BRR. It’s been very cold and damp here the last few days. I’m trying not to heat too much so I can acclimatise, but it’s hard. I’m dreaming of palm trees and beer on the beach!
My neighbour Caroline asked me to come over yesterday afternoon to see her latest purchase for the kitchen and we had a nice chat by their wood stove (lovely) while sipping black current tea (yum!). She then presented me with a gift that showed an extraordinary amount of sympathy to how I feel about the current weather:
Yes, that’s a union suit, complete with rear access flap. 😀 Every time I look at it, I burst out laughing. I do have to say it makes for wonderful pajamas! I usually wear pants and a top to bed, but then the top rides up and my lower back gets cold. With a union suit, you remain covered no matter how much you wiggle in bed. I was pretty comfy until about 6:00 this morning, when I had to turn on the mattress warmer.
We should have a warmish afternoon tomorrow, so that will be my chance to give the truck bed a good wash and then I can start working on filling it. I’ve started doing a bit of packing, but with nights heading below freezing, everything is staying piled into the RV. It’s getting pretty cramped in here!
The payment I wasn’t expecting to be here before leaving landed on Friday (!), so now I can leave with complete peace of mind and not be on such a strict budget for hotels. I am going to have to average 775KM per day between here and Nogales to get there by the Monday afternoon, so I’ll be glad to not have to hunt too hard for the cheapest motels along my route.
It’s going to be a very fast trip to the Mexican border! I am going to be somewhere in Wyoming the Friday night (probably Gillette, unless the border crossing goes exceptionally well and I decide to push on to Cheyenne). Then, I’ll probably be in Walsenburg, Colorado, Saturday night. After, things get fuzzy because I took a heck of a lot of my time between Nogales and Walsenburg in the spring! I’ll probably be somewhere around Deming, New Mexico, on Sunday night. Monday, I’ll hit the Walmart in Benson for as much of my shopping as I need, then get to Nogales by mid-afternoon.
Work in Arizona is going to be brutal as I will be starting work at 5:00 a.m.! I am considering the possibility of staying in New Mexico to work, getting the bulk of my errands done there, and then doing a run to Nogales on the Thursday afternoon after work. I’d finish at 2:00 and could be in Nogales by 6PMish. I’ll see how I feel as I get closer. The weather will play a role in my decision as will whether or not I can buy some pesos wherever I land in New Mexico.
It’s really good to have a firm departure date as it is making it so much easier to work through my massive to-do and packing list. The bulk of it will likely be done when I get off work the day before I leave, but there are a few things I can do ahead of time. I’m playing a lot of the ‘what are the odds I’ll need this before I leave?’ game and putting things into totes only to pull them out again! But I think it’s safe now to put away all the summery clothes. 🙁
I just realized you have to travel around your work schedule!
Yup. 😀 I’m trying to avoid taking time off so that I can do so to go to Merida in the new year.
If I pull off this insane schedule, I’ll be home in MX on the Sunday afternoon, have the Monday to collapse, and be raring to go for work on the Tuesday… provided my internet is working.
Does your landlady understand the importance of having Internet working when you arrive? Not that it means much in ‘mañana’ Mexico.
Yes, absolutely. That was made very clear last year. The internet went down a few times and each time she was right on top of it. She said that she’d call the Friday before I arrive and if the internet isn’t on Sunday, she’ll try again on Monday.
All the wiring is in now, so it’s just the matter of flicking a switch at TelMex’s end. Theefore, I don’t anticipate any delays nor will I stand for any now that TelMex has told me that they have a three business day, at the absolute most, response time.
Worst case, the colleague whose shift overlaps with mine will cover me. I’ll still do my early morning hour on TelCel and a couple of later hours from a café so I don’t lose all my income. But that’s really a worst case scenario.
Love your new bedtime ensemble but red really isn’t your colour 🙂
I think that arriving on the Isla on Sunday is perfect. I’m pretty sure that she will have your internet up and running. Worse case you can go to Carmelita’s Monday, buy a beer and get the current wifi code. That way you can go over there Tuesday AM and work. You can always buy a coffee once they open for breakfast.
Nogales has money exchange places, we one of them the first year. Easy to find on the main street.
http://foreign-currency-exchange.localbizguide.info/AZ-arizona/Nogales/page-
1/2.htm
Got another confirmation that they are paving another section of the road.
Red is definitely not my colour! 😀
I’m not worried about internet when I arrive. I’ll start the day on TelCel, do a few hours from a restaurant, and let a colleague cover any hours I miss. But I really do think I’ll have internet when I get there.
I used a money exchange place last year that was between the Safeway and the vehicle insurance place; very convenient!
And that’s great news about The Road!!!
I’m confidant that she will have your internet up and running. You are big business for her.
That’s what I think, too. She knows, based on last winter, that I’ll show up, that I’ll stay the six months I say I’ll stay, that I’ll pay the rent and the utilities promptly, and that I’ll leave the house in pristine condition when I leave. I’ve been a landlady and I know that I’m a dream tenant. 😀