The heck with fearlessness! Forget optimism. Without a sense of humor you will never make it as a foreigner living in Mexico.
With permission from my friend Carla who does Facebook stand-up.
“My bottle of over-the-counter drugs contained pills in two different colors.
*Scenario one – Darn, we’re out of transparent gel caps. I’ll just use those brown ones until the new boxes come in.
*Scenario two – Hey, this bottle is only three/quarters full. That won’t do. Let’s see, there are some extras over here. Antibiotics? Ok can’t hurt, I’ll use them.
Two months later, I think it was scenario one”
Hahaha. Seriously this could happen to you!
As I see it, my choices are:
Leave
Live here and be miserable and complain incessantly, or
Get a sense of humor.
I choose the latter although many folks choose door number two and of course some people leave.
This week I went to retrieve the final approval to build LIsa’s mother’s house. A mistake on the part of our former builder, plus a regime change in the government agency equalled additional time and more $$$. We had received notice that the paperwork was ready so off I went to SEMARNAT, the agency that regulates waterfront construction.
Sitting behind her computer, the officer began typing. She stared at the screen intently, typed a little more and stared some more. I waited, and waited, took some deep breaths, and stayed calm. Gringos are notorious for being impatient. Finally I asked in my friendliest voice if there was a problem? She shrugged her shoulders and declared the network “slow”. It does no good to be frustrated with the lack of communication. “In a minute” could mean a half hour (if you’re lucky).
Mañana doesn’t mean tomorrow. It means just not today.
As the move-in date comes and goes for our new home, we keep busy and know the universe has its own timeline. Our house is full of workers laying tile, painting the floor, building a stone entry, sanding concrete counters, installing appliances, lights, ceiling fans and more. Our bulldog project manager David meets tomorrow with the key players needed to get electricity installed!! The meeting took four months to arrange. Send prayers.
Tile placement for the stairway to heaven.
This is a pivotal week. The push is on to finish the interior so that we can begin moving. In the meantime, no taking ourselves too seriously. If it’s not fun, it’s not worth doing. DOS TORTAS
the adventures of dos tortas 
Just try to remember that there are also delays and cost overruns in the States, too. But Mexico has the magic that is missing here.
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You’re telling me! My brother just renovated a kitchen in Florida! Everywhere there are permits and red tape! We’re having the time of our lives!
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Thanks for the reminder. I think the patience required to live here happily indicates just how “immediate gratification” is the driving force in U.S. culture, and we need to remind ourselves of how this plays out in negative ways, such as road rage, etc. I worked forty years in the interior design business where clients have to wait for things to be shipped from far away places and made by hand to custom specs–not an easy sell in today’s instant gratification culture. All good things come to those who wait…
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Mmmm instant gratification hahaha. In the U.S. You can order ANYTHING on Amazon and they deliver it the next day. No wonder the favorite pastime in the U.S. Is shopping! It’s contagious too. I really have to work at not getting sucked in when I’m there.
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You’re amazing…..keep smiling and I’ll keep praying for you two 🙂
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You both are such an example to me of ‘living and adventure’ no matter what. I hope your meeting goes well and that progress continues. Love to you both xo
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We were just talking about you. When will you be back? Meeting went well. Things seem to be finally moving.
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