Wednesday, June 6, 2018

We went to bed at 11pm last night as usual and I didn’t wake up until 5:45am, finally getting up at 6:45.  Maybe it was the Krispy Kreme donut that helped me sleep through the night.  Lol.

Teresa spoke to the muchacho building the gate and she says she will need 800mil from me today and she’ll reimburse me when she gets the money from John.

Teresa isn’t going to the finca today because she has her nutritionist appointment this afternoon.

I watched the first 20 minutes of the Today show and headed to the gym.  On the leg curl machine I feel something in my hamstrings when I begin but it soon goes away.  At one point Oscar came up to me and asking why I don’t have a tattoo?  I told him I don’t like tattooes.  He said I could get a small one on over my heart with a colored heart and “I love Teresa”.  I told him maybe I’ll put one on my penis and I thought he was going to die laughing.  (Sometimes Teresa asks me why I’m so funny and I reply “because I’m a gringo”.)  I did all of my exercises in a little under 2 hours.

I made plans to meet Gray and his father Bob tomorrow morning at their hotel in the San Joaquin barrio of Medellin.  It looks like they are about 3 blocks from Jose’s house.

After lunch I managed to figure out how to copy all (254) of the 17-year old grandmaster Samuel Sevian’s chess games into my own database.  His first published game must have been when he was about 9 years old and he was already playing stronger than I ever have.

Teresa and I left the apt at 2:30 for her 3:30 nutritionist appointment.  I kind of remembered how to get there from last time so I was able to advise the taxi driver.  The doctor gave Teresa pretty much the same pitch he gave me but he also gave her a prescription to see another doctor or for additional tests.  I understand her mother and father were both diabetic so they are going to check her.

We walked over to Santafe and Teresa checked out the new Zara store and came out and said everything is ugly.  Ugly = less expensive in my book.  Lol.  She also checked out Forever 21 with the same result.  We went up to J&C Delicias and sat down and when no one came to take our order after 5 minutes we left.  We went a couple restaurants down to Parmessano where I ordered a Cesar salad with chicken and Teresa ordered beef with mushrooms and mashed potatoes.  I also had a mango juice and she had water.  It suddenly occurred to me that I didn’t have my tech bag with me.  I hustled back to J&C Delicias and there it was right where I left it on the side chair.  My salad was pretty good although light on the lettuce and I tasted Teresa’s beef and ended up spitting it out because it was too tough.  The final bill including tip and tax was 64,791COP or $23.50.

We walked down to the lower level where Teresa picked up apples and a head of lettuce at Jumbo.  Outside we waited in the usual place to catch a taxi but I thought it was strange that there was no line.  After about 5 minutes Teresa asked someone and we learned that they have a new taxi waiting area – with seats – up the ramp a short ways.  There were about 8 people waiting ahead of us but we soon were on our way back to Envigado.

On the news it appears that the hydroelectric dam is still leaking and I understand they are rushing to finish/fix it before it gives way completely.

I found some videos on Youtube that give tips about using my Fritz software so I started looking through those.

T-shirt of the day: Bit first gym.

Tuesday, June 5, 2018

Well, I got up 4-5 times during the night, finally woke up at 5:30 and got up at 6:30.

Teresa left for the finca at 9:15.

I watched the first 20 minutes of the Today show then changed clothes and left the apt.  I stopped first at the barber shop on the corner for a 25 minute haircut for 10,000 pesos.  I made an ATM withdrawal then stopped for café con leche at Bartolos.  I paid the epm (utilities) bill at Cotrafa and the Direct TV bill at $efecty.  I returned to the bookstore and the same young lady was there as last week and she recognized me right away and I could tell from her body language that she would allow me to exchange my book for another one.  She did see her get approval from a man in the back before writing the title down in a ledger book.

I stopped at Bancolombia and deposited the cash into Laura’s account for the gym.

Back at the apt I received an email from Will who I understand won’t be able to visit Envigado now until August as he has to have some surgery.

Laura and I left the apt about 1pm and walked down to Deli Hoy where we had a nice pork lunch.

Back at the apt Laura said something about going to Oviedo for her grandmother and she wanted me to go with her.  I said I would.

I took a little nap from 2:30 to 3:30.

Laura and I left at 4pm and took a bus to Oviedo.  She spent about 2 minutes in Bon Bonite and came out with some cash.  Did she return something?  I said I came here just for that?

We walked down to Starbucks where we both had a cold caramel something for almost 10mil apiece.  We walked next door to Krispy Kreme, each picked out a donut and sat outside.  The drink was very cold and very good.  I think I’ll continue ordering it in this hot weather.

