Saturday, March 30, 2024

Last night I went to bed at 10pm, fell asleep quickly, got up once at 5am, finally waking/getting up at 7am.

My left wrist and hand hurts a little; either I was fighting someone in my sleep or my arthritis has gotten worse.

After breakfast my thumb was throbbing; I took an Advil which took time but eventually got it back to normal.

I left at 10am and had a café con leche in Parva. I left at 11:30 and returned to the apt.

We left at noon and took an Uber to SantaFe mall for 7,670 pesos (I have a 40% discount this week).

This is what their atrium looks like today:

Teresa did some shopping in Zara, Bershka, finally finding a nice dress in Studio F for 310,000 pesos ($83). We had lunch in J&C Delicious. She had her usual salmon with a side of broccoli and a glass of piña hierbabuena while I (feeling fat) had a chicken Cesar salad and a fresh mango juice (no sugar) for a total of 117,071 pesos. Prices have increased noticeably the past few years.

We then went on the hunt for an airline carry-on for her. She led me to Fallabella where we found one for 1,100,000 pesos. I led her to Totto where we found one for 399,900 pesos ($111). I only got a CER of 3600 using my Capital One card (touch free or whatever they call it) and I notice Pesos and USD on the receipt. ☹ Btw, the carry-on has a built-in padlock so maybe I should stop buying separate padlocks.

We left at 3:30 and took a taxi back to the apt for 17,000 pesos.

Teresa stayed in the porteria because she was going to meet her sister Vickie and other family members to go for gelato. (As usual I got the story… if I go I’ll be expected to pay for everyone.)

I thought it was too late to go for coffee so I just hung in the apt the rest of the night.

On Medellin TV, I watched JFK: What the Doctors Saw (7.5) then started Arlington Road (7.2). I had to fight through some buffering.

Teresa returned at 7:30. She reported after Gelato they all went to Gloria’s for pizza.

 

EL ARROYO SIGNS

Friday, March 29, 2024

Last night I went to bed at 10pm, fell asleep quickly, got up twice during the night, finally waking/getting up at 6am.

Today is a holiday, Good Friday.

I went to get a glass of water for my morning pills and there’s no running water. ☹

It’s 7am and still no running water so I informed Teresa there was no rush for her to get up and I’m going for breakfast and hope I can find a restaurant open early on Good Friday. Teresa got up and called the porteria and learned that water should be back on about 9am.

I left the apt at 7:15, our parking lot has only a few cars and the streets were near deserted, I saw 2 people on the way to Ganso y Castor that thankfully was open. I had their pancakes (a little dry) with a large then small latte.

At one point a man (30s?) took the table next to me carrying a small dog (lazy dog?). He ordered something in English (didn’t know my waiter spoke English 😊) and a few minutes later a pretty young thing (20s) joined him. He’s originally from Portland, been here 2 years, lives a couple streets south, his wife is Colombian and speaks perfect English although she never said anything to me.

I left just after 10am and the portero informed me we’re still without water.

I packed my gym bag and completed my workout in a crowded Smartfit from 10:30 to 11:30 (a whole different group of faces) and took a shower after. When I returned to the apt still no water and the only response I got from the portero was “mas tarde”.

I received the invoice of $166 for doing my taxes for nothing owed to Uncle Sam and paid it to Quickbooks online. What a racket!

It was 1pm and Teresa didn’t want to go out until she had a shower but then relented and said we could go to Mu. I checked to make sure they were open then ordered a Didi and…nothing. I raised the fare a number of times and…nothing. I finally gave up and we had the ribs delivered.

Just before 4pm Teresa called the porteria and was told the “thingy” is fixed and we just need to wait until 5pm for “something to clear”. I tried at 5:01 and still only drips, the same at 5:30. Finally about 6:30 I heard Teresa running water in the kitchen.

I finished watching The Card Counter (6.2), nothing special, on Medellin TV.

I set the combination on the new Sentry cable lock. Easy, once you understand how to do it. 😊

I blundered and lost to Troyclough lowering my rating to 1553. Yikes!

 

EL ARROYO SIGNS

Thursday, March 28, 2024

Last night I went to bed at 9:45, fell asleep quickly, got up once at 3:30, finally waking/getting up at 6:15.

Today is a holiday, Maundy Thursday.

