Thursday, December 4, 2025

Last night I took my Diphenhydramine and Zopiclona tablets and went to bed at 10pm. I quickly fell asleep, got up once during the night, finally waking/getting up at 6am. The street is wet so we must have had a little rain overnight.

Today is my daughter’s 37^th birthday – Happy Birthday Jeannie!

Uh-oh. I received an email from Capital One, “Capital One is switching its debit card network, and a new card will be coming your way in the next few weeks. Your card will be widely accepted, like it is today. Keep an eye out for the Discover, PULSE® or Diners Club International® logos.” This new card uses the Discover network that some gringos here have complained about. ☹

I met Marcos outside Santa Teresa High School at 9am. We walked to Docs Medical Coworking where he waited outside and I went in to the reception desk. I handed over my test result hardcopies and got an appointment for next Thursday at 2pm with Dr. Ricardo Restrepo.

We walked back to Sao Paulo and took a table in Olivenza. I had a latte but he didn’t have anything because he’s had a stomach problem. His older brother Marshall is coming for a visit next week for a goodbye tour because he’s in bad shape and could die any minute. I told Marcos that’s quite a responsibility to put on you as to dealing with his body. He left at 10:15 as he wasn’t feeling very well. I left at 10:45 and checked in Carulla for the jabon de coco liquido that Teresa requested. Agotado. I walked back to our complex and checked in Tienda D1 and Ara and they didn’t have it either.

I won a game in 35 moves vs chesswiz98 increasing my rating to 1534.

I left the apt at 1:30 and stopped at the Gana kiosk to pay the Movistar bill but their internet was down. I continued on to Los Porteños where I ordered a latte with leche semidescremada. They brought it in a different cup (glass rather than metal) and she said it was a new presentation. It looked and was stronger than I liked – was that due my milk choice? I asked the waitress to bring me sugar (something I don’t normally do) which kind of defeats the purpose of not having whole milk. I was asked to move inside so they could clean the canopy covering the patio. I left at 4pm and stopped at the Gana kiosk but the lady wasn’t there. I stopped in Tienda D1 and bought a different brand of laundry soap and when I returned to the apt Teresa showed me the small photo of a coconut on the front.

Teresa and I finished the apple pie; I suggested we buy one just before Christmas and share half with MT and Wilson. I’ll ask Glenn about the ordering details.

I watched another episode of Downton Abbey before switching to The Chris Hayes Show.

This was a nice birthday present – Annie James has started getting vocal:

Today I recorded 6,185 steps – I hope my legs are getting used to more exercise. We’ll see if I can complete my 16 minutes on the treadmill tomorrow.

A downpour started about 9pm and was still going strong when I went to bed at 10pm.

 

FUNNY

Wednesday, December 3, 2025

Last night I took my Diphenhydramine and Zopiclona tablets and went to bed at 10pm. I quickly fell asleep, got up once during the night, finally waking/getting up at 6am.

Teresa returned from the gym just after 8am and made my breakfast. I took a nap but couldn’t fall asleep finally leaving the apt for Smartfit a little after 9:30. The gym was about as busy as normal although for a few minutes it seemed to clear out. I completed 16 minutes on the treadmill briefly reaching 129 bpm at the end.

I had a latte in Ganso y Castor finally heading back to the apt at 11am.

I left the apt at 1:30 and walked to Viva Envigado. I recycled a plastic pill bottle then made a withdrawal from Servibanca (all 100s). In Av Villas I paid December’s apt rental.

I stopped in Claro and paid Teresa’s cellphone bill but mine wasn’t ready yet. I know Teresa’s bill always comes first in the month but I didn’t get one for either of us in November. Strange!

I went down to Urbania and ordered a latte. I’m trying to figure out how to order them now with low-fat milk. I think “semidescremada” is 2% and “deslectado” is lactose free so I think I want to ask for the former.

About 2:40 I heard a loud peel of thunder so there’s probably a storm passing through at the moment.

I left at 3:30 and bought some oranges, vanilla extract and a bottle of vanilla extract in Exito before returning to the apt.

I watched another episode of Downton Abbey before switching to The Chris Hayes Show.

Today I recorded 5,640 steps – that’s more like it.

