A shitty Situation

It's spring, you know what that means right? Soon the people will want to golf....sigh! :( 

here is a bunch of plants that have all become very close friends

I have been eating mangoes for a month, started with one ripe one everyday, then 2 ripes ones, then 3, now I have about 8 ripe ones a day, I am the mango lady, no one leaves my house with a few mangoes. 

I nominate the bougainvilleas to be the most beautiful plant in the whole......it wows me all the time 

there are 2 more bunches of bananas in my back yard. 

Freezing mangoes for my room mate who is away on a Tuna boat....who by the way I really really miss when he is gone. He has turned out to be an amazing room mate...well not "turned out" he always was amazing I"m sure, it just took a while to get over my Canadian tendencies. 

mucho mangoes

mango shakes every day....sometmes twice a day

Let me tell you about the mango tree. First, it's the biggest mango tree on the Island (maybe) It's 30 plus years old (maybe). It's a little crazy (not maybe).

It had mango on it before it was mango time. If you take the horse and wagon tour of the Island the wagon master will drive you past my house and show you this tree and he will tell you it is crazy. Tourist get driven past my house all the time just to look at the mango tree. I should really put a tip jar out there (to help pay for my ceiling)

Now you need to understand how much everyone loves mangoes. A lot. Here is what happens all day.
The birds get up there and peck at the mangoes until they fall down. (it hurts to get pinged in the head with a mango). They eat mangoes all day, now, what happens when you eat mangoes all day? You shit all day! All day!
At night the rats come (yeah I didn't know I had rats either), they eat mangoes all night and ....... Shit al night.
Then the raccoons come and climb the tree and eat mangoes all night and .......shit all night.
The Iguanas really really like mangoes too, and they REALLY shit. And they eat day and night. (double shit)
So now there are mango pits and mango peel and half eaten mangoes lying everywhere and then the whole back yard is full of fruit flies.....lots of them, and i am sure they shit too.
So....3 times a day at least I am washing down my brick back yard and burning incense to cover the smell of shit.
I have been putting poison out for the rats, which they eat and I have a found a dead rat or 2, however it just seems like I am feeding all the Island rats.

A few days ago I got a friend to get up on the roof of my house to get some high up there mangoes. I tell him to make sure he gets them all. He says he only wants to pick the ripe ones, I say no, get them all, the greens ones ripen in the house, He argues with me, and says that if you pick unripe fruit it hurts the tree and will be bad for your spirit....huh? I say I am not looking for a spiritual experience right now, I just want the shit to go away.

Now, please understand that I am not "complaining" here about having mangos, that would sound ungrateful and petty and THAT might just be bad for my spirit, I am only reporting on what it is like to have a crazy mango tree in the yard.

when the ceiling falls

Even in Paradise bad things happens....sometimes. Imagine my surprise. I come from being on the mainland all day. I need to go to the beach, most days I want to go to the beach, but when I come home from the mainland I NEED to go to the beach, It seems I have to wash the city vibe off of me. So I am in a hurry to get out of the house, but I need to use the bathroom first....quickly I say to me. This is what the bathroom looked like. WHAT!

A piece of concrete from the ceiling fell down and smashed my sink right off the wall.

See all the little cracks in the concrete, that means its not done falling, my bedroom, bathroom and kitchen ceiling is very cracked.

So operation "fix ceiling" will happen while  I am in Canada. Which means I have to pack my whole house into plastic bags because the dust will be Guynormous (yes thats a word) it means really really much.
Which means operation "pack house into plastic bags" is happening right now.....well not right this moment, right now i am sitting here in my living room (the only safe place in the house) drinking coffee and listening to the roosters waking up the Island.

The New Old Bull

 My Mexican sisters restaurant "El Torro Viejo" (the old bull) got torn apart from the hurricanes that came through before I got here and she was a little slower in rebuilding that the rest. The biggest setback was the stove that got destroyed and of course the palapa and bathrooms.....all destroyed.

poor Old Bull

The Fridge

Where the kitchen used to be

What a mess

All has been rebuilt, bigger and better. Bathrooms have tiled floor and walls, (I know....how fancy) but no roof so you can still see the sunset from the toilet, the stove is new and beautiful, new fire pit has been built, we have lots of shelves and a much bigger work space. We have a fridge, a stereo, we have a concrete floor (not sure I like this yet)  and the dishwashing station has been built to fit me, everyone else has to stand on a pop crate to use it, looks like I am expected to work here awhile yet.

