Thoughts from afar

I have been in the "states" for 10 days and am headed back home tomorrow night. It has been a mental trip. After getting over the initial culture shock and returning to work I was fine. As twisted as it sounds, whenever I am on a Delta airplane whether it be for work or nonreving I feel safe. It is my second home and when I am on it I am either with friends, making money or that bird is taking me to my loved ones, usually. The difference now is the feeling at the end of a trip. Before October 1, at the end of a trip I was practically jumping out of my skin to go home. Now I casually walk off the plane, not caring if I get a reroute because that may get me a place to sleep that night. I will go to the lounge, change clothes, talk to people and decide what to do until my next trip. I have had lots to do between taking care of unfinished business in Salt Lake or shopping for stuff to take back. I have noticed though that I really talk to friends now instead of the quick " hi, how are you, would love to talk but am in a hurry".

I also learned a little about myself being away from everything that wasn't going "right". I am a crazy freak. I don't know where I got the idea that I was "like super chill, mellow chick". I am high strung, anxious, nervous, etc when things aren't going well. When something happens I immediately, if not sooner run through every possible senario, and they usually are the worst possible and irrational senarios. I freak out in my mind, get very upset and usually get mad at Ozzy because I think that he doesn't care or have any emotions. When in actuality he is calmingly thinking and processing or even waiting for an answer before he gets upset or worried. I am the prime example of needing to "sleep on it". He has been wonderful down there with everything. Without his calmness I couldn't do it. Thank you Ozzy!! I have noticed while being in the states that I am starting to be more calm about situations, understanding that things will work out, maybe not now and the way I want them to, but they will. But I have also not had to deal with anything, except the truck that isn't doing too well. It may not drive great but it is working out wonderfully as my 2nd home. We should probably stay in Mexico until I AM the super chill mellow chick.

I want to thank Erin and Tyson and Carrie and Drew for a warm comfortable bed to sleep in, delicious food, wonderful company and too much wine. You all were so good to me and I really appreciate everything. I will be back.

It is time to head back south. My work is done, my kids are very missed, my husband needs a break, it is getting cold, my skin is dry, I need a good sweat session as well as a good paddle session in my new Jolyn bathing suit, Tacos Ivan, and a lick from Dillon....only after I work from DTW to LAX to SLC, sit around for four hours to take the allnighter to ATL then three hours later to MEX sit around for four hours and finally hope to get on the flight to PVR. It is all part of the experience!

New Gear for Our Adventure

The winter of 2011-2012 will see no new skis, passes, boots, poles, helmets, gloves etc. This year our new gear will be stand up paddle boards. We shopped around for used boards but as absolute novices we didn't really have any idea what the hell we were looking for. We live in the mountains of Utah so what used boards we might find here may not be the best choice for the coast of Mexico. After some research and guidance we feel like we have found our perfect boards. Our boards will be from oZoboard. The SUP line from oZoboard is designed to be shorter than many SUP boards yet very stable and maneuverable with extra floatation. The outside skin of the board is soft so it is very paddler friendly and provides excellent grip when you are on your knees or when standing. Since I have been cut by surfboards in the past, stitches included, I like the idea of a "soft" board as I learn new skills and progress. I also know the kids and or other novice surfing friends will be a bit safer as they use the board. Ashley will ride the 34" wide board for more stability and paddling while I will ride the 32" so I can take it into the waves when I am ready. Give me a little while and hopefully I will have made friends with my new board and I'll report back on what I think. If you would like to learn more or are intersted in buying one of these boards, please use my affiliate link at oZoboard.

Los Dias de las Muertos-Halloween in Mexico

Los Dias de las Muertos aka The Days of the Dead. Halloween in Sayulita started tonight and there are several celebrations through the traditional day of the holiday on or about November 2nd. The holiday is intended to "honor" the Dead but it is certainly a kids time to be all things creepy.

The kids and I attended a party at a local school that had games, haunted houses, food etc as a fund raiser. The BIG difference from the states is that there are virtually no fairy princesses or super heroes to be seen. The holiday dress up theme is gore, blood, fright and creepiness. So much so that Trace didn't even want to go near some of groups of kids that were dressed to scare tonight. It actually scared our friends' two year old son, Jack, right out of the party. Trace went as Iron Man and Alex was a ballerina. Cute but they were certainly in the minority at this gathering. Good to be at such a large collection of kids in one place and we'll know to step up the costume efforts to include more gore if we are here for the holiday in the future.

Ozzy Working the Concrete

Living here is NO Corona Beer commercial. Just out of the mold, a hand fabricated mold and the resulting sink for a client here in town. A little touch up still ahead. Hope it's the beginning of more business here in Sayulita and the Puerto Vallarta area. www.mountainwaveconcrete.com

If It Ain't Broke...