 

FUNNY

Tuesday, December 2, 2025

Last night I took my Diphenhydramine and Zopiclona tablets and went to bed at 10pm. I quickly fell asleep, got up once during the night, finally waking/getting up by alarm at 6:30.

At 7:20 I started the process of ordering my Didi ride to Unicentro. I arrived there 5 minutes before opening and Jose was waiting for me at the entrance.

We went up to Santa Leña and I had the same breakfast as last week, 1 piece of French toast (with slices of bananas & strawberries), 2 scrambled eggs, a latte and a bottle of water to go for 52,226 pesos.

We adjourned to the food court where I had the Black pieces in the first game. It was a back and forth battle but in the end after 76 moves I had 2 connected passed pawns one square away from queening but he forced a draw by repetition. ☹ That game took 3 hours. I hope the second game doesn’t take that long or I’ll be sleeping here.

What is it with guys who pee in the toilet standing up without raising the toilet seat? Huh?

I had the White pieces in the second game and on his 15^th move he moved his queen to the side of the board attacking two of my pawns. I only defended one because the other was what we call “a poisoned pawn”. He took it, I checked his king exposing his queen and he resigned on the next move. It was only 12:40 when we said goodbye.

I took a Didi to Viva Envigado for 19,600 pesos. I used my Capital One debit card to withdraw 2,000,000 pesos but my USAA credit card wouldn’t work in two different ATMs. (Capital One only allows 1 withdrawal a day.) Since I didn’t have enough cash to pay the apt rental, I just used a consignacion ATM to make the other payments. (I’ll have to return tomorrow afternoon to pay for the apt.) One thing I don’t like about these ATMs is if the amount you deposit isn’t exact they always refund at least 1,000 pesos in small change.

I went to Santa Leña for lunch but they didn’t have pancakes so I ended up with the same thing I had for breakfast. 

When I got the check I compared the prices to the other location and that’s when I discovered they didn’t charge me for the French toast. I tipped my waiter almost all the extra change I had which was about 2,000 pesos but I don’t think he had any idea why I did that.

The mall's Christmas atrium:

I stopped in Exito and bought a 12-pack of toilet paper and returned to the apt by taxi.

Teresa has been to El Hueco again buying tape for making bracelets. She raved about a new Italian American restaurant she found Puro Gusto in C.C. El Union at Carrera 49 Junin #52-27, local 204.

We had a rainstorm come through from about 3:30 to 5:30.

I watched another episode of Downton Abbey before switching to The Chris Hayes Show.

Today I registered 2,718 steps, about what you’d expect for a Tuesday.

 

FUNNY

Monday, December 1, 2025

Last night I took my Diphenhydramine and Zopiclona tablets and went to bed at 10pm. I quickly fell asleep, got up several times during the night, last time being 4:30 when the rain had finally stopped, finally waking at 5am and getting up at 5:30.

Teresa made me breakfast before leaving for her 6am gym class. She called me from the porteria to share the news that workers had yet to arrive to fix our water problem.

I packed a gym bag and left the apt just after 7am. I found Smartfit less busy than usual. At 8am while on the treadmill (I completed 16 minutes at 6km/hr with a high pulse rate of 124 bpm) I noticed the gym was nearly empty. After my workout I went upstairs and took my shower, taking advantage of their running water. As I stepped from the shower floor to the locker floor I slipped and almost fell on my ass.

I dressed and walked to Ganso y Castor where I had a latte in a very quiet La Buena Mesa.

Teresa sent me a voice mail message we still don’t have running water. I guess we’ll be having lunch out today.

I filled my thermos with water in their restroom then returned to the apt. Walking through the porteria I think I heard that water should be back on after 1pm. Something about replacing a trap.

I found a December 28^th charge on my checking account for $8 to the NY Times. I chatted with USAA for a little over an hour. The rep responded “In order to protect you and USAA from further unauthorized charges, all cards associated with the selected transactions will be cancelled and new debit cards will be issued.” They said it should arrive by December 12^th. After it arrives, I’ll release everything in my locker.

I finished Section 23 – Destroying on ChessMood.

I lost a game to chesswiz98, lowering my rating to 1528.