What didn't change....the knife with the broken tip is still there, our plates still don't match, the forks are still bent, extension cords are still stung out everywhere, the view is still breath taking, the food still amazing, water still over flows in the pila once in a while, the people.....all the same, albeit a year older which is only noticeable on the 8 year old who just turned 9, and the cat looks a bit more mature. The dog had puppies again and is pregnant again, and the hammocks are still there. 

Lovely stove and shelving. Stove has a deep fryer which is where sister stores her shoes and purse and anything else of value. A real Mexican restaurant does not submerge when deep frying. My sister uses new oil for every order, so a deep fryer is not practical. This is why her fish and shrimp are better than anywhere else....my opinion

New shower

The old sink survived the storm

Love  the big long prep table

Triple BBQ and a double pila, sister is standing on a crate

the new double pila, one side is for cleaning fish, how awesome is that. However, I do see a problem, the drain holes are very small, and there isn't mush slope.....oh well. 

And of course I am still the beach inspector......my hammock. 

Namaste

I have walked barefoot on the Island all winter, morning, afternoon and at night. Here is what I have learned

- I like it. A lot.

-It feels good and that makes me happy

-I feel centred and balanced, way less stumbling and tripping on stuff. By nature I am a clumsy being but being barefoot makes you more aware of what is on the ground.

-I am more aware of my surroundings, I walk slower, so it feels like my eyes have been opened wider.

- Though you tend to walk slower you do feel quicker on your feet, almost bouncy and your feet just want to dance (gasp).

-Your foot feels danger before you actually put all your weight down on it thus preventing you from cutting or scraping your foot on anything. I haven't had one injury.

-The sensors on the bottom of your foot have better memory that your brain, so your foot remembers the "lay of the land" also preventing injury and keep you from stepping into a pot hole or from forgetting about that little drop.  

- It's easier to wash your foot than your shoes or flip flops, you can wash and dry and be on the road again in 2 minutes or less.

-You notice the different textures and how it feels on the bottom of your foot. Sometimes I am just walking along and all of a sudden I will  think "ohhh I like how this place feels".

- You notice the temperature of the ground, while the sand had gotten hot at times this winter it has never been unbearable. You notice when you are stepping on shaded areas and then back to warm areas, you do become more mindful of all your surroundings and the temperature.

-I have not once stepped in gum or dog shit or horse shit or anything unpleasant.

- It feels so gooood to wash your feet, it`s almost ceremonial, even if you wash your feel 5 times a day, it feels amazing every time. 

-Did I mention it feels good.

When I go to Mazatlan I do wear flip flops (reluctantly) I went to Mazatlan one evening with a friend and he as barefoot but I was wearing flip flops. At one point that sidewalk was made up of a different brick, one that is a little less common, little square ones with a different texture and just as I was thinking "I wish I was barefoot, I bet this would feel good" he says "ohhh you would like this, this feels good". I was annoyed at myself that I felt I couldn't go barefoot in the city and a bit jealous of him, he's been doing it longer than me, I'll get there yet. It's a mind and head thing...nothing more. It's hard to wash your brain again after it's been washed by society. Society has very strong soap.

The downside of all this, it will really hurt when I have to put my shoes on in the other country. It will be cold when I first get there so barefoot isn't even an option, going to work barefoot is not an option either, going into a store or restaurant barefoot there is not an option either. 

Here is what MindBodyGreen has to say about going barefoot, full article here 

http://www.mindbodygreen.com/0-17779/the-importance-of-going-barefoot-how-to-reclaim-your-feet.html

How often do you take your shoes off just to feel the grass between your toes, walk around the house barefoot because you can? My guess is probably not often enough ... 

Your feet are incredibly important and were designed to be mobile, otherwise you wouldn't have 26 bones in such a small body part. But feet that sit in shoes all day long (particularly high heels, steel-capped boots or any heavy, high-ankle or thick-soled shoe) are not happy feet. They need to breathe and have the freedom of movement.

Because of the amount of nerve endings found in the feet (more per square centimeter than any other part of the body) , they're your gateway to proprioception or, the awareness of where your body is in space. So imagine if your feet were stuck in thick-soled, flat shoes all day, not knowing if there was a need to alter your movement due to uneven ground, inclines, declines or changes in temperature. These are all important messages that should be received through your feet, but when they're constricted within shoes, the brain doesn't receive the feedback.

Furthermore, issues with and stiffness in your feet can eventually affect muscles and joints higher up in the kinetic chain, like ankles, knees, hips and spine. Paying attention to and exercising your feet can change pain experiences in other areas of your body ... never underestimate the importance of happy, healthy feet! Here are three things you can do to reclaim your feet.

