Good & Irritating

I guess I've been here long enough to assess what is great and what is irritating to me!  In general, I am amazed at how easily I've adapted.  I don't know that I would have done as well at any other time of my life.  I think a number of factors have contributed to this being a positive experience:  old enough to be ok with slowing down (though it is hard to say that when I'm working more hours than I used to work), with being away from family (the move to Albuquerque was more difficult in that regard), the desire to serve, the comfortableness in my own self and skin at this point in time.  I have not hesitated to go places, do things, meet new people and experiences, and I don't know that I would have been willing to do that at some points in my life.  So I believe that things happen at the right time if one is open to the experience!

So:

I really love the people--it is hard to find anyone who is not welcoming (though the post office clerk comes close)!

I enjoy the way garbage is picked up twice a week and how one puts it out:  hang the bags on the spikey fence!

I enjoy being close to the sea.

I enjoy watching the children in their uniforms going to and from school (except if I am trying to get somewhere)!

I love the tropical fruits!

I love that you can get anywhere in the "city" in a matter of a few minutes!

I love the Yoga group that I found--and that I went through all the steps to find it, including calling the instructor when I couldn't find the studio 5 minutes before the class started.

I love that a really good pizza place is two blocks away (and they say they deliver)!

I love how healthy I feel!  It is very odd...I sleep well, I have had no digestive issue whatsoever--all issues that I had in New Mexico!  I can't figure that out!  I have always insisted that I have to be in a cold room to sleep, but apparently I've been totally wrong!  Nathan always said that New Mexico water is the problem, and now I am inclined to agree with him.

I am surprised both about how extravagant I've lived/consumed in recent years, and how I am noticing how to save--or how I am consciously choosing not to save!

I chuckle, though sometimes annoyed, when goods are sporadically available--cat litter, for instance.  You buy cat litter every time you find it for fear that you'll run out and there is a scarcity!  (Thank you to a person at the Hour Bar who let me in on that secret!)

I am very irritated when I have to take three showers in a day due to the oppressive heat.

I am uncomfortable at times with the very mixed neighborhood that I live in.  I was told that a gang of teens are known to mug and rob women on the street--makes walking home a bit of a tense trip.

I am uncomfortable with the cultural acceptance of trash...litter is seldom picked up, and at the Centre, I wish there was more attention to the condition of the yard.  People just walk over things, and in the streets, people drop trash with no regard!  It reminds me of when I was very young and the big campaign to stop littering began.  That kind of awareness campaign is needed here!

Despite what I said above, I like that people walk so much.  Gas is over $5/gal ($US), so it is expensive to drive.  We drive a lot, but it is because Dave has to be within 15 minutes of the airport at all times.  Having one car is interesting, and I am surprised at how manageable!  (Of course, I am sitting here typing, because I can't go to the store to pick up a couple of things for my office since Dave has the car.  My attitude is:  mañana!)

I wish I had brought different clothes--more lightweight, long pants, yoga clothes, more underwear (at three changes of clothes/day, you do a lot of laundry!).

I wish I'd included the nail polish remover that I took out of the suitcase in the last minute, rearranging.  So far I haven't found any!

And I am often amused by observations that now escape me.  For example, Dave & I have decided that the style of "sagging" developed in a hot climate!  Pants just get looser and looser during the day, heavy when wet with perspiration!  They sag, even with a belt!  On the other hand, you don't need to iron, as wrinkles just fall away as they "dry" in humidity--sort of like hanging your clothes in a steamy bathroom!