I’m on my own for lunch.

Glenn texted me “Danny says that Na is open this weekend as are other restaurants that he knows about. They have water towers. My building has a tower as well but I was told there will be no running water.”

I translated the notice the portero gave us yesterday and I understand each building has water towers. Even though water will be off for most of southern Medellin our building will give us access to our tower’s water from 5pm-9pm on Saturday and 8am to noon on Sunday. Still they ask us to avoid using washing machines, cleaning bathrooms, or other general cleaning. And the swimming pool will be out of service for these two days.

I left at 1:30 and took a Didi to the mall. Surprisingly, I didn’t find a Gente newspaper in Exito. I had a burger and Coke at a new place called H{}ME Burger. I can’t really recommend it. I stopped in Cine Colombia and found The Black Telephone playing at 7:10. I called several times but Teresa didn’t answer for almost 2 hours. She isn’t interested in the movie, or maybe just not tonight. She asked me to buy apples and blueberries in Exito before I return. There was only one cashier available at the usual express line in Exito so it took some time to check out and then there was a long slow line for a taxi.

Teresa thought my haircut was “ugly”. I thought she would like it just because it’s short. Nope!

I was watching the series Manifest on Netflix but gave up after 5 or 6 episodes. Looking for something better.

 

 

Funny pix of the day

Thursday, July 21, 2022

Last night I went to bed at 10pm, fell asleep quickly, woke up at 2am, had trouble falling back asleep, finally got up at 7:15. Another bad night.

We left the apt at 9:15 and took a Didi to the San Diego Ophthalmology Center. We put on our facemasks upon entry and went up to the 7^th floor to the ENT specialist’s office where Teresa only had a short wait to see the specialist. While waiting I confirmed with the secretary that the doctor speaks English. When Teresa returned she reported that, unlike Laura, she didn’t have much crud in her ears. I wanted to make an appointment for myself but his only opening next week is on a Wednesday morning. I’ll wait until August then call for an appointment. I paid 200mil and we walked a block away to Premium Plaza mall.

Teresa exchanged something in Zara while I waited outside. She did a little more window shopping then we took a taxi to Viva Envigado. As we were approaching Sere I asked Teresa if she would like to have lunch at Hija Mia. Because of all the one-way streets I had to direct our driver turn by turn to get to Hija Mia Nomada. Teresa was impressed with my knowledge of these back streets but it’s mostly just a good sense of direction. Teresa had a salmon dish that she didn’t care much for and I had the acai bowl.

I ordered a Didi which took us to Viva Envigado. I made an ATM withdrawal. For the past months it’s always given me 50s. Today it was 100s, 50s, and about a dozen 10s and 20s. 😊 We went to Home Center where we bought 750mil of stuff: 2 bathmats, 3 fitted sheet sets, 2 tubs large and open enough that you could bathe a small child or pet, pail, toilet brush, face towels and a 9V battery.

Outside we quickly caught a taxi back to the apt with our stuff in the trunk. The taxi was allowed inside the complex and at the elevator we transferred everything from the trunk to a shopping cart kept by the elevator door. At our apt we moved everything into the apt and I took the cart back to the basement garage. On my way back up I saw this sign

on the elevator wall. It appears our complex won’t be without water for the entire period between 10am Saturday and 10pm Sunday. 😊

I gave Teresa the good news.

We had just gotten into bed to rest when our doorbell rang. A portero brought us a copy of the notice I had seen in the elevator.

I watched the 8^th January 6^th hearing on CNN. Lots of new revelations about that a##hole Trump.

 

Funny pix of the day

Wednesday, July 20, 2022

Today is Colombian Independence Day!

Last night I went to bed at 10pm, fell asleep quickly, woke up several times but quickly fell back asleep, woke up at 3:45, gave up sleeping and got up at 4:30, did some adjustments to my chess notes, went back to bed at 5am, finally fell asleep, and woke/got up at 7am. I don’t feel very refreshed this morning.