After about an hour we walked back to Oviedo and after about a 10 minute wait we got on a Sabaneta bus.  It was standing room only and at each stop, even though the bus appeared full, more people squeezed in.  If they couldn’t get in the front door they got on through the back door so we were squeezed from both directions.  At one point a lady was trying to get to the back door and as she squeezed between my back and a man behind me wearing a backpack, I said to Laura “I feel like I just had a medical procedure!”  I don’t think she got the joke.

We finally got off a block from the apt and were back by 6pm.

Teresa was already there and I asked how things were going at the finca and she replied that they are digging holes for the gate.

Wow!  We had what, like 3 days without any rain?  Maybe the first rainy season for the year is finally over.

T-shirt of the day: 100% paisa.

Monday, June 4, 2018

Last night I fell asleep quickly but I got up at 3am, 5am, and 6am.  I finally gave up getting back to sleep and I got up at 7:15.

Teresa tells me we need to buy lettuce and arepas.  I know we need bananas and more Cheerios.  Teresa is getting ready to go to the finca.  She’s got cans of tuna and spaghetti to make lunch there.  

She gets a call and then tells me that the muchacho has a bad cold so they won’t be going today.  So I say then you can go to Exito to buy some groceries.  She then recommends we go to Euro in Mayorista to buy more things.  I guess we’ll be going right after lunch.

At the gym I completed all my exercises in an hour and 55 minutes.  My quadriceps are feeling more normal so soon I'll increase the reps a bit before I add on more weight.

We all walked down to Deli Hoy for lunch.  After, Teresa tells me that she only needs a few things – mostly for the finca so we went to Exito instead.

In the evening I learned that my son Jim is coming for a visit on July 2^nd.  Yay!

T-shirt of the day: No pain no gain.

Sunday, June 3, 2018

Last night we went to bed at 11pm as usual.  The good news is I slept through the night until 5:30am.  The bad news is that I was awakened by a cramp in my calf.  At least it only took me about 20 seconds to massage it out.  Teresa told me that when I yelled she thought some animal had bitten me.  I fell back asleep quickly and didn’t wake/get up until 8am.

After a breakfast of French toast for me and leftover ribs for Teresa we left the apt.  Workers finished most of the sidewalk surrrounding the little park across from the library.  Approaching Home Center we saw a large beam from Exito leading towards a new “tower” on the corner of the lot.  We wondered what the heck that was.  Teresa talked to a worker and we found it will be a pedestrian bridge to the metro station.  Wow, that’s like 2 blocks away.  But that will get them over 37^th street safely.  If I understood him correctly the planned August 31^st finish date for the mall is unlikely.

In Home Center we first picked out about a dozen light bulbs for the finca.  Then Teresa picked out a single burner electric cook top.   I understand it’s mainly for cooking lunch for workers at the finca.  She tried to get me to buy a Char Broil barbecue grill/smoker for our next apt.  I told her we don’t even know what our next apt will look like.  I explained that we would need a balcony because using charcoal we would need bo BBQ outdoors.  Then while looking at cooking pots she put the light bulbs back on a shelf.  She picked up a bottle of lighter fluid and a set of plastic food storage containers.

We stopped at Dogger’s – The Real American Taste - where we each had a hotdog and soda.

We quickly caught a taxi back to the apt for the minimum of 5,400 pesos.

I got an email from Gray whose father Bob of 77 years has just retired here.  From what they say it looks like they are about 3 blocks from Jose in San Joaquin.  I’m going to try to meet up with them in their area either Tuesday or Thursday.

Wow, we went a whole day with no rain.

T-shirt of the day: I love you more than a nerd loves math class.

Saturday, June 2, 2018

I got up once during the night, waking at 5:45 and getting up at 6:45.

Wow, it’s a clear sunny morning with nary (there’s a word you don’t see much these days) a cloud in sight.

I had a bowl of Cheerios for breakfast.  Funny thing is that when I bought my first box the ladies laughed at me as they said this was cereal for niños (children).  Then Laura started eating it then Teresa started eating it.  I rest my case.

I left the apt about 9:30, took a bus to Envios Market but the document was just more unnecessary pension information.  I stopped at the Servibanca ATM and again it gave me 2 10s and all the rest in 20s.  Outside I found 2 2,000 peso bills lying on the sidewalk – my lucky day.

I walked up to Starbucks where I tried something different – an iced tea - a green tea latte.  They made it with whole milk – next time I’ll ask them to make it with water.  I checked the news on my phone and read some from my Reader’s Digest.  I then walked across the street and up a block to Oviedo where I caught a bus back to the apt.