I met Marcos at 9:30 sitting in La Buena Mesa. He said Parva wasn’t open yet so we had coffee in Ganso y Castor. He resolved his apt situation by agreeing to pay 4 million pesos a month for the next year. He said he would take some Bisquick off my hands in the future if need be. I reported it still looks like AZ will be selecting Marvin Harrison, Jr. with their 4^th pick in the draft but recently there is some talk of trading down with the Vikings for their 2 1^st round picks.

He left at 10am and I hung around a bit longer. I left at 10:30, bought a box of pads at Pasteur pharmacy, a pair of kitchen gloves and 2 tubes of Colgate toothpaste in Ara before returning to the apt.

I see my bank account still hasn’t been charged for our April 15^th to 22^nd hotel stay. I sent them an email notifying them I usually have a $600 transaction limit on my account but it has been increased for this week only. I hope that spurs them to charging my account.

I downloaded my 2023 1040 and the signature page and copied the later to my USB drive.

I don’t see anything new playing in Cine Colombia.

I left the apt at 2pm and took a Didi to the mall. I recycled a few things, printed, signed and scanned my signed 1040 in Auros. In Decathlon I bought a suitcase padlock but took a while to figure out how to set it before I purchased it for 53mil. In Exito I purchased a large carton of eggs, a package of croutons and an Duracell 9V battery. In line to pay I met a middle-aged English speaking man and his son from Cali.

I went up to Santa Leña and had a latte with a blueberry/orange muffin.

I left at 4:30 and returned to the apt by taxi.

I uploaded my signed form to Vickie’s website but I don’t see a payment invoice.

The payment for the 2^nd hotel came through 😊 and I see my pension deposits.

 

DOG MEMES

Wednesday, March 27, 2024

Last night I went to bed at 9:30, fell asleep quickly, got up once at 5:30, couldn’t fall back asleep, finally getting up at 6:15.

Today I had my workout from 9:15 to 10:15. It’s not any easier when there’s 5 days between workouts. ☹

I received an email from Smartfit that our monthly membership fee will increase to 99,900 pesos.

I left the apt at 3pm and took a Didi to this store near downtown Envigado.

When I walked in I was greeted by a young lady wearing a t-shirt that read, “Shut up and kiss me.” I pointed to it and told her I understand that and she wagged her finger and shook her head and all was good. They will add zippers to the outside of the suitcase for 40mil and it will be ready on Saturday.

I walked back to La Buena Mesa and stopped at the Gana store where I paid the Tigo/Une bill.

I went to Eduardo Madrid bakery but they didn’t have any sesame seed bagels. ☹ I asked about cinnamon bread but they didn’t have that either. I bought a loaf of pan de semillas (seed bread) and had a latte there. At one point the place was crowded and I gave up my table for a family by moving to a side table next to their bench.

I left at 4:30, stopped at the corner store and bought 2 bags of milk before returning to the apt.

I checked the self-inflating queen size mattress from Amazon and the price, direct to Envigado:

$349.99 – product

$185.59 – shipping & handling

$312.52 – import charges

For a total of $848.10. Well, that’s an easy no!

In the evening Esmeralda arrived by taxi and we went to Antica for pizza. When we finished, I tried to order a Didi to Esmeralda’s apt with a stop at our apt on the way but this time I couldn’t get it to work. I ended up ordering a Didi to our apt and then she called someone who gave her a ride on his motorcycle back home.

I received an email with a pre check-in form attached from the Grand Bavaro Princess. The email was in Spanish, I just hope the form itself is in English or I can copy & paste it to a translator.

 

DOG MEMES

Tuesday, March 26, 2024

Last night I went to bed at 9pm so I wouldn’t be tired today, fell asleep quickly, got up once at 4:45, couldn’t fall back asleep until well after 6am, finally waking/getting up by my alarm at 6:30. ☹

I brought 2 suitcases up from the garage storage area into the apt.

I took a Didi to Unicentro mall and since there was little traffic (because of holy week?) I arrived at the mall 10-15 minutes before their 8am opening.

I met Jose upstairs at Parmessano where I had French toast with a latte and a bottle of water to go for 40,535 pesos and he had coffee Americano and a couple of bunuelos. I told him about my struggles to reserve hotels in Punta Cana.

In the food court I had the Black pieces and had the advantage late in the middle game but didn’t continue properly and lost in the endgame.

In the second game I had the White pieces and mounted a strong attack and had several winning moves but missed the tactics and we agreed to a draw.

