It is full moon time in Bahia and I couldn’t resist taking pictures.
Well it looks like the full moon brings out all kinds of critters. Dave was in the garage and walked out to see a large spider on the driveway. He called me, as he knows how interested I am in looking at them and finding out what they are, so I came and took a look and took pictures. Then I searched the web to see what it was. Dave thought it was a Tarantula but it wasn’t really hairy like one. Well it turned out it was a Tarantula but a baby. Dave took him out a ways from the house so he could venture on. Here are a couple pictures.
Remember me talking about my friend Creela and her husband Phil who had a stroke last month? Well he has improved drastically and has been moved out of the place he was in and put in one of the best places for rehab. The Sharp facility in San Deigo. The day he arrived they assessed him A.S.A.P. to see what he could do on his own and what he needed help with. They had him walking up small portions of steps and now he can get out of bed, get into his wheel chair and walk with assistance. He has trouble still with bathroom business but they are allowing him to stay until the 13th so they can have him be able to take care of himself for the most part. I am sure they will have someone come to the house to help so Creela won’t have to worry about that but she is thrilled Phil is progressing like he is. He is talking better but will still need some speech therapy but we are thrilled he is doing so well. They are planning on coming to Bahia next year in the spring.
We are leaving for La Paz on Thursday the 5th. We need to get the boat back in the water. If all goes well we should be back to the house on Wednesday the 11th. I have a Craft and Art show coming up on the 22nd so I need to be back to make the announcements over the VHF radio to entice people to come and look and hopefully buy Christmas gifts.
We left this morning early for Loreto but made a stop in Guerrero Negro to get some money. We arrived in Loreto around 3:00pm and got checked in. I was so tired I had a hard time staying awake. I think my allergies are acting up again and that makes me sleepy. After getting settled in our room and checking emails, it was time for dinner so we walked up the street to our favorite place and had a Super Burro. It was delicious. Then we headed back to the hotel; stopping in a small store to check prices of rum and other things. We didn’t buy anything as we were just comparing prices. We left there and went back to our room to watch TV then went to bed. The next morning we had breakfast then headed for La Paz. The weather is in the 80’s so it isn’t too hot. We checked in at our favorite B&B in La Paz, named Casa Buena, to stay there until the boat gets in the water. Once we were assigned our room and settled in, we took off for Fonatur Marina where our boat is on the hard. When we got there we parked and walked to the boat and found the bottom had been pressure washed but not sanded and painted. Hmmmm!!!! The bottom was supposed to be already painted so we could splash the boat soon after we got to La Paz. Well guess again. So now we have to talk to the people in the office and in the yard to find out just what happened. We found out that Kenny, the guy who took the little boat we had that came with the house, had been fired from the boat yard at Fonatur. He paid us 3,000 pesos and took the boat back with him to La Paz and then he was going to sand and paint the bottom of the boat and wash it to work off the rest of what he owed us. Well he pressure washed the bottom; however, he and his boss had an argument and Kenny got fired. So now we have a problem. Then there was another snafu and that was when Kenny was still working at Fonatur, he had bought the bottom paint to paint the bottom of our boat and the broker from La Paz yachts showed our boat to a couple and they seemed to really like it so the broker thought it was going to sell. So the broker spoke with Kenny and made it sound like the boat was sold so Kenny stopped work and sold the paint. Then the boat didn’t sell as the people changed their minds and then Kenny was fired and our boat sat through the summer with no bottom paint. So we arrive and find no paint on the bottom and the boat is filthy dirty. We were very unhappy. So now we have to talk to the marina personnel to see what we can do about the situation and have to find Kenny to find out what he is going to do to rectify the situation for payment for the little boat we were selling him. We found Kenny and Dave and he talked and Kenny said he would try to get the paint and would try to get Fonatur to allow him to do the work on the boat. Well neither happened. Comex, the paint store here in La Paz, doesn’t carry bottom paint anymore and the only color they had left was red. Ugh!!!! Then the owner of the Comex store, whom is friends with Kenny, said he couldn’t get the paint without Kenny paying up front, which he couldn’t do. So that plan went out the window. So there was no negotiating with the Marina for him to work. So now what????? We went back to the marina and talked with Carlos, the head guy that owns the work spot in the yard who fired Kenny. He and one of his workers, Hugo(oogo), hunted for paint and got us the best price they could. So what is happening now is the boat has been moved to the work area, they will sand the bottom and apply the epoxy and when that dries put a coat of paint and let it dry for 