MeXscape

The day after I got home from the hospital, Reku decided to get in on the act with an emergency of his own. He somehow managed to torque one of his rear nails off the quick. Well, not completely off, that would have been easier. The nail was still hanging on, just unwrapped from the quick. Ow.

I know a lot of you reading this are cringing in horror at the thought of going for surgery in a Mexican hospital. Many people conjure up a picture of a glassy-eyed bandito type with a knife in one hand and a bottle of tequila in the other getting ready to cut me open. Nothing could be further from the truth.

Last Saturday, I awoke with some stomach discomfort. I figured I was paying the price for the previous night. We went out with friends, drank more than is prudent, and had dinner at a restaurant I had never visited before. The dinner was the kicker: a salami and cheese sandwich and French fries. It was a shock to my system. I have become accustomed to a diet that prominently features fish, seafood, and fresh fruit and vegetables.

Our very low electric bills have been very exciting to us. We came from Fort Worth, where in the Summer, our electric bill could be $800USD. And ours was low compared to a lot of our neighbors. So when we got our first electric bill, a scarce $204MXN, we were astonished and did a happy dance. Other people we spoke with thought that was a little low, but we reminded them that we don't have air conditioning. We insisted that fact, combined with the different rates charged to each neighborhood made up for the difference between our bill and theirs. A theory proven false.

We knew we were moving to a totally different climate with a new set of rules. We also knew that we were going to be living open air with no air conditioning. With this knowledge, we tried to make considered decisions about what to bring with us and what to leave behind. We almost succeeded.