At 1pm, running water came back on just as we were leaving the apt and walked the 2 blocks to restaurant Palogrande. Teresa had the menu of the day for 23,900 pesos and I had the solomito (steak)

for 84,000 pesos and a mango juice for 9,900 pesos. Teresa’s came with soup and mine with fries and a small salad and the total check came to 128,707 pesos ($34). In the future I’ll just eat the thin half and take the thicker half to go for supper later.

Teresa returned to the apt and I walked the 2 blocks to Gardenia where I had a latte while going through some chess notes. Teresa joined me later and soon her girlfriend Lucy joined us. About 3pm a strong wind came up and it got noticeably colder and we moved inside. About 4pm it started raining and soon was a downpour which I hoped it would lessen before their 5pm close. Lucy left at 4:30 and we made our exit 10 minutes later as the rain had lessened to a light drizzle.

I watched 2 episodes of Downton Abbey before starting my pre-sleep reading.

Today I registered 5,367 steps. That’s much better!

 

FUNNY

Sunday, November 30, 2025

Last night I took my Diphenhydramine and Zopiclona tablets and went to bed at 10pm. I quickly fell asleep, got up once at 3:30am, finally waking at 6am and getting up at 6:30.

All the Didi drivers wanted more than 20,000 pesos just to take us to Estacion Exposiciones. I declined a number of their inflated requests but eventually resigned myself and paid 19,800 pesos at 10am. We picked up MT on the way and arrived at the station by 10:30. A small, full bus was just leaving for El Retiro. We only had another 15 wait for another and this one was larger and nearly empty. We took our usual seats in the back (more legroom).

As the bus crested a ridge and was coming down toward Indiana mall cars were bumper to bumper and we soon came to a complete stop. After not moving for five minutes the driver turned right and took an entrance to a strip mall which allowed him to get further down the hill before being stopped again in traffic. We sat there for fifteen minutes before traffic started moving again. I’m guessing there was a bad accident at the traffic circle in front of Indiana mall.

We arrived in El Retiro at 12:20, about 20 minutes later than usual. We walked straight up the four blocks to Lomo Fino and was surprised to see it with almost all tables available. We took out usual table in the side room and the ladies ordered salmon and I their solomito (steak). They had water and I also had a mango juice. After the ladies came back from a trip to the restroom I went to the men’s room which was already occupied. The total check came to 229,000 pesos ($61), including tip. The restaurant was full by the time we left and there was a short line outside.

The ladies went exploring while I went directly to a nearly empty Café El Retiro

where I ordered a latte and a cookie with blackberries. Wow, the Panthers beat the Rams leaving the Bears as the #1 seed for the playoffs. (Lots of tough games ahead though.)

The ladies returned about an hour later and Teresa ordered a cup of vanilla ice cream. I told her about how bad the cookies are (I took one bite and that was enough for me) and she complained to the waitress and they took it off our bill.

At 4:30 I paid the bill of only 20,800 pesos and we walked down to the bus station and while the ladies used the restroom the bus pulled out. Another one soon came and we got our usual seats in the back. The bus was full by the time we returned to Medellin. We got a taxi under the station and returned to Envigado and dropped MT off at her apt before continuing on to ours. It was just beginning to drizzle as we got out of the taxi.

Again we don’t have any running water! ☹

I watched the end of an NFL game while waiting to see 60 Minutes on Chicago’s CBS.

It was then time to start my pre-sleep routine with some reading.

It was still raining when I went to bed at 10pm. I heard intermittent fireworks as Colombians celebrate entering December.

Today I only registered 2,109 steps.

 

FUNNY

 

Saturday, November 29, 2025

Last night I took my Diphenhydramine and Zopiclona tablets and went to bed at 10:15. I quickly fell asleep, got up once at 2:22am, finally waking/getting up at 6:30.

Yesterday, using a Black Friday discount, I ordered a pair of Brooks running shoes for Jeannie for her upcoming birthday. Teresa liked the shoes so much she chose a pair for herself.

I left the apt at 9am and walked to Ganso y Castor where I had a latte while going over the stress test results with the assistance of ChatGPT. Everything looks normal, at least for my age, but I should reduce my cholesterol and want to work on strengthening my heart. I texted my Internista, Dr. Ricardo Restrepo, letting him know I have all my test results and asked if I should drop them off at Docs Medical Coworking under his name.

I left at 10:45 and returned to the apt.