8 hours. They were able to find blue bottom paint which I am happy about because the red would not have looked good. Anyway---so we had to pay for the paint and the work out of our pocket and now have to figure out a way for Kenny to save face but pay us for the work. Kenny is now having some healthy issues due to his liver which is causing swelling in his joints and he can barely walk and certainly can’t do boat work right now. So Dave spoke to Kenny just this morning, the 12th to try and have him figure out a way to pay us back for our costs. We said we will be back down here on the boat in February and we can see how he is doing and if he has a job to where he can pay us. If worse comes to worse, he will have to sell the boat in order for him to pay us for our boat expenses. So we will see what happens in February. We still hold the title on the little boat so it isn’t Kenny’s yet and won’t be if he can’t pay us. So things haven’t work out so smoothly this trip. We are working with the Marina to get a boat out of the slip we were promised which was the one we were in before we got hauled out in May. The guy who has his sailboat in that slip knew we were coming back and said he would move. But then he up and left to go to the states. Now the marina has a problem with moving the boat as he agreed to be out of that slip by now. We have tried to get another slip but they are telling us the slips are too big, 60 feet, for our boat and Dave brought to their attention that there are boats shorter than 60 feet in those slips. Mexico has some strange ideas on things. So we talked with one of the Mexican workers and explained our dilemma and he said he would talk to the head lady in the office and see what could be done. Soooooo!!! We wait. The boat is to be finished this afternoon and we should be back in the water tomorrow morning, the 13th. Then we can get the headsail up and wash the boat so it will be presentable to show. So that is my story and I am sticking with it!!!! So now instead of being back in Bahia on Wednesday it will be Monday the 16th. It has been very frustrating and depressing as we were not anticipating spending a bunch of money. Well hopefully in the end we will be reimbursed and things will be good. So we still remain strapped for money, but we have made it work before we will again. God is with us and I know things will work out. I will never give up thinking positive thoughts. There is always a light at the end of the tunnel. We will see that light soon!!!!
We splashed the boat this morning and all went well. She started right up without a hitch and ran smoothly to our new slip.
We ended up staying in the B&B for 7 days which also cost us a bunch, but that is the way the cookie crumbles sometimes. We were able to move our boat to the other end of the marina where we had been originally and I think I like that spot better. It is behind the marina building, which is tall and it blocks a lot of the north wind. So we won’t get too much bouncing around there as it is away from the entrance to the marina. So we are happy about that. The man who had his boat in the slip, we were promised, couldn’t be contacted and in the end it worked out better for us. After we were in our new slip, the next day that man and his wife came in. He didn’t even have a marina key to get into the gate so he surely didn’t make any arrangements with the marina before leaving. Sometimes I get so upset with gringos as sometimes they can be selfish and rude when they cruise to Mexico. They think everything should be done their way and don’t remember, or want to, they are in another country and things are handled differently and on a different time line. This isn’t the first time I have been upset with cruising gringos, but I have to say there are just a few of those kind of cruisers where most cruisers are respectful of the people here in Mexico and remember gringo rules don’t apply. I wanted so much to say something to that man, but I didn’t as it wouldn’t have done any good. It was obvious he didn’t care about anyone else.
We spent the rest of the time on the boat cleaning her and getting the head sail up. It had been windy so we didn’t think we would be able to get it up but one morning it was very calm so we did it and all is well again. The boat is back to her beautiful self. Just before we started to wash the deck and cockpit, we were up having breakfast at the marina café when our yacht broker showed up with a couple people from the B&B. We had been talking to them about the boat so they came down to look. It is just the man who is interested with living aboard a boat here but he can’t make up his mind whether he wants a sailboat or power boat. But at least he looked. When we finished breakfast we went right to work. What a job cleaning her up. After sitting in the yard all summer and 3 months in the fall, she was really dirty. We cleaned her up as best we could and at least made her look show able again. We made a contract with Hugo to wash our boat 2 times a month and we would pay him in February. We also contacted a diver clean the bottom once a month. So more money is being handed out to the broker, to have on hand, so when the diver does the cleaning for Dec, January, he comes to the broker’s office to get paid.
Now we can go home. We decided to leave on Monday as we have to pay our bill at the marina and the office isn’t open on Sunday. We don’t have to leave real early as it is only 4 hours to Loreto from La Paz.