It was only 1:30 so instead of reviewing the second game I took a Didi to Viva Envigado. (I heard a cheer while waiting to be picked up.) Again traffic was good.

I stopped in Home Center and found the inflating mattresses but they weren’t the same as the fancy one I found on Amazon. In Pergamino I had the yogurt with chia berries, sliced banana and strawberries and granola, a small latte and a glass of water. I heard another cheer as Colombia was now up 2-0 in a friendly against Romania. I found both the sasteria (suitcase repair) and Gana kiosk (Tigo bill) closed. I bought a large pack of toilet paper and returned to the apt.

I texted Alejandro asking where I could repair the zippers on my suitcase

 and he suggested El Imperio de los Bolsos Carrera 43 #33Sur-31 in Envigado so I’ll check that out tomorrow.

Marcos texted me he received a letter from the owner of his apt notifying him he has to leave by June 30^th because he’s only paying 2,900,000 rent and she can get at least 4,000,000. ☹ Later he added that he doesn’t have a lease.

I finished watching season 5 of Fargo which was very good.

 

DOG MEMES

Monday, March 25, 2024

Last night I went to bed at 10:30, fell asleep quickly, got up once at 5:15, didn’t fall back asleep until after 6am, finally waking/getting up by a phone call at 7:15.

Today is St. Joseph’s Day and the first day of holy week.

Teresa showed me a video of a self-inflating mattress and bed on Amazon. I googled it and it’s $349.99 there.

Amazon.com : self-inflating mattress and bed

I skipped they gym today but did some arm and shoulder exercises with my 7# dumbbell.

I left the apt at 9am and found Parva hadn’t quite opened (doors were open but tables, chairs, and even a motorcycle were parked inside). I took a seat at Ganso y Castor, ordered a latte and alerted Jerry to the change. He arrived about 5 minutes later. I had a latte (had to add sugar it was so strong) with a glass of water and he had breakfast.

I told him about our trip to Greece and he told me about their upcoming trip to the US. They fly to Atlanta where they drop off an aunt, then fly to Connecticut where they travel down the eastern shore by train with a stop for a visit to the White House. They leave this weekend and return May 2^nd.

I mentioned the self-inflating mattress and bed Teresa found this morning and he said he bought the same thing in Home Center and it works great and is very comfortable.

I learned more about how they increase apt rentals here. He left about 11am and I stayed around a little longer checking Chicago Bears articles on my cellphone.

I left about 11:30 and bought a couple things in Ara before returning to the apt.

I found a Bungalow Suite available for Grand Bavaro Princess but at the last second received another error message.

I called USAA and with a rep on the line went through the process again and this time it worked.

We had a short shower about 5:30pm.

I booked VIK Hotel Cayena Beach for our 2^nd stay from April 15 to the 22^nd.

They had some mix-up about my 2^nd hotel reservation but I think I’ve gotten that straightened out.

 

DOG MEMES

Sunday, March 24, 2024

Last night I went to bed at 10:45, fell asleep quickly, got up once at 6am, finally waking/getting up by alarm at 7:30.

I left the apt at 8:30 and met Glenn at Olivenza at 9am. I brought my new laptop lock and he wasn’t sure how to set it either but did find a video which might help me. I’ll check it out later.

I asked if he would be interested in some Bisquick but he wasn’t interested. He did take an extra generic Neosporin off my hands, though.

Today I had something different, the American breakfast which included French Toast, scrambled eggs, bacon and slices of banana and strawberry. Not to mention 2 lattes.

I left at 11am and returned to the apt.

how to change to combination on a kensignton lock - Search (bing.com)

It wasn’t exactly the same and was a little tricky but I managed to reset the combination on my new laptop lock.

1.  Choose a new combination (same as my other lock).

2.  Set the combination to “0000”.

3.  Push and hold the button at the end of the combination.

4.  Reset the combination.

5.  Release the button.

6.  Teresa gave me the go ahead to purchase our tickets for Punta Cana.

Laura spent the day packing for her return to Boston.

For lunch I ordered chicken from Frisby. I hate that they include 10 arepas that just get thrown out.

I made plans to meet Jerry tomorrow at 9:15 at Parva. He’s so hard to get together with that I’m blowing off a morning at the gym.

I drew a game against Troyclough that I should have lost, reducing my rating to 1573.