Sometimes, like today, Teresa literally asks me not to leave her alone in the apt. So, I don’t go for coffee but neither do I get any steps in.

Highland Park tree lighting

At 6pm Teresa sent me next door to Ara to pick up ingredients for broccoli cheddar soup. Yum.

I ordered a box of Bisquick and a container of creatine capsules from Amazon. They will be part of the package I will release from Florida after Teresa’s shoes arrive.

At 7:30 a downpour started.

I finished reading Lee Child & Karin Slaughter’s short story Cleaning the Gold (Jack Reacher #24.6)

By the time I went to bed the rain had dissipated to just a little dripping.

Today I only registered 2,518 steps.

 

FUNNY

Friday, November 28, 2025

Last night I took my Diphenhydramine and Zopiclona tablets and went to bed at 10pm. I quickly fell asleep, slept through the night, finally waking at 4:15 and getting up at 6:30.

I skipped gym this morning because I’m not supposed to exercise 12 hours before my stress test.

I can’t believe I scheduled a stress test the same day as my Bears game – then again who would think they would be playing on a Friday?

I left the apt at 9am and had a latte in Ganso y Castor for about 90 minutes. On the way back to the apt I stopped in Ara and bought 4 apples, 3 bananas and a bag of semidescremada (2%) milk. For the first time the guard asked to see my receipt.

At noon I had an orange and a banana, at 12:30 I had an apple and at 1pm we took a Didi to SICOR for 20,000 pesos. We checked in at the desk at the entrance then took a seat in the waiting room. After 15 minutes we were called to the cashier where I paid 372,900 pesos for the stress test. We were taken in back to another waiting room and 10 minutes later we were taken in back. A technician put 10 electrodes on my chest and  explained a few things in her limited English. She took my blood pressure then I got on the treadmill. It started at an easy walking pace then 3 minutes later speeded up to a faster walking pace, then 3 minutes later I was running. I could see on the display my pulse rate went up to 148 highlighted in red and just before it was supposed to increase again I had had enough and stopped it.

The technician removed the electrodes and we took seats just outside in the waiting room. A few minutes later the cardiologist’s assistant came out with the test results, including a summary in English. 😊

We had a 20-minute wait for a Didi to take us to Santafe mall for 23,550 pesos.

Mikeal965 finally resigned our game on the 54^th move, increasing my rating to 1538.

We had a nice late lunch in Il Forno. The mall was very busy because it was Black Friday. Teresa even skipped checking out Zara because it was so crowded.

This is the atrium with Christmas tree and ice skating.

We went down to the basement and got in a long line for a taxi. Teresa wanted to take the bus but I figured lots of buses would be full and when we finally got on one I would have to stand through long heavy traffic back to the apt. The wait for a taxi ended up being an hour and ten minutes but the ride back to the apt was only 30 minutes and 18,000 pesos.

After changing clothes, I had trouble finding the Bears game on NFL Game Pass but found it just as I was ready to give up.

I had my salted-in-the-shell peanuts (tradition!) with a Coke while I watched the Bears beat the Philadelphia Eagles (last year’s Super Bowl champions) 24-15. That was fun! The Bears are now 9-3 on the season and the NFL should be on alert that they aren’t a fluke.

This is my son & daughter with my granddaughter on Thanksgiving.

Today I only registered 2,472 steps.

 

FUNNY

Thursday, November 27, 2025

Last night I took my Diphenhydramine and Zopiclona tablets and went to bed at 10:15. I quickly fell asleep, slept through the night, finally waking at 5:15 and getting up at 5:45.

Happy Thanksgiving everyone!

Teresa finally woke/got up at 7am and made breakfast.

I left the apt at 9:15 and had a latte in Los Porteños. I chatted with ChatGPT about what to expect for my stress test tomorrow. I received a text message from SICOR with more information: 1) no exercise 12 hours before the test, 2) no caffeine 3 hours before the test, 3) Teresa has to accompany me, 4) wear comfortable clothing for exercise, 5) eat a light lunch (nuts, fruits, juices) before the appointment.

I left at 10:30, bought a small tiramisu cake at Pepo’s Cake for 17mil and returned to the apt.

At 11am, someone rang our bell and announced that water will be turned off until 1pm. ☹

The water came back on right at 1pm and Glenn and Bianca arrived with an apple pie at 1:15. I went down to the porteria to bring him up to our apt.