A friend of mine once told me something about life in Mexico. "Things in Mexico are not ever fixed, they are just waiting to break". I'm not sure if I got the quote just right but you can get the general idea. We have had a serious string of things break and or go wrong since we arrived. I figure that this is all a test. A test to see if we have the mettle for life in Mexico where help, repair or replacement may not be around the corner or a phone call away. Most of these things are certainly manageable and or fixable but finding and communicating our needs makes this a much bigger challenge. Here is a brief list and we have only been here a few weeks.

-Broken ball valve in the house water storage tank-still broken
-Toilet valve and handle needing repair-twice
-Broken pump from the cistern to the roof storage tank-repaired
-Back door latch to the truck not working-repaired
-Driver's side electric window motor arm broken-twice
-Truck air conditioning broken-repaired and charged
-Ashley's roller luggage handle broken-repaired...sort of
-Surfboard fin broken-replaced
-Car suspension shot-repaired with fingers crossed
-Property gate latch broken-replaced
-Dillon visit to vet for skin infection-treated

So, we've been knocked down quite a bit so far but we keep getting up and moving on.

2nd day of school in Mexico

I get to the school today to pick up the kids and hear a bunch of little children singing as loud as they can. It was so cute! Pure joy!! Then I am waiting for the forbidden door to be unlocked and see two chickens or roosters or something running around the courtyard. They let the chickens in but not the parents? Are the chickens the newest students? Then the door opens and Maestra (teacher) is going on and on about something. Gretchen and I are looking at each other saying, what the hell? Omar, her language tutor is there, thank goodness, so we ask what she is saying. He explains that two nurses came to the school to give the kids something to drink that would "kill the animals in their bodies". They clean the dishes with bleach but sometimes that isn't enough. We look at each other again and say, "what the hell?" roll our eyes and start laughing. All part of the experience.

First day of school "in Mexico"

After hemming and hawing, thinking and thanking we finally decided on a school for Alex and Trace. And with many thanks to our new friends Gretchen, Pete, Maggie and Jack from Steamboat and Nancy, who works at the local private school here. They were all very helpful in our translating, comforting and guiding us in this decision.

We have been thinking about what to do about school since we have thought about moving here. CVIS is the local private school which is amazing but out of our price range. There is a Montessori school in San Poncho, the next town over which is also amazing, expensive and they speak only Spanish. Also, the drive there twice a day is a bit much on the nerves. There is also the local Primary school, aka public elementary and of course they speak only Spanish. I visited CVIS and the local Primary school in March, and we drove to the Montessori the other day but it was closed due to Jova. I came down here thinking that I would most likely put Alex in the Primary and she would just have to wing it. Then thought that it would be quite difficult. She would one, become frustrated because she wouldn't be able to complete her homework and I didn't want her to hold the other kids back due to the language barrier and her needing extra help.

Enter Gretchen and Pete. Thanks to Dillon running up to Gretchen to make a new friend on the beach, we met. Nancy was also trying to get us to meet as well. We started talking and Gretchen told me about the local kindergarten that I had no idea about that her daughter Maggie, also six, Alex's age, would be attending. After visiting, meeting and talking with the teacher, with help from Nancy, we decided that this would be a great place for Alex and Trace. They would meet local kids and families, interact, learn the language, all in a safe and non pressured environment. No one at the school speaks english, not even the teachers. Let the emersion begin!

First though we have to buy uniforms. Luckily Gretchen had been down this road and told us exactly where to go to purchase them. The store is a very nice lady's space right beside her house behind a very large tree with no sign. We spanglished our way through this purchase and the kids had a few pieces to begin school. EVERY school, as far as I have seen, has uniforms. It is actually very nice. Alex and Trace were so excited about their uniforms and going back to school that they literally asked every hour how much longer until we get to go to school and had to try on and wear their uniforms all day Sunday.

A success story...we get there at 9 am but wait a while for the teacher.(We believe she commutes in from Puerto Vallarta on the bus each day, and only think this because we saw her at The Home Depot in PV on Saturday.) Alex and Trace couldn't enter the gate because we weren't sure if they would let them come today due to paperwork and I use that term very very lightly. The teacher shows up, lets them in, meanwhile I am trying to talk to a local mom about buying more uniform pieces, I look up, the doors are closed, locked and my kids are in school, no bye no nothing.

At the local schools here the parents either walk or drive their children to school. Each school is in total lock down during the day while the kids are there. When the parents arrive, the kids go in the gates and the parents hang out, outside of the gates, and socialize until that gate is locked. When you go back to pick up your children, at least at the kindergarten, the children are not allowded out of that gate until the teacher sees that childs parent to pick up their child. This system that is in place here might add years to my life. There were two times in Alex's very short one month of school that I didn't know where she was and each had something to do with the school bus. In the first instance with help from the bus driver we found out where she was quickly. The second instance, her very last day of school, I didn't know where she was for at least 20 minutes which felt like 20 hours. Any parent understands that fear and it SUCKS!! So, needless to say, I am actually happy that my kids are locked up, happy, safe, and well looked after.