I had a dream last night. I was working for an insurance company. (The same one my buddy from college worked for, I just can’t recall the name.) It has a lot of buildings situated campus style. I was at my desk and a coworker was questioning my work. I told her I finished my program and could create test data but I’m still refining it. For some reason I have a revolver in my pants pocket. There was an announcement (PA system?) for an all hands meeting in another building. I’m now outside walking counter-clockwise around buildings looking for the meeting. I see a small note that identifies the location of the meeting. (Houston building? Maybe.) That still doesn’t tell me where that building is. Now I’m at the location of the meeting, standing outside under a covering. I’m with other people but I don’t see or hear any speaker. The same coworker from before notices the revolver. (Is that a gun in your pocket or…😊) I notice a policeman a few feet away. The meeting is over and I get lost trying to return to my building. I get on a bus that takes me from one end of the campus to the other. It waits a few minutes before returning to where it started. I get off. I continue walking clockwise around buildings. I go into one and see games, including chess. Good to know. I exit the other side and continue walking. I finally run into other coworkers and follow them back to my building. End of dream.

I met Glenn at Los Porteños at 9am. I showed him the iPhone that Laura gifted to Teresa and she wants 1 million pesos for it. Glenn said it isn’t worth much because it’s version 7 and now Apple is on appr. Version 14. (Later he texted me that the phone is 6 years old.) We are both incredulous that the US Secret Service could lose text messages as everyone backs up their data. Instead of following the XE.com CER he follows the Visa exchange rate. He believes the ATM rate you get today is the Visa exchange rate from two days ago. We discussed a number of other things but left soon after finishing eating as the place was packed and people were waiting for a table.

I thought Teresa and I were going to go to the mall today but we were both so tired it never happened.

The rain started about 5:45 and lasted about 20 minutes.

Teresa spent the evening cleaning both bathrooms and when she was done she pronounced it would be better if we didn’t go away for the weekend. I understand she talked to someone else and for our “cabana” (cabin?) you have to use a bathroom “outside”, whatever that means. Instead she recommends we buy a “coca”, whatever that is, to store water for the weekend.

 

Funny pix of the day

Tuesday, July 19, 2022

Last night I went to bed at 10pm, fell asleep quickly, and got up twice during the night. I had trouble falling back asleep, finally woke/got up at 7:15. I don’t feel very refreshed this morning.

Teresa talked to a friend and she has a “cabin” that we can rent for 400mil ($100) a night. She showed me some photos that look nice. I agreed but don’t know where it is or how to get there so that’s on her.

I left the apt at 9am and took a Didi to Santafe mall. I directed the driver to drop me off at the entrance at the top of the hill and it was only one level down to the “vaccination area”. There was no line outside and a guard helped me fill out the form. I got my fourth shot (2^nd booster; Moderna), waited 15 minutes to ensure I had no adverse reaction at 10am I ordered a Didi to return me to Envigado. I got out at the Pasteur pharmacy on Ave. Poblado where I bought another box of the high absorbent MPs for 25mil ($6) then had coffee in Parva.  When I left I noticed they have put down pavers at the south end of the street. You’re looking at Antonio’s Gelato and to the right of that would be Na Pizza and next Parva.

I bought 2 bags of milk before returning to the apt by noon.

Looks like it’s going to be another warm day, it’s 85 degrees at 1:30 in the afternoon. Soon the sun will hit the thermometer so later readings won’t be reliable.

I showed Teresa our storage area in the parking garage and how we can only open the door about a foot because of the long cardboard boxes from the refrigerator. She finally relented and said I could throw the boxes away. We could keep them if they were the first things in there as I could put them up against the wall, unfortunately, they were the last things put in. If I wanted to remove everything, I could put the cardboard boxes where they belong and that way keep them. I’m not going to even consider tackling that until I’m 6 months post-surgery. (Six more weeks to go.)

I received an email from Alcala that our apt rent will go up to 2,011,471 ($500) on October 30^th.

I tried taking a nap before and after lunch but couldn’t sleep. I think tonight I’ll go back to melatonin and see if that makes a difference.

It’s strange but I get Yahoo emails to my cellphone (eg, Alcala) that I don’t see on my laptop.

Teresa left at 5pm for a massage. She called me at 6pm and asked me to bring her 10mil. (I need to get dressed, close the place up and walk two blocks just to give her 10mil?) She sweetened the deal by suggesting we go for ice cream after. The 10mil turned out to be for booties because she forgot to bring hers. ☹ We walked up to Percimon where we had yogurt ice cream with fixings.

On our way back to the apt we stopped at Tienda D1 and Teresa bought 2 packages of arepas and some aromatica (tea).

 

Funny pix of the day

Monday, July 18, 2022

Last night I went to bed at 10pm, fell asleep quickly, and got up once during the night (streets were wet). I finally woke up a 6:30 and got up at 8.