Over the next few hours I purchased airline tickets for our flight to Punta Cana. I also tried to reserve a room in one of the hotels but they no longer had availability. I switched to another hotel and the room offered had a king size bed and 2 bunk beds. I took the significance of that to mean this was probably a room/building/area catering to children. ☹

I finally found a room in one of the hotels on my list but the last stop of my payment I received this message:

I then found another room in another hotel and again after submitting the payment I received this message

I decided I’d better make sure the problem isn’t with my bank so I called USAA but they couldn’t hear me. I had to switch MagicJack from speaker to headphone a couple times before it worked.

After a 25-minute wait I spoke to a helpful rep. It took a while to confirm my identity; my USAA app didn’t seem to be working properly. Once we cleared that hurdle she could see my Avianca payment and my attempted hotel payments. She unblocked my card and found that I had exceeded my transaction limit. She changed it for this week for me. I asked her name to thank her and it was something unusual. I asked if she was Jamaican and she replied she’s Haitian. The irony is she’s from one side of the island of Hispaniola and we’re going to the other side. I thanked her profusely for her help and said goodbye.

Laura spent the evening packing.

I finished reading James Rollins’ paperback Subterranean.

At 10:30 I said goodbye to Laura and went to bed.

I understand Bryan will be picking her up at 2am for her 4:40am flight back to Boston.

 

DOG MEMES

Saturday, March 23, 2024

Last night I went to bed at 10pm, took a while (30 minutes?) to fall asleep, got up once about 1am and retrieved my recharged cellphone, again at 5am awakened by the backup beep of a truck, couldn’t fall back asleep so got up 30 minutes later, went back to bed at 6am, finally waking/getting up at 8am.

Troyclough resigned our game increasing my rating 5 points to 1576.

I asked for pancakes for breakfast but Teresa informed me the Bisquick went bad. I checked the box and the “Use By” date was September, 2023. In the future I either need to consume it faster or share it with another gringo.

I’m sure my bowels are now back to normal. 😊

I left at 9:30 and had a café con leche in Parva.

I bought a bottle of laundry detergent and bag of milk in Ara before returning to the apt.

As I returned at 11:30 Teresa and Laura were heading out for a doctor’s appointment so I’m on my own for lunch.

I’ve always wanted to try Office Burger in the La Mesa neighborhood of Envigado. I ordered a Didi for about 8mil but got dropped and when I tried again they wanted 19mil. I switched to Uber and they took me there for about 8mil.

My waitress Mata informed me she spoke English but I quickly determined my poor Spanish was better than her poor English. I ordered the NY burger and a regular Coke.

All was good and I paid 50mil for everything.

I paid 8,500 pesos for a Didi to return me to our apt.

Laura informed me she would like to go out tonight for Italian food. I recommended Olivia but she wanted something more authentic. We settled on Tagliata. It was just after 6:30 when I started changing clothes then, when I was all dressed, Laura informed me we had a reservation for 8pm. At 7:30 we took a Didi to Tagliata for 10,400 pesos.

I was feeling a little full/fat so I just ordered pasta bolognesa and a bottle of water.

The ladies shared a pitcher of sangria, Laura had some type of pasta and Teresa some type of seafood she wasn’t very pleased with. We shared a cream brulee for dessert. The total came to 301,009 pesos including tip. This was Laura’s goodbye dinner.

We left at 9:30 and returned to the apt by Didi for 12,800 pesos.

I started my pre sleep routine as soon as we returned.

 

DOG MEMES

Friday, March 22, 2024

Last night I went to bed at 10pm, fell asleep quickly, got up once at 2am, again at 5am, finally waking/ getting up at 7am.

Teresa returned from her workout by 7:15.

I had my workout from 9am to 10am.

New movies this week in Cine Colombia include:

• ·     Arthur the King (7.0)
• ·     Cabrini (7.9)
• ·     May December (6.9)
• ·     The Beast (6.6)

While I was doing my TENS 3000 procedure the guy who rents our parking spot dropped off 180mil for the next 2 months rental.

We were having lunch when breaking news came on TV that Kate Middleton aka Princess of Wales herself announced she has cancer. She said it was discovered after her abdominal surgery and she has started preventative chemotherapy. Well, there is no such thing as preventative chemotherapy, you take it only if you have cancer so she misspoke there. She’s 42 years old with 3 children. According to Dr. Gupta, the most common cancers for women of her age are breast cancer and next cervical cancer.  I’ve never heard of abdominal cancer. What I think happened (my own conspiracy theory if you will) is she went for some cosmetic surgery (eg, breast enhancement or mommy makeover) and the pathology showed her tissue contained cancer.