The Packers vs Lions game was on as we sat down in the living room but he paid no attention to it; not a football fan.

Teresa called us to lunch about 15 minutes later. We had turkey, mashed potatoes, gravy, and green beans. I had a glass of milk and Glenn just had purified water in a container he brought with him. We waited a few minutes then had apple pie for dessert.

We chatted a while then he had to leave to run some errands. I went with him down to the garage and gave him directions to get to Ave Poblado.

We soon discovered the water was off again.

I watched a couple more episodes of Downton Abbey.

I resigned a game vs Troyclough, lowering my rating to 1535.

In the evening Teresa finally called a portero and asked about the water and it was soon on again.

Today I didn’t have the step counter on while in the house so I only registered about 2,000 steps.

 

FUNNY

Wednesday, November 26, 2025

Last night I took my Diphenhydramine and Zopiclona tablets and went to bed at 10pm. I quickly fell asleep, got up once at 12:45am, finally waking at 5:30 and getting up at 6am.

Teresa had already left for her gym class.

Teresa returned at 8:30, made me breakfast and since I have to wait about an hour after eating I went back to bed for 45 minutes, only sleeping a little.

Teresa explained she has a Christmas party tonight at the cultural center and do I want to come? If it’s the same as last time I just hung around trying to get a Wi-Fi signal, so no. I told her I could wait for her at the new café we found between there and Mi Casita Parilla. I checked my blog but I couldn’t see where I wrote down its name. I couldn’t find it on google maps either. ☹

I left the apt at 9:15 and found Smartfit about at busy as usual but still had to change the order of my routine a couple times. Their wall clock had been missing for a few weeks but today it’s back although it’s still 10 minutes fast, so it’s probably intentional. I completed 16 minutes on the treadmill at 6km/hr with a high pulse rate of 128 bpm. 😊

When I arrived at Ganso y Castor I was surprised to see all the outside tables were taken. I sat down at the nearest concrete table but 5 minutes later one of the customers came over to inform me there was now a table available.

I left at 10:45 and returned to the apt.

Teresa suggested we could now be in summer because we’ve had a couple days without rain.

I finished season 2 of Downton Abbey.

We left the apt at 6:30 and walked to what was the location of Mi Casita Parilla. 

Teresa informed me they had a 10-year lease so I guess it expired. We went around the corner and down the block to the new café which I now see is named Café Fika and is at Carrera 45A #34sur-24.

Teresa had a palito de queso and a sip of my latte then went to her party. I finished a small cheese croissant and my latte then left at their official closing time of 8pm even though there were still 2 couples still hanging around.

I walked to the edge of downtown and took this photo of some Christmas lights then continued on and through La Buena Mesa to our apt.

My step count for today was a much better 6,801.

I was slightly concerned I might have trouble sleeping because of my late night caffeine.

Teresa returned at 10:15 and I went to bed.

 

FUNNY

 

Tuesday, November 25, 2025

Last night I took my Diphenhydramine and Zopiclona tablets and went to bed at 10pm. I quickly fell asleep, got up once at 3am, finally waking/getting up at 6:15.

Teresa was already gone to her gym class.

At 7:20 I ordered a Didi for 15,000 pesos and was surprised it was only 2 minutes away. Traffic was busy but at least moving. I arrived at the mall 15 minutes early and Jose was waiting for me.

We went up to Santa Leña and today I ordered 1 piece of French toast with 2 scrambled eggs and asked if they had bacon. She said, “yes” so I ordered 1 piece of crispy bacon. The other waitress stopped at our table and said something that Jose translated as they only have bacon bits so I’ll be skipping the bacon. My check came to 42,939 plus another 8,500 when I asked for a bottle of water to go.

I had the Black pieces in the first game and he got a knight deep in my territory but ended up trading it off and after that I got a strong attack and he resigned on the 41^st move.

I had the White pieces in the second game and, as he often does, makes up some opening and I didn’t stick to my tried and true opening and I resigned on the 21^st move.

Jose apologized for the few phones calls that interrupted our game – he said it was because today’s his 77^th birthday.

It was only 1:30 which would be a good time to go to Italian American Grill – only problem was I wasn’t hungry.