I told Teresa we should stay in Rionegro from Friday through Monday. Via the Internet I found Hotel Velero that looks nice and appears to be close to the town center.

Laura left at 8am for an 8:30 doctor’s appointment. She left her suitcase here, packed and ready to go.

At 9:45 Teresa and I took a Didi to Clinica Medellin (with the suitcase) and picked up Laura. We continued on to the airport for 85mil. (I noted that the driver paid almost 20mil to use the tunnel.) In the 2^nd restaurant area they remodeled the previous Beer Garden and Piccolo’s pizza into Guacamole Grill.

We went to the 1^st restaurant area where Teresa ordered half a chicken and I had a mango juice. We said goodbye to Laura at 12:45 for her 1:45 Spirit Flight to Boston via Ft. Lauderdale.

Outside we took a taxi to the Hotel Velero in Rionegro. As soon as the driver started the car I informed Teresa that he hadn’t started the meter. After a short discussion between the two I understood only that it would be 40mil to the hotel. Sounded like a lot when, I thought, Rionegro was right around the corner. Wrong, it was a 15-20 minute car ride. When the driver stopped outside Teresa nixed the hotel without getting out of the car. The area is full of bars and restaurants and since we’ll be there on a weekend we would never get any sleep. Our driver took us to a bus stop where we caught a van to Medellin for 12,500 pesos each.

We got off at the San Diego mall and after a trip to the restrooms we went into Crepes & Waffles where Teresa had ice cream and I had a baked French onion soup.

I had a Didi pick us up at the casino across from the mall and the driver returned us to our apt by the expressway for 15mil.

I asked Laura by text if she was in Fort Lauderdale yet.

Maybe we’ll stay at the hotel in Santafe de Antioquia if I can remember the name of it.

We both had a nap for 1-2 hours.

Laura called Teresa and informed her that she missed her connecting flight in Ft. Lauderdale and Spirit was putting her up for the night in a hotel. She never showed me her itinerary so I have no idea how much time she allowed between flights.

I finished reading James Patterson’s Cross.

 

Funny pix of the day

Sunday, July 17, 2022

Last night I went to bed at 10pm, fell asleep quickly, and got up once during the night at 1am for a trip to the bathroom. (Laura hadn’t returned yet and it was raining outside.) I finally woke up a 6:30 and got up at 7:am.

I believe I’m finally over my cold. 😊

This is the translator I downloaded to my cellphone:

I met Glenn for breakfast at Hija Mia Nomada at 8:30. He told me he’s going to set up a 2^nd account with CS so he will have backup if he loses his card.

The ladies left just before noon to have breakfast with the relatives.

I thought today would be a good time for me to see Elvis in VE Cine Colombia but the only showtime they have for it in English right now is a 9:05 start. ☹

I left the apt at 1pm and had a meatball sandwich at Na Pizza. I ate half and took the other half to go. Parva is closed from 12:30 to 3:30 on Sundays so I went to Los Porteños where I had a small latte while playing some speed chess. I left at 4:45 and walked back to the apt. I took note of the name of the new Argentinian restaurant – Quilombo.

I checked cu.epm.com.co for details of the scheduled water outage for next weekend and it appears to be almost all of Medellin and the southern suburbs. I think we should make reservations at a hotel in Rionegro for the weekend.

For supper I ate the remainder of my meatball sandwich. Teresa called me at 7:45 to ask me if I wanted her to bring me a slice of carrot cake. Is the Pope Catholic?

They returned at 8:15 with fish for Teresa and a slice of carrot cake for me.

 

Funny pix of the day

Saturday, July 16, 2022

Last night I went to bed at 10pm, fell asleep quickly, and got up once during the night at 4am for a trip to the bathroom. The street was wet so we must have had a shower. I finally woke/got up at 7:30.

Maybe today will be the last day of my cold.

I left the apt at 9:45 and took a Didi to the mall. I printed a few pages of chess notes then quickly (no line) paid the epm and Tigo/Une bills in the Exito payment center.

I had a strong WiFly (wifi) signal as I went up to Santa Leña for coffee. I played a few rapid (10 minutes) chess games on my cellphone, checking my notes and doing a computer analysis after each game. I’m still working on learning the ins and outs of my new openings.

I talked to Teresa at 12:45 and she requested I return to the apt for lunch.