Laura and I left the apt about 1:15 for Deli Hoy.  Today they had lasagna mixta which is with meat and chicken.  Back at the apt I changed into my shorts – I should have done that before lunch.  Today is very warm with an expected high of 83 degrees.

Laura went on to the gym and I walked over to the bookstore to exchange my paperback.  I found a book by Robert Ludlum but when I went to exchange it the girl working there was new and she said she needed permission from the owner.  She called but he didn’t answer.  While waiting I noticed a book sitting on the desk titled Pricipia Mathematica.  It was in English but the content was so far over my head I doubt anyone here will ever buy it.  (My degree was in mathematics.  Back at the apt a google search revealed that this is probably an English translation of Isaac Newton’s classic mathematical work first published in 1687.)  She said something about 20 minutes but I said I didn’t want to wait so I took back my 2mil and my old paperback and I left.

I walked by Bartolos but all the outside tables were taken.

I walked over to Todo Drogas to buy my medicine for the month.  The older man helping me charged it to my debit card but then couldn’t find the receipt that I have to sign.  There was a fan blowing but the direction it was heading there was no paper.  I asked if the machine could be out of paper.  I asked if he could print another one.  Finally he figured out that since my debit card was from the US he needed to use a special reader for my card.  After that it all worked out except he set it to dollars instead of pesos which I understand gives me a worse exchange rate.

I walked past Bartolos again but all the outside tables were still taken so I returned to the apt.

John sent me the following message using Messenger.

We have decided to rent the finca on the following conditions:

·       The contract will be for 1 year to start.

·       The contract will begin from July 1^st

·       The rent will be 800,000 paid on the first of every month.

·       Deposit will be 800,000 (will be paid at the time of signing of contract.

·       The deposit will cover excessive damage to the property that is our fault.

·       A walk around video will be made at time of possession for reference, and comparison for when the relation ends.

·       2,000,000 will be paid at signing of contract, to be used to build a security gate, to be completed by July 1, at the entrance to the property.

·       This 2,000,000 will be paid back, by deducting 500,000 from each of the first months rent.

·       That is to say, July, August, September and October’s rent will only be 300,000.

·       The maintenance of the garden is the owner’s responsibility, and you are welcome to come to the property when you wish, anyone else, by appointment only.  (Nothing official, just a Whatsapp message is ok, just so I have an opportunity to be there.)

·       If all is ok, then you can draft up a contract with everything, or, if you prefer, we can have a lawyer do it, he costs 200,000 (we split the cost).

I talked to Teresa and we decided, for security purposes, it would be a good idea if John made all the deposits to Laura’s Bancolombia account.

Then we sat with Laura to talk about her future.  If she pursues the au pair route she will net about $8,000 in a year after paying me back and allowing about $600 for her expenses.  That’s about 2,240,000 pesos.  After renting the finca for a year that should net another 8 million pesos or so.  The problem is that we don’t know if the finca will be rented consistently after that.  The problem is that CES is too expensive and the finca income too undependable.  Teresa talked about if Laura went to a school called Sena they would teach her to cook and it wouldn’t cost anything.  Laura found a less expensive university called Luis Amigo near the Stadium that only charges 2,595,872 per semester and she could continue studying psychology.  In a pinch I should be able to pay for that out of my own savings.  She’s going to see when classes begin for the next semester – probably July or August.  And she says she wants to try out her shoe business, whatever that entails.

The Colombian Peso closed at 2,865 to the US dollar.

At 10pm it started raining again.

T-shirt of the day: Out until the sun comes up.

Friday, June 1, 2018

I was awakened about 4am by the loudest thunder I think I’ve every heard.  I woke up at 6am and got up at 6:30.

Well, it’s a new month and I get to start over – financially.

Teresa headed to the finca early to start work on painting.  The worker wants to stop working by June 14^th when the World Cup begins.

I left the apt at 7:45, picked up a free Adn newspaper outside Exito, bought a Q’Hubo newspaper from the corner newspaper boy, and picked up a free Gente newspaper in a store.  I walked over to Carbon de Leña where I had calentado with a café con leche for 8,500 pesos ($3).  On the way I saw a line outside Bancolombia waiting for it to open.  There were even a few people waiting outside the ATM I usually use.  I read in the newspaper that a 20-year old North Caroloina girl, hallucinating on meth, went into a church and literally clawed her eyes out and now she’s blind.  Yikes!  The newspaper also included a little card with the dates of Colombia’s World Cup matches in Group H: June 19^th at 7am against Japan, June 24^th at 1pm against Poland, and June 28^th at 9am against Senegal.