The 13th was Creela’s birthday and one of our grandsons, David. David is 5 now. How he is growing. Creela got a great birthday gift and that was to have Phil come home from the care center. She was ecstatic!!! He still has a long road of therapy ahead but they both will be a lot happier and Phil will be more willing to get better since being home. So we are thrilled for them.
We got home on the 16th and the next day our grandson E.J. left for Air Force boot camp. We are so proud of him.
Saturday, the 21st was set up day for the Arts and Craft Show opening tomorrow and running through the 30th. I make the announcements on the VHF radio to hopefully gain attention to the show and have people come out and buy Christmas, or any occasion gifts. Opening day was good, however we didn’t have as many show up this year as there was last year. It happens like that though. The rest of the week was slow and people trickled in now and then. We had closed the show for Thanksgiving so I didn’t work on Wednesday, the day before Thanksgiving, so I could make my apple and pumpkin pies and get the bird prepared and the giblets cooked. Dave and I had a quiet Thanksgiving and it was nice. The turkey was a gift from a friend who had come down from San Diego. That was so sweet of him. His mother was a good friend of ours before she died of cancer.
All of the artists didn’t do too badly. I made about $50.00 after paying an entry fee and giving 10% of my earnings to the Museo, as it was their facility we used. It wasn’t bad. $10.00 went toward the luncheon at the end. Sunday, the 30th came and the show was only open for ½ day and we only had one person come in so we decided to start tearing down. We got done early as lunch wasn’t scheduled until 1:00 o’clock. So we hung around for a while and talked, had a meeting then I left to get a few things at the grocery store and met everyone at the restaurant for a margarita. Then after visiting, we had lunch. After lunch we left and went our separate ways. The Mexican ladies (3) had lunch with us too. They usually have a couple tables with handmade jewelry and other things for sale. It is nice to have them there. Here is a picture of all of us artists outside the Museo with our gift to Carolina, the director of the Museo. A new garbage can!!!!
Now I can get back to my regular routine!!!! Ha!!!! I don’t even know what that is!!!! Each day I get up I decide what needs to be done. I always have cleaning to do but I only do that once a week. I’ve been doing a lot of reading which I really like, and also taking walks on the beach and sometimes finding treasures I can use for crafts. There isn’t going to be a Spring show, which I am glad about because it will give me more time to create new things for the November show next year. I have to change it up a bit.
The grandson that is in the Air Force boot camp posted a picture on Facebook and that made my day.
He looks so grown up!!!! It was funny because in the picture he is smiling and Dave said he wasn’t supposed to be. Ha! It is boot camp after all!!!! Well a lot has changed in the world of the military and it was nice to see his smile. His graduation is the 8th of January and we don’t know if we will be able to go. With what happened with the boat and having to pay for the paint and all, it depleted our bank account drastically, so even though we really want to be there at the graduation, I don’t know if we can afford to do it. That makes me really sad!!!! But things like that happen. I am praying there will be a way, so I don’t have to disappoint him, but that is life. We still have a while before we have to make a final decision and then I will write him and let him know. Bummer.
We got some very sad news from our friend Creela. Her youngest daughter, who had just turned 50 and had been battling with alcohol for years, died a few days before Thanksgiving. She was living with her sister in Oregon, and Creela thought she was doing alright, but knew the drinking was still going on when she got a call from the hospital saying Tina had died. They tried saving her but there was too much damage to the pancreas. Wow!!!! Creela has had a really rough time of it lately and now this. So arrangements had to be made to bring the body back to San Diego for services and burial. It makes me realize that the problems I am having with the boat and money is hardly anything compared to a mother losing her daughter so young. Life is so short and a lot of times we don’t embrace it. I hope and pray that all who read this will thank the Lord for everyday they have on this earth and rejoice in our life, families and friends as it could come to an end abruptly. I am very, very thankful for my husband, family and friends who have enriched my life and also for being healthy. When I am sad, discouraged and depressed, I have to stop and think that it isn’t all about me!!!! There are plenty of people hurting one way or another and a lot of their problems are far worse than mine. It brings things into perspective! Enjoy every day as if it were your last and rid yourself of anger, fear, resentfulness, jealousy, envy, and hate. Smile a lot as a smile can change not only your attitude, but someone else. Try it-----it works!!!!