I left the apt at 2:30 and at Los Porteños I was having a latte but getting a questionable internet connection. I moved to Eduardo Madrid bakery where it was much stronger. I left at 4:30 and returned to the apt.

I started watching season 5 of Fargo. So far, so good.

 

DOG MEMES

 

Thursday, March 21, 2024

Last night I went to bed at 10pm, fell asleep quickly, got up once at 4am, finally waking/ getting up at 7:15.

I’m sitting at my computer when I hear a kid downstairs in a stroller sing E-I-E-I-O. 😊

I met Marcos outside Tostao at 9:30. He is currently doing an hour and 45 minutes every day on the treadmill in an attempt to lose weight but then he’s exhausted and can’t do anything the rest of the day. He left and I hung around a little longer then bought milk and dish washing soap at Mercado Madrid before returning to the apt.

That’s different. Police have a checkpoint set up just outside the entrance to our complex.

I checked and I have until August 1^st to request an absentee ballot using FVAP.gov.

I emailed my 2023 1099s to Vickie’s Tax service and asked if I can claim Teresa as a dependent. I soon received her reply, “You aren’t owing any money because of the $3000 loss carryover so it won’t make any difference on claiming your wife as a dependent. I have put a copy of the return in the portal and sent an invoice.”

I called Princess hotels and with my broken Spanish got a few questions answered:

1.  Are the 2 princess resorts next to each other? Ans: They’re about a mile apart.

2.  Do they have evening shows? Ans: Yes.

3.  Is there an extra fee to use the health club? Ans: No.

4.  What is the dress code for the general and special restaurants? Ans: Best to ask the individual resorts and she gave me their phone numbers.

I left the apt at 2pm and took a Didi for 12,100 pesos to El Tesoro mall. I was about 30 minutes early for my dentist appointment but I only had to wait about 5 minutes.  Dr. Rendon and I chatted about recent vacations and future plans. After he cleaned my teeth for 230,000 pesos I went down to Valentina’s where I had a carrot cake with a latte.

This is what their atrium looks like now, sort of a Wild West town.

I left about 4pm and returned to the apt by Didi for 13,800, usually it costs closer to 19mil by taxi.

I watched Good Morning Football on NFL Network using Medellin TV.

 

DOG MEMES

Wednesday, March 20, 2024

Last night I went to bed at 10pm, really 10:30 by the time the abdominal pains went away, fell asleep quickly, got up once at 4am, finally waking/ getting up at 7am.

Teresa informed me that Laura would like to have lunch at Amazonas in Mayorista.

I completed my workout today from 8:30 to 9:30.

I forgot to mention yesterday when I was having lunch in Pergamino I ran into Jerry. He didn’t sit down but we had a short conversation while he was standing. In a couple weeks they’re going on a trip down the east coastline of the US but he says we will get together before then.

I also forgot to mention there must have been a short shower while I was in the mall.

It was only 82 degrees so I put on shoes and socks for the first time in a long time. Lauraa returned at 12:30 and we took an Uber to the restaurant. They each had a whole fish and I ordered the baby beef again but it wasn’t as good as last time.

There was a short shower while we were there.

Laura left for a 2pm optometrist appointment and Teresa and I returned to the apt by Didi.

I went to Parva (Chris Cojeleas sighting on the way) where I had a café con leche with a pastel de arequipe. We had a couple short showers while I was there. Maybe this is the beginning of the rainy season. Teresa asked me to pick up gelato so I bought a half liter of coconut gelato before returning to the apt.

Kelley showed up at 5:45 for massages for the ladies.

I went to Netflix and got this message:

I guess it’s the end of an era.

I watched Caleb Williams’ USC Pro Day on NFL Network from 7pm to 8pm.

My stomach seems to have calmed down, now I just have to get things working again after take that loperamide.

For supper I had an arepa de chocolo with a little cheese on top.

 

DOG MEMES

Tuesday, March 19, 2024

Last night I went to bed at 9pm, fell asleep quickly, got up a couple times during the night, finally waking/ getting up at 6:30. Hopefully I won’t feel as tired as last Tuesday.

I checkmated ChessRookie245 on the 44^th move increasing my rating to 1578.