After a trip to the restroom, I had a Didi take me to Viva Envigado for 19,000 pesos.

I had lunch in Pigasus, their Pigasus Burger, minus the chicharrones and it wasn’t bad although the meat wasn’t very good quality and could have been cooked slightly longer. It included fries and a Coke.

I made an ATM withdrawal then went inside Dollar City to buy garbage bags. I asked the security guard for “bolsas para basura” and she looked at me like she’d never heard Spanish before. She took me to a cashier who had the same reaction. I took out my Dollar City bag and showed it to her and said, “pero plastico para basura”. Finally she understood and took me to the first aisle where they had the 3,000 mil rolls of trash bags. I purchased two and was soon out of there.

I went down to Urbania where I had a latte and this time paid the check of 12,000 pesos at my table.

I stopped in Exito and bought some habichuela (green beans) and walked back to the apt. Teresa was getting a massage but when she finished she said I didn’t buy enough of them. Well, she didn’t tell me how much (many?) to buy so there.

I watched another episode of Downton Abbey.

I finished reading the novella The Nicotine Chronicles which included a chapter from Lee Child.

We had some rain late in the evening and was still dripping when I went to bed at 10pm.

My step count for today was 3,540. I didn’t expect much for a Tuesday.

 

FUNNY

 

Monday, November 24, 2025

Last night I took my Diphenhydramine and Zopiclona tablets and went to bed at 10pm. I quickly fell asleep, slept through the night, finally waking/getting up at 5:45am.

Teresa soon left for her 6am gym class. She returned at 7:30 and started making breakfast.

I left the apt just before 9am and found Smartfit not as busy as usual but still had to wait on a couple machines. At the suggestion of ChatGPT, I completed 16 minutes on the treadmill with a maximum pulse rate of 124 bpm.

I was having a latte in Ganso y Castor when Teresa called at 10am to inform me she was going to Hueco to buy some “stones” and we’ll be having lunch out; she’ll call later.

I contacted Teresa at 1pm and she informed me she won’t be back in time for lunch.

I left the apt at 1:45pm and walked to Asados Rogelio where I ordered the chicken breast plate for lunch. Only problem was I didn’t recognize the juices the waitress mentioned so I had a small Coke. The check was 32,000 pesos ($8) and I gave the waitress a 5mil tip. (She had also brought me a little container of BBQ sauce for my chicken.)

I walked to Gardenia where I went over their menu. They have Eggs American Style and a lot of fancy pancakes.

But I just had a latte with a glass of ice water.

Teresa joined me about 3:30 and ordered the same ice cream cup as last time; of course, she expected me to finish it.

We left at 4:30 and returned to the apt.

Chesswiz98 resigned our game on the 22^nd move, increasing my rating to 1544.

For supper, Teresa reheated my leftover beef brisket from yesterday; still delicious.

I received an email from ChessMood that their courses will be open until December 20^th.

My step count for today was 4,603. That’s a little better.

 

FUNNY

Sunday, November 23, 2025

Last night I took my Diphenhydramine and Zopiclona tablets and went to bed at 10pm. I quickly fell asleep, slept through the night, finally waking/getting up at 5am.

With ChatGPT’s help I re paired my JBL headphones to my LG television.

We left the apt just after 8am and Teresa went to her Pilates class in Otra Parte and I continued on to Sao Paulo. (The red light was on my iPod so I thought the battery was dead but it worked both ways and then died.) I arrived early and ordered a latte and texted Glenn I was early. He arrived a few minutes later. I invited him for a 1pm Thanksgiving dinner at our place and he accepted.

I had the American Breakfast which was pretty good

He’s looking for a nutritionist so I told him I would ask my Internista next time I see him. I recommended he get the book Outlive by Dr. Peter Attea, MD.

I stopped in Carulla and purchased 4 imported oranges for 15,000 pesos (about $1 each).

I walked back to the apt and Teresa returned about 12:15.

I logged into ChessMood and continued Tactics Ninja with Section 23 – Destroying.

I found my abdomen ultrasound “photos” on Cedimed but I can’t figure out how to copy or download them.

We had another visit from our pigeon friends.

I think my old 8GB JAL TECH USB drive is failing because every time I put it in the port it tells me it has to be formatted first.