After breakfast I went back and there were only 2 people waiting to use that same ATM.  It was only 8:30 so I waited 10 minutes and withdrew some cash.  I was back at the apt in plenty of time to watch the first 20 minutes of the Today show.

At the gym I completed all my exercises in an hour and 55 minutes.  Interestingly, there’s a guy there that looks like Juan (now married to Laura) but slightly taller and with a full beard and moustache.

After my shower Laura and I walked down to Deli Hoy where we had the menu of the day which was Bandeja Paisa but as usual I got chicken breast.

We walked up to Bancolombia and were given the number S529 and they were serving S507.  That didn’t sound too bad and the chairs weren’t all full either.  Fifteen minutes later they were still serving S507.  I told Laura that I have another location we can try that’s only 1 or 2 blocks away but she wanted to stay.

At the 40 minute mark we went to the cashier and I picked up the cash from my World Remit transfer.  We went outside where we put it in the payment machine for my health insurance and the apartment.

To reward her for her help we walked to the other side of the plaza where I bought her an ice cream cone.  By this time it was raining slightly.  We walked back to the apt in the light rain.  I even receive an email from World Remit that the money has been picked up.

Among new US movie releases I would like to see Adrift (6.6), Upgrade (7.6), and maybe American Animals (7.1).  Locally, I would like to see Jungle (6.7) but it’s not playing at any convenient times in English.

I received the following email from the US embassy:

Location: Colombia, areas downstream of the Hidroituango dam on the Cauca River in the Departments of Antioquia, Cordoba, Sucre, and Bolivar.

Event: There is substantial landslide and flooding risk near and downstream from the Hidroituango dam in Ituango, Antioquia.  The Colombian government has ordered the evacuation of a number of communities below the dam, and placed other municipalities under “Red Alert.”  In the event of a dam failure, communities downstream are at severe risk of flash floods that may occur with little or no warning.  U.S. embassy employees are not permitted to travel to this area without advance permission.

Luckily, that’s a different river than goes through Medellin.  The Cauca River is much farther west near Santafe.

Laura borrowed 200mil from me for her “shoe business” she’s partnering with her friend Ana.    I asked her directly if this is a gift or a loan and she said it’s a loan, although she might need another 100mil on the 15^th.  She left at 5pm to meet with a friend.

We had a light rain most of the afternoon.

Chuck called me from Louisiana.  Apparently he has an acquantance named Bob who just moved to Laureles with his 30-something son Gray.  He has been to Colombia before but he has some questions.  He has both my cell phone number and email address.  Next week would be a good time to meet him since Jose Cruz is traveling.

Teresa didn’t come back until 7:30.  She says that John will give her 4 million pesos so she can build a fence with a gate and we will pay him back out of the monthly rent.  She needs to return to the finca to supervise work that is being done as they want to move in as soon as possible.  He also says he needs to shower in hot water – I don’t blame him because that mountain water in the finca is cold.

We called La Casita Parilla and had them deliver 2 orders of ribs with sodas.

I finished reading Ryan Lockwood’s paperback What Lurks Beneath.

T-shirt of the day: Worst job in the world.

(I’m getting real low on t-shirt sayings.  When I run out I’ll have something new to share with my readers.)

Thursday, May 31, 2018

I got up once during the night, woke up at 6am and got up at 6:30.

I had a large bowl of granola for breakfast and left the apt at 8:25.  I quickly caught a bus to the metro.  I met Jose at the chess league at 9:20.  We talked to the secretary for awhile and she showed us part of her coin collection.  She had a US nickel and quarter and I told her I’d bring her some more change.

We played one game at near tournament speed – 60 minutes plus 30 seconds per move – and he blundered on his 4^th move but I blundered on my 16^th move and he ended up winning what shouldn’t have been a close game.

We had lunch at Subway and I had the 6” chicken teriyaki sandwich with a 16oz Pepsi for 17mil (about $6).  Jose had to comment that we finally have a sunny day without any rain.  I replied “so far”.

Back at the chess league we played another game and he beat me with a nice attack.  While we were playing we were both surprised to see it raining – but only for about 10 minutes.

Jose and Maria will be vacationing in Santa Marta from June 2^nd to the 9^th so I won’t be seeing him next week.

I returned to Envigado and had a coconut lemonade at Bartolos for 6mil.

I stopped at the corner store and picked up 2 bags of milk and brought them back to the apt.

We ordered 3 burritos from Frisby and they were delivered for 26,000 pesos.  That was our early dinner.

T-shirt of the day: Most likely to not give a fuck.