I left the apt at 7:30 and paid 12,600 pesos for a Didi ride to Unicentro mall. Because traffic was so heavy I arrived 10 minutes late. Today I skipped the French toast, having an egg casserole instead because I thought it would be better with my stomach challenges lately. We discussed the upcoming chess tournaments but I’ll probably wait until August for the flower festival tournament.

I had the Black pieces in the first game and made a mistake on my 3^rd move and it was downhill after that, resigning on the 35^th move.

I had the White pieces in the second game and I made a questionable 15^th move and eventually blundered on the 39^th move and resigned.

It was only 1:15 so I paid 15,100 pesos for a Didi ride to Viva Envigado. I had the acai berry yogurt bowl and a latte in Pergamino then bought a bottle of Nescafe decaffeinated instant coffee in Exito before returning to the apt.

I walked into the porteria and they handed me the box. There was no easy way to open and I had to basically destroy it to get to the multiple Amazon packages inside. Teresa got a number of things she requested including a new thermos water bottle like mine and I got 2 Chess Life magazines, a travel security cable for my laptop, all my 1099s, and a couple Arm & Hammer deodorants.

I drew and lost games to OneIPAMetato1453 lowering my rating to 1571.

Laura and Teresa had a massage from Kelley.

Monday night my heel was looking a little inflamed so I put some Neosporin on it and today it looks much better so tonight I put on a little more.

Laura left about 7pm to meet with a girlfriend. Jokingly, I told her to be home by 10pm. 😊 Surprisingly, she did.

I made the mistake of having a small bowl of frijoles  for supper and at bedtime I had abdominal pain and went #2 multiple times. By 10:30 my stomach had settled down and I was able to go to bed.

 

DOG MEMES

 

Monday, March 18, 2024

Last night I went to bed at 10pm, fell asleep quickly, got up a couple times during the night, finally waking/ getting up at 7:30.

I was surprised when I woke up that Teresa was still here, she was supposed to be at the gym. She said she had a sleep problem, too hot, so she decided to sleep in a little. That’s fine because I won’t have to wait until 8:15 for her to return from the gym to make my breakfast.

My right heel looked a little inflamed so I put Neosporin on it.

I completed my workout from 9:30 to 10:30. Today I added 15# to the two exercises I do on the Butterfly machine, 5# to the Leg Extension, Triceps Press, Seated Leg Curl (being very careful with that first rep), Seated Row, and Abdominal Crunch and I added 2 minutes to the treadmill at the same speed of 6km/hr (which was probably the most tiring of all).

On my way back to the apt workers were finishing up the paint job forcing the traffic flow into a real traffic circle (roundabout) around the island.

I received a text message (in Spanish) from Gisela requesting $18 to release the package that arrived in Bogota. I paid with Paypal and it should be released today and hopefully arrive tomorrow.

I left the apt at 2:30 and had a latte in Los Porteños. At one point Brit came out and sat down across from me and told me about his neck and knee problems that he is getting stem cell treatments for. They didn’t have internet so I left about 3:45.

I won another game against Troyclough increasing my rating to 1573.

Teresa and Laura got massages from Kelley from 4-6pm.

For supper I finished the leftover ribs and fries from Mu.

 

DOG MEMES

Sunday, March 17, 2024

Last night I went to bed at 10pm, fell asleep quickly, got up a couple times during the night, finally waking/ getting up at 7:30.

Happy St. Patrick’s Day!

I met Glenn at Ovienza at 9am. He needs to see a cardiologist about the heart medications he’s taking. He asked me about IKEA but I had no updates, still an expected 2^nd semester completion date. He had his usual Cemex but with only a cookie. I had the calentao with scrambled eggs and 2 lattes. I left at 11am and picked up 2 bags of milk on the way back to the apt. When I entered the apt Teresa asked “where’s the Fab?”. I had to go next-door to Ara to buy laundry detergent and, while I was there, 2 bags of apples.

I got the bill for $36.95 for my USAA credit card and I made the payment online from my checking account. (Full disclosure: I couldn’t remember how to do it so I had to call and speak to one of their reps but while walking them through the problem I figured it out myself.)

I left the apt at 2:30 and took a Didi to the mall. I recycled a few plastic bottles then took advantage of a Medipiel sale on Cetiphil products by buying two for 25-30% off.

Urbania was busy, as was the whole mall, but I easily found a seat and had a latte. I left about 4pm and bought a large carton of eggs in Exito before returning to the apt by taxi.