We had a short rainstorm early in the afternoon.

I had told Teresa that the Bears game doesn’t start until 4:25 our time so we have time to go out for lunch.

We left the apt at 2:30 and walked to Palogrande. The place is much larger than it looks from the front. We took a seat and Teresa ordered their chicken and a beer. The waiter suggested their rib eye steak (maybe because it was so expensive?) but I ordered the beef brisket and a mango juice.

My meat was delicious and so large I ate half and got half to go. There was also something on my plate that tasted like apple pie 😊 but the salad was almost all onion so I only had a taste. I checked NFL scores on my cellphone and was shocked to see the Bears were in the 4^th quarter, leading 31-28. I thought the game had been moved from 1pm to 4:25pm. ☹ The check came to 139,743 pesos ($37.50).

We returned to the apt and I put the game on DAZN and watched it from the beginning, only skipping halftime.

Another visit from our pigeon friends – they must think we’re family now

31-28 ended up being the final score so finally the Bears beat a team with a winning record but Friday at 3pm they play the 8-3 Philadelphia Eagles ☹ so that will be quite a challenge – especially with all their injured players.

I won a game vs chesswiz98 in 29 moves, increasing my rating to 1538.

In the evening we had a downpour but it only lasted about 20 minutes.

I watched another episode of Downton Abbey on Netflix.

My step count for today was 3,873. Not good.

 

FUNNY

Saturday, November 22, 2025

Last night I took my Diphenhydramine and Zopiclona tablets and went to bed at 10pm. I got up once during the night, finally waking/getting up at 6:30.

The cane seating on the chair I use for my desk is breaking so I switched it with the one I never sit on at my chess table.

At 8:30 I went down to the porteria and claimed my package and brought it up to the apt. It’s my Google ONN 4k streaming device.

I left again and walked down to Ave Las Vegas where I was soon on a Sabaneta bus. I got off across from EAFIT (university) and went up the stairs to an empty Mina Rica where I had a latte. (I was killing time until the 10am stores open in Monterrey mall.)

From my perch in the café I took this video of grass cutting, Colombian style

I left at 10:15, walked back down the stairs and soon was on an Envigado bus. I got off kiddy corner from the mall and used the underpass to enter.

I stopped at the first store and showed a photo of my Amazon 4k Pro Fire Stick and asked where I could buy it. He showed me a few in his display case. I took out mine and handed it to him and told him he could sell it. I think he didn’t understand until I told him it was free before I left.

Across the street I soon was on a Sabaneta bus back to Envigado. Teresa called and asked me to pick up a few things to I stopped in Mercado Madrid on the way back to my apt.

As I entered the porteria the portero handed me my other package. It contained purse handles for Teresa and 4 10oz. bags of salted-on-the-shell peanuts for me. I may have over done it on the peanuts.

I put out some lentil seeds for the pigeons but they are difficult to eat as they appear to be slightly too large. They had no problem with sesame seeds though.

My brother just notified me that the December 7^th game vs the Packers has been moved from noon to 3:25pm (CST).

I set up the new hardware and at 4pm Rob helped me set up the software which took a little over an hour.

I watched a couple more episodes of Downton Abbey on Netflix.

My step count for today was 2,974. Pretty pitiful.

 

FUNNY

Friday, November 21, 2025

Last night I took my Diphenhydramine and Zopiclona tablets and went to bed at 10pm. I got up once during the night, again at 5:30 when Teresa got up, finally getting up at 6am just after Teresa left for her early gym class.

I ended up with a draw against mekael965, lowering my rating to 1540.

Because the Chicago Bears have won 7 games, the NFL changed their Sunday game against the Pittsburgh Steelers from 1pm to 4:25pm.

New photos of Annie James

Looks like she had a bath.

I left the apt at 9:15 and on my way to Smartfit I observed a squirrel on the sidewalk carrying what looked like a mango in its mouth. I guess he has a sweet tooth.

The gym was a little busier than usual but I managed to complete my routine in the usual order. I completed 15 minutes on the treadmill with a maximum pulse rate of 128 bpm.

I had a latte in Ganso y Castor until 10:45 then I returned to the apt.