I had a 45-minute nap after lunch. When I got up, Teresa had already left to meet Laura in Santafe mall.

I left at 3:45 and had coffee for a couple hours at Los Porteños before returning to the apt just before dark.

I met Teresa and Laura in the porteria at 7:30 and we walked to La Buena Mesa in search of a place for dinner. The old frozen yogurt place is now a Messi themed Argentinian restaurant with a very strange name. There was a short line at Jack & Roll so we went on and finally settled on Pizzeria Olivia. Teresa had her usual salmon, I had short pasta with bolognesa sauce and I don’t know what Laura ordered. I tried one of their house iced teas – black tea with lemon but it was only so so. The total came to 156,241 (about $39). La Buena Mesa was really hopping when we left at 9pm.

 

Funny pix of the day

Friday, July 15, 2022

Last night I went to bed at 10pm, fell asleep quickly, and got up once during the night at 3:45 for a trip to the bathroom. I finally woke/got up at 7:45. Pretty much the same as the night before.

I’m almost over my cold.

At breakfast Teresa informed me we are almost out of eggs.

I left the apt at 9:45 and took a Didi to the mall. I stopped in Exito and picked up a complimentary copy of the Gente newspaper. I’ll try to remember to do that every Friday.

In the past I’ve been in Todo Fresa and my cellphone gave me a poor wifi connection with Home Center. My goal today is to find a location where I could get a strong wifi connection and then find a café near that location. At the main entrance to the mall I managed to log into the mall’s Wi-Fly wifi. It stayed strong and I went to Todo Fresa and had coffee.

When I left, I bought a large package of eggs and returned to the apt by taxi.

A Facebook post said Envigado (as well as almost all areas south of Medellin) will be without water service from 10am next Saturday through 10pm Sunday. 😊

Later, Teresa said she wants to buy something to store water but my plan is to just hang out in malls for the weekend. Use their restrooms and their restaurants. She said then I won’t be able to shower on Sunday. I already went a week without a shower after my last surgery.

I checked the receipt of the umbrella I purchased and I have 4 more days to exchange it. Laura asked what was wrong with it and in the process of our demonstrating how it worked, Teresa changed her mind and decided she would keep it. She gave me hers so now I don’t have to worry about going to El Tesoro. 😊 The only problem is it “peeks out” of my tech bag a bit.

Laura left at 1:45 for another doctor’s appointment.

I had a 90-minute nap after lunch.

I left the apt at 3:45 and walked to Eduardo Madrid bakery. I bought 7 sesame seed bagels for 18,900 ($4.50) and had a latte there for 7,200 (less than $2).

I’m noticing more people wearing masks on the street.

I returned to the apt just before 6pm.

A portero dropped off our Tigo/Une (wifi) and epm (utility) bills. That’s the last of the bills for July.

The TranslateZ app I downloaded appears to be the same as the Photo Translator app I used the past couple months.

Teresa asked me to see if La Bodeguita Havanera is open. I googled it and got the address (across from Parque Laureles #2) and phone number and the web says it’s open.

Teresa fixed her hair then remembered tonight is the last episode of Desafio. 😊 She solved that problem as we went back to La Casita Parilla since they have a TV inside that she can see from the picnic bench outside. Laura joined us about 5 minutes later and we all had chicken shish kebabs with drinks for 52mil ($13). We returned to the apt by Didi where Teresa was able to finish the episode at home.

 

Funny pix of the day

Thursday, July 14, 2022

Last night I went to bed at 10pm, took a few minutes to fall asleep, and got up once during the night at 4am for a trip to the bathroom. I finally woke/got up at 7:45. Pretty, pretty good!

Laura has a 10:30 doctor’s appointment so I’m going to the mall to pay our Claro bills.

I left the apt at 9:45 and took a Didi to the mall. I paid this month’s Claro bills, made an ATM withdrawal using my CS debit card and had coffee in Todo Fresa. I stopped in Home Center long enough to verify they do have bedding sets in our off-“Queen” size of 190cm x 160cm. I bought a package of croutons and 2 bags of milk before returning to the apt by taxi.