I asked Laura to help me find where on the InDrive app I could enter my credit card info but after searching a bit it appears they currently are only taking cash.

About 7pm Laura wanted to go for pizza so I changed clothes and ordered a Didi. The place was very busy and after placing our order I walked down the hill to buy pastries for the porteros but the bakery was already closed. We ended up eating our pizza standing up outside.

We quickly caught a taxi and returned to the apt. it was now almost 9pm so I had to accelerate my pre sleep routine.

 

DOG MEMES

 

Saturday, March 16, 2024

Last night I went to bed at 10pm, fell asleep quickly, got up a couple times during the night, finally waking/ getting up at 6am. I had diarrhea so I immediately took 2 loperamide and hit the shower.

Lately spending much of the day checking my phone for Bears news: free agent signings and mock drafts.

At 8:25 I started the Didi ordering process and arrived at Daniel’s barbershop 12 minutes early. After my haircut I took another Didi to Todo Drogas where I bought 2 months of medications for 632,900 pesos ($162) because I don’t know when we’ll return from Punta Cana. (Not sure when we’re going to leave Medellin either although Teresa informed me Laura will be leaving Monday, March 25^th.)

I stopped at the Banco Caja Social ATM where I tried my Capital One MasterCard (rejected) and my USAA Visa card (accepted for the maximum of 300,000 pesos).

I walked to Parva where I had a café con leche. Teresa came by about 10:45 on her way to have her eyelashes done and asked me to wait for her. She said it would take about an hour. Ninety minutes later I was ready to leave when she arrived.

She said she was hungry so we headed to Asados Rogelio but didn’t quite make it as she stopped at Asados Family Garcia where she ordered Sobrebarriga (overbelly?) for us to share. It reminded me of some type of ham that my mother used to make but Teresa insisted it was beef.

Anyway, it was so much food the two of us couldn’t finish it and with 2 juices and 1 soup and tax the total came to 114,722 pesos ($30). Yeah, I thought it was a little expensive, ompared to the last time I ate at Asados Rogelio July 1^st, 2023 when it cost me 24mil.

We returned to the apt. I’m still struggling a little with diarrhea so I took the 3^rd pill which shut me down completely.

Back at the apt I finished the first season of True Detective then started The Gentlemen (8.3) on Netflix.

 

DOG MEMES

Friday, March 15, 2024

Last night I went to bed at 10pm, fell asleep quickly, got up a couple times during the night, finally waking/ getting up at 6:30.

Troyclough blundered a rook in our latest game increasing my rating to 1580.

I left the apt at 9am for the gym. On the way I saw workers restriping the “y” junction between Carrera 46A & 43A. Today I had pain on my right knee for the first rep of the Seated Leg Curl, completing my workout between 9am and 10am. Having finished a line in my book, next week I’ll probably be adding more weight to some of my exercises.

At 11:30 Teresa informed me there’s a package at our porteria. I told her not to get excited because I don’t think my order has arrived in Bogota yet as I haven’t paid for it. I changed from flip flops to sandals and went to pick it up and it’s a package for Laura. ☹

At 1:30 The Weather Channel says it’s 85 degrees, my outdoor thermometer says it’s 88 degrees, and AccuWeather says it’s 91 degrees.

I left the apt at 2pm and walked to Eduardo Madrid where I had an oatmeal cookie with my latte. At 4pm I paid my bill of 12,900 pesos ($3.30) and returned to the apt.

I think my iPod is dying. I heard 30 seconds of oh-shocka-laka (Hooked on a Feeling) repeated over and over then only horns so maybe only one track is working.

I lost a game to Mekeal965 lowering my rating to 1568. ☹

For supper I placed a large order of ribs from Mu. Once I finished the order I was surprised how fast they arrived. We each had a rib and some fries and saved the rest in the fridge for tomorrow.

 

DOG MEMES

Thursday, March 14, 2024

Last night I went to bed at 10pm, fell asleep quickly, got up once at 6am, finally waking/ getting up at 6:15.

Teresa informed me she and Laura are going to Mayorca mall so I’ll be on my own for lunch.

I met Marcos at 9:30 outside Tostao café. He told me he’s doing 10,000 steps on his treadmill to lose weight before their trip to Europe which takes him about 2 hours to complete. We also talked football, politics, and movies. I’ve been experiencing tired eyes lately which I thought was due to poor quality sleep but Marcos reminded me about the pollution here since we haven’t had any rain in a long while. He left about 10:15 and I stayed around a little longer studying a chess book. I left about 11am and returned to the apt.