We left at 11:30 and took a Didi to El Tesoro mall for 13,400 pesos. First Teresa checked out H&M and Zara

then we had lunch in Crepes & Waffles. She had the salad bar, I had the Cesar salad with chicken and we each had a glass of water for a total of 63,800 pesos ($17). I guess we got a table just as they opened because there was a line waiting for a table as we left.

We stopped at a Bancolombia consignacion ATM where I put 107,500 pesos in Innovation Corp’s account for my package to be delivered.

Their atrium is set up for Christmas

We went up to Doctor Juan Carlos Castano’s office and we had a wait of over an hour. The doctor went over all my test results and declared I don’t need surgery for my stones if I don’t have any pain. He recommended I drink a lot of water, don’t salt my food (no problem there), and eat a lot of citrus fruits like oranges, lemons (ick), and tangerines. My next appointment will be in 6 months on May 21^st at 1pm. They didn’t give me a paper order for my next PSA blood test but Teresa says they’ll email it to me a week before my next appointment. I paid 330,000 pesos for the appointment ($87).

We returned to the mall and Teresa had a yogurt ice cream with blueberries and coconut then we went across the aisle to Valentina Bakery where I had a latte and a crookie (croissant with a chocolate cookie baked into each end). She did a little work on her next bracelet while I perused my cellphone. At 4pm I paid the check of 45,889 and we walked to the taxi area. There was a long line but the wait was only about 20 minutes to return to the apt by taxi for 19,000 pesos.

I lost a game to Troyclough lowering my rating to 1531.

Teresa informed me the portero called and I have a package waiting in the porteria. I told her I’d pick it up tomorrow.

I watched some of The Chris Hayes Show on MS NOW then started my evening reading.

My step count for today was 6,200.

 

FUNNY

 

Thursday, November 20, 2025

Last night I took my Diphenhydramine and Zopiclona tablets and went to bed at 9:30. It took a while to fall asleep, got up once around midnight, finally waking/getting up at 5am.

Teresa got up with me and made breakfast and was out the door before 6am for her gym class.

I think I figured out why my Mercado Libre order didn’t work yesterday. I tried using my other debit card but it didn’t like that either. I then tried my credit card and it looked like that was going to work but at the last moment it declined it. ☹

It was 7am when I tried to order a Didi but there weren’t any takers. After I remembered that Claro wouldn’t open until 9:30 anyway I realized I was too early for my errands.

I stopped at the Gana kiosk and paid the Movistar bill of approximately 64,000 pesos then continued on to Ganso y Castor where I had a latte and a glass of ice water.

Chesswiz98 resigned our game on the 33^rd move increasing my rating to 1545.

I left at 10am and returned to the apt.

Rob ordered the item for me and it should arrive here tomorrow. I’ll put cash into his account this afternoon.

I left the apt at 12:45 and took a Didi to SICOR for 19,800 pesos. Inside I gave the receptionist my medical order, cedula, and business card with my address, phone number and email address hoping that was enough. I got an appointment for next Friday, November 28^th at 2:20pm. Outside they had this interesting parking lot – parking problem solved.

I ordered a Didi which soon arrived and took me Viva Envigado for 20,000 pesos.

I recycled a couple items, printed a chess note, and went up to the 2^nd floor. After waiting in line a few minutes in Claro the lady told me “las dos estan en cero” meaning “both are at zero”. This is unusually late but probably explains why I haven’t received a bill in my email as yet. I put 360,000 pesos in Rob’s Bancolombia account for the item that should arrive tomorrow.

I went down to Urbania and had a latte and a glass of ice water.

I used google to obtain information on my abdominal test conclusions:

I left at 3:30 and went to the cashier to pay my check. They have new staff than I’m used to seeing. I had a difficult time trying to explain I already drank my latte and I just want to pay as I handed him 13mil – which should be more than enough including the tip. Another young man came over and in broken English, asked me: Latte or cappacunino? Large or small? Did I eat anything? Which table was I sitting at? In the end the 13 mil was enough but next time it might be quicker to just pay using the waiter.

I stopped in Exito and bought a large carton of eggs and a 3-pack of Dove body soap and returned to the apt by taxi.

I got an email from ChessMood that in celebration of Thanksgiving they are unlocking their courses for one month.

I watched some of The Chris Hayes Show on MS NOW then started my evening reading.

My step count for today was 4,583.

 

FUNNY