And then there is all these.......

I believe........

We don't always party but when we do.....

We party like millionaires. 

It took the whole village.....but we had a party. A 9 year birthday party. 

The crust got cut off of 5 bags of bread for the ever present "pastel de atun" a Mexican party favorite (for me not so much)

A pinata got stuffed and hung.....actually 2 pinatas

A meter mong cake got brought across the water ferry, along with all the expected decorations 

one of the three pastel de atun platers

Can't have a party without jello cups

The party girl waiting for the guest, she was told "don't get dirty". Grandma made the party dress

Centre pieces were made the night before by the big sister. I saw some guests walk home with them too. 

A portable blue tooth speaker got borrowed, must have music WHAT?! I SAID "MUST HAVE MUSIC". 

A car pulled up with a trunk full of pots of corn

A truck came and unloaded the jump-o-leen  (this year we didn't blow the breaker"

Another pinata  and more balloons

Musical chairs off course WHAT!? I SAID MUSICAL CHAIRS.

And then, because it wasn't loud enough a Mexican boy band showed up

and then....it happened. STOP THE MUSIC! EVERYONE STOP.  A girl dropped her sucker, it's always fun until someone losses their sucker in the sand. We found it. 

A good old fashion race.....

grandpa and grandma manned the taco stand

I was in the kitchen all day, which is how I like to be at a party, I like to have a purpose. Once the serving was done I slowly mingled my way to the outer edges and slowly slipped away into the dark beach. This is how I usually exit a party. Even in the other land. It was a good night.

Oh Mexico, how I love thee

- I love the sudden burst of loud music drifting out of homes as I walk by or from car windows as they pass me

- I Love sudden bursts of smells as I walk by places, the market, the coffee factory, the fish factory, taco stands, fruit stands, fish market, the malecon, the bakery, that places where the horses stand, that lady in her backyard doing laundry, you name it, the whole country smells of Mexico.

- I love how you think you have your day planned and you end up doing something totally different....and it's ok.

- I love how the Mexicans love their food, I really really love how they love their food.

- I love how the big burly fisherman is so secure with his machoism that he can pack his lunch in a pink Hello Kitty backpack and a purple little mermaid thermos and go to work.

- I love how I can buy fresh cheese in front of my house from a guy on a motorbike.

- I love how I can close my eyes and never forget that I am in Mexico because I can smell and hear pure Mexico, even when she tries to be quiet. Plus you can feel Mexico in your bones.

- I love how the music is always romantic (except  when it's not) .

- I love how I can go barefoot everywhere on this Island.

- I love how the Mexican know how to relax in a hammock after work.....truly relax.

- I love how Mazatlan glows so sweetly and softly at night, you can almost feel the glow in your bones, it's softens you.  (I realize that this sounds crazy)

- The cake, oh how I love the cake, most of all I love how I have to go to the mainland for cake.

- I love the Spanish book store, I love how they still read "literature" as opposed to trash novels, and I can't wait until I can read Spanish literature, I can't wait.....I dream of this day (well I daydream about it anyway)

- I love how food is so easy and accessible, on almost every street corner you can pick up a quick snack or a full meal.

- I love how the little kids call their fathers "Papi".

- I Love how they love to dance.  

- I love how you can ride around on the back of a pickup truck, on mattresses or on chairs, on top of palms, or top of a pile of zucchini, with dogs and kids and grandmas.

- I love how my banana leaves look in the moonlight and how the moon shines through my mango tree.

- I Love the soft sound of the surf from my bed.

- I Love how I can hear my roommates motorbike from across the Island. I also love how excited he is when he hears me using Spanish that he taught me.

- I Love how my curtains bellow out from the breeze (I've talked about this before).

- I love how at least once a day I have to chase a bee out of my house.

- I love how the receptionist at the x-ray lab still uses a typewriter, and not an electric one.

- I Love how my doctor doesn't keep a file on me, that is my responsibility. 

- I Love that carrying a step ladder on a motorbike is no big deal.

- I love that they love romance so much

- I love how I smell when I have been in the sea all day. 

My neighbor dries fish on the power line above his house  ....and I love that.

when something is in your way you just cement around it.....love that

fresh cheese

carrot cake, here in Mexico you can have your cake and eat it too.....the whole thing. It's cake for single people.

The Mexican cutting board.....love it

A whole bunch of different plants have married and become one

The glow

cotton clouds

What's not to love