Laura asked me about taking her to City Plaza where Teresa and I had our sandals fixed. After Googling it, I told her there is Eon Zapateria, Local 182 in Viva Envigado. I can take her there tomorrow afternoon.

The ladies left about noon and about 12:15 I started ordering a Didi. It was supposedly 5 minutes away but 5 minutes later it was 6 minutes away. I gave it another 5 minutes and it looked like the car was on the expressway. I don’t know how to cancel a Didi ride so I just restarted my phone and closed that screen. I then used Uber to order my ride and it arrived in about 5 minutes.

I was dropped right outside Big Boy in Sabaneta. I went inside the larger half and took a seat near a gringo from Montana. He’s visiting but is seriously considering buying property in Rio Negro.

I ordered the fish & chips and was surprised how large the order was.

In the above photo I had already eaten a piece of fish. I finished all but one piece of fish with lots of fries remaining. Never a street person around when you need them (to give them free food). With 2 Cokes, the bill came to 51mil.

I walked 2 blocks to Parque Sabaneta and continued 2 more blocks south but the bakery where I wanted to get a churro was closed.

On that same block I caught a Sabaneta bus back to Envigado. Lots of construction near downtown Sabaneta. I got out at Ave Poblado and walked a block to Parva where I had a café con leche. I left at 4pm and returned to the apt.

Teresa and Laura left about 7:45 for Viva Envigado for some reason. I reminded Laura before they left about Eon Zapateria. They returned at 9:15 and when I asked Teresa about it she said the shoe repair shop was closed.

 

DOG MEMES

Wednesday, March 13, 2024

Last night I went to bed at 9pm, fell asleep quickly, got up once at 5:30, finally waking/ getting up at 7:15.

I guess the recliner didn’t work so good as Laura told me that she ended up moving back to the master bedroom.

In the future I think I’d better go to bed at 9pm on Mondays so I won’t be so tired for my Tuesday chess games.

Laura left at 8:45 for a doctor’s appointment.

I complimented Teresa on how soft my underwear feels. Usually sun drying makes it feel a little stiff. She showed me this bottle and I understood everything.

Maybe Laura’s influence at work here.

I completed my workout in Smartfit between 9am and 10am. Today I took my step counter but was a little disappointed my 15-minute walk only equated to 1,698 steps. That means to accomplish 7,000 steps I would need to walk for 62 minutes. ☹

I bought 2 bags of milk at the market across the street before returning to the apt.

Following advice I found online I freed up 2.91GB on my c: drive using Start, Control Panel, Administrative Tools, Disk Cleanup, Clean up System Files, Windows Update Cleanup. I then tried it on my d: drive but as expected there was nothing to free up.

I left the apt about 2pm and took the back stairs instead of the elevator. When I exited the building I saw dozens of cockroaches, half dead, half alive. I stepped on those that were still alive. Still wondering where they came from, I walked around the corner and ran into a guy with a metal canister and sprayer. That solves that mystery. Later I saw a notice in the elevator that they’ll be fumigating this week.

I had a latte in Los Porteños for a couple hours. A few tables away were a couple of young ladies speaking English but I didn’t interrupt them. I left at 4pm and returned to the apt.

I showed Laura Gisela’s message and she had a different interpretation than Google translate.

I was just interrupted by a cockroach sighting. Teresa gave me a can of Raid and I sprayed it several times until it died under our couch. (The building is spraying for them but since Teresa doesn’t allow them to spray in our apt that’s where they tend to go.) We also found one of those little lizards in the hallway that are considered to be good luck.

So what I learned is Gisela is in Bogota and when my order arrives she will contact me for payment (Paypal) and then they can forward it on to Medellin.

For a long time I’ve taken 400mg of Calendula (Marigold) Flower twice a day for the osteoarthritis in my back. I had trouble finding replacements online but I did find an 800mg brand which I’ve been taking 800mg in the morning and 400mg in the evening. A few days ago I stopped taking the 400mg in the evening and so far so good.

I’ve started watching the TV series True Detective (8.9) on Medellin TV.

Troyclough blundered a piece on the 5^th move and resigned 2 moves later increasing my rating to 1575.

 

 

DOG MEMES