They came out all smiles, had a wonderful day and cannot wait to go back tomorrow.
YEAH!!! Ashley

How "not" to smuggle drugs into Mexico

So, before he left Ozzy told me to look for something from UPS that I needed to bring down with me. He said it is just coloring and said it is small, "just this big", showing me a grapefruit size with his hand. Sure I said, not a problem. The package comes. I open a box and there sits eight pounds of white powder and it is the size of a basketball. F&@?er is my first thought. My second thought is, "I wonder how bad the jails in Mexico are what are they going to do with my children?" Ozzy was waiting for me but he would have no idea that I was arrested and I had no way of getting in touch with him. Poor planning on our part.

We, the kids and I, give it a go. They had no idea what was going on and what could possibly happen to me and them. I pack what appears to be a huge amount of cocaine at the very top of the smallest bag that has all of the kids learning materials and some toys. Funny thing is that the "bag" doesn't raise any eyebrows in the US. They were probably thinking, finally someone is taking drugs out instead of bringing them in.

We get to agriculture checkpoint in Mexico and I am up, with two kids, a total of ten bags, five of which are huge, and my eight pounds of white powder. I am getting irked. The kids are trying to help which is very kind but you know how that goes, just underfoot, Alex broke the handle on my roller board bag I live out of and the guy behind the screen says "senora" you need to step to the side as a officer grabs my small "bag" and helps me with all of my other shit to get out of the way . The guy screening must have had a red alert button beside him because before I knew it there were five officers there which quickly grew to about 15. They were very nice, playing with the kids, smiling, laughing at me behind the smiles. I tried to explain to them what my white powder was but they just had to make sure. The huge bag of white powder is laying on the table and a very official "Officer" takes a sample, puts it in a very small plastic bag, holds it up and they ALL gather around to look. I can just read their faces, they are wanting some excitement and thinking "this bitch is crazy and uses her kids as a cover up!" At this point I become nervous because I don't know if they are doing a color test or what. To me, white is white. Luckily I was one of the last to go through the agriculture check point, that way I didn't have a whole plane load of people watching this lady with two innocent children trying to smuggle drugs, the 15 agriculture employees were plenty.

The white powder passed the test. "I" knew it wasn't drugs, but the thought that Mr. White Bread really was not who I thought he was did cross my mind. The kids and I were free to go. WHEW!! The funny thing is that they were so concerned about the eight pounds of white powder that they didn't even see the brown powder that I brought. Yes packed beside the white. Ozzy failed to mention that one before he left. F#$%er!!

Obviously, Ashley

Jova Aftermath?

For us, there is "NO Aftermath"! One day after we were supposed to see Hurricane Jova here in Sayulita, the skies are blue and the breeze is cool. Manzanillo, which is south of us and Puerto Vallarta, wasn't so lucky. They took the brunt of the wind and rain when Jova made it ashore with damage and sadly some human casualties. For now, it's time to put the deck furniture back out and get to life as we knew it before preparations began for the storm that never was. Come to think of it, we have been in Sayulita for a Tsunami warning and a hurricane warning. So far, nothing from either one...thankfully.

Pre-Jova Sunset Over Sayulita Bay

The colors coming from tonight's sunset ahead of Hurriane Jova were some of the most vibrant we have ever seen. Every 5 minutes or so the colors changed like some trippy slideshow. We know things will be much different tomorrow when the hurricane comes north.

Hurricane Jova!!! Welcome To The Coast of Mexico!

We'll fill in what has been happening the last 10 days or so soon but right now all the attention is being paid to the hurricane, yes hurricane, just off the coast south of Puerto Vallarta. Hurricane Jova is it's name. Lots of folks, including myself, have been keeping an eye on this thing for a few days now. For a while we thought we'd be hit straight on but the storm has redirected south and the "eye" will be ashore south of Puerto Vallarta. I'm guessing the eye will be 40-60 kilometers south of us. Thankfully. Not only am I thankful for us and our new home but a direct hit would do some serious damage to our little village that has just really recovered from some damage from Mother Nature. Last year some serious rains caused really bad flooding and knocked out bridges here in town and a main transportation route from Vallarta. Many homes were flooded as well. We may still see the bad rain but at least if we get hit it will be a glancing blow and not FULL on. For now we sit and look out our window and wait. We have supplies, including beer and wine, so we might as well have Happy Hour until Jova comes a knockin'. Pacifico anyone?