My transfer from CS appeared in my USAA account so that one-day turnaround was pretty quick. 😊

For lunch I had the remainder of my calzone. This time they didn’t include extra sauce. ☹

I left the apt at 1:30 and took a Didi to Pergamino Café #2 for 12mil. I texted Thejas and found he was at the wrong Pergamino. He arrived a few minutes later. He’s been here a few weeks but he will be leaving a week from Saturday. He’s going to return to his house in Houston before going to Portugal for a visit. We played two games. He plays quickly. He was clearly winning the first game but I eked out a draw by repetition. I won the second game after he blundered a piece.

I used inDriver to request a ride back to Envigado for 20mil. Yes, there is still heavy traffic on Ave Poblado apporaching the border with Envigado.

I checked Cine Colombia in Viva Envigado and starting today Follow Me (5.4) is playing at 9:20 and Elvis (7.8) at 9:05. After seeing the trailers Teresa is interested in seeing the former but not the latter. We’ll probably wait until Laura leaves on Monday and see Follow Me after.

For supper I ordered chicken wings and fries from Rocket Wings for 52mil, tip included ($13).

 

Funny pix of the day

Wednesday, July 13, 2022

Last night I went to bed at 10pm and got up once during the night at 2:30 for a trip to the bathroom. I got up again at 6:30, fell back asleep, finally waking/getting up from my 8am alarm.

The ladies left at 8:30 for a 9am doctor’s appointment in Poblado for Laura’s hearing.

I left the apt and met Glenn at Los Porteños just after 9am. We don’t see any significant difference between my Microsoft Office 365 Family version and his Business version. My version expires next December 28^th. At that time I will pay Glenn the equivalent of $33.33 in pesos to use one of his licenses (and Juan the same if he agrees). Since my Express VPN expires at that time, probably the same amount for that program. I still have some questions before we settle on the details.

I stopped at Pasteur where I bought another box of 20 Hidroxicina cold tablets for 3,836 pesos (less than $1).

I was in Parva having coffee when Nobraskja texted I have a package to pick up for 67mil.

I left about 11:15 and picked up the package of 4 Joint Support supplements at Envios Market and returned to the apt.

I checked my USAA account and saw a $5 “Returned Item Fee”. I used Talk360 (53 cents) to talk to a USAA rep and he informed me that USAA attempted to move $ from my CS account to my USAA account (at my request) but my CS account is set up so I can transfer money in but not out. I need to go to CS and give them my USAA account and routing information and in the future I have to use CS to move money from there to USAA. The rep is going to forgive my $5 Returned Item Fee.

I logged into my CS account and, after a short chat with their rep (they already have my USAA account & routing number) used the “Transfers & Payments” tab to request a Xfer from CS to USAA.

I talked to Teresa at 2pm and she recommended I go out for lunch.

I had another Calzone in Na Pizza. This time it was a “Panzarotti (Pizza Frita), El classico panzerotti frito es un favorito local relleno con nuestra salsa de tomate casera, mozzarella, parmesano, albahaca.” My cellphone didn’t catch the rest of the description but here’s a photo.

I care for it as much as the previous Italian sausage one.

It looks like workers are almost finished with the street repairs in La Buena Mesa. I noticed what looks like stacks of pavers ready to be put down.

I was having coffee in Parva when Teresa called at 4pm and asked me to meet them in Viva Envigado. I wasn’t sure where to meet a Didi car here so I walked to the mall.

I found them having frozen yogurt at Percimon. I didn’t feel like getting in the long line but Teresa let me finish hers.

Laura’s cellphone battery was nearly dead so I plugged it into a Coworking table and waited there while the ladies did some more shopping. About 90 minutes later Laura texted me from Teresa’s phone and asked me to meet them outside Crepes & Waffles. The whole time I was sitting there I didn’t see anyone enter this store that I was facing.

The line outside Crepes & Waffles was too long so we went to Peru Wok instead.

I ordered a chicken rice dish that was pretty tasty and, of course, the others all ordered seafood. Laura told me that her doctor gave her a thorough ear cleaning and she can now hear again. The check came to 246,161 ($60) for the four of us.

We returned to the apt, after dropping off MT near her apt, by taxi.

Outside the porteria I noticed a police motorcycle with two helmets sitting on top. When we walked inside the portero said something to Teresa and Laura. The only word I understood was “ladrones” which means “thieves”. I asked which tower and he said, ‘7’. I didn’t even know there was a tower 7. We are in a different tower so I wasn’t real concerned. Besides, we already survived a home invasion. Nevertheless Teresa had us lock our door from the inside for tonight.

 

Funny pix of the day